#the only thing i can’t figure out is why akira didn’t kill the protag.:.

[funfactory-moved]

i’ve spent all day playing famicom detective agency the missing heir nd... these games are fun but a little predictable 😭

but still fun bc i can’t do anything else bc i need to know if i’m RIGHT

[magioftheseas]

Palliate

For @i-demand-a-hug and @badthingshappenbingo

Prompt: Biting taken from here.

Rating: T+

Warnings: Vampirism with all the implications you’d get from a story still rated T+.

Notes: This is a continuation for Pariah, written for 2/2 also known as the in-game day Akechi and Protag-kun confirmed their love in Persona 5 Royal. But also with Vampire!Akira because lmao why not. However, it’s kinda angsty. Have fun.

***Alternate Ao3 Link***

Commission? Donate?

“It’s not a problem, right?” At one point, Akechi had asked that with a perfect and plastic smile. Head tilted, eyes crinkled, a smile emphasized with only soft curves. Not a flash of teeth—until now. “Right, Kurusu?”

The raw Akechi Goro was still such a sight to behold. He wondered if he ever doubted that for a moment. He supposed he should at least be glad for the scarf wrapped tightly around the neck. Somehow, his teeth still ached.

The words before had been like poison.

“Can you stay a bit?”

He knew from the second he asked that he made a mistake. And Akechi’s reaction—

The Detective Prince was perfect and plastic. Always offering a smile. Always assuming an act of innocence even when tucking his hair back to expose his throat. The image of charm, graceful on the line between friendly and intimate. It had only been those eyes that indicated his danger. A soft and sweet front—but there was no hiding that sharp and intelligent stare.

A stare which is now just a glare, lips pulled into a sneer.

“This sentimentality isn’t going to cause problems, right?” Any sweetness that could be gleaned was dripping with sarcasm. Ah, has Akechi always had sharp canines? Maybe that was just projection. “I can trust you to cooperate, yes?”

And, then.

“It’s not a problem, right? Right, Kurusu?”

Of course it’s a problem, he wants to scream. It’s been a problem since the day you shook my hand.

It’s been a problem since the day you came back with a godforsaken cocky fucking smirk.

I’ve been stuck on you like a parasite from the start.

“You didn’t answer the question,” is what he says instead.

“It’s a stupid question,” is Akechi’s blunt response. “What do you expect to get from continuing this?”

“I...” You speak so detachedly. “It’s the last chance I’ll get to taste you.”

With just the right stare of his own, Akechi stills. It’s not like a deer in headlights, not yet, but Akechi does stiffen when Akira strides towards him.

“You knew,” he said. “From the start. And you were curious. You always pressed so close, acting so innocent. If we were both normal humans, that’d be one thing. Maybe I could brush it aside.”

“Even if you were a human, you wouldn’t be normal,” Akechi said, clipped. “But, you’re not much of a vampire, either, are you?”

He’s not. But he can still practically taste the memory of Akechi’s thumb pressed against his fangs. Akechi’s grabby little hands. On his teeth, on his back, on his shoulder. Akechi, who knew and still acted like that.

Akira grips the damn scarf. Akechi doesn’t stop him, but he doesn’t rip it away. The fabric gives under his grip, but he doubts Akechi will care about a few extra wrinkles in the folds.

“You’ve never even bitten a human before,” Akechi said next, and those sharp blood-red eyes bore into him. Reflected back is an unwavering shadow. “I didn’t need to confirm it, although the lack of bite marks on any of your merry gang of thieves did strengthen my conviction. They always showed their wrists and necks without a hint of restraint—how comfortable they were around you.” Akechi’s long lashes lower, and there’s still no falter. “You look at me differently. Full of surprises, aren’t you.”

His thumb hooks into the scarf.

“Let’s not talk about that.”

With that, he pulls, pulls, pulls—

--

Until Akechi is standing in the attic, staring him down. The scarf has unraveled a little, but the fabric sticks to his throat like a flimsy shield. He has thin bedsheets that would provide more of a defense.

Haah.

“I would have been fine just admiring from afar,” he finds himself saying. “But then you had to go and get yourself killed.”

“And now I’m back,” Akechi says, too unimpressed to muster up a smile, no matter how sardonic. “Don’t you feel indulged?”

This is only the start of that.

He leads Akechi to the bed, seating him, keeping him upright. Tugging at that scarf until, finally, Akechi’s pale neck was exposed.

At the laundromat, I wanted nothing more than to pull you close and sink my teeth in. Just to see if you were really alive, I thought to myself, because I couldn’t believe my ears which picked up not only your voice but your heartbeat.

And what a frantic heartbeat it had been! Even now, it’s beating fast in spite of Akechi Goro’s stoicism.

When fighting you, your heart raced so much that I worried it would come beating out of your chest.

Akechi sighed, tilting his head. His eyes closed, and resignation washes over his features.

His heart is still so agitated.

So much so that Akechi does flinch when a hand comes around the side of his neck.

It’s human to fear death, Akira thought. With his other hand, he plucked off his glasses to set them aside.

“I did find it strange,” Akechi commented suddenly. “Did Maruki not know about your condition?”

“It’s not something I go around telling people.” Not a very good attempt at lightening up the mood. Come on, Akechi, you’re better than this. “Very few people figure it out on their own, too.”

Akechi’s lips pull into the straight, thin line.

On impulse, Akira leans in close to kiss the corner of them. That gets Akechi to jump.

“What,” he growls. “The hell—”

Akechi freezes completely when a fang nicks his jaw. Locked in place. Just like that. His heart pounds against his ribcage, not calming even as Akira rubs his sternum with his thumb.

“Afraid?” he asks. Even if he meant to be teasing, his breath comes out in a chill against the other’s ear. “I don’t want to hurt you. Even if I should.”

Traitor. Killer. Tease. You’re as dangerous to others as you are to yourself.

“I don’t want to hurt you,” he repeats. “Which makes desiring you a bit of a problem.”

Akechi does blink.

“Goro,” Akira sighs against him, and the spell is broken.

Akechi’s gloved fingers weave through his hair and yank without mercy. And Akechi is the one to bite him hard on the neck, hard enough to draw blood.

“Ah,” Akira mumbles blandly.

His teeth are sorta sharp.

And they dig in so fiercely, too. Grinding in frustration.

How human.

“Oh, Goro,” he murmurs, holding him close, pressing him closer. He feels the tension in Akechi Goro’s shoulders get tighter, precarious like a rubber band holding the blades together. “Please, please stay with me.”

Akechi bites down harder than before. When he pulls back with that defiant glare, his lips are speckled with the same shade of crimson as his eyes. The wound stings, blood beading along the surface. Wiping that away with his thumb, he smears it against Akechi’s mouth. Strokes his puffy lower lip, and kisses him.

Gently. Mouth closed, even when Akechi nips at him.

“You spineless piece of shit,” Akechi breathed harshly, huffing. “What the actual fuck are you doing?” His fists ball up in his coat. “Are you going to bite me or what?!”

He pulls at Akira’s hair, his stare narrowed.

“Well?”

Akira runs his fingers through the other’s hair in return. The soft caramel strands don’t even get tangled. Akechi is still so particular about his appearance regardless of the world’s state. Akira thinks about pulling, but he can’t bring himself to do it.

“Well?” Akechi repeats, hissing. “What are you doing, Kurusu?”

“How did my blood taste?” he finds himself asking.

“It tasted like shit! What’s your point?!”

Shit, huh? Yeah. Vampire blood isn’t appetizing at all. Appetizing—

Then, something happened.

