Whew, that was a lot of sweat and tears. Welcome back to the challenge, to its normal format!
Favorite Male Supporting Character
Can I just rename this challenge ‘favorite dad’? Because this lad embodies pretty much everything in the name of ‘support’.
A loving husband, proud father and a friend, Akio could be anything a man realistically dream to become. He is a comedic relief much needed for the timeline of Clannad After Story. Watching him acting tough when Tomoya first met him was humorous, just like all daddies out there being overprotective of their daughter. I would also like to believe this is not a thing limited to only Asians…
His personality perfectly complements his wife Sanae’s, as if it is not obvious enough that they make an incredibly heartwarming couple. He will never claim to be a ladies’ man but when situation calls for a true gentlemen, he would immediately, momentarily sacrifice all of the playful parts of himself and ‘be there’ for Sanae or anyone else he holds dear.
This is undoubtedly the most respectful quality of Akio. Those who have either played the visual novel or watched After Story will know why it is the case.
He, along with Sanae, has first hand experience on the cost of negligence for their child(ren). No longer working in his dream job, Akio sacrificed the best part of his life—his future for his daughter Nagisa, whom fell incredibly ill after a long period of not having been properly looked after. A lot of people would remark on how it’s foolish to give up your successful future, especially when it’s the real deal and sealed, but Akio is here to remind us of what it often means to be a parent.
“My child is my future; my child’s future is the next step of it. I have not given up on my future—it is being passed down onto my child.”
It is the biggest gamble one can ever make in their entire life, but an equally rewarding one.
His childish behavior makes him instantly lovable by kids of the neighborhood and anyone not looking for a middle-aged man facing mid-life crisis. I think this is just my personal experience influencing this part but having a step-father does remind me of how funny the scene below is when I first switched from calling him by his name to ‘Dad’ while at the same time feeling odd. But hey, love has no boundary; love conquers all barriers.
Changing how one address another person is learning, and by putting himself on equal grounds with others, Akio already knows how to effectively catalyze a person’s learning progress. This carries on as he casually yet confidently passes on the knowledge of anything and everything ‘father’ to Tomoya. Parents can make great teachers and Akio is proven to be qualified as one.
Akio is such a great dad everybody is willing to overlook his bad smoking habits.
But please don’t overlook tomorrow’s challenge where I take on the female side!
He was a great character. Normally these kinds of characters who seem to just repeat gags but occasionally say something important annoy me, but he was quite a charming character by the end and so important to the main character really growing.
Thanks for sharing.
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You’re welcome!
If Tatsuya is who I want to partly become, Akio would make up to the rest of it.
Seriously, such a role model father despite his smoking habit…
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Great pick.
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Thank you!
Tomorrow will be just as good! 🙂
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😀
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Now that you mentioned it, Akio really is an awesome character. The fact that he was able to deliver comedic relief and blend in with both tense and hilarious situations, without drawing much attention, shows how good he is as a supporting character. He really is a great pick for this category!
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Talking about low key right?!
Even his own arc didn’t get properly adapted haha 😂
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