#Q analysis bsd

[celesrangebsd]

Hi :3 You already know why I’m here :>

And yes technically you’ve already done this but-

Q analysis and I will give you my soul :>

Q Character Anaylsis

My old analysis of Q was kind of bad so here is a new and improved one! No spoilers hopefully :3

Q is a very complicated character in my opinion, simply because we don’t know much about them despite multiple approaches and Dazai fearing them, they have this air of mystery to them that is very interesting in my opinion so- let’s take in the literature base first, Dogura Magura by Yumeno Kyūsaku.

In Dogura Magura the narrator wakes up in a hospital, finding out that he was originally an experiment and killed his mother and wife and he inherited his psychotic tendencies. The novel is inspired by Freudian Psychoanalysis- an idea that people could be cured by making their unconscious a conscious thought and motivations, and by that gaining "insight".

So, relating this to Q, their ability is a mind control that forces illusions on people who intentionally or unintentionally harmed them, we can relate this to Freudian Psychoanalysis since Q makes an unconcious thought (I assume fear?) conscious as an illusion that drives people to attack others because of it. Q thinks of their ability as a curse because they know how dangerous it is, and we also know that abilites can influence the user as well so perhaps Q's psychotic nature is due to their ability and how they grew up.

Q has some major issues on how they see society as well, their hatred of their ability was obviously a result of how people treated them and perhaps they feel that society deserves to be forced to see their fears (we know that Q has "fun" when using their ability on others after all). Their personality seems to flip flop between being an innocent child and being sadistic, they are good at following directions and ignoring their wants.

When Q was captured by the guild, we saw that they were easily influenced, they took answers that were given to them and believed it easily, even when it was something that mentally harmed them or made them hate themselves even more. Q's appearance could also relate to their personality since it seems split, half black and half white hair, different shaped pupils, etc.

Though we know that character designs in BSD are based off of the popular works of the authors so I might just be reaching for straws

[rococo-sonata]

i see many people talking about how akutagawa and atsushi's hair are complementary to represent balance and how there is evil in good and good in evil

but i've never saw anybody point out kyusaku's hair or just kunikida's pin on his vest, it could only be aesthetic details but i doubt it is?? i want to hear someone's analysis about this ^_^

[wiltq]

I want people to realize that the abuse cycle and the abuse web are two completely different things(also please remember that manipulation is abuse).

For it to be an abuse cycle the abused has to abuse someone else, Kyōka is excluded from this because she got out of it and ended it, Higuchi is bordering the line between the web and the cycle.

The abuse cycle consists of Mori, Dazai, Akutagawa, and Kyōka.

The abuse web is victims of abuse who have either been abused and abused someone else or been abused but didn’t abuse another.

The abuse web consists of Mori, Koyou, Dazai, Kyōka, Akutagawa, Higuchi, Chuuya(yes, Chuuya is also involved), Q, and Verlaine.

Koyou was abusive towards Kyōka. Akutagawa is/was abusive towards Kyōka and Higuchi. Mori has been abusive towards Dazai, Q, and Chuuya. Dazai is abusive towards Akutagawa and Chuuya.

Abuse is not just hurting someone, it is taking advantage of someone or hurting them multiple times.

[navigatebetweenthelines]

I think Kyouka and Kyusaku might be the next Skk

IF there will be one. It feels really perfect if it would be them. I mean they're the closest in age. Q is 13 and Kyouka is 14

All the skk pairings have had a tie to the last and It's clear Akutagawa is the future of the PM the way Atsushi is the future of the ADA. Akutagawa would then would have custody of Kyusaku which gives the two of them a tie to the last skk.

Kyusaku and Kyouka would also have the characteristic differing points of view of the world. They both know the same people at different points in their life. Kyouka has seen the best of Dazai and Kyusaku has felt the worst. Kyouka has felt the worst of Akutagawa and Kyusaku will meet Akutagawa at his best.

They also have the same color scheme (red, white, blue and yellow) but they wear them in opposite ways. They both wear a hair piece, have a children's toy that represents both an aspect of their ability and their trauma,

Their stories also act as the complete opposite of the other. Kyouka is embraced and celebrated by her entire organization while Kyusaku is hidden and shun. They both discovered their abilities at a young age and were used as weapons for it but Kyouka is deemed controllable while Kyusaku was too unpredictable.

They would have a natural point of contention considering Kyu would have the biggest reason to hate the ADA (outside of organization politics) considering they embraced Dazai immidiately. Kyouka's trauma with abilities that compell people to kill will have natural overlap with Kyu's ability.

also their abilities together would be soooooo cool. I can imagine the first time they fight each other and Kyu just barely manages to nick her and instead of allowing the ability to control her she calls on Demon Snow to stop her from harming anyone at all costs JUST LIKE HER MOTHER. Kyu would have to undo it to save her if they wanted her to survive it.

They have the PERFECT experience to teach each other to make peace with their pain which is what every skk pairing will be about.

the two of them were created to be the perfect sacrifice.

like they're JUST kids.

[ramblesofthemad]

IT WAS Q ALL ALONG

OMG I LOVE EVERYTHING

[ratsbanes]

im on my abuse cycle agenda again, so let me remind you that most of the abusers in it care about the recipients of that abuse.

mori has said in beast that he cares about dazai, but in the 15 light novel he says that a problem like dazai can be useful. he wants dazai to succeed but success to mori is very limited, meaning that the only way mori saw fit to raise dazai is to prepare him to be the mafia boss. he assumed they wanted the same things when all dazai wanted was to be happy and that the way to be happy was to survive the darkness long enough.

dazai has said that he believes that akutagawa could become one of the strongest members of the port mafia, that's including others like chuuya and kouyo by the way, if he could just play it smart. he chastises and belittles akutagawa to try to force him to use his head in the same way that he does, the same way that he had been ultimately forced to do. he pushes and pushes for akutagawa to get through the darkness when all akutgawa wants is to be useful to somebody.

akutagawa pushes kyouka to be useful. he wants her to work through the pain because he believed that eventually being useful would make her happy. and as we saw, akutagwa eventually realises that all kyouka wants to to be surrounded by people who love her, not to be a tool.

the headmaster wanted atsushi to be able to survive, koyo wanted kyouka to be able to thrive with her, most of them care about the people they abused. the only exceptions to the rule are abusers who see a goal greater than their victim or who are afraid of them.

