Fanfic / Danganronpa: Galactic Melancholy

"After waking up on a mysterious structure, 16 high school students are shocked to learn that they’re not even on Earth anymore. Instead they’re sharing a ship with a boisterous monochrome man and his robotic bear assistant. Things really go out of control after he reveals that the only way to leave said ship is to participate in a sadistic game, one of mutual killing that will supposedly be broadcasted across the galaxy."

Dangan Ronpa: Galactic Melancholy by FranzSan is a Danganronpa Alternate Universe fic where Chihiro Fujisaki, now the Ultimate Pianist, is the protagonist of the story. Now, he must try to solve the many mysteries of the killing game while trying to stay alive alongside 15 other characters who are slightly different than in canon.

Tropes in Dangan Ronpa: Galactic Melancholy include:

• Abusive Parents: It is implied by several statements by several Ultimates that some of their parents were either neglectful(Byakuya and Akane's fathers) to outright abusive(Chihiro and Hiyoko's mothers). And then there's the fact that Chihiro's own father turns out to not only be the real abusive parent of Chihiro (as his memories of his mother's actions were fabricated) but also became the mastermind of the game in an attempt to get rid of his son's perceived "weaknesses."
• The Ace: Given that everyone has a talent of being the 'Ultimate' in their field, everyone applies.
• Adaptational Jerkass:
  • Byakuya. While he was unpleasant to say the least in his home canon, he was never as much of a jerk as he is here, being far more abusive to Toko than he was canonically, as well as openly getting violent at times, even breaking Chihiro's nose. It's telling that when mourning the deaths of the students, Chihiro at first has nothing good to say about him, choosing to curse Byakuya out for his behavior.
  • While she doesn't show up in the Killing Game proper, Kanon is definitely this, having murdered Sayaka Maizono in a fit of jealousy.
• Adaptational Nice Guy:
  • Hiyoko was fairly unpleasant during her tenure as the Ultimate Traditional Dancer, but here, while she starts out as foul-mouthed and as mean as she was in Goodbye Despair, thanks to some Character Development and diving into her backstory, she becomes far kinder and friendly than she was at the start.
  • Korekiyo may be the Ultimate Yakuza in this story, and he openly admits to having murdered a fair share of people in his line of work without regrets, that's still far above his canon self, who was an incestuous serial killer obsessed with a Tulpa of his dead sister. It also helps that unlike in canon, Korekiyo's murder was an agreed deal between him and Akane in order to save the others from the Russian Flu-ette.
• And Now for Someone Completely Different: During the Deadly Life in Chapter 5, we see through the eyes of Chihiro, Hiyoko, and Celeste. In Chapter 6, we get to see through the eyes of all the survivors.
• Anyone Can Die: Given that this is a killing game, this is to be expected. Victims so far include Mahiru, Himiko, Leon, Keebo, Byakuya, Toko, Akane, Korekiyo, Kirumi and Nagito.
• Balls of Steel: During the fighting tournament, Hiyoko tries to score an early win against Keebo, only for this trope to come into effect. It helps that Keebo's balls(if he has any) are literally made of steel.
  Hiyoko: (Agonized) WHAT THE #%#@ YOU SON OF A %^$#$ YOU BROKE MY ^&%*(## FOOT!
• Bash Brothers: Angie and Akane form this type of relationship after the fight night, and they seem to agree on a lot of things. Unfortunately, this relationship ends up being broken off quite bitterly by Akane thanks to Angie revealing one of her secrets so casually.
• Breather Episode: After the intensely stressful series of chapters that were Chapter 4's aftermath, we get a few chapters dedicated to showing what life would be like if the group had just lived out their normal lives at Hope's Peak.
• Bookends: The first trial is kicked off by the 'death' of Nagito, and the last one ends with his execution.
• Butt-Monkey: Mono-Kaito. No one really likes him or takes him that seriously, and most of the cast has gotten at least one dig in towards him over the course of the series. Chapter 3 in particular was mostly the cast screwing with him and humiliating him for most of the chapter. Mono-Kaito's sidekick, Kuma, was this, but Chapter 4 has him Take A Level In Badass.
• Can't Hold His Liquor: Chihiro, apparently, given he gets absolutely wasted after three shots. Then again, due to his smaller body size, it makes sense he'd get drunk faster.
• Central Theme: Word of God confirms that the theme is family and its effect on us. This theme reoccurs throughout the story, ranging from the relationships of the participants, to the motives for the murderers, and even playing an important factor to the motive of the Big Bad.
  • The creator also acknowledges that another major theme of the story is "Kindness vs. Strength". However, this theme was something that developed over time, as the creator explained.
