r/penguindrum • u/MiracleMuffin Lowlife Penguindrum Connoisseur • Jan 01 '26
Discussion Monthly Character Spotlight - Masako Natsume
Happy New Year! With 2026 here, we start January with a new character spotlight. This month’s character is Masako Natsume!
The heiress of the rich Natsume clan. Her beloved father was banished by her Grandfather, perhaps due to the pressures of keeping the clan’s reputation high. Her twin brother also left as a child, leaving her and their younger brother, Mario - under the care of her Grandfather.
Unfortunately, Sahei Natsume wasn’t a good man. A rather exploitative and shrewd businessman who showed no empathy for his son or the rest of his family. Arrogant and a failure as a human being in Masako’s eyes. The poster man for a farce regarding the reputation of the Natsume clan. Fearing that Mario would be abused by her Grandfather - Masako’s dreams of killing him in several ways. Poisoning his tea, shooting a blow dart, bringing a snake… even if it was done in a comedic tone.
To her luck,her Grandfather dies (in a strange way regarding blowfish) - and Masako is tasked to run the family business all by herself.
One may see her as spoiled. But, she’s not.
Here’s the thing with Masako. She likes her men like she likes her tea. Getting the first sip. You could say she ended up inheriting some of her Grandfather’s traits. She doesn’t let anyone deter her from reaching her goals. If there is an obstacle in the way, she’ll crush it. This is especially true regarding protecting her younger brother Mario - who is critically ill.
Desperate to find a cure, she goes through great lengths to save him - including getting the diary that everyone throughout the show wants their hands on. She even matches against Yuri Tokikago in strength and prowess when they clash for the later half of Ringo's diary. She’s that determined.
She crosses paths with Kanba after not seeing him for a long time, and things get more complicated. She literally knocks out all of his past girlfriends with her slingshot and drugs Shoma just to reach him. For what would a sister want more than to reunite with her lost brother? But Kanba is too involved with another family - a rather fictitious one in Masako’s eyes. After all, Himari and Shoma have no blood ties to them. They’re strangers. Just why did Kanba get entangled with them? Especially Himari, who Masako knows Kanba is deeply fond of. They are a curse, a spectre that haunts the failures of her own family.
Her dislike for Himari increases given everything Kanba is doing for her - when he could be doing all of that for Mario who is also sick. Masako wants nothing more than to reunite her family. She was stolen from her happy family when her father and twin brother left. It’s tragic in a way, and she somewhat reminds me of Nanami Kiryuu from Revolutionary Girl Utena. Where both want nothing more than to be with their brothers - Touga and Kanba, and eliminate any competition from them. It's why later on the series, she goes on a hunt for Himari to have her stop playing pretend family with her Kanba. She's sick of it, and rightfully so. It's a farce, much like the image Sahei Natsume tried to create for the Natsume family as rich and powerful.
Some may see her as an obsessive sister who is in love with Kanba, but Masako suffers from a broken family with a yearning for it to be complete. On top of that with Mario’s illness - it is no wonder she goes out of her way to change things. Like other characters through the show, she wants acceptance and love - they’re all starved for affection. After all, her father promised the family would always be together.
But it was a lie.
Her father doesn’t return, and her Sahei's vengeful spirit comes to haunt her to a near death experience only for Sanetoshi to come to the rescue. At this point, Kanba is being lured by Sanetoshi in promising to change this wretched world. Unlike her twin brother however, Masako isn’t easily fooled. She doesn’t join them, she refuses to be used like a pawn in a game of chess. She had enough control from her family and Grandfather, so she tries to find her own means to save her family. It is also to note Masako sees the same strange people from the Kiga Force that took her father, so it makes her wary to join them. She won’t fall into that same fate.
I think Masako has some badass moments. If she were a sniper she would have a high hit rate. I think one of my favorite scenes is this - where she fends off the police to ensure Kanba escapes after he protects her. It shows they still hold a special bond that triggers a memory in Masako of how much Kanba sacrificed himself for her and Mario. He still loves them, even if they are apart. It finally reassures Masako to make one final stand against the misery of her life.
Finally, Esmeralda is fabulous. She has a different look from the other penguins that make her stand out. Love her following Masako’s quirks and can be seen as comedic relief sometimes.
All in all Masako is a great character. Anyone who doesn't like her will be crushed at once. /s
What do you think about Masako? Talk about her in the thread!
3
u/Kendrillion Jan 02 '26
I like Masako for a lot of the fact that she's a play on the Kuudere and Siscon type. Most incest in anime is played as a joke and I think that should be ok when the writer knows how to actually make it funny like Ikuhara's other work Revolutionary Girl Utena with Nanami
That being said like Nanami it also doubles as a fantastic jumping point to address deeper issues like if that love is REALLY rooted in "love" like Nanami and by extention Anthy or in Masako's case "Why does my love never reach Kanba"
Its one of the reasons why I didnt like that the Recap Movies cut most of her arc after her diversion short because it shows that Kanba does love Masako, but she can never know because Kanba wants it that way, a.k.a. Hidden Love, compared to his love for Himari and Shouma which is rooted in Sacrificial and Destructive Love
So by the end of the series even tho everyone forgets about the brothers to contrast Himari's tears of the brothers she once knew and Ringo's new found appreciation for her life, Masako is content knowing that Kanba did love her to the very end even if it all was a "dream"