Danganronpa - Episode 12 Discussion / Poll

[Klashikari]

Welcome to the discussion thread for Danganronpa, Episode 12.

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[Klashikari]

(ノÒ益Ó)ノ彡┻━┻

That was the weirdiest cliffhanger they could have ever done.
What was revealed during the very last part of the episode should have kept for the last episode of the series to build up the tension and lead to the conclusion.
Yet...

Spoiler for end of episode 12:

Revealing Junko as the mastermind like this and leaving the rest for the final episode breaks completely the momentum: with the identity of the mastermind laid bare, the final episode will only have simple revelations along the way.

In a perfect world, 1 episode should have served as the full investigation and 2 episodes to have the trial and the epilogue. In this case, I think this episode could make use of the confusion and paranoia of the students and cut the episode when Makoto points out that there are only 9 corpses in the lab room, checkmating Monokuma.

By the way, why are they still that lazy during the trials? Detective or not, I really doubt Kyouko could possibly see the handwriting of the notebook was hers from this distance, and it isn't the first time they basically made characters warving their evidences and everyone readily accept them without -checking them-.

The trial also had a funny part: they completely forego the part they had to figure how Mukuro died and who killed her, yet when Makoto mentioned whose corpse was recycled, they completely forgot they skipped the monokuma file part, so anime viewers had no way to figure that Mukuro's corpses had multiple wounds all around prior Sho conveniently mentioning that 2 min before the trial (despite Kyouko DID check the corpse in the anime (not in the game).

And since they also forgo the investigation regarding Mukuro's background, it is painful to see Makoto claiming the agressor couldn't be Mukuro because the fenrir tattoo wasn't there but... he never had the chance to check Fenrir corps documents -at all-.

On the other hand, they finally made Monokuma more "proactive" in this episode, instead of being idle all the time.

Anyway, they cornered themselves so the final episode will be... rather awkward I guess.
Will post later the changes, but not as bad at last week, at the very least...

Spoiler for Episode 12 changes compared to the game:

-Prior the investigation, Kyouko tells Makoto that she is unsure that it would be "best to have everyone working together", to which Byakuya agrees: because of what Monokuma said, there isn't anyone else but the students, so the mastermind may be one of them. Monokuma could potentially be an AI that has a relatively good pattern for discussions.
They aren't trusting Monokuma there, but the possibility does exist, hence why they prefer to go solo. Thus, Byakuya leaves (mainly driven into resolving everything on the Togami family name), and Touko does too thereafter because of that.
Yasuhiro is pumped and trust his abilities so he soon leaves afterwards. Meanwhile, Aoi is frustrated she is a burden, always relying on Sakura and everyone else, hence she wants to help for real, so she goes on her own.
Before engaging the investigation, Kyouko believes that even though they aren't together, it doesn't mean they aren't cooperating.

[Investigation]
-Makoto reviews the locations he has now access to: the dormitory second floor, the bio lab, the principal office and the monokuma room in the data processing room.

-Dormitory Seconf Floor: Makoto meets Kyouko in the principal's bedroom. Kyouko is certain there is a hidden door considering the layout of the room, but she has no idea how to open it due to the password.
Makoto suggests it may be her own name, as he suspect she would never try that considering how she thought about her own father. Kyouko let him do as he pleases, although she is sure he is wrong.
That is to say, the door opens, much to Kyouko's shock. After discovering the bones, Makoto finds the picture of her and her dad, which surprises her quite a lot. Similarly in the anime, she laments the fact her father made things difficult by having obvious points that he cared for her, albeit in a very emotional way in the game.
After Makoto finds the emergency universal handbook, Kyouko asks him to leave, so she can think a bit about her father, although to her, the fact he could have dedicated his life for his work and have a mere picture as a lingering hope she eventually would come to see him doesn't things right.
Note that the interviews video disc (not a memory card, but that's basically irrelevant) wasn't found yet.

-Kyouko's notebook had a little more stuff: As Kyouko questioned her father about the shelter plan, the latter answers that The project goal was to provide sanctuary for the brilliant minds who would be humanity's hope for the future. He believes that calling this project as japan's last hope wouldn't be an exaggeration, so he tries to shelter the most brilliant students from the "tainted world". It is their last hope, hence why he also wants her to take part of it.
Makoto is shocked to learn that, and doesn't get why this notebook is in the locker. To begin with, it contradicts with what Kyouko told him before about her father.

