#mana walker

[nimiten]

[frankencanon]

D.Gray-man - Official Art by Hoshino, Katsura

[fruitsjellies]

i tried my hand at animating a fan MV for DGM!

music: syudou- 孤独の宗教 (miyashita yuu cover)

[reeuln]

it was hard

[fylavi]

katsura_5600: 遅れたけどアレン誕🎂

[sammayrin]

I might make a more in depth post about this later, but there’s something about Allen and Mana’s ways of grieving that stick out to me. They’re so similar, but I think there’s one key difference:

Mana forgets, Allen doesn’t.

When confronted with guilt over hurting a loved one (regardless of circumstances) and the grief of losing them, Mana couldn’t stand to look at himself to the point he literally changed his own face. He spent years searching for the very brother he killed. He hated himself so much he became someone else (Adam). It wasn’t it his fault (Adam’s), it was his fault (Mana’s)

Allen is similar, but ends up swinging in the opposite direction. When he’s at his lowest, he couldn’t cope with it either, becoming catatonic (is that the right word?). After he comes out of that state, it’s because he needs to keep a promise that he (Allen) made to Mana. And like Mana he’s acting like a different person! But he’s still Allen and he carries the guilt of turning Mana into an Akuma directly. He can’t change his face. Everything about his appearance is a constant reminder. It was his fault, and he’s going to spend everyday atoning for it.

[darlighl]

took part in the dgm zine servers Secret Lero gifting, and made this for @seijitheclown :)

Had a lot of fun with the prompt as you can see.

Neah didn't spend all day baking with Mana just for these two piranhas to swoop in and have some first!

[dearloonies]

Why I think that Mana was in fact truly an Akuma and not some form of false memory

Dgm is filled with mysteries and paradoxes, and the relationship between Mana and the Earl of Millennium is one of those. On the surface, it is contradictory that Mana could have been turned into an Akuma when he is later revealed to be the Earl. However, the narrative provides subtle hints that may reconcile this paradox. (Bear with me guys)

1. Dual Identities and the Split of the Earl

The Earl of Millennium isn't a singular, static entity, this we already know. Over 52 or so years ago, Adam split himself into two infants in front of Katerina who would adopt and name the infants 'Mana' and 'Nea', raising them as twins. Mana and Nea were both integral parts of the Noah family, and there's this suggestion that Mana might have been a vessel of Adam's memories and thus was the one who became the Earl of Millennium while Nea could not, because he likely lacked something. When Mana lived as Allen’s foster father, he have suppressed/lost his memory of being the Earl due to his grief-stricken mind and deteriorating mental state. This allowed him to exist as a separate individual while being consciously aware of the Earl's existence.

2. The Akuma Creation Mechanism

The Akuma creation process involves a soul being bound to a body after someone calls it back from death. If Mana’s "human side" died and was mourned by Allen, the Akuma process could have targeted only that fragment of Mana’s identity. If the Earl of Millennium that appeared in front of Allen is indeed Mana at that time yet still present for when "Mana" was turned into an Akuma, there's a possibility that the Earl at that time was simply the Golem Suit, Mana himself but his body usurped or, as mentioned above, because the Akuma is Mana's human side.

3. Mana’s actions as an Akuma

The corrupted Mana attacks Allen, since his human persona was overridden by the Akuma’s violent instincts. However, his plea for Allen to "keep walking forward" does suggest that Mana's original personality wasn’t entirely lost. One is free to think of Allen's cursed left eye, which gives him the ability to see the souls of the Akuma, is a punishment but i saw a theory that the eye is the Earl's eye(?? I forgot the exact wording or speculation/theory but I got some of it from: @poppystheories ) although in a sense that Mana's curse serves to warn Allen of the presence of Akuma, of the tortured souls and also of the fact that the Earl's "arms and legs" (or was it "eyes and ears"?) are near. And we know from Alma that Akuma are offshoots of the Earl, which is how he knew that Allen was a Noah.

4. Foreshadowing and Symbolism

Hoshino frequently employs themes of duality and identity in DGM. Mana’s transformation into an Akuma while also being the Earl symbolizes the conflict between the Noah and humanity, as well as the tragic cycle of grief and that drives the story. This paradox could serve as a microcosm of the series’ central conflict, also the duality of having humanity and an inhumane identity can also be seen in this.

