i will try to be brief. most of my more like rambling critiques about akihiko's linked episode can be found here but now that i have that here's how i would ideally restructure it

first, to start off, akihiko's character arc hinges on his initial iteration being an immature, narrow-minded, idealist who's obsessed with gaining strength and protecting others. this is a mentality he espoused as a way for atoning for the weakness he saw within himself after the death of his sister, as he blames himself for being unable to save her (despite being literally like 8 at the time). akihiko was very much so struck by the feeling of powerlessness watching the orphanage burn and the painful grief of losing his only living family member, and thus conceived for himself an "ideal" of atonement: a life of service protecting others and trying to live as a role model (especially for and to those younger than him, as we don't see him be as protective of the other two seniors).

akihiko's idealist nature is partly why he's so frustrated by shinjiro's abandonment of SEES - he thinks the way that shinjiro can atone for what happened with ken's mother is to similarly use his power to protect others and ensure that never happens again. while i'm sure he'd also just like to have his friend back, he wants shinjiro back in SEES as a way for him to make up for the past rather than letting it chain him down in isolation. it's how akihiko sees "moving on". akihiko's idealism is also why he lashes out when he's told that the risky plan to rescue fuuka might be too dangerous - the idea of not being able to save others, of not even being allowed to try, reminds him of the powerlessness he felt about his sister's death. as a result, he lashes out.

akihiko believes that the only way he can rightfully live is to dedicate himself to getting stronger and being a role model that others can depend on and gain inspiration from - that it's the only just way to atone and make up for his sister's death. he refuses to weigh down others (literally one of his original battle lines is "i don't want to be a burden") and instead is so overly ambitious and disciplined so he can be the one to help others instead. in P3 official design works, it's stated that akihiko's been carefully constructing "an admirable front" for others, that he's "obsessed with how others see him". he's overly logical as a way of brute-forcing past emotional responses and kick himself into action instead, and presents to others a confident, composed, reliable upperclassman figure.

i say all this to put a foundation for what akihiko's mentality is before shinjiro's death. he's constantly pushing himself and is obsessed with gaining strength in an eternal pursuit "to make up for the weakness he sees within himself" and to atone for a death that "he perpetually blames himself for". he's someone who is awkward and distant because he has constructed for himself an idea of what he must be and what his role in the lives of others is (that being a protector and mentor); and his obsessive, overly-practical, narrow-minded, and goal-oriented mentality is something that bars him from being able to really connect with people. in his P3P link after october 4th, he outright says that he was afraid of letting people in.

so onto the actual question, i would ideally want akihiko's growth to be restructured in a way that emphasizes a broadened outlook on the value of bonds, showing him learning from his past approach and experiences and trying to change for the sake of himself and others. his linked episode in reload repeatedly has him hammer in the point that he's going to protect others, but this didn't need any repetition. maybe once or twice would be serviceable? but it's something they hinge so heavily on as if the fact that he was going to continue protecting people wasn't already self-evident. and it really doesn't show any growth - akihiko was already doing this, has been doing so all his life, and there was nothing to indicate that he'd stop. even with him acknowledging that he'd been blinded by his obsession with strength during his resolution, the ending to that scene showed that he's committed to continuing to fight in sees, and continuing to protect others with the power he has. having him circle back to his promise to protect others as much as they do genuinely doesn't make any sense to me and doesn't do anything for his character. it doesn't communicate anything new about his mentality other than "i was doing this because of a selfish obsession, now i am doing it for the sake of others" but that is a pretty poor way to go about an arc that could've had a much more meaningful and applicable message.

while akihiko mentions it as part of a promise he and shinjiro made to protect others in his 3rd linked episode, they should've expanded on akihiko's change of mentality in how he sees connection. the 3rd linked episode, for the first half of it at least, made me feel like they were capitalizing on this idea. akihiko he tells the group that he was "just hungry and ended up making too much" while we know he actually threw the pancake party because it was something that his sister used to love and he wanted to help everybody cheer up. it shows him, though he might be awkward in how he goes about it, actively putting in an effort to show he friends he cares and to try and cheer them up.

that episode is ruined by how they shift it in the post-party conversation to again reinforce akihiko's "now, i'm going to protect everyone" stuff, but that's the crux of what i wish akihiko's character arc showed: a man who has lived a life consumed by an obsessive and idealist complex - who has never allowed himself to truly connect with others (even having distance with the other two seniors) and who has come to see his purpose as a protector and a mentor figure to others - unravelling that complex and learning how to care and connect with people, not just serve them.

