#Mha sport festival arc

[galactic-space]

BAJAHHAHAHAHA THEY HAD TO TIE BAKUGO UP WTF

[poppy5991]

At the next sports festival…

Iida: My glasses fell off inside my helmet and I couldn’t see anything! It was terrible. I hope we still did ok.

Meanwhile Shoto, lying on the ground in the distance after being run over by his teammate:

[rewrittenmha]

UA Sports Festival Arc

I've been waiting to get my hands on this arc (this is a long one so be prepared).

Despite the USJ incident, the Sports Festival is still going on. However, Aizawa, Midnight, and Present Mic vehemently protest against broadcasting it nationally. They remind Nezu that the school is very clearly being targeted and that exposing the weaknesses of their students- especially their first years- is not a good idea. Nezu acknowledges their concerns and agrees, but tells them that the HPSC has demanded that the Sports Festival goes on as planned. That the country needs to be reassured that UA- and the hero world- is as strong as ever.

(Me trying to make UA a competent school be like-)

All Might stays quiet during the discussion, but internally realizes that security concerns never even crossed his mind. He wonders why that is and why his younger colleagues seemed to recognize that while he didn't. He's starting to realize that there's a lot that goes on around him that he fails to recognize.

(Deconstructing All Might's toxic ideals around heroism is a very important part of the story as they're usually perpetuated through him. He's the poster boy of toxic hero society even if that isn't his intention and he doesn't realize it. Changing All Might's way of thinking- especially because of the affect is has on Izuku- is very crucial)

In the days preparing for the Sports Festival, Izuku notices how focused Uraraka is. She's been quiet, scribbling in her notebook and not being as talkative. When he asks about it, she admits to him and Iida that she needs to succeed at UA and feels like she's behind compared to the two of them. Her parents have struggled financially all her life and becoming a hero is her only chance to do right by them. She knows that it isn't a selfless, noble goal but it's been important to her all her life.

Iida assures her that wanting to provide for her parents is a noble end goal. Izuku agrees, but begins to think about his own mother. He had always had everything he needed, but Izuku knew they didn't have much money to spare. Inko had wanted to move to get him out of Aldera due to the bullying she knew about, but it just wasn't possible. His father refused to send more money from America and she could only do so much on a seamstress' salary.

He never wanted to be a hero for monetary gain, but he would like to make his mom's life a little easier, if he could.

Lunch with All Might goes about the same (it's so wholesome). The one difference is that All Might asks Izuku about his relationship with Bakugou. Izuku wasn't expecting that question and stumbles over his words, answering that they're childhood friends. But when All Might points out that Bakugou seems to be very aggressive towards him, Izuku replies with, "That's just how Kacchan is."

All Might's concerns are not alleviated by this.

The school day ends with 1A being confronted by the other classes. Bakugou is being his usual self, but Uraraka- who has found herself growing more and more annoyed with his attitude- tells him to stop being such a jerk. This stuns Izuku, who has never seen Bakugou being called out directly. But before he can process what's happening, Iida agrees, reprimanding him for his unsportsmanlike and pretentious behavior. Yaoyorozu chimes in that his actions reflect on the rest of the class and calling people "extras" is childish and not befitting a hero.

(Izuku.exe has stopped working)

Bakugou is about to rage at the three of them. Kirishima, however, brings up that while Bakugou's attitude sucks, it's unmanly for the other classes to gawk at and gossip about them. The kid in the front of the crowd- a general department student- scoffs and says that he has the chance to take one of their places in the hero course. He declares war on their class and tells them to watch their backs.

(Oh Shinsou, as pleasant as ever)

A class 1B student is also there, remarking on how unimpressive 1A appears to be. He warns 1A not to embarrass them during the Sports Festival since the audience is mostly going to be looking at them.

