#considering asagiri's relationship with detective fiction

[kaurwreck]

"why is it called bungo stray dogs when they're all cat coded?" they're not, but also, you're so close to recognizing there are references in bsd.

[bungoubookclub]

BUNGOU STRAY DOGS & The Art of its Characters

SPOILERS AHEAD!!

As an artist and casual manga reader I tend to be picky with my choice of reads, though I've bent my standards every now and then, Bungou Stray Dogs is a manga that I find absolutely exceptional-- no surprise considering it's one of my favorite series. An interesting story, beautiful and striking artwork, and an amazing cast of characters.

Written by Kafka Asagiri and illustrated by the talented Harukawa35, the story follows Nakajima Atsushi, an orphan who has a life-changing encounter with a mysterious man named Dazai Osamu, and through an unforeseen turn of events, ends up becoming an agent at The Armed Detective Agency-- an organization that employs skillful individuals with supernatural abilities. From there Atsushi makes friends and foes alike, and tries to find the purpose of his life.

It's formulaic premise of "young protagonist becomes affiliated with organization and battles other organizations", reminiscent of most shounen titles, is where most of its similarities with that demographic end. Instead of expanding its world and delving into lore, the series focuses on its characters, their growth, and their relationships with the world, each other, and themselves, befitting of a seinen title. It has a unique gimmick to its characters as well--that being that their namesakes are real-world authors and literary pioneers.

Kafka's background in literature credits their adaptation of these literary figures into characters, making good use of their analytical and writing skills in interpreting the authors and their works into characters with abilities that pay homage to their namesake's famous works. Their skill as a writer is nothing to be looked over either, having written 8 novels, 2 light novels, and co-wrote one screenplay-- specifically for the series' film, "DEAD APPLE".

Its gimmick lends itself to the characters especially, often making references to the author or their works through their personality or character design, and becomes the foundation for the characters's overall story.

The character Dazai Osamu, for example, is a suicide-maniac determined to die a painless death, preferrably with a lover to accompany him to the other side. This is a direct reference to the real-life Dazai, who had attempted multiple suicides, one attempt being with his wife, however, he had survived while his wife did not. Dazai's character also meditates plenty about morals and ethics and what it truly means to be a human being, depressing over the fact that he will never probably be considered "human" by society's standards; his real-life counterpart's famous novel, No Longer Human, is a meditation on human society and what it truly means to be a human, and how to fit into the mold of what we generally deem as "human"--it also happens to be the name of Dazai's ability, which allows him to completely nullify any other ability through physical contact, rendering the once supernatural ability user into a regular human.

Their abilities work as great metaphors as well, and Francis Scott Fitzgerald, the leader of an enemy organization known as The Guild, is a good example of this. The Great Gatsby is one of the most notable works his real-life counterpart has written, the novel's themes focusing on wealth and criticising achieving "the american dream"; the character's ability, "The Great Fitzgerald", enhances his physical strength and prowess depending on the value of the items he exchanges it for, be it either cash or objects. This quite literal metaphor ties with how the character sees the value of people through their economic and social status, and becomes one of the driving forces behind his later character arc. From this we can determine a cruel and heartless man, but one who values hard work and ambition, stopping at nothing to achieve what he wants.

Aside from the characters themselves, some of their relationships and interactions are also influenced by their real-life counterpart's relations with contemporaries, as well as the time period during which they were active.

The real-life Akutagawa Ryuunosuke and Nathaniel Hawthorne, for example, have opposing views on religion, specifically Chrisitanity; Hawthorne's novel, The Scarlet Letter, deals with the themes of sin and repentance through Christian faith, while Akutagawa's "O-Gin" is a historical fiction that takes place during the edo period and reflects on the spread of Christianity to the people of Japan and how the paranoia of the government manifests, it's also noted that during his final moments while reading the Bible, he claims that he can believe in the devil, but not in the existence of a God. In the manga, during a confrontation on the port, the characters Akutagawa and Hawthorne exchange lines of dialogue, a notable taunt coming from Akutagawa, "Irmão'', being a direct reference to the ancient ministers who have introduced Christianity to edo period Japan.

The characters are intensely rich in personality and humanity, showing that not every character is strictly black or white, Dazai and Tanizaki Junichiro--another member of the Detective Agency--are great examples of this; Dazai's character is a mystery, and is, personally, very hard to break down. He is a man who has shown to have very flexible morals and ethics, but is also extremely loyal and attempts to be a goodhearted person. Relatively, Tanizaki is led to be believed that he is a docile and kind person--a running gag in the show being that he is very shy-- but is willing to commit any atrocities for the well-being of his younger sister, including murder. He puts his and his loved one's interests first, and that nearsightedness can put him and others around him in danger.

Besides the written aspect about the characters, the designs done by Harukawa35 are so beautifully crafted to convey their person through a glance. Their clothes, physical features, shapes, color palettes, even down to their silhouettes are uniquely distinct from one another and feel very personal to that character. Here are some of my favorite examples:

Atsushi's belt, which gives his silhouette a sort of "tail", referring to his ability which allows him to transform into a tiger. His purple/gold irises are striking visual cues that allude to his supernatural ability as well.

Akutagawa's billowing cloak; aside from it's practical use for his ability, it also gives him a distinctive silhouette, along with the ruffles of his shirt and the cuffs of his sleeve that contrast the sharp edges of Rashoumon.

Margaret Mitchell's outfit which, although impractical in a battle, conveys her character of a southern belle very well. Her soft, bright color palette compliments the design of her partner, Hawthorne, who mostly dons darks and greys. Similarly, the soft and round shapes abundant in her design contrasts that of Hawthorne, who is sleek, angular, and sharp by comparison.

Nakahara Chuuya's overall design, which characterizes him perfectly (accurate considering the fact that he was the most difficult character to conceptualize, according to Harukawa). The dark colors of his outfit contrast the bright orange of his hair and blue eyes, giving the idea that despite his position as an executive in the Port Mafia, his personality is as wild and stark as his features. The billowing cloak gives his silhouette a sense of dominance to make up for his small frame, broadening his shoulders and making him appear bigger. And accessories such as his hat, gloves, and choker are all very symbolic to important aspects about his story:

the hat being a gift from Arthur Rimbaud along with the chain accenting it, possibly taken from Paul Verlain;

The gloves covering his palms as he never uses his fists in battle, and only removing them when he becomes possessed by Arahabaki;

And the choker symbolises his loyalty to Mori Ougai and the Port Mafia, for which he is called a "Dog of the Mafia" by Dazai.

And speaking of designs, the various rivals and partners in the series have not only great complementing visual designs, but chemistry, story, and writing as well. Rivals/Partners such as Soukoku (Dazai and Chuuya), Shin Soukoku (Atsushi and Akutagawa), and Mori Ougai and Fukuzawa Yukichi-- the leaders of the main opposing organizations, the Port Mafia and the Detective Agency, respectively--all have amazingly distinct contrasts in terms of visual cues, my personal favorite being Shin Soukoku's black and white theme, as seen in their contrasting color palettes, outfits, and personalities.

I could go on about the Rivals' various dynamics and stories, Character analyses, and such and such, but @bsd-bibliophile has made much better analyses and are very detailed and more refined in terms of composition and content (I would not be able to touch upon Atsushi's themes of existentialism without having to delve into the author's works and the character's story, much less with any finesse, my skill level is nowhere near that standard :'))), so go check their blog out for further in-depth reading!

To wrap it up, Bungou Stray Dogs is a great manga with not only fantastic writing in its story, but in its characters as well. To be able to convey rich, layered stories through people has always been the reason I've wanted to work with Characters and more specifically, Storytelling. This series has rekindled my passion for Storytelling and has made me appreciate how important and fantastic Literature is as well (seriously, to be able to paint images in your mind and make people think and feel through words alone is a skill that I can only dream to achieve).