Yosuke Hanamura

Yosuke Hanamura is a playable character from Persona 4. He is the protagonist's classmate at Yasogami High School in Inaba and the son of the Junes Department Store's Inaba branch manager.

Appearances

 * Persona 4 / Golden: Playable Character; Magician Social Link
 * Persona 4 Manga: Major Character; Magician Arcana
 * Persona 4 The Magician: Protagonist
 * Persona 4: Kiri no Amnesia: Protagonist
 * Persona 4 The Animation / Golden Animation: Major Character; Magician Arcana
 * Persona 4 Visualive / the Evolution
 * Persona 4 Arena / Ultimax: Playable Character/Navigator/Protagonist (Yosuke Story Route, Episode P4)
 * Persona 4 Arena (Manga): Protagonist
 * Persona 4 The Ultimate in Mayonaka Arena Stageplay
 * Persona 4 Arena Ultimax (Manga): Major Character
 * Persona 4: The Ultimax Ultra Suplex Hold Stageplay
 * BlazBlue Radio Wide: Guest Star
 * Persona 4: Dancing All Night: Playable Character
 * Persona 4 Colors
 * Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth: Playable Character
 * Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth - Side:P4: Major Character
 * Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth - Side:P3: Supportive Character
 * Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth: Playable Character
 * Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth Roundabout Special
 * Persona 3: Dancing in Moonlight: Cameo (DLC)
 * Persona 5: Dancing in Starlight: Cameo (DLC)

Design
Yosuke has slightly unkempt fawn colored dyed hair and brown eyes. At both his school and inside the Midnight Channel, he wears his Yasogami High school uniform, along with a white V-neck T-shirt with long sleeves and a pair of orange headphones (save for two occasions, he is never seen without them). Inside the Midnight Channel, Yosuke also wears orange glasses. His shoes are gray and white with cream-colored soles.

In summer, Yosuke wears his school summer uniform, along with another V-neck T-shirt with short sleeves. On weekends, he wears a white jacket with an orange V-neck shirt, dark green pants and brown combat boots. During weekends in the summer, he wears a white V-neck T-shirt with red motifs on the front, red cargo pants and brown shoes.

During the Crossdressing School Festival, part of his hair is pulled into a loose pigtail, and he wears a female school uniform with a light-yellow sweater vest, a loose red ribbon, a red checkered mini skirt, black stockings and brown loafers.

In Persona 4 Golden, Yosuke gains a few new outfits. In winter, he wears a snowsuit with a white hoodie, orange goggles around his neck with a light blue scarf, a white pullover with a red snow jacket, black gloves, green camouflage pants and yellow shoes. During colder winter days at school, he wears a sky blue pullover jacket underneath his school uniform. During the new epilogue, he has a different hairstyle and wears a hot pink T-shirt with thin white stripes and aqua jean pants.

In Persona 4: The Animation, Yosuke's swimming trunks are orange and have a floral pattern on them, and he is revealed to own a Yasogami High basketball uniform, which he wears during Kou Ichijo's last game. Additionally, his crossdressing outfit now has white socks instead of black.

In Persona 4: Dancing All Night, Yosuke is shown wearing his Yasogami High School uniform, except the sleeves are rolled up with an orange shirt with white writing saying FEVER vertically. He also wears a yellow scarf around his neck, a pair of fingerless orange gloves and orange sneakers.

Personality
Yosuke is a clumsy transfer-student who arrived six months before the protagonist. He is often the target for jokes about his lack of muscles and body strength. He fights with blunt, double-handed objects such as wrenches, but more so knives and kunai. The protagonist first sees him crashing his bike into a garbage can, the first of many times, but the protagonist ignores him. The protagonist only helps him the second time this happens.

He cares deeply about Saki Konishi and fell into depression after her death. Much of his character development stems from his feelings for Saki and dealing with the hurtful possibility that Saki probably never felt the same way about him that he did for her.

Yosuke doesn't usually think before he says something, which results in him sticking his foot in his mouth, and unintentionally insulting someone, including Kanji Tatsumi about his sexual orientation.

He tends to be a bit of a wannabe ladies' man and has a fascination for girls, forcing the girls to enter a beauty pageant. But beneath most of that (more so in the original game), he shows great insight with decent deducing, and is often on task with the situation on hand, and can be very serious at times. He also tends to keep a good face in order to make sure the team is in their best spirits and he cares a lot about the protagonist, as well as having a strong sense of justice. He's good with people's emotions, offering assistance at Junes. Despite his tendency to be a bit of a pushover, he has a strong vision of the future and displays uncanny deductive reasoning. A running gag is that Yosuke seems to be at odds with Chie Satonaka several times.

Being an idol fan, Yosuke gets very excited when he sees his favorite idols like Rise Kujikawa or Kanami Mashita. However, he later sees them as friends after seeing their insecurities.

His biggest insecurities are boredom and loneliness. He feels the town has nothing compared to the city and that his life in the city is the reason for his unpopularity. By the end of the game, he has grown to love the town and has made friends with the rest of the Investigation Team and feels accomplished in having a notable contribution to the group.

Along with that, he is described by the other members of the Investigation Team as too nice, even by his own words. This is evident in Persona Q (Persona 4 route in one of the strolls) and by himself in the Persona 4: Dancing All Night storyline (in the pre-story chapter, after Rise is doing her entry). Regardless, his skills in deduction and reasoning place him as the second-in-command of the Investigation Team, as it is hinted that he often discusses things with Yu the most regarding the team's final decisions.