even beyond seeing his way of showing he cares as protecting people, akihiko is not someone who is good at showing his friends that he cares for them. in fact, his mentality directly counters the idea of ever showing vulnerability and detaching himself from his own emotions (with only impulsive, intense emotions coming through). this is something made abundantly apparent in his dynamic with shinjiro, where essentially all of their interactions depict akihiko trying to impose his ideals on his friend: trying to get shinjiro to live and atone in a way that akihiko sees as correct. as aforementioned, while akihiko probably simultaneously simply wanted his friend back and you can certainly glean that in his dialogues, akihiko never expressly communicates to shinjiro anything about what akihiko wants - rather, it's what he perceives as what should be. that shinjiro has a duty to be in sees using his power to protect, that he should sign the papers and go back to school (akihiko never says anything about his own feelings on it to shinjiro, instead he jokes about it and only ever says "you know how much this means to mitsuru), and that he should stop using the drugs. the fact that akihiko does all this to try to get shinjiro back on his feet and live a normal is certainly itself an expression of akihiko's care for his friend, but the way he goes about that doesn't communicate that personal element. this is, yes, reading way too much into it, but my point here is to say that akihiko doesn't like showing anyone vulnerability, even a friend that he's had in his back corner for most of his life, and who notably was his main support after miki's death (as stated in P3ODW). the human element is pretty heavily removed from akihiko's interactions with others. this isn't exclusive to shinjiro at all, it's everybody. yukari even points out akihiko's emotional distance prior to the yakushima trip, feeling that the only thing akihiko cares about is whether or not he gets to fight.

back to the main topic here. again it's not like there was any doubt that akihiko would continue serving in SEES and fighting by his friends' sides after shinjiro's death. you don't need to repeatedly place emphasis on him continuing to protect others, and it instead comes to take away from what could've been. if his growth is just "it was a selfish thing, now it's not as much of a selfish thing", that is such an undercapitalization on what could've been an excellent arc that ties into the themes of the game.

persona 3 is a very meaningful story about life and the value of connections. the entire force that allows the end of the world to be prevented is literally in-game called "the power of friendship". the story of persona 3 acknowledges that death will happen, that it could happen at any time, that in life you will be hurt and that loving others can hurt, but also crucially that it's better to use the time you have to experience life and to love others than to never do so at all.

akihiko's arc to me would've been much more potent if he realized from his best friend's death that he was going about it the wrong way; that merely protecting others isn't enough to communicate that he cares for them; that he can't control fate (this tying into his arcana); that distancing himself, not letting people in, and committing himself to solely getting stronger so that he can save them (and himself) from the devastation of loss can't stop (and didn't stop) it from happening. it would've been much more satisfying and on-theme to show akihiko trying to learn how to actually care for others, even though he might it difficult to. trying to cheer up the rest of the dorm in the third linked episode is a great example of this, and you could further take this storyline and have it connect to shinjiro if you wanted, learning from the ways that shinjiro showed akihiko and others that he cared (though hardly anything like that is really apparent in reload necessarily, so it'd be difficult to execute; point is shinjiro has a lot of media where he shows others he cares in subtle ways and it would've been cool to see akihiko realize and try and replicate it along his healing journey). just showing akihiko reflecting on the past, learning from his faults, and striving to become better for the sake of people he loves is a much more of a healthier conclusion to his story than having him double down on protecting others to the point of saying "yes, i'll continue to protect my friends, and i'll start travelling the world to get even stronger so i can do so better!" (which to me, shows the exact opposite of growth if he's continuing to let his compulsion to protect others further obfuscate and distance him from the people he loves, and shows that he isn't actually moving on at all). he should learn how to be there for people, and how to connect with them beyond the fight.

