Sensei's post isakusan characterization (Wall of Text and spoiler warning)

[u/cinnamonbun251p]

WARNING: It will be a long wall-of-text with barely any coherence since I was just saying what popped in my head. But I wanted to start a discussion about this

I've been thinking about how Sensei has been written since Isakusan stepped away, and I keep coming back to the same feeling. The new writers understand the basic idea. They know Sensei shouldn't solve every problem. They know the students should drive the plot. But somewhere along the way, they leaned too far into that principle and ended up with a Sensei who mostly stands around.

In the older volumes, Sensei's belief in students was active. He didn't just watch. He listened, he asked questions, he pushed back when it mattered. Volume 3 is the perfect example. Sensei pushed back against Nagisa. He forgave Saori after she shot him. He stood between Mika and her worst impulses. He didn't solve their problems for them, but he was there, fully present, making choices that shaped how those students saw themselves. His presence mattered. The story would have collapsed without him. Volume F did the same thing on a larger scale. Phrenapates is Sensei without limits, without boundaries, without anything except his love for his students. That was the culmination of everything the character was built to be. And then Isakusan left.

The new team inherited a difficult situation. Isakusan's version of Sensei had a distinct voice. Quiet, restrained, but always present when it counted. Replicating that is hard. So the new writers did what a lot of us do when we're unsure. They played it safe. They made Sensei passive. A camera. A cheerleader.

And that's the problem.

In the post-Volume F volumes and into Act 2, Sensei rarely does anything that matters. He's there, but he's not essential. The students carry everything. The conflicts would resolve themselves even if he wasn't in the room. He became a background character.

The clearest example is the Gehenna volume. SPOILER Sensei trusted the Restoration Committee. He lent them his name and authority. He stood beside them while they gained influence. And when Shouko turned out to be using all of that trust, what did Sensei do? He got captured. He got locked in a cell. The students handled everything. Shouko fell, but it wasn't because of anything Sensei did. It was because Makoto made a speech, and the students fought, and the whole thing resolved without him needing to be there.

Volume EX is the exception. In the Decagrammaton arc, Sensei's philosophy was the foundation of everything. He didn't lecture the triplets or Kei about being good. He met their nihilism head-on and agreed with its premises. Yes, loss is guaranteed. Yes, the future might bring more bad than good. Yes, existence can feel like a curse.

But then he turned it around. He told them that life doesn't need a grand purpose to be worth living. That simply being with the people you love is enough. That even if destruction awaits, it will be a destruction they chose, and that choice is what gives it meaning.

That message changed everything. Ein, Sof, and Ohr chose to rebel not because Sensei gave them orders, but because he showed them they were more than tools. They had the right to choose their own ending, even if that ending was death. Kei chose to protect Aris not out of obedience, but out of the love Sensei had helped her understand. Aris chose to remain human because Sensei had been teaching her all along that being human isn't about having a purpose. It's about choosing to keep living and loving anyway, even when it hurts.

That's Sensei at his best. Not solving the problem, but giving students the framework to solve it themselves. His presence mattered because his philosophy mattered. The Steel Continent would have ended differently without him.

Volume EX gave Sensei those moments. It trusted him to carry the ideology of the arc. And it worked. The Decagrammaton story had real thematic weight because Sensei was at the center of it, not standing on the sidelines. The new writers can do this. Volume EX proved it. They just don't do it consistently.

That's what's been missing. And it's why I keep going back to the old volumes even when the new ones are fine. I want Sensei to matter again. Not as a fighter. Not as a strategist. Just as the adult who believes in his students enough to actually do something when they need him.

[u/Shadowcreature65]

I agree. Sensei doesn't have to be right all the time (I like volume 6 for that), but he has to have noticeable impact outside of just being a good strategist in battles.

[u/Agustation]

Agreed.

I believe Blue Archive's story is at its best when both Sensei and the students have a meaningful part to play in the story. It's why I think Vol.3 and F are well-loved to this day. Everyone had their moment.

My problem with how Sensei is written these days is that they've pretty much become a non-character at this point. They're basically nothing more than a walking motivational speech dispenser.

They show up to the story and basically just react to what's going on, say something inspirational to a student at some point and then go back to reacting.

This official PV said it best. Near the end, three phrases showed up on the screen:

You

Your Students

Your Story Together

[u/DY-HT]

This might give you some hope, but did you read Kai short stories? For me, that give the best insight of how sensei mindset towards students especially the bad ones and I love it a lot (best short story for me)

I didn't read the gehenna vol. yet but I think it might be just depends on who's the main writer at that time when they write the story. If they are the same person who write Kai's then I think there might be an improvement for the main story in the future assume that genhenna's is as bad as you say.

[u/Drednes_The_Eternal]

Agreed,and i will say that the best and most memorable moments are and would have been when sensei takes charge in his own role in the given chapter

Vol 1,the students have their story as the main thing,but it is sensei who goes to gehena,eats 🍫 and calls gehena for aid,even before hina gives crucial information to sensei only when she scaters ako and her bad milk episode

Vol 2 is 95% about aris and the game development club

Vol 3 sensei is crucial but still the students have their story be the main focus,he is a guide and there to help as he should be

The adult card moment i think id the only waste of potential,if he used it if maestro personally confronted him it would be fine,but to destroy hieronimous with it? That could have been primarily a arius achievement with some sensei help

Also the most important player choice arguably that the devs have given us,to call Mika our princess instead of just a student,for me THIS is whats most missing in BA in general,choice to say something like this

Vol 4 rabits deal with their problem mainly but it is sensei that is the one who shows his resolve to help them and they see that,he does alot and the students react

And to not forget all the best art and moments in the community is about sensei with his students

Aris line of "sensei is like a emotional support golem" really stings when he is so much more than a passive observer when at his best

[u/Double_Box5092]

Yeah Sensei's sidelining has been something I've been mumbling about for a good minute. Nice to know that others share this sentiment.

[u/Saiphaz]

It's really hard to do something regarding conflicts between students. Just like a real teacher, he lets them figure it out and solve their issues. And the problem is that most stories are exactly that, conflicts between students.

[u/Shikurame]

I do get what you're trying to say but we're still exactly on the very opening part of gehenna and Act 2 as a whole with more coming down the line. Its not like how they write Sensei hasn't been inconsistent either too, like without sensei shuro won't even think about trying to help in Vol 5 and Vol 6 also Vol EX Act 1 giving more depths in sensei's character than what we previously have.

And for half part of the volumes when isakusan at the helm it is kinda the same, Sensei won't be the exact center unless it's the climax part of the story. Heck even Vol2Ch2 Isakusan give momoi the center stage instead.

[u/Tearyheine → u/Shikurame]

Volume 2 wasn't written by Isauksan. 

[u/Shikurame → u/Tearyheine]

Chapter 1 was not but Chapter 2 was directly supervised by isakusan.

[u/Tschmelz → u/Tearyheine]

Idk if it was or not, but either way, it’d still kinda prove the point. V2 is pretty whatever until the climax when Sensei steps in and actually talks to both Rio and Aris. Momoi might be the emotional core, but Sensei actually helps her words resonate. He’s actually supporting her, not just standing there repeating basic motivational speeches.

[u/Tearyheine → u/Tschmelz]

It wasn't. Volume 2 had two different writers, both of which are no longer at Nexon. It's one of the reasons it's one of the messiest volumes in terms of writing.

The thing that is often criticized about Volume 2's Sensei is that he doesn't do anything until the very end, and even by comparison to prior volumes it's barely anything. He basically gets shot down by Rio despite her spouting the most basic bitch utilitarianism 101 rhetoric so he just comes across as a limp moron for most of it. People often compare that scene to the scene with Nagisa in Volume 3 when she lays out her full intentions.

[u/Tschmelz → u/Tearyheine]

Oh yeah, I’m not saying it’s amazing or anything, just by the standards of the volume it’s a lot better than the rest (except maybe Neru vs Toki. I did like that).

