It honestly baffles me how people are dunking on Sada and Turo for being shitty parents much more than I saw when Sun and Moon first came and Lusamine was first revealed to be the villain like huh 😭 where was that energy before??? Because I feel there’s more nuance with Sada and Turo’s characters and their motivations than there were with Lusamine’s (I’m talking about her in the games of course, not the anime. I will also leave discussion for what happens in Ultra Sun and Moon for another post, so I’m only talking about the plot of the original Sun and Moon here). I’m honestly just tired of all the bashing on the Professors and them being watered down to “typical shitty parent in Pokemon” when the game clearly states and implies the exact opposite.
Lusamine is very much shown to have abandoned her kids, openly berating them and saying she has no children right in front of her daughter’s face because they “abandoned her love” and going forth with her plan to open the wormholes and summon the ultra beasts with no consideration for anything else. She doesn’t have the headspace to care about her children anymore in her plan, in huge contrast to Sada/Turo’s plan where despite how extreme it was, was at the core still centered around their son and their family. I think chalking it down to just “well they’re still both bad parents anyway” takes away some of the complexity surrounding their characters in the first place. Also I’m only bringing Lusamine as a comparison mostly because Ghetsis and Giovanni do not have any other depth to their characters in the core games lmao, and I feel Lusamine is a great example of a parent who used to care but had lost that love after her husband’s “death” and along the way of achieving her goal, while Sada and Turo are examples of the complete opposite: parents who still held onto that love and care throughout their goal, but took it so far that they hurt the one person it was for the most out of everything. It really feels like people are portraying the professors’ flaws in the completely wrong way. The problem was never “they never loved their son at all and intentionally abandoned him” it was “they became so invested and deluded in their plan they ended up neglecting the treasure it was supposed to be for.” which is exactly what distinguishes them from all the other parent antagonists we’ve seen so far. There’s a certain tragedy present in seeing a broken family that used to be so happy together that I feel was also in Sun and Moon’s story, but was muddled due to the story focusing on other aspects.
And I’m going to address this right now because I know people are going to say something because they lack reading comprehension: I am not excusing Sada and Turo’s actions in the game and how their neglect had affected Arven. Explanations are not Excuses. You can acknowledge that they loved their son while still hurting him in the end, both ideas can coexist. I merely just want to analyze wtf even happened here for the professor to go down this path. And it’s also worth nothing that we don’t have much answers in the game itself as of right now, since well—the original is dead and we’re dealing with an AI version of them for the entirety of the game. Most of this is coming from the original’s journals in the lab, but I think the game makes a clear distinction that they still loved Arven even after everything. Despite their delusion taking over them, I think they genuinely believed what they were doing was the best for them and their family despite otherwise. The whole point at the end was to highlight how they didn’t need to create that paradise. They had that loving family already, and it was too late for them to realize that Arven only needed them and nothing else.
I don’t know if it’s just me, but I want the DLC to address Arven’s other parent and what exactly happened to them (or better yet, meet them in the story which would honestly be an interesting parallel where the professor of the opposite version is the one you get to know more than the original in game one). I know the in game Professor’s journal entry says they “walked out” but what does that even mean in hindsight? Keep in mind this is from the point of view of someone who’s continuously being deluded into their own idea of paradise, who most likely felt grief after their partner left them that they built an entire AI of themselves to help complete the project.
And yet they still say they’re going to build a paradise for “the three of them.” Does that mean the in game professor was also trying in some way to bring the other parent back? What if it was an accident? What if they were sent through the time machine and couldn’t go back, and the in game professor was so distraught their delusion out of sheer desperation made it so they processed it as “(s)he walked out on me, and now I’m all alone.” Of course this all a lot of speculation, but it just doesn’t make sense to me how Arven’s other parent would “leave” like that. Maybe I’m being an optimist about it, but it really does feel like it was unwillingly in some way, where the in game professor’s increasing delusion was the reason why they “left” so to speak.
And that’s not even addressing the 3rd legendary of the game and its role in all of this is. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was meant to parallel the snake/the devil in Genesis, as the sin of temptation since the professor and Area Zero have a lot of similarities with the Garden of Eden and this idea of “paradise” for their family. Where the 3rd legendary gave them the opportunity to create their paradise by giving them access to the paradox pokemon and terastalizing, and thus influenced them so much, it eventually led them down to a path of their own destruction consumed by the delusion that they could create a paradise for their family, but failed to recognize they ended up hurting the one person they treasured most in the end. If the other professor did indeed return in the DLC, maybe it would give the chance to separate themselves from their spouse and make things right with both the region and Arven. Having them be the antithesis to the other Professor’s motivation and making the choice to stay with Arven in the present would be a really cool way to wrap up the story ngl.
Anyways people who portray them as apathetic and uncaring to Arven in fan art and fics I wish you a very “play the fucking game again please”. Even their character design sheets say otherwise, especially with Sada like I cannot imagine the woman described as “not being able to hide her emotions well” would be a cold and uncaring mother like come on 💀 I played Violet for crying out loud and I’m still able to recognize that.
