#Akane and most of the cast deserved SO MUCH BETTER

[lesbiandarklaw]

Finished watching the gameplay of zero escape 999 yesterday and… Holy f u ck

[neoyi]

Neo Yi's Super Fun Webcomic Reading List Time!

I wanna do it. I wanna be the guy! I wanna recommend and impart my personal views on the webcomics I've read over the better part of the year. I feel like I've read more online comics since 2023 then I had in over a decade. It is an excellent time to get into comics.

Not every webcomic on the list worked for me, but I'm not going to comment negativity on any of them because all of them deserve to be read and appreciated. No, what I am going to do, regardless of how I feel about ANY of these comics, is to state some things I liked about it. Hopefully something will catch your eyes.

Links to each webcomic will be provided, though Tumblr hates annnnnything with actual links, so I'm just going to copy and paste them in an attempt to reach a broader audience and get these out into the greater wild. It ain't much, but I hope it helps the creators making 'em.

All images I used for each comic are usually the first cover/first page. If the creators prefer I not do that or have another image they'd like me to use instead, please let me know.

I'm also hoping I can regularly update this as I continuously read more and more as I had to split the current list I had into two parts. So consider this Part 1.

No rank because this ain't a ranking list; we going alphabetical order.

1. A Dance With Death (http://overmorrowtales.com/death/cover.php)

Summary: It's the end of the world and Death is waiting for someone to dance with. Who could it be?

Hi, I went into this comic because the main cover had the Grim Reaper in a suit. I know what I'm about, son.

I left this short (really, it's only 34 pages, so you can finish it in about thirty minutes) with a mix of existential crisis and an odd sense of peace. I love seeing anthropomorphic personification of human ideas and the world around us. Just seeing the creator indulge in what they interpret the likes of the Four Horsemen, or Pain, or Fear, or etc etc was a visual treat to see.

Who Death dances with might feel obvious once you put the pieces together, but its the explanation behind why he chose them, especially in the face of an ongoing apocalypse, that both felt utterly clever in its interpretation and worthy of the wait.

2. All Known Alternatives (https://akacomic.com/)

SUMMARY: Akane must find the 42 keys spread across parallel worlds in order to get back home. Eri and Ben is spending summer vacation before university, but get caught in the conflict when one of the keys end up in their world.

All Known Alternatives is described as both fantasy and slice-of-life and it definitely feels like it. I'm a huge fan of collect-a-thon stories, a quest forever molded and shaped by the approx. one gazillion platformers that I've been playing since 1989.

The comic is still new, so for the most part, I've mostly been seeing the slice-of-life aspect of Eri (and a reluctant Ben) settling Akane in. While no doubt finding ALL 42 keys would been an ordeal task for any comic artist (indie or otherwise) to write and draw about (indeed, Akane has half the amount prior to the comic's start), I am curious to keep going to see if the main cast will get the reminding 20+ left, and presumably, enter other worlds (well, other then the ones we've seen so far.)

In-between chapters are, what I think are flashbacks, centered on a squad of military folks. Presumably this will be a "How-Did-They-Get-Here" kinda tale, possibly centered on Akane's origin, but it's too early to tell.

It's three chapters in, each roughly about 40+ pages plus intermission chapters (roughly anywhere from 6 - 10 pages), so it's got a decent-sized backlog to get into. I'll be keeping an eye on this one.

3. Augustine (https://comics.windywallflower.com/augustine)

SUMMARY: August and friends are constantly surviving in the region known as the Crater as they collect bounties, often with a huge heap of trouble they tend to leave in their wake. When they stumble upon an ancient artifact, they''ll be force to contest with other bounty hunters and Gods!

As of this post, I've only wrapped up Chapter 1. I think Chapter 2 had just started, so I haven't ventured further, so there's not a whole lot I can say about Augustine yet. However, the first issue is a good introduction to both the characters (lovable misfits who all Try Their Best) and the absolute chaotic tone of the whole comic.

Augustine wants you to be pumped. It's incredibly energetic and fun, helped by the largely orange background. And I'm not talking orange orange, I am talking bright, vibrant sugar-infested Tang orange. It really lends well to the vitality of this comic and it's really gorgeous when the creator mixes it with the other color they use a lot: deep blue.

I'm also just a casual fan of Greek mythology, so I'm excited for the possibility of backstories and/or meeting with Godly pantheons. This bitch loves Godly pantheons.

4. BACK (http://www.backcomic.com/)

(Note: I used the front cover of the first BACK physical comic because the first page is kinda just background.)

SUMMARY: Abigail wakes up from a coffin and is immediately told she is the key to ending the world. With no memory of who she is, Abigail just accepts and goes about her mission. Trailing along is a druid named Daniel, someone with enough morals hoping that maybe, Abigail, shouldn't really do the whole Ending the World thing.

BACK was still updating when I first read it (up to the Dead Man Arc, I believe) and at the time, I remember being restless for reasons I now can't comprehend. I read through the whole thing again and asked myself, "Why did I feel like it dragged? This is one of the breeziest comics I've ever read!"

Ya know what I also like besides collect-a-thons? Its cousin, the "Fight Every Major Boss to Get To The Final Boss and Save the World: plot. BACK comic is actually pretty straightforward, but it's brandished with KC Green's (well, and perhaps Anthony Clark's: as of this post, I have not read Nedroid, but I've been recommended to it by a mutual) trademark sense of humor, so there's plenty of lingering weirdness and cartoonish, over-the-top characters. It's the kind of comic where the silliness never leaves, often used as much for laughs as it does for brevity whenever it gets serious. I kinda thing it'd work as a Cartoon Network program, honestly. It kind of dips a fine line between being all-age or something Adult Swim would play.

By the time I finished, I was left immensely satisfied. It's about 800 pages, but reading BACK felt effortless. Maybe I would have felt differently if I had been keeping up with it per update when it was still going, but diving into it as a whole? It works. Each chapter, character introduction, and action scenes never overstay their welcome.

I'm pretty invested in the idea of getting physical copies of these books soon, BACK is just that dang good.

5. Come Hell or High Water (https://www.chohwcomic.com/)

SUMMARY: Prince Gladimir did not want to fall in love with a pirate, but he's thrown into his world of sea-farers and ne'ers do-wellers if it means saving his kingdom.

Can I just say I love the title of this comic? Come Hell or High Water is probably one of the badassest of all catchphrases and the creator just chose to use it as their title and it rules.

Everything about this premise rocks my world: elegant princely figure falling for his dashing, roguish pirate guy, fictional kingdoms and the political intrigues and conflict that arises within, high-faring sea ventures, and etc etc. This comic, by all means, is my jam.

Soooooooo, I actually kind of fell out of this comic early into its run. Something about it wasn't clicking for me, personally, but with thirteen chapters under its belt and me, having only gotten up to, roughly, the third chapter, I want to give this one another go later down the line. There is no way I can't leave this comic left unread when EVERYTHING about it fits my particular mold so well. I'm not sure what didn't stick with me, but it certainly is not the sexual tension between the main characters which, god, Chapter One starts off with Gladinmir breaking up with his hot pirate boyfriend and if that isn't a good conflict for the two of them to work out their issues, then I don't know what is.

6. Dead City (https://topazcomics.com/deadcity/welcome/)

(NOTE: The cover is from the physical copy of Dead City. I screencapped this from their official store, hence why the link is watermarked on it. But hey, now you can go and buy it. It's good! Read it!)

SUMMARY: Two guys survive a zombie apocalypse, learn a little about each other, and maybe, just maybe, fall in love. ;O

If it wasn't for a couple of blogs I follow vouching for this comic, I might not have read Dead City. Me and zombie stuff are not syncopatico. Dead City is not about that. The zombie stuff is just background for what it's really about: a slice-of-life and cozy (yes, really!) story of two guys just trying to make through a dying world one day at a time. Throughout the comic, they learn to lean on each other, learn who they are, and get into internal conflicts fighting off their demons.

It's short (roughly 190+ pages), it's sweet, and it genuinely left me feeling like things will be alright in spite of a burning world.

7. Doris Doodle (https://www.dorisdoodle.com/)

SUMMARY: Doris Doodle is an old-timey cartoon struggling to find acting jobs in a media field where she's considered a thing of the past. However, when she is caught on camera for an act of goodwill that launches her into viral popularity, a new door opens up for her, but not without drawbacks.

I think Doris Doodle ended up being one of my new favorites. I'm fond of the Roger Rabbit-ish world of toons living in a human environment, breathed to life by animators, and going about their daily lives in-between gigs as actors. Indeed, you see a lot of crossovers from numerous famous cartoon stars (Betty Boop being a prominent one), which leaves me curious on how much workload the creator has to do with their current goal to make a non-copyright-infringement, physical version of this. It'll be interesting to see.

In any case, Doris Doodle left me emotionally yearning for a happy ending for the main character. We see how the media world chews and spit her out even decades later, and how, once a wide-eyed actress who wanted to be seen, can turn so cynical and bitter at what she was denied, through acts often not of her own faults.

The comic explores the usual horridness of Hollywood shallowness and sexist bullshit, but it also explains what its like to be an old toon out-of-touch of an ever increasing modern world. I love the latter a bit more since it's uniquely set for fictional pen-and-paper denizens; seeing how Toons exist, how restricted their livelihood is no matter what decade you were born, and the methods they go through to survive is fascinatingly good worldbuilding.

8. Earth In a Pocket (http://earthinapocket.spiderforest.com/)

SUMMARY: Anthropologist Halisi Mwangi wants to bring Earth's past to numerous human space colonies. Grabbing precious artifacts that has dotted human history, she blasts off to achieve her goals. Unfortunately, an accident causes her to be stranded on an unknown planet, with only its residences left to keep her company.

I think about the future of our planet a lot, and I'm often terrified of what will happen. I've found myself increasingly annoyed at End of the World stories heavily laden with cynical, edgy bents. I'm not saying these can't have commentary, but geez louise, one can only deal with another "Humans Suck and Can't Be Trusted In the Face of Despair" narrative without withering into a fetal position. Like, man, I get it, but also, come on.

Futurama has always been kind of a comfort show for me. There's something reassuring to see a fictional depiction of Earth a thousand years later, still thriving. Their problems aren't any more or less better or worse than ours, but they're living and doing things and it's just kinda nice.

Earth in a Pocket does something similar: it's a futuristic world where science benefited mankind. There are space colonies now and safe travels in-between, with no sign of the Earth itself in any danger. The main characters is utterly positive and obsessively in love with what humanity has accomplished. She praises the capabilities of what we have done and can do; it's this thinking that not only motivates her to survive, but educate the little adorable jellyfish aliens, all of whom are curious to learn about this strange, bipedal creature.

This is another short comic, so it'll take maybe an hour to finish. I urge you, if you ever feel sad about the current state of the world, give Earth in a Pocket a try. It's compassionate to mankind's achievements, endlessly encourages learning through curiosity and mutual respect for each other's cultures, and reminds us the good we can do. It's just feels good.

9. Fairmeadow (https://www.fairmeadowcomic.com/)

SUMMARY: Goma, a warrior orc, lost and broken, ends up in Fairmeadow, a small community of pacifists lead by Sanctuary. There, Goma is accepted as long as she abides by their peacekeeping rules, which she increasingly challenges every step of the way.

I was initially hesitant to approach this comic because of its tabletop RPG influence, something I am vastly unfamiliar with. I wondered if there would have been terminology I wouldn't get, but I strode on because the premise sounded interesting.

And it was totally worth it. I didn't need to know a goddamn thing about Dungeons n' Dragons or whatnot to enjoy the heck out of this comic. It is exactly what the summary say it is: hardened warrior who has Seen War clashes with a bunch of idealists who refuses to engage. It is damn good showing the flaws behind what an isolationist, hippie-like community is when they refuse to engage in politic strife that, though they refuse to admit, does reflect the world they live in. Goma doesn't instantly endear, both in-universe and out, but the further you read, the more you understand and even side with her frustrations on these crop-hoarding loners who seem content in their impossibly fantasy world. And I love that both sides represent their positions as justified. It's a constant battle and I am eager to find out how these characters will engage with each other, and especially, how it'll end. Fairmeadow feels like the kind of comic where we won't get an easy answer by the time it wraps up.

10. The Glass Scientists (https://www.theglassscientists.com/)

SUMMARY: In a city increasingly hostile to mad scientists everywhere, a one Dr. Jekyll took it upon himself to create an academy to encourage and prep those scientists to fit into good society. Course, things get complicated when Jekyll's other side, the impish Mr. Hyde, constantly takes over to rein a little chaos.

Okay, so, I do enjoy The Glass Scientists. The comic seem to be reaching its end point, so shit is hitting the fan, and I am glued. But I think I'm drawn more to the aesthetic of the comic than anything. Like Victorian-era mad scientists aren't my particular bread and butter, but everything about the Victorian-era fashion is, so Dr. Jekyll in a top hat as the first thing I saw was going to draw me in no matter what.

The second thing that dragged me in was the HOLY SHIT THE ARTWORK IS FREAKIN' AMAZING WHAT THE FUCK THESE LOOK LIKE ONE OF THOSE COMICS WHERE THEY SCREENCAP CARTOONS. I found out the creator works for animation professionally, so that explains a lot. This is a maddeningly great looking comic, with some incredibly good lighting haunting the streets of London.

Things really get interesting a few chapters in when Dr. Frankenstein appears and I feel that's when the comic really takes off. Like, if 19th century English literature and mad scientist gremlins are your thing, definitely give this a read. If anything, maybe you, too, will weep in tears at how gorgeous the comic looks.

11. Goth Western (https://www.gothwestern.com/)

SUMMARY: With an act of necromancy, Jack brings her lover, Evelyn, back to life, at the cost of working for the God she gave her soul to. Now she must hunt down a man in order for the two of them to have their happy ending.

Damn. "Goth Western." That's a title that goes hard. Another short comic that can be read in one fell swoop, Goth Western is pretty much what it is: a dark fantasy ol' west story between two women who would go to the ends of the Earth for each other. It's got all the hallmarks of the western genre: gun fights, bounty hunters, deserts and saloons, etc. I'm not particularly ride or die for Westerns, but it's there for those who are.

What I did love is the sheer optimism behind the grit. I like that Jack and Evie are genuinely decent people who just so happens to have no conniption committing some immoral acts or a crime or two if it means ensuring their own future. And they go through some shit. And you root for them regardless because they love each other and deserve to be together, and in spite of its harsh background, they will find it.

Honestly, with the length of the book, Goth Western feels like it could be an amazing and fun film.

12. Hans Vogel Is Dead (https://www.hansvogelisdead.com/)

SUMMARY: Ace pilot Hans Vogel dies in the Battle of Britain, wherein he ends up in a stagnating fairy tale world. Along with a girl cursed in a fox's body, Hans traverse the land as he strives to be a better person and unlearn the rampant fascism that has encapsulated his entire life.

I can only reason reading the summary above is enough for people to put two-and-two together that this takes place in 1940s World War II. And it's even more obvious what Party Hans is involved in, so if that kind of background is not to your liking, I don't recommend it.

If it's any worth, the majority of the story takes place in said fictional fairy tale world, using it as a thematic drive to explore Hans' background to have him realize, pretty early, in fact, that his entire fascist view is wrong. It's clearly a lovingly-crafted story, the creator constantly peppers each page notes with trivia and facts about the time period (her bio states she's a historian.)

I've gone in and out with the comic (one of those "I'll check back when it updates a few page" sorta thing), but I appreciate the chutzpah of the creator to make its lead character a literal Nazi and going out of her way to explore what it is like to have lived in that specific time period with a society and culture that devalued so many people. How will Hans get out of this kind of thinking and be a better person? Are his actions forgivable? I kind of feel questions like these are somewhat balanced by Hans himself, who, rather than portrayed as some arrogant jackass, is instead rather timid and unsure of himself.

Hans Vogel Is Dead feels very much like a "We will be doomed to repeat history unless we learn it" kind of comic, which, shit, given the politic course my country is going through, having a comic like this educating on why being a dangerous bigot is an awful thing, feels appropriately well-timed.

13. Harpy Gee (https://www.harpygee.com/)

SUMMARY: A young, magic-less elf enters the town of Podunk. There she has fantastical adventures with her new friends.

