#jshk analysis

This is an extensive post of how abuse afflicted Yugi Amane and even Hanako's behavior well into afterlife. Of course, emotional abuse is directly related to physical abuse, so I'll be talking about them together for the most part.

1. Behavioural Signs in Yugi Amane

We don't know why or who is behind this, and I won't particularly talk about it since it's not the focus anyway. We know his abuse started somewhere during his first year and was repeated until his suicide, july of his 2nd year. According to Tsuchigomori, he was badly injured every single day, so that's at least around a year worth of constant physical abuse.

However, it's important to note that it's very likely that before the physical abuse, emotional abuse was already consistently taking place, with multiple signs- He's isolated, experiences social withdrawal and has no friends, skips classes & school activities and has poor academic performance that contrasts his actual capabilities.

His emotional development is poor; He has difficulties expressing and understanding his own feelings, very likely a factor in the degradation of his and Tsukasa's relationship where Tsukasa can't understand Amane and Amane can't understand Tsukasa either due to lack of proper communication, and something that carries well over into the afterlife as Hanako.

The physical abuse worsened his already messed up mental state, and everything ultimately drove him into depression. He engages in behavior that puts his own safety in jeopardy (Like when he was way too close to falling over the window, both of his feet were at the very edge of the window frame), and while his love towards space stayed the same, he was overtaken by feelings of helplessness.

Even a rock could travel from the Moon to Earth, which gave him hope. It's important to highlight the word "even". He claims that if 'even' a rock can go this far, so can he, suggesting very low self-esteem. It's an object that carried him through many hardships because of this hope, but everything got so bad said hope just made him feel worse. At some point he started experiencing active suicidal ideation, marked by him giving away his treasured possession to Tsuchigomori in order to rid himself of this "hope", and declaring that he decided he wouldn't "go anywhere", a clear metaphor for deciding he would give up on his future and take his own life. He decided he cannot go anywhere near farther than a rock.

2. Behavioural signs in Hanako

As we mostly see his ghost self, we have a clearer vision of Hanako than we have of Amane. We can easily see his horribly low self-esteem and feelings of worthlessness. When we catch a glimpse of his perspective, we see how distorted his sense of self is.

He repeatedly claims that he isn't worth anything and that his existence itself is a punishment, and so refuses to disappear, considering that it would only be a release from the torment he deserves.

He hates himself down to his core, although this is a combined result of both depression via his experienced abuse and his PTSD of the murder-suicide. As Amane, he was capable of saying that it's fine if he's tormented this terribly, that even if there's no reason for it, he forgives it, massively contrasting Hanako who is incapable of forgiving himself, claiming that even if he had a super special reason for Tsukasa's murder, there's not a single justification that would warrant forgiveness. He's capable of forgiving anything that anyone does to him no matter how horrible, but not of forgiving himself.

As such, verbal abuse directed at him is taken positively by him, such as when Akane states that "reformed villains", refering to Hanako, make him sick, continuing to talk about how he can never take back what he did, essentially degrading him. He was given very harsh words that visibly hurt him, even implying that it triggered his PTSD for a moment, yet he could only claim that Akane is the type of person he likes most, as he was essentially validating and feeding into Hanako's already deeply negative view of himself.

This is also supported by his time in the Picture Perfect arc via his belief that he's undeserving of anything better for himself. Hanako said it himself in 71 that he wished he could've lived a normal life with Nene and Kou, and the Picture World reflected exactly that.

It's a world that was shaped exactly like he wanted, and that's exactly why he hated it. He knew what his reality was, and furthermore, he knows of his crimes and how he was the one who destroyed his own future, and so thinks he's undeserving of it.

He refuses to look at the stars for too long, because that reminds him of the hopes and dreams he gave up on in reality- He has no right to dare pick them up again, further highlighted by him refusing to go on the moon in the End of a Dream. His wish wasn't granted while alive, and now can't be granted after death.

In his helplessness, he is unable to reach for better circumstances for himself. After all, he's quick to adapt to whatever bad thing comes his way. "It's just how the world works", and he has to accept it.