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as someone who believes toko best trigger happy havoc character, i HATE IT when people say "syo has no depth!!!" and "toko's an annoying joke!!! wowzurs!!!", AS AN AMAZING FUKAWA/SYO FAN, CAN YOU HELP ME CONSTRUCT COMPELLING ARGUMENTS ON THE COMPLEXITY OF BOTH?
hi , anon !
it can be frustrating when people reduce our faves , but the first thing i’d like to say is : they’re kind of right about touko being a joke . touko’s fragile mental health is usually played for laughs , and reduced to a punchline . the localization calls her a “ schizo , ” and her maladaptive daydreams are framed as something psychotic rather than for what they are : a coping mechanism that her brain has developed to help her endure a high - stress situation .
i love when people ask these things , because the more we talk about that , the more we can start to break down touko’s character .
i would also like to state that this is a dissociative identity disorder [ DID ] conversation . i do not have DID , and i am not a psychologist . i will answer this to the best of�� my ability based on personal research and an ardent love for the character , but welcome corrections if necessary .
let’s talk about syo .
syo has depth . she is an extension of touko , who is , herself , a deeply introspective person . while syo is played for comic relief , it’s important to understand where she comes from : trauma . childhood trauma that touko , as a very small child , could not cope with . due to the intense physical , emotional , and psychological abuse to which she was subject , touko’s mind created syo , who fronts during times of duress and guards those memories that touko cannot endure , as a means of ensuring touko’s survival and base function . syo and touko do identify as separate entities , with a few key points to consider :
1 . DID alters can be ... anyone . anything . have their own ages , genders , sexual identities , ethnicity , personal histories , and memories . syo identifies as the name the media give her , but identifies with touko’s body , and accepts this as her appearance . a lot of alters look physically different to how the body of the core personality looks . that’s always been very interesting to me .
2 . touko acknowledges syo as part of herself . both touko and syo bounce back and forth when referring to themselves : between singular ( i ) and collective ( we ) . syo , to herself , looks like touko . she looks in the mirror and goes , “ i look like this . ” touko , especially in her later appearances throughout the series , feels a sense of belonging to syo , and acknowledges that she is a part of touko .
3 . they “ share emotions , ” meaning that there is some sort of co - conscious link between them that doesn’t go away completely during a switch . when touko hurts , syo hurts. when touko is in love , so is syo . while syo may not be able to understand and interpret complex emotions to the capacity at which touko does , she absolutely still feels them . this is what enables syo to act upon them : as a persecution alter , and later a protector alter , syo knows when she is fronting that touko is scared , or stressed , or in danger . these are the cues upon which she justifies her murders , but also those upon which she is able to fall in love and build friendships .
which leads me into my next point on syo : everything shed does is with the health and prosperity of touko in mind . DID , as a trauma - based disorder , is a neurological mechanism in place to protect the integrity of the individual . alters fulfill a purpose : they perform roles that the core personality physically cannot . syo is absolutely no different .
when touko decides to actively end syo’s murderous tendencies , syo complies . she knows that touko is suffering maltreatment at future foundation on the basis of her being labeled “ unstable and dangerous , ” and so , syo abstains from killing so as not to jeopardize touko’s wish to eventually join the foundation . while she still responds aggressively to threats , the only time she seriously contemplates killing is during another episode .
you can watch it here .
this scene is so loaded with depth . firstly , we see a clear co - conscious link between syo and touko . syo volunteers control of the body back to touko when touko is ready : even then , touko is able to recall the moments immediately before the switch , when komaru makes an emotional appeal to syo .
here , we also see a reflective , emotive side of her . we see her pause , despite whole - heartedly believing that she is going to kill komaeda . it is apparent to syo what is important to her : byakuya , and komaru . these things are important to touko , and therefore , important to syo . she has never been treated as normal : she has never really been considered by anyone to be a part of the system , as opposed to a “ deviant who kills for pleasure . ” and she thanks komaru for talking her down . in saying , “ i betrayed you , ” syo is feeling remorse . it’s touko’s remorse , because it was touko who made the deal with komaeda to exchange komaru for byakuya .
but , in the end , it was syo who threw the fight in order to spare komaru’s life , because she cannot bring herself to hurt a person for whom she and touko feel so warmly .
i’d also like to turn your attention to danganronpa 3 : future arc episode six , in which we can further witness syo and touko’s co - consciousness , and syo ultimately choosing to pursue what feels safe and warm and inviting rather than exacting vengeance . komaru talks her out of killing monaka : out of quite probably letting herself die in the process . komaru knows instinctively that syo has emotions : love . protectiveness . bravery . syo loves byakuya and komaru more , and feels a desire to protect them , more than everyone assumes her to simply love violence for violence’s sake . if something won’t serve the purpose of protecting touko and what is important to her , she isn’t going to do it .
now , let’s think about touko .
my blog is full of essays upon essays regarding touko , but i believe she can be best summarized by the phrase , the heart wants what it wants . a truly emotional , giving , and romantic woman , she actively hides herself underneath a repelling armor of grossly exacerbated flaws in order to protect her heart from being harmed .
