History Characters / DanganRonpaZero

* IncestSubtext: Displays some rather... disturbing behavior when she's talking about her sister. Even Ryoko (who turns out to be Junko herself) is disturbed.

* SupportingProtagonist: About half of the story is narrated from her perspective, and yet Ryoko takes an almost entirely passive approach to the events. Mostly because, in her own words, she doesn't care about other things besides Matsuda because she'll eventually forget about them. Somewhat fittingly, Ryoko lacks an IdiotHair (a characteristic of main characters in the franchise) while Matsuda has one.

* SavedByCanon: Since ''Zero'' takes place around a year before the events of ''Trigger Happy Havoc'' (where he's executed early on).

* SavedByCanon: Since ''Zero'' takes place around a year before the events of ''Trigger Happy Havoc'' (where she's murdered by Junko).

* TheDragon: To her sister, JunkoEnoshima.

* AlwaysIdenticalTwins: Exaggerrated trope. Despite being octuplets, they are all identical.

* TeensAreShort: He is often mistaken as a child due to his height.

* SuddenSequelDeathSyndrome: Timeline-wise. In ''Danganronpa 3: Despair Arc'', he's shown to have survived The Worst Incident in Hope's Peak Academy's History (which happens in Episode 7), only to not be mentioned in any later episodes. ''Danganronpa Zero'' happens between Episodes 10 and 11.

The academy's headmaster, Jin's loyalties are split after The Worst Incident in Hope's Peak Academy's History, and he hires his daughter Kyoko to investigate it.

The estranged daughter of Headmaster Jin Kirigiri and descendant to a famous line of detectives, Kyoko is hired by her father to investigate The Worst Incident in Hope's Peak Academy's History.

A random student Ryoko meets at Matsuda's laboratory, he is an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent who is blessed with luck (or bad luck depending how you view it), having been chosen to attend Hope Peak's Academy because of the luck in question.

* TheDragon: To Enoshima.
* FirstNameBasis: Being her older twin sister, Ikusaba calls Enoshima "Junko-chan."
* IWasJustPassingThrough: She uses this as an excuse to justify why she happens to be at the scene when she saves Naegi from Madarai.
* IncestSubtext: Displays some rather... disturbing behavior when she's talking about Enoshima. Even Ryouko (who turns out to be Junko herself) is disturbed.
* MasculineGirlFeminineBoy: This is invoked when ''and'' how she saves Naegi from Madarai.

* ShipTease: She seemingly has a crush on Naegi, which is made far more obvious in ''Literature/DanganronpaTriggerHappyHavocIf''.
* SuperSpeed: Shows this during her fights with the eight Madarai brothers. It's a big hint to how she's disguised as Enoshima.
* {{Tsundere}}: Her "IWasJustPassingThrough" excuse towards Naegi and her little embarrassment indicate that she's this.

* {{Yandere}}: Sibling-based feelings. Everything she does--from perpetrating murders to allowing for her sanity's destruction--is out of her devotion to Enoshima.

[[folder:Sōshun Murasame]]

The president of Hope's Peak Academy's student council and one of the two survivors of The Worst Incident in Hope's Peak Academy's History, having been rendered comatose by a head wound. He actually recovered a while ago, but has faked being comatose out of shell shock and trauma. Matsuda eventually manages to get a reaction out of him and chokes him to death upon realizing what he knows.

* MadnessMantra: Starts screaming for Enoshima to be killed over and over before he dies.

* SoleSurvivor: The only surviving member of the student council after The Worst Incident in Hope's Peak Academy's History... though it doesn't last thanks to Matsuda.

* WalkingSpoiler: His role reveals not only what The Worst Incident in Hope's Peak Academy's History is, but also Matsuda's true motives.

* WhamLine: While Kirigiri has already told her about it, Kamishiro delivers one to Ryōko by confirming that Matsuda is Murasame's murderer.

