#debating about OFA

[musicfeedsmysoul12]

 “Why was my wife hit with a Quirk that increased her anxiety and OCD while making her…” Hisashi hesitated. He didn’t want to say that it made her abusive. He hated the idea of Inko being that. 

 But there wasn’t any other word choice other than that one to really explain what she did. The ignoring of Izuku’s injuries. Her hyper focus on Izuku being best friends with Katsuki like her and Mitsuki when the blonde boy hurt their son. Her angry downplaying of his dreams. All were abusive signs.

 “I don’t know.” The doctor said. “But we are working on reversing the effects. Your wife is strong willed sir, to have beaten off the Quirk enough to seek help willingly. More so since it’s been years since she was hit.”

 -0-

 “The Illusive Man,” Liara said as soon as Hisashi entered her room. He paused, Garrus and Tali both mimicking him. 

 “Already knew what I was thinking? He asked rhetorically.

 “Indeed. The Illusive Man had arranged for your wife to be hit. He was working with someone about it. I’m still hacking those files. It’s a remarkable system,” Liara admitted. 

 “Need a hand?” Tali asked. Liara nodded and the Quarian moved to help. Hisashi and Garrus waited quietly until the two had a breakthrough

 “I’m seeing reference to a One for All and an All for One,” Liara mentioned as she scanned her data.

 “Ditto. I’m also seeing something about transference.” Tali said.

 “All for One? The Boogeyman?” Hisashi asked.

 “The what?” Garrus asked.

 “He’s… well not a myth. I thought he was dead though. He apparently was around during the rise of Quirks, able to steal Quirks from people and then either use them or give them away. It was said he played at being a benevolent man but in reality had ideals that he alone should decide who could have a Quirk, and he took his role seriously. Most info on him is black ops.” Hisashi said. “I really thought he was dead. Trails went dead… shit. Fifteen or so years ago.”

 “When Cerberus broke away from the Alliance.” Liara said grimly. “He’s still alive. Wounded badly now though, at the hands of a One for All? Apparently a Quirk that he made for his sickly brother in order to convince him to follow his rule. It didn’t work and it turns out that his brother had a Quirk that interacted with the other. It’s impossible to take One for All by force and it can be passed down by choice.” 

 “I found mentions of a deal. Izuku is Quirkless which… is rare in Japan?” Tali asked Hisashi.

 “It is. Asian people are ninety-nine percent more likely to have Quirks then not.” He said. 

 “The deal was to… break your son. To make him a malleable puppet.” Liara said grimly. Hisashi felt the burn of his throat. Shit. “The idea would be to present him as a useful inheritor of One for All, but then offer him a hand from the underworld. The idea being that a form left Quirkless boy would identify more with the people beaten down by society and would be swayed to their side.”

 “He’d get One for All and pass it to All for One.” Hisashi finished the idea. “They didn’t account for Inko being mentally stronger then they thought or Izuku being more stubborn then me.”

 “No one is more stubborn then you.”

 “Trust me. He is.”

-0-

 “Here,” Commander Shepard passed Toshinori a file. The number one Japanese hero blinked and took it. “It’s about a certain… problem you dealt with.”

 From tone alone Toshinori should have figured it out. As it was, he still didn’t feel prepared to open the papers to find an analysis on All for One. Or the information on him working with Cerberus. Or… any of it really.

 “He was after my son as a way to try and con One for All out of you,” Shepard said simply. “I’m friends with an information broker who adores Izuku. She helped put that together.” 

 “Shit.” Toshinori flicked through the file, his missing stomach aching as he realized something. “He’s alive.”

 “He is.”

 “I’m injured.” 

“Well you have us.” Shepard grinned, a small amount of smoke pouring from his lips. “He touched my baby. I’ll make him bleed.”

[mishy-mashy]

Something I made in a post that I think'll be lost in the texts + expanded a bit more

These panels are chronological events following AFO's pursuit of Yoichi's Factor.

AFO could tell if people were related through a Quirk. AFO and OFA also are connected to each other. In Kamino, AFO could confidently tell All Might that OFA had been passed on, so all that All Might had left were leftover embers.

When AFO killed Kudo, he asked where Yoichi was. He knew Kudo wasn't the holder of Yoichi's Factor at that time. He also realized when looking at Yoichi's hand that Yoichi's natural Factor was so weak he hadn't registered its existence. This implies AFO could sense Factors since he was young, and Yoichi's natural Factor never stood out to him.

Below are three panels of Bruce (right to left). Bruce fought, AFO killed him, and looked away in disinterest.

When he beat down Bruce, he already had a sense that Bruce didn't hold the Factor anymore. That's why, rather than yell in his face to figure out where it is and interrogate for a long time, he pulled up his corpse to inspect him better.

Bruce's corpse isn't resisting anything. Look at his feet; AFO literally dragged him. Bruce is already dead. Yet he's looking for something from him.

Bruce doesn't have anything for him. Nothing AFO wants.

When he looks away, he's dismissing Bruce, because Bruce doesn't hold Yoichi. AFO is wondering where Yoichi is, because he knows now that he's out there somewhere. Thus the pensive look to the wind.

After Bruce is killed, AFO and Garaki meet for the first time. Shinomori has Yoichi at this time, and AFO never comes close to him, so AFO is lost. He doesn't have any leads, and Yoichi has vanished.

Now that he knows Yoichi can transfer, it's possible for Yoichi to be kept out of his reach for the rest of his life. So meeting Garaki and having access to Life Force gives AFO more time to search.

Yoichi is still missing for 18 years though, because Shinomori is in hiding. AFO couldn't find him during the Fourth's turn.

This is why, when he encounters Banjo, the Fifth and active wielder of OFA [Yoichi], AFO is smiling.

It's been a long time, but Yoichi's in reach again. He knows where he is now. And this is the first time he's encountered the current holder.

Thus his shock.

[Yet... you never behave as I wish.]

It was the first time a Quirk wouldn't let itself be stolen. This was AFO's first encounter with this wall: it doesn't transfer without the holder's consent, and requires willpower stronger than all the holders combined to override that.

The holder is never going to give him that consent. To override the collective willpower, he's going to need something greater.

Meanwhile, look at Banjo's arms. Shinomori is the catalyst to tip OFA over the edge, that an unprepared vessel will be destroyed by how strong the Quirk is.

Banjo's arms are both messed up below the shoulder, just like Midoriya used to be. And like Midoriya uses Blackwhip to reinforce himself and stay standing, Banjo uses Blackwhip to hold his fist / arm together. His hand is being wrapped to stay in a fist.

(What I think is) The reason the limbs turn red, and then purple, from breakage, is a matter of blood vessels. Small, itty bitty, fragile things.

Using OFA breaks the whole area, from bones to blood vessels, causing internal bleeding. Thus the redness. But breaking those vessels again in a second go turns the area purple, because it causes instantaneous internal bruising.

But En wasn't ripped apart by using OFA. There's a cut on his thumb that lines up with the path of destruction; AFO sliced him in half. Otherwise, he wouldn't have that cut if it were just OFA.

It's hidden by the text in [... you never behave as I wish], but depending on where you see this chapter, you can see he got cut on the thumb. It's clearer where we see Nana take his hair from him, in [I only want... to make you mine!]

I have a post in drafts about En being cut in half rather than it being because of OFA, but I also hit an image limit, so I'm gonna end here. Ta.

[villainsandvictimsalliance]

Time to be delulu yet completely serious on my bnha 423 opinions.

Good points: The resolution between AFO and Yoichi was satisfactory, love as a reason for evil and evil deeds, the rooftop trio having one final moment full of emotion, the moment of Kurogiri thinking about Tomura and the LOV, Deku having a quirk of his own born out of determination and hard work, Deku as the protagonist of bnha in general, Tomura's last actions and words.

Bad points: Rushed arc conclusions, moments that felt kinda repetitive or lacked the punch given that we've seen/lived them before, not the best compositions we've seen from Horikoshi on the panels, Tomura's arc being rushed to a martyr ending— for impact???? ( or it ending on another cliffhanger that is gonna turn to be different from what we expected ).

I'll go in depth, so please check under the cut.

GOOD POINTS:

Yoichi and AFO:

The last conversation among these brothers was everything I was expecting. The love was there and it transformed them. It made AFO a monster and Yoichi a ghost.

For me, this time the AFO ending needed to be quick because we've already said goodbye to him too many times. This was supposed to be about AFO's refusal to give up on his brother and the unresolved relationship of those two.

I really liked how Yoichi reminded AFO that he needs to face the consequences of his actions and that he's love won't be able to save them.

Villain love:

Love as a reason for pain and destruction is perhaps one of my favorite tropes. So many stories approach love as this purely morally good feeling, when in the end it is just like any other feeling, you know?

People go to war for love all the time. They kill for love. Die for love. Do unforgivable things for love. Human existence is sooooo complex, why would love be the exception?

Horikoshi has been REALLY careful with the AFO backstory and his motivations. He didn't want an antagonist that felt empty. He made AFO human without redeeming him, okay? Because our ability to sympathize with some of AFO's traits doesn't make him less evil. To put it simply, it means that evil things are also human at heart.

Even those acts that you can't forgive or forget are motivated by something.

Kurogiri and the rooftop trio:

We knew from the beginning they were not the main characters of this manga.

We've gotten their story through glimpses and moments. Their time together had always been somehow rushed. Too many things to say, not enough time and they are on opposite sides of the war after all.

We knew that Kurogiri would go back because we knew he would protect Tomura during the final fight. We knew that he'd help the heroes defeat AFO. We knew he'd have to make his choice and say his goodbyes to his old friends.

Kurogiri, Tomura and the LOV

"He's friends are waiting" along with the image of Spinner asking Kurogiri to bring Tomura back to them was the highlight of this chapter for me. (You all expected it, right?)

Something about the way it reads like a father who wants his son to live because he is being waited for. He has friends who love him and would do anything to protect him, see him safe and sound. Something about the symbolism of Spinner putting Father (aka Kotaro's hand) on Kurogiri's face as he asked for it.

This chapter acknowledged that Kurogiri and Shirakumo share the same character core. They are always the protectors, the ones who would sacrifice themselves to see their charge survive. Similar to how Mic was waiting for Shouta so Shirakumo made sure that Shouta would survive, Kurogiri wants to do the same for Spinner and Tomura.

This alone would require an entire post to elaborate.

Deku's quirk:

The debate between endgame quirkless Deku or endgame OFA user Deku is settle.

I really liked that Deku got a quirk on his own that was born out of his own determination to be a hero. It's a nice representation of all he is as a character and what he stands for. Similarly, I enjoyed a lot the fact that it was short-lived. I'm the type who likes it better when things require a sacrifice or when miracles have their own conditions.

Deku doesn't feel overpowered to me. You get that sense that he really deserves everything he has and that it hasn't been a nonsense gift from the narrative. There's also the human condition, the limitations that keep him grounded.

Bnha and Deku:

Deku defeating AFO 'cause villains and heroes help him, his friends being there for him and being there to cheer for him as he fights, his sensei being there despite the fact that Aizawa at first thought Deku wouldn't make it— all the details that make bnha what it is.

They were good.

The UA kids really keep the story consistent when it is about them. They don't give up on anyone, they fight for each other, they stay to witness things for themselves. I love them <3

Tomura's last actions and words:

Careful here. Listen to what I'm saying.

If the narrative had pointed out to this ending, this would have been a good way to execute it.

Tomura coming back along with the vestiges to pack one final punch to defeat AFO— I know many fans that would be moved to tears and would be super excited to see it. Tomura was on point in this chapter, dialoguing with Deku without the hatred in his heart, his face being clearer and almost tender.

He felt defeated, like he had accepted his death already. There's also the connection to Kurogiri and Nana (who defended him) and his words to Spinner, that are meant as a general message to depict how much Tomura values the LOV.

Even the fact that AFO kept him around 'cause a part of him loved / cared about Tomura feels fitting, but I'm not sure if I correctly read the leaks in that part...

Anyway, we got the old trope of the antagonist who used his last moments to help defeat the real villain. It serves as his redemption and the expectation is for the public to feel sorry bad for him.

BAD POINTS

Rushed conclusions:

In my opinion, this chapter was too fast paced and therefore was not as emotional as it should have been.

It doesn't give the feeling that it's fast because the battle is intense. It gives the feeling of too much information packed on one chapter, so nothing really shines on its own. It's way too informative, not enough action narration.

Like I said before, the fatal mistake of a story is to be boring. Art has to provoke you, it has to engage with you, question you, awake things in you. This chapter tho, many things happened at the same time and it grew a bit murky.

Repetitive moments

Again, personal opinion here.

I think certain bnha movies were a mistake. Not because they were bad or boring or whatever, but because Horikoshi wrote parts of bnha real ending into them to the point you'd say "we've already seen that" while reading bnha 423.

Deku and Bakugo teaming up to defeat AFO was so expected. Not as in "the narrative is making sense", but as in "we saw it on heroes rising".

I feel the same with the students all appearing to help Deku fight AFO. That's a typical shonen structure where the friends making space for the protagonist to reach the main villain. It was already happening, so why bring AFO back?? I think the story is over-explaining here, making everything way too obvious. We could have had AFO's resolution with Yoichi before and the students moment after. In truth, it feels like Horikoshi closed some character arcs before he should and left plot holes without explanation, so he needed to reopen to accommodate.

Panel composition:

I admire Horikoshi when it comes to panel composition. He has some amazing panels that make the story really flow, but bnha 423 isn't there.

There are too many elements clustered and empty spaces that don't feel with purpose (in manga, even the blanks must have a purpose). This chapter should have been at least two, so you wouldn't have to rush Bakugo appearing, Yoichi and AFO resolution, Kurogiri saying his goodbye to the rooftop trio and facing AFO for Tomura's sake, Deku remembering where he started and where he is, Tomura last words and the Tomura and Deku resolution...

Those are too many important plot points to illustrate in a hurry.

Also?? The panel of Tomura and Deku punching AFO is so unserious. Totally wrong place to be funny sjbdjdnd why does it even feel like the vestiges are punching air???

" Tomura's ending " :

I'm not the first to say it feels anticlimactic and as if it isn't the ending at all.

The major problem is that through the manga, Horikoshi has focused a lot on Tomura as a character, carefully developing him, giving him tropes that are often reserved for the hero or the main character, making sure we empathize with him, we understand him, hyping up Deku's journey to rescue him.

We got an entire arc from the LOV perspective. This is not the type of one sentence ending you give to an antagonist you spent so much ink and sweat on. The nonchalant way of Tomura accepting his death? The little reaction from Deku? What was the purpose of the manga building up the LOV friendship to the moment where Kurogiri told AFO that Tomura's friends were waiting for him, if you'd make him just disappear on thin air?

This reads absolutely like a bunny within a hat.

That's being optimistic.

If we want to be cynical, maybe this is all there is. I don't find it readable to end the story with Tomura dying. All that effort to save him and it ends in "oh well, he decayed along with AFO"?!

If you think about it, Toga status is unknown because we don't even know where she went or if she's still alive, Touya status is also unknown although we know he wanted to live and that the ice prevented him from further damage, we haven't seen Spinner, we don't know if Kurogiri vanished with that last attack on AFO and now we saw Tomura decaying into the wind.

Yo kill half the surviving LOV would be a bold move that wouldn't follow the narrative. The reward for the hero students should be being able to save their counterpart, so the world can regard them as the greatest heroes 'cause they save the unsalable and blah blah blah.

There's also the fact Tomura hasn't been saved yet. Tenko? Nana and Deku saved him from Kotaro. The crying kid? Saved from AFO by Deku and the vestiges and the others. Tomura? Nop, he's dying/dead. The one person Spinner really wanted to save was Tomura. He didn't know about the crying kid or Tenko. He wanted to save his friend, the "irredeemable" villain, the young man he played videogames with and fought alongside and vowed to follow.

If this is the end, it's incomplete.

So we might hope it is not the end.

[bibibbon]

people have been debating whether mirio really was a better successor for ofa has given me an idea for my rewrite. In my universe, izuku is much nore attentive and analytical of his surroundings, and due to facing discrimination for his quirklessness, he has a less rose tinted view of hero society and wont just follow orders like lemillion. An example is when he and lemillion first meet eri and lemillion give eir back to overhaul, a long tongue snatches eri from his grasp and darts away. Lemillion tries to chase after the villain but izuku recognizes it as my oc herpeton and due to them already having worked together in the past izuku trusts his instinct enough to stop lemillion and get both them out of the alley and away from an angry overhaul. Also after izuku discovers who herepton is with nezu and after nezus deal, izuku acts as a benefactor to herpeton and gives him intel on what pros patrol the cities that herpeton is visting for the first time and what their tactics are. This willingness do what is right instead of just following what the commision want is why all might chose him as his successor. Speaking of which, nana shimura and the rest of the ofa holders were also vigilantes, which explains why they most people have never heard of them. What do you think?

Hi @suchusoid 👋

This has been a long and ongoing discourse that's been reignited a few weeks back after the series ended.

Personally, in Canon itself we aren't truly given a concrete reason as to why izuku is better than mirio and why he deserves OFA more than mirio. This gets even more annoying as the series ends with izuku not even claiming the quirk or making it his but simply still viewing it as a gift from his favourite hero.