I know the summary's lacking, but 1.) I imagine most people already know about Harpy Gee or its artist. I've followed her stuff before she launched this comic because of wowie-zowie I would kill to use copic markers the way she does let me learn your ways coloring skills and 2.) That's kinda what Harpy Gee is.

For sure there are scenes, foreshadowing, and characters that launch off future plot points, but otherwise, Harpy Gee is like watching a family-friend cartoon. It's got the bright colors, often has cheesy little dialogues, magic and monsters, and every other little dangerous, but manageable adventures the main characters get into. It's a nice comic to read when you want to unwind, and I really dig how earnest it is with its kid-friendly appeal. There's not a drop of cynicism or edge to it; the optimism and sense of fun is what gives Harpy Gee so much of its charm.

The creator has since graduated to digital coloring (though she still inks her comics the ol' fashion way), but I really recommend checking out the early pages to see how she works her magic with markers. Like, I'm biased, my stuff is traditional artwork, so I'm endlessly fascinated when I DO see another webcomic in the wild doing the same, but her stuff is eye candy. Like *chef's kiss.*

14. Hoppscotch (https://z-t00n.tumblr.com/tagged/hoppscotch)

SUMMARY: Bunch of animal people get into wacky shenanigans and boy, that is an understatement.

So, as far as I'm concerned, this comic is only hosted on the creator's tumblr page. It also doesn't have a cover and I wasn't very comfortable even posting a full page because of where its hosted, so I just took a small screencap of a couple of panels from a newer page to give an indicator of the kind of humor you are in for when reading Hoppscotch. (Though let me know if you'd rather this pic be removed.)

In any case, this comic wondered into my radar when a person I follow reblogged the one Hoppscotch comic with the exploding school bus. I remember scrolling down thinking it couldn't possibly get any more bizarre, but it kept elevating itself until I was left in awe at how GOOD with spontaneity it is. This is a comic that sets you up to think it'll go the expected route, but will often always, always go in a completely unpredictable, unhinged ending, and it gets me every. single. time. I haven't laughed so hard in a comic in a while. I was floored by its mastery of deranged comedy and I am genuinely looking forward to more.

A lot of this is really helped by the appealing artwork. Furries aren't in my radar, but I love the character designs. They're colorful, adorable, and really streamlined. Like this kinda has a mid-to-late 2000s Nicktoons/CN sorta vibe.

15. Kidd Commander (https://kiddcommander.com/)

SUMMARY: Phineas Kidd vows to gather a crew so she can fly off to Kairos Crossing to accomplish her goal: to catch the Sun.

Kidd Commander immediately drew me in the moment I read "to catch the sun" in the comic's "About" page. Maybe it's my love for cosmic eldritch horrors. Maybe it's that one Specter Knight fancomic I'll never get to making where I have him literally cut the sun (long story), but whatever it is, I bookmarked the webcomic to read it when I had time because I had to know what the hell I was getting into.

And then I read it (as of this writing, I wrapped up the Mile High Engage arc and stopped shortly after I started the A Wretched Analog arc) and I sat there with my hand over my head, wondering, "What the heck did I just read?"

I mean that in the best way.

Kidd Commander is a dense webcomic. It pounds you deep into its constructed world, with terms that I admit, I'm still trying to make sense of. Mind you, the comic explains what I need to know. What is it about Kidd Commander is that it goes with the assumption that you, the reader, is not a moron. It won't hold your hand; it expects you to keep up with the characters' nuances, the nature of its world and how it exists, and every other little intricate of foreshadowing waiting to be unraveled. The creator has a degree in English literature and it shows, in that while this can be a wordy comic, it's less about how much is squeezed in a word balloon (of which Kidd Commander does fine), but the way it is written. If it isn't casual dialogue, then it gets evocative, especially when it gets serious and/or bigger plot stuff unravel.

After I finished the first arc (which was a sizable 440 pages), I had to take a breather. It can be overwhelming, but it's also a comic that is clearly driven both by passion and anger. It feels like the comic equ. of wanting to punch all the bastards that has ever wronged you. It wants to internally liberate itself as much as it hopes for you. Its constructed world genuinely feels like the creator's own, all the while drawing in the best of shonen comics (bonus points for the aesthetic airship. This bitch loves airships.)

I plan to read further into the comic, but I wanted to make sense of the world it has laid out first. And I found out that sometimes the best way for me to read a piece of fiction and really get to the meat is not through digital format, but physically in my hands.

So I ended up buying the book to do exactly that:

I implore people to give Kidd Commander a shot. If you want something that feels so raw, built to give you a sense of catharsis to people of things with greater power that has wronged you, then this comic might as well be its spokesperson.

[iamhereinthebg]

Let's talk about the clock keepers in the new chapter!!

It's not a surprise to see that they had more in their sleeves, putting up an act to get all the information they wanted. Kako said it after all, he is the one observing. And he will gather what he needs before making a move, showing he deserves his title as the oldest supernatural. Hanako being the leader doesn’t seem to matter a lot to him in the end. He clearly has had his plan for a long time. It's not a shock to see he recognizes what came back with Tsukasa from the red house, probably knowing the entity from before.

Even if it was an act and all of them knew what the end result would be. The reactions Akane and Mirai had for each other in the last chapter were real. Akane was never shield in the manga, being the one doing it most of the time. So his reaction towards Mirai taking the blow for him is absolutely genuine, especially when he tried so hard to make her run away. And we can see it again when we see how slowly he takes her out of the water to give her back to Kako. Akane even reprimands the old man about being slow and Mirai having to go through this at first. 

This chapter highlights the clock keepers relationship too. Akane has been before in the innermost reach, he clearly knows what he is doing here, entering the house like nothing and actually setting things up for tea knowing Kako would like it. Being considered as a whole clock keeper, Kako and Mirai trust him not to do anything bad even in their most vulnerable state.

Kako watches over Mirai like a worried father, being happy when she is back and is still pushing Akane to find the answers himself, always in a teaching position. Akane is quick to scold Mirai about her actions, clearly seeing her more as a kid than a real supernatural being. He is seen worried for her and tells her right away not to do something like this ever again. On her side, Mirai is overjoyed to see Akane, the first question coming out of her mouth asking if he is hurt, and she seems rather shocked to see him being so worried about her, jumping on his head right away to praise him for being a nice boy.

They are way more genuine in their physical contact and actions. Akane is not refusing Kako’s headpat even though he has an angry/solemn expression when accepting it, the old man is smiling at Mirai and Akane the whole chapter while Mirai is being her usual clingy self. 

Kako clearly has been observing things and waited until the right moment to take actions. They are coming back in time to fix things up, and will sleep until the new present is stable. And for this they trust the clock keeper of the present to take care of the duty that was placed upon him.  

Akane is a wonderful pick for the present. His personality and way of life has always shown he was the only character who would be able to handle this role. He is a duty centered and really proactive boy, and most of all, sees how life is worth living. Even if he never feared the idea of getting hurt, we can clearly see how much he takes his role at heart. He now knows he has to live if the idea of a better present can exist. 

Kako knows Akane is able to handle all of it which is why they can leave without being worried about the new present, they absolutely believe Akane will be able to fulfill his duty. In the end, it’s Akane who keeps the yorishiro with him.  They trust him to make sure everything is in order and not die until he can use the key to get them out of the clock once they awaken. Kako’s last word to Akane is once again one with a teaching tone, praising him for a job he will do, showing he thinks he will handle it. 

One of Kako’s strongest traits is observation too. And Akane is really good at that, he is one of the most observant and perceptive characters of the whole cast. His mission will be all about seeing if the events really changed, acting like a memory of a present which doesn’t exist anymore. Having a human among the clock keepers to have eyes in the human world seems also like a logical choice. To know the whole situation Kako needs eyes in the human realm too, and Akane shares his informations with him when he think it's important.

Akane has known his role for a long time. Once he heard that he had his duty to do, his expression is hard to see because he KNOWS what the implications are. He is aware of what it means, he isn’t happy with this, he clenches the yorishiro once he has it, he says he doesn’t have a choice to Teru. Because even if Akane complains, he does things he is asked to do.

 Akane’s sense of justice has always been a big part of his character, and it’s also a big part of the clock keepers. Of course he wants the present to be better and goes with the clock keepers’ idea, erasing a problem at its root to help the majority of people and protect the persons he cares for is something Akane would never refuse.

He has no problem doing it even if he doesn’t want to be on the clock keepers’ side, because he knows he can do something ‘right’. He still trusts Kako on this one, embracing his role as the guardian of the present fully. The old man did say it would be good for humans after all.

How long has Akane been thinking about changing the present? Even if it means erasing the severance I don’t know how he would react seeing that Aoi never lived it. Having a world where she never got to know supernaturals, never was left dead all alone on the far shore and never got her hand hurt. It can’t be so bad right? 

But the more I think about it the more I go ‘was this present really THAT bad?’ Aoi has to go through her horrible everyday life once again, thinking that no one will ever love her for who she is and Akane definitely doesn't want that.

His talk to Teru also implies that Teru and Nene may remember since they were stopped by his time power. He trusts Teru to understand what is happening and help him with this new reality or hoping not everything will have changed. 

If we focus quickly on Amane and Tsuchigomori. They seem to have go back in 1968 so Amane was a middle schooler. Tsuchigomori and him had the talk about the moon in 1969 (after the 20th of July) so Tsuchi may not have the same yorishiro either. Would Amane live this time? Not sure, the reason he was trying to destroy the big clock may be related to the clock keepers going back in Time. I wonder what the clock Amane was working on really represents.

We can see this clock indicating the hour exactly like when Akane is stopping time, suggesting that it is really the one controlling the whole school time. It’s the first clock we see when the clock keepers are introduced too.

If Kako and Mirai really go back in time and erase everything they are visualizing on this. It would indeed mean a better control over the mysteries situations and the protection of the Land.

It means everything the mysteries went through won't happen. So the second Mitsuba won't exist, n°3 would still be here, Yako would still be waiting for Misaki to come back and won't go berserk, Shijima-san would still be in her boundary thinking she has no reason to exist expect hurting Mei-chan's memory, Hakubo would still be doing his duty without feeling anything and Sumire would still be living her death over and over again, not having anyone go see her in more than a century.

It means erasing all of the mysteries’ struggles and acceptance of what they are, not being bound by grief and regrets to do a job most of them didn't want to do. Would this present really be a good one? For the humans mostly it would be, it's the mysteries duties after all, and n°1 is ready to undo all the things each mystery went through to make sure humans have a good Present. They always have been more about humans than supernaturals. And this may also be the reason why Akane is okay with everything going on too. Kako sees this as his ultimate duty in the end, forcing all mysteries to embrace it even if they don't want to. Taking the matter at end without warning anyone since after all, no one will remember.

Another thing that has always been interesting to me, was the fact that the clock keepers look nothing like something out of Japanese Myths/folklore. It has always been strange to me to see they were labeled as the oldest supernaturals, when clocks weren’t that common in Japan before a long time.  The way they dress look way different compared to anyone else from the cast too. The closest look you could find was from the Meiji Era, which was mostly about Japan importing a lot of Western culture into their Land. I always thought that the clock keepers just couldn’t be from a Japanese folktale and this was confirmed in the last chapter. I had my supposition about where they were from,  but having an actual image of their old town helped me to focus more on it.

If we look at Clock making history we can easily focus on some countries, The Netherlands, Germany and England being the main ones. Now if we look at the architecture we get in this chapter, we can delete England from the list easily. This type of house is called Timbered framed houses. It can be found in Europe in different countries.

It’s important to note that the roofs on those houses are really really sharp on the illustration AidaIro gave us. Which means they were built for snow, so it can slide off the roofs more easily. The trees in the background are too blurry to see but it looks like forest of pines and the kids shown are holding one.

Now if I combine the two ideas of clock making and architecture I found here, my thoughts came to one city. Nuremberg in Germany. It’s a city known for its clock making history, there are mountains nearby and there is snow in this region during Winter. And more importantly The Nuremberg Egg.

It’s known as the ancestor of the pocket watch, created in the XVIth century.  

I don’t think AidaIro was inspired by a precise place but I think somewhere in this region of Europe could be a good pick for the inspiration of the city the clock keepers are from! Same can be said about the clothes the kids are wearing and the toy's shop which have vibes from this region too.

I’ve been thinking a bit more about what Kako and Mirai are really and it’s hard to say. With how Akane introduced them it could imply they were humans before. 

Why did they move to Japan and how did they become supernatural? Were they created or were they humans before? The idea of Kako creating a body to survive and creating Mirai is not out of the way since he is clearly the oldest and more experienced supernatural there is. A lot of questions with no answers for now but I am happy we get some glimpse of their old life.

I am also interested in the clock keeper of the present status too. Are they used to create different presents or if the present is fixed their role is finished? Did Kako and Mirai go back in time to change stuff before?

I don't think it happened recently. Nothing special has been happening at Kamome even with the whole Yugi suicide/murder history. The real problems started really once Nene met Hanako and Tsukasa woke up. Kako may have been observing things since a really long time, maybe putting some students as clock keepers of the present but never ‘activating’ their real role. Which may also be why Akane never was shown that stressed out about his role as a clock keeper, why would he be if all the previous clock keepers of the present never had to do this? What is supposed to happen to them once they have fulfilled their duty? Are they erased from the timeline to represent completely this new Present? Do they get to continue their life like nothing happens, being the only person having the memories of a world which doesn't exist anymore? How long do they stay alone until the other two wake up? Why insist so much on the idea he has to stay alive? So many questions I hope we will have answers on soon.

The story of the clock keepers is still really blurry but we are slowly getting more on them . AidaIro really showed us that they were mysteries the other characters shouldn't mess with and I am all for it.

[danganronpasurvivoraskblog]

Who are some characters that you think should've survived the killing games and why?

//Well, here’s how I’d put it.

//For Danganronpa 1, I think Taka should have survived instead of Hiro. Despite my complaints, everyone who survived in DR1 can stay except for Hiro for all I care. Despite my individual problems with Hina, Toko and Byakuya, all of them redeemed after they became stronger characters overtime. But Taka has probably the worst emotional arc out of every character that has one, since he becomes depressed over Mondo’s death, transformes into whatever the fuck Kiyondo/Ishida was supposed to be, and the FUCKING DIED. He deserved better

//Game 2′s surviving group are MOSTLY fine, and I wouldn’t change it much. If I had to pick one character to live to the end, it’s an odd choice, but I would say Ibuki. I know that sounds like a bad idea, given that Ibuki’s personality would really break away the tension in the game’s final moments (something that Hajime, Akane, Sonia, Kazuichi and Fuyuhiko as a group play really well to, which is why I think they’re a pretty solid final group) but bare in mind that every game already has one “comedic” character make it to the end (Hiro, Akane and Himiko) and also keep in mind that Ibuki is CRIMINALLY undervalued in that game. She doesn’t do a SINGLE plot-relevant thing throughout the entire time she’s alive for, and then she dies one of the shittiest deaths that the series has put out. She’s also one of the few Danganronpa comic-relief characters who are ACTUALLY funny, and consistently at that. And I don’t really see the ending of DR2 being much different with her there, even despite all this.

//Game 3, as in V3, I would say Ryoma, which I know most people in the fanbase agree with, since a vast majority of V3 rewrite fics have Ryoma survive (ITMLFY and TPS for example) He has so much potential for a good arc, but once again suffers from the age old problem of NOT getting one because it gets cut off by his death. While I do believe the order of events of Case 2 in V3 did make sense in the grand scheme of things, that doesn’t stop me from feeling a tad let down by them. Ryoma could have been something man.

//In case it wasn’t already obvious, I hate pretty much every member of the DR3 cast save Seiko, and I think she should have gotten out in the end instead of going out the way she did. I needn’t elaborate.

//As for the Another games, for Another 1, I would love to have seen Kanata survive for basically the same reason as Ibuki and Taka. She’s easily one of the best members of that game’s cast, and dies a crappy death that kinda shouldn’t have happened. I mean, looking at that game’s third case, Kinji had already killed Kakeru, and didn’t need to murder Kanata afterwards. There was no risk of her being a witness since she was unconscious, and not only that, but her death was brutal as well. She also deserved better.

