One of the core parts of Ilya’s identity is that he knows he’s hot, he knows he’s sexually desirable and he’s incredibly sexually literate.
What holds him back is he doesn’t believe he’s desirable romantically. He especially doesn’t believe that he deserves Shane. That insecurity and that low self worth given to him by his family, the one group of people who are supposed to love him unconditionally, is what drives their miscommunication.
He’s staring himself down in the mirror, disgusted with himself for needing Shane so much. Of course Shane doesn’t want him outside of sex. That’s all he’s good for. Of course Shane found a nice, sensible, beautiful woman.
Shane is a ‘good boy’. He’s going to settle down and get married and do all the things a professional hockey player should be doing.
Ilya is so deeply hurt and embarrassed that he thought for even a second he could be something more for Shane. Embarrassed that he wanted that.
He opened himself up for the first time in his adult life and got a knife through the heart- because of course he did. That’s what always happened when he was a kid. When he played a game and expected his father to be proud of him, only to be dismissed and belittled at every turn.
His brother calling him a ‘whiny faggot’ for expressing even the most surface level emotions.
fascinated and distressed by chase's disordered relationship with sexuality + his emotions abt his own trauma & abuse
thru the beginning of the show he doesn't even realize he's hot despite being objectively attractive. when he finds out he's hot he then realizes people pretend to be interested in him as a person in order to have sex with him and gets super upset about it
he starts having a bunch of meaningless sex as a coping mechanism when cameron leaves him. and also a lot of other times. whenever something bad happens, basically, he starts going out with a bunch of women, just to feel something, presumably
^to the extent where hes known within the hospital as a slut. and has had sex with an insane amount of nurses. as well as presumably women who are not at his place of work.
he says doing this made him hate himself so he stopped. it's the b-plot for an episode and then he's back having meaningless sex again by the end of the episode
even his coworkers know this about him. and have called it out, masters even says she thinks he doesn't respect women bc, in her words, he's with a different one every few days or maybe he finds comfort in meaningless relationships
goes back to having meaningless sex within weeks of getting stabbed. which is really bad for wound healing reasons too. genuinely it seems like such compulsive behavior for him considering he keeps doing it even when its objectively not only a bad idea but actively dangerous
house even directly says he's "a serial slut" because he's "terrified of intimacy." incredibly accurate assessment
his relationship with his sexuality reads so heavily as someone who thinks they're not good for anything else
see also: dissociation & avoidance
we know he has a lot of trauma especially in childhood- he never really gets into it let alone into how he Feels about it but what we know is already bad & that's just the stuff he's okay with sharing with his coworkers or patients
in general he's very avoidant of his own trauma- when he gets stabbed he says he "can't change what happened, can only make better choices from here" as if it was his own fault, and refuses thru the whole episode to acknowledge that being traumatized by this would be a really normal reaction that he is definitely having. instead he just blames himself
also, he dissociates from traumatic things that happen to him - says "there was a stabbing" rather than "i was stabbed" for instance
when he's talking abt his childhood trauma he does it in a very similar way - he talks about it very bluntly and doesn't ever get into how he actually feels about it.
see also: dr. fawn response
general passive willingness to go along with anything- when cameron says they should have sex in s3 he's surprised and then he just kinda goes along with it. not bc he didn't want to bc he obviously did, but he's just generally very much someone who does whatever other people want him to do. i feel like he and cameron both tend to seek validation thru sex in an unhealthy way that i'm still gnawing on like a dog with a bone i have to go rewatch s3 to really articulate it though
he has a sort of desperation for praise and approval especially from anyone he views as an authority figure. he does whatever authority figures tell him out of this idea that it'll bring him approval and therefore safety
like no matter what house does or says to him he doesn't argue or retaliate or anything. even when house punches him he collapses on the ground in pain and then just keeps talking about the patient like nothing happened.
the scene in 3.10 after house punches him where he's in the ddx room and house walks in and throws the file at him and chase is startled and tries to pretend he's not. and he looks up with this huge fuck ass bruise on his jaw swallows heavily and pretends not to be upset. and house asks if he got that looked at as if he wasn't the one to give it to him and chase just swallows and says he's fine. dr fawn response :(
Basically being "in the zone" in terms of sports - or that spurt of adrenaline or fear that causes things to slow down. Research suggests it's induced by a combination of high levels of dopamine (mood/movement/learning/focus/attention) and norepinephrine (adrenaline). That could lead to heart, blood vessel, and kidney damage - explaining Shin's nosebleed.
