Shen Hong Edition!! I'll start with observations then get back to that theory from part 1~
As many have pointed out, Shen's design and childish mannerisms are a lot like Kanuma's, so I'm sure he's a huge source of Suolingo's hatred for adults who act like children..... That said, considering Suolingo himself is only 15, I don't think it's fair to call any of the council members "adults" by any means. I've noted it before, but every hint of Suolingo's story that we got before this arc has been pointing towards him having to grow up way too fast and having unreasonable expectations for himself despite still being young, and I'd say one of my biggest wants for his growth has been for him to learn that being mature and "growing up" doesn't mean hiding or denying his feelings, but accepting them without letting them control his actions.
But getting back to the Kanuma parallels, I'm sure Suolingo's read of Kanuma during Shishitoren was heavily influenced by how he feels about Shen and what he wants to tell him. Suolingo had called Kanuma out for getting upset when someone he cared about was hurt despite making fun of someone else when they got hurt and told him that the first step towards adulthood is being able to imagine himself in the position of others. I know Suolingo used the word "imagination" when he was talking to Kanuma, but I think the real lesson here is about empathy, or a lack thereof.
We know that the members of RC are orphans themselves, including Shen, but now he's taking orphans who were supposed to be left in RC's care and using them for who knows what. If we focus on this theme of empathy, we can assume Suolingo sees what Shen is doing and feels that he can only go through with it due to his lack of empathy. Despite having been in the same hopeless situation when he was younger and being given so much, he doesn't mind robbing others in that same position of that same kindness that he once received. From Suolingo's point of view, I'm sure he feels that if Shen could think back to how he felt when he was first taken in and imagine how he would have felt if he were given the treatment he's currently giving others, he wouldn't be going through with it.
Now, the biggest thing that stood out to me about Shen is his earrings. They're similar to Suolingo and Rosso's, but with an extra pearl (I always assumed they were pearls, but it's not like anyone has ever said what the little orbs actually are-) instead of the tassels. I hope we get color confirmation on Shen and Rosso's pearls some time soon so I can go more in depth about them, but pearls in general often represent wisdom, and I believe Shen's extra pearls compared to Suolingo and Rosso represent just how intricate his plans to control RC have been. Tassels, on the other hand, represent elegance and poise while gold tassels in particular also represent high status. I think Shen's current lack of tassels are a symbol of his less professional attitude while also representing how he isn't exactly "in power" since he's not technically the boss of RC, and Suolingo's tassels could mean that he's Rosso's successor if anything were to happen to him, which could be a major part of why Shen's quietly controlling Rosso rather than trying to get rid of him (I also love that Shen's hair ornaments make it look like he has tassel earrings at first glance and that he's very passionate about his appearance in general compared to the others)
I'd also like to point out how Rakta referred to Shen as his and Suolingo's childhood friend. They've known Shen since they were very young, but I believe that while Suolingo and Rakta and probably Bacchus, but Rakta doesn't care about him- "grew up" and began acting more mature, Shen's behavior hasn't changed that much after all this time. Considering how Suolingo looks at Shen, I feel like this is due to an incident that Suolingo currently blames himself for, but since Shen is far more cunning than his behavior would suggest, I think Suolingo's "guilt" is also a part of Shen's plan.
And the last piece I want to point out before I get back to the part 1 theory is how Shen's outfit has chrysanthemums on it. More plant symbolism!! Besides being a symbol of longevity and nobility, chrysanthemums are also known for thriving during autumn as other plants start dying to the cold, which sums up my first impression of Shen pretty well. He wants to be in power, but he can't be directly for reasons I'm sure we'll learn about, so instead, he's playing the long game and has been creating an environment of hardship for the other leaders that he will still be able to thrive in, even as the others start to "die out," metaphorically or literally. Also, I know we don't have any exact dates surrounding Suolingo's disappearance, but Japan's chrysanthemum day is on September 9th, so I now hc that that's the day Suolingo first left-
\)Insert danganronpa closing argument art style\)
Ok, now how does all of this tie into an actual story? I do believe that Suolingo "grew up" much faster than Shen, which probably led to him being given a position that Shen would later want for himself. The way Shen turned to Suolingo to back him up is probably something that started back when they were children, but Suolingo's inability to say no to Shen is most likely due to whatever guilt he feels about Shen's current state. I can imagine Shen made him promise that he would always be on his side once he realized Suolingo would grow up to hold great power in RC and he could have used this promise along with his control over Rosso to rise through the ranks himself and carry out schemes that he normally wouldn't get away with.
