#You and Toga have a very interesting dynamic and I'm here for it OKAY okay

[airanke]

This Hellhound AU is getting out of hand, now I’m bringing in other characters like Class 1A/B kids and other members of the LoV. Everyone is aged up/down to the 20-22 age-range (age for demons/angels debatable because TECHNICALLY they’re immortal but mentally they’re in the 20-22 range). The setting is a Warlock university (also warlocks can make pacts with either angels, or demons, and if they’re really powerful/well learned they can summoner more than one of each). The worst part is coming up with unique pacts for each kind of angel/demon (there’s 8 of each).

BUT SOME OF THE PAIRS I’VE THOUGHT OF SO FAR ARE JUST. HILARIOUS. LIKE WHY WOULD I DO THIS TO THESE CHARACTERS--

Like I really decided that All Might would have Stain as an ANGEL, and that Deku would get Tomura (also as an angel maybe, making Tomu an angel would be INTERESTING TO ME).

And Ochacco gets stuck with Himiko and wants to know why I’m doing this to her. Also I’m making Kiri the warlock and Bakugo the demon and you can’t stop me. The best part is gonna be all the classmate dynamics (I have to make sure some of these chars are Tempters oh no).

[annalyticall]

Saw your tags about MHA being a lesson in restraint when it comes to having different opinion than the fandom norm and please take this ask as an excuse to share your MHA thoughts <- I want to know them if you're willing to share

Oh ho ho I will gladly talk about how my MHA opinions differ from fandom thank you for the opportunity. That said I'm basing what 'fanon' is on what seems to be most popular in fan fics and popular posts I see on Twitter and Tumblr

Also I'm breaking this up into sections because I've noticed a lot of my fanon opinions tends to overlap

Fanon uses character interactions as proof of ships, cliques, or found families instead of considering each interaction as part of a narrative whole. Now, I know this isn't unique to MHA, every fandom does this to some extent, however with a cast as large as MHA's it's more prevalent when so many ships overlap. Each major or even minor interaction is "proof" of a ship being canon and is more or less valid than "proof" for other ships - meanwhile the narrative so rarely cares about romance (barring the Toga/Uraraka/Deku subplot) that arguing about any of that feels very pointless. Bakudeku shippers are the most guilty to me about this; for example, in a recent chapter when Deku thinks about how Iida held his hand and helped him feel calm (a moment that ties into the larger narrative theme of helping a lost child by taking their hand), I saw Bakudeku shippers try to pretend Deku was actually thinking about how much he wanted to hold Bakugo's hand since he never took it in their youth, despite that never being hinted at. I don't even dislike Bakugo or Bakudeku as a ship but it gets so grating when I see big moments for other characters get watered down because they don't fit a shipping lens, which goes doubly for MHA where the narrative supports the idea that everyone is important and everyone should help everyone no matter who they are to them.

While I'm beating the Bakudeku hornet's nest I might as well throw in my grievances with the Erasermic Family and its persistence in almost every. Single. Fic. Or at least the ones I read because Aizawa is one of my favorite characters, but so many Aizawa-related fics I've read seem intent on making Present Mic his husband and Shinsou his adopted son. Listen. Erasermic is fine. It's fine. I even like it from time to time. I just wish it wasn't a fanfic staple because I actually think their canon relationship of comfortable-yet-somewhat-strained old high school friends is much more interesting to explore, especially with the twist of Shirakumo's fate. It also cheapens Present Mic sometimes, because Present Mic is usually portrayed in these fics as... how should I say this... motherly? Wife-like. I don't like that. He's a silly goofy guy but he's also impulsive and angry and puts on a facade and that nuance almost never gets translated when he's transplanted into a domestic familial role with Aizawa. Shinsou being Aizawa's son also feels like it cheapens Shinsou's character arc in a way? I don't hate the son theory I guess but Aizawa clearly only trained him, not adopted him, and making Shinsou a "mini-me" of sorts tends to blur his actual character and motivations to be the same as Aizawa's when they're not. The only dynamic here that has any canon foothold is Aizawa being an adoptive father to Eri. I think Aizawa being a dad to most of the other kids is overblown sometimes but he will always be Eri's dad to me. Present Mic is like her goofy uncle.