We all know pushing your body to its limits is a no-no, but using your brain to do it? A BIG no-no. Shin gained a new power but at a huge cost.
Suzuki through Nagumo did warn us - he's always saying things and showing up when they need it lmao. The ultimate plot device / foreshadower. So this isn't the last time Shin will be driven into a corner. Physically, we know he's at his limit (as confirmed by Kindaka), so all he has left is a gambit move that kills him.
But anywho, too much tachypsychia can probably lead to a mental and physical breakdown. Mental first most likely (seeing how Shin is already in such a fragile state).
This post by @uzurions is highly possible because high d&n can cause hallucinations and psychosis.
Either or is hella emotional.
If Sakamoto is actually there, Shin will be left with so much guilt. He totally could've killed Tenkyu, a literal innocent (in the head), but Sakamoto would be there to tell him he did it for their family (it'd still haunt Shin forever though).
But if it was all in his head? Sakamoto acting like a conscience would be beautiful too. Shin does have it in him to stop himself, but the fact that he went that far...
Either way, I assume tachypsychia can also numb someone. Major flight or fight kinda thing. So it's not Shin's natural affinity to be a cold ruthless killer, but every time he forces that switch in his brain, the easier it'll get.
So basically NO SHIN BABY BOY IT'S NOT YOUR FAULT!
///
Like I just wrote on Twitter under ordertrio and spondaick's tweets, I gotta suspend disbelief lmao. The only guarantee in SKDY's is that Suzuki will pull another fast one on us next week.
Remember, Jas. Remember how Kindaka just woke up and sonic’ed outta bed after 8 years with no physio?
Okay. So I don't think this is going to be groundbreaking for anyone, but I need to get the thoughts out of my head.
I, like everyone, loved this so much:
But, it has made me think too hard about Shin's need for attention and validation.
The "you're actually pretty useful" line is obviously a sign that for the first time, at least in a while, someone is praising Shin for his telepathy. I'd be willing to bet we'll get more of that in future chapters.
We know from earlier that at this point, he really dislikes his ability even though when he was younger, he insisted Asakura shouldn't be upset about Shin's powers.
(That said, I think there could be some retconing happening here since I don't think the ages would match up, but Suzuki didn't give a specific timeline for the scenes in the lab flashback, so I could be reading it wrong. It's been 11 years, though, so Asakura also could not have a perfect memory/be condensing things. Regardless....)
My read on him saying "aren't you even happy about it" and "your research isn't stupid" to Asakura is not just because he's always supported his research, but also because now his wanting to reverse it feels like there was something wrong with him. What it seems like he's really saying is "aren't you even happy to have me around" and "I'm not stupid."
He's also a kid who obviously wants attention. Growing up as the only kid in a lab of adult scientists probably had something to do with that. Then, on top of that, there's the alienation because of his telepathy.
I feel like younger Shin, to some extent, didn't really think that a blood relation was the only person who could accept him. More, I think he convinced himself of that after feeling rejected by the people in the lab.
Like, talk about attention seeking behavior. He tries to provoke a reaction from Sakamoto any way he can, even if he fully expects that reaction to be negative. I'm sure in his time away from the lab his alienation and loneliness has only grown given he now has nobody.
But he doesn't get any negative reactions from Sakamoto which, at first, frustrates him. But, that then leads to the greater satisfaction of the positive reaction he receives later.
Before that can happen, though, he finally finds his father. At first, he acts like he doesn't even know who Shin is.
If this panel didn't absolutely crush you, I don't know what to say.
Then Sakamoto rescues him and even though his thoughts reveal he wasn't thinking that was (that said, we know Sakamoto, and seemingly other skilled assassins, can pretty easily hide his thoughts from Shin, so who knows if that was just him trying to remain detached) I think for Shin, it was still a meaningful connection, something he hadn't had in a while.
