#lol look at monokuma going insane over not knowing whats going on

[whorenerdking]

drv3 au where everything is the same expect during the 5th class trial kokichi and kaito are both in the exisal together just fucking with everyone

[togamicrying]

honey you e got a big storm coming

35, 39, 47, 48, 51, 56, 83 hee hee

MAPLE.

35. A character who should’ve got more character development?

like. sooooo many of them lol. can i say the entire cast of v3? because honest to god that's my answer -- even my faves in v3 leave Something to be desired

beyond that, i actually think that thh and gbd do a really good job of stretching characters to their maximum narrative utility before killing them off, and i do feel like in both games the most narratively flexible ones are the ones who live. i think if i had to say anyone from those games it'd probably be leon or sayaka just because the way the free time events work in trigger happy havoc work mean they get like three events and then they die and you never get to know more lmfaoo (but even then i still don't think their characters are Lacking in the way that the v3 cast is for me. sorry for being a v3 hater lol)

39. Smartest murder plan?

komaeda's, obviously LMFAO. god every time i replay sdr2 chapter 5 im struck by it all over again. like they literally had to guess!! even with nanami revealing herself! even then! they still had to be like well. hope his luck actually worked out! king popped off and the entire trial is SO good for advancing the plot and tying off hinata's dynamics with BOTH komaeda and nanami! the moment of sickening clarity when hinata realizes that he DOES understand how komaeda's brain works, and knows what his intentions really were? nanami and hinata's final goodbye? uuuugh sdr2 chapter 5 i love youuuuu.

rest under the cut bc Long.

47. A headcanon you have about a character?

*pushes two million unfinished drafts of Togami Headcanons to the side* i am going to talk about komaru. i think she's a butch lesbian and every time she's depicted as feminine in fanart my soul dies a little even though butch komaru exists solely in my head. i also think she's really sporty, but i've talked about that elsewhere hehe.

ok i'll talk about togami a little bit. it's 100% projection but i think he's agender. not in a way where he like. actively thinks about it -- even at Full Self-Actualization i'm not sure if i ever see him actually realizing it and actively thinking about himself in that way -- but i just dont think he as any particular connection to being a *man* outside of how it plays into his attraction to other men/his family's expectations of producing heirs. like he just kind of is how he is and doesn't feel compelled to make any particular effort to present as masculine. i could make a joke here about his gender just being Togami, but genuinely i do think that rings true. he's not a boy or a girl but a secret third thing (byakuya togami™️) does this make sense. like. to anyone (<- projecting and insane) whatever. i think he would look nice in a floor length skirt.

48. Favourite OST?

i... usually play the games on silent :X legit i know like 3 songs including mr monokumas lesson. just tried to remember what beautiful days sounded like and the wii sports theme is what my brain supplied (<- embarrassed)

i WILL say that i think drv3 has the best opening track of any of the games. its so jazzy and fun hehe

51. Character you thought you were gonna dislike but loved in the end?

mmm. hard to say, honestly? it's been so many years since i formed first impressions of the thh and gbd casts that i kind of dont even remember what i first thought of them? i have a lot of v3 characters who i thought i would like and wound up feeling kind of ehh about, but that's not the question lol

i think, Big Terrible Writing Choice aside, i was really surprised by how much i wound up actually *liking* korekiyo? like okay OBVIOUSLY they took his character in a terrible direction but before that when he's just like, a weird little freak? that ruled lol

in terms of characters that i've had full turnarounds in opinion over the course of 2012-2022? i remember not particularly liking/caring about kirigiri, sayaka, fukawa, souda, or gundam when i first read the playthroughs of their games, and now they're some of my favorites hehe. but that's less about me going *into* the games thinking i wouldnt like them -- because in both cases i went in completely blind -- and more about them growing on me like a fungus over successive playthroughs lol

56. Best free time events?

ok. take this with a grain of salt because i'm stalled out in my sdr2 replay rn so i haven't redone the free time events for that game in awhile/haven't done any v3 ftes besides maki's and ouma's because im a hater.

i think kirigiri has really good fte's. i love that she gets a little sillay in them and how subtle her progression from "why are you talking to me" to "i care deeply about you" is. i also really appreciate how the game cutting her off as an option for free time at certain points serves to make that progression feel really natural with the game's actual plot. love you miss kirigiri.

mondo's are really great as well, he's such a fun guy to interact with and him talking about wanting to be a carpenter and loving his stupid tiny dog and being too nervous to ask girls out all add such levity to his character and make it SO sad when he dies. like damn that biker gang leader trapped in a murder game really is just like. some guy in high school :-( i also loved that they brought him wanting to be a carpenter back in dr:s! made my heart soar uuuuugh i love you mondo, sorry i never ever talk about you

komaeda gets an honorable mention for his botched love confession. buddy you did So Bad.

83. Least favourite chapter?

[staring myself down in the mirror] i will not hate on v3 this time i will not hate on v3 this time i will not hate on--

chapter 4 of v3 was soooo boring guys. i hated the virtual world and idk if it was just me but the controls for it were just. nightmarish. whatever lets talk about the games i do like.

i also agree with @ovidiomedes about thh's c3 kind of dragging. it's one of my favorite trials, but the actual chapter is. really slow lol. i think part of that is due to the anticipation of chapters 4-6 which are some of my all time favorites across all three games, but i think it has larger narrative problems that contribute to that dragging feeling ://

[lailarain]

WARNING: SPOILERS FOR DANGANRONPA 3

This is a continuation of this post.

I'm watching Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope's Peak High School Future Arc for the first time.

