your local maple kinnie

Alphabetober day 7

I’ve seen a few people on Tik Tok discuss how odd it is that Ryoko’s even a character. At first glance, she doesn’t seem to have a lot to her other than being a girl Joe’s into. But I think Ryoko serves an important role in the story.

Ryoko is mentioned to be one of Sara’s best friends. They’ve been friends since middle school, before Sara even met Joe. They know each other well, enough that Ryoko was considered to be put in the death game as an anchor for Sara. 

But she wasn’t, and instead Joe took her place. 

In the end he died, leaving Sara a mess. But that’s not the end of people close to her Sara will lose, her Father is almost undoubtedly Meister or at least heavily involved with the game. Which means her Mother may also be in on the game.

Sara has lost her close friend, will most likely lose her Father, and possibly lose her Mother. That’s going to impact her greatly, and she’ll need a good support system outside the game. Which is where Ryoko comes in.

Ryoko’s character gives us reassurances that Sara is going to have a friend to support her outside the game. She’s not going to be alone, as she’ll have Ryoko’s shoulder to cry on. 

The pain