#persona 5 critical
The thing about Makoto is that fucking EVERYTHING that’s interesting about her is stuff Atlus has no interest in actually exploring
Like it is INTERESTING that she is actually really impulsive and that impulsiveness is kept in check by a lifetime of sucking up to adults and it is INTERESTING that her main flaw makes her bad at the thing she wants to do and I would LOVE it if we explored her temper or her impulsivity or her desire to prove herself and be useful or the way she feels bad about being mad at her dad for not being around and how that relates to Sae being mad at her dad for dying and SO MUCH MORE
But we don’t get that because heaven forbid we explore these kinds of flaws in depth and realize Makoto actually has shit she needs to work on
Atlus: This is Makoto. Her arc is learning to break free of the oppressive system that forced her to become a cog.
Atlus: The resolution to her character arc is wanting to become a cop.
(Tags from @in-fair-verona-we-set-our-scene)
Seriously seriously it is INSANE that we get Kaburagi and Zenkichi in the very next game and it highlights how the cops are stalking and willing to frame Joker and how even “good cops” are still held back by the fact that to even get to a good position where they CAN fix the system they have to compromise their morals to the extent that part of Zenkichi’s arc is breaking the collar and becoming a lone wolf
And NONE of this HAS ANY effect on Makoto’s desire to be a cop, narratively or character wise
Also the game reinforces that Makoto would be a bad cop because her reaction to catching the guys trying to sneak out is to not give them a chance to explain themselves and then beat them up while shouting “fists of Justice” which is almost immediately followed by a scene of cops ignoring Akane when she asks them why they’ve barged into her house and beating up Zenkichi without giving either of them a chance to try and explain themselves (I know it’s supposed to be an homage to P3 but maybe you homages shouldn’t just reinforce the idea that Makoto would be bad cop)
Atlus: This is Makoto. Her arc is learning to break free of the oppressive system that forced her to become a cog.
Atlus: The resolution to her character arc is wanting to become a cop.