anyways i've ranted enough, i hope that kind of communicates my overarching problem with how his growth was handled in P3R and how i wish it was instead ^_^

that's basically all of it to be honest! but just to clarify the breadth of available content (at least that i myself have seen there is)

main games:
- persona 3
- persona 3 fes (the answer)
- persona 3 portable (female route)
- persona 3 reload (some additional stuff)

spinoffs:
- persona q (peak. both p3 and p4 side have p3-related content)
- persona q2
- persona 3 dancing (the social events i love)
- persona 4 arena + ultimax

adaptations:
- persona 3 the movies
- persona 3 manga
- persona 3 weird masquerade stageplay

cds:
- a certain day of summer (my least favourite, but it exists)
- full/new moon
- daylight/moonlight
- episode luck + episode rain
- character vol. 1 through 5
- the persona 3 portable ones (there's like 2 volumes one for male side one for female side idk if they're good i haven't listened to them)
- seaside vacation before death's scythe (PEAK)

fanbooks (note, most of these you'd have to find scans of online, and i can't really list everything here since there's novels like owari no kakera or shadow cry with like 1 chapter translated max):
- persona 3 official design works (this is really recommend, it's a great book! a lot of people have posted copies of its english translation online, but since there were so few copies made, it's really hard to find for yourself)
- persona 3 club book (never officially translated into english, but scans exist online and it's niftee)
- persona 3 portable fanbook (never officially translated into english either, but it's pretty fun to pick through scans of it as well)

other content:
- persona trinity soul (don't watch this. or well if you want to go ahead, but it's not really persona 3 media so much as it is just persona media. and even then it's not really that either)
- persona 3 manga anthologies (these aren't really "canon" and most don't really consider them official either. they're different books written by a variety of authors created and distributed by different publishing houses under atlus licensing, but they're mostly just fun side stuff. they were never officially translated or distributed by atlus, so you have to go on mangadex for them)
- velvet blue novel (this is actually the only one of the novels that has been fully fantranslated so i'm linking to it here)

i think that's all. all that i am presently aware of at least

for a hypothetical like this, i'd assume content from both sides would be used. overarchingly q would affect 2 major plot beats:

1) october 4th - in p4 side, ken has a pretty long arc where he learns (especially from kanji) about letting go of grudges, seeing people for who they are (as opposed to what you make them out to be), and acknowledging that people can change. ken is initially scared of kanji at first, and it's implied that it's because he reminds ken of shinjiro (there are also scenes where ken purposefully avoids/hides when he hears shinjiro's voice), but kanji's concern and shows of kindness helps ken open up, leading to a few interactions where 1) ken asks what kanji and the group plan to do once they find the murderer they're hunting and 2) where ken is confused about how kanji is able to empathize so much with others. reasonably, with ken learning so much about forgiveness and as he comes to doubt more and more the path he's decided for himself, it's pretty feasible that october 4th would not happen if ken remembered. kanji demonstrates to ken the value of talking to people, learning their perspective, and really not judging them purely on outcome or how they seem. it's kind of difficult to say "it wouldn't happen at all, if only ken had remembered" but it's the conclusion that the game leads to. and it's not really a bad message, if anything it enhances the tragic element where if ken had someone in his life that could teach him those lessons and help him step back that things could've gone differently. the problem is that i don't know how far this different route would go, if ken would end up confronting shinjiro in a different way or later on, if there'd even be a confrontation at all. who knows &_&

2) november 5th to 18th - in p3, mitsuru closes herself off completely after her dad's death. having been extremely objective-focused all her life, she doesn't know how to rely on people and sees her teammates as comrades rather than friends. this is dismantled by yukari at kyoto, who gets mitsuru to snap out of it and realize that she should and can rely on others, and that even if she can't fight for her father's sake anymore (specifically, to alleviate the burden from him), there are sitll reasons to keep going. the problem is that p3 side of Q hinges a lot on mitsuru and the other seniors learning to open up to and trust the others beyond battle. so it's a bit difficult because mitsuru's opened up so much by the end of Q (again, mostly because of yukari and also the influence of the P4 squad). i suppose you could have that arc showing instead her relapsing into her previous mentality and needing a reminder?

as for other plot beats, i don't think they'd be as affected. a lot of sees' intragroup conflicts predate Q in the timeline (most prominently the yakushima stuff), and the other major beats of the story (ie chidori's death, natsuki's move) as well as people's reactions to them wouldn't really be changed by Q's story. they'd likely just be approached with mroe of a feeling of unity, as the major outcome of side p3 is SEES learning to really trust and engage with one another

i will try to be brief. most of my more like rambling critiques about akihiko's linked episode can be found here but now that i have that here's how i would ideally restructure it

first, to start off, akihiko's character arc hinges on his initial iteration being an immature, narrow-minded, idealist who's obsessed with gaining strength and protecting others. this is a mentality he espoused as a way for atoning for the weakness he saw within himself after the death of his sister, as he blames himself for being unable to save her (despite being literally like 8 at the time). akihiko was very much so struck by the feeling of powerlessness watching the orphanage burn and the painful grief of losing his only living family member, and thus conceived for himself an "ideal" of atonement: a life of service protecting others and trying to live as a role model (especially for and to those younger than him, as we don't see him be as protective of the other two seniors).