-Makoto finds Touko in the dojo, but there isn't really any clue there.

-Bio lab: there are actually 2 scenes. Initially, Makoto is alone in the bio lab. He figured out about the functions of the storage units due to a handbook nearby. However, he doesn't have a clue how to open one of them.

-Data processing room: Makoto finds Aoi there. After a little chat, they checks out the Monokuma door. It leads to a quite high tech control room. They don't get what the buttons are for, but as Makoto checks out again the data processing room, he finds Monokuma who acts like Aoi. They realize that this room is the control panel for Monokuma and thus the mastermind was managing him from there. That also confirms that they cannot control Monokuma AND make use of the camera in the data processing room at the same time.
That said, Makoto doesn't get how it could be possible while Monokuma declared that only the initial 16 students were alive in the school. Concerned about the mastermind whereabout and possible traps, Aoi suggests they should move out. However, as soon they leave the data processing room, the door is then locked and Monokuma appears before them, much to their horror. They soon realize that the mastermind was actually in the Monokuma control room, hidden in a trapdoor they couldn't open upon first inspection. From now on, the data processing room is sealed and off limits for the students.

-Principal's office: Makoto finds Byakuya there. The latter find 78th class student register, the very same register Kyouko snatched Mukuro's profile from. Byakuya believes she was quite in a rush, considering the state of the profile page, but also the fact she missed the second page of Mukuro's profile, which is as follow:

Originally Posted by Ikusaba Mukuro's student profile, page 2

Note by the Principal himself:

It seems a certain person or people had significant involvement in Ikusaba Mukuro's sudden return. They are known as the Super High School Level Despair. At this time, it is unknown whether it refers to an inidividual or an organization. What is known is that Ikusaba Mukuro is somehow connected to them. I've got a bad feeling about this; it seems I need to expedite my investigation into SHSL Despair.

Furthermore, I believe extra careful attention should be paid to Ikusaba Mukuro and her actions. It may be just my instincts, but she is dangerous... Despite having walked numerous battlefields as a member of Fenrir, not a single wound or scar was found on her body during the medical examination upon enrollment.
That fact alone serves as obvious etstament to Ikusaba Mukuro's incredible aptitude as a soldier.

Naturally, I want to trust her, as she is one of my students, but if, by any chance, she does turn out to be a danger to the other students it would be prudent to have adequate countermeasures in place ahead of time.

Makoto is puzzled that the mastermind killed her, but also managed to overpower Mukuro... could they take her by surprise, or are they even stronger than Mukuro?

Byakuya also tells Makoto that the file contains Mukuro's measurements, as it is possible that the corpse isn't hers, so he counts on him to check it out later, much to Makoto's dismay as "yet again the errand boy".
Before leaving, Makoto is told by Byakuya not to trust Kyouko too much as he figured out he is again close to her. His intuition tells him that, he believes he is hardly wrong about it.

-Monokuma makes an announcement, saying that he is generous enough to give them a hint. So for those who want it, they should simply go to the gymnasium. Makoto finds it a bit too iffy, but checks it out anyway.
On his way, he meets Yasuhiro, but obviously trying to stay away from him. As Makoto tries to learn what he got as a hint, Yasuhiro runs away.
Makoto meets Monokuma who has left an enveloppe on the ground, which is the group picture.

-In the archives, Makoto finds Byakuya, who is obviously very wary of him, declaring he has nothing to discuss with him.

-In the garden, Makoto meets Yasuhiro once again, and the latter quickly leaves.

-In the bio lab, Makoto finds Touko there, unconscious. The scene is almost the same although Sho doesn't make any comment on Mukuro's body and leave. Instead, Kyouko shows up after being done with her family matter.
Like I stated before, Kyouko didn't have the chance to investigate during the first investigation regarding Mukuro's murder, so it is the first time she can check out the corpse. While she is checking the body, Makoto observes again the storage units and realize that only 9 of them are in use. After being done, Kyouko confirms Monokuma file that there are the stab wound, the blunt trauma wound but also various not so recent wounds around. She believes that the wording in the monokuma file was vague on purpose, but she thinks that Mukuro's murder is possibly done way before. She also checked Mukuro's measurements upon Makoto's request, which match those Byakuya found in the register.
After this discussion, Makoto wants to know if Kyouko checked out the hint, but she didn't bother going there, not going to rely on Monokuma for her investigation.
Afterwards, Makoto mentions the notebook. At first a bit skeptical, the fact it refers the principal as "my father" shocks Kyouko, making her think the video might be the real deal. Makoto doesn't get what she is talking about, and she entrust him the "78th class emergency interview" dvd.
Note that it isn't explained how Touko managed to open Mukuro's corpse storage unit. It is very likely it was just a fluke or Monokuma leaving the corpse like this on purpose after giving the pic hints.

