#i hope people give him a chance

[windcarvedlyre]

I've been following @druidposting's DR2 playthrough on discord and we just had a really good discussion about DR's Closing Arguments. Specifically the way the murderer is depicted as grey and featureless, which until now I found a bit annoying.

In Danganronpa it's repeatedly the case that we don't have the full picture until the talking actually stops- which always goes beyond the end of the trial. We generally vote first and come to understand what the murderer's actual motive was, sometimes filling in important pieces of the timeline in the process, afterwards.

But none of that matters for the killing game because characters' emotions aren't directly relevant to who was the 'blackened'- the only thing that matters to Monokuma- so it comes out afterwards and does nothing to change their execution. It doesn't matter how sympathetic they are (basically everyone) or whether other people share responsibility for the situation (eg. Hanamura, Pekoyama, Momota) or whether they intended to murder at all (Nanami). They objectively pulled the trigger and nothing else matters. Nothing about them as a person matters.

The Closing Argument mechanic might illustrate that problem- literally. They're a dramatic, conclusive summary of the entire case... constructed before the vote even happens, before we know if we're actually right, and they're missing something really important:

The actual perpetrator.

We quite literally don't even begin to see the real person behind the crime, any real exploration of their mental state, anything besides the cold, hard facts of the murder that are necessary to convict them, until the comic finishes and the protagonist makes their final accusation- replacing the grey figure with their real appearance in a shot that's often intensely emotional.

And these comics lack crucial parts of the case's timeline and sometimes important parts of the very scenes they depict that we only find out about afterwards. And those are what we know; characters may die with some pieces of the truth and prevent us from ever learning them. These aren't objective depictions of the murder, they're the protagonist's subjective attempt to connect the facts they have. A join-the-dots portrait of someone with missing dots and no colour.

Even characters' expressions may not match how they truly feel, with the grey placeholder potentially looking way more confident and sinister than they were in reality. Pasting Falter's commentary here since they put it well.

For obvious reasons this could especially be a problem for characters that die before the trial- the ones we never get a post-vote testimony from. DR1 chapter 4 really highlighted that in the way Asahina's huge misinterpretation of Oogami's feelings took up a lot of the post-trial discussion, only for Monokuma to reveal Oogami's real suicide note and recontextualise everything.

It might really be a problem for how Komaeda's depicted in DR2 chapter 5. While he isn't greyed out, we get panel after panel where he's either level-headed or maniacally evil, and even the depictions of his self-torture and death don't humanise him:

But we know that his real feelings were more complicated than that. We have his actual corpse to compare the last page to.

He died afraid.

If we approach the comic as Hinata's mental image of him instead of reality, he died without anyone truly understanding him. He was alarming, very hard to relate to, actively fought against people doing so, ensured even the killer didn't watch him die, and the survivors couldn't begin to understand his motive until a chapter later. The Closing Argument reflects that.

Early in DR1 Togami calls out the rest of his class for judging others by their own standards. However, he, too, is doing this, maybe more so than many other characters; his inability to view other people through anything but the cold, brutal logic of the killing game bites him in the ass in chapter 4. In DR2 chapter 2 voting without a good understanding of Pekoyama's motive or Kuzuryuu's involvement nearly got everyone killed. Komaeda's a walking embodiment of the problems with flattening people into caricatures and not empathising with them, suffered from people doing that back to him, and his case- the Closing Argument for which turned everyone else into grey placeholders- was impossible to solve with objective facts. It was only survivable because the survivors cooperated and one person tried to analyse things the way he would.

The games have always been a critique of the justice system and Japanese society and push us to care about others as individuals, not reduce them to- and judge their right to exist by- something they've done or their net impact on society. There are always consequences when someone neglects to do that, and the above might be yet another way the games explore that theme.

[a2zillustration]

I carried this thing for MONTHS with the EXPRESS PURPOSE of putting Raphael in it (knowing full well Larian wouldn't let me do that, mechanically) and I had one major miscalculation.

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[kugamoogle]

Happy belated Collections Day! Hoping more new fans means more people will end up going just as insane over these two as I have

Mostly off topic ramble about AAI and Badd in the tags!

[sunrizef1]

You tell them, king

I wholeheartedly agree and will support every wrong or right it takes for him to get there

[limewatt]

kamikou cheer squad “you’re not stuck on that rooftop anymore, rui” -> ena5 mizuki side story 2 “welcome to this side, mizuki” what if i cried. they’re finally both free of that rooftop……. they’re not friends in solitude anymore… they’re friends!!!!! that have each found their people!!!

also, in cheer squad, rui's “there's something i want to say, but i'm scared that i'll drive everyone to the other side again if i say it” was craaaazy. such a direct parallel to mizuki... and mizuki reassuring him (and having asked him to direct the cheer squad in the first place) being why he was able to gather his courage... “you'll be fine rui. seeing you at the culture festival made me believe you're not stuck on that rooftop anymore. i'm looking forward to seeing what crazy idea you'll direct!” i'm not caught up on all of wxs's stories so i can't say if it has an impact there, but rui's success in getting his feelings across in cheer squad being how he's able to reach out and make new friends in pandemonium/spirited affair... gwah.

rui's effect on mizuki is obvious. he's in a fair amount of her focuses / side stories / + picnic and ena5. and RIBBON... the shadow his absence casts on her... being the reason she was hesitant to reach out to niigo because she was scared niigo would leave her eventually like he did... but also the reason she wanted to reach out at all... because rui made her see that there are people in the world who will understand her... the 1 in “25:00:01” on kimi no yoru wo kure’s cover being rui’s colour… all so awesome. but mizuki's effect on rui is subtler/less focused on. so cheer squad where mizuki is unequivocally a key part of rui's growth is so special to me.