(Monoma being a bastard as usual)

The first event of the Sports Festival and everything leading up to it goes relatively the same. Todoroki confronts Izuku in the locker room and Izuku maintains that he'll try his best. Because Bakugou came in first during the Entrance Exam, he confidently and seriously declares that he'll win, which continues to make 1A a target.

Izuku wins with Todoroki and Bakugou coming in second and third. I'm keeping this because it's one of the best moments of the Sports Festival (the only thing I'm changing is Mineta on Yaoyorozu's back). And it sets up the Third Event well. I don't feel the need to change the Cavalry Battle that much either. I thought about having Monoma's team win instead of Shinsou's, but decided against it.

I'm also having Yaoyorozu confirm with Midnight before listening to Kaminari and Mineta about the cheerleading uniforms. She tells them that no, of course that's not a requirement for the female participants. Yaoyorozu, silently furious, scolds Kaminari and Mineta and tells them that she's reproting them to Aizawa.

Battle Tournament: Round 1

Round one basically goes the same. Except, I do have a few minor changes and one big change.

Izuku Midoriya vs Hitoshi Shinsou: I was going to change this fight, but then I realized that the OFA users snapping Izuku out of Shinsou's control was the first contact he made with the OFA users. And that's preeettty important. So I'm only changing it slightly.

Instead of OFA breaking Izuku's finger, a voice intervened before Izuku can snap at Shinsou. It's a woman's voice, reminding him of what Ojiro said and warning him not to lose his head.

She tells him that his quick thinking and ability to stay calm under pressure is one of his most valuable abilities. She tells him that keeping a level head in every situation is important. So Izuku, despite being upset as Shinsou's taunting of Ojiro, easily knocks him out of the ring.

(Nana gets scolded by the other users for intervening so soon. But she shrugs and defends that he was doing so well and just needed a little nudge in the right direction. Izuku reminds her so much of Toshinori- who she misses immeasurably- that it's hard not to get attached)

Izuku is snapped at by Shinsou, who accuses Izuku of having it easy because of his quirk. He assumes that Izuku had it easy his whole life and doesn't know what it's like to be outcast and labeled.

Izuku, who understands more than Shinsou could ever know, simply smiles. It's both kind and heartbreaking, which shocks Shinsou to his core. Izuku thanks Shinsou for the fight and tells him he can't wait to see him in the hero course one day.

Shinsou doesn't know why, but he gets the feeling that Midoriya does understand. But he doesn't know how that could be possible.

Momo Yaoyorozu vs Fumikage Tokoyami: This fight doesn't change much, but I thought I would get into Yaoyorozu's head a little here. Her entire life, she was the smart one. The one with the plan. She thought that she could face anything as long as she was smart and careful. It had worked all her life. It impressed her teachers, it made her parents proud. How could it not?

But for some reason, it never occurred to her that sometimes, she wouldn't have time for a plan. She was completely thrown off by Tokoyami's relentless assault. He didn't give her time to think or process, just kept dealing blow after blow that she couldn't counter in time.

Yaoyorozu was forced out of the ring. And she had never felt the sting of failure until that moment.

Ochako Uraraka vs Katsuki Bakugou: Uraraka has... a plan.

She distracts Bakugou as best she can. Using the smoke from his explosions, she attempts to attack him from all angles, diverting his attention from her real attack. She knows that it's risky and even a little foolish, but she has to try.

All this time, she's watched her classmates push themselves and give their all. That's something she's never done in her life. She can't be left behind, she has people counting on her. She has to succeed.

But much to her dismay, Bakugou figured out her plan. He blows up every bit of rock she had sent into the air, crushing any hopes of victory with it. Uraraka falls to the ground in dismay, fighting off tears. She's exhausted and hopeless and knows that she's going to lose. So why bother? She can't beat Bakugou.

She's been on the ground for too long. Midnight starts counting down.

5... 4...

Bakugou advances, telling her that she knew she would lose and that she should have quit earlier. He stands right in front of her, ready to deal the final blow and ring her out.

3... 2...

But something about his words make Uraraka angry. She's seen how he talks down to people. She's seen how he treats everyone as below him. She's seen how he targets Izuku who never fights back or defends himself. And she knows he's been looking down on her this whole fight.

And she's sick of it.

1-

In a fit of rage, Uraraka's arm shoots out and she grabs Bakugou's ankle. Making him weightless, she flips him over her shoulder and towards the edge of the ring. Bakugou, completely thrown off since he assumed she was defeated, falls to the ground.

Ochako Uraraka wins.

This was so, so satisfying to write this y'all don't even know. I told you guys that Uraraka's underdog story was coming. Idk what Aizawa's on about, but trying to say that Bakugou didn't look down on her was BULLSHIT. He literally told her she should have given up. So I thought, what better way to have her beat him than to use his own arrogance against him?

Every other round one fight stays the same.

Humiliated and angry, Bakugou confronts Izuku after the fight. He, through tears, accuses Izuku of telling Uraraka to fake him out and is upset that Izuku would use his weakness against him. But Izuku firmly tells him that Uraraka refused any help from him and that she won completely on her own. Bakugou doesn't believe him and tries to attack him, only for Iida to intervene and tell him to back off.

Izuku, who's never had someone stand up for him against Bakugou, is extremely touched, but also guilty when Bakugou runs away. He hadn't wanted to upset him, but he was telling the truth. He'd had nothing to do with Uraraka's victory.

And he wasn't going to stop himself from being happy for her.

Battle Tournament, Round 2:

Izuku Midoriya vs Shoto Todoroki: This fight goes relatively the same. The only thing I would change is that Izuku tells Shoto he's free to be his own hero and that what Endeavor wants doesn't matter. He encourages Shoto to reclaim his fire for himself. That's essentially what he does say in canon, but apparently Izuku haters need everything spelled out for them (eyeroll).

He loses this round, but he's not upset by it. He's just glad he could help Todoroki.

Toshinori is both proud and incredulous. Proud because Izuku helped his classmate. Incredulous because it had cost him his win. Nevertheless, Young Midoriya has impressed him greatly. This calls for a treat after the Sports Festival!

Ochako Uraraka vs Eijiro Kirishima: You know, at first I thought that Kirishima would be the winner of this fight. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized that Uraraka could easily win. Kirishima can't fight without touching her, which immediately gives her the advantage.

It's hard to touch Kirishima with all give of her fingers due to his quirk and attempts to rush her out of the ring, but Uraraka isn't giving up. She's determined to push herself as much as she can. Grabbing hold of his jagged flesh, she makes him weightless and kicks him square in his chest. This is enough to push him out of the ring.

Because she actually likes Kirishima, Uraraka apologizes profusely. But Kirishima is completely impressed and admires her manliness. Uraraka isn't sure how to take that, but thanks him anyway.

All the other fights stay the same.

Battle Tournament: Round 3

Ochako Uraraka vs Fumikage Tokoyami: Unfortunately, Uraraka is unable to effect Dark Shadow with her quirk. It's solid, but it seems to be able to regulate its own mass with negates her quirk's functionality.

However, she doesn't allow the fight to end quickly. She holds off against Tokoyami, dodging his attacks and targeting his body. She's able to kick his feet out from under him and gain the upper hand for a split second.

(Yaoyorozu watches enviously from the audience. How could Uraraka do that and not her? What was she missing?)

But while she did that, she momentarily forgot about Dark Shadow. It wraps around her and while she struggles futilely, it gently places her outside of the ring. Uraraka was disappointed to lose after coming so far, but she was met with an admiring smile from Izuku as she joins him in the audience. He commends her for getting so far and tells her she did a really good job. Uraraka blushes and compliments his performance back.

They sit back and watch together as Iida loses to Todoroki. He joins them in the stands as they offer apologies, but Iida waves them off with a smile. His phone rings and he goes to answer it.

