HORRIFYING: LIKE IT OR NOT SHOU SUZUKIS TERRIBLE BUZZ CUT HAS REAL SYMBOLIC VALUE

HORRIFYING: LIKE IT OR NOT SHOU SUZUKIS TERRIBLE BUZZ CUT HAS REAL SYMBOLIC VALUE

so i see people making fun of his new hair which is understandable to an extent because it does look a little jarring since it’s so new but it’s a little bit more than him trying to look like his dad or fucking up with scissors so let’s talk about it

i want to start with just hair and symbolism in mob psycho and what we’ve seen of it so far

terus hair gets its own entire arc basically but it mirrors his growth as a character, put simply: shaving=reason/opportunity to change, tall wig=overcompensation/dedication to large change, cut wig=humble change/humility as chosen by others, final hair=change/humility as decided by himself

serizawa’s haircut is symbolic of new beginnings, and it’s reigen that cuts it which can be seen as reigen freeing him from his past and allowing him to take steps into a new chapter in his life which is pretty cool, the same can be said for how it’s consistently mob that’s shaving Teru’s hair lol

less significantly is kamuro and ritsu getting hair changes after the big cleanup arc ends, while not exactly a haircut it’s still a way to show the changes in their mental health and is a way to say that they’re taking care of themselves more afterwards

which takes us to shou’s haircut, which still needs prefacing because his first hair has its own meaning

unfortunate and tragic but shou having this ridiculous vibrant sharp main character look is a window into how he sees himself during this time, he’s trying to stick out because he has an understanding that he is very important, I vaguely recall ONE saying in a tweet that his design is made with the intention to resemble that of a battle shonen protagonist.

in a way his appearance mirrors his feeling of responsibility to take the role of this cliche selfless protagonist chasing after a happy ending, and we know he has this style by choice because the fanbook tells us that by no means is it his natural hair

so understandably when he realizes that he’s actually free of this responsibility and doesn’t have to force himself to fill the shoes of a sacrifice and can choose to make decisions for himself and his own happiness, he cuts all his hair off.

and not only does it pull him away from this manufactured anime protagonist fantasy (which he’s arguably been using to make things look less scary by ignoring the humanity in his situation) it is also representative of free will and personal autonomy, which is so important because until then shou was doing most (not all) things because he felt he had to, not because he wanted to!!

tldr mobpsy loves symbolism and his haircut is a very literal way to show us he’s finally able to make decisions for the sake of himself because it’s what he wants and because it’s what makes him happy, not because he feels some moral or greater obligation to.. you make fun of him but that haircut was his choice and that’s all that matters :cry: :cry: