#like I still agree human chiaki should have never existed but I also think her existing as an individual who was wildly different from

[arolesbianism]

Every now and then I get haunted by my past as a dr fan because someone mentions it or smth and lemme tell you the worst case scenario is if they bring up v3 in an even slightly positive light because nothing will make me start giving a shit abt dr again except for my burning hatred of that damn game, I just spent like 30 minutes ranting to myself about how much of a nothing character Kokichi is in the bathroom after showering just to vent it out because if I don't rant abt v3 every now and then I'll explode and kill someone

[danggirlronpa]

haiiiii :3 akane anon again. im off work now!

i agree w absolutely everything u said. she's been my fav ever for years and i have so many in depth thoughts abt how she could function on relationships w like. most of the girls. i could probably make a chart if i figured out a format.

chiakane soooo crazy. never been my main ship but ill consider anything. they r most interesting from a doomed standpoint to me...... akane as a remnant vs chiaki's existence as ai and (counting dr3 as canon which im not usually interested in doing) death before the tragedy. i think of them in almost a similar vein to the tragedy between madoka and homura except if homura was replaced by a kyoko who's a little worse w emotions. chiaki's entire being has become dedicated in one way or another to serving class 77 even if that means sacrificing herself over and over and akane has had every single meaningful relationship (or what SHOULD have been) ripped away or twisted and never having even really existed and she is so afraid of going through this again she doesn't even try and have relationships she cares about deeply (or at all!) that aren't w her siblings. so she would be PISSED to fall in love w chiaki who is already dead and doomed to die again. ive never believed the mastermind akane theory people talk abt at least fully but it IS interesting. i can make a killer chiakane au w it. w madoka magica parallels even. but ur right they can also be very very sweet. i think they would play super smash bros and akane would kinda suck at it (spams the buttons and thinks it's a pro strategy) but chiaki would let her win every once or twice. akane hears the rumours abt chiaki dating some random reserve course guy and sends the "im so happy for you and your ugly fucking boyfriend I'm serious" text after swearing to herself she doesn't even gaf

that's uh. that's a lot. im so sorry can you tell i have autism. this isn't even my favourite ship for either of them ask me about pekokane and i start growling like a rabid dog.

YES yes yes yes!! I am a HUGE Akane fan. She's the only character I have a real little collection of merch for (though that's partly just because so much merch excludes Mukuro). I didn't really attach to her the first time I played SDR2 but over time I've grown SO fond and defensive of her, she is such a sad and complex character who deserved to be treated better by her writers (and have less racist tropes associated with her. Spike Chunsoft. cough cough) and still deserves to be treated better by the fandom.

And I think you got it RIGHT on the money why I'm inclined towards Chiaki/Akane, actually. Akane has lived such a dark life that not only does she not know how to ask for help or rely on others, she doesn't even realize she needs to - for her, this is just how the world is. Akane, to me, is like the equivalent of a housecat looking at their humans and going, "They don't even know how to hunt. They're all so stupid. I have to go kill mice so they can eat. Are they even bathing themselves properly?? Licking time. Morons." She's incredibly resilient and smart within the context of the VERY SPECIFIC lifestyle she's lived.

And something really appeals to me about someone who solely exists to help people meeting Akane, thinking they can 'save' her, and slowly coming to realize that she is not dumb or unskilled just because she isn't skilled in the way they value. Learning that intelligence isn't a measure of worth and seeing & valuing Akane for who she is - and, at the same time, helping her see that some of the things she's gone through are truly, deeply traumatic, and helping her learn how to rely on others for the first time...that shit gets me. I Just Want Akane To Be Happy

[theultimatefanficwriter]

Pride Month Headcanons!

So its Pride Month! And as a proud member of the alphabet mafia I wanna give my opinion on all the Danganronpa characters' sexualities! So let's go, starting with THH!

Trigger Happy Havoc

Makoto Naegi- Pansexual. I'm under the belief all protags are Pan. Transgender(ftm). So I have this whole hc that the reason his door was jammed was that the lock was quickly removed when they found out SHE was actually a HE and I just like the hc lol.

Sayaka Maizono- Straight. I just think she has a big thing for Makoto, but other than that she cares for her career more than a relationship.

Leon Kuwata- Bisexual, heavy female leaning. I ship him with Hiro, but honestly this fucker would probably take forever to admit he likes guys.

Chihiro Fukisaki- Gay. Dont really have a reasoning. Just my opinion lol

Mondo Oowada- Bisexual. He mentions trying to confess to girls, but come on. This guy is fruity for Taka.

Kiyotaka Ishimaru- Gay. This dude meanwhile is just straight homo. He's probably closeted in fear it would bring shame to his family name again.

Hifumi Yamada- Straight. I honestly dont think about the guy enough to give this enough thought, but the way he simps over Celeste proves he likes girls at least. Plus he kept calling Alter Ego she, so...yeah.

Celestia Ludenberg- Straight. Honestly I think she'd be homophobic? Idk i really dislike Celeste, sorry 😅 She just gives me those vibes.

Sakura Oogami- Bisexual. I wanna label her as lesbian, but Kenshiro exists 😒 Women leaning possibly

Kyoko Kirigiri- Bisexual. Though i dont personally ship her with any girls, I can see her going both ways.