[minugasakuranohana]

О галлюцинациях Ацуши и способности Кью

В 122 главе Ацуши говорит о видении-директоре: «貴方はQの異能の影響で僕の脳が創り出したただの影だ», «Мой разум просто создал этот образ под воздействием способности Кью»

В принципе, способность Кью приводит человека в бешенство/ярость, заставляет обезуметь настолько, что он нападает на окружающих. (Что интересно, в оф. анкете ни слова про контроль разума и галлюцинации)

Но достигается всё это за счёт контроля разума. Дазай в 25 главе, страница 21 сказал, что Кью проклинает сознание своих жертв, разрушая его галлюцинациями. Если дословно, то во фразе «Qの詛いが発動したものは幻覚に精神を冒され周囲を無差別に襲う» "幻覚に" - "галлюцинациями", "精神" - "дух; душа; психика; намерение; то, что на уме", "を冒され" - "поражать (напр. о болезни); повреждать".

В 28 Ацуши, судя по реакции, впервые видит глюк просто так. На фоне его испуганной мордашки с поплывшей заливкой написано: «Галлюцинация?.. Остаточные последствия контроля разума?..», или же «幻覚？精神操作の影響が未だ残って?», «Галлюцинация? Влияние "контроля разума" ещё сохраняется?». Ацуши мог так подумать, потому что:

В первый раз глюк был вызван Кью

В данный момен�� способность была активирована и почти сразу Ацуши увидел директора

Логично предположить, что это остатки способности, но потом явно не все случаи совпадали с действиями Кью (данный пункт требует уточнения от Асагири))

В дополнениях к главе 28 Дазай говорит, что иллюзии, вызванные Догрой-Магрой, напрямую зависят от силы воображения жертвы.

Можно предположить, что способность вызывает образы, связанные с самыми сильными негативными эмоциями, которые переживал человек в своей жизни и может быстренько вспомнить.

Если человек так и не нашёл с момента возникновения этой эмоции в прошлом до встречи с Кью некий способ "разобраться" с этой проблемой (простое подавление эмоций - так себе выход, т.к. Кью немного стирает границы реальности в воображении жертвы и притупляет чувство ответственности) — т.е. способ выразить эмоции, прожить их в безопасном контексте, не навредив ни себе, ни людям (aka therapy), или высокий уровень рефлексии на постоянке, тогда начинается фигня как в 25 главе.

Когда Кью говорит: «Новые друзья Дазай-сана - слабаки. Они так легко сломались» имеется в виду что-то подобное. Кью привычно видеть кого-то достаточно устойчивого, вроде Чуи и Мори. Чуя прекрасно знает, что делать, даже если человек очень злит. У него большой опыт в таких делах. Он всё-таки не убил Н, это уже показатель. И что на артах, что в манге Чуя иногда берёт на руки Кью, он не слишком переживает, несмотря на кучу травм Кью (способность же активируется с полпинка).

Мори до чёртиков логичен. Он обдумывает каждый свой шаг, если он решил что-то не делать, он и не будет. Хироцу вероятно тоже может спокойно наблюдать за своими эмоциями, и не принимать решения, основываясь только на них. Куникиду, который неплохо держался против способности, Кью просто не довелось увидеть.

Кстати, почему Куникида видит именно Сасаки Нобуко — из-за сильного внутреннего протеста в момент её смерти.

«Сасаки была мертва, Рокузо тоже. Пытаясь найти справедливость в том, что случилось с ними, я находил в своей душе лишь бессилие.Я выглянул из окна заброшенной больницы. В полуразрушенном дворе наклумбах пок��чивался под ветром красный ликорис. Даже когда я закрыл глаза, этозрелище, этот алый цвет не исчез, отпечатался на обратной стороне век. Как и тень её улыбки.»

Его гнев направлен не на неё или Дазая, а на нечто другое. И девушка, и мальчишка-хакер — жертвы своих чувств. Их месть была беспощадна к ним самим, в первую очередь. Но требовать справедливости здесь уже бессмысленно. Однако что делать — никтот не сказал. Разве может история закончиться так..?

«Требовать от мира справедливости значит держать в руке нож. Им можно только ударить, но нельзя никого защитить и спасти. Госпожу Сасаки убила справедливость Лазурного короля»

Ацуши в глазах Кью ещё слабоват.

Но даже учитывая, что Зверь лунного света — это отрицание любых травм, сложно сказать, может ли способность воздействовать на психику, восстанавливать её. Как сказал Дазай, «Я не могу забрать твоё прошлое». Никто не может, даже способность Ацуши. Видения Ацу больше всего похожи на проявление ПТСР.

Википедия говорит:

Посттравмати́ческое стре́ссовое расстро́йство (ПТСР, англ. PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder) — тяжёлое психическое состояние, возникающее в результате единичных или повторяющихся событий, оказывающих сверхмощное негативное воздействие на психику индивида. Травматичность события тесно связана с ощущением собственной беспомощности из-за невозможности эффек��ивно действовать в опасной ситуации.

Особая форма ПТСР — комплексное посттравматическое стрессовое расстройство (КПТСР или C-PTSD), также называемое комплексным травматическим расстройством или сложным посттравматическим стрессовым расстройством, может развиться в результате длительных, повторяющихся травм в контексте, в котором у человека было мало шансов или не было никаких шансов для того, чтобы перестать быть жертвой.

По критериям постановки диагноза с той же вики, — Ацуши проходит практически по всем, к несчастью для него.