Persona 4
Much like the protagonist, Yosuke moved from a big city to the small rural town of Inaba. He attends Yasogami High School, in the same class as the protagonist. This is because his father is the manager of Junes' Inaba Branch, which greatly intervenes with other local businesses and resulted in most stores within the Central Shopping District shutting down. As a result, shopkeepers who worked at the Shopping District and their offspring tend to dislike Yosuke.

He is first seen crashing into a trash can while riding a bicycle, in which the protagonist leaves him alone. After class, he gives Chie her "Trial of the Dragon" DVD before running away, only to be stopped by Chie, who kicks him in the "nads." Chie checks her DVD and finds it to be cracked (due to Yosuke's previous crash), then angrily walks home with Yukiko. The protagonist then goes home, leaving Yosuke alone (again). After an unknown student fails in trying to flirt with Yukiko, Yosuke invites Yukiko to hang out, only for her to flatly turn him down.

Chie later tells the two about the urban legend of the Midnight Channel and asks them to try it out. Their conversation is interrupted when Yosuke sees his senior, Saki Konishi, the daughter of the owner of a small liquor store, taking a break. Frustrated and tired, Yosuke talks to Saki out of worry. Yosuke later tries to tell Saki something, however, Saki simply brushes him off and tells him that her break-time is almost over. Chie takes note of Yosuke's disappointment and teases him, asking if he is falling in love with Saki.



Later that night, Yosuke tries to tune in to the Midnight Channel and sees a blurred image of a female student on his TV. Expressing his bemusement the next day, the three become intrigued due to seeing the same person on the Midnight Channel, and Yosuke was also intrigued by the protagonist claiming to have his hand sucked into the TV. Chie later asks Yosuke about the prices of a new flat screen TV, since her family was planning to buy one. The trio later goes to Junes to help Chie buy a TV, only for the protagonist to accidentally stick his arm onto it. Chie and Yosuke are shocked and panicked, as Yu deliberately places half his body into the TV as well, revealing a vacuous, empty space on the other side of the TV. Unfortunately, Yosuke did not go to the toilet the whole day and is holding his bladder. In a fit of panic, when customers are coming, Yosuke accidentally bumped into Chie and into the TV, dragging all three of them into the Midnight Channel.

Inside, the trio are astonished to see their surroundings. They anxiously try to return by searching for the entrance they fell from earlier, but since there seems to be no way out, they decide to check around the area. They stumble into a mysterious bedroom, where posters of Misuzu Hiiragi are plastered on all the walls with Hiiragi's faces scratched out, and a noose hangs from the ceiling. Furthermore, Yosuke's phone ceases to detect any signals. Yosuke can't hold his bladder anymore after the trio enters the room, and goes to empty his bladder in a corner. He ultimately can't, however, and the trio leaves after the odious atmosphere makes them ill. A bear-like cartoon character pops up as they return to the center. The mascot introduces himself as Teddie and urges them to leave his apparent residence. The trio confess their inability to escape, so Teddie summons three TVs and pushes them in, forcefully ejecting the trio out of the Midnight Channel.

The next day, Saki Konishi is reported missing and subsequently dead. Devastated, Yosuke swears to investigate the Midnight Channel, as the female student they witnessed earlier in the Midnight Channel was, in fact, Saki. Yosuke requests the protagonist to help him since he is the only one who is able to enter the TV. Eventually, the protagonist and Yosuke enter the Midnight Channel one more time, leaving Chie behind. Inside, the protagonist and Yosuke once again encounter Teddie, who, infuriated by their return, angrily asks them whether they are responsible for "throwing people" inside the Midnight Channel. Yosuke angrily stammers back, telling Teddie that he is the suspicious one. Upon learning that the protagonist and Yosuke aren't responsible, Teddie promises to help and gives them pairs of glasses that allow them to see the fog-ridden Midnight Channel clearly.

Eventually, the protagonist and Yosuke venture to an area resembling Yasoinaba's shopping street. Intrigued, the protagonist and Yosuke try to enter Saki's family liquor store and begin to hear the voice of Saki's family echoing on them. The voices are echoing that the sales of her family's liquor store are falling because of the opening of Junes, and those of her father detesting her part-time for Junes can also be heard. A voice of Saki then expresses her hatred for Yosuke, claiming that she never thought of him as a friend, but an annoying, irritating person; she was only being friendly to him because he is the son of the manager of Junes.

Hearing Saki's words, Yosuke is devastated and tries to convince himself that everything he heard was a lie. What appears to be a clone of Yosuke appears and openly mocks him. Shocked, he tries to answer back, but the other Yosuke proceeds to taunt him by saying that in reality, he absolutely hates being in a rural area, and his cheerfulness is merely a facade of escapism so he will not feel alone. The double also claims that he only barged in the Midnight Channel to seek a thrill because he was bored of everything in this rural town, and Saki's death gave him a perfect excuse to do this. The double then introduces himself as Shadow Yosuke and announces that he is Yosuke's other self, and he is Yosuke. Not wanting to accept these words, Yosuke angrily exclaims that this is not who he is.

