Curate, connect, and discover
I'm now full and famish at the same time. Probably one of my favorite things about the writing for Tokyo debunkers, it lets the characters kind breath.There not one who I don't find interesting.Both the frostheaven chapters are far apart from each other,so between that where getting a small glimpse of the characters.The more the story goes on my opinion on characters changes very differently.
Thoughts on Jin?
Jin is... interesting. Which is to say, I don't often think about him, but when I do, I really . Really want to squeeze him like a grape.
The nature of Eset opinion posts is that they get so fucking long I feel bad if I don't put them under a readmore. This is. No different. Oops
First of all, I think his dynamics with the other characters on both an in-universe level and a meta textual level are fascinating. I think the most obvious connection is probably with Alan (given the whole... everything with Frost vs Vaga), but I think the most interesting one is comparing him with Taiga.
Taiga and Jin are incredibly similar. Frostheim and Sinostra are essentially the true opposites in every conceivable way, yet they still retain important similarities that keep them in constant conflict. Both captains were incredibly capable until Something happened, both have vices that have a two-faced tendency, both are incredibly nihilistic on a personal level (while still being Involved)... both are attached to the MC, both have connections to Darkwick on a deeper scale than other ghouls...
Jin is in an incredibly weird spot in what his character does in relation to others. Internally, to my mind, he's in the same category as Taiga and Ed, which is a very strange group to be in. But it's because these three all have the same philosophy and general Character and express it differently.
In his prologue lines, Jin calls it a fixed match, and says he was a figurehead. Tohma calls him delicate, others call him cold, reclusive, etc. Jin seems to be able to Acknowledge his personal philosophy ('There is no changing this') but not Accept it. He Acknowledges that he has no real power over anything at the moment, but rather than letting that ideology lead him to a more 'So fuck it I'll do what I want bc we'll all die anyway' attitude (as it does w Taiga) or a 'But neither does anyone else, so I'll use my power as I please / enjoy myself' one (as it does with Ed), it leads him to this like. Despair state, almost.
'I have no real power, and never did, so what's the point in doing anything at all?'
But he can't accept that, because he is incredibly driven and motivated. He needs to succeed. He needs to Prove himself, in a sense, especially due to the pressures of being Kamurai's son, and so he Can't Accept that he Can't Do Anything. I think this is part of why Jin's stigma isn't working without MC right now. I don't think MC unlocks some special thing inside him, but I think he BELIEVES she does. I think he BELIEVES she's able to help him, and so he's able to use it again. Because he believes that she, in some way, is giving him the ability to Be In Control. Because that's what his stigma is. It's control.
And like, it's fascinating! Because Control dominates so much of his character. Control over Frostheim, control over his circumstances, control over others, control over himself. Lack of control. Lack of freedom. Oppression, tyranny, any other goddamn synonym out there.
At every turn, Jin's character focuses on these things. He's a king, but does he really have any control over his own dorm? Over what happens to them? He did his damn best in his Freshman year and got the Laurel Crown, and then what? The Clash happened. And he lost Yuri, either before or immediately after. He gained Tohma, yes, but what else did he lose? What else changed for him during that? His stigma, notably. His world spiralled out of control, and his ability to use his stigma was lost.
And so he gives up. He accepts that he can't control anything, so why try? But he really, really can't fully accept it, because all he can trust is himself. So he still. Tries. Tries to control Something. Tries to solve cases with the influence he has. The control he has. And he tries to control Tohma, because Tohma swore loyalty and should be easy to control, but he's not, and that's something that drives Jin, which we see with the mirror anomaly. It shows him two things; himself, in Frostheim garb, the King (total control; domineering), and when he calls that Pathetic, it shows him Tohma and Alan.
MC says the mirror showed the anxieties she's been keeping locked down. I firmly believe this is true for Jin too. I firmly believe he fears both sides; total loss of control and total tyranny.
And. GOD!!! I know this has been so rambling and Literally So Nothingburger and I'm sorry for that, but it's just really, really neat to look at him totally removed from how he treats MC, though I do find that dynamic interesting as well. I think he's interesting outside of Tohma, even!
I think. It's not a stretch to say that Jin's Frostheim parallel is Kaito. Which is to say, if you were to pick who Kaito resembles the most between Tohma and Jin, I think the better comparison is Jin. Which adds a lot of new fascinating layers of thought in that Kaito's confidence is lacking while his ability is pretty damn capable, or in how Kaito's attitude is honestly probably closer to Jin's internal monologue than Lucas' ever is, or how Kaito was closest to his grandmother who has already passed (while Lucas is closer to his father, who is seemingly still alive)... It's just. Fun. It's fun to look at.
I think I should probably end this here bc I have yapped way too long, but even this doesn't scratch the barest bittiest little Surface of Jin's character. I truly wish I knew More, or at least had more interesting thoughts on him, and I would LOOOOVE to read better analysis from Jin fans or others who think abt him a lot. Ough. Jin Kamurai I need to microwave you.