Byakuya Togami- Gay. And it's a problem with his family, so he's closeted.

Yasuhiro Hagakure- Pansexual. He just wants to love someone, man lmao.

Aoi Asahina- Bisexual. Again, wanna label her as lesbian, but the Bad End exists, showing she willingly got with three guys. And she does ask Makoto to pretend to be her bf. But she leans heavily towards females imo.

Toko Fukawa/Genocide Jill- Bisexual. It was straight until she met Komaru. Then she realized "Oh shit. I'm gay." But she still has a small thing for Byakuya ig 😒

Mukuro Ikusaba- Straight. We pretend the thing with her sister doesnt exist, alright?

Junko Enoshima- Straight. And definitely homophobic.

Wow a lot of bi peeps lol. Alright, onto the next game!

Goodbye Despair

Hajime Hinata- Pansexual. Again all protags are Pan. Fight me, prove me wrong you literally cant.

Ultimate Imposter- Panromantic, Nonbinary, Asexual. Though I call Imposter he a lot, I think it's almost canon they're nonbinary. I just have stupid brain and type he first without thinking. I also dont really have a reason for thinking they're asexual? I just think they are. But they're probably panromantic in order to fit their talent better.

Teruteru Hanamura- Pansexual. He's so painfully pan. He even says his options are, and I quote, "pretty open." Dis bitch gay.

Mahiru Koizumi- Lesbian. Dont think I gotta explain myself.

Peko Pekoyama- Bisexual. She's totally dating Fuyuhiko, but I can see her having small crushes on other girls.

Hiyoko Saionji- Lesbian. Also dont think I need to explain myself.

Ibuki Mioda- Bisexual. RAGING bisexual. Also I can honestly see her being Gender Fluid as well.

Mikan Tsumiki- Bisexual. She honestly needs therapy more than she needs a relationship, and she probably doesnt really understand her own labels completely, but I think shes bi.

Nekomaru Nidai- Bisexual. Homeboy was a little TOO eager to be rubbed down by Teruteru 😏 Just kidding, though I do think Nekomaru is bi. No real reason honestly

Gundham Tanaka- Bisexual. He obviously has a thing for Sonia, and in a perfect world(i.e. my perfect world) he would be holding hands with Kazuichi daily. Speaking of holding hands he basically breaks Hajime's in the FTEs. Gay 🥰

Nagito Komaeda- Gay. He's very obviously gay coded, mostly towards Hajime though I dont personally ship that.

Chiaki Nanami- Pansexual. She loves everyone equally. Honestly she probably doesnt put too much work on her labels and would probably go by any pronouns as well, so maybe Gender Fluid?

Fuyuhiko Kuzuryuu- Bisexual. Like Leon I think it would take him a while to accept he likes guys, and he probably leans towards girls more, but he's definitely fruity lol.

Sonia Nevermind- Pansexual. Our girl fucks. She dont care who, she just FUCKS. 🤣 But seriously, I think she just sees love as love. As she should.

Kazuichi Souda- Gay. Transgender, (ftm). He's so very closeted, so badly even he doesnt recognize it. He probably even has internalized homophobia, probably because of his father. Not sure why I hc him as trans, I just think it fits.

Akane Owari- Straight. She probably doesnt think about it much. All she knows is she likes fighting, meat, and Coach Nekomaru.

Alright and onto the last game!

Killing Harmony

Shuichi Saihara- Pansexual, Transgender(ftm). Its. THE RULE. I didnt make it. Sue me. Also fuck it I dunno I think it fits with his whole character if he were trans. Hard to explain lol

Rantaro Amami- Biromantic, Asexual. I admittedly dont know much about Rantaro, but from what I do know, I think he would fit well with just about anyone. I dont have much of a reason for him being Ace.

Kaede Akamatsu- Pansexual. She was the protagonist first, so the rule still applies lol. But even beyond that it just fits her. Hard to explain, it just seems like it works.

Ryoma Hoshi- Straight, Asexual. I know on my ship list I said I shipped him with Gonta, but theres a reason that ship was so low. I heavily think Ryoma is straight. It's just the vibe I get from him. Maybe hes bi curious, but idk. As for the ace bit, it's really dark. I hc it's because of the trauma he endured during prison.

Kirumi Tojo- Lesbian. Idk I look at her and I think "Lesbian power. Powerful wlw moments." Dont ask me my brain just does things.

Angie Yonaga- Pansexual. She always seemed like she was flirting with Himiko and lowkey Tenko, and in the FTEs she straight up wants to get married to Shuichi so like....I dunno what you want me to say.

Tenko Chabashira- Lesbian. Literally no explanation needed.

Korekiyo Shinguji- Pansexual. Putting aside the....obvious....he finds all of humanity beautiful, so he most likely doesnt have a preference when it comes to choosing a partner. Just like with Mukuro we pretend that entire plotline never happened.

Miu Iruma- Pansexual. I see her as pretty open to everyone....Yeah. That's all I got.

Gonta Gokuharu- Bi-curious. Honestly I dont think Gonta knows what he is himself. He probably hasnt given it too much thought, if hes given it any. The best I can think of is bi-curious, assuming hes currently exploring his sexuality.

