PERSONA 5 ROYAL Emotionally Manipulated Me 

And here it is... I HAD NO IDEA WHAT TO TITLE THIS ONE BECAUSE WHAT THE ACTUAL HECK HAPPENED MAN?! What a rollercoaster of emotions. I feel tricked, LMAO

Akechi dying in the first phase to a reflected physical attack and then immediately setting up a physical reflect is hilarious.

mf got hit with the akechi beam like crystahl 😭😭

Robbie's unhinged voices goes totally off the rocker.

I love how casually he talks about the cruise ship he was on before the reveal Actually golden dramatic irony

My favourite bit of this whole playthrough has to be chat gaslighting him. Everytime jc mentioned the stadium or Kasumi the chat flooded with messages like "who?" "what stadium?" "that's a bug". Great work chat keep it up.

“You’re just some criminal trash living in an attic!” “It’s the best café!” 😭😭😭

There’s a really good quote (forgot where its from) that goes: “you didn’t make good choices, you HAD good choices.” And that summarises the difference between Akechi and the phantom thieves the best. While the phantom thieves had their struggles, they also were way luckier than Akechi. They all had guardian figures providing for them, they got saved by friends before they could reach their lowest, and they had a Morgana to guide them through the unfamiliar metaverse. Akechi didn’t have those privileges, especially since being an orphan in Japan is extremely bottom-of-the-barrel. You’re not evil for making bad choices when that’s literally all you have to work with. Mind you, he is literally younger than Makoto. He gained these powers when he was younger than Futaba. He’s supposed to represent what all the thieves could’ve become if they’d been a little less privileged. The important thing about this arc is that the choices you make are only half the story. Circumstances are important to consider too. And circumstances are what dictate your choices. It’s not as simple as “bad people make bad choices, good people make good choices, so bad people deserve to die while good people deserve to be saved.” The answer to the question "why do I care?" is that every one of them could’ve been Akechi. That's why you care

I love the idea that Akechi during his rank 8 says he'll face Joker with everything he's got. But it was another bluff. Like when he used his non-dominant hand in pool. Joker could keep up with Robin Hood Akechi. But the moment Akechi used his actual full power, it took ALL of the Thieves combined to beat him. Which makes sense. Like Futaba and the others said, Akechi is a wild card. Like Joker. He is only bound because he didn't forge bonds with other people. And even then, he's been doing this for years. Way longer than any of the Thieves. His true power could only be overcome by the one thing he didn't have. People to call friends. A part of me does wonder how powerful Akechi could've become if he'd been able to reach his full potential.

Join the club jc that’s what goro akechi does to a man

Arc 7, also known as: repeated emotional baseball bats to the skull

“My brain keeps going to water” HOW DID YOU GUESS IT?!

I know you get this a lot, but your reactions to things like Akechi really make this playthrough what it is! Cant wait for the next part

God the METAPHORS that happen once cognitive Akechi comes on screen! First of all the obvious suc1de metaphor with Akechi shooting "himself" but it goes much deeper than that as well. Akechi is given a choice to shoot the thieves to "prove himself" to Shido and instead Akechi has a change of heart, *wink wink nudge nudge*, and decides to destroy Shido's warped perception of him. He destroys the part of him that has been working against the phantom thieves to save them. AND IT DOESN'T STOP THERE! He then shoots his gun at that button (a ridiculously accurate shot btw) and puts a LITERAL WALL between him and the rest of the phantom thieves to separate himself from them while constantly pushing them away and saying they need to leave him. It's a PERFECT metaphor (intentionally or not) for the emotional barriers Akechi puts between himself and others. Insisting that he's fine on his own that he doesn't need friends or team mates ect. Because he uses lying as a defense mechanism both to himself and others. I feel like it's hard to make sense of his character BECAUSE he's a liar, even when he says he's being honest he's lying most of the time.

Despite the fact that Akechi tried to play you and the phantom thieves, and you tried to play him back... you cannot form or strengthen a Social Link/Confidant through superficial means. Despite everything goong on around the two of you, whenever you hang out with him, you were genuinely forming a connection and are getting closer to him. It's a testament to how strong the two of you's bond is that even when the both of you reveal who you truly are to each other, the Confidant link didn't break off.

