#considering how the real akane acts with him

[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.

[skania]

OnK Chapter 155 Akane Thoughts

Before I start rambling about the chapter, let me just confess that my hopes of Aka delivering some Chapter 51 & 52 parallels in the upcoming weeks just increased exponentially.

I know, I know, I'm probably playing myself but. In this week's episode we see Aqua and Akane go out together and starting to work together as a team.

And in this week's manga chapter, we see... Aqua and Akane go out together and (potentially) starting to work together as a team.

As if to prove that it's no coincidence, Akane is even wearing a choker in both, this week's episode and this week's manga chapter. Even though in the manga, she hasn't worn one since... well, the very chapter the anime is adapting this week.

It's like Aka's break was strategically placed just so the chapter & episode line up 😭

Granted, there's nothing to guarantee that he will keep it up in the next two weeks. Maybe this will be enough for him and he will call it a day. But since we've gotten this far and hope is free, may as well keep hoping while expecting nothing 😂

Moving onto the chapter, full disclosure: I've been half-expecting Akane getting the "Moving On"™ patented haircut because it very much is a thing in Asia, whether it be in manga or in real life. So no surprise there.

The reason she gave on the other hand...

^ My face knowing Aka just served Akane on a silver platter to every Akane hater out there 😂

The funniest thing about all this is that, hello?? The bangs are one thing, but are we supposed to pretend that Akane didn't wear her hair long as a kid? If anything, Akane cut her hair short that first time because her idol wore hers short. So why should anyone take short hair as a more genuine Akane thing than long hair??

But whatever, Aqua went back to his Love Now hair so the choice of haircut itself was obviously just Aka wanting Akane to be in sync with him. Because even if Aka recently spent 4 chapters establishing that Aqua is supposed to end up with someone else, he and Akane are the ones who continue to move as a pair.

Naturally.

So leaving the haircut itself aside, Akane is back to her original hair parting and thus (apparently) done imitating Ai.

The question here is: in what ways exactly has Akane been "imitating" Ai up to this point? Because I know there are a lot of different schools of thought when it comes to that.

As far as I'm concerned though, we have seen Akane, we have seen Ai, and we have seen Akane acting as Ai.

Needless to say, this isn't at all how Akane conducts herself in her day-to-day life lol

However, I don't think she means that she just shaped her hairstyle after Ai to be more like Aqua's ideal girl. That's fair and makes sense on paper, but if "imitating" Ai was just about making her hairstyle more appealing to Aqua, then why didn't she cut her hair after she and Aqua broke up? More than that, why didn't she cut it after she chose to support Kana's love life?

Because the timing of the haircut is key, IMO. She cut her hair short only after Aqua chose happiness and accomplished his revenge. In other words, she cut her hair short only after her goal of saving Aqua was accomplished.

To me, this implies that if Akane has been imitating Ai, it's been in ways that she thought would help her accomplish that goal.

Now, since she hardly speaks this chapter, it's hard to gauge what changes this will bring to Akane's characterization. However, there is one thing that already stands out to me:

Remember what happened when Akane thought that Kamiki killed Ai? She feared that Aqua would get his hands dirty by killing him in turn, and as such decided that she had to deal with Kamiki on her own in order to protect Aqua.

Now she knows that Nino is the Big Bad, and the first thing we see her do is... go discuss the situation with Aqua.

Akane now trusts that Aqua won't break, and so instead of acting on her own to protect him, she wants to be forthcoming with him.

Considering what I mentioned above about Aqua and Akane moving as a pair, I can't help but to think Aka may just be establishing Akane's own version of this:

And — what a coincidence — those lines also fit none other than Ai, who pretended to not love Kamiki and kept her distance from him because of how important he was to her.

Since Ai knew Kamiki was about to break, Ai put on a façade that wouldn't show her own doubts and fears. All in an effort to not burden him more, to protect him better even if she failed at it.

So I'm inclined to believe that may just be how Akane has been imitating Ai.

Aqua recently described Ai as someone who was always carefree, strong and who never cried. Needless to say, he was wrong about her, but that's the impression Ai deliberately tried to give. And what have we seen from Akane, especially lately?

Even when going against her true desires, Ai always put on a smile and remained flippant. So Akane may have been taking a page from that particular book... to be Aqua's perfect support.

His perfect ally.

I theorized before that this star here was Akane fully embracing the role as Aqua's girlfriend, but she wasn't just any kind of girlfriend. She was as supportive of Aqua as she possibly could, always trying to offer him solace, precisely because she knew how burdened Aqua was.

And throughout it all, Akane kept her own feelings and wants very close to her chest. She even intended to say goodbye to him with a smile, not realizing just how hard it would be on her.

Akane has been striving to save Aqua all along and playing any role she deems necessary to accomplish that goal (the supportive girlfriend, the well-meaning ex that gets in the way of his plans), but now that Aqua has finally been saved, she doesn't need to put on a mask anymore. Unlike Ai, who wore hers nearly until the very end.

With that reading, I can't help but think that Akane's wording was pretty clever. If she wants to be vague about her haircut being related to the "saving Aqua chapter" finally coming to a close for her, saying that she no longer needs to imitate Ai is a good way to convey it without actually saying it.

I may be completely off about all this, though. Truth is, we could sit here all day trying to figure out Akane's thoughts and Aka's intended meaning, but we all know that a lot of people will be running off with the most unflattering interpretations and they could be right for all I know. Aka's mind sometimes works in twisted ways 😂

That said, one unflattering interpretation I do want to fight against is that of Akane's feelings for Aqua just being an emulation of Ai's own. That doesn't add up, because Akane's goal from the get-go has been to help Aqua be happy.

And she had that goal even before she started imitating Ai:

Unless Aka retcons this, Akane's feelings for Aqua are Akane's own. He saved her and helped her be happy, and Akane has always been seeking to save him and help him be happy in turn.

It is possible that Akane has been trying to fill for Aqua the role of unconditional love and support that Ai would've filled for him if only she were alive. That's more or less just another way to say everything I already mentioned above.

However, even in that case, this should be motivated by her own feelings for him rather than Ai's. Not to mention, Ai's feelings for Aqua are motherly feelings and thus, strictly platonic. Meanwhile, Akane's for Aqua were paralleled to Ai's for her lover literally just a chapter ago:

So if Aka's writing is consistent, that particular interpretation should be off the table.

But that's enough time spent trying to make sense of Akane's line and Aka's intention behind it lol

Moving on, I can't help but notice what a big coincidence it is that right after we get a chapter showing that Ai and Kamiki are (in many ways) a failed Akane/Aqua, we now get a chapter where Akane cuts her hair short to differentiate herself from Ai.

Akane and Aqua may just be about to move into uncharted territory.

The first time we saw Aqua and Akane team up in Love Now, they did so as a business, fake relationship. Now, they're (potentially) teaming up all over again and being more honest while they're at it. What kind of dynamic will we see now, I wonder?

Granted, it doesn't have to involve anything romantic. This could be very well Aka setting up the stage for Aqua and Akane to end up as friends, and I'd personally be fine with that as long as it's executed well.

Regardless of the nature of his feelings though, I can't help but remember this:

Aqua once said that he will like Akane no matter what kind of Akane she is. With some luck, we may just see Aqua finally prove that he meant it.

His reaction when he saw her was so funny though. Aqua's feelings for Akane can be interpreted in many different ways, but indifference definitely isn't a plausible one lmao

Even here in this panel he's anything but indifferent. Almost like Akane just broached a sore subject

Also, it is kind of poetic that as soon as happiness is back on the table for Aqua, we see Aqua and Akane reunite on a chapter titled "Happy Ending" of all things lol

Now, onto the plot! It's nice to have confirmation that Aqua did originally intend to kill Kamiki. I'd like to know what exactly entailed his original plan, but that may be asking for too much at this point.

We still don't know what changed Aqua's mind, though. This chapter presents it as Aqua simply respecting Ruby's choice, but like I mentioned before, if that was all there was to it, then why didn't Aqua change his mind after he saw Ruby act the "I don't love you" scene for the first time? What let Aqua finally accept that Ruby's version of revenge was the right one?

On that same note, this chapter seems to confirm that Aqua has now embraced his life as Aqua Hoshino. He once discarded the naive thought of being happy, but now he seems ready to move on and getting a happy ending. Last time we saw Aqua pre time-skip on Chapter 151, his stars were still black. So, what gave?

We should still be missing a piece to solve that particular puzzle, IMO. I do think that Aka will eventually show it, even if it ends up being something as simple as "Kana True Oshi ❤️" (lmao)

Speaking about puzzles, it's hilarious how Aka makes Aqua be smart only when it's convenient to him. Just like Aqua magically could tell that his father was Kamiki just "thanks to Akane's movements", now he was suddenly able to tell that Nino was the big bad 😂 At least we're being told Akane already figured that out for herself, so that's good.

I swear though, if this doesn't all end with Aqua asking Akane what her happy ending is, I'll riot. Akane has spent the entire manga trying to save Aqua, and now that he's saved, she will be working to make everyone's happy ending possible. So Aqua better put in some effort to make sure Akane gets her happy ending too, whatever that may entail.

Things are moving super fast though, way faster than I thought they would. Now they even know about Yura, like?? Hopefully we'll at least get a few flashback panels to show how in the world they knew about her, because Aka is seriously pushing it lmao

In-before Aqua and Akane use a B-Komachi concert as bait to draw Nino into making a move so they can catch her. With everyone's help, of course 😂

I also can't help but wonder if Kamiki may pull some strings so that Ruby can have her Dome concert...

Everyone could see the Nino reveal coming after what happened with Kamiki, so I won't dwell on that. What I do find interesting though is that Nino is being presented as a fan gone wrong. She is everything a fan shouldn't strive to be. So knowing Aka, it's only natural that she will be contrasted to someone who is a true fan. Someone who genuinely wants only the best for their idol, without seeking to own them in any way.

Considering everything that has happened in the story, the two people who are most apt to fulfill that contrast are Aqua and Ruby. In Aqua's case in particular, that's a very interesting thought... especially considering his relationship with Kana and what Kana wants out of him: to be his number one idol, an idol that is an idol for him and him alone.

But we'll have to wait and see whether Aka sticks to his values or not 😂

All in all though, I'm very pleased that this chapter seems to put Akane front and center in this final arc, which is exactly what I was hoping for 😭 And I even got Miyako! I wish her relationship with Ruby and Aqua weren't so underdeveloped, because that family hug could've been one of the manga highlights for me otherwise.

I do kind of worry that Aka may pretend that now that Aqua has (more or less) embraced his life as Aqua Hoshino, there's no need for anyone else to know that he once was Goro though. Akane learning about it is the one thing I've always wanted to see in this manga, so I really hope Aka will at least let me have that much

[mari-lair]

Akane is a human. He has supernatural powers and connections but he is a human first.

Akane's situation is very similar to Nene's in the sense that he is a student who got tangled up with supernaturals. Just a normal guy for most of his life until he got recruited as a clock keeper.