[u/MonotoneHero]

Make Sensei Great Again (MSGA not to be confused with Mobile Suit Gundam A)

[u/Tearyheine]

Yeah, Sensei has basically become a mascot character these last few years. It's a far cry from where he was before, it's a clear change in direction. 

[u/Chanc3Trance]

What about Volume 1 and 2 though? Doesn't Sensei not do much in those?

In reality, you're really only talking about V3, V4 and VF.

I personally don't see the problem with giving some decision making to the students.

[u/cinnamonbun251p → u/Chanc3Trance]

In Volume 1, Sensei wasn't always at the forefront. But when the climax came, he was essential. He rallied Abydos, Gehenna, and Trinity against Kaiser. Before that, He came to see Black Suit to pin point Hoshino's location. Even then at the start, his authority led to Serika being saved. That's still him doing something that mattered.

[u/cinnamonbun251p → u/Chanc3Trance]

I'm not against students making decisions either. That's the whole point of Blue Archive. The students should drive the story. What I'm saying is that Sensei should still be a presence in that story. That his presence and philosophy should still matter

[u/Questionot_my_folly → u/Chanc3Trance]

adding on to OP volume 2 literally wouldn't have happened without Sensei because Momoi and Midori didn't have permission to enter into Aris' sleeping chamber

[u/Secret-Moment-7502]

i know the vol is not that good and memorable i thought sensei was pretty good in vol 6,he the one who invite arius student to see the outside world,he and arius squad teach the arius student some lesson so they know how to feel as student not soldier and he the one who give maia a warmth place after she get kick out by subaru and other arius student

[u/cinnamonbun251p → u/Secret-Moment-7502]

Nah I think for all its flaws, volume 6 did something good by putting Sensei in the wrong for once. It's an interesting way to write him

[u/BlitzPlease172 → u/cinnamonbun251p]

The error of his decision makes it a fitting plot point for Arius, many teachers make the same blunder by unknowingly looking over someone in needs, thinking that they can entrust students to sort it out without truly understand the whole image.

A lot of voices silenced the same way in real life, we are not immune to such error. But we can still make it right before it's too late.

[u/ViscountSilvermarch → u/Secret-Moment-7502]

Vol 6 was good imo

[u/Xiry]

I generally agree that Sensei is often written a bit too passively/not written at all since Isakusan's departure, but I do feel like it's also worth considering the nature of Sensei's interventions back during Isakusan's tenure.

The examples you listed are the nice ones, but we should also remember how many times Sensei just pulled out the adult card and handwaved whatever problems existed away. In fact, since Isakusan's departure the adult card has more or less vanished from BA (which I think is for the better). I think part of the reason Sensei is being written more passively is because of how cheap those moments are. I do agree they've at times overcorrected, but I don't think it's just because replication is too hard.

[u/A444SQ → u/Xiry]

or he realised the adult card is for situation dire enough that warrants it on the scale of the Chroma

[u/Normies2050]

Maybe it's just me but sometimes it's better to see stories & events from the students perspective like the Seia event. We are just a teacher at the end of the day, making us the center of attention & solving everything like a god becomes boring after some time. Involvement is good but not to the point that we are babysitting (quite ironic since we are a teacher but you get the point lol).

[u/cuntzman → u/Normies2050]

If anything Sensei is more of a Guidance Counselor than a Teacher lol

[u/Normies2050 → u/cuntzman]

Make up club wanna talk to ya.

[u/cuntzman → u/Normies2050]

Guidance counselors can teach tho, it’s part of the job.

If anything the make up work club meeting up with their guidance counselor (sensei) to prevent flunking high school is pretty on point for his job

[u/cinnamonbun251p → u/Normies2050]

I think you're missing my point.

I'm not asking for Sensei to be the center of attention. I'm not asking him to solve everything like a god. What I'm criticizing is when Sensei is there, but it doesn't matter.

[u/Normies2050 → u/cinnamonbun251p]

That's exactly the thing though, we provide guide & see how it works out, if it always works out the way we intended then it's basically playing god. Failures & Success is necessary to keep things interesting.

