Random midnight rant (01:00 AM), imo people thinking Yoshida would set up a girl to assault Denji is craaaazy because come on now, let's be for fkn real.

The person you think is mastermind in all of this is the same boy who refuse cigarettes because of the law that said minor can't smoke. It's also the same boy who refuse sexual offers in non-consentual situation even though he's clearly could take advantages. He's just weird, NOT predatory.

Yoshida is suck at socializing, yes, but he still has basic human sense. Why WOULD he want Denji to go through all that? Isn't his mission is to keep Denji happy with his current life so he didn't transform into Chainsaw Man?

Oh, also, he planned for their date to be in movie theater, a place that is supposedly full with crowd of people. It's completely not a place to have sex in. There's no fkn way Yoshida hire a prostitute/classmates to specifically engage in sexual situation with Denji there. I think he just overhear a random girl in his class saying she really wants to have a bf then decided to pair her up with Denji in a date because he thought it would be a good idea (also it's Denji's type of girl, a girl who's desperate for boyfriend).

Even if you argue that Yoshida lure a devil here to scare everyone and emptied the room (again, why would he did that, it's counterproductive because if a devil was there then Denji could have reason to transform into Chainsaw Man, it makes more sense if it's really just a coincidence since devil attacks nowadays is that common) someone will come up eventually to clear the devil corpse, there will still be people here. And again, not an ideal situation to have sex in.

I think it's clear that nobody, either Denji or Yoshida expect this situation to turn into non consentual SA.

And if you argue that Yoshida goodbye lines has sexual connotation in it. Well, it's not. It's a simple English idiom. And in Japanese, it's also a basic way to basically say the same thing, to go get that girl impressed. That's all.

"But she's Yoshida's classmate! He should know her weird behaviour!"

He can't even notice HIS OWN weird behaviour and life philosophy omg. He's already confirmed to be socially inept, hard to connect emotionally with others (he keeps every of his relationships as parasocial and transactional only) and bad at reading people. HOW and WHY do you think he would fkn know that.

It's because of his negligence, I agree, but he's not a big bad villain in this!? Stop your overhate on him wtf. Are we even read the same story and same character at this point, hello???? Y'all media literacy is concerning tbqh.

[Fic]: Pink Carnation

I saw these flower-based writing prompt by writtenbyevie and had to give one a try!

Prompt: Pink Carnation--Burying a Lover.

Goro died, moved on, and worked part time at Jazz Jin. He did not expect to see Akira again with an unexpected guest.

A Dead Like Me AU where Goro became a grim reaper after the one who took his soul had moved on, so Goro took his job.

***

***

***

Goro didn’t connect the dots until Shido’s palace disintegrated in front of his vision into the darkness of a narrow alleyway, when he stood in front of his very still body with two bullet holes through the chest.

“I supposed that means I’m dead now,” he said to himself, not fully expecting answer, but then a voice spoke up behind him.

“You catch on to things quickly. It seems that I won’t have to spend a lot of time explaining your new job.”

Goro turned around to meet the amused gaze of an elderly looking salaryman.

And that was how Akechi Goro, Ace Detective and Assassin, became un-Akechi Goro, grim reaper for the Division of External Influence, covering murders, suicides, accidents, etcetera etcetera, thanks to the fact that the reaper who took his soul had retired. The elderly salaryman—Yoshida—current leader of the reaper team that Goro was, by literal fate, stuck with, had offered to bring Goro to see his body autopsy and his funeral, both of which Goro immediately refused.

There was really no need to be reminded that he did die in the one way he didn’t wish to end: utterly alone in a ditch somewhere, forever unloved. Nor did he want to see his cremated remains in an urn sitting in a sad corner of an ossuary, forever unclaimed.

Yoshida said it would bring him closure, but Goro was pretty sure he was over it already. He was honestly pretty over living in his last few moments of life.

So Goro just moved on. Every day, he received a name and time of death from Yoshida. Then he went to his day time job delivering food to people on his bike, which gave him the convenience of being able to leave anytime to keep the time of death appointments. Apparently Grim Reaper still had to pay for rent and food. It turned out that Grim Reaper was a thankless job with no employee benefits. Still better than being Shido’s lackey though, if Goro was to be honest.  

Overall, his un-life was fine. He learned to make curry now. He got a plant with flowers. He was in the process of learning how to make coffee. He did not think about why he wanted to do those things in particular.

The face that looked back at him in the mirror was too long, too thin, too sharp, too pale, hair and eye colors too dull, and he still hadn’t gotten used to seeing it when he brushed his teeth, but this meant that no one from his past would be able to recognize him.

Which was a fact that Goro was grateful for on a cold rainy evening, when Kurusu walked through the door of Jazz Jin with a large bag that he hugged to his body on one hand and umbrella in the other.

Yoshida had warned Goro about avoiding the past, and for some reason, Goro had not heed that warning when he decided to get a part time job at Jazz Jin.

Goro almost ducked away until he realized he had a different face now.

“Ah, good evening,” Muhen called out. “The usual table for you then?”

Kurusu gave Muhen a small smile and a nod as he approach the counter. “I brought him along with me today. I thought it would be nice for him to come one last time before tomorrow.”

“Of course,” said Muhen.

Goro straightened up the stack of menus while pretending he was not eavesdropping. He wondered what they were talking about because Kurusu was clearly alone.

“Is the service at eight o’clock tomorrow?” Muhen asked. “I’ll definitely be there.”

“Thank you,” said Kurusu, voice soft. “There won’t be a lot of people. I think he would like it if you came.”

Goro knew that he should stay away from Kurusu. Goro knew that lingering attachment to the past was a bad idea. Yet, as Kurusu walked to what was presumably his usual table, Goro couldn’t help but grab a menu and followed him before another server could. His body was moving before his mind could catch up, so by the time he was standing in front of Kurusu’s table, it was too late.

“What are you having today? Are you expecting company later?” Goro asked with a smile as he handed Kurusu the menu, the personality he crafted for his new identity came out naturally now without any effort.  

“I’ll just have two of the special on the mocktail menu today,” said Kurusu as he handed the menu back to Goro. “Thank you.”

Kusuru gave no other explanation of the guest he was waiting on.

Goro pushed down the flash of disappointment and anger at the simple dismissal.

He hadn’t thought about Kurusu in a long time. He didn’t think he had any expectations if they ever bump into each other again. He knew that he was now wearing a stranger’s face in front of Kurusu. Yet, being so easily dismissed from Kurusu’s attention unnerved him. His body went on autopilot as he made the drinks, but he was berating himself in his mind for being utterly stupid about this.

He was effectively undead. He had moved on. From the looks of it, so had Kurusu. He had expected this.

So why was it unbearable to look at Kurusu? Why was it also unbearable to look away from Kusuru?

Kusuru nodded a "thanks" as Goro placed the drinks in front of him.

And just like that, their interaction was over.

“Was there anything else?” Kurusu asked, and Goro realized with abashment that he had been standing there way too long than socially acceptable.

As his brain scrambled for something to say that would not sound like he had a mental affliction, his eyes finally dropped to the urn sitting in the chair next to Kurusu. It was the large bag that Kurusu was carrying earlier—Goro finally realized.

The second drink was on the table in front of the urn.

Kurusu followed Goro’s gaze to the urn next to him.

“Ah,” said Kurusu. “This is—well, a friend is not quite the right word. He is someone very important to me. I’ve arranged for his funeral tomorrow, so I’ve been spending the past few days bringing him to different places that he liked.”

Goro’s throat went dry. The back of his eyes stung. His legs were unsteady.

“Not a friend?”

Kurusu scratched the back of his neck, his lips curved into a small sad smile. “I don’t think that word can really encompass everything that he was to me.”

“Oh.”

Kurusu was a fool. Goro had tried to kill him twice. What was Kurusu doing? Did he think that Goro wanted him to do this? Goro's body was supposed to be unclaimed, forever forgotten by everyone else. Goro was supposed to move on with his undead existence. Goro wished that he had his face again, that he could grab Kurusu by the shoulders and shake the stupidity out of him.

Goro wished that he could kiss him. Bit at his lips until they bled. Until Kurusu bit back. Until the pain from that wound reminded Goro that he had a beating heart.

But Goro could not. Because his beating heart was no longer real.

“My condolences for your loss,” Goro said. His voice was unexpectedly hoarse.

“Thank you,” said Kurusu.

Goro took the nostalgic sight of the dark curls slightly damp from the rain, the downcast of Kurusu’s lashes, the way his spine arched into a familiar slouch, and then he was struck with the realization that this was it: he was never going to go to Jazz Jin with Kurusu again. He was never going to sit next to Kusuru and debate philosophy, never go to Penguin Sniper with him, never play chess during many late nights at Leblanc, never have those grey eyes intensely on him in those moments where he finally felt like he mattered to someone ever again.   

His mind was a mess. He didn’t know how he managed to walk back to the front counter. Didn’t know how he worked through the rest of the night, not when his eyes kept straying to Kurusu’s table. Didn’t know how he found a cloth to wipe down Kurusu’s table, eyes still glued to Kurusu’s back as he left.

It was over.

All of it.

It was stupid. He wanted it all to be over. He wanted to never see Kurusu again. He wanted a new start. He moved on.

Yet, Goro hadn’t expected that seeing Kurusu felt like peeling back a bandage until the wound reopened.

Something small and black underneath the table caught Goro’s eyes. He crouched down to pick it up.

A familiar black leather glove. Kurusu must have dropped it by accident. An unfulfilled promise to be forgotten now that the existence of Akechi Goro was no longer among the living.

Goro’s hand clenched tightly around the glove. His feet moved before his mind caught up to his body. He rushed out of the front door, ignoring the curious eyes of the patrons chasing after him.

“Wait!” Goro called out to Kurusu’s back. “Kurusu!”

Kurusu stopped in his track, turning to Goro with a look of a deer against the headlight.

Naturally, when Goro made a fool of himself was when his brain decided to go online once more in order to experience the full weight of embarrassment.

“You drop something,” said Goro as he handed the glove to Kurusu.

Kurusu gave him an indecipherable look before taking it. Goro wondered why Kurusu was staring at him like that, as if he was some interesting puzzle. Did he say something strange?

“Thank you,” said Kurusu and gestured to the urn sitting snugly in a bag. “He gave this to me once as a declaration for a duel, if you believe it or not. I guess now I should bury it with him.”

“I think he would like for you to keep it,” said Goro.

Kurusu blinked at him in surprise.

“Just—it was a promise to a duel that you’ve accepted. Are you backing down from his challenge?” said Goro.

What was Goro saying? What was he doing? This was the opposite of keeping distance. He had moved on. Kurusu should move on. They need to never see each other again. For all intent and purposes, Akechi Goro was supposed to be dead.

“I don’t back down from anything,” said Kurusu as he narrowed his eyes.

“Then keep it.”

“I guess I should keep my promise,” Kurusu chuckled. His face seemed to brightened as some of the melancholy melted from his entire body, and his gaze was filled with mirth as he met Goro’s eyes. “You’re quite a strange man, but I have to thank you.”

Goro felt his insides froze as Kurusu scrutinized him, reassuring himself that Kurusu might be sharp, but there was no way he could figure out Goro’s identity. Heck, Kurusu was literally holding his dead body in his arm.

Goro pushed down the voice in his head that sounded suspiciously like Yoshida, telling him this was a terrible idea.

“Well, if that is all, then good night,” said Kurusu as he began to turn away. “I hope I can see you again at Jazz Jin.”

Goro swallowed, feeling the excitement that he didn’t want to allow himself to feel beating through his body.

It was fine, Goro told himself as he watched Kurusu’s back until he faded in the crowd. Kurusu didn’t figure it out. There was no way.

Goro would continue his undead existence. Perhaps occasionally, he would see Kurusu. But that didn’t mean that he was hanging on to the past. He was moving on. Kurusu would be moving on. Goro’s importance in Kurusu’s life would eventually dwindle to a distant memory. And Goro was fine with accepting that.

And then, there would come a day when Goro would actually believe these lies he was feeding himself.  

***

***

***

Not Goro thinking he got away with things, but forgetting that Akira literally had not introduced himself so there should be no way for Goro to know his name. :)

Happy Weekend everyone!

This may seem random but I am curious! How did Paxton's emotional intelligence decrease in s2? I'm not criticising! I didn't notice, but you seem like a Paxton Expert (TM) and definitely notice things I do not. 😂

Oh that's just my unhealthy and concerning obsession but we all will ignore that  😇 Okay so I can't really word it well but they did handle Paxton's character pretty bad in season 2. They did give him depth this season but made him a typical dumb jock which he wasn't in season 1.. and emotional intelligence wise I think you can refer to this gif-set from season 1 he really wasn't the same yk? 1) Apart from emotional intelligence, in season 2 episode 1 McEnroe says "Ever since their steamy kiss in his jeep.. he had been icing her out. As a former teen jock myself, I'm not surprised with this behaviour. My advice to Devi, just give up on Paxton" He did not ice her out right after they kissed. He literally showed up at her doorstep the next morning.

He distanced himself after Nalini called him an idiot who knocks up smart girls, and ruins their futures.

I've seen youtube comments, tumblr meta about how he iced her out right after they kissed so he's a jerk etc etc. Fans / Viewers forgetting some parts of the plot is something... but the writers themselves forgetting it?

2) Paxton's apology in 2x01 Paxton : " I was such a dick to you. I was dumb and.. sorry" McEnroe :"This is the longest Paxton Hall Yoshida has ever spoken. Was it the great apology? No. He mostly looked at his shoes and the vocabulary was limited" Are we gonna forget every time Paxton ever spoke too??

If you take 1x02. Paxton comes up to Devi's house to apologize. He does it pretty different..

Do you see the difference?  3) Paxton in 2x10.  I understand why he didn’t want a public relationship with Devi. This is from a submission I got few months back “ As much as I hate the way Paxton was portrayed in 2x10. I think it was very realistic in a way. Devi learnt her actions had consequences. Paxton not feeling comfortable to be in a public relationship with her was also very realistic and very valid. He is also a teenager. He was cheated on.. in public. All this led to him getting run over by a car. This incident was the talk of the school. Aneesa mentions it in episode 4 as well. Everyone knew Devi and Paxton dated. Everyone knew Devi cheated on Paxton with Ben (vice versa too, but wasn't talked as much because Ben isn't popular). Everyone uploaded or saw clips of Paxton being run over because of this cheating drama. He was all over social media. Everyone thought Paxton is a dumb boy who can't get into college without swimming and Devi cheats on him with someone smarter than him and someone with lower social status... more fuel to the gossip. Paxton's friends weren't being of any support either. They were just making fun of him. For those Anti-Paxtons who sympathize with Ben and Ben alone and said Paxton wasn't hurt because he was cheated on or he had a support system... he didn't, his friends made fun of him. I don't think his sister and parent's are aware of what happened. He set his emotions aside and decided to fix something else which he lost. His scholarship and swimming. Paxton seems like a shy or an introvert. So publicly getting back together with the same girl who cheated on you would expose him to ridiculous gossip. As an introverted and a shy person myself, the last thing I need is to expose myself to ridiculous gossip again. In my personal opinion... he was also cautious. Valid. She used him for a sex rumor. Cheated on him in public. He couldn't trust her easily but he made up for it and showed up at the dance as her public boyfriend. I just wish the show did a better job portraying and tackling his reason instead of making him look like a jerk.” He also explained it in the episode but the writers did a pretty bad job handling it. They made it look like Paxton was embarrassed of Devi and was hiding his relationship from the start “I think any reasonable adult watching this knows that Paxton is embarrassed of her”.  When he’s been admitting to the sex rumor Devi started, asking her to attend his swim meets, flirting with her at her party etc (you can also check this gif-set out please ignore the quality lol) Paxton himself said he’s not embarrassed of Devi but he doesn’t want to be in a public relationship with someone who publicly cheated on him.

and this post was so unnecessary... It was before Paxton even explained why he wasn’t comfortable with a public relationship.. and the comments under the post..

So yeah.. I felt like they pushed him more into the stereotypical douche-dumb jock this season, especially with McEnroe’s narration. Like I said, I can’t really word it well and I don’t think I’ve covered it entirely but I hope it gives you an Idea :) Thanks for the ask <3  

- One -

megumi fushiguro x reader

genre: fluff, slight angst

summary: (y/n) was nothing special. A human being who had no idea that curses walked the same earth they walked. But then they locked eyes with Megumi Fushiguro. Can Fushiguro focus on the task ahead or will he be distracted by the king of curses and his new love interest?

series masterlist

©️ @megumisbimbo — all rights reserved. Please do not repost, modify or translate my work. Reblogs and likes appreciated!

Credit for the main storyline and characters goes to Gege Akutami.

the songs are indicated throughout the story at certain points!

songs used:

sunflower - vampire weekend

turn back time - wayv

humble - kendrick lamar

look at me! - xxxtentacion

———— sunflower - vampire weekend ————

It was a normal school day. You sat through each of your classes bored out of your mind. If only something interesting would happen, maybe then you’d enjoy your day. Classes felt longer than usual and all you could think about was getting to the occult club and opening whatever Itadori found last night.

Classes had finally finished. You raced to the other end of the school and walked into the club room and greeted your two classmates.

“Where’s Itadori? Shouldn’t he be here with the thing he found yesterday?”

“We thought it would be cooler if we broke into the school late at night and opened it then!” Sasaki says with a bright sinister smile. Iguchi sat next to her and nodded his head in agreement.

Just then, Itadori walked into the room with a bright smile and greeted you three.

“(y/n)-senpai here’s the thing I found yesterday. Sasaki-senpai said to give it to you so you guys can open it tonight. I’m not gonna be able to make it.”

“No worries Itadori, we’ll make sure to take pictures when nothing shows up.” You say glancing at Sasaki.

You had always been skeptical when it came to ghosts and monsters. Iguchi and Sasaki were your best friends so they always ended up dragging you on their haunted adventures. Itadori was the newbie first year who recently joined. He was happy to take the pair on their ghostly escapades when you weren’t available.

Sasaki ruffled through her bag and pulled out the ouija board you four regularly played with. Itadori turned to you and asked if you were ready to call on the spirit of the day. After asking your fellow club members, he called upon them.

“Spirits! Spirits! Please reveal an animal that the school council president is weaker than!” Itadori said giggling slightly.

You watched as the small coin shaped object wiggled underneath your finger.