Akechi bit his own lower lip. Like before, he bit down hard. Hard enough to draw blood, which dribbles down his chin. Immediately, Akira leans in to catch it on his tongue.

Fuck.

He laps it up and tastes Akechi’s vicious smirk with it.

“Goro, you...” Cutting himself off so that his lips can close around that hole in Akechi’s lip. Akechi shudders against him, but he’s still grinning wildly, amused to the point of a soft puff of laugh scraping its way out between his teeth. “God.” Akira wanted to laugh, too. “I hate you.”

“Kurusu—”

Akira nuzzles into his neck and doesn’t wait another second before sinking in his teeth.

“Kurusu,” Akechi pleads, voice strangled. “Kurusu...”

His pulse is fluttering like a trapped bird. Fitting, isn’t it? For all that aggression, Akechi Goro is still vulnerable like any other human, like any other living creature at another’s mercy. And he tastes so great, warm with a hint of spice.

“Don’t you feel indulged?” Akechi had asked then, and he only whines now. He really had no idea—did he even imagine? “A... Akira...”

Warm and alive—there wasn’t a doubt about it, especially with the way Akechi squirmed when a hand slipped under his coat—

“Enough,” Akechi gasped out. “T-That’s enough, Akira.”

--

He applies a bandage to the bitemark but tells Akechi that it shouldn’t take long to heal.

“It’s not a replacement for proper treatment, but my saliva does have healing qualities,” he says, handing Akechi an opened water bottle. “Don’t move around too much...”

“I know the standard procedure for dealing with blood loss,” Akechi snapped. He takes a swing before Akira can stop him. Even if he chokes a little and swallows it down wrong, there’s not much to do besides let him be.

Akechi’s glove has been rolled up a little. Akira’s fingers twitch when he notices.

“With that, all is settled?” Akechi asks, lips wet with his grip on the bottle tilted. “Are you satisfied?”

Fuck it. Just what does this guy expect when he asks?

“We’re not taking the offer,” he says as he takes that hand with the unruly glove. Rather than smoothing it down, he traces the vein of his wrist. Once, twice, each stroke harder against the skin. Until he leans down and kisses that pulse. The flutter is enough to make his lips tingle. “That should be enough.”

“You’re not the type to go behind someone’s back, for better and worse,” Akechi sighed, and he turns away rather than pulling his hand back. “I can trust you. Don’t disappoint me.”

Akira’s grip on his hand tightened. He thinks of biting both of Akechi’s wrists, to let blood drip from them like severed puppet strings.

“I wouldn’t dream of it.”

Akechi didn’t look at him. He refused, only giving a polite nod.

[sombrz]

Please imagine me just delivering these on a platter to ur sickbed: akira, minako, ochako, iida, (tries to think of a marvel comic person) uhh flash

thank you, thank you. who needs cough medicine when you have shipping.

(edit: i’m 99% healthy. it took me that long to finish this mess.)

AKIRA: okay, i think i remember telling you how i was pretty chill with akira ships. like, if done right, i don’t mind any of them, except for futaba (because they’re siblings, fu). besides our collective issues with atlus and their inability to not be weird when it comes to the girls. also, i feel like what makes the p5 kids feel the most like actual friends is also what makes it harder for me to fully invest in any individual dynamic - they all meet throughout the course of the game (even ann and ryuji aren’t close friends beforehand, and there’s definitely no drama between them) and they help each other heal and get past their abusers so that they can have a fresh start and feel free to be normal teenagers. so there’s little to actually grab onto when searching for….anything layered? like, compared to the p3 kids who have so much inner turmoil that they take out on each other - or the p4 kids, who can’t be completely truthful to themselves or each other. the p5 kids do have baggage, but not with each other. which makes for healthier bonds but also more boring ship dynamics lmao. all very cute and fluffy, but not a lot of substance. 

point is, i don’t really have much to say? like akira/yusuke is fun and silly. akira is eccentric and cool enough to go along with yusuke’s antics, and even though p5 always gives us an option to be mean, i can’t imagine akira ACTUALLY thinking that kind of stuff? like, he’s a weirdo too so he just. gets it. yusuke basically takes akira out on dates during his social link. they lend themselves well to model/artist headcanons and aus. they don’t realize they’re dating until a few months into their relationship - one of the others had to point it out and yusuke’s like ‘oh? is that what this is??’ and akira’s like ‘thank god’ bc he was too awkward to bring it up himself. futaba makes fun of them a lot.

akira and ryuji are cute too. i’ve gotten a bit fond of the boner squad (br)ot3 too. just ann/ryuji/akira being dumbasses. or ann/shiho+ryuji/akira being dumbasses while going on double dates. there’s also not really much to it - just the usual persona teen boy ‘no-homo-bromo-but-it’s-actually-homo’ fare. ryuji’s less possessive and repressed about it than yosuke is, though. which is good (ie more healthy) bc it’s more like akira found himself a human puppy jock boyfriend, and it’s cute! ryuji instantly decided he liked akira and started planning their secret handshake and selecting their cool delinquent hangout spot. and akira just smiles through it all bc he’s charmed. morgana gives akira the most judgemental stare ever when he finds out though. 

i like akira/haru bc she’s who i dated in my playthrough. they’re soft and sweet and i think a slow relationship built on patience is good for both of them. and they have the most obvious phantom thief couple aesthetic, tbh. they also have the ‘demure wallflower by day, trigger-happy hellion by night’ thing going on. i love the idea of them opening up a coffee place together (their futures align! this is the SO that sojiro approves the fastest lbr!) and akira being haru’s trophy husband (let this man be someone’s trophy husband).

akira/goro’s the one with the most depth lmao as our boy akechi gets the short end of the stick re: what everyone else got - to defeat their abuser and come out the other side a new and improved person. INSTEAD, it’s all about deep-rooted envy and what-ifs. when i replayed p5 for my friend’s benefit, she kept being like ‘wow ok akechi’s got….the most obvious crush on mc. why is he always here? why does he talk like that? omg?’ and my sentiments exactly. AKIRA’S thoughts exactly, tbh, bc what else is he supposed to get out of some of the things that come out of goro’s mouth. but it’s like….he DOES like akira, but he also resents his existence because akira gets to have real bonds and happiness despite the crappy hand dealt to him. and their own bond is based on careful lies and observing each other for any cracks in their armour. but there’s that undertone of wishing that they’d met in other circumstances, where they COULD have a normal relationship and get to know each other in a way that’s not ‘we levelled up our relationship when you shot me in the face with the intent of murdering me and framing me for my own death but really, i tricked you and you didn’t actually kill me & now we can defeat you and your dad! ha! checkmate!!’ but i love that that’s actually part of the dynamic so lmao.

