Naegi fans, we need to talk about the importance of this small egg having consequences for his actions and why completely negating them is a bad thing.
first let me throw this out there.
NO ONE IS COMPLETELY EXCUSING JUZO PUNCHING NAEGI WHILE HE WAS DETAINED. NOR ROUTA/AOI AND KILLING BANDAI WAS AN ACCIDENT.
Was it wrong? hell yeah. Was it unnecessary? Completely. But, was it unfounded? no.
And, this is where the issue begins. Juzo punching Naegi was wrong. But, looking a the circumstances and the state their world is in, he felt justified. Naegi harbored criminals who, although were victims of Junko, still played a hand in destroying his world. They killed families and friends. Without telling anyone, Naegi took them to Jabberwock island. He believed in rehabilitation because they were once good. And, that’s great! People deserve to redeem themselves. But, he did it behind people’s back. He inadvertently caused emotional grief and suffering to those who wanted to see justice for their lost family and friends, whether they were detained forever or killed. He took away the hope that they’re finally safe only to cause a new fear that they were running rampant somewhere until they realized one of their own took them.
And now, he has to face the consequences for his actions and where people seem to get up in arms and blatantly ignore his one, biggest flaw: His naivety.
Naegi is what you call a “pollyanna”. Someone who is incredibly optimistic in the face of adversity no matter what. It has it perks but it also has its downfalls. He doesn’t see the bigger picture and has short term goals with an inefficient back up plan.
He relies heavily on hoping and believing that he tends to fall short on practical ideas that benefits a long term goal. This does not make him a bad character. This doesn’t suddenly change who he is. It add depth to who Makoto Naegi is by giving him a strong flaw that can change their world for the better if he starts acknowledging despair and hope are one in the same.
By ignoring this flaw of his, you’re reducing him down to how people saw naegi through out the years. A flat, bland, and incredibly passive character with no real identity. But, by showing his flaw and “Rawness” (for a lack of a better word) by giving him a conflict that challenges his ideals and view point, you make someone who you can sympathize and relate to.
Leaving him naive and blind is, as Munakata said, a dangerous thing. Its a danger to himself (as he’s been taken advantage of before) and others who will suffer from short term goals that won’t last forever once their hope, naegi, is gone.
The only way to fix this is him seeing that, even if you feel you’re doing the right thing, they have consequences attached to them. He needs to see not everyone views the world just like he does. And, if he wants to spread hope through pacifism and words, they have to be long-term to be beneficial and truly count.
origamiaround
theartofmadeline
snowghoul
discoholicmusic
areudirty
