#kunikida analysis

[matchboxartist]

[SPOILERS FOR LIGHT NOVELS] i don't think Kunikida was ever okay

so i was rereading the light novels and... yeah i don't think Kunikida's okay. bear in mind that these were either set before the start of the anime or were set before the end of season 1, so things such as walking alone, cannibalism arc and decay of angels arc had NOT happened yet (stressing this point as much as possible). i've also included roughly when in the BSD timeline the light novels were set and which pages i found the information on.

LN1 (s1e6 and s1e7 - azure messenger arc)

is absolutely terrified of the dark - i'm specifying the dark here instead of ghosts, which he specifically mentions in the anime, because he says he doesn't believe in them. but all the same, he's definitely not (keep telling yourself that, honey) shaking and crying (pages 24 and 25)

even at age twenty is willing to let himself die to save the other hostages - it says in the light novel that he is in fact suffering the effects of the poison gas, and still tries to save them despite Dazai and Sasaki stopping him (page 29)

made sure he still wouldn't have been able to kill Dazai - despite holding Fukuzawa's orders in high regard they would go against his ideals, which is why he never brought the real gun with him (pages 76-78)

the entire ending, pretty much - he had to watch both Sasaki, who he cared about, and Rokuzou, who he raised like his own son, die. he couldn't understand that there was no other way to do things, but since we don't know how his ideal came to be (seriously, Asagiri? nothing at all besides a couple vague suggestions?) we can't exactly push this point much (pages 95-101)

LN3 (set between s1e1 and s1e2 - where the Agency are planning Atsushi's entrance exam)

has what can only be described as a panic attack at the mention of a bomb threat (pages 4 and 5)

starts describing increasingly dark and oddly specific methods of torture to use on Dazai, whilst panicking and trying to attack something that isn't there (pages 16 and 17)

Kunikida and Katai's Brilliant Days (set around s1e6 - first part of azure messenger arc, but by this point Kunikida had not watched Sasaki and Rokuzou die)

sounds terrified at the thought of being called useless (page 5)

anyway that's all i got for now, will update if i think of anything else

[wakanai]

Found a very intriguing analysis

[pe4rl-diver]

i don’t think amenogozen is truly killing people

remember how teruko melted and all that was left was her hd uniform?

the hunting dogs took her in, gave her a home, gave her a real purpose. that uniform represents who she is.

but when kunikida melted, his clothes went with him, and what was left behind instead?

his notebook. his ideals. his ideals represent who he is.

the thing that represents who they are is left behind.

i know that doesn’t really explain anything, but it’s at least enough for me to cause some doubt

[sorcerersandskillusers]

I want to talk about one of the most terrifying and interesting bsd characters who almost no fan remembers.

This character nearly tore down the ADA without ever getting involved herself, yet the entire fandom has ignored her because of her terrible anime adaptation.

Who am I talking about?

Nobuko Sasaki

If you haven't read Dazai Osamu's Entrance Exam, then you probably don't even know who this character is, in the anime she is watered down to the lovesick girlfriend of an actual villain, and you probably dismissed her immediately. But in the light novel, we get to see how dangerous and cunning she really is, to the point she nearly gets the better of Dazai and almost causes the ADA to be shut down. (Fukuzawa says he would have closed the agency if they hadn't caught her)

In terms of intelligence I'd put her on the same level as Mori, just slightly below the super human genius characters i.e. Dazai, Fyodor and Ranpo

The Azure Apostle

For those who don't remember, Sasaki was the Azure Apostle, a mysterious figure who challenged the agency with several horrifying cases, which would all lead to mass casualties if the agency failed to stop them. These were; uncovering an underground organ smuggling operation (which the agency failed to stop and which massively hurt their reputation) stopping a bombing of Yokohama port which could have killed hundreds of people, and preventing a commercial aeroplane from crashing into the city (this was not included in the anime)

Each of the people, who committed these crimes, had no Idea they were being manipulated and thought it was their own idea the whole time. There was no evidence that anyone else had been involved at all, and the agency had no way to connect her to any of the crimes. And she even makes the genius move of framing Dazai, the mysterious new member with suspicious knowledge of the underworld and a hidden past, as the true culprit.

In fact, she only made one mistake, challenging Dazai. If Dazai had been basically anyone else, they would have been cornered and arrested, but since Dazai's mind works on a level even master strategists can't imagine, he was able to turn the tables on her.