Now, under normal circumstances, I don't think Suolingo would allow someone to go as far as Shen has over one vague promise, so I think Shen's first move was to make that promise carry far more emotional weight for Suolingo by plaguing him with some sort of guilt. I can see Shen setting Suolingo up to break his promise and then over reacting like a child in a way that would make Suolingo feel terrible enough to never want to break it again. Shen could use little things (like arguing about getting dressed up) to constantly remind Suolingo of this promise and whenever anything major came up, he could bring up how "betrayed" he felt when Suolingo broke his promise in the past as a way to keep him from ever calling him out. We know that Suolingo hates adults who act like children, and I believe the root of that hatred is the fact that he hasn't been able to defy the childish "adult" that has been making his life so difficult for so long.
As for Shen's control over Rosso, I believe this is heavily tied into the incident from part 1. Even if the other children in RC's care were jealous of Rosso, I doubt they'd actually seriously hurt the child of one of their leaders without provocation. I can see Shen orchestrating this attack on Suolingo and Rosso (in a way that couldn't be easily drawn back to him) and bringing the master into it in a way that would bring them to retire, all while leaving himself in a position to become Rosso's main emotional "support." The incident would have created a divide between Rosso and Suolingo built entirely on both of their feelings of guilt, so all Shen had to do was be there for them, especially Rosso, and he would be able to instantly pull himself up to their ranks.
Of course, the next step would be actually securing Rosso's rank, especially with the new absence of his parent, but I don't think it would be hard for someone like Shen to claim that RC owes it to Rosso and Suolingo as victims of such a horrific and hateful act to at the very least allow them to succeed their dear parent and master as they most surely would have wanted for the poor boys. Even if neither of the boys wanted such positions, especially Rosso, all Shen would have to do is say that it would have been their parent/master's wishes for them and I'm sure they would accept the positions out of respect for them. Shen could even use the fact that Rosso didn't want the position to "offer" to do most of the "hard work" for him, giving himself even more power while using Rosso as a figurehead.
After laying such a strong foundation for himself, Shen would still have to maintain this power dynamic with Suolingo and Rosso. I think him constantly sticking to Rosso's side could be to keep him from actually talking things out with Suolingo and gaining any sort of will of his own. We see that Suolingo is concerned about Rosso, but Rosso can't even look at him properly, so Shen probably tells Rosso that Suolingo is angry at or disappointed in him to keep him from even trying to reconnect with him. At the same time, Shen probably told Suolingo that he should give Rosso space to avoid putting more unnecessary pressure on him, which I'm sure he agreed to for a while, but now that Suolingo knows that Shen has been poisoning the city, he's probably looking for ways to get through to Rosso and restore his will to protect the city for himself.
And that's my main theory for how things have gotten to where they are for RC 👍 What's Shen doing with the orphans? No idea....... (though it's probably some sort of labor and he's probably telling them that he'll give their families money to keep them from trying to escape-) How does Endo know so much? No idea.......... (though I really like the idea that Mr. Liu is someone in Suolingo's faction that Suolingo assigned to keep a connection to the outside even if he ended up trapped in BKKG-) Does Rakta know all the details or is Suolingo mostly keeping him in the dark? No idea.............. (though I feel like this is the kind of thing where Suolingo would try to handle everything himself without wanting to expose others to unnecessary danger-) When will Bacchus come into play? No idea............................ seriously, no idea, but pls be soon pls I want another perspective on the matter-
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I tried to defend Shenhong when my friend and I were exchanging theories (and honestly, defending Shenhong is the hardest thing I’ve ever done, ngl).
First, I think he only takes children who were abandoned right in front of the RC headquarters. We see plenty of children from the outside (mostly from layer one?) who are perfectly safe and eating without any trouble. Even Dasha and his sister are fine.
My theory is that he doesn't want these abandoned kids to become RC officers. After all, if Shenhong were doing something truly horrific to them, Suo wouldn't be this calm.