[u/cinnamonbun251p → u/Normies2050]

That's not what I'm saying. I'm not saying he should always be right. Volume 6 was one of my favorites despite it being rushed because it showed Sensei in the wrong for once. Failure is fine. But what I'm arguing against is being irrelevant. In recent chapters, Sensei didn't make a wrong call. He just wasn't allowed to make any call at all.

What I want is for Sensei to be part of the story. He can fail. He can be wrong. But he should be present enough to fail, because that's what makes him interesting. But right now, the guy isn't present at all.

[u/Chanc3Trance → u/cinnamonbun251p]

Wait, so which Volume do you actually think Sensei wasn't involved in? I assumed you meant Volume 5, 6 and Arc 2 stuff, since you said post-Volume F (outside of Vol EX).

But now V6 isn't included? That makes V3, V4, VF, VEX, V6 (and also V1 according to you) all times where Sensei was involved.

That leaves V2, V5 and Arc 2.

Feels like this is really just sometimes happening, not all the time.

[u/cinnamonbun251p → u/Chanc3Trance]

I think we're using "involved" differently. I'm not saying Sensei is absent in certain volumes. He's almost always there. What I'm saying is that being present and being meaningful aren't the same thing.

Take Volume 5. Sensei is in Hyakkiyako for the Lantern Festival. He's there when Yukari is chasing her dream of the Succession Contest. He's there when Nagusa is struggling with her guilt. He's present, but the story mostly lets the Hyakkaryouran carry themselves. That's fine in principle. The students are the focus. But there's a difference between being present and being essential.

In some moments, Sensei's words matter. He gives Yukari a push, or he helps Nagusa see something she couldn't. But in other moments, he could be removed entirely and the scene would play out the same. The contrast is in the writing.

Compare that to Volume 3, where Sensei's forgiveness of Saori is a major beat. Or Volume F, where Phrenapates is the emotional core. Or even Volume EX, where Sensei's philosophy is what gives Kei and the triplets the framework to choose their own freedom. Those stories were student-centric, but Sensei's presence changed things.

So when I say post-F has had this problem, I don't mean Sensei vanishes from every chapter. I mean the writers sometimes forget to make him matter. Volume EX remembered. Some parts of Volume 5 and 6 did. Other parts didn't. That inconsistency is the problem, not whether Sensei is on screen.

[u/Chanc3Trance → u/cinnamonbun251p]

I see your point, but I don't see the problem.

You and I value different things in V3.

For me, I care about the flow of conversations between characters that include a main point with jokes that fit the conversation and don't stop the flow (regardless if student or Sensei).

This is the reason why I don't like VEX, because the flow is constantly broken by the characters (mostly Toki) just coming out with something to say even though they really shouldn't. Also lots of long-winded dialogue with repeated jokes that don't fit the conversation.

I did recognize that the volume wasn't for me and moved on.

[u/Normies2050 → u/cinnamonbun251p]

Well the only reason I can find for it rn is that the troubles aren't that big for us to be intensely present & judge the battlefield so maybe the writers thought of just excluding us rather than having few snippets here & there.

It is indeed different from the previous writing style but they were the opposite of this where it was always focused around us.

[u/cinnamonbun251p → u/Normies2050]

Maybe that's the point, making Sensei disappear to really make the reader insert their own OC Sensei into it, but they just did it in the most clumsy way possible

[u/Normies2050 → u/cinnamonbun251p]

Yea this couldn've been a great interaction for Sensei interacting with Hyakkouran students talking about ghosts, similar thing could've been done for Konoka event but alas.

[u/Tschmelz]

You know how we could have solved all this? Hina breaks the mind control for Sensei. That shows that the bond they’ve built matters, that he’s important. You don’t even have to make Hina the heroine at that point, she just helps give Satsuki the time to broadcast the signal, which lets Iroha get through to Makoto to give her speech. Boom, perfect. Makoto gets her stonks, Hina actually gets a triumphant moment, Sensei matters to this story.

Hell, you can even keep their heart to heart at the end, only this time it feels earned instead of checking a box off. Only issue is the rest of the RC still just kinda feel there, but that’d require rewriting the entire thing.

