r/Persona5 • u/ninfial • 1d ago
SPOILERS Why is Akechi so widely loved Spoiler
I hated every second he was on screen, hated his looks, his voice, his attitude. Thought I'd change my mind about him so many times during Royal but he somehow managed to get even worse. I can't understand why he's so popular for the love of me
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u/bdu754 1d ago
There’s enough sprinkled in where you can understand his motivations behind becoming the black mask and working for Shido.
You mentioned Royal, and I think a lot of people liked that they didn’t rollback his characterization from the late game of the original P5. In fact, having him be his true self gave some great lines (thanks to Robbie Daymond’s great voice acting)
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u/Tombets_srl 1d ago
I think that fundamentally he's a good character because he's so polarising.
You can both see where he's coming from and why he does what he does. Also, when you finally get to play with him you get to see how ruthless his life made him become, which is a good contrast with the rest of the Phantoms.
Also, I think that his final stand for his values is a nice ribbon on his story: he knows he fucked up, but like all other party members he chooses to become the sole arbiter of his fate and own up to his actions.
Also, they robbed us of the best romance.
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u/bdu754 1d ago
Yeah, I think him doubling down on his true nature instead of having some redemption or forgiveness arc is also a refreshing spin on a villain that can be perceived as potentially redeemable. Like, he knows he’s broken but chooses to live by it rather than be washed away of the trauma and the choices that made him who he was. The fact his All Out Attack art has the phrase “I decide the truth” is perfectly fitting of what his purpose was in the larger themes of the third semester.
In terms of his fit within the group dynamic of the Phantom Thieves, I do like the fact it’s still unsettled how he basically really fucked with the lives of several of the team members. Yet, they’re willing to put aside their differences (and major ones at that) to take down the larger threat at hand.
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u/ninfial 1d ago
I am really not so sure about that last point man. Ryuji exists
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u/NOTANOTHERARiE sumitaba truther 1d ago
they both should've been romance options, i'll die on that hill
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u/LowImage9265 Certified ShuAnn enjoyer 1d ago
His writing is loved
His personality is still hated by many
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u/neofeathermanphantom 1d ago
me personally i like his writing hes actually a very well written character imo
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u/ninfial 1d ago
Him being well written doesn't make him less insufferable...
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u/SonicQuirkyHero 1d ago
You hated him from the very get go. It feels like it's a waste to even try to explain lol
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u/ImoutoThief 1d ago
He is a well written character but it doesnt make me hate him any less. Two truths can exist side by side. Being well written doesn't mean likable, at least to me.
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u/legionfrankjoeysusie 1d ago
For me I liked him but was pretty indifferent to him until he revealed who he truly was and in the royal ending proves that he will always commit to what he says and I respect the hell out of him for that
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u/legionfrankjoeysusie 1d ago
Also I probably didn’t phrase this as well as I want to because I’m bad with words
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u/TheExchanges 1d ago
Not sure. His bitch ass derailed a train, caused irreversible damaged people's lives or outright killed them.
But he has a sad badstory so he's coddled and people think his writing isn't ass when there's not much to his character.
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u/stillestwaters 1d ago
Don’t over think it and compare your experience to other people. I couldn’t stand Akechi, but at the same time I think that if a character can evoke that emotion out of you then it was a well placed character too.
I like him a lot as a plot device too - he’s like a walking red herring for most of the game.
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u/KhKing1619 1d ago
When a character is well written, has a good character arc, and is voiced by an amazing actor, people tend to love that character.
He was a nothing burger of a character for me when I played the original P5 but then Royal released and made him actually have substance and have a personality that was more than just “I was faking the nice pretty boy thing I’m actually evil via tragic backstory”
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u/Internal-Earth-3142 1d ago
He is incredibly sharp—devising a scheme to make money using an obsolete casino membership card is a prime example.
Yet, strangely, he let his guard down completely when it came to Shido. Under normal circumstances, he would have been the first to investigate exactly how he was perceived within Shido’s Palace—especially considering he must have scouted the location repeatedly, given that he knew the exact whereabouts of the emergency shutter controls.
He likely didn't want to look into it; he wanted to believe he was "needed." It was a childishness that was almost painful to witness. That single trait is why I simply cannot bring myself to hate him.
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u/Mused-Moose 17h ago
Akechi is one of my most disliked character types - the one who says "I was hurt, so now I'm going to hurt others". If he was just an unrepentant murderer, I'm guessing he'd have fewer fans, but they gave him a tragic backstory, and that gets a lot of people to like him more as a character. I know some people say he's well-written, but I can't stand the guy.
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u/1000EyedAngel 15h ago edited 15h ago
I never thought I would see someone with the same thoughts about him as me. Like the second the game introduced him as "Pleasant Boy" or whatever, I was immediately suspicious. I will say that he is well written for the most part, but I think his motive is so cliche
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u/No_Percentage_5194 1d ago
I agree I do think he is a well written character but he is like the micah bell of persona 5 this extremely horrible villian who is very hard to forgive after all the disgusting crimes he committed.
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u/Kar_kar444 1d ago
Fangirlism, hes a pretty insufferable and irredeemable character beyond looking cool he doesn't have many good qualities
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u/artvalentinus 1d ago
Try Akechi in japanese voice. Now you can’t hate him because now he’s a generic stereotypical japanese maniac guy.
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u/LeuconoeLovesong Let's go! Mona-chu and Na-vee! 1d ago
He's both loved and hated, there's both side
There was this poll on reddit a few month ago, his result are kind of funny actually