By forcing them to forgive Akechi instantly, the game undermines itself and their characters. It stings that the victims are Futaba and Haru in particular, because their stories centred around finding their voice and reclaiming their right to be angry at those who have wronged them. The heinousness of his crimes add more weight to the cruelty he suffered, because what in the world could motivate a fifteen year old to commit murder and willingly destroy another child’s life?Īkechi himself is an incredibly compelling character that I could enjoy: the problem is that now, he’s only come to represent the inability of media to allow girls to be angry at anyone other than safe, designated targets.

In essence, his character is meant to show the tragedy of how those who are traumatized by the system are isolated from help and one another. Akechi fell to the desperation of his situation, while Joker went on to fight for the sake of his friends, and by extension, others who were also victimized by the system. The game demonstrates that this one difference- solitude or companionship- makes all the difference between a hero and a villain. The only difference is that Joker managed to find like-minded souls to share this power and responsibility with, while Akechi remained alone. The beginnings of their stories are very similar: both are dealt unjust hands by an unsympathetic system, then abruptly given an incredible power to influence others. The thing is, he’s written as a foil to Joker in order to drive home a major theme of the game: the importance of human connection in an unjust world.

Persona 5 goro