#and kariya has the clothes of my friend because he is so fucking cool

[marmolao]

i would finish it if i could burn my school

they are a couple but they dont know it yet

[organizationhimself]

ntwewy thoughts

i beat it so all spoilers all day

-it’s not as good as twewy and it was never going to be, for many, many reasons.  it goes beyond “twewy was first and thus better by default” and into “it’s really trying to bring back everything we loved about twewy and not quite succeeding” sequelitis, but despite this it does still manage to do something unique and it believes in itself.  i Felt Emotions.

-i am completely fascinated by the idea of someone who takes forever to decide what to do actually having forever to decide what to do, and this creating a more decisive person who has suffered terribly from his hesitations.  (i wish this had been a little more explicit and the earlier situations were things more like “rindo hesitates to attack and Friend gets hurt instead.”)  but also, the ramifications of this?  like, so many different details throughout each day turned into things that rindo had to individually focus on and turn into game changers.  how do you recover from that?  how do you NOT go through life feeling like every snatch of conversation about a new pin or a recent episode is somehow Deeply Significant?  therapy for boy

-people who hate on nagi are wrong.

-people who hate on fret aren’t wrong, just weak, and nature will not select them.

-minamimami as slightly unhinged party member who does what he wants, and who is outright used as a threat with the vibe of “listen man we can be cool maybe but we don’t know what he’ll do about it,” is great stuff.  i never really understood people’s attraction to him when i played the original, but now that he has this incredibly intense reaction of staring out from under his hood with one glowing eye and just daring, with every fiber of his being, for someone to cross that fine line between this delicate tension and a world of meticulously calculated pain, i like.  understand it

-i love that uzuki finally put on some real clothes that somehow changed nothing, and kariya is the literal only member of the old cast who was like “fuck you i’m going to wear the same hoodie and ripped jeans for 3 years and like it.”

-furuya, motoi, and kanon are not as fun as higashizawa, minamitoto, and konishi, but i still like the commitment to themed puns.  the problem is just that these are less obnoxious and more bearable, and therefore subpar.

-suzukichi is a gem.  his redemption thing came out of absofuckinglutely nowhere but i can’t be mad at suzukichi.

-kaie’s a cool idea for a character, i wish he’d been in the game.

-very glad i didn’t see the trailer because i was constantly wondering what the hell was happening and surprised by every twist, even the one i was expecting (and praying for).  however, i did expect a lot more fuckery and frustration than i ended up getting; like yeah there was unfairness but i am used to having a party member ripped from my heart at the end of every week.  minamisolo fucking off felt like the gentle first rotation of what would become a revolving door of 4th (and perhaps 2nd and 3rd as well) party members, so while i was overjoyed when i didn’t have to lose people to gain people, it kinda hurt the already low stakes.

-beat!  beat!!  BEAT!!!  i remember hating beat and then loving beat in the original because he’s written with an arc, and the way he came back in this is just fucking powerful.  the game is always played on a tightrope full of grinning obstacles who won’t kindly step aside or shut up, so it’s beyond refreshing to see someone who is sick of the bullshit come in and just start closing mouths and punching the tightrope.  i wish they’d done literally anything else with his speech patterns, but i think he might be my favorite character now, legally.

-neku on the other hand, awesome introduction.  but like.  where’s the sass??  i get it, neku’s good now, he’s laid back or whatever, great.  but i was expecting him and rindo to exchange an eyeroll or do some kind of back and forth where neku’s like “so...does everyone call you ‘lord rindo’ or just--” and rindo’s like “just nagi.  don’t ask.”  or else he’s totally, visibly unfazed by some bonkers behavior and one of the new characters goes “oh wow sorry about that um” and neku’s like “nah it’s ok i’ve dealt with weirder.”  something.  i can imagine there’s some running, not-entirely-charitable internal monologue happening in his silences, but it needs to peek out at least a LITTLE.  being a Good Guy Not Misanthrope Anymore doesn’t mean “drained of all capacity for sarcasm,” and it also doesn’t mean he’s lost touch with other people’s ability to think shit is weird.  he should have reacted at least once to the weird shit he was explaining about tsugumi with an “i know how this sounds but” or something.

