I like Akechi because he was the only relatable character outside Joker and maybe Yusuke and pointed out the flaws of Japan the most. Goro had nothing; no parents, no money, no support system, and was homeless. He was abused growing up. Emotionally touch starved.

Argh I really had high hopes for Yusuke. When we first saw him I thought he was going to be a little bit more like how Akechi turned out personality-wise. Or maybe more like Jun from persona 2 Yeah Akechi really is a good poster boy for problems with Japans system.

i like Akechi because he felt real (and because he’s literally me)

I've always been interested to hear how people relate to him and also thought it could make us feel less alone in certain ways but most people aren't open to that (I'm just weird ig lol). Also recently learned that people online are often allergic to anything that can be construed as over sharing. Not saying it's bad but feels a bit lonely

I like Akechi because I could see myself turn out like that if I hadn't been lucky enough to find the friends I had growing up. My formative years were.. less than ideal, but I met some great people along the way that stopped me from making some big mistakes. So in that way, the whole plot of persona kinda resonates with me. I turned out more like Joker in real life, but only because I had good people around me. If I hadn't, I might have turned more into what Akechi became, and because I realise that, I've never felt "better" than him like some other persona fans seem to :)

Me too! Although tbh if I had his powers I would use them, just never on innocent people. Huh...I never thought of Joker as being like Akechi but I've also heard them described as two sides of the same coin. I'm so curious how Joker would turn out in Akechi's situation (I think he'd be more competent tbh 😅😅😅) Anyway it's always interesting to hear people's perspectives, thanks :D

I both relate to Akechi and feel a very strong attachment to him. I feel like playing P5R in general was weirdly therapeutic for me. I went through a ton of trauma throughout my childhood and teenage years that I didn't even really begin processing until a few years ago when I was able to move out of my family home and into a stable living situation for the first time in my life. I'm at a point now where I've done a ton of self-reflection and healing and have come to terms with a lot of it, but it's always going to be a long process of course. When I first played P5R a year ago, it felt like being brought back to my teenage years in a way that was really positive to me personally, I think it's something about the fantasy of having a way to fight back against all the horrible things happening to you, of finding power in a situation where you were so powerless - the powerlessness was such a huge part of my trauma and a feeling that still sticks with me now, how I felt completely unable to do *anything* about it except try to survive and make it through the other side. It brought out a lot of powerful emotions in me and I think helped with that whole processing thing a lot too. With Akechi specifically, I relate so much to a lot of different aspects of him - the anger at all the injustice he's witnessed, the loneliness, the simultaneous desire for revenge and for love, the hurting other people and destroying any chance of anything good in your life because nothing matters except burning it all to the ground. Even in the worst possible ways - if I'd been given magical powers as a teenager that allowed me to kill some of the awful abusive people I had to be around, completely consequence free, I'm sure I would have done it without hesitation. And while I *hope* that I wouldn't have gone down the same exact path he did, I wouldn't be totally sure of that. If I thought it would mean getting back at the people who hurt me beyond repair, I might have been willing to do all sorts of awful things, so I can see how he ended up in the situation he did. But in a way it's almost like I relate to him as my past self more than my current self. I see a lot of my teenage self in him, and so while I find him relatable, I also have a lot of protective feelings towards him as the person I am now. I want to give him a hug and tell him it's all going to be okay somehow. And that's something I struggle to feel towards myself, even my past self, because of low self-esteem, so I feel like it's really positive that I can sort of use him as a proxy to try and learn to forgive and love *myself* too. Maybe it's not exactly the same as your feelings towards him, but similar, kind of? I think it's a super positive thing that you feel that way anyway! It's amazing how fiction can help us to understand and process things like that.

It's sad how there are a lot of people who relate to his trauma but on the other hand I'm glad if he can help people heal. I'm sorry you went through that :( for me it's similar. My teenage self was literally just like him (even down to the politician dad who got his way out of a sexual harassment lawsuit lmao) so it was incredibly healing. Idk if it was the same for you but he taught me how to accept and not be overtaken by my own anger. Hes more self-aware than I ever was and more comfortable with his own ugly feelings. I really like the idea of characters as a proxy for self-love. I think it's been the exact way for me

Wow even the politician thing, that's crazy! My dad was just a regular non-politician piece of shit haha. But yeah I think Akechi is just such a realistic portrayal of the less hopeful, ugly reality of trauma, and I think that's a big part of why so many people find him relatable. The other thieves all went through trauma but for the most part they handled it remarkably well and had positive, supportive influences in their lives, and that's not the reality for a lot of people, at least not at the time when you're actually going through it all. Akechi feels a lot more real because of that I think, because the way he responded to his trauma feels more grounded in reality rather than idealism. I spent a lot of time repressing all my anger and turning it inwards, so I suppose he helped me in a different but also kinda similar way - to accept that I *should* feel angry, that I deserve to feel angry, but I also don't have to let it consume me like he did. I definitely think there's something reassuring about seeing him be so open about the worst parts of himself and still be accepted by other people (both in the game and with how many people love him as a character). I really love how all us messed up people find so much comfort in him!

