I don’t feel like I have much to say about this one. I felt like it was about time to do something with Aki and Denji on their own, and this is what came to mind.
Just a friendly reminder that this Ask was done on SubscribeStar before Makima’s Studio debut.
Power, Denji and Aki all came into the Studio in different ways, and I’ve never gotten around to doing much with them. This is partly because, well, as much as I like their dynamic, I just don’t really ship any of them with each other. I figured this Ask would be a convenient way to explore how I see their dynamic in the Studio. They don’t share the same small apartment anymore, but I don’t think Power would vibe with that as easily as the boys. It’s very easy for me to picture her just crashing at either’s place, disrupting Aki’s nights with Himeno or tempting Denji while he tries to remain chaste. I think Makima will actually debut publicly before this Ask, but for Subscribers she’ll actually be debuting a month or so later. Regardless, I wanted to touch on their dynamic while Denji’s still saving himself.
Aki from Chainsaw Man and Megumi from Jujutsu Kaisen are two characters that are easy to compare for a couple of basic reasons. They’re both kinda moody, monotone guys who have to keep the energetic protagonists of their shows in check, both have canine spirit companions they use (the Fox Devil for Aki and divine dogs for Megumi), they both have kinda stupid-looking hairstyles, and both come from high profile MAPPA shows. I’m far from the first person to draw them together, but I figured a few of you out there might like seeing this pairing from me.
Just a friendly reminder that this Ask was done before Makima was introduced to the Studio!
So, when I read this question I kind of had an idea of how Aki would see Denji’s choice. Hopefully his position is articulated well here, but basically I think he’d see it as kinda childish but respect his willingness to stick to it. Aki, on the other hand, has no such hang-ups, even though he also crushes on Makima in the series. I figured him showing just how much more open to “Studio life” he is would spice up his answer some. For his partner, I figured Momo would be as good as anyone, and is kinda a fresh pairing, I think.
In my mind, there’s really two ways to answer this question visually. Either I could draw Armin with Eren again to show how close they still are, or I can show Armin making his own connections outside their friendship to parallel Eren’s. I went with the latter, for variety’s sake, which I hope people won’t mind. I went with Aki as Armin’s partner here, ’cause I suspect there’s some overlap in the AOT and CSM fanbases.
A simple little low-angle shot of Aki, nothing special. These foreshortening-heavy pics can go one of two ways, but I think this one turned out pretty alright. I went with his hair-down look, since I think it’s a little more flattering than his usual ponytail.
Aki and Himeno are probably more vanilla of a ship than I typically draw, but I just kinda felt like it. I thought a state of partial undress would suit them, and I figured some folks might like seeing Aki with his shirt open like this. I don’t know if I’ll draw these two again or not, I guess we’ll see, but I hope y’all enjoy this little pic of them.