#adventures in tkdb

[rudimentaryflair]

Everyone is posting their sus!Subaru theories so I thought I'd throw my hat into the ring as well.

We've just discovered that Subaru withdrew from his acting career because of a scandal involving violence with one of his juniors. Haku chose to respect Subaru's privacy, so we don't know anything else, but it's pretty telling how he insists on distancing himself from Lyca, who is his underclassman and greatly looks up to him.

After a few years of isolating himself at Darkwick and pre-emptively avoiding crowds (he rarely ever leaves the Hotarubi dorm except for classes, which I assume he packs into as few days as possible since he has many free days, and Haku said he's mostly a homebody), he might have grown complacent to a peaceful, scandal-free environment.

Then, the first time he ventures out and interacts with the general public, he is recognized and harshly reminded of what he was running away from, shaking him so bad that both Zenji and Haku feel the need to meet with you alone about it. There's even some implication from Zenji that Subaru might do something; Zenji says he doesn't want to "fail to notice an SOS from someone [he] cares about" again (which ????).

We last see Subaru taking a pair of scissors off the Tree of Severance. Severance means separation, disconnection, or cutting. The tree also has red string hanging off its branches, which is associated with fate/destiny.

I don't think Subaru is planning anything malicious. I think he's about to use the scissors to try and cut himself from his past and/or his association to all things Subaru Kagami-related. He's holding the scissors reverently and laughing because he knows whatever he's about to do is Not Recommended In The Slightest, but the risk is necessary to free him from whatever is causing him so much pain/guilt/turmoil.

It's interesting how the inescapability of his past and how he's failed to cut ties with it was so emphasized during this episode, and now he's standing at the Tree of Severance of all places. I'm looking forward to seeing what he does next.

[rudimentaryflair]

Truly no one at Darkwick is doing it like Ren Shiranami.

He hates animals. He likes sharks. He's terrified of deep water. His magical artifact is a swim ring. He's selfish. He cares too much. He sprinted to the ocean to save a random octopus he just met and then cried when it left. He loves bad horror movies. He gets grossed out easily. He's apathetic. He has overthinking syndrome. He's a slacker. He's the only legitimately employed ghoul. He serves worm burgers at his job; despite this, people still keep showing up and bothering him. He has neat handwriting.

His House captain tracks him with a Find My Kiddo app. His other roommate is secretly trying to poison him. He has one-sided beef with a guy who barely knows who he is, and the one "friend" he has is another guy who only refers to him as his client. He has access to on-campus dining but eats cup ramen alone in his dorm because he can never find a cafeteria seat.

He's a champion of the academy. He's completely useless in a fight. He made a pact with a demon. He exudes NPC energy. He has used his power exactly once, and it was to clean a carpet. In an environment entrenched in supernatural happenings and conspiracy, his main priority is to collect all the login bonuses in his mobile games.

Your Honor, my client is simply a background character who was dragged kicking and screaming into the main plot and is therefore innocent of any crimes accused. Also, he's funny.

tkdb fans- reblog this post with your best defense for your favorite! I'm trying to understand what everyone likes about each character :D

[cloudcountry]

GUYS IM LITERALLY GOING TO EXPLODE LOOK AT RITSU T0T

HES DOONG THAT FACE AGAIN!!!!!! THAT FACE!!!!! YOU KNOW THE ONE

HES SO CUTEE 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭🙏😭😭😭🙏😭🙏🙏😭😭😭😭🙏😭🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏 THANK YOU TKDB DEVS NO ONE TALK TO ME RN

is that. is that a Ring. On his pinkie. hold on

( from https://www.aureusboutique.com/blogs/articles/the-meaning-of-each-finger-for-rings )

WHAT!!!! WAY TO BE ON THE NOSE HELLO RITSU ARE YOU SURE YOU SHOULD BE WEARING THAT 1) AS A PARALEGAL AND 2) WITHOUT ANOTHER RING FOR ME I MEAN WHAT I MEAN WHAT I MEAN WHAT

his waist .... His waist........ HIS WAISTTTRTTRRTTTHDJXJDJDN 🕳️🪂 AAAAAAAAAAAAA CHAPTER 16 CANNOT COME FAST ENOUGH

[jiro-kirisaki-no1-fan]

Jiro Kirisaki in JoJo Style!!!

