#There probably something to be said about Kanji and Naoto having the same fundamental struggle from the opposite end of the Gender spectrum

[almoststedytimetravel]

i saw your naoto post and deep dove your persona 4 posts (like a normal person). i am now asking what are your trans naoto discourse opinions

Scariest thing I've ever seen in my ask box

ahem

Personally idc what people headcannon a character's gender identity as (Especially one as poorly handled as Naoto giving you so many avenues for interpreting their Gender), just as general rule. Have fun with it, they aren't real people, Godspeed. As for my personal reading of Naoto as a character though...

So I'm not gonna deny that the specific way Naoto (specifically their shadow) talks about themselves comes across as transphobic. Shocking that a game that first came out in, what, 2008, isn't very good at talking about Gender issues. If/when P4 gets a remake they will almost certainly over hall the script for Naoto's arc (Thank god).

That being said I think Naoto's choice to crossdress her way out of misogyny is a way to show her social isolation and naïvety. Naoto expresses that she didn't have any friends until she met the Investigation Team and that she read a stupid amount of fiction from her grandfather's library. Crossdressing to do quote-un-quote men's work is something pretty confined to fiction, which was Naoto's only real window into the outside world (Other then the police force). Anyone with any real world experience could tell you that transitioning (or crossdressing) is not going to get you respect, especially in the police force.

I think Naoto's social link does a fine job of implying that pretending to be man was making her miserable, but I think it could have been more explicate about it. The spin offs however (Dancing and Arena specifically, if you bring up Persona X Detective Naoto in my presence I will reduce you to atoms) Really put a fair bit of effort into showing that presenting as a girl does make her happy! Her idealisation of Mitsuru in Arena, even saying that she was the type of woman Naoto wanted to become, does a lot to patch up the holes in her character.

Of course since these character moments are confined to spin offs a lot of people won't see them and only get her bad dungeon and mediocre social link.

Personally I like She/They nb Naoto!