The scene where Mitsuri's parents secretly watch her as she dyes her hair black in order to look like an acceptable bride is a scene I think about a lot.
The look of sheer pain and sadness on their faces feels like a punch in the gut to me, mainly because I've never encountered any parent who actually cares that much about their child. In fact, I nearly cried when I first saw that scene.
Where I live, first impressions are everything. If you mess up in front of others, you are seen as a disappointment and parents can go to almost any length to make their children seem like perfect angels in public, going as far as pressuring them to hide their true self and craft a more palatable persona for others to interact with.
Mitsuri's parents are the opposite of this. They love her for who she is and are never seen telling her to 'act like a lady,' which is amazing considering the time KNY takes place in. They are anguished instead of thrilled when they see Mitsuri trying to cover up her real personality.
Seeing parents truly love their child for who they are will never feel boring or overdone for me, considering how rare it is in real life.
• 3 major Dutch newspapers (De Telegraaf - where all started, AD, De Gelderlander) + GP Today went straight to the point: Max is missing from Kelly’s celebratory photos.
• The rest (NU.nl, NOS, RTL, Linda.nl, GPBlog) played it safe — neutral coverage, no mention of his absence.
So now the puzzle pieces are falling into place.
Liv 💫
Been seeing my lines floating around lately… after being harshly dismissed and labeled not long ago.
Copy-paste is free, sure — but at least we should have the dignity not to sell it back as a coincidence and maybe say thank you before you copy-paste the homework next time.
How Did Fukuzawa 'Sense' that Kunikida is Alive after his Bombing?
In Chapter 71, Fukuzawa says this when Fukuchi offers to tell him what happened to Kunikida after his kamikaze bombing.
At first I thought, ‘ Is this that tropey Kung Fu Sensei is in touch with the Universal Force’ bullshit ?
But then I realised that since Fukuzawa can control his subordinates’ ability power (like suppressing Atsushi’s tiger transformations and bringing Demon Snow under Kyouka’s control), that must mean he can sense their ability power too. If anyone of of the ADA died, their ability force would vanish. Or if an ADA member were dying or critically injured, their ability power would be extremely weakened.
Major spoilers for 55 minutes ahead ! :
We saw in 55 minutes that when Dazai dies, there is a moment where his brain stops working and so his nullification vanishes.
Extrapolating this further : since abilities are tied to the soul - if say Atsushi were on the brink of death or in terrible danger, his survival instinct (as others have said) represented by the Tiger would go into a state of feral panic. If a non - suicidal Kyouka were in such a state, Demon Snow would go into frantic overdrive. A dying Yosano would be trying hard to heal herself, unless she intended to sacrifice herself as in chapter 66. Fukuzawa's ability helping others to control their own is basically a metaphor for him being sensitive to their emotions and issues and helping them with their problems. This could mean that since emotions affect the soul symbolised by their abilities acting up, Fukuzawa can detect their intense emotions.
So that’s why Fukuzawa was rather calm and unhurried throughout the Cannibalism, DoA and Hunting Dogs arcs. He knew that his subordinates were still alive and well enough, because 'as long as one ADA member survives, the Agency will be revived.'
Unfortunately he can't do the same with Dazai and Ranpo.
DON'T DARE TO REPOST / PLAGIARISE / REUPLOAD MY ORIGINAL POST / ANALYSIS
The bare trees of winter are beautiful. Bicycles thrown messily down in the snow are beautiful. The coffee table I write this on, scratched and bruised are is stunning beautiful. The vase of pink tulips next to me giggle and wink in their beauty.
People are beautiful.
My friend and his girlfriend smiling at each other, not once breaking eye-contact, during the chaos of Truth or Dare. Beautiful.
Tapping my friend's shoulder, and him immediately turning around, bending down to help me with my Geometry homework. Every other sentence, he lifts his head up from the paper and says, "Does that make sense? Does that make sense?" His eyes are wide with the quiet zealousness signature to him. Beautiful.
Arms wide as my best friend trembles and shakes, murmuring, "I'm sorry. I can't believe it.". Beautiful.
The boy, who always sits in the back of the classroom, dark hair, clouding his vision, headphones blasting so that I could hear the ABBA songs from my seat in front of him. His hands quiver as he opens the email on his phone, whilst 13 wide-eyed students observe.
"Eli, we would like to guarantee you an offer in 2 years to our school.."
The phone hits the ground, and a gangle of limbs curl into a fetal position.
"Thank the lord, thank the lord, thank the lord," He cries. Cheers flood the room, and even the teacher is grinning.