Laughing at Yosuke's declination of his true feelings, the other Yosuke transforms to attack them, with Yosuke passing out. The protagonist defeats the Shadow, before Yosuke regains consciousness, but is still reluctant to face himself. Under the encouragement of Teddie and the protagonist, Yosuke painfully admits that he does feel that way, but it is always hard to face one's true feelings. Sensing Yosuke's resolution, the Shadow transforms into Jiraiya, and becomes Yosuke's Persona. After leaving, Yosuke later thanks the protagonist, telling him that he'll definitely have a good night's sleep tonight.

The next day, Yosuke tells the protagonist that they must stop the murder incidents and investigate the culprit behind the Midnight Channel, allowing the protagonist to forge the Magician Arcana with Yosuke.



After Nanako's death and the Investigation Team cornering the supposed culprit, Taro Namatame, in his hospital room, Yosuke pressures the protagonist to get revenge, which may lead him to murder him, when it turns out that he is more innocent than meets the eye. Yosuke's motivations for this are revenge for believing Namatame killed Saki Konishi and Nanako Dojima, and since Namatame may not be convicted, he may continue "murdering" people, and they only have one chance to do this. Only by telling Yosuke to "Calm the hell down!" may the Normal or True ending be accessed.

Social Link
Should the protagonist level up the Magician Arcana Social Link to Rank 8, Yosuke will express that when he first moved to Yasoinaba, he was resentful towards the town because he feared that the opening of Junes would make the people in the Shopping District hate him. Despite this, however, Yosuke began to open up when Saki Konishi told him that "parents are parents, you're you," only to realize later on that people in Inaba did most likely hate him for reasons as expected. Even then, Yosuke later exclaims that even after he knew the friendly Saki was a facade, he still loved her, and is sad to see her die. He goes as far as to say he really did not mind whether Saki liked him or not; he just wanted to make her smile. Yosuke also expresses his resentment of living in a small country town with little to do, as well as his wish to do something interesting like play hero.

By the end of the Magician Arcana Social Link, Yosuke expresses that deep down inside, he didn't trust the protagonist fully, and is jealous of his talents in combat and being a leader of the Investigation Team. Confessing his inner thoughts, Yosuke then requests the protagonist to punch him, so they could get even for Yosuke's jealousy. The protagonist brawls with Yosuke and their fight ends in a tie. Yosuke then exclaims that he'll live with his true self from now onwards, and hold precious the days he spends with others. Eventually having a change in his psyche and resolution, Yosuke's Persona Jiraiya transfigures into Susano-o. Noticing his newfound powers, Yosuke exclaims that he will use the power to protect the others, and thanks the protagonist. He also gives the protagonist a Buddy's Bandage, which enables the fusion of Mada.

Should the protagonist reach Rank 3 of the Magician Arcana Social Link, Yosuke will learn his distinctive follow-up attack, Yosuke Strike, where he performs a powerful combo with a 100% critical rate on another enemy, downed or otherwise, provided the protagonist has struck down a target.

Persona 4 Golden
In Persona 4 Golden, the addition of bikes for the Investigation Team introduced a unique new way of obtaining skills for party members. By going on special forms of dates with each party member, involving the use of the bikes, the player is given the option of either having the party member in question learn a brand-new skill, or relearn any old skill that they have forgotten. The bike skills available to Yosuke are listed below.

Yosuke can also perform a fusion spell with Teddie called "Junes Bomber" when the following requirements are achieved: Yosuke and Teddie are both in the active party, and an "All-Out Attack" is performed, but the enemy still remains. When performing "Junes Bomber," Yosuke and Teddie will run up to each other and perform minor stunts. Shortly after, they will both disappear, leaving behind a giant Teddie-looking bomb and several ninja tools. The bomb will explode shortly after, creating a gust of wind that clears away the ninja tools and damages the enemy.

Like all the members of the Investigation Team, Yosuke can access a third Persona and its special skill. The requirement for his Persona to transform is having his Social Link on Rank 10 during the winter if the player completes the criteria for at least the good ending. His third tier Persona is Takehaya Susano-o, and its special skill is Youthful Wind, a healing spell that increases the hit/evasion rate of the entire team.

Additionally, like with Rise Kujikawa in Persona 4, each party member is able to learn new skills upon the player's progression of their Social Link. The Social Link skills that Yosuke learns upon the development of his Social Link are also listed below.

Persona 4 Manga
Yosuke's role in the manga is similar to his role in the original game with a few differences. For example, Yosuke fights his own Shadow with his Persona, Jiraiya, even though this creates a paradox.

Persona 4: The Animation
In Persona 4 The Animation, Yosuke's role remains similar to his role in the games. At Kou Ichijo's basketball game, it is revealed that he isn't very good at basketball.

When Yu and Yosuke enter the Midnight Channel after hearing about Saki's death, they enter Saki's liquor store. Yosuke, who invited Saki to a movie yesterday, finds the ticket he gave her shredded. Yosuke wonders why she tore it up before voices of Saki and her father are heard. After encountering his Shadow Self and Yu controls Izanagi to fight it, it shows Yosuke a monitor of Saki and a co-worker having a chat about Yosuke, telling her that he thinks everyone looks up to him because he's the manager's son and how he thinks she likes him when she doesn't. Yosuke refuses to accept this despite his Shadow Self pointing out that everyone barely tolerates him as the monitor shows Yosuke laughing after thinking that he scored big with Saki.

