decchanlover

[decchanlover]

all right, fine

let's play ball

that bkdk car conversation is really fucking gay

I made this blog to talk about language because I find it fun and fascinating, so while I'm not thrilled to acknowledge 431 any more than I have to, there's really hilarious shit happening in this scene and the people need to know.

So, the first fucking thing we hear outta Katsuki's mouth is this:

"Jeez, why the hell do I gotta be Deku's private little chauffeur!"

There are a few ways you could translate this. It's an indignant complaint with some rudeness, but comparatively mild for Katsuki. Some people might rephrase this to something more like "why do I gotta drive Deku's ass around" but I'm keeping the original, possessive grammar of デクのアッシー (Deku no asshii) because I think it highlights an important implication.

Sooooo... the word Katsuki uses here アッシー (asshii) is uniquely loaded slang.

Jisho.org

This term originates from Japan's bubble economy era of the late 80s and saw continued use through the 90s. During the economic bubble, the unemployment rate was very low; the related increased presence of women in the workplace led to a cultural perspective that women were gaining social power and financial independence.

From this new social dynamic emerged several terms:

Asshii-kun, Messhii-kun, and Mitsugu-kun.

English Journal, written by University of Kitakyuushuu linguistics professor Anne Crescini

There's also the lesser known Tsunagu-kun, who hooks up electronics for a woman, and Keep-kun, a "backup boyfriend" for when a woman's preferred partner dumps her.

A couple Japanese websites I looked at talked about luxury vehicles gaining in popularity during this time, so Asshii-kun are associated with expensive sports cars, something Katsuki is probably referencing since his car is fancy as fuck!

It's not a well known term anymore, to the point that I saw a number of jpn fans joking about having to look up what it means, haha. Katsuki's dialogue often has interesting, unusual word choices, and of course, reigning queen of up-to-date slang Camie teased him about his delinquent shtick being "out of fashion"!

In that journal article, Crescini explores English terms which roughly convey the same meaning as asshii. I've used google translate here to show you what is written, so let's take a look!

O--oh.

Oh.

fdkjslhsmh;lkshm;

LISTEN I WAS TRYING TO BE FUCKING EMPIRICAL AND SHIT

oh. is that right.

yeah

yeah he is

FYI shiri ni shikarareru of course carries the implication of a man being dominated or bossed around by his wife.

Now, on social media, I saw people (likely in their 40s and 50s) using the term jokingly to describe having to chauffeur someone around for errands. It was mostly men talking about their wives, but there were a couple instances of it being used for friends and family members. It definitely has the energy of "being forced to drive someone around without getting anything in return."

But notice that Katsuki voices this complaint about Izuku specifically, even though Kirishima is also in the car. Like yeah, he yells about Kirishima threatening to scratch his car, but he doesn't fucking call himself Kirishima's asshii!

He could have used a plural "you" pronoun or even pluralized Izuku's name with Deku-tachi to make it "Deku and the people with him," but no, it's "Deku's asshii."

Tell me, Kacchan, when it comes to Izuku, are you hoping to get something in return?

"If somebody'd just said the words 'I wanna surpass Dynamight,' I'd have taken 'em." "You ain't gonna give up teaching?"

date me date me date me fucking do hero work with ME Izuku be a hero with ME

[sigh...]

"Man, you got dumped, huh, Bakugou!!"

Listen. My jaw dropped when I saw Kirishima say this.

Weblio (google translated)

This definition specifies "amorous feelings of being in love" (恋愛感情). I'm not joking when I say I've almost exclusively heard this word used for rejected confessions or couples breaking up.

Japanese Stack Exchange question, "Can フラれて be used in any non-romantic sense?"

The Japanese example sentence describes a business proposal being immediately rejected. The comedy here is inherently tied to the verb being used for romantic rejection, like someone saying "I applied for a promotion, but those fickle hiring managers went and broke my heart."

Even if you aren't literally suggesting romantic love, the association makes it sound over the top and dramatic.

Kirishima is drawing attention to how serious and emotionally invested Katsuki is in making this offer and affectionately teasing him for it. Note that he doesn't just use the simple past tense for this verb (フラれた), which would have sounded direct and not particularly sympathetic. He's using a [verb] + shimau construction (further contracted as slang to "-chimatta") which makes it a "regrettable" outcome, like an "aww man!"

