#sorry if this sounds preachy i promise this isn't meant to be an attack i just took the opportunity to go on a philosophical rant

[atanx]

I think this poll is missing the point. Firstly, things are not as simple as "x is a good person" and "y is a bad person". With all that Nishiki has done, he's definitely not a good person. But he's not necessarily a bad person either.

And people don't like other people or characters for their good- or badness either, that's not how it works.

Nishiki is a likeable person, as we see in Y0, being loyal and caring for his siblings deeply to the point of risking everything he's ever wanted (success and power) to defend Kiryu. He cares for his siblings and when the world keeps throwing rocks at him and he eventually snaps, it shines a sympathetic light on him.

Part of why Nishiki is my babygirl is 1) his character 2) the potential of what could have been.

Yes, Nishiki made his own decisions. He CHOSE to kill Matsushige, he CHOSE to kill all these other people and inflict suffering, but you can see why. To him, the end would justify the means, and while I don't agree with that philosphy, I still respect him.

Point is, Nishiki got dealt a bad hand, pushed to the point of attempting suicide, and then snapped and did a bunch of horrible stuff. Which, in an AU where he lives, I do think he should have to atone for.

But Nishiki is still a likeable character and his relationship with Kiryu only adds so that.

His suicide at the end of YK1 didn't redeem him. There was no need to him to detonate that bomb, he chose to because he wanted to die. Because now that he's failed at achieving his goal, he can no longer justify his actions.

I'd just like to reiterate that I don't like Nishiki because he's a good or bad person. I like Nishiki because he's Nishiki and because I sympathise with his struggles. His character arc was a string of tragedies that pushed him over the edge and no one ever stopped to give him a hand or to even ask if he's okay.

(We don't talk about YK1's ending, on this blog I pretend that the stupid love plotline doesn't exist.)

There are no good people. In the end, we're all selfish even when doing 'good' actions because we will feel like we're good people and that will make us content. Especially in a series centered around (organised) crime, I think it's ridiculous to expect anyone to be a good person or to demand that of them.