#Like I like her FTEs and School Mode with Makoto because while Makoto thinks is silly at the end of the day it's her life

[blastthechaos]

When you think about it, Naeceles is like the Savvy Guy, Genki Girl dynamic that looks switched only that it actually plays it straight. Since Makoto is the down to earth guy exasperated with his girlfriend extravagance (but still loves her anyways) while Celeste is the girl who lives in her own fantasy world with her fake name, made up crazy life and chasing an wacky dream who drags her boyfriend around for all her activities.

Ok I know it's not 1:1 with the trope and Celeste is barely Genki but you get my point.

[themattress]

Follow-up to this post: I feel like way too many people overlook just how important Celeste is to Kyoko's character development and the development of her relationship with Makoto.

Kyoko and Celeste are narrative foils to one another. They are both pretty, aloof, intelligent, strong-willed and mysterious girls with pale complexions, wearing jackets and ties, and are more concerned with their own selfish personal agenda than anyone and anything else.

But there are three major differences:

-1. Kyoko has a prestigious family background and active talent that she is proud of but cannot remember due to Junko tampering with her memories, while Celeste has a low class background and passive talent that she is ashamed of and willfully tries to cover up with lies.

-2. Kyoko's selfish personal agenda - solving the mystery of the school so that she can obtain closure with her daddy issues - does have a net positive benefit for others (justice will be served and they can escape from being imprisoned in the school) even if that's a secondary motive for her, whereas Celeste's selfish personal agenda - obtain a castle and servants so that she can live a comforting lie forever - only benefits her. Both of them, however, are shown to be willing to sacrifice others for their agenda when they feel pushed into a corner.

-3. Kyoko, while willing to deceive others, is honest with herself and takes great pains to legitimately observe others and get to know them even if she doesn't attempt to get close to them due to her distrusting nature. Celeste, meanwhile, lies to herself just as much as she lies to those around her and is self-focused to the point of ignoring or dismissing those around her. She thinks she has a mastery over them and can manipulate them like a brilliant puppet master, but her murder plot exposes how much of a blind spot she really suffers from.

In any case, it's crucial that Kyoko is who Celeste says these words to:

Because as clarified in later adaptations, this is what allows Kyoko to see through Celeste - while she had earlier attempted to play off that she resorted to manipulation and murder because "that's just how I am", these words let slip that she actually did because she was scared and could no longer bring herself to hope or trust in others in any capacity...especially not in an AI program like Alter Ego that she saw as only creating more division and danger.

So when this happens in the next scene:

The context should be clear. Kyoko grasps Celeste's tragedy and realizes that if she continues to trust no-one and not allow herself to open up to anyone or believe in anyone, she could end up suffering the same fate. If Celeste had been willing to do this same thing with Makoto, who FTEs / School Mode shows was fully open to it, things would have ended differently for her. By Kyoko doing it now, it ensures that her death was not a complete waste.

Tl;dr - Makoto/Kyoko/Celeste is a real thing, people. Embrace it.

[gyaru-tau]

*Insert Monkey Emoji*

OK SO IVE BEEN PUTTING THIS OFF FOR A WHILE SINCE I KNOW THERE ARE A LOT OF TAKA AND MONDO LINES THAT MAKE ME SO SO CRAZY. in other words, it'd be SO difficult to actually choose just ONE. So I'm gonna try and drop two lines per character! Some serious lines that make me think way too in-depth, and then some of my favorite, sillier lines (there are a lot of those). We'll start with Mondo for a change! Favorite serious line:

I ACTUALLY GOT SCREENSHOTS OF THIS ONE! This is the line I've been so so crazy about lately because where Mondo did obvious harm to Chihiro, Chihiro also caused harm to Mondo. If her OWN actions didn't hurt him, then he wouldn't have phrased it like this. While Chihiro obviously wouldn't know the specifics, she still absolutely knew that everybody was under the pressure of their secrets, and due to the severity of her own secret there was know way she couldn't have guessed that Mondo's may also carry a level of severity. This is Mondo at his literal breaking point. He has another line later where he describes his anxiety over his secret as "A rock in my stomach". This is a guy whose entire perception of himself is hanging on a thread, and I think the revelation that Chihiro is his definition of strong (AKA capable of violence) is what makes everything completely unfurl. The façade can't remain stable if it's lost all meaning.

