#yosuke's true shadow

[daily-hanamura]

[taldigi]

hi!!!! hi I've been loving ur Aus and kickass takes/discussions with each and every character (primarily Morgana and Teddie from what I can scroll down so far)

and I am !!!! absolutely normal about personas being gay or albeit the persona interacting with their little heroes cos like!! finally!!! SOMEONE MENTIONED IT and I can't thank you enough so here's - my take on that specific headcanon if you won't mind -

I actually do highly agree that each personas have a unique signature sound/calling noise if they don't speak verbally! (Jiraiya croaking like a frog,, very true and whistling tuney sound. Izanagi sounding like clashed metal and swishes of swords primarily, reverberated deep echoey hums, yukiko with flowery yet - also sounding like their turning into crisp. Sing-songy like uhhh a flute.)

but I also fuck with the fact they have their own personalities too; Izanagi and Yu having an apprentice/master dynamic... that's just me tho. Yosuke and Jiraiya on the other hand is a fun uncle who takes their kid somewhere fun - a gun range!

mix and match we have a polyamorous situation and I find that very very funny and delightful 😭😭😭 I do wish more fics explore this side of persona! like c'mon I want my other self talk and whisper me secrets -

but that's. all I have to say primarily cos I love your comics, they're funny and equally adorable 🔥

thank!!!!! I love being silly about my favorites and my brain is fulll of comics and ideas.

I've seeen a aloooooot of takes on personas, both in canon and non-canon and I'm def cut between a few different interpretations.

Ultimately, they are weapons, or- extensions of the self-- but p4 and 5 do push a little more into their independence. I like the latter idea, because it lends better to storytelling and situations.

I love personas talking and acting as guides, but only within your "self " (holds up the high priestess tarot card: The persona is your gut intuition, begging you to be true to yourself. holds up the magician tarot: the tools to success are within you and you must manifest them!) Like.. they may know a bit more than their user in terms of their own nature, but they aren't any more or less intelligent than their user. What gives them an edge is that they can express those subconscious desires directly-- stuff that you don't even know about yourself --and use that information to guide their selves. So yeah, the master/apprentice vibe from Yu? Yu's a natural leader, and an empathetic listener- of course Izanagi is going to be that too. And with Yu as drawn in as he is, who else is he going to listen to?

Persona noises? I'm all for it. I think it's a mix of.. what situation the personas are in specifically. They always have a link to their user, and can speak directly.. be it words or emotions. (i am NOT immune to the occasional scathing comment from Jiraiya on Yosuke's stupidity or loud mouth) On the field, however- it's different. Squeaks and clanks and hums and beeps. Others understand your persona based on how well they know you (example would be.. Yukiko understanding Tomoe more intuitively than she would understand Take-Mikazuchi.. "Whats that Tomoe? Teddie's stuck in the well??") plus plus plus PLUS close bonds being comforted by those real world equivalents... Chie loving birdsong... Yu comforted by frog chirps.. grapsy hands....

As tamed shadows: I also like to see them as "a version of you that is not tamed by societal expectations." and that does include shit like.. manners, gender performances, and familial expectations. So yeah, Izanagi likes herds his friends like a shepherd with his sheep, Tomoe craves stimulation, and Konohana Sakuya wants to bite things.

... and indulgently, I feel like that extends to expressing affection and bonds that would normally be like.. frowned at? as well as expressing relationships that pride seems to tamp down. Teddie and Yosuke have a cain instinct/ w/ Yosuke's "boys must be emotionally constipated about other boys or you will be EXILED TO THE FUCKED UP WEIRDO BIN" thing going on, but Jiraiya and Kintoki-Douji are far more openly affectionate b/c they are both naturally affectionate people. Get my vibe?

Also.. just.. personas seeing a loved one and go OH! MY FAVORITE ONE! and being drawn to them by default is.. aaahhh.

ANYWAY YOU GOT ME MONOLOGUING AGAIN YOU SLY DOG I hope this is as fun to read as it was to talk about LOL!

[nkn0va]

Request for Chie, Yukiko, Rise, and Naoto where they have a best friends to lovers relationship with their S/O. I'm talking about Yu and Yosuke levels of friendship. Please and thank you.

Ouch...almost two months...murdered motivation sucks...

-Chie first met you back in middle school. Your mutual love of martial arts movies led you to becoming fast friends, even though she was much more... enthusiastic than you were. You really just liked watch people fighting but Chie took it to the extreme.

-Not that you minded by any means of course, you looked up and admired her passion and drive. When you two met Yukiko as you entered high school you quickly became the glue holding the three of you together.

-It wasn't long before Yukiko started shipping the two of you together. Your dynamic just really struck a chord with her, she couldn't really describe it. As the Investigation team is formed and more people join, they start sharing the same sentiment.

-It never really occurred to Chie, mostly because she's not exactly a wise sage, but it certainly at least crossed your mind once or twice. Being around her just felt so...natural. It sort of felt like you were already romantically involved.

-It's after your close encounter with death when you caught the true culprit of the murders that you realized you had to do something or nothing would happen. It got you thinking on your own mortality and the realization that if you wanted to see change in your short life, you needed to make it happen yourself.

-As soon as you did work up the courage to confess your real feelings, Chie immediately breathes a sigh of relief, both at the fact that you felt the same she did and that she didn't need to take initiative herself anymore.

-Truthfully, not much changes People were teasing you about being in a relationship already for a reason. But there is that extra bit of tension when you're together. But it's the good kind.

-Your parents moved to Inaba when you were a child, and naturally you had to go along with them. While you were waiting for furniture to be moved into the new place you all went exploring and ended up at the Amagi Inn everyone was seemingly talking about.

-While you're looking around for things to do, you meet a girl your age who you learn is the daughter of the owners and you become friends pretty quickly.

-You're the first to find out and worry when Yukiko goes missing during your second year of high school. Once you figure out that Chie, Yosuke, and the new transfer student have found out where she is and they're planning to save her, you quickly assert yourself into the group, no room for negotiation.

-You lowkey lead the charge, leadership from Yu be damned. You're not letting anything happen to Yukiko as long as you still draw breath.