Ku

Ri

O

Ne

“A sea angel?!?” Itadori roared.

Your giggles were interrupted by the door suddenly sliding open revealing the sea angel himself.

“OCCULT RESEARCH CLUB!” The council president yelled, startling you.

“Your club did not submit an activities report! We don’t have room in this school for such irresponsibility!” He yelled, anger dousing his tone.

He explained that the club was going to be used as a changing room starting today and your club was to find somewhere else to play.

“I wouldn’t mess with our members council president.” Itadori said smirking at you and your friends. Sasaki slams a book onto the table and pushes her glasses up onto her nose.

“Here’s your proof council president! As you know, our rugby field has been closed off. The students who used it started getting sick and some were even hospitalized. Don’t you think that’s strange? I mean we’re talking about tough rugby players here. WELL. Just before the players began getting sick, they stated that they heard strange noises and voices on the field.”

You stand up and flip through the book that had rested under Sasaki’s hand.

“That’s where this newspaper article comes in.” You say showing the president an old newspaper clipping from many years ago.

“Mr. Yoshida, a construction man, went missing and he was last seen here at this school during construction.”

Sasaki interrupted, finishing the riveting story you four had discovered.

“Which means. Mr. Yoshida’s body is buried in the rugby field and the sickness was caused by the lingering spirit!” Sasaki said with stars in her eyes. Itadori and Iguchi stood on either side of you two giving jazz hands for dramatic effect. The council president looks at you four with a blank stare, dumbfounded at the ridiculous story.

“No...” He started.

“They were caused by ticks.”

You felt Sasaki wilt beside you while Itadori argued with the council president, explaining that either way this was club activity. The council president interjected and rudely pointed out the fact that neither you nor Itadori were registered with the occult club, leaving the club with too few members.

“Itadori, (y/n)... I thought you said you put your names down.” Sasaki said with an evil glare plastered on her face.

“Sorry Sasaki... I lost the paper ehehe...” You said, staring down at your feet with regret and a bit of fear hidden behind your eyes.

“I did put down the occult club senpai! I swear!” Itadori announced.

“Then who changed it?”

“I DID.” A voice barked, alarming all the students present.

“Coach Takagi?!” You all yelled in unison.

“Itadori, we need your speed and strength on the track and field team.”

“I ALREADY SAID I WASN’T JOINING!” Itadori wailed, hoping the coach would get the hint.

“No can do. However I’m a fair man so I will let you go if you beat me in a fair fight.”

“You’re on!”

You all ran down to the track to see Itadori battle it out with the coach.

“You think he’ll win?” You say skeptical of Itadori’s strength.

“I’ve heard he won the Ninja Warrior contest and he’s the incarnation of Mirko Cro Cop!” Iguchi explained.

“But he’s not dead...”

You watched as Itadori threw the heavy ball the same way a pitcher would. It whizzed through the air landing at about 30 meters from where he started, demolishing the Coach’s record of 14 meters.

“He’s like a gorilla.” Sasaki says behind you.

Itadori then walked up to the three of you and you congratulated him on his impressive upper arm strength.

“You know you don’t have to stay in this club Itadori.” Sasaki said.

“Thanks Senpai, but as much as you guys love haunted places, you wouldn’t go if (y/n) or I didn’t go with you.”

“Being scared is what makes it fun.” Sasaki says, laughing nervously.

Itadori checks his watch and realizes that it was time for him to leave. He speeds down the stairs and out the gates of the school, dust collecting behind him from how fast he was going. Out of the corner of your eye you spot a tall, handsome ravenette. You stare at him a little and hear him call out to Itadori trying to stop him. Do they know each other? Maybe he’s a first year too. “I’ve never seen him. He seems interesting, and cute.” You think to yourself. He notices your stare and sharply turns away giving off an egotistical aura. You break your gaze and scoff. “Interesting, cute...and cocky.”

————— turn back time - wayv —————

The room was dark, lit only by the light of a single candle resting on the table that Sasaki, Iguchi and you sat around. You handed Sasaki the wrapped object and she began fiddling with the stained paper. There were weird symbols on the paper, it kind of looked like a talisman.

“This is creepy, I’m gonna turn a light on.” Iguchi said timidly.

“No no we need to keep the ambience.”

Sasaki finally gripped on to a corner of the paper and began unraveling. The unraveled paper revealed a dark crimson finger.

“Is it real?” Sasaki asks.

“Probably not. Someone must have put it there as a joke.” You say, the skeptical side of you hiding the real fear you felt.

Suddenly the room shook and the candle went out. You were frozen with fear. In all the times you’d gone out to haunted places, you’ve never caught anything, but this time felt different. A faint screeching noise startled you three. Slowly you looked up and noticed a giant monster coming straight for you. You grabbed Sasaki’s hand, the finger stuffed into her pocket, and ran for dear life, Iguchi trailing closely behind. You hear the wall of the club room burst, and glancing behind you a huge creature was seen, hot on your trail. Iguchi turns a corner separating himself from you and Sasaki. You pull her behind a wall and sit with your hand pressed firmly against her mouth. You wait there for what feels like hours. Iguchi walks toward you ever so slowly.

“Iguchi! Thank goodness!” Sasaki says naively.

As he walks closer to you two, you notice the small monster that has latched onto his face. Your heart drops.

“H-el-p m-e..”

Iguchi’s voice rang through the hall alerting the creature that followed you and Sasaki. Almost instantly, the monster picked you, Sasaki, and Iguchi up. You felt the monster feel you all over, as if it was searching for something. Your mind starts going blank. Thoughts of your childhood, your family, the memories you made at school, flood your head. Thick, hot tears stream down your face. You faintly hear the voice of a person yelling. Your vision faded and soon you blacked out completely.

Megumi pov:

————— humble - kendrick lamar —————

Running down the halls I find one of the curses that Sukuna’s finger attracted.

“Out of my way! Divine dogs! You can eat it.”

The curses were getting closer together.

The finger was close.

I turn the corner and find Itadori’s friends. The curse is trying to eat them and the finger?!

Wait.

I recognize one of them. The one that was staring at me on the field.

“I’m not gonna make it!”

A loud crash echoes through the hallway. The window was smashed by someone.

Itadori?!

I watch in shock as he scoops up his friends. The one I’d seen before suddenly falls from his grasp. I run over and catch them in my arms. My heart beats faster.

What was this feeling?

I hold them close to my chest as my divine dogs run over and eat the curse.

“Normally I’d be pissed.. but good job.”

“Oh thanks, but what are those munching on the curse?” Itadori asks.

“Those? You can see them? They’re my shikigami. Normally you can’t see curses, unless you’re facing your death or in special places like this.”

Itadori stands and Sukuna’s finger drops from the girl’s pocket into his hand.

“This what your looking for?” Itadori asks.

I drop the feet of the unconscious person, still holding them upright. I reach my hand out to grab the cursed object. Itadori reaches out to take his senpai from my arms. A loud gurgling comes from the ceiling, startling me.

“RUN!”

I cling tightly to sleeping body and protect it from the curse as I try to call for Nue. The curse picks me up and throws us both against the wall, waking them up slightly. The curse gets ahold of us once again and blows the whole side of the school out, exposing us to the cold night air.

(y/n) pov:

You wake up with a pounding headache. You feel two arms around your waist and the cold night air blowing on your face. Were you flying? You look up and see a different monster heading your way.

“Hang on!” A voice calls behind you.

You turn slightly and see the same black haired boy from this morning. Why was he holding you? And why were you flying through the air? Where is Iguchi and Sasaki?

Slipping from the boy’s grip, you land on the hard concrete behind him. He glances over to you, checking to see if you survived the landing. You looked at him with big tear filled eyes. He struggled to put his hands together to form a bird shadow puppet. What is he doing?

“Damn I can’t focus.” He says, frustration written in his defined features.

Itadori flies through the air and whacks the monster on what looks like the head.

“Are you guys ok?!” He screams aiming his worry at you.

“I thought I told you to run.” The boy asks with a harsh tone.

“No can do, You were in trouble and you still had (y/n) in your arms.”

He jumps back onto the monster and starts beating it ruthlessly.

“Stop! You can’t defeat it without cursed energy!” The boy says.

Itadori doesn’t stop fighting it. The monster grabs him tightly and pushes him closer to his mouth.

“Itadori!!” You scream, heart beating out of your chest.

“Then all I need is cursed energy right Fushiguro?!”

He throws the crimson finger into the air and swallows it in one swift motion. Your jaw drops as the black haired boy, who Itadori referred to as Fushiguro, screamed at him. Fushiguro turns to you and, noticing your shock, runs over. He uses his entire body as a shield over you while his eyes are locked on Itadori’s changing body. Your eyes peek over his shoulder giving you a clear view of Itadori. Dark tattoo like marks form on Itadori’s tan skin. He looked like himself, but different. His nails grow long and sharp. He turns to the monster and swipes his hand upward, causing it to disintegrate. Itadori, or what looks like Itadori, turns back to you and Fushiguro with burning scarlet eyes.

————— look at me! - xxxtentacion —————

“Finally! A cursed spirit’s flesh is no fun! What a wonderful age it has become, women and children crawling around like maggots! It’ll be a massacre!”

His voice is deep and there is no trace of Itadori in his tone. Your breathing is heavy against Fushiguro’s neck. His arms are wrapped protectively around you as you’re both crouched down on the floor. The strange man’s eyes lock onto you.

“You don’t look like a sorcerer, maybe i’ll kill you first!” He says laughing maniacally.

Fushiguro’s grip tightens out of anger, squeezing so tight it hurts. A familiar voice exited the tattooed man’s body.

“Hey, what do you think you’re doing with my body? Give it back.”

The soft, sweet voice of your kohai calms your nerves ever so slightly.

He’s still there.

Fushiguro lets go of you and stands in front of Itadori.

“Don’t move! You’re no longer human. Under jujutsu regulations, I will exorcise you as a curse, Itadori Yuuji!”

tags: @xreemie @noyakura

big thank you to @noyakura for the banner :’)) ily

P5R: Rebel Girl (A FeMC Story/P5R Rework) Chapter 40: Out of the Dark

Friday after her shift at the convenience store, Ren got a call. She answered it. “Hello?”

“Hey kid” Iwai said on the other end. “I’ve got a special job for you tonight. Meet up at the shop, and do as I say, OK?”

Ren was puzzled. “No offence, but an older gentleman calling a young girl, such as myself, and asking her to do as he says isn’t a good thing usually.”

Iwai sighed. Ren giggled. “You know I hate dealing with cops as is. This kind of thing would only attract more unwanted attention.”

“I know I know,” Ren said. “I just like yanking chains.”

“Would that be why you got arrested?” Iwai said, turning it on her.

“Nah” Ren answered. “I only pull chains when I know I can get away with it.”

“Figures” Iwai said. “Just meet up at the shop.”

“I’ll be there in a few,” Ren confirmed. “Later!” She hung up and headed towards Untouchable.

“Good. You’re here” Iwai said. “So you do wanna do as I say?”

Ren smiled. She liked it when people were quick on the uptake. “Well, I could fight you, but I don’t think the police would be on my side.”

“Heh” Iwai laughed. “You could probably murder me and get away with it as far as the police are concerned.” Iwai stood up. “In all seriousness, let’s go.”

“Huh? Where are we going?” Ren asked.

“There’s this diner nearby,” Iwai explained. “I’m meeting someone there. I just need you to hang back and call me when I give the signal. I’ll even pay for your food… Provided you don’t order too much.”

“Question” Ren asked. “What’s ‘the signal’?”

“…That’s fair,” Iwai said. “I’ll just cough. Is that OK?” Ren nodded. “Good. Now let’s head out.” They headed towards the diner. “Alright, I’ll head in first, and then give it a few minutes before I head in. Sit somewhere close by. Oh yeah.” Iwai went through his pockets. “Here’s your spending money.”

Ren nodded. “Thanks.” Iwai nodded back. He walked into the restaurant. Ren let some time pass and followed him in. Ren spotted Iwai and sat at a booth close by. Once seated, she placed her order, and got out a book to make it look like she was studying.

A few minutes later, a man walked in and sat with Iwai. “Hey Mune. What’s the occasion?”

“It’s been a while,” Iwai answered.

“Feeling sentimental, eh?” the other guy asked.

“Well, I also heard some noise about Tsuda when some cops came by,” Iwai said. “I just wanna make sure everything is going OK.”

“Ah, good ol’ classic Mune” the guy sitting across from him said. “Always willing to uphold the oath.”

“...If there’s anything I can do…” Iwai pressed on.

“Heh. You know you’re always welcome to come back” the man said.

“...You know I gave up the life,” Iwai insisted.

“Right…” the other guy said. “Well, if we do need anything, we’ll let you know. After all, you’re our brother, right?”

“Of course,” Iwai said. He coughed. Ren, overhearing all of this, pulled out her phone and called Iwai.

“You feeling alright?” the other guy asked.

Iwai drank some water. “Just a little parched. His phone went off. “He checked it. “I gotta take this. It’s business.”

“I understand.”

“Hello?” Iwai said. “I see.” He placed his hand over the receiver. “Hey, I’m going to need to cut this short. Someone’s trying to mess with me.”

“If you give us a name, we can assist” the other guy said.

Iwai looked at him sternly. “I’m a skilled business professional. I can handle this.” He got back on the phone and started to leave. “OK now, where were we?” Once he was outside, he switched his tone. “OK, stay on the line, but don’t say anything to arouse suspicion. If he leaves, tell me.”

The other guy got out his phone and proceeded to make a call. “Hey Tsuda. It’s me, Masa...Yeah, that meeting Iwai wanted to take. Apparently the police are already looking at us...Right...Of course...No, that's fine...Yeah, it’s probably that deal from the beginning of the year...Huh?...No, you know Mune. He’s just saying this to honor the code. Although he is interested in helping out, provided he doesn’t do anything uncouth...Yeah...No, of course you can handle it…”

Ren got another drink. “Thank you,” she said. The man looked over to see she was also on her phone. Ren panicked slightly, and tried to cover her tracks. “Right, so, your day sounded lovely dear. As for me, I just got off work at the convenience store, and now I’m having dinner while studying...Yeah…”

The man, Masa, turned back to his conversation. “Nah, it was just some girl talking with her significant other...Yeah...Anyways, don’t worry about it...I’ll look into how much the police know, while you think of something for Mune...Yeah...Talk with you soon...Bye.” He hung up, finished his food, and left.

“He just left,” Ren told Iwai, over the phone.

“Alright. Good job” Iwai said. “I’m guessing he gave you a look.”

“Yeah,” Ren said.

“Still, that was some quick thinking,” Iwai said. “I guess it’s a good thing I hired you. If you had ran into Masa on your own, he might have tried to sweep you up into his deal. Although I’d like to think you’re smart enough to avoid that.”

Ren giggled. “Thanks.”

“I’m gonna look into what they’re doing,” Iwai said. He paused. “You know, it’s nice to have someone assisting me like this again. Ever since I’ve been on the straight and narrow, I haven’t had much in the way of assistance. I guess I thought I was used to it. But thank you. I couldn’t have done this alone. I think I’m starting to like you a little more. Enjoy your meal.”

Ren smiled. “Thanks boss.”

Hanged Man-Munehisa Iwai: Rank 2

Ren hung up, finished her meal, and headed home.

On Sunday evening, Ren got a call from Yoshida. “Hello?”

“Hello?” Yoshida said from the other line. “Is this Amamiya-chan from the restaurant?”

Ren giggled. “Yes.”

“I see,” Yoshida said. He sighed. “I’m glad I got the right number. Hey listen, I’m working on a speech tonight, and I was wondering if you could come and assist me.”

“Sure thing” Ren answered.

“Great! I’ll be out by Central street” Yoshida answered. “See you soon.” He hung up.

Ren headed to Central Street to meet up with Yoshida. Once she got there, she tapped his shoulder. “Mr. Yoshida?”

“Ah, splendid!” Yoshida said. “Perfect timing. I still have a few minutes before I go on. So, why don’t we chat for a bit?”

“OK?” Ren said, cautiously optimistic.

“Good,” Yoshida said. He sighed. “While I appreciate the help, I do have to ask: Why are you helping me?” Ren was caught off guard. “It’s just, there are other politicians out there with a more solid foothold in the political world. I’d figure you’d rather place your bets on a winning horse over me.”

Ren looked the man over. He seemed sincere, but a little doubtful of himself. Yet he continued making speech after speech. Ren smiled. “I told you before, I like your message.” Yoshida was stunned. “You stand up for the people. You want to assure people that the government can help them, especially if they can’t help themselves. I can’t help but admire that. Besides, you can’t count out a Dark Horse candidate until the race is over, right?”

“BAHA!” Yoshida said. “You’re quite right. I suppose the impossible COULD happen. Hm. Thank you.” Ren was taken aback. “For assuring me about my message. I wasn’t sure people were listening. So it’s nice to see that people are. Even if they can’t vote yet.” Ren smiled and bowed politely. “And how serendipitous is this: Tonight’s speech is about a couple of Dark Horses in our world today. Are you ready?”

Ren nodded, but then paused. “Um, what exactly am I doing?”

“Oh, right,” Yoshida said. “Well, basically for now you’re going to hold up these cards that advertise what I am speaking about for the evening. I might ask you to assist me in other ways in the future.”

Ren nodded. “Got it.”

“OK!” Yoshida said. “I’m just about on. Grab that sign and let’s go!”

Ren nodded. She went over to grab the sign Yoshida asked her to. When she read it, she was jolted a bit. “Tonight’s Topic: The Rumored Phantom Thieves.” Well, at least we have some attention. She grabbed the sign and headed to position.

Once they were in place, Yoshida began speaking. “People of Tokyo!” A small crowd began to circle around him. Although Ren noted that they mostly seemed apathetic and just wanted a way to kill time. “Tonight I wish to talk to you about the Phantom Thieves! Those rumored vigilantes that have recently sprung up in the city.”

The crowd’s attention was piqued. “While their existence may be unknown, we have to ask: If they are real, why did they show up in the first place? Shujin Academy, the place they made their mark, was home to one of the most heinous scandals I’ve even seen. Students felt unsafe in the very place they should be welcomed.

Furthermore, the person making them feel unsafe was a highly respected member of society; which would make it difficult, if not impossible, to tell someone. They had no other option BUT these rumored Thieves. They uncovered a dark truth surrounding the school, and managed to put a stop to it, which is why people are taking note of them, and some are even showing their support.