Fanon loves making backstories too tragic. Two of the most popular fic tropes I see either makes Midoriya's mom abusive or gives Shinsou a muzzle and abusive foster family, which... okay, one thing I really love about MHA canon is that everyone has a good reason for what they do and everyone suffers a little hardship due to the way society is all in varied and relatable ways. Characters like Midoriya and Shinsou DO suffer in canon but not any more than being bullied in middle school for their quirk or lack of quirk, which I think works well enough for two boys who still aspire to be good and still have some faith in the system that hurt them like most people in this universe do. Characters like Toga, Twice, and Shigaraki already have plenty of tragedy to justify their villainy, as well as Hawks who also has a tragic backstory and serves as a hero counter for them, so it doesn't appeal to me to so often give that pain tenfold to characters who don't fit those roles beyond a what-if exercise.

Fanon takes things characters say at face value and accepts the most shallow interpretation of a character. This is especially true for liars like Dabi and Hawks, who often say one thing and mean another. It's not as much of a problem at current since both Hawks and Dabi are probably at their most authentic in canon right now, but it's still an issue in fics I read where Hawks is presented genuinely as a flirty and cocky hero and Dabi is presented genuinely as someone who doesn't care about anyone but himself. It's really frustrating when something I love about Hawks is his nuanced interactions with almost every other character, which are always glossed over in his discourse. I'll give two of the most glaring examples:

I've almost never seen a take about this scene that justifies why Hawks does this - I usually only see comments about how he's getting into Todoroki's space, isn't aware of personal boundaries, or is being too nosy in the family drama. To me, the answer to why he does this is clearly deeper: he's dropping his laid-back facade and asking a serious question all while putting himself in Todoroki's shoes and planting himself firmly on Todoroki's side. He wants an answer to the scar because the answer is important to him; if Endeavor was the one who inflicted it, it would have tarnished the view he had of his old hero because Hawks knows what it's like to have an abusive father. This is only further cemented when later on Hawks says Todoroki is better than he is because Todoroki is finding it within himself to help the parents who hurt him, unlike Hawks, who feels he abandoned his own.

There's also this and other panels during the fight with Twice ("I'll be sure to tell that to the league") where Hawks seems to be rubbing salt in the wound and overall being a dick about betraying Twice's trust, and I've seen the interpretation here that Hawks is simply being a dick because he is one. And, I mean, this isn't to say that Hawks can't be a dick sometimes, but in the moment it feels like a culmination of two things: 1. Half of this interaction is framed through Twice's POV, so of course we're seeing the worst of Hawks here, and 2. Hawks is intentionally distancing himself from the Hawks he knows would have gladly been Twice's friend, because he knows there's a chance he might have to kill him. Whenever we're in Hawks' head during this fight, it's always focusing on how much he doesn't want to fight Twice and how much hope he has for things to turn out for the better. When he finally makes up his mind that he can't turn it in his favor, he turns cold and harsh again, probably as a coping mechanism similar to Lady Nagant's. Also frustrating when people use this as an example of in-universe police brutality when in actuality Hawks is a groomed child soldier acting very hesitantly to fulfill government orders. Those two issues are not the same.

Oversimplification isn't contained to Dabi and Hawks, though. Kaminari flirts sometimes so all he is is a flirt, Midoriya cries sometimes so he's submissive and weak, Iida is bossy sometimes so he's a goody-two-shoes stick-in-the-mud. One-note fanon characterizations plague almost every character and that does almost none of the actual characters justice. Any character with more relevance than, say, Ojiro has more than one side to them in canon that doesn't get captured all that much in fanon.

Fanon overanalyzes things that are Shonen convention. It's funny, on one hand, I think fanon interprets characters too shallowly, and on the other, I think it reaches far too deep to draw conclusions where the actual answer is "because the author wanted it." Aizawa and All Might bear the brunt of this mischaracterization because they're the main adults in this series, so all of their missteps feel overanalyzed to prove an abuse of authority when actually it's just irrational decisions made to keep the story moving forward. "All Might was irresponsible for telling a quirkless kid he didn't have a chance at becoming a hero and leaving him alone on a roof" I guarantee you the implications of that was probably not even a thought when that scene was written, and if it was, All Might certainly wouldn't have assumed them or else he would have dealt with that differently. "Aizawa is a bad teacher for not expelling Bakugo after he almost killed Deku in their first test" if he expelled Bakugo or had properly dealt with their toxic relationship earlier we would not have a story. "Aizawa is a bad teacher for not expelling Mineta for being a creepy weirdo" if he expelled Mineta then Horikoshi wouldn't have his favorite comic relief pervert archetype. Sometimes we just have to say "Horikoshi wanted this to happen so that's why it happened that way" and move on.

