"Life is a Cabaret, and you're the next big star!"
"If they were going to throw us all into a death game, they could have at least been polite to tell us about it..."
— Yuuma Amano, Super High School Level Chocolatier.
Cabaret Desespoir
is a Tumblr Roleplay Group based on the Danganronpa series of visual novels. It takes place inside a high-class revamped theatre, where twenty-one upcoming Super High School Level students have been chosen as the new cast, with each of them having a certain musical song/show/character associated with them. The show will get bigger and bigger, and the characters grow grander and grander! Even if a few murders happen along the way, you know the saying: "The show must go on!"
The LeRoux Theatre's official callback list was released on July 11th, 2016 (found here). The roleplay was completed in 2017, and an archive of its main events can be read here.
Cabaret Desespoir contains examples of:
- All-Loving Hero: Time and time again, Yuuma has proven himself to be one of the sweetest and gentlest of the cast members, especially in his interactions with Yuri. His self-sacrificial nature is exemplified with one quote:Yuuma: "Look, if you’re going to release another secret tomorrow...Please, let it be mine. I don’t care that I may be a lead, but none of them deserve so little time to make peace with their inner demons. I’ll take the hit."
- Big Bad: MonoPheasant. He makes it a point of contention that the next idiot to call him MonoCock will be executed, no questions asked.
- Big Brother Instinct: Not only is Yuuma protective of his younger sister, but he extends that same fondness to some of his classmates. This comes back to bite him really hard in chapter 2, when his younger sister is held hostage as part of the motive.
- Big Brother Is Watching: Those cameras have to be good for something. Parodied in the prologue when Yuuma dresses up as Sailor Moon for the fun of it, and is rewarded with a coin from the host, who hadn't even been introduced yet at that point!
- Body of the Week: Every chapter results in at least one death that the remaining students have to investigate.
- Cast Full of Gay: You can count the number of people in the Cabaret who show romantic interest only towards the opposite gender on one hand. Though with some, it's more of a "I like everyone" scenario instead.
- Clear My Name: Happens whenever somebody is accused of the crime and fights the charges, or when their friends do their best to help them. Of course, the question of whether or not they're actually guilty is very real.
- Cruel and Unusual Death: The executions, which are tailor-made for each culprit. Usually, they either mock their Super High School Level talent or exploit their deepest fears, ensuring their punishment is as terrifying as possible. Occasionally, a murder victim also dies in a particularly horrible manner.
- Dark Secret: Chapter 1's motive has the host threaten to reveal a random student's secret every day until a murder is committed, with those who didn't get a lead role from the play that chapter getting top priority. However, there is an even 3-3 split between lead secrets and non-lead secrets.
- Death by Irony: It is likely that each character's execution will also involve their themed musical song in some way.
- Everyone Is a Suspect: The objective of each trial is to find out who is the most suspicious.
- Fire-Forged Friends: Often, relationships are formed due to the stress everyone is put under and the bonds created thusly.
- Hostile Show Takeover: Though there wasn't a show to takeover in the first place, the Cabaret itself appears to have been subjected to this.
- Leaning on the Fourth Wall: Considering its premise and the fact that it's a roleplay, the characters are not above poking fun at the supposed absurdity of their circumstances.
- Meaningful Name: Yumma has one, with Yuuma = "true gentleness" and Amano = "of the sweet", that he takes great happiness in.
- Mystery of the Week: There's a new murder every two-three weeks.
- Official Couple: Despite all the drama, murder and general gnarliness throughout the duration of the Cabaret, it's nice to know at least five pairs of people were able to find true love. Unfortunately for some of them, it's not going to last...
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: You know someone's clearly fucked up when the resident sweetheart ups and slaps said someone.
- Proud Beauty: Emi worked hard to get where she is today, and she is not shy about her attractiveness. She knows that she's gorgeous, and you cannot tell her otherwise.
- Shout-Out: Overdosed on this with references to other games that the muns have been in.
- Slave to PR: Emi built a reputation for herself that she has to uphold, even though that reputation is one of an Alpha Bitch.
- Stepford Smiler: Yikes. Too many of these students conceal sorrow beneath their smiles.
- Teen Genius: All the students to some extent. They got accepted into Hope's Peak for being the best in their age bracket at what they do.
- Translation Convention: All characters are presumed to be speaking Japanese unless otherwise noted, even though the game is written in English.
- Victoria's Secret Compartment: Emi has been known to hide objects in her bra, mainly her sunshades.
- Win Your Freedom: The cast members win by identifying the mastermind. A killer wins by getting away with a murder. The mastermind's current victory condition is unknown, though it is likely 'never be identified'.