//And for Another 2, while I would say it’s my second least favourite group of survivor’s, I don’t like any of the SDRA2 characters enough to claim that one or the other should have survived. If we’re going on which character I think didn’t deserve the end that they got and had the potential to be really strong later on, then my verdict goes to Hibiki. As sad as it is to say, Hibiki is TERRIBLY written. She doesn’t contribute a single thing for the vast majority of the game, playing second fiddle to fucking Kanade throughout the entire thing, and then dies in an execution that she shouldn’t have even been part of. The idea of having twin sisters in a DR game is interesting, but it’s horrifically wasted on the Otonokoji’s, when only one of them, the vastly more terrible of the two, is the one who gets all the attention from the fans.

-Mod

[nihiltism]

as for my first Veedia Veeview! I just finished 999 (DS) and I sure do have opinions on it! so hold on one second as I readmore this because it might be long. warning for 999 spoilers probably.

ok so. i am going to preface that i did not Dislike this game. it was a very neat little thing with pretty good plot weaving (though there are some Shenanigans that leave me confused still), good puzzles and a killer climax/twist that recontextualizes everything. that's the good stuff. i think it was a good solid game. but also i dont think i get the hype? things like this always make me feel like somebodys gonna come from the shadows and rick and morty me like im not smart enough to appreciate it but i. do think i. got it. i just dont. see the hype.

my main, not really issue but Thing Keeping Me From Getting Into The Game was kinda just. how Eh all the characters were. something you should know about me is that i Love characterization based storytelling. i love when every character has a Deal and the plot is weaved around those characters' actions and interactions while In Character. 999, being a game based around Personal Revenge and Saving Somebody You Love, has potential to be character-based. and in some instances it really is. however a Lot of the game feels like the writers planned out the plot, key events, and how characters would affect that plot in turn, before they had decided on who most of their cast actually was. they just had wooden 2x4s in place of the characters for the majority of writing. It happened a Lot where it seemed a character was just, hijacked to infodump occasionally. hijacked to give important information, hijacked to make a smart move that had to be made, etc. they all seem both incredibly smart and incredibly stupid at the same time because of this. they're kind of just. uchikoshi's sock puppets. he asks them questions like "do you know any exposition useful to this puzzle?" and he answers himself in a slightly higher voice while moving the sock puppets mouth. (this especially happened with junpei, where in the safe ending and while going to door 3 he seemed to just. completely break character to make a plot thread happen). even without that, i wont say that characters lack depth but their depth isn't made Important, save for like. santa. i cant even fully argue akane. characters who have Deals are a bit rare and when a character is shown to have a backstory outside of this, like lotus, it is. decided it doesnt matter. i think lotus deserved better in general to be honest. it's one of those games where if I see anybody with a honest to goodness Blorbo from it I kind of tilt my head and ask myself how much you are hallucinating about the character in question.

as for actual like. gameplay whatevers. its fine. none of the puzzles made me want to die save for maybe the block pusher, it was easy enough to speed through early segments on subsequent playthroughs, the art is nice and i really like the animations when they exist. i tend to not have a lot to say about parts i thought were fine and a lot to say about parts that bug me so. For The Big One

I Did Not Go Into This Game Expecting To Get, Not Only Ableism, But Ableism For Something So Hyperspecific I Didn't Even Know There Was A Word For It. Despite Having It.

the way this game handles ace's prosopagnosia is. pathetic. it's like they only understood like 3 words off a wikipedia page about the topic, as well as the fact that it was a mental condition, and thought they understood enough to make it a major plotpoint. i have 3 main annoyances about it in particular.

1: the plot hole. the fact that makes me almost positive they didnt understand the concept. the fact that THE WRITER FORGOT THAT HAIR EXISTS AND OVER HALF THE CAST NOT ONLY HAS IT BUT HAS DISTINCT ANIME HAIR. ooooh my god. its. its so bad.

2: the way that they continually treat prosopagnosia as something agonizing or worth pity. if you have ever had any sort of mental illness you know that people responding "i feel bad for you" in response to you, having it, is a huuuuge yikes. but like. prosopagnosia toes the line of (definitely a disorder but so workaroundable that this is just. A Way People Be.) like how poor eyesight is so rarely seen as a disability nowadays because glasses exist. my friend related it with a better metaphor than me, being that the whole. way its presented is kinda like (the terrible agony of being left-handed). its strange its alienating i wouldnt call it demonizing but i would say its similar to that one time i went to college and somebody said "oh im so sorry to hear that!" after me mentioning in introductions that i was disabled.

3: the fact that ace's motive for Atrocities was his prosopagnosia. like. ok if it was just a Thing He Had and was a good way to pin him down as a killer then thats one thing. however using this, again, Way People Be, as a motive for it all. its. im leaning slightly more to demonizing but more just. Boooo We Hate Your Stupid Ableist Subplot. we hate the fact that this is even considered a villain motive when any normal person with prosopagnosia could easily tell you that they are not so Pained And Agonized by. not being able to tell peoples faces apart. that they would put kids into a death game for psychic powers to fix it. its one of the stupidest and frankly insulting villain motives ive ever seen in a really really well thought out game aside from it. it's paradoxically both Good and Awful writing and I've been told this type of thing is not rare of uchikoshi works.

anyway uhhhh overall. yeah i think its just kind of alright basically. shrugs. it just kind of made me want to replay ghost trick.

[jackienautism]

no bc it's also been. YEARS since i was Really into dr (and i was. REALLY into dr KSJDF. yeah it's been like three years huh). but YESSS your taste is so good. my favorites if i remember correctly were uhhhh hina and sayaka from thh for SURE. there were a bunch more who i liked but those two were the ones i ended up being not normal at all about. and then AKANE akane was like. i loved akane. AND YESSS sonia nevermind the character of ALL time. i remember i liked hajime a lot too i think he was my favorite protag. and i really enjoyed gundham!! sdr2 was probably my favorite cast on average, i enjoyed them all a lot with like one or two notable exceptions. and then with v3 my favorites were miu tenko and angie because i love widely hated female characters lol nobody got those three like i did i was in the trenches doing deep character analysis i tell you

ALSO. nekomaru most mentally stable dr character truther!! i am also usually All Girls but i think about hypothetical nekomaru nagito dynamic semi regularly because putting the most mentally stable and one of the most mentally. not. stable characters next to each other yields extremely funny dynamics..

i also put a LOT of thought into celeste sayaka dynamics like it's about the fronts we put up the masks we wear the performance of it all..... i will never be normal about those two ever.. man i am thinking about dr characters again this is wild.

also YESSS i love kyoko's va and i loved her as ann in p5.... speaking of which...... who are your p5 favorites.... i am a haru girlie personally. also talk to me more about va's i would love to hear about va's...

sorrry for the late response, im gonna answer the rest of my asks in the next little bit :]

youand me🤝🤝 i was huge in DR during the second half of ? 2020 and it came to be such a Big hyperfixation. i CANT believe it's been 3 years. i just can't. BUT THANK YOU!!!!! THAT MEANS A LOT 2 ME HEHE i am pretty much a fan of all the characters in one way or another though... except for the one that starts w/ k and ends in okichi LOL...

HINA AND SAYAKA ARE SUCHU GOOD CHOICES FOR SUUURE sayaka is just incredibly interesting (despite the amount of screentime she got) and aoi is such a genuine sweetheart, i lvoe them both. AKANE IS ALSO SUCH A GOOD CHOICE, its amazing all this girl has gone through and yet shes still one of the cheeriest characters. and i jsut love how like. how she is with the people she cares about. PLUS HER RELATIONSHIP W/ SONIA IS SOOO CUTE... i specifically remember liking their lil interactions during one of the ? last trials. hajime best protag is also a very good choice, i remembner rly likking his personality and stugff.. plus i loved his voice as well lkldngd you're def not alone in loving the sdr2 cast in its entirety! which im sure you're aware of. im kind of interested to hear who your 1 or 2 exceptions were though (eyeballs)AND OOO A GOOD BATCH FOR V3... i of course cant say much in depth since i havent played the third game but GOSH... i can def say now that both tenko and angie esp deserved sooooooo SOOOOO mcuh better... i hate what kodaka did to them. im super happy all 3 of them had such a huge fan behind them though!!!!!

YESSSS GLAD ITS AGREED UPON and GOSH GOSH ive def seen nekomaru and nagito once or twice before and that seems HILARIOUS. i think theyd balance each out well... since obv nagito's whole thing is self deprecation and whatnot and nekomaru's whole thing is pumping others up and cheering for them right? i think in the end nekomaru wpuld help nagito work on that part of himself

IVE THOUGHT ABT A CELESTE AND SAYAKA DYNAMIC BEFORE 2 OOUGH i also rtemember adding like.... kyoko into the mix for some reason... i cant remmeber exactlt why holdon. ok....... i beleive it has something to do w/ all of three of them concealing their "true" selves for like.all of their lives... and i find that sooo interesting bc they all seem so different and yet. emotional / emotions wise. theyre so very similar.concealing certain aspects of themselves to an extreme degree? being shit w/ regulating their emotions? yeah. sorry for going off topic but YES sayaka / celeste is so good...... itd genuinely be a great like. contrast / balance. someone whos Mostly in touch w/ their feelings paired with someone who literally hides themself for a living? amazing. does any fo this make sense i hope it does my bad its been a while since i thought abt DR characters too DJKGDN cant believe this shit

ANN MYBELOVED !!!!! ann will always be such a fave.. like of all time i think.... ia lso rly like shiho. but. ok. ill be real i havent played the entirety of p5 (the most ive gotten to is the middle of ann's arc) so i dont know just yet if i would enjoy any of the other phantom thieves / characters yk... ia slo rly like ryuji so far ! haru seems like an awesome choice though . lvoe how fucking violent she is, girlboss

HEHE OK. VAS. THANK YOU. sure you already know but erika harlacher voices both kyoko and kaede... and shihos va, christine marie cabanos, also voices chiaki / himiko i believe. and sean chiplock (taka) voices mishima! for the rest of the phantom thieves though... max mittelman voices ryuji, xanthe huynh haru, FORGOT ERICA LINDBECK VOICED FUTABA..... pretty sure shes the current barbie, and kotoko! cherami leigh is makoto, who also voices komaru! and ofc matthew mercer as yusuke... who also voices that fuck face haiji and also leon in re6... robbie daymond voices goro. cassandra lee morris voices morgana! and also hina and angie i believe....

as for DR its like. a good majority have voiced 2 characters atleast. off the top of my heeeeead... lucien dodge voices both hifumi and kiibo. and im pretty sure hes dating (engaged to?) erica mendez, who voices maki. marieve herington as celeste is still fr one of my fave performances like ever in a video game.. amanda celine miller voices both toko and junko! ill stgop for now but the overlap between danganronpa persona and fire emblem is so funny. i get that like theres only reallty a handful in this industry but im pretty sure almost every single VA has been in fire emblem heroes

AND SPEAKING OF VAS!!!! brenda song also voices anne in amphibia :] whihc i like is real cool

THANK YOU FOR TALKING W/ ME.... I REALLY APPRECIATE IT!!!!!

[teddybearty]

RATING DANGANRONPA S BEACH SPRITES 2/4

(Spoilers below. Duh.)

GOODBYE DESPAIR CAST

Hajime: 6/10 it’s better than Makoto’s not gonna lie but that orange is...not the prettiest...

Nagito: 5/10 it looked better in the trailer. It’s way too saturated now...

Twogami / Imposter: 4/10 Spike Chunsoft did them dirty!! One, why aren’t they OUT OF THEIR DISGUISE???? Two, they look like a FUCKING EGG!!! And three, the shading just looks really REALLY bad on their sprite I’m sorry...

Gundham: 4/10 basically his fucking jacket design. Also the Devas need little sunglasses or little baby innertubes. That would’ve been really really cute...

Kazuichi: 6/10 that green may be hideous but my man you got the abs you DESERVE!!! This man is a fucking MECHANIC, why are people complaining about him having abs???? He’s messing with all kinds of vehicles all the time, you guys think he’s a stick???

Teruteru: 10/10 Beautiful. Amazing. I love this so much you all have NO IDEA!!!! He’s READY TO SCORE SOME BEAUTIES!!!!!!! ^v^

Nekomaru: 10/10 This. Fits. Him. So. Well. This is EXACTLY WHAT I SAW HIM IN HOLY MOLY!!! And they kept his chain???? It’s weird but he’s weird and I’m find with this.

Fuyuhiko: 3/10 basic as fuck. HE SHOULD BE WEARING GOLD TRUNKS OR SOMETHING!!!!

Akane: 5/10 the blue is too saturated and it’s kind of uninspired because it’s the SAME SWIMSUIT SHE WORE IN THE GAME!!!! WHY????

Chiaki: 7/10 it may be the same swimsuit she wore in the game. And it may be different that the one she was wearing in the other image I’ve seen. But it’s fucking adorable. Sure, she could be wearing some gimmicky swimsuit with a gaming reference on it. That would’ve been a bit more interesting.

Sonia: 7/10 I’m upset that SHE WAS THE ONLY CHARACTER THEY DIDN’T GIVE THE SAME SWIMSUIT TO!!! GIVE HER BACK HER WET SUIT SPIKE CHUNSOFT!! That being said, it’s really cute. I adore that pink on her honestly even if it doesn’t suit her love for gothic aesthetics.

Hiyoko: 5/10 I hate that fucking green GET IT OFF OF HER!!! WHY IS SHE KINDA MATCHING KAZUICHI???? That’s a little weird but kind of funny. But still that green is awful she would be caught dead wearing that. Also she would’ve looked cuter in a one piece. Just saying.

Mahiru: 5/10 the one character I thought that would’ve looked nice in green and THEY DIDN’T GIVE IT TO HER???? That being said this swimsuit is cute but the blue could’ve been toned down a bit.

Mikan: 0/10 I fucking hate Spike Chunsoft. I hate how fan service-y this swimsuit is I hate it here-

Ibuki: 9/10 It suits her but I wish it was a one piece. And that it had a bit more of an interesting design.

Peko: 8/10 may have been the same on that she had in SDR2 but it suits her. It’s cute.

Izuru: 4/10 One, why the fuck are you here? Two, you’re all about not wanting to be bored YET YOU CHOOSE THE MOST BASIC FUCKING TRUNKS?? That’s stupid Izuru! Go change!!!

Monomi: 10/10 You go have some fun sweetheart! You’re doing your best and I love you.

Usami: 7/10 a little too similar to your original outfit but it’s cute. Go off I guess.

TRIGGER HAPPY HAVOC (part 1)

ULTRA DESPAIR GIRLS (part 3)

KILLING HARMONY (part 4)

[midnightdemonhunter]

about your remnant ideas !! you mentioned there were only one or two members of class 77 who DIDNT have a deep relationship w junko, could you elaborate on that? very interested in how not being as close to junko as the others affected those specific people's remnantisms

Oooo yeah of course! Though I didn't phrase my thoughts amazingly there, I more meant not every class 77 member has a friendship/romance with Junko.

The two classmates I'm talking about there are Gundham and Nagito, since both vehemently dislike Junko for different reasons. Gundham calls her The Devil Incarnite because of her mean attitude and tendency to make fun of him, as well because of how bad she is with animals. (They dislike her)

Occasionally Junko humors Gundham though, and argues with him in the same kind of speech as he does-- and he LOVES these moments. After all, who better than the devil to argue against? He's got some grudging respect for her and the 'curse she's cast' on his class. I'd like to think Junko's royal sprite was mildly based off the persona she'd put on to argue with him.

I think like Akane, Gundham only realised the depth of his feelings for Junko after she died. And GOD what a confusing mix of emotions it is. He's convinced Junko is the embodiment of evil, but he also thinks he's irredeemable. So he thinks she sucks but like-- in the most important, ultimate way possible. Thus, he ends up forming a cult/church to give her the respect and worship she deserves-- but also to talk about how horrifying she is.

Gundham's biggest problem here is conflating his own wickedness with Junko, and declaring them both irredeemable. He's dragging himself down with her. This is why he ends up attaching her arm to him-- the arm of the Devil-- to the wrong socket, so he can never use it properly. The man with two right hands! He's decided that love is sacrifice, that Junko demands sacrifice from him, and that he must destroy everything he loves in order to appease her. This gives him some of the most unhealthy remnant relationships!