However, during the fight, Izanagi punches his Shadow Self and at the same time, Yu punches Yosuke by accident. Teddie laughs at this while Yu sees this mistake and says "Oops, wrong guy." Yu then asks him if he liked Saki but Yosuke responds by saying that he "loved her," Yu then helps him up after helping him realize that it was proof enough. Yosuke admits that Saki did indeed dump him (after Teddie laughed and asked if she dumped him), he knew that but couldn't bring himself to believe it. Looking at the movie Ticket he has, he admits that his true feelings for Saki were real before admitting that all "this" is a part of him. In the process it weakens his Shadow and Yu finishes it off with Izanagi's Zio. Afterwards the Shadow transforms into his Persona Jiraiya and Yosuke thanks Yu for helping him in facing himself.

When Yu is trapped by Shadow Mitsuo, it is Yosuke that brings him out of his near stupor by calling his name and pulling him out of the shadow. The event helps bring the two closer together, as they afterwards refer to each other by their first names rather than their last, something that doesn't go unnoticed by the other characters.

During Nanako Dojima's hospitalization, Yu eventually makes the decision to move on and find the truth, for everyone's sake. The group leaves for home, while Yu simply stares at the sky, wondering about whether he did the right thing. He hears footsteps and is surprised to see Yosuke. The latter walks up to his side and merely offers him a shoulder as Yu Narukami finally breaks down in tears, crying Nanako's name and wondering if he did the right thing by not pushing Taro Namatame into the Midnight Channel.

Later on, upon discovering Tohru Adachi's true involvement in the murders of Mayumi Yamano and Saki Konishi, he follows the Investigation Team into the Midnight Channel, where they eventually stumble onto a twisted version of Yasoinaba, Magatsu Inaba. The team finds an image of Adachi in the first room that Yu, Chie and Yosuke landed in when they first entered the Midnight Channel. Adachi confesses to his role in the murders. Yosuke's emotions fluctuate between absolute hatred and horror, calling him out on his treatment of women and his views in life. When they chase after Adachi, they eventually stumble upon The Reaper, and Yosuke teams up with Teddie to buy Yu some time in finding the real Adachi in the area. After Adachi is defeated, Ameno-sagiri appears, deals heavy damage to the team and starts absorbing Yu. As Yosuke understands what is happening, his Persona Jiraiya transfigures into Susano-o and extracts Yu from it. It severely injures Ameno-sagiri with the help of the other ultimate Personas of the Investigation Team before Yu gives the final strike with Lucifer.

Later on, Yosuke is seen saying goodbye to Yu, who has to return to his hometown. He also appears in the True Ending.

Yosuke and Yu's bond is represented by the Persona Pyro Jack.

Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth
Yosuke and company are summoned to an alternate version of Yasogami High School filled with Shadows. They encounter SEES, who originated from 2009, and join forces to uncover the mystery of their gathering and return to their separate worlds.

While venturing through the labyrinth, You in Wonderland, Yosuke, Kanji, Teddie and Yu are all shrunken after drinking four potions to find the key to the gate blocking them out. While getting the key hanging from a bush branch, Yosuke and Kanji are knocked unconscious and their faces fall upon each other. Yu and Rise refuse to answer what happened to avoid traumatizing the boys.

When the groups venture through the Evil Spirit Club, Yosuke rushes into a men's bathroom for release. The groups encounter an F.O.E outside and are forced to retreat into the bathroom. Yosuke then hides in the stall with Ken Amada and Mitsuru Kirijo (and Yu Narukami, if he chooses to hide in the same stall).

Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth
Yosuke was found missing while the other teammates joined another party of Persona users. The party at first suspects Yosukesaurus to be Yosuke because he had an identical head and face, but he was a completely different entity. In reality, he is confronting a carnivore dinosaur F.O.E and defending a Herbivore Dinosaur from it. The party saves him by distracting the carnivorous dinosaur into an electric cage. When the Herbivore Dinosaurs gang up to exile the party from the movie reality, Yosuke joins the party.

Yosuke finds himself connecting to Junpei Iori and Ryuji Sakamoto in the fact that they are all close companions to their respective leaders. The connection turns into a special combo move that aids the trio in battle.

Persona 4 Arena
During the events of Persona 4 Arena, Yosuke is now a third-year student at Yasogami High School and he begins to hear rumors that the Midnight Channel is back. When he decides to investigate, he meets a mysterious girl. As he keeps defeating his friends each round, Yosuke hears them say that the reason the Grand Prix was set up is because of him and his feelings of despair and uselessness about going back to a normal life. After discovering that General Teddie from the monitor is a fake, he thought that it might be his Shadow dressing up like Teddie. Before heading to the announcement room, Yosuke manages to impress Labrys and even agrees to go on a date with him (much to Teddie's surprise). As Yosuke and Labrys arrive at the announcement room, he sees his shadow and just as he is about to deny it once more, his friends help him resolve his problems. But soon it becomes clear that it was not Yosuke's shadow as he used his Persona in the fight, soon General Teddie goes after Labrys and it's revealed that General Teddie was actually Shadow Labrys. She reveals Labrys' true nature as an android as another android, Aigis, appears.

Yosuke, clearly shocked by these events, chases after everyone as he gets trapped with Aigis on the roof because of the Grand Prix rules. After hearing about the true nature of Labrys and about the incident at Port Island, he resolves to go to Labrys' side and defeats Aigis. Using Aigis' words, he defeats Shadow Labrys as he helps Labrys accept herself, allowing her to gain a Persona. When they are about to leave, Labrys is hijacked, though Yosuke is able to hold her off. After the new enemy reveals himself, Mitsuru Kirijo suggests that they leave it to them. Yu relents as Yosuke catches on and helps to lead everyone back to the real world. After saying their goodbyes to Labrys, Yosuke and the others finally get a chance to celebrate Yu's return and announces that the Investigation Team is back in action.