But even after Dazai sees through her plans, the ADA still has to act exactly the way she wants them too and stop the plane crash. Even when they know they're being manipulated, they still have to do exactly what she wanted.

Finally, after Dazai and Kunikida confront her and get her to admit to being behind all those crimes, even then they are powerless to stop her.

Even after being involved with so many massive crimes, Sasaki herself hadn't done anything illegal, so within the law the ADA is completely powerless to stop her.

They can't arrest her, and if they try then the agency will be put in even more danger as will many innocent lives. She has completely trapped the ADA, and even Dazai in a choice to follow the law and let her go or take justice into their own hands and prove they will stoop as low as she did.

In the end, there she has them in a perfect deadlock, let her continue her mission, or kill her themselves. Both are bad outcomes for the ADA.

In the end, Dazai has her killed by using a third party (Rokuzo) to shoot her, so the agency can't be blamed for her murder, though this ends her plans it deeply scars Kunikida and shakes his resolve in his ideals.

The trauma from this event still haunts Kunikida to this day, we see that when he is affected by Q's curse, Sasaki is who he sees.

So thats the Azure Apostle, a terrifying master mind who nearly brought down the Armed Detective Agency, but now lets look at the other side of this character.

Nobuko Sasaki Herself

We know several things about Sasaki as a character and her history from the light novel. That she was a brilliant criminal psychologist and was internationally recognised despite being so young

,that she was the ex-lover of the Azure King and the real mastermind behind his plans, and that she had very little motivation of her own.

That's not meant to be an insult to the character, she says herself that she never really had much direction in life, even with her incredible intelligence she never really had anything she wanted to achieve.

But the Azure King was the opposite, he had powerful drive and strong ideals, he wanted to punish criminals who couldn't be touched by the law and when he failed to change the law as a bureaucrat, she offered him an alternative.

A very important thing here is that neither of them were manipulating or forcing the other into this path, as far as we see they genuinely loved each other, each providing something the other couldn't, Sasaki her mind and the Azure King his drive.

When the Azure king died, Sasaki had no path of her own to follow, so she simply kept following his, even though she doesn't seem to have really cared about his cause.

All of this creates a very unique character, you can't say she was driven by revenge, because she wasn't really driven at all. It's more like she was running on momentum, she had chosen a path to follow and could not stop even though there was nothing pushing her down it any more.

She's a perfect antithesis of Kunikida and was the best possible villain a light novel about him could have had.

A man who brings his ideals into reality with his own hands against a woman who uses others to enforce ideals that were never hers to begin with.

Anyway, I made this because Sasaki is criminally underrated in this fandom, If you haven't read "Dazai Osamu's Entrance Exam" I highly recommend it, I've only put a tiny fraction of the amazing story here.

[caffeiiine]

kunikidas ideals have the potential to be self destructive and kunikida can be considered passively suicidal, he is also not the polite and respectful man fanon makes him out to be- *gets shot*

[littencloud9]

i dont think i’ll ever get over how at peace kunikida looks here. i don’t really know how to phrase if but it’s something about how kunikida has always been ready to sacrifice himself, how he has never shied away from death’s door, as if that is the only way he can truly fulfill his ideals

what will kunikida do when he finally achieves it all? i believe he sets this perfect, ridiculously high standard for himself for a sense of purpose, or rather a reason to live. will he still choose to live without it?

there’s something symbolic about how kunikida separates from his notebook when he sacrifices himself. it’s as if he is tethered to living because of his ideals, and when he goes, he leaves behind his notebook, releasing himself at last

jouno once asked if he was relieved to be freed from his self-inflicted burden. at that time, i believe the answer was still ‘no’, for it wasn’t fully his choice. he still had much to do, the agency was messy and running, he couldn’t truly die in peace

this time, even though i don’t believe he’s fully dead, i think kunikida is okay with dying here. because atsushi just saved junichirou! he chose to fight for what’s left instead of ceaselessly grappling for something already fading. it’s something that kunikida has taught him since the very first day—think about what you can do. kunikida himself wasn’t able to save them, but atsushi did, and in him, his ideals will continue to live. atsushi’s actions showed him that even if he dies, they’ll be okay. they’ll be okay without him

i think that’s why this is the most at peace we’ve ever seen kunikida. to know that his teachings have impacted someone and that it wasn’t all for naught. this is relief