As for Nagito, this one is pretty much agreed on in the fandom-- Nagito didn't like Junko, but he also loved her. In school they were known for their Hope vs Despair arguments that would go on wayyyy too long, and their constant need to accompany each other to make sure they're not 'doing anything weird'. So they're often around each other with their weird mutual obsession, but they also very much dislike each other.

There's probably a sweet sweet parallel you could draw here about how the two people who hate Junko the most each take her arms and hands but boy I'm not sure what it is yet! Would love to do some art for that concept eventually though!

Just like with Mikan, I don't really have any revolutionary remnant Nagito thoughts? I feel like people have actually deep dived into his remnant self, so I have less to add.

HOWEVER. While we're talking about people who don't care about Junko..... HAJIME. In school he avoided her everywhere, deeply uncomfortable with her personality and general...offness. Then she visited him in the depths of Hopes Peak about the surgery and things got a little more complicated! This lines into my hc that ignores canon: Hajime is the one fronting for most of the apocalypse pre-sdr2.

And he still does NOT care about Junko. He does end up caring for class 77 though, especially since the future foundation wants him dead so bad. He'll take what he can get! This ties into my final remnant related hc here that's controversial: Nagito and Izuru only meet once pre-sdr2, and it's on the boat bringing them to Jabberwock island :))

[creepercraftguy]

My thoughts and feelings on the Danganronpa S Swimsuit Designs.

Recently the designs for everyone’s swimsuit sprites in Danganronpa S were leaked on a preorder website here: https://ebten.jp/spchun/p/7015021110403

There’s a lot I have to say about each of these designs, so I figured I’d make a decently long post ranking each of them.

These are all my opinions and my thoughts and feelings may be a little biased, but please hear me out and respect my opinions. Also, sorry for low quality images, since that was the most clear cut I could make them by zooming in on the sheets.

7/10:

It’s a fairly plain design, but honestly, I think that’s quite befitting of the first games plucky protagonist. One of Makoto’s main traits is that he’s nothing remotely that special, so his swimsuit shouldn’t really be anything major. I do like however, that it’s colours replicate the brighter aspects of his original design.

6/10:

Of all the characters in the game who could have been stuck with the speedo look, I’m glad it was Taka. Unfortunately, this also means that his design, other than the very befitting whistle around his neck, isn’t anything major.

8/10:

This is a really good look for Byakuya. It’s really fitting with his personality and status and he wears it well.

5/10:

Unfortunately, Mondo’s outfit is exactly what I expected it to be. It’s unfortunate because I was hoping the game would do more, given how extra his 10th anniversary do was, but I was left a little disappointed with this one. It’s not bad though and it does work with him.

6/10:

It’s a pretty plain and simple design with no real outstanding aspects, but it really fits Leon’s character and he does well with it.

7/10:

This is honestly hilarious, because this wasn’t what I expected from Hifumi. I was expecting him to have a shirt or something, but I’m glad he doesn’t because that can be considered fat-shaming in my eyes. The Pretty Pudgy Princess image on his shorts was, for whatever reason, NOT what I was expecting though, and I think it looks great.

8/10:

I’ve had my differences with Hiro, but I have to admit that this design really does suit him and his character. I really love the little alien pattern on his shorts.

10/10:

This has got to be my favourite design in the entire selection of these characters! The main reason is because it really suits Chihiro’s character. He’s sporting both some very boy-like shorts but also a very girl-like crop top. The design doesn’t prioritize masculinity or femininity, but instead creates a well done balance of the two. This was probably the best that they could have done for Chihiro and I’m so glad he got his justice in this game.

10/10:

I feel like Sayaka is so underappreciated and so berated that we fail to recognize just how beautiful she is. I mean LOOK at this! She’s so fucking gorgeous!

10/10:

Kyoko is among, if not the top of, the characters in this that can sport a really plain and slightly bare bones design, but look absolutely beautiful while doing it. The dark swimsuit clashing with her bright hair, and also not sporting anything too outstanding, just like her original design, makes her look absolutely ravishing.

10/10:

I know it seems like I’m just dishing out 10’s at this point, but the DR1 girls are just THAT amazing looking with their designs, and Hina in particular is really good. One of the things that I love about some of these swimsuit designs is the subversion of the colors that I’m used to the characters sporting. Hina for instance is usually associated with red or blue, but here she is wearing a deep yellow bikini and my god does she look amazing in it. Also, it’s hard to see, but she does have some slight abs, which is something I wish to see on most of these girls.

9/10:

We have to talk about these two at once because they kind of have the same swimsuit with just one difference, in that Toko wears the skirt, while Genocide Jill does not. This makes sense and it’s pretty clever in design, since Toko has usually always worn long dresses/skirts in her previous designs, to cover up the tally marks Jill engraved in her legs from her kills. Jill obviously wouldn’t care about that, so she feels no need to wear the skirt, and given that Jill is slightly more outgoing and sociable than Toko, she wouldn’t have as much of a problem showing off more skin. It really does make a lot of sense and the design itself is overall very solid.

6/10:

I wouldn’t go so far as to say this is bad, but this style and colour is not what I expected or would have liked to see on Sakura. She’s still pretty, but I just think there’s more potential here.

8/10:

In a sense, this is a very clever design of swimsuit, since it’s almost as if Celeste’s original dress was turned into a bikini, and it’s incredibly fitting as a result. Still, it’s not out of any expectation.

10/10:

This is probably the most ingenious design out of every swimsuit in this game, so hear me out. One of the things Junko is the most well known for in Danganronpa’s world is she always defies expectations, most of the time in ways that leave people dissatisfied or unhappy. What could be more dissatisfying to a regular hormonal teenager (which most of the DR cast are) on a summer trip than a busty beauty arriving to the beach wearing a cheap, one-piece school swimsuit with nothing remarkable about it. It’s so clever and such a smart move on the designers part that perfectly encapsulates Junko’s character.

9/10:

I love this swimsuit design, and I think Mukuro looks wonderful in it, but I still stand by my complaint that she deserves to be her own person in this game and not disguised as Junko.

5/10:

Monokuma looks less like a lifeguard in this design and more like a McDonald’s drive thru employee. Still, I didn’t expect Monokuma to get a swimsuit at all, and this does fit his character, so whatever.

9/10:

Like Makoto, this outfit is fairly simple. Unlike Makoto however, it doesn’t really replicate the coloration of the original design and instead provides Hajime with something more vibrant and original, and I think it looks pretty good on him.

10/10:

I just in general think this is a really solid look for Nagito. It’s a nice diversion from his original style, while also keeping some of the things that made his original design unique, namely the pattern on his hoodie is transitioned over, but in a new, quite dashing colour. I also like how he and Hajime have a contrasting blue/red dynamic with their designs.

7/10:

I mean, it obviously has to be the same as Byakuya’s design, but the colours of the hoodie are inverted. It makes sense, but I do believe the original Togami does it better in this case.

4/10:

Is this REALLY the best you could give Gundham? This is such a simple design for someone with Gundham’s personality, he deserves something far more impressive. Yeah, I get that Makoto has the same thing, shorts of a single colour with his symbol on it, but that makes sense for Makoto given that he’s naturally quite bare bones, whereas Gundham is much the opposite. Honestly, this is kind of a letdown.

8/10:

Can Kazuichi just naturally pull off any vibrant colour? First, in DR2, his outfit was a vibrant yellow, and then in DR3, he had a deep blue outfit. Now he’s sporting this Neon Green and it looks so good on him. Please tell me I’m not the only one who thinks that this is a really good way of transitioning his original design while also adding some originality?

7/10:

I don’t think it’s anything great, but I like the rose patterns and the clash of the dark shirt with the bright shorts. Honestly, this is a pretty good outfit sporting Teruteru’s moniker.

6/10:

Again, I kind of expected Nekomaru to wear the speedo, and I like the fact that he kept the chain on, but overall, the outfit doesn’t have an awful lot of uniqueness.

8/10:

There’s really not an awful lot to this design, but I think white shorts and a gold chain are a real good look for Fuyuhiko. He doesn’t really need anything more than this to look super good on the beach.

7/10:

We did see this outfit in DR2, but it was a CG and not a sprite, and at least she’s not covered in blood this time. The colours and patterns are a little plain for Akane, but she still looks pretty good in this outfit.

10/10:

This swimsuit already has a CG and sprites in the original DR2, but now we get to see more of them. And just as well because this plain white swimming outfit looks wonderful on Chiaki. She’s just super adorable like this and I can’t ask for anything more.

10/10:

I have to give Sonia the score she deserves here. While I am surprised she isn’t showing off nearly as much leg skin as I thought she would, I have no complaints to this. The colour is a good colour alongside her hair and the swimsuit itself looks splendid on her.

9/10:

I never thought in a million years that Hiyoko would look good in green, but I’ve never been more happy to be wrong. I’m also glad, and I can’t speak for everyone here, that she’s wearing a two-piece and not a school swimsuit like Junko, because she deserves more than that.

10/10:

I’m so tempted to sing the Bryan Highland song but change the yellow in the lyrics to blue. Words cannot describe just how much I love this simple patterns design on my all time best girl. Mahiru looks absolutely angelic with this outfit, and I’ve basically fallen for her all over again.

8/10:

All things considered, I’m really satisfied with this outfit. We all know what Spike Chunsoft and DR’s writers like to do to Mikan, so I was very concerned that whatever swimsuit she got, it was going to turn out to be really skimpy and barely cover anything. I am glad that this is a lot more modest than I thought it would be, and I thank the creators for giving her something more normal. However, it is still a string piece that has a likely chance of coming undone, so I am expecting a few wardrobe malfunctions in the game. Other than that, my only other real complaint is that I kind of want more than just a plain white design. I think a deep purple or even a deep red would work very well on her as opposed to this.

10/10:

This is the design I expected for Ibuki, and it works really well for her, so while my expectations weren’t defied, this is still among the better designs out of the selection we have.

10/10:

We all need to take a minute to appreciate just how gorgeous Peko looks in a plain black two-piece, because this lady looks absolutely exquisite. Even the most simple designs can bring out the best in characters, and while we did see this in DR2, we never got the sprite we needed. She just looks great like this, that’s all I can say.

5/10:

Izuru has a different swimsuit to Hajime for some reason, but I guess it does make sense since a bright, vibrant swimsuit like the one Hajime has wouldn’t work with him. Hajime’s is still better in my book though.

5/10:

Usami and Monomi have always had the adult/child dynamic in their designs. For example, in the regular designs, Usami has a skirt while Monomi wears a diaper, and that dynamic carries over in these designs too, which I really appreciate. Still, the outfits themselves aren’t anything outstanding.

10/10:

Is it just me, or is Komaru ever so slightly chubby in this? It’s the first time Komaru’s midriff has ever been shown in a sprite, so it’s the first time we’ve ever seen her bare belly like this. It’s not a complaint, if anything, I’ve been wanting to see some chub on the girls. Regardless, this is another example of a plain design pulled off extraordinarily well, since the plain yellow outfit makes Komaru look delightful.

6/10:

About what I expected from Masaru. Like Nagito, I like how he carries patterns from his og design into this one, but he doesn’t really do it as well. His design is kind of basic.

8/10:

I like this transition. The outfit and hoodie has originality, but it still bases itself off Jataro’s original design and I like how they do it.

10/10:

She’s just way too cute! This design is just super adorable and Kotoko pulls it off wonderfully. She was honestly one who I expected to wear a one-piece, so showing off this much skin is surprising given her backstory. It really does fit her though, and I wouldn’t think of changing it.

5/10:

Honestly, there’s not much to this. The colour and pattern fits Nagisa, totally, but I do wish there was a little bit more than just whatever this is. Nagisa’s a much deeper character than this outfit gives him credit for.

8/10:

It’s a really simple design with nothing outstanding besides the skirt, but Monaca looks really cute wearing this, and I think that that alone is enough. Besides, Junko had a fairly basic design too, so Monaca having one isn’t out of the question.

3/10:

I’ve always believed, as much as I really don’t like him and wish he wasn’t in this game, that Kurokuma has always had one of the best designs out of all the Monokuma’s. But as much as I believe that, and as much as I love the addition of the water gun in this design, this is honestly kind of lazy. The gun and the glasses don’t count as part of the swimsuit, they’re just accessories. In summary, literally all they did was give him orange trunks.

1/10:

THIS however is somehow even worse, because this straight up is NOT a swimsuit! Shirokuma is literally just wearing a hat and a floatie. This is probably my least favourite of all the designs in this.

9/10:

I have to add here that I’m rather disappointed that based on the scans, it seems unlikely that Yuta and Taichi from UDG are getting in the game, since I believe they both deserve some spotlight that they’re now giving Hiroko. I also don’t consider myself to be attracting to older women, but I am forced to admit that like with Mikan, I did expect something worse with Hiroko’s swimsuit, and this was a pleasant subversion of my expectations because I think she looks great.

10/10:

Maybe I’m being a but biased with my scoring here, but had Shuichi not been wearing the hoodie, I would have been a bit disappointed. Also, am I the only one who thinks that this is a surprisingly good look for Shuichi given that the colours aren’t his typical dark, emo style? I never thought Shuichi could rock a white hoodie and dark blue shorts, but here I am being proved wrong.

6/10:

Honestly, I did expect this of Kaito’s outfit, and I am a little let down that this is it really. Sure, it does look good, as he has the space pattern that he usually has on the inside of his coat, but speaking of his coat, one thing that I was expecting was that he, like Shuichi or Nagito, would have a hoodie in his design that he hung loosely around his shoulders like he does in his original design. C’est la vie…

7/10:

He literally looks like a tiny sailor! Like they straight up ripped him out of a Popeye cartoon or something! It looks really funny for some reason.

9/10:

Call me crazy, but I actually seriously love the colour of Rantaro’s shorts. The pink/red rose colour is a wonderful clash with his avocado green hair, and while the design is kind of simple, Rantaro has never been known to have the most over the top appearance. He’s kind of just a casual guy, so he deserves a casual attire.

4/10:

Oh Gonta, there’s nothing wrong with your swimsuit, but is this really the most justice they could do you? It looks so…I dunno…plain?

5/10:

Where’s his white coat go? Like, I love the shorts pattern, but is this really it? This is all we get out our clown prince of lies? It’s not totally disappointing like Gundham’s was, and thank god he doesn’t have abs anymore, but even still, is this the best they could do for Kokichi?

10/10:

Fuck yes! Why put Kiyo in shorts like the rest of them when we could give him this extremely fitting wetsuit! Like, seriously, how come I didn’t think this was a good idea? This is quite literally the perfect direction you could have gone in for Kiyo especially.

9/10:

Fucking…Keebo oh my god…Why did I expect any differently?

9/10:

Kirumi, Kyoko and Peko have exactly the same reason for getting their scores, and Peko and Kyoko only slightly pull it off better. My only complaint I have with Kirumi sporting this is that she doesn’t appear to have the spider pattern that she had on her dress before, which was one of her most notable features in her original design. Maybe it is there and I just can’t see it due to low res, but I’m fairly sure that this is all you need to make Kirumi look damn sexy during summertime.

6/10:

I know for a fact that Himiko doesn’t like the ocean, so maybe there’s a reason her swimwear looks like this. I don’t hate it, but I think Himiko might look better in a one piece, and maybe I’d like a bit more context as to why it looks like this of all things.

10/10:

Maki is so attractive in this outfit. It’s the perfect shade of red, and it’s everything she deserves. Honestly, while a lot of these girls look stunning in colours that I’m not used to seeing them in, had Maki had anything else than this red, I think I would have been a little disappointed.

7/10:

Pink was not what I expected on Tenko. I was honestly expecting something similar to Ibuki, but with light blue and green instea of blue and pink, and I’m honestly a little upset we didn’t get that. On top of that, she’s showing an awful lot of skin, maybe even more than Mikan, since that swimsuit looks like it doesn’t fit her, which I didn’t expect from her.  Still, you won’t be hearing any major issues on my behalf, since I still like this design somewhat.

10/10:

Yes, yes, and more YES! I ADORE the yellow swimsuit with Tsumugi’s dark blue hair. I was expecting something plain and white like what Mikan got with Tsumugi, and I’m so glad we didn’t. Not even Team DR are willing to take their jokes that far. She looks so god damn sublime.