Izuku and Uraraka don't see him again for the rest of the event.

Battle Tournament: Round 3

Shoto Todoroki vs Fumikage Tokoyami: Even though Todoroki doesn't feel the same disdain towards his left side, he still hesitates to use his fire. It still came from Endeavor, no matter how much he wishes he could reclaim it as his own like Izuku advised him to.

He thinks that maybe someday he could manage to use it without seeing it as what drove him mother away. But for now, he's unable to stand bringing the heat to his palm. It burns, even though it realistically shouldn't.

Tokoyami is thankful that Todoroki doesn't use his fire. If he had, then he might have negated Dark Shadow resulting in his victory. But because Shoto is exhausted from his earlier display of power against Sero, it gives Tokoyami the upper hand. He's able to maneuver Dark Shadow around Todoroki's defenses of ice and slam it into him.

Todoroki gets knocked away and falls outside the ring. He collapses from the emotional and physical toll and passes out.

Fumikage Tokoyami has won the Sports Festival.

FINAL RESULTS:

1st Place - Fumikage Tokoyami

2nd Place - Shoto Todoroki

3rd Place - Ochako Uraraka & Tenya Iida

All Might hands out the medals to the winners, though Iida is suspiciously absent. Izuku is happy for his friends, though he wishes he could have performed a little better. But he's cheered up by a call to his mom, who's simultaneously worried about and proud of him.

Izuku knows his mom loves him and knows that she would do anything for him. But to hear those words from her in support of his dream... It breaks something in him. He starts crying, thanking her and quickly hanging up.

He's so glad to hear those words from his mother, but he can't help but wish he had gotten those words of encouragement from her sooner.

Notes:

Of course it's right after I say I was struggling with this arc that it all comes to me. Idk, rewriting Hawks got me motivated

I seriously debated having Uraraka beat Bakugou. I wondered if it was even possible at this point. But the more I thought about it, the more I realize she didn't have to overpower him. Bakugou's biggest weakness is his ego. All she had to do was target that. My original plan was to have Bakugou lose to Todoroki but you know what? Fuck that, this is Uraraka's underdog story

So the thing with Izuku vs Shinsou. I did think that OFA breaking his fingers out of nowhere was... dumb. Like, it just came out of nowhere to get Izuku out of that situation. I think the OFA users gently guiding him throughout the story before revealing themselves makes a lot more sense. Also, I love Nana

I actually do think Tokoyami could have beaten Todoroki at this point. Tokoyami had relatively easy fights before this. He only lost to Bakugou in canon because Bakugou had an inherent advantage. Todoroki not using his fire + him using all his energy against Sero and Izuku means that the fight was in Tokoyami's favor

I intentionally didn't give Iida a lot of focus because all of his major characterization is being saved for Stain

There was no glazing from Aizawa or booing from the heroes in the Uraraka vs Bakugou fight. Both were dumb and plot manipulation in canon

[eggsdrawings]

they have a cute color combo!

[arrowsneo]

MHA JUMPSCARE anyway father/daughter Mic & Uraraka propaganda

[slitherin-away]

I made embroidery of my favorite duo of dorks!

[chagrin-roses]

feeling nostalgic for bnha lately hehe

[sapphic-agent]

Let's Talk About the Sports Festival

*Note: this is a long one so strap in*

Oh boy, here we go.

I did touch briefly on this in my first ever post on here and I mentioned it a few other times. But I've got a few thoughts and I think this arc deserves a little exploration as it plays a crucial part in setting up our characters for the rest of the series.

I have a love/hate relationship with the Sports Festival overall. I think it does well for some characters, not so well for others. I'd like to take some time to break down how some characters benefit and how others don't and really evaluate the arc as a whole.

