#of course. the question of Yuujin's agency is really complex

[randomidiocyncrazies]

The thing is. i go bananas over Oozora Yuujin in part because he's allowed to exercise his will and autonomy in his last moments, but only because Leviathan let him. like, sure, it'd have been cool to see Yuujin overcome Leviathan's control (love it when a brainwashed/controlled character overthrows their abuser), but as epic as that would've been i don't think it would've fit Yuujin's function in the show. like... from beginning to the end, Yuujin had very little real agency—he was presented as a character with autonomy, but once you peel his layers back, the situation becomes really ambiguous. I mean, he was literally calibrated to appeal to Haru. and while Yuujin's bond with Haru was genuine enough that he peeked out from behind YJ-14's control, he was never able to actually fully slip Leviathan's leash when the big L wanted to keep him under control.

So. Yuujin can save Haru only because Leviathan let him go, and Leviathan only did that bc Haru made a choice as per their agreement (and Haru's choice involves sacrificing Yuujin for the liberty of humanity). Yuujin is in control during his final moments, but that control was a gift based on someone else's actions that he had no control over; he was grated that control not because of anything he did, but because Haru (the protagonist) fulfilled Leviathan's bargain.

And yet. Yuujin's final act to save Haru from having to execute that choice is no less meaningful; i think it's meaningful because of how limiting his agency actually is. in that final moment Yuujin finally has the freedom to make a choice—the first and last choice where he wasn't a puppet dancing to someone else's tune—and he chooses to execute his termination with his own hands, so that someone who loves and cares for him wouldn't have to. Haru might be the one who chose humanity over Yuujin, but it's Yuujin who pushes the button of his own free will in the end.

(i've said this before, but i find Yuujin fascinating as a character in a similar way that Anthy from Revolutionary Girl Utena is interesting, but they're kind of opposites. Yuujin is introduced as a 'protagonist' that our protagonist looks up to, and presented as someone with autonomy, but we spend the show realizing how little of that he actually had; Anthy is presented as a helpless damsel without agency, but throughout the show we slowly realize how powerful she actually is.)