-Once you confront Yukiko's Shadow you go pretty much into overdrive. If her Shadow wasn't as strong as it was you would've thrown hands with it personally, even if you were weak to Fire skills after awakening your Persona.

-You barely manage to slip by and get Yukiko out safely after she's able to accept her Shadow. Something's still bothering you, though. The way her Shadow called you her prince, coming to save her.

-Upon questioning her, she suddenly gets rather nervous, but eventually confesses that she'd had feeling for you for some time now. You were able to act normal around her, supporting her no matter what.

-And you'd still stick by her no matter what. But this time, as her S/O.

-You were shopping one day in Junes when a girl your age quickly approached you, asking you to help her hide. Not really knowing what else to do when put in such a situation out of nowhere, you complied.

-After the surprisingly large crowd that came out of nowhere left, she breathed a sigh of relief and introduced herself as THE Risette, having no choice now. To her surprise though, you weren't a rabid fan. Yeah you'd heard of her, but had no interest in her status.

-Needless to say this came as quite a shock to her, but it also came with a huge opportunity. the opportunity to make a real, genuine friend without needing to worry about it going south because of her fame.

-So that's exactly what she did. You were keeping out of public eye as much as possible so people didn't catch on to your repeated plots in hiding her whenever the two of you went out, doing normal teenager things and growing closer.

-The feeling of security, of being able to be a normal person around you was something Rise didn't want to lose. Someone she could actually be Rise with, not Risette.

-The moment she knew she wanted you as an S/O, she made that clear immediately. And of course you couldn't say no to such an infectiously energetic, upbeat lady.

-Your dad was in the Inaba police force, he had been for quite a while. You accompanied him to the station one day, and for a change, actually found someone your age.

-An androgynous young man, claiming to be a student detective brought on to help solve the recent murder cases. You ask if you can help any, you did at least pick up a couple things from your old man. He said he'd get back to you if he ever needed anything and thanked you for the offer.

-It's not long before this new acquaintance, Naoto, does in fact get back to you. You two go out somewhere to eat and discuss/speculate about the case. Naoto however quickly became drawn to you, somehow, and the you ended up hanging out more casually, slowly but surely.

-Naoto in a twist of fate, however, ended up going missing as well like a few other people have. You were worrying for days about whether or not everything was alright, worried another body would be added to the count.

-Miraculously, and much to your relief, he ends up safe and sound, though saying there was a big secret to reveal. Naoto was actually...a woman.

-After listening to his- er... her reasoning for the disguise, you completely understand why it was done, much to her relief. You don't judge her for it.

-Once the secret's out, she opens up much more than before, and soon it's not long before a different kind of feeling between you two starts to develop. Surprisingly, she's the one to confess first. After confronting her Shadow, she realized she needed to be true to herself more, thought you don't need to know about the whole world inside the TV deal.

-She's inexperienced, but she's trying. It takes her a while to accept the fact you appreciated her for her, but the idea of calling you her S/O definitely wasn't one she was against.

[prrtnrr]

Shadow Yosuke: no 1 knows ur here. u didnt even bring weapons or armor. the midnight channel isnt on anymore so its not like any 1 is going to see that ur in danger n come running to ur rescue. but thats what u wanted wasnt it Yosuke: no Shadow Yosuke: mmm u can be short with me all u want i kno u. after all i am the true self. Yosuke: i get it the shadow, the true self, me, etcetera. just shut up already

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[kumakuma-circus]

weird to me that every shadow is listed with their "true self's" arcana on the analysis screen except shadow teddie. shadow yosuke's magician, shadow chie's chariot, shadow yukiko's priestess, shadow kanji's emperor, shadow rise's lovers, shadow naoto's fortune.

but shadow teddie is moon??? inexplicably??? all i can think of is that it's because of ame-no-sagiri somehow affecting him but i don't know why that'd make his arcana moon-

[emeyuko]

Okay, already posted on Twitter in a long ass thread but lemme talk about Yosuke's confession again, the "i never knew i had such a heat inside" or this depending of the traslation

It's SO important cuz It really empathizes their relathionship pretty fucking well. Yosuke loved Saki bc she was the first person that saw him as something outside of the Junes kid who's parents are gonna ruin the shopping distritc (even if the way she feels about him was more complicated than that), she accepted who she was, talked to him, was nice to him

we know Yosuke is a person who gets interested in people easily considering his flirty behaviour, but i am pretty sure his feelings for Saki were genuine and that there's a pattern, Yosuke is a lonely kid that is used to be treated like trash most of the time, seeing someone saying this stuff to him, makes him embarrased and...happy, and it makes believe that he's into people who are genuinely caring and kind to others, including a random loser like him. if Yosuke loved Saki for that empathic and kind nature, who's the person that fits perfectly those two terms? Is basically the whole point of their character considering that he's a protagonists and how it mix with the message of the game? That's right, Yu.

There are some parallels with Saki and Yu, in lots of ways, Saki and Yu both has this kind behaviour, can be teaseful around Yosuke and they both are big siblings that really love their little siblings more than anything, but despite their cool easygoing and kind behaviour, they are implied to be really deppresed individuals, for Yu/Souji more specificed in the manga about his parents("i wish all could dissapear" is a very suicidal thought, that Saki's shadow herself mentioned, like if she has thought about killing herself before)

Saki made Yosuke feel slighty better with himself, how he shouldn't worry about what the others are saying around the town, because he knows that isn't true

Yu made him realize how nothing would change for him if he doesn't do something about himself, how he isn't alone and has everyone else and i would say he did more than Saki did.

Yosuke wasn't ready for a relathionship yes, but he slowly realized how much Yu mattered to him, how much he is "special" to him, Yosuke finds himself comfortable in Yu's presence, smth he didn't felt until Saki came in, so i think that's what "i never knew i had such a heat inside" means

he's a perceptive person that knew that his relathionship with Saki wasn't mutual ("i knew all they said was right, i was just too embarassed to admit it...") and afterwards he saw how much he had going on in her head "i wish everything could just dissapear", Yu actually reasurred him, his kidness was more in a "i do like you as a person" instead of "i am kind to you bc i would be a ass if i weren't", Yosuke probably fell even harder than he fell for Saki, he finally found a genuine connection, the most genuine one he could ever have, that changed his life for better.

