Akomaru

There are characters in this series who are impossible to do justice by. Akomaru is one of them. Abandoned by his mother at birth, loathed by a father who wanted nothing to do with him, Akomaru is also very probably the only child amongst the Gohma. He is Shaddam's son, and it is reflected in his clothing, the colors he wears, and his attitude. Namely, the boy is strikingly like his father. Not surprising, for the two loathe each other fiercely. But surprisingly, Akomaru also has an ability for subtlety and planning that seems lacking in Shaddam. That may be because he was raised by the old Shogun and cared for by the Three Women, who treated him more as an adult than a child. It may be because he is a child, and has not lived over six-thousand years.

But it is appalling to look at a boy not quite ten years old, and recognize ennui. He was like an accellerated version of Shaddam. Already bidding for a high place in the Gohma hierarchy, even better for his father's place and to knock him down. Akomaru debued in Dairanger chasing the same legend his father was after, but with knowledge Shaddam did not possess. They were both aiming to stop and take the power of the Kiba Ranger. Shaddam was clueless as to who that would be, but Akomaru had his sources. He knew they were looking for a boy his age, with a tiger burned into his right arm. He knew that, and it was almost all he knew but for one little thing. So when chance set Akomaru passing by and he looked at Kou, for probably the second time... he did not know who he was seeing until some time afterward.

But when he did know, he went undercover. He disguised himself as a girl, bearing a faint resemblance to Kou's lost mother, and effectively seduced the other boy (in an INNOCENT way!) Hate was an emotion Akomaru understood well, and probably drawing from his own experience, created a scenario designed to get Kou to feel it, thus spurring the Gohma facet of his power beyond the strength of the tiger-brand to hold it in. The one thing Akomaru could never quite grasp was why Kou did not hate. But perhaps it was because there was no evil father around to hate. Akomaru's experience was that if your mother hated you enough to leave you, and your father loathed you so much he would attack you and threaten to kill you... what else was there but to hate them both, passionately, and feel your power from doing so?

Son and Father. This picture of Akomaru was from the day of his tenth birthday, when children's souls are closest to Hell. And when a Gohma child comes into his or her adult power. For that which we see on his forehead is the Gohma third eye, preparing to open. And beside him the picture of Shaddam, most probably HIS third eye is hidden under his leather hood. The actors did a good job, and Akomaru's was well-chosen. They do resemble each other, don't they?

There came a day when Akomaru got a second chance. When I think about it I must admit it really was a first chance. That was the day they found out the truth about his mother. That she had not abandoned him out of disgust for him, but in a determined effort to save his life. And that made all the difference in the world to him. Akomaru had been a Gohma all his life. He knew how to manage the hate and power he held. To know suddenly that he had been loved by his mother, loved so much she had given up the power that she could have had... loved so much that she had kept even under great duress the secret of his existence. She had exposed Kou rather than Akomaru. And when Shaddam turned on him completely and dealt him a mortal blow, the dying boy went to his mother. For the first time in his life, he knew he was loved.