Симптомы ПТСР могут появиться как сразу после травмы, так и спустя много лет после травмирующего события.

У Ацуши прошло около месяца после завершения травматичного опыта, когда его выгнали из приюта, что очень мало, на самом деле.

Для проявления (тем более первого ��роявления) ПТСР необходим триггер — событие, которое вызывает внезапное повторное переживание психологической травмы, тяжёлые негативные эмоции, а также состояние аффекта.

Таким триггером стало применение способности Кью, все составляющие Догры-магры идеально подходят под такое описание. Ацуши немного неправильно интерпретировал значение ситуации из 25 главы для последующих событий. (Ни у Куникиды, ни у Наоми, ни у Харуно ничего подобного мы не заметили за ±100 глав, так что у Ацу в первую очередь ПТСР)

Однако есть один спорный момент, галлюцинация Ацуши слишком уж самостоятельна. Есть чисто ПТСРные ситуации, когда он видит директора, повторяющего одну и ту же фразу. Но "Директор", вроде как, пытается взаимодействовать с Ацуши, "обладает сознанием, собственной личностью", "может самостоятельно менять форму" (и, вероятно, "количество себя", глава 105). А это уже смахивает на шизофрению. Или здесь действительно накладывается действие способностей.

В подпространстве сингулярной хтони накладывается всё, что только можно, так что немного пофиг, но "директор" утверждает, что до этого он сам управлял изменениями этой галлюцинации.

упс, лимит на 30 изображений исчерпан ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[daniraevys]

Similarities between Ch 24-25 and current storyline of BSD:

For context, Ch 24 & 25 deal with Q introduction and Q brainwashing Atsushi, only for Dazai to return and save him.

In ch 24, Dazai and Atsushi are together when Dazai senses a threat- somebody is following them, i.e. mafia. Dazai leaves Atsushi behind alone and goes to deal with the threat.

Dazai exchanges words with Higuchi and Gin trying to figure out what their plan is.

Dazai realizes that Q(Kyuusaku) was released, and the threat was not with him, but with Atsushi whom Dazai left behind.

Dazai rushes back to save Atsushi--

Meanwhile, Atsushi's co-workers Naomi and Haruno are injured and Atsushi breaks down feeling he is responsible for it(even though it was Q's brainwashing.)

Atsushi breaks down and feels unworthy to be alive--

Dazai arrives and neutralizes the threat of Q.

Dazai saves Atsushi from the brink of despair with some advise and a questionable slap to Atsushi's face to wake him out of his downward spiral.

Current storyline:

Dazai senses the looming threat of Fyodor over the ADA and Atsushi. Dazai leaves Atsushi behind but this time with ADA and Akutagawa as backup!

Dazai mentally spars with Fyodor during his stay at jail, trying to uncover Fyodor's plans.

Dazai realizes a great calamity has been unleashed(god-like Fukuchi & Fyodor), the actual threat was not in Meursault but back at the airport in Yokohama with Atsushi and others.

Dazai is far away but trying to get back--

Meawhile, Atsushi's co-workers Tanizaki, Kunikida and Kenji are killed before him and Atsushi feels responsible for their fates as it was his fault he failed to save them!

Atsushi breaks down and accepts his impending death---

!!! It is Fyodor who arrives and neutralizes the threat of Fukuchi!!!

Fyodor arrives with a proclamation that he is here to save Atsushi...? (Atsushi who is currently vulnerable and in a downward guilt spiral!)

Ch 24-25 ends on a happier note with Atsushi finally crying and recovering from his downward spiral, he finds some support and hope as he follows Dazai and his colleagues back to the agency.

But what about the current storyline?

Because Fyodor has kinda hijacked Dazai's role as Atsushi's saviour-- saviour as in the person Atsushi relies on for hope and guidance when the situation is dire. (not that Atsushi is happy with this new saviour.)

Will Fyodor really "save" Atsushi? If so what is he actually saving Atsushi from?

And what about Dazai? Can he return in time to save Atsushi and the rest of the ADA?

As always, there are so many questions...

[y1naho]

Q’s ability analysis

Q was sent to manipulate Atsushi or whatever in order for him to hurt the agency staff. But during that time, Dazai went to the ‘toilet’. Back then, Higuchi explained to Dazai that she and Gin were there to protect Dazai, and Dazai immediately knew it was Q’s doing. Q posed such a threat to Dazai he was actually shocked. That meant Q had once made the PM or other organisations plunge into chaos, up to this part, we all understand as we watched.

But why does the PM have to protect Dazai? As a person with a nullification ability, he wouldn’t be affected by Q’s ability. But that did not seem to be the case. From the PM’s actions, it seemed as if Dazai could not nullify Q’s ability if he were manipulated, which meant that Q’s ability could actually be used on Dazai.

To strengthen my point, when Dazai rushed to the scene as Atsushi nearly kills Naomi, he didn’t touch Atsushi. This shows Dogura Magura could not be stopped singularly. What I mean by this is say Q managed to manipulate both Atsushi and Haruno, and Dazai wanted to only nullify the ability on Atsushi (that won’t happen, obviously. This is just an example) , he wouldn’t have been able to do that. Dazai didn’t even bother to touch Atsushi when he was manipulated, so there is no way to singularly nullify Dogura Magura.

When Dazai did nullify the ability, he touched the doll instead of Atsushi or Q. This may seem a bit strange to some people, why wouldn’t Dazai just touch Q? I have two theories on this:

1- Simply because if Dazai touched Q, he would have been able to trigger Dogura Magura. We can put this in maths:

Say Dogura Magura is D, and No longer Human is N.

The current situation is:

+D

If Dazai activates his ability, it would be:

N-+D which is

N-D

= 0 (no more Dogura Magura)

But if at the same time, Dogura Magura is triggered:

N-+D

=0

0+D

=D

Of course, this is the first theory, so it may not work, so the second theory is:

2- Q doesn't have full control of Dogura Magura and the whole ability may actually lie in the doll. Some evidence of this is when Q says “I never asked for this ability” when captured by the Guild.

Of course, at the end of the day, these are just some delusional nonsense I managed to cook up, but it would be fun to see more of Q’s ability being explained.

[thelesbododo]

Does Q's ability work on Elise? I feel like this is important information that I should know but don't and now I have to know.

[plinko-mori]

Mori propaganda!

1.- Had the opportunity to kill to kill the protagonist from the media he's from but no... He chose to help

2.- In the circumstances Ougai isn't the Port Mafia boss in charge of taking care of the city in the shadow... A story written by the same who writes BSD, Ougai ACTUALLY wanted to help a kid and saw him immediately like a son in an orphanage after other character (called Osamu Dazai) sent him to be in charge of that orphanage

3.- In a Light Novel he was giving a lecture to his skill (who is actually a part of him that he canonically chooses how he wants her to behave) because she was doing a tantrum and running away, not wanting to use clothes

Ougai wasn't doing bad things, he was acting like a dad towards his skill

4.- He's based in a real life author called Rintarou Mori, who was a good dad! One of his daughters, the creator of BL genre called Mari Mori was extremely close to her father, wrote characters based in him and has a book about his father called "My Father's Hat"

5.- About Chuuya, he helped Chuuya when his best friends died because of the characters Osamu Dazai and Paul Verlaine. Mori, having knowledge of Chuuya's bio family, promised and complied to give him documents of this family who have parallels with the same boss and his right hand woman

Those descriptions fit with Mori and Chuuya's sister figure (Kouyou)

5.- Osamu Dazai locked up a tiny kid called Yumeno... And even if Ougai didn't let the kid go free for a long time, Q, the kid, didn't show any fear or anger towards Mori... But to Dazai!

Round 2, Match 1: Ogai Mori vs. Pascal

Submitted kids:

Ogai Mori: Uhhhh let’s go with Dazai and Chuuya. It gets complicated to figure out the adoption status of everyone else

Pascal: Village children

Propaganda under the cut!

Ogai Mori:

"Alright so Mori is a shady criminal underworld doctor who’s out here treating /looking after the sick boss of the Port Mafia. During this time he runs into this kid who tried to kill himself and treats him (because he’s a doctor and that’s what he does). This kid (Dazai) is HIGHLY suicidal and will Not Stop trying to kill himself. So Mori’s like “ok stick with me real quick” and takes him to visit the mafia boss. While they’re there Mori kills the boss and tells Dazai that’s he’s the only witness and the story they’ll tell is that the boss died of natural causes and made Mori his heir.

So the plan works and now Mori’s the mafia boss, plus he’s looking after this very suicidal teen on the side. Meanwhile someone (Chuuya) is out there single-handedly destroying the entire mafia. So Mori looks into it on his own and goes “oh that’s a teenager! Around the same age as my boy! Imma capture him and force them to be friends! :)” So he does, but they (Chuuya and Dazai) HATE each other. Absolutely despise each other’s very existence. So Mori’s like “well if I force them to work together forever, then they’ll HAVE to get along!!”

Anyway his two boys become the most powerful duo in the canon lore of this animanga.

Eventually Dazai leaves the mafia because his friend dies while doing mafia work. Very tragic, Mori still talks to him like he’s his estranged son that he wants a relationship with. Mori and Chuuya don’t interact much in the main manga but in all the bonus material he’s definitely very parental to him. Specifically the aquarium side story from mayoi— sure that was a job but iirc he kept telling Chuuya to relax and just enjoy going on a fun aquarium trip."

Pascal:

"not putting all of his lore here bc of the pg-13 rule but he's this robot who is the sweetest guy imaginable, he is pretty smart cares a lot for his kids (again, cant get TOO into that but he is v/ protective of them) and also is a pacifist who rlly just peace between the androids & machines even tho thats pretty fucking difficult (he even is an ally to the android resistance and trades w/ them frequently!)

from his unit data (because im Bad at describing things lol):

""A pacifist machine lifeform that despises conflict and strives endlessly for peace with humanity. This unit possesses incredible intelligence, as well as a deep interest in the history of both humans and machines."""

[vii0so]

[BSD 119] Theory/Analysis

"The Bookmark" and Akutagawa.

How Atsushi is the bookmark/what it means and why/how Akutagawa is also involved with this + Why I think Akutagawa is acting like this (knightly-medieval) without Bram's influence.

█▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒

1. "How is Atsushi the bookmark/ What does it mean to be the bookmark?"

Well let's start simple: "What's a bookmark?"

It's an indication of where you left off in a story.

In a game, you could think of it as a [save] point.

Now, IRL, a bookmark is optional. You may just remember the page or fold the corner.

But what if there was no way to remember or fold corners...only the bookmark?

The bookmark would be the only way to progress in a story. The only thing telling you where the 'present' is.

Time is divided in three:

Past -> Present -> Future

Q. Where is Atsushi?

A. The present

No matter wether he could time travel, or we read chapter 1 again, he will always be experiencing it 'currently'/in 'present time'.

"But that's obvious!" But did you realise the meaning?

The bookmark is used to mark the 'present' time of a story.

Atsushi (the 'bookmark') is the protagonist, keeping the story moving and being the indicator of 'present' time.

We could say that it's because he's the protagonist (they are always the centre of the story - the 'present') but I believe that in Atsushi's case, in the case of bsd as a story, he is the protagonist because he is the bookmark, not the other way around.

And while other characters, like our - many times mistakenly confused as protag - Dazai, have had their spotlight moments (e.g.prison arc), it was still centred around people and events Atsushi was in some way involved in (directly or indirectly).

In short: Atsushi/the bookmark is like the sun

Planets orbit around the sun

If the sun's gone, we're gone

If the sun's here, life continues

It's studying the sun that gave us the concept of 'time'. Of course the moon plays a part in stuff too, and I could talk more on it too.

