#and it can honestly be any of the milgram characters but those two are on the brain rn lol

[good-beans]

I can't reply to them immediately, but you all should send your Fuuta or Mahiru thoughts 👉👈

#im so busy but i need to drown myself in blorbos or im gonna go nuts today #and you guys have such good takes 😤 #anything thats on your mind! theories/opinions/silly things/etc #and it can honestly be any of the milgram characters but those two are on the brain rn lol #milgram #rose rambles

[archivalofsins]

Honestly, there's people all over within the Milgram fandom who just want to have fun when it comes to voting. I don't particularly understand how that aspect of Milgram is fun. To me, judging people isn't meant to be a fun thing to do or something that makes you feel good. Being critical of anything isn't meant to feel good all the time. If it did for me, I'd personally wonder if I was actually thinking about the information presented.

The fun in it for me comes from considering that my beliefs may be flawed and questioning where those beliefs came from. That's not always fun, and it's not always comfortable. It's definitely not for those faint of heart. So, mindsets like that seem like blatant admissions that some just like judging people for the fun of it.

Which to each their own and I may get flack for saying this but that sort of way of looking at it is disgusting to me. Even more so when that judgment is negative and people are still like, this is so fun.

It's gross to think that people can get genuine enjoyment or pleasure from making others fictional or not circumstances worse. At least to me, it is, but maybe I'm just too sensitive.

So, I dislike seeing this sort of mindset even though Milgram lets anyone vote for any reason.

It certainly doesn't help that the individuals I've seen display this mindset complain about the outcomes of the judgments the most. Especially when it's not going their way or Milgram isn't presenting things the way they would like it to. It is soooo much whining when it gets to that point.

Then loosely tying the character that is getting criticism they don't agree with to the lowest hanging ethical or moral talking point and going but guys. To just straight talking crap about the series stating it's bad representation or writing and going well it's actually bad it confirmed this because.

Sorry, it's just so annoying sometimes. Personally, I believe if people are really just having fun and don't wish to think about it too deeply, then the result shouldn't matter. Because they've already had their fun through voting. People can't have their cake and eat it too. Once you eat it, it's gone. You have to get another one now. There are other cakes in the world you ate that one come on be mature. That was the old cake. This is the new cake you took part in baking it. You're getting what you put in.

I don't understand all the complaining I've heard about or seen in regards to the direction Milgram is taking in certain areas. Because to an extent, the direction it's taking is the result of the audience's input. So, when I take a step back and look at it as a story with the audience in mind. It's easy for me to see how what is occurring now and will occur later is a direct result of what the audience as a whole puts in.

Everyone is entitled to vote how they want to. Yet, no one is entitled to the outcome they assumed would happen if they voted that way. Because it isn't the audiences story. The audience is just a character within it impacting the narrative through their collective choice and reasoning.

Think of it like a choose your own adventure game or book. The choice you make ultimately can't change what has already been written planned or how the characters actually are. No one can force someone to be something they're not through their view of them.

Milgram just takes this concept a step further. People can vote based on any bias under the sun, as is everyone's right, but Milgram will judge the audience for those choices not just through the use of Es' character but everything else at the series disposal as well,

Something it has been doing since trial two,

"Don't weigh me measure me against your morality. Just shut it, will you? You know it all. Feeling magnanimous? INNOCENT? I'm so not that. Just shut it, will you? You know it all."

"Holler holler from safety, so worthless. The fights up here come up to the ring and face me."

"You and you throwing around rules for fun hoisting up morality and feeling good."

"So, it's wrong. Oh, shove that! INNOCENT isn't that right?"

"Victim and Perpetrator, let's keep it simple."

Milgram has actively and consistently taken shots at individuals who vote using surface level reasoning. To be completely honest from the translation choices the staff has actively made, it can come off as though the series itself is making fun of those people.

Purge March extending it further by having Amane sing,

"Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. It's the beginning of a most wonderful day. However, there are blasphemers and silent by-standers, who would have it otherwise."

Something that not only called attention to all the silent enablers in Amane's life who knew about the way she was being treated but chose to do nothing but those within the fandom who watch Milgram but do not vote. People who have seen what Amane has been through but are choosing to do nothing. Dragging a very under discussed topic to the forefront the concept that no choice is a choice. So, it can be viewed just as poorly as making a choice can. Because when good people stay quiet, bad things happen.

Milgram also judges the majority verdict through the voice dramas as well. So, it's a bit outlandish to me that some still believe the judgments they make within the series won't be met with judgment in return. Simply because Milgram has been stating from the beginning, they will be. Besides that, no one is entitled to the right to judge others while not being judged themselves.

People are what they eat. Not only when it comes to food but the media we consume, what we're willing to accept. All these things shape one's personal identity and morals. I've said it from the beginning, and I'll keep saying it. The way I vote reflects on me as a person more than it does on the prisoners.

As Yuno and Mu both aptly put it, the audience is choosing to judge people consistently in this way. They don't have to vote at all or even vote anyone Guilty. No one is putting a gun to anybody's head and forcing their hand. So, on some level, people who are stating I'm just doing it for fun are no better than the characters they are judging. Something Milgram highlights well through their use of Futa as a character and his second voice drama.

That and by consistently drawing attention back to the fact that what has or will occur will be a result of the audience's choice. Not shying away from the fact that said judgments can end up having consequences. By ultimately refusing to make this easier for anyone or coddle the audience. Then going even further to highlight how the audiences' choices, while a part of the problem, are not inherently bad, it's a human response to judge things that one is exposed to as bad or good. Making it clear that there is no perfect or completely balanced solution here through showcasing that not making a choice can cause just as much harm.

So, it will always be funny to me to see people who are committed to passing judgment on others balk at reflecting on and internally interrogating why those judgment exists within themselves. All while still continuing to tentatively use their very personal morals and ethics to defend that choice and deflect criticism of it. This is just my "very' personal opinion, but this sort of thinking just shows off the blatant lack of compassion people be it large groups or individuals show when they believe or know there will be no tangible consequences to their actions for themselves.

Emphasis on the for themselves part. Because others do end up paying for their displays of ignorance and lack of consideration. These other people wind up getting taxed for their deluded and reckless displays by having to face mistreatment and abuse for these people's words or lack thereof them.

I know not only because I've seen it happen in real life numerous times but have personally had it happen to me within this fandom. I have been bothered over my opinions and the way I analyze this content. I've had people disregard my personal lived experiences and have been vagued about in every possible way. At this point, it comes with the territory. Recently, with the upcoming trial of Mikoto, I've begun having people make speculative and baseless claims about my mental health history.

Which,

A. Isn't any of their fucking business.

B. I do not have to disclose.

C. The act of doing this once again says more about these individuals than it ever will about me.

And most importantly

D. Has actively made me want to vote Mikoto guilty despite not voting on him the first time now just to get back at these fucking people. Because they've been that much of a fucking nuisance.

I'm starting to understand why he was so guilty before, and it seems like it's of no fault of his own. This is gonna be a surprise to read and probably get me more shit but I am petty enough to vote a character I like guilty simply because these individuals pissed me off. I can vote for any reason. It doesn't need to be helpful, I don't need to use logic, and I don't have to have empathy. I don't even have to give a fuck about my own feelings on the character.