A girl cries, as a group of boys, sweating, and cackling, and mocking her.
If Death is the mother of beauty, does that mandate it as the mother of terror?
Surely two extremities cannot be related, by any fathom.
However, beauty and terror share. they share the common trait of invoking visceral reactions, which equate to weakness.
Pure vulnerability, and raw, true, unfiltered emotions can be found both in gazing into one's soulmates eyes, but also facing the most petrifying of things.
both are real.
both are true.
yet we associate each with dissimilar situations, which may be incorrect.
If beauty is not terrors sister, maybe they are half-siblings or cousins
Having a complicated relationship with your brother that starts out as loving but turns into hatred because you want to prove that you're better than them and it turns into an obsession that literally strips you of your humanity as you will go as far as making a deal with the devil to achieve your goal and by the time you realise you were wrong, it's too late and you don't even get a single chance to apologise
How an Atsushi VS. Mori Confrontation Could Destroy the Mafia's Unity
Atsushi and Mori's worldviews are diametrically opposed. Mori is a utilitarian who sacrifices individual mafia members for the prosperity of the organisation. Whereas Atsushi is kind of the opposite of utilitarianism. He wouldn't want any individual to suffer for the collective. Why ?
Because Atsushi has been traumatised and victimised by the Headmaster's utilitarianism all his life. The Headmaster abused Atsushi to brand onto him that he's worthless and expendable if he can't help others. And the orphanage kicked him out because of the tiger's destructive potential. Even though they were the ones who caused him to be angry at them and the world.
Then at the start, Atsushi decides to leave the ADA & risk capture by the mafia, because he believes he's a burden to the ADA.
But a part of him is tired of being the martyr for people. That's why he empathises with and rescues others who were considered to be of no use to general, 'good' society - Kyouka, Lucy etc.
In fact Atsushi's journey is also a conflict between utilitarianism ('I'm only worth loving if I help others') vs. individualism (he doesn't want to die. That's why he frequently freaks out and hesitates in battles).
This is why I want a direct confrontation between Atsushi and Mori where they advocate for their respective philosophies. What if Atsushi upsets the Port Mafia's unity by exposing how Mori's extreme collectivism could ruin their lives and loved ones ? Like how Odasaku and the orphans died. Right now the PM respects Mori because he ended the previous boss's unnecessary bloodshed. What would happen if the members started asserting their individual rights ?
But on the other hand, Mori reignited Atsushi's fighting spirit in the struggle against Lucy, by telling him that a logical solution exists for every crisis. Mori's logic could counterbalance Atsushi's illogical side.
I wonder how Atsushi would justify his stance when currently Mori is far more knowledgeable and experienced than him.
DON'T DARE TO REPOST / PLAGIARISE / REUPLOAD MY ORIGINAL THEORY
Pushkin was made unlikeable by BSD. This by association taints his 'the weak deserve to get away with more than the strong do' philosophy as only pathetic and evil. Yeah it's messed up, but he's justified in being envious / afraid of those who were born with great talent / power just because of their genes.
Now look, Pushkin hate is understandable. I'm personally neutral about him. But I hope nobody hates on his worldview without dissecting the logic behind it.
Because the world shits on average / below average people unfairly, and everyone rallies with strong people. Most people don't care about the weak at all. Pushkin may well be afraid that he'll suffer just because he has average intelligence and talent in a world full of attractive super geniuses and powerhouses. Which is a very valid and very human concern.
Such a person will eventually believe that the common human should have some extra privileges, in order to even out the playing field with superpowered Deus - ex - Machinas. If an ordinary person were transported into BSD's harsh, perpetually dangerous world, wouldn't they want the same thing ? Wouldn't they be right in not wanting to lose out on good stuff just because of a genetic game of chance ?
What Pushkin could've done to become more likeable for basic - as - heck readers, is to ally with good / 'cool' people and be consistently useful to them. So why doesn't he do that in canon? Now listen up. We don't know his backstory. Maybe disheartening events made him think that in a cruel world, the weak would be trampled by the strong if they didn't prioritize their own wellbeing.
But yeah, his backstory is nonexistent, so all this is a mere theory. Plus I haven't read irl Pushkin's works, I've based this entire analysis off the manga only.
DON'T DARE TO REPOST / PLAGIARISE / REUPLOAD MY ORIGINAL ANALYSIS / THEORY
ATSUSHI'S SELFLESSNESS AND ABILITY EFFECTIVENESS ARE DECIDED BY HOW MUCH FAITH HE HAS IN HIS FUTURE
(An Atsushi character + ability analysis)
TW Death. Long post.