However, we know how that doesn't apply to the people he cares about. He may have given up on everything, but he is unable to give up on the people he loves. No matter how much he suffers, no matter what he has to do, he wants the people he loves to find happiness.

No matter how much he tried to tell himself he isn't supposed to care, he desperately wants them to live the fulfilling lives he didn't have. And if he is the one that gives them the salvation they need, he finds the indulgence to want a small part of him to live through them, the indulgence to hate himself just a little bit less.

He actively attempts to hide his past from other people, being content with them only knowing basic information about it (that he's a murderer), mainly because he doesn't want to appear vulnerable or know how much of a horrible person (according to himself) he actually is.

When it comes to people he has a good relationship with like Nene, he's actually afraid of them finding out, and even months after promising he would tell Nene everything, he's still reluctant to do so due to overall difficulty with opening up- exposure to characters or topics that relate to his past more often than not results in reactions varying from heavy emotional distress, expressing aggression, anger, guilt and/or shame, to reliving traumatic events. Avoidance seems to be his main method of coping.

Hanako suffers from emotional dysregulation. He not only has high difficulties processing and expressing his feelings, but has difficulty picking up on others' emotions as well. For half a century he had been socially and emotionally neglected while also being incapable of ever maturing past the age of 13, much less healing from his past experiences. They rather worsened due to a supernatural lifestyle. When he first met Nene, he wasn't behaving appropriately at all due to this and their relationship went through many difficulties due to his lack of boundaries and poor emotional intelligence, and him communicating his true feelings is always a rare occasion.

Not only did he not take into account other people's feelings ("Yashiro will hate it, but it's ok, she'll move on someday and live her life", not taking into account and understanding others being possibly spiteful over his actions and direct their hate towards innocent parties), he doesn't even take into account his own ("Why? Good question. Why am I doing it?" and "Even though I was prepared to never see you again, I'm so happy to have you back. Weird, right? There must be something wrong with me"). However, due to Nene's influence, he seems to be a little more upfront with his feelings lately.

He's also incredibly self-reliant. Both events of Picture Perfect and the Severance were a result of Hanako doing everything by himself without consulting anyone. He decided by himself that he's the only one that should dirty his hands as he was already a sinner, that it's easier to dump everything on the one that's already guilty of similar crimes, because he didn't have any other solution in sight. It's important to note that he took the *entire* blame for the Severance- Even if all he did was feign ignorance to no. 6's actions.

Him being grounded in the miserable reality he finds himself in is both a strength (as he is quick to adapt to his conditions) and a major weakness- He'll only be able to see the most practical, yet unfortunate approaches.

In the Clock Keepers arc, he wanted to trust Kou when he said he would save Nene, but his attempt quickly turned to failure when he was not seeing any tries, let alone results. He was even upset at Kou when he considered that if he wanted the job done he should have just done it himself, knowing that his methods aren't ones someone would approve of. Methods that he doesn't approve of himself, but carried them out anyway in his despair.

In fact, Hanako did not break free from the shackles of abuse. He is a child that has been placed in a position of leadership filled with various responsibilities for fifty years. He is committed to his duties as a mystery after being promised salvation by 'God', believing that his sins would be forgiven, but he's essentially just being used.

Usually when I see the "family issues" backstory, I need to brace myself for a tactlessly-written and edgy story. The parents are evil for the sake of being evil. There is either only one child that is innocent, or all the children by default are innocent little angels. This was luckily not the case for the Yugi family.

Mr. And Mrs. Yugi were unintentionally neglectful towards Tsukasa. Their neglect did cause damage, but they didn’t intend that. They genuinely loved him. To the point Mrs. Yugi became abusive in nature, desperately trying to retrieve the "real" Tsukasa. Mr. Yugi seemingly left out of hopelessness, or maybe due to the entity’s influence, but we clearly see that he loved his family.

Amane is confused and suffering, and he wants to believe his brother is still himself. Even when everyone else seems to be a shell of what they once used to be. But despite this he still has doubts, and he hates himself because he thinks none of this would've happened if he looked after Tsukasa more. And then he finally "stops holding back" and kills Tsukasa.

