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This is a Megaten fan blog (including but not limited to SMT, DDS, Persona, Dx2, etc.)
The owner of this blog is part of a system, if you don't know what a system is please check these carrds
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It's not something we will talk about a lot but we do want to make sure others know when following us
That aside, feel free to send asks and submissions! We love talking and chatting (i.e favorite demon, favorite game, have you beat [x] yet, etc.)
Images found in the "fansitekit.zip" file distributed on the Marvelous USA website. File was captured on archive in October 2013, but may have been uploaded as early as September 2013. (There is a button that was uploaded in Sept 2013 indicating an available download of the file.)
The subtle ways androgyny is used in SMTIV&A and its context in the franchise
What if I tell you... there's more characterization than it appears to be?
The most consistent trait among Megaten protagonists is certainly their androgyny. Fastidious fans would accept nothing less than the most beautiful eyelashes someone could have the privilege of being born with as it became a long defined characteristic in Kaneko's art.
Considering the franchise debuted with a main character described as a guy that would look good in a skirt, it's no wonder Kaneko (and later, Doi) had to follow the feminine-looking boy legacy:
However, this aspect is not actually that commonly depicted as a self-aware trait in the games. Attractive? Sure. Wooing ladies? Almost always. Specifically having a spotlight on the feminine features, though? Hardly any would be at par with our originator Nakajima.
Which includes Flynn. That being said, even if it's not brought up in the story, Flynn's androgyny is still touched upon not only in his profile notes in the SMTIV Artbook...
...but also in the way he's perceived in demon negotiations:
Excuse me!
Going from a stinky swordsman to bestie <333 in a flash.
Lham Dearg having this dialogue when the motherfucker shares the same hair lenght as Flynn is some double standards BS.
And then Chagrin-chan gives you a Detox solution.
However, you also have a chance of becoming a target of gender rivalry for this same answer:
No good, Chagrin-chan.
And then you have the rather unusually neutral way Flynn looks at relics:
You could argue that it’s due to Flynn being a country bumpkin born in an artificial world currently in its medieval period hence even basic concepts that he would know of would be interpreted differently when seeing their modern versions.
On another note, we also have to recognize that the location with the most conservative worldview is Mikado.
And yet, it's Nanashi the one with very gender-specific commentary:
A feasible counterpoint perhaps would lie on the possibility that Flynn didn’t grow with many women around him, specially ones that would invest in their own appearance which would be difficult considering their peasant background.
And an indoctrinated one on top of that.
Which isn't to say that there isn't makeup culture in Mikado though, as shown by Isabeau and Gabby.
Regarding Isabeau, I commented before that her choice of fashion seems to be more adapted to her own self-expression rather than a default way of presenting for either Luxurors or Samurai women. At any case, it's still part of a larger issue.
In fact, Luxurors and even monks from the Monastery weren't shown to be as anti-Unclean extremists as the Divine representatives themselves.
In the myth, Gabriel is a messenger who was entrusted to deliver several important messages on God’s behalf. Therefore, as Gabby, Gabriel acts as a mediator and makes God's message understandable to people through adapting her appearance to reach the most hearts as possible.
In other words, we have the picture of peasants being fairly ignorant of new technology (with Flynn among them) and only having the bare essentials while the higher caste thrives over luxuries to the point that becomes normalized what would be considered slightly sinful.
So much that even the angels had to tolerate it to a certain level in order to become close to humans and manipulate them.
Nanashi, on the other hand, meets so many ladies worried about their appearance underground that he learned even more than Asahi.
So essentially, Flynn "isn't familiar with female expression" but "effortlessly passes as a woman" regardless of what he's wearing while Nanashi "knows" and "plays around" with it like a costume.
And in both cases, it seemingly comes more "at the player's choice" rather than being done in an unsolicited way.
Doi's comments on SMTIVA's wardrobe convey that Nanashi is into wearing flashy clothes. Some fashionable, some dumb, some awfully absurd for anyone to wear in the middle of a war-like environment.
Nanashi basically wants to stand out. He fully knows he looks weird and is having a blast fighting demons around Tokyo in audacious, flamboyant display.
Meanwhile most of Flynn’s wardrobe have this feeling of “gears that Flynn would consider useful for avoiding hazards while being ignorant of what the design means”.
Nanashi does it for fashion while Flynn does it for protection. This is also applied to the situations where the player "can choose" to act feminine: Nanashi crossdresses and wears make up while Flynn lets demons believe he's a woman to get a positive reaction in negotiations.
