FUN FACT: I found out in post, but Takemura can actually TELL V about Jackie being in Mikoshi. I've never had that happen or even heard of it, but damn. It happens during the Bakeneko conversation, I believe. As crappy as that information is for V, it says a lot that he let V know. AGAIN. A COOL DUDE. ALSO! He was initially considered as a romance option, but there wasn't enough time to properly implement that story. Which, hey, understandable!
Yeah if you give Jackie's body to Vik, Arasaka takes it and creates a janky Ingram of Jackie. Goro tells you this if you do recon work with him before hacking one of the parade floats. But before you do all of that, you have to ask Vik what he did with Jackie's body and that is when Vik will tell you how Arasaka took it. As with Goro being a romanceable, that too was true. It wasn't just the fact that the devs felt there was no time for it but they actually replaced him with River Ward. Which explains why River's romance quest line feels so rushed.
Takemura's life was devoted to Arasaka. Even being framed and attacked by them he still tried to go save Hanako. As much as a stubborn dog he is, his character and honour is rare for Night city. Too bad it also blinded him.
Then they learn they both fought in the last corporate war since the NUSA and Militech are so close and they have finish their beers and have a Mexican standoff. Who would win that duel?
@@marcusraines4803I'd say, with absolutely 0 evidence, Takemura. Simply because even though Reed is certainly very very very skilled. He's more of a spy. In the idea you cant master everything, he wont be as good as a fighter as he is a spy. While Takemura's main job is to be able to fend of anyone threatening Saburo's life. Dumb random numbers, but if reed is 70% spy and 30% fighter, Takemura is the opposite
Classic samurai turned ronin story. The only difference is that it's a more realistic depiction rather than the romanticized version from stuff like old samurai movies. Historical samurai were never "honorable" in our modern sense. They were only honorable in the sense that they were loyal. That meant following their lord's orders including rape, murder, and pillaging of innocents. Even stuff like seppuku was treated as a way of retaining/redeeming any lost honor.
So pretty much the same as western knights and lords. The Catholic church sent them on crusades because they got tired of all the pillaging and infighting at home.
I mean, honor meant you were reliable on getting whatever job done. It didn’t mean you were moral or nice, just reliable. Definitely means different things now a days
I use the convo between V and Takemura bout corporate order to show how the most dystopian part of cyberpunk is how people can't imagine a better world. They either claim the evils are necessary, or they want to tear the evil apart (maybe even, say, use a nuke in a densely populated area) without constructive progress. Cyberpunk dystopias happen when we imagine a world without people who trust each other to build a better world for the sake of everyone. It's a warning against living in fear and looking only to despair or corporate authoritarianism as solution. I wonder why it feels so relevant?
Such an interesting dichotomy between him and those he serves; Takemura is loyal, honest, unambitious, incorruptible and, tragically, trusting. Makes sense why Arasaka would make use of him. He’s the perfect tool, one that will expend himself for a terrible cause without wavering. When he inevitably dies in service of Arasaka no one will mourn him, because the only people who value him do so for his usefulness. I feel like V is the first person Goro’s truly known in years, probably decades.
In the Arisaka space ending, I think Tak felt more uncomfortable taking Saburos' orders from Yorinobus body. Imagine if the corpse of your sworn enemy started barking orders. It would be like the Nick Valentine/Kellog interaction in F4.
@@watema3381no it's other way around it's disturbing to see a psychopath who murdered your wife and kidnapped your child to be speaking to you from beyond the grave taunting you about how you'll never find your son who claims is people who locked away underground through your best friend and person who help you seek revenge on that very same psychopath who is using your best friend as a medium.
Yeah, Takemura's character is kind of heartbreaking. Reminds me a lot of kids I grew up with who joined the military or local drug gangs. They were so grateful for some attention, money and purpose that they ignored everything they had to give for it. Fantastic video. I can't wait to watch more.
If there's one thing I love about this game's characters, it's seeing how good, principled people cope with living in a world that is completely and viciously amoral and how it leads to their downfall, especially with Takemura, Johnny, and Reed. Takemura can't accept that his masters aren't worthy of his dedication and lives in denial. Like you said in the video, when you boil it down, his loyalty to Arasaka is derived completely from his sense of indebtedness to the corporation for pulling him out of a life that would have been harsh and short, but at the same time he knows deep down that he and so many others were only in that position in the first place because of the megacorps' complete disregard for human life, so he clings to the most idealized and naive image of Arasaka possible to justify his loyalty to to it and it's founder, in a way that's pretty one sided. Johnny on the other hand is completely disgusted by the injustice of the status quo, and wants to upend the whole system on his own terms without selling out to anyone. However, this complete inability to compromise isolates him and means he's limited to just lashing out at the powers that without actually solving any of the world's underlying problems. The AHQ bombing is emblematic of this, his swan song was nuking Arasaka tower, and after all the death and carnage that bombing caused it ended up solving nothing, and he ended up accomplishing essentially nothing beyond getting himself killed. As for Reed (who I can't wait to see your video on), I find him the most interesting character in the whole game. Reed is a relic from a bygone era that refuses to accept he's fighting for a lost cause. In a world of megacorps and cyborgs, Reed is an old-school intelligence operative working for one of the last vestiges of the old American prestige that was destroyed decades prior. He's similar to Takemura in that he's loyal to people who don't appreciate him, but he's far more sober about it than Takemura and makes it clear he's under no illusions about president Myers' nature and is solely motivated by duty to country. It's why he was fine with being betrayed by Myers and sold out to Arasaka, he's so hellbent on saving what's left of his country that he's 100% willing to pay any price for himself or others as long as it advances America's interests. He's incapable of leaving the FIA no matter how often he gets burned or how terrible he feels, because leaving would mean admitting complete and utter defeat and the loss of any hope of a revitalized America.
Another reason Takamura is so disappointed when V rejects becoming an engram is because (as far as I know) V has been the only real friend he's ever known. Sure, he's had apprentices and superiors, but as far as we know, he's never truly had a friend who saw him as Takamura, then just as Suburo's bodyguard.
If he was a friend he would not lie about the engram, that he was send here by Hanako and what becoming an engram means - you are not a person anymore, you are an item owed by Arasaka. You are losing all of your rights. But Takamura says that "everything will be fine. This contract is to protect you", when it is basically you signing that you are becoming Arasaka's property.
Takemura is a nice guy but he's a company man. Arasaka will always come before anyone. Having him as a "friend" or lover wouldn't work unless you're just as devoted to Arasaka as he is.
@jkgf4671 The thing is that he probably does believe the contract would keep V safe, and even if he didn't believe that, he would still try to convince V to become a Construct so he'd still be able to hang out with V since, like I stated above, he has never had a friend like V.
@@fastgunnns3881 Come on. Takamura is not an idiot. He is able to read and understand what that contracts was about. He also saw how Arasaka treats its employees and especially people who "outlived" their uses. More like he wanted to get back in good terms with Saburo. If Takamura cared about V, he would told him the truth instead of lying. He was ordered to do something and like a good dog, he was going to use every trick he can to make V sign it. That's why he lied. Even if he cares about V it means nothing to him compared to his loyality to Arasaka.
From Takemura's perspective, he stood among 100 of the best of the best and was singled out as something special by the Emperor himself - that the Emperor had stared into Takemura's soul and was somehow uniquely qualified. From the Emperor's prespective, Takemura was just one among 100 possible bodyguards and there was no wrong answer. They were all interchangeable and fit for the purpose.
From the moment that Hanako reveals that everyone in power already knew that Yorinobu had murdered their father there was no possibility of a happy ending for Takemura. He was disillusioned and forced to see the reality behind the curtain. The myths he believed about Arasaka were broken. More importantly, Hanako was supposed to be the heart of Arasaka - the moral center to balance Yorinobu and the Emperor - and yet in this situation she was playing politics and being pragmatic. He couldn't go back to being a loyal soldier. He couldn't get revenge on those who betrayed & murdered his liege and somehow atone or make things right. He was forced to become a tragic figure who realized there was no right answer - even restoring the Emperor's engram to control wasn't good. He blames V, because V always knew Takemura's beliefs were lies. He can't bring himself to outwardly blame Hanako or Arasaka, so he blames V for exposing him to this truth.
One of the things that CDP did with him is that he is also representative of ALL the life paths by the time we meet him. First a Street Kid, then a Corpo, before finally being an Outcast and Nomad
This game, man. My opinion of just about every character changed through my first time playing. Jackie went from the most obvious redshirt to someone I genuinely hoped would survive, I resented Takemura at first but wound up regretting his death, and Songbird and Reed…I’m still mind-boggled from those two 😂
That choice right before the shuttle is one of the best moments in any game. You hold two lives in your hands, neither of whom perhaps deserves death, yet if you wanted vengeance on either it would be so completely understandable.
