I had to talk about this at some point because I'm so deeply in love with it- anyone who's into shuake, please PLEASEE go read "you have a beautiful smile underneath that mask" by saposaki on ao3 it drives me batshit insane how good it is and the characterization of both akira and akechi just GETS ME. and in the authors notes saposaki expresses it's their first fic EVER and like what the absolute fuck it's so good!!
I'm the anon, and thanks to someone's comment in my ask, I was able to find the source! https://www.pixiv.net/en/artworks/59851172
for everyone who was curious about the original source of the gif in my banner and the one I will add below, here's the link. thank you so much anon!!!!
joker literally gets an attempt on his life by akechi and he still forgives him. he could have ruined everything, and yet joker still has innate compassion for everything that's happened to akechi and why he makes the choices he does. I'm so normal about them. ALSOOO I saw a post talking about how akechi's confidant has to be max to keep the progression of the story going, so it basically equates to that closeness being a canon part of the story and i am unwell about it,..,.
This is indeed what I was referring to- that you literally cannot progress the story WITHOUT being rank 10 with Akechi and it has me down atrociously because holy shit that's the closest possible thing to being canon which is AMAZING
joker literally gets an attempt on his life by akechi and he still forgives him. he could have ruined everything, and yet joker still has innate compassion for everything that's happened to akechi and why he makes the choices he does. I'm so normal about them. ALSOOO I saw a post talking about how akechi's confidant has to be max to keep the progression of the story going, so it basically equates to that closeness being a canon part of the story and i am unwell about it,..,.
Every time someone beats Persona 5 they immediately start posting abt how much they love Akechi and how they're their boyfriend and whatever, and I'm SICK AND TIRED. Some of y'all gotta beat Persona 5 and start talking about how Toranosuke Yoshida is your babygirl malewife, we can't ALL be Akechi's boy/girlfriend, some of us gotta want that old ass man.
i glance at my tumblr mutual reblogging from me again.. blushes and looks away..... my trasured mutual, you mysterious and charming being.....what are we? i hope... maybe someday, we could be something more... something like..discord friends
why does this have 400 notes. you are all funnier than me in the tags and for that I'm sentencing you to public whippings. except you'd like that you FREAKS
here is the thing. i love this stupid scene. it's so weird and bad that it loops back around to being charming, with strangely fun characterization that i wouldn't trade for anything.
...that's why, in my recent deep-dives into the p5r source code, it was one of the first scripts i glanced at. and i noticed something interesting about how the written dialogue lines referenced the voice lines -- namely, that the indexes skipped around a lot, implying that a bunch of voice lines... perhaps existed but went unused?
intrigued and spurred on by the fact that i've always found this scene to be awkward and stilted anyway, i checked the folder with the associated sound files, and... lo and behold, there are a TON of unused voice lines in here. based on the ordering of the sound files, i've come to a few conclusions:
an earlier version of the scene was a bit longer, with more coffee family interactions at the top.
there are a few unlocalized japanese lines left in here, which i'm not inclined to believe factor into the original flow of the scene (or if anything, maybe an even earlier version??), but just a thing to note.
none of the traumadump stuff was in the earlier version. instead, akechi goes right into talking about his annoyance at the phantom thieves' latest victory and how he's determined to stop them.
...in fact, he comes down HARD on the phantom thieves. it's not that weird for this point in the story but it is a BIG tonal difference for this particular scene. his tone is THREATENING. futaba's reaction to him makes waaaay more sense in this context, honestly...
the traumadump voice lines are the very last lines in the folder/indexation -- suggesting that they represent a pointed later revision of the scene to try to paint a more sympathetic picture of akechi (lol)
also of interest but not particularly relevant, all of the lines from the subsequent scene ("I wanna light fireworks.") are duplicated here before the traumadump lines are even appended -- suggesting that, just structurally speaking, this scene and the next were considered one single scene.
the original scene flows MUCH better, but indeed, other than the fun little coffee family extras at the start, it's just... kind of boring. there's very little interest or substance to this version of akechi even if he's much more coherent š¤·
so, without further ado... i now present a reconstruction of the scene as it seems to have originally been written, as much as is possible from the voice line files āØ
NOTES:
protagonist (who i'll just call joker for simplicity) choices cannot be reconstructed from audio files and are mostly left to the imagination, with some speculation from context
lines omitted from the final version of the scene are marked with a *
the unlocalized japanese lines are left in, along with my vague notes of what i can glean from them (very little), again not because they actually fit into the scene (they definitely don't seem to, tonally) but just for completeness
the places where lines that are in the final version but werent in the original are marked with parentheticals (like this)
---------
Sojiro: You want anything, Futaba?
Futaba: Orange juice. 100% natural.
*Sojiro: What about food? You like shrimp pilaf, right? And I've got ice cream if you want something sweet...
[CHOICE 1]
*Joker: [possibly expressing concern for Futaba]
*Sojiro: It's all good. Futaba's out of her room now.
[CHOICE 2]
*Joker: [possibly commenting that Sojiro is fussing]
*Sojiro: H-Huh? Does it look like that?
*Sojiro: I can't help it. Seeing Futaba sitting there normally is justā
[CHOICE 3]
*Joker: [possibly expressing jealousy over not getting this kind of treatmentāblatantly correct choice, imo]
*Sojiro: You pouting? Don't worry, I'll cook something up for you later.
Sojiro: That reminds me, you're going to the beach tomorrow, yeah?
Sojiro: Go have fun, and make up for the fireworks. Just try not to cut loose too much.
Futaba: Fireworks?
Sojiro: Oh yeah, you wouldn't know. He tried to go to a firework festival, but it got rained out.