And i think It really fits his character, he is really someone who desires a genuine connection due to loneliness, people who genuinely liked him, instead of treating him as someone they need from time to time, thanks to Yu he's closer to the team.

And no, some people may believe Yu was like a """remplacement""" of Saki but i do believe this is just a natural course, you cannot control who you get feelings for, and slowly, you get to know them and fall for them, i do know people who broke up/lost their ex before and some weeks later, they fell for someone else, and there's nothing wrong about it, time passes, feelings changes, some people faster or slower than others but it's natural, and Yosuke should allow himself to love someone else when the other already passed away

So yeah, i do believe he got to experience, even an stronger feeling than before and it makes sense, (Yosuke also realized how life slowly changes in his SL, fitting EVEN MORE with his character arc)

Saki is special, Yu is special, and that wouldn't change in any way, not even how he sees himself, bc thanks to this experiencie, he could finally say he's special in his own way.

[adachimoe]

Random stuff from the Persona Club P4 book

I leafed through the Club book and more of the meta and setting stuff stood out to me than the character stuff. 🤓

The origins of Yasoinaba: The meta developer corner notes that Yasoinaba gets its name from the Hare of Inaba legend. Yaso comes from Okuninushi's brethren who are collectively called the yasogami. Samegawa is also a reference to the Hare of Inaba. In the myth, the hare went on the backs of sharks to reach the territory that would eventually be called Inaba. "Same" is shark, and "kawa/gawa" is river. The animal mascot in Inaba is the rabbit. Not because of the myth, though, but because there's a bunch of rabbits somewhere if you follow the Samegawa lol. The town plant is broadleaf cattail.

Tatsuhime Shrine: It's noted that Toyotamahime is the enshrined deity at Tatsuhime shrine. This is a kinda indirect reference to the Hare of Inaba. Toyotamahime was a sea creature who could transform into a human. Her sea creature form was said to be similar to that of a crocodile or a shark (see the above about the Hare of Inaba). Actually, my first blog post on here was about Toyotamahime and the woman at the shrine.

The staging area of the TV world: The design of the people on the ground on the floor of the staging area when you enter the TV world from Junes is the result of the main characters having murder on the brain when they first enter the TV.

The location of Junes: The Yasoinaba branch of Junes is located near the highway so it brings incidental business to town because people who are driving through will also stop there, not just Inaba locals.

Junes wages: Start at 690 yen per hour for high school students, and 900 yen per hour for others. (Per Google, this was like $6.67 / $8.70 per hour in 2008 when the game came out.)

Yosuke's dad's name: Yoichi Hanamura (花村陽一).

The origins of Konishi Liquor: A member of Atlus's battle team is named Konishi and their family actually owns a liquor store. Early on in development, the team just called the place "Konishi Liquor" as a placeholder after the developer and the name stuck. (The text specifically says this is about a Konishi on the battle team, so it's not referring to the composer who is also named Konishi.)

The in-universe history of Inaba: Yasoinaba developed as a mountain castle town with ties to Takeda Shingen. (This is a reference to the actual area in Yamanashi where Atlus drove to and used as a model for the shopping district.) Later, it became a coal mining town. But the coal mine has since closed. (I believe the coal mine part is fictional and isn't supposed to correlate to Yamanashi.)

Mayumi's Room and Saki's Shopping District: Originally, Mayumi's room and the shopping district with Konishi Liquor were a lot bigger and more similar to the size of the other dungeons in the time period after they were pushed into the TV. Once inside, they became lost in the maze and had to confront their shadows. But once the person who created these spaces/images died, these two places shrunk in size, hence the smaller areas you see in-game. The smaller parts are like "cores" of these once larger areas that remain behind. The book likens the small spaces / "cores" to ghosts that haunt the spots where they died.

Magatsu Inaba and Magatsu Mandala: Unlike the other dungeons, which sprung from repressed thoughts, Adachi's Magatsu Inaba was intentionally created to lure in the Investigation Team and confuse them. From the yellow caution tape, you can sense that a part of him still knows he's a detective.

The bit about the caution tape, I think you can read it also as an explanation to why he sends you the letter about the true ending - there is still detective'ing to be done. But like, I'm just gonna pretend I didn't read that. The tape says CAUTION KEEP OUT WARNING because babygirl has a hard time with feelings and people. Fuck you Atlus. Also, I guess his place being "intentionally" created is related to why he got to pick the entrance being in Mayumi's room.

Shadows: The shadows in Persona 4 aren't really the same as Persona 3. The book tells you to think of them separately as the ones in Persona 4 don't really directly harm people - they remain in the unconscious rather than appear in reality and shank people. Shadows in the TV world attack Persona users because they sense danger from Persona users and just instinctively know to attack them. Compared to Persona 3, there are more silly shadows because the Midnight Channel is influenced by the people who watch it.

Mitsuo Kubo's backstory: Mitsuo was a student at Yasogami High until Morooka caught him messing around in a downtown area, after which he was suspended from school for a week. This wrecked his ego / pride so badly that he dropped out of Yasogami High and held a grudge against Morooka. Btw, Hashino also mentions in this long interview that Mitsuo was originally not going to kill Morooka.

References to the Kirijo Zaibatsu: When Dojima tries to reach Nanako in November, he gets a pre-recorded message about the KJ phone service and Nanako's phone being off. "KJ" stands for "Kirijo". Additionally, when Naoto mentions that she did research and found info about shadows becoming Personas, this info was leaked from a Kirijo research lab.

Did Kashiwagi seriously book the kids at a love hotel?: The love hotel on Shirakawa from Persona 3 was renovated (kind of) into a regular hotel by the time of Persona 4.

Yomenai Bookstore: Yomenai means "unreadable". The owner's last name is actually Yomenai, and they didn't realize their last name wasn't a good match for running a bookstore until after they opened up business. School kids started making fun of the store, which bothered Yomenai at first, but they left the store open and now stock mostly books related to their own hobbies. In other words, the majority of the books at the store are "unreadable" to regular people.

