#also more food for the sero baku friendship fans

[bokunoheroanalysisforthefuture]

Whoo boy, been a little bit. I can’t really say much besides IRL sucks, so. Back to something that doesn’t suck, which is BNHA. This chapter is dedicated to the good bean Tenya, especially his little smile which forced me to change my pfp on discord because I just couldn’t.

I was kinda planning on doing arc summaries between sections, but honestly, the BNHA wiki already has those, so if you don’t want to go back and read through all the posts I’ve done for the pre-USJ chapters, just head over there and do a skim of the summaries there, I guess?

[No. 12 - Yeah, Just Do Your Best, Iida!]

I just love how his hand gestures are actual effective tools against enemies, I cannot even. Also, a good and friendly reminder that carbonated drinks stall his engines! I have never seen that used in fanfic, whether for crack or whump purposes… a shame.

We head right into the next morning from that battle training, with the kids being held up by the media as they ask about All Might. Izuku is a bundle of nerves as he awkwardly excuses himself to the nurse’s office, Ochako is a darling who describes All Might as super muscly, and Tenya goes into a whole ass speech with a lot of fancy language to explain the honor of being at UA and learning under All Might. 

(Honestly, I find it hard to determine whether this is genuinely earnest or if he’s picked up media warding skills from his parents and older brother. It’s probably genuine, but I just love the idea behind low-key troll master Tenya who learned from the best, aka his older brother.)

Katsuki, unfortunately, is still known as ‘the kid from the sludge incident’, which I mean. I am so fucking baffled at how long the media in this have held onto that 'sludge incident' thing, like, you'd think they'd have moved on to other things by now and don't really think about it much.

It’s the same with the general public (as seen in chapter 3), like, yes, I too would have a fucking complex and anger issues if all anyone thought about in relation to me wasn't my high grades or my skill in combat or anything, but that one time a year ago where I was almost suffocated to death while the people who were supposed to save my life did fucking nothing. I mean, Katsuki has always had a complex, but This Didn't Help.

Moving on, we see the media wondering who the fuck this messy looking dude waving them off is, while Aizawa just. Fucking shoos them like they’re dogs or kids or something. His words seem like a vague attempt at being polite about shooing them, but with the hand gesture, well. Basically comes off more as a chastisement. 

...honestly, this feels so weird that no one knew about it even though the kids who got in got a message from All Might saying he’d be teaching there. The only thing I and the others can assume is that there was an NDA on him teaching until it was announced to the newspapers on the first day of classes. Which would explain why it didn’t hit the news until said day…

Whatever, it’s weird, let’s just move on.

One of the reporters steps forward, asking/demanding a chance to speak to All Might about his sudden shift to teaching, only for the guy behind her to try and call out a warning - just a touch too late, as the sensors over the gate react, causing the daunting hunk of metal serving as a gate to slam closed right in front of her. Gonna guess she’s new to the reporting scene. The guy explains that the UA barrier locks down if someone without a school ID approaches the gate, and that supposedly there are more sensors throughout the campus.

The panel gives us a diagram of the three ‘levels’ of sensors - the gate/wall around the school, the walkway to the school, and the school itself. Which I think correlates to the security levels that come up later, since it’s a ‘level three’ breach, which means the school was broken into. Was it… always that fucking simple and I just totally glossed over that detail until now? orz

While the newsfolk complain about not getting comments from UA, we get to see the back of a ~mysterious figure~ who definitely isn’t the primary antagonist of the entire series. God, you can see his individual neck vertebrae.

Horrifying.

We transition to 1a’s homeroom, with Aizawa going over the battle training as well as their grades / evaluations. Aizawa calls out Katsuki and tells him to grow up and stop wasting his talent, which Katsuki grudgingly accepts. Izuku jolts at being called out next over his broken arm, and accepts the chastisement of learning to control his quirk, because trying isn’t going to cut it. Aizawa does soften the blow, however, by repeating that Izuku has potential, assuming he overcomes that issue.

With that done, Aizawa ‘Plus Extra™’ Shouta gets the whole class tense by drawing out the next class announcement. While I think it’s a translation error, the whole class sweating as they wonder whether it’s another brutal pop quiz is hella funny. (I’m guessing it was meant to be ‘test’ which would reference to the quirk assessment as well as the battle training, but ah well.) The whole class sighs in relief as one as Aizawa finally reveals that their task for the morning is to choose a class president - a normal, school-like thing in comparison to the past two days.

Pretty much the entire class has their hands raised to volunteer for the position, with Katsuki being particularly aggressive about it (as per the norm). Even Izuku has his hand shyly lifted up from the desk, while his narration notes that the position in normal schools entails mundane tasks, but in UA’s hero course means leading the group - a position suited for a top hero in the making.