Play Style
In battle, Yosuke is the fastest character in the game and performs incredibly acrobatic attacks. He has several ways he can execute his block strings and has several mix up options (from tick throwing to feints) but both his health and damage output are typically low although, in initial builds of the game, he had high health. His Awakening super, Sukukaja, greatly boosts his movement to being able to dash cancel many of his attacks, allows him to move very quickly to the point of teleporting, and being able to use his Moonsault during an auto combo.

His original moves are the Moonsault (leaps forward in a spiraling jump), Crescent Slash (Mikazuki Giri/Three-Day Moon Slash in JPN where he slashes upward during Moonsault), Flying Kunai (Tobi Kunai in JPN, Yosuke throws a storm kunai downward in midair), and Mirage Slash (Hengenjisou Giri/Transforming Phase Slash in JPN, here Yosuke in midair has Jiraiya appear in front of his place, covering his instant teleporting low-hitting slide slash to the ground; the Skill Boost version only teleports to the ground). He retains his Tentarafoo as a special, his Garudyne and the aforementioned Sukukaja as his SP Skills, and his Brave Blade (Brave Zapper in JPN) being his Mortal Blow/Instant Kill. His Reversal Action involves him provoking the foe in a reversal/counter stance, and making them pratfall should they hit him, allowing him to reset the situation.

Yosuke's leitmotif is called "The Hero From Junes," and its OST disc version features a few very small extra instrumentals. It also has a remixed version on the Persona 4 The ULTIMATE in MAYONAKA ARENA Original Arrange Soundtrack known as "The Hero of Junes -Electro Mix-," which features more electronic beats and guitar sounds.

Score Attack
Yosuke is the first opponent you fight in Score Attack. His buffs include permanent Sukukaja at the start of the round and the ability to Moonsault as many times as he wants.

Persona 4 Arena (Manga)
Yosuke appears as the main protagonist of the manga. Like in the game, he, Yu, Chie, and Yukiko hear about the return of the Midnight Channel along with the mysterious disappearances of Teddie, Kanji, and Rise. When they go investigate, Yosuke finds himself separated from the rest of the group in a fake version of his school inside the TV world and forced to participate in a Grand Prix along with meeting a mysterious girl who claims to be the student council president. After defeating Chie, Yukiko, and Yu, Yosuke finds out that the mysterious girl is named Labrys, an Anti-Shadow Suppression Weapon, and that the fake school and the Arena are actually Labrys' dungeon. Alongside Aigis, Yosuke defeats Shadow Labrys before Rise and Fuuka free Labrys of the Malevolent Entity's control. After leaving the TV world with everybody, Mitsuru Kirijo suggests that the Investigation Team leaves handling the new enemy to them. Yosuke and most of the investigation team initially protest but are convinced by Yu to relent. After Labrys says goodbye to him, Yosuke and the rest of the investigation team get ready to celebrate Yu's return and announces that the Investigation Team is back in action.

Persona 4: Dancing All Night
Yosuke Hanamura appears as a playable character and stars in two songs: "Backside of the T.V." (Lotus Juice Remix) and "Your Affection."

Yosuke's dance style, similarly to the rest of the group of Persona 4, is very still: he barely ever moves from the same spot, but much like the protagonist, he dances in a very cool way, though Yosuke himself is rather clumsy. He mostly seems to just come up with things on the spot and doesn't care if they look bad.

Both of his dances feature bridges where he dances slower than usual. A drawback to his dance style is the fact he always repeats his dances, however in "Backside of the T.V.", he only gets FEVERs quickly and only dances solo during the chorus. A unique trait about his dances is that when he's paired with other people, he dances pretty nicely, usually being the highlight of the dance.

A running theme in the opening themes is that the characters dance differently compared to in-game: Yosuke shows off a lot of isolated movements in the opening, while in game this is never shown.

Quotes
P4 Anime (English)= P4A=
 * "You are not me! You're not me!" (rejecting his Shadow)
 * "Yeah... Actually, I loved her. ...Yeah. You're right. Thanks. Watch it, you! I probably knew that deep down, but I couldn't bring myself to actually believe it. I wanted so desperately to try and fit in, I pretended things were cool. Sometimes, even I think I'm a pain in the ass. But no matter what, my feelings for Saki were real. So that's a part of me, huh? I guess if I'm gonna be honest... All of this is a part of me." (accepting his Shadow)
 * "You are a part of me... And I'm a part of you..."
 * "Is this my... Narukami? Thanks a lot, man. You were a huge help. I owe ya one." (gaining Jiraiya)
 * "So what if it's true? Who cares?" (To Chie about her true feelings)
 * "Ressentiment? Aw, come on!" (in response to his title)