[kizashige]

I have recently gotten into Persona 4, and I luckily remembered you also really liked souyo back in 2019. However I cannot find any of your souyo fanarts, so I wanted to ask if you have any of those works achieved somewhere?

When I was very into Corpse Party I was utterly enchanted by your kizashige fanart, and I believe we have had hours long conversations about those two a while ago. I was wondering if you had similar complex and well developed thoughts about Yu and Yosuke’s relationship as well?

Thank you! :)

ah most of my old p4 art is on another blog but whatever I posted was maybe just 1% of what I actually ever drew. persona 4 was my last big interest, I got into it in 2016 so I was really obsessed with it for a long time, but I didn't post my art much back then (and it's so old, I wouldn't feel comfortable doing that now).

however last year, I was part of a souyo zine but I never posted my piece. this would be the first time I'm showing this off

I still love persona 4. it remains one of my favorite games of all time and was definitely a major influence towards my current taste.

I think about this often, but one thing that p4 really influenced me now with corpse party is that I've always focused on the metaphorical aspect of the darkening first, that it twists a character's desires rather than it being a completely literal corruption. it's a similar mechanic as the shadows throughout the persona series. shadows in persona are uncomfortable, contorted representations of a person's psyche, that aren't entirely true. the darkening is just as ugly and awful and confusing. it's all about symbolism.

another thing is that I focus a lot on the societal aspects in kizami and morishige's characters, how being neurodivergent and just * being different * affects them in their everyday social life, which is also a very present theme throughout persona. like, yeah, they're fun characters because they're gorehounds, but that's not The Thing that got me attached to them in the first place. I often wonder if I hadn't been into p4 before, if I would have read their characters very, very differently.

ANYWAYS, when it comes to yu and yosuke's relationship, I also had very particular ideas of their characters and dynamic to where I was quite miserable being in the fandom. you've given me the opportunity to rant about this, so as someone who was obsessed with souyo for almost four years straight, I basically hated yu and yosuke's characterization in fandom.

people who hate yosuke, whatever, but people who thought yosuke was just a happy-go-lucky, bubbly idiot who always needed yu to scold him for being homophobic pissed me off so much. souyo fans are basically incapable of addressing yosuke's internalized homophobia in any meaningful way because all they do is make yu their mouthpiece for times where they themselves wanted to scold yosuke while playing the game, thus so much fanwork comes across more as just self inserting rather than writing yu as an actual character with his own personality where he can be just as immature and dumb, even in his own dialogue options. I guess this is just the nature of working with a silent protagonist, but I hated it so much. clearly, I still do.

I related to yosuke a lot as many other people did, but I was a BIG fan of shadow yosuke and cared a lot on what that guy meant for yosuke's overall character. yosuke is so often reduced to his homophobia, that many people miss out on his general issues with wanting to be special and to stand out, and how this makes him a very clear parallel to adachi. I think yu is a parallel to adachi mostly through their narrative roles as protagonist and antagonist and through such symbolism, but the parallels between yosuke and adachi go beyond just that and to the core of their personalities and backgrounds and that always made me crazy.

adachi and yosuke both suffer from constant boredom, masking, resenting everything around them, and feeling so unfulfilled in life. the difference is that yosuke was able to make real friends, instead of becoming obsessed with his own ineptitude and pessimism like adachi did.

and that really, really got to me about yosuke's character. I loved how much he hated everyone and everything around him, I loved that he was basically living his life aimlessly, that he was trying so hard to find some purpose, that he always made mistakes and fucked up and would act out by being an asshole either intentionally or unintentionally. his homophobia was only * one * part of that.

I don't have as much to say about yu individually, but my interpretation of him was always that loneliness was a major part of his character. his implied backstory of always moving around and having neglectful parents leading him to being very apathetic to most people as a result, only to then be terrified of letting go once he finally found people he belongs with. I was obsessed with how the anime ran with his abandonment issues, how he kept everyone in a timeloop because he didn't want to be alone again.

basically, I always saw yosuke as someone who was pissed off deep down and wanted an escape through the tv world, and that yu was someone who wanted to belong somewhere so much, that it scared him. that they were two lonely, socially inept, fumbling teenagers who wanted to mean something to someone. I thought they were obsessed with each other.

I've said a lot and I could probably say more, but this was definitely an interesting ask as yu and yosuke have sort of just been in the background for me these past few years. I think whatever I wanted out of souyo I saw in kizashige a lot as well, which is funny because to an outsider, they're incredibly different ships. this tweet says it all though.

[a-sketchy]

as the resident Yosuke scholar, do u have any thoughts on him repeatedly bringing up the anxiety of kanji’s shadow being witnessed by the wider public 🎤 👀

OOOOH, yeah that point is so interesting, yosuke’s behaviour during kanji’s dungeon is so fascinating and so different than what i had expected. i think it’s one of yosuke’s reoccurring fears blown up on a way larger scale through the reflection of kanji. that like more than anything he’s scared of being, he’s scared that anyone will perceive him like that, cause that makes it true and means that scrutiny is warranted and inevitable. i think being seen by the public turns discomfort into shame

i like this line from p4d a lot cause cause it’s specifically that the fear is of being seen as uncool, not that he’s uncool in the first place, cause he knows he is, and i think that’s the precedent for like all of his anxieties. scarier than the idea of liking guys is the idea of being perceived as gay.

there’s probably something to be said for how yosuke’s shadow was only ever seen by yu (and teddie but he’s not a person), and how with the realization that the midnight channel is broadcasting all of this combined with the particularly sensitive subject matter of kanji’s shadow, yosuke is realizing “oh shit this is BAD bad, this is life-ruining stuff being broadcast to an audience. this could have been me” in real time. with his prince of junes and scorn from the inaba residents thing, i think he knows more than anyone else how scary it is for this town to judge you for anything at all, for things outside of your control. yosuke’s the most public-interfacing member of the IT at that point, he works a customer service job and is used to playing to the audience (/company/haters), and that combined with how he relates to kanji’s struggle means he sees just how terrifying this situation is

[megaderping]