In Short: Mana’s transformation into an Akuma despite being the Earl of Millennium is because Allen called for Mana Walker rather than his Noah identity as the Earl of Millennium. Thus why the Akuma Mana could exist at the same time as the Earl's, his curse also have warned and er- "protected"? Allen more than once. It's also undermining if the Akuma summoned by Allen turned out to be some rando soul that the Earl used, since it doesn't make sense. The only plausible reason my mind could come up with is that the Akuma Mana summoned was the human aspect known and remembered by Allen.

[commytator]

work in progress

[arslanaart]

I'm sure someone has done it before me but here it is

[aubadeatelier]

This year 2024, a bunch of people in the DGM fandom gathered for a secret santa event-- or a Secret Lero Gift event rather! I made one for cylinderhat/ms_anya. They're on Twitter! please show their amazing art some love!

I was given the prompt of Mana organizing a play and making everyone participate and this somehow turned into playing a little bit of dress up with the characters. (Yes, that is an interpretation of a 'younger' Cross in a dress. And yes, it was fun to design!)

Happy Holidays everyone and may the year ahead be promising and wonderful!

[chaoticace2005]

D Gray Man family trees are so fun to think about

So... with Allen there's Cross who was his master and Mana who adopted him, but then we have the additional complexity from the last chapter.

Allen is both Past!Allen but also a product of Past!Allen as well as possibly Past!Lavi (given the same hair color) due to Apocryphos’ fuckery.

In the case that this is true, and Allen is partly a product of Past!Lavi, then there would be the Bookman to consider. Bookman likely raised Past!Lavi, which would sort of make him Allen’s grandpa. And with current Lavi… Bookman also raised him which could arguably make him Past!Lavi’s younger brother and Allen’s uncle, or if he’s a product of Past!Lavi make him his pseudo-brother, or if he IS Past!Lavi make him his pseudo-father?

So basically Lavi could arguably be Allen’s pseudo-brother, uncle, or father. So, that’s fun.

Then we get to the Noah side, which is somehow more complicated.

Mana is the Earl, so the Earl is also Allen’s father. But Mana is also a product of the previous Earl (Adam), making the Earl Allen’s grandpa. Nea is Mana’s brother, so Allen’s uncle, and their sharing a body.

We have no idea what’s up with Tyki, if it’s a coincidence he looks like Nea or if he’s a clone or what. But he also was with the Earl for a while (in some translations 10+ years) so the Earl could have helped raise him, making Allen his adoptive brother. But if Tyki somehow a product of Nea that would make Allen his cousin.

And genetically if Tyki is a clone of Nea, the identical twin of Mana, that would also mean he’s genetically similar to Mana, Allen’s adoptive father. Who seems to be genetically similar to Adam, the first Earl.

So Tyki is either Allen’s brother or cousin. In the case that he’s Allen’s cousin, that would make Sheryl and his kids also cousins. But if he’s Allen’s brother… that means Sheryl is sort of also his brother, and Road and Wisely are his niece/nephews and…

Sorry Allen, family dinners are gonna be a shitshow.

In summary-

Past!Allen- Allen, Allen's "producer"

Past!Lavi- Aid in producing Allen (assumption 1)

Bookman- Allen's "grandpa" (1, assumes Past!Lavi was raised by Bookman)

Lavi- Allen's brother (1, assuming he is also a product of Past!Lavi), Allen's uncle (1, he is NOT a product of past!Lavi but was raised by Bookman), Allen's "father" (1, he is an alternate form of Past!Lavi, in which case he may also still be Allen's "brother")

Cross- Master

Apocryphos- Creepy fuck who did stuff

Mana/Earl- Allen's adoptive father

Adam/Earl- Allen's adoptive grandpa

Nea- Allen's uncle and also possessing him

Tyki- Allen's cousin (if he's a product of Nea), brother (assumption 2: if raised by the Earl/Mana), may be a clone of his uncle (who is identical to Allen's adoptive father and grandfather?)

Cheryl- Allen's quasi-brother (2, if Tyki was raised by the Earl), cousin (if Tyki a product of Nea), uncle?

Road and Wisely- Allen's quasi-niece/nephews (2), Allen's cousins

[wingfril]

My last page— an iconic moment for the red & mana arc, for @dgm20thproject

I got too excited about drawing red and mana and especially the apo guy that I completely forgot about cosimov and the ringmaster and the potion and ahhh so much. By the time I realized it was two days from the deadline and I had no will power to do so much drawing in ~1.5 days. This is also the first time I’ve drawn two characters interacting with each other!