Fun fact: The Vanilla version of the Shido boss doesn't have the Segment where you defeat him on your own. They improved the fight to bring Joker's Revenge full circle. Shido sent him to Juvenile Hall in the beginning of it all, now Joker beats the Tar out of Shido's Shadow

Fun Fact : Shido's costume references to "Char Aznable", the antagonist from animation "Mobile suit Gundam". Shido's voice in JP voiced by Ikeda Shuichi, who voiced Char Aznable.

I think I clicked faster than The Reaper Video this time

In Japan orphans are treated unfairly and viewed as ungrateful for their parents not wanting them or their parents being dead

seeing jc reacting to akechi was the best part, i just couldn't wait and HAD to jump on the vods. glad you're enjoying the game

Honestly W voice acting from Robbie

Bro thinks he finished an SMT game without ascending to Heaven and fighting God

Thank you Happiness75 in the chat at 2:01:08 that is good intel.

Never forget how he blue balled the stream watchers hoping for the Akechi fight

What hurts even more is that Akechi just wanted to be loved and appreciated and he was jealous as joker had what he didn’t even tho he was an “ace detective” and at first you think there is no changing his mind he is insane but throughout the fight you see him slowly just breaking down and finally you his RIVAL got through to him in the end and managed to do the right thing. Even if it did cost him his life he went out protecting probably the only friend he has truly made and the only one whom he cared for even if he didn’t admit it. Fuck it just hurts

1:20:47 that’s a Daruma doll! Usually you get one with no eyes and fill the left eye in while thinking of a goal you’re trying to achieve. It’s a sort of good luck charm for that goal; when you achieve it you fill the other eye out! So this scene is kinda signifying how Shido is feeling like he’s reached his highest point!

Man this game emotionally broke me I first lost my fav character Akechi and thought:"Well at least I have my second favorite character Ryuji!" AND THEN THEY DID THE FAKE DEATH THING AND I WAS CRUSHED

Your large laughs of disbelief, amazement, and happiness when Akechi transformed were the same as mine. I was screeching when this happened!! This is probably one of my favorite reveals in gaming that I’ve ever played. Ugh. So, so cool.

Robbie Daymind is absolute fire in this scene. Absolutely unhinged in one of the best dramatic scenes in visual arts history, movies included.

Already watched through the VODS but JC’s playthrough and Satchel’s editing deserves a like

when i first heard "rivers in the desert" i got chills i was waiting for that fight for so long lmao gg jc

1:29:01 Haru: Can we attack? JC: No. *Begins to vibe*

Man, between Akechi and Hubert von Vestra, Robbie Daymond absolutely kills it (pun intended) as *those* kinds of characters.

1:32:32 shout out to chat w "DAMN FATE, I'LL SUE!!" Fuckin killed me

I cant wait to see his reactions to the third semester seeing how he talked about the difference between Akechi and Shido and the characters emmotional investments in the antagonist. Thats all. Not gonna elaborate any further.

I mentioned this on one of the streams, but since RU-vid doesn’t have Twitch’s comment limit, I can share a little more on here. 🙂 Part of the reason why I think the engine room scene works as well as it does is that the game spent all this time building up Akechi as this rival for the Phantom Thieves and especially Joker. But in that moment, everything turned on its head. The once fearsome Detective Prince is reduced to little more than, as Morgana said, a kid throwing a temper tantrum. In this scene, the Thieves are revealed to be the ultimate foil for him. He may have soloed all those palaces before and conducted all the mental shutdowns, but he was missing the one thing the Thieves had: real friendship. A lot of people criticize the Okumura arc (Arc 5) for how it handled the squabbling between Morgana and Ryuji, and I agree it could’ve been handled better. But I think that arc makes this one pay off more because we know the Thieves have moved past caring what other people think. They do what they do because they don’t want to see anyone else go through what they’ve been through. The tragic irony of Akechi is that in Arc 6, he set himself up as someone who could empathize with the Thieves as part of his lies. But in doing so, he completely missed the common ground he did have (being wronged by Shido). The only times we saw him being truly vulnerable were arguably the Rank 8 confidant event (“I’m going to be entirely honest with you: I hate you.”) and this scene. I think the Thieves were compassionate toward him because in finally embracing who they were, they recognized how similar he really was to them, even with his inexcusable actions. But in the end, he was the one they couldn’t save.