But if his situation is so similar to Nene's why does no one doubt Nene is a human? Nene used to get scales even outside school in the og timeline, but not a single character ever called her a supernatural or treated her as half-human. That's because unlike Akane, no major character wants her mermaid scales, so no one would look at her and go "Ah if it isn't the mermaid girl~" that just isn't a thing. They have more interest in her as a kannagi, a human role, than as someone with scales.

The only time someone took interest in Nene's supernatural aspect was the mermaid's servants, which aren't major characters, and only showed up on a mini-arc a LONG time ago. Nowadays, mermaid scales are just a quirk of Nene, not a big plot point/tool characters are interested in.

But a lot of people have an interest in Akane's power and his connections with the keepers. Let's go over who calls him No.1: Fellow school mysteries and the broadcasting club, people who sees him as his power or his connection to Kako and Mirai. Never Akane as the boy himself, just his power.

Akane being called a supernatural is always because of his power.

Teru used to separate Akane from his power until said power personally negatively affected Teru. That speaks a lot about how powerful controlling time is, to the point an exorcist needs to consider him a possible threat, but that was when Teru was surprised, confused, and emotional, by the situation.

He didn't take even 1 chapter to make his judgment and keep treating Akane as a human. A human he is VERY displeased with, but a human, not a threat.

Akane's power are so op it can make others ignore him, but when characters hear his beliefs, or anything that comes purely from Akane, he is always a human.

Hanako is the best exemple of this, focusing on his clock keeper's powers when he stops time and sees a human after being bluntly judged for putting Aoi's life at risk and killing someone in the past

Akane also didn't shatter into doritos in the Severace, nor did he get sick. Nene still turns into a fish, so any supernatural connection that is deep enough to affect him on a core level should still be around. The fact he is unaffected by the change and is just the watch that broke shows he and his powers are fully separated.

What the clock keepers did wasn't 'turn him into a supernatural', they just gifted him a watch that gave him a supernatural transformation, a body that is detached from his original human one (think of the way Akane only had Aoi's stab wound in his clock keeper form, but his normal human, which is his original body, was fine after.) when he is a keeper he is a full supernatural, people 'aren't even supposed to see him' in his keeper form. This literal personification of Akane's power, of his connections with the keepers.

But it isn't his main body, his real self, for lack of better wording.

Akane is alive, rumors don't affect him, he is not dependent on anything to exist in the Near Shore since his body is stable and he can go wherever he want. Is only his borrowed power that have so many limitations of use and activation.

Even when the big clock was broken Akane didn't start acting weird, or with uncharacteristic urgency, he had no desire to change the timeline or resort to anything drastic.

He had to be reminded and forced into his role by the keepers themselves. He still has control over his thoughts, that's why he is so conflicted, cause he is well aware he is going against his own will.

Speaking of will, Akane consistently has mentalities that directly contrast with other supernaturals.

Why does he look so anguished about Kako wanting to reset their doomed timeline? Cause he hates the plan. Man does he hate the plan but he has no power to go against Kako, he is just a dude.

A normal and replaceable human, trying to hold on to any power he has.

(the way he can be replaced only further drives home that his supernatural contract does not make him 'one of them', but he is well aware his role as no.1 is to be one of them. He usually introduces himself as No.1 in his keeper form- but that's a whole new analysis and this is already long. Let's just focus on how he is aware without the keepers watch he has zero supernatural connections)

Bonus: His devotion to Aoi is used as a direct contrast to Hakubo's devotion to Sumire. His story fits Hakubo's wishful idea of a human love.

Tldr: Akane has supernatural powers but he is a human.

[sillyyuserr]

My take on ‘teruaoi’ in the new chapter ❗️❗️ (spoilers obviously)

Ive seen people take in the new teruaoi thing differently, from how it could erase akane’s entire personality to the exact opposite, but i think personally the teruaoi thing might be good (for now at least)

for the entire manga since very VERY early on (book 1), it was established that akane was entirely for aoi, not changing himself or pretending to like things aoi likes, but like worshipped her with his entire being, but he seemingly prioritizes her happiness, above actually being with her.

so when he found out teru and aoi were getting engaged, he tried to go back to the clock, and remembered he needed the other clock keepers to do so.

Realizing he can’t do anything, despite how much he doesn’t like it, he lets it be. Maybe aoi’s happier with teru? Who knows.

for just about the first time in the entire manga, this almost COMPLETELY severs akane from aoi, giving him (again for the VERY first time in the almost 10 years tbhk has existed) a chance to be just akane.

we need to remember akane is under the impression teru likes aoi, he might assume since one is happy, the other is too. Whenever teru teases him with ‘what if i asked out akane-san’ he never considers or even thinks aoi will reject him, he assumes they’ll be happy together since teru’s happy (spoiler neither of them are)

rounding this back to my initial point, since aoi is no longer apart of his personality (if he really does accept teruaoi as is) he will act simply as him, not as aoi’s fucking worshipper but yk just him

the only time i think we’ve seen this before is when aoi’s in the far shore and teru&akane are like going around town after the karaoke date but before they actually go back to retrieve her.

And during this time may i say teru was almost making moves on him?? Like not blatant but i’d say some of the most compelling evidence that ‘teru likes akane’ is shown all relating to aoi, but ALWAYS when she’s conveniently not there to witness.

Whether aoi’s stuck in the far shore or being married off to someone, whenever aoi’s not present and/or in some kind of difficult situation terukane really pulls through. 😭 who knows maybe it’ll be another ‘coming back closer than before’ kind of falling out they’ve had like 5 times already after this arc. HOW MUCH CLOSER CAN YOU GET LIKE KISS ALREADY

maybe this might push akane to do things he’s never done, maybe we see a side of akane we’ve never had the chance of seeing before, who knows.

this is simply all my interpretation, if you see something different here pls tell me im very interested. Terukane REAL

[the-amazing-wonderss]

"Talk that talk"

A/N: Back at it again with another HC inspired by TWICE... This time it's actually going by the meaning of the song ALSO IGNORE WHAT I DID FOR AOI'S HEADER I GOT TOO INVESTED ANYWAYS ENJOY HELPCLPCS ⎯ Mod ☠️

Content: Fluff, no gender mention for reader aside from the word 'pretty' that is used in Aoi's part, short HC, not properly proof read/edited Summary: "Just tell me you love me already!"

Characters: Aoi, Teru, Akane

Talk that talk ⎯ Let me know the real you, let me see what's behind all that sugary sweetness in your voice. Don't wanna waste time with the push and pull, just say it out loud and I might say it back.

AOI would be surprised hearing your question towards her. For a brief moment you could see how she froze up and contemplated on your words as her smile drops, going silent for a long time before letting out a chuckle.

It was silly, so laughable even. For you to ask her something so insanely cute that she couldn't help but find it so endearing while you sat there looking all pretty, waiting for her answer.

When she had finally came to a conclusion, still refusing to meet your eyes and instead, stared down at her lap while her hair strands covered most of her face. You began to worry if the question had upset her. Oh but you were wrong. So wrong.

If she were to look up at you right now, you'd seen the embarrassing sight of her flushed redden cheeks and lovestruck smile. Obviously she can't let you see that side to her yet. So for now...

"You're so mean ... to ask a girl for her feelings straight up. I should honestly reject you right here and now for that, y'know?" "Aoi I'm being serious, I want to know..." It was then that she said it, barely even louder than a whisper, did she say something that made your heart skip a beat. - "⎯ I heard a rumor, that she (I) loves you back."

Tell me what you want ⎯ The simple words "I love you." That's all I wanna hear. Doesn't matter where we are, who we are, and what we're doing ⎯ baby I just wanna hear it and fall in love with you all over again.

When you first ask TERU about it, he was probably in the student council room buried in work again. But upon seeing you after you had open the door to the room, he was beaming from ear to ear, that princely smile that made everyone ⎯ including you ⎯ fall for his charms.

However, after he hears your question towards him, his smile drops from shock. Had he not already made it clear how he feels about you? It struck him like a slap across the face to hear you say all this but...

With a sigh leaving his lips, he suddenly leans in. Coming in so close to you that you could feel his everything. The way he had one hand on your waist while the other was holding your chin to look up at him. Whereas with your hand that rested on his chest, you could feel the rhythm of his heartbeat.

You could feel your face growing hotter by the second from how bold his movements were suddenly, mind especially racing when he leans in even closer to your ear ⎯ whispering while holding you so intimately... You might as well just pass out at this point⎯!!

"You can feel it, can't you? How fast my heart is beating so fast for you, only you, just you. " "Teru...I⎯" - "I love you, Y/N."

Tell me what you need ⎯ Enough with the jokes and preparation, get straight to the point and say it. Stop beating around the bush, stop acting like a lovesick fool, just let me love you already damn it.

He's absolutely jaw dropped at hearing your question towards him, him of all people. AKANE is just?? so baffled?? so flustered that he just gapes at you right after you finish talking. Did you not see his previous confessions to you?? Were they so lacklustre you didn't even consider them as confessions!??

But when you started to talk more about the underlining reason as to why you felt the way you felt, he slowly began to understood what you meant. Although he may act goofy at times, he's still the vice president, y'know?

He's bit upset (at himself) but he's not entirely mad about the situation at all, in fact, he's glad to know how he made you feel ⎯ or more so, how you actually felt about him. It's so funny that he can't help but laugh at how silly the situation took a turn to.

Akane tried so hard to impress you that he didn't even realise you felt the same. He's such a fool for you, a lovesick fool who can't keep his hand off of you. Suddenly taking you in his arms to embrace you in a tight hold as his shoulders shake from laughing so much, he loves you. He absolutely loves you.

"I can't believe you feel the same way." "I've alway had been, you were just so..." "I know, I know... I'm sorry." - "I love you so much, Y/N."

[nanakah]

onk mini-rambling

tl;dr i feel going against the current a bit as a die-hard ishimiko shipper, but I love Aquakane a whole lot ahahahah

heavy spoilers under the cut

Apparently this is an unusual take, but I'm not really convinced Aquakana is that similar to Ishimiko. The power balance is off and Kana in general reminds me more of how Maki behaves, with some shades of being too "bright" and removed from Aqua's real worries and business. She is still a complex character with good motivations, but the stakes she operates on are too different from what Aqua's revenge plot hinges on.

I've been fighting this feeling that Aquakane was more similar to Ishimiko since chapter 26.

Most people seemed to think otherwise, so I considered I was just seeing things and tried being more into Aquakana once, but I realized it required downplaying what really was going on with Akane too much. And the more I really tried to read Akane with unbiased eyes, the more I came to love her. There is something fundamentally missing for me to think the time Aqua and Kana spent apart is setup for a stronger SINCERE development now, and his protectiveness and admiration of her seem too rooted in the idea of salvation/redemption for Ai, which is platonic. Most of the time, the protectiveness he displays of her is too similar to Ruby for me to think it's romantic or concealing some deep forbidden attraction.

Overall, I think Kana is cute but I can't feel much for the ship. Her chemistry with Akane is really good too, I'm hoping the anime gets a second season for the Tokyo Blade arc because it's amazing.

Kana does bring light to Aqua's life. I can see it, but that reminds me more of Tsubame's role than Miko's..."The Sun".

