#you really thought you could get away with that one mr asagiri????

[liibation]

Guys, i feel like we arent taking enough advantage of the fact that theres *technically* canon magical girl outfits for skk and sskk

[along-came-atsushi]

Novel Recap: Osamu Dazai and the Dark Era

Chapter 1

After hanging up, I quickly stuffed the rest of the bread down my throat, then cut my Canadian bacon and scrambled eggs into thirds before inhaling them. I poured some freshly brewed coffee into my mug, tossed in a sugar cube with some cream, and drank it up all while slipping on my shirt arms-first. [...] I shaved, then put on some pants and hoisted my leather harness over my shoulders. It had holsters below my armpits, which I slipped my trusty 9mm handguns into. Finally, I tossed on my coat and left the house.

- Oh, nothing of importance here, I just wanted to share Odasaku’s kinda morning ritual with you. For uuuuuuhhhhh... scientific reasons, of course!

- Ok. The whole scene with Mori, Elise and Odasaku is even more uncomfortable in the novel than the anime.

“Our men were killed instantly after being hit with around ten to twenty 9mm rounds each.”

- People die if you kill them???!!!!

“Mr. Hirotsu, I don’t know why, but I was given the lofty position of executive, and when you’re an executive, you get subordinates whether you want any or not. But I can’t produce results with a bunch of sloppy flunkies. That’s why I cut the bad ones loose early. You should do the same.”

[...] In the Mafia, “cutting the bad ones loose” means killing them. Refusing executive orders is treated as betrayal and dealt with in the same fashion.

Hirotsu apologized but said no more after that. Dazai fixed him with a piercing gaze; the silence was so deafening that time nearly froze in place.

“...Ha-ha! Just kidding!” Dazai abruptly added in a cheery tone. Hirotsu stared back at him, confused. “The reason you have so many people following you is that you don’t turn your back on them. I’ll leave things in your hands. I won’t tell the boss.”

He patted Hirotsu on the shoulder and smiled. Hirotsu unconsciously rubbed his throat while he nodded. He must have been tense.

- Hirotsu after that, internally:

Joke aside: So the reason Dazai highly respects Hirotsu and Hirotsu Dazai in return to this day (not just because Dazai is/was his superior) is explained in this conversation here. That’s another thing missing and not really comprehensible in the anime as to why those two still get along, even though they’re on different sides now.

I always liked Hirotsu, but now I like him even more.

“Y’know,” Dazai commented after a good few moments of silence, “I’m thirsty.”

“I will have someone buy you a drink.” Hirotsu gave a flick of his finger, signalising the subordinate by hsi side to go. [...]

“Get me a coffee with lots of milk, Make sure to cool it off!” Dazai cheerfully yelled out as the man dashed away. “Oh, but no ice, okay? If you can get me a decaf, that’d be even better. And double the sugar, please!”

- Dunno who I should feel more sorry for: the guy who has to get Dazai’s coffee, or the person who has to make it.

Now that I thought about it, I knew next to nothing about his [Ango’s] personal life. Our relationship was always like that, though. Ango and Dazai never talked about themselves. The three of us were like a band of thieves who just happened to be hiding under the eaves of the same abandoned temple to avoid the rain. We’d always get lost in conversation, never knowing exactly who the other was.

- I think this is very interesting, because they have this kind of distant relationship, and yet they see each other as friends and are honestly concerned about the other.

As I sprinted, I punched in Dazai’s phone number. “Dazai?”

“Wow, it’s not often I get a call from you, Odasaku. I’ve got a feeling this is big! Hmm. Allow me to use my genius brain to guess the situation! You suddenly thought of a hilarious joke, and it was so funny that you had to call me to-”

“Someone tried to snipe me.”

Dazai immediately stopped midsentence as if the air had been sucked out of his lungs.

- YOU SEE?! But also, just as a sidenote: I read somewhere that Asagiri said in an interview (or something) that Dazai and Odasaku were calling each other often and that they talked for hours? Is this true? Because it contradicts the situation in the novel.

I hesitated for a moment. The reason I called Dazai was because he was the only one I could turn to with confidence on such short notice. However, he was one of the five executives, making him only second to the boss in terms of the Mafia hierarchy. Under normal circumstances, I would’ve had to send someone to ask permission to even meet with Dazai, then wait at least a month before getting an answer. Calling someone like him and giving orders is like asking the president to walk your dog.

“Dazai, I have a Silver Oracle with me. If you don’t mind-” “Quit it. You don’t need that to ask me for help. You‘re in a fix, right?”

- bUt DaZaI iS a VeRy SeLfiSh MaN aNd MaNiPuLaTeS eVeRyOnE!

Also, thanks for the image of Donald Trump walking my dog, if I had one.

- A detailed description of how Odasaku fights the two assassins and also how snipers do their job.

“You killed them?” I asked, looking down at the two fallen assassins.

“Yep. Capturing them and trying to get them to talk would’ve just been a waste of time. [...]”

I didn’t reply. It felt as if there were a lump about the size of a boulder in my stomach. Dazai faintly smiled, then said, “I know. That’s not what you were asking, right? But, Odasaku, these men were professional assassins. It doesn’t matter how good you are. Killing them was the only option.”

[...] “I can see you’re not happy... I’m sorry for compromising your principles.” His smile weakened as he spoke. Dazai usually never apologized to anyone, which was why what he said really rang true.

- bUt DaZaI AvOiDs EmOtIoNs aNd EmOtIoNaL aTtAcHmEnT!

- Odasaku just not wanting to believe that Ango betrayed the Port Mafia and Dazai probably hating to admit this, but it’s the truth >_<

“I hope you can see the excitement in my eyes, too.” Dazai continued to address the enemy who was holding him at gunpoint. “If you just squeeze your finger ever so slightly, you can give me precisely what I crave most. [...]”

[...] “Dazai!” I screamed. I felt as though we were thousands of miles apart.

“Please take me with you. Awaken me from this oxidizing world of a dream. Come, now. Shoot.”

[...] I looked at Dazai. There was something there invisible to the human eye. You could’ve called it demons of the mind--something that could never be seen--just something compelled to destroy all.

[...] Had our ranks or relations been any different, I probably would’ve punched him right then. [...] With every step I took, I felt as if the ground were going to collapse creating a bottomless hole that I would fall through for an eternity. Dazai’s expression as he placed a finger on his forehead and approached the enemy--that of a child about to burst into tears---remained burned into my eyes.

- afahgsakjhakj!!! So, Odasaku describes that Dazai has a big smile on his face while approaching the enemy, and Dazai is all about “Yes, that’s exactly what I want, I’m so happy it’s happening” but in truth, Dazai looked like a child about to cry...