But I won't. I'll just mention 2 points: the moon doesn't revolve around the sun but the planets instead.

I could also say how the moon is/could be Akutagawa with a few theories but I'll be getting off track...maybe in another post.

So back to the Q: "How is Atsushi the bookmark/ What does it mean to be the bookmark?"

Atsushi's ability is the 'bookmark' which in turn makes him it too.

It means that he is needed for their world (the book) to continue. He is 'present' time. The moment he is gone, so is time.

Fyodor saying this (pictures below) as if it's a certain fact that:

The tiger (Atsushi's ability) is the bookmark, not him.

The tiger is a seperate being to Atsushi, or at least has a very different personality (hence why Fyodor was disgusted to witness Atsushi's reaction, so different to his image of the tiger)

Btw, for anyone who may not know: Abhorrent = morally very bad

So just to clarify: Fyodor is saying that the tiger is morally bad and noble (as in elevated ideals/conduct or prideful and arrogant)*.

* Tried to translate the original Japanese for a clearer idea:

Note: I believe the translation above is accurate. It's just that I sometimes like searching for differences in the original language or things that may not translate well into english (double meanings, etc.).

DeepL spit this out:

"That high-steeled and abominable ‘shining tiger’ is only this good."

The original being:

"あの高覺にして忌まわしき「輝く虎」がこの程度の....."

Random fact: 栞 (しおり - shiori) = bookmark

^ The original Japanese for anyone interested.

███▒▒▒▒▒▒▒

2. Why and how is Akutagawa involved with the bookmark?

I could simply say: "Obviously they're yin and yang, two halves of a whole, so just like [Beast beneath the moonlight] is the bookmark, [Rashoumon] must be involved and be the bookmark's opposite."

But I'll try to explain with reasoning.

Rashoumon is said to eat through all it encounters, even if that something is space itself.

Sound familiar?

I would also just like to take a moment and mention that Fyodor genuinely seems like he had no idea that Rashoumon could put up a fight with Ame-no-Gozen.

Anyway...

Rashoumon is powerful. Powerful enough to fight against a being that isn't even in the same dimension (plane of existence) as itself. This means that Akutagawa's ability is 'god tier' (world bending/ changing) as well, just like Atsushi's tiger.

Honestly, to me, that by itself proves that Akutagawa is in some way connected to the book, just like Atsushi. If I think of more reasons I'll make another theory post.

I've been trying to think of what he would be to compliment the [bookmark] and have come up with many things, though none of them make sense and there are holes. So I'll have to come back to it.

█████▒▒▒▒▒

3. The reason I think Akutagawa is acting like this (knightly-medieval) without Bram's influence.

Rashoumon

Yes, you read that right. I believe he's acting like this due to his own ability.

Don't know how, can't explain it. Been thinking of how to explain this and Aku's involvement with the book further forever and this whole post has been sitting in my drafts gathering dust for weeks because of it.

So I'll just mention some noteworthy points that may contribute to the reason or not:

Atsushi's tiger is - as Fyodor has hinted at - different, personality/ morals wise. Meaning Rashoumon could also be different to Aku.

Abilities and their users are just two sides of the same coin

Abilities are the soul memory, the users are the body memory

Post Bram's possession, Aku's being could be considered half dead (in a way. Alive > Dead > Vampire > Alive-ish?) and so, that could have triggered his ability to front. Not sure if anyone knows DID enough to know what I mean by that but just think of it like how Atsushi was when he turned into the tiger completely - different - and then returned without any memory of the event.

So Aku still seems like himself (sorta) but the one in control is his ability - Rashoumon.

This would explain Aku not knowing who Atsushi is. Rashoumon could be familiar with the [tiger] but not Atsushi.

The clothes and speech: Most people think it's because of Bram's influence but does anyone even think about how old abilities are? If Fyodor has been alive since before Aku and Sushi were born and likely was aware of their abilities' existence since long before that, then it's likely that the law of reincarnation could apply here.

The law of reincarnation: (Not factual - off the top of my head)

Soul + body = self

Body dies = soul detaches and gets cleansed before rebirth

Reincarnation = (soul > soul + body > born > die > soul leaves body > repeat) x infinity

But because souls house abilities in BSD, it would be:

Soul + body = self divided in half (main self & ability self)

Body dies = soul detaches and gets cleansed, but [ability self] retains it's purpose (e.g. the bookmark) and carries over through rebirth.

Reincarnation = (soul > soul + body > born to fulfil purpose > die > soul leaves body > repeat) x infinity

This means that abilities have been around since the BSD world's existence or - if you'd like to believe the theory I think about a lot - since they were written in to the book.

Which means, Rashoumon taking control and choosing medieval attire and speech isn't unlikely, as they probably haven't been able to consciously use a body themselves since that type of stuff was still the norm.

Anyway, so no, personally I don't believe it's Bram's influence.

██████████ Complete!

I'm so glad I wrapped this up. As I mentioned, this has been in my drafts 80% finished since I made this account but I wanted to finish it before posting. Then I had assignments and had no time.

I probably forgot a lot of stuff I originally wanted to say when I started writing this, but oh well...not everything goes to plan.

While writing, I started overthinking the theory, when it's exactly that...a theory. It doesn't have to be exact with tons of evidence it can be far fetched and messy.

So as we're approaching the end of the month and the next BSD update, I thought: I better post this now. So here it is in all it's dot-point messy glory. I'll appear again when the new chapter comes out.

Btw, haven't had the chance to proof read as I decided to post this in a rush, if something sounded weird or didn't make sense that's why.

Thanks for reading ✦

[celesrangebsd]

Okay sooo besides Q- (the best character in bsd that is definitely not dead trust)

Analysis on Dazai and Chuuya’s relationship?

Because it’s interesting :>

Dazai’s and Chuuya’s Relationshup

Words cannot describe how I love Dazai’s and Chuuya’s relationship so this will probably be the longest analysis I have written so far.

Dazai and Chuuya have known each other since they were fifteen, this is nothing new to us, and their bond is INSANELY strong, they’ve been through so many life and death situations that it forces a codependency that you don’t really see represented in media as great as Dazai’s and Chuuya’s is. With these two we can see the amount of trust and sheer dependency, especially after the Prison Arc. But it’s not even their trust, but also the similarities and differences in personality that work so well together.

THERE MIGHT BE SPOILERS AHEAD

Chuuya and Dazai both question their humanity in different formats. With Chuuya it’s a matter of the possibility that he was a clone and was Arahabaki but with Dazai it’s a matter of if his apathy stops him from being human.

Chuuya’s dehumanization is a result of not only being experimented on but could also be related to being “King of The Sheep”, it’s heavily implied that Chuuya was used just for his ability and wasn’t seen as entirely human to the sheep. Instead he was (to them), his ability itself. They didn’t think he was human due to the power he has.

With Dazai, his dehumanization stems from his apathy, his inability to act like a “human”, throughout everything we have seen with Dazai, he seems to be just someone pretending to be human. Being labeled as the Demon Prodigy did not help one bit in this aspect as it made everyone view him worse. Dazai being the Demon Prodigy just made it acceptable for everyone around him to dehumanize him. It’s easier to pretend that someone bad is just a monster rather than recognizing they are an actual person with feelings.

Now, we know that Dazai was fully prepared for Yokohama to burn if it meant Chuuya could prove his humanity to himself, we know that Dazai fully thought of Chuuya to be human from the very beginning, he had no doubt that Chuuya was anything but human— and I think that stems from Dazai implying that Chuuya made him feel alive.

That isn’t a stretch, we can see in the anime itself where it was implied (when fighting Arthur Rimbaud and the Old PM boss) “Really, a suicidal maniac like you wants to live?” “I figured it was worth a shot.” In Dazai’s eyes, his purpose to continue- a goal to keep going towards, is Chuuya himself.

Chuuya seeing Dazai as human stems from the mistakes Dazai makes- his willingness to change- the way he’s calculated and planning. That’s what makes Dazai human to Chuuya.

And, we know that Chuuya would’ve left with Dazai, he would’ve followed out of the PM and Dazai knew that- but he also knew that Chuuya needed to stay there to support Akutagawa and have a friend on the inside of the PM.

Outside of the PM we can still see that their trust runs deep- past the lines of having sides. With Dead Apple, the Prison Arc, and even in Beast where their relationship is so complex and well-developed.

They’re also heavily codependent on each other, that doesn’t mean that Chuuya is weak or Dazai is weak but the codependency does exist in their relationship— Dazai relying on Chuuya as a person, the trust, the power, the relationship, the humanity. And Dazai, vice versa.

Even as an analyzer of BSD, I cannot label the complexity of their relationship. You can play it as romantic or as platonic. There’s no direct way we can know because of the writing. The writing of them purposefully leaves it ambiguous- something to figure out on our own and that what makes it so special to me.

I personally see Dazai and Chuuya as a soul ripped apart- meant to be one but can never be. Play that as romantic or as platonic, up to you. But, I do think that some parts of the fandom who think Dazai and Chuuya are the only “healthy” relationship in BSD is wrong. It’s impossible for a healthy relationship to exist in BSD. That’s just the nature of the show.

(Ignore that this draft was sitting for months)

[kaurwreck]

okay, so, what if aya has been passively exercising an ability this entire time.

aya koda (author) wrote and reflected on the profundity of the past, observing even her most complicated relationships with immense and broadminded humanity. she was responsive and filial in her conservation of others through memory, even when communicating with herself through them. further, her writing is not cerebral or fanciful or nostalgic. it is contained within narrow, mundane realities like homemaking, bitterly aging parents, stifling expectations, physical illness, and the material world. but the wisdom, humor, and frankness of her sharp attention to detail lend an elegant and mature candor to her impressions of the past imbuing meaning into the commonplace, without romanticizing or deifying it. the distinctiveness of her internity radiates optimism and magnetic humility, rendering her world remarkable.

in other words, she's capable of sweeping ennui from even atrophy through sheer, clearminded ardence, refusing to cheapen her world despite its fickle propensity for change — and that is what bsd!aya brings to her every panel. she's so small and is only a civilian, but she is never swept beneath the gravity of the scenes unfolding around her. because even though she is little, she expands in others their immense capacity for change by enveloping them within the wideness of her own sincerity and perceptive verve. but I think it's more than just her energy that galvanizes others; I think that's her skill.

(analysis + skill explanation under the cut to spare everyone's dashes)

like, that's how she keeps collecting all of these older brother and father figures.

Kunikida becomes shaken when confronted by his helplessness and loss of life, he will waver and curl into himself until grounded again. In the Cannibalism arc, Ranpo brought him back to his feet, but he still sought to self flagellate after. In the Hunting Dogs arc, he threw himself from a helicopter and absorbed the impact of a grenade with his own hands to mitigate the potential for lost life, but not before visibly panicking. But, in the Walking Alone OVA, he is tied to a pillar and confronted by his past failure in the form of his former student, who he not only didn't reach, but seemingly instigated into an act of domestic terrorism. A young man, like Rokuzo, an explosion, like the Azure Messengers'—this time staking hundreds of civilians lives and that of a ten year old child who has a bomb strapped to her chest while he is being physically beaten with Ideals and enduring PTSD flashbacks of Sasaki's death (who he also envisioned while under Q's curse). But he's scarcely lowered his head when Aya calls out, "Kunikida!" — to which he replies, "That's Kunikida-san," which he previously told her to use for him because when he cares to mentor others, he tends to lecture them and demand proper behavior from them. From that moment forward, he is in his best form, stalwart and brave and resourceful and utterly serene against that which he cannot change or control— even relying on Yosano's schedule for the critical moment.