There are some really funny consequences of my P4 Akechi AU, The Crow Cries at Midnight, and some of them that aren't too spoilery are... - Because Yu is known as "No Girlfriends," this reframes how he and Rise first interact with each other. I just love how Yu doesn't even care that everyone knows him by Marie's nickname because he's exactly the kind of person who'd wear it as a badge of honor in a very ironic sense. - Dojima absolutely knows the culprit's pattern with targets who appear in the news as of recent updates and I can't wait to play with what comes of that. He also has way more pressure to get his act together as a parent and has been more attentive as a result. - Naoto has literally been working with the Investigation Team since May, is fully aware of the TV world, Shadows, and Personas and has been there despite not actually awakening a Persona yet and has already decided that Akechi is the most intelligent and mature person on the team despite being twelve. They had a synchronized Featherman rant when Yosuke showcased his 'inferior' tokusatsu tastes and Yosuke would be convinced they're clones if they didn't look different. - Kanji has a much bigger support group of Akechi, Nanako, Dojima, and basically everyone on the Investigation Team who isn't Yosuke, and Yosuke... is going to try to work on that. - Because Akechi is nosy as shit, the Investigation Team knows about the Moel Gas Station Attendant, and Dojima and the Investigation Team by this point have just enough info on the case that by the time Mitsuo even tries to do the thing, he will not be taken seriously as a consideration for true culprit and I cannot wait to show the consequences of that, especially with how Adachi reacts. - Everything with Akechi's Hanged Man Social Link. It is the Dramatic Irony Social Link and you will all finally get to see who it is on Sunday. >:] Next to Izanami, this may be his Social Link with the biggest narrative consequences (though Naoto is pretty high up there tbh).

[daily-hanamura]

[taldigi]

Love the Shadow art with Yui! Does that mean Yui has to face her Shadow and admit that she actually likes being a girl this time around, arguably more than she ever liked being a boy? Are the others there when she does and, if so, how do they take it?

Yu has always come off as a character who is fully confidant in himself and comfortable with his eccentricities. Its a trait that's reflected well by being the only one who didn't have a shadow to confront in order to unlock his persona.

So- I love NG+ stories. And what inspired me explicitly is how, when playing the game with the FemC mod on.. sometimes, things feel different. Things that are loaded when postured at a female character. Relationships that change heavily because socialization rules shift.

Yu does a lot of things, Yu is praised for a lot of things. Cooking, caring for his sister, being empathetic, loving cats... Yui isn't exemplary for these concepts, not like Yu was. Yui's reaction to this FASCINATES me!

The girls are going to pull her in their direction more. They're going to trust her more then they ever trusted Yu. Yui's going to be praised for bringing "a feminine touch" to the Dojima household- cooking and tending to Nanako are assumed defaults, not exceptions. Dojima not letting her leave at night because it's dangerous for young girls to be out late like that- Yosuke and Kanji are going to keep Yui at an arms length. Even Teddie would change his tune and include Yui in on his bullshit unless it was shot down faster and harder than anyone ever did- and at that point, how much more would change now that Yui is a recipient? She can't join the sports clubs- so is she even able to do her strength arcana link? Ai's relationship shifts from fake boyfriend to something else. Even Yukiko is going to be way more open out the gate and less apprehensive to talk to Yui- and how does that affect the Yuki-Chie dynamic?

Yosuke puts an arm around Yu? Friendly? But touching a girl like that and not being in a relationship.. with his reputation and behavior? the implications are wild. and I have so much fucking brainrot about that NG+ Femc/Yosuke relationship that it could be an essay in it's own right.

All of this is intrinsically fascinating and complex in a way that a normal NG+ or a FemC rewritten story isn't.

Anyway, swinging back:

I think Yu can swing into being Yui well. I think they even enjoy being being Yui more than being Yu... I'm sure it's very freeing for her specifically. But what Yui struggles with most is that Yui isn't Yu. Yui has a whole year of memories, of character development and growth- and now is allowed to be someone she couldn't ever be- and that is what spawns her shadow I think. More than the gender stuff, it's the lying, the hiding of the truth, and the difficuilty of making the call of how far she can rock the train before it derails and she can't save Nanako. How many things can she change or avert? What if saving Saki gets Yosuke killed instead?

Yui loves her friends so much, but how much of Yui is faked in order to make sure this story doesn't derail. How does it all unfold when her shadow lets Yosuke know that Yui knew Saki was going to die..? and how she coudn't say something because what if something worse happens because of it? How much she has to hold back because Kanji's social link suddenly requires much more expression and empathy then it did back then?

I mean, I think Yu/i sometimes lowballs how much the IT loves their leader in return. The truth hurts, but all of their truths hurt. No matter what, they're going to care about her and help her in whatever decision because the conclusion they're going to come to is: "She took time to help us, not once, but twice over. We know her well enough that she's going to do it again. Being anything less than supportive isn't even an option."

After all, the IT will canonically kill someone on Yu's behalf. Being complicit for murder is true friendship.

anyway, thats my thoughts on it.

[animatedapostasy]

Persona 4 has been bouncing around in my brain even more than usual and I wanna complain about it.

I think the main problem with Persona 4 is that it has nothing to say. Despite being a game that is dealing explicitly with topics like gender, sexuality, queerness, and identity, the game has absolutely nothing interesting to say about any of it. In fact, its viewpoint is pretty conservative. Nothing upsets the status quo.

Almost all of the character’s shadow selves are rooted deeply into the character’s insecurity and fear around their gender and/or sexuality and how it fits in with society’s norms. The exceptions are Teddie and Yosuke (ironic I know). Despite this, in the individual character arcs: all of the characters make decisions and end up almost exactly in line with what society expects of them. No one dares to go against the grain.  Yukiko ends up running the inn just as she was expected to her, only now she’s happy about it. Rise returns to being an idol just like everyone wanted her to only now she’s happy about it. Naoto sheds their gender non-conformity in favor what society expects. Chie, despite seeing firsthand the incompetence and corruption of the police, still wants to be a police officer (Makoto Niijima also says hello here)

Yosuke’s cut romance is a pretty good microcosm of this and I don’t think you need to be particularly yaoibrained to see it. With his romance, he could have had an arc of “boy in search of someone who makes him feel special overcomes his internalized homophobia to fall in love with his best friend”. At the very least, you have to admit it would have been transgressive when it was released. But it was cut and nothing remains except ash, homophobia, and fujoshi tears.