akihiko's idealist nature is partly why he's so frustrated by shinjiro's abandonment of SEES - he thinks the way that shinjiro can atone for what happened with ken's mother is to similarly use his power to protect others and ensure that never happens again. while i'm sure he'd also just like to have his friend back, he wants shinjiro back in SEES as a way for him to make up for the past rather than letting it chain him down in isolation. it's how akihiko sees "moving on". akihiko's idealism is also why he lashes out when he's told that the risky plan to rescue fuuka might be too dangerous - the idea of not being able to save others, of not even being allowed to try, reminds him of the powerlessness he felt about his sister's death. as a result, he lashes out.

akihiko believes that the only way he can rightfully live is to dedicate himself to getting stronger and being a role model that others can depend on and gain inspiration from - that it's the only just way to atone and make up for his sister's death. he refuses to weigh down others (literally one of his original battle lines is "i don't want to be a burden") and instead is so overly ambitious and disciplined so he can be the one to help others instead. in P3 official design works, it's stated that akihiko's been carefully constructing "an admirable front" for others, that he's "obsessed with how others see him". he's overly logical as a way of brute-forcing past emotional responses and kick himself into action instead, and presents to others a confident, composed, reliable upperclassman figure.

i say all this to put a foundation for what akihiko's mentality is before shinjiro's death. he's constantly pushing himself and is obsessed with gaining strength in an eternal pursuit "to make up for the weakness he sees within himself" and to atone for a death that "he perpetually blames himself for". he's someone who is awkward and distant because he has constructed for himself an idea of what he must be and what his role in the lives of others is (that being a protector and mentor); and his obsessive, overly-practical, narrow-minded, and goal-oriented mentality is something that bars him from being able to really connect with people. in his P3P link after october 4th, he outright says that he was afraid of letting people in.

so onto the actual question, i would ideally want akihiko's growth to be restructured in a way that emphasizes a broadened outlook on the value of bonds, showing him learning from his past approach and experiences and trying to change for the sake of himself and others. his linked episode in reload repeatedly has him hammer in the point that he's going to protect others, but this didn't need any repetition. maybe once or twice would be serviceable? but it's something they hinge so heavily on as if the fact that he was going to continue protecting people wasn't already self-evident. and it really doesn't show any growth - akihiko was already doing this, has been doing so all his life, and there was nothing to indicate that he'd stop. even with him acknowledging that he'd been blinded by his obsession with strength during his resolution, the ending to that scene showed that he's committed to continuing to fight in sees, and continuing to protect others with the power he has. having him circle back to his promise to protect others as much as they do genuinely doesn't make any sense to me and doesn't do anything for his character. it doesn't communicate anything new about his mentality other than "i was doing this because of a selfish obsession, now i am doing it for the sake of others" but that is a pretty poor way to go about an arc that could've had a much more meaningful and applicable message.

while akihiko mentions it as part of a promise he and shinjiro made to protect others in his 3rd linked episode, they should've expanded on akihiko's change of mentality in how he sees connection. the 3rd linked episode, for the first half of it at least, made me feel like they were capitalizing on this idea. akihiko he tells the group that he was "just hungry and ended up making too much" while we know he actually threw the pancake party because it was something that his sister used to love and he wanted to help everybody cheer up. it shows him, though he might be awkward in how he goes about it, actively putting in an effort to show he friends he cares and to try and cheer them up.

that episode is ruined by how they shift it in the post-party conversation to again reinforce akihiko's "now, i'm going to protect everyone" stuff, but that's the crux of what i wish akihiko's character arc showed: a man who has lived a life consumed by an obsessive and idealist complex - who has never allowed himself to truly connect with others (even having distance with the other two seniors) and who has come to see his purpose as a protector and a mentor figure to others - unravelling that complex and learning how to care and connect with people, not just serve them.

