#a hater in ur ear telling u it couldve been done better’ stance. Because Its simply the truth that. dr3 couldve been done better man 😭😭

[batw1nggg]

Same anon here who brought up that stuff about Nagito's contempt for the Reserve Course being intensified in the simulation by misinformation. For a number of reasons I'm much more accepting of the premise of literal brainwashing than other fans. In fact, controversial opinion, I actually think it is a more logical and coherent premise than the idea of Class 77-B all becoming terrorists of their own free will.

Now just to be clear I do agree that the idea of insta-brainwashing via a Despair video that Junko had all along is daft. Since on top of it being kind of anticlimactic, it retroactively means she was sitting on an "I win" button the entire time in DR1. But to summarize why I don't think the idea of literal brainwashing is an unreasonable premise, it mainly comes to three points.

The first is that the precedent for brainwashing technology had already been set in the DR universe. DR1 established that it was possible to precisely erase targeted memories. DR0 took that to the next extreme by showing it was possible to create a new persona through that same technology. UDG established that helmets to mind control victims existed too. So the idea of Class 77-B also being brainwashed is far from outlandish in the setting. In fact I accidentally predicted the V3 twist before reaching the end. Since I initially assumed they would have gone through a more visceral version of what was done to the V3 cast (though possibly with some other nastiness like sensory depravation and solitary confinement).

The second is that...well, the premise of Junko indoctrinating them one by one into a cult sounds deep and clever until you seriously think about it for like 5 minutes. The timeline simply doesn't work. Junko would have maybe 10 months tops to pull something like this off. And making matters worse is that she's in a separate class, and has a whole lot of other shit to prepare in the year leading up to the Tragedy. Manipulating Yasuke and Izuru, arranging for the school council massacre, getting Monaca and the Warriors of Hope on her side, and all the while keeping up appearances as a member of Class 78. A class who were implied in the DR1 photos to be abnormally tightknit by Hope's Peak standards, like Class 77-B was with Chisa and Chiaki.

I've seen plenty of headcanons for how she'd go about it. And yes, stuff like the Twilight Syndrome incident could help things. But that only applies to about a third of the class. And overall just about every explanation I've heard treats Junko and Class 77-B like they exist in a vacuum. With none of the other people at school noticing that anything is off. Which is just nonsensical. DR0 shows a lot of the events right before the Tragedy from the perspective of people like Kyoko, Yasuke, Makoto, and Jin. And NOBODY seems to think there's something kind of off about Class 77-B, or brings up that Junko seems to spend a strange amount of time around them. Makoto of all people would be just the kind of person to try and bond with some of his senpais. And the Ultimate Detective not seeing any signs of bizarre cult-like behavior among the school's students is pretty absurd.

Not to mention that it requires that while they're still at school the Remnants never behave in such a way that's counterproductive to Junko's plans. Like Teruteru is briefly alluded to in DR0. Now am I really expected to believe that someone like him, who presumably would already be part of Junko's cult that late into the timeline, wouldn't already be doing some fucked up shit? Like increasingly creepy sexual harassment or violent mood swings? Same for people like Hiyoko, Nekomaru, Akane, Ibuki, and so on. This premise requires them all to be good little robots and rein in the Despair antics until after the riots spiral out of control. That's a level of subtlety that many in Class 77-B just don't have.

And finally...I'm sorry, but no. You can't have it both ways. You can't have the Remnants be fully responsible for carrying out their misdeeds of their own free will. And then have them be rehabilitated and redeemed via the Neo World Program. Using targeted amnesia to rehabilitate criminals is unethical to an absurd degree. If you're going to say "These people deserve a second chance", then you're going to have to commit to doing things the hard way. Detain and rehabilitate them with their memories intact. Literally the only scenario where something as extreme as the Neo World Program would ever be remotely justifiable would be an equally extreme scenario like a subject having been subjected to literal mind control.

So yeah. That's my controversial take. I disagree with DR3's depiction, but think the Remnants being brainwashed as more than just a figure of speech is perfectly reasonable. Mainly for pragmatic reasons related to story consistency, due stuff like DR0 not only doesn't have any hint of Junko secretly running a cult, but makes a lot less sense if we assume that's going on offscreen. But also for some ideological reasons too. Plus the alternative requires a level of competence and manipulative brilliance that it wildly inconsistent with what Junko showed in DR1. There is no way that someone who could convert all of Class 77-B with the constraints listed above in such a short timeframe, would be so easily thwarted by stuff like Sakura's sacrifice and Makoto's rallying speech at the end. In fact Class 78 should have all gone completely mad after a year in isolation with her if she was as brilliant as some fans hype her up to be.

OK WAIT NO NO NO i didnt mean to imply that junko should like. Run a cult or something. i agree with all of these points, i think that TOO personalized of manipulation would be unrealistic. the way dr3 did the brainwashing seemed lazy and anticlimactic for junko but also junko is smart and wouldnt put in all that unnecessary work for a class she doesnt care about.

youre right that brainwashing and mind altering does consistently show up throughout danganronpa, but i do also really really wish we couldve seen it be pulled off in a slightly more personalized manner. i used mikan as an example in that post but i didnt mean to imply i wanted them to show junko doing that to like. Everyone. i just personally wish they wouldve taken the “the brainwashing takes advantage of your personal desires and hopes” thing a bit farther somehow. like elaborated a little more

i dont have a clear vision of how danganronpa 3 shouldve ended. i think i’d be a lot more on board with the brainwashing if theyd just. Done it a little better, made it more climactic, made the scene more intense or something idk. it’s just so obvious to me that dr3’s ending (and dr3 as a whole but especially the ending) really seemed rushed and careless. we BARELY even get to see the remnants while theyre despaired, with the exception of komaeda. which SUCKSSSS SO BAD i wish they couldve at least incorporated THAT. like for dr being about the apocalypse we dont really get to see much of. The Apocalypse. outside of udg.

and ohhh yeah the forcefully inducing amnesia on a criminal thing is a point i never even considered. youre totally right there i have no comments to add about that

To Conclude. it does make sense that the brainwashing had to be done and i do admit that it is consistent with dr. But Also. It was Anticlimactic and the way they wrote it seemed half assed to me

#ITS SOO NICE to for once see a brainwashing supporter actually give a coherent argument instead of like. the ‘dr3 is great when u dont have #a hater in ur ear telling u it couldve been done better’ stance. Because Its simply the truth that. dr3 couldve been done better man 😭😭 #tell me WHY you agree with the choices made. i want to hear WHY. #dr3 #asks #long post