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Bungo Stray Dogs: Season 1-3 Recap! (Patreon)

Published:
2022-12-30 18:01:00
Edited:
2023-02-20 22:40:42
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I can't believe it's 1.) been almost a year since I've watched Bungo Stray Dogs season 3, and 2.) that we're about to start Season 4!   

I'm excited to start the new year with a new season of BSD, but for this video, we're recapping Seasons 1-3 with a character tier, talking about themes, the novels I've read so far, and the manga vs. the anime for this series!  

Cheers to the Stray Dogs, and to Season 4!  
Thank you for watching with me and for all the support!

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Bungo Stray Dogs: Seasons 1-3 Recap!

I can't believe it's 1.) been almost a year since I've watched Bungo Stray Dogs season 3, and 2.) that we're about to start Season 4! I'm excited to start the new year with a new season of BSD, but for this video, we're recapping Seasons 1-3 with a character tier, talking about themes, the novels I've read so far, and the manga vs. the anime for this series! Cheers to the Stray Dogs, and to Season 4! Thank you for watching with me and for all the support! Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/RomaniaBlack My Anime: https://myanimelist.net/profile/RomaniaBlack Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/RomaniaBlack You can mail me a letter or anything (except food, please) at this address: Romania Black PO Box 768 Harrisburg, IL 62946 USA