Battle Quotes
P4=
 * "Let's do this, Jiraiya!" (Hitting weak point/Critical with physical skill)
 * "Go! Susano-o!" (Hitting weak point/critical with physical skill)
 * "Let's go, Takehaya Susano-o!" (Hitting weak point/critical with physical skill)
 * "Throwdown!" (Summoning Persona)
 * "Persona!" (Summoning Persona)
 * "Countin' on you!" (Summoning Persona)
 * "Two left!"
 * "Two enemies left!"
 * "Two to go! We can do this!"
 * "Four left!"
 * "All right, four to go!"
 * "Not a chance!" (Protects the protagonist from a mortal blow)
 * "Here..." (Helping the protagonist up)
 * "Up we go!" (Helping Chie up)
 * "Damn, it's not going down!" (Fails to eliminate an enemy)
 * "That's some thick skin!" (Fails to eliminate an enemy)
 * "Someone else's turn!" (Fails to eliminate an enemy)
 * "What the hell? It's not working?" (Enemy blocks attack)
 * "It's not working — what is this?" (Enemy blocks attack)
 * "Too slow!" (Dodging an enemy's attack)
 * "You're gonna pay, dammit!" (Recover from Down/Dizzy)
 * "Dammit ... who do they think they are?" (Recover from Down/Dizzy)
 * "I'm pissed now!" (Recover from Down/Dizzy)
 * "Nice moves, partner!" (Cheering on the protagonist)
 * "Attagirl!" (Cheering on Chie)
 * "Go, go!" (Cheering on Chie)
 * "Great move, Chie!" (Cheering on Chie)
 * "Sweet, Yukiko!" (Cheering on Yukiko)
 * "Awesome, Yukiko!" (Cheering on Yukiko)
 * "That's the Kanji I know!" (Cheering on Kanji)
 * "Dude, you're a beast!" (Cheering on Teddie)
 * "Let's go, partner!" (Prompting All-Out Attack)
 * "Now's our chance! You ready?" (Prompting All-Out Attack)
 * "Should we show 'em who's boss?!" (Prompting All-Out Attack)
 * "All right, one for all and all for one!" (Prompting All-Out Attack)
 * "We're not gonna? What a waste..." (Declining All-Out Attack)
 * "Uh... If you say so..." (Declining All-Out Attack)
 * "Okay!" (Performing All-Out Attack)
 * "All right!" (Performing All-Out Attack)
 * "Good answer!" (Performing All-Out Attack)
 * "Out of our way!" (During All-Out Attack)
 * "Ready or not, here we come!" (During All-Out Attack)
 * "That should do it!" (Battle won)
 * "Whoo! That went well!" (Battle won)
 * "All right! Let's keep going!" (Battle won)
 * "Ugh ... that took forever!" (Battle won)
 * "That's my true strength!" (Battle won)
 * "Another level for me!" (Level up)
 * "Ha ha, level up!" (Level up)
 * "Alright, I leveled up!" (Level up)
 * "Not bad, partner!" (The protagonist levels up)

P4A=
 * P4G
 * "Alright! Leave this to me!" (Prompting Cavalry Attack)
 * "Let the winds blow!" (When performing the skill Youthful Wind)
 * "Feel that mighty wind!" (When performing the skill Youthful Wind)
 * "Blow through!" (When performing the skill Youthful Wind)
 * "Not bad, eh?" (Battle won in Gekkou Uniform)
 * "Who's da man!?" (Battle won in Gekkou Uniform)
 * "Phoenix Rangers Featherman R!" (Battle won in Neo Featherman Suit)
 * "Total victory by Feather Owl!" (Battle won in Neo Featherman Suit)
 * "Come, Takehaya Susano-o!" (Hitting weak point/critical with physical skill)
 * "Let's go, Takehaya Susano-o!" (Hitting weak point/critical with physical skill)''
 * "Whoa! Wait a sec! What's up with this?" (Starting Arcade Mode)
 * "Everything that bores me has got to go!" (on E3 trailer)
 * "Not bad, Partner!" (When guarding Yu's attacks)
 * "Your kung-fu isn't even real!" (When guarding Chie's attacks)
 * "Alright!" (While performing Dash Spring)
 * "Get some!" (While performing Flying Kunai)
 * "Move aside!" (While performing Crescent Slash)
 * "Down here!" (While performing Mirage Slash)
 * "Dodge this!" (While performing Tentarafoo)
 * "Garudyne! Blow away!" (While performing super move, Garudyne)
 * "Sukukaja! It's showtime!" ( While performing Awakening super move, Sukukaja)
 * "Brave Blade!" (Instant Kill)
 * "Time to bring this out!" (Instant Kill)
 * "Let's do this!" (Yosuke attacking the opponent in the air while performing Brave Blade)
 * "Ultimate attack!" (Yosuke attacking the opponent in the air while performing Brave Blade)
 * "You're finished!" (Jiraiya delivers the final strike during the Instant Kill)
 * "This is the end!" (Jiraiya delivers the final strike during the Instant Kill)
 * "Dammit!" (Final round loss)
 * "That was pretty impressive, right?" (Final round victory)
 * "Oh man, I was super cool!" (Final round victory)
 * "I'll cook you into bear stew!" (vs. Teddie)
 * "He's a powerhouse, that's for sure." (vs. Kanji)
 * "Heh, what's wrong partner?" (After winning a round against Yu)
 * "Aren't you gonna show me your training results?" (After winning a round against Chie)
 * "Do I make your heart beat faster?" (After winning a round against Yukiko)
 * "Like I'd ever lose to you, Teddie!" (After winning a round against Teddie)
 * "You're not as tough as they say." (After winning a round against Kanji)
 * "I'm still no match for you..." (Defeated by Yu)
 * "The innkeeper has no mercy!" (Defeated by Yukiko)
 * "I submit to you, my beautiful queen!" (Defeated by Mitsuru)
 * "Ugh... did I just get owned by Teddie?" (Defeated by Teddie)
 * "I ain't holding back, Teddie!" (Performing an All-Out-Attack on Teddie)
 * "Sorry about this, Chie!" (Performing a strong attack on Chie)
 * "All that steak made you sluggish, Chie-chan!" (After defeating Chie)
 * "How was that, partner?" (After defeating Yu)
 * "Pretty creepy, seeing your own face." (After defeating Yosuke)
 * "The Amagi challenge has been completed... or has it...?" (After defeating Yukiko)
 * "Damn bear." (After taking damage from Teddie)
 * "Great... I lost..." (Continue?)
 * "I can't stay down!" (Retry)