Now! My point to this is, for me, it really recontextualizes a lot of Shin's actions in the present.
He craves attention and validation. Not just from Sakamoto Taro, either.
When he feels he isn't useful enough, he apologizes.
There are definitely more recent examples of this, too, but I need to stop taking screenshots at some point.
All of this culminates into what I think is even sadder upon second reading, when Sakamoto tries to go to Thailand alone.
He is so hurt by this. But even after Aoi has to help Sakamoto realize he's just scared of losing the people he cares about (again), Shin still feels bad, like he did something wrong.
He's still such a kid, looking for validation from the father/older brother figure he's wanted his whole life.
I could go on about how I think there's something to the idea that being a telepath from such a young age could also mess up someone's ability to judge other people's feelings. After all, outside of people like Sakamoto and Nagumo, Shin has no trouble knowing what the person is feeling.
My final thought is, given all of this, my heart is breaking thinking about Shin first learning Sakamoto has retired and, it seems, disappeared. How much did he know? Did Sakamoto leave any note? He's not the most emotionally developed person (I mean, he had no parents and it seems like he was basically raised to be an assassin, so I don't blame him). Not to mention he would've been wary of creating connection and so, consciously or not, may have downplayed his and Shin's relationship.
Shin would've been 15 or 16 when Sakamoto retired. Can you imagine how that must have felt? I'll just remind you of this:
I'd be willing to bet Shin blamed himself when Sakamoto retired. After all, what did his dad say?
We start of with the most important thing, Sakamoto telling Ikari that she's a creep. (Thank you Taro, she really is. ) Before Shin picks up Andos weapon to threaten him.
It's clear that the stress of the whole situation is just getting to much to bottle up finally. He sneaked on the cruise to find him, in hope to reconcile with him. He's been on his own for FOUR YEARS, looking for information about Ando. Mind you, since he was only 9. He's barely even a teenager with 13 right here. He probably slept on the streets, and who knows what he had to deal with. He's skinny and probably doesn't get to eat regularly. Same for his eyebags, he probably can't find a safe spot often enough. (Not to forget the insane sensory overload he must feel compared to the underground lab. And I don't just mean his ESP with that.)
He's angry. His hopes for connection got crushed with his own father trying to kill him (multiple times). He's scared because at this moment he's probably convinced he will forever be alone. He's tired and probably hungry. He's overwhelmed so he points the gun at Ando.
Now Taro is trying to stop him, but mostly because he still wants to avoid the bomb going off. (Or so it seems at least) The fact that Ando has to die is less of a question for Taro, he's still his target. It's just a question of when and by who I think. He, already, doesn't want Shin to kill someone in anger. And although we can't see his thoughts here, he probably also doesn't want Shin to be the one to kill Ando specifically.
Now. Important is also that Shin only actually shot because Ikari scared him.
He says himself, he didn't mean to. He really just wanted to force an apology out of Ando. And as a child, that grew up on his own around violence, the threat of violence was probably the most obvious answer to do so. And yet, he didn't actually want to shot. He's a child, he's scared. And because he's scared, he physically jolted when Ikari started shouting and pressed the trigger. It's all inhis eyes. He didn't expect the bullet to come out. He didn't want to do this.
Now. Well. Ando. We have a short insight in Andos mind. While Ikari is trying to attack Shin, before he jumps between them to save Shin.
He's thinking about spending 13 years to escape the JAA, all because he saved Shin as Al Kamaar as a baby, only for Shin to show up with a hitman and mess it all up. And it very much sounds like he still resents Shin for it. He even thinks that he shoul've let him die as a baby. (In the official manga plus translation. In another translation he evn thinks about killing Shin as a baby.) And well, he then saves Shin, only getting injured even more.
And this is all just contradicting itself. Andos words and thoughts and actions. He talks about saving Shin as a baby, but who put him in Al Kamaar in the first place? He saves him, but who tried to kill him a few minutes ago? Who let Shin be thrown overboard a few chapters ago? (And it's very likely that Ando did that in order for Shin to have a chance of survival, somehow.)
