Mikan Tsumiki: One Of Danganronpa 2's Best Characters

[@ShortHax]

All Mikan ever wanted from the start was to be loved, needed and "forgiven,” even though in my opinion, prior to the events of the actual games she has nothing to apologize for. Bullied at home, bullied at school, cigarettes extinguished on her back, crude drawings on her arms and legs and God only knows what else she’s been through

[@Finnboy-ml5jv]

She feels this way because of the abuse and neglect from her parents, since she was an unwanted child.

[@Trans_SovietBee]

@@Finnboy-ml5jv Not just that. She suffered from multiple emotional, verbal, physical assault as well from SA that went thought her entire life from literally everyone. Even most of her classmates looked at her as a fanservice material and a punching bag.

[@Finnboy-ml5jv]

@@Trans_SovietBee This would be different if she had a loving household like Gundam did.

[@Trans_SovietBee]

@@Finnboy-ml5jv You are literally blaming a victim here.

[@Finnboy-ml5jv]

@@Trans_SovietBee Wtf are you talking about? I was pointing out how her demise stems from an abusive household and how it affected her childhood behaviour. That was some twitter brain moment right here.

[@kikikalathiasart9510]

The way Hajime is able to selflessly help improve Mikan's insecurities in a way that actually helps is her is one of the reasons why he's my favorite protagonist

[@Z0MB1ESLVDGE]

HI MIKAN ENJOYER AND KINNIE HERE 😭 God my poor girl keeps getting either babied or sexualised by her fanbase and it sucks. Despite essentially becoming one of the most popular characters thanks to tiktok trends and cosplays, she’s still a very misunderstood character and I feel that you giving her a proper analysis will def give her justice

[@SmileOfA-Dreamer]

Omg yes. She is so underated and while I hate the fan service she gets her overall backstory and character is amazing!

[@Idontreallyknowwhattoputhere81]

@@SmileOfA-Dreamer I freaking love your pfp

[@SmileOfA-Dreamer]

@@Idontreallyknowwhattoputhere81 Thanks!

[@Idontreallyknowwhattoputhere81]

@@SmileOfA-Dreamer No problem

[@lolvioletcore]

@@SmileOfA-Dreamer Mikan's one of the most loved Dr characters tho

[@Finnboy-ml5jv]

Imagine if she had a character arc where you help her heal from trauma as Hajime through love and affection and these two defeat junko together. I can only dream.

[@BAS19.6]

We need that

[@standardhuman8675]

thats not true, you can also write fanfic

[@Finnboy-ml5jv]

@@true_lovers_knot Yes, it can. One of the key points of her character, is that she believes in power of love VERY strongly. It’s her fantasy, her source of hope.

[@hkazu63]

But at the same time, that actually underplays her complexity. Mikan works well as a villain bc of her complexity. The juxtaposition of her kindness, and her cruelty in murdering Ibuki and Hiyoko as she did; her need for attention by demeaning herself, whilst also being invaluable to the trials; these are what make Mikan great. The idea that she could have chosen to become a nurse, not out of pure kindness, but also out of a need to be powerful over them for once, since she has always been otherwise powerless. Mikan’s darkness as a killer is in the fact that she could have been saved. But she was failed. Thats why she turned into despair; everyone in Mikan’s life ultimately failed her. It’s something that lays bare the core of the game; the damage of bullying is powerful and destructive. Making her into a hero actually doesn’t do much for her character; but making her a villain, a particularly dangerous one at that, is huge to the story and her character. It’s really part of what makes her so great.

[@Finnboy-ml5jv]

@@hkazu63 That’s a pretty surface level analysis. If you really want to explore the whole her “cruelty” you could design a situation where she kills in an attempt to save Hajime. That would make far more sense writing wise.

[@Slenderquil]

Mikan is honestly somewhere in my top 10 Danganronpa characters. She interacts with the main story beautifully and is a very tragic antagonist, she's just held down by the terrible writing of chapter 3 and the game's insistence on sexualizing her at every possible turn. I'm really excited to see what you have to say about her

[@lost8861]

To be honest I think the constant sexualising was just supposed to make her more clumsy personality more memorable to show the contrast between the two

[@ShadeShake]

She's on my top 5

[@valutakoshelok2879]

I may be wrong, but isn't Mikan herself the one who intentionally trips herself over nothing? I thought that was the point, that it's her ways of getting attention.

[@lost8861]

@@valutakoshelok2879 when she does that it's before she was aware of how she really is. To be honest I think they did this because they wanted to make it so that the contrast between Mikans were so different

[@midnalazuli793]

Sure, she has potential, I can’t deny that. But I feel like it’s more fair to judge her character for what it is, not for what it could’ve been.

[@nxelsss]

I've always thought Mikan was misunderstood or people misunderstood her character! So thank you Aeris! Also the art is lovely!

[@我主也]

Mikan is CANONICALLY the third smartest student in the SDR2 cast, after Nagito then Chiaki: -Mikan is the only student, aside from Chiaki and Hajime, who doubts Nagito is the Trial 2-1 killer❗️ Her talent indeed specifies the weapon, the most vital piece of information in that case. -Furthermore, Mikan is the FIRST person to realise that Byakuya's bloodbath did not stain Nagito❗️ This is something that her talent was not necessary for, meaning anyone could have realised this... but Mikan was the first. 😍 -Mikan said that ignoring the Twilight Syndrome motive was a bad idea❗️❗️❗️❗️ MIKAN TRIED TO PLAY TWILIGHT SYNDROME, BUT THE CLASS STOPPED HER. -Chiaki would later say "i guess i should have cleared the motive lol" BUT MIKAN SAID TO DO THAT, AND NO ONE LISTENED❗️ -Mikan again specifies key information relevant to Hiyoko as the prime suspect. Also, Mikan noticed that the gummy was wrong as soon as it was presented in the class trial❗️ Part of why Mikan cannot solve cases is literally because she has to spend most of her time with the corpse. If Mikan was an investigative partner, though...... -Mikan also says this in Trial 2-2: "Perhaps SOMEONE OTHER THAN THE KILLER moved the body?" -Mikan also said that AFTER Nagito discussed the body discovery announcement❗️ Mikan was VERY CLOSE to reasoning out the involvement of an accomplice. This means Mikan was the first person AGAIN to notice something that the rest of the class failed to notice❗️❗️ -Mikan's crime was engineered almost perfectly: because the hanging broadcast was central to the crime and it was shown ONLY to Hajime, the trial reached a point where Chiaki could not solve the crime on her own❗️ I REPEAT: MIKAN OUTPLAYED CHIAKI. -However, Mikan could not overcome Nagito because of all the clues Hiyoko's murder left behind. It does testify to Mikan's intelligence, however, that she was still able to temporarily establish her alibi. And, Chiaki fully accepted that alibi. -Trial 2-3 is the first trial where Chiaki hits a wall❗️ Chiaki hits a wall sooner in Trial 2-4, but in regards to the Funhouse and not the murder. This means that Mikan was able to stump Chiaki while Gundam needed the assistance of something Monokuma designed. -I REPEAT: MIKAN OUTPLAYED CHIAKI❗️❗️❗️❗️ It may have been fleeting, and Chiaki may have been able to resolve the crime after gaining the one clue she was missing, but Mikan was still able to briefly eclipse the second smartest student in her class.

[@我主也]

also note: this all happens in the main story, meaning this is the basic level of information needed to understand Mikan... her intellect is canonically central to her character, just as much so as her self-deprecation... only one is more overt and the other subtle. Both are present, however!

[@agatha6999]

Yeah Mikan would honestly be the Kyoko of DR2 is she had more confidence in herself which is unfortunate but fair enough for game balance. Mikan's crime literally only being exposed due to a video was insane and while unethical was all they could do to get the job done which speaks to how carefully she did her crime though maybe if she skipped the video altogether then she mightve gotten away it then again not her complete goal as it was to bring despair but yeah.