I could vote this man guilty simply because Amane's verdict isn't going well. Nobody has to continue to be the bigger fucking person when they're continually being bothered and disrespected. I can simply vote to spite these people.

This is ultimately why I don't care about how people vote or how they discuss it. Because what goes around comes around. I don't give a damn what people do for fun to each their own. However, when that fun is at the expense of myself yeah I'm going to have a fucking problem. In this case, sadly, it has reached that point. I like hearing opinions outside of my own a great deal.

Honestly, though, if anyone is just voting based on surface level reasons such as it's fun. Like just fucking say that instead of tying it to morals that don't exist. If it's not that deep for these individuals, then they shouldn't play like it is. It's just performative nonsense as the people actually facing the consequences of the things these individuals jokingly espouse go overlooked.

I think Milgram itself handles this aspect of the fandom nicely because it's openly disdainful about it as well. Something I do appreciate simply because it highlights how while I may respect an individual's right to their opinion, I do not have any duty to love the way said individual expresses that opinion and I especially do not have to enjoy how said opinion ends up negatively impacting me.

Milgram is hellbent on teaching the audience that even the smallest action has consequences. So, if anyone is doing this just to have a good time or because they think judging people is fun and don't want that behavior interrogated. Milgram may just end up biting those sorts in the ass. Like Jackalope said, this isn't meant to be easy.

At the same time, having people carelessly vote this way is definitely going to make for interesting writing developments trial 3. Simple solutions always cause complex issues. In this Innocent (Forgiven), Guilty (Not Forgiven), or no choice system, there isn't really a right answer, just the answer individuals come to.

All that to say I'm petty as hell and fuck everybody voting Amane Guilty actually. If these last two are Innocent while she's Guilty again I am going to fucking break something. If that something is my consideration of other people's right to their personal decisions and my own desire to remain civil, so be it.

I'm simply not going to continue providing something to others that is not provided to me. If people have an issue with that mindset, well, it is what it is. Do what you gotta do. I'm just trying to enjoy something in a way I find enjoyable, something a lot of people should understand. I'm just trying to have fun. It doesn't have to be that deep, everybody.

The way I discuss these things is fun to me. If it's not fun to see, then people don't have to see it or discuss me publicly at all. Minding one's own fucking business is one hundred percent free. Take a bit on the way out if you so choose to.

#milgram

[milgramprojectfan]

While I’m waiting for Kotoko’s MV to drop so I can continue my overview passion project, here’s Milgram, but Danganronpa? Comment if you have any better ideas for their Ultimates

(Someone’s probs done this before, but idc. Im not going anywhere with this so if someone wants to use my ideas just tag me in your post lol)

Jackalope obvi as Monokuma

Es as the protagonist, and Ultimate Warden

Haruka as something like the Ultimate lucky student maybe? Maybe Ultimate Taxidermist or smth he doesn’t have a lot going for him

Yuno as the Ultimate Companion, but she’s secretly the ultimate Sugar-baby? Weird ultimate but it fits her story lol. Ultimate Model or Pop Idol would fit her too but idk

Fuuta as the Ultimate Competitive Gamer? Graffiti artist? Online Harrasser? Social Justice Warrior? There’s a lot he could be tbh

Muu the Ultimate Affluent Prodigy or some nothing talent she just paid for cuz she’s rich (or is she?). She’d definitely be a big antagonist.

Shidou as the Ultimate Doctor

Mahiru as the Ultimate Influencer or maybe Matchmaker. Maybe Model?

Kazui as the Ultimate Salaryman idk I can’t think of anything else

Amane as the Little Ultimate Animal Caretaker

Mikoto would probably forget his Ultimate, but I don’t want a Toko/Jill situation so he’d die first like Rantaro 😭

Kotoko as the Ultimate Vigilante, like if Maki was super upfront about her talent. I also see her being the main antagonist

Ok so I think 11 people isn’t nearly enough to make an interesting story… so… I’m adding some more (plus pictures to show what they look like). I think some of them would be like plus ones, so there’d be a talent vs no talent dynamic

Haruka’s mom as like an Ultimate Caregiver (but she sucks at her job), maybe Haruka could be her plus one?

Yuno’s sugar daddy as the Ultimate CEO (also this is legit the only picture I could find 😭)

Fuuta’s victim as the Ultimate Student or smth idk we don’t really know her. Maybe some sort of gaming or internet ultimate would fit

Rei as the ultimate Amateur Investigator

Shidou’s wife as the Ultimate Florist? That or Ultimate Housewife which… isn’t really a good ultimate. Could be Shidou’s plus one

Mahiru’s Boyfriend has no personality so he would just be a plus one to Mahiru

Kazui’s wife as the ultimate salary woman? Honestly no clue, maybe another plus one situation

Amane’s mom as the Ultimate religious zealot

We don’t know much about the other two’s victims, so I’m just gonna add those two main bully girls of Muu, (Aa and Sayu are their names apparently). Since they were friends at one point, I could see Muu bringing one as a plus one and just paying for one of them being the ultimate lucky student.

For the plot I’d say everyone would come to the prison under different pretenses (like Muu’s gang would think it’s a super prestigious academy, Muu and her bf think it’s a couple’s retreat, Shidou and his wife think it’s a place to get treatment for her, etc.) Then Jackalope reveals the real purpose and traps them in the prison. I’d say a minimum of like three people would have to die per trial for there to be an acceptable amount of survivors.

Some plot things I think would happen, Mikoto probs would die first (just cuz he’s messy). Then after learning the rules Kotoko would murder one or two people she deems evil (maybe Yuno’s Sugar daddy and Amane’s mom or smth), cuz only the first death matters. Then I think she’d do that a couple trials, before someone fakes their death (probably Muu) and gets Kotoko executed. Also I think it’d be interesting if pretty early on Es would be revealed as the Mastermind, and the perspective would switch to Rei. I think for the third trial, like how in the og games there’s a double kill, there’d be a HUGE blood bath that like cuts down all of the just extra space characters.

#milgram #the milgram project #danganronpa #amane momose #fuuta kajiyama #kazui mukuhara #kotoko yuzuriha #mahiru shiina #muu kusunoki #mikoto kayano #haruka sakurai

[givemeanaccountalready]

Mahiru 14, Kotoko 8, Haruka 7

7. Favorite relationship with another character if they weren’t in Milgram, the way you imagine it would like them to be.

Hmmm… probably Haruka and Fuuta would be the most likely to happen and I do like their interactions. It’s been implied in the timeline conversations and in Fuuta’s interrogation questions, that the two of them hung out quite a bit before Kotoko’s attacks (as liberally as I can use that phrase since they are in prison with limited options). Fuuta says that he looks out for Haruka since Trial 1 Haruka is very timid and shy. And I think that if Haruka had been voted guilty during Trial 1, he would have latched onto Fuuta even harder. What with Fuuta’s deteriorating mental health, he probably wouldn’t be the best option for Haruka, but Fuuta does treat him like a peer on equal footing rather than a child and cannot keep his mouth shut, so he would push back on Haruka’s Es/you are my real mom shit. Fuuta probably has his own mommy issues, but he has a better idea on what relationships look like than Haruka so it’s the “I lost my glasses with the coke bottle lenses” leading the blind instead of the blind leading the blind.

But outside Milgram? I think the two would have had a good friendship. Maybe not the healthiest because of their own issues, but I think they could help each other become better people. With Haruka, Fuuta could learn to soften his edges, or at least learn to show more patience and grace to those who make mistakes (which seems to be why he went after Killcheroy? I’m not totally sure on what Killcheroy did to be gifted internet cancellation). With Fuuta, Haruka could learn to be more assertive and sure of himself. I would like for this blue blorbo to have a hobby that doesn’t involve sleeping or killing animals and children. Fuuta defines friendship as two or more people getting hype over the same things, so I can see him introducing Haruka to video games, Twitter, and soccer and seeing what sticks. Haruka needs some positive attention to grow confident, and again, Fuuta cannot shut his mouth, so he would give Haruka some much needed pushback. You know that meme where there’s two people and one goes, “Excuse me? He asked for no pickles?” I can see Fuuta going, “Excuse me? Haruka. What did you ask for?” “It’s okay, I’ll eat around them.” “No, what did you ask for?” *cue more insistence that he’s fine until Haruka finally goes, “… no pickles please.”

Honestly, I’m fine with Haruka meeting any of the other prisoners IRL except for Muu (who feeds into his bullshit) and Kotoko (who will kill him).

8. What is your theory for their crime? If there’s a general consensus within the fandom, do you have any other, not-so-wildly-accepted thoughts on it?

Kotoko’s murder. Based on “Harrow” I think that her killing the serial killer was her first kill, but her earlier acts like bribing the journalist for info and beating up the thief were all escalating behaviors leading up to it. She worries me the most because she’s the one I am most convinced that would kill again if released back into the general population. Haruka is my blorbo but he is also a murderous, little bitch who deserves jail time. But he’s also dumb and will most likely caught and arrested quickly because he boasted to his mother about his kills like a cat bringing dead mice and voles to its owner’s doorstep. Kotoko is clever, and I can see her outfoxing the cops like she’s a chess prodigy playing checkers. Despite John’s bluster about being an uncontrollable monster, I do think that he knew his victims and viewed them as threats to Bokuto’s life and/or current position. Kotoko’s methodical nature and dedication to her role as a tool of violence inflicting ‘righteous’ judgment worries me more than that. I’m all for addressing the flaws of the justice system, especially when it is used to let dangerous people off, but I don’t believe the death penalty should be the decision of one person (even if they were held accountable to the law and a code of ethics), if that makes sense. I can understand and sympathize with her motives, but I don’t agree with her actions and I have enough faith in her to have wracked up quite the body count by the time she is arrested by police. Home girl gets shit done, and has enough distance from her (criminal) victims to elude the police longer than someone who knew them.

I am curious as to how she got into this. I definitely think that the serial killer she killed worked the area where she lived, so I can see her growing frustrated with police for not stopping him and taking matters into her own hands. Kotoko emphasizes in her first trial interrogation questions that she is not a victim. She is someone who sympathized with their plight and wishes to protect them. It’s emphasized enough that I think, “Keep telling yourself that.” The theory that the serial killer abducted and then killed her sister may have some weight because Kotoko wouldn’t be the victim, it would be her younger sister. Semantics. I have thoughts on the glitchy trailer lines, and I think her line is her talking to someone who disapproves of her plan and her snapping back at them to shut it because they’re too weak to do it.

If you’re going to pick your first human kill, a serial killer is always a good pick.

14. Any headcanons on their appearance?

Mahiru is definitely one of the most fashionable Milgram prisoners. Yuno and her battle it out for the number one spot lol. Mikoto trails close behind them. She almost certainly is someone who has been reading fashion magazines since the fourth grade and knows how to best coordinate outfits and accessories in accordance to the weather, preferred colored palette, and the formality of the occasion. The only reason I wouldn’t want to go clothes shopping with her is because it would take too long!

Based on her comments about always being the one confessing versus being confessed to, I’d reckon that she doesn’t have much confidence in her own looks, which is a shame because she is pretty. Naive she may be, but, I think she has good insides to match her outside.

She seems like someone who has an in-depth skin routine. If the fashion magazines comment doesn’t count as a headcanon, I would say she definitely has a whole skin care routine that she does and coming to Milgram wrecked it since she doesn’t have access to her things. She’s probably a little miffed about it, but she’s got bigger problems so it is a back burner issue.

#ask game #haruka sakurai #kotoko yuzuriha #mahiru shiina

[shadowduel]

the extent of me shipping pairings is honestly taking two fucked up guys and going "now what if they bonded over this" like if we look like at any of my fav pairings, this is just the essentials.

jonouchi x yami marik is great because they can both bond over a history of growing up violent with varying levels of sociopathy (if we consider s0 jonouchi as explicitly canon) and the shared trauma of an abusive father that you loathe. how they came from a similar start point with a totally different path they ended up walking. how yami marik is a reflection of "what could have been" if jonouchi's life continued to go downhill, perhaps if he never befriended yugi. how they're perfect foils for each other.

i got the idea to ship kirihara x ikuina because i found them both to be terribly relatable characters, both putting on a facade of normalcy while craving nothing more than to give in to their latent desire. the juxtaposition of those desires being so similar, yet slightly different, and despite that, they could find comfort in each other, knowing neither one would judge them for their indulgence. ikuina literally stated to towa that he hoped to find more likeminded people after their experience together, so i love to imagine that his path crosses with kirihara/mizuno.

i actually don't ship anything in milgram but i like the idea of a 01 09 friendship :) they both sorta crave approval and hope to maintain the status of never having done anything wrong while being arguably the two most mentally ill themed characters in the series.

kuroseto just makes me insane dont talk to me i want to elaborate but i can't. (elaborates) i just think it's great to imagine an au either post-haze or "we're in this haze forever and we dont care anymore so we just chill" but it's kuroha getting adopted into the friend group by seto. everyone else horrified to see this and seto's just like he don't bite <3 something about the two of them having connections to animals. mental illness. none of kuroha's antagonization works on seto and seto never has to even consider reading his mind because he is an open book of unfiltered violence.

anyways i think i just wanted a chance to rant about dynamics i like. hi guys

#rib.txt

[gunsli-01]

Alright, let's get this set up in a somewhat digestible format. While also testing the waters. For people looking for more Mikoto info in particular this has some stuff on him within it but mostly gives a clearer idea on my experience with Milgram so far. Along with me being slightly unhinged. Soooo...woohoo...

Here's the set up. The next post will be the beginning of an in depth analysis of the two Celtic spreads found in MeMe. We will not only be analyzing them but delving into visual spin Mikoto put on the classic tarot cards with some insights his changes to them give us on his character.