Uraraka

I think Uraraka's a great place to start. Now, in my Bakugou analysis I did say that I was unhappy with the match, mostly because it panders to Bakugou to make him seem better than he was. And I stand by that, the narrative was trying to shove a "positive trait" of his down our throats since all we had seen from him up to this point was all negative. It was Horikoshi's first attempt at subverting expectations, I think.

However, I actually do think this fight was good for Uraraka as a character.

Uraraka isn't the fastest or strongest or smartest in 1A and previous to this that was fine because being those things wasn't her goal. She wanted to be a rescue hero and provide for her parents, she didn't set out to be particularly ambitious like Izuku or Todoroki or her other classmates. However, this proved to be somewhat of a hinderance to her succeeding as we see in the Cavalry battle. She pairs up with Izuku because she needs to rely on him if she wants to stand a chance of winning. And because of that, she feels like she can't fend for herself.

I think pairing her up against Bakugou was a good thing. Not because he treated her with "respect" or as a serious opponent (because he didn't), but because it pushed her to her limits and forced her to think outside of the box. She refuses Izuku's help because she knows she can't use him as a crutch going forward so she devises her own plan. And even though she loses, she still gets to shine and prove herself (we'll get back to this point with a certain character later). It also acts as a hallmark for her character, that she has to really push herself if she wants to be able to stand with (or even against) her stronger classmates.

Now, whether or not this setup pays off later is for another post, but I think Uraraka is one of the only characters this arc really does justice.

Izuku

If I'm being honest, the Sports Festival is far from the worst arc in the series for our beloved main character.

The race was great, of course. Because he can't depend on his quirk like everyone else, Izuku has to put all his critical thinking skills and strategic prowess to the test. The race is actually one of my favorite parts of the show because a kid from the bottom of his class (at the time) rises above everyone else and absolutely no one (including us) saw it coming. He has a major disadvantage and still comes out on top. It really ties in well with All Might's advice to stand in front of everyone and say, "I am here."

Now, the Cavalry Battle is a different story. To be fair, I don't think it really hurts or helps Izuku's character all that much. He has to think on his feet and strategize carefully, but he already did that in the race. His leaderships skills aren't really displayed all that much either (it's present, but Bakugou, Todoroki, and Monoma take much more of the limelight here). They could have taken more time to develop this role for him, but it's nothing really major to complain about.

The tournament is a little different. Obviously, Izuku couldn't win because if he had it wouldn't have been realistic. But his fight with Shinsou shouldn't have happened. The only reason they're matched up is for Izuku to break out of his hold with One For All. It doesn't do anything for his character (I might even say it hinders it because Ojirou specifically told him what to do and he ignored it) and really only serves as Shinsou's introduction, which could have been done with any character.

(Bakugou should have gone up against Shinsou. It would have humbled him; he would have lost to an "extra," one of the very people he talked down to. It would have also taught him that having a strong quirk or a weak quirk isn't what makes a hero and that power isn't everything)

However, the Todoroki fight does do Izuku's character justice. Because Izuku has always put helping others over winning or being the best. It's what makes him a true hero. He still makes Todoroki work for it and gives his all in the fight, but he does it with the genuine intention of helping. And that's what it means to be a hero. If the race was showing off his skill, then the tournament was showing off his heart. Those are the two sides to being a hero after all.

(If only the pro heroes had any semblance of sense to realize that)

So overall I am split on if this arc is good for Izuku or not. It does well with some things, poor with others. However, I do think that if Horikoshi had kept a similar approach with him throughout the story, it would have done him a lot more justice.

(At least more than whatever Dark Deku was supposed to be)

Iida

I don't have much to say on him other than that I think it would have been beneficial to showcase his skills a little more. He's supposed to be the second most intelligent in 1A and he got fourth on the quirk apprehension test. It would have been nice to show him off a little more like they did with Todoroki and Bakugou.

However, I do understand that his performance in the Sports Festival is meant to take a backseat to what's going on in his personal life. And for the most part that is done pretty well. The tension build up his actually really good and it sets him up to shine in the Stain arc.