Sojiro: Not only did he get crushed in the crowd, but he came home looking like some kinda drowned rat.
[CHOICE 1]
*Joker: [expresses disappointment at not getting to see fireworks]
*Sojro: Don't look so down. I'm sure you'll get to see fireworks again sometime in your life.
[CHOICE 2]
*Joker: [suggests setting up their owm fireworks, maybe...?]
*Sojiro: Sounds like too much trouble to me.
*Sojiro: I like quieter fireworks myself. They may not be as flashy, but they make for a great atmosphere.
[CHOICE 3]
*Joker: [suggests going to another festival soon]
*Sojiro: I'm sure the large festivals are already done and dusted.
*Sojiro: They've got fireworks every year, though. You'll get to see them again, as long as you're alive.
Futaba: Fireworks, huh...
Akechi: Hello.
Sojiro: Oh... welcome.
Akechi: Oh! You're...
Sojiro: Huh? You know each other?
Sojiro: Wait, aren't you...
Akechi: I'm Akechi.
Sojiro: Oh yeah, the one on TV and stuff. So what brings you here, Mr. Detective?
*Sojiro: [unlocalized Japanese line; sounds annoyed]
*Akechi: [unlocalized Japanese line; saying Sojiro is wrong about something...?]
*Akechi: [unlocalized Japanese line; possibly asking if Sojiro is Futaba's father...?]
*Sojiro: [unlocalized Japanese line; says "no," at least]
Akechi: This place is more than I imagined it to be. The atmosphere is wonderful.
Akechi: No wonder Sae-san recommended it so strongly to me.
Sojiro: I already told her everything I know. There's nothing more I got for you people.
Akechi: Oh no, that's not my intention. I just came to enjoy some coffee.
Sojiro: Oh...
Akechi: And she is...?
Akechi: Oh, you must be Wakaba Isshiki's...
Sojiro: What'll it be?
Akechi: I'll have whatever you recommend.
(In the final version of the scene, Sojiro gets a line here -- "Coming right up." There's a cut, after which Akechi has his coffee the whole time and only tastes it at the very end. But in the original scene, he seems to have been served much later. See below.)
Akechi: It seems I'm unwelcome no matter where I go.
(And here's where the traumadump lines all go. But nope, they're appended at the end. The original flow skips right to--)
Akechi: Ah, yes. Medjed... To think they'd be taken down by another hacker.
*Akechi: If only the Phantom Thieves had lost. That could have put them into hiding for good.
*Akechi: But now I have a feeling they'll get even more presumptuous from this point forward.
Akechi: I'm not sure whether Medjed was defeated by the Phantom Thieves themselves or an avid supporter...
*Akechi: Either way, they are a dangerous presence that is trying to incite the public to join their side.
*Akechi: They are nothing but a criminal group wearing the guise of justice. I will catch them, no matter what.
Akechi: Um, you're... Futaba-chan, right? Sae-san told me about you.
*Futaba: ......
Akechi: Many kids your age seem to be fans of the Phantom Thieves...
Akechi: Do you like them too?
Futaba: ......
Akechi: What's the matter?
Futaba: ...You're popular too, Ace Detective Akechi.
Akechi: Thank you.
Akechi: Although I'd rather not be compared to people like the Phantom Thieves, if at all possible.
*Sojiro: Coming right up.
(The above line is in the final version of the scene, but in an earlier spot rather than here.)
Akechi: Mm, this is delicious. You get to drink this coffee every day? I'm incredibly jealous.
...aaaand there you have it! i won't include the mini family fireworks scene that follows because it's just the same as the actual, final, separate scene.
anyway, other than the coffee family stuff, not actually a very interesting scene, if i'm honest! i prefer the badly written traumadump version!
and i see why they got rid of the extra coffee family stuff up top, if the point was to draw attention to a more sympathetic side of akechi (whether it worked or not). but i'm still sad about it :(
......i'm somehow just now realizing that the family fireworks scene originally being a continuous part of this scene implies that it originally also took place INSIDE OF LEBLANC. so the main revision would have been to place that scene outside in the alleyway instead. um..... yeah. a good revision for the fire-safety-concerned everywhere š
so, about those unused japanese voicelines that don't seem to fit the flow of the scene... it turns out they're present AND already unused in the 2015 dev build version of the scene. which means they're seemingly from an even EARLIER draft!
i'll link the video of the dev build version of the scene again here for the hell of it (long story short: it largely matches the flow speculated in the OP), but i should really get a recording of all the unused japanese lines together so someone might be able to translate them...
hi!! thank you for asking, and I have tried to track it back through the depths of the internet, and I'm pretty sure it's one of the endings to the persona 5 anime. I haven't actually gotten around to watching the animation yet so I can't confirm lol but I hope this answered your question. as to where I got it, I found it on Pinterest :))
edit: it's actually a fan animation!! can't find credit however, but if anyone knows where it's from please let me know
I hate having talented friends!!! one of my friends was staying at my house last night and got positively SLOSHED and wrote the most beautiful poem maybe ever?? what the fuck???
These three are so iconic as the only member of the Moon Arcana Fanclub I have to push their popularity as far as possible Iām MAFP (Moon Arcana Fanclub President) and it is my responsibility to see them take over the world one girlboss and two failguys at a time
shuake/akeshu fans have we considered how masochistic they both are. like akechi literally forces you into a battle with him. they are so idiotically in love they have no choice but to just start fucking throwing hands.
boys is it gay for your heart to start pounding really hard near your homie and then you ask him out to play darts and then you bring him to your favorite jazz club and then you also beat the shit out of him and then you try to kill him.