Favorite silly line:

HES SO STUPID also there are so many lines in school mode about how he NEEDS TO GO OUTSIDE so fucking bad like he has GOT to get out of here. I think you have adhd queen OK now for la Smackas Favorite Serious Line: Ok so my favorite is less of a singular line and really just. The BULK of his final FTE. We learn SO much about Taka in that last event obviously, and it all contextualizes him as a person, but one thing I NEVER see people discuss is the implication that he and Makoto are direct OPPOSITES of eachother. Where Makoto feels ordinary and even somewhat wishes she could be put on a pedestal, Kiyotaka is put on a pedestal against his will by Hope's Peak, and DESPERATELY, more than ANYTHING, wants to be viewed as normal. A task that is made damn near IMPOSSIBLE because of his past with Toranosuke, as well as the path he decided to go down on his own accord. It's kinda like this self-fulfilling prophecy that he is destined to NEVER have the normal life that he so desperately wants. Meanwhile, here's Makoto, who is living his dream before he ever gets a CHANCE to realize it.

Favorite silly line:

Everyone likes to point to trial 1 or the endurance battle for the funny Kiyotaka lines but he spits out some fucking DIAMONDS in school mode. This guy has so much wrong with him its insane...

[piyoduki]

naeishi

This is just an essay (?!) about Naeishi and why I like them. I just want to dump my thoughts about them somewhere because I love them a lot.

... a very, VERY long essay, featuring lots of screenshots. I don’t expect anyone to read this but if you do, enjoy?!

1. They’re cute

Very important reason and self-explanatory. They’re cute. 

2. Ishimaru relates to Naegi

Everyone already knows Ishimaru has trouble relating to others and making friends. But Naegi is actually the person Ishimaru considers to be the most similar to him (even though Naegi disagrees).

Ehe.

And also, just before the second picture Naegi says this:

But in the end of DR3, what did Naegi do? Even though he’s just a ‘normal’ guy, Naegi managed to rehabilitate the remnants of despair and decided to rebuild the school. He even ended up in a leader position like Ishimaru once did. They are more similar than Naegi thinks.

3. Professor Naegi!!!

After Naegi teaches Ishimaru about the wonders of having a hobby (that isn’t studying), Ishimaru happily praises him as Professor Naegi. Which Naegi is embarrassed about for obvious reasons. But anyway, Ishimaru started to look up to Naegi on their first FTE and wants to learn more from him.

‘I didn’t totally hate it.’

Ehehe. The idea of Naegi teaching Ishimaru about his favourite games and shows while Ishimaru intensely studies them and makes notes is really cute.

But I really like their relationship because it feels like they both can learn a lot from each other. Obviously, Naegi can help Ishimaru make friends and help him loosen up a bit and relax, but Ishimaru, besides helping him study, since they actually have similar ‘goals’ (although Naegi doesn’t believe he’s capable of it), Ishimaru would motivate and encourage Naegi not to give up and to be more confident.

4. Ishimaru secretly likes Naegi’s fashion sense

In their second FTE, Ishimaru confesses to Naegi...!

That he likes his totally cool hoodie!! Ishimaru, who only wears his school uniform 24/7 and has ten sets of them because he’s poor thinks Naegi’s hoodie is awesome. 

(But does Naegi have any right to criticise him when he sleeps in his full uniform as well?! WITH SHOES?! I’m so disappointed in you Naegi...! At least Ishimaru takes off his uniform when he sleeps! Not to mention Naegi has another hoodie with the exact same design but with short sleeves... Maybe they can bond over their clothes collection, except they're all the same type of clothes...?)

But it gets even better, as Ishimaru comes up with a reason (excuse) to get Naegi to hand over his ‘incredibly stylish hoodie’. 

...He totally wants to wear it.

Naegi manages to give an equally ridiculous reason (excuse) to convince Ishimaru not to confiscate his hoodie, by calling it a hard hat. If only Naegi did give Ishimaru his hoodie, then maybe it could protect his head from getting bonked.  

Naegi really loves his hoodie and defends himself. But Ishimaru still insists that he hand it over eventually. Totally because he’s breaking some non-existent dress code and NOT because he thinks it’s stylish! 

5. Friendship (FTEs and School Mode ending)

On their first meeting, Ishimaru thinks Naegi has a nice name (Makoto can be read as truth), and Naegi thinks he’s annoying... but if you do his FTEs Naegi does grow to understand him and change his mind. After all, Ishimaru isn’t a bad person, while he can be harsh and strict he is not purposefully trying to push people away and Naegi understands that. 