Comments

Dana

One of my favorite themes in BSD is the concept of the cycle of generational abuse/trauma, specifically from paternal figures, being passed down from person to person, but also said cycle eventually being broken. The chain starts with Mori, who heavily emotionally/mentally abused and manipulated Dazai, taking advantage of his mental illness and profiting off it for the Mafia, and then Dazai passed on that abuse to Akutagawa because it was all he knew (because he was groomed to be just like Mori), who then passed said abuse onto Kyouka, because of the idea drilled into him by Dazai that if you are weak and not strong enough, then you won't and don't deserve to survive -- which is, coincidentally, the exact same treatment and abusive "lesson" that Atsushi received from his headmaster, who in turn received it from his own abusers in the past. But then Oda comes along, and without even trying to or even realizing he does, he breaks that cycle of abuse, because he is the good father figure that Dazai desperately needed, Dazai really just being a child who was forced to grow up too fast and was only able to act like said child around Oda and Ango, who were his home (his found family 😭) in the Mafia. That's the tragic beauty of Oda but why he's so so important: because he came into Dazai's life, Dazai is saved, he is able to leave the Mafia and his abuse of Akutagawa ends, and he goes on to save Atsushi, who goes on to save Kyouka, and who also loops back around to gradually becoming a better influence on Akutagawa and changing him for the better. All of this can only happen because of Oda, without Oda there would quite literally be no BSD, because of how he touches Dazai's life and all that Dazai ends up doing as per Oda's wishes for him. There is a quote Gide says from the Bible near the end of Dark Era that goes "Unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it will remain only a single seed, but if it dies it will produce many seeds" and to me that perfectly sums up Oda's role in the story, in that he is the origin point, and that he had to die in order for so many other beautiful things to bloom. He never lives to see the fruits of his single act of kindness he imparts on Dazai, but his presence is still felt throughout the entire rest of the story, even long after he's dead, and I love that he's never forgotten, not by Dazai or Ango, nor the narrative (and yes, I fully believe Dazai was thinking of Oda when he told Atsushi that people tend to cry when their fathers die, and I'm glad you pointed that out, because it DOES feel like he cried in the novel, and he definitely did in the stage play 😭😭😭 it kills meeeeeeeee). I also adore Dazai as a character and how he's honestly one of the best depictions of mental illness in media I've ever seen; sure, his constant suicide jokes are a bit exaggerated, but his eternal lighthearted humor to hide his pain, and tendency to distance himself from being intimate with people and his inability to show vulnerabilities around them because of how deep his own self-loathing and insecurities must run is heartbreaking, as is his very obvious belief that he isn't human (no longer human amiright), or doesn't know how to be one, due to how he was born and how overwhelmingly intelligent he is to the point that barely anything interests him. The Mafia setting only made him infinitely worse, causing Dazai to have to cut off all his emotions in order to cope with the horrible things he has to do and the horrible things he feels (as we see in how he treats Akutagawa, and Chuuya in Fifteen; I should add that you got the timeline off, Fifteen happens BEFORE Dark Era, because Dazai is, well, 15 in Fifteen, and in Dark Era, right before he leaves the Mafia, he's 18. He hasn't met Oda yet at the time of Chuuya joining the Mafia, and has only barely just met him at the time of bringing in Akutagawa, hence why he acts much colder at those slightly younger ages). But this is why I find Oda's final advice to Dazai so comforting, because he doesn't lie to him and tell him that everything will be okay, but instead, he understands Dazai and accepts Dazai for who he is, an amoral person who doesn't really care whether he's doing whats "right" or "wrong", and tells him that, "hey, things are always gonna suck somehow, but that's okay, you're not broken, not all hope is lost for you, and even if good and evil don't mean much to you, you should try living on the side of good, because you'll find it more satisfying, just like I did." It's extremely validating of Dazai's struggles, and realistically comforting without being just platitudes, and it's exactly what he needed to hear from the person who understood him more than anyone else in the world. And as the manga goes on, Dazai is still struggling with what to do and struggling to be the good man Oda believed he could be, constantly being forced to go back to his old mafia habits that regress his progress some, but even so, we can see that he IS happier on the side of good, and that his perspective on humanity is slowly changing -- he tells Fyodor after he gets shot in the alleyway that "people are sinful and foolish, but what's wrong with that?", which is in direct contrast to how he would have thought pre-Oda's influence (and also in contrast to Fyodor, since they're foils) ❤️ He's truly begun to accept people and all of their flaws, because everyone in this series is so flawed, as you pointed out, but that's what makes them beautiful. Chapter 39/"Portrait of a Father" is the most important chapter in the entire manga imo, and I say that even now with 104 manga chapters currently out. Not only does it show the generational abuse thing so well, but it depicts the headmaster as a realistic human being who was not just 100% evil, but had good intentions despite his horrible methods, and it beautifully portrays the struggle of not knowing how to feel about the loss of your abuser. On the one hand, the headmaster brought so much trauma on Atsushi, and that can't be forgiven, but on the other hand, he was undeniably the most influential person in Atsushi's life up until he met Dazai, and is the reason he's alive today, and I love how Dazai, without justifying the headmaster's actions (because he himself treated Akutagawa the exact same way with the exact same "justifications" and it's so clear he holds extreme guilt and resentment towards himself for that in that speech he gives to Atsushi about it, even if it was a product of his own abuse), tells Atsushi that he has the right to feel however he wants to feel about his death, even if that means mourning him. It's such a powerful and haunting moment, and Atsushi has to continue to grapple with the mental voice of the headmaster literally haunting him in his head and dictating his actions even after that, trying to make it go away and trying to unlearn all of the toxic, wrong beliefs that were forced upon him, just like Akutagawa has to go on his own journey of learning that his own self-worth doesn't rely on pleasing Dazai, and that he's perfectly fine just the way he is. It's really beautiful stuff, again all these characters are all so nuanced and feel so real, and their struggles so relatable, and the messages the series has to convey are so powerful and ones that I think a lot of people need to hear. ❤️ Oda is so much deeper than you first realize upon reading the novel (the way that the book he wants to finish writing is about an assassin who stops killing and has a reason as to why, which is just a metaphor for who he himself becomes, and who Dazai ends up becoming!!! Aughh it's so GOOD), so is Ango, and Fitzgerald (HIS REDEMPTION IS SO GOOOOOD, HE IS SO UNDERRATED UGH I'M SO HAPPY YOU APPRECIATE HIM), and even Chuuya, who I admittedly was never much of a fan of, gains incredible depth in Stormbringer, the direct sequel to Fifteen, and now I have a newfound appreciation for him and his relationship with Dazai too. Every (well, almost lol) character in BSD is just *chef's kiss* flawless in their flaws (har har Flawless, get it-). Re: the manga art, Harukawa the artist has stated that the darker and larger a character's pupils are, the more "tainted" they are. Thus, most of the characters in the mafia have completely dark/black eyes... the only exceptions are Kyouka, whose eyes change somewhat throughout the early manga, and Dazai, who is the only Agency member to have completely black eyes. ;) (it should be noted however that Tanizaki's eyes occasionally turn completely black when he gets mad, too) The blue-haired woman you didn't know in the tierlist is Tsujimura; she was indeed in a tiny part of Dead Apple as part of Ango's government crew, but originally she's from a BSD side story novel called "Bungo Stray Dogs Gaiden: Ayatsuji Yukito VS. Kyōgoku Natsuhiko". I have not read this novel yet so I do not know anything about her, and I'm guessing they only threw her into Dead Apple as an easter egg, so it's perfectly normal for you not to know her either lol. The blonde hat woman however is Agatha Christie 😭 who... still hasn't appeared in the manga yet aside from her initial introduction with Fitzgerald and Fyodor waaaaaaay back at the start like you brought up, but I guess Bones really wanted to make use of her badass design already so they put her in Dead Apple lol. So even though I sincerely hesitate to call DA canon, that's Agatha's first real story appearance, along with Tsujimura. And the bandaid guy beside Agatha is Tachihara, part of the Black Lizard with Gin and Hirotsu. I like him a lot for some reason, and Aya, the girl from Kunikida's OVA, so those were the only ones it made me a little sad to see so low :' ) But other than them, I more or less agree with your list, especially Oda, Dazai, Ango, Fitzgerald, Akutagawa and Atsushi being at/near the top. ❤️👌 Very excited to see how your rankings may change after season 4, and excited to see your reactions! This was a great video, I enjoyed hearing your thoughts ❤️ and sorry for another essay comment HFJDKALSDKFJGFKDL I just can't help myself, there's so much to talk about with this series :' )