[incorrect-tokyodebunker]

Haru: [after complaining] ... It's been a long week.

Rui: It's Wednesday.

[rudimentaryflair]

HELLO I HAVE BEEN SUMMONED.

Full disclaimer: I love Pokemon and may or may not have gone overboard coming up with headcanons along with teams, which you can take or leave. I'm only familiar with Pokemon up to XYZ/Kalos though, so if there are newer gen mons that fit the ghouls better, then I do not know them. 

Anyways, without further ado.

FROSTHEIM CITY: A city that gleams with ice and splendor. 

Jin - Renowned Ice-Type Gym Leader who abruptly stopped taking challenges one day and disappeared from the public eye. Hardly anyone sees him nowadays.

Partner/Battle Signature: Beartic

Other: Glaceon, Alolan Ninetales, Gardevoir (shiny), Absol, Sylveon (shiny)

He's drawn to powerful, regal Pokemon that fit in high society. His shinies are envied by many collectors.

Tohma - Unofficially stepped up to take challenges in Jin's place after his self-imposed isolation. Adopted an Ice specialization but used to main Ground-Types.

Partner: Sandslash

Battle Signature: Mamoswine

Other: Aurorus, Glalie, Cryogonal, Garchomp 

He had an eventful run-in with Kyogre a few years back, which was what got him noticed by Jin.

He was second in line to take over the Vagastrom Gym, but ceded it fully to Alan.

He has a Donphan and Rhyperior in Storage from his old team, but rarely uses them unless he's trying to catch someone off guard. Garchomp is his secret weapon.

Lucas - Ace Trainer. Hails from the Emrys Region. Known for having a very honorable personality and being both a gracious winner and loser. He always carries poffins and biscuits to offer his opponents (Pokemon and human) after battle.

Partner: Doublade → Aegislash

Other: Gallade, Bisharp, Scizor, Escavalier, Empoleon

Lucas says he doesn't Type specialize, but he seems to have a strong unconscious preference for Steel-Types.

Though he’s already defeated Tohma for the Crystal Badge, he refuses to leave Frostheim until he's able to challenge and beat Jin properly.

Kaito - Trainer. He's a skilled battler, but he tends to get caught up chasing trendy Pokemon and psyching himself out overthinking the rotation of his team. He struggles to decide on how to use his TMs. His Storage Box contains a lot of random underleveled Pokemon. 

Partner: Piplup

Other: Magikarp → Gyarados, Goomy → Goodra, Eevee → Espeon, Dratini → Dragonite, Riolu → Lucario

Luca's Empoleon acts like a paternal figure to Kaito's Piplup.

Luca and Kaito go on to form an Ace Duo together.

VAGASTROM CITY: An avant-garde city full of unruly individuals. 

Alan - A Rock-Type Gym Leader with a checkered past and a formidable reputation. He considers himself a mentor to all his challengers and takes this role very seriously. 

Partner: Houndoom

Battle Signature: Steelix

Other: Rhydon, Bastiodon, Sudowoodo, Ursaring

Alan is always open to sparring with Trainers outside of Gym battles and giving them advice on how to best improve their skills. 

Victors receive the Bulwark Badge. 

Leo - Popular social media influencer. Well-known for his vlogs and team of lovable cat Pokemon. Though he seems like a harmless internet darling, in reality he is quite a ruthless battler.

Partner: Purrloin → Liepard

Other: Umbreon, Delcatty, Purugly, Weavile, Meowstic (female)

Leo often tasks his Purrloin with stealing other people's secrets for his blackmail schemes.

Sho - Chef Trainer. He runs a lucrative food truck business catering to both Trainers and Pokemon, which he usually parks near the Vagastrom Gym for the most traffic. He prefers Grass-Types, prioritizing training the ones that can provide him with ingredients for his kitchen.

Partner(s): Pansage (cooking), Linoone (battle)

Other: Exeggutor, Sirfetch’d, Tropius, Trubbish → Garbodor

Trubbish eats the food truck's garbage and spoiled produce. 

JABBERWOCK TOWN: A cozy sanctuary by the seaside. 