I think it’s also easy for Naegi to relate to Ishimaru as well. Since he’s just a ‘normal’ student, and while Ishimaru is a very extreme example of an honour student, his life basically revolves around studying which isn’t exactly foreign to Naegi. And Naegi can see exactly what Ishimaru is missing - hobbies and a friend. 

Naegi softens his impression of Ishimaru once he realises he has trouble connecting with others. While he does not have the best grades, not a prefect, or in many clubs, Naegi has one thing that Ishimaru doesn’t and deep down secretly wants, and that is the ability to communicate with others and make friends. 

And while Ishimaru is a disaster in social situations, he is completely aware that his personality/words/actions push people away.

He also apologises to Naegi whenever he ‘gets carried away’.

And Naegi, being the positive encouraging friend he is, cheers Ishimaru up with his words. 

In the final FTE, Ishimaru invites Naegi to study with him, instead of forcefully dragging him to study together:

Rather than being all ‘eh I don’t really want to study’ like he would be at the start, Naegi asks if he doesn’t mind if he stops by... To Ishimaru, studying together is the equivalent of playing a game or watching a show together - it’s his hobby and he wants to share it with Naegi. 

Ehe. He’s very happy.

Naegi interrupts their study session because he wants to know more about Ishimaru’s hatred for geniuses. He’s genuinely concerned and curious about him...! Ishimaru tells him about his grandfather, and how he messed up his family’s life. After that, Ishimaru says he’s really happy to have met Naegi, because he thought he would be surrounded by geniuses in this school for ‘Ultimates’. They continue studying and Naegi believes they’ve become true friends.

...But that’s not all! In the Trigger Happy Heart event at the end of School Mode, Ishimaru thinks to himself:

He’s aware that people find him annoying, but he still wants someone he can talk to. And once again, Ishimaru thinks Naegi is just like him.

If Naegi picks the best option:

Naegi tells him it’s fine to just be himself and talk about whatever he wants. He doesn’t feel like he’s forcing anything on him. 

But Ishimaru is still worried that Naegi sees him as a nuisance. Ishimaru wants to be friends with Naegi, but he feels bad for talking so much and wonders if Naegi even likes listening to him... and Naegi reassures him that he considers them to be friends. Ishimaru still asks for permission because he’s unsure (and has never had a friend before besides him and Oowada in the main story, but in School Mode the sauna battle didn’t happen), and of course Naegi is happy to become a friend Ishimaru can talk to anytime.

Naegi doesn’t pressure Ishimaru into changing his personality to become comfortable with him, he likes him the way he is.

If Naegi picks the second best option:

Naegi reassures him that his feelings are valid. It’s basically similar to the best option but shorter. (And if you want to be a monster and tell Ishimaru he’s annoying and watch his heart break, you can pick the bad options but we all know Naegi is too nice for that.)

Finally there’s the School Mode ending:

Foreshadowing. :p

Ishimaru manages to compose himself after remembering what Naegi (and living trapped in the school) taught him. Also Ishimaru’s face gets really nervous when Naegi mentions ‘I have to believe this isn’t the last time we’ll see each other’... 

Naegi is possibly Ishimaru’s only friend in School Mode, so it makes sense that Ishimaru might be worried that Naegi would leave him and he would be alone again.

Naegi remembers his promise with Ishimaru:

He even does his signature pointing pose when he says it! And Ishimaru wants Naegi’s help to achieve his goal. Naegi is shocked because as he thought before, he doesn’t believe he can do something so grand like changing the world to one that rewards effort rather than talent.

Ishimaru reveals that he wants Naegi to become his partner. He trusts him so much and wants to work with him to change the country. (Meanwhile in DR3, Naegi’s trying to do something similar on a smaller scale...) 

‘I saw then that no matter what darkness might stand before him, he would shine through it.’ If only that were the case in the main game... 

6. In the killing game

They are both ‘good’ people who don’t want any killings to happen. Because of his personality, Ishimaru takes the lead and tries to come up with ways to stop any murders from happening (like the morning meetings to keep track of everyone, and saying naive things like ‘if you’re the killer please raise your hand’). Naegi is more passive and doesn’t take any sore of leadership role until maybe the last chapter, but they both are the type who can’t imagine their ‘friends’ killing each other. 

Oh, and Ishimaru does the forget forget beam to Naegi in a small conversation in chapter 1. Cute.

