Hi. Welcome to a my retrospective on the Red Army outfit designs from the game Ikemen Revolution. This had some spoilers for all of their routes, though I doubt anyone will see this.
Im actually gonna go in a weird order, but have funsies reading this
Zero
His outfit is simple, and compared to the other Red Army outfits (with the obvious expection of Kyle) is sort of messy. On top of this he also has many personal identifications on him. Unlike the Black Army, where there tends to be more personal touches on uniforms, the Red Army tends to be much of the same pattern. Choker like collar with roses and stems off of the rose then wrapping around the collar, sword on side (excluding Kyle, I wont count Jonah as excluded since dialogue hints at him still carrying a sword even though he doesnt have it on his art... for whatever reason?),
Either way, he has four markers on him that makes his outfit stand out,
A. Braclet
B. Tattoo
C. Yellow hair strand
D. "Civillian" clothes. (As id put it)
Braclet is asymmetrical. Tattoo is from his past as well as the hair strand. Civillian clothes (t-shirt under the button-up).All in all, ill get into this more detailed later, but Zero is on a borderline. A borderline between being a civillian and being officially a part of the red army.
Kyle Ash
Kyle ash is messy and disshelved and also has a couple personal items (stethoscope and pen which are unique to him, red army wise at least). But honestly, besides that he doesnt have much I want to talk about right now.
Jonah Clemence
Jonah has a lot more uniqueness to his design than I'd expect. The little cape (or whatever you want to call it), the sash. Honestly, I think that the cape and sash almost just serve to make him look bigger and taller than he is. The cape would give his shoulders a broader look and the sash would serve to elongate his legs making him seem taller. This connects to his history of getting bullied for his weak appearance.
Lancelot Kingsley
LANCELOT!!!! Woot woot. Or smth. Anyway. I honestly dont have much to say about his design, i thought id have more.
I dont like the lil leg part off his main coat. Its extremely awkward to look at and I pretend like it doesnt exist. It bothers me greatly.
Besides that, red cape helps hide his one arm (ifykyk), but I also think it is probably a piece of the King's uniform that would be passed down through the generations.
The sash i think serves to make him look accomplished than anything, as such sashes are commonly given to the winners of certain contests.
I do like his pose however. One hand over the sash, one hidden/obscured. It kind’ve gives the look like someone who's awkward to be there, or believes they shouldnt. He's hiding his "accomplishment" (the sash) and even if it wasnt intentional it gives him the look of being offputted, like he doesnt truly want to be in the position he has but is dedicated to the Red Army, its values and traditions, so he continues to carry the torch regardless.
Edgar Bright
Hi! Im biased. This is my fav and this is where most of this retrospectives word count is going. To be frank, Edgar doesnt have that unique of a design. Its the actual epitome of red army, it has no personal items on it, no real differences from any of the others, and is nearly perfectly symmetrical. It doesn't stand out. But that was the point.
If you've read Edgars route, you will understand this better. If you havent, A. Read it. B. I will try to explain.
Edgar isnt allowed to have personal items, or really any life at all outside of the red army. His outfit reflects this. His only solace, only personal touch is the gloves, that is the only unique piece of clothing he has. But honestly? I dont count that as unique at all. They're paperwhite and are never stated to have anything unique about them. They're gloves. They hold no sentimental value, they simply serve as a means for Edgar to, in a sense, "protect" himself and more potently, others. He doesn't wish to dirty them with his filth, the blood on his hands.
Here is what ive been wanting to talk about this entire time, the collars of the Red Army uniforms. Theyre simple in design but I think the most important part about them is how theyre presented. Edgar, Jonah, and Lancelot have them fully closed, Kyle and Zero do not.
I believe the reason behind Zero's is because as I said, he is still on a borderline. Trying to decide whether to fully commit to the Red Army, its traditions and values, or to have his own values and ideals. His is still open, but its upright and close to closing, it is on a middle ground.
Kyles is open wide while tilted slightly up. He is realistically the only person in the red army who is truly free. Kyle wouldnt be afraid to leave the Red Army, he respects its traditions but doesnt always adhere to them. He doesnt always follow the social hierachy or listen to his superiors. His collar is open because he is. Kyle could do what he wants in life and still be happy with his decisions regardless because he is not tied down to the Red Armys traditions and values.
Edgar, Jonah, and Lancelot at different from the other two. All of their collars are closed.
Jonah and Lancelot's collars are completely closed. Theyre tied down to the Red Armys traditions and ideals. They're tied down to their families and their expectations.
Edgars collar deserves more attention. Its the only one which is completely symetrical. (Jonah and Lancelots collars roses are different on either side, though hard to notice). Edgar's roses are directly mirrored from eachother. Edgar is also the only collar that has something hanging off of it, which I like to call the dog tag. Off of that tag is chain-like things. I think the entire point of Edgar's collar is to mimic a dogs. Which, if you've played his route, makes perfect sense. He is the Red Armys dog and his design reflects as such. He has no personal items. He is completely tied down to the red army, his family, their values and traditions. The gloves shows he can break some of them, but that he has no real control to ever get completely free.
Anyway lmk if any part of this fandom is still alive, bye bye 🥰