A defender of the academy with the appearance of a snake, Madarai is determined at any cost to find whoever was responsible for The Worst Incident in Hope's Peak Academy's History. This leads him to pursue Ryoko, who through circumstance is marked as dangerous. After the confrontation, he is subsequently attacked and killed by Enoshima. Later on, Madarai returns, leading to TheReveal that "Isshiki Madarai" is actually a name used by eight identical siblings: Isshiki, Nisshiki, Misshiki, Yosshiki, Gosshiki, Rosshiki, Shisshiki, and Yasshiki. Renowned for their superhuman synchronization skills, they are all eventually killed by Ikusaba.

Isshiki is the first one to be introduced, confronting Ryoko and "Enoshima" (who is actually Ikusaba) at the school's central fountain, and he pursues the former relentlessly until he's trapped by her in a shed. Nisshiki assaults her right after she has defeated Isshiki, but he's killed by Ikusaba on the spot. Misshiki appears in Matsuda's laboratory where he takes Naegi hostage, but he's overwhelmed by Ikusaba's fighting skills. Later on, Yosshiki and Gosshiki corner Ryōko and Kirigiri in Matsuda's laboratory, with Rosshiki backing them up. After Ryōko jumps from the building to escape, she's cornered by Shisshiki, Yasshiki, Yosshiki, and Gosshiki—all while Rosshiki is busy fighting Kirigiri. The four brothers ganging up on Ryōko are then mercilessly defeated by Ikusaba at once.

* TheCameo: Madarai appears briefly in ''Super Danganronpa 2.5'', along with Matsuda and Ryōko.
* ChuckCunninghamSyndrome: They were absent when The Worst Incident in Hope's Peak Academy's History happened, which led them to "survive" the incident.

* ItsPersonal: They were not there when The Worst, Most Despair-Inducing Incident in the History of Hope's Peak Academy occurred. Aside from their guilt as failed to do their job as the Student Council's bodyguards, they weren't even targeted by the criminals and didn't consider them as a real member of the Student Council, feeling humiliated by that. Now they want revenge.
* JerkassHasAPoint: In the end, Madarai is not completely off with his belief of Ryoko Otonashi being involved with the massacre of the student council, as it is later confirmed that Enoshima orchestrated it.
* JumpingOffTheSlipperySlope: When they attempt to kill Kirigiri, the headmaster's daughter, in order to prevent her discovering the details behind the Incident.

* MyFriendsAndZoidberg: He is elected as a Student Council "member" to be the council's bodyguard.. but neither the council nor [[BigBad the]] [[TheDragon criminals]] behind The Worst Incident in Hope's Peak Academy's History consider him an actual member.

* RevengeBeforeReason: His FatalFlaw, as his determination to avenge the academy leads him to pursue Ryōko--a frightened girl with no idea what's going on--with the intent to torture her for information.

* WeHardlyKnewYe: Killed by Enoshima in the first volume shortly after Ryōko escapes. Subverted when it turns out he, or rather they, aren't quite finished yet.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: To a rather blatant extent. His obsession with avenging The Worst Incident in Hope's Peak Academy's History is what drags everyone down.
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: One has their neck broken by "Enoshima" (Nisshiki), the one Ryoko knocked out in the shed (Isshiki) is implied to have been killed, one was curb-stomped in Matsuda's laboratory (Misshiki) and four are defeated in combat by Ikusaba (Yoshiki, Gosshiki, Shisshiki and Yasshiki) before being killed by her. What happened to Rosshiki is never explained or shown, even though it's implied in the epilogue that all the brothers died since he/they were "expelled."

* BreakHerHeartToSaveHer: Threatens his daughter with expulsion should she continue investigating The Worst Incident in Hope's Peak Academy's History, doing so in order to save her life.

* LoveFreak: Well, "talent freak." It's not obvious, but he ''really'' likes talent. The ending spells out that Jin outright let Enoshima go through with her plans until it was too late to stop her because he saw ''despair'' as a viable talent.