[shima-draws]

Grips my shirt and tears it apart so that all the buttons go flying and SCREAMS I love Law and Cora so much what the FUCK!!!!

[kaxtwenty]

The further I get into season 2, the more it becomes apparent to me that Mikazuki has some self-worth issues.

Insane ramblings and heavy spoilers for IBO under the cut, be warned.

He seems like the type of person who’s self-worth is defined by how useful he feels to those he cares about. His dream is to become a farmer, but despite his repeated attempts, his crops mostly just wither and die. He tries to educate himself, but he struggles more with reading and writing than other other kids. And when people point out how he’s improved, he downplays his progress. It feels like he’s kinda given up on his dream of becoming a farmer and being anything other than Tekkadan’s (Orga’s) strongest soldier.

Mika still wants to become a farmer, but he doesn’t seem to think that it’s truly feasible for him. So he leans harder into what he’s already good at: fighting. This adds an interesting element to his relationship with Kudelia. As her life’s goal is to create a world where children aren’t exploited for conflict and wars are prevented. Mika doesn’t know how he’s supposed to exist in Kudelia’s world 'cause he is a direct product of the current world, where wars happen and children are raised to fight them. In Kudelia’s world, people like Mikazuki don’t exist, which leaves him in an awkward spot—at least from his pessimistic perspective.

So all of this just leads him back to Orga. His relationship with Orga is wrought with some serious codependency issues, but it’s where he feels the most useful, as he’s been Orga’s muscle for as long as they’ve known each other. Orga’s always ending up in a fight with someone too big for him and Mika’s always gonna take that person down regardless of the consequences to himself. This is their cycle and eventually it’s gonna hurt Mika in a way that will make his dream harder to achieve. But like I said, it’s where he’s the most useful and he considers himself a lost cause anyway.

I just think it’s…sad how everyone, including Orga, seems to have more faith in Mikazuki’s dream than he does.

[nebulanightsky]

can we all agree that the sexy man poll is rigged this year

:/

Like everyone’s pretty much voting for error and ink so they can go head to head which is kinda annoying..but that’s just my opinion

Pretty much most of my friends are voting for Error this year cause, dang, that man was in the second place 2 times in a row 😭 they're making sure that Error won this year

[wildsaltair]

I am not immune to the charms of beaten, bedraggled, post-pyrrhic-victory gunfighter-turned-preacher-turned-sheriff Cort

[revenantghost]

My mom has said that if Wolfwood dies in Stampede, she will stop watching it lmao. She’s like “They can’t take away my boy! That’s rude!” So whenever season two comes out, I’ll have to watch it before her so I can warn her.

SHE'S RIGHT!!! IT'S RUDE!!!!!!!!!! Prayer circle to protect against the couch come season two for your mom (and the rest of us lol)

[martyrbat]

habeas corpus – detective comics #1086

(ID in alt!)

[sainz100]

2024 Singapore GP | x

[mctna2019]

A chance

+Here.

Seon-ho throws himself on the ground as he slowly pulls his hand out of Hwi's arms. he sits in silence staring at the man who is sleeping.

+Mun-bok stiched his wounds. here the clean clothes.

Seon-ho takes the clothes from Hwi.

+do you want me to stay and help you?

Seon-ho shakes his head in the negative.

+call me when it finishes. and be careful about your wounds.

-thank you.

Hwi puts his hand gently on Seon-ho's shoulder and leaves room. Seon-ho pulls himself forward, towards him. this is the last time he can see him.

many things had changed in all these 12 years. that rough man who ordered Seon-ho to kneel down to take the bow had now given his life to protect Seon-ho. he tries his best not to cry, not to break. because this time he isn't there, who could collect Seon-ho's broken pieces and pour them into his empty shell.

he brushes away his unshed tears and placed his trembling hand on his cold hand.

-thank you for everything.

he doesn't smile, like always.

when he opens the bag, it's a silk dress exactly the same color as the one Seon-ho had taken to Hwi's father's burial. Seon-ho knows it isn’t an accident. he had never been trained to prepare the dead, and Hwi's father was the only person Seon-ho had helped Hwi with his burial. but over and over in his mind, Seon-ho had a glorious funeral for his mother and Yeon.

he removes his clothes and see his whole body is bandaged. ignoring the pain that shots through his body with every movement, he silently dresses him in a clean silk dress. it's different from usual but graceful. if he saw himself in such a situation, he certainly wouldn't have left Seon-ho and Hwi alive. Seon-ho laughs bitterly at the thought. he arranges the clothes and put his sword next to him. as always, he looks powerful and magnificent.