6/10:

I’m fairly sure that all they did for Angie’s appearance was take off her coat. I mean, she does kind of wear swimwear all the time, so I think that even though there’s no real uniqueness or originality to this one, it was the obvious direction to go in, so I have no real comment on it.

9/10:

Ok, this was a good one. I was really hoping that Miu in particular would fit her character to a tee, and if it didn’t I think I would have been rather let down. This is definitely satisfactory though, since leopard print absolutely works for her. Overall I think she looks superb.

10/10:

KAEDE PLEASE MARRY ME! She looks so fucking pulchritudinous! That’s not a word anyone knows, but that’s the extent of how enticing, foxy and sublime she looks! The sky blue is SO good on her, words can barely describe it! Kaede was one in particular who I set high expectations for, and I can gladly say that they were exceeded above and beyond!

[spiralhigh]

ranking the sdr2 cast by how much their formal wear hits

this is just my opinion, but my opinions are great and i know what i’m talking about! this will be long so it’s under a cut

S TIER:

s tier is reserved for only the best of them all, the cream of the crop, the fit that i would gladly lay down my life for. s tier is the crown jewel. s tier is what everyone else should strive to be... but only one can take the prize.

#1: AKANE OWARI

the undisputed champion. this look is everything to me. EVERYTHING. the red-trim cape with the fur. the contrast of the airy, gathered blouse with those skin-tight shiny (leather? vinyl??) pants. the pumps. the belt that screams disco style. the necklace accentuating the tasteful titty window. the red white and gold color scheme  are you FUCKING WITH ME miss owari this look could bring ARMIES to their KNEES in an INSTANT. whoever drew this deserves full creative control of the danganronpa franchise and i’m not kidding

A TIER:

a tier is for the fits that frankly own bones. they’re not as jaw-dropping and legendary as owari, but they’re still razor as hell and deserve to be met with riotous applause.

#2: KAZUICHI SOUDA

kazuichi, i didn’t know you had it in you, but this FUCKS. the character of the pins on the lapels, the sneakers, and the mispinned tie. the absolute CLASS of the suspenders, watch, and tiny round glasses. the handsome slick in the hair now that the greasy beanie is gone. the tasteful highwater. he looks like the host of the larry king show if the larry king show was exclusively about ska bands and he has never looked better

#3: HIYOKO SAIONJI

tell me this isn’t the cutest shit. the colors here are EXQUISITE. the bright notes from the blue on top, the way the soft pink is a perfect middle ground of the pink + white flowers on her sleeves, the subtle way the green in her bow matches the green in her collar, the white petals breaking up the sky blue that might otherwise look out of place? remarkable. stunning.

#4: PEKO PEKOYAMA

the ELEGANCE is EVERYTHING here. the monochrome is offset by just a splash of red that ties everything together with her eyes and the flower in her hair, the checkerboard pattern is visually interesting but not distracting, and her hair in that loose ponytail with the little white ribbon? ugh. ADORABLE! but most of all, look at those BOOTS. those CUTE LITTLE HEELS on those SICK LACE-UP BOOTS..... QUEEN shit!!!

#5: CHIAKI NANAMI

rounding out our a tier is chiaki in this adorable little dress just LOOK at her!!! she looks like a little rose, a perfect flouncy skirt with a glittery mesh overlay, a fun and fresh over-the-shoulder collar, a fucking big old bow tied in the back?? i can literally feel the way this dress would feel in my hands. it’s simple and perfect and frankly a GORGEOUS color on her this is flawless

B TIER:

b tier is a perfectly respectable place to be. these fits lack the lustre and flavor of the a tier entries, but they’re still dressed to impress and they still look fine as hell.

#6: TERUTERU HANAMURA

say what you will about teruteru (and i do) but this suit is ADORABLE and it fits in with his theme + talent better than any other mfer on this list. the tasteful white/brown/red palette gives it a flashy chocolate cookie look, which is amplified in the fun pattern on the jacket. the chef’s hat switching out for a little top hat and the way the cumberbund looks a lil bit like a chocolate bar is also VERY cute

#7: THE IMPOSTOR

now on its own, the suit is just alright. a vibrant pinstripe blue three-piece with the classic red tie wouldn’t land the impostor in b tier on its own... but that FUR COAT, LUXURIOUSLY DRAPED OVER THE SHOULDERS does WONDERS to pull this look together. not only is it worn with “yeah, it’s real mink, no, you can’t touch it” confidence, but it also ties the otherwise arbitrary white loafers into the structure of the look. it’s subtle and class as hell.

C TIER

c tier is full of looks that are... fine, but ultimately either are boring, lack cohesion, or have a confusing design choice or two that make it hard to get all that amped about. c tier is a passing grade, but nothing more.

#8: NAGITO KOMAEDA

there’s a lot that’s good about this outfit, but there’s also a lot that doesn’t really work. let’s start with the good: the slutty loose bowtie and collar, the tight-fitting vest that ends before the hipbones so you can see the belt, the cute little ponytail? (chefs kiss) exquisite, all of it. but the suit itself is boring as sing, and who the hell decided to put the t-shirt symbol on the sleeves??? was it to add visual flavor to an otherwise bland suit? this does NOT have the black/white/red elegance that peko had.

#9: FUYUHIKO KUZURYUU

the silver and gold mob-boss look, complete with matching shoes vest and fedora, are a nice nod to fuyuhiko’s talent! the plaid is teetering on the edge between fun and garish to me, but the fact that it’s consistent and the only pattern means it isn’t too offensive. quick question though: why are his pant legs rolled up like that?? this isn’t a cute “cuffed at the ankle” look, dude looks like he had to wade across a pond to get to the venue. what gives

#10: GUNDAM TANAKA

out of everyone here, gundam’s suit might be the most boring of all. the scarf is just his normal scarf. the red tie and trim don’t do anything to tie the look together. the only mild point of interest is the asymmetrical vest, and i can’t even tell if that’s intentional. simply put, this “““fancy”““ outfit isn’t even in the same ZIP CODE as the level of ostentatious chuuni that gundam serves us every single day in his casual wear. maybe even worse than being ugly... it’s disappointing.

#11: IBUKI MIODA

now, look. is this dress buckwild and ugly as hell? yes. but you know what else it is? it is IBUKI MIODA’S DRESS. there might not be a single cohesive thing about this dress aside from its color scheme. the huge poofy ruffles of the skirt and arm things with the spiked bow and corset are baffling. the artist somehow managed to draw the awkward, clumping shape of the skirt to make it look exactly like an emergency cosplay sewn four hours before a convention. frankly, i can’t justify ranking it as a c! but i’m doing it anyway, because the sheer level of craftsmanship demands it, and in this house we respect diy queens that are totally off the shits.

D TIER:

d tier is for outfits that aren’t offensive, exactly... but like, they sure don’t look good! d tier is not a respectable place to be. those in d tier won’t be laughed out of the ceremony in shame, but they should really run their outfit by someone else first next time.

#12: NEKOMARU NIDAI

now don’t get me wrong: i have nothing but respect for the titties-out look. keeping the shirt unbuttoned all the way down to where the lapels of the jacket end? that’s sexy as hell. however, this flawless idea has a confusing execution. why emerald green and orange? what’s with the... long-sleeved printed (hawaiian?) shirt? why the red pocket square? and the jacket itself, while fitted perfectly along the chest and midsection, has a weird, unflattering scallop shape flaring out at the bottom. i want to like this fit, but there are just too many bad choices.

#13: HAJIME HINATA

oh, hajime... literally nothing about this ensemble is it. the creamy manila suit might have had potential if there were literally any color variation in the vest (or potentially shoes) to give it a little more shape, or even if you just went with a white shirt underneath it! i could get behind a light, off-monochrome look! but that leprechaun-green shirt is downright perplexing to me. it looks like a mistake! did you get dressed in the dark? did you spill something on your other shirt? this is a mess.

F TIER:

f tier is inexcusable. f tier should never have happened. how does it get this bad. who did this? who’s responsible for this?

#14: SONIA NEVERMIND

y’know, the colors are pretty! i dig the white and teal! but... girl... what the fuck is this construction. the ruffles are all over the place. the bodice looks like it has less fabric than space it needs to cover. the bottom half of the skirt looks like it was sewn on as an afterthought because the top half was too short for dress code. what’s with the weird choker collar detached from everything else. why is the hairband a slightly different shade of green. so many decisions were made here and none of them are flattering

#15: MAHIRU KOIZUMI

yknow, i like the idea behind this. i can see what you were going for! the dress on its own might have worked, even! but everything else about it is just... so ugly. what the fuck is happening with those shoes??? the sheer black tights aren’t the sexy OL look you think they are. the collar of the dress looks like it’s... braided for some reason??? those earrings are so huge for no payoff, statement jewelry with nothing to say, and worst of all... that headband. GIRL. that headband and that belt...... there’s nothing here. also i love orange but it’s not her color.

and finally... the worst.

#16: MIKAN TSUMIKI

what the fuck. what the fuck is this. this is straight up cheap rubber fetish gear. why is the HAT rubber? that skirt ruffle makes this look like fucking polly pocket clothes. why the fuck is she wearing that. the clothes are so bad that it makes her hair look like rubber too. was she dared to wear this? is this some cruel punishment? i don’t even know what to say. this is the worst possible outfit. there is not even one redeeming quality about it.

[gaulemtypefemale-dm-l-016]

3d, 5d and 5n? :)

3d. Rank the endings (for one game of your choice or the true endings of the 3 games)

In terms of all games, I think I would rank 999 ending > VLR ending > ZTD ending.

However, each one of them gave me a different experience so I really enjoy them as a whole package. For example, when I finished VLR, I felt I needed more. The experience had been so intense that I wanted to play ZTD right away. On the other hand, ZTD's true ending made me feel very introspective, even if the writting felt lacking sometimes.

I ranked 999's ending higher because I feel like 999, in general, felt more concise and it had my favourite cast. I loved the epilogue and how the game could simply end there and not even have a sequel. It felt like a complete game by itself. Of course I was a bit desperate with the situation between Akane and Junpei, and how they ended up in separate ways, but it felt fitting.

As for VLR I really enjoyed the plot twist. I felt the true ending was a bit too long, like a never ending ride, but, despite the confusion, I enjoyed the general explanation of it. I also enjoyed the sad tone of the story, and I absolutely loved some of the reflections from the another time (even if not considered as canon).

However, the game asked for more.

And there's where ZTD enters. I had some problems getting used to the cinematics of the game and the characters, and, at the time I played, some things felt weird, like how suddenly it seemed so simple to just shift. As for the ending, I really like how it was put as a moral dilemma, a ZERO TIME DILEMMA, in fact, the situation of shifting (not sure if to think that the shifting until then had been made too easy, or it was purposedly used so that only later they had to face the fact that they doomed their other selves). The ending made me think a lot about how, despite them being alive at the end, despite this seemingly good turn of events, it still felt all like a gamble, as the begining of the game. In the end we didnt' even know the identity of the terrorist, and they still doomed their first ending iteration, for their last iteration (which has the trauma from playing the decision game).

Delta's character is generally a source of memes due to his quotes, but his words still left some marks. His whole plan was convoluted. It's almost like the second nonary game, but here the multiple timelines had to happen in order for this future to come true, and for him and Phi to exist.

I also love the ending theme and it plays very well, complementing this interminable dilemma mood the characters live through. I also love how, in the end, we can interpret Delta as a character portraying the player: "One of Delta's motivations for creating the Decision Game: he can't shift himself, but can read the minds of those who experienced other timelines, and was interested in learning about them. Given that Delta is technically the Player Character, this is probably a meta-narrative commentary on player curiosity" (taken from ZTD TV tropes).

So in the end this was all to say that, despite liking 999's ending better for how solid it seemed to me, the other games' endings also deserve a lot of credit for their worth.

(I didn't know the ranking was for the endings of all games or one in specific so I went with this, but I may try to rank for a specific game later).

5d. Do you consider Another Time to be canon? If so, do you have any theories on ?'s identity

I think at the time I finished ZTD I found that Another Time was not considered canon. Nevertheless I really liked its contents so I like to pick elements from it and incorporate in canon. One of my favourite part of it is Tenmyouji’s thoughts on this plan of jumping to the past and change it. The bikers’ story is one of my favourites there and I felt it was a message about how, despite losing Akane, he found Quark along his journey in this doomed timeline, and how, even if their plan works, this timeline still exists. There is also a possibility that the transporter was hinted with Alice and Clover’s conversation, but not sure if that was the alternative or not.

About ?’s identity, I think my favourite take is the player. Because the player is an irregular identity in the game. To get the Another Time, the player has to achieve certain goals, such as collecting the golden files. The player can play with timelines as much as they want since they can jump through the flowchart freely and they even command Sigma’s action through the game (which can explain the way sometimes he was surprised with his vote during the Nonary Game). And I believe it refers to the player coming from the true ending of ZTD, but this is merely speculation...

Since Delta could be meta commentary about the player, I also liked to think he could be involved in this, but since he can’t shift , it’s much improbable. However I like how there is a link with how the end of ZTD is Carlos pointing the gun at him, which represents a situation of danger that could trigger a shift.

Other than this, I think I haven’t thought much about it. I may have read some theories some time ago, but I don’t remember them now...

5n. Do you have any fanart/fanfic/fangame recommendations?

Fanart is probably what I consume the most. I really love @/keycrash’s works, @/kisschasey’s portraits of Snake, @/caelytrix, the way @/aestheticcannibal portrays Kyle and Dio, @/i0n4 and much more artists. I always try to reblog the amazing works I find from the fandom and sorry for not listing more, nor any work in specific.

Twitter is also a very good media to find a lot of good ZE fanarts. Not all of them are tagged, but generally searching the ZeroEscape tag allows you to find very cool works, along with other tweets and memes.

Now, on fanfiction I can’t really give much recommendations because I haven’t read many. I mainly read some from Zecret Santa event. I remember enjoying the one I got about Tenmyouji and Quark because I really love their wholesome relationship. Link here

There’s also one I once started to read but didn’t finish due to lack of time, but which was VLR’s story told from Phi’s POV and I found the idea extremely interesting although I still haven’t read it. It’s pretty long too. Link here

Now for an idea which concept I feel it’s funny and interesting: I once found one that was a Nonary game in the IKEA. I actually haven’t read it but at the time I thought it was a really funny idea. Link here

I’ve only read the first recommendation, but thought I should leave the other two, as they seem interesting and funny.

Sorry for the long post and the delay in replying. I also apologize for any mistake I made. I’m a bit tired but I really wanted to finish this post.

And thank you for the asks. I really enjoyed the question about Another Time and, although I’m pretty bad at ranking things, I like discussing and going through the games’ content again.

[zecretsanta]

Fic: Christmas at the Kashiwabara's

To: @miiversian​ 

From: @bookworm-2692​

I used the following prompt: the 999 cast hanging out together again for the holidays! (sans Ace bc… obvious reasons). There’s also bonus Nona and Ennea, since Hazuki is hosting the party!

This possibly isn’t quite as happy as you were hoping for - but as we know from VLR and ZTD, post-999 Junpei isn’t in a good place, so a bit of angst snuck its way in. I hope you enjoy it anyway!

Thanks for this prompt! I love the 999 cast, so this was really fun to write. I hope you enjoy it, and I wish you a wonderful rest-of-December!

AO3 Link

Summary: After the Second Nonary Game, Hazuki Kashiwabara hosts a Christmas Party for the other participants of the Nonary Game. They try to enjoy themselves and get into the Holiday Spirit, but as they’re still processing what happened last month, this doesn’t always go to plan.

———

Hazuki places the last knife and fork on the table, and sighs. It’s mid-December, mere weeks after the ordeal in Nevada, where she had been kidnapped and made to play some sick game, all to ensure the survival of some paradoxical girl’s existence. That same game was also where she finally learnt what her daughters had gone through nine years prior, and why they had returned from those nine days as shells of their former selves.