Fanon has selective memory and short attention span. Maybe this is just because there seemed to be a falling off of fandom participation around the time of Season 5, but a lot of fanon I've seen seems stuck in pre-season 5 era characterizations, sometimes even pre-Season 3. Bakugo and Endeavor both have some of the best character developement in the series, and Aizawa also has a lot of subtle growth, but people tend to focus on how bad Bakugo and Endeavor were in Season 1-3 and how good Aizawa is in Season 4, even though Aizawa was also kind of an asshole Season 1-3. It tends to lead to some cartoonishly evil takes on Bakugo and Endeavor and overly-saccharine takes on "Dad"zawa. I say this also as someone who loves Aizawa and is fairly neutral on Bakugo and Endeavor, but I just don't think fanon takes in the whole picture of their character arc sometimes.

Those are my big umbrella opinions, I have more minute ones (especially regarding Iida, Aizawa, and Hawks) but I've already ranted long enough. I know a lot of this comes down to a young fanbase but to be honest the people I tend to disagree the most with are my age so I can't chalk it all up to that lol. Anyways thanks for the chance to rant!

[1milzine]

As we celebrate over 200 followers on tumblr, here’s round two of favorite rarepairs!

@lurkerwithcomputer said: Still taking fave rarepair asks? I have a slowly growing love of Toga Himiko/Kaminari Denki. I'm honestly surprised it's so rare considering all the Traitor Kaminari theories. (I mean, there are only *2 fics* - I kid you not - on Ao3 with this ship and one of them is mine...)

Mod Muse: Oooh, good point. This will be a very valid ship if the traitor theory turns out to be true! Heck, even if it doesn't, I could see the dynamic being a lot of fun. Toga's chaos, empathy, and undercurrent of cunning combined with Kaminari's raw chaotic dumbass… chaos squared.

Mod Echo: I’m fond of the “Kaminari is the traitor” theory just because Kaminari is cool but like he could be even cooler with a shadowy past, and Toga and Kaminari would just be amazing to see together in general. I feel like these two are a pair I would not want to meet in a dark alley. @_@

Anon said: this is gonna sound weird but bakugo and that friend he had in middle school (the one w the long fingers) they WERE childhood friends, nd i feel like theyd have a very “no homo” kinda relationship (but secretly Yes Homo) nd angst bc the friend ISNT a hero student and esp w bkg rebuilding his relationship w deku, he could feel like hes not Good Enough to act on his feelings 4 bkg. idk i think itd b cute bc hes the friend bkg had a consistent good relationship w/ and i wanna explore that dynamic

Mod Muse: I don't think it's weird at all! I could definitely see that sort of vibe coming from them and the potential for angst, character development, and all those other things is… delicious. I love rebuilding old relationships type ships, and this hits that mark perfectly. :D

Mod Echo: “Childhood friend” ships are A+ in my book; I love those wholesome moments of “Remember that time when we…” Doesn’t seem like a weird ship to me at all!

Anon said: Dunno if you’ll do another round of fav rarepairs but I think ShinIzuOcha is so cute!! Also Kendo x Momo x Jirou are adorable

Mod Muse: Oh gosh, you're right, they are cute! I should have thought twice before suggesting this event… i'm… gonna end up with too many ships. RIP me

Mod Echo: Y’all ever look at canon and go “Wow, you’re just not trying hard enough. There are 505607920 ways you could be infinitely more awesome.” And here’s two of them right here! I’m a big fan of Shinsou in general so sign me up for ShinIzuOcha, and Kendo, Momo, and Jirou just seems like a totally natural ship--their connections all have good development!

@fleurdesamione said: I love the big three as a polyship! They're just such a good balance for each other and so sweet in their friendship! The idea of them sharing a romantic bond just makes me soften!

Mod Muse: *teary eyes* Too right OP… too right

Mod Echo: L I S T E N they’re not called “The Big Three” for nothing, okay??? There are some characters yah just don’t separate and this is it right here, gold standard. Nejire and Mirio’s outgoing natures balance out Tamaki’s shyness and Tamaki’s determination gives the others motivation to keep going. So good, just so good.

Anon said: Todoroki/shinso has got a killer vibe going for it right now with me! I love the idea of the two who declare from the start they don't want to make friends coming together and finding a warmth and love from each other.

Mod Muse: That sort of dynamic is always nice! I’ll admit, I probably wouldn’t have thought of Todoroki/Shinsou on my own, but now that you mention it, it sounds like it has a lot of potential.