even beyond seeing his way of showing he cares as protecting people, akihiko is not someone who is good at showing his friends that he cares for them. in fact, his mentality directly counters the idea of ever showing vulnerability and detaching himself from his own emotions (with only impulsive, intense emotions coming through). this is something made abundantly apparent in his dynamic with shinjiro, where essentially all of their interactions depict akihiko trying to impose his ideals on his friend: trying to get shinjiro to live and atone in a way that akihiko sees as correct. as aforementioned, while akihiko probably simultaneously simply wanted his friend back and you can certainly glean that in his dialogues, akihiko never expressly communicates to shinjiro anything about what akihiko wants - rather, it's what he perceives as what should be. that shinjiro has a duty to be in sees using his power to protect, that he should sign the papers and go back to school (akihiko never says anything about his own feelings on it to shinjiro, instead he jokes about it and only ever says "you know how much this means to mitsuru), and that he should stop using the drugs. the fact that akihiko does all this to try to get shinjiro back on his feet and live a normal is certainly itself an expression of akihiko's care for his friend, but the way he goes about that doesn't communicate that personal element. this is, yes, reading way too much into it, but my point here is to say that akihiko doesn't like showing anyone vulnerability, even a friend that he's had in his back corner for most of his life, and who notably was his main support after miki's death (as stated in P3ODW). the human element is pretty heavily removed from akihiko's interactions with others. this isn't exclusive to shinjiro at all, it's everybody. yukari even points out akihiko's emotional distance prior to the yakushima trip, feeling that the only thing akihiko cares about is whether or not he gets to fight.

back to the main topic here. again it's not like there was any doubt that akihiko would continue serving in SEES and fighting by his friends' sides after shinjiro's death. you don't need to repeatedly place emphasis on him continuing to protect others, and it instead comes to take away from what could've been. if his growth is just "it was a selfish thing, now it's not as much of a selfish thing", that is such an undercapitalization on what could've been an excellent arc that ties into the themes of the game.

persona 3 is a very meaningful story about life and the value of connections. the entire force that allows the end of the world to be prevented is literally in-game called "the power of friendship". the story of persona 3 acknowledges that death will happen, that it could happen at any time, that in life you will be hurt and that loving others can hurt, but also crucially that it's better to use the time you have to experience life and to love others than to never do so at all.

akihiko's arc to me would've been much more potent if he realized from his best friend's death that he was going about it the wrong way; that merely protecting others isn't enough to communicate that he cares for them; that he can't control fate (this tying into his arcana); that distancing himself, not letting people in, and committing himself to solely getting stronger so that he can save them (and himself) from the devastation of loss can't stop (and didn't stop) it from happening. it would've been much more satisfying and on-theme to show akihiko trying to learn how to actually care for others, even though he might it difficult to. trying to cheer up the rest of the dorm in the third linked episode is a great example of this, and you could further take this storyline and have it connect to shinjiro if you wanted, learning from the ways that shinjiro showed akihiko and others that he cared (though hardly anything like that is really apparent in reload necessarily, so it'd be difficult to execute; point is shinjiro has a lot of media where he shows others he cares in subtle ways and it would've been cool to see akihiko realize and try and replicate it along his healing journey). just showing akihiko reflecting on the past, learning from his faults, and striving to become better for the sake of people he loves is a much more of a healthier conclusion to his story than having him double down on protecting others to the point of saying "yes, i'll continue to protect my friends, and i'll start travelling the world to get even stronger so i can do so better!" (which to me, shows the exact opposite of growth if he's continuing to let his compulsion to protect others further obfuscate and distance him from the people he loves, and shows that he isn't actually moving on at all). he should learn how to be there for people, and how to connect with them beyond the fight.

anyways i've ranted enough, i hope that kind of communicates my overarching problem with how his growth was handled in P3R and how i wish it was instead ^_^

there's actually quite a number of allusions to nyx in P3D is the thing. they keep mentioning a very great battle ahead of them, something which mitsuru refers to as "their final battle". but we know this isn't the hanged man battle. we know it has to be after mitsuru's dad's death, which happened the day after the hanged man fight on 11/5. mitsuru and yukari have clearly had their moment in kyoto, as they refer to each other as each other's "best friend" (something neither ever do previously - they had a particularly awkward relationship beforehand) and mention that yukari had given mitsuru a "painful reminder" to rely on others (the Slap). the kyoto trip, and mitsuru's resolution specifically, happens on 11/18. so this final battle could not have been the hanged man fight - yukari and mitsuru were not nearly close beforehand.

there's a number of other allusions to p3d taking place after the november fight, but the most notable for pinning the timeframe is how akihiko mentions that graduation is coming up and that the seniors will be leaving the dorm soon, and because junpei mentions that he has a "special someone". junpei never uses past tense when referring to this person, pretty explicitly indicating that p3d must take place after chidori wakes up on 1/21, and then up to 1/30. yes p3d uses the chidori lives route. ultimax does too they're just less explicit about it

2 months late on this but i was balls deep in my semester gomen. overall i really do think p3d akihiko is the closest akihiko's come to good characterization since p3p (gamewise - i think the p3 the movie drama CD easily otherwise, that was released in like 2014). the manga and the movies are pretty good (the movies tend to play up his angry moments but not to the point that i'd say anything dissenting about it), but the rest of his depictions seem like they got tainted by the arena touch. the my-name-is-akihiko-and-my-only-personality-trait-is-that-i-like-to-train-and-i-eat-a-lot-of-protein touch.

p3d surprised me because yeah, while a lot of what he talks about is training/fighting and he does have like 2 social events where he mentions his lame little Gimmick, the wider scope of akihiko's character is prevalent throughout most of the social content, something that i really hate about his other depictions (and how those depictions seem to lack any attempt to show his multidimensionality or include the full gamut of his personality). he's mature and rational and genuine but still awkward and obtuse and he talks about going to college and how regimented he is and he has some really fun interactions with people. his social events are just kinda solid all around.

so while i still feel like it's not a particularly extensive depiction (there's only 8 social events on his end, then his appearances in others, and then his dance lines) and while i still feel that didn't need to lean into the training/fighting as much as it did, i do think it's probably includes the least amount of what i hate about akihiko's post-p3p characterization. and it also makes sense for him to have fighting on the brain given it's set in january right before the nyx fight. and it's not to the extent that it overshadows his discipline and foresight and aoogh. i really appreciated that social event with mitsuru. in a way it got my hopes up that reload would write him good and while i was disappointed by that that's not P3D's fault

my reading of the scene was that yes she did know but was struggling to accept it. her final speech to makoto mentions how everything comes to an end, how to "live" means to also eventually die. she's also crying as she talks about protecting makoto for eternity, so the way i see it is her, even as she finds it difficult to let go, wanting to comfort someone she loved in something that she either knew or feared was his last moments, and also tell him how much he meant to her.

she also reaffirms how valuable she's come to view friendships and thanks makoto for everything, which i like to see as her being like 1) i'll be okay, because i have people in my life there to support me and 2) saying her last farewell to him with how she tells him to rest

okay actually answering this one now and to be honest they're one of the lesser interesting dynamics in SEES for me, i've never really found myself particularly appealed to their dyad but i do enjoy how it (can be, could've been, is - i can't tell which i want to use here) used to further exemplify akihiko's character. i cherry-pick out what i consider the good parts of the P3R linked episodes, but generally speaking i developed a lot more negative conception of their dynamic after P3R's release since to be honest the linked episodes just framed their interactions as much more boring than the potential they had imo. i think that's just in large part because of what it does to akihiko's character, making him a whole lot less complex than the potential scope of who he is.

the most interesting version of it to me is what P3M3 puts out, with akihiko after the loss of his friend to try and help makoto out of the slump that he gets into and the mentality of not letting people in because it hurts when they leave that he espouses. i'm generally quite appealed by akihiko's tendency to try and be a role model for others, and makoto (and kotone, though that's a different can of worms) is probably one of the most open-and-shut example of a dynamic where he shows those traits.

i absolutely adore the various dorm and tartarus dialogues where akihiko gives advice to the protagonist. most of my appreciation for makoto and akihiko's dynamic comes from this element of akihiko wanting to show a composed, strong, reliable, and mature role model figure to makoto and makoto not really buying it. in the vein of makoto being quite apathetic, especially early on and in the movies having a reclusive stint in the third after pharos' departure, i like to see him as (like kotone) a bit too reckless regarding his own health. ie not patching himself up after getting hurt in tartarus, not eating or sleeping right, etc.

i like to think akihiko, being kind of a health nut (a very hypocritical health nut) would probably be concerned about makoto. i don't think he'd be able to effectively show it, but he'd give more pointed advice. like i enjoy headcanoning that akihiko's dorm dialogue line discouraging from any all-nighters in reload was something motivated by him noticing that makoto has really dark undereye bags and being like "heyy uhh not saying you do but if you Are then i gotta say all nighters are just not good for productivity and generally have a net-negative output". stuff like that. he wants to live by example he's just . not really good at verbalizing his concern.