There are two sets of ten cards. The first post on this will go over the first five cards in the first spread the second will finish off the first and give an overall interpretation of the reading. Then the same will be done with spread two. After we finish that then I’ll be attempting to break down the series of murders shown throughout MeMe.

Lastly, and my favorite part. We’ll finally be going over Mikoto’s character as a whole. Along with me just generally getting to talk about him without putting him beneath a microscope. Which I haven't gotten to do in weeks and still can't cause I'm stuck in tarot hell.

For those who don't read all of this and skip straight to the tarot I at least want to highlight and reiterate one part from here:

The point of Milgram is testing limits at any point these characters can do something that will make even their most devoted fans turn on them and I think the fandom should be open to having their opinions change and develop over the course of this.

So, here's post 1. I will link the beginning of the tarot interpretation here when it's up.

So, when I started writing what has to be the longest character analysis essay, I've ever written... I remember in December when I was like yeah I can crank out a few pages on Mikoto it won't be that difficult I can get this done by new years. I've already gone through the tarot once too what's a second time typed up gonna do? Maybe even before Mu's song.

I was wrong. But back when I was young, hopeful, well rested, and happier. I wrote something of a Preface. Just to explain all of my biases up front and let people form an opinion on if they wanted to take anything I said on this seriously or not. What comes after this part is that Preface.

Okay, so this is going to probably seem insane, but I might as well get it out of the way just to break in the new year putting my best foot forward. Yes, this is my best foot forward. Now Mikoto has a lot of diehard fans and detractors for some reason…How can such a normal guy be so controversial? Really unlucky… Honestly. Because of his popularity I’m a bit nervous to put out anything on him even though he is my favorite. Believe it or not I can get shy when talking about things I genuinely like a lot because I don’t know how it’ll be perceived, and I can get very, very critical when I like something.

It is not a normal like situation. It doesn’t go I like you; you could do anything, and I wouldn’t care. It goes OH, YOU UNLUCKY BASTARD! YOU’VE CAUGHT MY ATTENTION I SHALL NOW EXPOSE YOU TO THE WORLD! IF ANYTHING, BAD HAPPENS TO YOU IT IS LIABLE TO BE BY MY HAND! I well wade through the façade to find the truth I’m seeking knowledge, I’m seeking your identity, I want to dive deeper.

Don’t misunderstand- It’s just natural to want to know everything about the person you like and get all torn up inside because you never can. That’s just love isn’t it~ Ahh it’s an incredibly damning feeling that love, the idea of soulmates all that trite nonsense. Because when people aggrandize others, they usually end up wanting to pull them down to their level. That sort of sadistic thing is just as much a part of love. The adult world is so cruel that way.

As such I’m going to do my very best to tear this man to shreds lovingly, okay?

So, let’s start with some context did I love Mikoto immediately? Was I like innocent he just has to be? He’s just so good looking he can’t fail, lol. Okay, to be honest when I got here, I thought Kazui was so good-looking cause of his broad shoulders that when watching Undercover and seeing the flash throughs with Star I went that’s Kazui I know those shoulders anywhere. Got damn he looks like he gives good hugs those shoulders…

Also, I like sorry cowards my apologies for the disappointment but when I saw Mikoto in MeMe I willfully ignored him. I had a visceral response to his song telling Star I hated it and never wanted to see him or hear it again. While also going he clearly killed three people… in an obviously premeditated way as well. So, yeah guilty. Maybe? I don’t know. I’m just not interested I’ll leave that to the people who are.

I came in around Amane’s first trial… Soooo I very much could’ve voted on Mikoto, but I just did not want to look at him at all. Actually, I still don’t know why that was, but he made me uncomfortable and annoyed. Despite his video involving multiple things I very much love baths, tarot cards, clouds, water, records, baseball bats… Hell even his song was a genre of music I’m partial too. Like jeez in retrospect I really don’t know.

I just did not want to even think about him, so I didn’t. That changed when YouTube recommended me an English cover of his first song, and I was like now hold on… Those Sisters You Know really did a good job on that lyrics wise. Like it just hit different okay. I was listening to that cover every day having first job flashbacks and wondering huh why did I hate this guy again this is a complete mood actually.

After that I fell into an over analyzing loop for several months. Before I had pulled a nothing to see here and once we do that my brain just deletes the information since it’s been deemed irrelevant. Incredibly convenient skill to have. Yet, as it piqued my interest music wise, I was like well hold on…I have to know everything about this specifically now. Something that none of the Milgram characters had managed to achieve at that point.

To an extent I was pretty much like there’s nothing to see here at all when I was dragged into Milgram by Star. She showed me Mahiru’s first trial song like I really just want you to see this one and my immediate response was, “Are you trying to say something about me?!” We’ve been partners for years and this is what you lob at me what are you getting at? To which she had to dryly explain no I just think she’s neat and you love mystery things and putting together stuff so I wanted your opinion on what you think is going on here.

Then I got a rundown of the situation and was like ah okay. Then went through one through six giving all my thoughts on what they did and how I would’ve voted if I was there as she explained the results. I was surprised to hear from Star that none of the things I was saying to her had come up in the fandom as far as she saw.

As Star showed me Milgram my experience was basically

Weakness: Guilty. Committed murder for attention. Next.

Later down the line I asked Star about the reasoning behind Haruka’s trial one Innocent Verdict. It was after we watched Bring It On and she told me about Futa’s verdict. I needed to understand why Haruka was voted Innocent/Forgiven but Futa was not. Weirdly long before Futa asked us that same question in Back Draft. Why did Haruka of all people get a pass when we see him kill directly? That was the first thing that piqued my interest.

However, I was pretty disappointed by the answer Star provided and maybe to some people this will seem like a reduction of the actual reason behind prevailing consensus. Yet, what I gathered from her explanation was that he was voted innocent due to Autism. Particularly, people assuming he had a learning disability the most speculated one being Autism. Now, my response to this information was to go, um…that’s ableist right? Like, just because it’s helpful to him in this circumstance does not mean ableism isn’t present.

That’s just infantilizing and belittling his intelligence. Having a learning disability doesn’t suddenly exempt a person from knowing murder is wrong. It’s the same as using a person’s age as an excuse. Made even funnier that Haruka is treated more like a child than the literal child is. So…it’s not like that interpretation is that far off or difficult to get to. Plus, do people even critically engage with who benefits from these sorts of excuses and when they’re extended? 

 Because they aren’t applied indiscriminately. A perfect example of this in Japanese media in particular comes from something else Star and I were watching when she recommended Milgram. Higurashi Sotsu and the character Satoko a lot of people in that fandom got angry and found the concept that Satoko would become a villain all because she had a difficult time studying insane. Like she should have just studied harder ignoring everything else that occurred in Gou and Sotsu up until that point.

Even some going as far as creating a completely different reason for her actions. Because having trouble focusing, studying, and being ostracized in a new environment after being taken away from the people and things that brought you comfort weren’t good enough reasons. Ryukushi-07 also has a tendency to write about neurodivergent coded characters like Maria in Umineko and Satoko herself can be considered coded that way through sotsu and gou. The excuse extended to Haruka in trial one was definitely not extended to her by the Higurashi fandom.

