RustyVanBurace

I think one of the unsung morals in SMT IV Apocalypse is the danger of placing all your hopes or entire worth into another person. What might be called a parasocial relationship.

The Real Flynn is by no means self-centered or hostile since he does very much care for the people of Tokyo. All the same though, while good and necessary that he revived their hopes in IV’s Neutral route, his celebrity status posed a problem as people began investing all their hopes and expectations into him. That when he was kidnapped by Krishna, it immediately led to defeated anguish and fearful uncertainty among the populace. Not to mention the few Hunters already considering defecting to Lucifer or Merkabah. While it did also motivate other Hunters to take action, there was nonetheless a permeating sense of doubt and loss of direction.

Flynn inspiring hope in the hearts of Tokyo was never meant to rally people around him as their one and only savior, but to encourage them to take charge in their own lives for a better tomorrow. Nonetheless though, the former was what ultimately happened. And I think it was that loss of a savior and the desperation to have him back that made Tokyo so especially vulnerable to Shesha Flynn’s manipulation.

What especially stands out to me is during Armageddon at Camp Ichigaya when “Flynn” rallies his Hunters to recklessly charge at Merkabah and Lucifer. They essentially throw their lives away out of thoughtless, blind trust. Nanashi can try to stop them, but it just angers the Hunters and gets him accused of protecting their enemies. The Hunters are not thinking for themselves whatsoever.

IVA stresses throughout the game the importance of thinking for ourselves and making our own decisions. There are many who fall victim to blindly following the angels or demons. And there are also far too many who blindly follow Flynn as their sole savior, which the Divine Powers took advantage of.

A recurring theme in IVA is possession and I would consider this to be an extension of that. IVA cautions us not to deeply invest in someone at the cost of our own needs or independence. Whether that person is a celebrity, a politician, a friend, a relative, or anyone else. Even if that person isn’t actually taking advantage of us, the one sided'ness and worshiping in any relationship is all the same still unhealthy and dangerous.

(Originally posted on my Tumblr on April 4, 2023; a couple slight revisions were made)

In the SMT IV/A duology, it’s established that smartphones are a rare commodity. This is because, of course, they’re able to use the Devil Summoning Program. But what IV also touches on is that phones aren’t just hard to come by – their scarcity is also being manufactured by the Ashura-kai in an effort to control Tokyo’s hierarchy.

Early on, there’s an NPC in Ueno who comments that most of Tokyo’s smartphones were thrown out while the rest are being kept by the Ashura-kai. Worse off, another NPC on the Tokyo map adds that Akihabara (a major source of electronic goods) has literally been blown away by the Ashura-kai. All just to keep phones and other coveted electronics out of people’s hands.


It’s commented throughout IV that the general public – those who aren’t Hunters or in the Ring of Gaea – are entirely dependent on the Ashura-kai’s protection. The distribution of Reds is one way they keep the people safe and, more importantly, loyal to them; the consolidation of who gets to be a devil summoner is another way. Without any means of protecting themselves from the demons outside, the people living in the underground districts have no other choice but to turn to the Ashura-kai or the occasional Hunter. And it’s through this consolidation of smartphones, among many other things, that the Ashura-kai are able to maintain and wield their influence over the public.

And I think them blasting Akihabara also says a lot about the Ashura-kai living in luxury and excess. Rather than raid the city for anything valuable or worth salvaging, they’d rather just blow it up without a second thought.

So how people get smartphones then is either down to pure luck (such as in Nanashi and Asahi’s case, which was why finding a phone was such a big deal to them); through the Hunter Association (based on what Fujiwara says to Navarre); or by joining up with the Ashura-kai. I suppose stealing from someone is another option too (haven’t found any NPCs confessing to that though).

Side note, I find it funny that even though there’s this big scarcity of smartphones, there’s still this Clearly Not Apple Store in Ginza that has untouched phones and laptops on display in working condition. Ginza is under the Ring of Gaea’s guardianship, but it’s still surprising no one has raided the store yet.


Unless the “Appolo” products are too trashy to be worth using. :P

 

 

Hello to anyone reading this!

My name is Rusty and I am a hobbyist fan artist and writer, who especially loves the Shin Megami Tensei IV duology of video games by Atlus! Alongside drawing art of my interests and favorite characters, I also enjoy writing about and sharing my musings and observations on them. I created this DreamWidth journal primarily to share and archive my past and ongoing writings about SMT IV, though I may also share my fan art too from time to time!

I am also entirely new to DreamWidth as of writing this so it will take me some time adjusting. Comments and constructive feedback are always appreciated!