Episode 6:

Makoto, you fucking genius. Then again, can't Monokuma just make that a new rule if he wants to🤨

LMAO MONACA THINKING SHE WAS CAUGHT🤣🤣🤣

BYAKUYA! I missed u🥰

WAIT WHY THE FUCK IS HE BRITISH ALL OF A SUDDEN💀

Wait Geko Gahara is what now😀

KOMARU AND TOKO YES I MISSED YOUUUU

YES OUR FAVORITE ULTRA DESPAIR LESBIANS ARE BACK AT IT AGAIN😎😎😎😎

HAJIME YES MY NON-SHAPE-KNOWING BRO

Wait....Izuru🤨?

Episode 7:

Monaca, Junko killed HERSELF. Makoto didn't do shit🤨

THE TITLE IS ULTRA DESPAIR GIRLS YEAH BABY

THE WARRIORS OF HOPE ARE ALIVE AND HELPING OUT THE UDGs YES

It's so nostalgic to watch my favorite dynamic duo fight monokumas with the megaphone again🥺🥺🥺

The way she says "neutralizing demonic teddy bears" like it's normal😭

"Unless you like it rough😏"

Okay wtf is up with Toko's voice

Toko's fantasies are WAY more awkward when animated. Whatever they pay Byakuya's VA clearly isn't enough

IS THAT ACTUALLY HOW SHE SEES KOMARU LMAOOOO

BYAKUYA SENSED HER BEING WEIRD LMAOOO

Can Monaca just stfu🙄

HOLY FUCK YES THE LESBIANS ARE HOLDING HANDS I REPEAT THE LESBIANS ARE HOLDING HANDS

"Don't you see? I was HOPEING to defeat you. I R O N Y."

YES NAGITO

"Leave me alone. G O O G L E I T."

Who's gonna tell Monaca that she'll automatically suffocate the moment she breaks the atmosphere?

Istg those two are SO gay for each other

Komaru and Makoto are such wholesome siblings😭

KYOKO BETTER NOT BE THE ONE TO DIE I SWEAR I-

Episode 8:

Wait did he just say the name I think he said😀

I don't even know what to say about this episode title💀

NO MAKOTO SWEETIE IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT😭

Yo why tf does the blonde bitch look like that🤨

NO THAT MOTHER EFFER BETTER GET AWAY FROM KYOKO😤

Did that peach-haired asshole just-

HOLY FUCK POTHEAD GUY NO

POTHEAD GUY KNEW KYOKO AND HER DAD

What the fuck was in that chocolate😀

The bitch killed the love of her life? That's fucked up, man.

Kyoko, we're in a pandemic. Don't lick saliva, he could've had COVID🙄

Kyoko tricked them? Man, what a badass.

Episode 9:

Wait, so if that wasn't an actual exit, does that mean she killed her love for no reason?

The building is underwater? This game keeps on coming up with insane scenarios, I swear

Okay, blonde bitch has officially LOST HIS MARBLES.

Makoto please don't blame yourself🥺🥺🥺

DID THIS BLONDE BITCH JUST-

Wait....SO SHE DIDN'T EVEN HAVE TO KILL HIM?

AND HE STILL KISSED HER WTF

Aoi and Makoto's friendship is so cute🥰

Kyoko's gonna die, isn't she?😟

KYOKO NO SHE SACRIFICED HERSELF KNOWING SHE WAS GONNA DIE AGGGGGGGHHHHHHH

BLONDE BITCH SHUT THE FUCK UP HE JUST LOST KYOKO THIS ISN'T ABOUT HOPE

(No joke I am genuinely about to cry now. She better not be dead)

Episode 10:

Awwww I remember this is when she rescued him🥺

Kyoko really is with Atua now😔😇

"She died protecting me from myself" that line HURT, man

Awww poor Makoto is crying🥺🥺

Blonde bitch looking like he be POSSESSED or some shit

Wait what's that on Kyoko's body

how DARE this blonde ass motherfucker make Makoto bleed. Breathing the same oxygen as him was rude enough🙄

Bullying a girl Makoto? Not cool, Hajime Blonde Bitch

IT HIT HIM IN THE BACK OF THE NECK LMAOOO

Did he.....is Makoto....

Ohhhh He's keeping Makoto alive because he'll be trapped. For a second, I thought this was a redemption arc lol😂

Istg this guy is SO aggressive for no reason🙄✋

THE FACT THAT MAKOTO ISN'T ATTACKING YOU AND TRYING TO TALK IT OUT WHILE YOU BEAT HIM UP IS LITERAL PROOF THAT HE IS ON THE SIDE OF HOPE YOU FUCKING DUMBASS🤦‍♀️

WAIT SO EVERYBODY IS AN ATTACKER!?!?

Okay that's it this blonde bitch and me bouta throw hands for punching Naegi👊

Okay I know this scene is sentimental and all but how the fuck is Naegi still standing😀

Okay I wasn't expecting blonde bitch to cry this is actually pretty sad

WAIT SO WHO'S THE ATTACKER?!?!?

Episode 11:

I was wondering how they reacted to the outside world so this is cool

Wait why is ponytail girl smiling evilly😀

Suicide? Idk sounds unlikely to me🤔

Makoto is such a marder it's actually insane

MAKOTO PLEASE DON'T DIE PLEASE DON'T DIE PLEASE DON'T DIE PLEASE DON'T DIE PLEASE DON'T DIE PLEASE DON'T DIE PLEASE DON'T DIE

Okay who in the literal fuck is the attacker tho

What the fuck is that video and where is Makoto I'm so confused rn

ARE THOSE THE VICTIMS?!?!?