Kokichi Ouma- Gay. I dont ship him with anyone cause I personally think he'd be a bad partner to anyone he got with based off of his personality, but yeah. He gay lmao.

Kaito Momota- Pansexual. THE LUMINARY OF THE STARS IS FOR EVERYBODY! Probably took a while for him to admit he wasnt straight, but then he admitted it with his whole heart, precious thing.

Tsumugi Shirogane- Straight. Fuck I dunno I dont think about her in a positive light enough to care. Sorry I really tried 😅

Kiibo- Panromantic, Genderfluid, Asexual. Like Imposter, I've called Kiibo he all the time, including every story I put them in, but technically they have no gender. So that does make them nonbinary, but at the same time it leaves the opportunity for them to go by any pronoun they want, so I hc they go by all of them lol. I also think they just love everyone, and for the ace bit, unfortunately, robots probably dont have dicks 😔 Even if they did, I dont think he would be very interested in sex.

Himiko Yumeno- Lesbian. Despite her treatment of Tenko, her reaction at the end of chapter 3 shows she cared for her, and Angie. She probably loved them both, so, lesbian for sure.

Maki Harukawa- Straight. Kaito was probably her first ever crush, so I doubt she ever had a chance to feel out if she was anything other than straight. Even disregarding that, I dont think she'd be anything else.

Alright and those are my headcanons for all the Danganronpa characters! As a bonus, I think Komaru Naegi is a Lesbian! No real reason other than Tokomaru is top tier lol.

Now remember these are my opinions! If you dont agree that's fine! Just be kind!

And HAPPY PRIDE EVERYONE! 🥰🏳️‍🌈

[hinanamis]

do you have any thoughts/headcanons of kamunami *holds my hands out*

yes. absolutely. always. they have taken up permanent residence in my head.

under cut for length

generally speaking chiaki is probably one of the healthiest Relationship Options for izuru bc she 1) is very patient, understanding, and compassionate 2) also does not express herself very well, so she Understands that it’s smth that doesn’t come naturally to him 3) ALSO doesn’t put up with his shit when he’s being an ass, so he actually has the ability to learn and grow from being in any kind of relationship w her, platonic or romantic

he beats her in games Every Single Time bc he doesnt just have the gamer talent, he also has luck and a bunch of other talents that aid him. she doesn’t really mind losing and the idea of the challenge is kind of exciting for her

related, but he straight up Does Not Get how she can play the same game multiple times in a row. like, she knows whats gonna happen, isnt it... boring? if she can predict everything that happens? and she explains to him that theres value in things even if theyre predictable, and he doesnt really Get It, but the thought has now been put into his mind

he’s bad at showing affection so generally she’s the one who initiates things. though the times when he DOES initiate, its basically a one hit KO, which makes her wonder if maybe he’s holding back just so it has a stronger effect on her

he doesnt rly have a place to stay or... physical possessions... in most cases, so he tends to unofficially-officially move in with her very early on, if only bc she feels bad for him in a “god he’s like a stray animal” type of way. she also encourages him to like, get new clothes, items he might like, whatever, which takes a while to set in but once he does it becomes clear he DOES have personal preferences, it’s just that they were conditioned out of him by the project which literally took every last bit of personality left in him and scooped it out with an ice cream scoop

they do kind of. tend to argue a lot. and sometimes chiaki gets really heated bc hes saying some really mean things (mostly parroting his teachers from the project), and she stops talking to him for a bit bc she literally just Can’t deal with it (my own HC for (human) chiaki (AI chiaki is a good girl but for kamunami i usually default to human headcanons) is that she’s kind of unresponsive/unemotional is that she grew up in a particularly broken home, so any kind of arguments tend to wear on her VERY quickly bc Trauma) and after a while he claims he got bored of not talking to her so he like. not Apologizes necessarily? bc i dont think izuru, like, ever drops his pride enough to full-on apologize. but its an “agree to disagree” thing

that being said, it takes a LOT of work and effort, but i do think she’d genuinely be able to get him to like... see the value in things other than talent, eventually.

a lot of their time spent together is quality time adjacent (like he’s reading, she’s playing a game, they’re not doing the same thing but theyre just kinda Vibing nonverbally together) bc neither of them are... SUPER talkative? chiaki gets going about her games and he listens intently, but he rarely has very much to say at all. he just likes listening to her talk, he doesn’t feel the need to respond, but if she ever asks if he’s listening he can repeat back to her what she just said VERBATIM

chiaki sees izuru as his own person while also still being kind of an extension of hinata. they’re very, very different, but at least in the way i interpret it, he and hinata still share a lot of preferences and feelings (feelings izuru is unable to interpret nor act upon, but they’re still there). as such, chiaki would never like... want to get rid of or erase izuru just to have hinata back, even early on. 

she tries not to rely on his talents too much, but she’s so forgetful he ends up kind of like. taking on House Husband duties practically. cooking, cleaning, reminding her of appointments, taking care of any pets, watering plants, laundry, etc

in a universe where she survives her execution and joins future foundation, during the tragedy chiaki probably gets investigated Multiple Times for potentially being under the influence of despair purely bc when people talk abt how izuru kamukura is an inhuman monster and should be put down etc etc she’s ALWAYS there to defend him. like, yeah, he’s a piece of shit, but he was literally created to be that way, and don’t you think his entire existence is kind of sad and he deserves sympathy because he’s never had a chance to be anything other than what he was created to be by his cruel teachers and the steering committee? and they just stare at her and are like Ok Freak.

