Asagiri Said It Himself: He Intentionally Left Out The Core Of Dazai's Character And We Never Really

YES. It feels like so many people entirely miss the point of Dead Apple, saying "it's not that important but Dazai and Chuuya." Like, the entire point of the movie is the fact that the whole time, Atsushi doesn't want to kill anyone. He doesn't understand why they'd have to resolve to killing, and more importantly, his power wouldn't come back to him because he hasn't truly accepted it. And then, he learns that he did kill, as a matter of fact. He killed because of the power of the tiger. He killed because he wanted to survive, something which has always been a main point of Atsushi's character. And only after that does he become ok with his power and what it did for him, and only after that is he ok with killing Shibusawa. But noooooo, the entire movie is just about that one scene.

Half the fandom overlooking Atsushis lore for that one skk scene

(Atsushi lore repost because I know how to tag now)

I bet Chuuya was terrified of dentists when he first joined the Mafia.

Because like. He grew up on the streets. I doubt any of them ever exactly got health insurance.

So the first time Mori informed him what a dentist was and how often he was required to go, he actually freaked out.

Chuuya: what do you mean you sit in a chair and let a stranger tamper around inside of you?!

Mori: It's just your teeth, Chuuya, and it's required.

He won't refuse an order, so he goes, terrified. And the second he enters and sees the chair he immediately starts "Oh grantors of dark disgrace-"

Only for Dazai to show up because Mori made him tag along in case Chuuya tried to get out of it. He had to stand there the whole time, because if he let go, Chuuya's power would destroy the office on its own.

And even though he's become used to it by now, Dazai will never. ever. stop making fun of how terrified he was that first visit, nor will he ever let him live it down.

They're on a mission, and Chuuya's trying to be intimidating. Only for Dazai to tell the enemy, "oh, don't be scared of this chibi. He peed his pants the first time he went to the dentist." (he did not. or at least, he claims he didn't. We'll never know the true story).

Needless to say, Chuuya made sure that any enemy who Dazai told didn't live to share the info. Which may have been Dazai's plan all along, it's hard to say. Either way, no matter how much time has passed, Dazai still can't resist making fun of him for him once in a while.

And after the mersault arc, when Chuuya couldn't get the fangs out, he may or may not have said "Oh no, perhaps you should go to a dentist-"

Chuuya kicked him in his broken leg.

A Mysterious Thing Called "The Heart": Akutagawa’s Evolution in Bungo Stray Dogs and again not too detailed but a lot of THOUGHTS

In the latest chapters of Bungo Stray Dogs, Akutagawa Ryuunosuke’s character arc has reached a profound turning point (well it usually does, he has a slow and gradual and good development.) After losing his memories or so it seems, he only regains them in the wake of Atsushi’s self-sacrifice, an event that carries immense weight given their history. This development not only ties back to recurring themes in Akutagawa’s story but also resonates with Asagiri’s earlier work on him, particularly the short story The Heartless Cur. The significance of this title alone—"cur" referring to a stray dog, an outcast—echoes his core struggle with identity, worth, and the pursuit of strength. Now, with the latest manga title, A Mysterious Thing Called "The Heart", we see the final steps of this journey: the realization of what it means to protect, to be selfless, and to truly understand one’s own heart.

The Struggle for Worth: From The Heartless Cur to not quite understanding The Mysterious Heart

Akutagawa has long been plagued by the idea that only the strong have value. His harsh upbringing in the slums and Dazai’s ruthless mentorship reinforced this belief, leading him to adopt a mindset where power dictated one’s worth. The Heartless Cur explores this concept deeply, portraying Akutagawa as someone whose existence is defined by violence and survival. The title itself suggests a being without purpose beyond its primal instincts—an apt metaphor for the way Akutagawa saw himself.

Yet, in the present timeline, something shifts. Akutagawa’s repeated confrontations with Atsushi force him to acknowledge a different kind of strength—one rooted not in destruction and not just in protection, but from within oneself. This realization is crucial, as it reframes his view on what it means to live and fight, and importantly get rid of the Dazai obsession to which I am glad he lost that coat, which to me in a way is like the "watch" in beast for Atsushi. The title of the newest chapter, A Mysterious Thing Called "The Heart", directly contrasts his previous mindset. Where once he believed himself heartless, unworthy, and merely a weapon, he now finds himself understanding the weight of sacrifice, the worth of another’s life, and, ultimately, the meaning of his own (hopefully asagiri doesn't mess this up, but I believe in him so I'm sure all will turn out great just with a lot of lore dump and excessive plot armor with no deaths until wayyy later on. Ahem, but anyways.)

From Selfishness to Selflessness: The Parallel Between Akutagawa and Atsushi

One of the most striking aspects of Akutagawa’s sacrifice is how it mirrors Atsushi’s own. Both characters have operated on deeply ingrained selfish desires—Akutagawa seeking validation through strength, Atsushi yearning for affirmation that he deserves to live through saving. Now I know I mentioned this before, and I keep mentioning it, because to me its important to add. Their growth has always been intertwined, clashing and evolving through their battles. However, the defining moment of Akutagawa’s return to consciousness—when Atsushi sacrifices himself and repeats Akutagawa’s words—highlights a crucial transformation: their shift from selfishness to selflessness. In both of them in a way, even if Atsushi has put his life on the line to save others before it was not quite like he did here, without activating his ability (we're not sure if he really could or couldn't in the moment but lets add that here anyways.) to save Akutagawa at the expense of his own life and survival just as Akutagawa did for him, sacrificing his own life, his own selfish need for survival even if he stated he does not mind death for the knowing the value of anothers' life. I know I said this before too but just let me write.

It’s a moment of complete reversal and similarity as these Yin-Yang boys have always shown, proving that the rival enemies have truly come to understand each other. Akutagawa regaining his memories at this precise moment reinforces the idea that it was just that big of a deal and how impactful his own sacrifice and development was and it shows the same for Atsushi.

The Role of Rashomon: A Shield and a Blade

Rashomon has always been more than just an offensive ability. While it is known for its terrifying destructive power, its defensive capabilities reveal another side of Akutagawa’s character. This duality—destruction and protection—mirrors his own self. Initially, he wielded Rashomon purely as a weapon of aggression, but as he evolved, so too did his ability’s purpose. When he shields not just Rashomon shielding himself but when he raises his blade for others, this is a huge change - though I believe Knight Aku has much to explain especially I hope asagiri tells us if this is a singularity of bram and akutagawa or not. Which may take months. 

This theme of protection is not new. In 55 Minutes, after dying in flames, Akutagawa retained memories that should have been erased—a testament to how deeply certain experiences impact him. Likewise, in his vampire state, he still exhibited a sense of control, sparing Aya and ultimately keeping his promise despite being under mind control. Now I know when it said the heartless dog/emotionless child felt emotion for the first time it was hatred before going on that killing spree. But after all this it does show. These moments underscore a crucial truth: Akutagawa has always had a heart, even when he believed himself heartless or is shown to be.  (I will write more on this in another post, I know I keep saying that too, but it will happen and it will have to do with an interesting thing of Akutagawa's character being written and possibly shown in the "Rashomon Effect" you can research it if you don't know it already.)

The Weight of Words: From the Trembling Dark World

Akutagawa’s theme song, From the Trembling Dark World, captures the essence of his character’s struggles at least what they used to be. The lyrics paint a picture of someone who has always been fighting—against the world, against himself, against the fear of being weak:

"A longing as strong as 

A reason to live even when I’m unable to breathe

From the trembling dark world, always." It may not specifically be his reason to live but this says its "a longing as strong as a reason to live." This reflects the pain and determination that have defined his journey. The idea of pressing forward despite suffering is central to his story, but not just that but it shows just how important again that longing for approval and to be told he is strong and worthy to live is, which we all know funnily enough is what he mocked atsushi for before. Though they are so the same and different and I could go on forever about every little detail of their sentences to each other but not now, unfortunately. Another significant line is:

"Unreachable no matter how much I writhe."

Dazai’s influence is evident here (when is it not when it comes to Akutagawa?). Akutagawa was shaped by the expectation that he had to be strong to matter, that to stop moving forward was to be left behind. Yet, the lyrics also suggest a yearning for something beyond this endless struggle.

The song’s repetitive line is particularly poignant:

"Weak, weak and it's not enough."

This shows us a lot, or well kind of, within the last chapter in the manga and besides his endless yearning for strength and Dazais acknowledgement which is meant by this line in the song back probably around 8 or more years ago... His willingness to die not for power or recognition but for someone else’s survival is the ultimate proof that he has changed. The once "heartless cur" has found his heart—not in words, but in action. Funnily enough before he died he had a nice conversation with Fukuchi on what his last words would be, and he said he prefers actions, but what do we get... "Away with you...you fool." 

Lets also not forget how important this cycles and webs are of connection, manipulation, abuse etc. But considering that, remember how Akutagawa threatened Kyouka with getting thrown into a dark world/slums? How he described it... Well I need to re-read and get a better perspective or coherent thoughts on it but I'm sure it was said that Dazai threatened him with the same thing, to be sent back if he didn't do good. Which would of course make Akutagawa all the more "grateful" for being taken in and trained to be "strong" because like he's seen all his life only the strong survive, and the worthy get to live at the "top" of the world. Its funny how this kind of even gets added into his likes as the things he likes are very refined so to say, to show he is no longer down there. But I see how Dazai probably saw a piece of himself in Akutagawa, killing, empty eyes, looking for a reason to live - and decided to try and give him one in the way he knew too. At that time Dazai was in the Port Mafia he was a very different Dazai from the ADA one, his methods and his ideas...all quite different that its obvious what happened there with him and Akutagawa. And how Akutagawa saw himself in Kyoula (interesting she was 11 or around there when she joined wasn't it or was it 12-13? similarly to when dazai found Akutagawa) he said he saw the same eyes he knows, because he too had the same eyes. But now she has found the light, and a reason for living besides killing, a place to belong that doesn't hurt her constantly. (While he got that yes, but the place he belonged was void of the person he was waiting for approval from, and it definitely did not help in his mental state and health or help him much in any ways as the ADA did for Kyouka as we see his eyes are still the same, dark but now with determination.