Tenya calls for them all to quiet down, drawing attention as he goes on to explain how leading people is a task of heavy responsibility, but that ambition is not equal to ability. He is so intense it’s hilarious as he explains how the office demands the trust of its constituents, and that if it’s to be a democracy, then he puts forward the motion that they choose their leader through election.

Seriously this is just so fucking hilarious, I love this boy so much. And I love whoever it is that calls out that this is a classroom, not congress. 

Tsuyu points out that the class hasn’t known each other long enough to build trust, and Kirishima notes that everyone will vote for themselves. Tenya points out that that is precisely the reason that anyone who gets multiple votes will be the best suited for the job. He then checks with Aizawa if this is allowable, which the teacher agrees to so long as it’s quick. And a quick transition, we reveal the winners-

Izuku with three votes, and Momo with two.

Everyone else, it seems, still has one vote, which was their own (as predicted). Izuku is shook. Katsuki is shaking in anger as he demands to know who the hell voted for Deku. Ochako is whistling and looking away, thinking that she’d better not let Katsuki find out.

(Also of note is that Sero is already approaching Katsuki and making a joke here about it being obvious Katsuki wasn’t one of Izuku’s votes, and then seemingly laughing a bit when Katsuki’s temper turns on him?

Hard to say for sure, but it seems Sero is the first of Katsuki’s future friend group to approach him and get away with poking at his temper. Which I feel is something very much overlooked by the fandom in favor of Kirishima for fairly obvious reasons.)

Tenya, meanwhile, is in a funk as he notes he has no votes, and that that is the harsh reality of office. Momo is concerned as she notes that zero votes meant he voted fro someone else, while Sato points out that Tenya was the one to suggest the election, so what did he seriously want? Izuku and Momo go to the front of the class - Izuku a nervous wreck while Momo’s just exasperated with the situation. Aizawa confirms their positions as he gets out of his sleeping bag, and the class talk a bout about the suitability of the chosen pair while Tenya continues to sulk in his seat.

With that, the first half of the chapter is done, so I’ll call it here. I can certainly say I learned a thing or two today, and I hope y’all did as well!

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 164: Life or Death Battle

Previously on BnHA: The internship kids returned to the dorms and were greeted by their worried pals. Iida hemmed and hawed. Momo made some tea. Satou shoved an entire cake into Deku’s mouth. Ochako realized she wanted to save people in addition to earning money to ease her parents’ poverty. Sero and Kirishima showered Kirishima with affectionate concern. Bakugou quietly chilled on the couch pretending not to be worried. Kaminari slid over and called him “Kacchan” like the homeboy he is. It was all amazing. The next morning, Bakugou and Todoroki headed off to their provisional license course. All Might and Present Mic showed up to chaperone them, and we learned from All Might that Kurogiri was indeed captured by Gran Torino and Naomasa, but Giganto escaped after dealing some heavy damage. The group arrived at the training course location, and everyone’s windy fave Yoarashi greeted them along with Camie (the real one!) and fucking Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (Seiji). Also Endeavor was there to watch. And he’s going to have a private chat with All Might. Should be lots of fun, this.

Today on BnHA: Our best boys Bakugou, Shouto and Inasa (and Camie) begin the day’s training course. Endeavor cheers Shouto on from the stands and everyone is like “...” but then they notice All Might sitting next to him and they’re like “OH FUCK YEAH, ALL MIGHT.” Gang Orca walks out onto the floor, compares all of the kids to fish feces, and fucking yeets my three faves across the room. He then informs them that they lack heart, and thus he is assigning them a special trial. Enter a group of about 25 screaming elementary schoolers, plus their harried teacher who is constantly on the verge of tears. Baku, Shouto, Camie and Inasa are told that they’ll be in charge of them, and that to pass this test they’ll need to cooperate and move the children’s hearts. This is, of course, a recipe for perfect chaos, and to make things even more entertaining, Mic decides to do play-by-play commentary. Meanwhile, a surprisingly subdued Endeavor asks All Might exactly what it means to be “the Symbol of Peace.”

(As always, all comments not marked with an ETA are my unspoiled reactions from my first readthrough of this chapter. I’ve read up through chapter 187 now, so any ETAs will reflect that.) 

looks like the kids have changed into their hero costumes and are trudging towards wherever the course will be taking place

aww Inasa is aggressively trying to be friends

LIGHTEN UP GRUMPY GRUMP

also I’m kind of with Inasa on this one. sorry Shouto. I’ve only had cold soba noodles like once but I wasn’t that big a fan. but udon is the shit though

Shouto apparently feels very strongly about this

I honestly can’t tell if he’s just really particular about his food, or if he feels like Inasa is trying to sneak up a metaphor on him and he’s like NOPE, NOT HAPPENING. THIS ZARU SOBA IS NOT GIVING UDON THE TIME OF DAY

oh my god Inasa is literally saying “WE’RE GONNA BECOME BEST BUDS WHETHER YOU LIKE OR NOT”

did you hear that Shouto. WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT

that means it’s happening. because like. look at him. this big fluffy airbending teddy bear is not going to not let it happen

meanwhile Bakugou is watching and being creeped out. by their attempts at friendship? or something else?

