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Bubblegum Space Rock is the poly ship between Leon Kuwata, Kazuichi Soda, and Kaito Momota from the Danganronpa fandom.
Canon[]
Leon Kuwata is a character from Danganronpa Trigger Happy Havoc. Kazuichi Soda is a character from Super Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair. Kaito Momota is a character from Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony. As such, the characters have never directly interacted in canon, as they all come from different games. However, Leon and Kazuichi would have both attended Hope's Peak Academy at the same time. Leon was in Class 78, and Kazuichi was in Class 77. Although we never see them interact in the anime Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope's Peak High School, which shows their time at school prior to the Tragedy, that doesn't mean that the two never met off-screen. Kaito, however, comes from a different timeline where the first two Danganronpa games are simply that; games. As such, Leon and Kazuichi are fictional characters to Kaito.
Kaito and Leon interact briefly in the non-canonical Ultimate Talent Development Plan. This bonus mode exists in an Alternate Universe where the characters from all three games attend Hope's Peak Academy together. In their interaction, Kaito and Leon discuss "exploring new worlds", referring to the girl's locker room. Kaito says that it's all about the adventure and the passion to learn new things. Leon and Teruteru Hanamura, however, disagree. They want to actually get with girls or, at the very least, peep on them. Kaito seems offended by these ideas.
Kaito and Leon interact again in Danganronpa S: Ultimate Summer Camp. This time, they arrive at the baths when Tenko Chabashira is there. She calls them out for trying to peep, but Leon explains that it's actually the boys' time to bathe. Tenko says that he must not have seen the new schedule Kokichi Oma created, before realizing that she's been tricked by him. Leon tries to get Tenko to apologize, to which she does not so sincerely. Kaito tries to diffuse the situation, by reminding his "buddy" Leon that this is all the fault of Kokichi.
Leon and Kazuichi share a scene in Danganronpa S as well, with Mondo Owada, Chihiro Fujisaki, and Kiyotaka Ishimaru. However, they do not directly interact with one another and do not even appear on screen at the same time. Kazuichi brings a jet-propelled raft to their hang out, and Chihiro and Mondo are both incredibly impressed by his craftsmanship. Kiyotaka expresses his concern about the speed limit of such a vehicle, but Leon quickly shuts him down. He reminds Kiyotaka that they can't die in the virtual world, but both Chihiro and Mondo agree that going too fast would still be dangerous.
Kaito and Kazuichi never interact with each other in canon, and Kazuichi and Leon never speak directly with each other. Still, the characters do share a number of similarities. All three have very bright colour palettes and aesthetics, with Leon and Kazuichi both canonically dying their hair bright colours. They are also each known for being passionate, loud, and foul-mouthed (although each takes second place in their respective games behind a character who swears even more then they do).
Kazuichi is very much a mixture of the both Leon and Kaito, and shares more in common with them than they do with each other. Kazuichi and Leon are both seemingly chill and laidback at first, but are revealed through the course of the game to be quite the opposite. They are also the known "womanizers" of their respective games, with Leon showing an interest in Sayaka Maizono and Kazuichi an interest in Sonia Nevermind. Even their designs are similair, with dyed hair and punk-rock kind of looks. Kaito and Kazuichi, on the other hand, are both characters that are incredibly close friends with their respective protagonists; Kazuich is Hajime's "soul friend", and Kaito acts as Shuichi's support and "sidekick". They are also both known to be jumpy and get scared rather easily. Kazuichi's talent of Ultimate Mechanic could also be of use to Kaito's talent of Ultimate Astronaut. Finally, Kaito and Leon are both executed after committing a murder, with Leon being the first blackened of the series and Kaito being the last.
Fanon[]
Bubblegum Space Rock is a rather popular crossover relationship in the Danganronpa fandom. Some fans also like to include Yasuhiro Hagakure in the group, calling them the "Himbos" of the games. However, due to Kazuichi, Leon, and Kaito's flashy styles and similar aesthetics, it is generally just the three that are grouped together. Fans like to think that they would all get along well together, with Kaito being the voice of reason for the more hot-headed Leon and Kazuichi.
While the pairing might be slightly more popular as a friendship than a polyship, it still has its fans. It helps that Bubblegum Rock, the romantic pairing between Kazuichi and Leon, is one of the most popular cross-game ships in the fandom.
On AO3, there are currently 2 written works.
Fandom[]
- FAN FICTION
- Kaito/Kazuichi/Leon tag on AO3
Variations[]
- Bubblegum Rock refers to the ship between Leon and Kazuichi
- Kaileon refers to the ship between Leon and Kaito
- Mamouda refers to the ship between Kazuichi and Kaito