"93. Did you like the Monokubs?" and/or "100. Opinion on all the Protagonists!" :3
"93. Did you like the Monokubs?"
I was... more positive about them than average? I did genuinely love how Monotaro was used to foreshadow Gonta's error, and the Monodam plotline was enjoyable up until he upstaged Monokuma in chapter 3. They seem a bit like wasted potential to me.
"100. Opinion on all the Protagonists!"
Makoto- He's amazing, but I wish we got to see him as a person instead of a paragon more often. He makes mistakes in canon, like with Sayaka and Taka. I just wish we got to see him reflect on it more! Just as important to the Danganronpa franchise and formula as Junko, and characters like Kaede and Hajime couldn't exist without him being the Danganronpa protagonist trope played straight.
Hajime- I love him unless it's chapter 3. I feel like in order to make ANY chapter 3 work, everyone has to lose about 20 or so iq points, but Hajime got hit with it the hardest. Just have him not be sure how he feels about Nagito, and have him trust that Mikan knows what she's doing instead of having him constantly go "???" all chapter.
Komaru- Honestly, my favorite protagonist. She did the "growing into her protagonist" role the best, and I really don't think she gets enough credit. (most of my beef from UDG comes from Toko's writing, not hers.)
Kaede- not a fucking protagonist. That the fandom calls her one is an unending source of frustration for me.
Shuichi- Listen. I love Shuichi as a character. But the one thing I cannot fucking stand is that the narrative refuses to have him be wrong. Like, with Makoto I get it, because he's meant to embody hope. But the enitre point of chapter 1 is that "in order to protect lives, Shuichi must face his trauma head on and convict Kaede" and making him hesitate and second guess himself was a character conflict. BUT THEN, chapter 6 undoes all of that fantastic character conflict, having Shuichi retroactively be right to hesitate. While this is the biggest example, its far from the only one. Kaito repeatedly makes mistakes and impedes the investigative process in canon, but he's proven right time and time again. Why? Because when Shuichi likes someone (romantically and platonically) he really wants to overlook thier flaws. Which is a great conflict for a detective protagonist to have! But I wish the narrative didn't do the same thing.
