The Persona series has always had a varied, entertaining and deep cast of characters for the player to interact with in dungeon-crawling and everyday high school life. Most of these characters are written with complex and interesting backstories that tie into gameplay, creating memorable and exciting characters that stick with players for years to come.
Ever since the ground-breaking Persona 3 entry, every Persona game has had a kind of "mascot" member in the party. However, as with many characters in the Persona series, fans are split as to who is the best mascot as well as the individual likability and depth of each of the following three mascots introduced in the series thus far: Koromaru, Teddie, and Morgana.
The first mascot character in the series and the most unanimously beloved, Koromaru is an albino Shiba Inu dog with the intelligence and will to summon his own Persona. After managing to kill a Shadow on his own, Koromaru is quickly inducted into SEES and the party bonds with him with the help of the robotic Aigis translating the dog's speech.
Koromaru's backstory is heartwarming but short; after his master died, Koromaru waited dutifully at the shrine for his master to return. This, along with Koromaru's bravery against Shadows, is all we really get in regards to his characterization--although being a dog, it's not like Koromaru needed much to be likable. In battle, Koromaru is fairly weak offensively, but his Persona, Cerberus, is immune to Fire and Dark attacks and his great speed and agility, coupled with some useful stat buffs like Masukukaja makes him a capable support member of the party.
Most fans find it hard to dislike Koromaru. He's incredibly adorable to begin with, and his utility as a party member earns him unanimous praise compared to his successors. Despite this, it can be argued that Koromaru is the weakest among the three as both a character and a mascot. He does not carry the other two mascots' presence in-story or in promotional material, nor does he possess much characterization to propel any development forward.
Some would argue that Teddie from Persona 4 is the first true mascot character in the series and his overall design evokes the image of a beloved television mascot. A mysterious being from the TV World, Teddie provides much of the exposition of the strange alternate dimension in the Midnight Channel and assists the Investigation Team, making the glasses that allow the Team to see through the fog and locating the dungeon dwellings of victims' Shadows.
Teddie's human transformation, boundless curiosity, and constant womanizing are all attempts to fill the dreadful empty void of his existence with excitement and friendship, which becomes clearer across the game as his Social Link progresses automatically. In combat, Teddie possesses strong Ice attacks and good healing spells but is otherwise sub-par as a party member, with most players continuing to use Chie for ice attacks and Yukiko for healing.
While some would agree that Teddie's character arc is the most intriguing out of the three mascots, it's hampered by the fact that it's an automatic Social Link, leading to no meaningful input from player choice. Teddie also has a meddling, flirty personality that can annoy some people. Teddie is, however, the most mascot-like out of the three Persona mascots, being present in all promotional material for Persona 4 and is omnipresent in merchandise and events.
Morgana serves as a combination of Teddie and Koromaru's traits while also serving a stark contrast to them with a very cynical outlook. A mysterious cat-like creature from the Metaverse, Morgana is a shape-shifting thief with a penchant for stealing Treasure from Palaces. In the Metaverse, he can shapeshift into a bus, allowing the Phantom Thieves to traverse Mementos, while in the physical world, he turns into an ordinary house cat--much to his chagrin of being called one.
Much like Teddie, Morgana goes through much of the plot trying to discover who he is, acting in a major support role on the Phantom Thieves' heists, as well as being a competent healer. Unlike Teddie, Morgana starts the game as an experienced Persona user and is overall more methodical and take-charge than the previous two mascots. However, Morgana is also prone to rash decisions, with his leaving the party marking a major turning point in his character arc as he struggles to find his place in the Phantom Thieves.
Morgana has fans who like his cute design, snarky comments, and usefulness as both a healer and a critical-hit dealer. Still, he also has many detractors who decry his rather rude and caustic personality. Many find his relentless criticism of Ryuji unjustified and his tendency to force the player to go to sleep extremely annoying. While he is clearly supposed to be Persona 5's mascot with many promotional materials featuring him as a major speaker, he does not nearly have as much presence as Teddie, and protagonist Joker seems to do a better job at carrying the title.
While all the mascots have their merits endearing them to fans, arguably Teddie serves as both the most well-written character and the best mascot. While Koromaru and Morgana are both more useful in battle than Teddie is, Koromaru is mostly just a cute dog, and Morgana is too much of a jerk to fulfill the mascot role appropriately. While Teddie might rub some fans the wrong way, his generally amiable personality and cute design make him a fit not only as a mascot for Persona 4 but also for several events related to the Persona series.
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