One moment he resents Shin, in the next his parental instincts seem to show through after all. (And has Ando figured out that Shin can read minds? He seems to be Intentionally thinking those words here. This could support the theory that Shins powers are actually born, andAsakuras potion just triggered them accidentally.)
All in all, I'm pretty sure that Ando might be mentally unstable. (I mean, who isn't in Sakamoto Days. And at one point Ando mentions being soft in the head, which is probably just a throw away line. But who knows.) His mind can't settle between an urge to protect and resent Shin. It was probably a moment of clarity, that made Ando drop Shin of at Asakuras lab. And even though they already didn't seam to have seen each other for a long time at that point, he seemed to know that Asakura would take care of Shin/protect him. Even when Asakura would complain about it. (He also talks about "What would Asakura think about this?" when Shin is pointing the gun at him. Which makes Shin angry. This seems to be directed at Shin, but it might as well be directed at himself. Because what would his old friend think about him trying to kill the child he left in hi ssafety all those years ago? Surely nothing good.)
Shin is rightfully upset about all of this, curling up in himself. Because Ando couldn't even say those words about Shin having grown so much out loud. Now. Taro reminds us though that there's still a bomb on the ship, that will explode the moment Ando dies. (Is it like linked to his heartbeat? What.) Telling Shin to keep him alive long enough for him to find and dissarm the bomb.
When Shin says he's going with him to help, because the engine bay is to big, Taro actually tells Shin to stay back and use the remaining time he got left with his dad. Which... well. In the end Taro seems to understand that Ando is still important to Shin in some way. It's an absolutely messy situation in so many ways. Also because, again, the only reason they meet was because it was Taros job to kill Ando. But he wants Shin to be able to at least say goodbye to Ando. (Something Taro couldn't when Rion died.) But Ando also knows that Taro probably won't be able to find the bomb, which would mean Shins death as well if the ship explodes. So, seemingly set on wanting Shin to live in the end he decides to tell Shin the bombs location. And to go with him, while he will hang on until he gets back.
Which he probably won't. I think he just doesn't want Shin to see the moment he dies. Not to forget that Taro would protect Shin if the bomb goes off after all. In the end, his parental instincts are trying to protect Shin. Both physically, and mentally. Even if it's way to late for that.
Well. I'm definitely crying. This is all a huge mess. Taro, please get your newly adopted son to therapy instead of teaching him how to be an assasin.
I think it's funny how Tsukiyama wanting to eat Kaneki is really just a subplot after the Gourmet Arc. It's like, "at this point, Kaneki's life sucks so much that being stalked by a cannibal is the least of his concerns".
Every Instance of Dazai's Ability Being Used, and the Few Times it Doesn't Work
Because I really wanted to look into the logistics of Dazai's ability, I decided that I wanted to look through every source of media (barring BEAST) I could for when his ability has been used. This includes:
Dazai, Chuuya, Age Fifteen (Light Novel)
STORMBRINGER (Light Novel)
DEAD APPLE (Light Novel, pre-manga)
Dazai Osamu and the Dark Era (Light Novel)
Dazai Osamu's Entrance Exam (Light Novel)
Bungou Stray Dogs Manga
DEAD APPLE (Light Novel)
55 Minutes (Light Novel)
This list does not include:
The Day I Picked Up Dazai
The Untold Origins of the Detective Agency (no instances)
BEAST (Did not use)
Any instances in the anime
Any instances with general descriptions ('a guy who used his ability to nullify', 'he used his ability', etc. Was looking for instances with explicit explanation/visuals of what he does)
Spoilers ahead for all the above, and the manga through Chapter 101. Read at your own discretion.
The First Time we See it Used (Chronologically) - Dazai, Chuuya, Age Fifteen
The first instance that Dazai's ability is ever used is on Nakahara Chuuya in Phase.01, as written below.
(Dazai) placed a hand on Chuuya's neck.
"Sorry, but gravity is no longer yours to control."
Dazai's skill also activated when he touched his target. He had the power to halt and nullify all skills.
It was the ultimate anti-skill, no exceptions.
Dazai, Chuuya, Age Fifteen, Phase.01, Page 23
This is a classic example of Dazai's ability working traditionally, where he has direct skin-to-skin contact with Chuuya. Since Chuuya's ability is internal, as long Dazai touches him, he cannot use it.