  • Another noticeable running theme is "playing hero". All the murders are either caused or at least influenced by the characters trying to help/save someone else (or acting like a hero). Even the mastermind tried to turn Chihiro into a 'hero' as part of his way of enforcing the former's twisted idea of strength on the boy.
• Chekhov's Gun: A couple:
  • The bomb that Mono-Kaito used as a motive all the way back at Chapter 1 ended up being used to destroy the ship in order to keep it off the hands of the people responsible for the Killing Game.
  • The switchblade that Chihiro got from Nagito at the end of Chapter 5 proved useful against his father.
  • The Lazarus that Nagito used to fake his death ends up saving Nekomaru's life.
• Chekhov's Skill: Hiyoko's Groin Attack serves as this. First appearing in Chapter 2's fighting tournament, it end up helping with self-defense against the faceless assaultant twice and even against the Big Bad.
• Cruel and Unusual Death: It's Danganronpa. Anything less would be ridiculous.
  • Chapter 1: Mahiru Koizumi, the Ultimate Moral Compass, is crushed underneath a giant red stamp.
  • Chapter 2: Leon Kuwata, the Ultimate Musician, is dragged through the streets by a car, before ending up in a concert that violently escalates into a riot.
  • Chapter 3: Toko Fukawa, the Ultimate Animal Breeder, is killed in a manner so brutally, it had to be censored out by Team Danganronpa themselves as she's brutally torn to shreds by a pack of mechanical hounds.
  • Chapter 4: Korekiyo Shingujji, the Ultimate Yakuza, is handcuffed to a table as he has his pinky finger severed, before having both of his hands cut off. As he backs into a wall in a blind panic, he's bitten by several robotic snakes, which causes his body to turn a sickly yellow, before swelling and bursting like a balloon, sending blood and viscera everywhere. Even Mono-Kaito thought this one was messed up.
  • Chapter 5: Nagito Komaeda, the Ultimate Nurse, has a giant syringe shot at him, but before it hits him, it is revealed that he's on a spaceship. He flies through the solar system before the ship crashes into the sun.
• Drowning My Sorrows: The purpose of Chapter 4's drinking party, which Korekiyo suggested in order to take their minds off of the Killing Game. Unfortunately, those who participated end up being infected with a disease Kuma planted.
• Due to the Dead: In Chapter 3, the group collectively decides to hold a funeral for the four deceased students up to this point. Unfortunately, Byakuya ends up ruining the whole affair.
• Enemy Mine: In chapter 5, Mono-Kaito of all people teams up with the surviving students in their attempt to escape the S.S. Maki.
• Flashback Cut: In between chapters 4 and 5, there are a bunch of short stories of scenes between the students on the S.S. Maki. Notably, we get to see the origin of why Himiko became a detective.
• Groin Attack: Hiyoko performed this against Keebo during the fighting tournament. Unfortunately, Hiyoko learns the hard way about Keebo's Balls of Steel. This will later play as an important Chekhov's Skill in the story.
• History Repeats: In Chapter 1, Himiko took Chihiro as her protegee in order to teach the latter how to investigate. Then, Himiko died in the next chapter, leaving Chihiro to try to investigate mainly on his own, with some help from Kirumi. In Chapter 4, Chihiro took Hiyoko as his protegee in order to help teach Hiyoko how to investigate too. And in the next chapter, Chihiro was unconscious for most of the investigation, leaving Hiyoko to try to investigate mainly on her own, with some help from Angie.
• Innocently Insensitive: Angie tends to have this kind of problem a lot, not realizing when her comments make other people uncomfortable. Tragically, it costs her her 'Sista' Akane, due to one of these comments, and they never truly make up thanks to Akane's death.
• Laser-Guided Amnesia: Averted. It seems that Angie has this due to the illness she gained during Chapter 4, but it's really her just being in denial over Akane's death.
• Lovable Sex Maniac: While the 'lovable' aspect is debatable, 'Teruteru' (or rather, the Ultimate Imposter pretending to be Teruteru) is an absolute pervert and proud of it. Amusingly, it's implied that even with his identity exposed, the Ultimate Imposter still has trouble unlearning the Teruteru personality.
• Mythology Gag: And how. Every chapter has neat little references or CallBacks to previous entries and the talents the students originally had.
  • Throughout the story, Chihiro ends up keeping an item belonging to the killer of end chapter as a Tragic Keepsake. This references to how at the end of each chapter in the games, the player receives an item that belonged to the executed 'blackened'.
  • Chapter 3:
    • Much like what Angie did in Chapter 3 of V3, Keebo also chooses to destroy one of the motives provided rather than risk people fighting over it.
    • An unintended one: Keebo, the Ultimate Photographer, gets killed by a baseball bat to the head.