[calmlb]

unpopular opinion but i actually see Kouyou as the possible next Boss of the Port Mafia 👀

like ppl talk abt it being Chuuya but imo… Chuuya : Ranpo :: Kouyou : Kunikida

(Chuuya & Ranpo being the “hearts” of their orgs while Kouyou & Kunikida are the “heads”)

[tunamayuuu]

kunikida fans are so funny, you utter the word "ideal" and they start tweaking

[valenteal]

I think Dazai’s relationship with Atsushi is the only truly healthy one he’s ever had…

As much as Atsushi looks up to and feels like he owes Dazai, he doesn’t really put up with his shit. He doesn’t ignore or dismiss Dazai’s self destructive behavior but he also doesn’t judge or coddle him for it. He isn’t afraid to call Dazai out or acknowledge his flaws and he doesn’t listen and obey him blindly, unless he is in an immediately dangerous situation where hesitation could mean death. He doesn’t really let Dazai push him away either, he remains a stable source of comfort, someone Dazai can always rely on to help him.

All of Dazai’s other relationships, even Oda, had toxic aspects, some more than others certainly but still. Dazai can never trust Kunikida to accept him, Dazai’s entire being goes against his ideals no matter how much they may care about each other. Oda was always accepting and he was reliably there when Dazai needed him, but he’d also given up on Dazai to an extent, he didn’t actively try to help him at all until he was dying, he was kind of a passive person in general and even admitted that he wished he’d done more for Dazai. These relationships are not incredibly harmful, only damaging in subtle psychological ways that likely impacted Dazai’s self worth and his ability to feel comfortable or known. But still. Not healthy.

With Chuuya and Mori it’s quite a bit more obvious but I’ll explain how I see it anyway.

Dazai’s relationship with Chuuya, as much as it’s defined by mutual trust and respect, is poisoned by Dazai’s controlling behavior toward Chuuya. There are not one but TWO canonical instances where Dazai orchestrated the loss of Chuuya’s entire support network, during the 15 arc and in Storm Bringer. Neither instance was solely because he wanted Chuuya to himself but it was a motivating factor and the result was the same. Except of course Chuuya didn’t really blame him either time because he was able to deflect the blame onto Mori and Verlaine. But Chuuya isn’t unaware of Dazai’s role in either case, and he doesn’t forget. And Dazai doesn’t want to be so close to Chuuya. He doesn’t want someone to know him so well or to grow an attachment that he thinks will only end in pain, and he pushes Chuuya away violently when he remembers that. The thing that makes it toxic is that he forgets when he spends time with Chuuya because he just genuinely really likes him and enjoys his company. They are both each other’s only peers, in both rank and intellect. As much as they fights it, that means something to them both and it tied them together when Dazai was still in the mafia. And that’s not even touching on the rivalry between them, which isn’t inherently toxic but certainly has the potential to be, especially when paired with everything else.

And now we get to Mori. Dazai’s guardian, doctor, boss, and partner in crime. The man who saved his life more times than they can count. The man who gave him purpose and meaning in his life. Who brought him and Chuuya together. Who was responsible for Oda’s death. Who lied to him, used him, planned to kill him. Who trusted him, confided in him, shared his secrets with him. Their relationship is so complex, and in different circumstances it could have been very healthy. Mori truly cares about Dazai, and I think Dazai cared for Mori in return. It’s impossible to spend so much time with someone, share so much, without growing to care for them at all. And Mori and Dazai are so similar, they naturally understood each other and agreed with one another for a long time. One incident soured their relationship. But it still wasn’t healthy before that. Mori was using Dazai, putting him in a position no child or teenager should be in with little regard for his mental health. He still presumably gave Dazai drugs, though we don’t know what kind I think it safe to assume they weren’t regular antidepressants or anxiety prescriptions. Might have just been weed, but I doubt it. Anyway. Point is, Mori treated Dazai like an adult who was allowed to make their own terrible decisions, but took it a step further and pushed him towards those decisions for his own gain. Yes he cared about Dazai, and no he didn’t force him into anything, but he was irresponsible and manipulative all the same.

Anyway, I am once again writing an analysis on Dazai’s relationships in the middle of the night when I am supposed to be asleep. I have a Problem. Hope my sleep deprivation didn’t affect the quality lol

[wiltq]

The saddest thing about most characters in bsd is their mentality.

Akutagawa for example, Akutagawa is an incredibly tragic character, numerous amounts of traumatic events have happened to him, but still those aren’t the saddest things about him.