She helps Aqua get in touch with acting again, he supports her and plays around with her, but at the end of the day, that always seems distant and only a symptom of Aqua's true struggles. He can be happy besides Kana, but it somewhat only happens at the cost of shutting down what is actually eating him alive, and what could have been if his life hadn't been such a mess of tragedies.

And Kana, despite learning the truth, doesn't seem to be able to grasp how deeply that actually affected Aqua, and how badly he is screaming for help. That he wants to be saved. She knows he is more hurt than what he says, but has no idea how it's dragging his whole life down a rabbit hole he can't crawl out of.

On the other hand, Akane sits besides Aqua in the darkness, and offers him some comfort to rely on, so he can at his own pace dig deeper inside himself to drag out his ghosts and finally heal his wounds.

Not only that, she has a path she'd like him to take, but she's letting it be of his own choosing. She'll stop him no matter the cost, but she's also teaching him the hard way to take the hard route of choosing his happiness for himself and to admit he doesn't truly want to toss his life aside for revenge.

The plot isn't all that similar. Neither are the stakes. But the deeper reasons that make me appreciate Ishimiko feel more similar to what I can see here.

This might get people miffed with me (onk fandom can get a little scary with waifu wars), but I see far more in common with Aqua and Akane's relationship. Through their "fake dating trope" relationship, they ended up opening to eachother and blurring the line of "I can't feel something for you" too much, and as of recent chapters are developing something closer to a rivalry and spite born out of love that is....*chef's kiss* more what I'm into? NEURON ACTIVATION IN MY MONKEY BRAIN.

LOOK AT THAT EX ENERGY....THE BITCH PLEASE EXPRESSION ON A GIRL THAT WAS ONCE THE SWEETEST CINAMMON ROLL EVER

FUCK YES GIVE ME SOME RIVALRY AND ANTI-VILLAIN SHIP GOODNESS. I'm sorry, but only Akane gets to see him like this and I love it

Constantly wondering what is a lie, what is Aqua concealing his feelings and having his expressions hidden is delicious. In a way, both of them fell for the mask ("the savior" and "the perfect imitation of Ai") but stayed for what was underneath (a wounded lonely person and someone who wants to be by their side).

Because Aqua, despite being shrouded in lies and using "It's a business relationship, a game" like a shield, truly felt like he tasted happiness and comfort. He felt understood and like he had an ally for the first time in ever, but he did not want to drag her down with him, despite saying he "just wants to use her". And he's willing to protect her by becoming hateful.

And this was the point of no return for me.

Aqua is still Goro, and no matter how much he tells himself it doesn't matter that he was dead like a nobody and that he couldn't connect to anyone after Sarina's passing...

Isn't that awfully lonely?

And yet, Akane was able to find him. She's seen his literal worst, most rotten self, and she was still by his side and grateful to him.

Does it matter how it started, then? Despite Aqua using her as a tool, she's aware of the best and worst parts of his personality. She knows how much his kindness is a heavy burden, and how it drives him to his most reckless self. Akane feels for him, but loves him for all he's done for her. Aqua doesn't allow himself to enjoy life or live for himself, but he has been able to put his objectives aside simply because he thought Akane needed help.

"When you fall down the stairs, I'll be there to catch you"....ahahaha

god help me, if this ship is going down, I'll sink with it

[theamityelf]

Can't I know more of DD Makoto dynamic with Hajime, Fuyuhiko, and Chiaki? Does Komaeda still got DD or not? How would his dynamic with DD Makoto in both case?

I think I'll say for now that Nagito doesn't get despair disease, specifically because Junko considers them really similar and doesn't want to do the same thing twice. Like, I think an argument can be made that she gave Nagito despair disease in canon as just a proxy because he was the closest thing she had to Makoto (in her view). But here, in her eyes, Nagito is way more useful healthy, and Makoto is way more useful diseased.

Nagito would almost certainly want to be among those caring for the ill, and I think he would have a real appreciation for the implications of everyone's symptoms. "I see. I'm sure they would all hate to see themselves like this. A despair capable of overcoming such strong personalities? I'm so excited to see it defeated!"

That said, I think Hajime, Fuyuhiko, Mikan, etc. would not want Nagito around the sick ones. Nagito would be in a very particular place where he wants to make himself useful at the hospital but everyone is aware that it could be really dangerous to leave someone so interested in the killing game alone with any of the ill (especially Ibuki).

And I think the result of this is that Nagito and Hajime would both spend a lot of time around Makoto together. (More on that later!)

I'm deciding whether Chiaki would be there, because in canon she is among those quarantined at the motel, but I do think she would be really good at handling diseased Makoto, just because she's so good at taking everything in stride and just calmly going, "Stop that." And I like to imagine diseased Makoto causally yanking out her game cartridge while she's playing it and her huffing with the most irritation anyone has ever seen from her. So I think I will loop her in with them.

I think Fuyuhiko would be constantly annoyed by diseased Makoto; they would be in constant conflict, and it would be really funny. Earlier in the killing game, I imagine Fuyuhiko would toss threats and barbs at Makoto kind of a lot, and Makoto would just take it and move on with whatever he's saying or doing, but now Fuyuhiko (through whatever means; there's no telling who's still alive at this point) has undergone some character development, and he cares about the people here, and as comeuppance for his past behavior, he's left to get explosively mad at a Makoto who will deliberately provoke him. Just chasing Makoto through the hospital threatening to murder him if he doesn't sit down and eat his food!

Whereas Hajime I think would be a little reflective about it. I think seeing Makoto in a state of poor health and acting really out of character would make him realize how close they've become and how much he's come to care about and rely on Makoto. I'm imagining some introspective moments where he's just like, "The real Makoto isn't like this at all. The real Makoto would be encouraging me not to give up."

(Honestly, since there's no telling what the cast looks like at this point in the story until I actively plot all that out, I could see some of the characters who are dead at this point in canon choosing to help out, or even taking the place of Akane or Ibuki as diseased, but for the purposes of this post we'll ignore that.)

Maybe the group organizes in such a way where Mikan cycles between patients to check on and Fuyuhiko, Chiaki, Nagito, and Hajime watch whichever two patients she isn't with. So, for example, Mikan is checking on Akane, so Fuyuhiko and Chiaki are with Ibuki and Nagito and Hajime are with Makoto. Mikan moves on to check on Ibuki, so Fuyuhiko and Chiaki go to sit with Akane. Mikan goes to check on Makoto, so Nagito and Hajime go to check on Ibuki. It just kind of cycles like that.

They split up differently when one or more of the caretakers need to rest, so sometimes Hajime, Chiaki, or Fuyuhiko have to watch someone alone, but Nagito is never watching anyone alone. He's not allowed. (Officially. He'll sneak in if he can.)

Nagito and Hajime have very different reactions to diseased Makoto. Like I said, seeing Makoto like this makes Hajime feel strongly how much he likes regular Makoto, so he's pretty upset each time this Makoto acts rude and contrary, but he's also committed to helping him. Whereas Nagito is thinking of it more in terms of what can be learned about what kind of person Makoto is, that this is the version of himself that the despair disease creates, and he's deeply curious as to how the disease works and whether one of the infected can overcome its effects. He's watching the patients very closely to see what they'll do. He's smiling and acting relatively normal, and he's encouraging Hajime to stay positive, but he's also kind of willing Makoto to prove himself, in even these circumstances. He'd be messing with Makoto a bunch.

When it's revealed that Mikan had the Remembering Disease and, as I mentioned in the other post, attempted to kill Makoto, Nagito just consumes the idea that Makoto overcame despair, both by not killing anyone under its effects like Mikan did and by successfully evading Mikan. He might clap.

[goldenharmony]

Ai's T.V. Drama -> Parallels with AquaKana during the Main Stage Arc

Considering how most of the entertainment that's been focused on in OnK parallels/foreshadows the characters' "real-life" events:

That was the Start - Parallels Crow Girl & Ruby's meeting during the Private arc, along with Crow Girl's current acting role

Sweet Today - Potentially foreshadowing OnK's ending

Tokyo Blade - Paralleling numerous character arcs, including Aqua's, Akane's, and Melt's, along with the "love triangle"

I think that Ai's T.V. Drama from the prologue parallels the Main Stage arc with AquaKana.

The episode involves the male lead avoiding the female lead and her thinking that its because she did something wrong considering the male lead isn't telling her why he's avoiding her, similar to how Aqua avoided Kana and her thinking that its her fault.

As the episode goes on, its revealed that the male lead had an actual reason as to why the two couldn't see each other, which reminds me of Aqua and Kana finally having a conversation about Aqua's distance in ch107 with him revealing that he's been avoiding Kana to protect her.

This could be a coincidence since "Person A avoiding Person B for X reason" is common in romance but considering all the parallels OnK likes to do with its story beats, I like thinking of it as an intentional parallel.

[anika-kanroji16]

Aquakane thoughts debunking and headcanons

"The hug maternal"

You know there is a weak point in this thing, right? You say it was maternal because of the star eyes but before Akane hugged him

THEY LITERALLY DISAPPEARED!

Then came back again

And it's not like this was the only time this happened\

Because in season 1 she literally had the star and then she didn't when kissing Aqua she had before and then she turned it off and had it back when the kiss ended

Personally, I think it's like Ruby's acting style because remember Ruby was able to act thanks to Kana. Ruby was able to feel Ai's emotions because she had similar sadness that Ai felt not only that but she also had similar experiences with Ai because of the situation with Kana so therefore because she had similar experiences and feelings as Ai she was able to feel and understand Ai's emotions. Now look at Akane and Aqua and Hikaru and Ai. Akane had romantic feelings for Aqua at the time and Ai had romantic feelings for Hikaru when she hugged him not only that but I bet they felt a similar sadness at the time. Ai probably felt empathetic to Hikaru because of the Airi situation and Akane felt empathetic when she found out Ai was Aqua's mom and she was killed. Both Ai and Akane was in similar situations because the hug with Hikaru x Ai and Aqua x Akane were exactly the same and symbolized the same. Aqua and Hikaru even had similar facial expressions. So basically the star eyes appeared NOT BECAUSE THE HUG WITH AQUAKANE WAS MATERNAL. But because Ai and Akane felt the same emotions and had the same experience, the star eyes appeared. That is what I personally think.

"Aqua was never in denial about feelings for Akane."

I think Aqua loves Akane but I ain't doing this today because I already did 2 posts explaining Aquakane and 1 about how he does love her this is in particular is basically saying he doesn't love and he wasn't in denial I am just focusing on the denial part tho.

I would definitely say he was in denial about his feelings for Akane and this scene proves it.

When he was deciding what he would do with Akane since Revenge is over his mind went to the hug basically showing he has feelings for her and that he wants to date her but then he scratches that thought thinking it's best for Akane to NOT be with him. Now remember me saying it's best for Akane? That is because he thinks that the best for Akane but he doesn't feel that way tho and wants to date her.

"I could use her intelligence, I don't have to be tied to my own ego anymore."