A mysterious student who is believed to be the culprit behind The Worst Incident in Hope's Peak Academy's History.

A random student Ryōko meets at Matsuda's laboratory, he is an OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent who is blessed with luck (or bad luck depending how you view it), having been chosen to attend Hope Peak's Academy because of the luck in question.

A former member of an infamous mercenary group called Fenrir, Ikusaba is notorious for not receiving a single wound in her three years of service. Debuting in the second volume, she is Naegi's classmate and the older twin sister of Junko Enoshima, who she is in league with.

* ActionGirl: Especially since she's a female soldier. Once she becomes Enoshima's accomplice, she becomes a DarkActionGirl.
* AxCrazy: She has no problem with being either a murderous criminal or a member of Ultimate Despair. During a small mental breakdown, she is described as having eyes with swirls and spirals in them much like Enoshima did before she was executed. It also brings to mind other characters in the franchise who have fallen into despair.
* BigDamnHeroes: Saves Ryoko and Naegi from Madarai with a single knife throw.

[[folder:Ryōko Otonashi]]

The heroine of the novel, Ryōko suffers from anterograde amnesia, a condition that causes her to forget things shortly after they happen. In order to function in day-to-day life, she keeps a "memory notebook" filled with information about herself and her daily routine. Ryōko is hopelessly in love with Yasuke Matsuda, the doctor researching her memory loss. She is actually the amnesiac [[BigBad Junko]] [[HopeCrusher Enoshima]], as she instructed Yasuke to have her undergo a memory-wiping procedure in preparation of perfecting said procedure and using it against her classmates right before the "School Life of Mutual Killing."

* AwesomenessByAnalysis: Ryōko's talent. During the few times she remembers she has it, she can easily curbstomp trained assassins and "read" people's emotional flaws to an almost precognitive degree.

* TheCameo: Ryōko appears briefly in ''Super Danganronpa 2.5'' alongside Matsuda and Madarai.
* CasualKink: After it's explained to Ryōko why she's [[ItMakesSenseInContext tied to a bed]], her fear dissipates and she actually starts feeling a little excited about the experience.
* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: Even factoring in her condition, Ryōko doesn't think much like a normal person. At one point she even dreams about going to America with Matsuda to start a corn farm... ''on the moon''.

* EnemyWithin: It is implied that Ryōko temporarily regains her memories as Enoshima in certain scenes.
* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: She must have dyed her hair twice, once shortly prior to her memory loss and once again after her memory recovery. Changing her hair from blond to red is one of the things that catches Naegi off-guard.
* EvilRedhead: It's implied red is the natural color of Enoshima's hair and that she dyes it blonde.

* FullNameBasis: If the narration refers to her by her name, it will always be her full name. Even when she refers to herself, she does it internally... and ''also'' by her full name. This oddly sterile quality of the narration and Ryōko's inner voice is probably part of the [[{{Foreshadowing}} foreshadowing]] that her "name" is an alias.

* HeyYou: Whenever she introduces herself by her name, she just points at her notebook and people read "Ryōko Otonashi." However, neither the other characters call her by that name (regardless if it's the first, the last or the full name) nor does she vocally call herself by that name, which foreshadows that "Ryōko" isn't her real name. This becomes a plot point, as neither Kirigiri nor Naegi call her by any name in spite of knowing she's Enoshima.
* IJustWantToBeLoved: Matsuda theorizes that Ryōko's obsession with him is how she copes with the loneliness induced by her condition, although Ryōko herself refuses to hear it.
* ItsAllAboutMe: It isn't overt, but at times, Ryōko is shown to barely care about anything that doesn't concern her or Matsuda. Justified given that she can't remember anything besides Matsuda and thus treats it as irrelevant.
* JekyllAndHyde: Her connection to Enoshima. Certain scenes suggest she hallucinates seeing her when she begins to regain her memories.