She still wasn’t entirely sure how she felt about the other participants of the Nonary Game. Two of them had caused the original game her daughters went through – Hazuki was free to hate them unreservedly, and feel gleeful that one was in jail and the other dead, blown to smithereens. Seven was the detective who had rescued Nona from the incinerator all those years ago – for all that he was annoying and loved to rile her up, she would be forever grateful that he had saved her daughter’s life.

Clover and Light were also victims of the first Nonary Game, the same game that Nona and Ennea had been kidnapped for. Hazuki felt nothing in particular towards them, other than pity that they had been forced to go through the game twice, and relieved that they had survived. The other set of siblings during Hazuki’s game, Aoi and Akane, had also gone through Nona and Ennea’s game as well. However, while she didn’t feel much specifically towards the Fields, she felt much more strongly about the Kurashikis, even though most of those emotions were conflicting and confusing. She felt the usual pity that as children they had been forced into such a cruel game, but she also felt anger that they then staged their own version of the game, endangering a further seven people (or nine, depending on how one counted). Their game however ultimately punished the four behind the first Nonary Game, with death and life in prison, and for this Hazuki was grateful. Nine years ago, Hazuki wanted anything to punish the culprits of her daughters’ kidnapping – now she had it, and she wasn’t sure if the price was worth it.

Then there was also the question of the paradox surrounding the siblings. Surrounding Akane Kurashiki in particular. Apparently, she had died on the boat nine years ago, but Hazuki had gone with Akane (and Aoi) behind every single door during the Nonary Game. Door 4. Door 8. Door 6. One of the Door 9s. She definitely seemed real behind each of those doors, and between the doors themselves. Somehow she had died nine years ago, and also masterminded the game six weeks ago in order to save her own life when she was twelve years old. This really increased Hazuki’s anger towards the siblings – that they would put on such a dangerous game, but then not even fully explain why, or how actions now could save a life in the past. Hazuki deserved a better explanation. But she was still glad they had ultimately survived. Probably.

The final participant of the Nonary Game was Junpei. Junpei, who had been friends with Akane when they were children, before Akane had died (or something. Hazuki had resolved to not think about that part of it too much). He had apparently not seen her or even thought about her for years, and yet now he cannot stop obsessing over her. He had immediately quit school to go find her. Hazuki wishes Junpei would just let it go and get over her. She was ultimately glad that Akane had decided not to be part of their lives anymore – she just wants Junpei to join the rest of them in moving on. As it is, every time she speaks to Junpei now, he’ll either be talking non-stop about her, or otherwise moping because she hasn’t gotten in contact with him yet. He had joined Seven’s detective agency, so Hazuki hopes he will be able to keep a closer eye on Junpei, and keep him from going further over the edge.

So, despite feeling conflicted or neutral about most of the others who had been kidnapped for the Nonary Game last month alongside her, they had all decided to keep in touch, and this evening’s Christmas Party was born. Since Aoi and Akane could not be contacted, they had not been invited. Junpei was devastated when he found out, although Hazuki is privately relieved. She isn’t sure she wants to confront the Kurashiki siblings about what had happened anytime soon, so knowing they won’t be here will give her some much needed space to process those emotions. Hazuki still isn’t entirely sure why she got stuck with the hosting job – until Seven pointed out that they were the two “most adulty” adults, and thus had the most established homes out of the group, and that his was a small flat since he lived alone, whereas her house was the largest because it was where she had raised Nona and Ennea. So here she was, setting the table, and hoping that tonight would not go horribly wrong somehow.

Just then, Hazuki hears the door unlock, followed by a loud “We’re home!” in Nona’s voice, and a smaller “With Clover and Light” in Ennea’s. Hazuki looks up, and indeed sees all four of them entering.

After the Nonary Game last month, Hazuki had learnt that her daughters had been kidnapped nine years prior in order to participate in an almost-identical Nonary game. Hazuki was shocked to learn that the morphogenetic field, pseudoscience she brought up to distract Junpei from whatever his funyarinpa nonsense was, was real, and that Nona and Ennea were intimately embedded within it. More disturbing was that their abilities with the fields were the reason they, and the other sixteen children, were kidnapped for that Nonary Game. Nona had met Light during their Game, and Ennea had met Clover, although somehow (Hazuki wasn’t sure she’d ever fully understand it) they were all aware of each other through the fields.

After escaping the Game, the Egyptian woman, Alice, had directed the car to the SOIS base for questioning. Following that, SOIS had attempted to track down all 18 children from the first Nonary Game, and offered them jobs. From what Hazuki could gather, Aoi and Akane could not be found, but the other 16 young adults now, all accepted the government job. Hazuki’s daughters had been reunited with their friends from those nine hours, nine years ago, and they were all workmates now. Nona and Ennea had thus offered Clover and Light a lift back to the Christmas Party following work that day, and now they had all arrived.

“Hello, hello!” Hazuki calls out. “Welcome to my home!”

“Hello, Lotus! It’s great to see you again.” Clover ran over to give Hazuki a hug, while Light walked over more calmly, and shook her hand.

“Thank you for agreeing to host us, I’m sure your home is very beautiful.”

“I’d appreciate being called Hazuki now, rather than Lotus, but you’re quite welcome.”

After Nona and Ennea each give her a hug, Hazuki directs Clover and Light to place the Kris Kringle gifts on the coffee table, where three brightly wrapped boxes already sit.

“I’m so surprised we’re the first to arrive,” Clover comments, “since it usually takes me forever to get ready.”

“It helps that we came straight from work though,” Nona adds.

“True.”

“Even so, I would have expected Seven to be more punctual – or even early,” Light interjects, looking thoughtful.

As if on cue, Hazuki’s phone buzzes with a message from Seven. He had told the group his real name after the SOIS questioning, since by that point everyone else’s was known, and codenames no longer mattered, but then Clover had declared that he would always be “Seven” to the group, and since he hadn’t introduced himself nine years ago when he was rescuing her brother and the others, then he lost the privilege of being known by a name (or at least, it would take at least another nine years for his name to sound like a usable name). Seven just shrugged at that, and said he didn’t mind the nickname anyway, and only disclosed his name to be fair. So Seven he still was.

Seven was texting Hazuki to explain he would be late, since Junpei was more unresponsive as usual. Junpei was extremely erratic when it came into keeping in touch – he would often go a week at a time before saying anything. Seven had taken to checking on Junpei when he didn’t respond to texts, and so he was giving Junpei a lift to Hazuki’s place (even if he, quote, had to drag him kicking and screaming).

“You’re right,” Hazuki announces to the group. “Seven was intending to be right on time, but he’s picking up Junpei, and today is apparently not one of Junpei’s better days.”

Nona and Ennea glance at each other as she says this, while Clover purses her lips and looks away. It’s Light who responds.

“Well, Junpei will be coming to the right place. We’re his friends, hopefully we can distract him tonight with food and jokes.”

Noises of affirmation heard all around, Hazuki sighs with relief as the conversation smoothly continues on. As a mother to children Junpei’s age, she worries about him. He rarely seems to discuss his parents or other family, or even other friends. His focus is completely trained upon Akane, and little else seems to occupy his time. She doesn’t want to baby him, though, and does her best to treat him as a regular adult, and avoids mentioning Akane Kurashiki whenever she can.

After about twenty minutes of conversation, the ringing of the doorbell cuts through and interrupts. Hazuki excuses herself, opens the door, and finds herself face to face with a grim Seven and a sullen Junpei. Upon seeing her, Seven grins, says “Merry Christmas”, and holds out his gift for the Kris Kringle. Junpei offers a small “Hi”, and Hazuki ushers them both inside.

“Ayyyy! They’re here!” Clover calls out.

“Junpei! What are you wearing?” Light says. “The colours clash horribly – I think it’s going to blind me!”

Junpei looks down at his all black outfit and scowls at Light but doesn’t say anything. Hazuki still chalks it up as a win – he doesn’t look as listless as he did before anymore.

Nona then steps up with Ennea following. Hazuki smiles when she sees this, as it has been their dynamic ever since they were small, Nona charging up and speaking for both of them, and Ennea being quieter behind.

“Hello Seven! And you must be Junpei. I’m Nona, and this is Ennea,” Nona introduces. “Nice to finally meet you after all these years.”

“Y- years? What do you mean years?”

“Akane mentioned you nine years ago. You were the one who told her about checking if the elevator was dry, to make sure we wouldn’t drown.” Nona steps closer to Junpei. “I was one of the four who went down the elevator at first, to check on Door 2 with Ren. Because of you, we didn’t drown. Of course we’d remember your name.”

“Of course,” Ennea adds, stepping forward as well, “we didn’t imagine at the time that you’d be an adult. But it was only weeks ago for you, wasn’t it? And not years, like it was for us.”

“And what on Earth did you mean by ‘boys don’t drown’? Of course boys drown! You idiot!” Nona flicks Junpei on the nose, and giggles when he takes half a step back, eyes wide and bewilderment clear on his face.

“Wh- what? You heard all that?”

Light smirks. “We didn’t hear your conversation, but Akane certainly repeated it for the rest of us.”

Junpei groans, and drops his head into both palms, just as Clover pouts and bemoans how it’s not fair that she didn’t get to witness that conversation, and that it’s not fair that her connection to Light is not two-way, like Ennea’s is to Nona. That’s news to Hazuki. She assumed all morphogenetic field connections were two-way, since that’s what she’s witnessed for years in her daughters. Hazuki raises an eyebrow and glances at Seven, who just smiles fondly at the others.

Ice broken, they begin to move to the table. The turkey is sitting in the middle, surrounded by various dishes, including a whole leg of ham and a potato bake. There are slices of cured salmon, meatballs and lingonberry jam, roasted vegetables, halved boiled eggs, bread rolls, and frankfurter sausages. Sitting on each plate are the Christmas crackers.

Soon enough, cracks fill the air as the crackers are pulled. Brightly coloured tissue paper crowns rest atop of everyone’s heads, and terrible jokes are being shouted across the table. The plastic items inside the crackers are looked at with mild curiosity before being forgotten for the rest of the meal. Long after all the crackers are gone, Junpei, Seven, and Nona have engaged in a heated pun and dad joke war. There’s a comment shouted over that din that the terrible jokes are supposed to end when the crackers end, as everyone digs into the food.

The clatter of cutlery against the plates begins to die down as everyone finishes. Hazuki is feeling comfortably full as she looks around the table, a feeling of satisfaction at seeing almost everyone’s empty plates. Junpei’s is still mostly full of food, and it looks as though he barely touched it. Hazuki doesn’t take it as a slight against her cooking, as Junpei’s appetite has been lacking lately, and mostly feels sorry for him. She doesn’t dwell on it though, as she doesn’t want to lower the otherwise lively mood – Clover and Ennea are excitedly chatting and practicing some of the ASL that Sachiko has taught them, while Nona, Light, and Seven are chatting about what each of them got up to in the nine years since they first met.

Nona glances over at Hazuki, then looks at Ennea, and then both of them get up to start clearing the table, telling Hazuki to stay sitting. Hazuki still can’t quite believe that the “twin thing” she had joked about all those years ago was real, and not just limited to twins.

“Ah, is it Kris Kringle time?” Seven says. “I’ll grab the gifts, you four stay put”

Junpei complies – Hazuki isn’t entirely sure he was even paying attention – but Light grumbles that being blind and missing an arm doesn’t make him incapable of helping, and gets up anyway to assist Seven. Clover takes one look at her brother, and stays seated, explaining that when he’s like this, he’d rather not have help either, so it was simpler to just… let him be.

Soon enough, the table is cleared and the gifts are in a pile in the centre of the table. Ennea fetches a couple of dice and Clover takes one look at them and bursts into laughter. She points to Junpei and says “no dice”, continuing to laugh. Hazuki smiles in wry amusement and Seven chuckles at this, when the doorbell rings unexpectedly. Still standing, Ennea goes to the door and opens it, silent shock radiating from her. A shout of “No way!” from Nona, before she leaps up and runs to the door.

Curiosity piqued, Hazuki begins to rise from her seat, when Nona says, “Well don’t just stand there, let them in Ennea!”

It’s two people Hazuki was beginning to think she’d never see again. The two people who orchestrated the entire game last month.

“Aoi? Akane?”

At the mention of “Akane”, Junpei finally looks up, and sees her.

“Akane? You’re here? Why?” Junpei is just staring in shock and disbelief – which is exactly what everyone else is doing, too.

“I’m sorry for turning up uninvited,” Akane begins, but Junpei interrupts her.

“Don’t apologise for that! I’m just so glad you’re here! But… why didn’t you come find us sooner? How did you know we would all be here?”

“We couldn’t come earlier,” Aoi says sternly. “What we did was not exactly within the bounds of legality, and we couldn’t be sure you wouldn’t turn us into the police. And if you start to do so now we’re marching straight back out again. I didn’t even want to show up here and now, but Akane… she insisted. She said we had to do this.”

“Junpei, I’m so sorry. I just. I had to disappear like that.” Akane tries to be gentle but Hazuki can detect a hint of impatience in what she is saying.

“Okay so you had to leave or whatever, that’s fine,” Clover interrupts. “But like, I know Lotus wasn’t able to contact you two. Because you left. So how on Earth did you know we’d all be here? Like not to make you feel unwelcome or anything but…?”

Akane places her head in her hands, and sheepishly says “I got it from Junpei, via the Morphogentic Fields. We’re still connected.”

“Wait… you got my location via the field? Why couldn’t I get yours?”

“Well um, Junpei… I have a bit more experience with the fields…”

“What she means to say,” Aoi interrupts, “is that she’s amazing at them and your abilities are non-existent. You were only able to connect to her before because she was able to reach across the nine years and connect. You can’t do jackshit on your own. She was able to read the invitation Lotus sent you, but even if Akane was standing in a room with flashing neon lights saying ‘we are here’ you would get nothing from her, unless she chose for you to get it”

“So Akane is able to spy on Junpei whenever she likes, and he gets no say in the matter?” Light asks quietly.

Akane says nothing, and looks to the ground. Junpei glares at everyone and no one. Aoi freezes, as though he hadn’t considered it in those words before.

“No… I don’t think that’s quite right,” Ennea pipes up.

“Yeah. We’re able to block each other out if the other is annoying us too much,” Nona adds.

“So if we don’t want to be connected… then we won’t be.”

“And since we know Junpei quit uni to search for Akane, he wants to find her. He opened himself up to her. She can connect to him through the morphogenetic field because, on some level, he wants her to.”

“No!” Junpei suddenly shouts. “I don’t want her to, to, to spy on me! I just… don’t want her to disappear!”

“I can’t block Light though.” Clover turns to her brother. “Can I?”

Light looks thoughtful. “Well, I can’t say I’ve ever been aware of you blocking me. Sometimes I don’t get anything from you, but I don’t know if that was intentional on your part or just…”

“So can we only block each other because our connection is equal in each direction?” Nona asks.

“But so was ours!” Junpei bursts out. “Back in the incinerator, I could hear her, and when I spoke, she responded! It’s like we were talking in real time!”

“She’s just that much better at it then you. She can transmit and receive powerfully enough that she could simulate that. I don’t think you can block her,” Aoi says. “For what it’s worth, I don’t get a choice either. She either chooses to give me something, or get something from me, and otherwise I can’t connect to her either.”

“I don’t want to be spied on,” Junpei repeats in a quiet voice, staring at the floor.

There’s silence for a moment, as though no one knows how to respond to that.

“Well, you’re here now aren’t you? So you may as well join us and sit down, right?” Seven looks at Hazuki in confirmation, and she nods. “Have you eaten yet? Yes? That’s good, I think we pretty much demolished everything here, we were just about to get on to the Kris Kringle game. Perfect timing for you to show up, Santa Claus. What have you got in your sack of goodies?”

“My. Name. Is. Aoi.” Aoi says through gritted teeth. “Yes, we did bring gifts, but stop calling me Santa!” He holds up two wrapped boxes, a cylinder and a flat rectangle, and places them on the table sharply.

“Is that another thing you stole from my brain?” Junpei retorts.

“I mean,” Akane begins, “it is a Christmas party, is it not? So gifts were an obvious thing to bring.” Junpei’s glare doesn’t abate, and Akane sighs and adds, “Okay yes, I read that on the invitation too. Happy now?”

Before another argument could get under way, Clover picks up the dice Ennea brought over earlier, and says, “Okay forget about all that. Let’s play! I’m the youngest so I should start!”