"He wants to use Akane's intelligence so she can help find his dead body. Hence why he asked her Takachicho where would she keep a dead pet if she had one." Yes I am aware that he used Akane one more time to find Goro's body but to say therefore "their relationship was still fake" is a damn lie. Cause Aqua said "However then the hug appeared" meaning this, even though he is considering the option of using Akane one more time he still wants to date her for real. And there is more proof for this because he seems sad not being able to date Akane

"Aqua doesn't love Akane"

You know after this scene Aqua said "Stop doing dangerous things." And then Akane said, "You said that you were to use me but now you being kind." Basically debunking your whole point of Aqua not loving her cause CLEARLY HE CARES ABOUT HER shown here which means HE DOES LOVE AKANE.

Those moments weren't Aqua's memories.They were Akane's memories. While Aqua is monologing them.

Well, that's just stupid. Cause 1: Aqua was monologuing these words to Akane which means IT HAS TO BE HIS MEMORIES. And Yes I see the connection between this and this

But here is the thing. 1: Akane never said that he was wrong for thinking that she would lose to Kana.

2: Explain "You acknowledge someone like me, and get close to me." huh. These two are NOT AKANE'S MEMORIES and that's a fact because she didn't say anything like that to Aqua. Unlike with the first one, she did say something close to that so it does mean something. 3: Explain "I don't want to let go of these days when you're by my side." Same thing as the last one this CAN'T BE AKANE'S MEMORIES because never said anything like this and that can be the same for the "When it's wrong, you'll say it's wrong" because she never said that Aqua was wrong for saying she'll lose to Kana. 4 : "Those happy days are over." Aqua literally said himself that he enjoyed the times with Akane which basically debunked this weak argument that those were Akane's memories because he said "Those happy days are over" basically saying that he enjoyed those days with Akane which INCLUDES THE ONES HE MONLOGED.

"You acknowledge someone like me, and got close to me." Which is true. She did do that. She did acknowledge him and got close to him that ain't a lie but a fact during chap 52 and chap 71 she did exactly that. And look at his memories there is the umbrella scene right, now you can say it not his happy memories and if that the case why did they appear when he was talking to Akane and not only that but Aqua said himself that "Those happy days are over." Of course, he is referring to the days with Akane. So since these memories appeared when he was talking to Akane and Aqua said "Those happy days are over." then those memories during the talk must be his happy memories with Akane. Now for the "When it's wrong, you'll say it wrong." People assumed he said that when referring to her pouting when Aqua said she would lose to Kana. Which is understables and I already explained how he might not be lying there "Maybe because he was wrong remember, in Chapter 66 Akane's friends from the Love Is Now Crew started calling her a genius actor and during the times Aqua and Akane were dating Akane was very popular and had job offers left and right so it won't be wrong that for Aqua to say this "Also, why would Aqua say she is wrong when he said Akane will lose to Kana"." But Actually I think he just found the pouting cute but when he talks about "When it's wrong, you'll say it wrong."I think he was referring to this. Aqua was blaming himself for Ruby and Akane for seeing the body in Chapter 78 [And yes I am aware that He was using her to find it but fking still] And Akane said it was wrong for him to blame himself for something that the murder caused. Which is true it is. And that is what I think Aqua means by "When it's wrong, you'll say it wrong." because during that scene it is exactly what she is doing. So I think he truly meant those words all of them including "I don't want to let go of these days when you're by my side" and he clearly does love Akane. Cause I already proved that he is happy with Akane and wants to be near her thanks to his past happy moments with Akane, The scene with him smiling when her reputation was saved and "Those happy days are over." line, Plus he was smiling at Akane during the umbrella scene. Not only that but Aqua clearly cares about Akane more than you Kana stans realizes." And also people keep on say Aqua doesn't love Akane because he wanted to break up with her and they took a break but Aqua said this which means he was changing his mind of breaking up with Akane.

[thoughtspresso]

Hello, sorry I just need someone to voice my op to since none of my circles read or watch OnK :'(

It's so weird to me how Akane's fans interpret that scene when the girls are filming an MV as Akane only having good intention and care for Kana, 'cuz imo even if there is, what she said was still one of her attemps to get Aqua to stay with her. Look at how things played out to her: her business bf wanted to break up, he even straight up refused sex when she offered, and now she found out that right after that he took Kana on to a proper date, Akane's chances were close to zero. She was grasping at straws when she said that and played it under the guise of being considerate about Kana's safety, just like how she said she's okay with breaking up with him yet cried - showing that she wanted the opposite. Because if she only cared about Kana's safety, then what's with the side comment about how actors have it easier? It's like she was saying "Choose me, I'm the safer choice!". I'm not saying Akane didn't have good intention, but it's more like a two bird one stone typa thing where she wanted Kana to be safe and Aqua to continue with dating her (her own selfish want). It was kinda a dirty move from Akane, consider how she knows very well what happened to Ai and how much that'll affects Aqua. Akane always strike me as a good in nature yet also self-absorbed character: She decided what's best for both Kana and Aqua that also benefits her selfish wants regardless of how the other two would feel (& we all know how miserable both Aqua and Kana was during that ghosting period); She decided what to do to Aqua's father without thinking about how he might feel (again); The signs were as early as the LoveNow arc where she tweeted the apology thinking it was the right solution without consulting with her manager first because she thought she knew what was best for her to do in that situation. Even her acting method also kinda reflect this, where if the character's portrayal clashes between her and the director/scriptwriter, she already has a concrete image of the character from her own interpretation and thus has difficulty compromising and adjusting with the production team.

I might even take a wild guess that she was in love (obsessed) with the idea of saving prince charming rather than Aqua himself because to her, their story literally went/was gonna go like the old classic story of prince charming saving the girl -> the girl learns about the prince's past, decides to help him to repay him saving her -> prince charming defeats the bad guy (his dad in this story) with the girl's help -> happily ever after. Akane being a teen + Aqua saved her + it's her first dating experience caused her to have an idealistic view of dating and probably why she tolerated Aqua dating her despite having his eyes on Kana for he did act like the perfect bf on the surface, and that to her was enough to fulfil her prince charming fantasy. Akane is, actually, not that mature in her relationship with Aqua like how her fan keep praising her for, tbh imo it's more akin to what teens think "being mature" is. I know this is one of the appeal of her ship with Aqua, even though some might deny it. As oppose to Kana who might be a potential obstacle to Aqua's revenge whether good or bad, Akane is narratively there as a bonus reward for Aqua after finishing the main quest of avenging his mom if the ship ever be canon again. Akane and Aqua have unfortunately became perfect self-inserts for those who are into revenge and/or trophy girl fantasy (nothing bad about this itself tho). But perhaps because of looking into those fantasy fulfilment rather than the actual context of the manga/anime, they accuse Kana of not understanding the "real" Aqua (I have alot to say about this, maybe 3 paragraphs at least lol) or how she's useless for not helping him kill a person and ignore the entire other half chunk of the story about showbiz problems, where Kana's own story entangle more.

If you've read this far, thank you so so much.

P/s: My wild guess no.2, rather than being a damsel in distress (being Kamiki's target) for Aqua to come rescue, Kana already has a close relationship with Kamiki prior to reuniting with the twins (maybe a mentor-student relationship?). I've always find it weird how Aka just glossed over Kana's past, like he's holding back important info regarding her past that he can't show the readers too soon. So that's why I have this guess. This explains why Aka's been keeping her out of the revenge plot for so long + better than Kana just being a damsel in distress + raises the stakes for Kana (will she choses the mentor who helped her through her dark days being abused by her mom or the twins who she can see the light and bright future in?) + makes Kana a key player in the revenge plot.

Hey Anon! I'm happy to talk to you about some OnK Character Analyses anytime. Sorry to have taken so long to respond, I really wanted to sit down with your question. I've been thinking about this a lot. And I'm afraid my response might be even longer than your ask hahaha!

I want to summarize your main points for everybody else, so that we're all on the same page:

Akane was manipulative when she reminded Aqua that Kana was an idol, and pushed him to choosing her.

Akane wants to reverse the damsel-in-distress and Prince Charming trope, and decides on behalf of others.

Akane fans accuse Kana for not knowing the "real" Aqua

(Bonus) There's a possibility that Kana already knew Hikaru Kamiki.

So, my responses:

#1 Was Akane being manipulative in Ch. 76?

Well, yes. And no.

I actually had a short discussion (argument?) with Skania (who I will not tag for the sake of their mental health, but mentioning here to credit them.) about this very topic. (And I want to thank them for their time and also apologize to have annoyed them!) We have really different interpretations and disagree each other on this part.

To get the fast answer out of the way: Yes, I believe Akane was wholly aware of what she was saying.

She already knew from the Tokyo Blade arc how badly Aqua can get triggered on the topic of Ai's death.

Put it this way: imagine being a teenage girl who was depressed or bullied, and the boy who saved your life started dating you but admits that it isn't because he likes you that way. You start offering him sex if that would fulfill his wants in a relationship, but he tells you that your relationship is about to end soon. You find out from another girl that they went on a date--shopping for suitcases and Brazilian barbecue--a kind of date he never did for you. Then when he invited you to go on a trip, most of what he did was walk you around his hometown to look for something else, and then watch this other girl be really cute in a dress he was stunned by.

Akane is allowed to be a teenager who would want to nudge her boyfriend to stay with her and away from his other crush.

Akane fans like to argue that she was being completely selfless, and was just looking out for Kana's safety too.

I really dislike this reading of Akane's character, because it strips her of agency. Of course she has personal goals, wants, and flaws. She's allowed to be a teenage girl who wanted her love to be reciprocated. She's allowed to be a teenage girl who gets a little jealous, and try as she might to be professional and civil because all of these people are her work colleagues too, she still does things that fulfill her goals. She is allowed to be self-interested, and act on opportunities that align with those self interests.

I also think that if Akane's fans want to believe in her intellect and her masterful ability in understanding people's psychology and detective work, then it stands to reason that they should also believe that Akane was deliberately aware of the effect of what she said to Aqua. She doesn't always make 100% correct bets, but it's reasonable to conclude she made this bet hoping that it could get him to stay.

Akane and everyone else is already aware that Kana is actually not a person who needs scolding on the dangers of being under public scrutiny:

Under any normal circumstance, if Akane simply cared for Kana's safety, she would have simply responded to Kana when she was bragging about the date. Like, "hey be careful about dating in public spaces okay? I dont want you getting in trouble." Or, if she would talk to Aqua about it, she might say, "Please remember to book a private room next time you eat in a restaurant."

But no. If Akane would remind them of safety tips of dating as public figures, it would just lead them to the advice to do Home Dates:

And she doesn't want that now, does she?

She didn't say something as straightforward as that, and neither did the author write it in a more neutral tone. It was deliberately written with Akane implying that if he didn't want Kana killed, he should just date a fellow actor. (Preferably one that the public is actually cheering on to be together, because they were already in a Love Team due to the show.)

I just don't like ignoring what the Author and the Illustrator clearly put on the page for me to absorb the way that it was. I think pretending she was being wholly selfless is an insult to the writers.

#2 Is Akane motivated by the want to Save Prince Charming?

This is the "and no" part of my answer.

When I think of Akane, I don't think of an outright evil person who manipulated Aqua into doing things, wanting to be a hero for that reason. And just like how Tokyo Blade serves as a parallel for the show, it in turn informs us that it is an incorrect interpretation of Saya-hime (or Akane) to think that she outright wants the violence herself.

This part I agree with Skania on: Akane's main flaw is her low self-esteem.