WAIT WHAT'S HAPPENING TO MAKOTO WAS HE TRIGGERED WHAT'S GOING ON

NAEGI HOLY FUCK DON'T DO IT

WHAT'S WRONG WITH HIS EYES HE LOOKS LIKE NAGITO WHEN HE'S RANTING ABOUT HOPE WHAT THE FUCK

BUFF GUY IS ALIVE HOLY SHITBALLS

WAIT SO IT REALLY WAS SUICIDE?!?!?

NO BUFF DUDE DON'T GIVE IN TO DESPAIR STAY ALIVE

YES BUFF DUDE STAY ALIVE AND SAVE THEM DONT DIE

YES BLONDE BITCH GO SAFE YOUR BRO AND TELL HIM HOW YOU FEEL

NOOOOOOOOOO BUFF BROOOOOOOO

Wait IS TENGAN ALIVE?!?!?!?

(sorry about all the capitals)

Episode 12:

FINAL EPISODE BABY LET'S GO

Wait so is the video that forced the reserve course students to commit suicide and the one that made Makoto go batshit crazy one in the same?

Heh heh spiral eyes go brrr

Shy guy why are you freaking out what did you do

"You need to know the truth. I've liked anime for as long as I can remember" wow what a shock that the ultimate animator likes animation😀

"You're the exception to the rule and you damn well know it" damn shy guy

wait shy guy what are you doing

SHY GUY NO-

WAIT HE COULDN'T USE HIS TALENT

Did he just say eliminate😀

Shy guy what in the ever-loving fuck are you doing

BLONDE BITCH YES

Okay this is such an elaborate plot twist wtf

AWWW BLONDE BITCH🥺🥺🥺🥺

ASAHINA NO

SHY GUY DON'T YOU DARE PRESS YES

Thank god there's a timer😅

TOKO KOMARU NOOOOOO

WAIT MONACA TOO? SHE'S ALIVE!?!?!?!?

This isn't looking too good for Makoto and Blonde Bitch

WAIT JUNKO IS ALIVE?!?!?!?!?!

JUNKO CALLED OLD GUY OLD AND CRUSTY LMAOOO

Why do I like Junko so much

"Get over it, slut. We're dead😋"

WAIT THAT'S IT!??!?! IT'S OVER?!?!? WHAT HAPPENED?

Am I supposed to watch Despair Arc Now?

Okay I think it's over.

Next, it's time for the only reason I decided to watch the anime: to watch the despair arc for more NAGITO.

[kirbyss44]

My Top Ten Favorite Danganronpa Characters

So I’ve watched a playthough of all three Danganronpa games. Trigger Happy Havoc, Goodbye Despair and Killing Harmony. I can officially say I love this series and is obsessed with it.

Here’s a list of all the 10 characters that I like the most. Befrore we start I’m going to go over two rules.

This is based on their appearance in the main games. No supplementary material like spinoffs or the anime will be taken account. Also anything that can be gleamed from the character in free time or school mode will also not be taken into account.

I’m not going to adding you-know-who to the list because really, I only like him for shallow reasons and there are way more characters that are objectively better than him.

Spoilers. (duh)

10.  Ultimate Imposter (Byakuya Togami)

This the Ultimate Impostor, not Byakuya, so there’s no bias.

I don’t know much about the real Ultimate Imposer so this based on what I’ve seen in Goodbye Despair.

Impostor had the same smatassness as Byakuya but he was also determined to keep everyone alive. Which makes his death in the first case really sad, he tried so hard to prevent on murder that in the end, he was one that got murdered.

Also he gets called “ham hands” by Hiyoko and instead of retorting, he actually kinda rolls with. That’s kinda interesting.

9.  Gundham Tanaka

Oh my god. Gundham was just buckets of fun.

“FOUR DARK DAVAS OF DESTRUCTION! SAND-D, JUM-P, MAGA-Z, CHUM-P!” Oh man! I love the way this guy emotes. 

Fun fact: I was convinced Gundham wound’t die because he had cute hamsters. I mean, his hamsters didn’t die regardless I think.

Gundham puts his scarf up when he’s embarrassed. That’s just adorable.

8. Nagito Komaeda

I just recently got into the Danganronpa so I’m not familiar with all the jokes and meme. With that in mind, I don’t really understand Nagito’s infamous meme status and how he’s comparable to Sans. I can kinda get it from seeing him in Goodbye Despair but I don’t fully understand.

The reason why he’s on the list is because I strangely find this pathetic sad-sack to be endearing. He tries SO HARD to be a stepping stone for the other characters and his self deprecation and constant tearing himself down was so fun to watch.

And when Nagito learns about the truth of the other ultimate, he gets even better. I don’t know but watching this pitiful, insane, individual try to act all arrogant is so funny to me.

His role in the overall narrative of Danganronpa was pretty interesting too. In the first game, hope and despair were black and white, good and evil. In Goodbye Despair, it was cool to see a little more nuance added and it’s shown that hope isn’t objectively good. The most extreme end of hope can be just as devastating as despair.

7. Genocide Jack/Jill

Ok, so it Genocide Jack or Genocide Jill? In Trigger Happy Havoc, The serial killer is Genocide Jack but she refers herself as Jill. But for the rest er series, it’s only Genocide Jack? WHAT IS IT?

Oh well. Genocide Jill was quite the surprise, taking a character I was indifferent to, Toko Fukawa, and turned her into something beautiful and crazy. Genocide Jack is super expressive, and wild, and funny, and I love her. The one sided relationship between her Byakuya was pretty entertaining even if it got a bit too gross.

Also that tongue tho.

6.  Kokichi Oma

This guy, the freaking guy.

I love him. I don’t care what you say, he’s a good boy.

The way he emotes is just fantastic.

I think what makes me sympathetic towards Kokichi was his motive video. Turns out he isn’t some evil overlord, he just pulls harmless pranks with his friends. That made me feel really bad for him. Even if he was piece of shit.