[@我主也]

@@agatha6999 Mikan needed someone to witness her at the hospital when Ibuki "died" because Mikan needed an alibi 😄 if Ibuki is killed while under her care, then Mikan is automatically the prime suspect... she really, really needed that alibi and it 100% backfired

[@agatha6999]

@@我主也 But like couldnt Mikan frame Hajime without the video because she went to sleep so if Mikan was sleeping after all her work then Hajime would be suspicious. I forgot what cleared him so if it wasnt related to the video yeah that plan makes sense

[@axelvinicius3365]

"Mikan is the only student, aside from Chiaki and Hajime, who doubts Nagito is the Trial 2-1 killer❗ Her talent indeed specifies the weapon, the most vital piece of information in that case." Nagito is not the killer, and everyone has specific knowledge of their area of expertise. She got the weapon of the murder, which is very important, but that stems from her talent being useful in a death game situation, not her being generally smart. "Chiaki would later say "i guess i should have cleared the motive lol" BUT MIKAN SAID TO DO THAT, AND NO ONE LISTENED❗" She guessed, the same as everyone that said not playing was better. They couldn't know what to expect, and not playing WAS better (why wouldn't ignoring a motive be better?). It's not like she said "let's all play because we know Fuyuhiko will play nevertheless", if she said that, it would be more than a guess, but as she didn't, her gut was right and that's it. "Furthermore, Mikan is the FIRST person [...]" "[...] This means Mikan was the first person AGAIN to notice something that the rest of the class failed to notice❗❗" No one failed to notice anything lol Everyone's mind is working on some part of the case (only Tanaka never bothered I think), being quick witted is different from smart. Let's take Kirigiri and Nanami, both really helpful in trials and smart, but Kirigiri is the one that figures things out first. Is Chiaki less smart than her? Everything you said about 2-3: Her whole case was horribly put together and while I agree she could have gotten one of the best cases in SDR2 because she is in fact smart, it wasn't as good as you make it out to be. I don't even know how a case where you can't even tell me what the murder weapon was without delving into speculation was approved for release. But even then, did Teruteru outsmart everyone but Ibuki when she was the only one that could discern the voices in the first case? Because that was really important. I don't think he did. Hajime was the Ibuki in the third case, he was the only one that could attest to the truth of a vital clue, and without him the mystery wouldn't be able to be solved.

[@ultimxtemiracxler]

It's a shame that people just discard her entire character just bcz of her fan service moments and her execution then ignore her complex character and personality.

[@candydream16]

there's a fanmade, 3d animated execution for her and it's honestly so much better that I just accept it as cannon

[@nevergonnagiveyouup1180]

I honestly find Mikan incredible But I don’t like how she has implied sexual trauma and the creators give her these fan service scenes Besides that though I just want to give her a hug. I really do think she’s been through a lot

[@napstablookbutno666]

your name and pfp is amazing.

[@nevergonnagiveyouup1180]

@@napstablookbutno666 Thank you :)

[@Someone-or8tp]

I actually believe that the fanservice scenes aren't accidental on Mikan's part. It's implied that she has an attention seeking disorder and that doing the fanservice scenes is her way of seeking attention. Which I think would be interesting... ... _If_ it wasn't just an excuse to sexualise her. I mean, christ, she could seek attention other ways in the game and I think to some extent she does(?) but it's not enough. I'm glad they touched on sexual abuse in the game but I wish that they handled it a bit better.

[@QqQ3Three3]

@@Someone-or8tp There you go. You hit the nail on the head. Once was enough for that... turkey... scene. At least have the characters acknowledge it's wrong please!

[@Someone-or8tp]

@@QqQ3Three3 yeah, plus having food in such delicate areas can cause actual harm. Like a yeast infection. Even Mikan should know that, it doesn't make sense for her to willingly subject herself to such illnesses as the ULTIMATE *NURSE.* Maybe instead of falling into sexual positions, she's literally just tripping sometimes and claims its an accident. Maybe she offers her help only to botch it "on accident". There are better ways to go about it.

[@aidancurry218]

I’m interested to see where this is going. She had a lot of potential, with her loneliness, inferiority complex, and unhealthy desire to make others depend on her. There are some great pieces to work with, but they are used incredibly poorly in my opinion. Case three was a train wreck for her, and even before then she was only used as Hiyoko’s punching bag, a fanservice machine, and a plot device for autopsy reports in the first couple cases. While this last effect is helpful, it doesn’t feel like it’s enough to overcome how simultaneously annoying and pointless the other two were, and how the fanservice especially was in poor taste given her backstory. It’s easy to argue that she had a lot of potential, but calling her one of the best in the game is unimaginable to me, especially up against greats like Fuyuhiko, those with strong arcs like Hajime and Akane, and lovable goofballs like Gundham and Ibuki. It’s difficult, though not impossible, to even argue her for the top half. Which makes me all the more curious and eager for this.

[@Finnboy-ml5jv]

I think no character has as much layers as her though.

[@iguessicandraw7614]

Yeah I don’t like her either, she just makes me so incredibly uncomfortable for some reason. Idk why

[@simiroth9461]

I'm here to ask, with respect: How in the heck a girl that has a similar set to Mikan, but in a worse case can have an arc and be in a way, "underrated"? She just made MONOKUMA shoot her, and so, get Nekomaru dead. And she's like "What...?" instead of a instant worryment. (Though, pure convenience.)

[@noface2382]

@@simiroth9461 I think you misunderstood Akane's "what". It was because she was worried and confused. I don't think Akane is an amazing character at all, but i understood her worrying tone

[@croul9602]

The same with me. Most of time, Mikan was always shaped to be fanservice. Her shyness was projected to be fanservice (since her shyness most of the time is treaded seriously) and this fanservice doesn't make sense. Okay, she had her backstory, she has a motive to be like that, but why does she only seeks for attention In that way? She could try to help students, be a bully, try to make destact in danganronpa, try to be friend and etc, sometimes she did but they're no WAY comparable with the most of the time that she is only used to fanservice. What I find kinda funny is how nobody tries to call out Mikan for that? They just watch Mikan to shown her panties and help her in the end like, bro? Also, The turkey scene for example, having food on delicate parts of the body can cause an infection and the ultimate *NURSE* uses that to caught people eyes.

[@standardhuman8675]

**does a little fuck yeah dance bc mikan deserves all the hugs**

[@tomgibson6801]

Mikan's one of my favourite characters in spite of my less than ideal experiences with her fanbase as a result of also really loving Hiyoko(especially the section that goes on and on about how Hiyoko's death was KaRmA) she's a very complex and misunderstood character, she's not a precious bean who did nothing wrong nor is she some evil attention seeker who only cared about herself. Excited to see this

[@Finnboy-ml5jv]

She still is MOSTLY a precious bean that did nothing wrong. Chapter 3 had a BS plot device in a form of despair disease(which is also baked up by ANOTHER plot device in a form of hypnotic animations in DR3) which caused her to act out of character.

[@axelvinicius3365]

@@Finnboy-ml5jv Go through all her free time events again before saying she did nothing wrong. From the reason she wants to be a nurse to the way she ends up in vulgar poses after tripping on purpose to get attention... Not really a precious bean.

[@Finnboy-ml5jv]

@@axelvinicius3365 Trust me, I did it much more than you. I assume you might misinterpret some of her words because I have no idea why you are talking about. There is no malice and hatred involved in any of her actions.

[@axelvinicius3365]

@@Finnboy-ml5jv oh, I'm not trying to interpret anything to my liking. I just take what is said at face value (except with characters like Celeste and Kokichi).

[@Finnboy-ml5jv]

@@axelvinicius3365 False. You inferred malice when there is none. Mikan has various reasons to be a nurse. She is agraid of Interaction with people that might hurt her which is why she likes being around patients, since those are people that need her.