To summarize, Flynn was intended to be seen as an individual with both male and feminine traits (or the lack of both in some aspects) beyond just the stylistic choice of his androgynous design. While Nanashi is aware of gender roles and his social standing as a guy but also breaks expectations according to his own will.
These qualities are coherent to the lore of the story while simultaneously working on a gameplay perspective, as those are ways to bring diverse options for the average player while making female players also feel included even if the protagonist is a boy, which is an unbreakable tradition in mainline games to this day:
Somehow, it turns out that Nakajima's legacy comes in handy with a seemingly unisex-presenting main character that is able to fill the gaps of an audience.
On an ending note, one can understandably connect a similar reasoning for the design choices behind the SMTV protagonist.
The fanbase of the series combined with Persona has a male-to-female ratio of 40:60, to which confirms the feminine-looking boys indeed reach a bigger female audience than male.
As interesting as it is, one can't help but wonder if we would ever actually reach the other side of the gender spectrum in an actual title. We have horny mods, so there's that at least.
It turns out that my suspicions were correct! The SMTIV director addressed the intentions behind Flynn's design here:
"The series has always adhered to a policy of not assigning distinct personalities to protagonists, as they're supposed to be the player themselves—hence their absence of lines. However, the protagonist of a work must have a "hero" aspect, and that requires an appeal that makes people want to play pretend or "imitate" them—a certain "quirkiness," so to speak.
Thanks to character designer Doi's efforts after being asked to do many retakes, I'm proud to say we've created a great character befitting this issue cover that we would love for readers to try inserting themselves into.
Also, regarding gender, the main character was made to be as androgynous as possible—we have many female users, after all. It may be a strong statement, but it's perfectly fine to play the game imagining the protagonist is a woman. [...]"
Katsuyuki Yamai, Dengeki Nintendo (07/2013)
So how do Japanese fans feel about this? As usual, let's read opinions from the other side 👇
@kaori_offstage
"The official side said it's okay to think of Flynn as a girl since he was designed as a unisex protagonist—well, Flynn undeniably looks like a beautiful lady..."
@uketamawawryyyy
"Rather than a hero, Flynn is better suited as a heroine in my opinion."
@tomiiy
"Flynn feels like an ordinary guy to me, but since demons often mistake his gender and Flynn plays along by making them believe he's a woman, he probably doesn't look that manly from a demon's perspective."
In the jpn equivalent of "That's a 'Miss' to you", Flynn uses the だもん particle which sounds feminine and a little cheeky (in a cute way)
@chagunet77
"Fem!Flynn would be the type to hide her gender and slip into the men's dormitory.
Whenever I hear Walter and Jonathan's lines, I always feel like I'm the protagonist of an otome game… ;
Flynn is the heroine theory ☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️☝️"
@honeboomerang
"If Flynn's appearance could get mistaken for female at least by demons, then when Asmodeus said 'I'll crush the man and take the woman as my wife!', could the 'woman' be.....?"
@kitaonglacier
"I have this image of Isabeau giving a strong thumbs-up regardless if Flynn is a man or a woman, or even whether Flynn would crossdress (for both genders). Isabeau acts proper 90%, but in the remaining 10%, she would go off in a crazy direction."
@kaori_mgtn4
"When Walter and Jonathan invited Isabeau to eat breakfast, she would decline with 'I don't like the vibe of guys my age (mainly Walter).' But then, why was she saying that to Flynn? And so at the same time, I started to wonder if Isabeau viewed Flynn as a girl…"
One of Isabeau's quotes from the official website also complements the idea of she treating Flynn as if they're close on a gender spectrum sense:
"Your hairstyle is called a 'ponytail,' correct? Maybe I should grow out my own hair. I wonder if it’d suit me."
Megaten Spotlight
Some fan impressions got particularly heated about this matter, specially after the sequel became a thing:
@yuge_y
"I went to see what was the latest story leak regarding SMTIVA and… Flynn got kidnapped LOLOLOL What kind of stereotypical heroine role is this!!!! Are you Princess Peach?! LMAO"
@kaori_mgtn4
"I can't believe it. Until now, we were all like 'Kyaa, Flynn is the heroine!!' as a joke, and the official side just goes and turns it canon... There's only falling into darkness from this point...
This has gone beyond silly antics, Flynn is now a princess who could seriously cause the fall of a nation, no, the whole world."
@kitaonglacier
"Didn't he appear entangled in tentacles in a magazine cover before? Flynn was supposed to be a damsel in distress all along."