-I could never protect people who was precious to me. I'm sorry, but I won't fail this time.

Seon-ho immediately wipes away his tears.

-when I'm sure that Hwi is safe... then... I'll sleep forever. it doesn't matter where it is.

something weighs on his chest like all the times his loved ones were lost and he was left alone. he needs opium and alcohol. so that he can forget this torment a little. but he knows Sung-rok wouldn't be pleased, just as he knew his mother and Yeon weren't. he only puts his hand on his chest and press it on his painful wounds so that he could breathe. this time is the last time. he promises Sung-rok. while he knows it makes him angry.

he just sits there and stares at his face. remembering every moments they had. the life he could have with him. far from others and maybe a little piece?

Seon-ho doesn't know why he's thinking about Min-ho, his older brother. he had forgotten him for a long time and now, seeing Sung-rok's corpse, he remembers the day when Min-ho's lifeless body was pulled out of the water.

at least this time he has the chance to farewell and bury him, among all of them.

[righteousruin]

Oh Christ,

Steadfast belief in restorative justice is psychosis, Grant??

[dent-de-leon]

So many people are so mean to Kingsley and say they hate him simply because he's not Molly and I am fighting them off with a sword. None of you fuckers are true Tealeaf enjoyers. Love my boy or die by my blade; what did he ever do to any of you 😭

Hello! The thing is--I do understand why Kingsley can be upsetting to people, I really do. Especially when we've had Molly for such little time :( And it does make me sad that Kingsley doesn't seem to get the same treatment as the rest of the Nein, or that he's not as loved, so I understand both perspectives.

But honestly to me, a part of the appeal of Kingsley is that...although he's grown and changed, a part of him is still Molly; it's the thought that this shard of a soul was loved enough that it managed to endure, to grow and find its way home.

I love the ending of Lucien's novel, because the thought that Molly felt for Lucien enough to want to reach out to him in the very end, the way they both make peace with each other and decide to be reborn together--it's so heartwarming and cathartic, and it really feels like the final piece to me that King's introduction was missing.

I think, terrifying as the thought is, Kingsley himself is also aware that he's grown from Molly's soul shard (and Lucien).

Kingsley: “Not now, but in the future, I'd like to hear about your friend. Later, once I--once I know me better.”

Yasha: “I would love that.”

Kingsley: “Thank you.”

Yasha: “It's nice to have you back.”

Kingsley: “It's nice to be here.”

Yasha: “You know what I mean.”

Kingsley: “I do.”

The fact that he calls out to Yasha and knows her as Love, remembers the tarot card names he gave to everyone. The moment when Jester casts Greater Restoration, and King is lost in his pretty dream of the circus--"I was having the nicest dream."

And more than that, he keeps asking for Lestera specifically. "There was a--oh. There was a circus. And a...a beautiful woman, in a red coat. She was telling me secrets, showing me how to keep secrets. Show secrets--I...Where's the woman? No, not her...where's the woman--" Molly's heart, the part of him that loved Lestera and Yasha and the rest of the Mighty Nein? It's still there, still feels for all of them. "I get...feelings from you. All of you..." And that to me is such a comfort.

Lastly, I'm still very much struck by the fact that Molly always intended for Mollymauk to be more of a temporary name, one he kept until he was ready to choose another for himself--it feels kind of like Molly was his birth name, and Kingsley is more of a tiefling virtue name. I love the way that King changing his name when he's reborn mirrors Molly's worship of the Moonweaver--and how he incorporated his religion into his tarot cards. There's something nice about how King is still following those tenets of the Mooweaver, even if he doesn't quite realize it. For everything that's changed, there are many intrinsic aspects of Tealeaf that still ring the same.

"Each deck of Moon Oracle cards are different, as each deck evolves with the owner. When a card is weathered or simply no longer speaks to you, replace it with a new card of your own design. Something personal and true. Trust yourself; what is true for you will ring true for others. Some choose to change a card each Lunar cycle. Some decks magically destroy a card when it is replaced with a new one--such decadence!"

One more thing, but--I think that, because we've gotten so little time with King (and haven't really gotten the chance to hear Taliesin really talk about him ;; CR please give us a Kingsley Tealeaf Q and A one day I am begging--) there's so much about him that's open to interpretation or that's left intentionally vague. And the same could be true about Molly's initial soul shard too. "If souls could grow from but a piece..." Even Molly's own goddess is surprised when he's reborn as Kingsley. There's no precedence for this. He's an anomaly, an impossibility...a miracle.

All that just to say, that. I don't think one interpretation of King is inherently better than another, and I'm sure a lot of people aren't happy about my interpretation either. But I understand why King is as decisive a character as he is. He'll always be important to me though--and I'll always see him as being a part of Molly, a shard of a soul that was full of so much love and joy, he got another chance to live again and be reborn. And I'm happy if this little tiefling king is able to bring others the same kind of joy and comfort he brought me.

[elegyofthemoon]

out of curiosity!