Ironically, I think Kanji with all his discourse around him has the arc with the most to say. Honestly in my opinion, his arc was never about being gay but defining a healthy definition of manhood that includes having “feminine” interests. But in the end he ends up conforming too. Just look at his epilogue outfit. They did away with all the visual things that made Kanji unique to look “normal”. The same applies to Naoto whose gender non-conformity is completely erased in their epilogue look.

For a game whose whole theme is “Pursuing Your True Self”, it pretty much says that “true self” shouldn’t be anything that challenges the status quo.

[ammstify]

A few months ago, I read an exchange between a mutual of mine and a person about their experience with Persona 4 Golden, more specifically, about the queer writing within it, how they felt about Naoto Shirogane's story, and how the game treated (or mistreated) Naoto's gender identity.

Today, I decided I wanted to put in my two cents and discuss the truth of what Naoto Shirogane's social link/story is ACTUALLY about (at least, from my own interpretations while using empirical evidence from the game!)

***BIG FAT NOTE: To avoid controversy, but also out of personal preference and headcanon, I will be referring to Naoto by they/them pronouns.

This does NOT MEAN I AM TRANSPHOBIC! I am a queer person who imagines Naoto as genderfluid, similar to Haruhi Fujioka from Ouran High School Host Club, but if you view Naoto as a transman, that is PERFECTLY OKAY! I have no judgement for those who do, and support many headcanons, including Kanji Tatsumi being bisexual, or Yosuke being a closeted gay guy!

(Also spoilers for Persona 4 Golden's major story beats and Naoto Shirogane's Social Link!!)

Let's begin with a general summary of the story prior to entry into Naoto's Social link, which can be accessed as early as

We first meet Naoto Shirogane, a young male-presenting detective known as the "Detective Prince" by the media, who we find talking to Kanji, believing that he may be the next victim in the recent rising kidnapping cases. We learn through both Naoto and our uncle that Naoto was sent to Inaba for the purpose of aiding the local police department. For what purpose? To provide aid in investigating the increasingly bizarre murder cases and the kidnappings of local teenagers, much to the chagrin of both Dojima, Adachi, and many of the older officers presiding over the case.

After the return to school from summer break, as well as the rescuing of both Kanji and Rise by the Investigation Team, Naoto enrolls at Yasogami High School as a first year student, attracting the attention of all students, especially the female students who find Naoto to be handsome. He even receives multiple love letters from girls, yet remains disinterested, finding romance to be "entangling" and "callow". The boys on the other hand though are a bit mixed about Naoto, with some jealous of the interest he gets from girls, while others find Naoto to be cool and suave.

Eventually, we interact a bit more with Naoto during the investigations about the disappearance of Mitsuo Kubo, after the recent murder of local Yasogami High School teach Kinshiro Morooka. Many individuals, including our own team, the police department, and Naoto believe that Mitsuo is the true culprit and murderer of the prior cases, and the kidnappings.

As we question Naoto though, they become annoyed and question why we're so involved in this case, and why it matters to us. The group, and the protagonist himself, answers that its for justice and to seek the truth, which leaves Naoto a bit surprised and perplexed, as if they didn't expect that. It leaves Naoto contemplating as we hurry off to save Mitsuo from the Shadow World, and prevent him from dying so he can face justice.

But, after Mitsuo is apprehended, we come to find out that Naoto ends up becoming the next victim, despite deciding that the case was over and done.

Knowing all this and what comes next, you might think "oh, so Naoto's story is about his struggle with being a female at birth, and wanting to transition!" Not exactly...

This is where we get to the point of my post; Naoto's story isn't just about gender, sex, or sexism within the police force, its about age.

Specifically, how people perceive and treat Naoto based on their age, and how Naoto molds their appearance to affect that perception!

Let's first start with analyzing the main elephant in the room, Shadow Naoto. Prior to the battle, when we finally find the boss room, Shadow Naoto isn't acting like a woman or someone repressed by a sexist establishment; Shadow Naoto acts like a lonely child, begging for Naoto to not leave while sobbing and clinging to them.

The Shadow questions why Naoto is leaving, with Naoto rejecting it as they attempt to leave. Instantly, the Shadow's personality changes to a deluded attempt at maturity, as it states "These childish gestures are no mere affection..." and implies quotes from adults like "You're only a child" and "Keep out of our business kid."

This is definitely shown throughout the story and when we meet Naoto, who in comparison to their peers, whom of which adore them regardless if they present as male, female, or otherwise, is treated by adults as one thing; A child.

Even after the reveal of Naoto being a female at birth, neither Dojima, Adachi, or any of the police officers on the investigation change their treatment towards Naoto, viewing them as a child and annoying kid who is ruining their work. They all view Naoto as a rookie, and think that they should be sent back to the city and not meddle with their affairs.

Despite this though, Shadow Naoto regresses back, stating that they want to "be a big boy right now" and how the adults will "see who I am." Many people confuse this for Naoto wanting to be trans, which I admit, I thought so too! But as the conversation continues, we learn that Naoto doesn't necessarily want to be a man.... But be like the detectives in fiction, who are often older, mature, adult men, rather than women, or even teenagers for that matter.

But, even if Naoto were to appear or be a male, none of their older peers in the detective and police forces will ever respect them, because they're a teenager. So, even if they were to go through this change for their body using the machine created by Shadow Naoto, they would never truly be happy. This is further implied during the battle with Shadow Naoto, who states that "children can't do anything at all!"

We eventually fight our way through the battle, where in the end Naoto is left vulnerable as they explain the truth; Naoto is indeed a female at birth, who as a child, lost both their parents and was raised by their grandfather. Due to depression and struggling to make friends, Naoto read detective novels to pass their time, and fell in love with the idea of becoming a detective, both like their parents, grandfather, and the ones in the novels.

