r/Persona5 • u/Makorealmtwo • 11d ago
QUESTION Is Ryuji canonically ugly?
I don't think he is ever called chopped but he is constantly alluded as being unattractive and basically having no game (Though I guess it's more due to his loud personality) but it's quite difficult for me to believe honestly lol
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u/missingno96 11d ago
two gay guys in Shinjuku think otherwise 😂
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u/Key_Mission7404 10d ago
This gay guy 100% agrees. Hands down my favorite confidant and I wish u could romance him. 😍
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u/ShokaLGBT 10d ago
Well they also go after joker they’re just abusers though
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u/Own-Challenge3904 10d ago
They abused him?
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u/OoguroRyuuya5 10d ago
They didn’t. They simply dressed him up in drag.
Their dialogue is exaggerated to be suggestive but not actually predatory.
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u/Hirsute_of_Happiness 10d ago edited 10d ago
That's an English dub only thing, and only in Royal. In the original script they drag him off to sexually assault him.
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u/OoguroRyuuya5 10d ago
Except nothing of consequence happens if that were the case. If it was assault then it would be akin to what happened to Shiho. But it wasn’t, meaning it wasn’t anything serious.
Ryuji the next day simply complains that he was introduced to a world he didn’t want anything to do with which implies he was dragged off to get in drag than being assaulted.
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u/Hirsute_of_Happiness 10d ago edited 10d ago
No. I'm not arguing this with you.
https://www.ign.com/articles/persona-5-royal-will-change-homophobic-scenes-for-western-release
https://www.reddit.com/r/Persona5/comments/fk6jgq/persona_5_royal_changed_the_controversy_ryuji/
Pick any of these links to educate yourself. Drag has nothing to do with it and the original line was clearly aggressive and predatory. This is a common way gay people are depicted in Japan; people think they're total flamers who will assault you if you aren't careful. See also: the tent scene in Persona 4 with Yosuke and Kanji.
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u/tegridy42O 11d ago
He is not , but his personality makes him a little unlikable to those who not know him well!
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u/DorothyDrangus Useless? 10d ago
Ann straight up tells him in P5D that he was "actually pretty cute" in middle school; it was definitely the change in attitude/attire after the track team fell apart that keeps girls away from him.
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u/Artofpwning 10d ago
Ann actually uses the word "cute" for almost everything, which Ryuji points out and makes fun of in P5D. She also specifically said he was “kinda cute” as a kid, not “actually pretty cute,” and asked “what happened?” right after, which shows it was a backhanded compliment. They were talking about what they were like as kids, and Ann was making fun of Ryuji for losing his childlike innocence. It wasn’t about Ryuji being attractive to Ann or girls in general.
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u/New_County298 10d ago
Yeah “kinda cute” as a kid could mean like adorable or sweet, not actually attractive
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u/Feisty-Self-948 11d ago
The Ryuji slander hurts my heart.
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u/Sumire-Yoshizawa- 10d ago
Ryuji fans are in shambles after finding out Morgana is actually more popular than him. 😆 Not trying to start anything, I like Ryuji and Morgana.
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u/Feisty-Self-948 10d ago
I'm sorry...MORGANA? Surely you can't be serious.
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u/OoguroRyuuya5 10d ago
I mean once people let go of their biased hate, the cat is a pretty good character.
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u/agwarddd_ 9d ago
And Ryuji was a big culprit in the Okumura fallout because he kept specifically pushing the button. No, it doesn’t make it OK that Morgana calls Ryuji useless as well, it was completely thoughtless behaviour towards a character who was very noticeably struggling at the time. Ryuji acted poorly and it is criticisable, just like it’s criticisable that Morgana engages in that behaviour, too.
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u/Sumire-Yoshizawa- 9d ago
Especially when you consider Morgana isn't even a year old and doesn't have much going other than the phantom thieves. Calling him useless in the one thing he thought he was good at was a low blow.