However, as a politician, I know that for every one cruel deed you find, there are ten more still lurking in the shadows. The Phantom Thieves arrived because no one else was willing to help! But we can’t continue to rely on the Phantom Thieves forever! The government’s job should be to unearth these dark truths and stop them. Yet the powers that be are doing nothing.

That is my pledge to you! If you elect me, I promise to shed light on the darkness. And I will continue to fight for you all! Thank you.”

The crowd was murmuring. Ren noticed that they started to take interest. However, one man walked up and said “Psh. Chasing headlines to garner support? Don’t pretend like you’re nothing but the No-Good-Tora! I bet those thieves would come after you next!”

“WHA!” Yoshida said, in shock.

Ren was incensed. “HEY! That’s Mr. Yoshida to you!”

“Oh wow!” the man said. “You managed to convince someone to work for you. I wonder how you managed to swing that.”

Ren was seething. Yoshida took a deep breath and motioned Ren to stop. Ren was confused and looked at him. “It’s alright,” he said, nodding at her. He turned to the heckler. “My apologies. As you noted, she IS new. I’ll talk to her about all of this.”

“Hmph” the heckler said. “Whatever.” He walked off.

Yoshida sighed. He addressed the crowd. “Thank you everyone. And I’m sorry about the slight interruption. But please, do take my message to heart.” The crowd once again murmured, and then dispersed.

After they left, Ren and Yoshida met behind the wall. “Well, tonight could have gone a bit better…” Yoshida remarked. “...But it could have gone worse as well. Thank you.”

Ren as a tad confused. “That guy though…”

“Bahaha!” Yoshida laughed. “I’ve been a politician for quite some time now. I’m accustomed to the occasional heckler. But it’s important to remember to let cooler heads prevail.”

Ren sighed. “You’re right.”

Yoshida smiled. “Although I would have been lost had you not stood up for me in the first place.”

Ren was delightfully surprised. “Oh, thanks.”

“Truth is, I have a bit of a troubled past,” Yoshida explained. “And whenever someone brings that up, I feel weakened. But I’ve learned my lessons, and I’m trying to do what’s best for the country now. And that has to involve not letting naysayers get the better of you. Although, I have a bit of trouble in that area. Still, you being here tonight helped me focus quicker. Because I know someone was listening, and if I gave into my worst instincts, they might learn to do the same.”

Ren smiled. She then shifted around. “So, um, your speech… Do you support the Phantom Thieves?”

“Hmmmm” Yoshida pondered. “Well, as I said, I like what they did, but surely there has to be more we can do. The Phantom Thieves can only do so much for us. And their appearance in general is a bit worrying. If they’re our only hope, then the country is heading in a dark direction.”

“I see…” Ren said, taking note of this.

“What do you think of them, Amamiya-chan?” Yoshida asked.

Ren was a little caught off guard, but gave an answer. “Well, I can’t help but be biased,” she said. “I mean, I do attend Shujin, and I have been the target of that man’s actions, as well as several of my friends.”

“Oh my!” Yoshida said, shocked.

Ren smiled. “But it’s because of that that I believe you.” Yoshida was confused. “It’s hard to trust anyone after going through something like that. There are people with a vested self-interest that only look out for themselves, even if they tell you otherwise. But you’re different. When you say you wish to help people, I can tell you mean it. And I want to be there with you to make sure your message gets heard.”

Yoshida smiled. “I don’t know what to say. Thank you, Amamiya-chan. I’m looking forward to continuing working with you.

I am thou... Thou art I… Thou hast acquired a new vow...

It shall become the wings of rebellion that breaketh thy chains of captivity.

With the birth of the Sun Persona I have obtained the winds of blessing that shall lead to freedom and new power.

Sun-Toranosuke Yoshida: Rank 1

After that, Ren and Yoshida headed home for the evening.

Never Have I Ever...(accidentally) let someone meet Rebecca

heres the link to chapter 2 on ao3 

let me know what you think and happy reading!

word count: 4,622

His talk with Devi shifted from the forefront of Paxton’s mind soon after he got home. Once he finally got home and was ready to collapse, Rebecca found her way into Paxton’s room knowing of his arrival despite his exhausted attempt to hide it and with her came several and I mean  several  sketches of clothing she had drawn and that meant Paxton had to wake up and fast.

One time, Paxton, following a long day, had fallen asleep an hour into one of Rebecca’s ventures to bounce fashion ideas off of him and he had to work for weeks to make up for it. He loved his sister to death, but he was so tired he couldn’t help it and now he learned to keep energy drinks in their house for moments just like this one. In a movement perfected with repetition, Paxton grabbed a bang energy drink from his side dresser and down it while Rebecca pulled drawing after drawing out of the roll she brought with her.

Paxton hadn’t gotten in as late as he had in the past today so Rebecca had time to show him a good portion of her ideas before they had to start their movie so that they could get some sleep. Rebecca showed him a golden dress with a sequence pattern going down the left side, a take on a plaid skirt, paired with a shirt, she even shows him shoes and accessories to go with each individual outfit among many more. Becca wanted to be a fashion designer and hoped to soon apply to fashion school but she had to complete her portfolio first and did not hesitate to enlist Paxton’s help to do this.

After Becca finished showing Paxton all she wanted for the night, they settled onto the couch to watch the movie that had caught Becca’s eye 2 days prior,  After The Ball . The movie included an identity switch, a ball, and a touch of romance. It's a regular Cinderella tale with a twist, the protagonist was an aspiring fashion designer! Paxton could evidently see why it caught Rebecca’s eye. The movie ended rather quickly with Rebecca and Paxton engulfed deeply into the story although the latter tried to hide it. With the energy drink’s buzz leaving Paxton’s mind, his exhaustion followed and he was yawning despite himself. He and Rebecca exchanged goodnights and went to bed.

The next few days went off like normal, school was still new off of summer’s high and students and teachers alike needing time to bounce back, school work was nonexistent. The classes consisted of syllabi and classroom rules and expectations. This caused widespread boredom but fortunately, on this day, lunch approached rapidly and with lunch starting, Paxton found himself in the center of it all with his group of friends inside what students called  The Hotpocket.

Lunch unfolded as it always did, after they finished whatever lunch they had that day the soft hum of their light discussions broke out into full-fledged banter and laughter. Accompanying that laughter was parts of the aforementioned group messing around and sometimes engaging in ridiculous activities. Today that activity was Trent and Marcus, another close friend of theirs, battling with their lanyards. They were being dramatic as ever holding their IDs like nunchucks and swinging them about. Paxton was entangled in a lighthearted conversation with Devin, stopping on occasion to eye Trent and Marcus and laugh at their behavior.

Paxton was looking away when he heard someone exclaim “Ow. Goddamn it”. The entire Hotpocket looked up to cringe at the scene that was, apparently, a girl getting, accidentally, slapped in the face with a lanyard. Paxton’s jaw dropped slightly.

“Did I just hit you?” Marcus asks tentatively

“It’s cool” The reply from the girl, Devi, came rather fast considering her reaction from just moments ago. She adjusted her grips on her backpack straps, “Hey, Paxton, can I talk to you?”

Paxton turned towards his friend, giving him a pat and chuckling through an ‘i’ll be back’ while shifting up to stand. “Okay,” his face straightened as he followed Devi out of earshot from his friends.

“So I thought I would follow up on our conversation from the other day and ask if you wanted to hang out later?” The sentence was cool leaving her mouth, none of the ever-building anxiety leaked from her words.

Paxton had to think quickly to what Devi was referencing but it came to him milliseconds later and he blinked through his realization, “Oh, oh, you mean, uh, like, have sex?” he gave a soft smile hoping to give off a comforting vibe despite the twinge of uncomfortableness brewing in his gut. “Sure, uh, maybe” he paused to think “after school today at my place?”

Devi’s calm facade seemed to shatter and the word tripped from her mouth, eloquence long forgotten, “Today?” Her mind blanked with panic for a split second and the words  TOO SOON  flooded her brain. She hadn’t expected this.

“Yeah.”

“That’s super soon, which is great.” Devi had a feeling she was more so trying to convince herself than anyone else. “Soon is great, it’s just…” an answer popped into her head, “I have orchestra after school today, so I can’t.” she had to stall, to prepare herself but couldn’t for too long. It was a miracle that Paxton had agreed in the first place. If she messes up he could change his mind so she mindfully finished “But maybe later this week?”

Paxton wanted to laugh but held it in, he opened his mouth to answer but just exhaled. His charming smile ever-present as he answered while backtracking returning once again to the Hotpocket effectively ending the conversation. “I don’t know. Maybe.” He turned, striding away.

“Okay, great” Devi called, “We’ll compare calendars tomorrow or something. We’ll figure it out. Later, skater.”

Paxton had already begun to join Marcus and Trent in their makeshift game when he registered Devi’s continued speech, “What?” He asked but she tucked her head, shamefully, and walked away.

~~~

Succeeding lunch, the day sped up considerably. With the commencement of the last class of the day and everyone going to their lockers and then out the door, Paxton was joining them. Today there was no swim practice so Paxton was, thankfully, headed home early. That was his thought until of course his English teacher thought now would be a great time to talk to him about his supposed “lack of participation”. This normally would be something that Paxton would care about and attempt to contemplate but not now, not today when he was getting an early day to relax and who knows what else with this extra time.

It was probably 15 minutes max, but to Paxton, it felt like a lifetime. He was at his car door about to get in as someone called him from his right.

“Hey. I can actually come now. The scheduling conflict I had cleared up.” Devi stated, hands gripping her bookbag’s straps.

Paxton didn’t miss a beat, a split second earlier and he would have cut her off. He found himself buzzed with some semblance of happiness for the company. “Cool. Get in.”

“Okay.” Devi smiled and hurried t0 the passenger side of the car and climbed it as Paxton got settled and they set off.

When they got to Paxton’s house, he got Devi inside before his phone rang and he left the garage to answer the phone. The conversation was rather brief and as it was concluding Paxton re-entered the garage still speaking Japanese into his phone. He hung up.

“Sorry. That was my grandpa,” Paxton clarified, “Can I get you a drink?” he was already making his way over to the mini-fridge he kept in the garage before she could answer. He knew how these matters, if not handled carefully, could easily tip from comfortable to awkward if he didn’t mind sharp, and that was the last thing he wanted with Devi.

“Sure. Do you have any chocolate--” Devi stopped, rather abruptly, when Paxton spun around to face her, beer in hand. She grabbed it despite herself. “Ah. Beer. You read my mind.”

“All right. Well, my mom will be home soon, so...better get to it” Paxton gave a half shrug before stripping off his shirt from the bottom. If there was anything about himself that Paxton was securely confident in, it was his physical appearance. Being that Paxton was a swimmer, he could not afford to think about how others would feel about his appearance at every opportunity. Giving into potential insecure would only throw him off mentally during swim practices and comps, Paxton resolved himself a long time ago that it would help no one. So he tended to, or at least tried to, not think about it every time he showed a part of his body. Plus it’s not like any girl he was interested in who got far enough with him complained, thus taking off his shirt was no big feat and he did so without hesitation.

Devi was sort of freaking out at this point but was doing a great job of not showing it. That was until Paxton’s shirt came off. The beer she was sure she had a good grip on slipped and hit the floor with a thud. Paxton’s eyes followed it, slight confusion on his face but he didn’t comment.

“Oh.” the urge to explain the state of his chest took over, “Just so you know, I have to shave my chest for swimming, so the stubble might, like irritate your skin a little bit.” He lifted her limp hand to his chest for emphasis moving her hand to feel, he looked down following their joined hands, and then looked up making eye contact with Devi. He gave a small smile and she gaped.

“Oh, God”

Her mouth opened and closed for a few moments before her brain reconnected with her mouth. She had just touched the chest of Paxton Hall-Yoshida! Fab and Eleanor were gonna flip! But wait, her mind was now at red alert at the close proximity between her and Paxton that she’s just now processing. And so she did what any normal person would in her situation, she panicked.

“You know what? I just remembered. I have to go home,” She snatched her hand back like it was on fire leaving Paxton surprised and his hand hanging in the air as she patted his shoulders for good measure, “because I have a package coming that I need to sign for.” she nodded trying to regain her composure, it wasn’t working.

Paxton nodded and chuckled as he and Devi switched positions in her attempt to get to the door, he shoved his hands into his pockets, “Word?”

“Yeah, It’s medication for my mom’s...polio.” What the heck Devi? Polio, really?

Paxton could only nod through Devi’s hidden meltdown.

“Yeah, so…” She slowly retreated to the door through her word vomit when she misstepped and a sharp pain spread at the base of her leg, “Ow. Goddamn it!”

“Oh, shit. Are you okay?” Paxton’s stance broke as he rushed forward to the injured girl. She leapt back before he could reach.

“Yep, yep. I’m fine” Devi’s aim to reassure fell short as Paxton’s concerned eyes looked closer.

“Are you sure? You’re...bleeding.” he gestured to her leg

“It’s chill. I’ll see you tomorrow” humiliation ate at Devi’s very being. She had majorly fucked up, in various departments and she was out the door before Paxton could utter another word.

Paxton was extremely bewildered and it showed on his face. With Devi gone the garage fell silent. Paxton stepped back from the door, considered his options. He could go after her or stay home and like she said, see her the following day. He weighed it and decided against trying to catch up to her. She really did seem like she just wanted him to think she was fine and to leave it alone, he wanted to respect that. His gaze swept the floor before it landed on the theorized perpetrator. It was sharpish, in a box on the floor, and sticking out in his direction; one of Paxton’s old swim trophies. He crouched down with a sigh as he picked up the award and rolled it around in his hands examining it. At the very tip was a trace amount of blood, where it had punctured Devi’s cafe. Paxton could not help but think about how strange that was, try as he had to make the whole interaction go as smoothly as possible there was no predicting that and therefore no thwarting it. With the knowledge that there was nothing Paxton could do to help the situation with Devi gone, Paxton shrugged his shirt back on and proceeded with his day.

~~~

Contrary to what Devi said and to what Paxton thought, Paxton did not see Devi the entire school day. He found himself expecting to see her somewhere but always fell short when she was nowhere to be seen. The end of the day came and once again no practice, coach explained it as a new regime he was trying out, sorting out on days and off days and said it would vary until he decided what worked. Paxton was restless after two days and decided on a run after he got home.

He was finishing up his 2-mile run when he saw Devi pacing in front of his house, he ran up behind her. “Sup,” he panted, her response was a scream as he had seemed to startle her. He smirked faintly, “I’m just finishing up a run,” Paxton began. He wanted to get her talking, particularly about why he found her in front of his house talking to herself. He was vaguely relieved to see her but ignored that.

“Okay, cool” she crossed her arms, her demeanor chill. “So do you need to stretch or something, or are you good to just go into your garage and have sex with me?” The words marched from her mouth clear and confident. Let us take a minute to appreciate both the awkwardness of that sentence and applaud the boldness of it.

“Um…” Caught off guard Paxton frowned deeply into his shrug, “I’m good to go to the garage.” She struts passed, her head held high, and as soon as she did Paxton swiftly lifted his shoulder to sniff his armpit, reassuring himself that he did in fact not smell. He pivoted and followed her inside.

Unfortunately, the blind confidence coming from Devi’s words did not translate well into action. That is how they found themselves sitting on Paxton’s couch, Devi’s arm along the back of it, their vicinity too close to not be at least talking and the tension was building. Paxton looked to her for a move and Devi jumped on it.

“So, here we are…” she weirdly stroked from his collarbone down, the tone from outside back on, “about to pleasure each other.”

Paxton did not know if he should be weirded out by her word choice but Devi was proving, with every meeting, to be not like any of the other girls he tends to interact with. He nodded vaguely but when she tapped his nose twice he couldn’t stop his eyebrows from coming together, what exactly was happening?

“But before I can rock your world, I need to freshen up.”

Paxton couldn’t decide if Devi did not see anything wrong with this whole situation or if she was choosing to ignore it, that decision would dictate how he would respond so he needed to figure it out and soon.

“Can you point me in the direction of the ladies’ room? I wouldn’t wanna pee in the middle of doing it.” One point for ignoring the problems, zero for not seeing them. There’s no way she didn’t realize how that sounded coming from her mouth but her face gave no emotion but certainty.

Paxton wasn’t sure if he should respond to the second part but did anyway although the words came slowly full of apprehension, as he lifted his finger in the direction of the bathroom. “Yeah, that’d be bad. First door on the right.”

“Thanks” With that Devi was gone.

Paxton breathed a sigh of relief, he couldn’t think properly with her here. She came back on a new day seemingly ready to have sex despite yesterday’s debacle. The odd opening word choice might have been endearing had it not been followed by a tense silence and more questionable sentence phrasing. It was quickly bordering on uncomfortable but awkwardness was a natural occurrence in sex so this was not a real reason to bail. He just had to wrap his head around her way of speaking and this would be fine. Paxton repeated this in his head, this will be fine.

Several minutes had gone by and Devi had yet to return. Paxton got up from his position on the couch to find her, she really should not have gotten lost. He checked the bathroom to no avail and stopped confused then he continued down the hallway when he heard voices coming from Rebecca’s room.

“I’m Devi. It’s nice to meet you.” Paxton turned glimpsing into Rebecca’s room to see her shaking hands with Devi. Irritation started to build in Paxton’s chest.

“What are you doing?” He directed at Devi but didn’t wait for a response before addressing his sister, “Becca, I thought you were at work.”

Paxton walked deeper into the room, “I switched with Lisa. She gets her braces off tomorrow.” Rebecca explained, satisfied with the answer he received, Paxton turned back to Devi.

“You said you were just going to the bathroom. What the hell?” The irritation was quickly turning to anger at Devi having met his sister. If people knew about Rebecca things could turn ugly, fast.

“Wait. Are you mad at me or something?” The disbelief Devi felt was clear on her face, what was the problem here?

Paxton simply didn’t respond, the budding anger brewing substantially at her attempt to play coy. He walked clear out of Rebecca’s room without a word, his expectation was clear, she was wearing her welcome thin, and she was to go with him outside.

“Why are you sneaking around my house and talking to my sister?” Paxton was comfortable to let his annoyance into his voice with his sister out of earshot.