=Victory Quotes=
 * Generic
 * "Hehe! How were my magnificent skills!?"
 * "Please come back and try again...! Just kidding!"
 * "Whew, it's finally over... Yikes, now that I'm out of danger, I gotta take a leak...!"
 * "I don't mind being second banana."
 * "No one can call me a total disappointment now!"

P4AU=
 * Character Specific
 * Yu Narukami: "That was impressive, partner! Though I won this time!"
 * Chie Satonaka: "Your speed's dropped from all the meat you eat."
 * Kanji Tatsumi: "Dude, your expression when you charged at me was scary as hell!"
 * Teddie: "If you've learned your lesson, you better be a good bear and work hard, Teddie!"
 * Mitsuru Kirijo: "She's so gorgeous, but kinda scary too... That icy stare gave me the chills..."
 * Labrys: "No matter how strong you are, you gotta stay on your toes, Miss President!"
 * Elizabeth: "U-Um, miss...! If you don't mind, can you give me your number... Oh, you don't have one..."
 * Shadow Yosuke: "That brought back some nasty memories... But I can't lose anymore!"

= Victory Quotes =
 * General
 * "Hehe! You were pretty good! See ya!"
 * "Alright, I won! Hehe, that feels great!"
 * "You can't surpass me... or so they say!"
 * "Well, I guess the secret to my strength... is speed!"
 * "At Junes, we always welcome challenges from customers!"
 * "Hey, was I kind of cool? I wasn't disappointing, right? Right?"

PQ=
 * Character Specific
 * Yu Narukami: "You really are the man! Let's go at it again sometime, partner!"
 * Chie Satonaka: "Heeeey, what happened to your training? Your footwork was way off!"
 * Yukiko Amagi: "S-So this is the Amagi Challenge... it really was life-or-death."
 * Teddie: "If you've learned your lesson, you better not slack off during work ever again!"
 * Naoto Shirogane: "I can't beat her on brains, I gotta at least win like this. Damn, I'm starting to bum myself out..."
 * Rise Kujikawa: "Hehe! When it comes to using a Persona, you've still got a lot to learn!"
 * Yukari Takeba: "Won't you do a show at Junes for us some time? Man... The real one is totally different!"
 * Junpei Iori: "Hehe! You'll never hit me with those exaggerated swings!"
 * Labrys: "It's scary to go up against you as an opponent... but I'm glad to see you're doing well!"
 * Shadow Yosuke: "Heh! Stop coming back already! Not that it's any problem to smack you down whenever you do!"
 * Margaret: "That was close... I barely squeaked by! More battles like this would be the death of me. Though I wouldn't say no to going up against a beautiful lady again..."
 * Marie: "I mean why are you here!? Sheesh, she's always so absurd..."
 * "I'm counting on you, leader!" (Battle start, with P3/P4 hero as Leader)
 * "Let's go, Partner!" (Battle start, with P4 hero as Vice Leader)
 * "Th-These kind of nurses aren't my type..." (Battle start, fighting Kind Doctor)
 * "Persona!" (Skill, Jiraiya)
 * "Go, Jiraiya!" (Skill, Jiraiya)
 * "Let's do this!" (Skill, Sub-Persona)
 * "Give me power!" (Skill, Sub-Persona)
 * "Cheer up!" (Item, on Allies)
 * "Seriously?!" (Miss)
 * "Ah?! That was close!" (Miss, Enemy)
 * "I take back everything I dish out... really?" (Curse)
 * "It's... always... customer appreciation day... at Junes..." (Sleep)
 * "Sorry! I can't move at all!" (Paralysis)
 * "I'm not dead yet, you moron!" (Low HP, responding to Teddie)
 * "Way to grin and bear it, Chie!" (Low HP, Chie)
 * "Crap, I went too crazy with my Persona!" (Low SP)
 * "Hey! Zen! Rei-chan!" (Zen and Rei die)
 * "All right, we got him cornered!" (Kind Doctor battle, both nurses defeated)
 * "Well, we did just get started." (Kind Doctor battle, 50% HP)
 * "Please come again!" (Battle end)
 * "And that's a wrap!" (Battle end)
 * "Ah, the sweet smell of victory!" (Result)
 * "I leveled up! So, no more of this total disappointment crap, okay?" (Level up)
 * "We all have our own reasons to fight, but there are things you don't back down from. That's why we're here!" (Clockwork God battle, 25% HP)

Etymology

 * The name Yosuke means "light, sun, male" (陽) (yo) and "foreruuner, herald" (介) (suke).
 * Yosuke's surname Hanamura means "flower, blossom" (花) (hana) and "town, village" (村) (mura).