I also appreciate his approach towards Izuku. He respects him and sees him as a friend, but also knows that Izuku is still an adversary. It's a unique approach to rivalry in anime and also sets up his role in the Stain arc well.

So it's not a terrible arc for Iida, but it could have been better for him too.

Bakugou

I know, I know I don't want to either but let's just get through this okay?

Obviously above I said what I said about how he should have fought Shinsou. And I stand by that. The Sports Festival was the best way he could have been humbled and taught humility. Having Bakugou fight Shinsou and lose could have aided his redemption in the long run.

Now, one thing that bothers me about the Sports Festival is that it seems like the narrative constantly goes out of its way to make him look better. Oh, Bakugou meets his match from a student with a copying quirk who rightfully calls him out and catches him off guard? Let's have him overcome the (truthful) assumptions and beat him and still qualify even though he was completely focused on the wrong things. Oh, the crowd thinks Bakugou is being overly harsh on someone who clearly isn't on his level? Let's have Aizawa vehemently defend him and tell everyone he's showing her respect when he obviously isn't (and even doubles down after the fact). Oh, Todoroki has just embraced a part of his quirk that's more than enough to beat Bakugou? Nah, let's have Todoroki throw even though he just had an epiphany about how his power was his and not his father's.

You see where I'm going with this? No matter what, this arc absolutely bends over backwards to portray Bakugou in a positive light. Where our other characters lose, struggle, and get put through the wringer, Bakugou is handed a win (literally and figuratively) multiple times. It's part of what pushed me from genuinely enjoying the Sports Festival to somewhat disliking it.

Bakugou is never allowed to struggle unless everyone around him is struggling too, most of the time worse than he is. This is a pattern that persists throughout the series. And it started in this arc.

Todoroki

You know how I said that Uraraka was one of the characters that this arc did justice? Well, Todoroki was the other one.

His set up in the Sports Festival is fantastic. Before this arc, we knew he was important. He was strong, aloof, and the only one who could intimidate Bakugou. The way they ease us into his character is very well done from his little mannerisms to revealing his backstory.

I know most of us agree that he should have beat Bakugou. However, him winning or losing the final match never really mattered. What mattered is that he made peace with his quirk and his trauma. And through Izuku he opens himself up which not only leads to him being a loyal friend, but also makes him a better hero in the long run. He is undoubtedly the character that develops the most.

(It's also through Todoroki that we get a bit of world building. Endeavor is the first example of a corrupt hero we see and we're introduced to the concept of quirk marriages)

Unfortunately, like Uraraka, this setup doesn't pay off that well later, but again that's a story for another day.

Yaoyorozu

An unfortunate flipside of Todoroki is that Yaoyorozu's character goes through the opposite.

A pattern with Yaoyorozu is that Horikoshi seems to fluctuate between wanting to treat her as a serious character and going out of his way to screw her over. In the race, she's a victim of Mineta's perversions (there's also the cheerleading bit, but that happened to all the 1A girls so it doesn't pertain to just her; it's still shitty though). She's barely present in the Cavalry Battle, only serving as a support prop for Todoroki's team.

And then the tournament is the final nail in the coffin. Yaoyorozu before this was shown to be calm, collected, and intelligent. She also- by the Quirk Apprehension Test results- has the most control and prowess over her quirk in 1A. So it's odd that she lost to Tokoyami so easily.

Not to say that she necessarily should have won, but for her to not realize what Tokoyami was doing was out of character to say the least when she was shown to be very observant. And if Horikoshi was going to add this insecurity aspect to her character in the Sports Festival, she should have gotten more attention beforehand. At least then it would have made a bit of sense. But to give her this vaguely hinted emotional moment out of nowhere was... weird. She has barely any screen time and no growth or development to lead us into this point. And she barely gets any after this moment. There's almost no payoff or point to this.