In Chapter 18, Kunikida when saving Atsushi from Kouyou tells him, 'How long will you keep letting others save you?', referring to Kyouka who had been fending off Kouyou till then.
Kunikida has a point - Atsushi was thoroughly injured before Kyouka took over, but after that he didn't heal himself so that he could continue fighting. Now an analysis I read says that Atsushi can only heal if he consciously makes that choice.
Upon being butchered, Atsushi's mind probably blanked out from stress, so he forgot to heal himself. And that is natural, but in his previous fight with Akutagawa, he didn't blank out and managed to win. So why not now ? Did Kouyou just beat him up more severely (she was ordered to kill him whereas Akutagawa wasn't) ?
I believe there's a psychological reason for this - Atsushi's hope for a good life had decreased before Kouyou's attack, reducing his willpower to fight. I'll elaborate on why this happened :
Before his first fight with Akutagawa, Atsushi's 'good deed' of saving Dazai despite starvation gave him the ADA family. So he believed doing good would improve his life, i.e. that he can live a good life. Hence, he was more tough minded and hopeful against Akutagawa.
In BSD, ability power is a manifestation of the person's psyche. A happier, more hopeful Atsushi resulted in better use of his ability, both for logical reasons, and due to the nature of abilities. Therefore he was able to heal himself and defeat Akutagawa.
WHEREAS against Kouyou, Atsushi was already mentally tired due to his previous fights with Akutagawa, Kyouka, Lucy. His good deeds of fighting resolutely against horrid enemies got him almost maimed and killed. In his heart he was viscerally fed up of his misfortune. So he lost some faith in the 'do good receive good' ideology. Therefore when he was incapacitated by Kouyou, his survival instincts kicked in and told him to stay safe by staying put. He lost the will to continue struggling, and so didn't remember or care to heal himself.
Earlier, he had saved Kyouka out of natural empathy AND his desire to prove he's not useless. He underwent extreme danger in doing so. He wasn't ordered to save her, and was discouraged from protecting her. Yet he did it, his hope hadn't been drained yet.
Then in the necessary fight against Lucy, he tries at first, but later considers it futile and tries to escape despite it jeopardising his comrades, thinking the ADA would figure out a way. He lost hope in his ability to help, so he very illogically gave up until Mori rekindled his hope.
He fails to save Kyouka in Chapter 18 and she goes missing. After that scolding by Kunikida, in Chapter 25 (the three - way war involving ADA, PM and the Guild. His mission is to escort Naomi and Haruno to safety) he says, 'I'll protect the agency this time!'. This is both due to not wanting to be useless, and also because on seeing that Kunikida and Tanizaki risked themselves to save the clerks, he got hope that the ADA will help him when he's in danger. His faith in his future is thus renewed, so he is determined to fight once again.
I believe, as @elia-de-silentio says ♧, that Atsushi had saved drowning Dazai because he was scared to steal, and thought a grateful rescued man would give him money. Which is perfectly fine since he would've starved to death otherwise. (That doesn't make Atsushi a bad person. He still never developed the guts and skills to steal - because the Headmaster's teachings and orphanage bullying affected him the most, due to his gentler nature.)
Also note that Atsushi never wanted to join the ADA because he knew it's a dangerous job. He only started considering it a home when they gave him shelter (hence why he felt moved to shield the bomb with his body), and became truly attached only when Kunikida told him that he's not a burden on them.
I believe Atsushi is willing to risk his life in fights ONLY when he has hope in the world- that it's not a bleak place, that he has a support circle in the ADA and others. He will not do such risky good deeds just to be a good person when he has nobody to support him, when there's no way to survive except by prioritising himself over others.
Also, the bomb incident shows that Atsushi's worldview is illogical and contradictory - he realised that his life isn't that unfortunate, since the ADA sheltered him. So he sacrificed himself for them. What ? How will you spend more happy times with your new friends if you're dead or paralysed ?
Beast AU verifies the above inference. Atsushi won't kill unnecessarily, but he doesn't want to die and WILL kill purely to survive when necessary. Beast AU's world is much more harsh for Atsushi, so he becomes more selfish. And that's perfectly understandable.
What do you think? Does this explain Atsushi's actions ?
DON'T DARE TO REPOST / PLAGIARIZE / REUPLOAD MY ORIGINAL ANALYSIS
Citations :
♧ link to @elia-de-silentio 's manga Chapter 1 analysis -
TENTATIVE ANALYSES: BUNGOU STRAY DOGS
Fourth installation with the Tentative Analyses: Bungou Stray Dogs. A Seinen manga which began monthly