“Was I not supposed to? I didn’t even know that you had a sister.” Her voice was soft as she tried to get him to understand the genuine misunderstanding but it was far from working and Paxton was too cross to see reason right now. Come on Devi, read the room. Paxton saw this as a jab,

“Oh, you think I’m hiding her now, because I’m embarrassed of her or something?” It was definitely a question but he certainly did not want a response. Seeing someone with his sister sent Paxton into a sort of panic mode. Devi was going to go to school and tell everyone all about his sister and hell if he wasn’t going to get in a lot of fights defending her.

“No, I didn’t say that,” Devi stated, slightly defensive at the attack.

“Okay.” He didn’t believe her for a second as he looked away trying to gather himself, he wanted her out now. He shook his head as the words came out his mouth spiced with venom, “I don’t think this is gonna work. All right, you should probably just go.”

Devi felt the air forced from her lungs leaving her speechless, she knew there was nothing more she could say and honestly couldn’t find the words either way. She gave him one last look before leaving.

Paxton went inside, not stopping to see her go, so many emotions flowed through him but most of all he was scared. Scared of what people would say and all because he didn’t think to make sure Rebecca wasn’t home before he invited Devi inside. He was scared because he loved his sister and could not deal with people and their ignorant words and dumbass opinions but he was helpless. Paxton could not stop people from talking, couldn’t stop Devi from sharing. And Paxton hated feeling this way, the powerlessness ate at him because he was meant to always take care of his sister. So he bundled the emotions up into something he could control, aggravation, and directed it at the person who triggered the emotions, Devi.

~~~

The day passed and Devi and the situation with Becca plagued Paxton’s mind. He was upset, yes but he was also rational enough to know that he couldn’t completely blame his feelings on Devi but he was at a loss. He had accused her and gotten mad entirely too quickly. He now felt stuck between his emotions and the urge to talk to her, to say what? Paxton wasn’t sure as of yet but he couldn’t speak to her, he didn’t know how to.

~~~

Morning classes were a bore especially considering Paxton’s mind was not exactly on task so he found himself once again immensely thankful for lunch’s social reprieve. Paxton was surrounded by his friends and he could almost forget that something was bothering him. That was until the person Paxton was consciously avoiding called to him.

“Paxton, can I talk to you?”

The liveliness among the group died briefly before light laughter spread between them. Paxton’s energy dropped but it did not climb with the rest of his friends’. Paxton looked over, face straight, his eyes met with the expectant Devi. She sort of looked how he felt but he couldn’t compel his body to make a move. His eyes dropped from hers unable to maintain the contact with shame stewing over his behavior. Without a word to Devi, Paxton turned to his friends and continued to converse.

~~~

There was a chance although slight that Paxton held on to that he would not run into Devi during lunch. That did not work out. There was no chance that he could go to their  shared  history class and not be at a close distance seeing as he sat in front of her. He sat in front of her trying to focus but his mind was racing and he was dumbfounded.

He still didn’t know what to say. The reasons to simply ignore her compiled, her meeting Becca, his anger, his reaction, and now him disregarding her at lunch. He was making this worse instead of better, he knew this but he couldn’t figure out how to fix it. He hated being mean to people, he hated to leave things unsettled, but this time was different. He couldn’t get a grasp on the words that would make this better, so he chose not to say anything at all.

~~~

That night Paxton laid down, progressively his pent up energy was coming to a head and it was coming out as restlessness. Once he had gotten home, Paxton ran until he was spent but still he was unable to relax. He had done a series of activities including various workouts, watching movies, and cooking but nothing was untangling the knot he felt in his chest. The complete stress he felt at being a jerk to Devi. Paxton had to do something. He felt okay at first but it has gotten so much worse in such a short span of time.

He had to talk to her, and not tomorrow, no he needed to apologize tonight, right now. So he grabbed his keys and started to walk to Devi’s house. Thinking about it in a way that makes sense, he would have reached her sooner had he driven but Paxton wasn’t thinking. He was going totally on emotion and that was causing him to act rashly. He made it to Devi’s house relatively quickly and he rang the doorbell before processing a thought. When his finger released the doorbell, he took a breath that finally felt like it entered his lungs. Within moments a woman was answering the door,

“Hello?” she began, despite the door being wide open. She appeared suspicious of the unknown young man who stood at her door at this hour. “Can I help you with something?”

“Um...yes I am sorry to bother you but is Devi home?” He realized at that moment the strangeness of his request and how it could be taken considering when he had shown up.

“Hold on” The woman disappeared, leaving her door open and Paxton again was left to wait.

Paxton took a breath to help calm himself then turned to face the door upon hearing the shuffling of footsteps and was relieved to see Devi at the door.

“Hey”

“Hi”

The greeting was short as they both caught sight of Nalini Vishwakumar, Devi’s mom, leaning along the top of the staircase, eavesdropping not so subtly. Devi could not have her mom listening in. Devi did not know what this conversation would entail but given the nature of her past talks with Paxton, her asking him to have sex with her after all, she could not have her mom hearing that. She would very possibly kill her.

“Let’s talk over here” Devi offered, walking outside and shutting the door behind her. Once they were at a safe distance, Paxton let what was bothering his mind spill out.

“I wanted to say I’m sorry for yesterday. I’m just kind of protective of my sister. She used to get bullied pretty bad...even by people I thought were my friends. I guess I’ve always been a little too protective. Like, when my parents first adopted her, I used to sit by her bed every night with a Nerf gun. That’s why our cat only has one eye now.” Paxton finished slowly, slightly embarrassed that a funny story had turned into him admitting to mistakenly hurting their family cat.

Paxton did not know why exactly he was sharing so much with Devi but it felt nice. It started to seem to Paxton that he did not think about every word when it came to Devi. It was weird but it was nice to share this with someone.

“Paxton, I would never make fun of your sister. She’s super fashionable and way cooler than me.” They were sharing a laugh at that blatantly honest remark when Devi’s mom knocking on the window interrupted them.

“No laughing.” She warned

“Mom!”

Paxton had to interject, recalling something Devi had said in his garage, he lifted his hand in greeting. “I’m so sorry about your polio, Doctor Vishwakumar.”

“What?” Nalini shot back but she didn’t care for an answer and that showed when she let the curtain fall.

“Well, thanks for the apology. If we’re cool, should we meet in your garage tomorrow?” Devi’s tone was hopeful but Paxton had other plans. He made a face.

“Actually, I don’t think that’s a good idea anymore. It just got weird, you know?” He felt a lot better and his voice took on a relaxed feel.

Despite the disappointment Devi felt, she played it off, she scoffed “Yeah, sure. I was gonna say the same thing too.”

Paxton smiled and Devi gave a small one back, “Okay.” His words felt final and they knew their conversation was coming to an end. “Well, uh...I’ll see you at school.”

Paxton, pleased with the way the talk went, began his trek home and Devi dejectedly retreated back into her house. Paxton was once again walking away from Devi, but this time there was a difference. This time, Paxton looked back.

it does matter, actually, that goro akechi is a minor. not because this somehow exonerates him morally, or because this somehow makes him not responsible for his actions, but because persona 5 is invested in children as a source of hope for a better future. 

once i saw someone complain that people will defend akechi’s murders on the grounds that he’s a child/minor and how they felt that this doesnt excuse multiple counts of murder. and i was like, ok, well, im not sure anyone was excusing him, but alright, sure. and i’ve seen a few rebuttals to that, one of which is that shido and the other adults in akechi’s life had a responsibility to support akechi in such a way that it didn’t come to murder, and of course it’s on shido to just not be a massive dick who endorses fascism and murders in the first place. and i was like ok, well, this seems a little patronizing and dismissive of akechi’s agency and autonomy, but alright, sure.

in a very roundabout way of explaining my first two sentences, there’s one thing that bothers me lately, and it’s selim bradley from fullmetal alchemist: brotherhood. 

for those of us not familiar with fma:b, selim, or pride, is the oldest homunculus/artificial human in the show and the second-oldest villain, despite the fact that he looks about eight years old. of the seven homunculus named after deadly sins, selim/pride is the only one to survive the show--with an asterisk, which is that selim gets the “homunculus” part of him erased by the end of the show. with the “pride” aspect of him gone, selim is mortal, without any special powers, without memories of any of his amoral acts, and is generally just a happy, normal child.

which is a weird exception to fma:b’s general rule in which every other homunculus dies. even fan favorites like greed and envy don’t live, despite the fact that greed and envy are far more sympathetic as characters. selim kills multiple people on-screen, shows zero remorse whatsoever, and is an active helper in all the other mass-murders that the homunculi engineer. selim’s not an innocent in any way. also, he’s like, 200 years old? 300? he’s very old. biologically, mentally, emotionally, selim is not a child.

but fma:b goes out of its way to make sure that selim gets a second chance at a future, just because his body looks like a child’s. cut another way, he gets an exception from a large number of terrible crimes, up to an including participation in genocide, just because he looks like a child. 

fma:b reminded me that, outside of tumblr’s purity politics over children, and especially so in japan, children are socially constructed in a very specific way, beyond biological age and legal majority cutoffs. 

yes, biological age is a thing. yes, legal majority is a thing. i’m not saying that being a child isn’t a biological thing--it is, obviously. but what i’m saying is that there’s a difference between, say, the sex assigned to you at birth and your gender presentation, to use an analogy. there is a such thing as biological age, but the societal status of being a child of a related but separate thing. and this status of being considered a child is a societal construct.

the social construction goes like this, insofar as i’m aware: children should be good and silent and dutiful and work hard and go to school and listen to their elders, and their elders in turn should do everything they can to guide the children to the right path and build a good society for these children to inherit. (if we want more details on this, please see the entire history of filial piety in asia.)

so that’s a social contract right there baked into the social construct of childhood: children don’t have power, but adults have an obligation to make sure they don’t need power, and to make sure that the future and their children’s futures look bright. 

children represent the future, essentially. they’re the next generation. they’re simultaneously without legal rights as adults and in a very vulnerable position, for sure, but they’re also simultaneously considered the country’s most precious capital: quite literally the people who will inherit and lead the country next.

which, personally, i think puts a whole new spin on the phantom thieves in general. they’re not just kids who’re being rowdy or kids telling abusive shitty adults theyre being abusive and shitty--or, they’re kids doing those things, but they’re not just kids doing those things. they’re kids who’ve been specifically let down by adults who did not fulfill their social obligation to them. they’re kids who’ve been abandoned and neglected by the very adults who should have been paving the way forward for them, as society has asked those adults to do, because those adults have instead chosen to line their own pockets and cover their own asses. 

so the kids said: alright, well, then i’ll take power for myself, and i’ll make my own future. (which is where we get a lot of those promo slogans of “steal back your future” and junk like that.)

sae’s comments about how adults should do their part to fix the world for the kids is just a resolidifying of the way the world “should” work, and we could talk about her comments on the matter, but actually i wanna talk about yoshida.

i especially want to talk about yoshida because yoshida and shido are the two politicians we see the most of, and both of them spend a lot of time reciting political rhetoric to speak to the hearts of the general japanese populace. we all know the way that shido thinks of japan: a large vehicle that one person is in control of, and the masses just compose the throne upon which the ruler sits.

we also already know that yoshida’s a Real G, but it’s worth really close-reading some of his lines. he speaks a lot about apathy, the lack of caring for each other in society--a general willingness to disregard your fellow man, to not uphold one’s social obligation to each other. but he also talks a lot about the “youth”--which is not really uncommon for a politician, obviously, since politicians are always talking about “the children” and “the kids” and “the next generation” and “those damn millennials” and all that shit. 

yoshida instead gives us these fun lines:

A world where the young exist only to be exploited... is a world that must be changed!

And while our society appears to be prosperous, many of our young people are quietly suffering. They lack jobs, security, savings... The next generation will lead us into the future and yet they have no plan for how to arrive there.

Passing on the societal ills we have created to the next generation... is not right!

...the current administration refuses to discuss their plans for the future... Can we really accept such an utter lack of transparency?!

If you make a promise, you must keep it. If you make a mistake, you must atone for it. These are basic human principles that we have all learned from the youngest of ages... 

yoshida’s entire thing about how the adults have let the children down isn’t just him saying shit--he’s commenting directly on the fact that the social contract has been broken, and he’s putting the blame on the administration for not upholding their responsibility to secure a future for the children, especially since the children are the future of the country. 

this is partly why he doesn’t blame the phantom thieves for acting the way that they do; rather, he seems them as a logical reaction to the injustice that’s occurred as a result of the society that the adults have left for them:

I bet [the Phantom Thieves] are a group of young people. Young people who have experienced cruelty and injustice... They bravely face the societal ills that plague our world without thinking of the consequences.

(i think also in part he admires the fact that they’re anonymous and don’t benefit personally from their actions, which is exactly the opposite of what he did as a young politician. he also doesn’t throw the real embezzlement culprit under the bus to exonerate himself presumably for the same principle of desiring selfless public service instead of personal gain.)

in both the early parts of the s link and later on when yoshida starts talking with matsushita more extensively, akira’s important because he’s young--he represents the young demographic that yoshida and matsushita are discussing the future of. akira demonstrating support for yoshida in a public way means a lot because he’s a minor. matsushita asks akira for his opinions on the phantom thieves and other issues because akira is a minor. akira’s opinion is supposed to be heard and valued by adults, who should take his opinions into consideration and do their best to not let him down. 

this is tied into the general thread of yoshida being a person who was self-admittedly just as corrupt as everyone else, who was blinded by glamor and fame and money, who got caught up in political scandal. yoshida’s general acceptance of his mistakes as a human being and politician ties over to his general belief that it’s not that the youth are rebellious no-good teens, but that the youth have been let down by politicians like who he used to be. he blames himself, and because he is not too different from the rest of the older generation and politicians in general, he implicates a lot of the older generation and politicians as also blame-worthy.

his quest for redemption and atonement dovetails neatly with his views on the broken societal contract. taken together, yoshida’s s link implies to us the idea that the entire general older generation in japan more or less owes the children of japan a formal apology, and the older generation better get on their redemption arc and start being the vanguard of the change for children:

The reason [the Phantom Thieves are] causing a stir is because they are addressing the world’s problems. Setting aside whether their actions are right or wrong... there is one thing I can safely say about the Phantom Thieves. A belief with conviction... has the ability to move a person’s heart.

I’m sure you are all aware that I am “No-Good Tora,” the one accused of embezzlement. However, because I was accused like that, I was able to understand the suffering of the weak. Why am I in politics? In the past, it was merely for personal gain. But why do the Phantom Thieves continue to change hearts? I believe they do it for the world and its people. And in choosing to do justice for others, they had no choice but to disguise themselves. No matter what the world says, I fully support them. 

I’m just an average citizen. However, I will continue to voice my beliefs. I may not be able to become a Diet member this election... and I may not be able to effect change during my lifetime... but I’ve made my peace with that. I will be happy as long as I can be a meaningful stepping stone for the future of our youth!

okay. so that was a lot of close reading about yoshida. why did we do this exercise, tumblr user akechicrimes. 

there’s two takeaways from this. the first is the one that yoshida has already talked about extensively, which is that the phantom thieves are just but not because Fuck Cops and Fuck Capitalism and Fuck Anime Jeff Bezos. the phantom thieves are just because the people who are supposed to be upholding society aren’t doing their fucking jobs. the phantom thieves are specifically saying: we’ve been let down by society, so apparently we have to do everything our goddamn selves around here.

(which also ties in neatly to the general “fuck cops” vibe of persona 5 which, i would like to say, is very specifically “the cops are not doing their jobs.” the TV station scene where akira speaks back to akechi is, if i’m remembering this right, maybe the ONLY time we really hear “akira’s” opinion on the morality of his own activities, which is fascinating because he just does these things without ever justifying himself to the player--anyway, his three options are: (1) They’re justice itself, (2) They’re necessary, and (3) They do more than the cops. so akira can’t ever at any point say that the phantom thieves are bad, but his most interesting and detailed answer is to point out that the cops aren’t doing what they’re supposed to do, so who can really blame the phantom thieves for doing what the cops aren’t?)

the second takeaway is that yes, goro akechi does get more leniency because he’s a minor. 

yes. seriously. this isn’t a matter of excusing what he did, or downplaying the fact that he committing murder. i’m not saying that he wasn’t old enough to make decisions (although i would never say that he was old enough to make decisions, because he was 14/15 when he got wrapped up in shido’s conspiracy). i’m also not saying that akechi, somehow for some reason, didn’t volunteer himself willingly, because all the evidence points to the fact that he did (although of course “free will” is also highly circumspect considering his living conditions at the time and the fact that shido makes it clear that he was able to manipulate akechi without ever infringing on akechi’s sense of autonomy). i’m not even saying that akechi was driven to the point of murder and had no other choice (although i think that might also be true as well).

what i am saying is that under the construction of childhood as japan’s future and japan’s hope, akechi is considered a valuable member of society, and is therefore worth saving.

or at least he should be.

akechi says that he’s an unwanted child, but “unwanted child,” according to yoshida’s rhetoric (and a lot of japan’s general rhetoric of children as hope for the future) is an oxymoron. (or at least it would be an oxymoron if japan weren’t so fucking hypocritical.) you can’t not want the future of the country. you can’t not want hope for a good future. the very idea that a child could be not wanted or not valuable doesn’t make any sense, because children are the future--in some ways, whether you like it or not, that child is going to inherit the earth when you’re dead.

the kind of person who’d not want those things is--well, shido. (this is why i used yoshida; yoshida and shido are two polar opposite politicians.) shido quite literally does not want a good future for anyone in the country and quite literally does not want akechi and quite literally does not see akechi, one of the very young-person citizens that shido is supposed to be serving, as useful or valuable in any way unless akechi is directly promoting shido’s fame and popularity. shido being akechi’s father is just a very neat and nice way of literalizing the ways that shido, as an adult, has let down akechi as a child--the ways that shido quite literally owed akechi something to make akechi’s life and future better, and instead did everything awful.

there should not ever be a thing like “unwanted child.” that in and of itself, from the start of akechi’s life, was nonsensical. and to the extent that shido being akechi’s father is allegorical of the ways that shido is a terrible patriarch for japan, i would say that akechi, as an unwanted foster child, is just another allegory for the ways that children nowadays are treated as misbehaving, lazy good-for-nothings who have to work themselves into the dirt to be given half the salary and half the praise. akechi, as an unwanted child, is just the personification and representative of an apparently unwanted generation. 

what i’m getting at is that akechi’s status as a minor (and yes he’s a minor even if he’s eighteen; age of majority in japan is twenty)--akechi’s status as a minor is a critical part of why akechi gets a shot at a redemption arc. so yes, actually, the other villains or palace-rulers don’t get redemption arcs because they are adults, who had a societal obligation to do better by their peers and by the children of japan. yes, actually, akechi’s informal “trial” in the hands of fandom is to be tried as a minor and not as an adult. yes, i know kamoshida didn’t kill anyone and akechi’s literal crimes are more morally repugnant, but yes, unfortunately, being a minor does actually exonerate him on the morality spectrum to a degree. 

being a child matters in the larger scheme of persona 5′s logic of who owes who, who’s responsible for who, and why we should not be apathetic. adults owe children a better future. adults have been letting children down. adults owe every single phantom thief, including akechi, an apology, a better future, and health and happiness; and they owe that to japan’s future not as a matter of exchange or morals, but simple social obligation. adults are supposed to take care of the kids--full stop. 

