Personality: Mikado’s first appearance shows him as shy, naive, nervous, and easily both startled and excited. His introduction into the city of Ikebukuro is full of conversations he can’t keep up with, wide-eyed views of the buildings and people, and trepidation about violence. He followed rather meekly along after his more experienced friend Masaomi, and it took all of his courage to volunteer to be class representative. Likewise, while he wanted to be brave and protect Anri when she was being bullied, Mikado had to work hard to convince himself to step forward and actually do so, considering his shy nature and his lack of experience with conflict. While his personality while chatting online as Tanaka Taro is a little more outgoing, he still tends to attempt to avoid arguments..
His sense of excitement and wonder can sometimes overwhelm these traits, however. When Mikado first met Celty Sturluson - known as the “Black Motorbike” and “Headless Rider” - he reacted with astonishment rather than fear. On a later meeting, he requested that she allow him to see under her helmet, and when he saw that she truly did lack a head, he proceeded to act as a friend to her rather than running away.
It is also pointed out by several people who know him that when Mikado is in dangerous situations, he’s not just afraid but also exhilarated. Of course, anyone would have an adrenaline reaction, but the fact that Mikado started the Dollars as a way to escape from “everyday life” makes it apparent that some part of him wanted more. While he didn’t understand what he was getting into at the time, there are several points where he was offered an “out” and didn’t take it.
Is this because he enjoys danger and truly does want a “non-everyday life”? Partially. It is pointed out to him that he’s smiling or obviously enjoying himself during a tense situation more than once, and he eventually has to admit that he doesn’t want to be left out or left behind.
The other main reason for his continued involvement in the underworld of Ikebukuro, however, is a sense of responsibility. For Mikado, it is a simple truth that if he hadn’t created the Dollars, many of the things which happened to his friends and other innocent parties wouldn’t have happened. While Color Gang violence in Ikebukuro was a problem before he was ever involved, the Dollars created a whole new type of gang, and had a lawless platform that allowed members to feel emboldened without feeling constrained. Despite the fact that his fellow founders cut and ran, Mikado quite simply feels that he would be wrong to do the same, and must follow things through to their conclusion.
This sense of responsibility not just for his own actions but for the actions of others that were using the name of his organization has led him to a turning point: in order to have some measure of the “happy ending” that he does crave - and the everyday life he now wishes he could return to - he has to learn to be cold, calculating, and dangerous in his own right. When he commits violence against Aoba, he has planned it out in advance, is tapping his pen in a manner that intimidates and distracts, and is presenting a smiling and self-assured countenance. When he bandages the young man’s hand immediately afterward, Mikado is right back to the kind face he shows at school or anywhere else.
This kind of versatility and ability to evolve in order to reach his goal is a very important part of Mikado’s current personality, just as much as the fact that he still does retain enough of his earlier idealism to want to “clean Dollars up” in the first place. Exactly how far Mikado is capable of going isn’t known at this point in the series, but he’s definitely on a road to a darker place, and the fact that he is still capable of trusting (the wrong) people is both a sign he retains some innocence and a serious danger to him.
Abilites: Mikado has no supernatural or special abilities. His ability to accept and adapt to otherworldly and shocking things could be considered a natural talent: he quickly becomes used to dealing with strange situations. He has a good head for finances, considering that while he told his parents he would get a part-time job to support himself, he actually lives off a number of internet streams of income during his time in Ikebukuro. His intelligence - when he is thinking clearly enough to bring it fully to bear on a situation - is an important asset.
Other: Obviously I took Mikado from a canon point where he is changing, so I had to explain a lot about the reasons why. Sorry for the wordiness.
SAMPLES
First Person: [Mikado is somewhat relieved to find that the cell phones have a feature for anonymous texting. He spends a couple of days watching the videos that other people send out before he says anything at all, and he’s careful to glean information without engaging anyone right away himself. Now he’s decided that he might like to attempt a message of his own, but he wants to be careful about it.]
Excuse me. I apologize for any awkwardness on my part for making this type of post, but I’m a little shy. lol. Is there anyone who could give me some information? I had hoped to simply look online, but it appears that connection to the internet is not an option.
It seems that anyone is allowed to attend school here, but the classes that I attended weren’t very high quality or informational. Does anyone know if it’s possible to attend university classes instead? I would also like to know what types of other things young people in this community take part in, as well as if there are any particular individuals or organizations I should watch out for...
Oh, but I didn’t mean that in a bad way, so please don’t be offended. I just like to know what’s happening before I jump into life in a certain place, that’s really all it is.
Please do send me a text back if you don’t mind helping.