Relieved by the distraction, Hazuki raises her eyebrow and says “Sure. Provided you don’t insist on age order for the rest of it, and settle for a simple clockwise direction.”

Clover says “Deal” at the same moment that Junpei mutters “You just don’t want it to be obvious that you’re like the oldest one here or close to.”

“Oi! Just because you’re grumpy is no excuse to turn on me young man!”

Before Hazuki could continue yelling at Junpei’s blatant disrespect (how dare he!), Clover throws the dice down onto the table, perhaps harder than necessary, where they clatter for a few seconds before turning up as a one and a three.

“Aww,” Clover whines, as she pushes the dice to her left to Nona. Nona rolls the dice less forcefully than Clover, and ends up with a three and a five. She just smiles, and passes the dice to Light, making sure they drop into his hands. He rolls, and Nona cranes over to see what he got.

“First double,” she announces. “Two ones.”

“Wait, seriously?” Clover asks, and gets out of her seat to see for herself.

“She’s right,” Seven, to Light’s left and at the head of the table, says. “Snake eyes, huh? What are the chances of that?”

Light smirks. “Clearly I chose the right name for myself six weeks ago.” He reaches out and grabs the closest gift in the pile, as Seven grabs the dice and rolls.

The game continues. Doubles on the dice are rewarded with choosing a present from the centre, until they’re all gone, and then the players are free to steal the gifts from each other. Hazuki doesn’t miss how Junpei keeps on snatching the gifts brought by the Kurashiki siblings, despite the intermittent glares he keeps on sending them.

Soon enough, the timer on Ennea’s phone goes off and the game ends. Everyone stops to take in each other’s hoards. Clover has a pleased grin on her face as she notices that she has the largest hoard, with three gifts. Light and Ennea managed to snag two each, while Aoi and Junpei each have a single gift. Hazuki, Seven, Nona, and Akane all have no gifts. Ennea immediately hands one of her gifts to Nona, seated across from her, while Light offers one of his gifts to Hazuki, seated across from him. After a beat, Clover notices everyone looking pointedly at her, sighs long-sufferingly, and gives a gift each to Seven and Aoi.

The group then opens the gifts. Hazuki unwraps the small package from Clover, and finds a deck of playing cards. Hazuki turns to Clover to thank her, but is greeted by the sight of Clover staring suspiciously at a packet of chips, and then putting one in her mouth. Almost immediately, she yells at Junpei about the chilli flavour while simultaneously offering them to everyone around her. Aoi absent-mindedly takes a chip and eats it without flinching while fiddling with the three-dimensional puzzle he received from Light, trying to pull it apart. Next to Aoi, at the end of the table, is Akane with the mini succulent that Ennea bought.

Just then, a loud shout sounds out. Nona is holding what appears to be a Pringles can, but instead of Pringles inside, is a giant stuffed snake. Nona glares at Aoi, while he just grins and offers her a thumbs up, leaning back on his chair and thoroughly enjoying himself. She stuffs the snake back inside the Pringles can, closes the lid, and throws it at Aoi. It hits him in the face, dislodging the lid, so the snake leaps out again. Aoi falls off his chair, and glares at Nona, and then at his sister when she also starts laughing.

Hazuki tears her eyes away from the sight, and looks back at Light. He received the bottle of wine she had bought, and is sniffing it to identify it. He seems to sense that she is watching him, as he turns to face her and thank her for the gift.

“A joke book!” Ennea exclaims from Hazuki’s left. “And they’re not even good jokes. They’re terrible puns and dad jokes. Almost worse than the Christmas crackers earlier! Seven, why do you wish for me to suffer in this manner?”

Seven just laughs and holds up the notebook and coloured gel pens he received from Nona. “Your sister has just granted me the means to create even more jokes, and worse ones. Just you wait for next year!”

Ennea groans, dropping her face into her arms. “Just kill me now. End my suffering, please,” she jokes.

Hazuki laughs and looks beyond Ennea to Junpei to see what he received. He’s holding yet another book, looking between it and Akane and back again.

“What’s wrong with it, Junpei?” Hazuki asks.

“It’s a Sudoku book!” Junpei exclaims. “It’s like she’s taunting me about last month!”

Clover starts laughing. “Oh man. That would’ve been terrible for any of us to receive since we’ve all been in that incinerator – but especially you!”

Junpei glares again. “Akane! Did you do this on purpose?”

“Do what?” Akane asks serenely. “I did indeed exchange money to obtain that book… but I didn’t purposely give it to you. You kept on grabbing it yourself!”

Aoi smirks. “She was pretty sure you’d go for the one from her though.”

“Hey! Don’t expose me like that!” Akane turns in her seat and playfully hits her brother, before turning back to Junpei. “I’m sorry, this wasn’t meant to cause distress. You at least don’t have a time limit for any of these.”

Junpei scowls. “I guess.”

“Junpei – you’ve been trying so hard to find Akane,” Hazuki begins. “Now that she’s here, why are you being so hostile towards her?”

“I- I don’t… she’s just confusing! Why a Sudoku book? Why does she get to disappear and then come back without warning? Why is she allowed to spy on me? I don’t understand!”

Aoi leans over to Akane, and quietly says, “I think we’ve overstayed our welcome. We should go before we make things worse.”

Akane nods and stands. “Hazuki, thank you so much for opening your home to us. It was lovely seeing you all again one last time but it’s time for us to go.”

“Yeah, thanks,” Aoi adds. “Merry Christmas, happy holidays, all that jazz.”

“Wait.” Junpei gets out of his chair. “What do you mean by ‘one last time’? Are you leaving again? Why’d you come back if you’re only going to leave again? Why are you leaving me?”

Akane just looks heartbroken as Junpei keeps on talking. Junpei’s arm reaches up, reaches for her, but stops before touching her. Akane doesn’t look at Junpei, mumbles another apology, and turns around and back towards Hazuki’s front door. Aoi offers Junpei a final, “Sorry, man, we both wish we didn’t have to do this,” before following his sister out the door. Junpei’s arm continues hanging in the air where Akane used to be, before it drops to his side. Junpei bows his head, and Hazuki can see his body shaking, while everyone else stays sitting at the table in stunned silence.

Clover is the first to break the silence. “They’re… gone. Just like that. They’re gone.”

Seven gets up, walks past Hazuki to Junpei and grips his shoulder. “Hey man. How are you holding up?”

Silent sobs continue wracking Junpei’s body as he struggles to draw breath, let alone respond. Seven draws him into a hug, enveloping him and shielding him from the stares of the others.

“I think we’ll head home now,” Seven says, not releasing his hold upon Junpei. He meets Hazuki’s eyes over the top of Junpei’s head. “Thank you so much for your hospitality. I hope you have a wonderful holiday. Thanks everyone for an enjoyable evening. Come on, Junpei.”

One arm still around Junpei, and they too leave.

“Poor Junpei,” Ennea whispers.

“How did Akane change so much?” Nona wonders. “She’s nothing like what she was nine years ago.”

“The incinerator,” Light says. “None of us can know exactly what she went through in there.”

“But… she survived, didn’t she?” Clover asks. “She’s here now, we did the Nonary Game last month to save her life. So she shut it off. So it’s just like what happened when Junpei shut it off for us last month, or when Reed solved it for Ennea’s group nine years ago, right?”

“There are infinitely many timelines where she died,” Light says. “There’s only one where she survived.”

“But that’s this timeline! She survived here!”

“I still remember her dying. I remember her screams and I remember Aoi collapsing on the floor when the door opened and all he saw was ash. I also remember Akane surviving. I imagine if I can remember Akane dying, so can she. She probably fully remembers burning to death until she no longer existed. That would change a person.”

“I remember her dying,” Ennea mumbles. “Nona remembers her surviving.”

“Y-yeah. I think I can understand how she would remember dying too,” Nona says.

Hazuki doesn’t know what to say. She didn’t even find out about the first Nonary Game until she had already been through her Nonary Game, and even during her game she didn’t have the pressure of either finding or sending information through a, a, a pseudoscience! These four had that extra pressure, as well as being actual children at the time.

The silence stretches for a moment longer, and then Light says, perhaps a little too brightly, “This was a wonderful evening, Hazuki. However, I think we need to head home now as well. It’s late.”

Clover startles out of her thoughts and agrees. “You’re a wonderful cook, Lotus! If that’s what Nona and Ennea had growing up, they’re so lucky.”

Hazuki smiles. “Thank you. Happy holidays, and get home safe.”

“We will! I’m driving!” Clover grins. “Bye Ennea! Bye Nona!”

“Bye! See you soon!” Nona and Ennea chorused.

Once the door closes behind the Field siblings, Hazuki begins chewing her lip, worried.

“Did I somehow make it worse for Junpei, doing this?” she asks her daughters.

“No, Mum,” Nona says. “I think it was good for him to actually interact with people again.”

“Besides, you couldn’t know that Akane would show up, nor that that would affect him like that,” Ennea adds.

“I suppose,” Hazuki concedes. She still isn’t entirely convinced, but it isn’t just Junpei she worries about. Everyone who has been through a Nonary Game will carry those scars for life. They just have to take this one day at a time.

She wraps her daughters up in a hug, reminding herself that they’re still here, still alive. One day, this will all get easier. They just have to get there.

[caro-bug]

Danganronpa Characters Sugar part 2 - Goodbye Despair!

Hajime:

Most relatable protag imo

Pretty handsome too

Kamukura, Kamukura Yas Queen!

Baby stop overworking yourself and just accept yourself please

Kazuichi:

On one hand, the way he simps for Sonia is kinda usetteling. On the other hand, he would most likely be the absolute sweethart to his partner

He's a good bro as well

Deserves a looot of love

Him making Minimaru was so adorable I can't ❤

Fuyuhiko:

I love him

THE FIRST TIME HE SPOKE IN A TRIAL IT WAS ABOUT PEKO'S ALIBI AND STOMACH ACHES

His smile is so pure

This baby gangsta doesn't really drink alcohol and disaprooves driving without a license. That's so good I can't

Best👏character👏development👏in👏the👏franchise👏

Deserves all the Pekos in the world

Yeah... It's obvious he's my favoriute, isn't it?

Peko:

I would never suspect her of being such a great actor when playing Sparkling Justice

So loving

So loyal

So beautiful

All I want her to do is live like a normal person by Fuyuhiko's side

Nagito:

He made the game so much more entertaining

Might be relying on his luck too much, but still, he's a fucking genious

Honestly? I didn't like him (just respected him for his smarts) until I've watched the OVA and DAMN. Him dreaming of befriending Fuyu and Kazuichi, thinking that Sonia is a badass, lowkey shipping Sonda, wanting to see Warriors of Hope, Matsuda and Ryouko safe and happy... Now I feel like I need to protect him.

Looks SO adorable in anime

Sonia:

That one character who makes a game much funnier without being an obvious comic relief

Swears in the funniest way ever

DO YOU KNOW THAT SHE TOOK CARE OF THE 4 DARK DEVAS AFTER GUNDHAM'S DEATH?

She and Gundham make the best duo ever btw

Gundham:

I LOVE the way he speaks

DO YOU KNOW THAT THE SPELL HE USED IN THE EXECUTION WAS TO PROTECT HIS 4 DARK DEVAS!?

He's actually a softie and that's alright

He and his Devas are the cutest

Ibuki:

My ray of sunshine

#hiyokoproof

She makes me a bi disaster

NEEDS to form a band with Sayaka, Leon and Kaede

Can we appreciate the fact that in her FTE she tries to help Hajime regain his memory?

Nekomaru:

HE SACRIFICED HIMSELF TWO TIMES IN THE SAME CHAPTER I CAN'T

Gives pretty good life advices

Akane NEEDS a person like him

His mechomaru quirks in chpt. 4 were so fun.

Akane:

Deserved so much better

SOMEONE GIVE HER PROPER ED ABOUT SEXUALITY SHE NEEDS IT PLEASE

"It was so dark I couldn't see my food!"

It's kinda relaxing how happy she always is

Her relationship with Nekomaru is 👌

Mikan:

It should be illegal to use her for fanservice.

Needs her own defense squad

Is honestly so cute

Needs a therapy.

Pretty useful tbh

Chiaki:

Waifu material. Obviously.

Was very useful, but It didn't look like such a big deal, unlike in Kyoko's case. Not that I dislike Kirigiri, but I like the fact that they have different energies

Her sleepiness and lags were kinda cute, even though they were caused by her... Unique nature

Her both deaths give me a real heartache

Hiyoko:

Dear little gremlin

I used to dislike her a lot, but her fte helped me understand her.

Give her a normal life, please

Her bond with Mahiru is preciousss

Mahiru:

I watched the dubbing for that one manga chapter and her creating the photoalbum with such passion was honestly so wholesome

One of the most real characters in the cast.

Could be the main character and I wouldn't mind

Could be a good leader

Twogami:

A great leader

Such a good person I can't

He kept his promise.

His bond with Ryota in the anime always made me smile.

His talent is really cool too

Teruteru:

He just wanted to see his momma 😓

Seems like a really aprroachable guy when he's not a total perv

[deathdesu]

Zero Escape ask meme: 1h, 2a, 3c, 5f?

1h. Favorite quote: is it too basic if I say that it’s ‘SEEK A WAY OUT’?  it’s just really memorable to me and I always sing it to the little tune that plays when it shows since the amount of syllables and the amount of notes are the same. seek~ a~ way~ out~ 

2a. Least favorite character: Quark, I guess... I just think he’s more plot device than character and he’s kind of boring. He didn’t feel very defined outside of his relationship to Tenmyouji and he was missing for half of the game he was in. I hated having to look for him over and over. And the way they tried to paint him as sinister and then he wasn’t at all, which was kind of pitiful. Vent Goblin Quark would have been worth the hype they built up around him!  3c. Rank the ZTD teams: Q-Team Best Team > C Team OT3 > Dial D for DISASTER  

but honestly, this order only exists because D-end 2 is just THAT BAD. Unlike D team who I loved for the whole game until that ending soured me on them irreparably, I disliked C-Team for most of my first run and they only grew on me later. I hated the design change for Akane and Junpei - their characterization in ZTD was a bit grating but I understood it. But physically, they were unrecognizable to me. Akane’s face used to be so jolie-laide in 2D pics like this - her long features! her world weary heavy eyelids! nowhere to be found in ZTD design, she was a purple haired doe eyed moe girl. And Junpei already looked like death in 999, obviously there were ways to show his jadedness without turning him into a goth. On both teams the third wheel character was the saving factor. Carlos is pure himbo perfection and Phi just deserved so much better than the shit she was dealt. 

Meanwhile, Q team just grew on me lightning fast with their hilariously murderous found family vibes. They were such a delight I actually felt begrudged having to do anyone else’s fragments. I had never been more endeared to zero escape than I did playing as them. Eric’s fish out of water normie schtick is so great in this cast of hyperintelligent psychic weirdos and his PTSD + losing everyone he ever loved adds depth and sympathy to his largely antagonistic role. Sean is pragmatic but a huge sweetie and just a really well rounded character, and so interesting as a character that both of the other members of his team can see a part of themselves in - he is the perfect leader for Q Team in terms of both having enough empathy to truly attempt to understand them and work with them to be better people, and  being a super-strength robot who is absolutely not taking shit from them once enough becomes enough. You kind of start the game out going ‘oh no who left this small child with the assholes, please save him’ to realizing that actually, he’s got this! AND MIRA. Look, I have wrote my big analysis on how she highlights the themes of ZTD so well, and just. she’s murder wife. I made my animal crossing island Mira-themed what do you fuckin expect from me tbh.  

So if you averaged out my experiences then in truth

 Q team >>>>>>>>>>>>>>> C team = D team 

Sorry, not sorry 🔪❤ 

5f. Rant about something you disliked about the games: Again!? Well alright, let’s see... I’m just going to come out and say it. The payoff of VLR is extremely good, but playing the actual game is torture. I’m honestly convinced it is by design.  The events are so similar throughout, that all the timelines blur together in your memory and it’s hard to discern which events happen when. The bland ass sci fi shelter contrasted to 999′s gorgeous Titanic replica. And unlike in 999 where the character moments were blended masterfully into the escape rooms themselves and what you found at the end tended to differ by a lot, in VLR besides the escape rooms/your partner, you just repeat the same set phases of the AB game until at the very end one character tells you their backstory out of the blue in a monologue. There are also a million same-y bad endings where someone besides Sigma gets enough BP to ditch everyone. God. It’s just... so much. 

