Bsd Skk - Blog Posts

"you couldn't know how right you were but it was only to the river; it doesn't matter what you know but you were eager to deliver. it couldn't wait it couldn't wait but it was only to the river; you couldn't know how sweet sweet you are."

the river by fievel is glauque

I Am Dazai Ch 10

*Asks cutely* Have you ever had thoughts about dying?

Dazai: Why the hell did you punch me, slug?!

Chuuya: Because you tried to kiss me!

Dazai: You were under a mistletoe!

Chuuya: You put it there!

Dazai: Damn it Chuuya! Just love me already!

Chuuya: You’re a pain in my ass, Dazai!

Dazai: Yeah, sorry about that I’ll use lube next ti- *Chokes*

Chuuya: *Strangling Dazai*

Mori: *Looks at Kouyou* You owe me Seven hundred thousand yen.

Kouyou: I could have sworn Chuuya was the dominate one in the relationship.

Dazai: This is your badness level. It’s unusually high for someone your size.

Chuuya: Are you quoting an animated American movie?

Dazai: *offended* Lilo and Stitch is a classic masterpiece you uncultured slug!

The fact Chuuya calls Akutagawa "my boy Akutagawa" is not only sweet on his part but also SALTY towards Dazai?

Like Chuuya saw this kid getting treated like that by Dazai and decided "no no no, HE'S MINE"

The background friendship of Akutagawa and Chuuya will always be heartwarming to me. And this is completely in character for Chuuya, he has shown affection to Kenji, Elise and Q (in the manga, anthology, official arts, etc.)

Sure Atsushi can be Dazai's favourite, but Akutagawa is Chuuya's, always.

*Highschool AU*

**Dazai**

*swarmed by his fangirls/boys*

Girl: Dazai-senpai, I really like you 💖

Others: meee toooo

Dazai: I think you are very pretty too~

Girl: would you go out with meee?

Dazai: *omg I am so popular, omg I am so loved, omg so cute juniors, omg I can't---*

Dazai: how about we meet up at----

Atsushi, dragging Dazai out of the place: Dazai-san not this again!!! Chuuya-san's been watching you out of that window

Dazai: H-He was?? Atsushi....can you hide me somewhere, I might die---

Girl: omg omg do you think Atsushi's the one senpai's dating?

Girl #2: why is it ALWAYS Atsushi taking the good ones?

Girl: I think it's cuteee

************************************

**Chuuya**

Girl: I l-like you, Chuuya-senpai

Chuuya: *not this again* I am sorry, I am not interested in dating

Girl: a-are you dating someone?

Chuuya: *there's no way I will admit I am dating that bandaged freak* NO

Girl: then do you like someone?

Chuuya: I guess so...

Atsushi: *walking outside the class*

Chuuya: *yes I can excuse myself now* hey Atsushi, wait for me!!!, sorry I gotta go

Girl: WHAT WHAT THE FUCK ATSUSHI AGAIN? IS HE COMPETITING AGAINST ME?

*later*

Girl: did you know Chuuya-senpai is in unrequited love with Atsushi

Girl #2: Atsushi really has it all huh?

************************************

**Akutagawa**

Girl: Akutagawa-senpai, I...I...

Akutagawa, staring into space:....

Girl: I like you...eh..I.

Akutagawa: sorry, I am dating someone

Girl: woah...I didn't know-who is it?

Akutagawa:....my pet

Atsushi, listening to this: hey, I am not a pet!

Dazai: you are like a cat, a pet cat!!! Hehe

*later*

Girl: I got rejected again

Girl #2: did you know I saw Akutagawa-senpai and Atsushi walking holding hands!

Girl: ATSUSHI AGAIN!!!

Girl #2: maybe you should try Gin-chan

************************************

Atsushi: why are you all following me?

Girl: teach us your ways

Girl #2: how do you do it? Catch em'all?

Atsushi: what

(after studying seriously for a month and still being aggressively average as usual I am back to Tumblr)

*Chuuya fighting the bad guys*

Dazai, to the bad guys: do you see him? He's shining. He's the icon, the legend, the moment. My eyes sparkle and I can't stop staring at his beautiful blue eyes. Yes they are like the ocean----

Bad guys: can you stop talking?

