While scrolling through the BSD tag, I’ve come across a lot of debate about whether Oda “Truly understood Dazai” or not. And it’s made me wanna share my view on the topic:
Does it really Matter?
He was Dazai’s friend, and that’s what I think is the most important part, because that’s what makes a difference. If he just an acquaintance, understanding wouldn’t matter, because it wouldn’t have affected Dazai in the same way. The entire reason it was impactful was because it was Oda. At the end of the day, Oda’s death made Dazai want to become better no matter what understanding he did or didn’t have. It’s a meaningless debate when the impact he had was clear.
Alright I’m gonna draw a comparison to The Black Lizard that is maybe not the best but makes sense in my head (I’m sorry I just can’t go one post without talking about these guys).
Tachihara is an undercover operative for a government force, and due to this, he probably can’t tell The Black Lizard any part of his story that might blow his cover, so they probably don’t fully understand him and his motives. But even so, Tachi cares for his teammates enough to save their lives, and later believe in what they say so much that he literally retcons a Reality bending book (ik there more to it ofc but I know I’ll start rambling). Hirotsu and Gin make him feel happy, despite not understanding everything about him as a person. They trust and care about each other which is what brings them together, not a feeling of understanding.
To wrap this up I wanna say this: even if you don’t fully understand why someone acts the way they do, if you care about them enough, you’ll want to see them thrive. Whether Oda understood Dazai isn’t the point, the point is that the entire Lupin Trio cared about each other in a way that hugely impacted all of their lives when one of them departed. Understanding doesn’t hold a candle to caring and being there for them.