[@Kuhwouyeii]

I'm a casual Mikan liker who has no fucking clue where all the hate is coming from. Some people find her annoying because of her high-pitched voice and/or clumsiness but personally, thats what makes me find her relatable. (Commenting this before the premiere. I'm intrigued to see what points you'll make when this analysis video comes out lol)

[@midnalazuli793]

The hate comes from the fact that she has the potential to be a much better character than she was portrayed in both DR2 and the DR3 anime, but the writers fucked up both times. Her whole character is also just really insulting to SA survivors, and she lacks any redeeming qualities. If you were to ask me how to NOT write a character, I’d use Mikan as an example.

[@Ich-Existiere-Nicht]

@@midnalazuli793 True but Danganronpa is in my opinion in general not good in writing characters. Here some examples why that contain spoilers for all games: •Taka, Hiyoko die while getting a redemption arc. •Mahiru and Tenko both die and didn't get a redemption arc. It makes me feel like it's ok to hate on men to see two characters that never get called out by her behavior and die before getting a chance to change. I don't have a problem with someone hating men, especially when it's throughout of trauma but then give the character at least a redemption arc! Manhate is not ok and it should get represented as wrong. •Toko needed a spinoff to get a redemption arc and even there she still doesn't quite her obsession with Byakuya. •Kazuichi didn't neither. •Most if the characters seem 2-Demendion until you play her fte. You can't expect people to spend about 30- 40 minutes to play fte for 16 characters, even some you can't stand just do they'll get 3-Demensional. • Many characters never even get called out on their behavior. Hiyoko never gets telled that bullying people is wrong. Kazuichi never got clear tolded that his behavior towards Sonia is creepy. Mahiru never gets tolded that she's sexiest. (Toward men and women because she speaks of women sometimes like they need to rely on men and couldn't protect themselves.) •Characters with backstories that include sexual harassment get fanservice moments, like Mikan and Kotoko (who is 10-12!) • The characters often don't get character development. Neither in the main games, Ultimate summer camp or ultimate talent develop plan. • To explain their behavior with their backstories is for some characters the only way to defend them. Like Kazuichi for example. I like Danganronpa but it isn't good in making character developments or in using their characters properly. When someone would ask me how to not write a character I would use Danganronpa in general as an example.

[@theblasblas]

@@Ich-Existiere-Nicht Why would Toko need to get rid of her obsession with Byakuya? She's a more interesting character because of her obsession. It doesn't matter if the obsession is unhealthy or stops her from being a "better person". What matters is the entertainment value.

[@Ich-Existiere-Nicht]

@@theblasblas If that's your opinion then that's ok but I personally view her obsession as annoying. And yeah it's an important part about her character but it also ruins her character for a lot of people. In THH it was almost her entire character and a lot of people don't like her because of her creepy unhealthy stalking. Her obsession can be an important and interesting part of her character even if she'd get character development. But that's just my opinion.

[@theblasblas]

@@Ich-Existiere-Nicht That sentiment I can get behind. I wish there was more closure between Toko and Byakuya. They don't have to end up together, and I don't want them to, but I wish their relationship reached some kinda... stable equilibrium? Maybe something like the mutual respect between Makoto and Byakuya.

[@amaterasusnonexistentcontent]

Really glad you're talking about her. She's one of my favourite character if not my favourite character. I'll give out some reasons on why I love her character before I actually get to see the video. In terms of personality, it absolutely makes sense that she would be shy because of her trauma and the fact that she couldn't defend herself at the time so she had to cope with it. While it is a tragic fact, trauma and abuse victims tend to repeat the habits they have with their abusers when in presence of strangers (not all the time but does happen quite a bit), even when not in the presence of strangers because they are so used to these habits that it became a part of them. This trauma that they experienced and impacted them *is* a part of them since it will never easily go away. That explains why she "trips" in the game. Her design reflects her perfectly, not only does the pastel colors show how fragile of a person she is, but the clothing perfectly describes her too! The bandages and the hair basically tell you quite a bit of her story! It tells you that theses details aren't slapped out of nowhere on her design and it fits her perfectly. This character actually opposes Nagito's philosophy on how "people are born talented" in such a well crafted way and I love that about her! I love everything about this character but anyways - it's amazing to see that you're going to talk about her! Hope you go much more in depth on her than me, I'm excited to see what you'd find about Mikan!

[@Niko-qq2vr]

Loved the video. It explains how mikan is not just a fanservice character who is the shy anime schoolgirl cliché. The most unique thing i love about her is her design, you dont even need to think so much to know she suffered and have a talent based on treating and healing people. Also, i would love to see a vídeo where you tell why Mahiru would work as a protag! (IF im not asking too much lol) and maybe your thoughts on danganronpa MK2 as well on it! Loved the viid!

[@Wince_Media]

This was an awesome video! Yknow, the more and more I learn about mikan, the more I like her. I feel she's not only morally grey, but subverts a lot of the tropes you see with not only healer characters, but shy nice characters that aren't just "shy character actually mean"

[@frisk8632]

Agreed I often don't like how many just think of her as only "Fanservice Whinny Girl with no character depth"

[@Wince_Media]

@@frisk8632 that's how I felt when I first played the game before the evil reveal. Like I said in thr stream, initially, I felt she felt like a discount version of fluttershy from my little pony with an annoying voice

[@frisk8632]

@@Wince_Media I can see why she's similar to Fluttershy Although it's only on a Surface level

[@Wince_Media]

@@frisk8632 Exactly, which is a good thing. It was mostly her voice, though. It often sounds like what voice actors do for a flutterhsy impression.

[@andrewpappas9311]

I honestly always liked Mikan, I thought that she was an interesting character and after doing more of her FTEs I learned that she was definitely more than just "clumsy fanservice nurse" and that she really deserved to be treated a lot better like she had been; She really had gone through a lot and just wanted to be cared for and treated like a regular girl despite having gone through so much shit

[@lmnnml3931]

Part of why I love Mikan, aside from her being one of the biggest Woobie characters in the franchise and the interesting psychology behind her character, is her being 4th main character of her cast, as was mentioned. Back in DR1, Toko was only the 4th main character on the account of having interest in a member of the main trio and thus being more important than the remaining two surivors outside of the main trio. And then UDG happened. But in Mikan's case? - She has one of the most MVP talents, especially in killing game scenarios. If a "pacifist route" happened (ignoring that it doesn't work specifically in DR2's case since Junko set a deadline this time), she would be needed to take care of the others when they grow old and sickly, when women start giving birth, when someone accidentally injures themselves (like Akane and Nekomaru during battles), etc. Under regular killing game scenarios, she's needed for autopsies and you could argue that if someone were to survive attempted murder, she could treat their wounds. - As a result, she's the only character bound to have at least one Truth Bullet related to her (Autopsy Results) in every single trial she appears in. As a result, she's bound to at least help to save the day every single time. - Furthermore, while most of the cast contributed once in the first case (aside from Fuyuhiko, Hiyoko, Kazuichi, and Sonia; but they get to be important in other trials), Mikan actually saved the day in the first trial TWICE (autopsy, fanservice), with one of them being one of those occassions when someone other than the protag starts a certain topic. - Her motivation was deliberately left with many unsolved questions to serve as the foreshadowing for later reveals and as a major sequel hook (or rather, prequel in this case). She also wasn't shown to die on-screen in her execution, kinda making you wnoder whether she'd return later in the story. - She's one of very few DR2 characters to appear or have a cameo in UDG, the only one other than Minimaru, aside from such important characters like Nagito and Izuru. - In DR3, she's one of the few students from her class who aren't part of the main trio, but end up important for the story, with the only other being the Ultimate Imposter. - Again, along with Imposter, she's the only one who knew Ryota's secret much earlier and had impactful interactions with him. - In a quite tragic irony, she ends up being one of the biggest Unwitting Instigators of Doom, as it was becuase she was helping Ryota that she got to meet Junko and thus become the first Remnant of Despair, thus got missing, thus others went looking for her, which led them to eventually watch the Despair Video. Made even more tragic by the fact she "died" believing no one cared about her when it was everyone worrying about her that led them to become the Remnants. - In Hope Arc, she's not only one of those who saved the day (keep in mind some of them just watched, like Fuyuhiko, Sonia and Hiyoko), but she also ends up reviving a comatose Kyoko who had taken Seiko's antitode. She's also the only one other than Nagito to directly interact with Makoto here.