Chuuya: yeah if you aren't gonna do nothing, then don't distract us

Dazai: ok 😊

After five minutes, Dazai: that was such a wonderful move, Chuuya. I can understand all your movements, I have studied them----

Bad guys: we are leaving cuz we are tired of all this simping

*time skip*

Mori: congrats for stopping the fight in record time

Chuuya: that bastard didn't even fight, he was so cringe those guys left!!!

Mori: yeah that's why I sent him to missions with you 🍵😊

Dazai: 😊

Chuuya: 😨

Dazai saves Chuuya's number as "My financial help" because he borrows/steals a LOT of money from Chuuya. And one day Atsushi reads the call ID accidentally when Dazai is on phone and talking to Chuuya, and Atsushi only sees "My finance", which his brain interprets as "My fiancè".

And......

Atsushi with flowers: Congratulations, Chuuya-san on your engagement. I guess you are keeping it low-key now 😄

Chuuya, confused: what?

Dazai, gasps: woah Chuuya you are engaged? Who is it?

Atsushi: Oh come Dazai-san, you can't lie to me. You and Chuuya-san are getting married

Chuuya: WHAT???😨

Dazai: did you hear that Chuuya? We are getting married!!!!🥰

Yosano: congrats you two 🍷

Kunikida: at least tell your colleagues about your marital status...

Kyouka: I have to tell Ane-san this, she will be furious

Kenji: a wedding in the agency!!!! I'll bring a cow for the dinner!

Junichiro: I can't believe you two went through with it! Congratulations!

Ranpo: Will there be a huge cake in the wedding? Or else I won't come 🍭

Fukuzawa: does Mori know about this?

Chuuya: WE ARE NOT GETTING MARRIED. WHERE DID THIS COME FROM

Dazai: Chuuya now this is peer pressure, we HAVE to get married 😚

Chuuya: WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU SO CHIPPY

*ten years later*

Dazai: Thank you Atsushi-kun for getting Chuuya to marry me

Atsushi: Dazai-san, you two have divorced three times by now

Dazai: Fourth time's the charm!!!

*Someone on reddit*: Skk is toxic and I don't understand why people ship them. IT'S OVERRATED and doesn't make sense

*Me*: here we go again 🍷 I was waiting for this post all week

Dear people, let's enjoy FICTIONAL things without criticising others for enjoying things you don't like or understand, it is NOT that serious 🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️

Seriously, talk about things that you DO enjoy, that's more important. We do not want to constantly hear people bitch about things we like again and again with the same fucking arguments.

I have a feeling people won't shit about Skk so much if they weren't two guys----just sayin' 🤷🏻‍♀️ (infact Asagiri would have made it canon himself, like he was planning to with sskk)

Can we just stop hating on things? I am tired of the same discussions.

GUYS.... He's in denial Guys 😭😭😭😭😭🤣🤣🤣🤣

*after dinner*

Atsushi, confused: what are you doing Ryuu?

Akutagawa: planting the tails of shrimps to grow them into new ones

Atsushi: h-how is that possible?

Akutagawa: Dazai-san taught me this, it is going to work, you will see.

Atsushi: you can't believe him he was ly---

Chuuya, shuts Atsushi's mouth: don't say things that will discourage a child and stop their imagination

Atsushi: but he is just wasting his time!

Chuuya, shaking his head: let him experiment and find the truth out himself, it's a learning experience for him.

Atsushi: w-where are you going now?

Chuuya: to beat the shit out of Dazai

Atsushi: understandable.

Dazai, slamming his glass: why doesn't he love me, dammit!

Oda: maybe you should calm down a little; following him around and spying on him would come off as creepy to him.

Ango, massaging his temples: I have no idea how you haven't gotten arrested for spying!

Dazai: maybe because we are fucking criminals that work in the Mafia, Ango? I don't think Chuuya would report ME to the police of all people....

Oda: what if he reports you to the boss?