Excellent content as always! I'm glad you did a deep dive on Takemura as he was such an interesting character. He kind of represents V if they were unable to overcome and adapt to their existential challenges, a victim of circumstance. As you mentioned, his blind loyalty imprisons him and prevents him from changing course no matter what so there is no good ending for him. I think this can be best summed up by good ol' Benny “Truth is, the game was rigged from the start.”
Goro’s blindness to Arasaka’s evil is a combination of two things. On the one hand, there’s a self interest motive. He does benefit a lot from his relationship with Arasaka, even if the corporation itself views him as disposable. Elite level training, cutting edge combat implants, probably a pretty good lifestyle including a decent place to live, good medical care and good food. He’s better off than probably 90% of people. There’s also the Arasaka training itself. He’s been conditioned to be a good little corporate drone, to ignore his doubts, fears, and even outright manipulation and malfeasance by the corporation. His sense of what honour, loyalty and integrity look like are warped. Bushido is kind of an overly romanticized concept of the Samurai version of the knightly code of chivalry, which is in itself a romanticized version of “proper” knighthood. In truth, these ruminations on proper behaviour only came about very late into the game for both knights, and Samurai. If you study historical accounts of what both groups of warrior aristocracy actually did, how they behaved, it doesn’t really resemble the purported “code” at all. The reality is that the expectations for both knights and samurai for most of their existence was “Maintain your military skills and be loyal to your paymaster.” Game of Thrones provides a very interesting example of this in the personages of the brothers Clegane. Gregor, “The Mountain” is an anointed knight, and a complete monster, while Sandor “The Hound” has a character arc where he slowly turns into what some people would describe as “the quintessential knight.” He’s still crass, violent, and a bully, but you actually see him standing up for the weak and taking vengeance for them when he fails, and Sandor isn’t even an anointed knight. The Hound is the romanticized knight to an extent, while The Mountain is closer to what a real knight looks like, from a temperament perspective. For the Samurai in particular, Bushido only became codified the way we understand it today around the time that the samurai fell out of favour as military forces and began to be replaced with standing armies of peasants. It’s during this period where the Imperial Court began doing things like passing laws banning the wearing of swords for anyone not on official military duty. Then Arasaka comes along and perverts this “code” for its own ends.
I abandoned Goro in the motel when Arasaka came after Hanako because I thought that he was dead. I'm dozens of hours past that point in my current playthrough, so I'm gonna save him next time.
Definitely watching this after work. On a side note, have you ever thought about making a video on the bullet necklace? Like what it represents and its fate in all the endings. I think that would be an interesting topic to cover.
I really love your thoughtful review of Takemura's character. You’ve painted a vivid picture of his complexities, and I find myself agreeing with so much of your analysis. However, I’m less convinced of the depth of his feelings, and I think his steadfast refusal to change-despite undeniable evidence-is telling and here is why i think that. Takemura tends to justify his actions with clever quotes like, 'All hands are dirty, it’s just how you get them dirty,' it's nothing more than a shield for his self-preservation (even though its a great quote). It's a classic rationalization strategy: he frames his morally ambiguous decisions as 'necessary evil,' he avoids acknowledging his culpability. Saburo didn't choose Takemura just for his skills and i think Goro knows this too deep down; he really chose him because Takemura is, at his core, a loyal dog. He’ll do anything to protect the hand that feeds him and not ask questions, even if that hand is abusive. This blind loyalty makes him complicit, and his justifications serve as a means to maintain a sense of moral superiority over other mercs, who he sees as beneath him. Yet, Takemura is no different-he's just as willing to get his hands dirty, only he cloaks his actions in a veneer of righteousness. In short his unwavering loyalty, even to an abusive master, strips him of agency and reduces him to a cold and mostly (not entirely) unfeeling follower who rationalizes his actions to maintain a false sense of righteousness, making him more of a slave to his duty than a man of genuine feeling toward V, but thats just my opinion and does not mean im right.
Goro is the living embodiment of self-imposed delusion, blind faith, and sunk-cost fallacy. It's infuriating that you can't help him escape this trap. But it also probably the most real example of human flaws in the entire game until DLC.
its a tough situation, because on all endings besides devil (and minorly tower) you then absolutely crush his former world behind with attack on arasaka tower, leaving him hating you in his final moments, so sparing him that sense of betrayal by leaving him to the flames might feel more merciful, but at least in tower he's forced to admit to himself without V to either restore his former life or stab him in back that the world of corporations is cruel and uncaring, no matter your loyalty
Man... this channel is such a goldmine. No matter how big it gets, its still not going to be what it actually deserves. Takemura is probably my favourite character, so this is awesome. Thank you for all your efforts!
Part of me wishes that there was one more ending. One where you can go along with Arasaka, until you get to Yorinob, but then instead of capturing him, you execute/let him die. Although from V's perspective, you would also be accepting a death yourself without access to Mikoshi.
Nice! I always love your cyberpunk videos. I hope you can cover the phantom liberty characters at some point. Theres so much intrigue and material to examine there
Ahhh thank you! Absolutely, I'm excited to get into all the PL characters. I keep intending to start covering it, but then I remember "oh right there's this other character in the base game I need to cover first" lmao
I'm very uncomfortable with Takemura's character. Because I see myself in him, putting loyality over all else. And that's a sign of great writing, if your viewers can connect empathise, and see themselfs in your characters you've done it right. It's the same with Arcane or Ghost of Tsushima. Masterful writing. I hope they'll have a similar level of character depth and development in Cyberpunk Orion.
I let him die in the raid usually. Die a hero or love long enough to be the villain, and as much as I feel he's a fool, I'd rather he die while he believes in something rather than being thrown aside like everything else no longer useful to a megacorp
Mine is the one were he stays with the AIs and Johnny takes over the body. I want to see Johnny f*ck up his happy ending in a sequel story. And in that scenario V could become the loyal soldier of Mr. Blue Eyes. Can you imagine Johnny 2.0 having to fight V in a second crusade of Johnny's? That would be a tragic story worth of Cyberpunk.
That's a interesting take. I'd think the Reed ending is canon but we will see V again and the real Johnny Silverhand hopefully and more of the peralez.
Another banger of a video Lydi! I am not sure how familiar with Pink Floyd you are, but there is a song called Dogs on the brilliant concept album Animals. This song seems to me to sum up Takamura as a whole. He’s an attack dog who finds out when his time is up, how little the system cares for him. It would have been a great song to associate with him in game. (Which takes me to my biggest criticism of Cyberpunk, they make music so important to the story but do a poor job tying the themes and songs themselves to the story, like Peralez has the quest Dream On, the title works but the actual song doesn’t connect at all to the themes.) Takamura spent his whole life trying to avoid being a Sheep and working for Pigs that he is shocked to learn the Pigs think of him about as highly as the Sheep.
Takemura is a true samurai loyal to his Daimiyo to the death and beyond. While i understand the loyalty, it strikes to see how he doesn't see the monster Saburo is. For justice or to set things right sure but for Saburo? He is blinded by loyalty
I hate Takemura. No matter how well you treat him V is never his friend. Takemura is 100% devoted to Arasaka and never sides with V. He is best described as a corpo dog.(as you said jokingly)
I love your enthusiasm and thorough analyses! You have a new subscriber here. I also love that you finish every video crashing a car. The ultimate Cyberpunk 2077 experience.
Corpo V also gets an interesting line in The Devil to warn Takemura that, having failed to protect Saburo at Konpecki, not to expect Arasaka's gratitude in the slightest and that he'd be better off making an escape in the chaos. Goro's reply is a simple 'thank you, truly' but the expression that CDPR gave him in that moment suggests that he knows exactly what could happen even if they're successful in taking down Yorinobu. It seemed like maybe the first time anyone had suggested that he look out for himself instead of arasaka, and only coming from V would accept it as genuine concern instead of an insult. But to him, his path is already locked in. While V accepts the possibility of victory or death in Hanako's assault, Goro accepts the possibility of victory and death. It's a really well done moment to build that character and the relationship between him and the player pretty much up until the last minutes of the game.
Of all characters from "antagonistic" side, by far my favorite is Takemura. He was a poor child that, by mere chance, was pushed to society's upper escheleons. This plays havoc on one's psychology, as one starts to see oneself as chosen by the bigshot who picked them and develops a strong debt of honor, and we see both of those traits on Takemura. He is developed as a complete human being, with merits and flaws, in such realistic way we can see a lots of Takemuras in real world every time we see a poor child being catapulted to the big game by reason of being chosen by some big shot. In fact, in Colonial America that was done to some slaves to make them the most loyal plantation oversees, just to drop an example here.