Haru - Ex-Top Ranger. Was offered a Gym Leader position in Ultio City after his resignation, but he turned it down. Currently, he runs a reserve for rare and endangered Pokemon, with the Pokemon Association occasionally requesting his assistance with tough Ranger cases. He specializes in Electric-Types. 

Partner: Raichu

Other: Togedemaru (shiny), Ampharos, Luxray, Zebstrika, Heliolisk

Presently, Haru is raising a troublesome baby Togedemaru, which he carries around in a sling across his front.

Many people have likened Haru to a Kangaskhan. 

Towa - Pokemon savant. Helps Haru with his duties around Jabberwock. He has an uncanny ability to earn the trust of wild Pokemon, so much so that he's often able to command them in battle without ever capturing them. He doesn't carry Pokeballs. It is unclear whether he has a Trainer license or not.  

Pokemon on his speed dial: Whimsicott, Togekiss, Altaria, Florges, Ribombee, Pachirisu

He has a fondness for Fairy-Types.

There is a greater than 0% chance that Towa could summon a Legendary Pokemon if he wanted to. Haru is too scared to test that.

Ren - Trainer. The type to be really devoted to strategy and putting together the perfect team. Unfortunately, he keeps getting imprinted on by random Pokemon against his will, which is really messing with his stats. Currently stuck in Jabberwock Town grinding.

Partner: Inkay

Other: Bulbasaur → Venusaur, Krabby → Kingler, Sharpedo, Horsea → Kingdra, Rotom

Ren never wanted to Type specialize but now finds himself with a Water-leaning team (“Why are you sea creatures??”). Ironically, he caught all of them while actively avoiding large bodies of water. 

The only Pokemon that he voluntarily chose is Bulbasaur, which was his starter. 

He totally has the option to release his “hopeless” Pokemon at any time, but he's grown too attached to them and has resigned himself to making things work, even if he refuses to admit it.

His Rotom lives in his phone and doesn't like battling, but will help him cheat at mobile games.

SINOSTRA CITY: A city well-known for its luxurious nightlife. 

Taiga - A Fire-Type Gym Leader notorious for being in constant conflict with the law. To the chagrin of the police department, his affiliation with the League gives him leeway to behave as chaotically as he wants. Unlike other Gym Leaders, he does not have at least three Pokemon of his specialty; to remedy this, he often borrows them from his business partner, Romeo.

Partner: Krookodile

Battle Signature: Typhlosion

Other: Charizard, Gengar, Carnavine, Feraligatr

Many trainers refuse to re-challenge his Gym after their initial loss, preferring to go out of their way to another city for a different Badge rather than deal with him again.

Victors receive the Raze Badge. 

Romeo - Manager of Sinostra’s infamous luxury casino, which runs in tandem with the Sinostra Gym. He reluctantly lends Taiga his Fire-Type Pokemon because he enjoys the privileges of being affiliated with a Gym Leader, but doesn’t want to deal with battling Challengers himself. 

Partner: Persian

Other: Furfrou, Rapidash, Ninetails, Milotic, Starmie

He often has to strong-arm/harass Taiga into performing his duties as a Gym Leader so they can keep their legal advantages. 

Rumors say he has a deal with the Elite Four member, Hyde Haizono, which helps keep Sinostra’s casino running and Taiga out of jail. 

Ritsu - Trainer and the other reason why Sinostra’s casino hasn’t been shut down and Taiga hasn’t been arrested yet. Self-appointed as Taiga and Romeo’s legal representative, he believes the experience will advance him closer to being the Darkwick Region’s greatest attorney. 

Partner: Watchog

Other: Noctowl, Growlithe → Arcanine, Accelgor, Braviary, Magnemite → Magnezone

His Watchog carries a smaller version of his compendium of laws. 

He is oblivious to how much Officer Jenny doesn’t like him. 

HOTARUBI CITY: A perpetually rainy city sheltered by wisteria trees. 

Subaru - A gentle and soft-spoken Fighting-Type Gym Leader. A long-time stage performer, he is known for unconventionally honing the skills of his Pokemon through dance. 

Partner/Battle Signature: Mienshao

Other: Medicham, Hariyama, Hawlucha, Xatu, Kirlia

Most people who meet Subaru say he is not who they expect him to be.

Given his lack of experience with martial arts at the time, his induction into the Gym Leader position was controversial, but his proficiency at battling quickly silenced any disputes. 