You can add that construction to any verb and it would sound funny/sympathetic, so he could have phrased it differently:

断られちまった ("You got turned down," common word used for all kinds of rejection)

拒められちまった ("You got denied," used for romantic, platonic, and familial relationships)

撥ね付けられちまった ("You got totally rejected," used for when someone coldly or flatly rejects an offer or request)

撃沈しちまった ("You got shot down," uses battleship sinking imagery for failure in daily life, business ventures, romance, hopes and dreams, etc.)

轟沈しちまった ("You got crushed," similar to above, but more severe and instantaneous sinking: instant kill, KO, torpedoed, etc.)

The last few in particular are very dramatic and humorous, so they would work well if Kirishima wanted to joke about the speed or bluntness of Izuku's refusal.

BUT NO.

DUDE USED THE VERB SPECIFICALLY ASSOCIATED WITH ROMANTIC REJECTION, which centers the feelings of heartbreak and disappointment.

He is commiserating with Katsuki for "putting his heart on the line" and getting the cold shoulder, and then he fucking wingmans for Katsuki by spelling it all out to Izuku!!

You can say all you want "it's just lighthearted banter, they're joking!" Sure. You're right, this is a funny scene.

But the joke is that Izuku is a cute girl Katsuki keeps trying (and failing) to woo. That he's taking advantage of Katsuki's feelings for him and stringing him along.

The joke is that Katsuki wants Izuku at his hero agency so bad, the rejection is essentially on the level of getting dumped or having your love confession rejected.

The joke is that Izuku is completely oblivious when it comes to love.

oh interesting doesn't that sound familiar

LITERALLY EVERYBODY KNOWS THIS NERD WOULDN'T NOTICE LOVE IF IT PUNCHED HIM IN THE FACE

'cause Katsuki already tried that one

But I will say, for all Katsuki's complaints, the problem is obviously not a lack of reciprocation. The problem is that Izuku doesn't recognize what Katsuki feels for him. He doesn't get what Katsuki is trying to express to him. He can't answer honestly if he doesn't even understand the question.

The comedic parts of MHA are often wrapped up in important plot points and messages. Sure, it's funny, but why does that mean we're supposed to dismiss it?

Also, Kirishima says this:

"Midoriya sure is dense when it comes to these things."

その辺 (sono hen) is a perfectly ordinary phrase for "that area," "that topic," "in that regard," or "around there," and I wouldn't think anything of it if not for this next bit:

"On that note, what about you guys?"

They are talking about the Class B students who started dating, and Sero uses the same phrase to ask whether Jirou and Kaminari are a couple. Again, this isn't unusual, and if these moments were separated by whole chapters, it would not read as notable in any way. その辺 is a common enough phrase that it's not something you could pin down as a "thematic phrase" or anything like that.

But the repetition struck me. Sero could have said, そういえば (speaking of which, now that you mention it, on that subject), this is a very common sentence starter, but he also could have said things like 付き合ってといえば (speaking of dating) to be more specific.

In this conversation, その辺 is framed as the topic of dating or romance by the preceding remarks. Meanwhile, the "topic" Kirishima suggests Izuku is thickheaded about is only really defined by his own previous comment...

which framed Katsuki's rejection as romantic heartbreak.

anyway

here's the funniest translation of Katsuki's asshii comment I could think of:

"Jeez, why do I gotta be Deku's vehicular bitch boy!"

[decchanlover]

i finished mha and been brainrotting a bit evidently

[decchanlover]

[decchanlover]

EVERYONE SOBBED PROBABLY

[decchanlover]

THEM.

[decchanlover]

Katsuki is trying his best.

Kofi / Patreon

[decchanlover]

girlfriends!

[decchanlover]

DAY 14 OF 14DAYSOFMHA

Anything You Want

At first I wanted to dedicate the last day to the love that I have for this series and revisit some of my favourite memories. But because everyone has something to say about the ending of the series, I decided to also dump whatever I have on my mind.

Especially with the topic of Horikoshi's treatment towards Izuku and the villains.

Because with this fandoms logic:

Killing a beloved character = omg the writer hates them!

Now, if Horikoshi killed them in cold blood without having them find their happiness/purpose/peace, then yes I would agree that this ending sucked.