Takemura is actually a bit of a snake. Not the whole time but in the Saka ending. A slip of the tongue reveals he's once more a loyal hound, willing to be deceptive toward allies to further master's ambitions. He says Hanako forgot about V after their role was fulfilled, but that's just a ploy to ensure they sell their souls. Literally just a few lines later the slip of the tongue becomes apparent when he says that Hanako is actually the one who sent him. There's a video by Big Dan Gaming called why you shouldn't Save Takemura which goes into detail.
@@zerotodona1495 Doesn't change the fact that he tries to manipulate you and doesn't care about how you are doing. He promised you salvation from the start of the game, but in reality he lied. Johnny said from the beginning that Takemura isn't our choom and he was right.
I was with Johnny for most of my conversations with Takemura. The slavish devotion he had to that company, even in the face of what a hellscape Night City, which is a city that exists currently under the "protection" of Arasaka (and thus the oppression of it) just pissed me off. He turns a blind eye to the parts that he didn't want to think about and kept his rose-tinted glasses on the entire time. Made me happy when I took the Nomad ending and he hates me for it. A fitting end, for a corporate dog. Right back where he started, and now no hope left. Maybe now he can understand V's desperation.
I mean, he said it himself. Goro despises people who just want to burn down the corporations but have no plan on what to replace the power vacuum with. To him, order has to be preserved at all costs, even if it's an order that's built on the back of evil. This is in fact a very MAINSTREAM opinion today. Peaceful protests get absolutely vicious media coverage and ordinary folk will openly fantasize about murdering protestors over minor inconveniences. Nobody cares about the message, they care about order.
Takemura to me was the pinnacle of what I call a” micro tragedy”, which cyberpunk is almost entirely built on the idea of big and small tragedies, and how it shapes the characters in the story. Takemura may be a well-oiled brainwashed corpo killer, but he’s humanized in an interesting way in the story and you come to respect him and possibly like him enough to want to see an ending where he wins also. But the only ending for a man like Goro that is “happy” is the one where he realizes the only one truly loyal to him will soon be gone forever. That pain is so real and relatable. The same way I felt in the other endings where he’s disgraced and bitter, at the end of his road. Great video on a great character
takemura's dedication to arasaka kinda reminds me of how i heard that some ex-convicts would commit crimes just so they can be sent back to prison, because the outside world confuses them after they spent so long inside prison walls. every prisoner yearns for freedom, much like takemura wishes he would become a nomad and leave it all behind, but they cannot fathom living for themselves, outside of their cage
your videos are really well done, thank you for this great content! hope you get more and more into what night city has to offer, this game feels like the real deal, everything feels so ALIVE. You can tell this story was planned long ago
I didn’t realize you could save him on my first play through - I read that and had to restart everything - he’s such an amazing character with such depth
I always thought that the reason Takemura stuck around while V was recovering was simply duty. Duty to Saburo. That one moment V comes round to see Takemura leaning over them? I don't see that as sweet, I see that as Takemura placing a tracker in V. He really doesn't care about V, he cares about a valuable asset. Nothing more. Takemura is part of Arasaka. Arasaka is V's enemy. Ergo, my V never goes back for him. They will play nice, charming, chatty, teasing. But when push comes to shove, my V simply doesn't care about Takemura, only what they can get from him. Goro taught that lesson well I think.
My first run, I couldn’t help but chuckle at all of the text interactions between V and Goro, like he’s the ironically funny and silly uncle to V….but the second play-through, those texts hurt so much knowing about the endings and Goro’s plan.
I was completely shocked when hanako revealed that goro had inserted a tracker on us. the scene where he taps us on the shoulder, where we're in a semi coma, is the exact moment when he inserts the tracker. Since when everything is different for me. And that is, for me, the essence of cyberpunk. the layered world with its truths and lies. 😢
I respect Takamura, but from the point of veiw of my ex-corpo V, I can't find it in myself to pity or sympathize with him. He sees the same world we do, and the places Arasaka has turned into unlivable wastes, and instead of regretting the 'necessity' of it all, he balks at the dirtiness and decay. Yes, everything in Night City is a twisted facsimile of what it could be, BUT THAT'S LARGELY ARASAKA'S FAULT. The entirety of Ranchero and the suffering of those that live there is a result of an Arasaka corpo coverup. Yorinobu seeking to supplant his father wasn't even a bid for power, not really. He was attempting to staunch the bleeding corruption of a tyrannical despot. Based on just regular lore in game, Suburo deserved WAY worse than what he got, just being strangled to death in a luxurious penthouse. Goro knew about all of it. He knowingly protected a sinister, powermad dictator and pretended that he was somehow wronged when the right thing was done. He's inherently tragic, and it's brilliantly written that way, but his is not a story meant for sympathy.
Gorro could have been a good romance option, especially if it replaced River. River, himself, isn't a bad character by all means but is lack luster compared to the others. Gorro would have been a better choice, in my opinion.
I love these videos on deep dives into characters. I wonder if there is enough materials to do one on rosalind myers? In my eyes she is in the awkward position of being simultaneously important but not really present (??) in PL.
Finally got around to watching this, would've happened sooner but ya know how life goes, lol. This was a really great video, perhaps being my favorite character analysis from you. I'll admit that prior to this vid I really didn't think much of Takemura; he was just a means to an end. But now I can't help but feel sorry for the guy. You really got me to see him in a new light. I especially love your commentary on his fate in all of the endings and how that reflects on his character. Well done. I'll bring this up one more time because it would be such a fun video to see from you, but a video on the bullet necklace would be stellar. I can't help but keep pondering about its meaning in the endings. Why is it sometimes kept? Why is it sometimes discarded? Why do some endings give you the option to keep or leave it? It would be really interesting to dive into all of that, I think. But that's enough rambling from me, great video and I will be patiently waiting for the next one.
My first few playthroughs I didn't even know he could survive to the credits, then I played a Streetkid who went against Johnny at every turn and ended up saving Goro, meeting Jackie's engram (it was eerie in the exact right way), took Goro's advice to get Soulkilled... Really glad I did
Takemura basically suffers from Stockholm Syndrome: Arasaka picked him up from poverty, trained and programmed him and as intelligent as he is, he can't get around that programming, so no matter how badly Arasaka treats him, he'll always come back for more.
Takemura is my favourite character in the game. He's the quintessential archetype of a noble spirit ensnared and used by the world he's in. The "honourable enemy officer" is a classic trope, and Cyberpunk explores it incredibly well. The stake-out scene with pizza is my favourite part of the show, and in my "ideal 2077 ending worldstate" Takemura is still alive, but Johnny is not.
Takemura is the perfect example of someone that a company would take advantage of. To him, trust is the most important value one can have in both themself and others. So, when V does not help Takemura in the Devil's Ending route, he obviously feels betrayed. He put his trust in V, trust that is not easily given, and V just threw it away for any other shot. However, the table turns in the Devil's Ending. V is the one, essentially, betrayed by Takemura. Takemura promised a solution, and he did not deliver it. He let V down despite everything V had done for him. Something no normal person, or even a vengeful person would ever truly consider doing. V put their trust in Takemura, a trust that was not easily given especially since they hate corpos, and Takemura let them down. What is even worse is that V proved Takemura wrong. Corpos have the power to make change, but even they are limited, and often times they will not help if they do not really have to. V was like the Emperor to Takemura, someone he valued and cared for, someone whom he had an obligation to protect (if you go down his route). In the end, just like with the Emperor, he fails in his duties. The two worst endings for Takemura personally are the Phantom Liberty ending and the Devil's ending. In the Phantom Liberty ending, Hanako dies and he has to burden the guilt of killing not one, but two Arasakas in his quest for vegence. Yet, in the Devil's ending, when V is going to die despite everything Takemura promised... Takemura has no one else to blame but himself. He cannot blame Hanako and he cannot blame V, he cannot blame anyone else, no other person can be reasonably focused for his hatred and guilt other than himself. He has to live a life of shame and guilt, because he failed his master and his only friend in Night City. Takemura, a lesson of devotion and misplaced trust. A man who deserved so much, and was cut short at the very end, with no ending giving him the satisfaction he deserves.
If Jonny and Takemura met they'd fight to the death. But if you play Phantom Liberty you'll eventually realize it's a kind of self hatred. Johnny was very similar except he was a secret agent. I can imagine Jonny and Takemura having a long brutal fist fight... then buying eachother a drink and Jonny saying "I used to be like you back in the day" and slowly corrupting Takemura. They'd fight often like friends who pretend they hate eachother. Probably run some dodgy business together.
