#this is literally a thesis

[anon-maly]

Why Nagito Komaeda and Izuru Kamukura could be a canon pair in a no-despair AU

Sure, we only have two official scenes where we see them properly interact. But we also have a lot of official non-canon material that has them interact with each other. This leads me to believe that Kamukoma could have been a real, canon ship if the despair tragedy in Danganronpa didn't exist (this is a theory thing I have posted and pinned on all my social media lmao)

Firstly, let’s keep in mind that Nagito has a canon ‘crush’ on Izuru (crushes can mean anything that’s an infatuation, romantic or not). His song, Zettai Kibō Birthday, is literally about him wanting to “do it” with the “absolute hope” he met on campus.

There is also another song he has, Poison (Gekiyaku), where he talks about wanting to meet and love "the biggest hope". Izuru Kamukura is the Ultimate Hope, the absolute hope. It's undeniable that Nagito has a crush on Izuru and likes him romantically and/or sexually.

Moving on: There are two scenes in the anime where we see Nagito and Izuru interact.

First scene, aka THE scene. Nagito’s crush on Izuru began here. He didn’t know Izuru was the Ultimate Hope, he just fell for him. Kazutaka Kodaka even describes this scene as similar to a beautiful, elegant dance. (also, why did Izuru have to grab Nagito by his waist in that scene?? He could've grabbed his back for support instead, which I assume is far more convenient??)

The other anime scene we see them interact may not be with the real Izuru Kamukura, but instead, it's with the AI Alter Ego version of him: The World Destroyer. There are no official sources of Izuru Kamukura smiling (to my knowledge as of so far), except in here. For context: After World Destroyer (AI Izuru) brings up the emotion of "hope" to Nagito in the Danganronpa 2.5 OVA, Nagito starts recalling this emotion. While he reflects on this concept out loud, we see a frame of World Destroyer smiling at him.

Now considering all this, why was THIS the scene that Izuru was smiling?

Did he enjoy hearing Nagito talk about hope?

Or was he happy that Nagito was returning back to his normal self?

Either way, he is only smiling because of Nagito; It's safe to say he does not find Nagito boring since he smiled

Anime aside, we see 1 more canon interaction between Izuru and Nagito. And that's from the second game, chapter 0.

Yes, in this scene Izuru is very openly annoyed by Nagito. But keep in mind, this isn't regular Nagito Komaeda, this is a Remnant of Despair. He is brainwashed by Junko's despair influence, therefore he isn't himself. Would you consider Sonia to still be herself during her time as a Remnant of Despair who convinced her whole country to die?

Unlike Nagito’s world from the 2.5 OVA, Nagito has been forcefully altered to be induced with despair. This is not the real him.

In the OVA scene, Izuru smiles because Nagito was returning to his true self. In this scene, Izuru finds Nagito boring because he is a Remnant of Despair

Therefore, it’s logical to think that Izuru is slightly interested in the REAL Nagito.

Also adding on the Izuru-finds-Nagito's-real-personality-to-be-interesting theory:

World Destroyer in the OVA openly admits to finding Nagito to act unpredictably for him. And all Izuru ever does is complain about things being boring since everything is predictable for him. If he finds Nagito to be someone he could not predict, doesn't that mean there's a chance Izuru finds Nagito interesting rather than boring?

Now, time for non-canon stuff:

Still sticking to the Izuru finds Nagito unpredictable—therefore interesting—argument: This scene in Danganronpa S shows Nagito offering Izuru himself to be someone who listened to his "worries". As expected, Izuru found that thought to be useless. However, he still spends a WHILE conversing with Nagito, meaning that he actually found a conversation with Nagito to be more engaging than he expected. He basically said that he found Nagito more interesting than he anticipated.

More unofficial media analysis:

Izuru Kamukura has been characterized as loyal and altruistic. We see him get out of his way to help someone in need for no huge reason. He literally shoots Nagito in canon because Junko Enoshima got to Izuru first, therefore his loyalty was to Junko.

And if Junko Enoshima never got to him first, we could have seen this altruistic side of Izuru more. If Izuru can find Nagito worth his time, being loyal to him wouldn't be something he would find agonizing.

TL;DR: Izuru Kamukura is loyal to anyone. If he finds Nagito Komaeda unpredictable (interesting), his loyalty to Nagito wouldn't feel too boring. Since Nagito actually has a crush on Izuru, Nagito wouldn't just "use him" like Junko Enoshima. Therefore, Izuru isn't likely to dislike Nagito in the future. Nagito feels attracted to Izuru + Izuru finds someone not boring = Mutual-pining slow-burn Kamukoma is real... as long as it's set in another 'happier' universe.

[halfmoonstruck]

im late to the party..!!!