Victors receive the Form Badge.

Haku - Pokemon Connoisseur and Subaru’s advisor who helps handle the Hotarubi Gym’s affairs. He comes from a long line of mediums.

Partner: Chimecho

Other: Chatot, Shedinja, Spiritomb, Yamask, Chandelure

He was the person who encouraged Subaru to take the position of Hotarubi’s Gym Leader, despite the former’s reservations. 

His Yamask is very recognizable due to the purple mask it carries. He keeps it outside of its Pokeball at all times. 

Zenji - A dead traveling musician whose spirit has been transformed into a Yamask. Being a medium, Haku is the only one able to see Zenji’s true form and communicate with him. 

Pokemon he had prior to his death: Kricketune (partner), Whismur, Politoed, Jigglypuff, Maractus, Ludicolo

Zenji was searching for the Legendary Pokemon Meloetta when he died.

OBSCUARY: A small town on the outskirts of Darkwick, often blanketed by fog and clouds.

Ed - A reclusive Dark-Type Gym Leader. Because Obscuary rarely receives visitors, he spends most of his time away from the Gym, usually sequestered alone in his room watching videos online. Trainers have to complete the additional, arduous task of tracking him down, but once they find him he is more than happy to accept their challenge. 

Partner: Gliscor

Battle Signature: Hydreigon

Other: Malamar, Mandibuzz, Crobat, Noivern

The Obscuary Gym receives the least amount of Challengers by far compared to other Gyms. The only reason it’s still included in the League is because Dark-Type Gyms are incredibly rare and it distinguishes Darkwick from other regions.

Victors receive the Dusk Badge. 

Rui - Runs the bar and inn by the town’s entrance. Tends to a garden of rare and mysterious herbs. He likes to assist Challengers in finding Ed. 

Partner: Mimikyu (named “Mimi”)

Other: Phantump → Trevenant, Pumpkaboo → Gourgeist, Mismagius, Roserade, Serperior

All of his Pokemon are girls. He calls them his “little ladies”.

Lyca - Helps around Rui’s bar. He is generally distrustful of others due to negative experiences in the past, but he respects those who treat their Pokemon well. 

Partner: Zoroark

Other: Poochyena, Mightyena

Obscuary has a large population of wild Poochyena. Lyca likes to catch multiple at a time, evolve them into Mightyena, and then release them back into the wild. 

Sometimes he behaves in strange ways, which feed into rumors that he was raised by Pokemon.

MORTRANKEN CITY: A highly-modernized city with state-of-the art research facilities. 

Yuri - Region-renowned Pokemon Researcher and Psychic-Type Gym Leader. Only applied to be a Gym Leader so he could secure more funding from the Association. He is dismissive of Challengers and often regards them with dislike because they take valuable time away from his work. If he is too busy, he will refer them to his assistant, Jiro. 

Partner: Alakazam

Battle Signature: Metagross

Other: Reuniclus, Porygon-Z, Beheeyem, Bronzong

His Beheeyem was originally an Elgyem that was gifted to him by Jin. 

Alakazam and Reuniclus often help Yuri around the lab. 

Victors receive the Mind Badge.

Jiro - Pokemon Researcher. Was previously in a coma in one of Mortranken’s hospitals. He is still quite sickly and requires frequent observation and monitoring. 

Partner: Tyranitar

Other: Golurk, Drapion, Scolipede, Bannette, Weezing

Whenever he forgets his medication, Yuri’s Alakazam will show up and interrupt whatever he’s doing to carry him to Yuri using Psychic.

His Bannette likes to terrify the other researchers by standing silently behind them and waiting for them to turn around. He is oblivious to its antics.

♡ Hi, I need your help. I don't know if anyone here is as big a Pokémon fan as I am, but I want to make teams for all the Tokyo Debunker characters. So if anyone wants to leave their ideas of what team each of them would have, that would be a big help to me, please? And thank you.

[zomboivex]

I have a type.

I have a very particular type.

I very much have a very specific type.

[askallianything]

((Three random Alli facts because why not!!))

-Aside from marsupials, Alli is also deathly afraid of wasps and hornets. But she's completely fine with bees. In fact, she loves bees. She's the kind of girl who will fearlessly relocate a fallen beehive with her bare hands.