Dazai: the boss is the one who gave me the idea of spying on Chuuya to get his attention! He has been helping me all along!

Oda:......

Ango: that sounds like him.

*Meanwhile*

Chuuya: that idiot mackerel has been following me around for a week! Can you stop him?

Mori: interesting, have you thought of giving in and going out with him?

Chuuya: of course no----wait a minute! THAT'S your question? Shouldn't you stop that crazy ass behaviour?

Mori: I have decided to send you two on a joint mission to Hawaii....for a month.

Chuuya: huh? What will we do there? Have a honeymoon?

Mori:....

Chuuya: NOOOOO

*Dazai, Chuuya and Sigma on their way back to Japan*

Chuuya: what the fuck were you doing with that anemic son of bitch? Can't you stop flirting with ANYONE you see for five minutes?

Dazai, gasping: how could I ever cheat on you? I would never do that, I was only entertaining him for our plan to work~

Chuuya: AND WHY WERE YOU CONFESSING YOUR LOVE TO ME? THAT'S DISGUSTING. THAT'S SICK

Dazai: Chuuya....we are literally in a relationship

Chuuya: I never said I took you back since you left!

Dazai: then why do you get mad when I flirt with other people?

Chuuya: I feel bad for them. I pity them for dealing with you!!!

Dazai: you are breaking my heart right now Chuuya, have a little mercy~

Sigma, in a corner fiddling with his fingers: I wish I was still unconscious....

BSD and Shipping

Since Valentine's day was coming I was interested in discussing a huge part of the BSD fandom: Shipping

( ⚠️ RANT INCOMING. DO NOT READ IF YOU ARE EASILY OFFENDED ABOUT OPINIONS ON SHIPPING. PLEASE BE RESPECTFUL TOWARDS OTHER PEOPLE'S OPINIONS IN COMMENTS AND REBLOGS. ⚠️)

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

So where to start?

For a long time I have been noticing one specific trend in the BSD subreddit. And that are posts that talk about unpopular opinions/Headcanons/fav or least fav ships etc.

What I find interesting about these posts is that one thing is always in the forefront, and it's the debates about the sexualities of the characters in BSD. While Headcanons can be annoying and some people do push their opinions on others, there is nuance that is lacking in the community when discussing some topics. Finding posts about Mori being a pedo and how Dazai is unlikable or overrated is very easy and the discussions surrounding topics like that are always the same. People would pick sides and end up writing a lot about what their opinion is and while that's valid, it also ends up in fandom wars where it's hard to like or dislike something without your head being in the chopping block.

Now let's go to the original topic: shipping. To examine the environment of shipping culture in BSD fandom we have to start with the headcanons that people have adopted for sexualities of the characters.

1. THE PROBLEM WITH HETRO-NORMATIVITY

Now, the posts about shipping often contain a lot of people writing paragraphs and paragraphs about what ships they like or dislike.

One of the ships that takes the most bullets for its existence and popularity is Soukoku or Shin Soukoku. There are lots of comments about these ships that "remind" us that canonically Dazai, Chuuya, Atsushi and Akutagawa are all straight. They should not be shipped with each other because they are straight.....

Dazai flirts with women and wants to commit a double suicide with a beautiful woman. Atsushi is very clearly set up to end up with Lucy. Akutagawa couldn't care less about romance as we see how dismissive he is with Higuchi. And Chuuya.......wears fashionable outfits and has a slutty waist, but we won't comment on that.

Dazai and Chuuya have a lot of queer subtext that anyone can see. Akutagawa and Atsushi are pointed out to complete each other and complement each other several times. These ships don't exist out of thin air.

Now there is nothing WRONG with anyone having the headcanon of any of these (or any other) characters to be straight, after all we are not given enough information about their sexualities. But by stating "Dazai is straight, he likes women" or "this ship doesn't make sense because they are not gay" not only does it imply that characters can't have other preferences but also that being straight is the default, which it isn't.