There is a certain degree of brilliance to it.  We experience every moment Sigma does, encountering all of these horrible situation where for the time we are powerless. And it's SO frustrating. You really feel what he would be feeling. The complete torture of enduring the nonary game over and over and over with no victory in sight. Like, I hit every plot lock in the game before I got a single ending, so I basically WAS Sigma. But you know....I don’t like being tortured! I hated it! It took me like two years to beat the game because it made me so unhappy to play and I procrastinated on it forever. If I hadn’t been on a flight where I discovered all the other games I brought besides VLR made me motion sick, I don’t think I would have ever finished it. Of course, the catharsis of reaching the end was immense. But it was a cliffhanger, so the kind of immense that also invokes berserker rage...? I really can’t imagine how fucking unhinged I would have become if I was one of those Zero Escape fans who played it ten years before ZTD came out. I finished it a comfortable six months before and I STILL would have fought an army for VLR young Sigma (but NOT OLD SIGMA.) 

[prismed-tears]

imagine the dr surviving cast watching a mystery movie. they would be the WORST

trigger happy havoc

there's kirigiri who figures it out from the set-up (please. its chock full of cliches.) you don't know when byakuya figures it out, but he's just smirking at random close-ups and snorting snidely. (while he has a good idea, he's definitely just waving his dick around to keep up appearances too). makoto is the absolute worst. he's muttering the entire thing through, practically spoiling the entire movie as they go along.

there's asahina she makes for good audience, she's just vibing and gasping dramatically, giving the right reactions at the right moments. she's also practically strangling makoto lmao. there's hagakure, who makes bizarre and random guesses (conspiracy theorist) that happen to be right like.. twice (actual functioning clairvoyant, surprisingly). he also tries to fall asleep, but makoto is so damn loud. makoto and hagakure are a two-man class trial, them disproving and arguing both of their theories. touko's just there because it's teeeeechnically a date with her beloved white knight, but you bet your ass that she can enjoy good storytelling and plot devices. she's basically cinema sins as she mutters "huh. narration. cheap tactic." kirigiri is silently nodding along, and eventually, they're both discussing the cliches and the utter bullshit in it, lmao. touko doesn't quite figure out the mystery, but she's pointing out plot holes as they go.

makoto eavesdrops and uses it as truth bullets in the makeshift class trial. eventually byakuya joins in, by the halfway point, they're all drowning out the movie completely. asahina's just bummed out and wondering how did they think this was a good idea. kirigiri hasn't officially joined, but she's basically dropping hints to makoto as they go along. touko does the same thing to byakuya. hagakure cries out that it's unfair, he doesn't have a sidekick. kirigiri tries to pry out touko's knowledge of cliches, touko cries out that kirigiri's a traitor for betraying her trust by using their earlier discussion, etc etc.

by the end, asahina's just happy that the characters got what they deserve. kirigiri's right, of course, but hagakure predicts an unforeseen plot twist that's just bad writing in the movie, touko is practically ranting how the fuck did that happen, there were so many plot holes for the twist to happen, but he's right nonetheless. makoto gets it wrong, actual investigation skills doesnt work in a movie, he keeps attempting the movie to apply real life logic. and as for byakuya? he's just smirking and laughing all the way through. is he correct? is he just waving his dick around? that's the real mystery.

goodbye despair

(technically they're all surviving, but i'm just counting the awakened ones at the end of the game, because... that's a lot of people lmao.)

(+ nagito and chiaki because we need actual detectives in here, and they're barely detectives as it is.)

let's start this off with— chiaki is asleep. she's down for the count. hajime keeps trying to wake her up but she's out. that leaves nagito and hajime. hajime is just eyeing/glaring at nagito, nagito knows, he's just 💞😄🖐🍿 as for the actual mystery, hajime actually knows how to keep his mouth shut... for the most part. he's muttering out half-formed syllables at random times, or shaking his head. sometimes, nagito asks him to elaborate, and hajime reluctantly does. when nagito isn't doing that, he's watching the movie, going "huh? but..." which makes hajime go crazy. elaborate. what do you mean. but WHAT. sometimes nagito laughs at random times and hajime's practically boring his eyes into nagito's skull, wondering what the fuck he's thinking. chiaki wakes up at random times, points out random things, hajime's shaking her, what does she mean he didn't quite catch it, but she's already gone. hajime obsesses over the slurred syllable that he heard.

and then there's kazuichi, who... isn't quite following? that's the detective dude, right? what do you mean that it's a common trope in movies? that doesn't make sense, he's working for the police, why is he trying to get arrested— and there's akane, who's just cackling at the dead bodies and hollering at the crime scenes as she wolfs down her popcorn. why aren't you freaked out, fuyuhiko asks. you aren't acting like this in the game, fuyuhiko says. of course akane knows how to differentiate fiction from reality. fuyuhiko understands the sentiment, both of them go apeshit at the crime scenes, fuyuhiko wants the detective to lose because he doesn't like the police much, mafia and all. meanwhile, there's sonia, who already watched 70 other movies with practically the exact same plotline, but she's basically freaking out at every turn. she's ooohing and aaaahing at every plot twist and kazuichi is like. oh PLEASE, he already saw that coming. he stretches his arms very unsubtly, sonia primly stands up and moves ten seats away. you're right, miss sonia, this is a better spot. kazuichi says, appearing out of nowhere. sonia moves away. this is a vicious cycle.

she finds her way eventually to hajime, who's five seconds away from an aneurysm. he's trying to pick the brains of two people while trying to figure out the plot of the movie. nagito looks very strangely pleased. sonia is unfazed, randomly saying that "oh, you know x is actually stole x, right? but that's only one facet of the grand plan, which is currently in motion." hajime's about to cry. thank fuck. an actual conversational partner. they calmly swap theories, kazuichi desperately trying to join in the conversation but he really isn't keeping up. fuyuhiko barges in, basically going what the fuck are you all on, are you saying that this movie is gonna have a happy ending? hell no, it doesn't work like that, fuyuhiko should know. this is what would actually happen—

it's an actual class trial now, akane dropping in and all. she asks for clarifications every once in a while, but she doesn't really care. kazuichi is practically kissing her feet. nagito has gone 💞😄🖐🍿🧏🏼‍♂️👀💞 at this point. fuyuhiko is very much concerned. hajime doesn't see jack shit. what does hajime see, you ask? hajime sees that nagito isn't opening his mouth to share his thoughts. hajime asks him properly. nagito answers with his own question. hajime is about to pop a vein. why does he even bother. sonia calmly says that y is dying. chiaki wakes up. red bracelet. passes out again. hajime shakes her shoulders to no avail. hajime hinata is about to cry. kazuichi, out of all people, tries to calm him down. this makes him feel worse.

sonia is practically a clairvoyant as she predicts what's going to happen 5 seconds before it does. nagito goes 💞😄🖐🍿🧏🏼‍♂️👀💞 😄🖐🍿🧏🏼‍♂️👀💞 does nobody else see this, fuyuhiko says. i do, kazuichi says. they are both unable to do anything. for the very first time in a long while, hajime is blindsided in this mystery, and sonia was about to figure it out before he did. his mind is working on 5x speed now. he knows he shouldnt be competitive. its just a movie. he cant help himself. he find a red bracelet on the assistant detective. sonia doesn't say anything about it. hajime is now unlocking 50% of his brain (not literally. no kamukura in this post lmao, im not gonna put my hands in THAT).

final fight scene as the assistant tries to escape. fuyuhiko is on the top of his lungs, pointing out the many different ways he could knock out the detective. akane's joining with him. kazuichi's just joining in the fun at this point. the mystery gets solved. hajime fucking called it. sonia is genuinely caught off-guard, she was too used to movie tropes, but it's a pleasant surprise. fuyuhiko's just pissed that the detective won. "i didn't see that coming :)!" nagito says. what the fuck are you talking about, hajime says, and all traces of victory are gone. nagito says that he isn't a fan of the mystery genre. hajime's eye is twitching. he knows, deep down, nagito is truthful, but also, why does it feel like bullshit. i called it too miss sonia, kazuichi says. everyone knows that he's lying. sonia suddenly lost the ability to hear. chiaki wakes up. summarizes the case. how the fuck do you know that, you were out cold, hajime says. i was spoiled by a redditor, chiaki says as she blinks the sleep out of her eyes. hajime doesn't feel victorious at all. kazuichi, once again, sympathizes. right before hajime can storm off altogether, fuyuhiko joins in the pity pile, and hajime actually finds the hope to live again. what a hopeful sight, nagito says. no hope here, hajime realizes, just despair. akane is sitting beside 5 empty tubs of popcorn. hajime is half-tempted to shove his head in one.

(sidenote: nagito can probably solve the mystery if he tried but he really doesnt care that much + it was fun to rile hajime up lmao)

[magioftheseas]

How would you rank the sdr2 girls from worst to best written?

That’s pretty hard considering there are like...different kinds of bad writing, from functional bad to offensive bad. But, then again, there’s both of that in sdr2. Also all but one of the girls who die only die in like... Chapters 2-3, the first half of the game, which come to think of it, is extremely fucking weird. Shouldn’t it be more spaced out...?

There’s also just that there are certain things that annoy me more than others, and I’ll maybe try to make note of that? Idk how solid this list is, but... Well, whatever.

Note: I’m only taking sdr2 proper into account.

Decent All Things Considered Tier

Mahiru - Probably the least amount of sexism in her character, with pretty defined flaws that contributed in her dying (her short temper and narrow-mindedness). Guess you could call them...fatal flaws. Hahahaaaa. Ah. Anyway, she was also fairly involved with story events before her death and her personality was pretty consistent. While there are still some issues and inherent sexism in her personality, at least she...still has...one? A nuanced one, at that? She’s not a shallow character, at least. Still, her “be a man shit” is annoying but I’ll take that over the other crap we have in this game.

Sonia - Generally involved and usually palpable in terms of handling. The sexist shit is more Souda’s fault than hers, so I don’t feel like knocking off points for it. The only issue is that she’s lacks big character moments and is overall a static character. She does get more fed up with Souda’s harassment though, which is something, even if nothing comes from it. Bah. Also the romantic subplot with Gundam is fine. It’s probably the most fine a romantic anything has ever been in this franchise. But because she lacks anything super profound, I can’t put her above Koizumi despite liking her more and her...surviving to the end.

There’s At Least Something Here But URGHHHHHHHH Tier

Mikan - Y’know I was pretty resistant to the idea of putting her at third because of her...everything. But, like, even so... I wouldn’t call her inconsistent, I wouldn’t call her shallow, and I think she’s fleshed out a decent amount. It’s just her...everything. Anyway, I’ve gone on length as to why I love Mikan’s writing on paper, supremely tacky and gross execution of her character aside. She’s probably the best example of a deconstruction in sdr2, being a ugu doormat with like, AAAAAAAALL the actual baggage and shittiness that kind of person would have. Mikan’s personality of being emotionally manipulative with a huge victim complex while also being incredibly resentful of those around her (for good reason) is still SUPER fascinating. There’s layers to how she even exploits herself for sympathy points as well as attention. But...y’know... Still inherently pretty gross and not handled deftly by someone who truly understands what a fucked up mentality that is. She’s definitely not palpable...but I guess the actual nuances of her personality make up for it in terms of...whether or not I think she’s at least well-written. Would have less qualms putting her this high if the characters actually learned shit from her.

Hiyoko - WE COULD’VE HAD IT AAAAAAAAAAALL. I love Hiyoko. She’s my other favorite sdr2 girl with Sonia. Bully girls often get a bad rap, but they can be interesting, and Hiyoko’s a particularly stand-out example. She’s not manipulative. She’s in fact, really soft-hearted and sensitive, and she hates those aspects of her, so she targets people specifically for having those traits. She’s insecure! And it makes her shitty! I stan! That she cares for Koizumi for actually reaching out to her is super important. She could’ve been one of the best if not the best...but then Kodaka had her killed for bullshit reasons and had to throw in a dumbass quirk about her not being able to dress herself to justify her bullshit death down the line, so any profound development she could’ve had is just...unceremoniously thrown out the window. It’s really so tragic. Hiyoko deserved so much better.

Peko - What’s worse, a terrible trope that’s fleshed out or a good trope that’s grossly wasted? Tough call, and this is what I ended up with. Still not sure if I made the right decision. Anyway, Peko’s entire character is based on the incredibly sexist trope of Girl Exists For Dude. Thankfully, she makes her own decisions and she’s presented as very woefully unaware of how Kuzuryuu actually feels. Her existing for Kuzuryuu’s sake to the point of happily sacrificing herself is, y’know, a flaw. That gets her killed. So I can pretend that Kodaka is saying it’s a bad thing that she’s like this. He’s probably not, given how Peko’s never really given a reason to live outside of Kuzuryuu, bUT I CAN PRETEND. Although I will say that as annoying as her canonically having romantic feelings for Kuzuryuu is, it’s still incredibly fucking funny seeing Hinata get crushed and rejected.

Just Not Good Tier

Ibuki - I sincerely had no idea where to put her at first. Ibuki’s writing is...fickle, due to primarily being comic relief so more often than not her dialogue and writing is more...jokes...than facets of a personality. And what personality is showcased has little variety. She definitely has those layers but they’re few and far between in the main storyline. And there’s stuff in her FTEs (her strong belief in individuality) that I don’t think comes up. Not to mention there’s completely untapped stuff such as how lonely she must be due to her band splitting, and... Really, she’s just the most wasted of the characters in term of how little she contributes beyond jokes. And sdr2′s sense of humor is pretty fucking shit, so I’m not a fan of a lot of the jokes, either. Ibuki is pretty...ahem, pardon the pun. Pretty one-note. The most offensive part of her character is probably from her attraction to women being portrayed really creepily, which I definitely super hate, but it’s only like...a few lines of dialogue and...I know for a fact how much worse it could’ve been. It could’ve been so, so, so much worse.

Chiaki - Could she have gone above Ibuki? Probably. I mean, her writing *is* more consistent and varied (even if she only has like, two more facets of a personality) buuuuuut. Kodaka literally said she’s his ideal girlfriend. And that grossness *does* seep into her writing to the point where it’s pungent. The fact that she’s idealized and that even her potentially off-putting traits are either meant to be endearing or desirable is... Ew. Pretty ew. But, with all that, she’s bland in what the narrative allows her to offer. Having her be the most moralistic of the cast also makes her pretty annoying when she starts preaching about trust, doubt, hope, killing is wrong, and then she makes excuses as to why she can’t be bothered to be involved with the plot a la Chapter 3 where she doesn’t do shit about the sick kids. She’s seriously more of a mouthpiece than a character and those can be fine...but maybe not so much in sdr2, and definitely not at the expense of other characters developing through learning this shit themselves instead of her having to tell them. The inherent gross sexism that she’s supposed to be Kodaka’s Ultimate Girlfriend sure doesn’t help.

Akane - I honestly feel kinda bad putting her at the bottom but...jeez, the more I think about it, the more Akane’s character really sucks ass. Like, she’s really shallow and uninspired. Even her damn “talent pose” is derivative of Sakura’s just with less ferocity and a panty shot. And as offensive as Nanami’s concept is, at least it can go unnoticed by the player. Akane being Boobs and Food girl is constantly shoved in your face. And the fact she has a history of sexual abuse really, REALLY makes it worse. At least with Mikan, there’s layers. With Akane, there ain’t. She’s just portrayed as too dumb to know any better. Urghhhhh. But what about her personality? Shallow. What about her arc? Frustratingly non-existent. She doesn’t learn a fucking thing despite her flaws actually making her a damn liability. Her...backstory? Well, abuse aside, it’s...weird. Her backstory is about struggling to survive. When...in the main story she's too stupid to live despite being a survivor. So, I don’t think it clicks, much less informs/fleshes out her character beyond giving us a reason for why she’s so sexualized and obsessed with food and...yeah, no thanks. Akane’s writing is the worst, both on the outset and in what little nuance we have.