essay: shin megami tensei - devil survivor 2- the animation

7/24/2019 Essay: Shin Megami Tensei - Devil Survivor 2- The Animation

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Analyzing A Visual Narrative:

Shin Megami Tensei - Devil Survivor 2- The Animation


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Samuel Grant - Williams

November 6 2!"#

$nglish %om&osition "

Writing 'ro(e)t *+

Analyzing A Visual Narrative:

Shin Megami Tensei - Devil Survivor 2- The Animation

,n moern so)iety meia sour)es su)h as vieo games an animate T.V. sho/s are o0ten

mista1enly vie/e as being unable to )ommuni)ate any 0orm o0 mature im&ortant or &ro0oun

&hiloso&hi)al or themati) meaning. When su)h themes are &resente they are mostly /atere o/n

an t/iste into a bla)1 an /hite )a&italist ueo-%hristian vie/ 0ille /ith )hilish iealism

zealously an hy&o)risy. This )oul not be 0urther 0rom the truth in regars to the multimeia 0ran)hise

Megami Tensei. What 0irst began as a novel series /ritten in the "34!5s by Aya Nishitani uner the title

Digital Devil Story has sin)e gro/n into a 0ran)hise that has s&anne a)ross multi&le meia &lat0orms

most notably a&anese role &laying games or 'G5s an a&anese animation also 1no/n as Anime.

The visual narrative , /ill be analyzing is the anime retelling o0 one o0 the more re)ent games in the

0ran)hise Devil Survivor 2. This installment &arti)ularly resonate /ith me an my 0as)ination /ith

inner human nature /ith )om&le7 themes su)h as ho/ 0ar /ill humans go to survive )atastro&he8 /hat

is the res&onsibility o0 those /ith &o/er9 What is sel0ishness9 What is sel0lessness9 What is humanities

role in the universe9


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e0ore , begin my analysis an summary a brie0 history o0 this 0ran)hise is neee. ;00i)ially

1no/n as Shin Megami Tensei or True Goess esurre)tion in $nglish an a00e)tionately 1no/n to

0ans as MegaTen. The long running game series has laste sin)e "34< an began /ith a vieo game

aa&tation o0 the original novel uner the title =yuuya1u Megami Tensei also 1no/n as ;l Testament

Goess esurre)tion in $nglish. This series has be)ome the thir most &o&ular 'G 0ran)hise uner

>inal >antasy an Dragon ?uest. Although it is &o&ular it is still obs)ure an un1no/n to most 'G

0ans an only gaine &o&ularity outsie o0 a&an /ith the release o0 'ersona + in 2!!6 es&ite the 0a)t

that many Ameri)an an $uro&ean lo)alizations /ere mae all the /ay ba)1 to the "33!5s. The )ore

game&lay me)hani) o0 most entries in the 0ran)hise revolve aroun the summoning an )ontrolling o0

su&ernatural beings 1no/n as emons. ,t is im&ortant to note that the /or emons is use a))oring to

its Gree1 origin in orer to re0er to any an every su&ernatural )reature an oes not re0er to anything

that is s&e)i0i)ally malevolent or evil. These emons have )ome 0rom the mythologi)al )reatures 0rom

nearly very )ulture on the &lanet 0rom Norse eities $uro&ean 0airies A0ri)an animal s&irits %hristian

Angels Gree1 heroes a&anese Ghosts an traitional horror movie monsters su)h as vam&ires an

/ere/olves. The se)on most im&ortant 0eature o0 the Megami Tensei 0ran)hise is the si7 attribute

morality s)ale base on the &layers )hoi)es that /oul im&a)t the story /ith many games having many

&ossible enings base on /hi)h alignment your )hara)ter ha by a )ertain &oint in the game. The si7

attributes /ere ivie by t/o s)ales /ith three in ea)h. The 0irst s)ale /as base o00 o0 mythologi)al

attributes an etermine /hat emons you )oul easily use. These three attributes /ere light neutral

an ar1. Though it shoul be note that light oes not im&ly goo anymore then ar1 im&lies evil. The

se)on system o0 alignment /as etermine by the a)tions o0 the &layer an simultaneously

re&resente their &ersonality an &hiloso&hi)al /orl vie/. These three /ere la/ also 1no/n as orer

neutrality also 1no/n as balan)e an )haos also 1no/n as anar)hy.

