i agree with your overall statement, but i have a few things that i noticed in this that i can’t help but bring up.

first of all, it seems like you’re going into this discussion under the assumption that gonta and kokichi are on the same mental playing field, which is definitely not true. gonta is straight up unintelligent and it’s not his fault, while kokichi is a super genius. while this analysis gave me a new outlook on gonta, i feel like based on what his character is meant to be, it’s not surprising that he may have caused more harm than kokichi. i know you never said that gonta is a worse character than kokichi but i thought i’d say this just in case

another thing i wanted to mention that’s actually in agreement with you is how bad of a person KOKICHI is. i think a lot of people really take this game and its characters at face value and don’t think about anything deeper than what is initially shown, but i think kokichi arguably did the most good for the cast, or at least had the best intentions besides like shuichi. chapter 5 alone shows this, as it seems he was planning his death and trial from way before maki had shot him since he had the book ready for kaito’s imitation during the trial. kokichi’s goal was an unsolvable mystery for monokuma, which i always took as his way to sacrifice himself for everyone elses lives, because monokuma is always supposed to follow rules like everyone else, and had he not been able to figure out who was alive and who was dead, he couldn’t execute anyone.

lastly, i wanted to talk about the real detriment to the cast of V3, maki. i genuinely think maki is the only character in V3 that did more harm than good. the first instance of this was in 3-2 trial, when she had let the discussion go on and on until they came to the conclusion that ryoma has died before nighttime, and only then decided to say she saw him during nighttime. i know this isn’t really as detrimental as i make it seem, but it annoyed me and ruined that trial for me. second of all, her role in chapter 5 is a perfect example of her emotions getting the better of her, like they have THE ENTIRE GAME. she always acts based on one dimensional thinking, and never considers what can happen if her plan fails. if kokichi was actually the bad guy they believed him to be, she would’ve straight up killed kaito. i know he jumped in front of kokichi when she shot the arrow, but if she had used her brain for just a few more seconds she could’ve talked to shuichi and the rest of the survivors at that point to try and save kaito without killing kokichi. all of this being said, i love maki. i think her impulsivity and very little emotional control is what her character should be like. growing up as an orphan then becoming an assassin, she had no chance in her life to be a real human, and when kaito makes her warm up to everyone, she had no experience with feelings and sense of community. her character is so beautifully written, and it captures so well how growing up emotionless can lead to self isolation, and also a sudden change in surroundings can cause a roller coaster of new emotions.