basically, kamunami = chiaki saying “listen. i KNOW he’s a piece of shit. but he’s MY piece of shit. and i like him, and kind of think he’s cute, and i want to help him become a better person by giving him a chance to be human, because he’s literally never had that opportunity before”

[pyropsychiccollector]

"Th-There! All good as new!" Mikan announced with relief as she finished bandaging up Hajime's arm. He flashed her a grateful smile in return. "Thanks." The Nurse poked her index fingers together and smiled bashfully. "I-It was nothing! You were hurting and needed help! It was the least I could do." "Y-Yeah, but... I'll bet there were others you should've gotten to by now... Or you had some homework..." Hajime flinched slightly as Mikan shrilly cut him off. "N-NO! ... No." Mikan tried to calm down. "Y-You're... my friend... You listen to me, y-you never want to... DO anything to me... Y-You always want to hangout... I w-want to help you, Hinata-kun. I don't want to lose you...!" As Mikan started to cry, Hajime took her hands into his and tried to soothe her. "H-Hey... You're not gonna lose me, Mikan! It’s kinda my job to make sure Natsumi doesn't get hurt, but I'm not tough enough to handle the really big threats to her life! The Kuzuryu Clan keeps me out of those messy situations." Mikan sniffled. "B-But... Your arm..." "Yeah..." Hajime smiled wryly. "I actually took a hit that I didn't need to, 'cause Natsumi dodged, anyway. Still, this is like one of the few times I feel... useful. I'm getting paid to watch out for Natsumi, so I should take the hit when I can. 'Cause I can't predict if she sees an attack coming! If I can see it she probably can, but I don't want to take any chances. I'm not... like you Ultimates... I want to take every chance to help..." Mikan's face had softened, and she abruptly hugged him tightly. Honestly, Hajime felt the wind taken out of him. "S-Stop saying you're useless... W-We keep telling you th-that you don't have to prove yourself..." She bawled. "J-Just... Try to be less reckless... For me...?" Hajime's smile became warm as he rubbed her back consolingly. "See? Standing up like that is what a nurse has to do, sometimes! You're the nurse, I'm the patient. I should have to listen to you and do what you say, 'cause you know a lot more about health than I do." Sniffing, Mikan nodded and burrowed her head in his chest. After a while, Mikan let him go, and Hajime spoke up again. "So, uh, where were you off to when I bumped into you? You seemed distressed." Paling, Mikan recalled what she'd been doing previously, before her nurse's instincts had kicked in upon seeing Hajime. "Th-That's right! Mitarai! Oh no... Oh no, oh no, oh no..." Hajime tried, in vain, to calm her down again. "Mitarai? What's wrong with Mitarai?" "He's gone missing!" Mikan wailed. "The Ultimate Imposter said he wasn't in his apartment, so... so... I was running there to check when I ran into you! I'm so sorry, but I need to go!" Ultimate Imposter? Hajime hadn't heard of a kid like that in Mikan and Chiaki's class, but he might've been in a different one and just been a caring friend. "W-Wait... You guys are in class, aren't you? Is Mitarai sick?" Mikan wringed her hands. "W-Well... To tell the truth, Mitarai-kun never attends class because he's always working on a project, and the Imposter asked me to look after him when he collapsed from starvation again, and...!" Hajime blankly stared at Mikan as he processed what she was telling him. The Mitarai he knew from Class 77 introducing themselves to him... was this Imposter guy? That seemed way too outlandish... But then again, this WAS Hope's Peak... Now he felt even worse about holding her up with his own problems... "Let me come with you. It's the least I can do for inconveniencing you like this." "Y-You're not a n-nuisance...!" Mikan huffed before shaking her head worriedly. "L-Let's just hurry!" Hajime simply followed Mikan's lead. ~*~ Mitarai wasn't in his room, as the Imposter had said. There was even some stuff missing from the shelves, though that was based off of Mikan's testimony, and she didn't sound too sure. Mikan had been prepared to run all over campus looking for Mitarai, but Hajime kept her levelheaded and proposed they talk to her classmates. If they were going to look for one guy, they'd need all the help they could get. And despite their eccentric natures, Class 77 was pretty capable. Mikan was worried about the Imposter's feelings about this secret getting out, so they went to check with him first. "... I see. I suppose it couldn't be helped..." The Imposter leaned on the wall next to Tsumiki haggardly. It appeared he'd already exhausted himself from searching. The nurse was apologizing profusely, though the rotund boy had forgiven her already. "Do you think... the situation is serious enough to come out to everyone now...?" Hajime rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, if he's gone missing, and you haven't found him anywhere, and he didn't leave a note... It probably is." Hajime sounded apologetic, and reluctant to believe it himself. Attempted murder on a Yakuza girl was one thing, but kidnapping a recluse... Something was definitely up. "S-Sorry..." "No, you're right." The Imposter admitted. "We probably should have