I Rlly Like The Emphasis That Live Action One Piece Is Putting On The Fact That Literally Nobody Else

Saiki K has this interesting sort of chill atmosphere and monotony about it. It's called "the disastrous life of Saiki K" but the disasters are often like... him not having enough pocket money for something, or having to get through a sports festival. Occasionally the disasters are him having to save the world or his brother being an actual freak, but the show treats these times almost with the same stakes and importance as everything else.

I find this really interesting because what just feels like a "vibe" at first becomes an actual plot-point later on, with Saiki rewinding the Earth every year and repeating the same stage in his life over, and over, and over again... nothing has any real consequences, it's as dull as it is funny, and while it is a comedy I feel like there is this quiet sense of horror underneath it all. The intro with the flower petals falling and then being rewound kind of illustrates this for me - Saiki constantly controls everything around him in an attempt to hold it in some kind of stagnant peace, slowly growing accustomed to the people around them but none of them truly moving forward, like everyone is being held in a dream.

I don't really know where I'm going with this, it's really hard to put into words, but does anyone get what I'm talking about? Is this coherent in any way?

OK correct me if I'm wrong, but I feel like the main 'yin/yang' parallel with Atsushi and Akutagawa is not something like 'this one is bad but secretly has a good side and this one is good but secretly has a bad side'.

I feel like it's more about 'who they are at their core vs who they choose to be'.

At his core Akutagawa is kind and at his core Atsushi is not. But despite this Atsushi tries every day to make the kinder choices and I love him so much for it. He has to work so hard to be good.

He wants to be a bitch SO bad I know he does but he tries his best to help people and be nice (sometimes he fails but that's OK <3)

Atsushi doesn't always WANT to help people, a lot of the time he's selfish and scared, but he does help people anyway. He keeps helping people over and over again. There's still some selfish motivation to it, and his initial motivation for helping people was because the headmaster told him that's all he was worth, but overall he does care about the people he helps and it weighs on him if he fails to save them. And of course, as the series goes on he starts helping people more because he can rather than because he feels like he needs to.

In Akutagawa's case, he's still capable of being kind but his environment led him into being someone who chooses to hurt people. But he's always been a protector at heart. In the start he was bad compared to Atsushi because he was choosing to hurt people and keep the cycle of abuse going. Just like how Atsushi developed in why he saved people, Akutagawa starts to get redeemed when he chooses to not just act on his rage. Not only does he start to spare people, but he speaks more kindly to them (apologising to Higuchi and telling Kyouka he's proud of her). It all culminates into the moment he chooses to help Atsushi and sacrifice himself for him, going back to his core value of being a protector. Even when he's finally revived, he keeps this role in his new position as Aya's Knight.

I kind of see the streaks of white in Akutagawa and the streaks of black in Atsushi not as their 'hidden sides' but as their fundamental selfs. That's who they are at their core, and their main colours (black for Akutagawa and white for Atsushi) are how they're presented to everyone else and how they try to have people see them as.

The common misconception that Akane has no personality outside of Aoi is a sign of immaturity among many fans, in my opinion. This isn’t really their fault, seeing as the majority of the tbhk fandom is on the younger side, but it’s still something that should be noted

When people say this, they are talking about his hobbies. It’s true that every hobby Akane has is something he started to impress Aoi. I’m of the firm belief that he stayed on the Student Council because he enjoys it but that’s slightly up to interpretation (it could also be a way for Teru to keep an eye on him). However, in general, Akane doesn’t seem to have much going on outside of Aoi. His favorite food is something he imagines her baking for him, he joins clubs based on what type of guys she shows interest in, the books he reads all have a character that shares her name, and when she asks him what he enjoys, his response is “I like you, Aoi.” He’s even shown to zone out of conversations when Aoi isn’t mentioned. This is clearly unhealthy, though he does eventually learn to give her some distance which is beneficial to the both of them. But he still doesn’t seem to actively engage in hobbies that have nothing to do with Aoi

This is a consistent character flaw, but it does not mean Akane has no personality or character outside of Aoi. This is where the immaturity bit comes in, kids want to describe themselves entirely based on their interests. With the rise of fan culture and the internet, many adults do the same. It’s not just a young people problem, it’s an issue of how we identify ourselves. We like to put people into categories, understanding them based on their hobbies and careers. These are very important elements of identity, but they aren’t everything. A person with no job and no hobbies is still a person. They might struggle due to having no outlet for their creativity, but they are a person nonetheless

Fandoms notoriously love to understand characters based on their niche interests. Aoi is a gardener, Hanako loves the moon, Nene plays idol games, Teru has a very sad life. These are absolutely elements of their characters, but there’s more to them than their hobbies. They have personalities too, goals and passions outside of what they do in their free time