-- Tanaka Taro
Third Person:
Mikado’s eyes were very wide, as he walked down the streets of the little community that was apparently - for now at least - his new home. The styles of architecture were very strange to him, and that was enough to catch his attention for now. While he supposed the houses must seem normal and everyday for people who came from different places than himself, they weren’t anything like the homes in his own small town, and even less like anything he had seen in Ikebukuro.
Likewise, the layout of the city was very strange as well. The combination of lots of room to walk around in the residential district and so many things to do and see in the shopping and entertainment areas was almost jarring to him. He couldn’t believe that it was possible to make his way down the sidewalk without being jostled by anyone, or that even during what should have been busy times of day, he had no problem finding his way from one place to another without running into anyone.
It felt almost eerie, like a ghost town, after Ikebukuro. Yet, it didn’t feel the same as Saitama either, not when he could walk just a little ways and find almost anything he could want to buy.
It definitely felt like “another world” to someone like Mikado, who only knew a couple of places and had become used to them each in turn. Would he become used to it here, he wondered? Would, after some time, he start to appreciate the lawn and quiet neighborhood, the “families” that weren’t families at all, the lack of responsibilities that had weighed him down at home? Would he come to appreciate the strange videos everyone seemed to send out on their cell phones, the claustrophobic single chat, the lack of massive amounts of information to try to gather up and make sense of?
He wasn’t sure, but at the moment, it was almost an overwhelming thing to think about.
In fact, the teenager was so caught up in thinking about it that he’d managed to stop in the middle of one of the quiet streets, and he was jostled out of his thoughts only when one of those red cars -- and that was strange, how they were all the same -- pulled up and honked its horn at him.
Mikado flushed, stammered out a half-coherent apology, and hustled his way to the other side of the street, to stand alone on the empty sidewalk and look out over the street, wondering.
OTHER Housing Request?: None. Did you read the rules and FAQ?: Yes! Would you like your application to be unscreened?: Sure!
ACCEPTED Congrats, your application has been accepted! Your character is now living at 1450 in Holly Heights, with a child slot. In order to get the ball rolling, here's what you need to do:
Comment back with the journal you'll be using for your character so that they can be accepted into the communities.
Create an IC Mailbox post on your characters journal that is not friends only. You are also free to treat this as an information holding post with your character's family and address listed if you wish.
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Re: Mikado Ryuugamine | Durarara!! | Reserved
Personality: Mikado’s first appearance shows him as shy, naive, nervous, and easily both startled and excited. His introduction into the city of Ikebukuro is full of conversations he can’t keep up with, wide-eyed views of the buildings and people, and trepidation about violence. He followed rather meekly along after his more experienced friend Masaomi, and it took all of his courage to volunteer to be class representative. Likewise, while he wanted to be brave and protect Anri when she was being bullied, Mikado had to work hard to convince himself to step forward and actually do so, considering his shy nature and his lack of experience with conflict. While his personality while chatting online as Tanaka Taro is a little more outgoing, he still tends to attempt to avoid arguments..
His sense of excitement and wonder can sometimes overwhelm these traits, however. When Mikado first met Celty Sturluson - known as the “Black Motorbike” and “Headless Rider” - he reacted with astonishment rather than fear. On a later meeting, he requested that she allow him to see under her helmet, and when he saw that she truly did lack a head, he proceeded to act as a friend to her rather than running away.
It is also pointed out by several people who know him that when Mikado is in dangerous situations, he’s not just afraid but also exhilarated. Of course, anyone would have an adrenaline reaction, but the fact that Mikado started the Dollars as a way to escape from “everyday life” makes it apparent that some part of him wanted more. While he didn’t understand what he was getting into at the time, there are several points where he was offered an “out” and didn’t take it.
Is this because he enjoys danger and truly does want a “non-everyday life”? Partially. It is pointed out to him that he’s smiling or obviously enjoying himself during a tense situation more than once, and he eventually has to admit that he doesn’t want to be left out or left behind.
The other main reason for his continued involvement in the underworld of Ikebukuro, however, is a sense of responsibility. For Mikado, it is a simple truth that if he hadn’t created the Dollars, many of the things which happened to his friends and other innocent parties wouldn’t have happened. While Color Gang violence in Ikebukuro was a problem before he was ever involved, the Dollars created a whole new type of gang, and had a lawless platform that allowed members to feel emboldened without feeling constrained. Despite the fact that his fellow founders cut and ran, Mikado quite simply feels that he would be wrong to do the same, and must follow things through to their conclusion.