Then, near the end of the novel, he uses his ability to nullify Arthur Rimbaud's ability against Nakahara Chuuya.
In (Dazai's) left hand was a piece of fabric: a garland he'd used as decoration for Chuuya's fake party.
The long garland dragged along the ground, cleverly hidden in the shadows of floating debris. One end of the cloth was stuffed inside Chuuya's clothes.
"I told Chuuya to pick up this garland when you destroyed the nearby building," Dazai said with a child-like grin.
"Then I tied it to myself using my skill," Chuuya added with the scythe still piercing his arm. "I wrapped it around my entire body and made sure it was hidden underneath my clothes."
"After that, I simply touched the other end." Dazai held up the cloth. "Want to guess what happened then?"
"The skill affecting the cloth you touched... was nullified."
Dazai, Chuuya, Age Fifteen, Phase.04, Page 115
For that instance, instead of physical contact with the ability user, Dazai extended his ability across an object to Chuuya. This made the object nullified against Rimbaud's ability, forming a shield of sorts to block his skill from attacking further.
The First Time it's Used On a Singularity - STORMBRINGER
NOTE: I own a copy of STORMBRINGER, but at the time of making this post, I was loaning it out to a friend. With that said, I used a translation that I have read previously. If you wish to locate it, go to bsd-bibliophile's Tumblr and search from there. I don't want to directly link it for obvious reasons.
Dazai's ability is seen twice in STORMBRINGER. The first instance is near the beginning of it, as written in the translation below.
(Dazai) casually grabbed Chuuya's arm and lifted it up.
At that moment, the abnormal gravitational field that surrounded them immediately disappeared, along with the insufferable pain Chuuya had felt.
STORMBRINGER, [CODE ; 01]
Like before, we have yet another example of Dazai using direct skin-to-skin contact to nullify. However, in this instance, it is used to nullify a partial singularity, as Corruption has not been fully unleashed here. (At least, that is how I am interpreting it.)
Then, near the end of STORMBRINGER:
Chuuya limply drifted in the air for several seconds before the black wings on his back slowly lowered him. Dazai caught his body.
The minute he touched his body, Dazai's ability nullification activated. The self-contradictory singularity energy that sustained him retracted in on itself as the singularity's power outlet decreased. He eventually returned to normal and his gate closed. The red marks plaguing Chuuya's body pulled away.
The field of gravity disappeared and the stillness of night was restored.
STORMBRINGER, [CODE ; 04]
Yet again, nullification through direct skin contact. This instance doesn't provide an exact idea of where they touched, but it's reasonable to assume he touched Chuuya on his back or something.
This is the first time Dazai's ability has been used related to a singularity.
Singularity Time - DEAD APPLE Prologue
Dazai continues to use his ability to nullify Chuuya's singularity as seen in the prologue of DEAD APPLE. Though this is not shown in the light novel or in the movie, it can be seen in the manga, as shown here:
DEAD APPLE Manga, Volume 3, Chapter 10
Dazai touches Chuuya's face to nullify corruption.
Other Instances Before Dazai Joins the ADA - The Heartless Cur and BSD Manga Chapter 12
The Heartless Cur is a short story provided in the sixth volume of the Bungou Stray Dogs Manga, which tells of how Akutagawa and Dazai first met. Akutagawa attempts to use his ability on Dazai as written below:
Akutagawa turned his own sleeve into a wide blade, and thrust it into the boy's neck without a shred of hesitation.
"Not bad," Dazai said, quietly.
Akutagawa was stunned. He was sure the boy should have died. However, Akutagawa's blade had vanished like mist right where it would have touched the boy's neck.
The Heartless Cur, Bungou Stray Dogs Manga #6
Then, a flashback is shown from when Dazai was mentoring Akutagawa. During that, Akutagawa attempts to use his ability against him.
Bungou Stray Dogs Manga #3, Chapter 12
As seen here, Dazai directly touches Rashoumon with his hand, nullifying the ability upon contact.