Goro Takermura is a perfect, tragic, and very literal take on the idea of a 'corporate samurai.' He takes his duties to a whole new level of devotion, as though following the core tenets of the code of Bushido. And of those tenets, the ideal of loyalty is one of its most prized. Those who have historically pursued such loyalty in feudal Japan have enacted great, borderline insane acts of courage and bravado in the face of impossible odds, or against those who had slain or dishonored their lords and masters... as well as great horrors made in the name of convoluted vengeance, or pointless, wasteful, or otherwise avoidable mishaps. The romanticized iterations of the western code of Chivalry emphasizes a more personal moral spectrum to be guided by through battle and court, emphasized by loyalty to the practitioner's heart, conscience, and sense of righteousness above all else, even should it lead them into treachery against a master they deem evil. In contrast, the romanticized iterations of eastern Bushido emphasizes loyalty to one's master _to a fault,_ even if it should lead to the samurai following his master into what he knows is a path of evil, if he cannot sway his master from it. As long as the code is satisfied, so is the samurai's duty and honor; only being severed from that duty or disregarding the code itself can really do his honor harm and/or leave him drifting aimless. Goro is a noble man, honorable, and is willing to go to extreme lengths to realize Saburo's goals, even from beyond his master's grave. Being trapped in Night City, where his luxurious tastes are but a bitter memory and betrayal rules in place of anything remotely resembling honor, has left him at a loss and in perilous need of V's help. But no matter how much of Arasaka's evil is thrown into his face for him to confront, at the end of the day, Goro is driven completely by his loyalty to Saburo Arasaka, no matter how wicked he may or may not know his aims to be. Goro has gotten to the point in his career where _happily_ views himself as more a tool than his own man, and if Saburo so much as asked him, he'd leap upon his own blade in his service. Being deprived of a master to wield him broke him down worse than any torture ever could. If Goro worked for a man or family whose morals were upstanding, he'd be just as eager, if not more so to help them realize their ambitions. The tragedy of knowing this good, honest man, in the cruel and dishonest world of Cyberpunk, is just another weapon to be exploited in the vast and warped and arsenal of the Arasaka Corporation is horrifying, accentuated by the fact that Goro may know this deep down but simply accepts this as his purpose in life. Loyalty is everything to him. Without it, he's nothing.
It would have been nice if, during the game, your bond with Takemura reflected his reaction to V in the end credits scenes. Like, if V and Takemura have a good relationship, Takemura is more forgiving of V's actions and does not hold anger towards V for choosing one of the other endings, but if your V and Takemura's relationship is neutral then Takemura is more hostile towards V.
I did not know of his father being a chef, To be honest I thought his picky eating was to show how despite growing up in the slums he is spoiled by Arasaka’s postion of privilege
I remember one part where Takemura tries to make Saburo sound human by saying his favorite food was a cheap protein bar... and of course V's like 'So, he's still a prick' (I'm paraphrasing). It's kinda funny that people actually do that in real life.
Huge difference IMO with street kid V is that V had the money and possibility to leave Night City. He wasnt stuck there like many people are/think they are. They are in night city by choice. Which I dont understand, if his childhood was that "horrible" he wouldnt have come back
Being a soldier inherently requires shedding some amount of "humanity" for lack of a better word. Goro isn't really a soldier, though. He's trained like one and talks like one, it's even his career and a huge part of who he's been, but it's not what he is. He's closer to a guard dog, which ironically brings him closer to the humanity that needs shed by the soldier. We love Takemura because we see this whether we know it or not, and because his humanity is so much more noticeable when it shines beyond that corporate soldier layer that he's taken on over the years. He's a genuinely well-written character for the most part, I wish his execution had been a bit better overall in the final game but damn do I love my boy
Takemura is such a tragic character to me. And in all honesty, besides Judy and Panam, the only person who I'd really say managed to become a friend to my V after Jackie's death. Though in my playthrough, I've actually lost him in that firefight with the Arasaka storming the hideout after Hanako's kidnapping. Not for the lack of trying, mind you. I've looked and looked around the room filled with smoke and red lights but never found that crack that led to him. I was honestly quite certain the game forced you to leave him there to die... I wouldn't put it past Cyberpunk narratively. Only later, through video essays, I learned it is possible to save Takemura. Though on some level I wonder if that was the only possible way our connection could have ended on a high note...
So Act 2 has three major characters for V to interact with: 1. Takamura is the Corpo 2. Judy is the Streetkid 3. Panam is the Nomad Takamura and Corpo V had both been chewed up and spit out by Arasaka, but Takamura still remains loyal unlike V, who fully embraces the chaos that is Night City and leaves their former self behind. They were both betrayed by the corporation, but I think Takamura sees it more as a betrayal by Yorinobu. He still trusts Oda and Hanako. V is suspicious of them. And I think another really large factor in this is Johnny Silverhand. Johnny is the devil on your shoulder, but he's not exactly wrong either. Arasaka still comes after V and Takamura after your discussion with Hanako (and will kill Takamura without V's intervention) and if you follow through with Hanako's plan, V essentially becomes a lab rat in "The Devil" ending. If you sign the contract, your fate is the same as Johnny's: V's consciousness is trapped in Mikoshi. If not, you live the remainder of your life on Earth with no help from Arasaka. Either way, Arasaka absolutely f**ks you.
Oh Takemura, I always let him die despite me liking his character quite alot, but because I don't want him to be around for when I raid Arasaka at the end of the game, I don't want to disappoint him like that :(
I loved Takemura so much during the story, went blind playing cyberpunk and managed to to get my "role play" Corpo V ending with Takemura live and well on my first playthrough. i was really sad when i found out there was no romantic option with him no matter what I did, but I loved the devil ending,truly a masterpiece of an ending for how tragic and sad. In my hopefully but fool thoughts... i'm waiting for the day when me and Goro will eat "real food" back in Japan together...hopefully...I get a new host thanks to the "secure your soul" program,if that will ever happened before Takamura dies of old age,or maybe, we'll meet under the "secure your soul" program in a distant future...if the technology won't develop fast enough. loved the video❤
Only a dead dog can't learn new tricks. He could have taken to the Bro-mad life, like some Spaghetti Western/Ronin movie and been a wandering badass, righting wrongs and evisceratng scavs. I'd watch that. I like the Good Cop/Bad Cop working relationship he has with V.
FUN FACT: I found out in post, but Takemura can actually TELL V about Jackie being in Mikoshi. I've never had that happen or even heard of it, but damn. It happens during the Bakeneko conversation, I believe. As crappy as that information is for V, it says a lot that he let V know. AGAIN. A COOL DUDE.
ALSO! He was initially considered as a romance option, but there wasn't enough time to properly implement that story. Which, hey, understandable!
I would of romanced him in a heart beat :(
Dam. Iono I feel about that. Takemura is like 60? Lol
@@squallthegrieveris he too young for you? You're more of a Saburo guy, I guess.
@@squallthegrieverWell, you have the option to romance Kerry. Take that as you will.
Yeah if you give Jackie's body to Vik, Arasaka takes it and creates a janky Ingram of Jackie. Goro tells you this if you do recon work with him before hacking one of the parade floats. But before you do all of that, you have to ask Vik what he did with Jackie's body and that is when Vik will tell you how Arasaka took it.
As with Goro being a romanceable, that too was true. It wasn't just the fact that the devs felt there was no time for it but they actually replaced him with River Ward. Which explains why River's romance quest line feels so rushed.
Takemura's life was devoted to Arasaka. Even being framed and attacked by them he still tried to go save Hanako. As much as a stubborn dog he is, his character and honour is rare for Night city. Too bad it also blinded him.
A decent man serving a terrible cause, such a brilliant tragedy of a character.
Takemura and Solomon Reed are so similar I love them both but it seems the worst thing you can do to them is give them what they want.
Imagine them both meeting in some mission where both are needed and, both have some beer over their experiences as you sit and listen to them?
Then they learn they both fought in the last corporate war since the NUSA and Militech are so close and they have finish their beers and have a Mexican standoff. Who would win that duel?
@@marcusraines4803I'd say, with absolutely 0 evidence, Takemura. Simply because even though Reed is certainly very very very skilled. He's more of a spy. In the idea you cant master everything, he wont be as good as a fighter as he is a spy. While Takemura's main job is to be able to fend of anyone threatening Saburo's life.
Dumb random numbers, but if reed is 70% spy and 30% fighter, Takemura is the opposite
@@marcusraines4803
Takemura when Solomon Reed hits him with that dollar store tech pistol:
Classic samurai turned ronin story. The only difference is that it's a more realistic depiction rather than the romanticized version from stuff like old samurai movies. Historical samurai were never "honorable" in our modern sense. They were only honorable in the sense that they were loyal. That meant following their lord's orders including rape, murder, and pillaging of innocents. Even stuff like seppuku was treated as a way of retaining/redeeming any lost honor.