This sense of responsibility not just for his own actions but for the actions of others that were using the name of his organization has led him to a turning point: in order to have some measure of the “happy ending” that he does crave - and the everyday life he now wishes he could return to - he has to learn to be cold, calculating, and dangerous in his own right. When he commits violence against Aoba, he has planned it out in advance, is tapping his pen in a manner that intimidates and distracts, and is presenting a smiling and self-assured countenance. When he bandages the young man’s hand immediately afterward, Mikado is right back to the kind face he shows at school or anywhere else.
This kind of versatility and ability to evolve in order to reach his goal is a very important part of Mikado’s current personality, just as much as the fact that he still does retain enough of his earlier idealism to want to “clean Dollars up” in the first place. Exactly how far Mikado is capable of going isn’t known at this point in the series, but he’s definitely on a road to a darker place, and the fact that he is still capable of trusting (the wrong) people is both a sign he retains some innocence and a serious danger to him.
Abilites: Mikado has no supernatural or special abilities. His ability to accept and adapt to otherworldly and shocking things could be considered a natural talent: he quickly becomes used to dealing with strange situations. He has a good head for finances, considering that while he told his parents he would get a part-time job to support himself, he actually lives off a number of internet streams of income during his time in Ikebukuro. His intelligence - when he is thinking clearly enough to bring it fully to bear on a situation - is an important asset.
Other: Obviously I took Mikado from a canon point where he is changing, so I had to explain a lot about the reasons why. Sorry for the wordiness.
SAMPLES
First Person: [Mikado is somewhat relieved to find that the cell phones have a feature for anonymous texting. He spends a couple of days watching the videos that other people send out before he says anything at all, and he’s careful to glean information without engaging anyone right away himself. Now he’s decided that he might like to attempt a message of his own, but he wants to be careful about it.]
Excuse me. I apologize for any awkwardness on my part for making this type of post, but I’m a little shy. lol. Is there anyone who could give me some information? I had hoped to simply look online, but it appears that connection to the internet is not an option.
It seems that anyone is allowed to attend school here, but the classes that I attended weren’t very high quality or informational. Does anyone know if it’s possible to attend university classes instead? I would also like to know what types of other things young people in this community take part in, as well as if there are any particular individuals or organizations I should watch out for...
Oh, but I didn’t mean that in a bad way, so please don’t be offended. I just like to know what’s happening before I jump into life in a certain place, that’s really all it is.
Please do send me a text back if you don’t mind helping.
-- Tanaka Taro
Third Person:
Mikado’s eyes were very wide, as he walked down the streets of the little community that was apparently - for now at least - his new home. The styles of architecture were very strange to him, and that was enough to catch his attention for now. While he supposed the houses must seem normal and everyday for people who came from different places than himself, they weren’t anything like the homes in his own small town, and even less like anything he had seen in Ikebukuro.
Likewise, the layout of the city was very strange as well. The combination of lots of room to walk around in the residential district and so many things to do and see in the shopping and entertainment areas was almost jarring to him. He couldn’t believe that it was possible to make his way down the sidewalk without being jostled by anyone, or that even during what should have been busy times of day, he had no problem finding his way from one place to another without running into anyone.
It felt almost eerie, like a ghost town, after Ikebukuro. Yet, it didn’t feel the same as Saitama either, not when he could walk just a little ways and find almost anything he could want to buy.
It definitely felt like “another world” to someone like Mikado, who only knew a couple of places and had become used to them each in turn. Would he become used to it here, he wondered? Would, after some time, he start to appreciate the lawn and quiet neighborhood, the “families” that weren’t families at all, the lack of responsibilities that had weighed him down at home? Would he come to appreciate the strange videos everyone seemed to send out on their cell phones, the claustrophobic single chat, the lack of massive amounts of information to try to gather up and make sense of?
He wasn’t sure, but at the moment, it was almost an overwhelming thing to think about.
In fact, the teenager was so caught up in thinking about it that he’d managed to stop in the middle of one of the quiet streets, and he was jostled out of his thoughts only when one of those red cars -- and that was strange, how they were all the same -- pulled up and honked its horn at him.
Mikado flushed, stammered out a half-coherent apology, and hustled his way to the other side of the street, to stand alone on the empty sidewalk and look out over the street, wondering.
OTHER
Housing Request?: None.
Did you read the rules and FAQ?: Yes!
Would you like your application to be unscreened?: Sure!
Accepted
Congrats, your application has been accepted! Your character is now living at 1450 in Holly Heights, with a child slot. In order to get the ball rolling, here's what you need to do:
I hope you enjoy your stay here!
Re: Accepted
Re: Accepted