So, it’s not surprising that same courtesy was retracted in trial 2. Sorry, to rain on your parade but disabled people of color from any minority group are not extended those same benefits of the doubt and rarely have their impairments or age taken into consideration if they even reach a trial. So, this is when I went oh well people are gonna people glad to see some things still haven’t changed. This is what Milgram’s bias looks like. It’s almost a perfect reflection of the performatively politically correct space we live under today and highlights the pervasive biases that continue to disenfranchise many that go overlooked.

All we’re missing is overt ableism, racism, and sexism disguised as feminism and we’d have everything that’s wrong with performative morality. (Star just informed me one of these things is just Yuno.) So, my interest was piqued around here but mostly from a sociological standpoint.

Yet, I was mostly ticked off. Media is supposed to be a form of escapism for many people and I found a lot of the issues that people usually use media to escape from pulled to the forefront in Milgram through its voting system. I came in and was like this series probably isn’t saying a damn thing special. Reluctantly after telling Star I wouldn’t watch it multiple times because well I was a mad at her and she kept asking. I had every reason to hate this series given what was going on around our relationship at the time she presented it to me and didn’t really think taking something lightly could end up saying a great deal about society as whole.

Umblical: Guilty. It was clear to me from the very first video that she attempted to entrap someone in a relationship through the use of a pregnancy then committed murder when that failed. Possibly multiple times.

Later, Star told me people assumed she got an abortion. Because the woman that was clearly in a sector of sex work knew nothing about contraception. That and she may have had family issues. I said oh so they thought she was stupid. That’s insulting and then people continued to think she was stupid. So, some things never change but my opinion of her did. She’s the only person here with a consistent character and seems to be incredibly considerate but not hesitant to go after the things she wants by any means necessary. I find that endearing and respectable and really wish she’d get a 50/50 since regardless of what she did I respect her want for us not to give our opinion on it.

It’s only polite to shut up and say nothing when no one asked you to speak. Yuno not only never asked us to speak but openly asked us not to. Her character description even states she dislikes being psychoanalyzed. She sort of reminds me of Kotono Kashiwaba from Caligula Effect but I can’t really figure out why yet. I haven’t finished the game at this point and right now we’re only up to Ike-P but I just get that feeling.

 Bring It On: Innocent due to lack of information. I haven’t seen a murder. I don’t know what happened here. Having a flop Twitter account and making callouts is not murder or a crime at all. So, innocent. Then Star tells me the actual outcome and the reasoning behind it and this is when I start to get a bit heated.

Basically, went what do you mean guilty on the grounds of his actions allegedly leading to someone taking their own life??? Because they were just involved in someone’s death. It doesn’t say they directly caused them to die which means indirect involvement is on the table. Ha, ha, oh my fucking god that’s rich considering the dude that clearly killed a dog and a child was given a pass. Did that with his whole chest but he’s good. Alright, alright… I literally went back and pointed out all the kills Haruka was directly responsible for in his first mv going but this was passable. At that point don’t even try to justify it just say you don’t like Futa that’s less insulting.

Like I discussed in the part on Weakness I found this way of thinking inherently unfair. The benefit of the doubt and consideration extended to Haruka was completely absent for Futa. A lot of people want to say this is because he didn’t appear sorry. But, what gives others the right to decide when someone is really sorry or not. Futa’s entire voice drama goes into how you can’t tell how someone is feeling or what they’re thinking based on how they behave outwardly alone and that’s all anyone did when it came to him.

Not many people extended that same courtesy or empathy. They didn’t attempt to look deeper because no one cared to and that’s sad. Start didn’t see anyone go hey that’s clearly a kid with anxiety who’s attempting to garner validation through social media possibly due to a lack of external validation in his actual life. Something tackled in the writer’s previous game Caligula Effect Overdose with the character Naruko Morita. Who does the same sort of things Futa does if not worse. Because she literally outs a trans person on social media, takes pictures of people without their knowledge, and looks up someone work application to then go oh they’re not as good looking in real life let’s tell their fans so they no longer like this musician.

Like these are things she does repeatedly throughout the game. She is a terrible person and in the game she’s your teammate. She has a social link and reasons for the way she behaves. She’s obnoxious, annoying, egotistic, inconsiderate, a snoop, has an aversion to criticism, low self-esteem, and is easily dissuaded from doing things she enjoys if it’s not immediately praised or faced with scrutiny.

She goes out to eat popular limited time items at shops just to post food reviews about it after one bite. She doesn’t even post her own opinion on it at times but instead goes by reviews others have left already while giving a little bit of a different perspective but not really. Then if you say no to her being on the team because she basically airs out your entire organization on social media for likes, so everyone now knows who you are, what you look like, your name and all of your teammates information you’re treated like the heartless asshole.

Hm, it’s like she doxed you and it has real life repercussions and makes your life harder. It continues to make the lives of everyone she does this to harder and in instances is retraumatizing for many of them. All I’m saying is if you play this game and end up liking her but still hate Futa then you don’t dislike doxing you just hate men. Point blank. At which point I hope you enjoy Ayana.

After Pain: Guilty, I didn’t and still do not believe she’s sorry. Plus, the person she killed was uninvolved. When Star told me she was voted Innocent. Well, I couldn’t really say I was surprised given certain universal truths but- When she explained it was because people were saying it’s because she’s clearly a lesbian and that person she stabbed told everyone she was which led to her bullying.

I kind of went well isn’t that sort of justifying someone getting murdered or in blunter terms just victim blaming. Even if the victim did do that which I’m doubtful of that does not justify murder. Like people really immediately went we trust Mu she’s a victim now what did this clearly evil girl do to deserve to get stabbed, huh?! I found that kind of odd, I wouldn’t want anyone thinking that about me or anyone I love if they were murdered. Plus, given the circumstances I grew up under it’s very common to see that sort of mindset pushed on specific types of victims of brutal crimes. Just saying; it’s really not interrogated often enough who the whole what did they do to deserve it mentality benefits and hurts.

Ultimately, I found the whole concept kind of cruel. However, I guess as we’ve learned Es is the sort of Guard that abhors a person doing something that may have inadvertently led to someone taking their own life more than very purposefully taking someone else’s life with your own two hands. Taking into consideration the response seen in the English speaking part of the fandom this mindset is showcased twice throughout the first trial with the only noticeable outlier being Kazui.

Throw Down: Guilty he asked to be voted that and I respected it. Also, he was organ harvesting from his patients. Like what? Innocent is this some reverse psychology nonsense well okay at least he already feels bad.

This is how to be in love with you: Innocent due to lack of information. I can’t punish someone for something I do not understand I genuinely don’t know what she did. I assume she poisoned someone since she works as a florist, cooks, and mentioned herbal remedies. However, I just knew too little at the time.

