Hiya :D I was hoping if I could ask you a question, if that's okay? Ever since episode 58 came out, I've seen a lot of debates about whether or not Yusaku has Stockholm syndrome towards Revolver. I've done a lot of research on the subject, and from what the series shows, Yusaku doesnât seem to have the syndrome at all, towards Revolver, Dr. Kogami, or any of the Knights of Hanoi. But Iâm seeing the term being misused a lot. So, I want to ask: What are your thoughts on the matter?
Thank you for asking this, anon, and Iâm sorry for the late reply. I feel like this response/post is a bit overdue since I know there a lot of fans out there concerned about the misuse and application of the term.
Because canonically, Yuusaku doesnât, and has never, suffered from Stockholm syndrome.
To truly answer your question, anon, weâll have to first analyze Yuusaku to see if he meets the criterion to develop the syndrome and then continue by figuring out if he displays the symptoms in the series.
Now, this is going to be pretty picture heavy and long, so bear with me. Also, this will contain spoilers.
All through season 1, Yuusaku is hunting for the truth behind the Lost Incident. He did at one point make the connection between it and the Knights of Hanoi, due to its other name, the Hanoi Project, hence why he hunts them as intensively as he does. He wants revenge and he wonât get it until the ones responsible pay for their crime.
Early on in the series, he states that the Knights of Hanoi are the only ones he hates. Does that mean he also hates Revolver?
Yes, he does. Revolver is just another piece to use in the search after the truth. However, Yuusaku never makes the guess that the leader of Hanoi is the same person as the mastermind of the Hanoi Project. Yuusaku is heavily driven by logic and never makes hasty assumptions but rather conclusions and only when heâs absolutely sure.
But we all know Yuusakuâs perspective shifted when he learned Revolver was his special person, as well as the one who made the anonymous report to uncover the incident. Shifted in the sense of learning where Ryouken came from, hence turning part of his mission into no longer being about crushing Revolver as a part of Hanoi but dragging him away from it. Thatâs important to remember.
Now, letâs move on to Stockholm syndrome.
The most common description of the term that most people uses, and the very basic one, is âa hostage developing sympathy for their captorâ. Which isnât entirely correct; itâs closer to the truth to instead say that the victims start to identify with their captors, especially when they to cope with the fact that theyâre captured, feeling like their old life were empty and meaningless, or to sum it all up in one sentence; a psychological alliance as a survival strategy during captivity.
What everyone agrees on, however, is that itâs generally considered as a highly irrational condition, so no further argument is needed on that point. But just like any other psychological term, there is way more to it than just that.
And when it comes to Yuusaku, we donât have to continue before it already falls apart.
Letâs go back to episode 58 that started this whole debate in the first place:
VRAINS tells us it was eight-year-old Ryouken.Â
The show has so far not shown us how exactly the kidnapping happened, other than it was child Ryouken luring Yuusaku away, a method not uncommon to use when luring away others into captivity, and itâs clear that Dr. Kougami used it to his advantage.
Hereâs the thing, though, and what most people may have missed or forgotten about; Ryouken luring Yuusaku away doesnât make him the most responsible for Yuusakuâs captivity. The ones to blame entirely are the adults involved, and, most specifically, Dr. Kougami.
âBut Ryouken is equally guilty since he was a part of it!â
Yes and no. Ryoukenâs guilt complex has its origin from this since he did lure away Yuusaku (if he lured away the others is still unknown, but so far, it doesnât seem like he lured away Spectre and/or Takeru). But Ryouken also confessed that he didnât understand what was going on, which shouldnât be too surprising due to being as young as he was. And putting such heavy blame solely on a child is questionable on too many levels.Â
Yuusaku himself has stated himself as well that Ryouken was, indeed, too young to be blamed for the Lost Incident.Â
In this specific case, the roles as kidnapper and captor arenât shared by the same person, or even on equal grounds since that would mean Ryouken was just as involved in the project as Dr. Kougami himself, or even Vyra, Dr. Genome, and Faust. But he wasnât due to his age, and itâs even implied that he was left in the dark, which would be more than understandable.Â
Itâs worth mentioning as well that Dr. Kougami did admit guilt over dragging Ryouken into the mix to begin with, implying even further that he wasnât involved more than the show suggests.
This is what we, the audience, get to know. But Yuusaku is aware of this as well, at least in a matter of it being a different person guilty for locking him away. In other words, Yuusaku never developed sympathy or psychological alliance with his captors; he makes a difference between captor and kidnapper just like the show portrays it. Furthermore, he thought for ten years that Ryouken was imprisoned as well:
Based on all this, itâs not too far-fetched to assume that Dr. Kougami took Yuusaku away when Ryouken wasnât in the same vicinity. Otherwise, he shouldâve known that Ryouken was in cahoots with Dr. Kougami.
All Yuusakuâs hatred towards Hanoi is because of them imprisoning him, something a hostage with Stockholm syndrome doesnât feel since the lack of hatred and negative feelings is the main factor for the condition developing in the first place. Wikipedia uses a quote from the psychologist Thomas Strentz: âThe victimâs need to survive is stronger than their impulse to hate the person who has created the dilemma.â Nothing we see in the show indicates that that was the case with Yuusaku. He was a tortured, starved child who just wanted it all to end so he could go home, never once showing any sympathy as a way of coping or attempts to lessen the experience.
Now that Iâve taken apart the basics of Stockholm syndrome that most people are used to, letâs move on to see if Yuusaku actually shows the symptoms or not:
