Application

[triviality]

✖ CHARACTER:
Name: Saburouta Bandou
Canon: Project K
PB/Image: this dope
Info links: http://k-project.wikia.com/wiki/Sabur%C5%8Dta_Band%C5%8D The K Wiki's entry on him!
Canon Point: At the final episode of Season 1 of the anime (episode 13), right as HOMRA has learned of Mikoto's death.
Gender & Sex: M/M
Age: 20
Birthdate/Sign:

Bandou doesn't have an official birthday or sign, so I'm going to choose Cancer based off of his personality. Birthday July 3rd.

One of Bandou's most defining traits is his inability to let go of the past. He holds grudges for petty reasons, which carry onward through different stages of his life. Emotional and moody, he experiences emotion to the extreme, whether he's feeling jovial and confident or down and self-pitying. All these flaws are glaringly Cancer, but his better qualities reflect the Cancer sign as well. Bandou prides himself in being a superior in HOMRA, and you can even say that he has a maternal side to him that shows when mentoring his juniors. He is extremely protective and intuitive as a result of his sensitivity.

Since these aspects of him are shown consistently in canon, it makes sense to choose the sign most associated with them. And that would be Cancer!

Tattoo: Beneath his navel, dipping down to his weewee
Suitability: N/A
Power:

As one of the Red King's clansman, Bandou has access to using what is called a red aura. Red aura is fire based and acts as the element itself, except that it can be manipulated and controlled by the user. It can take various shapes and sizes, igniting in the form of sparks or bursts of flame. In Zodion, his power will be limited to small wisps of fire.

Personality:

With a surprisingly taciturn exterior, Bandou may give off the first impression of being a bit of a thoughtful, reserved individual with an emotionally withdrawn nature -- someone who says little and prefers to fall back as others take the lead. Described in the manga as a "quiet" person, Bandou's image is more of an unintentional result from his "insignificance", which is a ruling aspect of his life that both feeds into his strengths and weaknesses. This display also hides a personality that is anything but quiet.

Since the days of his youth, Saburouta held a competitive nature, and had the type of personality that would obsessively compare himself to others, and especially juxtapose himself with his childhood friend, Shouhei Akagi. He was stated to have been a bit of a "nerdy" kid, but overall held good athletic talent, and tried very hard to be the best at what he sought with effort and hard work. The reward and pay-off of becoming talented, however, never was satisfying enough to Bandou, who wanted very much to be first at something. Instead, his best friend consistently beat him at everything, outshining him in athletic talent, stealing the love of his life, and being effortlessly accepted and loved everywhere he went. This was, at least, the weight that Bandou assigned to these slights in life -- all meticulously and carefully collected and festering -- when the reality of the situation was always something less severe. That love of his life turned out to be a girl he crushed on in kindergarten, and he often only lost to Shouhei in athletic competition by a small margin. Still, Saburouta let these wounded feelings accumulate, bruising his ego and pooling a one-sided resentment in his friendship.

To say he gets fixated on small things is an understatement. He's repeatedly called "petty", and it's quite a suitable description for many reasons. Saburouta is the type of guy that finds it perfectly acceptable to begrudge someone for being more well-liked than him, and utterly necessary to create a laundry list of reasons to maintain embittered feelings, lest he forget. Much to the incredulity of others around him, he has no qualms with holding on to these petulant feelings, and will even indulge them and wallow in them in front of others, openly bemoaning his misfortune and not minding who he annoys in the process. He can get very carried away in his negativity, and has the tendency to feel small very easily in comparison to others. Saburouta is a young man who takes rejection harshly, but also expects it to a level, from a lifetime experienced of failure and what he perceives to be mediocrity at best. Even small, everyday rejections such as being picked last on sports teams sits with him his whole life, and he uses it to measure himself up against his friend and those he perceives to be better than him. As a result, he is a rather envious person with a chip on his shoulder, seething at the popularity and fortune of others. He feels he has something to prove, and has no problem with raining on somebody's parade if he's jealous, or making them feel unwelcome or intimidated. He nags Shouhei, for instance, upon arrival and initiation in HOMRA in an attempt to drive him away from the group, and quickly gets involved in a scheme to make his friend Kamamoto less attractive to women.