* NeverMyFault: She has a habit of saying "that has nothing to do with me." The most blatant example is when Naegi is taken hostage by Madarai, with Ryōko refusing to help him because she insists on being uninvolved and blaming Naegi's bad luck for his situation.

* RedEyesTakeWarning: Assuming her eyes are really the [[CurtainsMatchTheWindows same color as her hair]]. Not only may she have killed one of the Madarai brothers in self-defense with ''Film/HomeAlone'' [[ShoutOut inspired traps]]. In addition, moments after she reverts to being Enoshima, she stabs Matsuda in a fit of despair and then kicks his corpse repeatedly until it's unrecognizable. The accompanying image even gives her an overlay of Monokuma's red eye over her left eye.
* RememberTheNewGuy: Given that she's seemingly a new character, we learn that Naegi has already met her in the past. It's subverted, as it turns out that the reason why Naegi remembers her is because she is Enoshima.

* SupportingProtagonist: About half of the story is narrated from her perspective, and yet Ryōko takes an almost entirely passive approach to the events. Mostly because, in her own words, she doesn't care about other things besides Matsuda because she'll eventually forget about them. Somewhat fittingly, Ryōko lacks an IdiotHair (a characteristic of main characters in the franchise) while Matsuda has one.
* ThirdPersonPerson: An odd variation. There are a couple of times where she internally refers to herself by her full name as if Ryōko Otonashi is a different person. This is a hint that "Ryōko" isn't her true identity.
* ThrowingOffTheDisability: Played with. While Ryōko does lose her condition at the end, she didn't actually have anterograde amnesia, with her memory condition being a side effect of the memory wipe Matsuda had her undergo.
* TomatoInTheMirror: In the climax of the second volume, Ryōko finally manages to regain her lost memories... unveiling her as having been the ''real'' Enoshima the whole time.
-->''"[[EvilLaugh Upupupu!]]'' ''[[WhamLine That's right! Ryōko... Otonashi... never... even... existed... in... the... first... place!]]"''

* VillainProtagonist: ''She'' is not a villain, but Enoshima certainly is, and this story is primarily concerned with the "two" of them.
* ViolentlyProtectiveGirlfriend: She snaps into a fit of [[UnstoppableRage blind rage]] when she finds out that one of Enoshima's goals is to kill Matsuda. She vows to do whatever it takes to protect him and their world... and then we find out she ''is'' Enoshima.

* WrongGenreSavvy: When she snaps at Kirigiri, she believes to awaken hidden PsychicPowers when the glass on the door is breaking. She tries to use {{Telekinesis}} on Kirigiri's [[YourHeadASplode head to kill her]], but it obviously doesn't work and it's just her wild imagination. Why was the glass breaking? It's because Madarai broke it.

Ryōko's doctor, crush, and childhood friend, Matsuda is renowned for his knowledge and skill relating to the human brain. He also happens to be aloof and overly rude. Matsuda is in fact the childhood friend of Junko Enoshima, having created the identity of Ryōko for her in order to protect her from others--including, to his own word, herself. This leads to him murdering Murasame and Kamishiro when they get too close to the truth. Eventually, he tries to kill Ryōko after realizing Enoshima was using him as a pawn, only to be fatally stabbed before his corpse is kicked repeatedly until it's unrecognizable.

* AntiVillain: While the fact that Enoshima has been using him without him knowing may make him sympathetic, he is still not one of the "good" guys.
* TheAtoner: He eventually realizes that his attempt to salvage Enoshima's sanity has failed and he must kill her to protect humanity (having personally killed everyone else who tried). [[HeelFaceDoorSlam He's too late.]]

* HeelFaceDoorSlam: Is killed just after realizing that Enoshima was using him as an UnwittingPawn.