MERAAAAAAAA

I’ve been having a bit of an insomniac phase myself. so I feel ya bro

also they’re in this gym that, surprisingly, actually looks like a normal gym?? although there’s a bunch of playground equipment in one corner which is odd

Mera says that so far they’ve been doing the training course with the ten of them, but today there will be an eleventh person joining them

so is that Camie then?

meanwhile All Might and Mic are entering the spectator area and looking for someplace to sit

Mic wants to sit near the front to see better, but All Might doesn’t want to stand out

well he is pretty famous. and not to mention that Endeavor’s still right there as well and I don’t know if they’ve had their chat yet orz

oh jesus

yep. wouldn’t want to distract anyone. definitely not looking to do that, nope

starting to see why Shouto was angsting so much over that text

so Endeavor is actually screaming encouragement at him, but in his obnoxious Endeavor way

I feel like. he’s actually trying. oddly enough. but he’s just. so terrible. in so many ways

oh snap I forgot all about this

yep. the guy that wouldn’t autograph your book and subsequently changed the course of your life by causing you to withdraw your application from U.A.

oh shit now All Might’s getting recognized too

I hope they cheer the fuck out of All Might and it’s like, who even fucking cares about Endeavor

:D

hee

that’s Bakugou’s dad, you know. ever since chapter 120. and Deku’s dad too, obviously. Shouto he can be your dad too if you want. plenty of All Might to go around, and it’s not like your old man is doing such a bang up job

Shouto is literally saying “hmph” and even Bakugou is staring at him like “what’s this guy’s problem”

Mera’s telling everyone to calm down and pay attention to him again lol

and now real!Camie is properly introducing herself

ahhhh

so that’s the cover story Shiketsu came up with? or is that a story they’re telling the other kids? or does Camie herself genuinely believe this and no one actually knows she was briefly abducted and replaced by Toga?

and um. just to make sure. this is the real Camie though... right?

she’s acting differently enough that I think it is

Seiji is sitting with a Shiketsu teacher in the stands and they’re discussing it!

he says she’s “a complete and utter fool” and the teacher is gently correcting him and saying she’s “just bubbly”

so they did figure it out!

Seiji seems to actually be beating himself up for not realizing that she’d been replaced

(ETA: yeah, so rereading this, I’m getting some definite shipping pings from them now. Seiji’s clearly guilt-stricken about what happened to her, and clearly worried about her still. he didn’t attend any of the previous training sessions, based on Bakugou’s reaction, but he came along to this one now solely because Camie was going. he’s not going to let anything happen to her again. Seiji is, in fact, just a big ol’ softie you guys.)

the teacher is saying they need to make up for the absence of the Symbol of Peace immediately

I guess with this being the first time Shiketsu has been targeted, they’re finally realizing how serious this is too. U.A.’s been mixed up in this for a while, so they already know

heyyyyyy!

LOOK WHO’S BACK

he’s talking some shit about them, oooh

I assume he’s purposely trying to rile them up for whatever reason. probably because at least several of them are only here in the first place because of their poor anger management

everyone is instantly sobering up

lol Seiji

lmao

wow Gang is really laying it into them

ben·thos /’benTHäs/ (noun): the flora and fauna found on the bottom, or in the bottom sediments, of a sea, lake, or other body of water

did you just call my son a sea sponge. did you just compare them to fish poop

...

his feet

he just. flung him

is it weird that I really want to make this into an icon

...

is the whole rest of the chapter going to be like this

THERE IS NO RIGHT ANSWER HUH

this is now my favorite chapter in the history of time. also this is one instance where I’m already sure it’s impossible for the manga to be outdone by the anime. because how could it be. visually this is flawless

oh wait? is that it? just those three? no one else needs extra guidance?

so they’ve already singled out these three in particular as being the ones with the most potential, huh. sorry, Rest of the Kids

he’s chewing out Bakugou for his behavior toward the rescuees, and the other two for their whole starting-a-ridiculous-fight-in-the-middle-of-a-disaster-rescue-scenario

he says the thing they lack most is “heart”, and that they can’t expect to be heroes without it

“do you think that everyone will willingly grasp your hand when you offer it to them?!” oooh I like that. basically these idiots need to learn to be more approachable

“survive this life or death battle” lol oh shit

based on the tone of this chapter so far, I can’t help but wonder if this is going to end up being something comedically tame after all of this dramatic buildup

oh my god. suddenly I’m thinking back to that playground equipment. don’t tell me...