Also a random mention to later chapters just because Akutagawas eyes are important to me (as everything in his character is important to me.) 

And perhaps, in the end, he was never truly heartless—he just needed someone to remind him that his heart was always there, waiting to be acknowledged. Kind of like Yosano who was used for her ability, but never had her kindness acknowledged until Ranpo invited her to the Agency. 

(Also random thing to add but I enjoy canon way too much to consume too much fanon content so I prefer keeping away most of the time so I can keep my thoughts and theories/analysis of things clear and to do with canon so things don't get blurred or messed up or have mischaracterization or information errors. But if you do find any or have anything to say about it please do.)

I wrote before about his eyes in another post probably twice or more times as I always like mentioning it... But just to add:

On a side note I feel like Harukawa was talking about Tanizaki who we know will soon probably have more relevance with Naomi or something.

His eyes always turn completely dark. And he was said to be good enough to be in the mafia before. Not to mention when Yosano said she wouldn't go back he offered to go. And reading back Harukawa said that mostly those in the PM are like this. But anyways. Hope the rambling ended up alright, I'll end the series of thoughts and analyzing for now.

~ Hope your brain isn't as fried as mine, end of The Akutagawa Fan, Charkoala, Caldera posting until the next few hours.

I love how every time Fyodor opens his mouth to speak in the last few chapters Atsushi's face is just like "No no no no shut up shut up SHUT UP-"

Unfortunately, he does not.

I really, really hate when people say that Dazai doesn't care about Akutagawa and that he never did.

Don't get me wrong: I'm not saying that what Dazai did to him was right, nor that it was justified. He treated him awfully, he abused him, and I'm not trying to insinuate that his treatment was fair, or that his motives excuse the actions. But what I am trying to say is that the motivation behind it wasn't cruelty, both in the past and present.

For starters, this is the interaction when they first met, from the short story The Heartless Cur:

He told him right off the bat that he wouldn't be treating him well. He never forced Akutagawa into anything, and even offered to give him and his sister enough money to live the rest of their lives content, never to hear from him again. But he told Akutagawa he might be able to give him a reason to live-something the boy had been lacking his whole life. By giving him a "master" as the short story says, someone to look up to and follow. Again, the way he was treated was brutal, but Dazai's intentions weren't evil.

Now, I don't want to do a "Dumbledore said calmly" meme, BUT... check out the difference between this scene in the anime vs this scene in the Dark Era light novel (apologies if the audio sync got a little messed up)

Dazai sounds frustrated, like Akutagawa isn't worth the breath it takes to speak of him. But vs the light novel...

Yeah. Pretty different. This scene came after the one where Dazai punched and shot Akutagawa for killing the soldiers, forcing Akutagawa to learn to use his ability in a way he never had before. And then now- "Dazai grinned from ear to ear" - that sounds a lot like he's proud rather than ashamed. He clearly does think Akutagawa is powerful (as Atsushi says later on, Dazai acknowledged him long ago). And then he admits that he truly feels he could be powerful, and that Akutagawa would destroy himself had he not stepped in to train him.

Now. This doesn't make what he did right, and we see from Beast how Akutagawa might have turned out if someone like Oda had been the one to find him and take care of him. But the fact of the matter is, Dazai believed he was doing this for Akutagawa's own good. And this was the world he lived in; Dazai was incapable of treating someone like Akutagawa well in the place he was in mentally. He saw his own darkness in him, and therefore, couldn't treat him the same way he could Odasaku and Ango. But he did care for him, and more importantly, he wanted to help him learn to stop killing.

Which brings us to the present.