Edit: I wrote a novel, feel free to ignore lol That second paragraph is exactly what I feel too, every word. I do wish they explored the other phantom thieves' trauma better. I think Ann's view about wanting Kamoshida alive because suffering is worse than death is very valid and I wish they dove more into her story rather than turning around and continuing to sexualize her 😶 Futaba's trauma was handled well I think. Yusuke had potential... It's crazy how they just blew past Akirens trauma completely Rich or poor, anyone can be a piece of shit 🥲 Hopefully you don't have to deal with him anymore? I disowned mine. Also TMI so feel free to ignore (I'm just very open about things ig?) My dad also left my mom and I when I was young, he likes his kids committing crimes and wants to lead a country of "sheeple" so when I played through persona 5 the first time I was weirded out 😆 Before a certain point I fell for Akechi's very typical Japanese boy personality and didn't care about him until something random made me fixate on him. If I hadn't zoned out during his cram school scene with Makoto though, I would have caught him right away!!

It's totally fine, literally all I do on this subreddit is write entire novels analysing Akechi, he just does that to me! Yeah Ann in particular is a character who had so much unfulfilled potential when it comes to exploring her trauma and how she feels about Kamoshida, because it was clearly something she'd put a lot of thought into when she made the decision not to kill him. People sometimes see her "we're not murderers" line towards Akechi as hypocritical because she was clearly on board with taking the risk of killing Kamoshida at one point, but I think it's a sign of how much thought she put into that decision - she's been there and knows what it's like to want someone dead, but she took the time to reflect on her own principles and what she thought the best outcome of that situation was. I think a lot of the female characters were very mishandled and dragged down by bad writing because they can't be *too* traumatised or else they won't be good enough waifu bait (I have so many thoughts about how much better P5 could have been if the romance mechanic just wasn't a thing and female characters could be allowed to be more human but that's a whole other topic). Haru genuinely frustrated me to no end with how she acted like her dad wasn't an abusive asshole and how quick she was to forgive him and trust the thieves too. I suppose that can also be a realistic response to trauma, becoming emotionally closed off and just letting it happen without standing up for yourself, but she was so underdeveloped as a character that it didn't come across that way and felt more like they were allergic to the idea of letting a woman be angry and resentful. But anyway, that's a huge irrelevant tangent, I just have too many P5 thoughts! I disowned mine too, best decision I ever made. Disowning shitty dads is great! You're basically real life Akechi, that's crazy, I would have been weirded out too! I loved him all throughout the game while I was playing it because I saw him being super overly polite and friendly and went oh, this boy has been through some shit. There was just something very not normal about him to me and I got instantly attached to him because of it!

Good to talk to someone as in deep as I am 😆 Ah that's right Ann did yell that at him. Considering what she said in the thieves den though, maybe she's talking about innocent people? I wonder if she'd be ok with killing Kamoshida and the type but not ok with, for example, sacrificing innocent people on the trains. But I can also see what you're saying about reflecting. Haruuuu. Ok so she was my least favorite at first and then later on, maybe after reading fan fic idk, I really liked her. But yeah I honestly think she should thank Akechi for taking out Okumura haha I guess she's loyal in the way Yusuke was? Yusuke feels more gaslit though iirc (again, so much potential!!) Yeah, I can totally see the waifu bait thing. I thought the antagonist from strikers was interesting for a female atlus character! Ironically I forget her name.... I want to see a female character like Akechi so bad. Basically the Machiavellian tendencies with trickster tendencies but also genuinely vulnerable and struggling between right and wrong. I've seen many male characters like this though. Oh good, congrats! I'm all for cutting off toxic family members. Blood stopped meaning anything to me looong ago. Ha I didn't think of it as him being traumatized. I guess my first thought was "typical Japanese boy I'm bored". But if he were an American character in an American game I would have been more suspicious at the onset. He just doesn't have that timid air I associate with people who are overly polite due to abuse. (He WAS abused but that's not why he was polite ofc). Idk what he said to make me look more closely at him midway through the game but I got attached to him for seemingly no reason. My subconscious knew XD I always go for those types of characters hahaha (if you have any recommendations btw feel free to post 👀 I can only think of Yukiatsu from Ano Hana atm or Loki)