It's easy to miss that this scene contrasts with the other, similar instances where he's frozen or faltered, because he does find himself again each time. That's because the capacity is always within him, and he's far more balanced than anyone gives him credit (especially when set against his irl...). But, he isn't serene, his fear of loss and lack of control are things he still grapples with, and they usually spill from him in these moments and their aftermath. He hasn't fully self actualized, and although he pulls through each time, ideals intact, he has to wrestle that from himself (which he alludes to quite literally in Dead Apple). Yet, even as he was thrust into a full-blown panic attack, he caught that Aya called him by his name without a suffix and was rendered self-possessed enough to correct her, and then seamlessly move into what needed to be done without a moment of doubt. Then, even after that, he is thrown into a literal trolley problem. But, again, he doesn't waver. He remembers Sasaki and Rozuko, but not involuntarily; he invokes them with aplomb and acceptance, holding them and what they meant to him as strengthening, rather than destabilizing, his commitment to his ideals. Despite his habit of approaching those he cares about rigidly and patronizingly, he fluidly sinks to his knees and embraces Aya (and thus his own humanity and limitations) sincerely and warmly, promising her that he will hold her through it and cradling her without any awkwardness or reticence.

The name of the OVA comes from the literal translation of "Doppo," which means lone wanderer and invokes the image of a solitary wanderer— but "lone" isn't a character invoking loneliness; it implies that he's peerless, unparalleled, matchless. His name is a double entendre speaking to his individualism and invoking the image of an iconoclast heroic figure standing above the fray of mediocrity— which is the impression that made his former student feel taunted and spat upon. But, he sheds his lofty veneer in this OVA and expresses the height of who he's capable of becoming when grounded in reality but unhibited by fear and self-doubt: the Confucian virtue of ren, meaning humaness or benevolence. For Confucius, it was illustrated by love for others, including within relationships between people. But it further encompasses an inner drive for altruism that's cognizant that one is never alone in the home, the state, the world, and, ultimately, the cosmology of the universe.

If it were only Kunikida, I would think it an illustration of what he'll be as a leader or a moment of clarity. But Aya manages to reach Bram past centuries of ennui and morbid depression and learned helplessness. Not immediately, but by satisfying his seemingly silly and, to him, unattainable want for something as mundane as a radio. She does him one better and introduces him to streaming & earbuds, and quite literally expands his whole world so that he's, however briefly, no longer immobilized within the claustrophobic confines of his coffin, but floating untethered in the ever expanding vacuum of space. He wanted a radio, but, really, he wanted music that would take him outside of himself and the limitations of his reality, which he could consistently have with him in lieu of company to transcend the constraints of his purgatory. Shortly thereafter, despite Fukuchi having command over his kin through the sword and seal, Bram regains his air of nobility to snap, "Impudent!" at a vampire such that the vampire recoiled and even l looked askance. Further, like Kunikida, Bram is swept into his memories when he looks at Aya— but not wistfully or bitterly. They're light and beautiful and remind him of who he is and what is precious to him— his family and his vassals, his duty to whom had given him purpose and meaning. I'd relate his oath to Aya and his renewed observance of his role before his kin to the Confucian virtue li, meaning propriety, or observance of the formal rules of proper conduct conducive to social harmony.

She does it to Fyodor, too, whose triggering detail is her dirty hair. He attributes his compulsion to spare her as Bram's lingering oath, but I think it's a reflection of Fyodor's own inclination towards children. (I know he kills children in canon, but his perceptions of suffering and salvation are violently skewed, and so his expressions of righteousness (as in the Confucian virtue yi) look to us like sadistic violence.)

Which is to say, I think Aya brings out the highest capacity in others, triggered when they latch onto a detail she offers them that may appear mundane, but which touches on some core aspect of who they are or their memories.

I think she'll do the same for Akutagawa, which will be part of the transformation he undergoes from the version of him clinging to the spider's thread from irl!Akutagawa's short story of the same name (the headspace that causes Rashomon to resemble spider legs) to becoming the dragon complement to Atsushi's tiger (the imagery invoked by his armor from the teaser at the end of S5). The Confucian virtue I'd assign him would be xin, aligning ones actions with one's word/ honesty, sincerity, and faithfulness. Akutagawa keeps his promises.

(I specifically think Aya is elevating the Confucian virtue each character most embodies, which aligns with irl!Aya Koda's education in Confucian ethics as taught by her father; if that isn't apparent yet.)

This ability is more conceptual than many of the others, but the precedent for an ability like this is there in Fukuzawa's All Men Are Created Equal and Lippmann's unnamed ability, which reacted to and countered others' murderous intent.

Anyway, so yeah. I think Aya's ability is a mirror into the best, most focused versions of those who see in her some detail revealing themselves.

[starlostlix]

Bungo Stray Dogs and the separateness of Childhood - a sociological view

[So a large portion of this is left over from when I was revising sociology for my alevels, which were done over a month ago now (wow). So I hope there's people out there who find this interesting, it's nice to post this since it goes back to my roots of what started me on tumblr in the first place (sociological analysis, but of MTP). Also this has Stormbringer spoilers.]

Sociologists agree that childhood is a social construct (a concept in society with no fixed definition). The definition of childhood changes depending on culture and time, so it is not universal or 'natural'. Bungo Stray Dogs portrays a definition of childhood much different to many of our own cultures, and part of its presentation is something I want to look into.

The main idea to look at is Jane Pilcher's idea of 'separateness' - childhood as a clear and distinct stage of life in which children are considered physically and psychologically incompetent and unable to run their own lives. This idea of separateness often leads to childhood being considered a 'golden age' of play and having a lack of responsibility. In BSD, the idea of childhood as a separate stage is not as clear - many children 16 or under are seen working in (or looking for) employment much like adults would do. For example, in Stormbringer Shirase (who is 16) works in a car factory, Yosano at age 11 is said to work in a confectionery store (we don't know if this was family owned or not though), and Ranpo in Untold Origins (aged 14) looking for a job when he meets Fukuzawa. With this information we can gather that children have to take the responsibility of work from a younger age than many cultures (for instance where I lived children have to be in education until 18) and that from as young as 11 they are able to employment.