Sadly, after chapter 2 Ishimaru gets broken and Naegi tries to talk to him... somewhat. Ishimaru doesn’t respond to anyone and Naegi gets distracted by Alter Ego. Ishimaru does go to Naegi directly and asks him to let him meet Alter Ego (who he deludes himself into thinking is Fujisaki). It’s probably because Ishimaru does feel the most comfortable with Naegi compared to everyone else (since his bro is...). Naegi brings Ishimaru to Alter Ego despite Kirigiri’s warning (if you talk to her, she says that he might be dangerous but Naegi does it anyway). Also if you click on Maizono’s door, Naegi thinks to himself that Ishimaru must have felt the same way when he lost his bro, so he sympathises with him.

Unfortunately, Naegi (and everyone else) kind of forgets about Ishimaru when he becomes Ishida and runs away. If you try to talk to Ishida during Free Time, he just tells Naegi to go away because they didn’t bother to write any FTEs for him. Grumble grumble. Naegi is sadly too passive and doesn’t bother going after Ishimaru/da any further (he usually waits for people to come to him before helping). Ishimaru dies a lonely, quiet death justlikehisgrandfather and everyone worries about Yamada instead. And that’s the end of Ishimaru. 

------

Some random depressing Ishimaru thoughts that don’t have anything to do with Naegi but I wanted to include them anyway: 

• In the very first trial, the two people on either side of him died so Ishimaru is already isolated from everyone else in the first (!!!!) trial. (Naegi is one spot besides Maizono too.)

• Ishimaru and Sakura are the only dead characters who don’t show up in the small group photos Naegi finds in chapter 3-4. Sakura makes sense since she died in chapter 4 and the next photos are just the big group ones, but Ishimaru... It would be nice if they appeared in a photo together in chapter 5.

------

7. Angst potential

Did someone say ‘angst’? Naeishi has a lot of angsty elements. Of course, they’re in a killing game and Ishimaru dies. But Naeishi can have:

• Memory loss. It’s very likely that Naegi and Ishimaru could have been pretty good friends in their first year together, or at least close enough that Naegi didn’t feel annoyed by him anymore (like through his FTEs):

That last sentence has a nice translation. So when they forget everything and get thrown into a killing game, it’s pretty sad to think about them forgetting everything about each other and becoming distant. And it’s even more painful if Naegi got his memories back afterwards and realises he did nothing to save him... 

• Unrequited feelings. Yeah. This can work both ways. Naegi or Ishimaru feeling like they’re not good enough for the other...

• Guilt. Goes with the first one, but if Naegi had kept an eye on Ishimaru even when he became Ishida (and when he needed someone to help him more than ever...), maybe he could have saved him? Or at least let him know that SOMEONE else does also care about him, just like his bro. Anyway Naegi feeling guilty is tasty.

• Happiness doesn’t last. For some reason there are a few comics where Naegi and Ishimaru hang out and do some happy thing (like Naegi showing Ishimaru how to play a game), and promising to show him more, or something like Ishimaru promises he will beat the game before they graduate. And then it ends with Ishimaru falling into depression and eventually dying while Naegi is helpless... Their promises never got fulfilled.

8. Wholesome?!

Anyway, because I don’t want to end it on a depressing (?) note, Naeishi is just... very soft. Ishimaru really wants to become Naegi’s friend, and he’s awkward about it, but you can tell he really enjoys Naegi’s company. When he talks in his FTEs, Ishimaru is really excited because he’s never really had this kind of conversation with another person before (just talking with someone normally is new to him). While he can be judgemental and set in his opinions, it’s possible to change his mind as long as you give a reason that he can accept (like games helping you make friends and the hard hat hoodie). And Ishimaru does get bothered/guilty when he realises he might be forcing his opinion on Naegi, and apologises, because deep down he’s worried of what Naegi thinks about him. He doesn’t want Naegi to dislike him.

Naegi knows there’s a lot more to life than just studying and school, and he feels bad for Ishimaru. So he tries to help him, and share his own opinions, and Ishimaru realises that he has a point and wishes to continue learning new things from him. At the same time, Naegi admires Ishimaru and thinks he’s a very strong-willed and dedicated person. While initially he finds Ishimaru comes off kind of strongly, he slowly understands why he is the way he is and ends up enjoying spending time with him, even through studying. 

In conclusion, Naeishi are very good. I like how their relationship progresses gradually and naturally, I like how their personalities complement each other, I like how painful they are... I like how they are (relatively) normal, or how they have some things in common (school) and can relate to each other, and how they admire aspects of each other. I love them a just a bit. Thanks for somehow reading/skipping to the end. Have a cute pic from the anthology as your reward: 

[loveinthebones]

So, I have been working a lot and as such... I haven’t been consuming a lot of new media but my Beau purchased some new games for the switch and well.