Tsukasa is violent, chaotic and even sadistic at times. Yet all he wanted to do was save his brother. He thought Amane hated him, and so did everyone else. He thought he mattered less and hence repressed himself, which resulted in his strangely childish yet hostile nature. He still loves Amane even though Amane "hates" him.

hi i wanna make a post about this again because i'm annoying and i'll never shut up. so, i saw a mutual of mine with generally great takes about mitsukou interpret this scene in a way that, while completely reasonable, was also missing the massive transfem elephant in the room, so i felt compelled to make my own little analysis post about that elephant since nobody fucking talks about it. here's that analysis post

in this beautifully drawn scene, we see mitsuba switching between two versions of himself:

the scary supernatural too different from normal humans to find any form of acceptance or love, wearing a bizzare outfit with a silhouette suspiciously similar to a dress, but *authentic and real*, not hiding any of his true emotions, not trying to be someone he can never be, the *real* mitsuba.

the fake mitsuba, a normal middle school boy, completely false in every way, a version of mitsuba that died long ago, dressed in the male school uniform, a representation of the expectations this world has of mitsuba. this is the fake mitsuba, the facade he puts on to find acceptance and love, even if it's fake, even if it's hollow

mitsuba, a pink supernatural wearing a dress, is lamenting the fact that the love he felt as the fake mitsuba, the one wearing the male uniform, wasn't real at all; that if he was being his true self, the scary supernatural in a weird looking dress, it would've all fallen apart in an instant and it would cease to exist.

and then, he switches. mitsuba wipes his tears, puts away those inconvenient thoughts, and goes back to settling for what he *thinks* he can have: fake acceptance of a boy who's been long dead by now. it's okay, even if it's fake, even if they'd hate the real me, this is the only way i can be happy, so i'll pretend to be okay with it. i'll put on this uniform, i'll take off my pink sweater, i'll be *normal*. this is all i can have, it's good enough. it has to be good enough.

for example, here, in this jshk panel

Throughout the manga, Hanako has pretty distinct body language. While he is often hanging off of Yashiro in some way, his hands rarely touch anything other than her arms and head. Here, I think he is about to complete the hug, touching her waist, but the audience still isn't allowed to see it. Why? To maintain that pattern for some reason? To keep the focus on Yashiro's hands? So we don't get to see how tightly he holds her, to keep some of the mystery? To maintain the manga's tone of forlorn intimacy?

The mysteries of death, oh, it usually comes with despair, melancholy and a certain drama. A slight touch of nostalgia, and of course, the farewell - which doesn't always come.

There are those who hate it, those who fear it, and those who believe it is the solution. But in death there are no answers, perhaps there is silence, I can't tell you for sure, after all, fortunately I haven't encountered it (yet).

They say there is nothing like living someone's experience in order to understand them. But I fear that in some cases not even that would be of any use.

There are experiences that we interpret in ways we never imagined. What can we say about a simple girl who just wanted to have an ordinary life, with an ordinary boyfriend and ordinary desires and had the empathy to try to "save" a murderer.

Sometimes it seems like she already knew, that she already felt that there was something pure in him, something that only she could feel. The girl who tried to give him a little company and the joy she could offer, even if it wasn't much.

But getting involved with a murderer isn't something that should be done by good girls, by kind and naive girls, and often superficial.

The world isn't cool to kind people.

It usually offers the opposite.

Nene now holds the knife that was so heavy in Hanako's hands. The knife that reflected the image of the greatest love of his life.

Now in her hands, reflecting the image of the people she promised to save.

Irish, isn't it?

She's living a little of what he lived, feeling slightly what he felt, even though she can't compare to him, after all, he took the life of the brother he loved so much, he can't compare to some of his school friends.

Not even the best of them.

The naive girl still hasn't realized that she's being prepared for this. To kill someone she loves the most, someone she cares about the most.

Because Sakura once told her how terrible Tsukasa's death would be if she didn't remove his yorishiro, something Hanako wouldn't allow.

Because Tsukasa asked her directly to kill Amane if she wanted to get out of that false world.

For everything to end, does Amane need to die? Or will it be Tsukasa?