Consider the other children present - the Akutagawa siblings living on the streets for many years without parents or financial support, Kyouka and Q (as well as teenagers like Dazai and Chuuya) being part of the mafia from a young age, Kenji in his village, Chuuya and Mary Wollstonecraft in Stormbringer, and Atsushi living in the orphanage. All of these have different notions of childhood attached to them.

The Akutagawa siblings learnt to support themselves from a young age. Their group of fellow homeless children act as proof of a wide child poverty issue, one which represent the effects of a lack of child welfare support by the government or the effects of the many casualties in the Great War (leaving many without parents). The lack of child welfare support may show a general lack of the idea of separateness, since specialist support for children is not available.

The abundance of children in the mafia, especially those who reach the higher ranks of executives like Dazai and Chuuya by the age of 16, show a distinct lack of recognition of childhood as a separate stage. Those who are children don't seem to be treated much differently to the adults, which is especially apparent in Q and Kyouka's missions (where Kyouka in her first mission we see being considered disposable by the mafia).

Kenji's childhood on paper seems the closest to many farming cultures in our world. He works on a farm from a young age, as many people in his village and in real life farming families do. The recruitment of him to the detective agency however, suggests that (despite his youth) his ability makes him fit for the job. This somewhat leads on to the idea that children with abilities are seen as more mature and subjected to more adult activities and topics from a younger age, with their allowance of separateness smaller than that of non-ability user children.

A few other Stormbringer examples - Mary Wollstonecraft is only 10 years old as of Stormbringer, and yet she is working for the European governments and making robot agents for them. Young children working for governments is a clear example of a lack of separation between child and adult. Another, and arguably much worse example, is Chuuya and Verlaine - both experimented on by scientists/the government and infused with singularities via force. Chuuya is also canonically cloned. Verlaine and Chuuya, in their experimentation, are not treated much differently, despite Verlaine being an adult and Chuuya being around 5 at the time of his kidnapping/start of experimentation. This suggests a lack of seperateness yet again. There is a lot more that could be said about the whole 'cloning/made into a weapon' part of their story, but this is not the post for that.

A more recent one - Teruko. Because of her unique ability to change her age means that within the first few months of her life she was forced to fight in war. She's actually forced to bypass her own childhood for the war effort, and therefore her childlike demeanour during the Decay of Angels arc may be to try and harness what she missed out on. Her ability in itself could also play into the 'old age is a social construct' argument too maybe but again, not the post.

Atsushi's childhood in an orphanage at first seems to match the ideas of childhood as a separate stage dependent on others. The purpose of orphanages is to raise children without parents and help them prepare for the world, but Atsushi's experiences of abuse shows that his ability, to the orphanage director, makes him undeserving of this separate stage. Instead he is abused and eventually kicked out with no real support. This being able to go on unchecked alongside the other examples brings me to my conclusion about the definition of childhood in Yokohama/the surrrounding villages/possibly the world are not being considered a separate 'golden age' to the same standards as our world.

As mentioned earlier, children who are ability users are less likely to have this construct of seperateness include them. In sociology, labels and constructs are assigned by people and society, and so in this universe there are many adults who have removed this construct from ability users' lives in their childhood. Yosano is the clearest example of this - Mori takes her away from her experience of childhood and places her in a war zone, where she, despite being 11 years of age, is treated like an adult and (because of her ability) is placed on a pedestal by the solders. She's stripped of her childhood through not only the standards placed upon her, but the trauma she endures in the war zone - leaving her to spend what remained of her childhood in a psych ward until Fukuzawa is able to take her in.

Ability user children, via circumstances or adult intervention, do not get to experience childhood in the way other children do because that label is stripped away from them. This is most usually because they pose some asset to an organisation or campaign - and this can include the ADA too. Just because the ADA offers a more healthy and safer environment for the children than other organisations, it is still putting children into work and treating them the same as adults. How ethical this is, is in itself another question that I don't think I can give an answer to. But I could honestly talk about how ability user children are treated differently in a whole other essay.

[I do not have much else to say now about this specific area but it's probably better to post than just to let sit in the drafts as it has done for a while. So no proper conclusion sorry.]

[minugasakuranohana]

[Ru]

How did Yosano feel at that moment during the war? First of all, she doesn't remember much. If she had sank the ship, she would have died, everyone would have died. It could mean she was in a deranged state.

It could be a bit similar to the chapter 28 where Q's and John's abilities were combined and Q was screaming «I've never asked for this kind of ability! But why do such terrible things always happen to me?» «this rotten world... I'll burn it down!». Trauma, mental breakdown...

I want to see Q in manga again, I want the happy end

Someone had to convince many military men that Yosano wasn't so guilty. Not just people, but soldiers of a losing army on the most hopeless part of the front. The ones who constantly feel the fear, the anger, the injustice of what's going on. People who could easily kill. It was unlikely that many cared about her after Tachihara's brother died. She didn't seem to use the ability after that. She didn't even remember anything.

Somebody managed to convince everyone. Because she wasn't executed. Even in Chapter 57, where the government obtains evidences incriminating the agency, this incident doesn't come up. They only talk about suspicion of killing a patient while she was a military physician.

Someone is obviously Mori.

What was his motivation? 🧐 He just wanted to protect her and felt responsible/guilty or he was planning “now, I convince them that because of Yosano's mental state, not jail or execution, but at most a psychiatric hospital is needed, the girl will be sent away, I'll come back from the war, find her and then I'll become a mafia boss and create my immortal regiment after all...”. 🤭🤣 Come on, who was able to plan that far at that moment? He could die next day. But a little calculation might have been involved.

Mori's motives are always too complicated.