touko has suffered in the past from consistent dehumanization , belittlement , and abuse . her parents expressed that they would have preferred her dead , and so they abused her at home . her classmates thought she was weird , and so they bullied her exorbitantly . whenever touko would actively reach out to others to pursue friendships or romantic relationships , she would be betrayed by others , and made to suffer for it .
to help you understand the breadth of the psychological impact that nearly two decades of being treated as less than human has had on touko , here is a link to a short thing i wrote on her ablutophobia , or fear of bathing . it’s a very quick overview of her self image issues , and self preservation tendencies .
next , why don’t we consider how fully and completely touko fukawa loves ? as a romance novelist , we expect her to harbor a highly idealized , grossly saturated perception of romantic love . instead , we get a woman who writes romance purely because she believes in channeling the ugly tragedies of her situation into something of beauty . here are my style notes of touko fukawa’s literary works , but we learn from her that she :
1 . prefers to write stories that are grounded in reality .
2 . enjoys magic realism , aggrandized settings , but innately human characters .
3 . prefers romantic tragedies to happy endings . ( komaru remarks upon how sad so lingers was . )
furthermore , touko states that while the power of delusion and its subsequent escapism is a powerful coping tool , she understands the harsh line between fiction and reality . she understands that no love story on the page can resemble how true love feels , but her work is so intricately entwined with emotion that she scaffolds her novels with universal emotional appeal . fictional romance , then , does not satisfy the resilience of her own heart . she is as cynical as she is whimsical : a true hopeless romantic who believes herself undeserving of loving , and being loved . she pours her heart and soul onto a page , so that others may feel to even a small margin of the scope of her feelings .
touko has a very resilient heart . despite the horrible things that togami did to her , and the abysmal way that future foundation treated her , touko is able to protect the last shred of love within her being and use it as fuel to improve herself as a person . please remember that all personal tragedies are learning experiences of touko : the pain she felt as a child became a rich and lucrative imagination . the trauma she undergoes as an adult is the catalyst to her finally turning against her self loathing , and building herself from the ground up .
what do i mean by that ? well ... touko fukawa is a badass . komaru naegi remarks constantly upon fukawa’s strength ; that she can’t imagine a “ weak touko . ” touko loathes herself ; her fears , her weakness . loathes that she can’t function as a normal human being who holds meaningful friendships without being suspicious of them ; loathes that she can’t look after herself , exact self care , without knocking back a cocktail of conglomerate anxiety . loathes that she was weak , and cowardly , and it almost got her killed when she has learned the value of being alive .
touko vocally objects to people walking all over her . she wants to be vilified ; she wants to be autonomous , and respected as a woman , an artist , and a person within her own right . touko exits her killing game , and the next time we see her in ultra despair girls , she is the furthest cry from the woman we previously knew . why ? because touko put her foot down , and went , “ i need to change . ” touko decides to do away with her cowardice , to fight for acknowledgement , and to reclaim her own life when she has been so deprived for so long of basic human kindness .
touko systematically exposes herself to blood to combat her hemophobia . touko credits other people for their strength and uses it as inspiration to keep going . touko puts a stun gun to her head and endures fucking electrocution so that she can control her switches and bequeath her body to syo when she needs to physically protect other people . touko mother fucking fukawa admits that she is scared , but picks her broken body up of the ground and stays standing so that she can do what is right .
touko has an incredibly strong sense of right and wrong that was cauterised by her participation in the killing . in this scene , we see touko voluntarily get the shit kicked out of her so that she may save thousands of innocent lives . she calls haiji towa a coward for hiding underground and not fighting back against the warriors of hope as they terrorize towa city . she does these things simply because it is the right thing to do : because if no one is going to stand up and fight for the people who cannot fight for themselves , then by god , touko is going to do it .
and , finally ... the heart wants what it wants , and touko wants to offer her heart to others . “ i’ll definitely protect both ... even if it costs me my life . ” actual quote out of the mouth of touko fukawa . touko loves . touko’s heart leads her into danger with the full conscience of her inevitable death , but she follows it to protect the lives of those closest to her . we see her , over the course of ultra despair girls , as she gradually opens up to the first person who has ever called touko a friend : to have treated touko with an ounce of humanity and kindness , and to have assured her unconditionally that touko was not alone .
pain , to touko , is transient . physical pain , that is . she’d allow a person to beat her to a pulp , even kill her , if it meant she would saves the lives of those who matter to her . byakuya and komaru make her a stronger person : love makes touko fukawa strong . love makes her stand against impossible odds , and tell those odds to go fuck themselves . touko listens to her heart : to what her emotions are telling her , and for that , her loyalty is stalwart .
i hope this helped you . i hope you have enough in your arsenal to speak up for our girl , and to remind everyone of the strong - ass motherfucking hero she is . if you have any further questions , i am always up for talking about my daughter , and how phenomenally important she is to me . i don’t think this post really scratches the surface .
in conclusion ,
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