As it was for any Soldier or Lord in the West in the Old World. It’s a very Human notion.
So pretty much the same as western knights and lords.
The Catholic church sent them on crusades because they got tired of all the pillaging and infighting at home.
Same as any western knight/lord.
I mean, honor meant you were reliable on getting whatever job done. It didn’t mean you were moral or nice, just reliable. Definitely means different things now a days
@@vadim6385 Yes, but it's interesting how both knights and samurai became romanticized for similar reasons.
I use the convo between V and Takemura bout corporate order to show how the most dystopian part of cyberpunk is how people can't imagine a better world. They either claim the evils are necessary, or they want to tear the evil apart (maybe even, say, use a nuke in a densely populated area) without constructive progress. Cyberpunk dystopias happen when we imagine a world without people who trust each other to build a better world for the sake of everyone. It's a warning against living in fear and looking only to despair or corporate authoritarianism as solution.
I wonder why it feels so relevant?
This is basically our reality
Capitalist Realism by Mark Fisher.
"It is easier to imagine an end to the world than an end to capitalism."
For Corpo V, you are the Jackie to Goro's V. Kinda highlights V's shortcomings. And Goro's.
Such an interesting dichotomy between him and those he serves; Takemura is loyal, honest, unambitious, incorruptible and, tragically, trusting.
Makes sense why Arasaka would make use of him. He’s the perfect tool, one that will expend himself for a terrible cause without wavering. When he inevitably dies in service of Arasaka no one will mourn him, because the only people who value him do so for his usefulness. I feel like V is the first person Goro’s truly known in years, probably decades.
In the Arisaka space ending, I think Tak felt more uncomfortable taking Saburos' orders from Yorinobus body. Imagine if the corpse of your sworn enemy started barking orders. It would be like the Nick Valentine/Kellog interaction in F4.
Yes, seeing Nick live on in Kelloggs body would be very disturbing from the Sole Survivor's POV
@@watema3381no it's other way around it's disturbing to see a psychopath who murdered your wife and kidnapped your child to be speaking to you from beyond the grave taunting you about how you'll never find your son who claims is people who locked away underground through your best friend and person who help you seek revenge on that very same psychopath who is using your best friend as a medium.
Yeah, Takemura's character is kind of heartbreaking. Reminds me a lot of kids I grew up with who joined the military or local drug gangs. They were so grateful for some attention, money and purpose that they ignored everything they had to give for it.
Fantastic video. I can't wait to watch more.
I think Takemura is somewhat aware that he has a dog's loyalty. As you said: "You can't teach an old dog new tricks"
If there's one thing I love about this game's characters, it's seeing how good, principled people cope with living in a world that is completely and viciously amoral and how it leads to their downfall, especially with Takemura, Johnny, and Reed.
Takemura can't accept that his masters aren't worthy of his dedication and lives in denial. Like you said in the video, when you boil it down, his loyalty to Arasaka is derived completely from his sense of indebtedness to the corporation for pulling him out of a life that would have been harsh and short, but at the same time he knows deep down that he and so many others were only in that position in the first place because of the megacorps' complete disregard for human life, so he clings to the most idealized and naive image of Arasaka possible to justify his loyalty to to it and it's founder, in a way that's pretty one sided.
Johnny on the other hand is completely disgusted by the injustice of the status quo, and wants to upend the whole system on his own terms without selling out to anyone. However, this complete inability to compromise isolates him and means he's limited to just lashing out at the powers that without actually solving any of the world's underlying problems. The AHQ bombing is emblematic of this, his swan song was nuking Arasaka tower, and after all the death and carnage that bombing caused it ended up solving nothing, and he ended up accomplishing essentially nothing beyond getting himself killed.
As for Reed (who I can't wait to see your video on), I find him the most interesting character in the whole game. Reed is a relic from a bygone era that refuses to accept he's fighting for a lost cause. In a world of megacorps and cyborgs, Reed is an old-school intelligence operative working for one of the last vestiges of the old American prestige that was destroyed decades prior. He's similar to Takemura in that he's loyal to people who don't appreciate him, but he's far more sober about it than Takemura and makes it clear he's under no illusions about president Myers' nature and is solely motivated by duty to country. It's why he was fine with being betrayed by Myers and sold out to Arasaka, he's so hellbent on saving what's left of his country that he's 100% willing to pay any price for himself or others as long as it advances America's interests. He's incapable of leaving the FIA no matter how often he gets burned or how terrible he feels, because leaving would mean admitting complete and utter defeat and the loss of any hope of a revitalized America.
Principled? Yes, absolutely. Good? Hell no.
Another reason Takamura is so disappointed when V rejects becoming an engram is because (as far as I know) V has been the only real friend he's ever known. Sure, he's had apprentices and superiors, but as far as we know, he's never truly had a friend who saw him as Takamura, then just as Suburo's bodyguard.
If he was a friend he would not lie about the engram, that he was send here by Hanako and what becoming an engram means - you are not a person anymore, you are an item owed by Arasaka. You are losing all of your rights.
But Takamura says that "everything will be fine. This contract is to protect you", when it is basically you signing that you are becoming Arasaka's property.
Takemura is a nice guy but he's a company man. Arasaka will always come before anyone. Having him as a "friend" or lover wouldn't work unless you're just as devoted to Arasaka as he is.
@jkgf4671 The thing is that he probably does believe the contract would keep V safe, and even if he didn't believe that, he would still try to convince V to become a Construct so he'd still be able to hang out with V since, like I stated above, he has never had a friend like V.
@@fastgunnns3881 Come on. Takamura is not an idiot. He is able to read and understand what that contracts was about.
He also saw how Arasaka treats its employees and especially people who "outlived" their uses.
More like he wanted to get back in good terms with Saburo. If Takamura cared about V, he would told him the truth instead of lying.
He was ordered to do something and like a good dog, he was going to use every trick he can to make V sign it. That's why he lied.
Even if he cares about V it means nothing to him compared to his loyality to Arasaka.
@@jkgf4671Ok Silverhand lol
From Takemura's perspective, he stood among 100 of the best of the best and was singled out as something special by the Emperor himself - that the Emperor had stared into Takemura's soul and was somehow uniquely qualified.
From the Emperor's prespective, Takemura was just one among 100 possible bodyguards and there was no wrong answer.
They were all interchangeable and fit for the purpose.
that CEO mindset of everyone rolling the same dice
but because *they* were the ones blowing on it, that's why it came up sixes
From the moment that Hanako reveals that everyone in power already knew that Yorinobu had murdered their father there was no possibility of a happy ending for Takemura.
He was disillusioned and forced to see the reality behind the curtain. The myths he believed about Arasaka were broken.
More importantly, Hanako was supposed to be the heart of Arasaka - the moral center to balance Yorinobu and the Emperor - and yet in this situation she was playing politics and being pragmatic.
He couldn't go back to being a loyal soldier.
He couldn't get revenge on those who betrayed & murdered his liege and somehow atone or make things right.
He was forced to become a tragic figure who realized there was no right answer - even restoring the Emperor's engram to control wasn't good.
He blames V, because V always knew Takemura's beliefs were lies. He can't bring himself to outwardly blame Hanako or Arasaka, so he blames V for exposing him to this truth.
"Wrong city. Wrong person."
One of the things that CDP did with him is that he is also representative of ALL the life paths by the time we meet him. First a Street Kid, then a Corpo, before finally being an Outcast and Nomad
Minor correction, Takemura never believed Saburo was poisoned, he literally says before being cut off by Yori "I doubt--"
This game, man. My opinion of just about every character changed through my first time playing. Jackie went from the most obvious redshirt to someone I genuinely hoped would survive, I resented Takemura at first but wound up regretting his death, and Songbird and Reed…I’m still mind-boggled from those two 😂
Been loving these character analysis videos. Hopefully you can do either Reed or Songbird.
Omg Songbird yesssss
FOR SURE :D
That choice right before the shuttle is one of the best moments in any game. You hold two lives in your hands, neither of whom perhaps deserves death, yet if you wanted vengeance on either it would be so completely understandable.
Excellent content as always! I'm glad you did a deep dive on Takemura as he was such an interesting character. He kind of represents V if they were unable to overcome and adapt to their existential challenges, a victim of circumstance. As you mentioned, his blind loyalty imprisons him and prevents him from changing course no matter what so there is no good ending for him. I think this can be best summed up by good ol' Benny “Truth is, the game was rigged from the start.”
Goro’s blindness to Arasaka’s evil is a combination of two things. On the one hand, there’s a self interest motive.
He does benefit a lot from his relationship with Arasaka, even if the corporation itself views him as disposable. Elite level training, cutting edge combat implants, probably a pretty good lifestyle including a decent place to live, good medical care and good food. He’s better off than probably 90% of people.