What do you mean they thought she was so clingy her partner committed suicide, so she was voted guilty? I’m sorry so what I’m understanding is stabbing a woman in cold blood is okay but indirectly causing someone to end their life through social error is a irredeemable sin? That last girl stabbed another one purposely and that first guy killed a dog and kid-

Half: Guilty but also- That dudes incredibly good looking and has nice broad shoulders that is certainly an impressive physical build look at him in that uniform- Hears the song oh my god he’s an emotionally unavailable and dishonest coward too just my type! Guilty I know in my heart what he did was fucked up but got damn I’m hoping it’s fucked up at this point- not me literally getting chills at the let’s make it victim and assailant line in Cat like boy howdy don’t say such things oh no. Is this how people feel when Yuno says Come Marco I’ll Polo?

It certainly doesn’t help that Kazui’s demeanor and communication habits remind me a lot of Star and I end up feeling a little bad for him but slightly want to watch him squirm as well. Truly, it’s the emotionally unavailable quiet ones you gotta be careful with. They have such intense emotions but they hold them back to the point they can’t express them and then the right person pushes and boom it’s like a pistol accidentally discharging. People who bottle up their emotions like that for as long as it seems he has well when they blow a gasket it’s like a volcano and I want to be in lava range.

Innocent I- well I’m fine with this you saw that up there you know why I'm fine with it we don't have to talk about it but like why??? Because they believe he’s gay and was in a very loveless and performative marriage while also assuming his actions just led to his partner committing suicide or an accidental death. Wait why is that okay here but with the other two it’s not… It’s cause he’s hot and seemingly pathetic ain’t it? Lol, that dude is not as weak as he presents but have fun with that when it comes up I suppose. Good liar my ass...

Magic: Guilty even asked Star to vote on it. So, I was made aware of how to vote at this time. This was not because I want her to be punished but I didn’t believe anything could be solved through agreeing with her and I honestly don’t think agreeing with her will solve anything now either, but it will maybe stop her from getting jumped. Maybe? Though I’m unsure about that because Kotoko has jumped people who were pardoned before sooo... That and Amane told us not to treat her like a child.

I believe it’s a bit unfair or shortsighted of her to ask us to respect her agency in her own life, that she chose to make these decisions, and yet at the same time ask to not be held accountable for them if we feel her behavior was wrong because she answers to a higher power. Her mindset on her killing and being considered a murderer highlight her immaturity to me. Those aren’t two separate things but childishly and stubbornly she attests that they are. Being an adult is recognizing that regardless of if you had a good reason, or a higher law you abide by other adults don’t need to care about those things when judging you they can just objectively judge the actions you took. It truly is that simple. To me it just seems like she didn’t really know what she was asking for when she said that. Like she equates being an adult with gaining respect but it's more than just that.

Amane’s situation really reminds me of that song by Maaya Sakamoto More than Words, particularly these lines, “Isn’t freedom painful? I’ve become an adult, haven’t I?” “Isn’t freedom painful? I’m now alone, aren’t I?” “Isn’t freedom painful? Endlessly so…” Because a lot about being an adult is being able to stand on your own by the decisions you choose. The respect you get from others is fickle at best and never really equates to understanding or empathy. In a way as we age, we become more and more emotionally isolated when it comes to social communication and consideration. Because the patience and consideration that is frequently extended to children is not given to adults since they’re meant to know better by then and not need that sort of care.

Adults have the freedom to make their own choices and have that agency recognized. However, many times that agency we yearned for so badly is weaponized against us in small and insidious ways. Causing adults to become more emotionally closed off, socially defensive, or calculating. An adult would never ask to have their choices looked at while taking into account that they chose to do those things they’d simply tell the person accusing them to figure out why they did it or take into consideration their circumstances. Not pull a don’t judge me and I won’t judge you. They would know that their main focus should be endearing themselves by any means necessary like Mu attempts to do or lean on their legal rights.

So, I really feel like Amane was her own worse advocate during trial one and it ended up biting her in the butt. Also, another song that I feel properly exemplifies that feeling of emotional isolation one faces with age but isn’t as somber I think is “Love I need” by The Living Tombstone.

MeMe: Abstained due to a vague sense of hatred. I literally told Star to never show this to me again and not to bring him up I don’t have an opinion, I don’t care, I’m glad that’s over was my immediate reaction to MeMe. [Star: She said that she didn’t like the song, him as a character, and it was obvious that he committed several murders. So, there was nothing left to look into.] Afterwards I promptly deleted the information from memory until finding that cover song.

Harrow: Guilty she literally did the same thing Futa did just in a more direct way. She also seemed to jump people who had already been put on trial and had a decision on their actions handed down. Even openly said apologizing meant nothing. I’d rather give a pass to the person who says just say sorry then the one who goes lol it doesn’t matter if you try to make amends now no second chances ever once a bad guy always a bad guy.

I put all this to show that even before I was actively posting Milgram stuff on here. I did have opinions on all this that have only developed over time. As much as I came out swinging in the oh I really like Mikoto camp. I really did not want to see this dudes face when I first saw him. Like I feel as though I’m being a bit of a broken record. I said the same with Haruka. Yet, with Mikoto there was a bit of hatred there. Like a knee-jerk reaction that I couldn’t even pinpoint and didn’t want to interact with. Something, I still don’t really have an explanation for.

Even still before this I was spending months talking to Star over the phone sifting through the music videos reading the conversations and literally burning out all my investigative skills on it. Something I believe she knew I’d do when she brought it to my attention and asked, “What do you think happened here?”

Now here I am trying to churn out an entire essay on the guy. Certain characters can grow on you. However, with Milgram there’s this feeling that such a fondness like that can be broken. The point is testing limits at any point these characters can do something that will make even their most devoted fans turn on them and I think the fandom should be open to have their opinions change and develop over the course of this.

I feel like being shut off, isolated or just stubborn about one’s own opinion is unfair to the social experiment aspect Milgram is trying to pursue. That’s just me personally. I really hope that by the end of this there is interesting data collected. We can vote any way we want at the end of the day. Not everyone has to take into consideration what the characters did or how bad it is objectively.

Yet, for people to trick themselves into believing the vote doesn’t matter, this is all in good fun, and no one will be held accountable for the outcome in any way is negligent and blatant denial. The verdicts have a direct impact on the sort of place Milgram is currently and could become. It's a direct reflection of the will of the fanbase. If we vote a certain way the creators take that into consideration. They seem to not just take the winning verdict into consideration but pay attention to responses from both sides overall. They’re paying attention. So, it’s incredibly short sighted to assume our collective judgement regardless of how you vote or if you chose not to doesn’t reflect on the entire fanbase in some way.

I’m not saying this to be a Debby Downer or go really interrogate why you’re voting this way. I’m saying all this to get one point across if you’re going to vote seeped in bias the least you can do is express what those biases are in your own unique way. That’s what will make this all the more fun for everyone. I don’t care if you choose to vote guilty, innocent, or abstain, but at least vocalize why that is. Especially for people choosing to abstain since that’s more difficult to gauge since it is just not an option and the closest thing to abstaining would be attempting to get a fifty/fifty.

I know not everyone is willing to be that out there with their feelings and that sort of thing isn’t fun for everyone. Though even just discussing it privately with friends, people you trust and feel comfortable around is enough. All I want personally is for people regardless of how or why they vote to look at these characters for what they are and give them the opportunity to surprise you outside of your personal opinions like with actual people. All these characters will probably disappoint someone at a point but I feel like if you keep a healthy sense of realism and treat them in an unidealized way that will help in not causing resentments towards the series or the people who work on it down the line.

