#just thinking about akechi again

[phantomrens]

thinking a little too hard about akechi again (shocker i know) and i think the reason there are some people who don’t like him is because they’ve never been in his position.

akechi was almost doomed from the start. his mother committed suicide and his father never gave a shit about him and he was thrown into a system that didn’t want him and didn’t care about him. being a child and being so isolated and never feeling like you have any friends to support you or understand you is terrifying. and yes what akechi did in response to this was extreme, but he didn’t feel like he had a choice. he never wanted to hurt anyone but it was the only way he could get an ounce of attention from a father who didn’t care about him. i think people forget that he is still a victim even if the way he handled his trauma and isolation was wrong.

and then finding the one person who takes the time to understand you and learn you inside out, even if it’s not the person you expected or wanted. akechi wanted shido to understand him but instead found ren, and immediately knew he was something special. their bond was immediate, two sides of the same coin. and akechi never knew how to handle this, no one had never been this nice to him in his life, so he became hot and cold with him. he’d never been so open with someone yet so shut off from someone. he was so attached to him yet wanted to push him away at every opportunity because he was scared of hurting him. he wanted to tell him how much he meant yet ended up telling him he hated him because he didn’t know what else to do. and he started to regret what he did because he realised that he didn’t need to murder people to have someone take notice of him and like him for who he was. and realised if he met ren a few years earlier things would have been so much different for him.

and yes my own life experiences are nowhere near as extreme as akechi’s, but i understand being alone and finally finding someone who understands you and realising you’ve found your soulmate. i don’t condone what akechi did in response but i understand why he did what he did because it was a cry for help from him.

[afterthelambs]

In another (happier) world, I think Muhen would've been Akechi's Sojiro. Akechi would've lived above Jazz Jin just like how Joker lived above Leblanc. Muhen would've taught him how to make the drinks and close up at night. They would've bonded over music. And Akechi would finally have an adult looking after him. Because Muhen does care about him in-canon. He's the only character in the epilogue that mentions Akechi, he notices who Akechi spends time with, and he wishes to see him again.

It's so sad that Akechi assumes nobody cares about him or wants him around and yet this random jazz club owner does. Do you ever think about Muhen seeing Akechi at the Jazz Jin sometime in December, not knowing it would be the last time he ever would

[iwritenarrativesandstuff]

Ok, I think I have a pretty good idea of why a lot of Akechi's dialogue is... like that.

So, even before his confidant truly started, I noticed that he has a real knack for directing the flow of a conversation. This is very fitting for someone who is both a detective and skilled at interviews - when there is a topic and a goal, Akechi is in his element.

All this to say, he's actually kind of controlling when it comes to conversational flow. He probes for information, or turns the conversation around to a particular topic, usually the Phantom Thieves. He manages to take a few of Joker's dialogue options and spin them so they sound mildly incriminating in the context he's placed them in - the only way to truly get around this is to pick answers that feign indifference, and even then, that's more than a bit telling. He's clearly very good at this kind of thing.

But then, we get conversations where either Joker does something he didn't expect, or else he doesn't have a particular goal in mind - and the conversation stutters. In the first instance, Joker does something (a particularly egregious example is putting his glasses on him and fluffing his hair in rank 3) which both leaves him wrong-footed and no longer in perfect control of the situation. He just kind of... freezes, for awhile. It's hilarious. He has no idea how to respond.

He picks up control again in the phone call afterwards, having chosen to play into it, turning this "fooling the crowds" into a kind of game or secret between them. Nice save.

But in instances where there isn't an obvious topic and the goal is somewhat nebulous, for instance, that one Leblanc scene, it becomes pretty apparent that Akechi doesn't have the right "script" to go off of. Again, it's particularly notable in that scene, because I'm fairly sure he didn't have any specific reason to be at Leblanc, other than him looking for a quiet spot now that public opinion has turned on him. And because there isn't anything specific he's digging for, he kind of just ends up throwing things at the wall to see what will stick. Probing for any kind of recognizable reaction that he can jump on and work with, and that just doesn't really happen in this scene.

He references Sae, a woman in a respectable position, to Sojiro, but instead of that netting a welcome, it earns his ire, given Sae's recent actions against him. He then tries to greet Joker, his... rival? friend? enemy? person who at least seems to somewhat enjoy spending time with him? But Joker's responses are somewhat short, and Akechi practically wilts. He tries to commiserate by oversharing. He tries to involve Futaba and reaches out for the only topic of interest he can think of around "young people". He compliments the coffee. He compliments Joker. He tries to invoke that connection between them. None of it is really sticking, nor does it serve as a jumping off point for him to steer the conversation, or even really start one.

So, he basically just ends up having a one-sided chat with himself and then leaves. Hilarious. Also a little sad, if I'm being honest. It's really giving "guy with no friends who only knows how to speak to adults" energy. If there's no specific purpose to the exchange, or he is not in control of its direction, he seems to be kind of out of his depth. He succeeds only in being a little awkward and confusing, more than anything.

[doodleodds]

Me? Uploading a Halloween comic on November 18th, almost four whole-ass weeks late???? Yeah that’s uh. yup. yeah

Thanks for reading! :) <3

[theredcuyo]

I don't care for kisses hugs are the ultimate PDA and just DA in general

Because there's just something so Special about letting someone hold onto you, to feel each others' breath and heartbeat, to be embraced in the warm of a safe place we're while it might not be true, you feel protected from anything

And You are sure you're not alone, not anymore

[bobzora]

school is making me miserable so here's a doodle sheet of akechi truths. hope this helps

[justphantomparty]

doodles for the roleswap thingie

[sketchy--akechi]

the adoptive dads are dating

[bugscreating]

More art. I’ve haven’t drawn for years until recently. So I’m trying to figure it out again. And shading confuses me, so sorry

[gertritude]

Continuing to revisit persona 5. Was examining fanfic stats before and after royal coming out and I still find it insane how much pr that game did for akechi

[nebulaleaf]

i just realized its like. totally not normal to enjoy gore in art n whatnot OOPS. sorry i like seeing images of anime guys cut in half with spaghetti coming out it's fun

[arledrone]

p5 suou au microwaving in my head thinking about shiho's parents' change of heart eventually lead to katsuya and maya taking her in. hmm. oh i could be so unhinged about this. akechi has shit to Say about this and none of the Phantom Thieves are going to enjoy it because they always strive for the ideal outcome and. well. akechi does not. and i think too much peace so suddenly with her parents would just leave Shiho on edge after so long under their scrutiny anyway.

[doodleodds]

Happy Valentines, Akira. Happy Valentines, Asshole.

If you can’t read what Akechi’s secondary inner-dialogue says cause I obscured it too much behind his regular dialogue, here’s a transcription in panel order: Hello, you fucking- Ah- Hello, Akira! Fuck off, why should I tell you- Just a soda- there’s a new flavor.

I don’t want your shitty gift. Oh- haha! You’re so sweet.

I hope I choke. They’re lovely, thank you.

Like hell. Likewise. There’s no way it’s just a coincidence. Still though, it’s a funny coincidence.

[sage-nebula]

Gonna be honest: I am halfway through my second playthrough of P5R and I don't get the Akechi love in the fandom. No hate to anyone who loves him ofc, we all have different tastes, but

[akechi-stole-my-heart]

literally a week ago i was like "oh no i think my obsession over goro is growing stale do i not care about him anymore???" and now i'm going fully fucking insane over him so yeah no i think we're doing fine over here girls

[joshhere911]

Hikikomori by crywank is soo kusuo saiki coded (give it a listen and gove me ur interpretation ,,, im losing my mjnd)