the boy in the bunny parka

Name: Kiryuu Yoshiya
Nickname: Joshua, Giggles, Pink, Rainbow, Kiryuu Yoshiya: Private Dick
Titles: The Composer, God of Shibuya
Alternate Occupations in Parallel Universes: Journalist, Tin Pin Champion
Favorite Foods: Definitivo Chili Dog, Shio Ramen, Absolute Shadow Ramen, Sync Bar, Curious Mushrooms, Viper Drink, and a noticeable love of crepes and coffee.
Least Favorite Foods: Minestrone, Def Medicine, Brave+. He's not a medicine kind of guy.
You Meet Him...: Week Two, Day One ("Joshua's Chapter")
Most Interesting In-Game Attire Choices: Bunny Parka, Frilly Parasol

Why Joshua?: In Defense of a Seemingly Selfish God

So why did I like Joshua enough to make an entire webpage devoted to him? After all, previous w-d.net entrants tend to include stalwart teen heroes (Akihiko Sanada), diplomatic and sweet young princes (Larsa Solidor), and the occasional cranky-yet-determined fighting lad-with-moxie (Haseo). And if I do like the overtly selfish ones, well, they tend to be raging megalomaniac cyberpunk doctors with massive karma issues (Serph Sheffield).

Joshua doesn't really fit into any of these categories. He earns questing party status, yet flirts with antagonist; he is a being composed of light and compassion, yet judges his subjects in a terrifying post-life game; he is the benefactor and protector of the hero, a modern day prince with a knight-errant fighting in his name, yet he is the one who killed and manipulated that very champion. The game's own lead, the essentially good-hearted Neku Sakuraba, even seems confused about where Joshua stands in the scheme of things. He "can't be his friend" and can "never forgive him", and yet "still trusts him" and is unable to shoot him at the end of the game. So why would I bother liking a character with so many shades of gray?

For exactly that reason, of course.

Selfish, snide, dishonest, manipulative, compassionate, clever, and caring, Joshua echoes the game's themes in every way. Starting as a judgmental god of Shibuya with plans for destruction, he strives to win his own game at all costs: yet he never factored in the cost of his own self-evolution. His own dealings with change fascinated me. You never know quite where Joshua stands until the very last moment of the game - and even then you're left with a niggling sense that things are not quite finished in the World of the UG. With Joshua at the helm, it seems that nothing will ever be what it seems, except for one overriding factor: his compassion.

I love the contrast of a rather human god who walks the thin line of compassion and judgment. He exhibits disinterest in the "ruined" inhabitants of Shibuya, yet stays his hand when his own champion proves the worth of the city. His own evolution mirrors that of his charges: far from an aloof, cold god, he is active, present, and malleable. All of these factors make for a fascinating character.

Also, his attacks in battle kick massive rear. Heck yeah!