[@thenathanbyrne7333]

I remember her mostly from her fear of abandonment and neglect. It was different from the other characters in the series, plus for a nurse to had a past of abuse and wanting the control a nurse has for both good and bad reasons was fascinating to me and someone who tries to analyze characters.

[@PGOuma]

the best friend relationships are honestly the best and my favorite! It's like your relationship is on multiple layers

[@Vearru]

Mikan was my favourite danganronpa 2 character from the start. Her personality was always so deeply relatable and resonant with me. I can even very much see the possibility of my highschool self turning down the same path if I had Junko do the same things to me. Honestly going on a deeper reflection I think that the dual aspects of my personality that I had entering highschool could mirror the duality between Mikan and Nagito presented at the end of this video. I had been bullied and socially isolated and outcast for seven years of my childhood. So I developed a personality of wanting to make sure everyone liked me be any means necessary in such a way where nothing else mattered and if I wasn’t liked by everyone then I had failed in life. At the same time I suffered from very severe gender dysphoria that led me to evaluating my life to be worthless, due to my body causing me to experience constant suffering. So believing my life to be worthless I decided I needed to help do as much as I possibly could to improve the state of the world so that way other people who have a chance at a worthwhile life don’t need to go through suffering like I went through. These two personality aspects were very much at odds with each other within me and for the most part my need for people pleasing took over and I just became whatever everyone around me would like most. Then later my caring side took over again a little more powerfully but because I could feel proper emotions while I had that aspect dominating I ended up with excessive pain and suffering due to puberty and was nearly driven to suicide because the pain was unbearable. I only didn’t because of how much I had made everyone like me, if I died everyone around me would experience much more pain than they would if I transitioned. So I ended up transitioning and these warring personality aspects in my mind ended up slowly merging together allowing me to take the best aspects of both. I still struggle fully accepting my worth, and I am still naturally inclined to adapt myself to get people to like me but all in all I’ve grown a lot and improved from these aspects fusing. And I am sorry that I just went off on such a long tangent, I kinda don’t know where I was going with all of that but thank you for reading my inner thoughts as I went through a bit of self reflection and rediscovery. And also thank you very much for this video it helped me contextualize my experiences and inner turmoil a lot better, and that means a lot.

[@ItsShaz1]

Mikan is one of my favourite characters from the series. She really is an interesting character and shouldn’t be judged by the things she does but rather why she does them. She had a lot of potential to grow in the game and we could have explored more about her inferiority complex and potential other issues like loneliness and the unhealthy urge to make others depend on her.

[@theworldsgreatestlover]

This was great, as excepted. I loved being there at the premiere! As I already said, I love Mikan a lot. I think she is very complex, and it makes me sad that she is often overlooked and thought of as a pointless fanservice character or dumbed down to "uwu little bean who did nothing wrong" which is obviously also not true. I really like her free time events and how her relationship with Hajime evolves there, which I'm glad you talked about in the video. Mikan's character is also one I personally heavily relate to because of her desire to be noticed by people, because of her severe anxiety in communicating with people and also her trauma and her dark tendencies. This is another aspect of why I like her so much. Another thing I'm glad was brought up in this video is Mikan's murder plan and her role in the third trial. I agree that not all motives should be sympathetic, and that this particular case works really well in contrast to the other ones in this game. I generally tend to like the more selfish murder motives in these games because they are often far more interesting and complex, in my opinion. As you maybe have noticed by me often praising Celeste in the comments and also having Kiyo as my profile picture (i had him as my pfp when I wrote the comment), I am a huge fan of the third class trials and their respective culprits because of how undeniably selfish their motives are and it really upsets me that the general public just hates them for no particular reason. God, I wrote so much, this is such a mess... But yeah, Mikan is a wonderful character. Thanks for coming to my ted talk.

[@CassieIsGae]

Looking forward to this! She's so complex, the only thing I don't like is how the creators chose to use her for fanservice.

[@shopnil4]

I always felt bad for Mikan. She's one of my favorite characters and I always hate what happened to her in the story.

[@eeveemiscellaneous8270]

This made me appreciate Mikan more.

[@eeveemiscellaneous8270]

I do feel she deserved more respect from the game, but what can you do.

[@beefrandon8776]

She really called me out when she said “If you’re playing Minecraft rn look at the screen for a few seconds.”

[@Bobo-Nose]

Sometimes I feel like Mikan's hair symbolizes her mental state. I mean, just look at it, that doesn't look like a normal/usual hairstyle. I know that her hair was chopped up by bullies, but as a character design choice, I thought it meant something.

[@cjadams9658]

man i hate when my mental state changes and i gotta cut my hair at 2 in the morning /j

[@Frenemies.]

Hi Aeris! I'm really excited for this Mikan Analysis because I feel as if her depth is very overlooked and people don't tend to look into her mindset during chapter 3. So yeah I'm super pumped up.

[@dangandanger8006]

YYYYYEEEEEESSSSSS, omg I really love mikan and the complexity of her character, i can't for this

[@LabRat1210]

She's personally one of my favourite characters in the series. I love her backstory and emphasised with her pain. I felt like I needed to protect her and her breakdown in the 3rd Trial hurt. Very complex.

[@keyonalyles2267]

Mikan! MIkan Pecan! This is a very well in-depth video! Mikan is more than just the "sad little uwu fanservice girl" that everybody makes her out to be. She's got multiple layers of complexity as well as other characters

[@takumidoutou4412]

I like her so much I hated Hiyoko bc of it. Though I like Hiyoko now. But I still love Mikan always have. I relate to her too much.

[@takumidoutou4412]

Also you have ignited my love for Mikan x Hajime again

[@CeceliaIsAWeeb]

This video is absolutely fantastic. I’ve always adored Mikan and she’s by far one of the most “LITERALLY ME” characters ever. Also that point you made about nurses usually being bullies makes my times spent in hospitals make so much more sense. I went to a mental hospital around a month after this video released and every time nurses were rude to me it all just made so much sense.

[@AlexxHedgehog333]

a video essay on my favourite character??? i'm so happy!

[@casual3123]

I've recently been going through Danganronpa 2 again and I really forgot a lot about Mikan and she's become one of my favorite characters in the series as of late. I really just want to give her a big hug to make her feel safe.

[@markt1639]

I do really enjoy this video,I am happy we have one of the character-based essays again,especially to someone I have very high feelings for. Just one thing to make clear as I didn‘t know this until a few weeks ago:The Hippocratic Oath is not actually used or said by official medicial personality as it is a)quite stereotypical as well as very much outdated (e.g. abortion and removal of bladder stones) and b) never said by any doctor to validate themselves after graduation. If there is anything to refer to ethical medicine,I would refer to Declaration of Geneva as medicial personality has reevaluated it many times over the years to keep the idea of the „Hippocratic Oath“ alive while not being religious and to fit into modern society. Here the text of the Declaration of Geneva: The Physician’s Pledge AS A MEMBER OF THE MEDICAL PROFESSION: I SOLEMNLY PLEDGE to dedicate my life to the service of humanity; THE HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF MY PATIENT will be my first consideration; I WILL RESPECT the autonomy and dignity of my patient; I WILL MAINTAIN the utmost respect for human life; I WILL NOT PERMIT considerations of age, disease or disability, creed, ethnic origin, gender, nationality, political affiliation, race, sexual orientation, social standing or any other factor to intervene between my duty and my patient; I WILL RESPECT the secrets that are confided in me, even after the patient has died; I WILL PRACTISE my profession with conscience and dignity and in accordance with good medical practice; I WILL FOSTER the honour and noble traditions of the medical profession; I WILL GIVE to my teachers, colleagues, and students the respect and gratitude that is their due; I WILL SHARE my medical knowledge for the benefit of the patient and the advancement of healthcare; I WILL ATTEND TO my own health, well-being, and abilities in order to provide care of the highest standard; I WILL NOT USE my medical knowledge to violate human rights and civil liberties, even under threat; I MAKE THESE PROMISES solemnly, freely, and upon my honour.