everyone in SEES all sort of acknowledges that makoto is stronger than them all, and i think would unsettle akihiko. there's a few lines like that in his linked episode, including one where he's like "i'll try not to be jealous, i'll just have to work even harder". while i don't see them as rivals (akihiko doesn't seem to either given the tv hangout event) as that'd require more equal footing, i think makoto's presence would (initially!) be a detriment to akihiko, who is already unhealthily pushing himself, but then begins to do so to more extreme degrees when he sees someone who just awakened be more capable than he is. but this would be a silent thing for him, not really something that he verbalizes. over time, i think he'd slowly adapt and see makoto's power more as something that motivates him to work harder (to be someone that even their leader can rely on), but to less unhealthy extents. i also think his innate complex and worry for his underclassmen would win out over the "i must beat him" - evidently akihiko never tries to really challenge makoto himself (he does mention wanting to spar with him after the nyx battle in his P3D hangout) which is good. it'd be stupid for him to and akihiko's not that dumb. that's more junpei's thing anyway

as a little fun thing for me i also like to hc that makoto is a bit scary to akihiko. like the strength thing would kinda be unsettling (and the apathy - i think the apathy would also unnerve akihiko) but i also just think it's funny to imagine makoto being weird and eerie. akihiko is immensely logical, so makoto being a weird little guy with whose behaviour is unpredictable and freaking akihiko the fuck out is a very amusing thought to me. like silently appearing in the kitchen while akihiko's getting a snack and when he closes the door to the fridge he jumps when he sees makoto just standing there. that type of shit.

i did touch the scantest bit on my thoughts about kotone and shinjiro's dynamic in this bigger post about how i view shinjiro's friendships with the second years. even though his arcana is moon in P3P (a choice i've always disliked, i really don't think it fits shinjiro that well, but i won't complain too heavily when akihiko is star and the cosmological symbology goes crazy) personally i like to lean towards him being a mentor figure - at least at first, true to his arcana - and then, especially with kotone, that being somewhat torn down and giving way to an actually pretty meaningful and complex friendship.

it's not really a secret that i can't see them romantically but i do really love the potential platonic bond they could have. i do kind of find it entertaining to hc one/both of the protagonists crushing over shinjiro but i don't see it as mutual (i don't fw any shinjiro romantic relationships during the timeline of p3 it really messes with his character for me). but with that out of the way -

with both his link with kotone and the linked episodes in P3R with makoto, shinjiro very much so focuses on giving tangible lessons to people as well as broader life lessons. in p3p, he helps teach fuuka how to cook, reiterates about how important it is to make and treasure memories to kotone. he also just takes on a protective role to others, "meddling" with how much he asks kotone about the others (their diet, if they're fighting well), and also ensuring that people will take care of each other after his death (like how he asks kotone to take care of akihiko, akihiko to take care of ken). overall, shinjiro also just serves a very instructional role to both protagonists, informing the group of the stakes of their operation and living by example of 1) how to not make the same mistakes he did and 2) how to show others care (this part more in his p3p route than in the p3r linked episode).

i like seeing him as (reluctantly, on his part) kind of as one of the girls. i mean, i don't think he'd ever really be an active participant in more frivolous forms of social interaction (his ass is not painting someone's nails, but he'll sit there and listen and let someone paint his), and i initially trying to espouse the same distance and occasional mentor figure-esque role that i mentioned earlier, but slowly having his walls broken down because kotone doesn't really care to respect that distance, with shinjiro kind of just being dragged along for stuff but also coming to silently enjoy being able to be there for others. i see the dynamic similar to how i see a potential yukari and shinjiro dynamic, but with those two (while i see them as being on the same wavelength/same "head on their shoulders" and level of emotional intelligence), i still think there'd be some distance between them. yukari notably doesn't really intervene or try to bother shinjiro in any media, and i think any friendship between them would take a lot of time to develop, something that could be helped along by kotone intervening and being like "senpai come with us to the mall" (to which emboldens yukari to also be more comfortable around her upperclassman as well). i think he'd be a good listener, even if he doesn't care about any of the drama or gossip that he might be exposed to listening, he might respond with a dry "really?" or give advice ("yeah this dude was just being super creepy earlier..." "tell him to kill himself" /j)

a protagonist's personality is a pretty malleable thing and everyone has their own notion of it, but i tend to ascribe kotone something more along the lines of her P3WM personality than her Q2 personality, which i didn't really feel gave the idea that she had a particularly complex character. i like to see her as someone who finds emotionally regulating high-stress intense emotional states difficult (contrasting to makoto's state of apathy), and coping with that through a veneer of numbness. she's visibly outgoing and feels like she has to be for others, but seems to show an evident lack of regard for her own health and safety in P3WM.