Trivia

 * Yosuke's headphones resemble the Audio Technica ATH-FC700A or the Audio Technica ATH-ES10. On the Volume 2 cover of Persona 4: The Animation, his headphones on the artwork are called the Music Technica ATH-EF11.
 * During the Persona Stalker Club program, it was revealed that Yosuke, while in combat, listens to western music and film soundtracks.
 * The word "Atlus" is printed on Yosuke's bike, a reference to Atlus, the company that is behind the creation of the Persona series and Shin Megami Tensei.
 * The license plate on Yosuke's scooter is 6-22, which is likely a reference to his birthday, June 22nd.
 * In the game, when Yosuke is inside Saki's Twisted Shopping District, he sees cut-up photos of him and Saki working at Junes. In the anime, he sees cut-up movie tickets he gave her instead.
 * As part of Persona 4 Arena and Persona 4 Golden promotions, Yosuke is used as his 's avatar for the  radio show "Bururaji" chatting along with the seiyuus of BlazBlue characters Ragna the Bloodedge (Tomokazu Sugita), Noel Vermillion (Kanako Kondou) and Tsubaki Yayoi (Asami Imai). His "opening act" is similar to his first appearance in the original Persona 4 where he crashes into a trash can while riding his bicycle although this time, he crashes into Ragna.
 * The way Yosuke performs Garudyne in Persona 4 Arena resembles his Follow-Up Attack (Yosuke Strike in ENG or Yousuke no Kougeki/Yousuke's Attack in JPN) from Persona 4.
 * His new Shunten Hisougiri (Blink Turning Soaring Cutter) move in Persona 4 The Ultimax resembles Leona's V-Slasher from . It is even blatantly localized as "V-Slash" in the English versions.
 * When Yosuke equips the Yellow Featherman outfit in Persona 4 Golden he says "Hey, I'm in yellow!? I'm not the fat one! Am I...?" The line alludes to the Persona 2 duology where Eikichi Mishina used the Yellow Featherman mask when he was an overweight kid. It also alludes to the character Raita Oishi, Yellow Owl from Chojin Sentai Jetman, the Super Sentai series Featherman is a parody of.
 * Prior to entering "Marukyu Tofu," Yosuke reveals that he can't eat tofu for untold reasons, yet exclaims he would buy tofu and accept the extra tofu Rise gave.
 * This creates a continuity error with Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth ' s "SOS: Save Our Stomachs!" request, where Yosuke is able to eat a hot pot made with tofu without comment or ill effects.
 * Yosuke mentions several times throughout the game that he is disgusted by fish - not only the idea of eating fish but the idea of fish in general. Ironically, Yosuke can use a weapon called "Inaba Trout," which can be obtained from a quest.
 * In the weeks that Nanako appears on the Midnight Channel, if the protagonist decides to go to the Void Quest dungeon and talk to Yosuke at the entrance, he will say after his primary lines: "Our princess is in another castle, dude." This is a reference to a line spoken in the Mario Bros. games by Nintendo.
 * Yosuke has a nurse fetish.
 * If the Cleaning Uniform received from Sayoko Uehara in Persona 4 Golden is equipped to Yosuke, talking to him while in a dungeon will have him remark on how the protagonist is lucky to work with nurses, and in Persona 4 Arena, in Yu's route, Teddie will ask him to get Yosuke a new nurse porn magazine, as his old one was burned.
 * Teddie teases Yosuke on this multiple times in Persona Q: Upon reaching the nurse's office for the first time, Teddie will call out for a nurse. When he doesn't get a response he tells Yosuke not to be sad, yet Yosuke responds by telling Teddie that he didn't say anything. He also explains Yosuke's fascination with nurses during the group date cafe and exclaims that they might see nurses in the Evil Spirit Club when seeing an examination room sign implying they were in a hospital.
 * In Persona 4 Arena, Yosuke has a poster that parodies . He also has the albums (in order from left to right): Persona 3 OST, 's Deep Cuts, the Grammy Nominees 2008 album, 's Minutes to Midnight, and 's All the Right Reasons displayed on two shelves.
 * On the ski trip in Persona 4 Golden, Yosuke tells a ghost story about how his friend's sister and her group of friends bullied another student. As Yosuke continues, he states that his friend's sister would lock herself up in her room, mumbling to herself, "I'm next." Worried, his friend tried asking her friends about it only to find out that they had all passed out and were in the hospital. That night, she bursts out of her room and didn't turn up until the next morning where she was found unconscious outside of the school gates. This story was actually a loose retelling of the events that happened with Fuuka Yamagishi in Persona 3, with some false details being added, such as how the girl "died." Naoto mentions that she read a police report that sounded similar as well.
 * During his introduction in the P3 side of Persona Q, Yosuke is referred to as "Boy with Dyed Hair." In Persona 4 Design Works Soejima confirmed that he and Chie dye their hair, but their true hair colors are unknown. He is one of three out of the members of the Investigation Team to have been confirmed to have dyed hair, the others being Chie and Kanji, while only Kanji's true hair is revealed in Persona 4 Golden.
 * Because of his highlighted interest in music, all three of Yosuke's Personas have a disco motif, including his ultimate Persona, Takehaya Susano-o, who has an afro haircut.
 * Dummied content including English and Japanese voice clips from the PS2 and the Golden release of Persona 4 reveals not only an earlier draft of Yosuke's Social Link, but leftovers of a script that implies he was written as a potential romantic partner for the protagonist at some point.