* LikeParentLikeSpouse: It's stated by Ikusaba at the end that Ryoko's appearance was based on Matsuda's late mother.
* LovingAShadow: He's despised Enoshima ever since she fell into despair. Realizing this is what really causes him to break.
* MissingMom: His mother's death by an unspecified brain condition is what led him to become a neurologist. As he's dying, Enoshima claims to have orchestrated her death, though how truthful she was is left ambiguous. Given the circumstances, she was probably lying in an attempt to drive him further into despair before he died.

* NoKillLikeOverkill: After he's stabbed to death, Enoshima kicks his corpse so badly it's described as barely looking human.

* TragicVillain: He never wanted to hurt anyone or even cause despair—all he was actually trying to do was protect his childhood friend, the only emotional support he had since his mother died. For it, he got used as a pawn, killed two of his fellow students, tried to kill said friend after realizing it was the only option he had left, and ended up stabbed, dying under the belief that she might have actually been responsible for his mother's death. For a kicker, Enoshima ''repeatedly kicks his corpse until it's unrecognizable'' before stealing his research. '''Ouch'''.

* UnwittingPawn: To Enoshima. He doesn't take realizing her manipulation well.

* WhatMeasureIsANonHuman: He considers Ryoko a mere role that Enoshima is playing, and talks to her as he would Enoshima (for example, his comment that Ryoko has an "ugly heart"). Despite this, he still feels disappointed when Ryoko "dies."

[[caption-width-right:300:Enoshima in ''Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc''.]]
The mastermind behind a scheme to spread despair across the globe, Enoshima orchestrated The Worst Incident in Hope's Peak Academy's History as part of that scheme. She claims to have stolen Ryōko's memories and then declares that her EvilPlan now includes murdering Matsuda. Near the second volume's end, Ryōko realizes that this Enoshima is a disguised Ikusaba.

* AlphaBitch: The first time she meets Ryōko, she establishes herself as this. Enoshima's also the kind of attractive, influential, and rich girl who loves seeing others fall into despair.

* AxCrazy: Enoshima is way more than crazed enough to want '''everyone on Earth''' drowning in despair. There's also how she ''scratched Ryōko's tongue just because she showed her name instead of saying it''.

* BigBad: Of ''Danganronpa Zero'', as it's her scheme for global despair which leads to everything that happens in the novel. However, Ikusaba's a decoy BigBad.
* BlackEyesOfEvil: Ryōko narrates how Enoshima has "deep dark eyes" that could potentially swallow "even the darkness of the night."
* BreakThemByTalking: She makes Ryōko feel sick by explaining what she thinks about everyone who isn't her.

* CharacterExaggeration: Enoshima's already over-the-top personality is turned ''up to eleven'', and it makes sense because she's '''not''' the real Enoshima.
* DarkActionGirl: Puts up a very good fight against Madarai. This is mostly because it's Ikusaba who's fighting.
* EvilLaugh: As she scratches Ryōko's tongue, she breaks down into a fit of disturbing laughter.

* TheFashionista: Enoshima's official talent.
* FlashStep: Uses this against Ryōko when she tries to run away from her.

* HopeCrusher: Including Ryōko, only a few people are aware she's the Ultimate Despair. Look no further than what she has to say right after she's through with scratching her tongue.

* ItsAllAboutMe: Enoshima not only believes she's the only person who matters, but also that ''thinking'' about escaping her is "nonsense." '''Geez'''...

* MoodSwinger: Enoshima rapidly changes whatever she's talking about along with her facial expressions.
* ObviouslyEvil: Ryōko quickly realizes how sinister Enoshima is.

* OutOfCharacterMoment: She seems quite offended by Ryōko’s large bust, and insists that it will sag horribly as she ages. An odd thing for someone as well-endowed as Junko to comment on.

* TalkativeLoon: Enoshima's an AxCrazy mastermind who loves to talk.

* TheyLookJustLikeEveryoneElse: Ryōko notes how Enoshima appears to be just another "normal cute girl" at first.