-on the same note i literally cannot imagine neku being ok with being called a legend.  he did all he did to save his friends and it was bullshit the entire time.  getting hyped up for that seems like something that would make him deeply uncomfortable and feel like it was unearned.  it’s good that he didn’t respond to it because again i can characterize him as being uncomfortable with it in my head, but square i shouldn’t have to do everything my fucking self.

-overall it kind of feels like the poor guy was on dayquil the whole game.  it would explain the voice, too.  even in the original neku sounded like a frustrated intern trying to get past his gay coworker cutting in line for the copier; in this one he always sounds just a tad beleaguered by his mortgage and 2.5 kids.  (beat is similar at times but he still gets up in the neighborhood of his old register enough to let it slide.)

-rhyme and shiki were in this game too i guess.

-i called shoka as sparrow very shortly after she joined the party, because rindo (who always, ALWAYS hesitated on party members before) was suddenly like “uh hey so w-would you maybe like to idk...join...” and that was like.  maybe transparent or something, in hindsight?  but i am a COMPLETE SUCKER for characters getting to know each other without ever getting to see each other and then learning their true identities in dramatic fashion, i don’t care how tropey it gets.  i also thought from the beginning that tsugumi was going to be sparrow and i was “ugh”ing about it because the chemistry was better with shoka, but i got worried when shoka tried to double cross them to rejoin the reapers, and because i didn’t know if she was the kind of person to use “XD.”  anyway i cried during the reveal and i love shoka so much tho.

-felt very little about ayano’s whole thing.  some have criticized it that she should have been introduced earlier and i agree.  this is kinda tsugumi’s problem too; i thought she was going to be very significant, but in general the whole situation with the shinjuku reapers is not very compelling because it all gets revealed and dealt with so fast.  like, we learn that hishima and shiba were friends once after exactly zero scenes of them interacting (that i have any memory of, anyway), and just a few scenes before what’s supposed to be the emotional payoff.  i understand there was supposed to be a shinjuku game between the original and this one and the story suffers for it.  it feels like a years-long rp in an established world with a friend who suddenly brings in a bunch of new characters like “no listen, these characters are really important and compelling and i’ve been building them up offscreen for months without actually writing them into anything we’re doing, let me tell you their whole deal with no ambiguity or narrative pacing so you can be immediately invested.”

-literally why didn’t we at least see tsugumi get restored?  like, damn.  give shiki just one thing to do, as a treat.  i am begging

-the time travel mechanic was really cool and i loved it, especially how it demanded paying attention to different elements and how the timing of certain things would signal to rindo when it was time to head back and try again.  that said, it got a little weak towards the end when there was a lot of “let’s go talk to this person and watch a scene, then let’s go to this time and talk to this person and watch a scene, then let’s...” etc., but the need to make individual arrangements and gather information again in the last loop did save it a little.

-if i ever see coco atarashi again it will be too soon.  i haven’t even played the add-on where she kills neku again or whatever, i just think she’s a mess.

-obsessed with the way haz came down just to chat like “hey ant, how do you like your anthill?  how does it feel to be an ant?  ok whatever, have a nice 72 hours or however long you ants live for, bye.”

-where is josh??  where is yoshiya joshua kiryoshua.  missing: josh.  gray hair, gray eyes, made of light and condensed smarm, last seen wearing a button up, size “coat,” and dress pants with gay.  if found, please run as fast as possible, immediately.

-this game did not deserve hanekoma so it’s ok.

-i don’t like what they did with shiba.  like, even in the original things end sort of awkwardly in that joshua should by rights be funding neku’s therapy and that of everyone else involved in this, but the fact that literal days after kanon’s death fret is involved in a situation where he has to team up with the guy LITERALLY, DIRECTLY RESPONSIBLE for her death and the deaths of ALL those other innocents (because they weren’t! fucking!! dead!!! when the game started!!!!), and shiba is NOT SORRY and STILL bent on killing literally everyone in shibuya, and then it’s just like...he’s on our side?  and his (remaining) friends are still with him?  like it’s great that he’s taking steps to atone and a game master (not even conductor tho, the bar has never been lower) doesn’t really possess the same morality and i get that.  i just don’t think he deserved this ending and if anything kitaniji was much more sympathetic (while also somehow being even more despicable).