Some of these resentments are already present in the fandom and being used to create a reflection of the writer that could be wholly inaccurate. Personally, I don’t find that sort of approach to be fun or fair. However, it very well could be to some. Yet, at times I find it incredibly disheartening to see. My hopes in writing all of this and thoroughly attempting to analyze my fluctuating feelings on Mikoto may tackle why that is in some way. Even if the problem isn’t firmly rooted within the interpretations around his character but extends to the entire cast.

Though it’s like Jackalope said he certainly did cause a bit of trouble.

I hope this has been a good prelude of what’s to come and helped whoever may have read this far better understand my personal perspective on Milgram. This post didn’t focus on Mikoto as heavily as I would have wished but served to properly build an understanding of what one may be getting into when it comes to my analysis of his character.

I hope by displaying my biases and feelings on all the characters that one can decide whether reading what comes after this is for them or not. Regardless of if you continue to read or go back to this post from the ones that precede it, I appreciate you reading my ramblings.

#milgram #kayano mikoto #yes it's in parts i'm sorry

[deuterium51614]

I posted 1,026 times in 2022

107 posts created (10%)

919 posts reblogged (90%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@queenofthefaces

@thatlittledandere

@c-r-i-m-s-o-n-s-i-l-e-n-c-e

@hapalopus

@dracolizardlars

I tagged 1,024 of my posts in 2022

#funny - 365 posts

#tik tok - 170 posts

#dracula daily - 126 posts

#art - 122 posts

#boueibu - 121 posts

#boueibu love - 111 posts

#video - 94 posts

#comic - 69 posts

#boueibu happy kiss - 54 posts

#tweet - 46 posts

Longest Tag: 128 characters

#and another trailer about a boy who was an artist that i had honestly forgotten about until i came across it on youtube recently

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

(I posted this earlier in the month, but remembered another point that should be brought up.)

On the 27th of June, let's all DM and @ PONYCANYON_EN on Twitter about the following:

1. The Boueibu LOVE! LOVE! manga which was never completed. It said it was to be continued in the last chapter, but then it wasn't. Will it ever be finished and get a print release?

2. Who to contact to get an English release of the novels and manga? (I tend to suggest it in the Seven Seas survey whenever I come across the link, but there could be a better way.)

3. The game! We want a Switch port, and maybe a PC port! With translations! Bring up #BinanPort! There's so much content in it that's gone since the game's no longer playable!

4. The Happy Kiss shop is broken(?) so that you have to go to the Ponycanyon site, and most of the stuff is no longer listed. Like most of the BluRays/benefits that come with them. (And I just checked the Boueibu LOVE Shop - they no longer have ANY of the BluRays, DVDs, CDs, books, etc listed, only the recent acrylic stands that have passed the order date, some badges, and flags.)

5. Maybe also bring up that a bunch of the Boueibu sites still link to the Ponimaga (manga) site in the footer. They no longer own the domain, so it shouldn't be linked.

Put these in your own words! If lots of us DM and @ them, we're bound to get attention!

16 notes - Posted June 21, 2022

#4

So vampire bite marks are either made with one top canine and the matching bottom, or Lucy is compensating for the size of the children's necks.

22 notes - Posted September 27, 2022

#3

What does Dracula say when trying to buy a used hearse?

"Show me the Carfax!"

28 notes - Posted October 2, 2022

#2

Wanna preface this by saying I'm not anti-Yuno, I don't hate her or any Milgram characters, I just like analyzing characters.

So I know the general consensus is everyone voted Yuno innocent cause her "murder" is supposedly abortion, and there are some who theorize she killed her lovers and that's what she's imprisoned for...

But I have a prediction (and my friend agrees) that Yuno just. Straight up dropped a newborn baby from a few floors up, or abandoned it.

Like maybe Yuno did have abortions previously, but the "I messed up" part of Umbilical is that she waited too long one time (maybe she thought the father was going to support her, but he dipped) and she had to deliver?

36 notes - Posted August 31, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

I love YouTube's new "most replayed" feature. You can see everyone's priorities are in order.

[ID: Two screenshots of the Crunchyroll upload of Uruu's transformation from Fairy Ranmaru on YouTube, hovering over two points on the peak of what is labeled "most replayed" on the timeline with still frames from those points being previewed. Both frames are at 0:55. The first preview is the close up of Uruu's butt. The second is of his crotch.]

40 notes - Posted June 13, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

#tumblr2022 #year in review #my 2022 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review #long post

[lovesick-level-up]

hey there, how are y'all doing! ^^ sorry this isn't a request ;;; but i've been SO into milgram recently & with the recent release of 'double' and everyone theorizing about mikoto, i was wondering if any of you had any thoughts on how mikoto and john are handled (especially as a system yourselves)? if y'all aren't comfortable sharing i totally understand, sorry for the sudden question ;; but i am genuinely curious to hear your perspectives on the topic, or even just on milgram in general !! yikes this got long lmao. but hope y'all are having a good day/night!

yesssssss, anon. let's fucking go, we are totally fine with recieving asks like this, because Autism. i'm gonna put this under the cut, because it got long lmao. we hope you have a good day/night too, anon, and that you enjoy hearing our thoughts!

though there are definetly some stereotypes and stuff in how mikoto and john are written, we fucking adore them. especially me! how john is portrayed is something i love, mostly because i relate to him a lot. double is fantastic tbh, it reminds me so much of how i can feel handling the system as a whole. persecutors (and gatekeepers) are, at our cores, misguided protectors. and double shows that really well, and how it can feel to be villainised and misunderstood despite us trying to help. i'm also honestly still on the fence on whether or not john has ever actually killed people, or if its more of like. a metaphor? that's probably just wishful thinking though. i also really liked the little phone conversation we got to see mikoto have with their mom. that also reminded us of us a lot too. both the contents of the call, and also the fact it shows they are close with her. we're on good terms with our mom (though mostly out of necessity). i'd also like to see milgram hint more about what trauma they might have experienced to become a system. i know that's kinda bleak, but i think it could be really interesting. we have our own theories of course, as does a lot of the fandom lol. i want to see milgram hint more about what exactly made john be the way he is, and mikoto too. why did they have to be so covert? what drives john to hurt people? its pretty fascinating to think about. and obviously, the whole one alter is good, the other bad thing is a little. well, bad. but its also the case with a lot of systems to have an alter to blame bad stuff on. its not necessarily their fault, or the rest of the systems. but its pretty common. i'd also like to see hints to more alters than just mikoto and john (though obviously two people systems are very valid, that doesn't really fit with them much, it seems like there's two active fronter alters rather than two total).

we aren't super active in the milgram fandom outside of looking at the occassional fanart and reading youtube comments. we probably should interact more with it, but we're also a little scared lmao. we are very rarely in active fandoms while the thing is still going on, so it can be intimidating. if anyone has any suggestions for blogs or twitter accounts to follow that you like, do send them in. we'd appreciate them.

in terms of milgram in general, we fucking love it. cat is a fantastic song and made us fall for kazui. yuno is one of my favourite characters to have ever been made. we also relate a lot to fuuta. and in general, i think its such an interesting subject to make a series like this about. it really makes people think and that's always a good thing. it opens up conversations on morals, how ourselves would deal with certain situations, how our first reactions can be innacurate and damaging, how our actions can be damaging, and how we aren't always so different from the people we see as villains. its well written and so, so good. plus, the songs are catchy and the visuals gorgeous. what more could you want lmao. anyway, yeah. those are our (mostly my) thoughts on milgram lol. its just, really great.