I have played Danganronpa for the very first time and I have opinions. I haven’t really engaged with the fandom and have only known about certain things through my periphery (and in some cases, memes) and I acknowledge that this game is a bit... lackluster in certain areas but that is another post for another time.

I want to talk about the characters and my impressions.

So, I am going to dive under the cut because there are spoilers about some major plot points and executions. This is a part one--part two may come later (most likely). 

I am going to leave our protagonist for last because it just seems right. Let’s start with...

Sayaka: I actually don’t dislike Sayaka as a character. She is very perceptive and cunning-- using Naegi’s affection for her to try and frame him and... while I adore Nagi, I think that Sayaka jumped at the course of action that she thought was best to try and cling to the dream she had.

She had even said that she had already done some questionable/despicable(? It has been a whole game so exact quotes escape me) things already in the name of being the Ultimate Pop Star and her reaction to Monokuma’s murder, just shows how much she was affected by the idea of her group falling apart.

She was a desperate character who was willing throw someone who trusted her under the bus to escape and while I do not want that for Makoto... I can understand.

Leon: ...They really dropped the ball on this one. Leon is pretty uninteresting to me as a character and his execution was probably the weakest of the whole game because they did not give you time or reason to care for him before it happened. Gifted boy who is fighting against his gift because he was dragged into it could be an interesting narrative (yes, I did do his free time events in School Mode) but it didn’t progress past that.

Plus, his reason for killing Sayaka is... It makes him seem like an asshole. If he had killed her in self-defense then maybe I would re-consider but he could have stopped once she trapped herself in the bathroom and alerted everyone-- which could have made the plot move along in different ways.

So, why? Why did he kill her if he wasn’t desperate to get out too?

Suffice to say, Leon did not leave much of an impression or have very much of my affection.

Mondo: Okay. Listen, look-- I did not think I was going to like this goofy-haired guy as much as I actually did but his rival/friendship with Taka is actually very wholesome and cute. His FTE also show that he has a soft spot for animals and his determination to show his promises has also that juicy angst because of what happened with Dayia.

I know that he probably has quite a split fandom opinion and I understand, but for me, he is interesting. I see his motive as more stemming from jealousy and his inability to change than Chihiro’s secret and to be fair, Byakuya is the who decided to showcase their body... like that because Byakuya is an asshole in the beginning. 

He also tried to keep Chihiro’s designated gender at birth at secret even in the end and he accepted his death with one of the coolest lines in an execution. It gives me chills.

(Also, Taka broke my entire fucking heart in that round but y’know.)

Chihiro: I love them a lot, okay? 

I, personally, see them as transfem nonbinary because I think the self-depreciation comes from not being able to fit neatly into a masculine role (and I can’t really elaborate on that since I am not well versed in Japanese masculinity standards) and feeling more at ease in a feminine one in order to ‘fit’ and protect themselves. Their shell of Self-Depreciation, as Monokuma puts it, is like an armor but it can’t change their fear or the act of trying to keep up pretenses.

But they are strong in their own ways and when they are killed, they are starting to face that fear. They are also sweet and really, the MVP of saving everyone in the end by creating Alter Ego.

I had hoped they would have been a survivor but I don’t think things would have progressed as interestingly without their influence.

Hifumi: I’m not quite sure how I stand on Hifumi. I don’t hate him, but I don’t love him as much as some of the other characters. If I remember correctly, he is the Ultimate Doujinshi Artist and not Fanfic Creator-- that translation was stupid as hell.

Anyway, I do like his friendship with Celeste and how he calls her “Usagi-san”, it makes me smile and his rivalry with Toko about the legitimacy of creativity behind his work.

I do love that he is shown to think about his inspirations (Princess Piggles) and that he is usually the comedic characters. I know his perversion can be a hit or miss with people, but he is much more bearable than TeruTeru so.

The creators didn’t give him much so I don’t really have much to say except: I’m lukewarm on him but I absolutely adore the call back to him with Usami’s design.

His death was probably the hardest hitting of his time because he remember Celeste’s name and spoke it with his dying breath while Aoi held him and that is just... so good and painful.

Taka: I LOVE HIM AND HE BREAKS MY HEART AND I WANTED HIM TO LIVE BUT NO.

I have my soft spot for straight-laced characters and while he intially was a bit too loud and forcefully, he really grew on me. His friendship with Mondo really helped with that and his heartbreak after Mondo was gone annhiliated me. He wouldn’t even talk to Naegi and I was like, “Talk. To. Me.” 