Akane doesn't personally believe that she is inherently worth any value, and any value that she holds is attributed to her hard work.

People have taken notice to the fact that, unlike Kana's experience of abuse and abandonment, Akane had a really good support system behind her when her suicide attempt happened during the LoveNow arc. She had a loving mother and a really kind-hearted manager that believed in her. Yet she clung onto the validation from the agency President more. She ascribes her personal value to the approval of other people, especially positive feedback from her superiors in the industry, her theater troupe calling her a genius, her fans applauding her.

And, on the opposite side of the same coin, she has immense Rejection Sensitivity that makes her extremely defensive when she received cyberbullying, leading her to want to make a public apology right away and appease people.

This leads Akane to be an extremely hardworking person, but also seeking validation and direction from other people (like the LoveNow crew), unable to voice out her views unless it is supported by an authority figure (like when she wanted something changed in Tokyo Blade), and also why when meeting her personal hero and idol Arima Kana in person, when Kana lashed out at her, instead of simply thinking, "okay she's a terrible person, I'm done with being her fan forever", she rejected that idea and went on to study Psychology in the hopes of understanding people like Kana.

All of this manifests in her relationship with Aqua being okay with receiving bare minimum from him, not complaining when she realizes he has feelings for someone else, and also doing anything and everything for him, whatever he needs whether he asks for it or not.

I'll go a little further into my interpretation of her (which I know Akane fans might be resistant to or disagree with, but I hope you stick with me here.)

I also think Akane has a co-dependency on Aqua, and herself has Inverted Narcissism, with Covert and Cerebral Subtypes.

I agree! I sound nuts! This interpretation is crazytown.

Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) has several subtypes, including Inverted Narcissism, which is a subtype where the person craves the co-dependency on another narcissist. They are self-sacrificing to their primary narcissist, feel they are not entitled to anything, but seem emotionally level-headed and highly attuned to the primary narcissist's needs but not much empathy for anybody else.

Because of how little they think of themselves, it gives them a feeling of power and control to be with a person who believes himself to be so special, to have a crucial mission whose victory she can partake in. In a sense, Aqua was someone Akane looked up to so much for having saved her from her suicide attempt, and for turning the public's view of her from negative to overwhelmingly popular.

Akane definitely thought, "I want to be useful to him! I want to make him happy!"

And this man had his own amazing detective mission going on in his mind and trauma to solve. And so Akane thinks, "Let me solve that for you! Let me be useful to you even if it kills me! Use me as you need!"

They say true love is unconditional and self-giving so I will aide my enabler in patricide to prove my worth to him!

According to Professor of Psychology Sam Vaknin, the DSM gives us 9 criteria to diagnose an Inverted Narcissist, and you need to have at least 5 to qualify. Here are some that he mentioned that I think fit Akane:

The inverted narcissist is emotionally stable, but her self-esteem is very low. The inverted narcissist devalues herself as an offering, as a sacrifice to the narcissist in her life. The inverted narcissist is compelled to filter all her narcissistic needs through the primary narcissist in her life. The inverted narcissist feels amplified by the primary narcissist's own accomplishments. The inverted narcissist is pre-occupied with fantasies [...] of an ideal love to be accomplished through the narcissistic partner.

The inverted narcissist feels like she is undeserving and not entitled to anything.

The inverted narcissist is indistinguishably selfless. She is sacrificial. She is anxious in her interpersonal relationships. She avoids assistance of others at all cost. She can only interact with others when she can be seen to be giving, supporting and expending an unusual effort to assist. So she is sacrificial, she sacrifices herself, but ostentatiously, in full view.

The inverted narcissist lacks empathy like a classic narcissist. She is intensely attuned to others needs, but only insofar as it relates to her own need to perform the required self sacrifice. She needs to self sacrifice in order to obtain her narcissistic supply from her primary narcissist. But to do so, she must be attuned to his needs. So this is her restricted use or leverage of empathy.

The inverted narcissist displays extreme shyness, lack of any real relational connections, is publicly self-effacing, is highly moralistic and critical of others, is a perfectionist, engages in lengthy ritualistic behaviors that can never be perfected.

I also mentioned that Akane has Cerebral subtype, in that she believes she has superior intellect, and the Covert subtype, where she seems altruistic and selfless on the outside but internally she is driven by a self-serving need to be useful, to be wanted, because she chases after this external validation to fill in the gaps of her own self-esteem and call to perfectionism.

There is room to argue that Aqua is actually the inverted narcissist and she's codependent on Akane who is the altruistic/communal narcissist subtype. I reviewed it, but it seems she's the codependent one in this scenario.

I think this answer entails that Aqua himself also has NPD, and I think he does have Vulnerable Narcissism with Cerebral subtype. Kana actually picked up on it pretty well:

He does tend to think that he is the sole person who can accomplish this mission of revenge, even though it took him 4 years to crack a passcode and he actually didn't solve anything himself. Like, ever.

He thinks that he has some superior ability to read people and manipulate them (and it's not necessarily true, he just believes so).

And he likes bringing it up out loud a lot, like I used you, or haha she's so easy to manipulate, regardless if he actually did anything.

When Ruby points out he hasn't made any friends, Aqua deflects and becomes defensive.

He also initially thought that he was going to make it big as an actor after the one time he did well as a child, and entreated Gotanda to take him in, but when his PTSD was getting in the way of his acting, he just chalked it up to saying no actually I was never talented in that, because he doesn't want to admit to others that he doesn't have the supernatural inhumane acting skills he thought he did. (Note: He's not comfortable showing those old acting videos to Kana, but is okay with showing it to Akane for this reason.)

He truly believes he's everybody's savior. Unprompted he just thinks he's some main character that caused everybody's suffering. His Behavioral Self-Blame (BSB) about the death of both of his mothers is a manifestation of his wish for control over the situation, which is a known coping mechanism for those with PTSD or Major Depression Disorder (MDD)

Vulnerable NPD subtypes also feel uncomfortable being praised, which is why he reacts that way with Kana.

Vulnerable NPD subtypes also hate being asked to compete, which is why during both LoveNow and Tokyo Blade arcs, he keeps out of the way.

Vulnerable NPD subtypes really really hate rejection, and that's why Aqua says that he can't confront Kana without a Pieyon mask because he's too weak to be shot down by her again.

Vulnerable NPD subtypes are quite anti-social, but again if you confront them about it, they'll just deflect you and say things like they had no intentions to make friends or they're busy observing or something like this.

I mean, look at this dumbass intellectualize having feelings for girls his age like Akane and Kana:

Kana gets it though:

ONLY A NARCISSIST WOULD (half-joke)

This is of course a reminder that people with NPD aren't inherently bad people, they also don't come in one shape or form as there are many subtypes, and they can swing in severity. Most of them are a by-product of either a traumatic childhood or an overly doting one. Akane and Aqua just simply happened to be both of these.

I just came to this interpretation when I kept thinking of why was it that it felt like both Akane and Aqua were using each other. They both felt miserable and yet felt necessary and dependent on each other's emotional comfort. They both lie to each other too. I think a lot of people have picked up on the "feeling" that the two are using, manipulating, abusing each other, there's something dysfunctional about them together, and yet they also genuinely care about each other a lot. And people couldn't pick the right words to describe that. Co-dependents and their primary narcissists can heal together into a healthy relationship, they don't have to stay that way forever. But for the most part, nobody really recognizes that that's what was happening, because the dance they do together looks completely synchronized as a relationship. Who ever says no to a sweet and completely self-giving girlfriend? Who would leave their boyfriend to die alone in a revenge plot?

ONLY A NARCISSIST WOULD (not joking)

#3 Does Kana know the real Aqua:

I think a lot of Akane fans love to cite that Akane knew about the revenge, the trauma, the using, the manipulation etc. She also knows what he's like when he's being silly and playful.

And I don't deny that Aqua and Akane cared for each other.

But I also think that Kana knew Aqua even when he was being unpleasant, making crude jokes about her when they were kids. Kana observes Aqua's acting meticulously and understands the fine details of his style. Kana also has actual conversations with him about his interests too. They read the same books and they jog together, and they're very comfortable arguing with each other about anything.

Most of all, of anybody, only Kana has pointed out that Aqua has chuunibyou/grandiose thinking, narcissistic tendencies, and that Ruby has a co-dependent relationship with him (even when she didn't know about their past as Sarina and Gorou, she just picked it up as the core reason for their clinginess).

#4 [Bonus] Does Kana know Kamiki?

I don't think so.

When Kamiki opened his production company/agency, Kana would have been about 11yo. It was around this time that she had been recording Full Moon and her other songs, and her career had been on a decline. Then her company left her and she started freelancing instead.

Kana's acting style is also diametrically opposed to Kamiki's acting. Which as Akane has pointed out is similar to Ai's acting style. Kana's acting is very emotionally honest and is rooted in her personal understanding of her own emotions, whereas Kamiki and Ai act to deceive others based on the calculated perception they know the audience wants of them. Given this, it's unlikely that Kamiki mentored her in any form.

Lastly, I think Kana would have been the first person to point out that Kamiki looks like Aqua if they knew each other, even if he was acting as the Miki-san persona.

But I did joke before that I think if Kana and Kamiki met each other, they'd just traumabond and be friends until the cops haul Kamiki away. And that'd be the funniest thing ever.

That's it! That was a very long rant. Thanks for the question.

[2n2n]

ch 108

WEWWWWWW!!!!!!!! amazing times.

ghoul.... mmm... you look amazing honey

distractions

what is it with aida-sensei wwwww... if it's not Mokke running all around playing sillay little games in the BG it's a detail like this... well I love it very much

It's good to see Akane indict the Clockkeepers in some sense. The real threat indeed...

here we go AGAIN~

poor little songbird~~

it's the captive princesses ... Nene-chan.... I really adore you... you are pure of heart... you have to absorb and appreciate your scenery and role, don't you... it suits you. Unfortunately, even despite your intentions to do this secretly while he sleeps for some self-indulgent reason, I don't think Tsukasa can perceive your fetish, as he is too innocent. Now, you need to show it to Amane....

so kind of you to try to free you both at once, Nene-chan.... you really warmed up to him, didn't you?

N-Nene-chan animal theater.... I love when Aida-sensei does this so much!!!!!!

whore drawing...

but.. I really love to get to see a listless Tsukasa. I've been waiting forever... it's very cute that fatigue makes him depressive and unmotivated! I like that he's not trying at all and just laying down... Tsukasa strikes me as ah, not tolerant of bad stimuli...? the kind of boy who needs to keep his shirt untucked and his suspenders loose to the point of falling off... who can't tolerate a movie theater longterm. It's a charm point, part of this childishness... if he's bored, he just leaves ... if he's tired, he just lays down...

I'm so fascinated that his Tsueshiro are rendered inert, now. I couldn't imagine-- not when the general time power itself couldn't effect him like it did Amane... and, since Amane's Tsueshiro is operating perfectly normally, this means what happens to one doesn't touch the other...

Th-thank you for having beliefs like this, Nene-chan.... please, please think about how they are twins. It makes their minds special, doesn't it? Surely.

another instance to add to the list of 'Tsukasa having a surprising amount of faith in Nene-chan"! WELL-PLACED FAITH !!!! she's amazing isn't she....! this chapter....!

meanwhile.... a wrecking ball smashes into our minds...

what an incredibly intense bit of lore for the Yugi. I love how Tsukasa approaches 'facts'-- with a practical sense, without seeming morose or mired in what could seem a grim absolute. It's just like his delivery of, "Amane hates me" as his younger self.... Tsukasa doesn't lie to himself, doesn't pull away from what is true, but neither does he express resentment, or any expectation or wish for it to be any different. Amane is Amane. Tsukasa knows Amane. I really don't think Tsukasa imagines ... change ... in their dynamic, as much as Amane also struggles avidly with the idea of having anything 'new' as a ghost. I'm sure that is why Tsukasa is seemingly aiming for Amane to rip him asunder again....

He can't seem to be sad about what he doesn't have, because he just doesn't fathom having it in the first place. I... think that's, the purpose of, Nene-chan... to make Tsukasa consider what he doesn't have, or what could be had. Despite being the wish agent, I don't think Tsukasa wishes for much. I think Nene-chan does that for Amane too, of course... I think she's meant to give both the Yugi an impetus for seeing more. For wishing.

whatever part of Tsukasa may have mouthed Amane's name despite his own belief, he does seem to feel something profound....

you're acting tsun and fussy at a time like this.....

I hope Amane heard their entire exchange ... I imagine he would feel quite stubborn and fussy about what Tsukasa's so easily declared as a fact about him. I wonder how he feels about it.... "never come when called by you?"

I am sure every single second, feeling his weight accounted for and bared by Amane's body, is dreamlike. I doubt he can believe what he's feeling! For real.. Amane's arm! Carrying you! In equal measure to carrying Nene-chan!! THERE COULDN'T BE A BETTER MORE IDEAL PANEL FOR EXPRESSING AMANE'S LOVE FOR THE TWO--!!! these little GOONS!! also, this panel kind of gives you lewd thoughts

I'm sure.... if Amane showed up, Tsukasa expected Nene-chan to be plucked from his hands, and to continue to watch them pivot away to safety, while he falls down into the dark pit.. left to his own devices to figure out how to get out. He had to get out of Amane's boundary by himself, didn't he? and Tsukasa wouldn't be sad about it….! Really. It would be Amane being Amane, to him. He expects it, and it's fine. He loves Amane, anyway. He'd die for an Amane who he believes hates him. That's the kind of person Tsukasa is.

a moment to appreciate Tsukasa releasing his own hold on the edge of the cage, to catch Nene-chan...

A wonderful display. I don't think he thinks twice about it.... not a choice to plummet himself to oblivion, but an instinct. That's just like him, isn't it....?

I'll talk a little more about cages, crying for help, beseeching, at the end... because I have a few more thoughts about it!

ughhh save your princesses ♥♥♥♥ I can't believe you've threaded Tsukasa's bound arms around your neck.... ♥♥♥ God do I wish I could see it second by second....

you're making all my dreams come truuuueee Amaneeeeeehhhhh ♥♥♥♥ all three...!!! your two precious things....!!! ohhhhh our heroooo ♥♥♥♥ dashing in his cape.........

y-you remove Nene-chan's shackles but not Tsukasa's .......

if that is how you want me, master... wwwww

goobie woobie oobie baby Nene-chan in Hanako's arms. Hanako experiencing a new lolicon emotion. Ohhhhhhhhh sweet darling preciousness.... it's not so bad to experience a little bit of pain for such an incredible pleasure, right??

oh all this build up and sweating and shaking to say absolutely nothing in response is so incredibly Amane. She loves you just the way you are, thankfully.... we all do.....

I like DBS's TL of Tsu here better than the MangaUP actually AHAH... mangaUP did "good for you." which I think in ENGLISH carries a bitter connotation that I genuinely do not think Tsukasa has lol. He just talks in a naturally simple way lol.

god. Amane you'd love to get away with doing things with no commentary but unfortunately you have a funny little bug of a brother who is obsessed with you.... what an. amazing and perfect Yugi interaction. Amane obviously being pissy. extremely. Tsukasa keying into it. Amane lying blatantly but stubbornly doubling down anyway. Tsukasa continuing to ask like a little pest. Oouuuh. Boyce... brothers....

ohhh Tsu-chan... you can't... imagine.... the kinds of feelings... Amane has about that kiss... okay... he can't begin t o .. articulate ... any of it at all ... I'm sure he would honestly like it to be as simple as 'mad' ....

personally I enjoy that this makes it obvious it wasn't really Tsukasa's intention ... but I think it's cute to him Amane is still thinking about it despite all the circumstances and events lol.... I actually think Amane is being very charitable and maybe the best big brother he can manage to be here ............ I would give him a treat if I could ... not gonna yell at Tsukasa.... not gonna lash out rn.... contain it....

now I would like to say something funny lol. Tsukasa's line here is actually incredibly ambiguous:

he doesn't actually make reference to Nene-chan, it's like " Amane kiss also?" in that casually threadbare way JP can be ... it means the fujoshi are free to interpret "he's pointing to himself, is he referring to Amane kissing him?" playfully aahahahaa... I'm sad its hard to preserve that kind of ambiguous way of phrasing something!!! it's sad that kind of "wait what did he mean" funny discussion can't happen here, mangaUP also just had him directly refer to kissing Nene-chan.... I'm SUUUUURE it's 'meant that way' but, like, I love when coach lets the girlies play....!!!! they are loving this panel.... its way funnier vague .... Amane ? kiss ? too ? wwwww

AN AMAZING EVENT!!!!

LOVE to see Amane THROWING Nene-chan into Tsukasa's arms, Tsukasa dutifully catching her carefully, Amane trusting he will catch her...!!!! Well I have to say it... it's been funny watching the fandom predict a lot of animosity and hatred in all directions that just isn't there ahahaha. All these expectations for Amane to punch and maim Tsukasa in jealous rage, and instead, you have him relying on his brother to help protect her, and trying to graciously handle the situation. The Yugi... they always surprise you by how familiar they really are...

I'm in love with every time Amane seamlessly commands Tsukasa by saying his name... ♥♥♥ look at him, being such a useful otouto even though Amane hasn't granted him the use of his arms back, and the spell making him fatigued... ♥♥♥ even with a ball and chain on his ankle, Tsukasa can run for Nene-chan...!!

I don't have many profound feelings about Teru and Akane lol, they are just very funny to me-- ultimately neither's alliance is truly with one another, despite that I do believe Akane is one of the only people Teru is his true self around. A complicated closeness which is easily broken .... Akane would kill Teru for Aoi, Teru would kill Akane for his little siblings, these are things I think of as fact. It's such a tenuous bond and, they are mutually aware ... but kind of, struggle with betrayal and reliance and trust and dependence on one another's skills and support. I like how KILL TRAIN Teru is here lol. He's got plenty pent up concerning Akane ... unlike Kou, I think Teru is much more capable of "when push comes to shove..." and suspending empathy or compassion ... even if he could later hold remorse. Crazy Minamoto conditioning and such ...

Interested in the greater machinations and Akane's vagueries, but I don't have thoughts about them. Happy to wait for more (:

stupid ... uke .....

--pomf-- ooo get humped idiot

A FEW EXTRA THOUGHTS ...! pertaining to.... Tsukasa's ominous statement, that Amane would not come if he called... that he "never has before"

what a tantalizing thing to say. When, at what point in time? It conjures the image of a Tsukasa pleading for Amane-- something I'm sure many of us, can't even imagine. I haven't thought of a begging Tsukasa, wanting to be saved. He is so typically 'fine' where he is, even if that circumstance is unpleasant.... even at age 4. In a normal situation, it's hard to imagine Tsukasa calling for help from Amane ... and it's hard to imagine Amane, that sweet older brother, not simply sheltering him. He's sweet to Tsukasa, at 4. He's happy to read to him, and tries to put on a calm front for him while so ill, so as not to worry him. Amane cared about Tsukasa, of course! He's even charmed by the Tsukasa absorbed in katanuki for hours at 8. Wouldn't that Amane come running if called? .... but would that Tsukasa cry out for him .... ?

So.....

when, how? The only Tsukasa we've seen a glimpse of post-ghosting is the coffin boy, who appears quite inert and dead. He certainly can't call for Amane. The Tsukasa at the start of this series, struggled to even get used to moving at all. Is there a stage we don't know about?

How much could Tsukasa call him with no answer, until he ultimately concludes it simply will never be replied to? Why would he think that it is specifically himself Amane won't respond to? Only doing something once or twice, wouldn't create conviction like that. In order to say something like, "this person never ____", you would think there would be extraneous circumstances that proved ... beyond a shadow of doubt ... that it simply is the way things are. Tsukasa is so shocked to see Amane appear, and save him ... that belief has to be rooted in something Tsukasa took to heart.

Perhaps something happened when they were alive .... we really don't know what that final year was like.

Whatever the case... Amane does love Tsukasa-- unlike Tsukasa, we have the benefit of knowing this completely! In our hearts! There are circumstances where, because Amane loves you, and wants to protect you, he ignores your cries....

I wonder when, why, how... Amane wouldn't come when Tsukasa finally called. I wonder why Tsukasa would call for him ....

Honestly, if Amane didn't love Tsukasa, the possibilities wouldn't be so scary. They are much more haunting, knowing how much he loves his little brother. I can't wait to learn more about Amane!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I want to see the Tsukasa pleading for his brother!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I wonder how hopeless we have had to get .... !

[briochebrioche]

Psycho-Pass ( Real-life Honorlock )

The idea of this anime is very good, and the story does a good job of keeping the viewer reflecting. The society depicted can be interpreted as a perfect world or a massive prison depending on who you ask. Currently in the real world, we are becoming more and more reliant on AI and machines to do things for us. It used to be just manual labor, but now we’ve begun thinking about neural links, we have AI that detect faces through cameras, and we have criminal background checks online. It’s a bit of a stretch, but the concept of being able to detect someone’s mental instability or inclination to commit crime has some real life parallel as the concern for safety grows.

The good side of it is that anyone who could commit a crime is either arrested or executed, depending on their threat level. This creates a society with an exceptionally high level of security. It also means that investigations could be facilitated, as innocent people would have a lower psycho-pass score than the culprit. The system of the dominators also ensures that only lethal force is used when necessary. This would solve the real-world issue of innocent people who are fatally shot by law enforcement (which has recently become a huge topic of debate).

Then there’s the bad side, where the system ignores human nature. The first of these instances was seen in the beginning of the series when there was a woman being sexually assaulted by a man. Enforcers were able to eliminate him before he could carry out his crime, but this left the victim severely traumatized. Due to her heightened emotions from having almost been assaulted, her psycho-pass score had shot up to a level where she was labeled a threat. Here, she was almost killed by Kogami, but luckily Akane was able to stop him in order to save the woman. This to me shows a problem where the system does not consider the context of a person’s emotions. Stress and trauma can cause us to have irrational or dangerous thoughts, but that does not mean we will act on them.

Overall, the show does a good job of showing how a seemingly perfect system can still have flaws, and makes one think about whether the benefits outweigh the risk.