that being said, i do like to see her bothering him a lot, and i think that's how they'd really initially interact. i don't wanna say "like a little sister would" but also kinda like how a little sister would. i really love the idea of kotone meddling with his life and pushing shinjiro to be more active in the group, it's something that i had wished the P3P link capitalized on more. maybe not quite understanding why he isolates the way he does, but either motivating him to or, if that fails, simply manipulating situations where shinjiro is more or less confronted with having to interact with akihiko, or mitsuru, or the others at the dorm. i.e. a "let's go to the cafe senpai c'mon" (actually invited the other two seniors there too to make them all talk). i have a lot of gripes with the P3P link, and i really prefer the idea of shinjiro's change of mentality originating as he's forced to build back the bridges he burns and becomes entangled in a web of people who depend on him and care about him.

simultaneously because i see shinjiro as being particularly astute with reading people, it functions well to me to have her kind of drop the facade at some point and only be mischievous when she feels like it. it's something that i like for kotone with all of sees, but with shinjiro especially i like him being capable to sort of see through kotone's exterior from early on and making an effort to work around her. i also think he'd show concern like he does with mitsuru and akihiko, and would notice if she was pushing herself too hard (with kotone's disregard for her own health from P3WM as aforementioned, it makes sense to me that she'd operate in that same vein and that he'd be worried about her like he is with mitsuru and akihiko). like he somewhat does with fuuka in the P3P link about cooking and like he does with akihiko all the time (and mitsuru, occasionally), i like to imagine him scolding her for being too reckless.

like with shinjiro's dialogue to makoto in the q group date scene, as well as his interactions with his underclassmen generally, he evidently wants his underclassmen rely on him and be on able to let their guard down/relax in his presence. in that way i also see it similar to how i see yukari and kotone's dynamic (yukari and shinjiro have, imo, a number of personality similarities that make it difficult to not compare them, i used to really love musing about how they'd interact), where kotone comes to trust having a place to show her toned-down self, even if i also enjoy her taunting him sometimes and pushing him out of his comfort zone.

i also like this sort of thing for junpei and kotone as well, but i think it would function in a slightly different way because junpei and kotone have more of a bros dynamic, and junpei is pretty reaffirming to kotone and is a pretty positive guy even if he has his moments (i also think that junpei's repeated snapping would make him relatable to kotone, i think they'd share a similar mentality), sort of making a feedback loop where they're able to brighten each others day by someone who is similar to them.

with shinjiro their dynamic has more of an element of council (shinjiro is a brutally honest man who is too good at reading people to put up fronts to; he's not someone who reaffirms or acts positive) and a back-and-forth of her pushing him to be more social and him pushing her to take more time for herself. their friendship is berry meaningful to me and while i think he's around for too little of a time to have that developed sense of trust that i like to see for them, i still really like seeing that push-and-pull as core to how they interact with each other and really wish the P3P link had more showing that. alas i will save my gripes about that social link (basically my full thoughts about it are in this post if you're interested) and instead end it here. thank you for the question :^)

shiba inus (which koromaru is, despite how utterly massive the games make him) typically live from 14 to 16 years, with the median lifespan being 15 and a half years. we do know he's a grown ass dog, though no particular date is ever specified for him, since he lived with the priest for much of his life.

we also to my knowledge have no idea how long it was between the priest's death to his recruitment to sees, but some portion of his life was noteably spent on the streets subsisting off the generosity of others.

by ultimax (set in may 2012), ken says that koromaru is "getting old" and that he doesn't have the same stamina that he used to. that being said though he's still going on regular walks with ken to the shrine, so he's not so far into his old age that moving is especially difficult for him.

my headcanon is that he's 9 during p3, and 12 during ultimax, and would likely be a goner during a persona 5 arena, given that game is set in 2016.