Dazai gets to use his ability a whopping four times in this Light Novel, which can also be seen in the remarkably inaccurate two-episode Azure Apostle arc in the anime.
It's used twice on Kunikida in a short period of time, as shown below:
The bullet tears through the air until it hits (Dazai) right between the eyes.
Dazai Osamu's Entrance Exam, Chapter 3, Page 127
I take the pistol I shot earlier and toss it at Dazai. He catches it, and almost instantly, it transforms back into a piece of notebook paper in his hands.
Dazai Osamu's Entrance Exam, Chapter 3, Page 129
Since the bullets were also created using my skill, they were nullified and vaporized by Dazai's own skill on contact.
Dazai Osamu's Entrance Exam, Chapter 3, Page 130
Again, direct contact with Dazai's skin gets rid of the bullets, vaporizing them, while turning Kunikida's pistol back to its original state. This is interesting to me in how Dazai's ability impacts them differently. Because the bullets were created with the pistol, the bullets vanished. However, when Dazai touched the pistol, it reverted back to notebook paper with whatever Kunikida wrote on it.
This is also the second instance where Dazai touches an object and uses his ability on it.
Then, his ability is used twice on the numbers terrorist.
"Why...?! Why won't any numbers appear?! I can't accelerate, either! Why, why, why is this happening?!"
"You should've done your homework. Skills don't work on me."
Dazai Osamu's Entrance Exam, Chapter 3, Page 150
What I find interesting about this is that he isn't touching an object or the ability user here. I'm assuming that since it would require to impact Dazai's skin, that is where the nullification occurred. If the ability didn't show up on his skin, would it still have been nullified? We shall never know.
However, him nullifying the ability against himself does not nullify it against anyone else. This is further encouraged by the below:
Dazai's right fist connects with the young man's face, spinning him a full 180 degrees.
Dazai Osamu's Entrance Exam, Chapter 3, Page 150
(Kunikida's POV) Then I look at my body to find that the numbers have vanished. Dazai must have defeated that skill user.
Dazai Osamu's Entrance Exam, Chapter 3, Page 151
It appears that if Dazai wants to end an ability user's ability on everyone at that moment, he has to touch that ability user physically. So, to be clear, Dazai's skin can nullify the effect of an ability on himself. Dazai touching skin-to-skin with an active ability user nullifies the effect of their ability on everyone.
Examples We See in the Present - Bungou Stray Dogs Manga
Dazai uses his ability quite a few times at the beginning of the series, but it begins to be many more chapters between once we finish with the Guild Arc. It goes from less than twenty to twenty, then, fifty. The last time (as of posting this) that Dazai has used his ability was in Chapter 101. Make of that what you will.
Bungou Stray Dogs Manga #1, Chapter 1
Direct skin-to-skin contact. Atsushi returns to his original human form.
Bungou Stray Dogs Manga #1, Chapter 4
ATSUSHI - Direct skin-to-skin contact. Atsushi returns to his original human form.
Skin-to-ability-infused-object contact. Rashoumon vanishes after cutting through Dazai's bandages to his neck.
Bungou Stray Dogs Manga #7, Chapter 25
Skin-to-ability-infused-object contact. Q's doll disintegrates, and the ability deactivates against Atsushi.
Bungou Stray Dogs Manga #7, Chapter 29
Skin-to-ability-infused-object contact. Q's doll disintegrates, and everyone affected by the ability is released from it.
Note: Touching those affected by the ability would not nullify its impact on them. He would actively have to touch the catalyst of the ability (the doll) or Q themself.
Bungou Stray Dogs Manga #8, Chapter 30
Skin-to-skin contact. Because Steinbeck's vines are in the middle of being created and used by him, Dazai touching him on the neck nullifies them and causes them to disintegrate.
I explain this because there is an instance in the future where Dazai touches Steinbeck's vines and they don't disintegrate, which I will attempt to explain.
We Will Now Take a Break From Our Scheduled Programming - DEAD APPLE
Dazai uses his ability three times during DEAD APPLE.
The moment his fingers touched the crystals, their hard gem-like surfaces cracked, and they melted away.
Drip. Trails of light suddenly transformed into a liquid-like blood, swirling around and mixing together in the air. The two lights melted into one and spun until they formed a single sphere.