said something a long time ago, but I allowed myself to get complacent. Even if we kept searching on our own, the others would find out eventually." "For what it's worth, I'm still sorry." Hajime smiled wryly. He hadn't meant for Mikan to let a secret like this spill... But he was also glad he hadn't let her run off hysterically searching for Mitarai, thus alerting everyone in the school... In a way, his actions had minimized the damage. Somewhat. “At any rate, we have quite a few classmates that could help us track him down…” The nameless boy replied. Mahiru had great eyesight, and Ibuki had great hearing. Akane had a good nose, and Tanaka likely had some animals that were excellent trackers. If they couldn’t locate Mitarai with the combined powers of Class 77, then they were dealing with a truly frightening and powerful kidnapper. “Apologies for eavesdropping, but I think I could help you in this search.” Hajime, Mikan, and the Imposter all turned as one to face a lilac-haired girl who was dusting a stray strand of hair out of her view. “Who are you?” The Imposter asked warily. The girl seemed to nod indulgently. “Kyoko Kirigiri. I was scouted by Hope’s Peak as the Ultimate Detective. I am a member of the 78th class.” Understandably, Mikan was elated with this news. Hajime, too, was relieved to have a detective that was willing to help them. The Ultimate Detective at that. In contrast to them, the Imposter still seemed wary and reluctant. “I understand and appreciate your assistance. However, I must still inform our class, and enlist their help. Since Mitarai was originally part of Class 77, it’s only fair they know about his disappearance.” Again, Kirigiri seemed to understand the Imposter’s caution. “Wise. Even with me looking into this, there’s no guarantee that I will find anything. With the more people looking as soon as possible, we’ll hopefully find this Mitarai before the trail goes cold.” “Tsumiki and I will be off, then.” The Imposter replied. “Hinata, can you show Kirigiri to Mitarai’s room?” Hajime nodded dumbly as he processed that he was volunteered just like that. It made sense, though, since Reserve Course students weren’t allowed to enter the main building. “Y-Yeah. This way… I think…” Hajime chuckled sheepishly as they headed in the general direction of the dorms. If Kirigiri was bothered by his lack of confidence, she didn’t show it. ~*~ “Fuck…This whole thing with Mitarai is messed up.” Fuyuhiko cursed as he, Hajime, Natsumi, and Peko killed time until dinner at the Kuzuryu Compound. A week had passed since the initial disappearance, and no one had turned up anything that didn’t lead to a dead end. There was no ransom, no threatening phone calls… It was like Mitarai had dropped off the face of the earth. “Why would anyone go after the guy, anyway? He’s a damn animator!” “Not to mention the guy’s existence was pretty much a secret.” Natsumi mused, resting her chin in her palms as she leaned on the table. “Everyone thought fatty was the animator.” Peko clutched her elbow as she looked off to the side, standing next to the couch where Fuyuhiko and Hajime were seated. “Tsumiki did say that he went in for regular checkups for his health. It’s possible his kidnapper encountered him during one of those trips… The exact purpose for Mitarai’s abduction eludes us, but since there have been no demands, I think it is safe to assume the purpose may have had something to do with Mitarai’s talent.” “And that’s what I don’t get!” Fuyuhiko groaned. “The guy had to make fucking godly pieces of art if someone wanted to kidnap him for that… And I guess I can see him doing that ‘cause he was an Ultimate. But still! What’s the point in staging an abduction for a few anime scenes when you could go to jail for that? It’s not like he would’ve turned you down if you made a request… probably…” Natsumi noticed Hajime idly checking his phone for messages. “Still nothing from Kirigiri?” “She was giving daily updates until two days ago…” Hajime reasoned. “It didn’t matter if the investigation was slow; she said she’d keep in touch so we all wouldn’t run in circles… I haven’t seen her around campus, either.” “Fuck…” Fuyuhiko groaned again. “If Little Miss Ultimate Detective’s gone off halfcocked and gotten captured, too, I’m gonna be pissed. Natsumi, Hinata, neither of you are goin’ home alone until this is cleared up, you got that? It’s bad enough you guys got that bullshit message about Hope’s Peak and human experimentation… Man, that was fucked up!” “The other Reserve Course students believe in it, though…” Hajime muttered. “Can we say for sure it was fake? I mean, I got asked to participate in that project… And from what I remember, I was going to agree because they were going to give me a talent through that project…” “So what, dumbass?! There’s probably a little truth in all that bullshit!” The Yakuza heir raged. “Fine, maybe the school gave some kid a brain surgery so he could become talented, and maybe they used the Reserve Course funds to make it happen… But that same kid slaughtered the whole Student Council, coming out unscathed? That’s insane!” Peko sided with Fuyuhiko, as she usually did. “With seemingly the whole Reserve department getting that message, it is hard to imagine that it was completely