But I never saw it this way.

Now this is my personal (and very biased opinion) that could be extremely wrong. But at last, BNHA ended and everyone and their mother is talking about it so, here goes nothing.

"The villains didn't get what they wanted"

Tenko/Tomura Shigaraki

"His only desire was to destroy" was it though?

Why don't we go back, to the very beginning of Tenko Shimura.

No, his first ever desire was to become a hero.

"Okay then he should have lived and become heroes with Deku"

.... First of all, I highly doubt that ANY citizen of Japan would be happy to have the guy that was so heavily involved in two deadly wars become one of their heroes. This scene conveys the message perfectly.

So no, he can't become their hero but that ... shouldn't matter anyway because Tenko was already a hero to the villains.

He fought for them, protected them, promised them a new beginning with freedom. The moment where he states his true goal, is still my favourite moment from his character. Because we know that he has been feeling lost. Who was he? Were his thoughts his own or AFO's?

The need to protect them was his. Finally for the first time he's talking straight from him heart, without AFO's influence. Tenko Shimura never wanted to destroy but to save.

Tenko Shimura didn't die being AFO's puppet . His life, his whole existence was planned by him. That's the moment he's breaking free from the AFO shackles and makes his own decision. He's a hero. AFO's desperation to mold him into a heartless super villain gets destroyed by Shigaraki himself.

So Tenko wanted to survive in order to continue being their hero. But here's the problem, the Lov didn't exist anymore. As Tenko was saying how he's the hero of the villains, said villains were either dead (Twice) dying on the battlefield (Toga) and were about to die in a few months (Dabi)

So if not for them then what would keep Tenko alive? His will was to protect them, and he did. You can't blame any of their deaths on him, from his part he did a good job being their leader. He truly cared about them.

His first wish was to be a hero, and a hero he became. Just with a twist. Instead of taking down bad guys, he protected them. He found his purpose before he died.

(Side note) Shigaraki makes his last appearance in the last page of the finale... and I loved it. I didn't get emotional just because he's there but because of what he's wearing.

It's the clothes that he had in the beginning of the series :')

But most importantly, look at his body, the hands of his dead family that AFO forced on him, aren't there anymore.

He's free. He finally found peace.

Twice

All Twice ever wanted was to belong. To have a family. Simple as that but because of who he was he truly thought that it was almost impossible to fit in. But the Lov became his family. The Lov made him feel like he belonged. You can just see how grateful he is as he's slowly dying. He thinks back to his life and states proudly that he had never been unlucky, which is obviously not true.

Twice have been anything but lucky but in his final moments he thinks that he was. Because while yes most of his life was miserable, just by meeting the Lov and have them be a part in his life, he looks back and can only think how lucky he was, to live and meet them. He found his family before he died.

(u can see a pattern here and yes you're right)

Toga Himiko

Toga wanted to be accepted as she was. To have people not judge or get disgusted by her. For someone to understand her. And she found that comfort in Ochako. The line about Togas smile means so much more than what many think.

And I know because it has been meme-ed to death that a lot of people can't take this scene seriously anymore and it is a shame!! Cuz that's what Toga always wanted to hear. Because she was targeted and ridiculed for that same smile and now for the first time there was someone that not only accepted her smile but she thought that she was beautiful, the most beautiful. So come on say it with me, she got what she wanted before she died.

She doesn't think of herself as a monster. No, she's normal and she's the cutest girl in the world!

(ps, I just realised that Twice died in the arms of the person that accepted him the most, Toga. And then Toga also died in the arms of the person that accepted her in the end the most, Ochako)

Dabi/ Toya

He wanted approval. He wanted his father's attention. But he also wanted love (all people who think dabi as a heartless monster can go now!) that boy thought his need for revenge cancelled all his desperation for love but HA NO! And I'm so glad that at the very end you can see his true self shine through. Dabi got Endeavours attention, he had him apologising for everything. He got his family together and the knowledge that Shoto, the brother that he tried to kill on multiple occasions, doesn't hate him, only asks him about his favourite food.

He. Got. What. He. Wanted. Before. He. Died.

I think Izuku, Ochako and Shoto will always live with that burden. When the whole world thinks of these guys as monsters, they can say otherwise.