The 5th case made me fall in love with him but really, I took a shine on him throughout the entire game. His insults are something out Glee but they’re still entertaining because they’re directed to the worst people like Miu. Fucking Miu.

Also his fake death was great. 

Yeah, I know he’s a lying basted but look at him!

HE LOOKS SO SAD. AND WHEN HE’S SAD! I’M SAD! AAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH

5.  Junko Enoshima

This was a mind blowing reveal. Junko Enoshima, the character who died at the start and is quickly forgotten was the mastermind of the killing game. She fits the role of total despair perfectly, it’s so unsettling to see this girl talk about destroying the world and torturing 14 innocent teenagers while also being excited about doing it.

Her multiple personalities were also a treat. The fact that she changes her personally because she’s bored of her current one is just amazing. The regal one is my favorite.

That giant Junko at the end of Goodbye Despair... WOW.

But I will admit they kinda overused her. Seeing her in Goodbye Despair was a kinda neat but in Killing Harmony... Yeah. I was so ready get disappointed if Junko was the main villain a THIRD TIME. It she was, she would’t even be on the list. But while I’m glad she wasn’t, the teasing and the fake reveal still kinda soured Killing Despair’s ending for me.

4. Sakura Ogami

Overtime throughout Trigger Happy Havoc, my admiration for Sakura grew exponentially over time. She was definitely was the most mature of the entire cast of high schoolers, determined to keep focus on the goal ahead and despite her outward appearance, she was very kind.

Her friendship with Hina was great to see even if it made Hina try to kill everyone.

Sakura is the type of person where you can talk to her about personal issues and she’d try to help.

It’s so depressing how she was treated by everyone when she was nothing but nice, even if she was the traitor and planned to kill someone. 

3. Kaito Momota

Spoiler alert. The last three on this list will be the best friend group from Killing Harmony. I couldn’t just pick one, they are all just amazing.

At first, Kaito seems like your typical filler character that gets killed off in early cases but boy was I wrong. His kind, supportive, and determined attitude to believe in his friends and survive the killing game was wonderful.

Kaito was the one to approach Maki and try to start a friendship, even after learning of her true origins. That just shows what a great guy he is.

His peak was undoubtedly the 5th case.

Kaito contracting that disease and fearing he not survive and get into space was heartbreaking. But that last “fuck you” to Monokuma during his execution was awesome.

2. Shuichi Saihara

Hands down, best Danganronpa protagonist ever. Makoto was ok, kinda unoriginal and bland design but was nice seeing him in Goodbye Despair and Hajime, actually he has an ever blander design LOL, but he makes up for with good writing and performance.

But Shuichi blows those two out of the water. Admittedly I was disappointed that Kaede was killed off and the protagonist role was switched to him because a female protagonist would have been amazing. But Shuichi proves himself to be something great.

First, him being the Ultimate Detective made a lot sense when he was figuring out these complex cases.

Second. his eternal struggle of figuring out the truth vs the truth harming others was so interesting to me.

Third, his relationship with Maki and Kaito was so fun and satisfying to watch and his brief friendship with Kaede was so sweet but sad to see end. It’s adorable that Shuichi accepts the role of sidekick to Kaito despite him and Maki knowing full well Kaito barely knows anything.

1. Maki Harukawa

GIVE. MAKI. ROLL. A. HUG.

If Maki is upset, give her a hug. If Maki is happy, give her a hug. If Maki is threatening to kill you, give her a hug.

What started out as an cold, intimidating girl, became something amazing when  Kokichi dropped this bombshell.

The Ultimate Assassin.

The name alone sends chills down your spine. A person like that someone you’d want to put as many doors, walls and continents between. But in a killing game that might be a bit difficult. Which is why Kaito tries get him, Maki and Shuichi to all form a blossoming friendship.

Maki’s con disaster backstory was really cute.

Her origins as the big sister of an orphanage and how despite the fact she’s a ruthless killer, kids still love her, that was really cute.

And how she talks about assassinations as if it were a mundane job was interesting.

Look. The point is, Maki is best girl and my favorite character in all of Danganronpa.

...

...

...

JUST KIDDING! NUMBER ONE CHARACTER GOES TO BYAKUYA TOGAMI!!!

BEST BOY! NO DOUBT!

HE DID NOTHING WRONG EXCEPT ALL THINGS HE DID THAT WERE WRONG.

FUCKING EAT IT BITCH!

[trashy-fujoshi-blog]

Hey Ho.

So this was a request on Amino, by ⚜Kami~Anon⚜#ATUACULT

I like the TPL so I posted it alongside this c; IF YOU’D LIKE TO REQUEST ON AMINO, THE BLOG TO DO SO ON IS HERE >> Here.

I reference the V3 cast, but I promise it’s in a spoiler free way! 

ANYWAY:

Where Chiaki is a ghost, post Despair Arc, and cannot pass on, due to ‘Unfinished Business,’ so she just kinda follows Hinata around and stuff... lol?  

Ship: Hinata/Chiaki

(Distant sobs as my Komahina-loving heart shatters because I betrayed the gay.)

UNFINISHED BUSINESS

Chiaki didn’t wait long for Hinata.

A part of her wanted him back alongside her, to simply sit beside him once more, the calmest of atmospheres his presence caused and the fact the two could get along with minimal effort. Chiaki had wanted him to return to her side, as the boy he had been, not the one he had become, the person he thought he had to be, just so he wasn’t the odd one out around them.

Chiaki didn’t need him to change. Hinata was perfect how he had been, he had been a little aloof, and probably needed more confidence in himself, but he was human, he had flaws and he had talents. Maybe not at a Hope’s Peak Level, but he was human and that was nice, because it meant he was a breath of fresh air.

All Chiaki had was games, and sometimes it felt a bit suffocating, so having Hinata around had been nice. When he’d vanished, she’d been worried and confused. Had she done something wrong? Something to insult him? Was it that she was boring? Or that she always played games? Or had someone said something to him.

Chiaki never found out the answer as such, but in those last few moments, where she could feel her pain numbing, and the blood blocking her eyes, vision blurring from tears, she knew the boy in front of her was Hinata. Perhaps not the Hinata she knew, but deep down, past the piercing red eyes that stared at her, she could still feel him in there.

There was no saving her. That she knew. It was nice to see him though, before the end, knowing that he was alive. Maybe not okay, but alive, he’d live on, and that was enough for her.

When she’d woken in what she could vaguely call the Afterlife, she’d been slightly bewildered. She was quite the logical thinker, so she hadn’t really believed in anything after death. It was more like being a ghost if she was honest. Chiaki figured out fairly quickly what life after death entailed. Upon death, a door arrived, and said door would let them pass on. She’d seen it happen plenty after her death, as the world fell into mass despair.

Chiaki’s door never came though.

And the only reason Chiaki could think of, as to why it hadn’t come, was that there was surely something she still had to do.

As the Ultimate Gamer, Chiaki’s life was mostly just games, but her thoughts instantly went to Hinata at the thoughts of ‘unfinished business.’ It made sense. She had too many unanswered questions about the boy. Why had he left so suddenly, and who was he now if not the Hinata Hajime she had grown so fond of the company of. It took a while before she found him, because the world was in chaos.

She found him eventually though, and was horrified at who this boy was. When he wasn’t in the presence of Junko Enoshima, he was out aimlessly wondering, causing despair in his wake. This wasn’t Hinata. She refused to believe it.

When the boy was finally called Izuru Kamukura by the blonde, Chiaki could put a name to the monster Junko and Hope’s Peak had created. This wasn’t Hinata. She was sure.

Makoto Naegi was a name Chiaki had heard once or twice, from Komaeda. He was the Ultimate Luckster in the year below her own class, and Komaeda felt unsure about the boy, who seemed to have more potential than him as an Ultimate. It was only once or twice that this name had come up, but Chiaki hadn’t expected the boy to seek out Izuru, and especially not in what remained of Hope’s Peak.

The exchange between the two was watched only by Chiaki, who remained invisible, but by Izuru’s side. She wouldn’t lose this boy, and she would stay by him, until the day Hinata returned.

The talk was short, and somehow Makoto convinced the taller boy to cooperate, in the Lucksters plan, to aid the Remnants of Despair and revert them to their original selves. Chiaki’s heart soared at that, because she couldn’t help the guilt she’d felt. Her death had aided Junko in using her friends to destroy the world. The 77th class didn’t want such a thing deep down, Chiaki believed in them, and if there was any way to undo what Junko had done, Chiaki would wholeheartedly support it�� if she was alive.

With Izuru’s help, eventually all of the 77th class were gathered, and shipped out to some remote island. It hurt Chiaki to see them in such a state, some were restrained heavily, and others looked so blank and empty. The only two who looked any part sane, was Izuru and Komaeda. Komaeda, if anything, remained his normal self, maybe just a tad more intense. Izuru looked calm, and not worried in the slightest about what was to come.

It took a lot of help from Izuru to securely get all 15 students into the pods, but Chiaki was glad to see there may be salvation for the friends she had loved dearly.

Everything was relayed onto Monitors, and Makoto and two of his old classmates watched the entire thing. Chiaki watched too, because she knew this may be her chance.

Sure enough, the first person she saw on the monitors was not Izuru Kamukura. It was Hinata, her Hinata, slightly covered by Komaeda’s hunched over form. It was a little weird to see herself there too, but from what conversation she heard from the three overlooking the program, it was an AI formed from the remnants of the 77th classes memories, constructed into a form that all of them combined wanted. They all wanted to see her again? After everything? Even Hinata?

It touched her.

It was nice to see Hinata get along with everyone too, to meet the friends she had died to try and save, to see the boy slowly get along with everyone, to feel like he belonged somewhere. It was nice to see Hinata happy for once, a smile Chiaki had barely seen from the boy in the entire time they’d known one another.

When it went terribly wrong, and the murders and executions of her friends begun, even if it was all just part of the Simulation, Chiaki wished ghosts had the ability to cry. One by one, her friends perished to each other, friend killing friend, and horrible executions that no one deserved. It hurt that they didn’t remember each other, that they didn’t realise they were hurting those closest to them, and Chiaki wished there was a way to stop it, just like Makoto and his friends, as they tried in vain to stop the error planted in the system by an unknown source.

From watching them slowly starving in the Strawberry House, to her own Execution, Chiaki felt torn, her emotions a mess, but her belief in Hinata never wavering. Hinata would come out of this, not Izuru, and that was all she needed.

When it was revealed Izuru himself had been the reason for Monokuma’s appearance, and Hinata had wholeheartedly denied it, pained at the thought he himself had been responsible for all their torment, Chiaki wanted to give the poor boy a hug, and never let go, tell him he wasn’t to blame at all, but she couldn’t. When Hinata needed someone the most, to comfort him, he had no one.

To make things even worse, according to the ‘Junko’ in the Simulation, it wouldn’t even be Hinata that woke up, and Chiaki wanted to hit something, because she’d finally gotten to see Hinata as himself once more, the world wouldn’t be cruel enough to make him vanish into nothingness once more, right?

Chiaki could only hope, because hope could overcome anything, right?

Her hope wasn’t misplaced either, sure when the boy awoke, he needed a haircut, and a change of clothes, but finally Hinata was back in reality, with heterochromatic eyes, and tiny bit of Izuru’s personality that slipped forward sometimes, but he was back, and he had made it his mission to make sure everyone else woke up too. Chiaki was proud of him.

She was even prouder, as Hinata slowly but surely began to awaken everyone from the program, Komaeda being the last up. When they ventured off, to save Makoto, and the world, it touched her heart even more. These were the people she knew so well, and it was so nice to see them all back.

After the events at Future Foundation, the world finally started to recover, it took a step back in the right direction, and Makoto Naegi even began to rebuild Hope’s Peak, the first class of the new school were certainly exciting characters too, the 16 of them ranging from a Pianist to an Astronaut, but all of them were wacky and cheerful enough that Chiaki could see the Hope’s Peak she had loved slowly return to the world, as a much more understanding and fair place. As to be expected of the boy who she knew was now actually considered Ultimate Hope.

Hinata and the 77th class helped rid the world of nearly all the lingering traces of despair, and balance slowly returned to the world. After clearing their names, Hinata even went on to be a Teacher at the rebuilt school. It was nice to see, and a part of Chiaki hoped Hinata would live a long and happy life, after all the shit he’d had to endure in the last ten years of his life. Another part of Chiaki didn’t want to wait any longer, didn’t want to wait who knows how long, just to be able to tell him she was proud, so proud of him.

Chiaki didn’t wait long for Hinata.

Shortly after he’d started working at Hope’s Peak, there was an attack on the school, from a small group still under Despair’s influence. They were weak, uncoordinated and possibly the last remnants living from Junko’s ideals. They’d only really attempted to shoot a few people, and then give their lives in some insane bomb plot, to destroy the rebuilt Hope. Hinata had intervened, his students threatened, and if there was anything he remembered about some of the Hope’s Peak Staff he’d encountered, people like Chisa and Kizakura, it was that the teachers adored their students and would do anything to protect them.

That’s the example Hinata followed, taking the bullets for the short red haired Magician, and the boy Chiaki knew lied more times than he blinked, and two more bullets while staggering forward to tackle one of the crazed gunmen to the floor.

It ended quickly, because Hinata could still tap into the array of talents he had been given, and taking down a couple of gunmen didn’t prove too hard when you weren’t caring for your own wellbeing anymore, and had the talents of several hundreds of Hope’s Peak Alumni. Chiaki wasn’t sure what feeling was more overpowering, the respect she had for Hinata, or the horrified feeling deep in her gut, at the wounds Hinata had gained in places she knew he’d not likely recover from.

It was quite touching to see, if Chiaki was honest. She wanted to cry but ghosts lacked that ability, but the students Hinata had tried so hard to protect, to guide in the right direction, like he himself had longed for his own Hope’s Peak Experience to go, were all safe thanks to him. Not only that, but while two dashed off for help, the rest stayed by him. There was plenty of tears, as two of the larger males restrained the unconscious attackers, one of the girls trying desperately to stop the blood flow. It wasn’t enough, but the effort they went to try and save their teacher moved Chiaki.

It didn’t take long, before the lack of blood became to much of a strain, and Hinata Hajime followed in suit of her own death, about 4 years beforehand, dying knowing he had died trying to save those he felt closest to.

It was weird to see, but Chiaki was used to it by now, the process in which one's soul became a ghost, and this was one soul she hoped wouldn’t instantly be dragged through a door, without her getting the chance to talk to him.

And thankfully her wish came true.

“Ch-Chiaki?”

Chiaki could only nod, because the words she had spent so long wanting to say wouldn’t come out of her mouth.

“I.. I’m so sorry.” That was Hinata’s first words to her, and a part of Chiaki wanted to slap him, and the other part to hold him and never let him go.

“Don’t blame yourself.” Chiaki finally got her words out, noticing the shake of Hinata’s shoulders, fists clenched, and eyes squeezed shut. He couldn’t cry, but Chiaki liked to guess this was a ghosts equivalent.

“But- I could have-”

“You couldn’t. I’m just glad you found yourself once more.”

“Y-You were watching?”

Chiaki nodded and Hinata’s eyes widened.

“The entire time.”

Hinata just covered his face with his hands, and Chiaki gave a small smile.

“Don’t beat yourself up over it. You did so well, Hinata, as yourself! You never needed to change.” Chiaki mumbled, resting a translucent hand on the taller boys shoulder. It was a nice surprise that ghosts could feel one another, and Chiaki was grateful she’d finally be able to tug the boy into a comforting hug, a hug way long overdue.

Hinata ended up tentatively wrapping his own arms around her, after she initiated a comforting hug, and Chiaki could feel him slowly relax, the scene of reality still playing around them, the horrified sounds of distress from the students he had died for, and for the staff that arrived just a bit too late.

“I’m so proud of you, Hinata.”

That was how Hinata found out that alongside crying, ghosts couldn’t blush either, which was good, because he’d be lit up like a Christmas tree by now. Praise the lord for the lack of blood in a ghost.

It was in that tight yet comforting embrace, that Hinata finally noticed the door that had appeared, two initials engraved where the house number should be.

“Wh..What’s that?” Hinata asked and Chiaki turned to look, with a small smile.

“It’s for us.”

“Us?”

“Yep.”

Hinata looked hesitant, but Chiaki took him by the hand, gentle pulling him over to the door with her.

“We can do this, together Hinata.”

Hinata nodded. He had no idea what waited for them, but he trusted Chiaki more than anyone, and if she was by his side, he felt invincible.

“Together.” Hinata nodded in response, his own hand giving Chiaki’s a reassuring squeeze, before the Gamer turned the door handle, assaulted by the bright white light that the other side of the door emitted.

And so, hand in hand, reunited at last, both took their first step, through the archway, and into the unknown, completely unaware as to what to expect, but it didn’t matter to the two, because they had each other.

As long as Hinata could feel Chiaki reassuringly holding onto his hand, he could take on anything. As long as Chiaki could feel Hinata squeezing back, beside her once more, she could take on anything.

They’d do this together, because that’s what Chiaki had waited to do all this time.

Her unfinished business hadn’t been to get answers to all her questions.

Her unfinished business was simply to be there for Hinata Hajime, the boy who secretly stole her heart.

[murasaki-murasame]

Danganronpa V3 Liveblog Part 8 [Chapter 2 - Trial Success]

Not gonna lie, this chapter kinda kicked my ass, and it’s basically entirely my fault, lol.

Thoughts under the cut.

Just to get it out the way, I honestly came disturbingly close to failing the trial a second time. Mostly because it took me a weirdly long time to figure out which weak point to use the Alibis for Yesterday truth bullet on, and then to remember that the concentration feature exists after several failed attempts at shooting it. Oh and then the sword battle section happened and I started panicking all over again because I didn’t think we’d have anything else after that before the Argument Armament, and something about the logic of the argument made it take me a few attempts to figure out which truth bullet to use. I also kinda suck at the actual gameplay of the sword battle segments. And THEN I lost like over half my goddamn health on the Argument Armament itself because I continue to be awful at rhythm games. My next priority skill-wise will almost certainly be getting that other one that makes those parts a bit easier.

So yeah this trial was a complete goddamn nightmare, but I can only really blame myself for it. I feel kinda dumb in hindsight for having expected it to be easy and predictable.

I really do wonder if anyone else had as much trouble with this as I did. I can at least see how Kirumi makes sense as a culprit, and how if you had a correct idea of how the murder happened, she’d be very immediately suspicious. So I guess at least SOME people must have guessed it right away. But I still wound up getting stuck suspecting Kaito, and then frantically suspecting basically everyone aside from Kirumi.

I especially feel like a bit of an idiot for not thinking about the piece of black fabric. I guess I just assumed it was some random material used to tie the ropes together.

Before I talk about the motive and whatnot, I should talk a bit about the trial in general since I didn’t really do so last time.

One of the more immediately surprising things was that Angie started immediately suspecting and questioning Himiko. I knew already that she’s pretty callous in her own way, but I didn’t expect her to start openly questioning someone who she just befriended and recruited into her religion.

Tenko’s still growing on me more and more as a character. She’s pretty flawed and short-sighted, but it’s always interesting to see characters deal with stress and desperation. I hope she gets a chance to develop further as a character.

I still don’t really like Kokichi, but he undeniably works great as a Komaeda-esque character who stirs shit up. I don’t really know how to word my opinions on him. I think his personality just grates on me much more than someone like Komaeda. Also his expressions are somehow getting more creepy and off-putting as time goes on. I do like that he’s not a super-competent genius manipulator, though. The only person who doesn’t immediately ignore him is Gonta, really, and a lot of his schemes get torn down at some point or another.

Oh, and that reminds me, I’m surprised that Keebo’s audio recording feature never came up again in this chapter, but it makes sense, since nothing audio-related happened in the case. I can only imagine that it’ll be used at some point later in a case, though.

I’m also still really happy that Kaito was innocent. I feel pretty bad about suspecting him for so long. He’s still a really neat character. I like how straight-forward and honest he is about everything. He’s working really nicely as a foil to Shuichi, with how he knows how to be blunt and somewhat harsh if he needs to motivate Shuichi to overcome his emotional hang-ups and insecurities. And of course he’s still a bit of an idiot who’s not very good at actual detective work and mystery-solving, so he needs Shuichi to help him. And I feel like Shuichi’s one of the relatively few characters who responds to Kaito’s overall personality in a positive way, and who tries to stay on his side and work with him. It’s a nice dynamic.

As for the murder case as a whole, it’s almost insane how complicated it is compared to it’s relatively simple end result. It’s no wonder that it was the Ultimate Maid who was able to nearly perfectly pull it off. I knew in advance that I had no real clue exactly how the mechanism of getting Ryoma killed and through the gym window worked, but I guess I had most of the gist of it down. It was just specific details of it that I couldn’t work out.

Part of me was expecting my guess about Kokichi actually being the Ultimate Prisoner to play a part in the trial, but I guess it didn’t. It makes sense that they wouldn’t just get rid of his character this early. I’m not discarding that theory, though. It may not have played into the trial, but I still think that he is indeed the Ultimate Prisoner, and that Ryoma’s bathroom was actually Kokichi��s lab.

I’m slightly surprised that this chapter actually managed to give me even more trouble than the first one did, but I like it. It’s fun to play a murder mystery game that feels genuinely challenging.

Onto the topic of Kirumi’s motive, I actually quite like it. It’s pretty fitting for how over-the-top these cases can be in this series. I can see why other people might think it’s too much, but I really loved the idea that she had been enlisted to become the de facto prime minister to help improve the country. It raised a pretty interesting ethical conundrum, with how everyone began to feel guilty about sentencing her to death because it might mean dooming an entire country’s worth of people. I wonder if someone could actually volunteer to be executed in someone else’s place. I’m guessing not.

Like with the last chapter, I appreciate that Kirumi’s motives were completely understandable, and she still felt like the same person afterward. It was really hard not to feel bad for her. It would have been nice if she could have escaped, but obviously she was never going to be able to. That one CG of her screaming while running was really well done.

