I’d like to start off by saying that analysis will deal almost exclusively with Mikan’s portrayal in the SDR2 game, rather than the DR3 anime or any manga adaptation. Being a different medium, and produced a few years after the game, I believe that the writing and art could at times have different intentions than the games.

I personally find the writing choices for Mikan’s character absolutely fascinating, to the point that it invites both Doyalist and Watsonian exploration of what makes her function.  (simply put, Kodaka’s writing and Mikan’s in-universe motivations work in concert, rather than at odds)

I’m writing this series of essays in response to the constant, not to mention surprising, confusion I’ve seen surrounding Mikan’s character over the past ten years. Mikan is a very unique character, and her motivations are difficult to find perfectly mirrored in another existing character (not to say that I have consumed every piece of media ever, but I have yet to run across another character like her). Either way, I’m hoping to challenge some incorrect views or at the very least have the chance to say my piece after so many years.

Now, of course, I am not Kodaka nor have I met him personally. I have, however, been in the fandom for longer than the average DR fan, not to mention being somewhat older, so I may have different experiences with media than some other fans.  

Now that I have all of that out of way, I’d like to begin with what I personally believe was Kodaka’s primary intention in creating the scenes where Mikan falls over-

Satire.

Dictionary.com defines satire as:

‘The use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues.’

So just what is the ‘stupidity or vice’ that Kodaka is satirizing?

Fanservice.

(and perhaps the dojikko archetype, but we’ll visit that in another article)

I feel as if the term fanservice has become skewed as of late, as terms often do with passing decades. Back in the early days of English-speaking online anime fandom, fanservice was most often used to mean a scene or piece of artwork that was literally intended to be sexually appealing to the (usually straight male) viewer. At the same time, these scenes would do nothing to further the plot or add to the characterization of the woman in the scene.

These are images of Faye from Cowboy Bebop. I choose her because she exists in a sci-fi action canon that contains a well-written story and characters, as opposed to a pure fanservice series that is only created to showcase women’s bodies for an assumed male gaze.

While it can be argued that the way Faye dresses can make a statement about her personality, it is also clear to the viewer that her outfit is intended to be sexy not just in-universe, but for the viewer as well.

Let’s consider these pictures.

Faye’s top leaves little to the imagination, showing much of her cleavage, which is of course something that many female-attracted people find to be a turn on. You’ll also notice that her booty shorts are unzipped in front, inches from her privates. While I am neutral on the topic of fanservice, characterization and story-wise, there is no reason for the creators to dress her this revealing other than for viewers' pleasure. The adjustments to her costume in the live action prove that she can still be a strong and attractive woman without letting it all hang out.

The same goes for her cocktail dress. There is no vital in-universe need for jiggle physics.

(Disclaimer: This is not a critique of Cowboy Bebop. I think it’s a brilliant show. These images are here solely to juxtapose true fanservice with Mikan’s suggestive pose scenes)

Now, let’s take a look at some characters you’re more familiar with. These are from a collab with a mobile game called Sengoku… something. I’ve never heard of it, and I’m not sure what the actual characters from it look like. That said, let’s look at Mikan and Chiaki in these images.

These images are stand-alone, rather than being scenes from DR canon. In that case, they say nothing about the personality of characters in question, or the story they are from. These images serve no other purpose than to titillate the viewer. The outfits are clearly drawn in ways specifically to highlight their chests and other areas.

So what does this have to do with Mikan’s scenes in SDR2?

I firmly believe that Kodaka is doing three things with the following scenes: satirizing fanservice, satirizing the dojikko character type, and showing quite a bit of Mikan’s character at the same time. I find this pretty clever writing, and the reason I felt compelled to write this series of essays. We know that Kodaka likes satire and parody. Please just take a look at the entire DR series. Even the major themes underlying the games as a whole, such as reality TV culture and the pressures placed on Japanese youth, are largely satire. So why wouldn't smaller moments of satire be present in these same games as well?

These are the scenes in which Mikan falls over on purpose in order to diffuse tense moments, and shift the focus back onto herself by using her sexuality (I’ll go into this topic in depth at another time). As I said, these scenes show us a great deal about the personality of the character, making them immediately more valuable than simple fanservice scenes.

Take a look at her pose, and how she is dressed. Compare it to the ninja costumes above. They show quite a bit of skin, and the poses highlight their breasts and thighs.

In SDR2, Mikan is fully clothed in a reasonably well covering outfit (I once saw someone on Tumblr say that her skirt was drawn too short, and sometimes I feel like we’re one step away from visible ankles becoming scandalous again lol). Her chest is covered. There is the tiniest little peep of plain white panties in one of these images, but that’s about it. I can assure you that these scenes are not very sexy to the average female-attracted person. They are over the top, and clearly present a parody of the sort of scene truly meant to be sexy. Now, of course, literally anything can be a turn on to someone out there, but I’m talking about on average, of course.

Does this mean that Kodaka is against fanservice? I’m sure that’s not the case. However, it is possible to satirize things that you enjoy as well. In fact, I encourage creatives to critique tropes that they personally enjoy. I personally think that it’s a good way to challenge your own point of view and to not take yourself too seriously.

Satire can be shocking, or bring on feelings of discomfort. It is not always intended to be funny. Spending ten years of my life in the DR fandom, it’s always been strange to me that depictions of sexuality--even when they show very little or are used to further characterization--are more shocking to the general viewer base than the actual murders themselves, but that is likely a larger discussion for another day. Back to my point however, is that even if you do feel disgust or discomfort at Mikan’s scenes, they do elicit an emotion in the viewer, which is a large part of the point of art in the first place. In short, you have every right to feel discomfort at these scenes, but I do think that understanding the meaning and value behind them can help deepen enjoyment of the game, or at the very least of Mikan’s character.

Upcoming- A look at the dojikko archetype, followed by a Watsonian look into Mikan’s own motivations in the conscious use of her sexuality.