-oh right did i mention EVERYONE DIED FOR REAL.  there’s no implication that anyone from the MULTIPLE teams all implied to contain at least 10 people apiece were reconstituted after the fact.  selfishly, i’m okay with that, because fret/kanon is fine but they will first have to pull fret/beat from my cold and dying fingers, but it’s still bleak as shit.  rindo going back to save a total of 5 people is completely a teenager’s decision and i’m here for it, but it would be a lot more compelling if it would also walk back all those deaths a la the original.  plus, it makes shiba that much less cool as a character to the audience, forget the cast.  this is hordak levels of “people should still be fucking mad.”

-for what he was i liked kubo (the voice actor was very good at making the kind of deliberately obnoxious laugh that would have made teenage me want to break his nose), and i like that we’re seeing a few more hints of this hierarchy that has only ever sort of been hinted at with hanekoma.  but having him just get “exorcised” out of existence really killed the momentum of the whole thing.  also between him and minamiyolo why are the only two dark-skinned characters bad plsthx

-basically everything about the ending feels very...abrupt?  and i remember having lasting questions about the original’s ending too (and there are secret reports i need to gather and ruminate over), but like.  josh just coming in with his three (3) lines and snapping his fingers to fix everything not only with regard to neku and them but also with the shoka thing just feels very not-josh (though i do get the reference, and if i just accept he decided to save shoka, it was done in a josh way, i just question the motive).  like if he was going to do that where was he during the haz thing?  did he know ahead of time what rindo would choose?  (and if that’s the case was rindo’s choice actually a choice?)  like...in hindsight i do like the idea that rindo had to find her just like playing fango, but it just feels very tacked on, and the suddenness of her disappearance really undercut what’s supposed to be the emotional resonance of seeing all the other characters getting their happy endings.  (i thought i would be, y’know, playing the game josh had just made out of it??  so instead of fulfillment i felt confusion and alarm.)

-the final boss theme music is a thing of fucking beauty.  every time i died to the bird and heard “it’s supposed to be hard” i was inspired.  eventually beat it on normal anyway because i’m an adult with limited time, but teenage me almost certainly would have channeled that to beat it in a blaze of stubborn glory, and the rest of the song just constantly goes places i don’t expect.  i don’t like screamo and yet this is my favorite (new) track.

-minamimememan was underutilized news at 11

[guidingthulite]

Hey did you know that when I was away I made a bunch of headcanons

Did you also know I forget to post them everyday

- Hamano was, technically, the first one to confess, but he decided to do it in such a casual manner that Hayami thought he was kinda joking (he probably did it after training or while they were fishing), but Hamano kept saying 'I love you' over and over, and Hayami, being who he is, just turned his head around, saying 'okay, okay' or just plain blushing and walking away. It was one day they were walking back home that Hamano tried to confess once more, only for Hayami to be annoyed because he 'didn't mean it seriously' and that he 'should stop playing with his feelings'. But Hamano stopped walking, held Hayami's hand and looked at his eyes, and with a serious expression he said 'But I do love you. For real'. And at first Hayami couldn't stop staring at Hamano, but then realization hit him and Hamano was the only thing he COULDN'T look at. Long story short, it was a mess, but at least they were dating now

 - I've written so many confession fics on my head this is like one out of a million

 - The only way for Hamano to study is having Hayami near, because he would leave it for later to never really do it, and Hayami insists that he does, and that they won't really do anything else until they're both done with homework/studying - And speaking about that, Hamano is good at History, because it's something that Hayami loves (when they were studying ancient China Hamano discovered that Hayami knew more than any teacher. Ever. Isn't he so cool) and when he rambles about it Hamano tries to pay as much attention as he can, and something always stays with him, so it's easier studying History

 - HAVE I MENTIONED THAT HAMANO HAS CANONICALLY WRITTEN POETRY CAUSE. HE DEFINITELY HAS WRITTEN SOMETHING FOR HAYAMI

 - These two planned their wedding when they were children, Hamano brought it up some random day and Hayami was embarrased because 'we were children we didn't really know i mean i don't think we're getting married anyways' and Hamano basically excitedly screams that 'no!!! We'll marry because we love each other! And we will wear pretty dresses! And we'll invite the whole team! And the fishing lady!' so they spent the whole afternoon planning it over again (only one thing was clear after the planning: Kurama would be the flower boy)

 - Hayami once called Hamano 'Kaiji' accidentaly and both of them died internally

- Hamano is SOOOOOOOO into the idea of double/group dates. It all started when Ichino and Aoyama called them over for a group thing and since then he has loved hanging out with other couples

. - ... Which obviously led to Hamano wanting to hang out with Minaho and Manabe - And Hayami was okay with it but internally he was hella nervous because Minaho and Hamano are VERY good friends and he has only talked to Manabe like... Twice, maybe, when Earth Eleven came back and they held a party n stuff, so he thought that the date would be basically Minaho and Hamano talking about whatever while he and Manabe stared at each other awkwardly

 - But the double date was fun and everyone talked to everyone and Hayami found out that Minaho and Manabe are really really really nice people to hang around - So they hung out more often (but not that often because Minaho and Manabe live away, sob)

 - and they started dating each other. and kurama. and kurama is also dating hikaru and kariya too. kurama has a lot of boyfriends

 - Hayami is actually very into videogames, specially rhythm ones and RPG's (story heavy ones in general). He introduced Hamano to the Rhythm Heaven franchise because he thought he would love the quirkiness of it

. - AND HE DID HE LOVES RHYTHM HEAVEN SO MUCH. Hayami bought him The Best+/Megamix for his birthday and Hamano almost choked him because he hugged him too thightly

- Because I'm obvious, at some point Minaho, Manabe, Hamano and Hayami go to England for their honeymoon and Hayami and Minaho have to make sure the other two are with them all they time because they are absolutely horrible at English and they can't be left alone

- Hamano and Hayami have sleepovers all the time. And there was a time when both were super awkward around each other because they were starting to fall for each other and were sUPER SLOW to realize. So anyways, Hayami told Hamano to sleep somewhere else and at first he did go to another room but sometime later he came back because 'Hayami if I want to see you early in the morning I'll just get up earlier and come here but if I stay I want to wake up with you and all...'

- You can pinpoint the moment Hayami died internally. - But he agreed. And while he was sleeping lying on Hamano's chest he Realized™

 - fuck i should write that 

- Speaking of Hamano and Hayami being slow, my brother and I have this AU in which Kurama is Hamano and Hayami's son, and a time traveller who came to this time to ensure those two get together so he can exist in the future and all

- Kinako and him bonded over being time travellers sent to take care of family members and then both joined the Shorty Brigade with Shinsuke and Konoha

 - Also he has a younger sister named Estrella (I like to nickname her Suta for some reason) 

 - i think suta is a boy name heck 

- Hamano can carry Kurama and Hayami at the same time. He's quite proud of that. 

 - Okay so some people talk about Tsunami adopting Hamano but hear me out. NORIKA ADOPTING HAMANO. [And now the best headcanon is Kogure and Haruna adopting Hamano]

 - I somehow have the headcanon that Hayami likes Vocaloid and my mind jumped to him dressed as Hatsune Miku save my soul

 - I recall Kurama saying something on the games that made me think he likes wearing skirts/dresses but I can't remember what it was 

- But yeah Kurama likes wearing skirts and dresses 

- I looked for it and now I know. (This is what he said on the Spanish ver and through time and experience I learned that translation differ from each other... A lot) They were talking about the Middle Age clothes (when they went to Jeanne's time n stuff) and Kurama just said that 'I don't know, it's like wearing a dress, right?' and it gave off such a casual vibe that I started that headcanon 

- Maybe I'm reading into it too much 

- But he would look adorable in dresses don't lie to me 

- When they grow up, Hamano works as a preeschool teacher and Hayami works as a biology/history teacher, in higher levels of education of course - Au in which all 5 of my ot5 work as teachers. Manabe is obviously a math teacher. Kurama can take the biology away from Hayami idk, he likes animals. My Philosophy teacher sorta reminds me of Minaho so there but he could also teach Psychology

- The whole school starts suspecting about Hamano and Hayami because _why would a preeschool teacher hang around teachers who teach (? older kids_ but then Kurama comes along, and then Minaho and then Manabe and aaaaaa

- The whole school ships it. There used to be arguments regarding who matched better with who but they kind of died when all 5 started dating. There were discussions regarding who the cutest were, though

- On the alternate timeline where Sakka is Dead and no one joined the Sakka club, Hayami starts dating Aoyama. 