The visceral sensation of blood dripping from the knife onto her hands, Aoi's still warm body falling as she begged Nene to wake up while she hugged her, knowing that Nene was innocent, she didn't give up on her best friend at any moment.

She accepted her in a hug, even though it literally tore her heart apart.

Maybe it was the same cold sensation Amane felt when Tsukasa smiled at him one last time after the stabbing.

For the first time, she is feeling on her own skin what that lonely boy felt. The regret, the pain, the fear, the shock.

Death came to her several times, once to take her, when she refused to go with it, she found something worse, to be responsible for the death of those she loves.

She is capable of doing it, said the entity.

It was a matter of time.

Death would come.

And it did.

So, Tsukasa essentially plays up his image as a cruel, chaotic freak. Due to his disconnect from the cast, caused by his mysterious lore of disappearance and time travel, Tsukasa seems to have realized that it's truly difficult for others to perceive him for who he truly is. He himself is afraid to dwell on the topic too much.

Ever since childhood, his mother imposed a monster image on him, turning the entire family against him. Amane is convinced of some kind of fake only because his mother repeated these words to him every day. Yugi's mother decided this for her own reasons; the returned Tsukasa was truly different from the carefree child he once was; he now shared a body with an entity, which joyfully began to manifest itself at every opportunity. Amane, meanwhile, was four years old; we are shown him carefree playing with his brother until his mother raised the alarm.

In any case, the family decided that Tsukasa wasn't who he claimed to be, that he was behaving inappropriately, that he was bad and terrible. Amane only grew more convinced of this over the years and began pushing Tsukasa on emotional swings, having already stopped paying attention to him in life, focusing instead on the idea of fixing the clock and reviving the real Tsukasa. Tsukasa lived with this his entire earthly life. Whether he tried to convince his family otherwise or resigned himself to it, the outcome is clear: no one's opinion of Tsukasa has changed. Under these circumstances, the only solution seems to be to bend to the circumstances. Or rather, the lack of a solution.

After all, Tsukasa, as I wrote, often bends over backwards for them. And how does his villainous persona manifest itself? For example, in how he doesn't explain his goals regarding Mitsuba, instead simply responding with "just because." Perhaps he didn't want to go into detail; Kou already sees him as the villain who "destroyed Sousuke." If, after all of Tsukasa's explanations about how helping Mitsuba develop works, Kou still thinks it was all unnecessary and creepy, then does it make sense to keep answering more questions to someone who doesn't expect to hear that kind of answer?

Tsukasa also pretends to be an anarchist, or is actually almost convinced that he is one — his copy-paste-inflated desire for freedom is, in fact, limited by the conditions and his behavior. Generally, it seems to me that "destroying the boundaries of worlds" only benefits the broadcasting club, and Tsukasa is merely agreeing with them again in the hope that he, too, will benefit in some way. He basically agrees with this friendship between people and supernaturals, having "befriended" the entity within himself, but is this very destruction of boundaries his personal motive? We know that Sakura needs this first and foremost. It's ironic to watch Tsukasa speak of complete freedom from any rules, while acting solely by them, according to the principles and demands of the entity. Tsukasa is well aware of these laws of nature, so he accepts the fact that former Mitsuba is no longer there, explains that fear is remembered best by people, and explains to everyone how and what works in the system of the other world. Of course, one must be well-versed in the underbelly of what one is going against, and yet, were it not for Sakura's motivation? Would Tsukasa have engaged in such things is an open question. He already spends so much time coping with his brother's problem. Most of Tsukasa's motivation revolves around him, rather than any larger issues.

Tsukasa also supports Mitsuba's self-identification as a supernatural who desires to become human, based on the idea that Mitsuba at least has some choice, some attempt. Tsukasa never had such a choice; he was branded a monster from childhood. This false belief on Mitsuba's part that he can do it may well be a desire for his protégé to achieve what Tsukasa himself could not. After all, Tsukasa is, in many ways, like a parent to Mitsuba-mystery. Mitsuba is a flawed being from the perspective of mystery politics, and Tsukasa was also hated for his flawed nature.