@contacos
"Flynn is too cute, TRULY adorable, it's scary how he looks more like the heroine than Isabeau… (trembling)"
@Karlyjet
"If Flynn were a girl, wouldn't it increase the hidden meaning of 'Women's toy' even more...! Oh no, my fantasies are running wild /// The rabbit hole of Flynn's gender debate just keeps getting deeper..."
3D rendering by DDear
@chagunet77
"Atlus is quite the schemer for playing on the fact that's it's more fun to let your imagination run wild by not knowing whether Flynn is male or female rather than allowing the player to choose the gender right from the start…"
@kingyo_neko
"Flynn is so cute… who cares about gender...
I just want to be the weed that gets trampled under Flynn's ass in the first Mikado cutscene."
@lilisyurent
"I genuinely believed Flynn was a crossdressing beauty due to how Isabeau acted in SMTIV, so I was like 'Who the heck!?' when playing SMTIVA, but once Krishna took him captive, I thought, 'Phew, Flynn is still in the heroine role' and rested easy."
@kaori_mgtn4
"In the original myth, Krishna was the kind of man who would carry out bride kidnapping... Well, the woman in the abduction wanted it in the first place, so that's fine, but Flynn didn't consent to anything, so cut it out."
On top of those, Megaten veterans couldn't let other parallels pass by:
[Spoilers of SNES era Megaten below]
@ntmaya
"Thinking back on SMT1, the Law and Chaos representatives left a strong impression on me, but on the other hand I'm trying to remember what kind of girl the heroine was.
-> Died during the ICBM incident in order to send the heroes to the Diamond Realm
→ Pushed onto a 'messiah' role after reincarnating
→ Rescued when was just about to be possessed by a demon
Isn't this strikingly similar to what Flynn goes through?"
@kaori_mgtn4
"Adopting a self-sacrificial stance the moment a nuclear bomb is about to hit, forcing the protagonists onto another world before dying, then reincarnating before joining the team again.
Flynn is literally just like the SMT1 heroine."
@kingyo_neko
"Heroines in Megami Tensei learn Dia-type healing magic → only Flynn learned Dia-type healing magic in the DLC -> Flynn is a heroine?"
@kaori_mgtn4
Following a similar fate to the first female partner of the Shin Megami Tensei series while being the one in charge of healing in the Diamond Realm DLC… Flynn is doubtlessly heroine-like, no way around it."
@chagunet77
"If the SMT1 protagonist is a Neutral hero, then Demi-fiend is a Chaos hero and Aleph is a Law hero. Obviously, Flynn is the heroine."
By the way, Flynn doesn't get left behind either when it comes to a heroine's nudity protective instinct for her other half:
[End of spoilers]
So, what do you think? Have you started looking at Flynn's official and fan portrayals from other perspective?
Have any new interpretations emerged inside your head?
Or....
....
Does any of this really hold importance...?
@heine_eleco
"Flynn may look like a young maiden adorned with a beautiful ponytail, but will violently tie up and extort not only passerby demons but even so-called best friends, female teammates and god-like beings that hold someone's fate in their hands"
@kitaonglacier
"It matters little that there's not an official gender*, even as a woman Flynn would still be a gorilla that hoards money at the end of the day"
*The tweet describes Flynn's gender as '迷子' ('lost child'), it's a term used for characters whose appearance is so ambiguous that their gender seems to disappear, hence the comparison to a kid that wanders off and can't find their way back.
You gotta admit, It's an awfully fitting pun for many genderless protagonists...
Source: megatenonline.com:80/blog/ (web.archive.org mirror); dated 5/17/2006, snapshot taken 6/21/2006
This image is the only surviving image of this particular blog page and post: concept art of Shinjuku Babel showing the full tower. An interview is posted below it.
This is an April Fool's post detailing a bullet hell system to be implemented in IMAGINE, with six set characters to play as rather than your own avatars. Despite it being an "update" to IMAGINE, it plays and has the appearance of an arcade shooter. To my knowledge, this post is simply a collection of very impressive mockups and was never actually implemented or created... but it sure looks like fun!
The six playable characters, from left to right, are named "En", "Gia", "Kou", "Eko", "Nagi", and "Kona".
HELLO I have a big bill coming up and I need some help paying for it! I am opening commissions, discounted comms are avaliable through my ko-fi shop, and regular comms can be requested w a new google form! You could also buy my comics from my itch or get a physical copy of Death is Not the End chapter 1 from my shop! please and thank you for the help :)
Proof of membership? @cafe-florida - Tumblr Blog | Tumgag