[[folder:Yūto Kamishiro]]

* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: An odd, [[{{Keet}} outgoing]] boy with a perverted personality and a mild obsession with solving mysteries right out of a spy thriller. Ryouko's narration even says he has an "innocent madness" to him.
* TheCuckoolanderWasRight: Despite his eccentric behavior, Kamishiro was right about Enoshima being the mastermind behind The Worst Incident in Hope's Peak Academy's History.

** Which is why Matsuda killed him. Also, he's only character who figures out that Enoshima orchestrated the deaths of the academy's student council.

* {{Bishonen}}: His body is slender and gentle-featured, in contrast to his personality.

* DrJerk: Rarely nice to anyone even if it is A) his fellow student, B) his patient, and c) openly head-over-heels for him.

** He is aware of how dangerous this trope is, so he doesn't share any information that his junior agent--Chihiro Fujisaki--doesn't need to know.

* IncestSubtext: Displays some rather... disturbing behavior when she's talking about Enoshima.

* DoesNotLikeShoes: Spends much of his time in his lab barefoot.

'''''Characters/Danganronpa2GoodbyeDespair''''' | [[Characters/Danganronpa2MaleStudents Male Students]] ([[Characters/DanganronpaHajimeHinata Hajime Hinata]] | [[Characters/DanganronpaNagitoKomaeda Nagito Komaeda]]) | [[Characters/Danganronpa2FemaleStudents Female Students]]\\

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: One has their neck broken by "Enoshima" (Nisshiki), the one Ryoko knocked out in the shed (Isshiki) is implied to have been killed, one was curb-stomped in Matsuda's laboratory (Misshiki) and four are defeated in combat by Ikusaba (Yoshiki, Gosshiki, Shisshiki and Yasshiki) before being killed by her and Ryōko. What happened to Rosshiki is never explained or shown, even though it's implied in the epilogue that all the brothers died since he/they were "expelled."

* GoodCannotComprehendEvil: For a given value of 'good'. He initially believed that Enoshima's despair could be healed as if it were a mental disorder or illness. In reality, Enoshima despairs because it is in her ''nature'' to do so, and she doesn't want to be 'helped' (though she enjoys sanity in some ways, as it alleviates her endless boredom).

* WhatMeasureIsANonHuman: He ''correctly'' considers Ryoko a mere role that Enoshima is playing, and talks to her as he would Enoshima (for example, his comment that Ryoko has an "ugly heart"). Despite this, he still feels disappointed when Ryoko "dies."

* RedEyesTakeWarning: Assuming her eyes are really the [[CurtainsMatchTheWindows same color as her hair]]. Not only may she have killed one of the Madarai brothers with ''Film/HomeAlone'' [[ShoutOut inspired traps]], but towards the end of the story, she begins to become even more unhinged and is willing to commit murder if that's what it takes to see Matsuda again. In addition, moments after she reverts to being Enoshima, she stabs Matsuda in a fit of despair and then kicks his corpse repeatedly until it's unrecognizable. The accompanying image even gives her an overlay of Monokuma's red eye over her left eye.

* {{Yandere}}: Spirals into being this towards the end of ''Zero'', where she decides to murder the eight Madarai brothers just to see Matsuda.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ryoko_otonashi.png]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/yasuke_matsuda_illustration.png]]

[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mukuro_ikusaba_dr0.png]]

* DoomedByCanon: He's murdered by Junko just before the events of ''Trigger Happy Havoc''. Since ''Zero'' takes place around a year before that, he's safe here... but he's still destined to die.

* DoomedByCanon: Ikusaba dies in ''Trigger Happy Havoc'' when Enoshima betrays her on a whim.

* MegaTwintails: Her twin pigtails are described as "large, soft puffs."

* ShipTease: She seemingly has a crush on Naegi, which is made far more obvious in ''Danganronpa IF''.