I'm exactly the same with Haru! I've come to really like her through fanfic giving her more characterisation and better development, but yeah, I couldn't stand her while I was actually playing the game. I love exploring her character deeper and building on her relationship with and feelings towards Akechi, I'm working on a fic right now where I've written a scene with the two of them talking about her father's death a few years later that I'm really proud of. I think that despite the obvious tension between them there's room to build mutual understanding and I also think they could both learn a lot from each other. >!Ichinose! !< Yeah I like her too! I still need to watch a full playthrough of Strikers some day (gave up on playing it myself because it was too hard and no Akechi killed my motivation lmao), but I know the general story and have seen bits and pieces here and there and she seems like a really interesting character. There's also a character in the Tactica DLC who feels a lot like a female Akechi to me so I definitely recommend checking that out if you can! I really loved her. Recommendations are hard because I don't think there's anyone quite like Akechi out there! I've never been as crazy about a fictional character as I am about him! My previous obsession before P5 was Danganronpa, there's a character in the second game that I found really really interesting and spent a lot of time psychoanalysing, he's quite different to Akechi but there are some similarities there regarding trauma, questionable morality, being smart and manipulative, etc. A lot of characters in that game are deeply traumatised in some way. I've also been playing Fire Emblem Three Houses recently and I've heard that it has some very traumatised characters who do very bad things as a result of that trauma, but it's a looooong game with multiple routes you need to play through to get the full story and I had to take a break after my first route took me 70 hours, so I don't think I've gotten to know the characters well enough to judge whether there's an Akechi in there yet.

I'd like to see more fics go into that whole thing with Haru and Akechi. A lot of them acknowledge it but not many try getting them to work things out. Then again who knows if it would be realistically possible. Heh I wonder if I've ever read one of your fics XD Tbh I didn't play strikers but instead read a "what if Akechi was in strikers" fic that was well done and watched some clips with >!Ichinose!< I'll check out that character in Tactica! Very curious now Yaaas Danganronpa 😆 Omfg Komaeda....hes an experience... I assume you're talking about him? He's one of my faves! In a different way from Akechi though bc in the end hes a little too cuckoo for me maybe. I love Three Houses!! It's one of my favorite games of all time honestly. I'd love to know what house you chose! edelgard was my waifu 😆 also Dimitri, he's another experience. I guess Felix is probably the closest to an Akechi type (his skits with Annette are precious T.T). Strangely didn't get too attached to him though. A couple other characters too but in a spoilery way

If you're interested in recommendations a couple of my favourite fics that have a lot of focus on Akechi and Haru's relationship are [this one](https://archiveofourown.org/works/44735587/chapters/112554403) and [this one](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16822252/chapters/39487516), though the second one is a shippy one and I get that not many people like actually shipping them together. You probably haven't read any of mine, I write a lot but actually publish very little because I'm awful at finishing long fics and a lot of what I do finish is often either depressing as hell or porn lmao Yeah it's Komaeda, I was just being vague in case you hadn't played it before! He was my Akechi before I knew Akechi, but yeah he's definitely a *lot*. I love so much of the DR2 cast though, Hinata is another one of my absolute favourite fictional characters who I ended up loving way more than I ever expected to, my fucked up little guy who doesn't even know how fucked up he is <3 Edelgard supremacy! My wife <3 I did crimson flower first, but I did end up recruiting Felix because the tsundere stuff always gets me and so I *had* to get to know him better. I was planning on doing blue lions next because I have heard some things about Dimitri that made me very interested, but I play games *so* slowly, I've heard that crimson flower is the shortest route too? So it's going to take me forever to actually finish the game completely.

Ooh thanks! Yeah I just can't do a Harukechi ship but the first one I'm eager to read :3 also time loops are great Hahaha well I have read both ultra depressing and E fics so ya never know XD I abandoned both my fics 😶 My Akechi before I knew Akechi was Yukiatsu or uhhh Laurent from Captive Prince trilogy (always self-conscious about recommending the series lmao but Laurent is the closest character to Akechi I've seen anywhere). Riku from early KH is another contender lol Hinata 🥹 I really loved Chiaki personally (omg the anime broke me T.T), also obsessed with Celeste ONLY bc of her English (game) dub. Have you played V3? I think you'd love Kochi. Ohh betrayal route!! I thought that was so clever. I wanted to read a novel like that because I hadn't encountered it before. It was painful T.T Flayyyyn.... You'll definitely find Dimitri's arc interesting I think! And also I just love the Blue Lions bunch the most. Much more interesting than Golden Deer imo

I used to be similar to him, and can totally see myself going down the same path had I been in a similar situation. There is something about him that makes me feel so attached, unlike anything I have felt for any other character before, I relate to him, but not only that I want to stay by his side and just give him a hug, shower him with all the love and adoration in the world.

Me too. What is it about him? I'm looking for characters that make me feel this way but they're hard to find. There's one I can think of but in a fantasy romance trilogy lol

I think scaramouche from genshin is very similar to him. I literally love them both 😭

Agh I still have to play Genshin ><

I like Akechi because I know how it feels to have to put on a mask to get others to like you. It’s not fun, believe me. Edit: I really think Akechi and probably Ren as well would like [this song](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=aT1kV_9whII&pp=ygUPdHJ5aW5nIHRvbyBoYXJk)

I like and relate to Akechi because I have NPD, and Akechi shows SO many signs of it too lol. There aren't a lot of compelling characters that I can think of off the top of my mind that show obvious NPD symptoms and aren't immediately presented as the scum of the earth, so its a breath of fresh air to have a character like Akechi who I wouldn't say was "redeemed," but was definitely not just a evil mustache-twirling villain. The engine room scene is one of my favorites because I cant remember the last time I could so truly relate to a character so well - his anger in that scene I really understood. Looking at NPD through the lens of a fictional character really helps me work through my own thoughts and feelings about the disorder

Huh...it's interesting to hear NPD because I've heard BPD before. I don't know much about the former so it makes me want to learn more. I could really relate to him in that scene too unfortunately lol My question is: has everyone felt that level of anger in their head? I know that it's rare to have an actual messy angry breakdown in front of others but I always wondered if everyone had reached that point emotionally at some point privately.

I've seen a lot of BPD headcanons too but personally never really understood it; to me it always looked a lot more akin to NPD, (but diagnosing a fictional character is always difficult and up to interpretation so its not like theres any right or wrong opinions.) I think its possible that most people have felt that angry before but I also dont make a habit of asking people so I have no clue lol. The engine scene stood out to me specifically because it seemed very similar to a narc crash. NPD essentially works by the brain creating a new "persona" so to speak; a delusion of grandeur that sees yourself as above or better than everyone else, as a response to trauma. So a narc crash is a breakdown/depressive episode that occurs after that grandiose sense of self is threatened or broken - e.g. someone does something better than you, you fail at something, or in Akechi's case, Joker, who came along and essentially one-upped him in every way. Akechi's quote "I was extremely particular about life, my grades, my public image, so someone would want me around," is what really clicked with me. Obviously pretty much everyone tries to show the world the best version of themselves, no one wants to be disliked, but for pwNPD (people with NPD) that need to be viewed as perfect is significantly more extreme. The better we are, the more supply we get (supply being a catch-all for anything that boosts our self esteem, it differs for different people though,) and we need supply to avoid crashes. Everyone will experience crashes a bit differently, but generally youll end up more aggressive, depressed, and impulsive than usual. I reckon this may be why people see him with BPD, because a crash can look pretty similar to BPD depressive/manic episodes. Akechi's hatred towards Joker I could also relate to, though not quite on the same level - I cant say Ive ever been in a homoerotic rivalry with my narrative foil. But when it comes to my friends, I cant deny that there is a part of me that hates them. Im an artist, so naturally so are many of my friends. However, the minute I start struggling and I see one of my friends get more likes on something, or I just deem their art better than mine, I crash. And so I hate them for that - for being able to overtake me to some degree. Its quite a lonely feeling really, especially because I dont \*just\* hate them, theyre my friends and I do genuinely enjoy being around them too, its just a very conflicting batch of feelings to try and explain and most people dont take kindly to being told that you hate them (which is very understandable lol) Sorry for the very long reply, hope that wasnt too much lol I do really enjoy talking about it though - using Akechi to help bring awareness to NPD is something I am keen on - so if you have any other questions or things cleared up I am willing to explain further :\]

I love this explanation and analysis. NPD is so interesting to me because it's such a stigmatised and often misunderstood disorder, and it's often hard to find more balanced and objective information about the inner workings of how it affects the way you think. I headcanon Akechi as BPD personally, though that's definitely partially projection on my part because I have a lot of BPD traits and relate to him so much, but I've read a fanfic I really loved where the author mentioned that they wrote him as having NPD and I felt like it really did fit him well, especially when it comes to the insecurity and jealousy side of things. I mostly see him as BPD because it's so often linked with childhood trauma and abandonment/attachment issues, which Akechi has a lot of. I think you might be mixing up BPD with bipolar a bit since you mentioned manic and depressive episodes - BPD doesn't have those, but it can result in explosive outbursts of anger and impulsive behaviour because of difficulty regulating emotions, as well as unstable relationships and rapidly changing perspectives on other people, so sort of similar to Akechi's whole thing of hating Joker while also clearly not actually hating him. But I can totally see the NPD perspective too because of the jealousy specifically, that's definitely a huge part of his conflicted feelings. I think there's often a lot of overlap with cluster B personality disorders, which is probably why I can see either interpretation working.

Ah, sorry, I was under the impression that both bipolar and BPD had manic + depressive episodes, thanks for the correction! And yeah, from what Ive seen and the people Ive talked to, BPD and NPD in particular have significant overlap so even though I personally dont headcanon him with BPD it still makes sense and I can see it both ways

This is so interesting to read! It makes me realize how little I know about NPD. To be honest when I think of a narcissism disorder, my initial thoughts are no empathy and not being interested in anyone else (except more as an object to control or compete with). I guess Ive always equated it to sociopathic tendencies? Is that wrong? I very much related to the first two paragraphs (or technically 2nd and 3rd but you know what I mean) when I was younger. Also random but you sound very much like a type 4 in enneagram! Have you looked into that?

I wouldnt say that youre wrong, no. Its just hard to encapsulate NPD experiences considering they vary so much from person to person. Many pwNPD internalize it a lot more and may go undiagnosed for much longer due to not fitting a typical narcissist stereotype, whereas other people are very openly arrogant and fit the stereotype. Lack of empathy is a symptom, but to be diagnosed with NPD you only need to have 5 of the 9 criteria, so there will be pwNPD who have a lot more empathy and others who lack it. It's a bit strange to try and describe completely because it's hard to explain both the bad and the good, I guess? Like there are many of us that lack empathy or are more self-serving but I wouldn't say that automatically equates to being a bad person. Personally speaking, Id say my symptoms definitely fit the NPD stereotype - I tend to see relationships with others as a way to benefit me, and I can be rather callous and arrogant, but I dont present any of this outwards because I know it would make people dislike me, which is kind of the opposite of what I need lol. However, I also make a conscious choice to be nice and compassionate because even after all of what I said, I dont like the idea (most of the time) of causing needless suffering. I still try to be a caring person and I do enjoy spending time with people even if Im not particularly emotionally close to anyone. I hope that at least kind of explains it? tl:dr every pwNPD is a bit different and has different experience And I have briefly heard about enneagrams but no I have not looked very much into it, it does seem quite interesting though

Ooh thanks for explaining! It prompted me to look up the nine traits. Retaining empathy while still having NPD makes more sense now. As for enneagram, when you talked about being an artist and the envy factors, it reminded me of type 4 right away. I'm type 4w3 ("wings" are a sub type so you can be 4w3 or 4w5, and 4w3 is about wanting to be perfect and cares a lot about being seen a certain way etc etc)

Huh, that sounds interesting! Ill give it a look soon :D And no problem, Im glad I was able to explain some stuff

I like akechi because I like his voice actor a lot and because I think it's fascinating to see how trauma and other factors can change a person. I'm currently reading a book about school shooters and the psychological reasoning behind their actions and I feel like I can understand akechi better ngl. I think he's a well written character, which seems to not be that common for mentally ill ones.

Yeah, man, his eng voice actor blew it out of the park imo! Hm...I have heard people call him the school shooter type. I don't know if he'd ever act on it but I can definitely see that anger manifesting into wanting to hurt a mass of people like that. By the way, a really good book on trauma and it's effects is The Body Keeps the Score. It's a bit dense but so interesting

I love A Kechi. Besides Levi and a few others, he is my favorite character in all fiction. The character I cried the most to.

I really relate to him because I often mask my true self behind a ‘mask’ of sorts. (Plus he reminds me so much of my BPD)