I remember @mikeellee asking a similar ask as to why izuku was picked and not mirio and Canon doesn't give us a concrete answer heck it's even worse when you realise how non existent izukus relationship with all might is.

However, I think that you're changes here to izuku are honestly what was needed!! Having izuku carry and cement the idea of no man is created equal and making sure to make that an integral part of his character would allow for izuku to really see the grey morality and messed up system especially since Canon does try and point this out but constantly fails due to the lack of introspection and development izuku has.

Izuku understanding the cruelty of the system yet still trying to save everyone is what makes him different to mirio who has a goal if 1 million people but izuku has an ongoing gaol that in reality would never be achieved and will always be added onto and altered to help produce a fairer society one where people can at least have the same opportunities.

Making Izuku much more attentive also makes sense and is crucial since Canon misses that part of his character completely. In Canon we do get some interesting analytical moments from izuku but they are inconsistent and its a shame because with a bit more digging and thinking izuku's character could of became so much more.

Mind you this is the same character that saw Hawk's once and said that it's weird that he is only 6 years older and so much more mature then them.

This is also the kid who ended up copying his classmates move multiple times with his quirk like shooting blackwhip from his mouth to mimic froppy or the use of his legs when it comes to ofa mimicking iida.

Due to his analytical abilities I feel like midoriya would be able to peice together that herperton is one of his classmates friends.

They would form a partnership of sorts. Izuku wants to help herperton out in hopes of helping achieve a better future and society so he would give him information in return and maybe he would even give him some quirk advice.

A part of me thinks that herperton would get a sense of deja vu especially when he finds out that izuku was quirkless. This would all remind him of his own quirkless mentor and from that they would slowly grow closer to the point where they both trust each other to make the right move if needed. This means that izuku allows for eri to be taken and then herperton and izuku manage to get her into safety.

In the end izuku wants a better society and he has already done many things to show us that he would do what is morally right over following the rules. This is the same izuku who ran and intervened the moment he realised iida was in hosu and trying to kill Stain. This is the same character who tried to take down gentle criminal so the school Festival wouldn't be disturbed. Even if it means getting himself into trouble or being hated izuku midoriya does what is right and that should be his character

[abirddogmoment]

A lot about Mav's decline and a little about how it makes me look at Rory.

I didn't talk about it very much here, but Mav was really subtle in his signs of pain when he was declining from his spine injury. Some of the things that tipped me off were changes to his gait, lower tailset, slower movement, reluctance/slowness getting on or off furniture, and needing extra cuddling. These things could easily be brushed off as him being tired or him being disinterested, and it really made me doubt what I was seeing.

I was sure Mav had something really wrong with him, but it was so hard to convince the vet of that. She said things like "are you sure you didn't just train him not to jump on the furniture?" and "sometimes dogs slow down as they age", meaning well but ultimately making things a lot harder for me. This, coupled with Mav's happiness at the vet and overall stoic personality, gaslit me into thinking I was imagining things. I googled things like "munchausen by proxy symptoms" because I needed to know if I was the real problem.

When Mav went for his OFA hips and elbow rads, I had them take spine rads as well, hoping it would answer my question and help find out what was wrong with him. When his rads came back normal, I cried. It was partly in relief that it wasn't something structural, but also partly desperation that I couldn't prove something was wrong.

I pushed my vet to refer Mav for a neuro consult. It took four months to get her to agree and then for the neuro clinic to schedule Mav in. In that time, I started tracking his decline with a special quality of life chart I made specifically for him. It showed a degeneration of his QOL, but I still thought maybe I was dramatizing things and imagining it.

When Mav went for his neuro consult, they took him back for tests for ten minutes, then came back and solemnly told me they were certain his problem was neurological. They then asked me if they could take him back and let their vet students do the (non-invasive) tests on him for practice because he was such a happy dog. Of course I said yes.

They told me he wasn't a good candidate for surgery. I could do an MRI, but it would be expensive and wouldn't add much besides a formal diagnosis. They recommended palliative care.

I sobbed while driving home. Part of it was relief that I finally knew I wasn't imagining things. Most of it was heartbreak.

I scrutinized Mav's final decline because I couldn't let him suffer. I had hard lines ("when he can't run" and "when the painkillers stop working") and he reached those, but he was still so happy. He still had so much joy in his life. I made the call anyway.

The day came. He trotted into the vet's office like he was meeting his best friend at a restaurant. The vet carried him back to get a port and he wagged his tail the whole time. He scarfed down an entire fistful of cookies.

It was still, without a single doubt, the right choice for Maverick. I have thought about it from every angle, torn apart every single decision, and there's nothing I would do differently if I could go back and do it all again.

Now Rory came to me with a weird gait. She came to me with occasional dorsal shivers (the skin thing horses do) and extremely occasionally bunny hops while running. Not enough for me to think there's something seriously wrong with her, but enough for me to send videos to her breeder. I tried to believe it was just a symptom of puppy uglies or that she just needed more time to grow gracefully.

I debated it for two months, but I finally took Rory for an assessment at a sports physio vet here in town. When I filled out the intake form, I made it clear that I could be concerned over nothing, that this could be a waste of $85 and an hour of our time.

She scheduled us in, did her hands on assessment, and found a knot in Rory's thigh. She gave us some stretches and we have a few more rechecks, but Rory should be totally fine and her gait should improved within the week. All the symptoms point towards a longterm overcompensation to reduce weight on her one leg.

I felt so stupid going into the sports vet today. I almost cancelled my appointment twice because I was sure I was imagining things. Even when she was examining Rory, I was preparing my apology for wasting her time.

Rory is going to feel better. She's going to get to grow up without the effects caused from an overcompensation from shifting her weight in a weird way. She probably would've been fine even without the appointment, but she's going to be even better now.