Akutagawa isn’t a sad character because he was abused or that he has a lung disease, it’s because of his views. Akutagawa finds no meaning in life, he’s only still alive because he was given a goal and he needs to achieve it. He likely wouldn’t be alive if Dazai didn’t come along.

Almost every character in bsd is suicidal in some way, Chuuya and Kunikida will sacrifice themselves for others sometimes without thinking of a different solution, Akutagawa and Poe don’t see meaning in life unless there’s something for them to look for, Atsushi doesn’t bother in thinking of a different solution and acts on impulsive thinking. Dazai is simply the only one who makes attempts on their life.

All of these stem from world views, Chuuya believes he has to save others as it is what he was made for, Kunikida thinks that others should live more than he should, Akutagawa views life as nothing but hell and finds it pointless to suffer unless he gays to obtain something, Poe believes he doesn’t have a right to live unless he’s the best at what he does, and Atsushi thinks of himself as worthless and doesn’t believe he deserves to live.

These all weren’t because of events that happened to the characters but simply because of how they think.

[rococo-sonata]

i see many people talking about how akutagawa and atsushi's hair are complementary to represent balance and how there is evil in good and good in evil

but i've never saw anybody point out kyusaku's hair or just kunikida's pin on his vest, it could only be aesthetic details but i doubt it is?? i want to hear someone's analysis about this ^_^

[weeby-monster-the-bastard]

KUNIBRAMMMMMMMM

[unicornpopcorn14]

Dazai and Kunikida got the black cat/golden retriever looks but their energies are switched

[sorcerersandskillusers]

I'm almost 100% sure this is how the agency will stop Fukuchi getting One Order

Aya seemed to recognise the flash of One Order. Why? One Order was made during the war and never used, so there’s no way she’s seen it before. But there is one blinding flash that she would have seen, and that she could never forget

AND GUESS WHO IS RIGHT THERE ON THE BATTLE FIELD!

I think Kunikida swapped out One Order for a fake containing a flash bang, Tanizaki is also there and could have used light snow to make them invisible while Fukuzawa distracted Fukuchi. And Fukuchi couldn't stop this by cutting the past, since he would have no way to know where they were at any given moment

But how could they have done it? They are on deaths door, well as Kunikida says here...

I thought it was weird that Yosano hasn’t shown up in the airport so far, she is way to central to the ADA to be left out of what seems to be building to the final conflict, this would be a great way to bring her in and call back to Kunikida saving Aya. The ADA is strongest together, and the biggest mistake Fukuchi (someone who does not have a great track record with subordinates) makes is forgetting that.

I thought for ages that Ranpo’s plan with Poes book was incredibly dumb, it was way to straight forward and he had shown Fukuchi what the books could do beforehand. But if it was just to make Fukuchi think he had thwarted him and let his guard down then it makes perfect sense!

I also think that Fukuzawa trying to convince Fukuchi to kill him and spare the others was not part of the plan, he feels responsible for everything that happened to the agency, and feels like Fukuchi only targeted them to get revenge on him.

So I still think there is a good chance of him potentially dying

Overall I'm really confident about the flashbang thing, since otherwise Aya's line makes no sense. but the rest also fits very well! They could use Annes room to escape afterward and Fukuchi would have no way to follow them, Ranpo is not stupid enough to leave room for error in such an important moment.

IM SO EXCITED TO SEE HOW THIS ENDS

[lotus-pear]

bsd fic authors i understand yalls pain SO well right now why is it so fucking HARD to write dazai. like i have a whole fucking spreadsheet dedicated to tireless analysis i have done on my part so i can accurately characterize him but he is such an unpredictable and morally gray character that it's hard knowing his limits and boundaries and where he draws the line for himself.

[oliveoil3000]

lowkey dislike people saying that chuuya/kunikida doesn't care about dazai or the other way around .

because yeah sure they both are pretty irritated by dazai sometimes , and dazai and chuuya sometimes says they hate each other , but they really don't . as it's shown BOTH chuuya and dazai trust each other with their lives , chuuya trusts dazai with nullifying his corruption , and it's shown by the prison scene where chuuya was going to shoot dazai in the head , he trusted him to stop the bullet . and as for kunikida and dazai , kunikida was written in his notebook to check up on dazai at least twice a day , and for dazai's side when asked who is to be the next president of the agency dazai speaks about how it can't be anyone but kunikida , which shows his respect for him .

i definitely could write a lot more , but i wanted to keep it short