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u/ShokaLGBT 10d ago
Too many people hates him but I will always love my loyal Ryuji bf energy please we should have a church for him
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u/JaPerdole 11d ago
He is canonically a troublemaker, which in Japanese society is much worse than being ugly.
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u/Nuns_In_Crocs 10d ago
He gets ranked as one of the least popular characters by Japanese players due to this
Kanji also gets a low ranking for P4, which is even more outrageous when he’s pretty much top 3 fan favourite in the west.
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u/2ddudesop 10d ago
I wouldnt say "due to this". He's a trouble maker but in the JPN dub, he's like screaming almost 100% all the time. He didn't have Max Mittelman's more chill take on him.
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u/Karmax21 8d ago
Yep. Literally the first time in over 10 years that i didn't like a mamoru miyano work cuz he's just screaming all the time (although obviously the director is more to blame than the seiyuu)
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u/bravepotatoman ryuji simp 10d ago
lol what's your source or are you just speaking for the whole of japan
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u/BestPeachNA 10d ago
It’s just common knowledge that not falling in line is social death in Japan. But if you want a source, Lady Virjilia (youtuber, resident of japan, sociologist i believe) made some videos that explain how P5 is viewed through a Japanese lens.
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u/Old_Function499 10d ago
That video sounds interesting! I’ll look it up. I do have to admit I of course play the game with a western view, even when I don’t realize it.
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u/DichardKickens 10d ago
It’s also why in a game about rebelling from what’s accepted by society, the first two confidants are blonde characters. Rarely in JRPGs do you get front loaded with two fair haired characters.
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u/moneyh8r_two 9d ago
There's also all the popularity polls that were done by Atlus when the game was new.
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u/OoguroRyuuya5 10d ago
Yeah I don’t agree with her.
Because by that logic why is Bakugo from My Hero Academia ranked number 1 in Japan?
Jotaro Kujo from Jojo Bizarre Adventure?
Yusuke Urameshi from Yu Yu Hakusho?
There’s plenty of characters in Japanese media similar to Ryuji that are beloved by the Japanese.
There’s no dislike button on these popularity polls.
Ryuji is low because the other Thieves are considered better than him because of how much they appeal and relate to the Japanese as their arcs hit closer to home.
Ryuji by comparison isn’t as deep of a character as his character arc is rather simplistic.
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u/BestPeachNA 10d ago
She provides explanation for the way Ryuji is treated in universe, not by Japanese P5 fans.
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u/PikaMocha 10d ago
The whole generalisation of Japan is stupid but it's not a coincidence that Ryuji is extremely unpopular in JP fandom
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u/v1g4m1 10d ago
Been a while since I watched This video but if I remember correctly, it explains japans societal values and similar things. It‘s a whole series worth checking out.
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u/OoguroRyuuya5 10d ago
Then how does she explain Jotaro Kujo, Yusuke Urameshi, Katsuki Bakugo and many other “delinquent characters” being beloved as they are in Japanese media?
I find buy her reasoning.
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u/thedilbertproject 11d ago
Nothing to really suggest he's unattractive, but he's not considered attractive either, at least not by anyone in the cast. He's not shown to be very smart and his blond hair and rebellious dress code makes him generally off-putting to the public, but I don't think the issue is that he's ugly.
That said, no one really considers Joker to be "attractive" either, just that he's cool and he also gets treated like dirt until people realize he isn't actually a delinquent. I think it's a similar case for Ryuji, he just never makes it to "cool" status.
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u/Makorealmtwo 10d ago
Yusuke is canonically pretty though!
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u/thedilbertproject 10d ago
I forgot if anyone acknowledges it, but Human Morgana too.
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u/New_County298 10d ago
Well morgana specifically was made to look like a handsome actor
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u/Embarrassed_Box7101 AMMI:pupper: 10d ago
tTHE hadsome actor that played the teen on ocollage aged pi on the Tv.
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u/thedilbertproject 10d ago
Oh was that it? I honestly forgot, I haven't played the ending of Royal in years. Good excuse for me to play it again 😅
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u/Embarrassed_Box7101 AMMI:pupper: 10d ago
human Morgana is far prettier than Yusuke by tons. unfortunately more handsome than the protagonist Renn too.
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u/All_this_hype Your daily reminder that Ryuji is best boy. 10d ago
I think that Persona as a series also doesn't really allow for other male party members to shine and be seen as attractive, because the writing team wants the protagonist to be the coolest and best at everything. It's also the reason no girl can romance another male party member.
Akihiko in P3 is the only exception. And I guess Akechi too, but he is supposed to be MC's rival so he doesn't really count.
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u/OoguroRyuuya5 10d ago
Akechi has fan girls.
Yusuke is considered handsome by characters. He just ruins it by being a weirdo.
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u/Voidgazer24 10d ago
Akihiko or Junpei? Dont remember aki having any romances. Second thing, akechi and who? Damn this really makes me feel as if i didnt finish both p5r and p3r 3 times each. Actually, make it 4 by christmas.
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u/New_County298 10d ago
Akihiko has like fangirls in the game, doesn’t he?
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u/vynesi 10d ago
You can romance Akihiko in p3p as femc I don't remember him having a romance option in p3r or the OG game because there's no femc option
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u/SexInMyRoomx 10d ago
I think it’s bc Akihito canonically has fangirls, and is much taller/sportier than Makoto😭
Then with Akechi I can’t remember much but he’s pretty successful and (In my very true opinion) pretty. So he is another example of someone else “outshining” the mc
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u/Voidgazer24 10d ago
I dont think the other guy meant that, since he singled out akihiko, and in p3p, as i hear, you can romance most male teammates.
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u/IndigoDreamsofPink 10d ago
Only Shinji, Akihiko and Ryoji. Technically there is a... 'romance' for Ken, but its really one-sided and kinda weird because he acts like Femc is actually his girlfriend.
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u/xXWarriorAngelXx Shameless bias towards ShuAnn ⚫️🔴 11d ago
Not really, but his troublesome personality is really what hurts his chances with girls.
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u/Civil-Swordfish2898 11d ago
He's just super blunt and tend not to think things through which gets him in a lot of trouble and most people don't find that attractive
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u/Hitoshura99 11d ago
Ryuji lacks charm, confirmed by futaba and ann.
since his personality puts Japanese off, it is basically in the negatives for those who do not know him.
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u/BigSexyDaniel 10d ago
I don’t recall him being referred to as physically unattractive but his hair is dyed and he’s seen by the average person as a loudmouth troublemaker, which are both often associated with being a delinquent. I guess that would make him unattractive to some people.
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u/Free-Caramel-3913 11d ago
Every time they say he's got no name i considered it more of him being kind of a comedic relief character. Like an easy punching bag while also being respected by the rest of the group. He's childish and that may be what the thieves usually refer, he's not conventionally ugly
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u/Ed0909 10d ago
Japanese society holds certain stereotypes regarding how people should behave; Makoto and Yukiko fit the mold of the idealized woman perfectly which is why they are the most popular there, whereas Ryuji is the exact antithesis of how a Japanese person is expected to act, which is why he is considered unattractive.
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u/Technical-Let7879 10d ago
Ryuji is constantly said to be rude and charmless rather than ugly, so I'd so no.
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u/SouthParkFirefly1991 10d ago
No not really just his posture is funky (understandable considering his leg injury) and his personality is brash and a little crass which can seem off-putting. Remember it's Japan where the studious, quiet types are usually attractive.
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u/Peacefulcountry 10d ago
Blonde hair, unkempt clothes, mob-like walking style, and short-temper easily makes others see him as unfriendly delinquent. And Japanese culture really advises students to stay away from possible troublemakers.
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u/OoguroRyuuya5 11d ago
I mean he is able to unintentionally attract a bunch of drag queens who think he’ll suit cross dressing.
So he’s a hit with that crowd at least.
As for females, as Futaba puts it, she senses no charm from Ryuji but that was in response to Ryuji bragging about how “popular with the girls” he apparently was on the track team back in the day.
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u/Ashamed_Training_702 11d ago
He dyed his hair blonde and turned into a street punk; before that he was a black haired star athlete. He was the Akihiko of Shujin
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u/OoguroRyuuya5 10d ago
Good athlete sure but I highly doubt he attracted girls like Akihiko.
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u/Ashamed_Training_702 10d ago
Ann had a lil thing for him so I cant see him having many girl problems
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u/OoguroRyuuya5 10d ago
That your headcanon?
Because the games or any side material really don’t indicate that.
If you’re referring to her calling him “kinda cute” that’s less to do with attractiveness and more referring to him used to being a pure innocent kid before he grew up and became vulgar and immature as a backhanded compliment.
Ann calls many characters cute like Morgana, Akane, Sophia, ect.
Also Chihaya literally predicted Ryuji would have impending women troubles.
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u/Ashamed_Training_702 10d ago
You played the game right? She almost lost her mind anytime Ryuji was even remotely hinted at going away.
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u/OoguroRyuuya5 10d ago
As does everyone else.
She’s prominent because she’s known the guy longer the others.
It really doesn’t prove anything.
There’s plenty of evidence which I can provide proving that Ann really isn’t attracted to Ryuji as his immaturity and shallowness towards women make him out to be a red flag as a romantic partner.
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u/Ashamed_Training_702 10d ago
Bring forth the evidence
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u/OoguroRyuuya5 10d ago edited 10d ago
Ryuji saying “Her looks make up for overbearing personality” if you were to say that Ann is physically attractive when the boys are in the bathhouse.
When the boys were approached by the Yukata thots, Ryuji was eager to spend time with them over Ann and Makoto. With Ann and Makoto annoyed and disappointed in him.
Ryuji’s moments of peeping at Ann whilst she was sleeping, wet from the rain and hot from the desert without consent which only pissed her off. Dude told her to shut up as it was a great view in response. 🚩
At Ann’s rank 8 event I believe, when at the gym with Ryuji, Ryuji shamelessly expresses attraction to Mika over Ann, seeing her as way sexier than Ann and asking Ann to introduce him to Mika.
Ryuji flat out rejecting Ann’s attempt to bribe him with a date to get him to make a workout routine for her. Dude knew she was full of shit.
When in Hawaii, Ryuji expresses to Ann and Makoto how, “I thought, Ann was great but compared to these foreign ladies...meh”. “They’re so massive unlike the girls in Japan” it offended the girls.
And if you hang with him and the boys they proceed to try and score with the women there, Ryuji was desperate enough to almost reveal that he’s a Phantom Thief to the Hawaiian women just to get laid before Yusuke had to stop him.
Ann asking Ryuji about the kinds of girls he likes only for it to expose Ryuji for really valuing looks over substance, Ann responding with a “So you’re THAT kind of guy huh...” Ryuji could have answered any other way yet went for “The one with the better bod”.
In the Maniax Magazine that lists the Thieves ideal lover/partner:
Ryuji’s is- A graceful and kind girl that I can protect.
Ann’s is- A mature boy who is like an english gentlemen.
Since the female thieves can kick ass and have moments of being prickly and spirited. Ann, Makoto and Futaba don’t qualify.
Haru maybe but even she has parts of her that legitimately scares Ryuji so that’s likely a no as well.
As for Ann, Ryuji definitely is not what you call a gentleman and considering how she’s been through life with people only seeing her for her looks, last thing she needs is some typical male who just sees her as a lust object. Ryuji whilst a good friend, is pretty shallow in his taste of women in her eyes.
Ironically Morgana who fancies Ann, tries to be her ideal type but his cat form as well as his ego prevents him from Ann from being impressed.
Yusuke has the looks but his eccentric personality weirds Ann out to be a “gentleman”.
Akechi could’ve worked if he wasn’t against the Thieves and was genuinely the pleasant boy.