(*cough* maybe focus less on Bakugou and give other characters a chance to shine *cough*)

Yaoyorozu might have been the character screwed over the most in this arc.

Shinsou

Wasted potential. Like I said before, having him take down Bakugou would have really hammered in how dangerous his quirk can be. It shows him as an actual threat. Having him get ringed out by Izuku in the first round doesn't do anything for anyone's character. It makes his entire introduction lackluster.

Final Thoughts

So yeah, those are my thoughts on the Sports Festival. Good for some characters, not so much for others. I always like to read fics where it gets rewritten because so much could have changed for the better. What do you guys think? Did I miss anything?

[s0fter-sin]

i’ve stopped expecting interesting animation from bones. the star and stripe fight is cool but like every other fight/moment in mha, it’s only cool bc the source material itself is cool; bones does nothing to elevate the manga

they rarely try to experiment with colour and style. i saw so many colourings of the moment star and stripe made a giant version of herself out of the air; people made her look like a cosmos, like it reflected and bent the sky around her, doing so many inventive things and for the anime to just make her an outline against that godforsaken sky? i’m disappointed

but people will take me saying i’m disappointed and spin it to me saying the fight was bad. it wasn’t, just like most fights and moments in the anime aren’t bad but that’s all bc horikoshi knows how to draw. they never do anything beyond that; they never try and adapt it. whether it’s bc of time, direction, budget, or what have you, they will never do something truly inventive with their colouring

i’ve said this before and i’ll say it again, it’s not just that the sky is blue; it’s what the blue sky represents and that is an unwillingness to broaden their colour palette or atmosphere to support the changes in the tone of the story. the story isn’t just “will midoriya get into his dream high school and achieve his dream job?” it’s child abuse and societal systems and their dysfunctions, it’s racism and morality and is it right to try and save someone who’s determined to destroy the world just bc they are also a victim?

look at the finale of atla, a show that mirrors the narrative tone of mha; it starts out bright and colourful and vibrant to match the happy and small stakes nature of the story and as the tone of the story changes, the environment changes to reflect that. the siege of the north pole? everything goes blood red when the moon spirit is threatened, then goes completely desaturated when it is killed with only fire bending having any colour. the day of black sun? uses a solar eclipse to change the lighting. the entire sozin’s comet fight? has red skies and lighting to show the threat

bones abject refusal to change anything about the art itself is a detriment to horikoshi’s complex narrative

[userpreviouslyknownasbakudeku]

im putting together a form for anyone interested in the chance to become bakudeku without the trouble of going through an isekai journey. once all participants are accounted for,

[bnhababe]

Recolored this manga cap because I always wondered why the UA cheer costumes weren't UA colors (or at least the colors I assume are the UA colors based on the gym clothes lol)

[hayleysstark]

all might, watching midoriya break his bones again and again:

[cecebookworm]

Doing a full rewatch of My Hero Acadamia and I’m almost done with the Sports Festival and honestly my feelings about it haven’t changed much since I first watched it way back in 2020 (I first read it 2019 though.)

Which is to say I still don’t like it that much. 🫣

I don’t even have a valid reason for it, I just get so bored watching it because you can kind of tell who’s gonna make it and who’s not. Of course the mains of 1-A make it, and of course side characters who are heavily implied to be important later (cough cough Shinsou) make it.

The only “shocking” thing about the arc is that Midoryia doesn’t even place. I put shocking in quotes because the only reason it’s shocking is because he’s supposed to be the protagonist, but even before this arc Horikoshi showed he wasn’t afraid to show how honestly far behind Midoryia is to the rest of his classmates; it’s just realistic that he winds up not making it past the second round of the one v. one fights.

All of this isn’t to say I don’t like individual aspects of this arc. I really love some of the fights (mainly Uruaka V.S. Bakugou and Shinsou V.S. Midoryia.) and honestly some of my favorite season two voice acting moments are in this arc (I’m a dub girlie purely because I can’t focus on subtitles, but Justin Briener’s “wHaT?!” When Todoroki asks if Midroryia is “All Mights Secret Love Child” lives rent free in my head.)