I really wanted to have apocryo guy towering over everyone else and for him to look very unsettling. Maybe I succeeded too much..? He’s the one literally pulling the strings. And to contrast that with a very warm but sad hug between red and mana. Road and cross are looking behind both suit and red and mana because they’re both just observing the situation. Red’s arm is to the side because it important but what’s more important is the love that mana has for red 🥹

I should’ve add cosimov holding the viel ToT

This is my favorite piece personally, but I think most people liked page 112 more :’)

Looking at it again in two month, I cannot get over how out of place the apo guy looks, so here’s some remixes and close ups (the canvas is 4.2k by 6.2k pixel lol) because the details got crunched

[fruitsjellies]

mana, look at this!

[reeuln]

Save me! Will you?

---

btw i am currently thinking about opening commissions. what do you think about it?

[poppystheories]

Allen's in serious trouble. He was already in bad shape from everything that's happened so far, considering the hits to the head he's taken and bite Krory took out of him. But just as he can't find the strength to continue fighting...

My first thought was: Allen's Innocence has activated on its own again! But that’s wrong; it doesn't seem to be activated. Something just made Allen's hand move to catch the axe.

A certain someone has awoken!

This isn't an illusion, or a hallucination. This is not in Allen's head. This actually happens, as Eliade sees it. Akuma!Mana is right here.

First there's the Spiral, and then the entity has the D from the logo too, though we don't have a clue as to why. Mana D. Campbell? Something to do with what the D stands for?

You'll also note that the skulls is incomplete, and its right side references the spiral again. Souls can be called back from the Spiral by their bonds with the living, so long as they have an anchor: the upside down star that represents matter prevailing over spirit, which Allen has carved in his face.

The curse evolves right in front of our eyes, then retreats back inside him. Akuma!Mana even talks to him, saying "I'm back". Back from being temporarily destroyed by Road, or is this the first time the consciousness with the curse has awoken at all?

We've seen these black eyes on the Earl and Nea. Allen's star is also now filled in. Was its shape before indicative of some kind of incompleteness? Meant to represent that before, it was empty, but now it is properly housing something?

When Akuma evolve from Level 1 to 2, they become a lot more sentient, with their own thoughts and personalities. Allen's eye is doing something similar; Allen himself even points that out, with the Dark Matter evolving to the next stage within him. Still, the whole-ass consciousness that came with that evolution does not get acknowledged enough.

Allen's thoughts are presented to us like this.

This:

is someone else entirely. There's an entity inside the eye now, with its own separate thoughts.

Allen recognizes that Mana is the one speaking to him, somehow using the Spiral of Life. We see them them standing together within it, at least.

Allen tells Mana the conclusion he's come to: he has finally found a place to belong, a path to walk. The tragic fate of an exorcist is his choice. He appreciates Mana's gift to him (Mana's desire to protect him), but he would've chosen the path regardless, even though it's dangerous.

In this moment, there's no doubt that this "Mana", whatever part of the original he is, knows Allen is his own person, the child with Innocence, not Nea or a dog.

He is also dressed like "Mana Walker", nothing like the youthful Mana D. Campbell's more casual clothes or the beige suits the Earl wears.

All of this makes me think that Akuma!Mana is the "soul" of all the memories from in-between meeting Red and Mana "dying" that the Earl wanted to discard, alongside any inconvenient sentiments like fatherhood that may hold him back.

If that turns out to be true, that might mean this remnant of Mana doesn't even know who Nea is.

Don't get up on the "fall" wording here, the translations vary. I think "sink" might have been a better choice.

Akuma!Mana encourages Allen, and even gives him what could be some advice or a some kind of hint. Did Mana also see the world of black and white, when he was alive? Is that one of the Earl's abilities? The ability to see the souls is leading Allen to some kind of answer; he definitely grasps at least some of that truth when he uses the knowledge to take his body back from Nea much later.

This whole scene is one of the most interesting in DGM, but I really don't think its discussed enough. Again, this is not some symbolic or metaphorical meeting of Allen connecting with his own grief, this very much happens. Eliade witnessed the skull and everything.

Mana is somehow using the curse as an anchor and connecting to Allen from or through the Spiral or something like that. He is conscious and aware and "back". Maybe Road's candle really did do something that allowed him to gain so much consciousness, and even move Allen's body.

Regardless, this will not be the last time this entity within the curse interferes. He doesn't talk much, but he is very much present going forward, and saves Allen on several occasions.

The names of these chapters are "return" and "merge", by the way.

So yeah. Akuma!Mana is in Allen's eye and he's along for the ride. Neat.