His...transformation... Kiyondo was a bit sudden and didn’t make a whole lot of sense at first but it was because he wanted to be stronger to not lose anyone else. Especially when Alter Ego went missing and he said that he would rescue them because they brought “my bro back to me” just... oof.

While I didn’t appreciate the whole ‘rivals in love’ storyline he had with Hifumi, I did appreciate that it wasn’t about romance per se and more about protecting Alter Ego from evil intentions.

His death was actually pretty sad with the reason behind it and the knowledge that everyone was friends before this killing game started.

Celeste: Ah, yes. We can’t forget our residential goth and absolute Queen. 

She isn’t a character you enjoy because she is good-natured, like Naegi, or who goes through some development like Togami, but one you like because this girl is cunning, manipulative, and will kill for greed.

She is very interesting and when she snapped, it actually was quite entertaining and her reason for the double murder? To buy her own castle! 

She didn’t even let down her façade at the end-- you catch glimpses like when she tells you her true name, or when she is giving her last words to Naegi, but she keeps that mask there... not just to keep lying to everyone, but even herself.

Her execution is SO memorable to me because it had the set up to be the elegant, dark death that Celeste would prefer with the Salem WItch Trials airs and the dark atmosphere but she dies in an unexpected but undiginified way-- hit by a truck. 

I adore her-- because she is just allowed to be a liar, manipulator, and elegant and it is refreshing.

Hiro: I feel like I could care a lot about Hiro... If his main contribution wasn’t derailing the trial and alternating between hysteria and being carefree. I also think his FTE events have a lot to be desired and that him being a horrible con artist could have worked in his favor... if he had some things to balance him out but alas, he does not. He just isn’t my cup of tea and narrative-wise, does not move things along interestingly or have a push-pull like Makoto and Togami do. 

He just is very... boring, I guess.. That is the closest word I can come up with and while that gives a lot in way of fanfictions, it does not endear Canon Hiro to me.

[gyaru-tau]

i actually remember someone talking about Makoto and Kiyotaka as opposites but more so in a shipping frame work as they were speaking in the sense of why they don't ship NaeIshi. But the major point of their argument that coincide with your point were, how Makoto puts Taka on a pedestal but working with the framing of genuis than normalcy. 2nd. point had to due with Taka's austism coding and how makoto is negative but that's not important. I could link you the post, though, it's not nice to makoto and does come from the basis due of not shipping NaeIshi, but still an interesting read into the relationship of NaeIshi romantically and then canonically as in game

I'm gonna be completely honest with you, I think that Makoto and Kiyotaka are so incredibly QPPS. Coming personally from an autistic person I've never really viewed Makoto's behavior towards Taka as ableist either (I believe that's what you're saying the post implied, but do correct me if I'm wrong here)? Because even if Kiyotaka does does have a lot of symptoms unintentionally, it's also really important to note that he is also INCREDIBLY extreme in regards to his beliefs (this is even touched upon in Taka's school mode where he feels hes forcing things upon his friends, and the literal correct answer is for makoto to tell him that no! He isn't selfish for this!), in a way that would be jarring and difficult to understand for literally anyone. Like with any FTE, going through Taka's in full ends with Makoto having a clearer understanding of Kiyotaka. At his core he is a character that is both optimistic, and willing to listen while equally wanting to help Kiyotaka understand the concepts that are harder for him to grasp. As for them putting each other on pedestals, I couldn't agree less. Makoto calling Taka a genius is more of a throwaway comment than anything to segue into the Kiyotaka lore, and while Makoto is normal, Kiyotaka never expresses any sort of idolization of her. They have these traits and COULD go down that path if the circumstances were bad enough, but I think from where they stand they would be perfectly healthy. They are FAR from the level that Chihiro and Mondo are at, like it's hardly even comparable beyond the fact that they've kinda got opposite goals and opposite positions, and to me that's more of an interesting coincidence that COULD be elaborated on if someone wanted to. Fascinating and fun to rotate? yes. But is it entirely necessary? No. I'm very Ishimondo ride or die so I don't ship them romantically, but it is FAR from a stretch to say that there's absolutely chemistry there. Honestly Makoto could become QPPs with anybody if she wanted to, lol. Also, this is nothing against you but I ask that you please please don't send the link. I'd hate for people to see it as an excuse to attack this person, whoever they may be. I'm positive you don't have any ill intentions, but I sincerely hope that you can understand.