Over time, they began to aid their grandfather with his clients, earning them the nickname "Junior Detective." But even with their intelligence, not many accept their collaboration with cases due to their age. There, they wisely then state that "But though I will one day change from a child to an adult, I will never change from a woman to a man..."

They reveal that their gender and sex on the other hand didn't fit their image of an ideal detective, representing the lack of women in the force at the time, and a struggle with their own identity because of this. They state that it would give officers another reason to look down on them, saying that "no one would need me anymore..."

But, through the support of Kanji and Yukiko, they realize that its not about age or gender, but the fact that they shouldn't have to listen to the misguided judgment of adults. Nor do they have to change theirself to fit others views, and should be comfortable with their own body and age. And with a smile, they accept their Shadow, and create their Persona, Sukuna-Hikona!

(Who btw, is a male Persona, similar to how Ken's Persona, Nemesis, in Persona 3's was female! Perhaps this is due to Naoto's ideal idea of a detective/their grandfather, like how Ken's might reflect his mother and his view of her being strong?)

Next, we then focus upon their Social Link!

Over the entire course of Naoto's social link, they are sent upon a scavenger hunt around Inaba, led by a series of mysterious cards written by an anonymous person who calls theirself a "Phantom Thief" (later to be revealed to be Naoto's grandfather). When we go to the respective locations listed on each card though, we come across a series of various clues and seven detectives tools that relate to their love of mystery novels.

Some of these tools include:

A handmade detectives badge

A children's digital watch, with a bright backlight meant to blind enemies

A ballpoint pen that functions as a penlight and telescope

A knife-shaped radio

And a detectives pocketbook

Seeing these objects help Naoto remember their childhood, and make them realize what they have been longing for all along: To be seen. According to Naoto, when they were young, their parents passed away, leaving them to live with their grandfather. Because of this, Naoto was fairly lonely and had little to no friends, and spent much of their childhood enjoying detective novels, admiring their grandfather, and wanting to be like a detective.

This formulated not only their want to be seen as an adult, but as a male adult due to most detectives in their novels being depicted as such, hence Naoto's more mature personality, but also style of dress. They often try to take care of theirself and do things by theirself, out of fear of not being seen as mature or feminine.

Despite that though, Naoto realizes that not only do they not have to be seen as an adult, since they are only a teen, but also to accept help from others including the protagonist. This is especially shown when you meet Yakushiji, the secretary of Naoto's grandfather, who was sent to Inaba in order to send the protagonist and Naoto on the scavenger hunt. The purpose was to aid Naoto in not only gaining friends, but to also "regain the joy (she) felt in days past. To regain the feelings of when all that (she) wanted was to be a detective, regardless of (her) heritage or gender..."

They realize that being a detective doesn't mean getting respect or recognition, regardless of your age or gender, and remember why they wanted to become one: To help people by solving the mysteries that intrigued them.

And lastly, this means the entirety of Naoto's social link was focused on helping Naoto live in the present, and enjoy their life not only as a teen, but look fondly on their past when they were a child. This in turn allows Naoto to be more willing to be seen as immature like a teenager, and enjoy the joys of being a teen more happily with their friends, but also realize how they want to help their friends and Inaba, and bring the killer to justice.

In the end, while gender is a fairly large part of Naoto's story, age is also just as equally important if not moreso, and together, Naoto's realization helps them better understand theirself and be their true self: A young teenage detective, who loves their friends and family, and only wants the approval of those that love them and their own. Not from their peers or the adults around them.

(Also wanna note cause I saw this: ASKING NAOTO TO DRESS IN THE GIRLS UNIFORM IS OPTIONAL, YOU DO NOT HAVE TO DO IT! I don't know if Naoto will still wear it during the Christmas date, but as far as I'm aware, that dialogue choice is once again OPTIONAL.)

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this analysis, and maybe learned a bit more stuff about Naoto that you might've not expected!

[lolo3h]

So I finally finished that shadow souyo fic idea. It has a few differences from the original idea but is overall the same in story. This is all so crazy to me because I haven't written a fic in nearly a year, so my witting/grammar may be a little odd but I had fun with it.

Summary: Shadow Yu loves his friends, and wanders around the TV world looking for their shadows. He runs into Shadow Yosuke, who is none too pleased to see him.

Word Count: 1108

Yu Narukami’s friends are everything to him. And that’s the truth.

They’re his happiness, his purpose, his reason for facing each day. Without them, he is nothing. An empty shell flitting from place to place without meaning. And even if may refuse to acknowledge that fact, his shadow is very much aware of it. Especially when he’s in the TV world, foggy and alone. 

It’s not abnormal for shadows to stick to themselves, but Yu’s shadow can’t help but feel lonely. His friends are a part of him after all, but what can he do? While his real self may be able to hang out with his friends freely, Yu’s shadow has a feeling that the shadows of his friends won’t be happy to see him. From his perspective, it’s easy to see why. Yu always strives to be the perfect friend, the perfect leader. To be perfection. But the shadow’s existence proves that isn’t true. He’s weak. Sad. Pathetic. And if his friends are too polite to say it out loud, he is certain that their shadows will. 

But even if he knows that his friends can’t stand him, he can’t help but be drawn to them. Wandering the TV world, he found himself at the entrance to the facsimile of Junes. Perhaps the happy memories enticing him inside, or maybe the familiarity. But whatever the reason, his feet carried him inside.

Half of the lights were off, causing the remaining lights inside to cast long shadows down the aisles. The store was silent, except for the constant buzzing of fluorescent lights throughout the store. It would have been eerie, seeing the normally bustling department store filled with people, but the TV world was usually devoid of people so the stark emptiness was just normality for him. Yu’s shadow aimlessly meandered through the store, absentmindedly glancing at the items on the shelves and on the displays. He didn’t know how long he was there for, maybe a few minutes, a few hours, but he suddenly stopped when a certain item caught his eye. 

He had wandered into the electronics section and was standing in front of a TV.

The TV. A replica of the real one that his real self and their friends would go through to enter the TV world. 

The thought of his friends caused Yu’s shadow a great ache within his chest. 

What were the shadows of his friends doing? Were they hanging out without him? Did they forget about him? Did they just not care? Would they all just leave him? 