Anyway, I’m very excited for the Stain arc because it’s my favorite arc of two but the Final Exam arc also holds a special place in my heart because it was the first My Hero Acadamia arc I ever watched. (Don’t ask why.)

[fireheartwraith]

The new chapter is up! 20k words of the Sports Festival, so if you like that arc this is the chapter for you!

Tags and warnings still apply!

[obsidianstrawberrymilk]

I will never stop screaming about the untapped potential of Shouto and Fuyumi's relationship

[plusultraetc]

Saw the tags on the Toshinori post and do you have more to share?? Any insights? If so I’d welcome hearing them 😭 He really is so self-sacrificial and it hurts but it’s truly at the core of who he is

This has been sitting in my inbox for almost a week because I needed to make a futile effort at organizing my thoughts into something coherent--but this is as organized as they're going to get for now! Thank you so so much for the ask though bc I do love to yell about MHA <3

(Obligatory reminder that I'm watching this show in such a confusing order so if what I'm about to rant about has been addressed before and I'm harping on it unnecessarily I Am Sorry.)

(For anyone curious, this is the post btw)

SO. It feels relevant to mention that my sister and I were talking about All Might in the first place because we were talking about MHA Moments That Haunt Us. For me, it's the 'I am not here' sign hanging around the neck of the All Might statue in Kamino Ward after the Paranormal Liberation War. It literally lives in my brain rent-free 24/7 365 days a year, especially with the AM vs AFO fight being relatively fresh in my mind. The reversal of All Might's catchphrase and all it represents hurts, but to display it at the site of his 'last stand' in Kamino? That's brutal.

All Might vs All For One and how that rematch plays out is so so important to the story for so many reasons, but one of them is that the fight itself is a sacrifice. Toshinori gives everything he has, short of his life, to defeat All For One. He gives up his physical strength, his public image as the unbeatable Symbol of Peace, and, effectively his Quirk ("Goodbye, All For One. Goodbye, One For All" haunts my every waking moment, still!)

This battle is also the culmination of years of All Might's life and heroic philosophy (because Toshinori has been both practicing AND preaching self-sacrifice in the name of the greater good since we met him. It's what he thinks a hero does). Kamino is the sacrifice to end all sacrifices, if you will. Yes, he does get to walk away from the fight with AFO, but he walks away irrevocably different, almost unrecognizable. He's forced to totally change his focus and his mindset and his life. Everything he has given up is made literally visible in the deterioration of his body.

But most most importantly, All Might's sacrifice at Kamino was... all for nothing. Even if AM defeated him in that moment, All For One is free less than a year later. The world is in shambles. People are afraid, and their faith in heroes is crumbling. Heroes are afraid, and this time, they have no idealized symbol to rally behind. When Dostoevsky wrote "Your worst sin is that you have destroyed and betrayed yourself for nothing," he was talking about All Might btw.

Toshinori gave this fight (and his career, and being All Might) everything he had, and it still wasn't enough. He sacrificed so much of himself, and so much of how he perceived himself and his purpose, and he didn't even save the world. He just bought them time--and not much of it. I think that's why he's so desperate to keep fighting, no matter the cost, no matter what condition he's in--even 'quite literally half-dead.' He can't let Kamino be the Symbol of Peace's final stand, because Kamino was ultimately for nothing. Instead of saving the world, it has been reframed through the sign on the statue as All Might abandoning the world. And ever since then, he's been scrambling to prove that he is still here.

(There's also probably something here about Sir Nighteye telling him that he was going to die. Since Nighteye used his Quirk on him, Toshinori has been anticipating sacrificing his life for good. Knowing that his entire hero career is effectively a fight to the death has probably maximized his self-sacrificial tendencies.)