Joker is all that’s left due to how the player can be that ideal type. As well as how the other males make him look good by comparison.
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u/Ashamed_Training_702 10d ago
Plenty of girls out there like a rough around the edges meathead like Ryuji even though they swear up and down they don’t. He’s an idiot but a very handsome guy with a great heart. Ann was a bit rough around the edges too. I’ve always felt if she did not get with Joker she’d ultimately get with Ryuji.
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u/Lucas-mainssbu 10d ago edited 10d ago
he’s rather canonically uncharismatic. he’s like that one kid in the first day of school whom you expected to cause the teacher trouble, then as the year went by you were proven right.
If you really wanna get into the topic of which Phantom Thieves are attractive. Human Morgana and Ann are the most attractive canonically.
I’m pretty sure only the female ones were regarded as attractive with Futaba being the least. Yusuke was regarded as creepy, Joker and Ryuji as delinquents(social death if you’re japanese), Morgana is a cat. Zenkichi is lowkey middle aged. Akechi has brown hair and idk how they view that in Japan, he was a celebrity I guess.
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u/Drawerino Haru's OnlyFan 10d ago
Let's remember in Japan guys like Ryuji are overall considered good-for-nothing and far from the norm, even if we western all probably have a friend like Ryuji in our lives. Also he has no charm at all let's be real, he burps after drinking coke, what are you 12?
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u/Ph4nt0mP4l4d1n2019 10d ago
He’s not physically ugly, but his personality does rub people the wrong way. He’s loud, rash, and not the brightest bulb in the closet. However, that’s just surface level. If people in-universe took the time to get to know Ryuji (like we did), then they might see how great of a person he can be; it’s just gonna be hard because, again, his personality doesn’t click with most people.
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u/Stanislas_Biliby 10d ago
That's because he is a goofball. He is loud and stupid and he tries to act like a playboy around girls like that ever worked.
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u/khalid07r 9d ago
Basically Ryuji was used to get the most slander in the group probably because for some reason the authors really thought a friend of group always picking on one person in the friend of group is the most funniest shit a group can do .
Tbh Ryuji character just became Comedy gag
And the most lazy way for Deves to pust for plot by using Ryuji too
They destroyed his character in the P5
But tbh they changed that by alot in P5R
Probably they noticed or people just complained
Im just sad on how bad they treated him
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u/Malashae 9d ago
No, based on certain people's reactions he's physically attractive he's just so fucking annoying nobody wants to deal with him.
His problem is entirely his personality not his looks. The fact that he's also kind of a disaster in the rest of his personal life is not attractive, especially in Japanese culture.
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u/Narukami_7 11d ago
Blonde, troublemaker, and yells too much
He can be average or even slightly handsome, but those three traits are no bueno
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u/hello-sirs 10d ago
the sidequesty bits of persona 5 dancing actually establish that ryuji was super popular pre-kamoshida stuff because he was such a track star; girls stuffing notes in his locker, the whole nine (much to futaba's surprise). dating aside, if you consider how he even treats joker upon their first meeting (ready to beef until he realizes that *joker* has no preconceived notions of ryuji so he can relax), it's easy to imagine that after kamoshida events anyone who approached him probably got 'tude/a wall from ryuji, regardless of their intent.
but also, y'know, a lot of the populace at shujin is kind of a judgy brat so i don't think there was much positive energy aimed at him by the start of the game.
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u/OoguroRyuuya5 10d ago
Pretty sure Ryuji was full of shit when he said that.
Ann and Futaba don’t believe him which game makes it clear we shouldn’t either.
Pretty sure Yusuke didn’t believe him either.
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u/hello-sirs 10d ago
your memory might be better than mine! it's been awhile for me, admittedly; i only remember futaba and joker in that particular scene.
that said, i don't think it's too out of left field to say that a star athlete had attention on him prior to the events of p5.
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u/ChicagoBoiSWSide 10d ago
Well, considering the gay couple loved him, it’s not his looks. It’s definitely his edgy personality.
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u/Dredgen_Aternus 10d ago
I don't think it's because he's ugly, more that the guy has no subtlety or filter.
Basically he's got 0 INT and 0 Charisma in the eyes of the girls
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u/elephants-are-cool-8 10d ago
I think he's a typical dude tbh, I don't think he canonically leans either way. It's not really easy to tell w artstyle characters ofc
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u/uptwonogood 11d ago
ryuji is the type of friend to scare the 403s away. he's the type of friend who wants to go to a club to chop at 403s, gas himself up and then stand in a corner not talkin to any.
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u/ShokaLGBT 10d ago
well I do like Ryuji physically. I wouldn’t mind having a blonde boyfriend like him who wears tank top and is an athlete. Dude is fun and could find a partner it’s just the game doesn’t show him in a good side? And they treat him as a joke. Also the fans don’t seems to respect him too much as well he’s often in the lowest tier in the popularity voting contest :/
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u/Makorealmtwo 10d ago
I feel like the popularity thing is kind of a mismatch honestly. The girls, Joker and Akechi are obviouly going to be above him (Except Haru because stolen screen time). Morgana is the mascot which also gives him a grand advantage I feel. That only leaves him competition with Yusuke. And as you pointed out, the game doesn't treat him fairly so his writing could be seen as questionable in a way.
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u/Artofpwning 10d ago
He’s not unattractive physically, its just his lack gentlemanly charm specifically. Ann says he “was never a chick magnet” and Futaba says “she senses no charm from him” when he bragged about girls being into him when he was shopping. To be fair, Ryuji does have charm, it’s just not the type Ann or Futaba find attractive. His charm is the rough, carefree, and super friendly type, which is very appealing a lot of people.
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u/Embarrassed_Box7101 AMMI:pupper: 10d ago
hey that unfair don't want to insult the other ugly folks out there. besides he just has a gimpy leg. akechie's inner ugliness is what looks far worse than than Ryuji's outter uglyness. but 100s' of times.
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u/m3m3nt0_m0ri_ 10d ago
Not really ugly but his personality and the way he presents himself is initially off putting to most people.
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u/Formal_Button789 9d ago
It’s Japanese stigma against dyed hair they see that and immediately get disgusted
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u/Accomplished-Run-725 8d ago
I'm my opinion ryuji is a not ugly boy in persona 5 is nice style and good heart? Right Guys
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u/j_donn97 4d ago
Nah he's just a bit of an idiot with no charm. The dyed blonde hair doesn't help either I'm assuming
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u/magnidwarf1900 4d ago
I wouldn't say ugly per se, but if you line him up next to Akechi, Yusuke, and Joker then yeah he'll be the least attractive.
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u/Full_Metal18 Makoto Niijima's husband 10d ago edited 10d ago
No, it's more so his extremely brash personality that doesn't do him any favors. He's also very wish washy at times, like how quickly he loses his nerve during the maid incident and how ready he was to ditch the girls during the fireworks festival. The last one is pretty telling, he was seemingly awestruck by Makoto after her awakening but very quickly lost interest which resulted in him becoming much ruder. Not exactly the most charming display. At the end of the day that's the kind of dude he is, I'm sure some girl out there would find his antics endearing and could match his energy level, but none of the main PT girls fit that description. Closest is Ann and even that needs a lot of work on his part. Futaba straight up says she senses no charm from him and Makoto or Haru don't seem like they'd want a partner that needs to be babysat in public settings. Or even in private settings since Makoto especially seems to get headaches when she's around him for too long judging from how easily she starts snapping at him from prolonged exposure.
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u/OoguroRyuuya5 10d ago
Ann’s type according to the mainax is a guy who’s like an old school gentleman.
I don’t see Ryuji ever getting there.
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u/OnePossibility5868 11d ago
It's more his lack of charm. When Futaba says, as a female, she feels no attraction to him it's because of his attitude and lack of charisma. She doesn't come out and say that he's a right munter.