-In the media room, Makoto is watching the content of the video. The catch is that he only sees 3-4 students before the dvd player acts up and shuts down (a bit more subtle than having Monokuma plugging off the plug blatantly when it is Junko's part. In fact it doesn't make sense he is that slow, since even if it is a split of second, he could see Junko there, so the purpose of preventing Makoto finding out about the charade is moot).
Of course, Makoto doesn't buy Monokuma's explanation about this convenient technical mishap.

[Trial]
-The start is basically the same: first, Yasuhiro, Aoi and Byakuya state they have "evidence" that everyone else is in cahoots with the mastermind. After that, they had to discuss regarding how they could be real (amnesia), which is further confirmed with the dvd (Kyouko and Yasuhiro's notebooks are not mentioned yet).
As Monokuma changes the subject back to Mukuro's murder, they have to figure who did that. Kyouko states it is the mastermind, and to confirm that, Makoto testify that the data processing room had a control panel for Monokuma. That being said, because of that, Byakuya believes the mastermind is one of them, since there is only the 16 students in the school to begin with.

-Kyouko believes they should track back to the real cause of death. Aoi still believes they concluded that it was the blunt traume behind the head, but Makoto reveals that it is most likely the numerous wounds. Yasuhiro disagrees because the wounds aren't recent, but Makoto retorts that the murder could happen days before they discovered the corpse.
Touko objects as she believes Mukuro got wounds way before on the battlefield. Kyouko disagrees and Makoto submits the evidence.

-[They shuffled the part with the number of corpses and the night agressor. The latter is actually discussed first]
Byakuya then wants to discuss about the one who agressed Makoto before. Since it couldn't be Mukuro, who could it be? Makoto states it is the mastermind. Monokuma mocks him, as it is mere conjecture as the agressor had a mask, and pushes that it was indeed Mukuro.
Makoto counters it due to the lack of the tattoo on the right hand's agressor. So it couldn't be Mukuro.
Monokuma states that any of them bare Makoto could be the culprit, but Byakuya reminds that he, Touko, Aoi and Yasuhiro have solid alibi, so only Kyouko is left, to which she shows her hands.

-They are still in a stalemate regarding who killed Mukuro (the identity of the culprit, that is), so Byakuya wants Monokuma to confirm that Mukuro was still alive when they went to school, to which Monokuma alledgy confirmed. She was definitely killed after the mutual killing started. Byakuya, Yasuhiro, Aoi and Touko are actually wondering how the corpse could be preserved and Makoto reveal the existence of the bio lab. Another evidence is that the vinyl sheet used for moving the corpse to the garden had a bio lab stamp on it. Likewise, the remaining sheets in the bio lab had the same stamp.
Monokuma wants them to show evidence that the sheet was used to move the corpse. Kyouko plainly says it is only her theory and remarks how defensive Monokuma is right now. She believes they have the key to expose the mastermind identity, because of a glaring contradiction in the bio lab.
Makoto realizes what she is talking about but Monokuma tries to distract them by yelling "aah ahh, I don't hear ya!". And while Makoto is thinking about what Kyouko's just said, Monokuma asks him what he thinks about his family, obviously blackmailing him. "Wouldn't it be tragic if something happen to them?". Although Makoto is bewildered, Kyouko manages to calm him down.
Makoto then exposes that there are only 9 storage units being in use, despite there are 10 victims thus far.
Aoi believes the mastermind get rid of a corpse to screw them, but Makoto doesn't think it makes sense because they should have disposed of Mukuro's corpse then.
Then Makoto mentions how Junko was killed by numerous spears, which perfectly match the description of Mukuro's corpse. Byakuya believes then that the corpse is Junko's used once again as "Ikusaba Mukuro". So the students believe that the mastermind is Ikusaba Mukuro. Makoto is however not sure about this train of thought, exactly because of the tattoo, and then cuts Touko's train of thought, presenting the fact that it has to be Mukuro's corpse because of the body measurements and the tattoo. Then he presents that the mastermind is in fact Enoshima Junko.