Tsukasa also simply doesn't believe anyone could perceive him differently. He doesn't understand that Kou and Nene came into the house because they were worried about the crying child inside. He tells Kou that people only come here for their wishes, so he should probably say his own.

Tsukasa no longer believes Amane loves him, so it's easier for him to help him quietly, using his own methods, rather than seek his understanding. If his brother thinks he's weird, there's nothing he can do about it.

Blackmailing others to push them in the right direction is also a form of exploitation. Tsukasa uses his intimidating aura to influence Mitsuba, Amane, and Nene. Ultimately, even if they hate him, the important thing is that he can benefit others. After all, Tsukasa doesn't really care about public opinion, and secondly, the principle of "effectiveness over morals and appearance" also applies here. His loved ones aren't public opinion; of course, he'd like them to understand everything, but can Tsukasa explain himself? Does he even believe they'll understand him? And has he even tried? Deep down, Tsukasa could very well be as much of a coward as Amane.

Besides, Tsukasa doesn't consider himself all that terrible; he simply accepts the false name, but he hardly defines himself as a monster. For him, his actions make perfect sense; after all, he's the one doing them, knowing his intentions. When Natsuhiko demands that Tsukasa stop teasing Mitsuba at the welcoming party, Tsukasa replies that he's not teasing at all; on the contrary, he likes Mitsuba. That is, he doesn't view his behavior toward Mitsuba as purely humorous bullying. He feels the same way about the game of tag with Nene over the clock keepers' boundary. For Tsukasa, it was primarily a game; remember the take about the big cat and the kitten? Tsukasa asks Nene why he can't get close to her, because he didn't see himself as someone to be so afraid of in that situation. In those same chapters, we see his lyrical mood, his patience with Nene, and he even shares bits of his past with her. This is a side of Tsukasa that others, and even readers, rarely see. Tsukasa is portrayed there in more than just his usual eccentric personas.

And here it's important that much also depends on the artistic presentation of Tsukasa. Aidairo deliberately portrays him as mysterious to this day, so it goes without saying that the main character's doppelganger was meant to be genuinely intriguing at the beginning. Since this is, after all, a bit of a horror manga, the reader should be left with a corresponding impression. Tsukasa is so chaotic, such a maniac, isn't he? He smiles so cruelly when he does the wrong thing, he laughs, his gestures are so crude.

However, much of what Tsukasa does visually is also done by Amane, who, in the public eye, is more normal. But Amane, too, has plenty of quirks and dark sides. And it's all about the visuals. Amane, just like Tsukasa, hides negative emotions behind a smile, and also smiles frighteningly when he does something questionable. His darkened face with black eyes when he throws Nene by rope into the Yako's boundary. His unnatural smile in volume 6, all the time when he says Nene will actually die and when he fights Kou over it. His next cheerful smile is when he tells Nene that Aoi died in her place, so everything is fine.

This is inherently no less frightening than Tsukasa's actions, if not more so, because Tsukasa immediately comes across as a chaotic person from whom you can't expect peace. Amane, on the other hand, pretends to be normal.

Amane also often attacks and/or destroys various ghosts in the same manner, as well as those who might be pitied by others, like Sousuke or Mitsuba. He just does it gracefully, using a knife and a calm expression. Tsukasa, on the other hand, fights with his bare hands and feet, which visually gives him a feral and dangerous look. But they both essentially perform the same job as the seventh mystery.

Just imagine the scenes with Tsukasa; if he moved like Amane and used a knife, would that make it any easier to process? And would it make it any harder to process if Hanako killed Sousuke's ghost, attacking Sumire, Mitsuba, and Kou with nothing but his bare hands? The visual effect would change, even slightly.

Tsukasa and Amane are similar, like brothers, even in their flaws. They're certainly tactile, sharing a love for katanuki, dinosaurs, and donuts, and use similar gestures. They also both hide their pain behind smiles, harbor many dirty secrets, and have trouble understanding each other. They're both willing to sacrifice themselves to save their loved ones, willing to disappear without meaning to, and both are better at giving attention than receiving, due to their lack of accustomedness to being loved.