- But it feels weird because even though he really likes Aoyama he gets this feeling that it's just because he's the closest person he has. 

- And there's this guy on his class, Hamano. He is a rather quiet kid (although some of his classmates would beg to differ) and sometimes he asks for his eraser or tells him good morning when he arrives and it's so SO weird, because he feels as if he SHOULD know him, and he SHOULD feel a certain when he looks at Hamano or when he talks to him, like they knew each other but forgot, like they have or had something together. But if they ever had something, it's gone.

- And this other guy, Kurama, who is on his class too. He's quite rude, stubborn and doesn't really talk to anyone unless he is required to. The kind of person Hayami doesn't really like, and yet, for some reason, he can't get angry at him. He has caught himself smiling at how the smaller boy pouted when he couldn't answer a question correctly. Sometimes, he'll look at his only visible eye (what kind of fashion statement is that, Hayami wonders) and see things deeper than just the black that it seemed to have. 

- I JUST LOVE THAT ALTERNATE TIMELINE SO MUCH IT'S TOO ANGSTY SOB - But Hamano and Hayami do end up meeting each other, they sit together for a whole month. - Hamano makes Hayami laugh at one point and he's like 'bjmljgxfbc who are you why is your laugh so cute omg why can't you laugh more often your smile is so precious too i'm sOB' 

- Hayami is flustered because 'what he said wasn't even that funny wHY AM I LAUGHING SO MUCH' but he can't really stop and aAAAAA 

- But after sitting together they don't really talk that much because yeah, being with one another was fun but there is really nothing that ties them together, so they lose contact 

- Oh look at that I can write angst after all. Nice. 

- On a not so sad note, Hamano is the biggest fan of cuddles and affection in general ever on existence (or at least out of his boyfriends) like he could be walking down the street with Kurama and he has to hold his hand and give him a kiss on the forehead (Kurama hisses at him but he feels blessed he's just not really into showing it) or fishing with Hayami when he tells him to sit on his lap (or just outright goes and sits on Hayami's) before resuming fishing (Hayami hesitates a bit to put his arms around Hamano but when he does Hamano and I thinks it's the cutest thing) or hanging out with Minaho on his room  and he hugs Minaho so thightly and Minaho pets his hair and hugs him back, or reading with Manabe when he puts his head on Manabe's shoulder, and Manabe has to close the book because he's getting sleepy as well so they lay down and cuddle together until they've both fallen asleep. 

- Then one of the other three comes to join them. 

- Usually the first one is Kurama, and because he is the smallest and thus the most huggable he is always in the middle. Then it's Hayami, who takes off Manabe's glasses because sOMEHOW he forgot to take them off to sleep. He unties his hair and lays wherever he's closest to. He's tired. Minaho is mostly the last one because he's a night owl eEHEHEHEHE. He gives everyone night kisses on the forehead and falls asleep quite fast, actually. 

- THEY'RE SO BLESSED AND I'M SOB 

- Speaking of Hamano getting sleepy, he can't go on long bus trips without falling asleep. Cars, maybe, but for some reason he can't go through a long bus trip without falling asleep. 

- Poor Hayami knows this better than anyone. It's like Hamano KNOWS when a trip is going to be long even if no one told him so. And he uses Hayami's shoulder as a pillow. Always. Well, not always, there was one time where the bus moved a biiiiit too much and Hamano fell to his lap 

- He didn't wake up because he's THAT powerful 

- Anyways, Hayami just stared at him for a few second, then REALIZATION hit him like a truck, and he hoped no one was watching him. On the seats before them, Ichino and Aoyama, both of them sleeping, safe. Seats behind them, the managers, who looked too into their conversation to notice. And the only one he should be worrying about was Akane, who had a camera, but it was okay, he only took pictures of Shindou, apparently. So, safe too. 

- And, finally, the seats next to them... Oh, Shinsuke and Tenma, right, they looked interested in their current conversation topic, so safe... Or so he thought because Tenma is shipping trash too, I mean, have you seen how he acts with Aki regarding Ichinose? He ships it, because they looked at him, stared for a bit, gave him a thumbs up and resumed their conversation. 