[skania]

AquaKane & OnK 148

Ohhhhh boy. I thought we would have to wait until July to get back to Aqua and Akane, so this chapter blindsided me lol

I know that the most on-the-nose reading of this chapter is that Aka is preparing to pull the classic romcom trope where the love interest gives up on the MC only so the rest of the cast can reassure her that she is the one who makes the MC happy, etc. etc. Considering that this is happening two chapters after Aqua told Kana that he has fun with her, it's like Aka is leading us all to believe that's where it's going. It's all very tropey and in-your-face and perfectly on brand with the way Aka has always written that particular ship.

So instead of talking about the obvious, I'd like to indulge my hopes for good writing and discuss the possibility of Aka actually subverting those tropes by playing this straight, regardless of how likely or unlikely it may be. Because if he does, then all of the stuff I've always loved about Aqua and Akane may just end up meaning something.

This is the possibility I'm rooting for against all odds after all, so I figure that I may as well go down throwing my ship the hurrahs it deserves while I can still do so lol

So buckle up because this is going to be long!

This chapter is a wild ride because it touches upon a lot of different things at once.

First, Aqua supposedly didn't want to be involved with Akane any longer in order to keep her safe.

However, when Akane announced that she would stop his plans — in other words, that she would stay involved in his life — Aqua looked giddy.

Look at him. When Aka allows him to actually emote and be an actual character, Aqua can be so funny!

True to form, in this chapter we see Akane come up to him and Aqua just... welcome her. In fact, he even asks her if she feels awkward around him. Instead of acting like they never dated (which is exactly what Akane has been doing, mind you), he himself brings their former relationship to the forefront.

There's a pause splitting his question in two, meaning that this is something Aqua hesitates to ask. Almost like he is scared of the reply. Or like he may be feeling a little awkward himself.

Which is no surprise, because that is how Aka himself presents their current era. Akane isn't just Akane and she isn't just a friend; she is Aqua's ex girlfriend, a title that never fails to bring attention to the fact that they used to be romantically involved.

From colleagues, to a fake couple, to partners, to a real couple and now they're in their Exes era. I've been waiting for Aka to explore all the tension and complexity that should bring, but he's been kind of busy off-paneling most things Aqua. Alas!

When I commented on Chapter 131, I mentioned that (to me) it feels like after Chapter 116, Akane found something to focus on. She isn't thinking about her relationship with Aqua, the only thing she has in mind is Aqua. Keeping him safe, helping him achieve happiness.

Even here during this chapter, she goes to him to ease his loneliness and remind him that he has people worth living for and that he deserves to be happy, but... nothing she says includes her. It's all about Aqua and the others, the others and Aqua.

I don't think it's a coincidence that Akane walks away from him with her eyes closed. Her mind is consumed with thoughts about wanting Aqua to be happy, and so she doesn't even notice the way he turns to look at her retreating back.

Until Kana shines her proverbial light on her, making Akane open her eyes.

The way the chapter is structured, it's like Kana is there to give Akane the answer — the missing piece to solve the Aqua Happiness Conundrum™ that Akane is so focused on. It's easy to think that the answer is predictably Kana herself, but since I'm here for Aqua and Akane, I'd like to believe the answer can be just as Kana says.

After all, who is prominently featured in what Aqua considers to be his happy days?

Kana's words are abrupt, yes, but the silver lining is that they reflect what Aqua himself has already told us.

Akane is front and center in what Aqua has come to know as happiness.

One may wonder: How TF does Kana know that though?? And it's a fair question that I'll talk about in a little bit, but maybe what matters most is that she knows it at all.

In a way, it feels almost like meta commentary. Like the story has finally reached the point where Aka can afford to go back to Aqua and Akane, and so he is getting ready to reap all the seeds he sowed during the previous arcs fingers crossed.

And this is the very first one of those seeds: Aqua was happy with Akane, but Akane never let herself think that she played an instrumental part in his happiness. She seems to think that it was just being freed from his revenge.

I'd even argue this right here was the true reason of their downfall. It wasn't Aqua finding out about the loophole and Akane not coming clean, it was the reason why she didn't come clean.

Aqua's happiness mattered so much to her that Akane failed to consider that risking her life for him was the last thing Aqua wanted.

So when I read the leaks and Kana's comment, my kneejerk reaction was to think Finally! because this could be setting in motion something I've been waiting for all along.

For Aqua and Akane to revisit their dynamic, their relationship, and come clean about what they mean to each other — wherever that may lead them.

Now, going back to Kana and that earlier question of how does she know? Perhaps she saw something we haven't been privy to (in classic Aka fashion). Or maybe it's as simple as Kana finally realizing that Aqua is deeply unwell, and knowing that the last time she saw him happy was back when he was dating Akane.

Considering the information Kana has and — especially — all the information she lacks, it's not far-fetched for her to come to the conclusion that Aqua's state is partly to blame on his break-up with Akane.

Once again, it would be easy for Aka to say that Kana got it wrong because she doesn't know anything about Aqua's revenge. But wouldn't it be ironic if Kana's lack of insight into that particular side of Aqua is what allows her to see something so simple that the very parties involved are missing it?

Regardless of the road she took to get there, I'd like to think the manga has given us enough reasons to believe Kana is not quite wrong.

After all, Aqua didn't get his black stars when he found out that his father was alive. It wasn't finding out about his father's identity that did it, either.

It was turning his back on Akane and on the naive thoughts of being happy in order to walk down the Revenge Road, on a chapter aptly titled "Going Astray", that gave Aqua his two black stars.

If that was the chapter where Aqua stepped away from the "correct path", so to speak, then it stands to reason to believe that Akane may be front and center in the path Aqua is meant to take.

Coincidentally, this was the last interaction Aqua and Akane were allowed to have before this chapter.

Another thing I find very important in c148 is the way Kana words her realization. Kana isn't telling all of this to Akane as an observer. She's saying it as someone who likes Aqua romantically.

This is in contrast to Akane and Aqua, who are two hot messes when it comes to identifying the nature of their own feelings.

Throughout the entire manga, we've never seen Akane put a label on the way she feels about Aqua. We've seen her realize why she feels the way she does, but we haven't seen her say what she feels, even though Aqua himself has questioned it.

Closest we got was this, and they broke up a chapter later.

Aqua has unexpectedly been more open than Akane in that regard, but... once again, they broke up literally one chapter after Aqua was at his most candid.

And considering everything that happened before and after that, I'm not sure if Akane actually got the message.

But before I get to that, there is an important difference in the way Akane was thinking of Aqua's happiness back then and the way she's thinking about it now.

Chapter 97 was even titled Together. Akane wanted to make Aqua happy, yes, and she also wanted to be together with him always. Just like Aqua wanted them to, according to his own admission: "I don't want to let go of these days... when you're by my side."

But all of that is missing in this most recent chapter. She no longer includes herself as part of the equation at all.

It truly feels like Akane is back to completely underestimating how much she means to Aqua.

Back when Aqua told her this:

Akane reacted like this:

And what is her reaction to Kana's words this chapter?

Every single time, Akane is taken aback by the thought of meaning more to Aqua than she thinks. Every. Single. Time.

This is sad and a little frustrating, but it's far from surprising. After all, this is how Akane has always interpreted their relationship:

As far as Akane is concerned, their relationship was a lie that was turning into truth little by little. She never dared to hope that he loved her back; hell, she even thought that he was attracted to Kana and wondered why he decided to date her instead.

To make matters worse, in Chapter 98, Aqua deliberately set the stage so that Akane's trust in him — the very basis of their relationship — would be broken.

So while Akane realizes that Aqua doesn't want to use her, she may have explained that away as Aqua being his kind self rather than as Aqua harboring any kind of special feelings towards her.

Regardless of how she interpreted his actions though, it seems likely that Akane thinks that she failed him.

She couldn't save him as his girlfriend and Aqua told her he would have nothing to do with her anymore, and so Akane is now trying to save him as something else entirely. Not even as a friend, because she hardly interacts with him at all.

She's trying to save him while staying away just like he wanted her to. While only stepping in when she deems it appropriate and/or necessary.

But is that really and truly what Aqua wants?

Most importantly, is that what Aqua needs?

This chapter suggests that may not be the case, and the rest of the manga agrees. Staying away is not how Akane saved Aqua little by little. This is how she did it:

That's why the way Kana worded her realization is important. It isn't only that Kana — the very girl Akane thought Aqua was attracted to — is bringing romance to the forefront and thus setting the stage for the nature of Akane's (and Aqua's) feelings to be finally cleared up.

It's also that Kana is showing Akane that it's possible to own her feelings while being selfless about his happiness.

After all, the ball right now is in Akane's court. In the state he is now, Aqua would never ever allow himself to chase his own happiness. Even when he thought he was free to do so, he felt that Akane deserved better than to be held back by him.

So all in all, it's like with this chapter alone Aka has laid the groundwork to address all the AquaKane elephants in the room. Just in time for the very season that will be showing AquaKane in all its glory to all the anime-only watchers, at that.

In each of the last arcs, Aqua has reconciled with someone important to him. Kana and Ruby are fully back in his life now, yet he isn't doing any better. Maybe it's finally Akane's turn to try again.

So yes, Kana's change of heart is so abrupt that it may be a red herring leading to a very predictable end.

But since I've made it this far, I may as well keep hoping for the opposite to be true: maybe, just maybe, Aka is planning to tie all of this together and lead it to a satisfying conclusion. I can only hope that is the case, because it's where I feel that the writing is at its best.

Besides, if "giving up on Aqua" and "turning his black star white" are so-called "winning flags", well... Akane did both of those first 😂

[oddeyes588]

Uh oh it's a little late but guess who's posting about Oshi no Ko again, courtesy of chapter 147~

I have no goddamn clue what Aka is cooking.

As if ANYBODY knows what Aka is cooking LMAO. At this point we're all just here going along for the ride, regardless of where it ends up. At the very least, I'm stubbornly keeping my faith in him... and also theorycrafting. That's what this post is. Buckle up, folks. Spoilers below... here are my thoughts and speculations on the latest chapter.

In any case, starting with the first part of the chapter, featuring Kamiki. Honestly? I kind of doubt that Ruby didn't recognize him. It's not even a case of anime sameface, if Akane could recognize the uncanny resemblance, then so should Ruby... especially considering her current feelings for Aqua (lmao).

Which does beg the question... being that if she DID recognize him and her romantic feelings for Gorou haven't dumbed her down (which is the worst case scenario), why would she talk with him like this? Well, it's made clear by Ruby herself... she isn't sure.

Thanks to Aqua, she's abandoned the path of revenge, entrusting it all to him (without knowing just how badly he's doing mentally as a result). She's "poured out" her hatred so that she can move on, so that she can pursue the dream she's held in her heart throughout both her past life and her current life. To be an idol, to shine even brighter than Ai, one of the "stars" that kept her going when she was Sarina.

She's also learned, through acting for this movie, the unfortunate truth that nothing in this world is as simple as black and white. Hikaru Kamiki, her father, the one who killed Ai... he was never as simple as a malicious and unforgivable villain. He's a boy who has gone through severe hardships that sent him down the path to being the broken individual he is today.

But that doesn't mean she can forgive him. No matter where he came from or why he did it, the fact remains that he took Ai from them. She wants to pour out her hate, but that feeling stubbornly remains. Thus, she's at a dilemma. Is it right for her to continue hating him? Can she really move on if she does?

I think that's why she talks to him, why she tells him all this, while acting like he's just a stranger. In interacting with him directly, she hopes to receive an answer on what to do. (God I will pop the hell off if I actually got this right. Give me this, Aka. Tell me I'm just as batshit crazy as you are.)

Now, obviously I can hear the cries about how that really isn't the smartest play. I mean, come on girl, you are dealing with a literal murderer. There is not a single instant during this interaction where she isn't in very real danger... but impulsiveness is one of Ruby's defining traits. I think we need to stop expecting her to do the logical thing. She was in broad daylight, so she must've figured he wouldn't have killed her THERE... but it's hard to tell at this point.

She took her opportunity to give voice to her thoughts to the very subject of her hatred, but revenge isn't her goal anymore. Aqua brought her off of that path, even if she doesn't realize the consequences of leaving it all to him. In any case, those are my thoughts on Ruby.

Now, for Hikaru...

God he's so fucked up. God it's so interesting to me that his star turned white in that moment.

It couldn't be clearer where Hikaru's insane fucking headspace is at. He kills those with potential, those who shine the brightest, because by depriving the world of that light he can feel the "weight" of his own. Fucked up! Truly, not a single person in this family is okay.

But again, it's interesting to me that his star was white in this moment. We see him approaching Ruby as if to push her down the stairs, but it makes me wonder if he really was going to kill her. If he was going to kill her, wouldn't his star be black? The stars mean a lot of things symbolically, but murderous intent seems to be a theme with the black stars...

...or maybe he's just so fucked up that killing is, for him, what gives him those white stars. If feeling the weight of his life after killing is what he lives for, then maybe that's what gives him that light, even if only briefly.

For the moment, it's all speculation. Akane comes in with the save and gets Ruby away from him before anything can happen... and honestly, I gotta wonder what Akane's place is in all of this.

As we know, Akane is trying to put a "stop" to Aqua's revenge. What this means exactly is up in the air... since I doubt she's here to make it so Hikaru gets away scot free. She was willing to kill him herself for Aqua, after all, and hell... it seems like even Hikaru is willing to accept Aqua's revenge.

So it begs the question as to what "stopping" Aqua means in this regard. Is she just trying to stop him from "killing" Kamiki? Is she still planning to kill him herself to take that away from Aqua? What is my girl cooking?? Aqua's mental state aside I don't think you should want to help this guy, Akane.

But back to Hikaru... or actually, more specifically, the ending of the movie arc.

Yeah we sure did rush through this, didn't we? But honestly... I'm actually not complaining, but not because I didn't like this arc.

Because I think it makes sense that we've rushed through all of this. Because in the end, though this movie is possibly at least 90% accurate according to Akane... I think there's much more to this than what's been written in the script. What we've seen of Ai and Hikaru was all written as a story... and that's it.

We don't know how much of it is true.

I think that's why we've brushed past everything so quickly. Stuff like all the scenes we didn't see, Ai's rejection, etc etc... I think those were skipped because Aka isn't going to show us that through the context of a movie where we can't tell how much of it is really true.

I think we're leading up to seeing the details of Ai and Hikaru's relationship through Hikaru's own eyes, and that's why we've skipped so much.

...alternatively, the next chapters will include the parts of the movie we've missed out on seeing, but I think my idea is better, actually—

In any case, those are my thoughts. If it turns out that I got ANY of this even slightly right, I'm going to be reblogging this to hell and back. Let me into your headspace, Aka Akasaka.

[mari-lair]

In ageswap AU which other characters are also age swapped?

Are Yokoo and Satou in Teru's class?

Was Mitsuba a classmate of Teru? Mitsuba should have given Teru "let's be friends" talk since they sit in alphabetical order.

Of the main cast only the Minabros age are swapped. But I have decided to age up Yooko and Satou too, because I love their friendship with Kou very much, and I want them to grow up together and slowly pick on how stressed Kou is, helping him out as much as they can.

Mitsuba was Teru’s classmate and he does give him the "Let's be friend" talk. I didn’t want to put too much focus on Mitsuba, but this is the third ask I get about him, so I'll go into ramble mode: Here is every loose idea I had of Mitsuba and Teru relationship.

Since they are both friendless and lonely and sit next to each other, they agreed to be friends, but it’s a strange and somewhat superficial friendship, very short-lived. Their personalities just don’t clash very well: Not with Mitsuba's fake mask.

Mitsuba is very boring for Teru's standards, his sweet and polite persona makes Teru even more confident in his belief he isn’t normal and probably never will be. He puts effort and tries despite the lack of interest and his difficulty forming attachments because he does want friends, part of him hasn't given up on it. He also knows Kou is worried about him always spending his lunch with him instead of people his age, and Teru wants to make Kou proud, not worried.

Teru is more careful with strangers, but he doesn't really have a persona when he tries to make friends, he is still too casual about morbid topics and too blunt about his opinion, bullying Mitsuba on accident.

He gets some hope of making this work when he scares or frustrates Mitsuba, since it breaks his good boy act, and his real self is dramatic enough to entertain Teru. He is still hopeless though, so he enjoys hanging out with Kou more than Mitsuba.

Teru ends up realizing Mitsuba doesn't like to be seen as girly, and he was taught to treat girls nicely, so he kind of took it as “Don’t be delicate with Mitsuba,” and while that doesn’t make him violent, as he is with Akane, he does hurt Mitsuba on accident a lot when he teases him.

Teru makes an effort to be a good friend but he is very bad at it, and very arrogant, so he is confident he is nailing this friendship when he starts having fun, which is when Mitsuba starts to be stressed in his presence.

As for Mitsuba, he used to think Teru is cute (his type is blond with kind looking smiles and pretty blue eyes) but that feeling was quickly overshadowed by anger, fear, frustration, and just plain bafflement.

He is jealous of how authentic Teru is, and scared of being honest too, considering Teru's attempts to bond came across as him bullying Mitsuba when he is being ‘inoffensive’, so he fears being killed if he acts cocky and arrogant. The alternative of actually hurting Teru is also uncomfortable though, since he is one of the few people that can get happy to see him.

He gets tricked a lot and feels dumb near Teru (which he really hates), but he does likes that when Teru asks about his life, he listen to the answer, and remembers what he tells him.

He doesn’t believe in exorcists but does notice Teru gets new injuries every day, sometimes serious injuries. Mitsuba comes to the conclusion there is an uncomfortably high chance Teru is involved in something shady, maybe an illegal fight club (Teru just has a ‘vibe’ when he talks about supernaturals that put Mitsuba on edge)

Mitsuba eventually gets curious and lets Teru drag him to meet ‘his cool big brother’, and Kou is super sweet and happy to see Teru with a friend, so Mitsuba got a crush on his first meeting, even if he is angry about it and refuse to go out of his way to see Kou again, only seeing him on casual chance encounters.

Depending on how lonely Mitsuba feels he either seeks Teru out (anything to not spend his break alone) or avoids him as he would his old bullies, which confuses Teru, but he doesn’t mind, happy to have lunch with Kou.

Mitsuba would only consider him a friend when desperate for it or if his mom looks too worried. But usually, he doesn’t know what his relationship with Teru is: He doesn’t hate Teru but he also doesn’t like him.

He stopped interacting with him relatively quickly cause he think being friends with the weirdo that frankly, is stressing to hang out with, would ruin his chances of making friends with other people.

He is convinced his own personality isn't as bad as Teru's.

Their interactions got reduced to random talk when both are too bored and being the first person to go to when you need to borrow something, since they sit so close and do know each other. It's not hostile but more like friendly (?) acquaintances than friends. (I genuinely do not know how to describe their relationship)

When Mitsuba dies, Teru was close enough to him to feel the loss but not enough to grieve ‘properly’. It hurt, and he isn’t as bright for a week, but he moves on relatively quickly, going back to only focusing on his family.

Teru did not realize the weak ghost he exorcized is Mitsuba, only able to connect the dots when he heard Tsukasa say Mitsuba's full name. The idea he exorcised an old classmate will make him feel guilty and sad, but Teru won’t regret it or beat himself about it for long: He was taught since young that wandering spirits can become a danger if they try to cling to the near shore and that supernaturals are pitiful and selfish creatures that lose their humanity.

He had accepted Mitsuba, the human he knew, had died on the day his death was announced last year, and he had moved on from it.

[scalamore]

Thoughts - House Belois was justified in treason

As much as I think they're annoying and infuriating, I have to admit, in another story, they would have been justified in their attempt at rebellion.

After all, consider this: Trash dad was Akan I's closest associate. Even their wives were close. House Belois was always known to be loyal to the Crown. Unfortunately, Akan I was overthrown by his brother, but he at least was still a member of the imperial family. After this event, House Belois withdrew from most political activities and stayed mostly in the South. Although not as active, he got along well with the Queen's faction enough to send them/Nigelle an invite to Lari's 12th birthday party (the one Rupert ordered Tory to steal).

It's implied that the promise made between Trash dad and the Crazy emperor was something like this: In exchange for keeping the secret of the Emperor's infertility and how Eva is a wiletan spy and wants to escape, the Count will live like a mouse in the South, along with smuggling Lari away, but also on the condition that Eva's child will not inherit the throne.

Ch 72:

Notice in both timelines, Trash dad was quiet and didn't earnestly make plans for treason until he learned that Rupert would be crown prince/Emperor. In TL1, it wasn't until Rupert became Emperor and soon took Tori as his Empress that Trash dad started acting up: he openly complained about how a commoner was the mother of the nation, but he also knew that the new emperor was also essentially a Wiletan commoner with no speck of Vellnelni blood. He didn't take action because although Rupert was named Crown Prince, the emperor, Arnulf, and Ventibolt was still alive so it wasn't a guarantee that he would become Emperor next.

In TL2, he had a jump-start of 3ish years to plan the treason and was on the lookout for the truth that Lari was correct in that Rupert was actually a male would become CP, and we see the evidence through Lehan: his unusually quick improvements, knightage, promotions, transferred to another location, now part of the army instead of the military (or something like that).

As someone as loyal to the crown and as traditional as House Belois, it is utter madness to allow non-royals to masquerade as the real ones and fool the entire nation. There was no way they could accept that. So of course he had to take action to put Lari back rightfully on the throne. Ventibolt is a coward, Arnulf is weak, but through Lari, House Belois can "set the Vellnelni empire to the right path" again.

(It's also explained in the novel that in hindsight, she's aware that her father loved/idolized/respected Akan I and House Belois so much, and that he only "loved" her as long as she was useful to him with his goals. The moment she cut ties with House Belois, he was ready to abandon her. Gross. This was hinted as early as Ch 54 with the first visit to Aunt Amelia's house where she told Lari that Trash dad didn't love her, he only loved Belois)

It just so happens that in THIS story, it's a story of choices, changes, healing, acceptance, freedom, autonomy etc, so the reader sympathizes with Rupe/Lali so we WANT them to succeed and be happy.

Just thoughts.