It's a whole lot of text to say something cliché like trust your instincts or don't overthink it, but it is what it is.

[stillness-in-green]

Hello, I like your posts and I want to ask you something. I don't think there is any way AFO knew from the start that other people besides him couldn't handle as many quirks as he could, so when he decided to offer someone many quirks, he ended up harming them instead. Do you think the original plan was for this to have been included in AFO's backstory as one of the factors for his villainy, rather than having him evil in the womb (though even him being inherently evil is debatable).

Hiya, and thanks for the kind words! 

To answer your question, the tl;dr is that I don't know what Horikoshi was originally thinking for AFO's backstory (but we could compare him over to a certain movie villain if we want to hypothesize about it!) but I don't think you or I or anyone else is obligated to care. Your proposal seems to me like it fits fairly neatly even into canon as we have it, give or take it being "a factor in his villainy," so you should feel free to include it in your headcanons as-is.

Also included below: several paragraphs about why I personally fall on the side of AFO being inherently evil as he's depicted in the canon even though I heartily believe it's a stupid-ass depiction and people should freely elect to ignore it.

Hit the jump.

People sometimes being harmed by multiple quirks came up in the same conversation as the idea that One For All could not be stolen but could be forced on someone, back just after Stain.  I don’t know how much we can gather about Horikoshi’s original plans from that, but it must be said that these days I’m pretty cynical about any information in the series being able to withstand close analysis.

For example, I always assumed that All Might knew OFA could be forcibly passed because at some point it had been, because how else could he possibly know? But while that hasn't been strictly disproven, it's certainly the case that none of the vestiges ever act in a way that suggests they never wanted this to begin with and had it forced on them against their will. So could we not as easily say that both the “forcing OFA on the unwilling” and the “too many quirks can harm people” factoids were literally just there as set-up for Shigaraki and Spinner’s respective endings?

On the other hand, that conversation happened all the way back in 2015, with Spinner’s existence only just having been hinted at in a single panel, and we know Horikoshi had a different ending in mind at one point.  Maybe back then, he was still thinking in terms of that different ending when he wrote that conversation?  We know the original ending eventually got recycled into the second movie, Heroes Rising, which came out four years after the conversation in question.  We don’t know exactly how it would have looked if integrated into the story proper, but if you’re wondering about All For One potentially being slated for a more sympathetic origin, it’s worth comparing him to that movie’s ending—or, more specifically, to that movie’s villain, Nine.

For the longest time, I took Nine for a sort of proto-Shigaraki, but that’s because I was working under the assumption that Shigaraki would be the Final Boss, and thus that Nine was “Shigaraki as Final Boss from a time when the Villains were just meant to be scary and alien.”  I had not prior to this very post given any serious thought to the idea of Nine as a proto-version of Final Boss All For One.

It does make a certain amount of sense, though!  He’s got the multiple quirks, he’s hunting for a specific quirk, he was given surgery by Ujiko, he has an unstable body, he has white hair, he has megalomania…and, most pertinently to your ask, he was even born in the most grinding poverty imaginable with no indication of any parents being in the picture for him.  So then, how did Nine react to the circumstances of his birth, and could we extrapolate any of those reactions back onto Canon AFO to see him in a more sympathetic light?

Unfortunately, Nine’s takeaway from his backstory seems to revolve around the idea that he has a great, powerful quirk, so he really ought to be on top of the world, but because of the circumstances of his birth, he isn't—instead he and the rest of his friends are living on the streets or in shitty trashed apartments or being chased by mobs or what-have-you.[1]  That sense of specific grievance is much more akin to All For One’s evil than it is the more sympathetic tack taken in the portrayal of the League.  The League never wanted to be powerful/famous/rich; they didn’t think that they deserved to be on top of the world but that the circumstances of their lives/the unfairness of the world deprived them of that golden life.  Their grudge is a result of their own suffering and how that suffering was ignored by the world around them, not (give or take some elements of Dabi’s story) the sense that they were denied something that was “rightfully” theirs.  All For One, though, does have that sense of grievance and denied ego.

1: It is, of course, very easy to also track elements of other Villains to Nine’s crew.  Chimera was a victim of heteromorphobia and (Spinner), while Slice was either living the hikkikomori life (Spinner, La Brava) or had trouble controlling her quirk (Toga).  Mummy is the vaguest of the three, but given the flashiness of his clothes in the single flashback panel we get of him, I might guess he got drawn towards organized crime, like various of the disenfranchised Shie Hassaikai characters and, one might argue, Twice.  So even here, those elements of societal failure are present; they’re just rationalized differently by Nine's crew on their journey from victim to Villain.

Of course, that doesn’t necessarily reflect on what Horikoshi would have done with those scenarios in the long term—the movies are historically extremely disinterested in having Villains with a lick of moral nuance that might make Deku & co. hesitant to do anything other than punch them out of commission ASAP.  So Nine boiling down to, “I want to take over the world because my godlike quirk means I deserve to, and I only wasn’t already ruling it because the world figured out how to cage allegorical lions,” doesn’t necessarily mean All For One’s story would have been—or was always intended to be—the same!

In the end, though, as I said, I’m pretty cynical about Horikoshi and his “original intentions,” so I think if you want to dream up a more sympathetic backstory for All For One, you should just go for it!  I don’t even think it’s entirely out of bounds, canonically speaking.  After all, we know that AFO is capable of feelings resembling affection for people he thinks of as “his”—who’s to say he didn’t discover that giving people too many quirks would hurt them when he gave some favored subject one quirk too many and it broke them?  Sure, I think that in canon his reaction would be that of a spoiled child who accidentally broke a toy, with any actual sense of guilt willfully buried beneath anger and pique that he can’t have another one just like it.  But it’s still plausible!