Akane puts his all into helping others, he takes his Student Council duties very seriously and keeps his hands full during every school event. He is a very empathetic character, able to understand characters like Aoi, Teru, and Nene without them having to tell him what they need. He’s competitive, as seen in his friendship with Teru. He’s romantic, as is the driving force of his character (and romance is a perfectly acceptable goal, marriage is one of the most common things for a person to strive towards in life). He’s violent and overprotective, striking down any man who makes Aoi uncomfortable. He’s emotional, prone to fits of joy, anger, and tears. He’s easily annoyed and carries a chip on his shoulder, but that doesn’t stop him from wanting to help people. He hates supernaturals because of how they hurt others, and despite his stance as a School Mystery, he is so painstakingly human. He can be aggressive, especially when someone he loves is trying to do something self-destructive. He cares so deeply for people, wearing his heart on his sleeve. He’d stay up all night playing video games if it made the girl he loves happy, but he won’t attack Teru for having genuine feelings for her. He’s incredibly loyal. He’s also casually bisexual so there’s that

Idk there’s just so much more to Akane’s character than people give him credit for, I didn’t even cover everything. Remember when you’re analyzing a character, it’s important to look deeper than “they enjoy this” or “this is their job.” Akane may devote so much of his life to Aoi, but he is still his own person, whether he realizes that or not

I am begging ya’ll to stop throwing the “no character outside of Aoi” allegations at this man

What do you think could make Tsukasa cry? From the beginning of the series until now, he has never been seen to cry despite what happens to him, so I was curious to know what you think. I hope you read it and have a nice day! :3

Thank you ^^

If you want to know, what would make Tsukasa cry would probably be the moment he receives love.

When he hears Amane say for the first time that he loves him with every word, when he hears that he is important, when he hears that his sacrifices were things that Amane did not want because what he wanted was to be by Tsukasa's side because he loves him.

He will cry when Amane admits that he will protect him, when Amane hears his calls, when Amane is the one who will hug Tsukasa, and not the other way around.

All Tsukasa needs is love, affection, care. He did everything he could for his brother, even before he met the entity. He asked Amane if he loved him, he wanted to feel that love, but what he received was the opposite.

He is so used to no one liking him, to no one caring about him, that it doesn't hurt him anymore.

Tsukasa know this will happen, he himself said that "Amane won't come, even if I call him"

Why won't Amane come?

He also explains "he's never done it before"

Tsukasa is the boy who was abandoned by everyone, including the person he loved the most. People don't usually like him, he always hears and sees looks of fear and contempt from other people. No one has ever asked him how he was, if he needed anything, no one cares about him.

And he knows this, he's sure of it.

One of the reasons he looks for a reason to "stay".

At the moment he was most vulnerable, he talked a little about what happened to him and Amane, that sad and empty look.

And you see that look shine when Hanako finally shows up to save him.

Then, the shine disappears again when Amane says he saved him "because he was there".

Tsukasa had a little hope here, but Hanako killed it again.

You see some of that hurt reflected when Tsukasa calls Amane selfish, when Nene says she loves Hanako and Tsukasa is handcuffed behind him saying "good for you" in the official translation.

When shortly after that Nene says she hates Tsukasa.

Can you see it?

Nothing negative will make Tsukasa cry because he expects it, because he is used to receiving contempt and indifference.

When you expect hate and not love, the tears dry up.

But when love finally comes to him, Tsukasa will overflow, because he has never dealt with it, he would not know how to react.

I can even see him shocked, in disbelief at first.

Like when Nene JUST hugged him.

He reacted that way with just one hug, so imagine how he will react when the person he loves the most finally admits that he loves him deeply?

He sings in search of a place where he can be happy

Tsukasa is neglected even by the fandom.

I understand that he did a lot of wrong things along the way, but let's remember that Tsukasa is that little baby who spent his days fulfilling Amane's wishes to see him happy.

Little Tsukasa became Yorishiro with this troubled personality because of his union with the entity.

The entity greatly influences his behavior, but he chose to stay by her side because the entity was the only one who could fulfill his wish to save his older brother.

The entity was the only one who stood by him when everyone else turned their backs (even though we know that the entity is also just using him).

All Tsukasa needs is love, affection, kindness, and that will be enough to make him cry.

He is a good boy who suffers unfairly for having chosen to save the life of the person he loves the most.

He didn't do it for himself, he never made wishes for himself, he wasn't looking for any ambition, he just wanted to see his brother happy, even if he didn't feel that he was loved by Amane, he didn't care about that, he just wanted Amane's happiness.

The cost of Amane's happiness is Tsukasa's pain.

If you want to see him cry, truly love him.

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Tsukasa's loneliness…

I've been thinking about Tsukasa's situation. How he is so tired. Tired of waiting for Amane, tired of being alone, tired of staying awake.

⚠️ SPOILERS FOR CHAPTER 344⚠️

@theinkymystery

Rage (?)

+2 pages that didn't fit/were redundant but i liked them :)

WHAT was that FRAME I’m in LOVE

Alternate Universe HS Chuuya calling Dazai "Osamu" when they were young being so important to Dazai that he wrote it down and put it in a time capsule

....is not the craziest soukoku info thats ever dropped into my lap

but it blindsighted me nonetheless.

Animaniacs #36 -April 1998- DC Comics

Communication Gap

writer: Dana Kurtin

penciler: Omar Aranda

inker: Jim Amash

letterer: John Costanza

colorist: Prismacolor