DEAD APPLE, Interlude-3, Page 126
In this, he is touching Shibusawa's ability-infused objects. At least, that is how I'm interpreting it. It doesn't change the fact that the users behind them are dead, but it means they are no longer being contained.
Then, in a classic instance that I'm sure everyone will recognize:
The viscous liquid slid down Dazai's throat until eventually, long, slender fingers touched Chuuya's ghastly, corrupted face. When they made contact, it instantly nullified his skill.
DEAD APPLE, 5-4, Page 154
Skin-to-skin.
The next instance, however, is considerably interesting to me.
"Get off me," he demanded, but Dazai kept him still.
"Don't move."
"The hell?"
Chuuya grimaced as Dazai held his head down. While glancing around, Dazai admitted, "Looks like the fog hasn't completely cleared yet, and I'd rather not have to protect you from your skill right now."
DEAD APPLE, 5-4, Page 155
By maintaining skin-to-skin contact with Chuuya, Dazai prevents Shibusawa's ability (the fog) from affecting Chuuya. Since Chuuya's ability is nullified, there is none to steal in that moment.
And Back to the Manga! - Bungou Stray Dogs Manga
This instance is not a very explicit one, but it is heavily implied that he is using his ability in this moment.
Bungou Stray Dogs Manga #12, Chapter 51
As per usual, skin-to-skin with Atsushi, and skin-to-ability-infused-object with Akutagawa (well, potential, as it's not active at that moment).
The next instance is in Bungou Stray Dogs Manga #22, Chapter 101. There's no specific panel or image of how exactly it works, because it's not tangible.
To be clear, Dazai nullifies the cat burglar's time control ability's effect on him. The reason for this is assuming that if it affects a certain amount of space (as stated, a few kilometers within her radius), it is technically tangible, and therefore can be viewed as touching everyone within that space. If it touches Dazai's skin, it won't impact him.
I had to think about this a lot more than I thought I would. Initially, I thought, 'it has no corporeal form or anything, it's not as if he's touching her... there's no rational explanation for why he can nullify it.' This thought was further encouraged by the fact that Fukuchi turned back time repeatedly, and Dazai couldn't have been not impacted by that.
Then, I realized that Asagiri specifically stated that there is a limited space in which her ability can take effect. By giving it a spatial limit, it is implied that it has to make some sort of barely visible contact to freeze everyone in time, as it doesn't do that for everyone else.
Asagiri, you clever son of a bitch. For fuck's sake.
These are all the instances where Dazai's ability has been successfully used. However, there are times where it fails to work. I want to explore those moments and explain why. Some are more self-explanatory than others.
He's Only Human - Dazai's Entrance Exam, BSD Manga, and 55 Minutes
There are six different points where Dazai's ability doesn't activate. I think it's important to look at them, because it shows exceptions to his ability.
The first instance is in Dazai Osamu's Entrance Exam. You're going to laugh at me for putting this example in, but I feel it is necessary.
"Heh-heh. What surprised me the most was the fact that Ranpo's 'skill' isn't actually a skill at all."
...Huh?
"Don't be ridiculous. As if someone without a skill could really do something like that."
"That's what makes it so amazing! Listen to this. When Ranpo was thinking, I sneaked up behind him and pinched some of his hair."
It goes without saying, but Dazai's ability can't impact an ability that doesn't exist. Ranpo's Super Deduction is imaginary, and thus, Dazai can't nullify it.
Next is a few instances in the manga.
Bungou Stray Dogs Manga #2, Chapter 7
Because Kyouka purposefully does not touch Dazai's skin, she could activate her ability, Demon Snow. Now, could it be said that theoretically, Dazai could've blocked this by extending his ability to his coat? Maybe. Considering previous examples, it's fair to say that if Dazai didn't want to get abducted here? He probably could've avoided it easily. Just some food for thought.