The &lot o0 Devil survivor 2 begins /hen the &rotagonist @ibi1i =uze an his 0rien Dai)hi


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Shi(ima as they (ust 0inishe s)hool e7ams. To )elebrate they e)ie to o some sho&&ing aroun

To1yo. ater that ay /e 0in them tal1ing in a 0ast 0oo &la)e /here Dai)hi o/nloas an a&& onto

@ibi1i5s )ell &hone. This a&& 1no/ as Ni)aea is something )alle a Beath )li&C site that sho/s you

&ro&heti) vieos that e&i)t the eath o0 your 0riens. ,t shoul be note that the /or Ni)aea means

B%ity o0 Vi)toryC in an)ient Gree1 an that this meaning is a ma(or &lot &oint later on. ;n their /ay

home they run into our thir main )hara)ter an their )lassmate ,o Nitta /hom Dai)hi 0lirts /ith. As

the three teens /ait 0or a sub/ay train to &i)1 them u& their )onversation moves ba)1 to the sub(e)t o0

Ni)aea. ust as they 0inish their )onversation they re)eive a eath )li& o0 ea)h other. ealizing that the

eath )li& ta1es &la)e in the sub/ay that they are in an that they in terrible anger. ,t is too late an

the in)oming sub/ay train )rashes nearly 1illing them. arely surviving the )rash @ibi1i hears a voi)e

)oming 0rom his &hone as1ing him i0 he /ants to live. oth he an his 0riens say yes an are &artially

heale an a ne/ a&& The Demon Summoning A&& a&&ears on their &hones. This a&& )ombines

magi) an te)hnology to )all 0orth emons to save them.

They use the emons to es)a&e the sub/ay an are 0or)e to 0ight a strange monster 1no/n as

Dubhe. They are )on0use as a))oring to the summoning a&& Dubhe is not a emon. A0ter 1illing the

monster an )hanging 0ate by avoiing their eath )li& our three heroes are arreste by a mysterious

organization 1no/n as '5s. A0ter being interrogate by a /oman name Ma1oto Sa1o they are

in0orme that a massive isaster has 0allen on the /hole /orl an is some ho/ )onne)te to a grou&

o0 monsters )alle Se&tentriones o0 /hi)h Dubhe is a member. They are o00ere shelter in e7)hange 0or

using their emons to hel& 0ight the Se&tentriones they agree an are soon 0or)e on an aventure that

/ill etermine the 0ate o0 the /orl.

The reason , li1e this Anime is be)ause it eals /ith the tou)hy sub(e)t o0 human survival.

Nearly all o0 the )hara)ters introu)e in the sho/ /ill ie at some &oint an the main )hara)ters are


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0or)e to eal /ith the emotional )onseuen)es. ,t is a uniue inter&retation o0 the en o0 the /orl /ith

real )on0li)t an )onseuen)es an not (ust mae 0or a)tion or entertainment. The )hara)ters have to

evolve an gro/ in &o/er an have to 0a)e their ar1est 0ears in only one /ee1. , 0eel li1e more movie

an tv ma1ers nee to ta1e more 0orm things li1e Shin Megami Tensei as it hel&s us learn /hat truly is

goo an evil an /hat it truly means to live an survive. ,0 /e )an learn more 0rom things li1e this

then maybe humanity is sa0e 0rom anything an maybe /e )an all Survive.


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ibliogra&hy:

htt&:EEmegamitensei./i1ia.)omE/i1iEDevilFSurvivorF2FTheFAnimation

htt&:EE///.har)oregaming"!".netEmegatenEmegaten.htm

htt&:EEtvtro&es.orgE&m/i1iE&m/i1i.&h&E>ran)hiseEShinMegamiTensei
http://megamitensei.wikia.com/wiki/Devil_Survivor_2_The_Animationhttp://www.hardcoregaming101.net/megaten/megaten.htmhttp://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Franchise/ShinMegamiTenseihttp://www.hardcoregaming101.net/megaten/megaten.htmhttp://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Franchise/ShinMegamiTenseihttp://megamitensei.wikia.com/wiki/Devil_Survivor_2_The_Animation

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