MINAKO: you know, despite minako and minato being considerably different (both their external personality/appearances > emo boy/preppy girl  - and the changes in their dialogue choices > again, minako is a lot more confrontational and energetic), i pretty much just ship them with the same people?

the only exceptions of this being i ship minako with shinjiro and yukari but can’t really fathom either of them with minato. (it’s bc yukari is a lesbian and shinji does not deal well with sullen people. like, what’s he supposed to do? pat minato on the back?) 

i will also warn that it’s been….forever since p3 so i’m kinda fuzzy on details. 

anywhoooooo, AIGIS. main protag ship is aigis. idc which protag, but i must give atlus my once-in-a-blue-moon compliment because they kept aigis’ social link and her blatantly romantic feelings for the protag the exact same in portable. so minako/aigis is just as canon as minato/aigis, buahaha. anyway. robot girlfriend who starts off being somehow programmed to feel protective/indebted to minako but then starts developing real genuine feelings as she explores her humanity, minako wanting to show aigis how to enjoy herself while putting the emphasis on aigis’ feelings and opinions but also being so amazed and grateful for aigis’ love and attention. also, the difference between protags here being that while minato is silently intimate, minako is loudly loving. the utter tragedy that is aigis not being able to save the person she cares about, the imagery of minako’s head in her lap while they wait for the end is….A Lot. i think in a lot of tragic robot/human romance fiction, the robot gives up its life for their human partner so i like the reverse here - with aigis having to experience the emotions of loss and depression and overcoming that because she truly loved mina(k/t)o and now they’re gone. it’s heavy! it’s a lot! i just remembered i never finished the p3 movies! i should do that!

there’s ryouji. again, don’t care which protag - just like the idea of our mc flirting with death. literally flirting with the avatar of death. the double sides of the ship: goofy teenage flirting vs warning of impending doom. ryouji just being like ‘yeah just kill me it’s for the best i’m actually here to destroy the world or w/e’ to his gf (or bf) out of nowhere on christmas eve lmao. it’s fun, idk.

yukari! honestly, taking out all the forced hetero ship teasing made me ship her with minako more lmao their social link was just better! no offense! and their personalities mesh better too - i feel like yukari would get way too frustrated with a closed-off partner and i love concept of: the huffy takes-no-shits girl being soft for her cheerful outgoing gf. also, i spent way too long imagining the answer with minako - the aigis/minako/yukari would be heartwrenching and we deserve it. 

shinjiro! can i start off by saying it’s a good thing shinji was in p3, which did the best job of showing the characters apart from the protagonist and main plot (prob bc on the other hand, it did the worst job with social links seeing as none of the guys had them) - i feel like in p4 or p5, we wouldn’t have gotten to know him nearly as well before he died. anyway, his social link with minako is really sweet and a romance between them hits my ‘tsundere/flustered boy not knowing how to deal with affection from pretty girl he respects a lot’ checkpoints. and i need to talk about this: i feel like the decision to make him comatose instead of dead if you romance him was a double edged sword disguised as a blessing lol. because he was still DYING before he got shot, and also he wakes up just in time to find out his girlfriend died! fhdhfgdjd! 

                      —————————————————————– 

uraraka……okay: i ship her with tsuyu, bakugou, iida, mina and toga. 

oh, here’s a story. before i got into bnha, i stumbled on a bunch of deku/uraraka amvs and they were so precious. like, really, deku and ochako are the cutest goddamn things in this series. seeing them side by side makes me want to channel my inner grandmother and pinch their cheeks. it was, like, the only thing i knew about bnha at first, so i just figured i’d end up shipping it whenever i eventually got to watching it bc i’m easy to please like that. but ha. nah. it’s sad bc i love their dynamic when it’s focusing on their actual friendship but then the actual romantic hints made me want to roll my eyes so hard. it’s so BORING if you take it at face-value, and i’m so boggled by it if you look deeper bc i don’t understand what hori’s planning here. it’s irritating bc even uraraka admits that her borderline obsession (and that’s what it is, since it’s compared to TOGA’S CRUSHES…y’know, our resident yandere serial killer?) is detrimental to her growth as a hero. and i know it’s partially bc she’s a teenager but its blown so out of proportion. it’s a crush!! relax!!! like, compare to deku’s crush on uraraka where after he got over his initial anxiety of talking to girls, he - at most - just blushes a little when she stands too close or dresses extra-cute. every other time, he treats her no differently than any of his other friends. but then uraraka’s crush is treated like. this weirdly twisted admiration she doesn’t even WANT. she relates to a villain’s desire to imitate and become the person they like, she gets ridiculously jealous every time he looks at another girl, she keeps fucking up because she focuses too much on him and how to be like him. it’s weird. idk. typical fiction tropes lead me to believe i’m supposed to root for them to get together (and bnha will end with an epilogue where they have a child named after a food) but the story i’m being told makes me want to root for uraraka to succeed at getting over those feelings! idfk!!!

also, i have to laugh at the way horikoshi decided to tell us and uraraka herself that these feelings were romantic. by having aoyama just be like ‘oh you were thinking what would izuku midoriya do? could it be you love him?’ when we see multiple male friends of deku’s (iida and todo, in particular - hell, even aoyama himself) have similar WWMD thoughts and he, in turn, instantly imitates bakugou whenever he hits a roadblock (taking inspiration from to downright copying bakugou’s moves, trash talking his opponents, etc). am i supposed to see only uraraka’s feelings as romantic? why? because she’s a girl and deku’s a guy?

i like it better when iida’s involved. both iida and uraraka are so sweet and enthusiastic to counter deku’s more nervous personality, and they’re a very good trio! i tend to prefer them as a brot3 but as i said, i do ship iida/uraraka seperately! i don’t have any big reasons for it except i enjoy how contagiously energetic and silly they are around each other? dramatic too - remember the ‘REACH FOR MY HAND’ scene when all the UA students were freaking out? it’s just a simple best friend dynamic like what they have with deku but there’s no weird one-sided jealousy/competitiveness involved (luckily, iida got over it after the stain arc haha). they don’t end up feeling bad or unworthy of the praise they get from the other - which is great, because they’re very complimentary towards each other! iida is so understanding (his immediate reaction to uraraka being self-conscious about her reason for pursuing heroism) & uraraka is usually the one who vocalizes how cool and talented iida is (while also giggling her ass off whenever he gets all extra-dramatic)! tbh, curse their aborted moment after iida’s match with mei! let them praise each other!!! i like that their seats are so close to each other too - i wonder how horikoshi decided on the seating plan. but uraraka’s tendency to shake iida by the shoulders is precious & i bet you he breaks his staunch ‘follow-every-rule’ mentality when it comes to uraraka writing him little notes in class. also, maybe uraraka just deserves a sweet+rich boyfriend. it’s that easy. lmao.

i already talked about bakugou/uraraka. it’s great, dripping with potential, needs more canon interaction. i only trust a portion of its fanbase to do them properly. but this is the case for almost every big ship. (where’s that one fandom meme where one of the questions was like ‘what do you hate seeing in fanfic/content for them’ bc NOW THAT I’M ACTUALLY READING FANFIC AGAIN, LEMME TELL YOU. BEING A MULTISHIPPER IS HARD.)

tsuyu and uraraka are just genuinely a good match? i like the contrast between uraraka - who is emotional and upbeat - and tsuyu - who is calm and rational. but they’re both very perceptive? their first night at the dorms is a good indicator of how their dynamic works. the others are quick to accept that tsuyu doesn’t want to play along with the room competition, but uraraka both provides the excuse and lingers behind with worry. she probably had to convince tsuyu that it was okay for her to vocalize her feelings to the bakugou rescue squad, and volunteered to be with her during said confrontation. compare to the forest where tsuyu sweetly and calmly offers uraraka her hand because she sees her friend is scared, without actually needing to say anything else. they’re sweethearts. i absolutely adore them. oh, and i dig their earth/sky + pink/green aesthetic clash.

uraraka and mina are based on two things: 1) they’re always hugging and hanging out in official art/sketches (mina even has a selfie of them hanging on her wall of pics in her room) so i can only assume they’re super-close gal pals that should kiss, 2) i love shipping silly idiots together and it’s hard to find ships like this that are f/f but these two fit that specific chaotic mold!!! and 3) AESTHETIC DREAM!!! PINK SPACE GIRLS!!!! DO I NEED ANY OTHER REASONS? NO. NO, I DO NOT.