Heck, you could even add in that his and Ujiko’s Noumu project wasn’t about strengthening the body solely for AFO’s sake, to outrun the quirk singularity, but also so that the people he liked and wanted to keep around could get multiple and/or powerful quirks without going catatonic.  It makes sense, even—if the quirk All For One is all that’s necessary for AFO to get all the quirks he wants with no downsides, why would he care about the quirk singularity?  It could only have been because he wants to preserve humanity for his rule (because he’s desperately lonely but also desperately controlling).

Really, I’m all for takes on All For One that try to give him any nuance and humanity at all—which brings me to your aside about the debatableness of AFO being intrinsically evil.

(I don't know where you stand on this, anon, so don't take this as aimed at you personally so much as the people I've seen on Twitter who say things like, "Anyone who thinks AFO was born evil missed the whole point Horikoshi was making about Villains being created by society.")

I have all the respect in the world for people who try to argue that Horikoshi didn’t intend AFO to be read as evil in utero, I truly do, and I very much see where they’re coming from. However, in this specific matter, I think they are giving Horikoshi more benefit of the doubt than he deserves. We know good and well that Horikoshi can set up a good juxtaposition between the reality of a character’s situation and the “narrative” the world is enforcing on them, and that juxtaposition is just not there in the depiction of Baby!AFO.

Look at the contrast between the “Who Was Shigaraki Tomura?” program and Spinner’s breakdown about Shigaraki being his friend and hero, or the art of young Himiko just existing and being Himiko as her parents call her a demon, a monster, and a deviant.  Conversely, think of the ironic juxtaposition of Edgy!Deku, covered in grime and muck, a terrifying presence but still being extolled by the narrative as a Hero trying to help and save people.

None of that duality is there with Baby!AFO, who is drawn with bulging, creepy, blank eyes and twisted expressions from the exact moment of his birth and constantly throughout his childhood, compared to his younger brother, who’s just drawn like Horikoshi normally draws babies, who gets to be a normal adorable child compared to his obviously-drawn-to-be-unsettling older brother.  This accompanies a narrator telling the reader about how AFO was “imbued with hubris and a disrespect for others” from the moment he was born; it constantly describes AFO in ways that ascribe him agency that he as an infant could not possibly have: he “stole” his mother’s quirk just like he “stole” nutrients from his brother.

From the moment of conception, he’s talked about like some kind of alien monster, a horror movie parasite fresh off a meteorite. The text says of the twins’ mother that she couldn’t feel “what had taken up residence in her uterus,” which is just about the most garishly dehumanizing way I can think of to describe a pregnancy!  AFO is a “what” instead of a “who,” and he “took up residence” instead of “was conceived.” Seriously, it’s like I’m reading the worst dregs of posts from the old childfree livejournal communities that had their own nasty slang to use for mothers and babies that anyone outside of their community would look at and ask, “Hey, what’s with the fucking gross language you’re using to describes other human beings here?”

There are so many ways that Horikoshi could have—and, I expect, would have!—done differently if what he wanted was to demonstrate that even AFO is a victim of the world he was born into.  He could have kept the narration as-is but visually depicted Baby!AFO as just a normal infant who became twisted due to the events of his youth.  He could have kept the alienating visuals but had the narration be more sympathetic, telling the reader how AFO was born a little different but still might have grown up okay if he hadn’t had the deck stacked so badly against him from the beginning.  He could have just let readers draw their own conclusions and dropped the narrator entirely because there is no one in all of the setting’s history (least of all the usual narrator, Future!Deku) who could actually be a reliable narrator about AFO’s infant years.

Instead of any of that, what we have is Horikoshi indulging the part of him that likes horror with an omniscient narrator lecturing us about how AFO was a greedy parasite of unknown providence in the womb, and art to match. It's only made more clear by how sterling and saintlike Yoichi is despite his only consistent model for human behavior being All Of That.

Listen, I am all about trying to wring the story for any and every excuse I can find to write apologetics for the Villains!  I will take an inch from Horikoshi and run a ten-mile marathon with it!  I totally support being critical of the story of AFO as we were told it! But I just can’t get behind the read that Horikoshi was challenging us to look beyond the surface with Baby!AFO, and that only readers who misunderstood what he was saying with his Villain plot could possibly think that AFO was written as an Evil Baby.  I’m sorry, people who want a non-evil baby!  I’m sorry, people who want a Horikoshi who wouldn’t write an evil baby!  But canonically speaking, AFO was an Evil Baby. Every element of his story was chosen to hammer that in—the scenario, the writing, the art, the narration, and the fact that only real juxtaposition present in any of it is in Good Baby Yoichi.

Aaaaand that’s all the more reason why Villain-appreciators in this fandom should feel absolutely free to disregard any and all pieces of canon they think are stupid lazy bullshit that Horikoshi ran with because grappling with e.g. “relatable motivations” or “the difficulties of treating antisocial personality disorder when the only medicine you were taught is punching” would make the story too complicated.

Honestly, “AFO didn’t realize his toys could break before he broke one,” is easy to fit into the canon compared to some of the back-breaking twists I’m prepared to undertake with a straight face.  Go nuts!

Thanks for the ask!

[thehusbandoden]

Midoriya Izuku x OFA Related Reader Headcannons

A/n: here's the request. For some reason my account is acting weird with requests and I don't wanna risk losing them so I'm doing it differently.

I'm so sorry it took so long! I wanted to write a fic but it wasn't working lol.😅

If you want something changed/want to request something else, please please contact me!

General info:

Genre: fluff + sllight angst \\ wc: 902 \\ posted: 01/01/2024 \\ requested

Your parents died when you were about six. They were bystanders of a villain attack, and All Might unfortunately didn't get there in time. All Might felt incredibly guilty, even though he knew that he did his best.

His guilt tripled when he found out that the couple had a daughter. He was very invested in your future, and immediately offered to adopt you when he found out you didn't have anyone to take you in.

After a while of debating and arguing, the government finally allowed All Might to adopt you. He took a few months off of work to bond with you and get to know you. He hired a full-time nanny to help take care of you while he was at work.

As you grew, he secretly hoped you would be able and willing to take on his quirk and be the next successor.

A few years pass by, and you haven't developed your quirk. All Might had taken you to your doctor multiple times, but he didn't see anything wrong. You were just a late bloomer.

All Might continued to smile, comforting you whenever you felt like a failure.

At your request, and probably a little bit of All Might's own desires, he started training you a week after your tenth birthday. You were amazing, and All Might was sure you would become the next successor.

Until your quirk came.

On your fourteenth birthday, you received your quirk. It was amazing and powerful, yes, but there was one problem...

It was completely incompatible with OFA.

The news devastated you and put you in a pit of depression for a few weeks.

All Might tried his best to reassure you, but you were too caught up in your own self-pity.

Five weeks later, you finally accepted it. You allowed and appreciated the comfort All Might gave you and started to rethink your life's plan.

After a few more weeks of recovery, you asked All Might to help you train your quirk.

It was tough, and almost overwhelming at times, but with All Might's support and the many professionals he hired with similar quirks, you prevailed.

You were behind your fellow classmates by several years, but made up for it by the relentless hours you trained with several pros.

By the time Middle school was ending, you were equal if not far surpass your classmates. You made it into UA by recommendation.

During the months before UA, All Might introduced you to Midoriya Izuku... his new successor.

They were both nervous about your reaction, but pleasantly surprised when you took the news well.

You and Izuku ended up getting along quite well. You quickly became friends, and you helped him with both preparing for and controlling his new power. 

You became very close, becoming inseparable from each other.  

Izuku slowly began to master his new power with your help, filling you with pride.  

Helping him achieve his dream helped you to feel better about your failure.  

Both of you developed feelings for one another but didn’t admit it- even to yourselves.  

You always denied accusations of your crush thrown at you by the majority of Class 1-A.  

It got so bad that Bakugo screamed at you across the hallway, demanding that you and “stupid Deku” stop being wimps and actually confess to one another.  

Izuku was in hearing range, and you almost died from embarrassment.  

Luckily, no one mentioned it.  

It wasn’t until you worriedly entered the hospital, walking down the hall as your eyes flickered from room to room, anxiously looking for his number.  

Your eyes met with the room number, and your heart thundered against your chest as you hurried inside, tears forming at the corners of your eyes as your eyes laid on the broken body of Izuku.

He got so worried when he saw your tears, trying to sit up to comfort you.  

At the sight of him hurting himself, you grew angry.  

Your lips contorting into a snarl, you gently push him back into bed, glaring at him.  

“We’ll talk about this... foolish behavior later.” You growl, your e/c orbs boring into his emerald ones.  

After he healed the two of you shyly confessed. He took you on a date, and you became official three days later.  

You spent even more time together, sitting closer, and staring more openly.  

Neither of you denied your feelings anymore- even though you didn’t tell anyone.  

Almost everyone knew but you didn’t really care.  

You were able to help him whenever he struggled to control or understand OFA, and you were the first one to recognize what was happening and to jump into help.  

You ended up engaged three months after you graduated from UA and married seven months after that. Izuku heavily relied on your knowledge, asking you for help or for advice.  

You both became well-known heroes, and you both went back and forth from number one and number two.  

Bakugo surpassed you once- for two months.  

Izuku was secretly fuming, fighting harder for his position.  

He had a smug smirk on his lips as you regained your ranking, wrapping an arm around your waist as he pressed a kiss to your cheek, not caring about the cameras.  

The affectionate act was all over the news the next day.  

He fainted when he saw the pictures and the clip the next morning, profusely apologizing when he woke up.  

~~~~~

Izuku's masterlist | Masterlist | Navigation | You can tip me here <3

Reblogs and feedback are greatly appreciated <33

~~~~~

Do not copy, repost, nor plagiarize my work. Ask before you translate or use my work in any way -minus reblogging.

[aashi-heartfilia]

Why BakuDeku will be canon and not IzuOcha? Connection between TogaChako and the entire Love Square...

So this is pure hypothesis and I should clarify that I'm not a shipper when it comes to MHA. I just love the story, its premise and the various themes that it involves and I love to see what happens next. I don't particularly support any ships and so with all that being said, let's jump into it!

So, Ochako said that "You should never hide your true feelings or that face of yours".

Horikoshi is very very clever with the panelling.

While most people were debating on whether or not it was an IzuOcha ship bait, I think it signifies something completely different.

Notice how Ochako was thinking about Deku as she said those lines but even in Ochako's imagination, Deku wasn't looking at her.

HE WAS LOOKING AT BAKUGO.

I mean, look at it.

He was a bit embarrassed and looking at someone else. It is most probably a memory from when they were training before the second war (when Bakugo was showing his new move Cluster to Deku)

But why would Ochako think about Deku looking at someone else during such an important time?

It parallels how Toga thinks about Twice in a completely platonic sense. He was more of a brother to her (Toga and Twice->brother sister bond)

Plus it also signifies Ochako's journey of self acceptance. Think about it!

When we met Ochako in the beginning, she had an inferiority complex about her hero motivation and background.

She met Deku, who played her knight in shining armor, who had this cool quirk and everybody loved him.

He was a Hero, and always in the spotlight. Even All Might was interested in him (according to Ochako because she never knew about OFA)

So she admired him and wanted to be like him as in wanted to be a great hero like him but it backfired because Ochako is Ochako and Deku is Deku.

Throughout the series, we see these feelings grow.

But with admiration, what Ochako always felt was jealousy....envy.

The theme of envy has been very prominent in the series. Bakugo is the biggest example of it.

I admit that Ochako might have had a tiny bit of crush on Deku because who wouldn't?

He is a cute, clumsy boy, well natured, a crybaby at times but a real hero at heart. Who wouldn't fall for that?