Mod Echo: Yesss, let’s continue to further the Shinsou agenda… I think there’s so much good stuff that could happen in a ship like this--they both have elements of their quirks that they hesitate to use or don’t view as heroic, so finding a way to make their quirks into something they love and feel great about TOGETHER is just flawless. 

@coffee-craving-canine said: I have A LOT of rarepairs, but currently, my favorites are Frozen Marbles (Rei/Compress) and DabiHawksMiruko. Compress, despite being a villain, is much more of a gentleman than Endeavor ever could be and would treat Rei so much better; plus he's very charming. Rei deserves good things. The scandal with Dabi secretly dating two heroes is angst heavy, making it fun to plot how it could work out. Hawks and Rumi can relate to each other with their animal instincts (plus "Dabi is a furry" jokes)

Mod Muse: Is now the time to say that I actually ship Dabi/Miruko myself? So yes, Coffee, I definitely understand where you’re coming from! And you’re dead right about Rei deserving good things! Compress may be a villain, but at least I have little doubt that he would treat her right.

Mod Echo: YOOOOO, I love this!! Mr. Compress more like Mr. Steal Yo Girl!!! He should totally go save Rei; Horikoshi get on this stat! DabiHawksMiruko is hilarious to me because I’m imagining how such a situation would happen in canon and what people’s reactions would be… Great stuff.

Anon said: My favorite rarepair (and just bnha ship in general) is Setsumori! (Setsuna/Kinoko) They have such a cute dynamic: Excited tol and shy smol (in the most simple terms). They're also just both cuties!!

Mod Muse: You have me intrigued. Excited tol and shy smol girls is a worthwhile shipping investment indeed! 

Mod Echo: Class 1-B needs way more love! There are so many fun characters and dynamics there and then the comic just glances right over them. I want to see some interactions with these two in canon!

Anon said: Inko/Yagi/Naomasa! All Might and Naomasa have such a good rapport in Vigilante! But Toshinko is such a wholesome ship! So why not make a ot3, you know?

Mod Muse: I do know! Naomasa deserves more love, and Inko and Toshinori both deserve nice things. Ship them all together and let them all be happy and warm and wholesome. ^.^

Mod Echo: There are so many shippers with great taste submitting responses here. I love All Might/Inko, and I also love All Might/Naomasa--Inko/All Might/Naomasa is like double the love! We all know Toshinko is A+ but man, I feel like Naomasa’s calm and just generally kind demeanor is a great match for Inko too. This was a great idea for acquiring new ships....

Anon said: Shipping Fuyumi with Miruko is popular but I'm also intrigued by Mt. Lady and Fuyumi together, considering they also have such clashing personalities. With Mt. Lady very self-assured and attention-seeking and Fuyumi tends to throw her all into supporting others.

Mod Muse: Oooh, I could see them making lovely foils! I approve! Also, imagining the surprise of Fuyumi’s family and friends finding out she’s dating Mt. Lady… lmao

Mod Echo: I like Fuyumi with like… everyone. XD She’s just a perfect cinnamon roll, too good for this world… But Fuyumi with Mt. Lady could be really cool! I feel like Mt. Lady is really good at putting on a media personality, but having to be herself around Fuyumi could be very interesting challenge!

Anon said: i have such a soft spot for kirishindeku ;;w;; shinsou and deku already have a friendship in the series, and kirishima would absolutely get along w shinsou as well!! they make me all sorts of emotional, haha

Mod Muse: S o f t. I think that Kirishima and Shinsou would balance each other out really well, and then Deku falls really nicely somewhere in the middle of the relative soft-stale cinnamon roll spectrum.

Mod Echo: I see you, fellow Shinsou fans; I see you. Kirishima and Deku are already adorable together just by themselves, but Kirishimi and Shinsou is a dynamic I hadn’t even thought of. I could totally see Kirishima hyping Shinsou’s joining the hero class, and can we just talk about the sheer amount of motivation contained in a KiriShinDeku ship???

Anon said: I really like Mei/Himiko/Iida! mostly because of how hilarious it would be to pair off Iida, one of the most intense and serious members of class A, with two of the wackiest, one-track mind characters.

Mod Muse: O-oh my gosh. I have no words, this is… this is just utterly fantastic. Bless Iida and, in this scenario, heaven help him. I could actually see this relationship being good for all three of them though! 

Mod Echo: RIPPPP Iida! XD There are some ships you like because they’re serious and deep and thought-provoking… And then there are some ships that you love that are just plain comedic genius. The potential for wacky hijinks here is truly and completely off the charts. Just yes, please.