The public doesn't see little Tenko in the villain Shigaraki. Only Izuku does. Only Izuku has seen a small boy getting abused by his family, and then manipulated by AFO.

The public will not find Togas smile the prettiest but most likely creepy. But Ochako thinks it's beautiful!

And the public couldn't care less about Toyas favourite food because he's just Dabi to them. But that was what Shoto only wanted to know.

Along side Izuku, Ochako, and Shoto stands us, the readers. Just like how these three know what truly these villains were, we also know because we lived through their povs. We've seen them being silly and making jokes, living life as "normally" as possible. We've seen why they ended up becoming villains. And now we have to live with their absence.

Which is why for me Spinner and Mr. Compress are the saddest part.

To question what was the point of the league of villains is like you're insulting them. The point was the happiness that they found. Their home, the place to belong.

Spinners scene is heartbreaking but personally what breaks me the most is Mr. Compress. Yes that small panel of him smiling while reading (probably) the book that Spinner wrote about the Lov. Just seeing the fondness in his smile is enough to convince me that after everything that went down, he doesn't regret it. He doesn't regret the league of villains. It was probably the happiest he'd ever felt in his life. And after 8 years not a single thing could change his mind. He was and still is, happy that he got to meet them.

But then I ask myself, what ending would fit them? A "happy ending" only sounds happy to us. And apparently for BNHA fans:

happy ending = all characters must live.

Would Tenko be happy to know that what awaits him is a life trapped in a prison without the Lov being alive? As if they would ever let him out. So what, Izuku visits to trauma dump on each other and then when it's over Izuku goes back to his happy little life being a Pro Hero, and Tenko goes back to being alone? Trapped in a room with only his thoughts and the remaining trauma? Would that even make him happy? I personally can't think of another ending that doesn't revolve Tenko being thrown in prison. I just go with what sounds more realistic. Trust me, I would LOVE to see him as a Pro Hero alongside Deku and Dynamight. But that's maybe for an alternative universe :')

Toga was (and still kinda is) the one that confused me the most. Hori just kept avoiding to show us any actual evidence of her being dead. It felt like it was building up, that it was going somewhere but at the end she's really gone. But again, same question with Tenko, would Toga be happy as a prisoner for life? I just imagine Ochako visiting her to update on her life and lift her mood, but then again, Toga would only be happy because of Ochako's happiness and not her own. It's tricky, I really really wanted her to live. But at the same time I don't know how it could have been handled.

(Alternative ending: Toga lives, she hides until Ochako becomes a Pro Hero. Then they meet and immediately fall in love and decide to run away together ❤️)

Dabi is the most complicated one. I will say that what we got from chapter 426 was pretty satisfying to me.

It's bittersweet, exactly like I expected it to be.

For Dabi to live, logistically would be impossible. He's quite literally a walking corpse. I'm assuming he died after a few months from chapter 426.

And this is where the open ending solution can be unsatisfying.

I wanna know how he died. Was he alone? Was he crying? Apologizing? Was his family with him? Maybe Shoto? And if yes, then did he apologize to him? Did he die peacefully? :')

That's why open endings can be 50/50 for me. It's nice to leave things up to the readers interpretation but sometimes you just really wanna know what exactly went down.

Alive doesn't equal to happy.

As a fan of these characters (myself included) of course you'd wish for them to stay alive because you're attached to them.

And you have a every right to feel attached to them, even if they are the "villains" of the show.

Horikoshi didn't punish them with death. He clearly cared about these characters. Otherwise he wouldn't go out of his way to humanize them.

To dedicate two volumes on them and their backstories, knowing fully well that they aren't as popular as the heroes in Japan.

Of course not all endings are satisfying. But personally to me, seeing them break their walls down and either accept love (Toga, Touya) or find their purpose (Tenko) was enough for me to smile in the end.

It's a sad smile nonetheless, but loving and cheering for the "bad guys" is always like you're playing directly with fire.

Izuku Midoriya: Do Not Be Defeated By The Rain

Don't get me wrong, Izuku deserved to have an emotional breakdown. He deserved to be comforted and be told that he isn't a murderer.

It hurts to see him move on while his heart is still heavy with pain.

He needed a hug. Someone to hold him.