There’s also the Arasaka training itself. He’s been conditioned to be a good little corporate drone, to ignore his doubts, fears, and even outright manipulation and malfeasance by the corporation. His sense of what honour, loyalty and integrity look like are warped.
Bushido is kind of an overly romanticized concept of the Samurai version of the knightly code of chivalry, which is in itself a romanticized version of “proper” knighthood. In truth, these ruminations on proper behaviour only came about very late into the game for both knights, and Samurai. If you study historical accounts of what both groups of warrior aristocracy actually did, how they behaved, it doesn’t really resemble the purported “code” at all. The reality is that the expectations for both knights and samurai for most of their existence was “Maintain your military skills and be loyal to your paymaster.”
Game of Thrones provides a very interesting example of this in the personages of the brothers Clegane. Gregor, “The Mountain” is an anointed knight, and a complete monster, while Sandor “The Hound” has a character arc where he slowly turns into what some people would describe as “the quintessential knight.” He’s still crass, violent, and a bully, but you actually see him standing up for the weak and taking vengeance for them when he fails, and Sandor isn’t even an anointed knight. The Hound is the romanticized knight to an extent, while The Mountain is closer to what a real knight looks like, from a temperament perspective.
For the Samurai in particular, Bushido only became codified the way we understand it today around the time that the samurai fell out of favour as military forces and began to be replaced with standing armies of peasants. It’s during this period where the Imperial Court began doing things like passing laws banning the wearing of swords for anyone not on official military duty. Then Arasaka comes along and perverts this “code” for its own ends.
I abandoned Goro in the motel when Arasaka came after Hanako because I thought that he was dead. I'm dozens of hours past that point in my current playthrough, so I'm gonna save him next time.
Definitely watching this after work. On a side note, have you ever thought about making a video on the bullet necklace? Like what it represents and its fate in all the endings. I think that would be an interesting topic to cover.
My headcanon is definitely that goro can leave with us in the star ending. There is good sushi to find out there, somewhere....
I really love your thoughtful review of Takemura's character. You’ve painted a vivid picture of his complexities, and I find myself agreeing with so much of your analysis. However, I’m less convinced of the depth of his feelings, and I think his steadfast refusal to change-despite undeniable evidence-is telling and here is why i think that.
Takemura tends to justify his actions with clever quotes like, 'All hands are dirty, it’s just how you get them dirty,' it's nothing more than a shield for his self-preservation (even though its a great quote). It's a classic rationalization strategy: he frames his morally ambiguous decisions as 'necessary evil,' he avoids acknowledging his culpability. Saburo didn't choose Takemura just for his skills and i think Goro knows this too deep down; he really chose him because Takemura is, at his core, a loyal dog. He’ll do anything to protect the hand that feeds him and not ask questions, even if that hand is abusive. This blind loyalty makes him complicit, and his justifications serve as a means to maintain a sense of moral superiority over other mercs, who he sees as beneath him. Yet, Takemura is no different-he's just as willing to get his hands dirty, only he cloaks his actions in a veneer of righteousness.
In short his unwavering loyalty, even to an abusive master, strips him of agency and reduces him to a cold and mostly (not entirely) unfeeling follower who rationalizes his actions to maintain a false sense of righteousness, making him more of a slave to his duty than a man of genuine feeling toward V, but thats just my opinion and does not mean im right.
Goro is the living embodiment of self-imposed delusion, blind faith, and sunk-cost fallacy.
It's infuriating that you can't help him escape this trap. But it also probably the most real example of human flaws in the entire game until DLC.
bless you for giving this character and the people that created him the recognition they deserve
it took a couple of play throughs for Takemura to grow on me but now in that motel i go back & save him every time.
its a tough situation, because on all endings besides devil (and minorly tower) you then absolutely crush his former world behind with attack on arasaka tower, leaving him hating you in his final moments, so sparing him that sense of betrayal by leaving him to the flames might feel more merciful, but at least in tower he's forced to admit to himself without V to either restore his former life or stab him in back that the world of corporations is cruel and uncaring, no matter your loyalty
Man... this channel is such a goldmine. No matter how big it gets, its still not going to be what it actually deserves.
Takemura is probably my favourite character, so this is awesome.
Thank you for all your efforts!
Always love your videos. So well made. So well researched. From one writer to another. Thank you genuinely. 😎🤝
Seriously, thank you so much :D Means a lot!
Part of me wishes that there was one more ending. One where you can go along with Arasaka, until you get to Yorinob, but then instead of capturing him, you execute/let him die. Although from V's perspective, you would also be accepting a death yourself without access to Mikoshi.
Nice! I always love your cyberpunk videos. I hope you can cover the phantom liberty characters at some point. Theres so much intrigue and material to examine there
Ahhh thank you! Absolutely, I'm excited to get into all the PL characters. I keep intending to start covering it, but then I remember "oh right there's this other character in the base game I need to cover first" lmao
I'm very uncomfortable with Takemura's character. Because I see myself in him, putting loyality over all else.
And that's a sign of great writing, if your viewers can connect empathise, and see themselfs in your characters you've done it right. It's the same with Arcane or Ghost of Tsushima. Masterful writing. I hope they'll have a similar level of character depth and development in Cyberpunk Orion.
I let him die in the raid usually. Die a hero or love long enough to be the villain, and as much as I feel he's a fool, I'd rather he die while he believes in something rather than being thrown aside like everything else no longer useful to a megacorp
I've listened to almost all your cyberpunk videos in 1 day so far
Been loving these videos ngl good shit
Aw thank you!
What ending would you want canon for V?
Mine is the one were he stays with the AIs and Johnny takes over the body. I want to see Johnny f*ck up his happy ending in a sequel story. And in that scenario V could become the loyal soldier of Mr. Blue Eyes. Can you imagine Johnny 2.0 having to fight V in a second crusade of Johnny's? That would be a tragic story worth of Cyberpunk.
That's a interesting take. I'd think the Reed ending is canon but we will see V again and the real Johnny Silverhand hopefully and more of the peralez.
Another banger of a video Lydi! I am not sure how familiar with Pink Floyd you are, but there is a song called Dogs on the brilliant concept album Animals. This song seems to me to sum up Takamura as a whole. He’s an attack dog who finds out when his time is up, how little the system cares for him. It would have been a great song to associate with him in game. (Which takes me to my biggest criticism of Cyberpunk, they make music so important to the story but do a poor job tying the themes and songs themselves to the story, like Peralez has the quest Dream On, the title works but the actual song doesn’t connect at all to the themes.) Takamura spent his whole life trying to avoid being a Sheep and working for Pigs that he is shocked to learn the Pigs think of him about as highly as the Sheep.
OHHH I LOVE THIS
Takemura is a true samurai loyal to his Daimiyo to the death and beyond. While i understand the loyalty, it strikes to see how he doesn't see the monster Saburo is. For justice or to set things right sure but for Saburo? He is blinded by loyalty
I loved spying on Takemura-san after scripted interactions with V, such as the one after meeting Wakako-san on jig jig street.
I hate Takemura. No matter how well you treat him V is never his friend.
Takemura is 100% devoted to Arasaka and never sides with V. He is best described as a corpo dog.(as you said jokingly)
I love your enthusiasm and thorough analyses! You have a new subscriber here. I also love that you finish every video crashing a car. The ultimate Cyberpunk 2077 experience.
Corpo V also gets an interesting line in The Devil to warn Takemura that, having failed to protect Saburo at Konpecki, not to expect Arasaka's gratitude in the slightest and that he'd be better off making an escape in the chaos. Goro's reply is a simple 'thank you, truly' but the expression that CDPR gave him in that moment suggests that he knows exactly what could happen even if they're successful in taking down Yorinobu. It seemed like maybe the first time anyone had suggested that he look out for himself instead of arasaka, and only coming from V would accept it as genuine concern instead of an insult. But to him, his path is already locked in. While V accepts the possibility of victory or death in Hanako's assault, Goro accepts the possibility of victory and death.
It's a really well done moment to build that character and the relationship between him and the player pretty much up until the last minutes of the game.
Just saw your Instagram post about Willard, Lydi. I am so sorry. He was a fearsome little dog demon boi.
Oh wow, what a treat! Thank you for uploading this!
Of all characters from "antagonistic" side, by far my favorite is Takemura. He was a poor child that, by mere chance, was pushed to society's upper escheleons. This plays havoc on one's psychology, as one starts to see oneself as chosen by the bigshot who picked them and develops a strong debt of honor, and we see both of those traits on Takemura. He is developed as a complete human being, with merits and flaws, in such realistic way we can see a lots of Takemuras in real world every time we see a poor child being catapulted to the big game by reason of being chosen by some big shot. In fact, in Colonial America that was done to some slaves to make them the most loyal plantation oversees, just to drop an example here.