[kyoshi-lesbians]

The Blind Bandit | The Bullpen

[video description: an amv of Toph as the Blind Bandit set to The Bullpen by Dessa, focused on her earthbending skills fighting in Earth Rumble VI. the ending sequence shows her leaving her home to join Aang, Katara, and Sokka. end description.]

forget the bull in the china shop / there's a china doll in the bullpen

[rabbithearteddd]

AND IF YOU MISSED A DAY, THERE WAS ALWAYS THE NEXT, AND IF YOU MISSED A YEAR, IT DIDNT MATTER, THE HILLS WERENT GOING ANYWHERE

[deadrlngers]

James Fitzjames + Caravaggio's Entombment, David with the Head of Goliath, Penitent Magdalene, The Incredulity of Saint Thomas, Death of the Virgin, Bacchus

[bertoyana]

charles and erik with each other: oh dear, oh dear. gorgeous 🥺👐 charles and erik with the villain of the week/the x-men: K1LL YOURSELF 🔥🔥🔥

X-Men: First Class (2011) | X-Men Apocalypse (2016)

[grey-ves]

Especially with the release of The Unwanted Guest, I feel like I see too much focus on the “romantic” (as in idealized and regarding any type of love) message of the series and not enough on what I personally think tazmuir’s actual thesis statement is. We forget that she is a horror author, and I think that is her entire goal. Every set of relationships we’re presented with are codependent, unhealthy, consumptive. Someone is consuming someone they love, someone is being consumed by someone they love. Even if they claim not to, even if they try to find a more “fair” way to do it (ex.: Paul), it’s still what is happening in the end. (Abigail and Magnus are the only exceptions I can think of.) Pyrrha is the only character who seems to recognize this, and she tries so hard to call it out, but no one listens because they think it’s romantic. Because every relationship is either seen as romantic or wretched, both by the characters and by the readers, even though they are all so bad. I think tazmuir is trying to make readers question this. Why do we find certain toxic relationships - like Harrow and Gideon - romantic, but others - like John and Alecto - horrifying? Why is one acceptable but not the other? Where do we draw the line? In regards to TUG, why do we jump from changing each other with love, to consuming each other in its name?

I think this will be even more clear in AtN.

[haejjoon]

wip for fanart for an AMAZING fic i read the other day. like it literally changed my brain chemistry go read once sighted twice seen by alicura on ao3

[agent-troi]

[tvlandofficiall]

[lydiaalin]

save me horror cowboy game ocs save me

[satoruxx]

Erm. The brain rot took over.

Does hybird!Toji's tail wag when he's near us?????? And does he let us touch/groom it considering its a rlly sensitive part and he trusts us??????????????

OK YUP YUP THANK YOU FOR LISTENING.

(Your honour he gives my life)

YESSSS BRING FORTH THE BRAINROT NONNIE I'M HERE TO LISTEN :3333

tee hee yes it doessss !! toji's very subtle about it now, but it becomes more frequent once he gets comfy and actually starts falling for you !! there are a few moments in the past chapters where he will notice his tail slowly going back and forth, but refuses to acknowledge it bc wtf??? curse his animal body for betraying him like this.

but in the near future, he will allow himself the freedom to let it wag. especially if you're both joking around or he's trying to push your buttons, you bet he's subconciously doing it. it's just a sign that he's truly letting loose around you :(((

(that and he's quite literally obsessed with you and everything you do makes him so stupidly giddy.)

toji's so funny too because he will give you the most abrupt and grumpy responses and yet his tail is literally thumping against the ground... like bro who are you fooling??

(try calling him out for it and he will put you in a headlock.)

as for touching/grooming, honestly i don't think he would let you do it now. even once you guys are comfortable and shit i think he still has a lot of reservations about people touching him. and especially a part that is so sensitive and vulnerable... i think he'd rather take care of it himself y'know?? BUT once your relationship is in full swing??? oh babe touch him wherever you want he was always only yours anyway.

once you're dating him he quite literally will trust you with his entire being. wanna wear knives on your feet and walk all over him?? do it, he's laying down for you already.

i just think wolf!toji will always have that reserved stance with humans, and it takes the confirmation that you actually do love him and won't hurt him for him to finally allow you that privilege.

also i think a big thing for him would be the implications behind allowing you access to a part of him that is so vulnerable?? the idea makes his head spin... i think a lot of his reluctance also comes from embarassment bc god knows he does not want to lose his shit around you....

(and he will for sure.)

[spicyvampire]

4 MINUTES (2024) EP. 1

[mummer]

sacrificing sons to the nights watch is crazy like oh theyre crastering huh…………….

[gemsalive]

okay i have no idea where on the scale of Hot Take to Restating The Obvious this falls, but i remain entirely convinced that bonnie has never actually hated puns.

of course it’s a fun trait to play up for comedic effect sometimes, but the moment i saw them let out that unguarded little laugh at siffrin’s goof at the third floor door before catching themself and remembering to correct back into The Rage (TM) the possibility that said rage could be genuine pretty much instantly wiped itself from my mind. like ohh okay that is a preteen doing the classic preteen thing of overperforming an opposite reaction to hide how much they truly care, got it 👍