-Byakuya admits this is the only other possibility, however he states that "Enoshima Junko" was skewed right before their eyes, so with this reasoning, that would have been staged, which doesn't make sense since even Makoto confirmed her death. Only after that, Makoto realizes that Junko and Mukuro switched places right from the very beginning.
Monokuma once again mocks this assumption, but Makoto argues Monokuma tried to obscure any information regarding Enoshima Junko: the DVD and the pictures. The rest goes similarly like in the anime.

[MisaoFan]

Spoiler for Episode 12:

Episode 12 has a lot of revelations that are offered to learn how the show will probably end. The identity involving the mastermind was finally shown at the end of it, plenty of secrets were discovered to the characters, I can't wait for an epic final episode!

[Solitaired]

Gonna watch it later. Just tell me, compared to the game is the hints of the mastermind more obvious? Or not given yet

[Klashikari]

Originally Posted by Solitaired

Gonna watch it later. Just tell me, compared to the game is the hints of the mastermind more obvious? Or not given yet

Much more obvious.

[AC-Phoenix]

Originally Posted by Klashikari

Much more obvious.

Did they add togami's accidental red Hering where

Spoiler for red hering:

he said that it might be possible that one of the surving members could lead Monokuma through a convversation and thus control him while being in with them

?

[Solitaired]

Alright finished it. If I'm not a gamer, I will love this episode. Though I can't complain much as I got my wish of having Junko for a full finale next episode.

The anime treats anime viewers as plain viewers, not doing any deductions on their own. Hence, they skip out many crucial hints. But looking back knowing this fact, it makes the anime much more enjoyable.

However, the only complaint I have for this series overall is Togami Byakuya. He is supposed to be up there with Naegi and Kirigiri as the 3 main characters. But all of his deductions and efforts in the game are given fully to both of them.


BEHOLD THE 6->7 PERSONALITIES OF ENOSHIMA JUNKO!!! GENOCIDER IS NOTHING!

[AC-Phoenix]

The voice difference between Mukuru and Junko is even more apparent in the Anime, tbh both have voices you'd expect from the other rather than them.
(Was the same in the game though)
I had to lol a bit when she introduced herself as 'chan' though.

[White Manju Bun]

Originally Posted by Solitaired

However, the only complaint I have for this series overall is Togami Byakuya. He is supposed to be up there with Naegi and Kirigiri as the 3 main characters. But all of his deductions and efforts in the game are given fully to both of them.

I honestly felt he was until Class Trial 5. He was given a lot of screen time before which is why I had him pegged as making it thru this since it seemed like only characters with low screen time were being killed. But I agree since Trial 5 it's been mostly Kirigiri and Naegi, which I kinda get since they have to cut so much.

Still loved the epi, the twins part explains a lot of issues I had and Junko's dying words from epi 2 make a lot more sense now.

[GreyZone]

So... next episode will be the final episode, but there are still 7 of 16 people alive. The mastermind Junko will probably die next episode, but then there are still 6 people alive... I got the feeling that there will be more deaths... Maybe Junko will introduce a "hardcore rule", which states that when you just give 1 wrong answer, you will be immidietly executed, or something like that. It would surely make a dramatic final.

[ChampDream]

it was a nice episode!
they were throwing hints and hints that Junko was the mastermind in this episode like everywhere, also she seem to have more then one personality.
another thing is that I really like the trial, especially when Naegi reveal who was the matermind.
I can't wait to see how is this going to end.

[HandofFate]

dang, didn't expect the Junko bit.

I remember a few episodes back, there was a magazine of Junko on it, wonder if that was a hint as well and if you could spot a difference in appearance..but they're twins anyway...doesn't look like it to me.

[BloodyKitty]

Originally Posted by HandofFate

dang, didn't expect the Junko bit.

I remember a few episodes back, there was a magazine of Junko on it, wonder if that was a hint as well and if you could spot a difference in appearance..but they're twins anyway...doesn't look like it to me.

Mukuro has freckles on her face while Junko does not.

[Goty]

Originally Posted by HandofFate

I remember a few episodes back, there was a magazine of Junko on it, wonder if that was a hint as well and if you could spot a difference in appearance..but they're twins anyway...doesn't look like it to me.

There was a hint back when Ohgami commented on how she looked different from the magazines.

Beside the freckles, another difference is that Junko appears to have bigger breasts, doesn't she? When she appeared in the video i wondered if Junko was always that well endowed.