HOLY SHIT, CAN YOU BELIEVE IT’S OFFICIALLY CANON THAT TOGA HAS A ROMANTIC CRUSH ON URARAKA? again, i could write an essay on coding and how frustrating it is for characters like toga to usually be bi/pan. but no one’s claiming this a win for rep. and i’m FASCINATED by this dynamic. toga loves stain-sama for his ideals and how that enables her nature to kill. she loves deku-kun out of curiousity for his ideals and the fact they met when he was beaten to a pulp lmao. and she loves ochako-chan because she sees herself in her - she thinks that they share ideals. again, i have no idea what the long-term meaning for this development is but it’s clearly pitting them against each other? and adding a romantic element to that is hmmmmmmmmm. we’ll see, we’ll see. and like i mentioned above, it’s shocking and worrying and makes me ship uraraka and toga more that uraraka ALSO sees the similarity between her and toga. she’s horrified by the implications of it but she hears toga’s spiel and tries to fruitlessly deny that ‘yeah, she’s right. that’s how i am. we’re the same.’ if i were to ever write a traitor!uraraka fanfic (which i would if i could ever FINISH a writing project), it’d be uraraka/toga and uraraka trying to convince herself she’s better than toga, that she still has a moral code and her reasons for joining the league have more weight to it, and she doesn’t!!! care!!! what toga thinks of her!!! and expecting a rivalry but toga doesn’t meet that head-on because instead, toga wants to be close and connected to uraraka. toga has this kind of mature soft side we’ve seen before (with twice) that shows how she can see you at your core (her fight w/ uraraka also showed that) and i want to see uraraka to be on the end when she thinks she doesn’t deserve it and doesn’t trust toga and just being frustrated and confused over it all.

                        —————————————————————– 

iida…….i think deku, todoroki, uraraka and aoyama are my biggest ships for him. also, i don’t ship it myself but momo/iida/todoroki’s rich kid squad is A REALLY FUN DYNAMIC AND OT3.

LET’S BE REAL: IIDA/DEKU IS SO UNDERAPPRECIATED IN THIS FANDOM. ALL IIDA SHIPS ARE BUT….IIDA/DEKU. iida’s goddamn….tucked deku into bed. threw his hat in the ring of rivals. there’s official art of iida giving deku a shoulder ride. he punched him to make him see how his actions are affecting him - “haven’t you thought about how *I* feel [about you putting yourself in peril]?!” like. bro. okaaaay. i still laugh that they got on the wrong foot initially - deku was so scared of iida sjfhhf like he was equally worried he’d be stuck in the same class as iida as he was about kacchan. thankfully, iida’s a sweetheart who cares with all his heart, and he sees all that there is to admire about deku, so they became instant friends after that. and iida means SO MUCH to deku. i pay a lot of attention to how future!deku talks in his narration, because he normally interrupts the narrative to move the story along - by talking about minor time skips, the movement of the villains, etc. but he also tends to wax a bit poetic about his friends. like when he interrupted everything to give us a side-story about how and aoyama became bffs. so we can assume that aoyama’s friendship means a lot to adult izuku. or how comforting and important it is to me that even as an adult, he refuses to stop calling bakugou ‘kacchan’. it’s sweet. in that same vein, it strikes me that deku still holds an amount of guilt for not supporting iida better during the whole ingenium-stain debacle. it ended….much better than it could have, and that experience was what strengthened iida/deku/todo’s relationship. yet as an adult, deku still wishes he could have done more. offered iida the help he needed before he went rushing in. hoo. but anyway, yeah, they’re cute! wholesome nerd boys! cute height difference! also yeah, i’m glad that iida got over his sports-festival-era feelings of inferiority towards deku. deku loves competition, but you can tell that he didn’t want that out of his relationship with iida (compare to how he outright covets a rivalry with bakugou and accepted it from todoroki w/ his head held high). it wasn’t based on healthy feelings and they’re so much better as supportive bfs.

iida and todoroki have a lot of stuff in common as legacy heroes who were trained from childhood to be heroes - with the major difference that todoroki faced horrifying abuse that prevented him from having a close relationship with his siblings and made him want to reject his legacy, while the iidas are good folk and iida’s brother means the world to him and he’s so far one of the only heroes we know to reuse a superhero identity based on legacy. and even the painful bullshit (like the ‘take out your muffler and a new, stronger one will grow in’ thing) was something that iida went through on his own accord and with warning. and todoroki’s words of encouragement during the stain arc were based on his own life lesson! they both come off as very serious and abrasive elites at first glance, but they’re actually dorky and socially awkward! but i think they get each other - i imagine they have a very calming friendship, no need for pretenses and judgement, and they deserve that! they probably think the other is hilarious too even though absolutely no one else gets the joke! they had a lot of cute moments recently since they were paired in the same 1A vs 1B match. like iida can just…tell the minute differences in todoroki’s expression and demeanour apart and knows when there’s something wrong. and they’re just so humble and sweet and can’t handle the other being self-deprecating. they’re good boys, brent.

already talked about iida/uraraka. they’re cute, i love them.

AOYAMA THOUGH. knight boys! they were so good during the exam! it really got me that aoyama didn’t even consider the idea that iida might not abandon him, might want to help him and win together instead of just use him to get ahead himself - and iida didn’t even really get the emotional realization aoyama went through there but he was still like ‘YEAH WE DID GOOD! I’M GLAD YOU FEEL BETTER! THUMBS UP! :D’ they’re both very dramatic and - i don’t know how to describe it….they pose a lot, talk with their limbs. they’re silly, is what i mean. and maybe aoyama ALSO deserves a loving, rich boyfriend. MAYBE IIDA SHOULD BE EVERYONE’S LOVING RICH BOYFRIEND. but in this case, aoyama’s boyfriend who will carry him bridal-style everywhere, much to aoyama’s glee lol. except when he’s dragging him along via his cape. whatever works.

also, side note, i find it kinda interesting that fandom pairs him up with girls like mei and camie - when i just….feel like he’d be so out of his element and sooo overwhelmed? i’m wincing just thinking about it lol poor iida.

                        —————————————————————–

i’m glad you specified marvel bc if you’d just said ‘comic’, i would have assumed you meant THE flash and i would be forced to sit here and think of every dc speedster ship…..well, it wouldn’t be as bad as spidey ships (honestly i’m very basic with speedsters - it’s just like ‘speedster/their spouse’ with the adults (even wally - linda or bust, tbh) and ‘speedster/their best friends’ with the teens), but we’d be here longer. 

BUT FLASH THOMPSON? i already mentioned my two big ones, with venom and peter but i’m def willing to talk more about them.

 flash/venom, a man and his gooey alien husband. i love that it’s a relationship based on self-growth and healing from past hurt and stopping destructive habits and cycles (both that cause self-harm and harm onto others). one of my favourite panels is still where flash pleads with peter to not let his anger seep into venom because venom’s gotten past all that. he’s a better person (being. alien. thing.) now and doesn’t want to turn to feeding on rage ever again. and that’s true for flash (a victim of child abuse who bottled up all that sadness and rage and took his aggression out on other kids) as well. it’s just so….nice. and venom credits all this to flash. and a thing i find about venom is that its unhealthy dynamics are all about control - you’re just its host, it possesses you against your will, you become an out-of-control villain. but with flash, venom sees a partner and home - they need and belong with each other, they communicate and cooperate, they became a superhero. also i love how they’re seriously affectionate and intimate - that’s just kind of a given with venom, i think, because you have to invite & accept it as part of yourself. but flash is so soft with venom - while he’s not as….hm, vocal about it as eddie ‘ooh my love my darling~’ brock is (he’s also a bit less obsessive haha sorry eddie), he’s so protective and likes giving venom headscratches and kissy faces to the point others react to it like they would witnessing PDA. i just want flash to be all cute and smooch his husband when they’re not like. one singular entity. CAN YOU BELIEVE THE HEALTHIEST DYNAMIC FOR FLASH TO BE IN IS WITH A SYMBIOTIC ALIEN GOO CREATURE? I CAN. AND I’M THANKFUL FOR IT.

 i also ot3 them with eddie for the sake of my peace of mind where everyone’s happy. where venom’s not torn between two loves, and eddie doesn’t feel the need to think things like ‘it’s tough being someone’s second best’ and ‘i’d like to think he’d do the same for me but part of me knows that would be a lie. it’ll always be flash.’ and having those thoughts because he literally FEELS that pull towards flash? like he inherited those feelings, he KNOWS what it’s like to love flash thompson. LIKE, YO????? GIVE ME THAT SYMBIOT3.

then there’s flash/peter, the funniest super/civvie id love triangle in the world. flash having the biggest hero crush on spider-man in high school - so many superheroes to choose from but spidey is the best, because he’s an underdog, because he gets pushed down and refuses to give up, because he’s SO GODDAMN COOL - while simultaneously thinking peter is frankly, the worst? but in that terrible way where he fixates on peter even when he’s not part of the conversation. waiting for him to leave school so he can be mean to him, feeling frustrated whenever he tries to be nice to the guy and peter either ignores, rejects or insults him in return. peter just being like ‘Sigh’ whenever flash insults him by gushing about spidey, but that’s also why he can’t dislike flash no matter how bad their relationship is. how can he hate spidey’s biggest fan? and also he probably gets a good amount of pleasure out of flash’s gf liz allen having a crush on him. peter also does this to johnny and his gf, dorrie evans - they’re frienemies in high school and kind of obsessed with each other,,,,’heRE’S MY LIST OF 500 REASONS WHY I HATE THE HUMAN TORCH’ OK PETE RELAX. so yeah, peter, despite having genuine feelings for betty brant, hits on liz and dorrie whenever they cross paths and lets them use him to make their hot blond boyfriends jealous. (peter, maybe you ARE the worst. stop it.) and then when they get to college and end up in the same friend group, flash slowly realizes that peter is like. hot now? and like, kind of a cool dude who went through a lot! like, he thought peter was a jerk in HS but he’s actually really nice when he wants to be and is always in your corner! ‘wow, i really like and respect pete! i’m proud to be his friend!’ flash thinks while staring at peter’s biceps. meanwhile, peter has no idea what’s going on because he keeps expecting flash to turn back into a dick (and steal one of his girlfriends lmao) but instead, he just keeps proving he’s a great guy! and keeps confiding in him! and uh, complimenting him a lot? and still fanboys over spidey and that’s really endearing! and oh, he’s really gonna miss him whenever he’s on tour and the idea of flash dying is unthinkable and he really likes being his roommate and he’s who he wants to be his best man and he doesn’t get why flash doesn’t seem to realize how great he is, and welp, he just punched captain america in the face for not telling him flash was agent venom. anyway, bottom line: i like dynamics that are very….long-term and constantly changing? so i tend to fall for the enemies/rivals to friends to lovers thing. or friends to enemies to lovers. but this is a former situation for sure.

also, i’m convinced every corner of the college crew pentagon happened. flash and harry MUST have at least made out once and neither was sure how to deal with the aftermath of that for a couple of months. he’s kissed and casually dated gwen AND mj - but i find it interesting that it seems like neither girl really ever considered him a contender. gwen cares about him but sees him as a shoulder to vent to about her issues with peter, and mj has a lot of fun with him but also considers him the male version of her (outgoing and bright but unwilling to commit and act serious). and he interestingly backs down quickly when peter decides to make a move on the girls. like, compared to his love triangle with liz and peter where i feel he was pretty resistant to letting her go - especially to someone like puny parker, he responds to peter’s accusations re: gwen and mj with ‘hey, relax. it’s not like that. i wouldn’t do that to you.’ i take it as him growing up and not feeling the need to overcompensate to impress his dad and also maybe the fact that he’s a bit more aware of how closeted he is. but it’s weirdly different with harry (*cough* cause it’s the first dude aside from peter he had any romantic interaction with *cough*) so he just……..dances around those feelings (on top of both of their feelings for peter) until harry starts dating liz (BECAUSE EVERYONE DATES EVERYONE IN PETER’S CIRCLE OF PALS, I GUESS) and he’s just like ‘???????????? well okay then’.

i like his dynamic with felicia as much it also pains me - that felicia went into it thinking she could use flash to hurt peter (’i’ll break your heart like he broke mine!’) but then ended up legitimately falling for him and started hoping for a normal life with him. also that they liked hanging out in terrible workout clothes. nerds. (alas, it didn’t last bc….FLASH, BUD….BUDDY….I CAN’T BELIEVE MARVEL HAD FLASH SAY THAT AND THEN PROBABLY SAT BACK AND THOUGHT ‘YUP PETE’S BEST BUD FLASH IS TOTALLY STR8′) and i need to read more of him and betty to get a handle of that but. what i’ve gotten from the panels i’ve seen that it’s very dependant on the writer and has the same problem flash’s relationships with liz, gwen, mj and felicia had where there’s a lot of love there but the actual romantic element is….lacking? falls short? fizzles out? where he seeks out a connection to peter(/spidey) through his romantic relationship with a woman peter used to be involved with and pushes said woman away when she starts getting in too deep?

anyway, that just turned into an essay about how flash thompson has been gay since his conception and only like, 20% (maybe less) of writers in charge of writing him have actually realized it.

[pendulumprince]

It is I, ready to watch Blue Angel kick Vyra’s ass, right now, in episode 26,

After the recap/opening

Yusaku’s just caught sight of Vyra (no, I’m sorry, KYOKO) on camera

HE’S GOT A CLEAR SHOT OF HER

And remembers her s Aoi’s doctor

So, why’s she there?

One! She’s there by coincidence

Two! She knows the dude who just got turned into Another

Three! SHE’S A KNIGHT OF HANOI

Welp. He got it lol

So they look up her info and shit

She’s Kyoko Taki, 30 years old, randomly canceled her work schedule for the day so she could go play card games with teenagers

They get her home address

Figure she prob knows how to cure Another, so they’re going to her house

BACK TO THE DUEL

VYRA AND BLUE ANGEL BOTH HAVE 3600 LP

VYRA’S MONSTER HAS 2400 ATK, BLUE ANGEL’S 2000

BLUE ANGEL TAKES HER TURN

SETS A MONSTER AFCE DOWN

BUT VYRA’S GOT A P;AN FOR THAT

VIA MONSTER EFFECT, HE DESTROYS HER MONSTER

“Sorry, but I won’t lose to a child.”

BLUE ANGEL HAS NO CHOICE BUT TO END HER TURN

VYRA DRAWS

IT’S A TRAP!

VIA MONSTER EFFECT, BLUE ANGEL GOES DOWN TO 3100 ATK

SHE’S THROWN INTO A BUILDING

MY BABY’S HURT, BUT SHE’S STILL IN THIS

JUMPS OUT A WINDOW??

AND… ONTO HER D BOARD

“Whatever! That amount of damage was nothing” Such sass!

“I’ll make you understand how cruel reality is.” VYRA NO. STOP THAT.

SHE ACTIVATES HER SKILL

“FORBIDDEN SURGICAL OPERATION” THAT DOESN’T SOUND GOOD

SHE BANISHES TWO MONSTERS FROM HER GRAVEYWARD

SUMMONS TWO 500 DEF MONSTERS ONTO THE FIELD

AND SINCE THEY’RE LINKED TO HER ACE

HER ACE IS IMMUNE TO TRAP CARDS

AND GAINS 600 ATK

THAT. IS GODDAMN ANNOYING.

IT’S AT 3000 ATK

VYRA SETS A FACEDOWN,

AND BLUE ANGEL KNOWS WHAT IT IS SINCE, OH, VYRA SHOWED HER AT THE BEGINNING OF HER TURN

BUT BECAUSE OF HHER OTHER SPELL

SHE CAN ACTIVATE THE TRAP HERSELF

SHE TRIBUTES ONE OF HER 500 DEF MONSTERS

LINK MONSTER’S ATK’S GO DOWN TO 0

AND THEY CAN’T USE THEIR EFFECTS

AW DAMN

HOLLY ANGEL GOES DOWN TO 0

DARK MUMMY ISN’T EFFECTED

VYRA GOES IN FOR THE ATTACK

BLUE ANGEL ACTIVATES HER TRAP

IT PROTECTS HOLLY ANGEL

“BUT YOU STILL TAKE DAMAGE!”

AND SO

BLUE ANGEL IS DOWN TO 100 ATK

AKIRA GETS UP

HE’S ABOUT TO GO INTO LINK VRAINS TO STOP THE DUEL

BUT HAYAMI TALKS HIM OUT OF IT

“Your sister is fighting with all her might. A brother’s role is to watch her to the end! … is what I think! :D"

YOU GO HAYAMI

BACK TO THE DUEL

BLUE ANGEL THINKS ABOUT WHAT SHE SHOULD DO

“It’s too late to do anything. You don’t have the slightest chance to win. Give up!"

WHICH ONLY MEANS SHE *IS* GOING TO WIN LMAOOOO

“I’ll never give up. I activate my skill!” YAAAAAS.

SHE DISCARDS A MONSTER IN HER GRAVEYARD

AND FORCES VYRA TO DRAW UNTIL SHE HAS THREE CARDS IN HER HAND

SO AT THE END SHE’LL HAVE TO BANISH A CARD FROM HER HAND FOR EVERY TRICKSTAR IN HER GRAVE

… Vyra explained all that, btw

She even knows Blue Angel’s skill lol wtf

BUT OKAY, SHE DRAWS

IF SHE DRAWS A TRAP, BLUE ANGEL IS SCREWED

BUT OKAY

THE FIRST IS A SPELL CARD

THE SECOND IS A MONSTER

AND THE THIRD…!

AHHHHHHHHHH

IT’S A SPELL

BLUE ANGEL SENDS HER TRICKSTAR TO THE GRAVE TO ACTIVATE HER SKILL

SHE ACTIVATES HER EFFECT

SUMMONS A MONSTER AT 1000 DEF

VYRA ENDS HER TURN

HAS HER ENTIRE HAND BANISHED

ALRIGHT! NOW BLUE ANGEL’S GONNA END THIS

… back in the real world

Yusaku’s outside Kyoko’s apartment building

He’s got some thing in his ear, probably hooked up to Shoichi

Ai tells him this might be the KoH’s headquarters

YUSAKU FUCKIN HOPES IT IS

“… are you good at fighting?”

“See for yourself.”

AW DAMN, MY BOY’S READY TO FIGHT 10 MEN AT ONCE

He goes in

The AI receptionist asks him who he’s there to visit

Yusaku… stares her down??

BRUH SAY SOMETHING

But okay nah

Shoichi hacks into her, he’s all good to go through

Yusaku goes into the elevator

HE HAS SOME WHITE GLOVES ON

Shoichi guides him to Kyoko’s apartment

She has some passcode lock on it

AI BREAKS INTO IT WITH HIS NOODLE HANDS

*hacker voice* he’s in

He goes into her bedroom

It looks… weirdly normal

He leaves

Walks down the hall

BACK TO THE DUEL

BLUE ANGEL TAKES HER TURN

IT’S WHAT SHE WAS WAITING FOR

SHE SUMMONS A 1000 ATK MONSTER

VYRA’S TRAP ACTIVATES

HER MONSTER GOES DOWN TO 0 ATK

SHE LINKS HER MONSTERS TOGETHER

IT’S A LINK 4 MONSTER AT 2800 ATK

AW DAMN

NOBODY WAS EXPECTING THAT SHIT

SHE ACTIVATES HER MONSTER’S EFFE T FROM THE GRAVE

TALKES OUT VYRA’S WEAKER MONSTER

DARK MUMMY’S ATL GOES BACK DOWN TO 2400

AHAHAHAAAAA VYRA’S LOOKIN NERVOUS

AND NOW DARK MUMMY IS EFFECTED BY VYRA’S OWN TRAP

HER EFFECTS ARE NEGATED

HER ATK IS NOW 0

NICE NICE NICE

VYRA TRIES TO LET HER KNOW THAT HER SHINY NEW LINK MONSTER WILL ALSO BE EFFECTED, BUT—

NAH

BELLA MADONA’S EFFECT SAVES HER FROM THAT

WHEN SHE’S NOT LINKED UP TO ANYONE, SHE’S NOT AFFECTED BY OTHER EFFECTS

AHAHAHAHAHA YOU FUCKED UP VYRA

BELLA MADONNA’S OTHER EFFECT ACTIVATES

SHE DEALS 200 DAMAGE FOR EVERT TRICKSTAR IN THE GRAVE

SHE BRINGS VYRA DOWN TO 2400

Vyra… lowkey figures Blue Angel was able to do this because she “didn’t give up hope” lol sure, let’s go with that

“Her desire to keep fighting has created a miracle.”

BLUE ANGEL GOES IN FOR THE KILL

BELLA MADONNA ATTACKS DARK MUMMY

“This is the power of believing.”

Vyra… types something in on some keyboard real fast??

AND THE ATTACK CONNECTS

VYRA’D DOWN TO 0

BLUE ANGEL WINS!

YAAAAAAAAAS

THE CROWD GOES WILD

Hayami’s so happy??

Akira looks. Relieved lol

And Go’s proud of Blue Angel, he knew she could do it

Back at Kyoko’s apartment!

Yusaku and Ai arte at the last door of Kyoko’s apartment

AND THERE SHE IS

STILL LOGGED INTO LINK VRAINS

And in front of her

There’s… recording of Blue Angel and all the victims of Another??

Yup. She’s the one.

Alright, back in Link Vrains

Like Playmaker and Ghost Girl before them, Blue Angel and Vyra are standing on a rooftop looking out at the scenery

“Blue Angel. You’re back.”

“No. All I did was defeat you to get my revenge. I only fought for myself. Blue Angel is back only for today.”

DAMNIT AOI

“Blue Angel…” SHE TAKES OFF HER MASK, "look at the sky.”

All these… little particles of light are falling on them

Pretty~!

In the real world, SHOICHI BURSTS INTO THE ROOM

And he and Yusaku watch on as

As…!

THE LITTLE PARTICLES OF LIGHT ARE THE ANOTHER’S SOULS??

*hyperventilating* BLUE ANGEL DID IT.

THE SOULS ARE BEING FREED BECAUSE OF HER

NOT OUR MALE PROTAG. HER.

*sobbing* THIS IS BEAUTIFUL

“But… why?”

“You changed my heart.”

*sigh* now watch Kogami off her or some shit

“You may have fought for yourself, but that can change those around you. If you carry the hopes of others, you’re fighting for everyone.”