Her execution was also pretty difficult to watch. I mean, all of them are, but the ones that involve people being slowly injured, and having to actively move through a damaging environment, are always uncomfortable to watch. My only real issue was that it was kind of unfortunate that the signs that random shadow people were holding weren’t redrawn to be in English, so I can only guess at what they meant. I guess they were meant to represent protestors who were demanding stuff from Kirumi as the de facto prime minister.

It was also interesting how the execution used the concept of that one story I’ve heard before about a sinner in Hell being given a string leading up to Heaven to climb, that snaps before they get to the top. It makes a lot of sense that it’d reference a story all about Heaven and Hell, given that this chapter’s title is literally A Thin Line Divides Heaven and Hell, and we also had a few different vague references to the idea of the school being a sort of Hell. Which is getting me even more curious about the idea that maybe it literally is a form of Hell.

I should also probably say that even though I get why some people might find the idea of the motive videos to be a bit forced, especially the idea that Kirumi was the only one to get her own video, but the basic concept has been around since the very beginning of the series, and I think this chapter did a good job of twisting the formula a bit. It was also pretty obvious that Monokuma and the Monokubs probably designed it specifically so that Kirumi would get her own video and be driven to murder. So I think it’s totally fine.

Though on the note of Monokuma and the Monokubs, I’m intrigued by the way that they don’t all seem to be on the same page, and might be messing with the game in their own ways. I’m not sure what to make of it.

Obviously the whole ‘unprecedented crisis’ is foreshadowing for later plot reveals. I’m curious to see what’s up with all that. It’s reminding me a little of the whole scenario of Junko overtaking the world with despair. I guess we’ll learn about it later. It makes me kinda curious about why Kirumi would have elected to lose her memories like Shuichi seemingly did, if she was so devoted to her country.

I stopped playing immediately into chapter three, but I still saw a brief flash of some sort of news report showing meteors raining down, so . . . maybe that’s part of it. I have no real clue.

Anyway, on the topic of Ryoma, I probably should have expected that he was complicit in the murder and allowed himself to die. I think I kinda idly suspected it, but I never thought about it deeply since it wasn’t important to figuring out who the culprit was. But it makes sense. It’s both depressing and kinda admirable that he allowed himself to die in order to potentially save the entire country. And I like how it showed that Kirumi didn’t simply take him by surprise, but instead she explained her motive to him and gave him time to agree to it before attacking him. Not that she would have backed down even if she needed to fight him over it, though. There’s also the detail of how even in spite of all the emphasis placed on Ryoma’s apathy about life, he still resisted death in his final moments, as shown by the struggle he put up in the bathroom. I don’t think Kirumi was lying or anything about him genuinely exposing himself to her attack, I just think that instincts took over for him when he was actually facing imminent death. It adds an interesting element to this chapter’s whole discussion of the idea of ‘having a reason to live’.

I also like that Ryoma was actually hoping he could find a reason to live by looking at his motive video. It’s interesting that he wasn’t so apathetic that he wouldn’t seek a chance to live if he could discover one. Which isn’t that much of a surprise, I guess, since he said before that he was jealous of how everyone else had reasons to live. It’s also really depressing to think that he must have been genuinely curious to see who Monokuma would say is his most important person. Though we now know that there was literally nobody. I think that Monokuma went out of his way to give him a ‘blank motive’ in order to set him up as a victim, though. Ryoma probably technically had SOMETHING that could have been put there. We even saw in this chapter earlier that Kaito has a lot of respect for him from his old tennis club days, and that he was annoyed at him because he wanted him to regain his will to live. So there’s at least one person who cared for Ryoma in his own way.

Then there’s the implication of him having blackmailed Maki about potentially exposing her identity as the Ultimate Assassin. That was neat. Even though Ryoma’s more or less a good person, he’s still someone with an experience in crime, and he’s not above things like this. I was gonna say that I’m not sure how Ryoma or Kokichi knew her real identity, but come to think of it, Ryoma had her motive video, and Kokichi had also presumably seen them all. He was probably lying about having ‘just checked who had which motive video without having watched them’. So her motive video probably just made it clear that she was the Ultimate Assassin, and since they’re the only people other than her who would have watched her video, it makes sense that they both knew about it. Now I’m wondering exactly what her motive video showed. I wonder if we’ll ever see it. I’m kinda surprised, but also happy, that the motive videos actually played a pretty huge part in this overall case, in multiple ways.

I was wondering why Maki was being so defensive about her room, and why she was so tight-lipped during the trial, but now it makes sense. I kinda hope we can see her lab now that the truth’s been exposed.

It’s also pretty interesting that this already opens up the idea of someone outright lying about their talent, which makes me even more confident in thinking that Kokichi’s probably also lying about his talent. I guess she was probably setting up a false identity for herself in order to remain as unknown and unsuspected as possible. I wonder how she’ll act now that everyone knows her big secret.

Come to think of it, I remember people thinking that she looked more like a ninja or an assassin when we first learned about her, so I guess this twist makes sense. I’d forgotten about it though, so I didn’t see this coming.

I’m very curious to see how the story continues now. It feels like it’d be pretty difficult to motivate anyone to kill after how these two chapters went.

In a metagame-y sense, I’m kinda expecting to get a female victim and a male killer soon, after two cases of a male victim and a female killer. That’s about the extent of my prediction, though. I’m not sure who exactly I’m expecting to see die.

Before I forget, I’m aware that I apparently missed one or two ‘backdoor’ options in the trial, but I can’t really imagine where they could have been. I’d have to basically retry the entire trial, which I have no real intention of doing anytime soon. I feel like, in general, it’d be much easier to find those options in hindsight, when you know who the killer is.

Overall, I thought this was a really good chapter, even if I feel a bit ashamed about having lost right near the end of it the first time around. I really wasn’t expecting it to feel equally as difficult, if not MORE difficult, than case one, but it really did.