[Gohan78]

Originally Posted by Klashikari

Spoiler for end of episode 12:

The trial also had a funny part: they completely forego the part they had to figure how Mukuro died and who killed her, yet when Makoto mentioned whose corpse was recycled, they completely forgot they skipped the monokuma file part, so anime viewers had no way to figure that Mukuro's corpses had multiple wounds all around. So having Makoto declaring that Junko's corpse has "similar" wounds than Mukuro felt out of nowhere.

Well, they actually talked about Mukuro's multiple stab wounds when Fukawa and Naegi were examining the corpse.

Anime viewers like me can't make a guess at the culprit because many details are only given during the trials but I accepted this long ago. I suck at detective work anyway... I only managed to guess Leon because it was super-easy (the "diying message") and Celes purely on instinct (because she was the first one to be "attacked" by Justice Robot but only got a light bruise).

Anyway, they cornered themselves so the final episode will be... rather awkward I guess.

As an anime-only viewer, I liked that they didn't make me wait another week to reveal the mastermind.
There are still plenty of misteries that I want answered in the finale episode: what the hell happened in that school? What is the "Biggest Despair in Human History"? Why did the 16 students accept to live at Kibougamine? Why were their memories erased? Why did Junko organize this weird survival game?

[Goty]

Originally Posted by Gohan78

Well, they actually talked about Mukuro's multiple stab wounds when Fukawa and Naegi were examining the corpse.

Yeah, it was Fukawa, or rather, Genocide who mentioned Mukuro's corpse had multiple stabs.

And i agree, learning the "who" still doesn't solve the "how" and "why" of the whole thing, which always intrigued me more. As another anime-only viewer, i'm very interested in the last episode.

[Solitaired]

I highly recommend to go YouTube to watch the final trial. No more spoilers from this point in as everything will be revealed by Junko herself. It's great that they managed to have a full 25 minutes for Junko's awesomeness, but I'm worried that the anime will screw it up.

For some Mukuro awesome, go find translations for Danganronpa IF. A non-canon alternate world where everyone gets to live. She and Naegi are the main characters there.

[ookamigirl]

So they finally got access to all areas.
That should make the mystery solving much easier.
Monobear meddled in again when things were getting really interesting.
He also provided additional clues that complicated things.
Seems like they've had their memories wiped before the reality show began.
Naegi was really on a roll this time, impressive!
The mastermind is finally revealed. Wonder how it's gonna end.

[Kirito]

Really great episode. As for who the Puppetmaster was is somewhat as of surprise, but at the same time it's wasn't. Thanks for Jan Poo and AC Phoenix in the speculations thread for giving me the answers and notes I needed to deduce the whole "one person whom we thought was dead was actually alive" and in turn was the Puppetmaster ie. Junko Enoshima - the real one. It's all about process of elimination, and most of the people who commented on here knows what they are, so no need to further beat that dead horse.

It makes sense that the two are twins due to the fact that she truly looked like her, but couldn't really "act the part" in a figurative sense. It's to be expected since it's one different person trying to act out someone she isn't, and in turn was not only a accomplice, but a victim, and a stepping stone in an effort to throw the others off balance. Sucks that we don't get a chance to see Mukuro as herself, since she's actually quite cute. Why did you have to break the school rules, Mukuro I wanted to know more about you.

The real Junko is really...something. Despite her short appearance we see a little bit of her awkwardly villainous traits. I really like the whole personality swap she pulled every few seconds... is this chick bipolar? If so then I wonder if there's more to her than what we've seen at this time.

I don't know why anyone hasn't noticed or discussed this, but there's a big contradiction between this episode and the ending credits up from episode 2-11 etc. Hint: It's something Makoto received from Monokuma.

[Triple_R]

I get the argument that it would have been better to save the big Monokuma/mastermind reveal for the final episode, but there is a trade-off here.

By making the reveal now, you get a bit more time to showcase the mastermind behind the Monokuma mask. Having the main antagonist reveal herself, and presumably get defeated, all in the same last episode, would probably leave her having less of an impact than she ought to. Hard for a villain to look cool when they're going down to defeat right after they take center stage.

By doing it this way, the real Junko gets a bit of spotlight and a nice cliffhanger moment before she presumably gets defeated in the finale.


I also will say that I love how Makoto went about deducing who the mastermind is. He did some impressive Detective work in this episode, to the point of outshining Kirigiri (to be fair, Kirigiri was clearly numbed a bit by confirming the death of her father).

Monokuma's final episode as the Mastermind's mask was also a good one for the bear.