When considering Tsukasa, it's impossible not to compare him to Amane. It's ironic how Amane finds Tsukasa's behavior strange, incomprehensible, and bad, when he himself behaves the same way. At least when it comes to the fake smiles.

Is Tsukasa truly evil twin, or is he simply a second Yugi with his own motives? I wouldn't say Tsukasa is much more gray moral than Amane, who's so famous for being self-aware and understanding what's going on, and therefore everything he does is a deliberate decision — all his murders, his emotional roller coaster ride with Nene, his shady plans. Tsukasa was cast as the evil twin, drawing attention early in the manga, but he's long since been explored in other ways.

Tsukasa simply embodies various tropes, playing with them. The damsel in distress who rescues herself from her tower confinement. The protagonist's dead wife, for whom he does all this and is even willing to turn back time, and whom he constantly looks at with the same expression Kou makes at Mitsuba. You know what I mean. A man in the traditionally feminine role of kannagi. The evil twin trope is also played with. There are no winners among the Yugi twins, that's the thing.

If you approach Tsukasa with an open mind, the results will be different. Mitsuba succumbs to fear of Tsukasa, and Tsukasa easily manipulates this fear. When Nene becomes hysterical and her fear gives way to stubbornness, Tsukasa suddenly realizes something new is happening. He begins to look for new ways to communicate with her. Sakura generally sees him as "a kind child inside, despite all his chaotic behavior" (character survey after Volume 16).

She also describes Tsukasa as reliable, which is confirmed by my research into his work ethic.

Natsuhiko is immortal, unafraid of the dangers Tsukasa poses, able to put him in his place, and Tsukasa even begins to perceive him as an authority figure, something he lacked in life. Of course, Tsukasa isn't easy to tolerate, and Natsuhiko is lucky, but this shows that attitudes breed inverse attitudes. It's all about how each person chooses to see Tsukasa for themselves.

And how do you see Tsukasa? I hope my analysis has helped you at least understand some of Tsukasa's traits and draw your own conclusions. Of course, Tsukasa is complex character, but that's what makes him interesting. Just as Amane is a truly complex person with ambiguous morals — the Yugi brothers were created that way simply to make them interesting to explore.

I see a lot of people saying that Aoi was drugged and that is why she stabbed Akane. Which I agree...

... and I don't.

Hakubo's reaction to her compliance is interesting. He doesn't seem very keen to trust her (maybe because Aoi is very similar to Sumire and he knows what a handful Sumire is lol) but in the end he does.

(Look at Aoi's eyes and how devoid of light they are compared to Nene's)

At the same time, I do think she was drugged but I don't think it had the same effect it had on Nene.

(if anything I do think Sumire wasn't drugged when she was sacrificed, or as Aoi, it didn't have the full effect on her)

On the other hand, it seemed to have some effect on Aoi, which I think only fed on her insecurities.

Her self-loathing and subsequently, on her hatred for Akane.

It fed into her frustrations, her helplessness when it came to her inability to express herself, while also giving her power she never had in her life.

(Look at her, she's so powerdrunk i love her )

And drugged or not, she had made up her mind. Came to peace about her fate as an offering. And here is Akane– it front of her, a supernatural – something he had been hiding from her since gods know when, as had Nene. He had abandoned her in exchange for power over time and had let their relationship grow cold (sure, he confesses to her but she doesn't trust those words as much as she did when they were kids)

And now? Now when she's part of the action and finally in the known– one of them? Now he refuses to accept her decision.

He's fighting her. Fighting to take her back when she doesn't want to go back–

So she stabs him.

She's not drugged anymore here, yet she doesn't hesitate to hit him where it hurts the most (after she herself patched up his wound).

The stabbing was Aoi. Drugged as she was, it was her intention to hurt him the way he had hurt her by keeping things from her.

Maybe not to kill him and maybe she didn't realise he could die from it, because of the drug or because of the heat of the moment. Or maybe she wanted him dead. Because she wanted herself dead.

Hello! I’m back, and I’m really sorry that I couldn’t finish this arc up last time. I was getting over a bitch of a cold, and literally couldn’t move without severe motion sickness haha.

Here’s the link for P. 1:

With that said, here! We! Go!