“What the hell are YOU doing here?”

A boy’s shout snapped him out of his spiraling thoughts. He turned around to the source of the voice and came face to face with Yosuke’s shadow.

He was wearing a black jumpsuit with a long red cape around his neck, and a pair of large yellow four-pointed shurikens on opposite sides of his waist. Yu’s shadow would have been glad to see the other, if not for the expression of irritation on their face. 

“I…”

Yu’s shadow really didn’t have a good answer. He knew his friend’s shadow would be displeased at his presence, but he couldn’t deny his intentions. 

“I came…to see you.”

“Really? Well I don’t want you here, partner. Get out.”

He was hurt by the use of his nickname, but Yu’s shadow didn’t want to just get up and leave already. He had finally found one of his friends, maybe they could talk and-

“Why are you still standing there for? Are you going to say something? Let me guess, come to gloat about yourself?” 

 “...What?” 

Yosuke’s shadow started approaching closer to him, his face shifting from annoyance into anger and pointing an accusatory finger. 

“Oh please, everyone knows that you’re superior. You’re not going to shove the fact in my face that you’re better than me? That you are the better student, the better fighter, the better hero?”

“That’s not-”

“Shut up! I can’t stand looking at your pretty face anymore! Get out of my sight!”

The boy pulls out a pair of kunai from behind his back and starts sprinting down the aisle. 

Shadow Yu barely has time to dive out of the way before having to step back and dodge another swipe of the kunai.

“What, are you not going to fight back? Are you trying to prove something?”

It seemed like the other shadow wasn’t going to back down. With a sigh, Yu’s shadow drew his sword and  stood in a fighting stance. He didn’t want to fight his friend, but if he wasn't going to stop then…

Yosuke’s shadow dashed at him again, and just before the kunai slashed at his chest, Yu’s shadow stepped to the side and kicked his feet out. This caused the other shadow to trip and stumble, and in the brief window of opportunity, Yu’s shadow channeled electrical energy into his sword and fired a bolt of lightning.

“ARGHHHHHHH!”

Hearing the other shadow’s visceral scream of pain made him flinch, but it eventually stopped and Yosuke’s shadow collapsed on his stomach. He hadn’t meant to hit him that hard, just enough to make him back away. 

Yu’s shadow hesitantly approached the collapsed shadow. 

“Are you-”

“Dammit, it’s not FAIR!” Shadow Yosuke slammed his fist onto the ground, causing shadow Yu to stop in his tracks.

“Why are YOU always the stronger one?! It’s not fair, none of it is fair!”

Yu had no idea this was how he thought. He was the reason why Yosuke was in such anguish, suffering, pain.

“Yosuke, I’m sorry…I never meant to hurt you.”

The other shadow sat up in response to his words, glaring at him with such fury behind his eyes that shook Yu’s shadow to the core.

“I can never win when it comes to you! Every time I look at you I’m reminded of how complete and utter SHIT I am! No matter what I do I can never be anything else than your hideous second place!”

“That’s not true at all!”

Shadow Yu kneeled at the other shadow’s side and clasped their hand in his.

“You’re so much more than you claim to be. You’re witty and charming. You saved me from being alone. You’re my friend, my partner.”

Shadow Yu embraced the other shadow and held him tight. He whispered into the other shadow’s ear. 

“You’re my hero.”

Yosuke’s shadow was stunned into silence, just sitting unmoving for several seconds. He mulled over the words in his head.

“Your hero huh? Coming from you that may almost be enough for me.”

Yosuke’s shadow hugged back with a content smile.

[disasterinbound]

the scene where souji chooses to be trapped by izanami in persona 4 the animation: no one is alone kind of made me start thinking of a (yosuke centered but not really) au again hooray

souji has been repeating the same year over and over again, until he realises that something is very much wrong because why does everything seem so... familiar??? yet also so different?? and then comes to a realisation of "shit i'm in a time loop"

he tries to tell the others. he manages to get chie to remember the past years, of how weird it was that she could remember some details about july yet it was only march.

chie definitely doesnt tell yukiko. but yukiko finds out because souji and chie were trying to find ways to get out of the time loop and she overhears them by accident. its easier to manage if she doesn't think too hard about it. if they all don't really think too hard about it, tbh.

so the three of them try to come up with ways to figure out how this mess started. souji knows that he has to get his juniors to remember as well, though he doesn't know exactly why. maybe its just a gut feeling.

yukiko does know she's gonna get kidnapped and put into the tv, though she doesn't remember who did it, for some odd reason.

but this is yukiko, who in the previous loop had her social link completed by souji, so her dungeon and shadow confrontation is much more easier for her to deal with cuz she remembers her growth.

it probably goes the same for the juniors as well as teddie. after teddie gets a new body and clothes (sponsored by yukiko), they try to get him to remember, but he only has fragments, unlike the rest who can generally recall the loops.

skip to 20th of march. they havent figured out whats going on. its not the murders, they've already solved the case.

until the events of the true ending happen, and souji figures out the identity of the gas station attendant.

of course its izanami whos trapped them all inside a time loop, and maybe she reveals that souji has been looping for a long time but this is the first time he's actually remembered.

and then she gives them a hint to how to stop the time loops. remember the person who was at the beginning of it all. find her son.

then she laughs, and souji wakes up in his room on the twelfth of april, 2011.

this time though, he has a clue.

wanna just note that the original loop was a bad end route when souji failed to get adachi by the end of his dungeon date. izanami appeared to yosuke (susano-o) and accepted his plea to keep his friends safe, even in a timeloop. but yosuke has to stay with her.

so she basically made yosuke disappear from everyone's memories, until souji manages to remember the timeloops.

bonus souyo: once they get all their memories of yosuke back (before they only had this feeling of someone that was missing from their group and only some small parts coming back to them as the year passes) , souji feels really guilty about forgetting yosuke.

maybe because before december, he promised yosuke to never forget him, and yet here he was, having forgotten his own boyfriend. and maybe he doesn't quite cry about it, but it certainly feels like he's about to start blaming himself. no wonder souji never felt complete and whole every loop.

he'll apologise to his partner when he gets him back.