    • This exchange, which also does the job of referencing one of V3's most popular Memes.
      Chihiro: (Determined) Seesaw effect!
      Nekomaru: (Confused) Seesaw effect?
      Korekiyo: (Excited) Seesaw effect!
      Hiyoko: (Confused) What the shit?
      Korekiyo: (Embarrassed) Sorry, I like seesaws.
  • Chapter 4:
    • Both Chihiro and Kirumi make references to their original talents when they get absolutely hammered during the party in Korekiyo's lab.
      Chihiro: (Belligerent) Do I look like a goddamn programmer to you!?
      Kirumi: (Belligerent) I ain’t your maid!
    • During the first half of the trial, Angie is asleep, and begins muttering things in her sleep. Said things heavily imply she's dreaming about the events of her own game.
      "Nyahaha...They're so big Tsumugi...Do you mind if I touch them?"
      "So you have no desire to accept Atua into your heart...How unfortunate...But if you change your mind, let me know...Atua and I will be waiting for you, Kaede…"
      "Time to play Shuichi...Play until we’ve reached...sweaty salvation."
      Oh, hey Kiyo... What are you doing with that floorboard? Oh, okay...I'm just here for a candle...for the ritual...I won't be here long... Kiyo... ...what are you-
    • Once again, Korekiyo's murder involves him, aikido, and an athletic girl and tanned girl. Just in this case, the murder was moved up a chapter, he was the one practicing Aikido, and the athletic girl and the tanned girl are the same person.
    • Much like Chapter 4 of the second Danganronpa, the murder ends up being the result of a duel to the death between two people in order to save the group from the motive.
• Noble Demon: Despite being a yakuza without any qualms for murder or bloodshed, Korekiyo's actually quite a friendly and level-headed member of the group, and is rather content with helping others with their needs.
• Odd Friendship: Quite a few, actually.
  • Chihiro and Nekomaru get along quite well, especially with how Nekomaru's helping Chihiro grow stronger little by little.
  • Himiko and Korekiyo, of all people, become incredibly close, with the two hanging out often to play Cluedo, and Korekiyo seems to take Himiko's death the hardest, even with his stoicism.
  • Celestia Ludenberg and 'Taeko Yasuhiro' actually the Ultimate Impostor who decided to take the real Taeko's name for himself actually form a friendship after the third chapter due to both of them hiding their true identities.
• The Peeping Tom: Mono-Kaito actively encourages this trope, setting up, in his own words, "Super Secret Wall of Men's Passion" behind the bathhouse so the boys could peep on the girls. It's screwed up after 'Teruteru' has a Nosebleed that knocks over the wall.
  In this tense situation, Leon could only wonder whether he'd rather be here or on that burning stage. The stage was really winning out, despite being in a room with beautiful topless women.
• Teen Pregnancy: This is Leon's "Sins of the Father". He impregnated Sayaka Maizono, who was then killed by his cousin Kanon in a fit of jealousy.
• Tragic Keepsake: Chihiro ends up keeping one for each executed killer at the end of each Chapter. They include Mahiru's handkerchief, Leon's guitar pick, Toko's pet rabbit, Kiyo's emblem pin, and Nagito's switchknife. The last one ends up helping Chihiro immobilize his father.
• Speak Ill of the Dead: Byakuya engages in this during the memorial to the dead classmates, stating that they all 'deserved it'. This leads to him and Chihiro getting into a fight, and Chihiro's nose being broken.
• Team Pet: Toko's pet dog, Jack, is this. Aisling would later join in Chapter 3.
• Two Dun It: In Chapter 3, it turns out that both Toko and Byakuya were conspiring to kill Keebo and Celeste.
• Used to Be a Sweet Kid: Byakuya, of all people. Toko's description of their childhood together doesn't line up at all with his actions now. It's implied that the pressure of living up to his father's name and the meteoric rise to success he got led to him becoming more and more cruel as time went on.
• Was It All a Lie?: After Kuma sows the seeds of doubt within Chihiro's mind about Mahiru's intentions for mentoring him, he has a small crisis of faith in both himself and Mahiru's good nature. Thankfully, Hiyoko's able to snap him out of it.
• Weaponized Ball: Byakuya uses a skeeball machine to turn one his baseballs into this in Chapter 3.
• What the Hell, Hero?: Leon has this moment towards Chihiro after Chihiro freezes up in fear when Hiyoko tries to kill Leon. This permanently damages their relationship, and Leon never truly forgives Chihiro for this. However, Leon's reactions become a lot less justifiable when it was revealed that Leon was planning on killing Chihiro during the moment, and he would have succeeded had Hiyoko not tried to kill him first.