romaniablack
>>98639796

Ohhhh, yes, with this series, there’s DEFINITELY an emphasis on “generation” (the three Shokoku pairings for example), and trauma because OF COURSE Trauma in BSD! :P And it extends, like you said, beyond the pairings to other characters like Kyouka, too. UGH, ODA, his role in the story, particularly with Dazai is SO important! *sigh* It’s why I love him so much! :) And Ango being influenced as well! I agree, too, Dazai DEFINITELY cried in the novel/stage play and I don’t BLAME him! The suicide jokes with Dazai CRUSH me – I get reminded more of Xie Lian from Heaven Official’s Blessing with him in the dark reality of self-destruction/sacrifice/harm and how little Dazai thinks of himself and keeps going now primarily because of his promise to Oda. T-T I love that line to Fyodor about how people are sinful and foolish, but “doesn’t that make them great?” <3 indeed – I love that he’s such a gray character, but all the more relatable because of it. It’s so interesting that as important as “Portrait of a Father” is, it feels like SUCH an underrated episode! I definitely feel the manga did a better job setting up and handling the headmaster character but at least I’ve read the manga up until this point so I can go to season 4 with that knowledge! And yessss, Fitzgerald – I love that man! :) And Oda is “flawless” indeed; the mangaka knew what they were doing! Oohhh, that is INTERESTING to note about eyes in the manga! That’s very cool and I like that it applies to the Mafia so much – now I’m going to look for the “gleam” in Dazai’s eyes in the manga. HAHAHA – I KNEW she had to be in Dead Apple! Thank you for the info on Tsujimura! And Agatha Christie – I should have known! I feel bad for Tachihara – I love his design and character so far, but for the life of me CANNOT remember his name. *sigh* Thank you so much for the kind words and comment! I am REALLY excited for season 4 and making this video, catching up with the manga, and all that fun just made me look forward to it more! CHEERS! To the Stray Dogs! :)