lotus 龙 wife
Honestly how can you not like the wiggly demon starfish? He gatekept the fuck out of people in IMAGINE but was chill enough to still hang out with you after you killed his bro Forneus in Nocturne. A great guy. 8/10.
izzy.vrm
I've never understood why she's a solid badass in the SMT series but early-to-midgame fusion fodder in Persona. I think she's a fun design and one of the reasons I laugh when everyone accuses Doi of drawing sentai monsters, like Kaneko's Mab wouldn't look perfectly at home getting rider kicked to death. 7/10.
paradisaea
Kikuri-hime is legitimately one of the best glow up redesigns that Kaneko is responsible for, given her original design is just a lady in a robe. 3/10 for the original design, 9/10 for the revision.
stheno ☆
I liked this dude a hell of a lot better before my students all started copping his haircut. It's hard to be objective when his grown up design fucks so hard, and here's this little dork. Bits are charming like the school uniform pants under the armor, but definitely a victim of the mid-00's Kaneko obsession with patterns everywhere. 5.75/10.
連続犬
Jack Frost, Megami Tensei II kind of like how the original chocobo design was featherless and terrifying, Jack-o-Frost was actually more at home in a British children's book. Honestly he's so charming in a nostalgic way I want him to come back. 7.5/10
Jack Frost, 1992-2021 The iconic. Untouchable. Lovable. Instantly made a perfect mascot and you should be able to tell why. One of the best little guys of all time. 9/10.
Jack Frost, SMTV onward honestly for a subtle redesign I like it. Definitely feels like the frost for the modern day. I think it'll grow on me as time goes on. 8.5/10.
King Frost, 1993-2008: Just honestly not a whole lot to say here. It's not a bad design but it's fairly plain. Does what it needs to and gets moving. 6/10.
King Frost, Modern: Has a lot more of a terrible autocrat vibe than his counterpart. I'm pretty sure this is the sort of petty tyrant you actually want to dethrone. 8/10.
Jack-o-Lantern, Megami Tensei II: I know he's more accurate to the lore, he's even decidedly turnip-shaped, but he's also like you tried to draw the California Raisins while down a k-hole. 2/10.
Jack-o-Lantern, every other game: Now this? This is fun. This is cute while still having a tiny touch of menace. I think this version deserves to be a mascot like his brother. 8/10.
Jack Ripper: Oh come on, he's just a little guy who wants to murder you and is screaming the whole time! Bring him back! He needs to be in more games! 8.5/10.
Hee-Ho-kun: The first of the mascot Frosts, and I believe the most prolific, showing up in SMT If..., Nocturne, and Persona. A merchant, a bro, literally just a normal Jack Frost who stole a school uniform. 8.75/10 how do you not love him?
Raihou Kuzunoha I: The exact right amount of dumb and zany in a game duology that needed it. I appreciate he has a story arc, of all characters. Arguably more than some of the other recurring characters. 8.75/10 nothing drives the girls crazy like a sharp-dressed Jack.
Frost Ace: Again this little guy just fucks. He works so well for what he is, he's the best thing that the DemiKids games ever gave us. The closest one of the Jack Frost variants gets to his original. 8.999/10.
Nahobeeho and Ai-Ho: I don't know. Are we just now at the point where every SMT game needs a Frost Variant? I feel like these are fine. They're inoffensive. If you told me either was your favorite I'd just shrug. 6.5/10.
The Flavored Frost Rangers and the Frost Five: So I know I complained that Lucifrost was one-note but somehow the snow cone Frosts just make a ton of sense to me given the tone of the Devil Summoner/Soul Hackers subseries? It feels like it fits better. All of them teaming up into a sentai team is almost a little too goofy.
But I mean almost. Toes the line. My ratings are as follows: Lemon Frost: 6/10 you can tell he tastes like store knock-off sprite. Blue Hawaiian Frost: 8/10 it's a good flavor. Strawberry Frost: 3.5/10 if you were gonna make him red and a physical attacker he shoulda been FRUIT PUNCH. Also strawberry snow cone syrup is so one-note.
Melon Frost: 8/10 Kasugai why did you discontinue muskmelon gummies? Milky Frost: 6.5/10 my dude is a whole can of condensed milk on a snow cone you're going to develop the first case of Type 3 Diabetes. Frost Five: 5/10 needs an upgrade form that adds a sixth flavor.
The Devil Buster Busters: The Frost Duo who walked so the Hee-Ho Bros could fly in Digital Devil Saga. I love their designs so goddamn much, but they themselves are kind of just there and a one-off thing, much like all of Devil Summoner itself. 5.5/10 it's a waste.
Queen Frost: Originally introduced in the Demikids game then given a more standard design for the dx2 Liberation gacha, this is one I don't have a ton of experience with? It's not offensive but it's just so fucking busy and I really can't get interested or excited with it? 4/10.
Jack Frost in SBK - Snow Board Kids: I live in a fucking swamp and I would have to talk myself out of that sick ass snowboard design if you sold a real one. 10/10 put him in a real game already Atlus.
Lemon Frost: 6/10 you can tell he tastes like store knock-off sprite.
Blue Hawaiian Frost: 8/10 it's a good flavor.
Strawberry Frost: 3.5/10 if you were gonna make him red and a physical attacker he shoulda been FRUIT PUNCH. Also strawberry snow cone syrup is so one-note.
Milky Frost: 6.5/10 my dude is a whole can of condensed milk on a snow cone you're going to develop the first case of Type 3 Diabetes.
Frost Five: 5/10 needs an upgrade form that adds a sixth flavor.