“For everyone…?”

*IN HER MIND* “I used to be like that. When I was young, I believed in my potential and ran without fear. I immersed myself in my research to build a better world and a brighter future. I wonder when I changed…”

So… she logged out?

ALRIGHT, YUSAKU AND SHOICHI ARE READY TO INTERROGATE HER

“Then, let’s tie her up!” AI NO

But Yusaku isn’t paying attention

“Yusaku, stop daydreaming! Hurry up! Get ready, Hanoi! I’m gonna pummel you—“

“Something’s wrong.”

SHE’S NOT WAKING UP

REVOLVER SHOWS UP ON ONE OF THE SCREENS, AND!

It’s… like he’s closing her eyes?

“Hanoi purged her??”

She knew it would happen. But she felt guilty and did it anyway

Ai doesn’t get it, Yusaku tells him he doesn’t need to

Shoichi goes to call an ambulance

It’s just not a Vrains duel unless someone winds up in the hospital

So, the next day

Aoi and Akira are having breakfast at home

Watching the news and shit

They’re reporting on how the Another’s have regained consciousness

“Umm… brother…”

“Thanks to Blue Angel, the Another’s have been saved.”

NII SAMA KNOWS, AOI. AND HE THINKS YOU DID A FAB JOB.

“Thanks!”

SHE’S SO HAPPY?? THIS WAS SUCH A PURE ENDING

And that’s it!

Preview time!

Naoki’s shouting dramatically

Yusaku is unmoved

… no, he actually looks sort of pissed

… ALRIGHT, NAOKI’S VR NAME IS ��LONELY BRAVE”

AND IT’S PRETTY MUCH WAS I EXPECTED

And… he’s using a Cyberse card.

The cards that aren’t supposed to exist anymore.

OKAY SO EITHER THE CYBERSES ARE IN PRINT AGAIN BECAUSE OF PLAYMAKER

OR NAOKI HAS SOME CONNECTION TO THE LARGER PLOT

Lmaoooo, either way Faust is gonna pin his ass to the wall, so

[maguneedsalife]

Review time: ArtFX J Protagonist (Phantom Thief Ver.)!

(please excuse me while i scREAM!!!!!! REAL LOUD!!!!)

as usual, picture-heavy review under the cut!

Persona as a franchise means a lot to me, so I was of course extremely excited when Persona 5 finally came out overseas. My boyfriend and I marathoned the game together and beat it in just about a month (our roommate also bought the game and we had to race each other to avoid spoilers haha). What I didn't expect was for the game to completely, utterly charm me--the protagonist especially. I am the most weak for boys who can be equally sexy and cute, and Protag here hits that sweet spot dead on. So, ordering a figure of my best boy was inevitable. (technically, since my bf offered to go halfsies with me, he belongs to both of us--but he'll be living on my desk for now). When the release date was revealed to be my birthday I almost cried, haha... Anyway, let's get on to what you came here for, which is pictures of hot anime boytoys. (For the purposes of the review, I'm going to refer to him by his thief name, Joker, from here on.)

Here he is from the side! Those legs of his are really something....!!!!

You can see that he takes up quite a bit of space horizontally. Personally this is less than ideal, as I'm a little strapped for space at the moment--but the pose is so fun, I'm willing to make whatever room I can!

Here's how he looks from the back!

Lookin' cool, Joker!!

The way his coat billows out behind him is definitely one of the highlights of this figure. I can almost hear the sound of his footsteps amid Life Will Change now... The details on his coat are also very faithfully reproduced. Come to think of it, this is going to make great drawing reference in the future--it's hard to pick out details on a lot of the official art.

From a lower angle... the base's secret mask becomes visible! A very creative touch. It's hard to tell in this picture, but his butt is also... very nicely sculpted...

From the other side; possibly the least interesting angle.

Another side view. This figure has so much movement; its fun just to turn it around....

A closeup shot of his face... have you ever SEEN a man so beautiful??? It took me forever to get through the shoot for this review because I spent so much time just lying on the floor and admiring him..... His lower lip is a little too prominent for my taste, but it does follow the character designer's style. It's not too bad in certain lighting.

The paintwork on the mask is a little sloppy... but for the most part I'll be seeing it from a distance, so it doesn't bother me that much. I bought Joker from Amiami because I wasn't swayed by the Kotobukiya-exclusive parts (and I already had a September order going), but in hindsight I do kind of wish I had a calling card for him.

I can't remember why I took this picture actually.... but it's a good angle for him.

Close in, you can see that the details on his vest (vest?) were also very faithfully reproduced. I think it's meant to be a shirt, judging by the grey coloring on his wrists, but I usually draw it as a vest....

Akira "Legs for Days" Kurusu has some really very impressive legs.... He probably has the nicest legs of anyone in my collection.....

Closer in on those boots...! The paintwork on them really shines; they look just like polished leather. And those heels...!!! i almost want him to step on me...... In the above picture you can also see a couple of bits of leftover plastic; here's a detail shot so you can see what I mean:

They're only noticeable from some angles, and are probably easy to sand or snip off, but I felt it was important to point them out. Joker isn't my first Kotobukiya figure, but I've only had one other one to go on...

A closer look at his handgun. I noticed that he's been sculpted with his finger off the trigger; a+ gun safety there, Koto! Joker has a number of iconic accessories: the mask, calling card, gun, and dagger are probably the four that come to mind the fastest. I'm satisfied with the two they chose for the standard release, but I wouldn't mind having the calling card part too. though, considering I broke my P4 Protagonist's tarot card part not that long ago, maybe it's for the better that I got the regular version....

A closeup of his back! The seams of his coat are raised in relief as decorative piping. I also really like the strap in the back; very stylish.

Another detail I hadn't quite noticed in the game or the official art: the buttons on the far side of his coat! I don't know why I never noticed them before...

Here's a closer look at the base! The Phantom Thieves logo is faithfully reproduced, and the shattered-glass effect brings to mind the All-Out Attack animation. Plus, the stars in the background are meant to evoke the game's menus. I don't usually care much about bases, but this one is appropriately stylish for a game and character that ooze style.

Here's how the base looks from the back, with the hidden mask visible. The eyes are even hollow, just like the real thing! Like with May, Joker is also firmly anchored to the base with a screw. Is this something Koto does on a regular basis? It's going to make moving with him kind of a pain... While the base is certainly a highlight of the figure, it definitely has a downside. I don't know if this is a common problem on this figure, but my base doesn't quite sit flat on hard surfaces (or even carpet, like the one I was shooting on). It wobbles back and forth, which makes me a liiiittle nervous, since Joker is already putting a lot of weight forward. I might see if I can warm up the plastic a little and warp it back into shape.

Another close-up shot.... I just can't get enough of him, honestly! I was worried the final product would look too baby-faced, but he looks very handsome in person. Higher angles seem to be more flattering for him.

Alongside Shinjiro and Souji, we have The Holy Persona Boyfriend Trinity! I feel extremely blessed that figures exist for my main Persona crushes... now we just need Akechi Souji was my first scale figure, and at the time I thought he was impressively tall. He's since been dwarfed by every single scale I've bought since, and now he's even been out-legged by Joker. BUT! Souji still wins for looking like a Shigenori Soejima drawing walked off the page. (If I remember correctly, Soejima was the one who supervised GEM Souji in the first place....). Soejima's unique style is difficult to reproduce (see: every other Persona figure), so Joker here gets points for coming close. He's still very handsome!!

Maybe one day we'll get a nice scale Akechi to go with Joker, but for now I'll have to make due by balancing fan merch on him like a loser... (by the way, the cute Akechi charm is by K; here's her shop!)

