| Hajime Hinata | |
|---|---|
| Danganronpa character | |
 Screenshot of Hajime Hinata (left) and Izuru Kamukura (right) from Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope's Peak High School | |
| First appearance | Danganronpa Zero (2011; cameo) |
| First game | Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair (2012) |
| Created by | Kazutaka Kodaka |
| Designed by | Rui Komatsuzaki |
| Voiced by | EN: Johnny Yong Bosch[1][2] JA: Minami Takayama[3] |
| Portrayed by | Ryusei Yokohama (stage play) |
Hajime Hinata (Japanese: 日向 創, Hepburn: Hinata Hajime), also known as Izuru Kamukura (神座 出流, Kamukura Izuru), is a character from the Spike Chunsoft visual novel action-adventure game series Danganronpa. The character has two identities: Izuru first appeared in the 2011 light novel prequel Danganronpa Zero by Kazutaka Kodaka as a mysterious high school student whose actions resulted in genocide, while a computer avatar copy of Hajime appeared as the protagonist of the 2012 video game Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair, as a high school student with no memory of his past, forced to investigate murder cases involving high school students who are trapped on a group of tropical islands. The prequel anime Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope's Peak High School further explores the past of the human Hajime and how he volunteered to undergo experimentation to become the silent apathetic superhuman Izuru.
Hajime was created to be a caring student who would be explored as a more tragic hero, in contrast with his predecessor, the Danganronpa protagonist Makoto Naegi. The franchise explores the themes of despair and hope; as a result of his sins, Izuru's activities involve a search for redemption. Their prequel personas were also modified to fit the narrative involving their lack of self-esteem and relationship with Junko Enoshima, the main antagonist of the series who attempts to manipulate him for her own goals. The character is voiced by Minami Takayama in Japanese and Johnny Yong Bosch in English.
Critical response to the character has been positive, in particular their interpersonal relationship with other characters and the voice actors' vocal performances. The character's role at The End of Hope's Peak High School was praised for the handling of his alter ego's origin story and depiction of degraded humanity.
- ^ Power Jusho (2014-07-09). "@johnnyyongbosch are you voicing Hajime Hinata for Danganronpa 2?I can hear your voice in it and I want to be sure. [Tweet liked by Bosch]". @PowerJusho_KH13. Archived from the original on 2019-09-27. Retrieved 2019-08-04.
- ^ "Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope's Peak High School Broadcast Dub Cast Announcement". Funimation.com. July 28, 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-07-30. Retrieved 2016-07-29.
- ^ "Hajime Hinata Voices (Danganronpa)". Behind The Voice Actors. Archived from the original on 26 June 2021. Retrieved 26 June 2021.