There's no visual of it in the manga, but I brought this up earlier. In Bungou Stray Dogs Manga #8, Chapter 31, Dazai and Chuuya go to rescue Q. They are entrapped by Steinbeck's roots, and Dazai has to cut them out of it. Please keep in mind that when I say this, this is based off theory alone and no direct proof, panel, animation-wise or otherwise. I believe that when Dazai is cutting Q out of the roots, odds are, he probably brushes against them with his knife-holding hand a little. Since these roots were all created together, wouldn't it be reasonable to think that they would disintegrate under Dazai's touch? Which brings up another point: why wouldn't Dazai just touch the roots if that was the case? That would be far easier than cutting them all away, unless he's intentionally trying to annoy Chuuya (which is incredibly possible but time-consuming). This makes me think that Dazai's ability can stop ability-created objects if they are still actively being made or used by the ability user, but if they are no longer attached to the user (activity-wise) and were not created from an object (like Doppo Poet or Dogra Magra for example), they remain existing.
Anyways. Sorry about the rant. Back to actual examples.
Bungou Stray Dogs Manga #8, Chapter 31
As Dazai will clearly state himself after recovering from this, Lovecraft's tentacles are not an ability. If it's not related to an ability, he can do nothing against it.
Then, we have 55 Minutes, which introduces this fascinating tidbit:
(Wells) "Skills that nullify other skills will not activate if the user is dead. In other words, Dazai--or rather, his body--won't be nullifying any skills since his heart has stopped."
55 Minutes, Page 186
First, when Dazai's heart came to a stop, the blood supply to the brain would cease, and Dazai would die. When this happened, his skill would cease to exist, and other skills would start working on him again. Therefore, his wounds needed to be swiftly treated, and he'd need immediate resuscitation afterward--even the kind of resuscitation they perform at any ordinary hospital through electric stimulation. And if that worked, Dazai would going from being "dead" to being "on the brink of death."
After that, Yosano could use her skill to completely heal his wounds. In other words, it should be possible to heal Dazai as long as he was on the brink of death.
55 Minutes, Page 186-187
Yeah, so if he's dead-ish? Abilities will work on him. Albeit, it's a very, very short time-frame, but it does in fact exist.
Bungou Stray Dogs Manga #21, Chapter 95
In this panel, Nikolai uses his ability, The Overcoat, on Dazai. This shows that yet again, as long as the ability does not touch him directly skin-to-skin, it will work as intended.
SUMMARY
Dazai's ability can be used against anyone or anything that he can touch. Examples being:
Ability users he is touching skin-to-skin with
Objects he is actively touching and willing his ability into
Abilities that are infused into external objects (ex: Rashoumon in Akutagawa's jacket, a gun created from a sheet of paper in Kunikida's notebook)
Abilities that would have direct contact with his skin (ex: the numbers skill from Dazai Osamu's Entrance Exam)
Dazai's ability cannot affect:
Skill users he is not touching skin-to-skin (ex: Kyouka grabbing his jacket when abducting him so she can continue using Demon Snow)
Objects that are no longer actively a part of an ability (ex: Steinbeck's vines on Q) [ASSUMPTION]
Not abilities (Ranpo, Lovecraft)
Abilities he is not touching with his skin (ex: Nikolai's ability)
Abilities when his heart isn't beating/he's dead
So. Do with this information what you will.
Also, for shits and giggles, here's a running tally of how many times his ability has been used on an individual, and who it has failed to impact.
So the idea that abilities in bsd are trauma based is basically canon yeah? Maybe just high stress or something like that... but it seem pretty damn canon.
Like-
We have Kyouka who just flat out inherited her mother's ability.
We have Chuuya who (this is near speculation) at the age of 7 had an ability and a calamity god after being basically tortured.
We have Atsushi who's ability manifested while being tortured.
We see Yosano developing her ability through her trauma.
Akutagawa was a orphan who needed to protect himself and his sister and he got a guard dog of an ability. His ability continues the development, adapting to abuse.
Even Steinbeck went hungry with such a large but poor farming family, and he got an ability that grows plants, crops and the such.
Some may seem redundant, like Kunikida. But someone with high anxiety (which he definitely has) could feel large amounts of stress (especially when young) if they don't have the things they need...
And then just for myself. We know little about where Dazai came from. But let's think. His ability turns off other abilities. Maybe he suffered great harm at the hands of an ability user through their ability...
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