-Her natural hair color is a medium-dark brown with her natural texture being severely neglected 1C (which does have many different definitions but in this case, I'm talking about wavy white girl 1c)

-Alli hates swimming in pools. She is a natural water only kind of gal!

[rudimentaryflair]

And with our combined powers my cell cultures will finally stop dying

you walk into a museum exhibit on infectious diseases & see these two wdyd

[rudimentaryflair]

Is this anything

[rudimentaryflair]

Something about Ren I think is often overlooked is that his character motivation stems from wanting to be invisible, not from disliking others or laziness.

Though those things can be related, there is a distinction. Characters like Yuri and Romeo are belligerent on their own with no provocation. They believe most of the people they interact with are incapable idiots or TGAs (Tiresome, Good-for-nothing Assholes for those of you without a Romeo dictionary). In contrast, Ren isn't really rude unless somebody pokes at him or he's forced to do something he doesn't want to (see: how he treats/speaks about Haru versus Towa). He reacts negatively if the MC acknowledges him (re: bus stop side story) and can be blunt in his requests to be left alone, but he rarely ever calls her names or treats her meanly. Ren would never go out of his way to be an asshole because that would draw attention. He's only rude as a reaction to attention already being on him.

Another hint is his stigma. Though we still don't know much about the demon-pacts, people have noticed/theorized that the ghouls’ stigmas are related to their wants and goals. Leo likes learning secrets; he can eavesdrop on conversations from far away. Haru is overburdened by chores; he can make himself lighter to move faster. Subaru is very private and seems to distrust others; he can sense people's intentions and emotions with a single touch. Rui is afflicted by an incurable curse; he can heal others. So on and so forth.

I also want to draw attention to this particular scene from Episode 12, when Ren was running the duck show at the farm:

Ren's activation word, Raothtas, is an anagram of Astaroth, an archdemon who “can make men invisible” (from the Ars Goetia Wikipedia). In Episode 3, he was able to use it to remove ink stains from the dorm carpet. He seemed unsure that it would work at first, showing that its main intended purpose is not cleaning-related; he likely just turned the stains invisible instead of cleaning them (which is quite in-character tbh). With this in mind, I believe the reason for his pact is related to being able to navigate through life unseen or unacknowledged. It's also why his other main complaint about Jabberwock is that it has no general students: he can't blend into the regular student body because the only members of his House are ghouls. Not to mention, every time the topic of demon-pacts has been brought up, his mood has visibly worsened.

Ren did not have any positive feelings towards the ducks. He didn't even need to be talking, since the dog patch was doing it for him. However, he felt so strongly about making sure the ducks were left alone that he spoke up and scolded the boy anyway. Probably because he related to the situation on a personal level.

Astaroth is also described to “seduce by means of laziness”, but the thing is Ren… isn’t that lazy? He does his best to go to all his classes (despite being woken up at atrocious hours), is invested in doing well in them, and is the only ghoul who has a part-time job. In fact, he works hard enough to resent when things appear easy for others, such as when he suspected Sho of cheating on exams because he scored so high without having to study as much. He doesn't understand how people can succeed without hard work. He only seems lazy because he's in an understaffed, underfunded House that expects a lot of extra work out of him that he isn't willing to give, especially since none of the other Houses’ students have similar responsibilities. Ren being labeled a slacker when characters like Jin and Ed, who actually shirk their required duties, exist, makes me think this whole lazy campaign is a red herring for something else.

Ren, at his core, just wants to feel safe and normal. He doesn't want to go on missions and be put in danger, and he doesn't want to be reminded that he's a ghoul.

Unfortunately, he also goes to Darkwick Academy.

[rudimentaryflair]

Haru being confused about who Lyca was means that Ren directly asked him to take over his duties while he was sick, implying that he and Lyca are at least familiar enough with each other to be acquaintances. We are now one step away from a Ren and Subaru interaction

[rudimentaryflair]

My personal theory is that Rui became a ghoul after getting cursed because his stigma is a healing ability (i.e. he made a pact to try and cure himself)

(Episode 6 - Chapter 4)

I was looking for something in the Obscuary episode when I suddenly remembered someone asking if Ed was even a ghoul, so here's a reminder that Obscuary is for non-human ghouls only. Everyone in Obscuary is a non-human and a ghoul. If you're only one or the other you get put somewhere else by the weighing of souls.