Dazai's actions towards Akutagawa, especially at the beginning of the series, are of a different nature than they were in the past. He doesn't hit him, but he riles him up. Tells him Atsushi is better than him with the intent that he'd go after him brutally. Hangs up on him, makes him desire Dazai's approval, essentially manipulating him in both the finales of season two and three, as well as in season five. And this is for one reason that is expressed in beast: he believes that Akutagawa and Atsushi would work extremely well together, but that they'd need to fight in order for their souls to truly connect and for that trust to be built up. Dazai admits that he'd been considering them as duo since the moment he met Atsushi-which proves he never forgot about Akutagawa, or even considered him second rate in terms of power. But he felt that he needed to push Akutagawa in order for the two of them to connect, putting both of them in danger, yes, because he knows that the two of them possess strengths that balance the other out, both in literal attacks and in their philosophies. Which is why he looked so happy at the end of season three when Atsushi tells him about the deal with Akutagawa not killing for six months. Atsushi was able to reach out to Akutagawa in a way Dazai never believed himself capable, even if he had to manipulate both subordinates to achieve it. And again, this isn't to say that Dazai is right for using the both of them like that, or treating Akutagawa like dirt in order to force a relationship with Atsushi. But it wasn't down of out malice or apathy, that Dazai never truly cared for him and only for Atsushi. Because if that were true, he wouldn't bother to have them work together the way he did. It also comes down to the fact that Dazai himself grew as a person since he met Akutagawa. And this is most evident in the finale of season two, when he puts his hand on Akutagawa's shoulders, smiles genuinely and says "you have become strong." Only after does Akutagawa temper his anger and desire to kill to work with Atsushi to protect the city, Dazai calls him strong in more ways than one. Because all he ever wanted for Akutagawa was, in a way, what Odasaku and the rest of the agency was telling him in beast: to control the raging beast inside of him before it consumes him.

This isn't to say that the abuse was justified. That it was ok for Dazai to insult him and use him in order to achieve his goals. But I really hate when people say that Dazai never cared for Akutagawa, because at the end of the day, it's not true. And that's what really hurts the most about abuse-most of the time, it's done out of love than malice.

I really like how the unwritten message of Beast is that anyone could become anyone given the circumstances they were put into. Atsushi could become a murderer, Akutagawa could learn to tame the beast inside of him when surrounded by good people. It questions the idea that people are innately good or innately evil. Because while yes, Atsushi is a murderer burdened by guilt and fear, and Akutagawa is a detective who lacks a drive for helping people and has no qualms resorting to...unsavory methods to get results, at the end, we see that despite Akutagawa being told he's meant to be evil, he STILL wants to try to learn. To learn how to live a good life, learn how to tame the beast. And at the end of the day, while Atsushi still wants to protect people, he learns to kill them without a moment's hesitation. The only person he can protect is Kyouka, and he is almost TOO protective of her. I just think it's really cool that you can take these characters, one who is "innately good" and one that's "innately evil" and switch their circumstances, and you can see how they'd really end up. How a good person can become a murderer when surrounded by evil, how a bad person can quench the thirst for vengeance inside of him when surrounded by good people.

"Akutagawa is Atsushi's foil" yeah but you know who else is?

Dazai.

Atsushi and Dazai are really good parallels in a way that doesn't ever get talked about. Atsushi saved Dazai from dying in the moment that he decided he was going to live. Everything Atsushi does, everything that drives him, is his utter desire to live. Sure, sometimes he may doubt his own right to do so, but to him, life is the most beautiful thing he wants to be worthy of.

Dazai, on the other hand, is driven by his desire to die. He searches for a way out, even if he never goes through with it. He doesn't see the value of life, not in him and not in most others.

That's one of the things that attracted Odasaku to him, and now Atsushi. Because as much as Dazai never valued life, he values people who value life. Chuuya, Odasaku, Atsushi, even Ango he chose to befriend when learning that he was writing the names of all the dead. That's why Atsushi is so precious—it's someone he could learn from, maybe to find his own will to live.

The boy who desires life while his mentor desires death. And their relationship is somehow one of the most wholesome in the whole series.

There's something so interesting about how the ADA is associated with cats the PM is compared to dogs.

How there's Atsushi, who is quite literally a cat (sorry, tiger). How Fukuzawa, the president of the Agency, is obsessed with cats and caring for them.

While characters in the Mafia are dogs. There's Akutagawa, the Rabid Dog of the port mafia. Chuuya, who's loyalty could be considered dogmatic. Who literally wears a choker, or "dog collar."

And then there's the fact that Odasaku constantly compares Dazai to a cat, especially in The Day I Picked Up Dazai. Like a subtle hint that Dazai doesn't belong with the Mafia. As a matter of fact, he hates dogs. He belongs with the Agency, the ones who are associated with cats.

Sometimes, I think about the fact that Odasaku and Atsushi were the only two people Dazai really cared about to ever ask why he wanted to die. (Oda in The Day I Picked Up Dazai and Atsushi in 55 minutes). Kunikida and Chuuya just acknowledged it and believed it to be a part of him. But Odasaku and now Atsushi wanted to know why. They wanted to understand him because they truly care about him and see his goodness more than anyone else and alifodishfsdlfd

So like.

If that's not Fyodor, does that mean Nikolai is just hugging some random dude's hand???

Just wondering.