Takemura is actually a bit of a snake. Not the whole time but in the Saka ending. A slip of the tongue reveals he's once more a loyal hound, willing to be deceptive toward allies to further master's ambitions. He says Hanako forgot about V after their role was fulfilled, but that's just a ploy to ensure they sell their souls. Literally just a few lines later the slip of the tongue becomes apparent when he says that Hanako is actually the one who sent him. There's a video by Big Dan Gaming called why you shouldn't Save Takemura which goes into detail.
He also has a why you should save him. So kinda a poor argument since there’s probably cut dialogue
@zerotodona1495 i know its one of 2 videos about it. But the truth is Goro, not cut content, tries to get his friend to sell his soul.
@@zerotodona1495 Doesn't change the fact that he tries to manipulate you and doesn't care about how you are doing. He promised you salvation from the start of the game, but in reality he lied. Johnny said from the beginning that Takemura isn't our choom and he was right.
I was with Johnny for most of my conversations with Takemura. The slavish devotion he had to that company, even in the face of what a hellscape Night City, which is a city that exists currently under the "protection" of Arasaka (and thus the oppression of it) just pissed me off. He turns a blind eye to the parts that he didn't want to think about and kept his rose-tinted glasses on the entire time. Made me happy when I took the Nomad ending and he hates me for it. A fitting end, for a corporate dog. Right back where he started, and now no hope left. Maybe now he can understand V's desperation.
I mean, he said it himself. Goro despises people who just want to burn down the corporations but have no plan on what to replace the power vacuum with. To him, order has to be preserved at all costs, even if it's an order that's built on the back of evil. This is in fact a very MAINSTREAM opinion today. Peaceful protests get absolutely vicious media coverage and ordinary folk will openly fantasize about murdering protestors over minor inconveniences. Nobody cares about the message, they care about order.
Excellent breakdown!
“You were very strong Medicine, V.” Last words of a wise Takemura.
I am always so excited to see more of your content, thanks for that sweet sweet dopamine, net samurai.
Takemura to me was the pinnacle of what I call a” micro tragedy”, which cyberpunk is almost entirely built on the idea of big and small tragedies, and how it shapes the characters in the story. Takemura may be a well-oiled brainwashed corpo killer, but he’s humanized in an interesting way in the story and you come to respect him and possibly like him enough to want to see an ending where he wins also. But the only ending for a man like Goro that is “happy” is the one where he realizes the only one truly loyal to him will soon be gone forever. That pain is so real and relatable. The same way I felt in the other endings where he’s disgraced and bitter, at the end of his road. Great video on a great character
Opening of the video is already 🔥 That's also one of my favorite lines from the game.
You have no idea how excited I am to see you cover the Phantom Liberty plot points
ITS ON THE WAY!!
Ohhhhhhhh, she back at it again
takemura's dedication to arasaka kinda reminds me of how i heard that some ex-convicts would commit crimes just so they can be sent back to prison, because the outside world confuses them after they spent so long inside prison walls. every prisoner yearns for freedom, much like takemura wishes he would become a nomad and leave it all behind, but they cannot fathom living for themselves, outside of their cage
Just started to binge watch your videos! Been loving it! Keep it up!
This was a incredible breakdown. Thank you.
your videos are really well done, thank you for this great content! hope you get more and more into what night city has to offer, this game feels like the real deal, everything feels so ALIVE. You can tell this story was planned long ago
Make one on Rita wheeler if possible please. Wish we got more of her in cyberpunk
I didn’t realize you could save him on my first play through - I read that and had to restart everything - he’s such an amazing character with such depth
Nibbles is forever.
I always thought that the reason Takemura stuck around while V was recovering was simply duty. Duty to Saburo. That one moment V comes round to see Takemura leaning over them? I don't see that as sweet, I see that as Takemura placing a tracker in V. He really doesn't care about V, he cares about a valuable asset. Nothing more.
Takemura is part of Arasaka. Arasaka is V's enemy. Ergo, my V never goes back for him. They will play nice, charming, chatty, teasing. But when push comes to shove, my V simply doesn't care about Takemura, only what they can get from him. Goro taught that lesson well I think.
Not sure if it's already been said, but I love how the Arasaka logo "has him by the throat" as it where.
My first run, I couldn’t help but chuckle at all of the text interactions between V and Goro, like he’s the ironically funny and silly uncle to V….but the second play-through, those texts hurt so much knowing about the endings and Goro’s plan.
I was completely shocked when hanako revealed that goro had inserted a tracker on us. the scene where he taps us on the shoulder, where we're in a semi coma, is the exact moment when he inserts the tracker. Since when everything is different for me. And that is, for me, the essence of cyberpunk. the layered world with its truths and lies. 😢
I respect Takamura, but from the point of veiw of my ex-corpo V, I can't find it in myself to pity or sympathize with him. He sees the same world we do, and the places Arasaka has turned into unlivable wastes, and instead of regretting the 'necessity' of it all, he balks at the dirtiness and decay. Yes, everything in Night City is a twisted facsimile of what it could be, BUT THAT'S LARGELY ARASAKA'S FAULT. The entirety of Ranchero and the suffering of those that live there is a result of an Arasaka corpo coverup. Yorinobu seeking to supplant his father wasn't even a bid for power, not really. He was attempting to staunch the bleeding corruption of a tyrannical despot. Based on just regular lore in game, Suburo deserved WAY worse than what he got, just being strangled to death in a luxurious penthouse.
Goro knew about all of it. He knowingly protected a sinister, powermad dictator and pretended that he was somehow wronged when the right thing was done. He's inherently tragic, and it's brilliantly written that way, but his is not a story meant for sympathy.
Thank god, a good video. I swear it's just like all slop on UA-cam lately.
My biggest regret wasn't saving before the mission he could die in... I lost my boy...
Absolutely love your videos. Please make more. 🙂
Gorro could have been a good romance option, especially if it replaced River. River, himself, isn't a bad character by all means but is lack luster compared to the others. Gorro would have been a better choice, in my opinion.
God I wish.
I love these videos on deep dives into characters. I wonder if there is enough materials to do one on rosalind myers? In my eyes she is in the awkward position of being simultaneously important but not really present (??) in PL.
Man I wanted to romance her for a night. She's a hell of a woman but, like Arasaka. She isn't necessarily good either.
I’m really loving your videos! Subscreebed!
Aww thanks!
Finally got around to watching this, would've happened sooner but ya know how life goes, lol. This was a really great video, perhaps being my favorite character analysis from you. I'll admit that prior to this vid I really didn't think much of Takemura; he was just a means to an end. But now I can't help but feel sorry for the guy. You really got me to see him in a new light. I especially love your commentary on his fate in all of the endings and how that reflects on his character. Well done.
I'll bring this up one more time because it would be such a fun video to see from you, but a video on the bullet necklace would be stellar. I can't help but keep pondering about its meaning in the endings. Why is it sometimes kept? Why is it sometimes discarded? Why do some endings give you the option to keep or leave it? It would be really interesting to dive into all of that, I think. But that's enough rambling from me, great video and I will be patiently waiting for the next one.
My first few playthroughs I didn't even know he could survive to the credits, then I played a Streetkid who went against Johnny at every turn and ended up saving Goro, meeting Jackie's engram (it was eerie in the exact right way), took Goro's advice to get Soulkilled... Really glad I did
Takemura basically suffers from Stockholm Syndrome: Arasaka picked him up from poverty, trained and programmed him and as intelligent as he is, he can't get around that programming, so no matter how badly Arasaka treats him, he'll always come back for more.
Takemura is my favourite character in the game. He's the quintessential archetype of a noble spirit ensnared and used by the world he's in. The "honourable enemy officer" is a classic trope, and Cyberpunk explores it incredibly well. The stake-out scene with pizza is my favourite part of the show, and in my "ideal 2077 ending worldstate" Takemura is still alive, but Johnny is not.
Takemura is the perfect example of someone that a company would take advantage of. To him, trust is the most important value one can have in both themself and others.
So, when V does not help Takemura in the Devil's Ending route, he obviously feels betrayed. He put his trust in V, trust that is not easily given, and V just threw it away for any other shot.
However, the table turns in the Devil's Ending. V is the one, essentially, betrayed by Takemura. Takemura promised a solution, and he did not deliver it. He let V down despite everything V had done for him. Something no normal person, or even a vengeful person would ever truly consider doing. V put their trust in Takemura, a trust that was not easily given especially since they hate corpos, and Takemura let them down.
What is even worse is that V proved Takemura wrong. Corpos have the power to make change, but even they are limited, and often times they will not help if they do not really have to. V was like the Emperor to Takemura, someone he valued and cared for, someone whom he had an obligation to protect (if you go down his route). In the end, just like with the Emperor, he fails in his duties.