This is coming from a straight woman from a very conservative country where we don't have exposure to queer media. It took me a long time to stop being so heteronormative. I think assuming someone is straight until they prove to you or tell you directly is just as bad and as assuming someone is gay. I think we have come far along as a community to understand that it shouldn't be our first instinct to assume everything is heterosexual until we get some sort of proof or stamp of approval from its creator.

Asagiri isn't going to stand up in a stage in front of the world and say "yeah Dazai and Chuuya have gay feelings for eachother" because the manga is from Japan. If there were explicit queer characters then BSD would no longer get the label of being universal because of certain censorship laws. Even if it's getting more acceptable in Japan to show queer characters in manga and anime, BSD isn't a romance or slice of life story. It's a seinen, not a BL/GL. Besides, Asagiri shows little to no interest in romantic relationships in his story.

So by saying "______ character is straight because we don't have any other information proving otherwise " isn't a valid excuse to tell shippers not to ship certain characters, it's making it seem like heterosexuality is the default state of being.

That also doesn't mean you can say "Dazai is gay, don't ship him with women" because that's the same thing. If you think Dazai is gay/bi/pan/etc. then that's your opinion, pushing that on others only worsens the rep of skk shippers especially.

You have the right to like or dislike certain ships or have your own Headcanons. This is why even feminising certain characters also isn't as problematic as people call it. It's just a different take on a character (but that time people were correcting those who called Sigma a "he" instead of "they" was genuinely wrong). Headcanons of some random online stranger doesn't make anything canon. So if you find yourself around annoying people like that, just leave the conversation.

2. WHY SUBTEXT MATTERS

Subtext is really important when discussing media; in case of BSD whether it is the anime, manga, anthologies or LNs. BSD is not new to subtext, even from the start of the story there is a lot of queer subtext that people can figure out easily.

When we are introduced to Dazai and Chuuya's partnership in the first season, it's clear as day to see the dynamic and its underlying tension. We can see how close those two are that their relationship can't be explained just as simple partners turned enemies. Time and time again we get so much queer subtext between Skk's interactions. The entire 15 arc and well as Stormbringer shows us the bond and trust between the two as well as the intense amount of gay scenes. At this point I am sure Hoshikawa is a hardcore skk shipper. All of their official art is also gay (that could be queerbating though). Asagiri must know what the public thinks about Skk and still writes subtext about them. It makes sense why this would be a popular ship; it's not made out of thin air with no context (*ahem* Kousano *ahem*) but has actual roots and the proof to back it up too.

SSKK is a similar story, it's not my favourite but it has been growing on me ever since S5. Similar to skk, we get a lot of subtext and homoerotic moments between Aku and Atsushi. They are yin and yang. They are enemies that sought to kill eachother but still team up to fight together. Atsushi is literally the centre of Akutagawa's life since the beginning. Atsushi and Akutagawa grow together as characters and as different as they appear are similarly looking for one thing: validation and acceptance. Their relationship is so compelling in so many levels that it too makes sense why their ship is as popular as it is (especially regarding recent events in the story)

Ranpoe.....let's be real, those two got married a long time ago. They are the definition of "be gay, solve crimes". They are undeniably a cute ship regardless of whether it's one sided or not. Fyolai as well makes complete sense with the context behind Fyodor and Nikolai's relationship, while I also consider it quite one-sided as it's mostly Nikolai that is fascinated by Fyodor (and wants to kiss kill him) Fukumori isn't my cup of tea but it too has enough subtext to back it up, same with FukuFuku.

While I would love to talk about other ships, I wanted to show the reasoning behind the most popular pairings.

Personally, as a multishipper, it's very fun for me to have so many characters to examine and spend time obsessing over.

Now, there are straight ships that I like too as well as ships I don't ship for myself.

The reason I don't like Yosano and Ranpo together is because I see them in the same position as Kyouka and Atsushi. The scene of Ranpo recruiting Yosano (who worked with Mori) into the ADA parallels Atsushi saving Kyouka (who also worked with Mori). I consider them siblings and like how they are platonic instead of it being the typical "a boy and girl can't be besties". Another ship I love and cherish is AtsuLucy because it's so adorable, Lucy is my fav Guild member and her and Atsushi are "Girlboss and Malewife". I ship Tachihara with Gin, Higuchi and Gin as well as Kunikida with Yosano (surprisingly I don't find the appeal of Kunizai; though I still like that ship from time to time, just don't ship it actively). I prefer not to ship Sigma with anyone (he is still a baby to me)

So it's not that BSD doesn't have straight ships, when you make a majority male cast and have them be rivals or enemies, obviously people will ship m/m more. Especially if there is more subtext and tension behind the male characters and they have little to no interactions with women.

And I might get some heat for saying this:

It is okay for most of the BSD characters to be considered queer because if comp het is so normal in anime/manga then why can't the opposite be the case? We already have enough series with little to no representation, so why can't we have a bunch of queer characters?

3. TOXIC SHIPPERS AND THE FALL OF FANDOM CULTURE

I have been raving for the past two sections and defending the shipping community. But it isn't a conversation with nuance if I don't address the problem of a small group of people that take shipping too seriously. The reason why fandom itself gets a bad rep is because of shipping more often than not. I will admit, it's not all sunshine and rainbows when people argue about their fav ships. And a lot of the aforementioned ships are to a point, toxic. Yes, some shippers are annoying and ruin everyone else's fun. There are ships that don't make sense at all.

But that doesn't mean that a small part of people should represent others who are just having harmless fun and don't even believe their ships to ever become canon. Let's be real it's highly unlikely we will have any couples by the end of the show (the closest could be AtsuLucy). Sometimes people are too intense about ships and that goes for both antis and pros. Both of the extreme are toxic. And instead of shoving down our opinions down other people's throats, we should be celebrating the very story that brought us together in the first place.

Yeah it can be hard for those who don't like shipping at all to enjoy the story and have discussions. But we have to remember the roots of fandom culture start with shipping. It's always been the case and it's always been the most popular way to discuss one's favourite fictional work. From Sherlock to Genshin to boy bands to streamers, everything has been shipped and will always be. There is a reason why AO3 works so well.

4. SO WHAT?

The ships are what brought me to BSD in the first place. I wanted to explore the world of BSD because of its characters and their dynamics. And a lot of other people have gotten into this fandom for the exact same reason. While there are unflattering moments in our fandom, that doesn't mean it's not a place for people to come together and have some fun. Whether you ship or not. Whether you like fanfictions or not. We have to accept that there are a lot of pros to shipping too. It brings our ideas together, makes us feel giddy inside or tears our heart apart, it produces beautiful fanarts and fanfictions, it makes us analyse characters, it makes us look deeper into the story....and it makes us wait for what's next to come.

And I want nothing more than to be able to enjoy shipping without the guilt that comes with it.

Shipping isn't free from its flaws, but it is not defined only by its flaws. It might not be for everyone, but it is someone's everything. So even if you don't like it in particular, let's not spoil other people's fun. One's trash is another's treasure.

~Peace out 🕊️✌️

Chuuya, singing in the kareoke: I wanna key his car, I wanna make him lunch

Dazai, whispering to Atsushi: Chuuya sounds so desperate

Chuuya: I wanna break his heart and be the one to stitch it up

Dazai: .....wait

Chuuya: Wanna kiss his face

*Dazai, smirks*

Chuuya, making a fist: with an uppercut

Dazai: oh no....

Chuuya: I wanna meet his mom, to tell her, her son sucks!!!

*ADA and PM laughing in the background*

Dazai getting out of Chuuya's apartment in the morning: 😶

Atsushi getting out of Akutagawa's apartment in the morning: 😶

Dazai: let's keep this a secret between us and not tell anyone about this in the ADA

Atsushi: deal.

Akutagawa using intimidation tactics on Atsushi because he doesn't know how to flirt: Jinko look at my eyes when I talk or else....

Atsushi: but, you are holding my wrist and pushed me into a corner, what do you want? I thought you agreed not to kill me

Akutagawa: if you don't want your sister to go missing, then let me take you to a restaurant

Atsushi: first of all, Kyouka would never get kidnapped by you and why a restaurant, are you trying to sell me drugs or something?