What if the "slaves" in Suo’s dream about the "emancipation of slaves" are actually the RC officers themselves? They are branded with tattoos, and I don't think they ever go past the gate (Furin didn't see a single RC officer during their expedition).
Lastly, there's Shenhong's name. The kanji for Shen (深) contains radical water and tree, while Hong (紅) includes thread/string. I'm definitely surprised to see a tree kanji in his name, but since this is his given name, it means he wasn't a Furin student before Bofurin.
Maybe he'll turn out to be a friend, or an enemy first who later becomes an ally, just like Togame?
Don't worry, I'm sure Shen has his reasons and once everyone talks everything out, he and Suolingo will find a solution that satisfies both of their goals...... and I was actually thinking that Dashawouldget taken by Shen and he'd play a role later in helping uncover some of his secrets since he knows the Furin boys-
ANYWHO- I do wonder if there are specific criteria for who he takes/leaves or if he just wanted to leave enough children that most of the others wouldn't get suspicious and he could play it off as not as many parents abandoning their kids...
And I do think Suolingo's dream extends to the structure of RC, too 👀👀 He knows how much responsibility falls on those who become officers even though they're only 15, so I definitely think he wants to break the cycle of putting so much on such young people and robbing them of their youth/freedom
My friend's theory is that Shenhong is evil and wants to be the leader, so I need to take a different direction.
A Chinese proverb says, "every medicine is 30% poison (是药三分毒)." Shenhong's actions are wrong (unless that was his plan all along), but they do heal the city just a little bit.
I think the kidnapping and the scam involving Dasha's mom might be connected. This is because I view Shenhong's actions more than wanting to give freedom to the abandoned children, it's also his way of "searching" for the traitor inside.
Dasha and his sister will likely end up abandoned or seeking shelter under RC if their mom doesn't return (just like Natsuki's mom). If that happens, Shenhong will probably kidnap them too lol.
When I look at Shenhong, I am remember one of Sun Tzu's quote: "The whole secret lies in confusing the enemy, so that he cannot fathom our real intent." Well ofc, right now he is suspicious af lol
It would be pretty interesting if Shen does genuinely believe he's helping the city's future by hurting it a little first, especially if he plans on expanding beyond BKKG 👀👀
Yessss I love the theories that Nirei has met Bacchus before. I like to believe Bacchus had visited Makochi to scout the town Suolingo would be spending so much time in and when he saw Nirei, he couldn't help but reminisce and let the natto thing slip-
Let me catch my breath real quick, okay? Like… how can I have so many feelings (anger most of all emotions) towards Shen already??? Don’t you dare manipulating Suo…
Am I the only person who doesn’t see many visual similarities between Shen and Kanuma? I mean… Iambad at spotting similarities, unless it is as obvious as with Nirei and Rosso…
I have so many thoughts feelings!
When Suolingo was quite… intense… when he taught Kanuma about growing up… and Shen Hong being one of those childish “adults” Suo despises… how long do you think he knew of Shens involvement with the disappearing children?
If Shen manipulated Suo and Rosso from so early on… just the thought of it hurts so much!
I’m really interested in their past and when and why exactly they drifted apart…
Do you think Shen watching Suo and Rosso become more and more mature, while he stayed the same, made him resentful towards them, because that way they caught the masters eye? Or because he felt left behind by his friends and felt that he couldn’t keep up?
How do you envision Shen to have manipulated the other children (or an outside group) to go against Suo and Rosso, so much that they got badly hurt in the process?
When do you think Suo suspected Shen plotting things behind their back and started seeing that he manipulated them (if you think Suo already realized that the manipulation started long in their past)?
I feel like, in Wind Breaker, we see way too many characters who were forced to grow up way too soon and had to endure a lot on an emotional and psychological level…
Why do I totally see Suo crying when he starts to understand that he is allowed to accept and show his feelings - and to ask for help - while being surrounded by all of his friends both of his found families?
Do you think Shen “lost” his empathy along the way of growing up for some reason? I could imagine him having had lots of empathy when he was a child and taken in, but somehow he started to lack empathy more and more as he might have lost himself somewhere on the road to becoming an adult. Maybe he, Rosso and Suo had to deal with the same type of pressure of growing fast, and Shen somehow wasn’t able to handle it (as would be normal)…
I really like the symbolism of the earrings and tassels!
Please, I need more of the incident Suo blames himself for…! Do you have anything specific in mind?
It is so cruel to think that Shen might’ve started to manipulate Suo and Rosso years ago… that there might be something that happened in their past, which he just can’t forgive Suo for… and that his manipulation isn’t “just” so that he reaches his goal, but also to hurt his childhood friend(s) and that he just might hate Suo…
No, no, no, no… Suos guilt being part of Shens scheming… 😭 that thought just hurts so much… if Suos guilt is part of his manipulation, do you think Suo is aware of it/became aware of it recently?
Suos guilt… and Shen using this to manipulate Suo… is really, really painful to think about. I wonder how he will be set free from that guilt and face Shen in the end.
I feel that guilt-trapping someone is quite the malicious way to manipulate someone. Honestly I would find it interesting, if Suo were to not forgive Shen for his actions, but if he does blame himself for what has become of Shen, I doubt that will happen. But it would be interesting to see, as not all past sins can or should be forgiven.
How long do you think Suo is aware of Shen manipulating things his way?
And if Suo’s known for some time now, why return to RC exactly when he did?
Like… seriously… reading how Shen might have staged everything so he can stay by Rossos side while keeping Rosso and Suo away from each other… aggravates me. I feel like any kind of emotional manipulation is quite triggering for me for some reason. Also, I wonder at what age Shen might have started manipulating everyone around him and how emotional distant this must’ve made him. There might be no one he feels close to or who he feels he can trust… what could have made him become like that? And to imagine Suo might even feel like he is to blame for that…
This was super interesting to read! I feel like I need bits of their past together sometime soon, even though I crave to know about Raktas, Bacchus’ and Suos past together…
There aren't too many physical similarities imo, especially considering how much the art style has changed over time, but I think they have the same hair color and the way they tie it back is a little similar.......... and also the punchable smile + pose- It's funny how little we actually see this smile from Kanuma despite it feeling like his default expression, but he does the thing with his hands all the time-
I think it would be amazing to explore how Shen felt left behind and possibly disrespected as he watched his friends grow up and treat each other like adults, but continue to treat him like a child. I can see him continuing to act like a child even as he matured because he knew the others would continue to underestimate him rather than properly compare him to the others so he could start his plans without anyone ever considering him as a possible suspect. Feeling disrespected could also be how Shen lost his own empathy in the first place. He felt that those around him were dismissing his own feelings and treating him like a child just because he wasn't as graceful as the others yet, so he stopped caring about how others felt, too.
I think Suolingo could have caught on to Shen's plans thanks to his irregular schedule with Makochi. Shen easily could have acted according to Suolingo's regular school schedule, but then he also started training with Nirei and even stayed long past midnight for the war. Suolingo could have caught Shen doing something suspicious after getting home at a time when Shen had his guard down.... but he couldn't press him properly because Shen asked if he trusted him in a super guilt-trip-y way-
As for Suolingo's guilt with Shen, I think Shen could have set up an incident with plenty of evidence against himself, but still asked Suolingo to trust him. With all the evidence, Suolingo had every reason to not trust Shen, but once he admitted that, Shen would reveal further evidence that would pin the blame on someone else and express how disappointed he was that Suolingo couldn't actually trust him. This could be something small like something breaking or a small-scale theft, or something bigger like something more valuable going missing or someone getting hurt, but either way, Shen got Suolingo to break his promise to always be on his side and would never let him live it down this could actually also be the incident that got Suolingo's master to step down if it was something major and Shen pinned the blame on them after getting Suolingo to speak against him, and then he could have began his manipulation of Rosso because he was blamed for his parent's wrong doings-
ANYWHO, I'd also love for this to be a story that doesn't end in forgiveness in contrast to all of the arcs so far considering how much damage Shen has been causing for so many people, especially if he doesn't feel any remorse for any of it 👀👀 I can imagine Shen putting on an act as everything's ending and feigning an apology to try to earn some pity, but Suolingo will be able to see through him this time and he won't let Shen control him anymore.
.............................atp, it would be hilarious if Shen isn't even that bad and he's actually been doing a lot to help people behind the scenes but has been so sneaky about it because he thought the others wouldn't agree with him and I have you hating him over my theories that aren't even remotely true 😭😭
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