[@DetectiveNyx]

i did mean it as a throwaway joke, but this is interesting!

[@markt1639]

@@DetectiveNyx I assumed so,but the perfectionist in me needed to speak up. Like I referred to it,not many people know this as it is more knowledge from medical personal and odd people researching such stuff when they get the opportunity to do so as they have an interest in the topic.

[@christopherbennett5858]

Mikan was always one of my favourite characters in the franchise. Frankly though, she was the one who scared me the most because of how much she reminded me of myself to the point where it made me wonder how I'd turned out if I met a guy who was as evil as Junko... that used to freak me out. I must admit, good examination on Gundham. Kind of reminds me of the trend of woobifying the edgy and borderline monsters in fiction e.g. Kylo Ren and Rise of the TMNT's Draxum, proving that, ironically, execution is key.

[@songbirdrebel5895]

I... actually never thought of seeing Mikan like that. My first Danganronpa exposure happens to the Despair arc of Danganronpa 3 (no, not killing harmony) and when I watched and learned more about the Ultimate Nurse, the more uncomfortable I am since I can more or less relate to her personality. So, thank you for opening my eyes.

[@darkkirb206]

Mikan has always been one of my favorite characters in the franchise, even being in my personal “Big 5” for this franchise, but I do agree that some people either oversimplify her character or act as though she’s a completely innocent person who only has darkness or flaws because of Junko. Plus, I am kinda sick of the “Ultimate Fanservice” title that people keep dumping on her. I get that using a character that was implied to be abused for fan service is tasteless, but I never thought it was that bad in SDR2. (DR3: Despair Side however…) Mikan is a complex and morally jaded character who just wants to be cared about and is willing to do anything necessary to do so, even if it involves demeaning herself. Plus, she had one of the best breakdowns in the whole series even if her actual execution was trash. All in all, I will always say that Mikan is a fantastic character even if I have some issues with Chapter 3’s murder.

[@QqQ3Three3]

Ah! Who are your big five out of curiosity?

[@darkkirb206]

@@QqQ3Three3 Since you asked, these 5 characters: Fuyuhiko, Miu, Tsumugi, Hajime, and Mikan. This isn’t exactly a ranking, they are all just my favorite characters because they have aspects to their characters that I personally relate to and have impacted me as a person.

[@QqQ3Three3]

@@darkkirb206 Ah, I see! ^-^ Also, I agree. Mikan is one of my favorites because she so darn complex and intriguing, but I strongly dislike how out of all of the characters the writers could have made into the primary fan-service character, they pick a sexual abuse victim... I'm honestly naïve in this topic since there are a select few (you and AERIS for instance) who don't mind it as much as one could, so please enlighten me. Also, there's a fangan in which a character who's the primary fan-service and has gone through trauma, though I don't know what type. If it was sexual... how will they deal with it?

[@rustyroast24]

7:28 THE FACT IM ACTUALLY PLAYING MC WHILE WATCHING THIS

[@B3ky0fTh3V4ll3y]

This video is makeing me realize how much i relate to mikan

[@area52ron]

I think Gundham not telling the truth is most likely so he doesn’t become a hypocrite especially after he want them to keep fighting and not give up to the end without doing the same

[@M4x_P0w3r]

Yeah. I think he was being selfless because he took it upon himself to commit a murder when no one else looked like they were willing to. One way or another, he gave them a fighting chance for their survival, rather than allow themselves to simply starve to death. And it's exactly because they were fighting for their survival that Gundham refused to simply give up and confess: he wanted to survive too. And by making his murder so convoluted, he also ensured that if the rest managed to solve it, then they would be more prepared for what would come next, and if they weren't, at least their suffering would be cut shorter. That, and well, he was deliberately playing the bad guy role both to double down on his persona and to try and make the decision to execute him a bit easier to digest. Also, reminder that Gundham could have been sneaky about the whole murder, but he literally challenged Nekomaru to a duel, and gave him the chance to back down. Sure, he "cheated" to win, but he never hid his intentions from him. They both knew that only of them would reunite with the others.

[@theworldsgreatestlover]

I'm so excited for this! Mikan is one of my favorite characters and I also relate to her heavily, so I'm very interested to hear the things you say about her here

[@SamuraiDoggo14]

"Peko is my current favorite." Ah, I see you're a person of culture as well.

[@vanilla7981]

The way you described Komaeda and Mikan’s characters and how well they parallel and relate with each other is perfect. They’d be such good rivals, tbh the way they are is why I personally ship Komaeda and Mikan together heavily LOL. Good video! P.S. THE CITY ESCAPE LYRICS AT THE END MASHED WITH THE DR MUSIC MADE ME JUMP CUZ IM A HUUUUUGE SONIC FAN LOL

[@markt1639]

I must say it is wonderful to have videos analysing characters,especially if people do have a more complex image of the character. The connection of Nagito and Mikan has always been there and I guess I had this in mind,but I did not have the synaptic connections in my brain to link the classical theme to the situation in chapter 3. I must admit that I like Mikan and her character for multiple reasons (appearance,behaviour,dark past,characteristics,Ultimate Talent,etc.),yet I could never actually pin down why I felt so horrible after her being revealed as the culprit. I think what made it rough for me personally was that Mikan did show the other side of her. She presented the side of her personality she had within her,a side she never wanted to be revealed to anyone as she desired to be a well-functioning part of society or at least a respected part of a small supportive group.It has been so different from what most people were used to her which got me this emotional and was only beaten by the first execution and Kaitos final trip to space. To simply put in in here:Thank you for such a great video,they are at least my favourite part of this channel

[@carameleddie]

oh my gosh the art for the thumbnail looks so so good!

[@cblazerc]

simply since you mentioned it I feel like I must (as a fanboy of this character) comment on it. Gundham admitted during his trial that you should not give up on life, which by admitting his guilt would have done. Also it wasn't that he didn't want his friends to starve to death, that is never confirmed by him. What is confirmed is that he doesn't want them to give up on life, and he killed because he felt like they did. But yeah I can't explain the brutality, other than that it was a deathmatch that they both excepted being a part of (though I know that it's shaky reasoning at best and an excuse at worst).

[@patricketn]

Honestly I think Mikan had the most potential and the despair sickness was a very interesting plot point

[@midnalazuli793]

Definitely disagree about the despair sickness, it was stupidly contrived just so the writers could force the plot in a certain direction.

[@patricketn]

I think the despair disease was written badly I think if they wrote it better it could’ve been a good plot point

[@ski8977]

"If you're currently listening to this while playing Minecraft, please divert your attention to the screen!" DO YOU HAVE A CAMERA WATCHING ME-

[@mayayamato7351]

"his dog committed celestia ludenburg" my sides but also my heart ouch owie noooo puppy...

[@OnyxeBlade]

I love me some Tsumiki. Thank you for making this video of one of the best DR ladies

[@nicolasmeisel]

Excellent video. It really opened me up to Mikan as a character. Before I had just gone with the consensus of seeing her as "the fan service character." But your essay made me realize I've just kinda been going along with the popular image of her. Also after hearing the part about her and Hajime being a couple I can totally see it. Given the parallel's in the ways they both were abused and manipulated by Junko, I think it makes for a great story. Two characters escaping the abuse and manipulation from one person and finding solace after the fact to form an eventual budding relationship. It's the kind of love story that I eat up like birthday cake.

[@Ich-Existiere-Nicht]

When I found out about Mikan (that was before I even got really in Danganronpa and knew who she was) by watching edits of her, I started to like her character already. Not because I could relate to her on a personal level, I liked her design or whatever. Because I despise bullying and her line: "Everyone always treats me like that. Aaalwaayyss... It's all her fault, like sh-she's the one with the problem! ... I am done with that! You hear me? I'm doooneee!!!!" Slapped hard. I didn't got bullied myself but I agreed with her so much that moment and could understand what she was trying to say. How people pick on you, abuse you, treat you like bunch of rotten trash and just can't get it how their behavior is problematic. How some bullies take the stupidest things that aren't your fault as an excuse to act like you don't deserve any rights. "She's so weak, ugly, pathetic, boring, annoying... She doesn't have a reason to wonder why people hate her." How they can't just stay away from you then they don't like you and instant have to make you feel dirty and use you being you and things you can't and shouldn't change about you as a excuse for their behavior and it makes perfectly sense with their stupid logic. But Mikan snapped. As awful Junko abused her, remembering Junko was a bit of a good thing. Because Mikan remembered that she is tired of this. (Sad that she thinks that what Junko did to her is love and that this is what made her snap.) Mikan was a sign for me that no matter how good a person is, how weak and unable to fight back they are. Even they will get eventually tired and fight back. And when it's too late and you don't try to apologize and become a better person, they will fight back in an awful way that will make you regret everything. That's the cool thing about Mikan's character. People represent her as weak and someone to pick one (sometimes) but actually I think her character should get represented as "I'll take revenge and no longer will people let do this stuff with me." And yeah, I know Mikan had the despair disease but maybe deep inside she always wanted to fight back. Maybe the reason why she never did before, is because she was always too scared to but when she felt despair it didn't matter for her what people think about her. She was in despair, maybe knew she's going to die and couldn't stand the feeling of being a victim anymore. Maybe the despair disease gave her the confidence she needed to finally show what was going on in the deepest corners in the inside of her mind.

[@SHSLBLAZE]

Aeris with another banger video!!! ☺️

[@tomgibson6801]

20:05, i honestly found 2-2 a worse example of that, while Mahiru did die instantly and i have a theory that Peko ensured she would considering her knowledge of targeted strikes, the way she died, just felt so, cold to me, she was lured to her death in an attempt to make things right, subjected to a very abusive Fuyuhiko screaming in her face, if he calmed down he'd realise she was actually remorseful and guilty over the game, she was evidently terrified in her last words about revenge, and then i think its probably likely she saw him go for the bat and then Peko in turn take it off him and strike her, which considering she liked and trusted Peko is pretty damn harsh. Not to mention the utter trauma Hiyoko went through and the fact that losing Mahiru essentially killed her And then the game just negates all this cruelty with "but they loved each other", okay, so did Mahiru and Hiyoko, why doesn't their bond matter Kodaka(same deal with how 2-4 somewhat negates Nekomaru and Akane's bond with Gundham's and Sonia's). With Nekomaru, while yeah, he ended up looking like a mess(though honestly so did Mahiru, seriously her body discovery haunted me long before she became my fav) at least that was a fight to the death, as opposed to a cruel ambush that Mahiru had no chance of winning. And with Peko i do think her murder made her more sympathetic its bittersweet to see her genuine remorse and guilt over Mahiru, she thoroughly hated herself for what she did, as opposed to Fuyuhiko who even after seeing Mahiru bleed to death in front of him because of him still didn't seem remorseful, sexistly insulting her not to mention how he mocked Hiyoko's tears over her(my god is it satisfying when Hiyoko lays into him in 2-3). While he does end up actually going as far as seppuku, thats not until mid 2-3 so the game treating him as sympathetic in 2-2 because he loved Peko and lost Natsumi just felt somewhat like a negation of how truly awful his actions were. I'm probably in the minority here but 2-2 made me hate Fuyuhiko a lot more but thankfully 2-3 made him my favourite boy in the series TLDR- I feel 2-2 was a worse example of trying to portray an awful action as sympathetic, however mainly in regards to Fuyuhiko, he's so remorseless(until 2-3) about what he did to Hiyoko and Mahiru as opposed to Peko's obvious guilt and I'm supposed to care because he loves Peko? Yeah no the second he referred to the girl he got murdered because of his bad temper "that bitch" i lost all sympathy i had and it didn't come back until the seppuku scene. Onto 2-3, i agree, if Hiyoko had to die there(though i hate this writing decision so much, Soda should have died instead,), I'm glad it was for a wrong place wrong time thing as opposed to Mikan's (justified) dislike for her because the fanbase already glorify her death enough as karma, when nothing Hiyoko did to Mikan, was close to what Mikan did to her, As expected a very well written and interesting video on my fourth(tied with ironically enough Ibuki and Hiyoko, I cannot stress enough how painful it was to lose my fav and second fav in 2-2 and then my joint fourth fav's in 2-3) favourite character in the series, its always lovely to see all of her flaws and positives pointed out and there's so much effort put into it :)

[@supportmain8509]

Mikan was surprisingly pretty usefull in the class trials. I would have liked to see her survive

[@sky1846]

Aaaaaaa I'm here for this!!! There is so much that I like about Mikan (for example, saving the trial in C1 by being the first to argue that Nagito was not the killer, rushing off to help everyone who was struck with the disease...) and even though I think she could have been written a lot better in places, she is still a cool character! And I want to give her a hug honestly

[@softie_vinyl]

as someone who's been through what mikan has and who personally disagrees with how she's represented I love how you presented this. now do I like mikan as a character? no. do I respect your opinion on her because you gave reasons as to why and didn't just say "mikan baby she traumatize oogabooga"? yes. keep up the good work🌸

[@rockheart2002]

Mikan snapping also made me like her more. She's definitely a top character for me. Although, I did figure out that she eventually murdered because my siblings hated her and I had no clue why they would ever hate such an adorable character, unless she did a murder.

[@zookeeps1340]

idk if the video mentions this cos I haven't watched it but I do want to mention that Mikan does share some common traits with people who suffer from Histrionic Personality Disorder; 1.Uncomfortable when not the centre of attention (this is mainly in her fanservice scenes which are gross af) 2.seductive or provocitave behaviour (see the fanservice scenes) 3.using apperance to draw attention (seems like a shy quiet girl who constantly needs help thus becoming the center of attention) 4.suggestible (this is more of a despair disease thing but like idk, this isn't a solid point admittedly) 5.considers relationships more intimate than they are (see her crawling into bed with Hajime) and there is also; Shifting and shallow emotions & Dramatic or exaggerated emotions (however to my knowledge you need at the bare minimum 5 of the following criteria to be diagnosed and Mikan does just that) *the causes of Histrionic Personality Disorder are unknown, and more women are diagnosed than men as well (although there might be more men who just are undiagnosed) I am also going to say that I am unaware of if people with HPD care if the attention is positive or negative or if any attention will do (Mikan does imply [?] that she would rather have negative attention drawn to her than her simply being forgotten) Of course I will also say the idea that people with personality disorders being villains is wrong on so many levels (if the reason why they are bad is because they have a personality disorder) and that Mikan in canon is not stated as having HPD but it would explain some of her behaviours

[@Loopimay]

Mikan is literally my favorite character of ALL of Danganronpa, so excited for this video!

[@Futaba_Fan4444]

Wow, I knew about her trama but I never looked at it with this depth nor this closeness to an unbiased opinion. Aeris you’ve got a sub. I enjoyed the video, love the depth in which you dive down to lore. Again, you’re near unbiased. Gotta love ya for it!! I’ll check out your other videos. And I’ll stick around even if this I your last one on Daganrompa. If you ever questioned yourself if this was good enough? Or if you were waisting your time. This indeed shows the level of a Dr.’s deg in knowledge and understanding. And I indeed believe this was a blessed usage of your time that you were so kind to share with us.