Akutagawa: why are you not understanding me?

Atsushi: what are you talking about? What is wrong with you?

Akutagawa: stay here, I have to ask Dazai-san for more pointers. If you run away, I will put handcuffs on you

Atsushi: ......

Atsushi: wait...I am the DETECTIVE HERE NOT YOU.

Meanwhile, Dazai watching this with binoculars: Dammit, Atsushi is even more air-headed than Chuuya. How can they not get such simple things? I should have given Akutagawa the dog collar already. It worked on Chuuya, surely it will work on Atsushi-

Chuuya, kicks his back: can you stop ruining kids eh, shitty mackerel?

Atsushi, confused after a mission: what exactly is the relationship between Dazai-san and Chuuya-san?

Fukuzawa: they are enemies

Kunikida: more like ex-coworkers

Yosano: definitely, enemies with benefits

Kyouka: best friends!

Kenji: they help each other out in times of great trouble like good neighbors :)

Junichiro: Aren't they rivals?

Naomi: I thought they were Ex-boyfriends!

Haruno: I heard they got divorced

Atsushi, even more confused: they were married????

*Everyone looks at Ranpo*

Ranpo, takes his Lollipop out: Gay.

Why do you think Fyodor chose Chuuya specifically as his accomplice?

Maybe all that time in prison he heard Dazai constantly hyping Chuuya up and gushing about him. He heard about their shenanigans and the amount of trust they had in eachother. Maybe Dazai was just complaining and pouring his heart out about their complicated relationship.

And Fyodor thought it would be funny as hell and so much drama if Dazai gets killed by his own partner.

Dazai: And he didn't even kiss me after I went out of the way to recreate snow white!

Fyodor *fake gasp*: no shit, that's toxic!

Dazai: I know right, we never work it out :(

Fyodor: hey, maybe I could get you guys to meet and talk it all out....

Dazai: you would???

Fyodor, *evil smile* : of course, what else are enemies for?

Dazai: thanks bro, you're the best!

Dazai, in his head: Just as planned, he fell right into the trap or I say.....rat hole......ah that was a bad one

Dazai, in his head: I better call Mori and ask him to get Chibi a hot new outfit, he needs to look good for my confessions.....and the best part is he can't even deny or reject me when he is acting as a vampire...hehe. I should go practice my speeches.

Every valentine's day Chuuya gets desperate, passionate love letters from someone whom he doesn't know. It's full of poetic lines and cryptic messages about how they are fated to be together and are soulmates. He wonders who this secret admirer is and decides to write back to them and ask them out on a date.

He goes to the restaurant they decide to meet at and takes a U-turn back to the receptionist and cancels his reservation when he sees Dazai sitting there waiting for him. Because Chuuya.exe has stopped working.

BSD S5 is driving me insane~

I did not expect to cry because of Fyolai and FukuFuku

Why do they have to pair them up and then separate them?

Are we here to fulfil Asagiri's sadistic desires ? 😭

Does he even like us?

"This story is not for people who are good at living"

Bullshit

Then maybe you should think about your fanbase of mentally ill people on copium~

Just sayin'

(ps: at least Skk and sskk reunion happened)

Heres a sneak peek of the fanart ive been doing for @kyosuku ‘s courtesan dazai au on ao3, you should absolutely go read it!!!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHUUYA!!!!

i kinda rushed this drawing but whatever :3

https://archiveofourown.org/works/64079077/chapters/164405416

i finished writing this fic hehe (pretend like the link isn't being mean)

dazai and chuuya making paper stars and being silly :3

technically this is part of series but you can just read this and mostly understand

this turned out way better than expected like i love this sooo much :D

this is actually reference from a photo i took!! i went to the city the other week so i had to get some reference photos hehe :3

uh oh! someone found their secret hideout (aka a supply closet)

the lighting on this one was fun :D

I fear I may have spent too much time on this lmao

used another random place from google maps as reference :D

"I've got you"

i really like how the colors turned out on this one :D

the sillies again

i wanted to mess around with color pallettes and outfits so this happened