The two worst endings for Takemura personally are the Phantom Liberty ending and the Devil's ending. In the Phantom Liberty ending, Hanako dies and he has to burden the guilt of killing not one, but two Arasakas in his quest for vegence. Yet, in the Devil's ending, when V is going to die despite everything Takemura promised... Takemura has no one else to blame but himself. He cannot blame Hanako and he cannot blame V, he cannot blame anyone else, no other person can be reasonably focused for his hatred and guilt other than himself. He has to live a life of shame and guilt, because he failed his master and his only friend in Night City.
Takemura, a lesson of devotion and misplaced trust. A man who deserved so much, and was cut short at the very end, with no ending giving him the satisfaction he deserves.
If Jonny and Takemura met they'd fight to the death. But if you play Phantom Liberty you'll eventually realize it's a kind of self hatred. Johnny was very similar except he was a secret agent. I can imagine Jonny and Takemura having a long brutal fist fight... then buying eachother a drink and Jonny saying "I used to be like you back in the day" and slowly corrupting Takemura. They'd fight often like friends who pretend they hate eachother. Probably run some dodgy business together.
Goro Takermura is a perfect, tragic, and very literal take on the idea of a 'corporate samurai.'
He takes his duties to a whole new level of devotion, as though following the core tenets of the code of Bushido. And of those tenets, the ideal of loyalty is one of its most prized. Those who have historically pursued such loyalty in feudal Japan have enacted great, borderline insane acts of courage and bravado in the face of impossible odds, or against those who had slain or dishonored their lords and masters... as well as great horrors made in the name of convoluted vengeance, or pointless, wasteful, or otherwise avoidable mishaps.
The romanticized iterations of the western code of Chivalry emphasizes a more personal moral spectrum to be guided by through battle and court, emphasized by loyalty to the practitioner's heart, conscience, and sense of righteousness above all else, even should it lead them into treachery against a master they deem evil. In contrast, the romanticized iterations of eastern Bushido emphasizes loyalty to one's master _to a fault,_ even if it should lead to the samurai following his master into what he knows is a path of evil, if he cannot sway his master from it. As long as the code is satisfied, so is the samurai's duty and honor; only being severed from that duty or disregarding the code itself can really do his honor harm and/or leave him drifting aimless.
Goro is a noble man, honorable, and is willing to go to extreme lengths to realize Saburo's goals, even from beyond his master's grave. Being trapped in Night City, where his luxurious tastes are but a bitter memory and betrayal rules in place of anything remotely resembling honor, has left him at a loss and in perilous need of V's help. But no matter how much of Arasaka's evil is thrown into his face for him to confront, at the end of the day, Goro is driven completely by his loyalty to Saburo Arasaka, no matter how wicked he may or may not know his aims to be. Goro has gotten to the point in his career where _happily_ views himself as more a tool than his own man, and if Saburo so much as asked him, he'd leap upon his own blade in his service. Being deprived of a master to wield him broke him down worse than any torture ever could.
If Goro worked for a man or family whose morals were upstanding, he'd be just as eager, if not more so to help them realize their ambitions. The tragedy of knowing this good, honest man, in the cruel and dishonest world of Cyberpunk, is just another weapon to be exploited in the vast and warped and arsenal of the Arasaka Corporation is horrifying, accentuated by the fact that Goro may know this deep down but simply accepts this as his purpose in life. Loyalty is everything to him. Without it, he's nothing.
5:10 - hmmm... Now that you mention it, on many levels Goro IS a refined version of Danny the Dog from "Unleashed".
It would have been nice if, during the game, your bond with Takemura reflected his reaction to V in the end credits scenes. Like, if V and Takemura have a good relationship, Takemura is more forgiving of V's actions and does not hold anger towards V for choosing one of the other endings, but if your V and Takemura's relationship is neutral then Takemura is more hostile towards V.
Goro being trapped in the devil ending is a good point. Wouldn't be wrong to call it a gilded cage.
I did not know of his father being a chef, To be honest I thought his picky eating was to show how despite growing up in the slums he is spoiled by Arasaka’s postion of privilege
Takemura Saburo's personal Reed leading down Song So V.
Ahh I know what Im watching before bed
Her videos
I remember one part where Takemura tries to make Saburo sound human by saying his favorite food was a cheap protein bar... and of course V's like 'So, he's still a prick' (I'm paraphrasing). It's kinda funny that people actually do that in real life.
je dois etre le seul francais a cette heure chez moi il est 1h 40 du matin ;) ta video un kiff
et merci pour les sous titres :)
C'est marrant parce qu'un mois plus tard je suis ici à la même heure haha
@tartelette_ sait de la sorcellerie :)
I'd like to see Goro become Mr. Hands' bodyguard in a future game, I feel like they'd get along nicely
Huge difference IMO with street kid V is that V had the money and possibility to leave Night City. He wasnt stuck there like many people are/think they are.
They are in night city by choice. Which I dont understand, if his childhood was that "horrible" he wouldnt have come back
Being a soldier inherently requires shedding some amount of "humanity" for lack of a better word. Goro isn't really a soldier, though. He's trained like one and talks like one, it's even his career and a huge part of who he's been, but it's not what he is. He's closer to a guard dog, which ironically brings him closer to the humanity that needs shed by the soldier.
We love Takemura because we see this whether we know it or not, and because his humanity is so much more noticeable when it shines beyond that corporate soldier layer that he's taken on over the years. He's a genuinely well-written character for the most part, I wish his execution had been a bit better overall in the final game but damn do I love my boy
Takemura is such a tragic character to me. And in all honesty, besides Judy and Panam, the only person who I'd really say managed to become a friend to my V after Jackie's death.
Though in my playthrough, I've actually lost him in that firefight with the Arasaka storming the hideout after Hanako's kidnapping.
Not for the lack of trying, mind you. I've looked and looked around the room filled with smoke and red lights but never found that crack that led to him. I was honestly quite certain the game forced you to leave him there to die... I wouldn't put it past Cyberpunk narratively. Only later, through video essays, I learned it is possible to save Takemura. Though on some level I wonder if that was the only possible way our connection could have ended on a high note...
Takemura was groomed to want too keep everything, but work with nothing. A last resort when all else fails.
So Act 2 has three major characters for V to interact with:
1. Takamura is the Corpo
2. Judy is the Streetkid
3. Panam is the Nomad
Takamura and Corpo V had both been chewed up and spit out by Arasaka, but Takamura still remains loyal unlike V, who fully embraces the chaos that is Night City and leaves their former self behind. They were both betrayed by the corporation, but I think Takamura sees it more as a betrayal by Yorinobu. He still trusts Oda and Hanako. V is suspicious of them.
And I think another really large factor in this is Johnny Silverhand. Johnny is the devil on your shoulder, but he's not exactly wrong either. Arasaka still comes after V and Takamura after your discussion with Hanako (and will kill Takamura without V's intervention) and if you follow through with Hanako's plan, V essentially becomes a lab rat in "The Devil" ending. If you sign the contract, your fate is the same as Johnny's: V's consciousness is trapped in Mikoshi. If not, you live the remainder of your life on Earth with no help from Arasaka. Either way, Arasaka absolutely f**ks you.
Oh Takemura, I always let him die despite me liking his character quite alot, but because I don't want him to be around for when I raid Arasaka at the end of the game, I don't want to disappoint him like that :(
He reminds me of a certain quote from another hit game…
“A Man CHOOSES, a Slave OBEYS.”
Goddamnit now I gotta play BIOSHOCK again lmao
@@lydiscott Oops 😅
Goro is one of my fav characters is the game, he would have been such a goooood bro if he wasn't so loyal to arasaka
I loved Takemura so much during the story, went blind playing cyberpunk and managed to to get my "role play" Corpo V ending with Takemura live and well on my first playthrough. i was really sad when i found out there was no romantic option with him no matter what I did, but I loved the devil ending,truly a masterpiece of an ending for how tragic and sad.
In my hopefully but fool thoughts... i'm waiting for the day when me and Goro will eat "real food" back in Japan together...hopefully...I get a new host thanks to the "secure your soul" program,if that will ever happened before Takamura dies of old age,or maybe, we'll meet under the "secure your soul" program in a distant future...if the technology won't develop fast enough.
loved the video❤
Only a dead dog can't learn new tricks.
He could have taken to the Bro-mad life, like some Spaghetti Western/Ronin movie and been a wandering badass, righting wrongs and evisceratng scavs. I'd watch that. I like the Good Cop/Bad Cop working relationship he has with V.
A Man with Guts and Honor
To bad his Loyalty was to the wrong Persons
Then again are there Good persons in NC