[@Futaba_Fan4444]

The video is still awesome though

[@iamabox2478]

I was so happy to see this when I logged onto yt just now, I've always found her so captivating, pre-chapter 3 and after! From watching the vids about Akane, Kirumi, Kokichi, Angie and Celes I know this'll be good :)

[@bclubofawesomeness2894]

The comment about minecraft was very appreciated, I was looking away and was glad you told me before putting something on the screen ☺️

[@Myheartz4u]

THE DESCRIPTION IS SENDING ME HELP, ALSO CANT WAIT FOR THE PREMIRE TO START

[@courtiusmaximus5150]

I love Mikan and, because of your video I love her even more. She's also my 2nd favorite character.

[@meganmccarthy595]

Wonderfully said! Honestly, i think Mikan is one of the character in danganronpa who requires a lot of analysing. She is definitely a character who gets taken the wrong way and she deserves a lot better then what she gets.😀

[@overlyfixated21]

I've never thought about her like this, thank you :)

[@nadiaabdulrahman_]

I have no idea how to explain this but I agree on a very high level with this video, I LOVE the light that you shined on Mikan and honestly I love how you generally analize characters in a way that I never thought about, keep up the good work Ig idk man👌🏼

[@missgalaxia14]

The similarities between me and Mikan (bullying, being okay with said bullying as long as we’re useful, ppl pleasing, etc) made me realize I needed to go to therapy

[@goroakechi6126]

Admittedly, I came in with lowered expectations after the delays. I kind of expected less, just due to Aeris not having a lot of time on their hands with everything that had gone on in the meantime. Never before have I been so happy to be so very wrong. As someone who also holds Mikan as one of, if not my favorite SDR2 character, all of this was fantastic character dissection, especially the FTEs, or “I’ve had Hajime for a day and a half but if anything happens to him I will go sicko mode on all of you”. Honestly, I’d say this is probably their best work to date, maybe rivaled with the Kokichi dissection. I cannot wait for The Hunted to come out!

[@spiffymiddleschooler36]

Something I also feel like should be brought up about her character is that she was based on a serial killer nurse who would climb into bed with their victims and suffocate them, which is eerily similar to what she did in Chapter 3 leading up to the events where Hiyoko and Ibuki are discovered dead

[@DetectiveNyx]

is there a source on this? /gen

[@spiffymiddleschooler36]

@@DetectiveNyx Maybe I got false info, I was looking for it but I can't find it :/

[@OhSeeBarber]

@@spiffymiddleschooler36 me when i spread misinformation

[@natsuki7325]

@@OhSeeBarber lol

[@arlequinelunaire418]

I think the reason why people don't like the Despair Disease as a motive is not because it's unfair, but because it's kinda lazy from a writing standpoint. Given it makes you act OOC, the usual question of 'What would drive someone to kill?' that makes things interesting gets thrown out. That said, having Mikan recall her past self rather than just flip her current self makes the Despair Disease not too lazy in this case Also, when I see Mikan's 'killer revealed' image (at 16:55) I still can't help but think of Ross Geller killing Squidward in an Applebees restroom

[@spinjitzumasterfalcon]

7:29 Ironically I was doing Stop motion. But after watching this video, I feel a bit less hate towards Mikan. I mean, I don't like her, but I do appreciate you shedding some light on her. And I agree, nobody deserves to be traumatized. As an introvert myself, I can connect to her in some way.

[@modchanishere]

The video really helped me to get a better understanding of mikan and really really really like the complexity of Mikan more now. A better appreciation.. Though I also feel like my initial unsureness towards Mikan was because of people who would defend all aspects of her Grey morality as just and completely okay because Mikan has been abused so therefore, it’s only her right. .. which may just be my general discomfort to the enabling that it’s okay for mentally ill people (me included) to be cruel and terrible

[@hitsuxhitsu5009]

Ok, so i know this video is about mikan, but you've mention gundham few times, so... it's complicated. From what i understand his way of thinking was "i'm gonna kill, so i'll survive, but even if i failed, others will survive, so either way it's better to do that than to do nothing and die from hunger" and for his brutality, nekomaru was a big ass robot, he literally survived a direct hit from this mega man gun or whatever that was, i feel like going all out was kinda necessary to kill him

[@pretty.much..]

I like the escape from the danganronpa outro

[@saturnsmoon9529]

I love mikan she is my favorite Danganronpa character

[@LOVEUGYARU]

a little late to this one i know, but i think part of the reason mikan picked ibuki and hiyoko as victims was because they were her last remaining friends from the twilight murder game thing. it would make the kills be a lot less random, as she couldve killed them because killing her friends would bring the most despair, or something of the sort. shame the idea is never brought up at all, i dont even know if it was intentional but its the best explanation i can come up with. its more interesting then a random kill + collateral damage imo at least

[@kiru___]

mikan is one of my favs, a lot abt her is interesting. by far, having power over people is extremely in character, and especially now considering the whole *_you know_*

[@vacheraise]

Holy- you just made me love Mikan as a character even more

[@eeveemiscellaneous8270]

I do recommend trying to find the SDR2 Stage play cause some of the acting (especially Mikan's) is great. And the changes are fascinating

[@rodneylane952]

Finally some Mikan love, her case isn't my favorite due how the double murder is usually jumbled but the switch in her personality during the trial is almost as good as Nagito's during the first trial. And plus her Free Time and Island Mode really fleshes her out like you said, Mikan deserves better. Also Gundham deserves better, he hid Nekomaru death because if he just made it obvious that he killed, then he'd be a hypocrite in his own eyes. He killed in order to save everyone because he found the thought of them reserving themselves to death was absurd, if he made it obvious he killed, he'd also be reserving himself to death. It's why he also had a legitimate fight with Nekomaru instead of sneakily killing him.

[@DetectiveNyx]

with gundam, i very much understand his mindset, but his mindset is still really screwed up when applied to brutal murder and doesn't mesh with his 'save everyone' goal at all

[@rodneylane952]

@@DetectiveNyx That is a fair point to make, murder is still murder

[@carjis]

As for Mikan, I do think all the despair shit she does is likely based in repressed behavior that wasn’t deemed “useful” to anyone but her, which would be “selfish” but then conflates that with actual selfish things.

[@denisapasca154]

I liked Mikan becausd of her talent. I want to be a nurse too. Yes she can be really weird but that is what I like about her. I know she is not perfect but I find myself similar to her in some ways, especially being shy and over councious about making other feels uncomfortable :)

[@loveparasite]

people often forget that gundhams kill is extremely similar to what would've happened if sayaka killed leon, if sayaka had succeeded then during her trial she would have struggled to choose between saving herself or saving everyone else (since she didn't know everyone else would die beforehand) gundham and nekomaru both knew what they were getting into (nekomaru knew they were going to fight to the death and didn't run away) they both knew that if nobody killed then everyone would starve to death, and delusional from the lack of food probably took this opportunity to save everyone (I know sewerslide would've meant less deaths but I don't think any of them were ready to do that yet) in her trial, if sayaka survived, then she would've been faced with the choice of dying or killing her classmates. likely leading to her admitting later into the trial. this hypothesis is almost identical to what happened to gundham. obviously he hesitated to sacrifice himself because he didn't have a death wish. after being found out he didn't seem angered or distressed he kept (mainly) calm and like his usual self, implying that he knew what was coming for him. random rant ig but as a sayaka, nekomaru and gundham fan I felt the need to comment hahaha(´-﹏-`；)

[@JAnne_Bonne]

I also like to think he wanted them to fight to keep living like he had to against Nekomaru. Just laying down and dying was already their plan when trapped in the Funhouse, so who's to say they were _really_ willing to keep going if the winner of the duel said outright they did it. No, it was no sacrifice. He was still fighting, and he wanted everyone to fight back. That's also why the final argument was what it was. Gundham didn't want to be labeled a coward or a martyr or anything of the sort. He was fighting from the start and whether he won or lost, he wanted them to know it.

[@rowynyerboat1146]

I always felt part of Gundham's motives for not immediately coming clean is that he felt (both from his backstory and in the persona he developed on the Island) that he had to keep up the villain persona. If they felt he was a remorseless monster who murdered Nekomaru to escape or in cold blood, then the rest of them would have no regrets in sacrificing him and moving on. If he had come clean right away, it would have been much more of a moral dilemma for the group. Not to say he wouldn't have minded getting away on his own, but I'd always felt that he'd rather be demonized for the greater good than be labeled a coward or a softy.

[@akira5710]

gotta love sneaky Corpse Party references in my favorite character analysis essays. keep up the good work.

[@ItsShaz1]

Thank you for the video Aeris! Mikan’s character is misunderstood. She’s one of my favourites.

[@MissMariss]

mikan is my favorite and one of my highest kins i love her sm

[@congobongoproductions5476]

What a masterpiece of a video... And what an absolute masterpiece of a description XDDD Kudos to you, and much love Aeris

[@hunterofcomedy]

Your mentioning of liking Mikan even more after her selfish and dark tendencies were revealed really reminded me of why I love Celeste from the first game. Sure, there are psychological reasons that Celeste did what she did, due to stress, anxiety, etc. But overall, the fact that she flat out said she wasn't the kind of person who enjoyed dragging things out once she knew she'd lost...that always stuck with me and made me love her character. So I get where you're coming from about Mikan. Personally, I just didn't enjoy Mikan's character from the beginning. Her FTEs were very good and I enjoyed learning more about her, but she's just not that interesting to me. I'm not 100% sure why, but I think it has to do with the fact that constantly wanted to be 'forgiven' and 'needed' that just bothered me. I think it's because I feel that same way sometimes, albeit very differently, in that I need other people's approval because I have a hard time convincing myself of my own self worth. She reminded me of something I hate about myself, and I disliked her for it. And I only realized that because of your video. So thank you for that. I do find her character enjoyable, but they definitely could have done more with her imo, especially where her execution is concerned. Why the hell does she fly into space on a 'penis rocket' (as my best friend so lovingly put it)? She deserved a better ending than that for her amazing character.

[@aceisdead5477]

I am excited to see this. I honestly really like Mikan. She is probably in my top 10. I dont get why people even hate her. I guess because of people whining over their favourite character getting killed by her. And i dont think that is a good enough reason to hate a character. For example Korekiyo killed Angie who is one of my most favorites. But i still find Korekiyo a cool character.

[@cozycozy5088]

yknow, never played danganronpa. never watched anything about it. this video however, amazing. top tier. very interesting. good job aeris.

[@galaxygal1210]

Help I was listening to this in the background while playing minecraft, how did they know

[@JJumbie]

The "Junko yanking on her spinal cord" made me bust out laughing-

[@hkazu63]

I can’t lie that Mikan is a character I don’t particularly like. Thats a lot on my personal preference. I understand her trauma but that doesn’t mean I like her for it. But I would never deny anything about her being an excellent character and a very necessary part of the game. Mikan is one of the single most important characters in SDR2 and the tragedy about her is one of the best pieces that the story can offer. Love her or hate her, Mikan Tsumiki is SDR2; it wouldn’t be the same game we love without her.

[@QuynhNguyen-gp4ti]

Honestly, after chapter 6, chapter 3 is my next favorite chapter in sdr2, from start to finish (maybe because my favorite character is hajime and chapter 6 gives me more emotional whiplash than anything else but chapter 3 comes the closest to this aspect). Hell chapter 3 can be made into its own horror OVA and I will watch the heck out of it because the circumstances and the buildups from "someone has to move on from the deaths of someone important to them" while supernatural-ish stuff keep happening around them makes for a good thriller movie (it even has 2 jumpscares). The things I mostly heard people refer to chapter 3 is: fuyuhiko's redemption arc, hiyoko's wasted potential, and its trial sucks. But honestly the most memorable thing to me in chapter 3 is the helpless situation the kids find themselves in and Mikan carries that whole chapter. Like she keeps going back and forth between 3 patients and the most Fuyuhiko and Hajime could do is keep an eye on Akane and Ibuki so Mikan can keep Nagito breathing. The hopelessness and tiredness the 3 kids feel is so depressing I wanna hug the hell out of them. And seeing Hajime expressing his care for Mikan by repeatedly asking her to go rest and Akane expressing her gratefulness for Mikan by defending her because she took care of Akane is very heartwarming and sad at the same time. Maybe because I'm a Hajime trash so I payed more attention to him but Hinamiki interactions and fallouts in this chapter also mirror Komahina in chapter 1. Like Mikan and Hajime kinda become a duo in this chapter with some romantic undertone, he cares for her and gets worried about her wellbeing, he trusts her so much but the reveal of her "true" character and her getting 2 people killed throw him into a deep hole, exactly like how Komaeda gained Hajime's trust in chapter 1 only to shatter that trust (unintentionally) after he got Imposter and Teruteru killed. So, yeah, another parallel between Mikan and Nagito. I like Hinamiki but more in a sibling type of relationship because Hajime is one dense mf when it comes to romance but his trust for Mikan and in turn, Mikan can be herself around him is very cute, but because the circumstances leading to the "proposal" in island mode kinda creeps me out with her intention about Hajime, I would say before romance, just give her therapy first. Also on a very stretched out note I do have a feeling Hajime used to got bullied in his old school because of his kinda superior complex over his peers (and he did get bullied by Nagito later in the game) so he could understand to some extent how Mikan feels. (His DR3 self is like the milder version of both Nagito and Mikan like honestly) Besides Hajime, I also appreciate Mikan's relationship with Ibuki although it's a kinda you have to squint to see situation, but Ibuki dragged her out to eat at the diner in chapter 2 and invited her to the firework event in chapter 3 is cute. Chiaki gaming with Mikan is cute. Mikan taking care of Akane's wounds and during her despair state is cute. I know we tend to overlook DR3 because indeed some of the writings are trash but 2 Mikan highlights for me is her relationship with Imposter and her hesitation before shoving Chiaki to her death. Like I just wish more people show Mikan that she is appreciated like the way Hajime in the game and Imposter in the anime did way sooner. And her hesitation before shoving Chiaki showed that even in her despair state, she still found herself wanting not to go through with this because she cares about Chiaki. And like she freaking cry when Hiyoko, her bully, thanks her. Someone please hug her. That being said, she still have some morally gray qualities within her like how she enjoys her power over the weaker and her willing to incapacitate Hajime enough to depend on her for the rest of his life, or her....hyper sexuality (not a bad thing but sometimes making me feel uncomfortable). That's why I don't agree with people woobify her but also I don't agree with people hating her because "she's weak/she cries all the time". Some people justify Hiyoko bullies her because "Hiyoko sees her weak past self in Mikan" or "Hiyoko wants Mikan to be stronger" rubs me the wrong way because I don't freaking care about the bully's backstory or their intention, bullies are still bullies. Some people reacts to bullies by fighting back but with Mikan enjoying her power over the sick people, I do thing she did fight back and realize it's useless. Also like the second Hiyoko cries, someone will defend her, if anything I think Mikan would pick up this from Hiyoko and be like how to gain more sympathy? Why fighting back when you can cry and someone will care for you. Sadly, maybe besides Sonia, Mahiru and Hajime, no one cares for her. I enjoy Mikan a lot and thank you for this video

[@SmileOfA-Dreamer]

OMG YES. FINALLY! I’VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS! 😃