~ moondust 😈🧷🎶

#[non edits] #[questions] #[moondust 😈🧷🎶] #anon ask #anonymous #its 7am we have uni work but our brain is now just Milgram Central so time to listen to all the songs again lmao #maybe we should do some art #i'd love to redo that art we did a bit ago of mikoto #i never liked how it turned out so it might be fun to redraw

[milgrammer]

[ENG] Yurina Amami on Es & “Undercover”

DECO*27's fussy lecture about saying "Future"! Yurina Amami, who will sing the first song, felt the mystery behind it?

Co-produced by DECO*27, one of the leading Vocaloid composers, and Takuya Yamanaka, known for his human psychology oriented literary style, this original work, “MILGRAM”, is a viewer participation type music project. The MVs, which are the keys to unlocking the prisoners’ sins, are currently being released!

Animate Times is conducting an email interview with the voice actors participating in the project! Our first guest is Yurina Amami, who voices Es. This time, we’ll hear about Es, who exists as the audience surrogate, and, of course, the visuals, the lyrics… We’ll also hear about the song "Undercover”, which attracted numerous users with its scattered mysteries.

“Milgram” was already mix of excitement and mystery...and then they appeared! What were the pointers for playing Es, the audience surrogate?

“Milgram” has finally started, so please tell us what your thoughts were upon hearing the outline of this project.

When I heard about the outline, my honest first impressions were: 10 prisoners? All of them are “killers”? A viewer participation model? A three trial system? I had so many questions. The concept had never been done before, so I was incredibly surprised by its novelty.

Not to mention, I was gonna sing songs made by DECO*27 and act out a story written by Takuya Yamanaka?! I remember getting super worked up over that. I love the look of the world, which those two created, so I’m honoured to be involved with the project in this way. 

Es exists to be the audience surrogate and interacts with the prisoners as such. Did the staff give you any explanations or directions for their role beforehand?

Es will act as the audience surrogate until the very end, so I kept it simple and added some aspects of their individual character. As the prison guard, I’ve been given some leeway, but Es remains cool, calm and collected towards most things. I wasn’t allowed to be emotional. However, despite being this work’s protagonist, I was told that their character shouldn’t stand out too much. Since their sex remains a mystery, they also taught me lots about Es’ character, so that I wouldn’t end up leaning too far to one side. 

Honestly, it took me a long time to understand and get a feel for Es’ part. In addition to that, Es often says "Hm", but I had such a hard time grasping the nuance behind it...lol

The MV of "Undercover" was released and its numerous mysteries are attracting so many users! What a fitting song for the opening, created by Yamanaka and DECO*27!

The MV of “Undercover” was released on May 15, 2020, and marks the start of the series. Please tell us your first impression when you watched the video.

From the moment the visuals of "Undercover" appeared, I thought, "there’s no way I can stop watching this". I was glued to the screen from beginning to end. There were many scenes in which the dark atmosphere heightened the mystery behind it. And, above all, the characters’ movements were incredible. 

Were there any aspects in the visuals and lyrics, which were of particular interest to you? Please tell us your favourite parts as well.

The lyrics which I was curious about were "You would probably smile and be pleased" Same goes for the visuals—the scene, where everyone gradually laughs more and more, sends a shiver down my spine.

From there, they seemed to be hinting at something while the chorus played for the last time… That made me feel a sense of terror. Also, the lyrics where the kanji reading was "you" instead of “me” was another favourite of mine. Es is you and you are Es—that was what I thought. But, more than that, I thought the word gave a sense of unity between Es and the users.

Also, the MV of "Undercover" may have a dark atmosphere, but there are some cute parts, which I personally like! When the chorus is played for the second time, in the scene where the tied-up prisoners appear in order, Amane looks like a scroll. It's so cute… Please have a look!

When you were singing “Undercover”, were there any aspects you paid attention to, were particularly fastidious about, etc?

This song is the so-called opening song of “Milgram”, so I sang with lots of strength and tried to give off the impression that we were moving at a fast pace. It’s an incredibly cool song, so I was worried as to whether or not my singing voice would be able to keep up.

As for fastidious… In the song, there’s a scene for each prisoner where I have to mimic them, so I listened to Mr Yamanaka as he talked about the set-up in detail and managed to deliver the “essence” of each prisoner in my singing voice. If you can feel the difference between them, then I’m happy.

Not to mention, “future”. He was very fussy about this part. Sing it like this! And so, I had to listen to their consultations on how to produce the correct sound, DECO*27 actually said the word “future” himself, and I had to go through a lot of lecturing. 

When you first read the lyrics or after you finished singing, did your impression of Es change?

Not really. Just like how Es doesn't know anything about themself, I feel like there are so many things about Es which I don’t know yet either.

Furthermore, I personally chose to sing "Undercover" more like an opening song, which would mark the start of MILGRAM, instead of treating it like Es’ own song. I also don’t know much about how things will unfold or what will await us from now on, but someday I hope I’ll get to know the real Es!

It’s the users themselves which make the project more exciting!

Since observations hold the key to a project like this, it is expected that there will be discussions among users on the official app and social media. Please tell us how you would personally enjoy “Milgram” or if you have any suggestions for those users.

Do loads of analysis, share your opinions, and tell lots of people about Milgram. If you get 10 people, you’ll get 10 different ways of thinking. Not to mention, this project uses song lyrics, singing voices, visuals, and voice dramas! Those can all be looked at from various angles.

If there are sections in your analysis which are lacking, someone could fill in the gaps for you. It’s fantastic! Please pay attention to everything and fully uncover the sins of each prisoner. There’s also an official app, so it’d be great if you could make the most of that as well, while continuing to make Milgram even more exciting!

Lastly, please give out a message to those planning to enjoy the project from now on.

Since MILGRAM is a three-trial system, its users will have to observe the work for quite a long time. The information we’re given at the moment—about what on earth kind of sin each prisoner has committed—is a puzzle in itself.

However, this project is one which all of you will help form alongside us. Analyses are a given, but things like song and dance covers as well—to the people who produce those derived works, it’d be great if you could use them to make the project itself more exciting!

I’m sure that once the third trial ends, the project will unfold in ways which my current self could have never imagined. The project may have just barely started, but it’d make me so happy if you could see it through to the end.

In regards to Milgram and Es, thank you for continuing to support us!

Thank you

#These interviews are all so wholesome #ミルグラム #milgram #translation #interview #Es #Yurina Amami #Amami Yurina