It is funny how they gave him codename Crow and then it turns out his 'true' outfit is indeed a crow look a like.

This whole series has just been the gift of profecy. The number of times he's accidentally predicted events in this game is amazing. Also I love the occasional "this reminds me of [x] from Sonic" springled throughout the series

I’m so glad Akechi’s arc captured you the way it did. It was so much fun to watch the reveal and bait and switch with him actually work out so well.

JC I know you're probably getting asked by everyone to play persona 3 or 4 next but if you really love 5 I suggest trying out persona 5 strikers. The spinoffs are always just such a love letter to the fans of that specific game, i think you'd love it

Can't wait for the finale stream this Sunday!

32:00 none of these people know i was an undesirable child

This palace remind me of something important, that thing is 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙣𝙤 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝗻 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘀😢

dude i just started this series and got to the present video WE NEED MORE I CAN’T WAIT LIKE YOUR OG FANS CAN 😭

This has been an amazing journey to watch, even if by only watching the vods since you stream at literally 2AM for me in Brazil lol. But I'm so happy my favourite game brought me back to watching you! Can't wait to finally catch it live on Sunday, I'll be there 🫡

cool to see crystaahhl mentioned here

The ecstatic jumping up and down at the Akechi reveal is the best part 🔥

Hilariously I've actually read a fanfic with the premise that Katsumi snuck aboard Shido's ship and saved Akechi just in time and it was a REALLY good read so like. I recommend reading it and other 'Akechi miraculously survives' fics for a little cathasis sometime XD

Not Sure if its been mentioned, but a cool fact about shidos palace Theme is its actually just the same as tokyo daylight (the song that plays when you Walk around town) but distorted and pitched around to Show how distortedly he views the world, and I think thats very neat

Your commentary truly adds to the experience man, can’t wait until you finish this.

57:51 Funny thing about Protect (the Confidant ability that caused Makoto to save Joker)...the person doing the protecting takes the exact amount of damage Joker would've taken, except that they automatically endure the hit and can't die from it. Joker had 482 HP, so if Protect hadn't kicked in, he would have taken 483 damage and died to exactly 1 damage over lethal. That sure would've been infuriating, wouldn't it?

Dude I am so so excited to watch this you have no idea. I genuinely have not been this hyped to watch a gameplay in a hot minute 😭 Can’t wait to see your reactions to Shido’s palace and especially Akechi and the whole deal with him

Been watching the streams (which I almost never have the patience to do) but I still loooove these reaction videos. Cuz the highlights and the editing make it totally worth it

50:00 AKECHI STOP HITTING YOURSELF

i waitted for his reaction to loki since the very first video

Oh how I’m excited for this video!!

if you look at your party you can see their reactions to akechi’s death before you leave the area you can see them wipe away their tears

I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS

Dam you're working fast with these videos 😮. Thank you for the amazing content that you and your editor always put out ❤️‍🔥. Also Akechi ♥️

IVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS!!

This was one of the best arcs in game in mt opinion... Glad you enjoyed it! (Just get ready for the next arc...)

Can't wait for the next part, great stuff. I hope it doesnt take months, i'm praying for it to take like... HOURS, I NEED THIS MAN'S REACTIONS

Oooohhh this is gonna be a good one, can’t wait to hear your probably even more crazy theories this time

God I’ve been waiting for your reaction to that scene!

After a very long day… I am very glad to watch this. I’ve been following this series for months, and this makes me happy Thank you for making great content, man

Really loved this one! Such a joy to go through the whole trip again with you!

Oh snap we back at it with the one of the best arcs!

Shido is business, Akechi is personal. Shido is the joy of wrapping up every loose end, Akechi is the emotional catharsis. Yes, Akechi stands out a bit more in the long run, but Shido is a good fight for what it needs to do. Narratively, Shido is the reason the phantom thieves even exist, and his own hubris causes his downfall by looking down on the person who will rise to beat him. Shido connects every prior villain not because it is needed, but to get everything wrapped up in a neat bow to stop loose ends. Arc doesnt feel resolved? That is kinda the point, but i cant say more until you finish off what was in the base game. It is why Shido feels like business; he is a stepping stone for the thieves, and the fight means more to Shido than to those who have to foil him. The thieves knew he was scum from day 1, and all the connections to joker are only an excuse to act. Shido meanwhile ignores everyone who cant give him power, and is constantly looking for ways to stab them in the back and discard them once they serve no more purpose, and it is someone he completely disregards as having value to offer him that takes him down. Not a stranger, not a tool, not even one of his allies, but someone he wronged seeing no way they could touch him. Shido overlooked Joker, now Joker, as the player's window into that world, overlooks Shido.