”okay but @ tumblr user akechicrimes?? akechi KILLED people.”

yeah, i know. i said “being a minor does actually exonerate him on the morality spectrum to a degree.” 

what degree? no idea. that’s up to you to decide. if you want to play in the black-grey-white morality scale that only goes two ways, you’re welcome to continue to ask “what degree.” we can argue that being a minor somehow reels akechi back from the “black” end of the spectrum into the “grey” or “white” parts. 

but (if i may be permitted to go completely off the shits into things that might make people pissed off at me for saying) i implore you to consider that this two-way scale of morality is not the line of thought that persona 5 is pursuing. 

this, again, ties back into the social construction of a child. i’ve said “a child is representative of the country’s future” so many times i think it’s lost meaning, so let me dice it a different way: a child is socially constructed as representative of potential and hope. a child is socially constructed as the capacity for things to get better. in persona terms, a child is the fool at the start of their journey, all futures contained in one present, a vast multitude of could-be’s. 

for a game very concerned with japan’s general societal ruin, children are not just in the position of having been let down by adults, but are--as the phantom thieves demonstrate--representative of better futures regardless of how terrible circumstances look in the current day. they are a source of believing one day this sad, depressing story might actually end with “and then they lived happily ever after.”

if i may go even more completely off the shits, take a look at this heckler from yoshida’s s link, which is the one that akira speaks back to in the middle of yoshida’s speech:

...I’ve been wrong this whole time. Even though someone has failed in the past, it doesn’t mean that person can’t try again.

this is to say, redemption arcs insofar as persona 5 (and also persona 5 royal, i think) is concerned is not a question of necessarily addressing the wrongs that have occurred. yoshida sets the bar pretty high in that yoshida does not ask for forgiveness for what he’s done, and instead simply accepts his actions and their consequences without attempting to lessen the blow. he embraces what he’s done in all its awfulness. 

but because akechi is a a minor, and because akechi as a minor is getting wrapped up in persona 5′s train of thought about kids as the hopeful futures of japan, akechi is at the very least owed a chance to do better. as a minor, japan is societally contracte to give him the space to have the potential to be better and do better. nobody is obligated to forgive him, and indeed neither royal nor akechi ever seem to entertain this as a valid possibility. forgive, forget, reconciliation, retribution, and resolution seem to be all off the table, as if the very idea would minimize haru or futaba’s losses. the very conceit of the dreamworld in P5R wants to shoot down the very idea that the past can ever, to any degree, be fixed, remedied, or even emotionally resolved. akechi will have always killed wakaba and okumura and this fact will always be awful--full stop.

nevertheless, despite the fact that the past cannot be changed, akechi is still a minor. rather than attempting to resolve the issues of the past, akechi is still owed the space to become a beacon of potential change for the better in the future--which is also known as hope. 

i’ve said this in other posts elsewhere, but persona games are like, obsessed with hope. they fucking adore that shit. why not? even in difficult times, even when things are terrible and you’re going through misery, if you at least have hope that one day things will be better, that life will change, that the new generation will step up to the plate and make the story have a happy ending, pain becomes easier to bear. and why not? persona games cover a breadth of difficult topics. 

especially in a game like P5, which talks at length about modern day japan’s ailments, what good is it if the player walks away with a defeatist attitude that the future will be terrible? 

if reality is malleable like morgana says, isn’t the first step to have hope that this is true?

this post has gone on a lot longer than i thought it would. but in any event. that’s why it is valid to say that akechi being a minor “exonerates” him to a degree. 

also selim bradley lives because fma:b concurs that children are a hope for a better future and fma:b is particularly invested in this line of thought because it’s a story about edward transitioning from a child to a young adult who is learning about the ways that the world works and is also still just childlike enough to propose that the world shouldn’t have to work in the bloody, awful way that it does. selim is representative that all children should be given as many chances as possible to do and be better because they are representative of potential. if that wasn’t clear. lmao.

TMA x Persona 5 crossover

I’m combining my newest obsession with one of my favorite games ‘cause I love playing the game “what characters from X series would belong to Y category from Y series”

So...

Persona 5, but all the characters belong to different entities from the Magnus Archives (Note: this’ll be based off of the original game, as I have not been able to afford the new release of Royal, and so have not played it yet.) Main Cast: Akira/Ren: Beholding. I debated for a long time about what to pick. What fit the protagonist better? Did his attempts to appear harmless mean he was better suited for the Spiral and it’s deceptions? Or does the fact that he’s a Wild Card able to mold himself into anything his friends needs align him with the Stranger? Or does his anger at unjust treatment give him the greatest connection to the Slaughter, or the Desolation? In the end I went with Beholding not only because that’s what I made the Velvet attendants, but because the Beholding also witnesses all the other entities. It has ties to all of them, even the Stranger which is it’s antithesis along with the Dark. It would make sense that he would have access, have KNOWLEDGE, of all the other entities under this power. Ryuji: The Vast. I almost gave him the Lonely, as after Kamoshida broke his leg he was isolated from his peers, but Ryuji doesn’t WANT to be alone. None of the other entities felt right. The Flesh is too literal, the Web requires more smarts than this boy has, the Corruption makes no sense and so on. I eventually went with the Vast because Ryuji always talks about freedom, and how running made all of his worries fade away, how it helped him connect to his other teammates. Avatars of the Vast have a very laid back look on life and are by far some of the most friendly you can run into, though it doesn’t make them any less dangerous.

Morgana: Beholding. I was originally thinking about whether to make him a Spiral creature or maybe the Stranger, but I realized that whatever Morgana was, then the other velvet room attendants would have to be it as well. And Igor’s JOB is to know things and help guide the player without actually interfering. He can’t belong to anything BUT the Beholding.

Ann: The Stranger: I wasn’t super sure about this one, as the Stranger relies heavily on deception-which Ann is NOT good at-but looking back at all the statements that involve it, it’s evident that it doesn’t try to be GOOD at deception either. How would you know something’s not right if the act was perfect? And as a model, Ann needs to be able to put on different attitudes in order to have presence.

Yusuke: The Spiral. I wasn’t sure which one to give to Yusuke originally. Again, the Lonely was my original thought, as his eccentricities make it hard for him to connect to other people, but being isolated is something that happens TO him, not something he pursues. Yusuke says that he wants to inspire people the way the Sayuri did for him, wants to show the world in new ways. And what better Entity/Patron to follow then the one that does exactly that? The spiral is about fooling the senses, making you see things that aren’t there or perceiving things in impossible ways. What better way is there to describe how art is supposed to make people feel?

Makoto: This girl belongs to the Hunt. You might think the Slaughter because of the rage she feels at being treated like a doormat but nope! That’s her sister. Her sense of justice makes her pursue her prey. She stalks Akira, set traps for him and the Phantom thieves. Not to mention that she wants to be a cop-which tend to lean towards the Hunt due to pursuing criminals. Futaba: Beholding all the way. This girl wants to Know everything, wants to Understand above all. While her vision might have been clouded by grief after her mother’s death, she still Knew they were lying to her and pursued the truth relentlessly.

Haru: Slaughter. I don’t think I have to explain this one do I? Girl canonically has sadistic tendencies, and while one COULD argue that Sadism fits the Desolation better, she doesn’t destroy for destruction’s sake. 

Akechi: Desolation. I was originally going to give this boy the Slaughter like Haru due to his anger, until I realized that the anger wasn’t the point. It was directed at Shido. At building him up as high as possible just to take it all away from him. That’s quintessential Desolation mentality. The Desolation is about loss more than fire, and Akechi is determined to make Shido lose EVERYTHING, and believes anything destroyed in that process will be worth it, just to see the expression on his father’s face as he pulls the rug out from under him.

Confidants:

Sadayo Kawakami: Victim of the Buried. Not just because of her debt, but also because of her guilt. The Buried can be metaphorical as well as physical, and Kawakami is an excellent example of that. Sae Nijima: Slaughter. Her anger and tendency to lash out at Makoto are what made me decide on this Entity. She isn’t an Avatar. Like Melanie, she was infected with it and was slowly becoming more and more angry and violent.

Sojiro Sakura: Hunt. He’s been out of the game for a while, so the instincts have largely gone away, but as Wakaba’s friend he learned a lot and that knowledge has helped him keep Futaba safe.

Munehisa Iwai: Slaughter. Former Yakuza? Of course it’s Slaughter; but taking in Kaoru and leaving his clan cut him off from the entity and nowadays he’s just a normal human.

Toranosuke Yoshida: Victim of the Lonely. Being evicted from congress isolated him and left everyone unwilling to listen to him. 

Ichiko Ohya: the Dark. It doesn’t fit perfectly. The Dark is about hiding information, not publishing it;  but in game her abilities allow you to move around undetected, and her articles help your reputation. I almost went with the Spiral considering how she deceives people, but the characters don’t all need to be Avatars who symbolize their patron. I see it more likely that Ohya is a victim of the Dark, as Shido’s organization is trying to keep her from the truth. 

Chihaya Mifune: Web. As a genuine fortune teller it only makes sense that she would be aligned with the Weavers.

Tae Takemi: The End. Enough said.

Shinya Oda: The Hunt. He’s always searching for weaknesses, whether that’s in his competitors or the enemies in game.

Hifumi Togo: The Web. Not only do her abilities allow you greater control over battes, but she’s also caught in the Web of her mother’s making when she’s trying to turn Hifumi into a model.

Yuki Mishima: The Corruption. Mishima uses his ‘position’ as the Phantom Thieves manager to try and gain others respect and take advantage of people. Corruption isn’t always about literal filth and decay, so I think this kind of moral Corruption would definitely put him under this Entities gaze.

Igor: Beholding. I explained this earlier in Morgana’s part, but Igor just fits the Beholding. He has knowledge that he shares with the player to aid in their journey, but he never interferes, never takes action.

Caroline: The Slaughter. I know I said that all the Velvet attendants would be beholding, but I thought that since the twins were two halves of one person, it would be interesting if their Patrons were different to reflect her broken nature. Justine: The End. I wanted to originally go for something different, like the Lonely or the Web. But Justine is a lot calmer than her sister, almost emotionless, and most of all she’s PATIENT, which is a trademark of the End. 

Lavenza: Beholding. As a Velvet attendant, she shares the same Patron as Igor.

Palace Rulers: Kamoshida: The Flesh. At first I didn’t know which Entity to give him. Should it be the Hunt, considering his lustful pursuit of the girls? Or maybe the Buried as he tries to pressure Ann into sleeping with him, using Shiho to keep her at his side. I eventually settled on the Flesh because even though Kamoshida was willing to do anything to get Ann as soon as possible and hurt Shiho when she turned him down in retaliation, the Hunt will never stop their pursuit because THAT’S THE FUN PART. There is no end for them. Kamoshida did want to catch Ann.

Madarame: The Spiral. I was originally going to go with the Lonely since he isolates his students, but other than that surface comparison, Madarame has no connection to the Lonely. He relied far more heavily on deceiving his students and tricking them into thinking that they owe him their artwork due to his mentoring them. 

Kaneshiro: The Corruption. I mean, he turns into a fly. What more is there to say, except that he possesses the same moral corruption that infects Mishima?

Okumura: The Buried. I originally went with the Flesh, but it felt far too literal. I eventually settled on the Buried as Okumura oppresses his workers and smothers them under exhaustion and debt to the company to keep them in line.

Shido: The Web. I thought about going with the Beholding as a sort of parallel to both the protagonist and Jonah Magnus from TMA, but Shido doesn’t want knowledge. He wants control, to exert his will on the masses, and that’s Web, not Beholding. Yaldabaoth: The Web. The ultimate expression of manipulation. Father of Puppets. 

I translated the interview with the anime’s producer, Uryuu Kyouko, from this issue of LisOuef. 

IMPLIED SPOILER WARNING: PLEASE SKIP THE ANSWER TO THE FIRST QUESTION IF YOU ARE ANIME-ONLY AND TRYING TO STAY COMPLETELY SPOILER-FREE.

Producer Uryuu Kyouko has longed for the anime adaptation of BANANA FISH, a famous work long considered to be impossible to animate.The thing that supported her in her passion was the “never give up” way of living that Ash taught us. I asked her about behind the scenes on production and her feelings. 

--Please tell me again about the path you took leading up to the anime adaptation of Banana Fish.

I first encountered the manga when I was a college student, when I borrowed it from a friend and ended up reading almost the whole thing in one sitting. At the time, it had already been quite a while since the series had come to a conclusion, but the title was still famous, and I imagine it was in the home of anybody who had an older brother or sister. I really loved detective stories and mysteries like Kaoru Takamura's "Fly with the gold," so I got totally sucked into Banana Fish as a mystery, wanting to know how things would unfold and enjoying how it developed. But in the end, what really moved me was seeing the instant of Ash's blaze burning out, or should I say it was seeing how his way of living seemed to be a single, shining moment. Banana Fish was a big hit in my class, too, with boys and girls of all ages, and it gave the strong impression of being a work of art that could move anyone. 

I first started to make moves towards turning it into an anime right after I was transferred into the production department, so I think it must've been in 2013. I managed to catch someone from the publisher during a meeting for something else, and I told them that I absolutely wanted to do this, no matter what. First, they were really surprised that I immediately went for Banana Fish. It had already been so long since it was in publication, and it was something that had never been turned into an anime or movie of any kind. But I told them I was determined to do it and asked them to at least let me write a proposal. What I put out ended up basically being a love letter to Banana Fish explaining how I'd come across it, what made it so spectacular, and what I wanted to express by turning it into an anime. And I thought that Yoshida-sensei probably isn't someone who really watches anime, so I put together a compilation of the company's latest anime to show her that all kinds of things are possible in modern animation. I was desperate just to have her become even a little bit optimistic about seeing Banana Fish turned into an anime; that would've been enough to make me happy. 

--I admire your passion from the bottom of my heart. I also heard that you rather like Yue-Lung Lee.

I think that I really like people who keep struggling toward things that they can't hope to reach, people who refuse to give up. Ash is like that, too. But Ash is searching for things like freedom and unconditional love, things that put him closer to something higher. Yue-Lung is closer to being a spoiled brat, and I think it makes him feel more human. He's smart like Ash and lives in a similar environment, but Ash has something that he doesn't, and it makes him both jealous and resentful. That's all the more reason Yue-Lung can't stand Eiji. Yue-Lung has all kinds of skills himself, but maybe I kind of get the feeling that he's close to what the rest of us are like despite that. There are a lot of scenes where he's angry, so the director is always checking in with me about the nuance involved. In contrast to that, there are times when her direction is like, I want this to feel like more of a harsh anger. (laughs) On the other hand, we're always talking about things like how we want Yue-Lung to approach Sing with a different kind of energy.

--The characters definitely show different sides of themselves depending on their relationships with others.

That's the main focus in directing, too. All of the staff have a solid grasp of the core characters, so there's hardly ever any talk like, "Ash isn't like this" or "Eiji isn't like this." The kind of things that get discussed are more like, "I want him to sound a little more gentle when he's talking with him," "I want him to talk like he's acting like a big brother," or "this makes them feel too close, so I want them to have a slightly more reserved atmosphere."

--Do you have any stories from when you were deciding on the cast?

We spent the most time on Ash and Eiji, of course. And we were really picky about the auditions for Shorter, too. For Max, after the director had seen some footage, she suddenly said, "We've got a Max." At the recording studio, whenever Hirata-san talks it puts everyone at ease. And the process of seeing him grow closer to Ash--or should I say Uchida-san-- is similar to Banana Fish. Hirata-san told me that at first, he didn't really talk much with Uchida-san, and Uchida-san himself was rather prickly, like he'd been possessed by Ash, but as they go out to eat together and see each other week after week on the job, you can feel them growing closer in their exchanges in front of the mic, too. In Banana Fish, there are scenes where the 2 of them are pretending to be father and son, but seeing them interact really brings that picture to mind.

--I'm looking forward to seeing Toshiyuki Morikawa make his appearance as Blanca after this, too.

Morikawa-san was specifically requeseted for the role, and this was part of the director's image for things, too. Just the other day, we had the recording session for the episode when Blanca appears. We had him do takes emphasizing adult sexuality, but the performance that Morikawa-san created of someone who still has something that he's hiding was just perfect. There are still a lot of things that I can't say about Blanca, but I want you to look forward to seeing him appear. 

--The combination of Yue-Lung and Sing is nice, too. I really get the feeling that Fukuyama Jun-san (Yue-Lung) is looking forward to seeing Shoya Chiba's young talent develop. 

We did auditions for the role of Sing as well, but he's the youngest character out of the main cast, so we wanted to give importance to the feeling that although he can't hope to beat Ash, he's someone who will one day bear the weight of the Chinese mafia and has a bright future ahead of him. Chiba-san's straightforward attitude was really the perfect fit. He left a big impression with how hard he was trying among all these veteran performers. Uchida-san thinks the same thing. The earnest way he does his best to push aside the pressure makes him look like Ash, which is strange. They're getting closer, too, which is interesting.

--When it comes to recording, you and the director Utsumi Hiroko-san are basically put in the same role.

Yes. The sound director, Yamada Haru-san, will take our really nuanced requests for something like "say it more sweetly," and break it down for the cast. Even when it comes to requests that aren't by the book at all, he's flexible in how he deals with them. There are tons of discussions based on the director's visual image for things, so Yamada-san is challenged in a lot of ways, too. Even when it comes to picking music for a single scene, there are times when he'll have all these different possibilities ready for the director and she instantly goes, "This is all wrong." (laughs)

--How did Shinichi Osawa come to be picked for the music?

When we went to pick a composer for the score, we decided we wanted someone who wouldn't give off a really strong impression that this was for an anime. Osawa-san was picked as the person closest to the image the director wanted after he showed her examples of music in a variety of genres. The director is the type who has images come to mind first. First she has a scene that she wants to see, and then she starts to gather things for that. I think the sounds come into play during that, too.

--Do you have a particular song or setting for music that you like?

I have to say I really like the violin songs done in Yue-Lung's image. I particularly like the song "Lunar Shackles" that's for Yue-Lung and Shorter. Just like in the scene in the OP where Yue-Lung is getting involved with Shorter, it's a song in the image of him getting involved in his life. 

--You said that Osawa-san and the director had a lot of discussions. Including Yamada-san, where there any parts of your team that went through changes?

I think there are quite a few. First, in the beginning we were talking about the music and discussing whether or not it fit a scene or feeling. There are scenes that are serious, but the characters are having fun in it, right? For example, when Eiji is doing a high jump in the 2nd episode. The music that Yamada-san first brought for the scene was a normal, serious song because it was an escape scene. If you look at it objectively as a scene, that would've been a good choice. However, the director said that during that scene, Ash was feeling excitement. In the end, we ended up using the song "Leaper" that's like the sun pouring down. Although it's probably a song that Osawa-san made while thinking of LA. (laughs) And for the scene where Shorter dies, the director said that she wanted to have a beautiful waltz playing, so Osawa-san made "The Last Waltz" for her. Now Osawa-san isn't making music for a broader concept, but for each and every specific order.

--So there are getting to be more songs than what's included on the soundtrack.

There are. I've never personally ordered so many songs for so many little separate things, so I was worried if it would really be OK, but Osawa-san was kind enough to say, "It'll help me come up with an image if I have visuals, so even if I have to break up my work, let's do it that way." We were so grateful to him.  I seriously don't even know how many times we dragged him into a meeting. We've really been saved by how many people were willing to take things on in a positive way. And we're using the opening and ending songs inside the show itself, but I think it's because we had everyone's cooperation that we were able to express things in a good way.

--It really gets you fired up to see a special ending like in episode 1 and 10. 

Even from the scripting stage, we'd decided on the music to some extent, so from the very beginning we explained that to the music artists for the OP/ED. In particular, the ending on episode 5 was an acoustic version. The director didn't want a lot of music during that scene, and she said she wanted the sadness of the guitar, so she had the artist work with that.  Right now the music artists for the second season are in the middle of production, but we're getting more great songs. 

--I can sense everyone's love for the project. Now that you've come this far from your feelings about the original manga, what do you think it is that you want to give the most importance to and convey to people? 

I know I started off talking about Ash's way of life, but I always wanted to depict the way he never gives up on the things that he wants and the way he faces his problems. So I basically want to depict Ash. I want to show him as he continues to struggle. There are things that Ash can't get even as someone who has everything, and I'd love if it comes across just how much he's saved by Eiji's existence. We're extremely particular about Ash and Eiji's time together and their interactions, from the script to recording. The story is packed with content, so we know the anime is too short to cover it all. But we just can't cut down on their scenes together, and that balance is the one thing we're very careful about. I get the feeling that the staff as a whole was always talking about what they could do to preserve that. In the anime, there are more scenes where we have to show explanatory text as a visual, but they're a result of trial and error to make sure the scenes are accurately depicting Ash and Eiji's time together and their state of mind. 

In the 2nd half of the anime in particular, there are going to be more scenes that happen sooner or later than they do in the original manga. But if you think an important scene has been cut, there are times when it'll unexpectedly come up later, so I hope you can put your mind at ease and watch to the end. 

--What do you think of the reaction of new fans and the younger generation?

This is quite timely, but when I was on my way to the office today, I heard from an old  underclassman from college asking, "Are you involved with Noitamina? 'Banana Fish' is totally interesting." I'm happy to see that reaction from people who've never read the manga. Banana Fish is an overwhelmingly famous work, so I thought that everyone had already read it, but of course that's not the case. That's all the more reason I want young people to see it now and take a look at the original manga, too. Even if you know the manga, there are new emotions with the anime. The angel statue in episode 9, that wasn't in the script, it was the director's original staging, but when I saw it in the storyboard I almost cried. 

--The anime broadcast is about to reach a turning point. Please tell us some standout points in the upcoming developments.

In the second half, you have Ash and Eiji having heart-to-heart talks, and their faith in each other grows deeper and deeper. There are more scenes digging up Ash's upbringing and feelings, but we're putting a lot of power into it, so we want everyone to really savor it. And then there's Blanca. Please look forward to seeing this new character appear. And then the battle scene with Arthur in episode 13 is really something. The visuals in the OP for the first season were made with the image of episode 13 in mind. There are a lot of scenes that link up, and I think it's fun to spot where different parts from the OP fit in. And then I hope people can watch and get a feeling for why Arthur is so fixated on his hatred for Ash. Hosoya Yoshimasa-san's Arthur is really popular with guys, and all the male staff are always talking passionately about him, and that love has been included. (laughs) Banana Fish is a work that you can best understand the brilliance of only after you've seen it through to the end. There's a full season left now, so I really hope that people will stick with it to the end.

I been wondering, since I don't honestly know much about what happened to Hibiki. I know of the writer changes, but not much else. How deep does this rabbit hole go? Since the only thing I know was that a lot of character assassin happened and the plot changing massively. And I was looking forward to your review, but I understand the issues of Toei and other problems.

thanks for understanding on that.  Hell, I’m still failing to get the *Old* episodes back up without Toei’s abuse of Copyright claims rearing its head. It’s…well…yeah…  The rewrites aren’t just obvious in the infamously-scrapped-and-rewritten final episode.  I covered a lot of it in the originally intended review, but…it’s basically everything and every scene.  It’s so heavily NOT Hibiki, that the Hibiki AR world in Decade has more in common with first-half hibiki than post-staff-change Hibiki does.  To many fans, Post-staff change Hibki IS the AR-world, and the series ends at the ‘seven senki’ movie as it Actually DOES tie into hibiki’s canon and the continuity problems in that movie are explained by it being Asumu’s acted-out imaginary fantasy depiction of recorded historical events he spends the film reading about.

Basically every two-part arc had that feeling of the second half being forcibly changed and thus screwing over the potential of the first half…and usually by it being Kiriya’s inclusion in things fucking it all over.  Asumu suddenly has a complex about his absentee father, is a completely spineless loser and is all his own fault for being so (as opposed to being comparable to My Hero Academia’s Izuku Midoriya in intended storyarc (I am not kidding)), and any progress on improving himself is lost–thus further delaying him actually BEGINNING his oni training until it’s the final 8 episodes because the show failed to start that When they Should have (I.E: episode 16-24).  Akira abandons everything she’s done and trained for over the course of years and ignored Ibuki in the name of quick powerups and a desire for power now because of Kiriya and a woman Oni that comes out of nowhere only to be killed in a moment of complete idiocy as she loved Zanki’s dead mentor.  Hibiki outs himself as a Coward and that being why he trains so hard, instead of a desire for self-improvement and a clear-minded sense of self  to selflessly help people which an Oni was shown to need…all so it can make how Kiriya was portrayed more reflect the ‘truth’ of Hibiki.  A Truth which, incidentally, is that of A Hypocrite, as why he drops Asumu as a disciple in the first place BEFORE the finale’s timeskip was because Asumu decided to help a friend out–KEEPING with Hibiki’s previous teachings about there being a need for ‘balance in all things’ and to not abandon your normal life to be an Oni as those connections are what support you in tough times– and Hibiki condemns him and considers him worthless for it while they’re in the midst of a situation where the barely-trained apprentices being involved would result in them straight-out being killed.  So Asumu staying out of it would’ve been a GOOD THING as then he wouldn’t be pointlessly throwing his life away in a battle he could do nothing to affect.(I Honestly think it’s this scene in specific that led to Shigeki Hosokawa exposing how badly the show and it’s cast had been treated.)And Todoroki and Ibuki…become complete oblivious Idiots.  With no explanation.Hell, the ‘training’ the Oni do becomes far more half-assed.  instead of the thorough, intense workouts and regiments the Oni previously needed to stay in shape and grow in power…their workouts consist of basic fitness training you’d do in Gym Class, while their improvements take the form of sudden powerups.And to make that last one Worse?  KIRIYA COULDN’T EVEN DO THOSE BASIC EXERCISES!  By the time He and Asumu were finally accepted to train for the job he’d shown himself as completely incapable at any physical activity, and we were supposed to then feel bad when he had to cheat at them to keep up with Asumu who was giving his all, and got caught doing so.  Then, again to show how badly Asumu was screwed over, after the timeskip in the final episode? Kiriya’s still slacking at his training but can now transform without a problem a year after training (IIRC the normal time range is in the span of about 5 years.  Akira before she suddenly out of nowhere decided to just Fucking give up at it did it in about 3 or 4), while suddenly Asumu can’t even climb a slightly inclined hill that *I* could walk up the side of with no problem, even while helping out a injured kid as Asumu was showcased in said scene…and he had to call kiriya to help him do that.  All the more galling, as in a previous episode, in the EARLIEST days of their Oni training before they did any of the strenuous stuff, Asumu had climbed a steep graveled incline in a quarry without fail, which had far less of a foothold or ability to climb than a moderately wet grassy hill.  That one was ALSO made worse, as an even earlier episode had Asumu assisting Hibki in a task, only to slip down a sleek, slippery muddy hill and need to be rescued from injury, so him climbing up the rocky incline also worked as contrast to how Asumu had supposedly grown on his own as a person from his own experiences without explicit need for supervision…and then by the series end he’s worse off than when he started.  And we’re supposed to believe it’s a good thing.No-one that was actually paying attention bought it.Hell, that’s in turn why people then got so mad when the details got out about the show’s last episode being rewritten, and simultaneously why The recent news of the Hibiki tribute arc of Zi-O got people pissed off again.  Turns out, first draft?  Asumu became an Oni and Hibiki’s successor, Kiriya was to drop out due to him not having the character to succeed at this.  Later rewrites?  Asumu’s still the successor, but Kiriya now becomes an Oni as well.  It was ONLY the version that Producer Shirakura rewrote himself that excluded Asumu from what the entire series had been building towards, all so they could cannibalize the suit made for Asumu to make *Kiriya*’s better.  yes, the one they made special order because it wasn’t originally mean to exist had to be improved, by destroying the one which was always meant to be there at the end.  Kiriya, literally and figuratively, stole Asumu’s story, relationship with Hibiki and earned reward.It’s just…It really is that nearly every damn episode after the staff change that nor only makes the show more repulsive and unappealing,but retroactively makes all the GOOD things about the first half turn bad by proximity or how they’re ‘recontextualized’ in the newer content.  Nothing and no-One escapes.  Hell, not even the villains.  Turns out, we weren’t even actually following the major antagonists at any point in the series, but clones.  What was their big deal?  No Idea, they literally didn’t care at that point.  Which personally was a big tip off that the post-staff-change writers weren’t to blame on this, as both HAVE Written a litany of good antagonists even in their less well-received works.Cumulatively, It’s why, while I have criticised them a lot in the past for their bad content, I don’t really blame Toshiki Inoue or Shoji Yonemura for how bad it is (and in the latter’s case try to remind yugioh fans that ‘hey, a few really bad writers are on Vrains, that’s a big part of why it sucks so don’t go attacking Shin Yoshida for it ‘cause he’s repeatedly been shown to not be the cause when he was accused of such in the past’), for they clearly were not in control nor had the leeway that’s usually afforded to Writers on series like this to develop their stories how they like within reason.  I forget where, but I remember reading something about them apologizing for their part in this and stating they had no control, Decade’s Tribute episodes being reflective of that apology, and that arc being more in line with what they would have done had they had…well, any other producer.I really, really cannot understate how bad it is.  I feel this brief is once more only scratching the surface on how bad it goes.

Gintama manga chap 691

~

Dear Gintama gods and Sorachi-sama,

They were working together!! I am so happy to learn that the Shinsengumi boys and Zura were working together all along!  And I guess, Zura and Takasugi as well? Honestly, I’m still a bit murky on that so I’ll hold off on it for now. But the Shinsengumi and Zura, as a team, yayy!!! Joyness! It was obvious something was amiss when Zura disbanded them as soon as he became Zurump since the last time they were together they were already friends: it did not make a lick of sense that as soon as Zura ascended to power, he would immediately turn on the Shinsengumi like that. In fact, I would say that it was downright contrary to his character and therefore completely unbelievable.  I could never believe he would do something as traitorous to his friends as that. Nay, nevermind traitorous, he would be downright evil if he had really turned on his friends, especially when he knew they were good people who had spent their entire lives protecting the country and its people.  

And then there was also the whole crazy things with the Shinsengumi turning terrorist assassins against Zura, which also made no sense. Despite his “beef” with the now defunct Shinsengumi, Prime Minister Zurump was from all appearances doing a great job so I never understood why Matsudaira, Sougo, et al would even want to assassinate him. It was also contrary to their characters to put their own grievances ahead of what was best for the country. Even if Zurump had dismissed the Shinsengumi, forcing them underground, as long as he was executing his duties as prime minister in a beneficial manner to the country, I truly doubt they would ever try to remove him his position, least of all kill him. Of course, sure enough, the answer is, they indeed wouldn’t harm him and therefore all of their assassination attempts were all fake. I love it. It warms my heart to know that they were working together all this time for the sake of the country, with Zura really acting as the ultimate scapegoat since he is in the most hazardous position, being the prime target of any attacks and having to bear the brunt of any blame had things gone south. It really makes me love him more that he would put himself up for potential sacrifice like this. When he said that both now and in the past, he has simply been acting as a disciple of Yoshida Shouyou, I almost teared up in pride. I’ve changed my mind: if they are going to revive baby Shouyou and bring him up as a decent man instead of a monster, I want Zura to be the one to bring him up. With an assist from Elizabeth.  

As for Takasugi and Zura being in on the plan together as well, I’m still trying to work out the kinks of that one. Obviously the Shinsengumi were kept in the dark about Takasugi’s involvement, which I’m fine with and that actually makes sense since it would explain why they’ve been after him all this time, and it would also exonerate them from the crime of assassinating the prime minister since Takasugi was on camera when he committed the crime. But I do wonder when did Zura and Takasugi hatch the plan to destroy the terminal in order to attract the Tendoshuu down to Earth? It had to happen before Takasugi returned to Edo since as soon as he got there, he was already setting off to see Zura. I guess the back-and-forth conversation they had at Zura’s office was only for show for the cameras he might have set up on his premises? Or was it just to reaffirm that they were on the same page regarding their goals? I could accept the second option even though technically, if Takasugi had already set up the terminal to explode and Zura had already started the plan to evacuate the people there, they were already at the point of no return. But when did they get together to come up with such a plan? Or, do they actually call each other once in a while to create schemes together to bring down evil organizations? I just imagined the two of them chatting on the phone, and I already love that idea. I hope that’s what happened. Either way, I’m glad things worked out, which led to a beautiful and adorably violent reunion between the original Joui 3. Watching the three boys acting like utter goofballs as they struggled to capture Shouyou’s heart was an absolute joy, even though at one point, I was seriously worried about Zura’s beautiful face after it crash-landed into the building’s cement outcropping. I love that in the end, both Zura and Takasugi entrusted their beloved teacher’s fate to Gintoki, which is really just the most appropriate thing to do: Gintoki was the one forced to take away Shouyou’s life, now it’s only right that he would be given the choice to return it. Whatever decision he makes, and it will definitely not be an easy one no matter what he chooses, at least it would be the decision that he would be most able to live with. All these years Gintoki had to be the one to carry the burden of guilt for having executed their father figure, now maybe he can finally find a way to bury that guilt which has haunted him so much by either giving Shouyou another, better chance at life or finally laying him to rest permanently for the sake of humanity. I hope that Zura and Takasugi are successful at obliterating the Tendoshuu once and for all so that if Gintoki does indeed choose to revive Shouyou, the child at least would no longer be hunted for his immortality.  

Lastly, I just want to say, Soyo for President 2018, 2019, forever!! Seriously, seeing her standing before her army of policemen, asking them to protect the people just made my heart swell. She is really the representative of the next generation that Zura and everyone else was acting as a stepping stone for. They are clearing the way for her to take power so that the world she would be in command of would be a peaceful one, cleansed of the Tendoshuu and most of any other threatening forces. That’s what I feel in my gut they are ultimately doing. I do hope you prove me right on that, Sorachi-sama. I cannot wait to see what becomes of their collective, painstaking efforts!  

Yours truly,

A silly fangirl with yaoi dreams

(^3^)

Take a shot everytime I shove Kishibe and Hiro fathersonism into narratives. It doesn't matter what versions of headcanons you believe in.

Death devil Hiro? He was raised by Kishibe personally and completely hidden from the world because he's that dangerous. He then wear contact lenses so his eyes is now similiar with Kishibe and that's pretty damn cute.

Octopus/ctulhu devil Hiro? Pretty much same with Death Devil. He took form like young Kishibe because he wanted to looks like him. And that's still pretty darn cute.

Not-family-related Hiro? He's one of Kishibe's favourite disciple and saw him like his own father figure.

Your regular emo teenager Hiro? Even better if he's also a bratty Kishibe's son actually. His strange and weird behaviour made more sense now since his dad is alcoholic and he probably has massive daddy issues. But that's okay, fanfiction devil could fix this.

Aroace and/or gay Hiro? This makes sense, also since it's explain his self isolation tendencies and his familiarity but distant type-of-relationship language. Just wait 'til he come out to his dad like when Quanxi does.

Super evil scheming guy Hiro? It's actually his dad's orders and therefore is the government's orders. They're both victim to the controlling society and need to do the deeds if they want to survive. Every devil hunters need to have some loose screws to stay alive anyway.

Whatever happen in chapter 132 WILL NOT stop me at hc-ing this AT ALL. In fact, Hiro did parallel Kishibe (that SWAT team and their capability to "kidnap" and "protect" people smoothly) and it convinces me even MORE.

I will DIE on this hill. The only time I'm gonna stop believing and preaching this is when that fathersonism idea were robbed from my COLD bloodied hands. This is where I STAND and no one could make me undo this beliefs but myself.

**edit: fixing the typos

2017.06.27 Nintama Rantarou Musical [Review]

I went to my first every Nintama Musical on Tuesday went in without really knowing what to expect. I knew it was a popular kids anime and I knew it was a popular stage and that Tenmyu actors sometimes do it after Tenimyu (e.g. most of D2Boys like Jinnai Sho, Mitsuya Ryo, Shiramata, also Aramaki Yoshihiko etc.).

Official Website here Official Twitter here Press Coverage 1, 2, 3, 4 Video Coverage 1, 2, 3, 4 PreOrder the DVD here

CAST AND CHARACTERS

5th Years Yamaki Toru as Kukuchi Heisuke Sato Tomohiro as Ohama Kanemon Yoshida Shogo as Fuwa Raizo Kuge Kyohei as Hachiya Saburo Kurihara Taiga as Hachigaemon Takeya

6th Years Ebisawa Kenji as Shioe Monjirou Nihira Shougo (aka Shougo-kun) as Tachibana Senza

Teachers Kitamura Keigo as Hyogo Daisan Kyouemaru Nitta Kenta as Kagero Sugie Masahiro as Onigumomaru Kunta as Yoshimaru Tachibana Tatsumaru as Miyoshimaru Kuramoto Hiraku as Shige Takemura Hitoshi as Doi Sensei Imai Yasuhiko as Yamada Sensei

Bad Guys Watanabe Shuto Takahashi Hikaru as Captain Tatsumaki

NON-SPOILER REVIEW: Overall: I went in with such low expectations that I was pleasantly surprised and loved it. I thought this show was supposed to be for kids but clearly not because, in typical butai style, it was full of girls squealing ‘kakkoii! kakkoii!’. The story is super simple and ridiculous but they make it very fun and enjoyable. It’s very interactive too; the audience clap along to songs and there’s high touches at the end and such. Lots of comedic moments and lots of laughter. It’s just good ol’ fun. It’s somewhat childish (as it should be) but not too childish. You can tell the actors are enjoying themselves too. I’m interested in seeing the previous stages on DVD for sure now. Rating: 7-8/10

SPOILER REVIEW

As I stated above: I was SO surprised when I saw it was ALL women. I thought this was supposed to be a kids stage?! But nah! It was just the usual ‘all girls’ crowd that you see at any other 2.5 or stage these days. Also I was 6th row and had an aisle seat. I’ve NEVER had such a good seat at Sunshine before! So that was nice! Especially for the ending, but I’m getting ahead...

A quick heads-up before I start! I’m going to be honest; I honestly just spent this play enjoying it rather than focusing and analyzing it which is why all my comments about the actors are more about how good looking they are, rather than how well they acted. It’s also why I don’t really remember what happened; I wasn’t making mental notes throughout this play because I just wanted to experience it because, as I stated, I had no idea what to expect. So yeah, don’t expect any real critical and detailed comments this time around. Sorry!!

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STORY

The teachers are on a ship one day but it gets bombed and somehow they all get away safely, just about. It’s the 5th year’s mission to find out who it was and where they are. Turns out it was the Dokutake’s doing. But just before they find out, one of Dokutake’s minions (Watanabe Shuto) has disguised himself as one of the local people and snuck into the school to steal some plans. Fortunately, he gets tricked by one of the twins without realising and they get a hold of the map to where Dokutake’s ship is. So, the ninjas decide to get their own back and board the ship. But of course the bad guys have a few tricks up their sleeves such as trap doors and being able to hide in the dark before striking out and attacking. In true story style though, the ninjas eventually get the upperhand, blow the crap out of the ship and win for the day! And in true kids show style; the enemy survives and swears he’ll get his own back.

Very simple story right? The story, while simple and some-what juvenile, is entertaining and fun! All the characters are ridiculous too. So it leaves a lot of room for fun, songs and action; which is what it does give!

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THE STAGE

I really liked how the stage worked; they could change it and make it into so many different locations! I really loved the boats they used and could move by themselves. Also the blue cloth for the sea is always a classic xD 

They also had a scene when they were on Dokutake’s ship where Captain Tatsumaki would stomp a foot down and the mechanical plank would come up and he’d attach a cog and turn it and the stage would open up and it’d show the different battles between the ninjas and the bad guys. He did this about four times and on the forth time, when he stomped his foot, the plank came up on the wrong part of the stage, and so he stomped again; wrong part of the stage. he had to do it about 5 times; it’s super childish but I was dying on laughter. I was the only one dying of laughter at this part. I thought it was so hilarious! It’s very child-like and I loved it!

THE MUSIC

THE SONGS! Holy moly the SONGS! They are ARE WELL DONE! I am so impressed with the songs!!! They’re all amazing and very well written and produced! You could easily take the songs out of this musical and stick it into another (more serious) stage and it would still fit and have emotion and make sense! Guys seriously, I want the CD for this musical! The songs!!! Are so gooood!!! And they can all sing! I so want this soundtrack!! Some of my favourites were Nayami no Otoshi Goro, Bokura no Jidai and Akai Umi.

AND THEY SANG YUUKI 100% AT THE END!!!! I thought that was a Johnny’s Entertainment copy-righted song!! But apparently not?! At first I was like ‘this song sounds oddly familiar’ and then it clicked! And they had a dance to it and it was so much fun! I could quickly learn the dance -- everyone in the audience already knew it which meant they’d been to it several times -- seriously guys, I was the only one who was a newbie there I swear to god! I think 90-95% of the audience were Nintama fandom fangirls. There’s definitely a different air in the room which this audience and I automatically felt like I was the odd one out. This clearly showed it. AND when everyone knew whether it was a song to clap to or not, everyone was fucking ready! So yeah... this audience is solid and dedicated to the Nintama fandom.

BUT my poor ears whenever the kids sang... their voices are too high even for my ears! Everytime they started singing I was like ‘how can I kid be this high pitched?! Hurry up and hit puberty so my ears can rest or at least turn the mics down when they sing!’ xD

All the Videos linked above show a lot of the songs just listen to them! ^_^

THE CAST/CHARACTERS:

There were so many ikemen than I was expecting! When I first saw all the visuals, I was like ‘man, they all ugly (I’m so shallow, I apologise)’ but seeing them all in the flesh? Holy mama, I get why it’s full of women watching the show; they’re all good looking and those pants they wear aren’t the most baggy of pants, especially around their butts xD SO MANY IKEMEN! I can tell you right now; Shougo, Taiga, Kunta, Tachibana, Kuramoto and Shuto are ALL ikemen! Also Sato is a cutie! Nitta has a very good body too! Anyway... time to try be a bit more critical on them:

Yamaki Toru as Kukuchi Heisuke: This one super, super confused me. He’s supposed to be the main but I do not remember anything about him or his performance or when he was even on stage?! He was clearly the Zachou (lead) because he was the last to bow at the end and got the biggest applause but... I remember jack shit about him! Sorry dude but damn you were for-get-a-ble! So sorry to those who like him but I didn't even notice he existed.

Sato Tomohiro as Ohama Kanemon: Oh my, what a cutie! He was and looked so adorable! And he had these chubby cheeks and perfect teeth. His character was so cute. He was always smiling! Guys.. I dread to look up the ages of this cast... I have a feeling they’re all too young...

Yoshida Shogo as Fuwa Raizo and Kuge Kyohei as Hachiya Saburo: How are these two not twins seriously?! I could NOT tell them apart and was convinced they were actual twins! I didn’t really pay attention to them because (shallow me again) in their Nintama costumes, at least, they were not attractive and I didn’t want to look at them. They did however have an After Story at the end of the play, which is kind of like higawari extra scene. It was them two and Shige and Hyogo Daisan Kyouemon and they wanted to meet Kyouemon’s brother because he’s also a twin but he wouldn’t come out at the same time as his brother (it was one actor so of course he and his twin couldn’t come out on stage at the same time xD). It was a rather funny scene. They were funny but just their faces... sorry!

Kurihara Taiga as Hachigaemon Takeya: This guy! This guy caught my eye straight away. He reminded me very much of a young Endo Yuya. Something about his face and how he acts just reminded me of Endo Yuya. His character was super interesting and I liked the look of him too. He amused me a lot because while the other actors would look far out if they were turned towards the audience, Taiga would instead focus on someone in the front rows. Maybe it was his nerves or something but he never looked straight out he always looked closer to the stage and to the closer audience xD it was a super interesting observation that I had. Out of the five main characters, he was my favourite.

Ebisawa Kenji as Shioe Monjirou: This is my second time to see him on stage - the first time being Konchuuger last month (review here). And he was the victim of the higawari this day. The old school head was like ‘what’s pin pin/’ and he had to explain and he ended up getting into this song and dance and it was very hilarious and all the Teachers were trying to keep a straight face -- I don’t know HOW Shougo-kun managed to keep so straight faced, good job boy xD -- and the audience found it so funny we ended up clapping when he finished his bit. Ebisawa has a lot of energy and he’s good with these types of roles, but again his voice can’t reach a far range; good job we have mics for this stage, unlike Konchuuger. I got a high five from him at the end =]

Nihira Shougo as Tachibana Senza: I totally get why both Shougo-kun and MakiChan both got the role of Tachibana and I totally get why I like both of them. They’re very similar in how they act and they both act the same way when it comes to ‘proud’ character roles just like Tachibana is! He’s very... ousama/prince-like and proper and calm and collected; a role which both of them suit perfectly! So I totally get why they both got this role when they did/do Nintama! Clearly I have a type and not just when it comes to looks, but also when it comes to acting style and character types xD

Anyway, I really liked Shougo-kun as Tachibana. Just a shame his stage time was so short in comparison to some of the others. But his fighting choreography was great, his acting was great, he did a great job! He can act, he’s very good at what he does(!) but for some reason he just doesn’t get any many jobs as the other actors I support... this boy needs more gigs(!) He can do it! Also he’s a skinny-ass rat! His body is SO tiny! He needs to eat more xD

Kitamura Keigo as Hyogo Daisan Kyouemaru: He was very funny with his ‘I have a twin but you’ll never see us together and the only way to tell us apart is from our mole which is on the opposite side to each other’ joke.

Nitta Kenta as Kagero: We got a good look at his upper body when he (and the rest of the teachers) were injured and he has very nice arms xD

Kunta as Yoshimaru: At first I wasn’t quite sure about him because visually, he looks and reminds me a lot of Juri who is someone who I can’t look at; I can’t stand his face at all. But very quickly Kunta as Yoshimaru was so cute and he has this great smile and he did an amazing job keeping calm and keeping a straight face whenever Ebisawa had to do a higawari or something unscripted but hilarious happened. Also I got a high five from him at the end <3 he’s also a lot younger than I was expecting. I thought he’d be an 80s kid but he ain’t! AND I got a high five from him at the end ^_^

Tachibana Tatsumaru as Miyoshimaru: I was instantly attracted to this man. I just really like the character and we got quite a few scenes of him with his shirt somewhat off - either through injury or having to swim in the ocean. He is visually pleasing for me... what the fuck is this review turning into?! Like just look at him!! He’s gorgeous! And his character was courageous, taking it upon himself (and Shigeru) to dive into the wave and set up the bomb!

Isn’t he gorgeous!!!!!

Kuramoto Hiraku as Shige: And here we have another cutie! He helped Miyoshimaru bomb the bad guys ship towards the end of the story so we got good somewhat shirtlessness from him too. He;s another one I dread to look up how old he is in real life... I bet he’s young...AHA! He’s a 91er! PHEW!b Yeah... he’s cute... I got a high five from him too!! Okay I’m done sucking it up with the highfivingness xD

Watanabe Shuto: he’s plays the badguys newest minion and he’s supposed to be this super elite who managed to do all the bad guy training in 3 days rather than in 4 years. BUT he’s easily tricked by the 5th years. His fighting choreography was very good and he was very funny and I liked his character a lot. He did some great stunts too! But goddamit he’s a young-un.

Takemura Hitoshi as Doi Sensei: This guy didn’t give me much of an impression, until he crossdressed! He looked SOOOOO cute as a girl! And he has this cute pink dress on but obviously had to slip up a few times, like stand too manly and exposed his underpants a little and such xD He was a very cute girl and he’s a sweet sensei too! The guy playing Yamada-sensei also crossdressed and he owned it xD

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This was a LOT better than I was expecting. A LOT better. I went in expecting to be bored and for it to be childish and such BUT it ended up being creative and fun and funny and it was VERY interactive. The audience are encouraged to clap along with the songs and to laugh a lot and to cheer and there’s lots of high-fives and it’s great! 

I feel bad for having my expectations so low and for going in expecting just boredom and for it to be awful and childish. I should’ve realised from the ALL GIRL CROWD that it would’ve been up my street. It seriously is just like... it’s basically Tenimyu but with Ninjas and where everyone can actually sing (remember the amount of dodgy singers we’ve had in Tenimyu? xD).

The interactiveness is what makes it very different from Tenimyu. Every song, everyone knew what clapping rhythm we had to do and everyone knew the 100% Yuuki choreography at the end -- I quickly got the hang of it although I did feel awkward at first because I didn’t know it nor expected it! Also, during the final battle whenever the ninjas pulled out their (ultimate?) weapons, a sign of the weapon’s name would pop up somewhere on stage, and we would clap super hard every time. Just these little things really made the audience more engaged and it made it a lot of fun! I definitely want to watch the previous stages now and see how it’s progressed and developed and what other comedy scenes and stories we have in this series. Also it’s full of tenimyu actors (MakiChan!) so I kinda already planned to watch them anyway, but this has encouraged me to move it up my priority list of stages to watch asap.

The bad guys in this are SO ridiculous that you can’t NOT like them! They’re so much fun and so silly and stupid! xD

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And that’s all I really have to say on this musical! If you ever get time to watch one, I recommend you watch it and go in with just wanting to enjoy whatever the hell happens xD

Paxton’s character in season 1 vs season 2 (rant)

If there is a season 3, Im honestly VERY nervous on how they're goin to write Paxton's character because:

1) Paxton unintentionally calling Devi "crazy Devi" was so OOC. I'd be so disappointed if he doesn't apologise next season..

It felt OOC for me cause this wasnt the first time he's hurt... like when Devi used him for a sex rumor (that is pretty messed up too).. he was upset but he just distanced himself and also admitted to it? I mean yeah he got cheated on this time which is worse? But in season 1, he said “why are millions of people asking me if I’m having sex with Devi Vishwakumar” when people asked him he just admitted to it... he didn’t insult her. But now when Trent and Marcus were rubbing it on his face that he got cheated on.. he unintentionally calling her crazy devi was just disappointing 

2) In episode 1, John McEnroe literally saying this "Ever since their steamy kiss in his jeep.. he had been icing her out. As a former teen jock myself, Im not surprised with this behaviour... My advice to Devi, just give up on Paxton"

No- he didn't ice her out after they kissed. The way everyone conveniently forgot the part where he shows up at her doorstep the next morning will never sit right with me. He iced her out after her mom.. her MOM called him an idiot  who ruins girl's futures by knocking them up and getting them pregnant. I mean she literally told that to his face. “Why don’t you let this idiot knock you up. Maybe princeton will allow you to raise a little baby in your dorm room... Ah I’m sure you have a very busy day returning dresses to other smart girls whose futures you’re trying to ruin”

3) trying to squeeze drama for the season finale by making Paxton look embarrassed of Devi? Because he NEVER WAS. If he was, he wouldn't admit the sex rumor Devi started. In the last episode Devi randomly sees this thing where Paxton hugs Devi AND trent too? He never called her his girlfriend because he's never had one. He's referred all his relationships as hookups. Even in episode 1 and 2 (season 2) he wasn't "hiding" their relationship?

He also wanted to ask her to be his garbage partner and was VISIBLY hurt when she walked away with Ben, he also kissed her there? Flirting with her at her party

Asking her if she'd cheer for him at his swim meet cause he would love to look at her when he gets out of the pool (the way he says it makes me so soft okay)

But then they tried to make him look ashamed of her in the last episode

"I think any reasonable adult watching this knows that Paxton is embarrassed of her. Unfortunately when you've been romantically unsuccessful for as long as Devi has, you'll take what you can get"

Ben and Fabiola calling him a dick and a dog ugh dont even get me started on Ben

I'm glad he later explained why he didn't want a public relationship and even McEnroe agreed that it was valid but they did a horrible job tackling his reason.

4) Paxton's apology in the first episode (ssn 2)

"This is the longest Paxton Hall Yoshida has ever spoken. Was it the great apology? No. He mostly looked at his shoes and the vocabulary was limited"

Great Yes now lets forget every time Paxton ever spoke too😀 He apologized so well in season 1 episode 2 and this was definitely not the 'longest he's ever spoken'.

So its I dont know, I feel like they'll do more of this in season 3... change his character... make him a jerk... Fans / Viewers forgetting some parts of the plot is something... but the writers themselves forgetting it?? 

5 reasons I love Arc-V

Today as I was bored, I kept reading metas of why some people loved Arc-V or their favorite moments of the show and I decided to analyze why Arc-V is my favorite Yu-Gi-Oh! show and honestly one of my favorite shows period(this honestly shocks me today still) Also in this piece I’ll generally talk about the previous series and I don’t mean to insult them(well most of them) but I’ll have to talk about what I found about them lacking and how Arc-V fixed that for me, sorry if anything I say is offensive.

Lessons

I’ll be blunt, most of the franchise’s “lessons” are generic lessons like believe in yourself and your friends will help you do anything stuff, especially when Yoshida is writing, that you can find in any show for kids. While yes it’s important for kids to learn this but when that’s the lesson for nearly everything it gets old fast, especially for a franchise that’s 2 decades old. That’s not to say there aren’t some good lessons in there as well like the past makes who you are and by trying to ignore it, you’re not doing yourself a favor but it’s soooo overwhelmed by the generic lessons. 

In comparison Arc-V gives some really unique and interesting lessons. Like when Yuya was scared of not being special because Reiji was cracking Pendulum monsters, instead of the generic “everyone is special” stuff, Shuzou gave Yuya a great goal, become the pioneer of Pendulum Summoning thus everyone will remember and look up to you. That’s not something you hear regularly if ever. 

The best example of this is how Jack continually called Yuya out on using his father’s dueling and we all expected this would be Yuya breaking free of his father’s influence and “be himself” whatever that means. But Jack gave a rather interesting spin on it, that people are influenced by others and you know what that’s FINE. To be yourself doesn’t mean everything has to be original but that you’re able to understand the influence that others had on you and use to it explain your will. And that craziest thing is, Jack’s right. People are ALWAYS influenced by others, no matter what you say, we always look up to others and use them as examples whether it be our parents, friends, celebrities or fictional characters. A strong example is writers, every writer will tell you that there are no more original stories, every possible story that can be told has been told, but if so why are some stories seems original while others feel bored and generic. Easy the writers of original stories take the story elements of well known stories/genres and put their own spin on it, they make it their own. While generic stories are the result of writers lazily copying what was done before and hoping it works. For example Game of Thrones takes the basic fantasy tropes and then takes out the part where the heroes somehow survive and actually face the consequences of their honorable but stupid actions  

Standing

I’ll admit watching people duel is fun and if I didn’t like that I wouldn’t like this franchise. But at the same time, you have to admit it gets OLD having two or more episodes, DM sometimes took FOUR episodes on 1 lousy duel, of two people yelling at each other, pointing and smirking. 

5D’s riding duels were an attempt to fix this by having the duelists and the monsters in motion and giving the characters something to do beside react. But if I have to be honest, Action Duels are the perfect way to fix this. By having Action Duels, we get to see the characters in motions and show off their agility or showing their monsters helping them. Who didn’t enjoy seeing how agile Sora and Shun was when they dueled in episode 34. It gives a sense of suspense and the previous series generally lacked cause if they were in trouble, we thought, oh they have an face-down, that’ll save them. 

Predictability

Yu-Gi-Oh! is many things but unpredictable it is not. We generally knew the result of every duel and every twist before it ever started. Sure there are some twists like Atem playing the seal, Kaito dying despite winning, Carly dying and the whole Supreme King thing in GX. But this was more of the a treat in a LONG, LONG WHILE. 

And lets face it, whatever you felt about Arc-V it was always unpredictable don’t try to deny it. In plot development, characters and even duel results. A great example is Yuya vs Yuri. We knew they were going to duel because of course they were, they were the counterparts that represented the greatest extremes. But when the episodes finally came out, NOBODY was sure if Yuya or Yuri was going to win, it was a literal toss up. We questioned, argued and were shocked that Yuya did win. The day when we have a duel with the protagonist and the fandom is literally split 50/50 on the result shows the writers were great at surprises.  

Main Characters 

Ok this is going to get me in the dog house but Yuya is a fucking breath of fresh air in modern anime. It’s so nice to have a sympathetic main character that gets continuous character development and has flaws, like HONEST to god flaws that aren’t there to make him look good. That’s not to say there aren’t good protagonists in recent anime like Kaneki from Tokyo Ghoul or Yato from Noragami just they’re more and more rare due to the many, many harems or how many shows are more or less power fantasies. And Yuya as a character is even more amazing especially this compared to Yu-Gi-Oh! protagonists, not to say I hate them, except one, but that Yuya just blows them out the water. 

For Atem got the short end of the stick as he did get character development but the anime started at the start of said development so we didn’t get to see how he changed. DM started at the end of the Death-T arc where Atem was starting to get more kind. His mind crush is literally the nicest punishment he’s given, he literally drove people crazy and set a man on fire before. And for Yugi, look the anime also shafted him, he rarely got focus and most of the time that was for exposition. By the time we saw his development, it had occurred off-screen and well that’s one of my pet peeves in terms of writing.

Judai, Ok I admit out of the protagonists before Yuya, he got the most development. But he got it in his third year and that’s it. He spent his first and second year more or less unbothered by the events around him and then said third year broken him into a million of pieces and tried to put him together in time. But at the same time, his development bothered me too, it most or less came down to this phrase, “Children card games aren’t all fun and games, it’s serious”. Yeah that’s ridiculous. 

Yusei, oh this is hard to admit as he’s either my second or third favorite protagonist(it’s tight race with Atem) but he has the least development of the protagonists or more than Atem in the anime. I admit, he rarely changes and that’s sad, especially when Yoshida got his hands on him. But luckily Yusei was interesting enough to work as a character but the issue remains he’s pretty static and a bit too perfect.  

Yuma ....... You know how I said Yusei’s issue is he’s a bit too perfect, yeah Yuma’s the exact opposite. And Yuma fans look away, I’m going on a fucking rant here. Yuma’s issue is that he does have flaws but his series continually pushes it’s head up it’s ass to convince us that said flaw is actually a strength despite showing yes it is flaw. And then there’s how he gets everyone to fall in love with him, the show bending it’s logic so he’s always right and the biggest annoyance is that he remains the fucking same. Just as stupid, just as naive and just as flawed and we’re supposed to support that. HELL NO.

While Yuya is this guy that wants everyone to be happy and well he has flaws that stop him from doing this. He can be selfish, stubborn, lacks self confidence and hesitates. And this just makes him all the better, Yuya has flaws like real people, he suffers like real people, he questions his ideals like more people should but he changes and we get to see it in front of us for three years. No matter what people say Yuya will always be one of the best characters Yu-Gi-Oh! has ever produced.   

Suspension of Disbelief   

Look I’m not going to mince words here to watch this franchise, you need to turn off your brain. This happens for every show where all conflicts can be solved by using consumer goods that are for some reason connected to magic. 

And the BIGGEST reason I love Arc-V is well they do a great job justifying everything. Why are card games dangerous, holograms with mass are awesome to kill people with. Why use holograms with mass, cause it’s awesome and people will pay to see it. Reiji’s being a dick, Yuya tries to punch him. Police lose a duel, they still try to catch the “criminal”. With Arc-V, you get the sense of what happens if you take Yu-Gi-Oh! and put in in the real world and watch the chaos as the rules we know and love are twisted by reality. 

And some of you reading this might wonder if I even like Yu-Gi-Oh! beside Arc-V and I do besides Zexal but I can admit that Yu-Gi-Oh! as a franchise has many problems, how it handles the female characters for example ..... and I can admit Arc-V has issues too, pacing and sadly how they treated female characters in the end too. But again just because you like something doesn’t mean you should believe it’s perfect.   

The Devil's Scientist made his influences known, eventhough he's not around in flesh and soul... or is he? Hmmmm....

You know the drill, last time it was my internet that behaved badly. This time, my health was the the culprit. Forcing me to stay in bed since last week, postponing all the plans I've made and posts I've wanted to publish. To be completely honest though, this was initially meant to include episode 10 that's about to air in just 2 hours from now (following last week's break). In a last minute hours decision, I've decided to delay episode 10, and batch that one alongside the other November episodes. Separating these episodes on a monthly basis sounds better for the long run, right? Okay then, here's episode 08 and 09...

08 - "Maternal Instinct"

- Hey there, we got to see the three Prime Ministers again. Along with their names, in case people have forgotten. I know I have, because last we saw them was 5 episodes ago. LOL. Yoshiko Tajimi of Hokuto questioned how the fugitive Kamen Rider was able to appear in her region. Masakuni Midou of Seito pointed out that Touto could be working on a military angle with this. Taizan Himuro of Touto obviously didn't have a clue, because it's his son who's playing with fire. - Aaah, yes, I guess there's good coming from the identity reveal of Night Rogue. Gentoku got to show up much more often now, and even in the battle! No more beating around the bushes or playing coy. We also learned a hint of his motive with the Kamen Rider system. It's clear that he wanted to build a military response to protect Touto from the threat of Seito and Hokuto, even if that's against the wishes of his own father who prefered to focus on economy. Classic case of Republican vs Democrat, eh? Then again, Gentoku could simply be exhibiting paranoia, constantly living in fear that the other regions are scheming to attack his region when that 'might' not be the case. For now, let's just wait and see... - Having learned from Blood Stalk that her son was the founder of Faust, Kyoka decided to give Sento and clown Ryuuga (no kidding, he had TWO cosplay jokes in one episode) a chance. In a sweet conversation she told them about Takumi, his love of science, and how he idolized his late father, the man previously responsible for Pandora's Box. - It's an intimate conversation, that was amped up by Sento's polite and emotional reaction when he ate Takumi's favorite dish: sweet rolled omelette (Tamagoyaki). Hmmm... this reaction felt odd. Could it be possible that, Sento is in fact... Takumi? As in, trapped in an outer body situation? Seriously though, the more I saw it, the more I felt how Takumi indeed resembled so much like him. This is a sci-fi show, so perhaps Takumi's consciousness was transferred into Sentou when he died? That's certainly one possibility. - Apparently, Kyoka left Takumi's research data in Touto, and wanted to retrieve that herself to ensure that it's given to the right hands. Sadly, that also caused her to be the prime target of Faust. Dang it, our boy Gentoku is ruthless! Not only he snatched Kyoka himself, he openly tricked her into giving the data, and then turned her into Smash just to erase his tracks. He wanted to protect Touto, but would do anything, even use dirty measures to get it done. Can't say I dislike this ambiguous side though... *grins* - The Fire Engine Full Bottle that Misora handed out was a Best Match with Hedgehog (the one from episode 1), turning Sento into "A Pin-Point Rescue", Fire Hedgehog form. FYI, this was the form that encouraged me to see this show... before I actually saw its appearance. I dig the design, but why the Red and White color scheme? To make it look like a Fire Truck? Hmmm... - Kyoka was rescued, but the memory of her meeting with Gentoku and Utsumi was already lost. Thankfully, Takumi had already planned out his own safety measure in advance, by planting the Bank's safety box as decoy. The real USB flash drive was hidden elsewhere by Kyoka, at a special place for both Takumi and her husband: Nanba Heavy Industries Composite Materials Laboratory. Sento and Ryuuga obtained the data, but Stalk has been... ugh, stalking them. - Ryuuga fought Stalk, prompting the Cobra to utter that intriguing phrase... of how his enemy's Hazard Level is already 2.4. He continued the battle to increase this number up to 2.7. I wonder why? Build on the other hand, dealt with Night Rogue who entered the battle. - The battle ended abruptly, when Stalk decided to... give the data to Ryuuga. HUH? Night Rogue furiously demanded an explanation as Build ran off with Ryuuga, to which Stalk revealed a sneaky reasoning. He did that on purpose... to let Sento do the hard work for their project (with Ryuuga as the subject). OUCH!!! Of course, this made me certain that Stalk could be Takumi after all. Let's just say, I wouldn't be surprised if he is. Remember Night Rogue? Takumi understood that only his mother knew where the data was hidden, so unlike Gentoku, he waited for her to make the move. And the way he analyzed Ryuuga in battle? That sounded like a mad scientist to me. - This episode ended in another strong note. Kyoka made her decision to entrust the research data to Sento. He returned the favor, by giving her Takumi's private message... "Thank you for giving me life.". Aaaaaw... THE FEELS. As I've said before, Kyoka has been a highlight for this show, and her story with Takumi was soooo compelling and heartfelt. I just hope this wasn't a massive redherring, when the show ends up revealing that Takumi is indeed... Stalk.

Overall: Great goodness!!! WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH THIS SHOW?! After being disappointed three episodes in a row, it delivered probably its best episode so far. Both in storyline and acting, particularly Kyoka's, Sento's, and Ryuuga's actors. It not only succeeded in making me VERY intrigued to see what's next, it even made me shed a tear. Of course, it's worth noted that this show still feels like a big game of charade. Moving back and forth and confusing audience with the character's motives and actions while the outcome is pretty much straightforward and simple. So here's a wild guess for the sake of speculation! Basically, these early episodes merely serve as a 'prelude', that will see all Riders (Build, Cross-Z, Rogue, Stalk, and probably more) working together to protect Touto against the other regions. I'm not betting my money on this theory, but if it that's indeed accurate... then I certainly won't be surprised.

09 - "Hazard-Level Twist"

- "PROJECT BUILD". Yep, that's the secret research data that Takumi left behind. Well, I'll be damned! Who would've guessed that Takumi was the true creator of the Build Driver, and not Sento, right? - That Takumi video. I wonder if this was meant to be Build's transformation video, instead of Sento's version? Some people might found this oddly filmed presentation to be... annoying. It honestly didn't shout nerdy scientist, more of a cocky flashy Tony STARK-esque. Remember how "Iron Man" used science for military? But that's good for the plot development, because it actually gave Takumi a proper characterization. Hmmm... his gesture and attitude felt familiar. Wait a sec... BLOOD STALK? *winks* - According to the exposition-heavy video, the Rider System was developed for 'ultimate defense'. Hence, weapons for military. Only people who has achieved a certain criteria could use the Build Driver. And that criteria? *drumrolls* Hazard Level. The phrase Stalk kept mumbling about since episode 6! It's a term used to describe resistance to Nebula Gas, ranging from 1 as the weakest, to 3 as those who could utilize the Driver. This explained why Ryuuga was zapped when he tried to trigger it. He couldn't use it... YET. Sento deduced that those human experiments were likely performed to find perfect candidates for the Driver. - Full Bottles were generated from Nebula Gas, combining a pair would produce new sets of power. Takumi demonstrated this using Wolf and Smartphone to create Smaphowolf form. No sign of when this cool-designed form would make an appearance in the show, because we somehow got the Lock bottle instead. - Another surprise arrived on the opposite side. If you think Gentoku was the Leader of Faust, then you might be mistaken. Another player called Juusaburou Nanba (played by Akira Hamada) entered the fray as Faust's bigwig investor whom Gentoku needed to report to. He even debuted in a fan-service scene that... easily humiliated our Night Rogue. If his last name rings a bell, that's because he's the Chairman of Nanba Heavy Industries... the place where Katsuragi and son used to work! This old man pretty much threatened Gentoku to persuade his father right away, or he would offer his aide to Seito or Hokuto instead. - Sento had a disagreement with Ryuuga (acting like a... married couple? LOL) about Takumi's work, so he ran off to find distraction by... going to work. Seriously? THIS is your reason to actually be in the office?! Two of his colleagues, Shingo Kuwata (played by Ryo Yoshida) and Eita Kawai (played by Tsukasa Honjou, who reminds me of VA Tomokazu Seki) turned out to be Takumi's fanboys. Hold on, why did the episode reveal their names? Important people? - On the other side of the equation, angry Ryuuga vented out by... having casual chit-chat with Misora. Goodness, what is wrong with these guys! Why not talk it out with each other? At least, Ryuuga did a better job, by dragging Misora out of the house to have some fun outing. Another costume cosplay joke aside, this sweet risky 'date' provided us with much needed depth for her. We got to learn more about her, and how she has been a poor victim all these time. 7 years of comatose since the Sky Wall Disaster?! You've got to be kidding me. No wonder she kept saying "Sleepy" and always looked tired. Misora never had a normal life, and she's stuck with that golden bracelet as well, the key item that purified Smash Essence! - As always, things were too perfect after all. Night Rogue attacked them, and tried to take back Misora. Once again, Stalk meddled and allowed Ryuuga to bring her to safety. WOW, WHO's really the higher up among these two then? Why did Gentoku keep on agreeing with Stalk, and not the other way around? - As suspected though, Gentoku was doing all this merely to save Touto. "I'll do whatever it takes to keep it away from the other countries", he vowed. To the point that he wants to do bad to his own father, by stealing the Pandora's Box to spark a war. And guess who would serve as his lackeys? That's right... Kuwata and Kawai. THAT's why these two extras got the privilege of having actual names. LOL. - Kuwata turned into a Smash. Sento utilized the Lion and Vacuum Full Bottles and become "The Maned Cyclone!", Lioncleaner form to deal with him. Nice color scheme, but so-so busy design. It was a quick fight, that ended with Kuwata revealing that he was merely a distraction to ensure Kawai's part. Before the poor nerdy guy obliterated himself, he also revealed that Takumi is still alive. Yep.... CALLED IT! - At the same time, a familiar female voice handed photographic intels on Build to old-man Nanba. Oh Sawa, you sneaky woman you! So the person she has been reporting to in the first episode, was none other than this creepy Chairman. Then again, this could end up becoming another massive red herring. Because if I didn't know any better, Sawa acting as a double agent or some kind is the most probable situation... - One last thing. Why the name 'Kiryuu Sento'? 'SEN' is the first kanji of 'SENSHA' that means 'Tank', while 'TO' is the kanji for the kana 'Usagi' that means 'Rabbit'. So he's... literally Rabbit Tank. LOL. Thanks to this convenient confirmation, I've updated the protagonist's name from 'Sentou' into the more accurate 'Sento'. Is it a coincidence that Sento sounds like 'Saint'? Probably not, knowing Sento's... almost Saint-like personality. What about 'Kiryuu'? That's just the name of the barber whom Souichi visited when he found amnesiac Sento. Oy oy...

Overall: Okay, I'm convinced. I've said that I would give this show a chance only up to episode 9, and it surprised me by giving not one, but TWO consecutive great episodes. This one managed to up the game even further, beating an earlier episode that was already impressive. A show is good if it can hide shocking secrets from the audience, and not just withholding them between characters (because that can get tired very fast). This episode proved just that by pushing us into a fun loop. I admit, this was an exposition-heavy episode, but the many reveals were all important. Takumi got actual personality now. Misora's high school date was truly a highlight that added so much depth to her character. All the ambiguity with Gentoku, who ironicallly has been pushed around by other people, also added depth to his questionable actions. And then there's Sawa... As I've said over and over again, this show is really good when it's serious and not trying to exaggerate itself too much with comedy. I'm also amazed how a science-themed Kamen Rider eventually evolves into a military themed one, complete with political intrigues and agendas. Definitely best episode so far! If there's one part I truly dislike, it's none other than the preview. From the looks of things, Blood Stalk IS exactly who I've been suspecting. Just like episode 6, TOEI LOVES to ruin a good surprise in advance, by revealing the obvious. This time, TWO WHOLE weeks earlier due to the break! Sad to say, that reduces the episode's overall score... a few points *sigh*. Next Episode: Shall we start a war...? PS: For the time being, I WILL be watching more episodes of Build. It still doesn't mean that I'm going to follow it to the end though, because if things get bad again, then I won't ever mind to abandon ship right away. Let's just say, I'm giving the show another chance to prove itself for the next 9 episodes. Will its Hazard Level increase enough to force me to stay, or will it goes the other way and goes 'kaboom'? We'll see... *grins*

Episode 08 Score: 8 out of 10 Episode 09 Score: 8,3 out of 10

All images are screencaptured from the series, provided by the FanSubber Over-Time. "Kamen Rider Build" is produced by TOEI, and airs every Sunday on TV-Asahi. Credits and copyrights belong to their respective owners.