OH MY GOD

TODDLERS

holy shit. I count at least 24 of these tykes. and it looks like at least some of them have already manifested their quirks too oh shit

oh my god

Katsuki please don’t murder the small muppet child. I believe in you. babysit the shit out of these brats. you can do it

why do I suddenly have the feeling that maybe the elementary school just needed a substitute really last-minute and so this somehow ended up happening

now the big bird kid who called the grenades lame is running away crying

Bakugou is being chewed out by the other children and desperately trying to do some crisis management that consists of yelling at the kid to “STOP CRYING DAMMIT”

who the fuck is this

does Monoma have a younger brother we don’t know about

meanwhile three other children have cornered Shouto and are grabbing something on his utility belt and shouting “IT’S A PEEPEE” repeatedly

on the plus side, I can already sense Endeavor’s fight or flight instincts kicking in, and with any luck he’ll be out of there before we even get started

Shouto is patiently explaining that the thing on his belt is not, in fact, a peepee

this approach is not really working out for him

meanwhile still more children have surrounded Inasa and are just. punching him. for absolutely no reason

but Inasa is just taking it, and looking up at Endeavor and thinking “I won’t become like him.” awww

and yet this is not really working out either

you know, I wouldn’t have expected this to be the case, but so far Bakugou is actually managing the best here

Camie’s there too, and she’s asking if she’s supposed to be part of this training as well and what’s up with that

Gang says she’s a special case since she didn’t participate in the real test

she’s exasperated, but says that she likes kids anyway so whatever

and there’s a panel that we’re just going to skip riiiiight on past, thank you very much

suffice to say, the female kindergartners are now ganging up on Camie out of jealousy that their popular male classmate appears to like her

also, forget what I said before about Bakugou faring the best so far

little Billy, that is not a toy. please put down the grenade

these kids make flashback!baby!Kacchan look like a perfect little angel. at least he was cute

Gang somehow has faith in them though

you guys. if Kacchan somehow manages to bond with a bunch of snot-nosed little brats and become their mama I will lose my shit. please please please

(ETA: arguably this is exactly what happened. what a fine arc)

the rest of the class is meanwhile being shuttled along to have some boring lecture

lol Bakugou is despairing loudly

THIS IS THE CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT YOU NEED, BUSTER. YOU SIT THERE AND YOU TAKE IT

and seriously though, wasn’t he always the leader of his little pack of brats even as a child? can’t he just somehow tap into that little brat energy and take command of this group of kids as well? he does have a weird sort of charisma, and always has. and he’s shown patience and leadership in the past at unexpected times. I really think he can do this if he just puts his mind to it

All Might, Mic, and Endeav are sitting in the spectator section in silence

Endeav and Mic are dotting up a storm lmao

oh my

ARE YOU GOING TO PROVIDE COMMENTARY

-- HE IS OMG

he says an event without commentary has no soul

brother I’m right there with ya. why do you think I even do this. we should go get kicked out of a movie theater together

All Might’s asking if they really need “soul”, and FUCKING DUH THEY DO, ALL MIGHT

oh shit he’s commandeered Mera’s microphone

I can’t believe this man is the fucking U.A. traitor. maybe. admittedly seeming less likely by the minute

anyways, now that Mic is gone, All Might is figuring he might as well get this awkward conversation over with

he says that he doesn’t really know what to say to Endeavor in his current state

Endeav is asking if All Might’s aware that over the past month the crime rate has risen by three percent

hmm. someone sucks at his current job of being number one, huh

oh no

is Endeavor

having character development

...

motherfuc...

shit

okay look. one, dude is basically a rapist, albeit in a manner that’s just barely society-approved. two, he beat his wife and child. and three, he then had his wife committed when she had a breakdown and never bothered to do anything to try to help her (and also, you know, he’s the one who caused said breakdown in the first place)

so just a reminder. that Endeavor. not a nice guy

...but. it’s a story. and if a character actually shows a desire and willingness to try and change... well. I’m not necessarily just going to dismiss it out of hand

but this motherfucker needs to show some remorse, though. otherwise, fuck that

so whatever, Endeavor. let’s see. I have a feeling this is going to be a long, arduous process, and it might not even pan out. but it’s interesting, at the very least. and so in that sense, I’m here for it. hell, I welcome it. after all, we sure as hell didn’t get too much complex character development in the previous arc, Nighteye aside. so this... this is good

BONUS:

lmaoooooo @ “likes beer” oh god. no salary in the world would ever be enough to compensate teachers for everything that they do and all the shit they have to put up with

the fact that she’s a newbie is apparent just at a glance. give her a year or two under her belt and I bet you anything her personality completely changes. teaching is basically baptism by fire. but she will eventually learn to improvise, adapt, and overcome. and she’ll probably be a lot more drunk too lmao