He revels in rather absurd and arbitrary power trips, enjoying the rare times he gets to one-up a person, such as feeling victorious that he beat Shouhei in rank at HOMRA due to experience alone, and also feels entitled to acknowledgment for it. The rare times he comes out on top, he makes no attempt to hide it, and he also enjoys having a fun laugh at the expense of his friends. Saburouta also seems to have no problem airing out these negative feelings, even knowing that they reflect poorly on him. In fact, he embraces these bad qualities of himself, internalizing them to accept a role that often leads to him being playfully beaten on or bullied in HOMRA, since he can often get on the nerves of others or push their buttons.

This acceptance of his role as the "insignificant" and petty member reflects how he views himself, and so it comes to little surprise that he can easily see the good qualities in others, but downplay his own. Though he deals with his numerous shortcomings and failures ( such as his ... apparent inability to even hold down a job) through self-deprecating humor and a process of caricaturing himself, he's not used to seriously playing up his finer traits. When they are pointed out to him, he becomes flustered -- even shy -- in the face of genuine compliments, and gets caught off guard with a meek vulnerability. The flip side to his bold embracing of his petty behavior is his underestimating of his own good heart and sacrificial nature, causing him to have a great deal of humility. What positive qualities he does have, he tends to downplay or not see, and he's always very adamant about sharing credit and the act of teamwork. For all of his complaining about Shouhei being in the spotlight, Bandou turns down the chance to be in the spotlight when the opportunity arises, exhibiting a great consideration and appreciation for the efforts and good qualities that his friends possess around him. The depth of his petty attitude is actually quite shallow, as shown when he actively refuses credit for saving Shouhei's life. As much as he enjoys trudging up the past and ranting about it, he actually keeps very quiet on the fact that he tended to always look out for Shouhei, and has long held the selfless nature of doing anything in his power to save him or talk him out of bad situations.

Saburouta has the more destructive habit of vocalizing his whining rather than playing up anything good he's done, so his frivolous attitude coexists with a starkly contrasting nature of modesty. He doesn't think twice about putting himself in harm's way for a man he claims to have contempt for, and reprimands Shouhei for acting on his own without thinking of how his actions will affect others. He's a thoughtful person deep down, holding a protective streak and enjoying the sense of responsibility that comes with embracing the "senpai" role, as well as the duty he has to his comrades in HOMRA. He doesn't act carelessly or in ways that will hurt those who care for him, and he'd never entertain the idea of compromising others with an impulsive decision or some idea of revenge. His prudent and thoughtful side is also highlighted when he repeatedly reminds Shouhei to calm down during their drug raid, and to not enjoy the act of harming others too much. He also seems to have a good grasp, in general, on not valuing power too much, as he scolds Shouhei for taking the camaraderie of HOMRA for granted in his quest to seek out enough power on his own. Perhaps because he was often rejected and inadequate in his youth, he values the acceptance and loyalty that HOMRA offers him, even if he's often being the buttmonkey of the group and thrown into pummeling headlocks.

Overall, Bandou can seem pretty whiny, trivial, banal, and abrasive. He comes off as begrudging and small-minded, often letting himself be consumed with envy and not bothering to fight off some of his more contemptible feelings. Deep, deep, deep, deep, ...deep, deep down, he hides an incredibly humble, compassionate heart that holds a good grip on ethical control and empathy. He's a great friend to others, once they get past the fact that they want to punch him so often.

✖ SAMPLES:
"Zodion" First-Person Network Entry:

[ Video Post ]

[ Hey, City of Zodion! There's a guy who looks kind of shady, and he might be wearing a look of urgency on his face, if you could see his expression clearly beneath the large sunglasses and drawn hood. Even his eyebrows are obscured due to his hat, so there's something a bit ... silly about the way he looks. Or maybe it's creepy? Either way, in a land where people all seem to look as if they walked right out of a movie, he looks as if he's walked out of a shoplifting spree.