Ed and Lyca are also allegedly the first recorded instances of non-human ghouls. So demons normally make deals with humans, at least as far as current common knowledge goes. (I only say Ed and Lyca because Rui is a human, he's just so cursed he's not legally considered one. . .unless he became a ghoul after becoming cursed which would be interesting news.)

[rudimentaryflair]

Do you guys think Jiro finds Yuri playing music and singing in the lab comforting because it unconsciously reminds him of Zenji

[rudimentaryflair]

I read this post by @danieyells about Subaru and Ren bonding/clashing over their horror movie tastes, and it got me thinking about how they're actually kind of similar characters, but in opposite directions.

Ren sees himself as a regular person surrounded by freaks. Subaru sees himself as a freak surrounded by regular people.

Ren clings to normalcy as a way to distinguish himself from the other students at Darkwick. Subaru wears the guise of normalcy as camouflage.

Ren wants to go unnoticed in the background, but is constantly forced out into the open for various reasons. Subaru is always aware of the spotlight on him, so he maintains a perfectly polite persona that allows him to step offstage unseen.

They're like two sides of the same coin: the NPC versus the Leading Actor. There's a certain level of overcompensation they both exhibit that comes from the desire to hide: Subaru from the condemnation of others, and Ren quite literally from anything bothersome and/or dangerous.

[rudimentaryflair]

Speaking of suspicious TKDB characters: Haku is incredibly suspect to me.

In the first Hotarubi chapter, Haku is able to effortlessly convince the Chancellor to release Lyca from the Ultio prison after a single conversation, despite Subaru spending years pleading for the exact same thing. And Subaru was Lyca's primary handler and the person responsible for determining his guilt or innocence; the fact that Lyca didn't get released after Subaru used his stigma on him spoke volumes about how strongly Darkwick had condemned Lyca already. So Haku being able to flip this decision onto its head is very interesting, especially since nobody (specifically Subaru) gets punished for it.

If this had only happened once, I would have crossed it off as just a way for the writers to introduce Lyca to the story. But in Episode 15, we see more evidence of Haku's influence at Darkwick.

First, he was able to negotiate blocks of free time to explore the amusement park.

Darkwick is serious about its missions. It's why R&R permits have to be filed separately, and why inspectors are needed to make sure the ghouls are staying on task. Students can be punished for straying off course: this causes Kaito and Lucas to be stressed about the MC returning back to her house temporarily in Episode 2. Though Darkwick is only really strict with students with poor grades; Subaru was able to get his R&R request approved within a very short time frame in Episode 11.

But if it were that easy to get R&R during a mission, Zenji and Subaru wouldn't have been so surprised at Haku's offer to negotiate. It was so far from the realm of possibility that they didn't even consider it an option until he brought it up. Not to mention: wouldn't it make more sense for the captain to have that type of discussion? Haku may be vice-captain, but he's not the lead on the mission. If anyone needs to be reassuring the faculty that the students they're responsible for will be staying on task, it's the captain.

More of this influence is shown later, when Haku is able to push the Hotarubi mission to the top of Darkwick's priorities.

There was only a day between these two instances. The fact that Haku was able to spur Darkwick to gather so much evidence in such a short amount of time speaks volumes to his leverage with the staff. And Subaru had been implied to be doing his own research/have a lot of background knowledge on the ghost stories of Yumeyashiki, rendering the evidence gathering a bit redundant. If the TKDB writers wanted, they could have had Subaru be the sole provider of evidence, or just not have mentioned the additional challenge of Darkwick being short-staffed. But they didn't, which makes me think this exchange is crumbs.

Maybe I'm grasping at straws here, but I just think it's very intriguing how Haku has been shown multiple times to have more sway over Darkwick as a vice-captain than Subaru has ever had as a captain and model student. He may not be specifically working against the MC or his friends at the moment (in fact, he's been working to their advantage so far), but I'm pretty convinced he's in Darkwick's pocket.

This will surely become interesting when Darkwick's agenda starts to directly clash with other characters' principles—such as Subaru's poorly hidden disdain for the academy.