Ah, now we wait patiently for the next episode. You're going to LOVE IT!! Cheers ^^

Man JC’s foresight is crazy good. He’s able to predict so many things 😂 well, can’t wait for the next video 😜

Well, time to watch the VOD. I cannot wait for more.

God I was just about to sleep, but I cannnot now. I’ve been waiting for this part for SO LONG. Let’s go!!!

I can't wait to see JC play through THAT part

Yes JC Back ❤️ So hyped for the Next two chapters

Next persona upload when man?! This series is awesome and I rly wanna see more

I've watched this 3 times in the past week, and I'm already so ready for the next one. Fingers crossed it's less than a month 🤞

LETS GO! THIS IS ALL I EVER CARED ABOUT EVER! YOU'RE THE BEST JC!

I just caught up on all the episodes today. Great timing!

I loved the video, looking forward to the next one

Yessssss. I’ve been waiting for this ep to drop

Keep playing you will not be disappointed! So much more to come!

I always get shocked, but also excited, when I wake up and this is one of the New videos that pop up. And yep, saying that the Persona series emotionally manipulated you just makes sense.

ANOTHER, been enjoying this series with you and hope to find another one of the games I enjoy here 🎉 thank you truly for letting me relive the P5 R experience ❤

im so ready for the megastream sunday (12pm pst, for those that don't know) its gonna be so good

ITS UP ITS UP ITS UP!!!!! JC I love love the playthrough!! And your analysis too!!! I can’t wait for more 😊😊

Finally we're here. I've been waiting for this. I would love my favorite new streamer to tackle Persona 5 Strikers next. It's a great followup to these kids you've grown to love.

Even if I knew what would happen Akechi's death still hurt me so bad (im actually in denial) and I really can't wait to see you stream this Sunday! It's just a pleasure to rediscover my favourite game ever with a such cool person like you :)

I love how much you love these characters and this story.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA ITS HERE!!!!!!! Cant wait to see your further reactions to this game, and see why it holds such a special place in so many people's hearts. Also I want to thank you for making a such a special community that I have met so many amazing friends in, and being such an awesome person. Keep up the amazing work! I'm typing this before I watch the video but I already know my boy Satchel COOKED, can't wait to experience it for myself! Also one day I will get you to play Xenoblade, mark my words the destiny/fate counter will go through the roof when that happens lol

Can't wait to see you get to the Royal exclusive content

1:03:12 i never thought about this until now because I just finished the namek saga in Z Kakarot but man does that speech remind me of vegeta's first death and his heartwrenching speech on the abuse he's faced while under the Tyrant who nearly exterminated his race. The "you have to stop him in my stead" speech is SO powerful, especially from characters as prideful or hateful as vegeta or akechi!

Time to rewatch this since I watched the vods 😂

The next episode will be fun to watch seeing his reaction :)

I CAUGHT ALL OF THESE STREAMS HAHAHAH, i was fighting myself to keep awake but your ̶m̶e̶n̶t̶a̶l̶ ̶b̶r̶e̶a̶k̶d̶o̶w̶n̶ experience finding out everything was amazing. I even made my friend who lives 12 hour differences than me to watch the stream and we would gushed on your reactions together. I will now rewatch your reactions unfold again in this video. Congratulations on finishing Shido Palace!!!!

I’ve been loving the streams I like seeing your reactions and chats gaslighting! Heh he thinks akechi is alive :)

i have to thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to experience the game the first time again through your eyes

Rrghhh I was just about to go to bed... guess there's no sleep for me tonight, gotta watch the new JC video

watching the streams live and hearing how you kept saying you didnt like akechi was hilarious knowing what'd happen in this chapter >:) one of us.... One of us.... ONE OF US...! ONE OF US!!!

Arc 7 is now at its end and so is almost arc 8 on stream. Welcome to the Everyone loves Akechi club JC 😭

IVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS