Danganronpa R: Beyond Hope and The Shadow of Despair [DISCONTINUED]

TJ Hato Redesign

OG POST DATE: 12/15/21

I was actually really satisfied with his original design. I only really changed his eye color to balance his color designs but and changed his back back a bit so you can see the bottom of the skate board.

Fun Fact(s): His name TJ actually means Tyson-Jason. Basically, those two are his... possible fathers. This goes into his mother's backstory. Basically she wanted to become a movie star in America so she moved there and tried to start up a career. From there, she only stared in a really bad commercial before having to work at a mall. She did eventually get a boyfriend who she described as a poor meat head janitor and she admitted that she only dated him so she didn't have to return to Japan in shame and not out of love. She then caught the eye of a rich Business owner and she "fell in love." In reality, she just wanted him for his money. She eventually slept with both of them and then that's how TJ was conceived. Long story short, both the men found out by each other and just disappear, leaving her alone. She managed to get her life together for a bit and lived in America until around TJ's junior high years before they had to move to Japan... Also he's biracial, being Asian and African American. He was originally gonna have a necklace that would've had a red, blue, black, yellow, and pink which references the power rangers. The symbol we see on the skateboard is supposed to be a T-Rex. I also originally wrestled with the idea on him being around a little bit longer. Like when another character, Benjamin, freaks out, he starts to speak gibberish (in reality speaking English in an accent but it sound like gibberish to the mostly Japanese cast) and TJ would have to translate because he can speak Japanese and English relatively fluently. The name Tyson means "firebrand" or high-spirited as Jason means healer. Hato also means (ha) or "feathers" and (to) which means "to soar". It also roughly translates to pigeon. In a way, he's kinda like a Phoenix... minus the coming back to life part. I feel like his character is someone who can bring life to other people.

Background Synopsis: Now with TJ's actual story, back in America, his mother was very protective and was a bit of a helicopter parent in TJ's younger life. TJ began to rebel near the end of his elementary school years and snuck out of school with two of his friends. They eventually found went to a skate park and that's when TJ discovered skateboarding . From there, he had a great love of skateboarding and he got a skateboard for his next birthday. He often skipped classes to learn from the older kids at the park how to skateboard. He began to adopt their lifestyle a bit and began getting into rock music. He took some of his friends and started a garage band. He tried to get some kids at school to join his band and he did get a lead singer from there. That lead singer would eventually become his girlfriend (who is in the second killing game in this story as the ultimate voice actor [pink ranger reference if you're curious], no I don't ship the OG Red and Pink Ranger, the types of characters they are just led me to this outcome) and that's when he says that he had everything he needed. He (barely) passes his middle school but is excited to continue his life with his friends... that is until he is forced to move back to Japan. He slowly began losing contact with his old friends from America and even lost contact with his girlfriend. He tried to make some friends at his new school but thanks to the way he looks, his attitude, and overall the culture shock, he never could. His own family outside of his mother and his cousins see him as a nuance. Someone who should be ashamed to ever exist... A bastard child.... But he doesn't let it keep him down. He keeps fighting against the people who look down on him and he eventually becomes a professional skateboarder.