This is actually kind of adorable..... maybe I'll hang more merch on Joker in the future....

AU where everything is the same except the Personas are the size of Pikachu

(By the way... I would kill for some Arsene merch right around now!!! I know a plastic model Arsene was just announced, and it looks amazing so far, but I want to decorate my purse with cute Arsene straps.... I have such a bad crush on him too haha. I'd also love to see cute little charms like the Izanagi one, but for the P5 crew... ah, I can dream.)

Anyway, that's enough delusions of grandeur.

Here's where I'm keeping him on my desk! Right within easy view of both me and my boyfriend, whose desk is kitty corner to mine. With a heavy heart, I had to relocate my Ren and Masato scales to storage to make room for Joker. ;-; Maybe someday soon I'll get a proper display case... Also--I didn't get pictures of it so you're going to have to take my word for it, but his box is probably the most stylish figure box I've ever seen. The box insert has the Phantom Thieves logo, along with the stars from the game's menu--and I would have used it as a backdrop for the review, except it's extremely (appropriately) busy. Not only that, the top of the box has a mask design like Joker's--and one eye is cut open to reveal a picture of the figure on the flap below it. This box is so neat that I actually didn't fold it up; I put the blister packaging back in and stuck it in my closet--so that's a testament to how cool that box is.

If my rambly fangirling wasn't enough to get the point across, Joker was worth every penny I spent on him. He adds a really dynamic presence to my collection, which I love (if you've read my reviews before, you know I never miss an opportunity to compare the sort of boring poses a lot of male figures get to the fun, interesting ones female figures get...). Joker has also brought to light the monkey's paw end of this scenario, which is that in exchange for a dynamic pose, he takes up way more space on my desk... whoops. Anyway, I definitely recommend this figure to fans of Persona 5--and I'm hoping that if this boy does well, we'll get more Persona 5 figures! Pls.... Atlus.... give us Akechi...... I'll take the most boring Akechi in the world if i have to.... I'll be looking forward to seeing more merch, especially with the anime coming next year... In particular I'm excited for figma Joker, who will be joining my collection in the spring. I'll have to try to pose him in the same pose as Koto's Joker just to compare. I'm also curious about Phat Company’s P5 protag announced at this year's summer WonFes. I wonder if they'll come up with a unique pose for him, or just go with the default... we'll have to see! Anyway, I think that just about wraps it up for this review. Tomorrow I'll likely (hopefully) be back with another review for the other item in my September AmiAmi order, figma Gwendolyn.  Oh, and to my Jewish followers: Shana Tova and G'mar Tov! And have an easy fast, if that's something you're participating in. (I'm not fasting, but I did go to services today...) The summer (summer?) of unending anime purchases continues...

[phin-dicated]

Why I’m Angry About Akechi (spoilers)

I beat Persona 5 the other day and I’ve been doing nothing but stewing over the details and little things that bothered me. Yes, it was a fantastic game. But I’m going to delve into one specific issue that bothered me; Goro Akechi. Spoilers below, proceed at your own risk.

So I’ll be honest, I went through a wide range of emotions concerning this character. I liked him from the get-go, didn’t trust him at all, secretly hated Atlus that yet another hot guy had been shoved in my hetero-protag’s face and ultimately sobbed hysterically over his story. I haven’t been this invested since Aerith died, dead god.

But let’s talk about what pissed me, and hopefully you, off about this maniac. Akechi was a foil to Akira, we all know this. His whole purpose was to be a mirrored image of Akira’s recklessness and how it’s held without a support structure. That’s fine, and it was done well. His entire battle scene is just one long self-doubt, self-hate drawn out madness that made me want to curl into a ball and die. Was Akechi a good person? Not really. Did he do terrible things? Absolutely. Was he in his right mind through most of it? Most signs point to no. Am I going to tell you he did no wrong? No, he most certainly did, but it’s a little more complex than that.

So my first beef comes with the discussion that Akechi was, in fact, mentally ill. It isn’t that hard to see, especially if you wander through your NG+ and pay attention. The kid was raised specifically to become what he was thanks to some dumbass god with a gambling problem. He goes through the entire game alone, only being shown with people in regard to his popularity, or lack there of. We don’t know at the time, but Akechi is hiding everything about himself to everyone around him. The only time we see him actually speaking with someone genuinely (as close as you can get) is Akira. He seems to only open up when it comes to Akira. I can’t even imagine the sheer amount of loneliness this child must have endured BEFORE his run in with Shido, much less after, but I have to wonder if Akechi didn’t see parts of his own personality in Akira.

And then we do what we do to every single mentally ill character in anything ever; we freaking kill them.

Now, normally this wouldn’t even be an issue for me. Characters die in games all the time, only those deaths typically seem to MEAN something. Aerith’s death causes Cloud to move forward and become a better person (if not getting lost a little on the way), Shinji’s death in 3 helped build characters, especially Akihiko, and help them grow as people. Akechi’s? Well it made for a good cry fest.

My second issue with Akechi is how poorly his character was handled. He was written so interestingly and all of that went to waste in a mere moment. I was fine with his entire scene, the battle, everything I could choose. It was very interesting to have options that made Akira reach for Akechi, or tell him he’d be okay. Your party’s interactions were great, just EVERYTHING WAS FINE UNTIL THAT GODDAMN COGNITION SHOWED UP.

I’m sorry, but it is bad enough that you have this character struggling with himself and the horrible things he’s done, trying to understand why these people WHO HE’S BETRAYED and even SHOT IN THE FACE would want him around, and then you go and have him shoot himself?? That line “You’re all beyond my comprehension?” Yea from a life of solitude and rejection that’d be out of my comprehension too. But c’mon Atlus. You do not show a mentally ill person, struggling with their own inner issues, lose to themselves. You don’t, you just, like that is a LEGITIMATE fear among people. Now you could argue that he won in the end, sure. But people, he died. He still got shot by something that looked like him, sounded like him and said the meanest words he was probably thinking himself. And he died.

I was so angry and I can’t stop being angry about it because none of it made any sense to me. His death doesn’t prove anything, it doesn’t help anyone grow, it doesn’t even tie up loose strings. It just happens and it’s gone. Just like Akechi. I figured that would change as the game went on but oh ho ho was I wrong. Not only is he barely ever mentioned again, no one even acknowledges his death outside of the party. Sae mentions he’s disappeared at one point which you can’t respond to unless you’re like me and you’re screaming at the television because apparently no one in this game has the common decency to say he flippin died. Oh wait, I guess it wouldn’t matter right? Who would they tell? Not like he had a family or friends. Ouch. I hope you’re hurting as much as I am.

Another point: You can’t possibly expect me to believe that Akira wouldn’t have summoned (insert strength Persona here) to knock that wall down and rescue Goro’s sorry ass. Akria is just as reckless and had it been anyone else in there he’d have caught the whole damn place on fire. You can’t tell me he just stood there with his hands in his pockets like “Yea okay.” Because Akechi wasn’t his teammate, but he damn well could have been. That’s not Akira’s justice.

Akechi’s death irritated the ever-loving shit out of me because it doesn’t do anything. He died to tug on your heart strings, or not, because I guess you could hate him for being a douche the whole game? So then it proves even less for those people. I thought that his story, the fact that he was also a wild card holder, would become important for end game and it just wasn’t. I thought I’d see some remnant of him, even a freaking death imagine, at the end since he was a maxed social link, but nothing.

Overall, in my opinion, Atlus dropped the ball with this character who had, dare I say it, infinite potential. But that, again, is just my opinion.