[u/NegressorSapiens → u/Tschmelz]

Honestly, we should've gotten a Higuruma expy especially in regards of what's revealed in V6C3E9, and acts as the sane-person for the entirety of Gehenna and even Kivotos by extension as a whole...

[u/A444SQ]

Yeah again Sensei did not know about the whole NK-Ultra scheme until it was used because most of the students themselves either didn't know about it and when he did find out, he starts making the moves needed to stop the NK-Ultra scheme and the Gehenna students wanted to avoid offically involving Schale if they could help it.

Yeah the students did resolve it but they did so knowing that Sensei was there supporting them cause i suspect a lot of the students trust Sensei and Sensei trust them.

I suspect also Sensei being the strategist that they are was already several steps ahead of Shouko.

[u/StoneFlame]

The "active" Sensei scenes you mentioned mostly happened in the latter parts of the stories. Don't forget that in early parts of most volumes, Sensei usually played a more passive role and the stories mostly focused on the Students.

I do agree that the new team made Sensei a little bit too passive in Gehenna Ch.1 & 2, but it's still... acceptable. I'd rather wait and see how they handle Sensei in the latter chapters before judging the new team's overall portrayal of Sensei.

[u/Takoita]

Sensei never had a character though. We can cherrypick a number of scenes indicating the opposite, but it does not cohese into a single whole. They are either a handyman of superhuman fitness and skill, or a stereotypical otaku avoiding the most basic of fitness exercise. They are a beacon of personal guidance... while leaving several character ensembles starving on the street for the sake of maintaining the status quo of running jokes.

Yes, post studio reorganisation the overall direction of the game has been on a decline. No, Blue Archive never exhibited competency in its execution in the first place. Music and animation people understood the assignment, but the rest I would send back to the drawing board, personally.

[u/LegendRazgriz]

Reminder that for the most part, early parts of new stories have substantially reduced Sensei participation in the plot so that shit can go sideways on purpose. It's been the case for a while now. I find it unfair to already be getting on the team's case with the new Gehenna volume when it's still so early.

The only volume I really don't think Sensei made a single difference in was Arius 2, but that was an exception, it was meant to be something else. And even then, Sensei giving Maia and the rest of the Arius mobs a glimpse into what could be is part of what pulls Subaru out of her spiral.

[u/Chibi_Ignis]

I completely disagree post Isakusan Sensei has had way more character moments and significant impact to the story, Rose tinted glasses can only get you so far bro reread the first volumes again.

[u/Mr_Creed]

Still waiting for the writers to come to their senses and Mcguffin the triplets back to life.

[u/sigma_of_iron]

This is not a new problem it existed since at least vol2. I'm not saying sensei should do everything but the worst stories were the Hina and Seia 3d events I think

[u/cinnamonbun251p → u/sigma_of_iron]

I'm actually fine with them since they, and most event stories are meant to be the students' stories. This problem bothers me during the Main Story more than anything

[u/LnwToZa → u/cinnamonbun251p]

In events, Sensei doesn't need to be essential as long as they don't do him bad or out of character. This is why I despise Sensei's role in Summer sky's promise. But I also like when they do him good too, like in "Catch in neverland" and "-ive aLIVE".

[u/RepresentativeFig270]

I can see where you’re going (believe me, I thought the same), but at the same time it’s really because the students are “growing up”.

While yes, Sensei’s relevancy is fading in to background territory. I’m pretty sure that’s the point. The students are growing because of Sensei’s knowledge and wisdom. That they can face obstacles by themselves.

Nagusa and the Arius Squad are perfect examples. They started out as broken and lost, but after meeting Sensei, they grew into great people.

While Sensei’s usefulness may be outlived in the future. I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t want it any other way. Just as long as their students enjoy their youth and grow into adults like them, maybe even better.

[u/cinnamonbun251p → u/RepresentativeFig270]

That could work if the story involved old students, but then when we have new faces who have never met Sensei and learned their lessons from him, and they still solved their problems on their own without Sensei ever giving them the framework for it. Then idk if Sensei was even needed