This guy has definitely kept under the radar, no matter how ridiculous he looks. Still, while his features might be hidden, the flush at his cheeks is quite visible, and should look familiar to any older residents of the place.

With gathered, practiced courage, he pipes up: ]

My name is Saburouta Bandou. I'm 20 years old, and I'm not a very important person.

[ He feels his face get redder as he stares at the feed. Talking to audiences gave him stage fright. ]

I-I just wanted to tell you all that ... I'm on week five. It's ... a strange situation, but I thought I'd report back to everyone what happens when you reach the other side. So far things are uncomfortable, but ... nothing crazy has happened yet. I mean, everything's still working, I think. And it all looks good. I'll report to you all on week seven, too.

[ ... Wait. He has to clarify, for his ego: ]

Ah! BY THE WAY -- this? This is just an experiment! I could do the lewd things I was asked to, if I felt like it! But I don't. I would only do that with a serious girlfriend, s-so if ... any girl out there wants to be my serious girlfriend, reply to this post!

[ His hand rests at his chest and he takes a few deep breaths, trying not to let anxiety overtake his moment to shine. ]

If not, could ... I at least get a wish for good luck?

"Zodionlogs" Third-Person Prose Entry: (200 word min)

His fingertips traveled up from the lapels of his coat and over the cloaked rim of his hood, setting a light, self-conscious touch along the fabric before giving a forcible tug at the brim of his hat. He pulled it further down, allowing it to hit the ride from the frame of his sunglasses, while his shoulders hiked up in a tense effort to shrink his body language.

He was being stared at. In a land where people looked like they walked out of an online RPG, he appeared to be the anomaly. For an ego so easily bruised, the fact is a bit hard to accept, let alone be comfortable with. His thoughts turn inward, wondering obsessively if he was wearing something culturally insensitive, or if the people here just felt like rejecting him. Usually, when traveling in a pack with HOMRA, he had no problem being a cog in the machine, and becoming a conglomerate for a larger, more intimidating presence. Strongholding people into respecting and accepting you was a tried and true tactic of gangs, but while on his own, he feels slight and vulnerable.

"I wonder who would have an easier time with this sort of situation ..." Saburouta muses aloud to himself in a murmur, thinking both enviously and longingly at his friends. He wasn't as good at exuding the warm, likable presence that most of them had down pat, it seemed. Sure, a midnight stroll through as much District ground as he could cover, without aim, might seem a little suspicous, but ... he was starting to feel discriminated against, here! Why is it so hard being the new kid? For once, rather than have people walk to the other side of the street hurriedly when seeing him, he wanted to be embraced by someone and welcomed warmly!

"Looking for a good time?"

The voice comes out hoarsely from Bandou's side, accompanied with a line of smoke and the familiar scent of nicotine. Bandou squeaked and jumped in response, breaking out into a pant of bewildered breaths as he clutches at the front fabric of his shirt, pressing a fist to his own chest in a gesture to calm his heartbeat.

"IDIOT!!! YOU SCARED ME!!" He shouts at the man, turning red in the face.

"I said ... are you looking for a good time?" The tattooed man deadpans, unimpressed with the melodramatics.

"No!" Bandou replies and recoils in his body language, frowning in uncertainty.

"You're not looking for a good time?" The man's eyebrow quirks inquiringly.

"No! I'm not!"

"Are you looking for a bad time?" The man purrs.

"No, I'm not looking for any time!" He turns away as he yells, folding his arms.

"So you just want to have a boring time?" The voice trails skeptically behind him.

"Yes. I want to have a boring time." Bandou murmurs, feeling hot in the face at this attention. Wow, was he being propositioned by a man? This was a first for him, and something he'd always dreaded -- so much, in fact, he fantasized about how he would reject a guy in this very situation all of the time. Yes, he definitely dreaded this. What he dread more, however, was being ignored, and the ensuing silence causes him to look over his shoulder in befuddlement.

"He's gone ..." Bandou muses to himself in awe, sounding a bit disconcerted by the sudden disappearance.

"No, I just walked over to go get food." The voice retorts from the other side, and Bandou's startled into looking at his left, where the man disappears into a cafe.

He must have taken the rejection hard.