wholesome. Someone is trying to sabotage the academy’s reputation. Perhaps it is the same person that abducted Mitarai… we have no way to know.” Hajime had to concede that possibility. Even if that whole Student Council Killlings thing might’ve been forged, the person who sent the message en masse to the Reserve department could be Mitarai’s abductor. If it was… this person might’ve been more powerful than they had initially thought. He just hoped they’d hear from Kirigiri soon. A lot could happen in two days… ~*~ Kyoko’s eyes snapped open in the dark room. It took her scarcely a second to discover her arms and legs were bound to a chair. There was only one source of light in the room, and that was the computer screen that she was forced to look at, for even her head had limited movement. It didn’t take long for a certain figure to enter her field of vision. “Aww~ You’re awake! That’s good. I was starting to get booored~” The fashionista giggled as Kyoko renewed her efforts to escape from the chair. “Junko…! What do you think you’re doing?! Kidnapping Ryota Mitarai… knocking me out and restraining me… What is the meaning of this?” Though Kyoko managed to keep her voice level and a cool façade, truthfully she was scared out of her mind. She’d finally gotten a match for the strands of hair left in Mitarai’s room, and she’d thought that she would get the drop on Enoshima, interrogate her, and hopefully resolve everything before the situation worsened somehow. Unfortunately, Kyoko underestimated Junko. Kyoko had followed Junko after class, intent on getting the blonde in an isolated area. She thought she would be prepared for Mukuro possibly interfering in Junko’s interrogation, but it wasn’t the Ultimate Soldier that she had to worry about – Enoshima had hit her with a dose of knockout gas, and now she was here. At the mercy of someone she had called ‘classmate’. And yet… Enoshima hadn’t killed her. Not yet. “Oh, Kyoko-chan! Always so impatient~” Enoshima made doe eyes at her. “Upupupu~… I’m not going to kill you. Well. Not anymore, anyway~…” The detective went ashen at this revelation. “You were going to… kill me…?” Was Junko this much of a psychopath? Junko beamed proudly, despite Kyoko’s horrified expression. “Yup, yup! You and the rest of our class! I was gonna kill you all ‘cause I love you all sooo much, and I wanted you guys to get the richest taste of Despair—death!” The blonde suddenly slipped on some glasses, changing personalities. “Ah, but now a new opportunity presents itself! My Despair Video should be tested on an Ultimate, and you fell neatly into my lap! Yes… you will serve nicely as a guinea pig, especially since you are the daughter of our esteemed headmaster.” If Kyoko had increased her efforts to escape before, she was putting everything she had into that now. Regrettably, she made zero progress. And Junko seemed to enjoy her predicament, as the fashionista strolled over and patted her cheek amicably. “Chin up~! The show’s about to start, and you won’t want to miss a minute of it!” With a click of a remote, a video appeared on the screen and began to play. It was fairly obvious to Kyoko that it would be a violent one, as she took in the weapons and the fear on the Student Council’s faces. Kyoko tried to close her eyes, but she found they were being forced open now, and she couldn’t tear her eyes even a fraction from the screen in front of her. Nevertheless, Kyoko persevered. Even through the grotesque montage of images shown, in collaboration with lighting and music, she was somehow able to not succumb in the way that Junko apparently wanted. The images were horrifying, but Kyoko was used to seeing death by this point, and she had deduced the purpose behind this video from the information Enoshima had given her earlier. Kyoko would not bow to Enoshima’s will. To her last breath she would not give in. She would not succumb. She would never succumb. Oh god… What was that…? Junko gave a Cheshire grin at seeing how stubborn the detective was. She would’ve been an inspiration to anyone else… But they were the Despair Sisters, and therefore had no hope to believe in. Junko liked it when they played hard to get. “Looks like I was right about you~! Muku, give Koko-chan that little extra push! Upupupu!” That feeling… were they poking needles into her brain?! Oh god… Ohgodohgodohgod… It felt… It felt… Kyoko's breath hitched and her heart felt like it was running a marathon. Her chest was heaving with increasing intensity. There was a burning sensation building down below. In her core. Though she still couldn’t move much, she soon found her lower body starting to buck against her will. There was a growing wetness in her loins… She was getting too excited. Damnit, she couldn't climax from this...! She couldn't allow it! But the wet patch was growing. More pre-cum was just spurting out now. Her eyes were still on the Despair Video, transfixed… And she was having an orgasm… This wasn’t right… This was sick… But it felt… good. Kyoko moaned erotically. Once that stray thought crossed her mind, Kyoko’s eyes began to swirl. Her hips bucked harder and harder, and soon she violently orgasmed. Once the ecstasy died down, Kyoko Kirigiri went limp, though her face was contorted in an eerily blissful grin…

[recentanimenews]

Off the Shelf: Shoujoriffic!

MICHELLE: Hey, Melinda! You know what time it is. Time for my first really terrible joke of 2019. Are you ready?

MELINDA: Michelle, I was born ready.

MICHELLE: Okay, then. How do you find Will Smith in the snow?

MELINDA: Um. I don’t know, Michelle. How do you find Will Smith in the snow?

MICHELLE: You follow the fresh prints!

MELINDA: Okay, I know that was a terrible joke, but since I’m a pretty big fan of the Fresh Prince, I can’t help but appreciate it.

MICHELLE: It is exceedingly terrible but somehow it makes me happy! Anyways, we’ve once more dusted the cobwebs off the shelf because there’s some new manga we want to talk about. Would you like to go first?

MELINDA: I would! So, I just finished reading Kakuriyo: Bed & Breakfast for Spirits, which was adapted from the light novel series of the same name and as such, comes with a slew of credits: art by Waco Ioka, original story by Midori Yuma, and character design by Laruha.

Aoi was adopted as a kid by a man named Shiro whom she describes as her grandfather. Shiro was a notorious philanderer, who wandered Japan fathering countless children with his many lovers, so he was hardly wanting for progeny of his own, but he raised Aoi faithfully, even providing for her college tuition after his death. Now alone, Aoi is prepared to make it on her own, but before she can even begin, she’s kidnapped by an ogre named Ōdanna, who whisks her away to the Ayakashi (spirit) world. As it turns out, Ōdanna is the proprietor of a well-respected inn, which Aoi’s grandfather once trashed on a bender. Unable to pay for the damage, Shiro promised Aoi’s hand in marriage as compensation, and Ōdanna’s come to collect. When Aoi refuses, she is offered the opportunity to work off the debt herself, but to do so, she has to find a job somewhere among the Ayakashi, most of whom hate humans, especially her grandfather.

Manga adaptations of light novels are not usually a big draw for me, but they’re also a bit of a rarity for Viz, so I figured it was worth a shot, especially since the supernatural setup is the type of thing I generally enjoy. My immediate reaction was regret. This adaptation begins with pages of narrated exposition that may work perfectly well in the novel but are clunky and awkward in manga form. The setup feels rushed, as though the artist knows that it’s awkward and wants to just push through it to get to the parts of the story that will be easier to tell, which unfortunately renders Aoi as a pretty generic protagonist with no personality in particular outside of a soft spot for Ayakashi and an interest in cooking.

Thankfully, the artist does seem to find their footing about halfway through the volume, and there are some fairly compelling mysteries set up, especially regarding a shape-changing nine-tailed fox named Ginji, who seems to be a friend. Or is he?

MICHELLE: My immediate reaction to your summary is that Shiro sounds like quite the asshole!

I’m sorry to hear that it gets off to a disappointing start. Are the mysteries sufficiently compelling that you think you’ll bother to pick up volume two?

MELINDA: Shiro indeed seems to have been quite the asshole, though certainly there is a lot of mystery surrounding him as well. For instance, he carefully taught Aoi how to avoid being kidnapped by an ogre, which would indicate that he never intended to surrender her as “payment” after all, and I get the sense that there’s more to the story than Aoi’s being told. And yes, I do think I’d give it at least one more volume. As lukewarm as this began, by the end I really did want to know what was going to happen next. Would Aoi find a job? Is Ginji as harmless as he appears? And what’s up with Akatsuki, the inn’s cranky general manager who really hated Shiro, and his adorably tousled hair?

Oh, and lest our shoujo-loving readers fear, despite being an ogre, Ōdanna is a total hottie with red eyes and cute little horns, which honestly is kind of a disappointment for me, but will probably sit well with the intended demographic.

MICHELLE: Probably. I should also note that a 26-episode anime version aired recently and is available on Crunchyroll last I heard.

MELINDA: I suspect that an anime adaptation might be more effective, especially for the exposition sections, so perhaps that’s the way to go. I will stick with the manga a bit longer, though!

So, would you like to share what you’ve been reading, Michelle?

MICHELLE: Continuing with the VIZ shoujo trend, I just finished the first two volumes of Shortcake Cake by a duo creating manga under the name suu Morishita. The series runs in Margaret, which is typically a very good indicator that I’m going to like it.

Ten Serizawa is from a very small town where local schools only go through junior high, so she’s had an extremely long commute for her first month of high school. Her long-time friend Ageha has been trying to persuade her to move into the boardinghouse where she lives and finally, after visiting the place, Ten agrees. Because this is shoujo manga, it turns out that the gorgeous, bookish boy that all the girls are obsessed with turns out to live there, too. His name is Chiaki Kasadera.

By the end of the second volume, it’s clear that Ten likes Chiaki, but how we get there is a pretty interesting and complicated route. One of the other boarders is a flirtatious boy named Riku Mizuhara, and he’s intrigued when Ten shuts down his attempts at flirtation. Soon, he’s developed a crush on her that she finds out about almost immediately. She rejects him and to his profound credit, Riku backs off. “I don’t want to pester her and make her hate me.” Chiaki, however, wants the two of them to be happy, so when Riku’s estranged little brother Rei—a wholly odious and imperious little shit who calls Ten by the name “Ugly”—commands Ten to be his girlfriend (just to make Riku miserable), Chiaki claims that he and Ten are actually dating, hoping that this pretend relationship will convince Rei that Riku is already suffering enough. Then, the kid will back off and maybe Riku and Ten can make it work.

Still with me? I grant that all these boys have feelings for Ten incredibly quickly—well, only Riku has officially admitted that he likes her, but I imagine it’s only a matter of time before Chiaki and Rei are forced to examine their real motivations—but at least she’s not an annoying protagonist. What’s really neat, though, is that we actually see inside the boys’ heads! This is exceedingly rare in shoujo manga, so a little bit of narration from a potential love interest goes a long way. I’m sure that it’ll be Chiaki in the end, but Riku is so thoroughly charming that I really want it to be him.

MELINDA: Okay, so from your summary, I admit that, like you, I’m currently a fan of Riku. I always like the boy who isn’t going to end up with the girl. It’s a lifelong curse. Mostly, though, I’m thinking that this sounds so gloriously shoujo, I must read it right away. I mean, seriously. A boardinghouse. I’m so here for this.

Is there other stuff going on besides the romantic drama? Like, at school?

MICHELLE: Not even a little. Ten’s mother only puts in a brief appearance to consent to the arrangement (though it’s at least suggested that her parents did go have a look around the place and all before she moved in) and school pretty much only exists as a backdrop for Chiaki and Riku to both attempt to walk Ten home so that she doesn’t get menaced by Rei. On the one hand, the protagonist having a well-rounded life is nice, but on the other hand, maybe it means we’ll be spared some of the by now too-familiar shoujo story beats like sports and cultural festivals.

MELINDA: Fair enough. Sounds like a fun read, in any case. I’ll definitely be digging into these volumes myself.

MICHELLE: I look forward to hearing what you think!

So, to conclude our VIZtacular trio, our mutual read this week was the first two volumes of Ao Haru Ride by Io Sakisaka, who also brought us Strobe Edge. Would you like to do the summation honors?

MELINDA: Sure! Here we go.

Futaba Yoshioka was a shy junior high school student with no interest in boys, except for Kou Tanaka, whose quiet sweetness mirrored her own. She thought something might happen between them, but when she turned up to meet Kou for a summer festival at his invitation, he never showed, and then his family moved away. Now, she’s in her first year of high school, and when she discovers that Kou is at the same school, she imagines them starting over. But the truth is, they are both so changed, they might as well be different people. He’s become a prickly underachiever to cope with his broken family life, and she’s become a tomboy to stay on the good side of her catty group of friends.

Then everything goes wrong, and Futaba finds herself friendless and isolated in a new class. But when she makes the rash decision to volunteer as class representative, she begins to find new friendships among a collection of loners, one of whom is Kou.

MICHELLE: Nicely done! This series ran in Bessatsu Margaret so, of course, I like it. There are a number of things about the initial setup that are pretty neat. For one, the action doesn’t start on the first day of Futaba’s first year but rather in the last semester, meaning she’s been at the same school with Kou for a very long time without noticing him. He’s in the honors class, which convenes on a different floor, but has definitely noticed her. Secondly, instead of the heroine starting friendless and gradually acquiring them (like Kimi ni Todoke or Waiting for Spring, to name but two recent examples), she starts with some friends. They’re just not really friends because she’s been duping them about who she really is. It’s true that both of those girls are not very nice, but I also appreciated that the dissolution of their friendship was not accompanied by mean-girl antics. Futaba just has to start over, and we’re shown glimpses of two other isolated girls who seem destined to become her true friends.

MELINDA: I’m struck, too, by the differences between this and my first read here. This series, too, starts off with a lot of narration, but it’s utilized so effectively in Ao Haru Ride. Because Futaba is so shy, most of her thoughts are kept to herself, especially in the beginning, but instead of delivering an exposition dump, this narration is guiding us through Futaba’s realization about her crush on Kou and her interactions with other kids at school. We’re experiencing her thoughts and feelings much the way we would if she were the POV character of a YA novel, but only exactly as much as we need to. We’re shown what’s happened and told how she feels about it. This isn’t something that’s unique about the series at all—it’s exactly what we want to see in shoujo manga, and when it’s done well, it’s kind of invisible. But after reading Kakuriyo, I’m struck by how skillfully Sakisaka utilizes Futaba’s inner monologue.

MICHELLE: And some of the things she thinks are so poignant, too. She spends much of these volumes looking for signs of the old Kou and there’s one moment when she’s looking at him and thinks, “The nape of his neck is familiar but he sounds like a stranger. It makes me feel like crying.” Physically, someone she used to know and love is standing in front of her, but the connection they had has been cut off. I have been there and I thought Sakisaka captured that kind of feeling very well.

And then Kou rightly tells her, “You’re acting like you want to move forward, but you’re holding on to the past,” which I liked, as well. Eventually she decides that only his words are harsh, but that his heart is kind. I was glad she came to that realization in the second volume, because I didn’t want to keep rehashing the contrast to his past self and also, it’ll be nice to see Kou grow, as well.

MELINDA: Things do seem to happen in this series exactly when we most need them to. Just when I was becoming impossibly frustrated about Futaba’s attachment to the friend group that forced her to hide her true self, she broke free of them. And as you say, just as I was done with her mooning over the boy Kou used to be, she finally let that go as well. The pacing in these volumes is somehow exactly right.

Just as I was typing this up, I saw Shōjo Beat mention on Twitter that the third volume will be out next month, and I felt a surge of glee, so Sakisaka is definitely doing something right.

A bit of an odd confession: I admit that I’ve come to a place as a reader where I’m a bit bored by stories that lack queer characters, so from the beginning I found myself personally casting Kou as trans to help me get into it a little better. Queer readers, If you haven’t tried this with Ao Haru Ride, I wholeheartedly recommend it!

MICHELLE: That’s interesting, especially when he comes back with a whole new name and she keeps using the one he doesn’t identify with anymore!

I had a surge of glee when I was researching Sakisaka and read a little about her current series. Now I really want that one to be licensed here, too!

MELINDA: Yeah, I really didn’t expect that, but it did capture something poignant and relatable there.

I’d very much like to see more of Sakisaka’s work make its way here, so I guess we’ll cross our fingers!

By: Michelle Smith