But Izuku doesn't allow himself to have an emotional breakdown.

He thinks he completely deserves it.

It's almost like he thinks this:

Breakdown means your heart is complaining about something. You can't complain, that's ungrateful.

(He's still alive while someone else isn't)

You need to stay humble and live with it.

(He said he's fine while feeling slightly lonely for years)

If others are crying, you should go and comfort them.

(Katsuki, Spinner, Ochako)

But don't expect or even wish to be comforted back.

(He never did)

The choices that you made will live alongside you.

(.....)

And the only thing that you can do, is move forward and be grateful even if unhappy.

Sounds awfully familiar, right?

Better dismissed as useless than flattered as a "Great Man"

Izuku stayed true to his character until the very end.

That's Deku for you. A selfless person that will never put himself first, will never truly think of himself as important, will always question his worth and will always downgrade his value.

It's frustrating to watch, it's hard. You love that character so much, you just wanna bang your head against the wall thinking just how much more he deserves.

I don't think Horikoshi is the one that thinks Izuku doesn't deserve to have a moment for himself, it's Izuku himself who's against it.

That's why I'm so glad that even after many years, he's surrounded by the loveliest people that care and want to show him how incredible he is.

He might not want to face it, but he truly is a "Great Man" :)

At the end, you can say and feel however you want. Things could have easily been handled with more care. But this wasn't my or your story. If that's what Horikoshi wanted then I'm ok with it. The open ending leaves so much for us the fans to figure out and get creative with! I'm honestly grateful for that. Now I know for sure that this fandom won't die that easily.

I will be honest with my next topic:

Calling Horikoshi a useless writer and saying things like "put that pen down" and "maybe it's time to retire" is very disrespectful and just plain rude. I get it, you didn't like the ending. But I personally find it too harsh.

People saying that Horikoshi now sucks but used to be good, mind you, the "used to be good" literally refers to a few chapters before the finale. So in a spam of five chapters he became the worst writer possible? No. That's the ending that he had in his mind. Like it or hate it, it shouldn't cancel all of Horikoshi's work.

We all know that he has given us amazing arcs with brilliant characters and backstories. That man knows how to write, he's just not perfect. He's a good writer with flaws. You know, like any other normal human out there?

No matter what ending we'd get, it would never satisfy every single fan.

Some wanted for all the villains to stay alive while others didn't care about their survival.

Some wanted for all the main characters (especially Izuku) to get married with kids and stuff and others (like myself) hated that idea.

Hell some people still wanted Bakugou to end up dead somehow. Or for Izuku to get revenge. For Toga and Ochako to become canon. Katsuki and Izuku to become canon. Mina and Kirishima, Denki and Jirou, Izuku and Ochako... You get the point!

Everybody wanted something different. How on earth could you satisfy a fandom with so many different needs? You simply can't.

I'm not saying that I LOVED the ending. But I also don't think it's a bad ending. Is it rushed? Yes. But is it bad? It depends on who you ask. If you ask me, I wouldn't call it bad at all.

And for the love of god, stop saying that Horikoshi got sick of BNHA and wanted to end it as soon as possible. That he "hates Deku" omfg are you listening to yourselves?

First of all, even if Horikoshi really wanted to end BNHA, that doesn't mean that he hates it! His love and adoration for his series can coexist with his need to move on to something different. It's been ten whole years and I get it. If he wants to create something new I will definitely stick around to see it.

At last, people undermine how worst we could have had it. Getting the ending of a long series right is difficult .

He's still a good writer in my eyes. Not perfect but very good with interesting ideas to share. Overall I enjoyed this ride. And the more time passes the more I like this ending.

I still hope for more material tho. Maybe from team up or light novels? Perhaps any original ova or movie? (I will always beg for a fantasy movie PLEASE BONES JUST DO IT)

Either way I definitely want more from adult class 1A. Headcanons and fanon stories to fill gaps are good but come on Horikoshi 👁️👁️ don't be shy, share some facts with the class.

Saying goodbye to BNHA feels weird...

Those 3 years of being in the fandom brought me so much happiness and laughter. I will forever be grateful to Kohei Horikoshi for creating this wonderful series. Nothing will ever come this close in my heart.

[decchanlover]

DAY 13 OF 14DAYSOFMHA

Future, Growth, Change, Evolution

Growth and change are two words that are heavily rooted in Katsuki's character. And while many characters have gone through significant changes throughout the story, Katsuki's is the most noticeable and in my very biased opinion, it's easily the best one.

No need to explain, I think everyone is aware of how nicely handled and realistic Katsuki's change is (while still being true to himself!!)

It's why he's my second favourite character!

Giving myself a pat on the back for believing in his future evolution since episode 1 (⁠◕⁠દ⁠◕⁠)

I mean... I still get surprised when ppl say that they didn't see it coming like ... really??

Either way, the end result is still excellent! One of BNHA's biggest strengths if you ask me.

The future and evolution of our characters is something that we've only gotten a small taste of. I know the manga couldn't possibly go on forever but still I'm hoping for more information :')

I'll talk more about them and their "conclusion" on day 14 but for now all I can say is that I'm extremely proud of my babies .⁠·⁠´⁠¯⁠`⁠(⁠>⁠▂⁠<⁠)⁠´⁠¯⁠`⁠·⁠.

[decchanlover]

DAY 12 OF 14DAYSOFMHA

Smile, Humour

Nothings better than seeing your comfort characters smile :')

[decchanlover]

DAY 11 OF 14DAYSOFMHA

Name

Honestly, I don't have anything specific to highlight. It's more so everyone's names and how easy it was for an anime beginner (me) to learn!

Plus they're all so creative. I applaud Horikoshi for all that work that went into coming up with each of them 👏🏻👏🏻 well done Hori, well done.

I would also like to add that as someone that's interested in getting to learn the Japanese language, it's so cool to have most of their names be connected to their powers because you can simply remember what each word translates to, just by knowing each characters quirk!

Very cool 🫡

[decchanlover]

DAY 10 OF 14DAYSOFMHA

Heart

Today's an angsty one for me.

Izuku losing control over his heart for a certain blonde <3

:')

Somebody hug that boy now!!

You 🫵🏻 (certain blonde boy) you go hug him rn!

[decchanlover]

DAY 9 OF 14DAYSOFMHA

Childhood

Today's star of the show is none other than baby wonder duo!

They're so small 🤏🏻 so squishy

(⁠ ⁠◜⁠‿⁠◝⁠ ⁠)⁠♡

[decchanlover]

DAY 8 OF 14DAYSOFMHA

Music

If there's one thing that the anime adaptation got right, it's definitely the music!

So for today's topic, I will honour the one and only Might*U!

Never fails to make me sob uncontrollably ༎ຶ⁠‿⁠༎ຶ

[decchanlover]

DAY 7 OF 14DAYSOFMHA

First Impressions

Izuku Midoriya

I thought he was cute but nothing that special. I liked him enough as a main character but there was no emotional attachment yet (yet!) I didn't know just how obsessed I would become later on!!

Katsuki Bakugou

I mean... sure I hated how mean he was but I never really hated him. Of course I didn't approve of his behaviour but I already knew that he was one of the main characters and at the time I wholeheartedly believed that you couldn't possibly have a main character stay a consistent asshole throughout an entire series ┐⁠(⁠ ⁠˘⁠_⁠˘⁠)⁠┌

I knew that he was gonna get that sweet sweet character development, just didn't know when or how realistic it would be.

Shoto Todoroki

Skip to season 2 cuz I barely even noticed him in season 1. Shoto was the first favourite of mine (⁠◕⁠દ⁠◕⁠) I don't think there's a single person that wasn't moved by the Deku vs Shoto episode, season 2 was just his season.

[decchanlover]

DAY 6 OF 14DAYSOFMHA

Minor Character

Not a single character but all the vestiges!

(Apologies for the Kudo and Bruce erasure, it was the first pic that I found of all of them together 🙃)

Very cool and underrated, definitely desperate for more of their backstories and silly little details (PLEASE HORIKOSHI PLEASE GIVE THEM TO ME 🦅🦅🦅)

With a very big shout out to our beloved doomed ship <3 :')

They were too iconic to survive 💔

[decchanlover]

DAY 5 OF 14DAYSOFMHA

Special Move

It had to be this one :')

Coldflame's Pale Blade!

That smile is still everything to me (⁠╥⁠﹏⁠╥⁠)