- Hayami has never felt so embarrased.

- And I mean, he could try putting him back lying on his shoulder, but the willpower needed to do that is something that he lacked right now

- So Hamano spent the whole trip sleeping on Hayami's lap

- OR SO WE THOUGHT

- Hamano wasn't asleep when he fell on Hayami's lap, but hey, it was comfortable and Hayami was petting his hair so he might just stay there.

- When he woke up again he looked at Hayami's eyes and said 'Good morning~' like nothing happened and like it was morning

- Hayami's favorite Inazuma Japan member is Kazemaru since he is so fast and graceful, and seemed quite capable too (Although he likes Kidou too, his gamemaking helped Inazuma win. So talented.), Kurama's is Toramaru, because he was the smallest of the team but that didn't stop him from being a great forward, even rivalling the forever-more-popular Gouenji (plus he learns Tiger Drive on Chrono Stones isn't that precious) and Hamano's is obviously Tsunami. 

- He even started wearing goggles everywhere since he was a smallie because of him. When they actually met Tsunami was so happy like 'tACHIMUKAI CHECK THIS KID OUT HE'S SUCH A GOOD KID WE SHOULD ADOPT HIM' to which Tachi replies 'Tsunami, you already said you wanted to adopt Tenma, you're going to adopt everyone at this rate' 'YOU ADOPTED SHINSUKE TOO IT'S NOT LIKE TENMA WOULD BE AN ONLY CHILD IF WE ADOPTED HIM' 'Tsumami that's a totally different thing, I just told you that I like Shinsuke's determ-' 'Plus I can't adopt everyone, Tachi! If I ever dared to adopt Kidou's little penguin baby he would kill me!' 

- Hamano was just looking at them half 'What is even going on anymore' and half 'TSUNAMI, THE TSUNAMI JOUSUKE WANTS TO ADOPT ME???' 

- Hayami is an only son, Kurama has a baby sibling and Hamano is the middle sibling out of three, and the only boy 

- that's not me proyecting onto hamano what are you talking about. and headcanoning him as gay instead of bi like everyone else does is not either

- Hayami's parents are not home often so he's home alone most time.

- Or that would be, except Hamano visits a lot or brings him to his house. He has lunch and dinner there most days. And those sleepovers I mentioned earlier? Every weekend, at least once. 

- Hamano's family loves Hayami a lot and when they knew they were dating they got so happy they prepared a party 

- Hamano's big sister was on first name basis with Hayami before his lil bro 

- Hamano lowkey complained about it but his sister just went 'yOU'RE CLOSER TO HIM THAN ME JUST DO IT HE'LL BE FINE WITH IT YOU SLOW DUMMY' 

- He wasn't 

- 'JNBMCJXJFGHDJHDHCHUVNKGD' - their internal thoughts 

- Hamano is close to the Managers, specially Akane 

- They have no idea how they came to be this way but they're super close 

- Akane roasts Hamano on a daily basis (and that fact is canon) and Hamano tries to get back at her somehow 

- 'I could try holding her camera up so she can't reach it'

- Then he remembers he's smaller than Akane 

- 'I could ask Hayami to hold it up for me' 

- But Hayami didn't want to 

- So he asked Kurama to sit on his shoulders because short people STACK together 

- Kurama thought it was dumb 

- Hamano was a sad bean 

- OKAY BUT IMAGINE. Hamano has lots of pics on his wall and half are from Akane and the other half are ones he took himself because Akane taught him The Ways Of Photography 

- AKANE DOING HAMANO'S HAIR 

- They're on first name basis 

- Hamano is actually pretty decent at cooking, specially pastries - Since Kurama absolutely LOVES sweets if he happens to cook some he'll give them to Kurama (and sometimes to Hayami but while he does like sweets he's more on the salty side) - Kurama just dismisses it and says they're okay but he really likes Hamano's sweets 

- And Hamano can read him like an open book so he knows too - His face lights up and it's the cutest thing Hamano has ever seen 

- Me: I should find a shorter name minamanahamahayakura is too long Me: Uhhh... MiNaHaYaKu Me: [realizes] hOLY SHIT AHAHAHA 

- "Minahayaku" - Hayami to everyone, probably