Plus it's not wrong to have feelings.

But in Ochako's case, she always felt that Deku is so far away.

It is such a literal representation!

Deku was moving forward while Ochako felt like she was lacking, like she is behind him, literally and figuratively.

We saw how she was struggling to deal with whatever she was feeling.

At first it looks like she is struggling to deal with her feelings for him, but at this particular moment her feeling could only be described as envy.

Admiration could easily be confused for love but!

You're never jealous of the person you love!!

Because till season 3 Ochako was feeling both admiration for his best friend (which everyone else confused for love) and jealousy.

It was especially awkward because they were friends and their other friends kept on pointing in that direction.

But the real change came in the war arc when Ochako got Deku's letter and realised that maybe Deku is not that special after all.

They are good friends, and she was worried about him because she realised that behind the Hero persona that Deku has, he is also human.

Being a fellow hero, it was more relatable to her.

"Special powers are one thing but there is no such thing as a special person" she said in her speech.

Humanizing all heroes and villains.

I also wanna talk about this specific panel after Bakugo's apology.

Something about Ochako's expression here really struck a crod.

As Deku falls in Bakugo's arms, the camera pans on Ochako who just stands there observing, what true love is.

She didn't feel anything, because she realised the bond between BakuDeku is a bond of love.

Which is why she never made an effort to follow Deku's footsteps again.

The famous cliff scene: the day before the second war! Both of them knew they could die the very next day and yet they chose to say nothing... Nothing as in love confession, because there was nothing to confess.

Ochako realised that Deku loves and admires Bakugo and she's ok with that, so she'll focus on more important matters, like the Toga situation.

Because she realised, she can be her own Hero.

And now she wanted to help Toga. A girl like her, that was crying.

Because she has seen so many happy faces, she cannot help but wonder what made Toga cry.

Plus Toga said that only heroes and the people they protect are counted as people and the rest don't even matter.

As a person, Toga should be free to love whoever she wants but because of her quirk she is constantly judged by people except LoV.

Toga was mad because nobody accepted her throughout her entire life, her parents, her friends, Heroes and the one place where she found home was also snatched away from her.

Everyone is free to love and admire heroes then why not Toga. Everywhere she went, she was rejected.

Even Deku's quirk pointed out that there was no real malice behind TOGA's actions. Her love is so strong that it puts people in danger.

Heck, Danger sense didn't activate in the beginning because Toga didn't wanna hurt Deku.

But it was after she was rejected so badly, that she turned against them.

It was not about a girl asking a boy out but a villain asking a hero out.

And Deku not only rejected her completely but also judged her.

So if the world rejects her, she is bound to do the same!

Which made Ochako the perfect person to face Toga. Both are girls full of love but hide deep inferiority complexes.

Ochako understood this and told Toga her smile is beautiful.

Why? Because Ochako realised it the hard way, what happens when you suppress your feelings which is why she admired Toga and told her that Toga is right and she should never hide her feelings or her face because she is beautiful.

She admired Toga for her genuine honesty and told her that it is nothing to be ashamed of.

Toga went on a rampage because Deku hurt her (he was the final nail in the coffin) but just because Deku rejected her doesn't mean the end of the world.

Toga is free to live her own life, just because Deku rejected her doesn't mean her life is finished and if she really wants to have a girl chat, Ochako will always be there!

She'll give her blood to Toga for the rest of her life..!!

It's just Ochako's way of telling Toga that just because a boy rejected her doesn't mean her life has ended. That Toga is beautiful and has a lovely smile. And if toga wants to talk about it, Ochako will be more than willing to listen and support her for the rest of her life.

And such is the beautiful dynamic of TogaChako.

Cheers! Sunshine!

[ilovereadingandstuff]

Okay, so I was doing some chores here at my house and, out of nowhere (something completely normal forr me as a fan of bnha), chapter 413 popped in my head, especifically pages 13-14, and I started rambling my ideas...until I realized something.

Izuku is going to lose OFA.

Ok, not that, which is literal text, but this:

Izuku is going to lose OFA, and while arguing with Kudou and the others vestiges, he was crying his eyes out because what mattered the most to Izuku about losing OFA, among ALL the consequences and intricate meanings which 'becoming quirkless again' could represent...It was the fact that OFA was a gift from All Might that made Izuku's heart ache in agony at that moment.

ch. 413 Here I want to note that the spanish official translation says exactly the same, so there's no contradictions.

It was not that he was going back to his past self, not that he most-likely would have to face that discrimination he went through all his childhood all over again. Not that losing his quirk could mean that he would have to stop being a hero. Not that he was gong back on being useless/worthless again...ANY OF THAT! BUT because he is 'losing the gift, meant for him, from his daddy might'...THAT'S what was causing his tears...

And from this, I see two things:

First...

IZUKU YOU BASTARD!!

HE'S AVOIDING AGAINNN THINKING OF HIMSELF!!

And, I'm sorry, but being quirkless is not goddamn easy!

It has been explained several times in the development of the plot that bnha's society is based on superhumans: people with quirks.

Being just a regular person without a quirk is a really complicated thing to deal with, and having that particularity means facing problems both on a social and psychological level.

In Aoyama's case, for example, his parents were so devastated over the fact that their son was quirkless, and therefore, he was feeling excluded and different from others, that they reached a point of despair that they made a deal with AFO and, well, you know the rest.

Another one that comes to mind is Ragdoll. Her inclusion here in the list could be debated, but what I want to distinguish about her character is that, after losing her quirk completely by AFO's doing, she had to face a huge set back in order to re-organize her new life now without a quirk. She didn't appeared in the story for many chapter until it was explained that she was still working as a hero but in the backstage, to say in a way.

And finally, Izuku is one of the clearer examples of all this (and that's why he's the protagonist).

He had to deal with bullying, rejection and exclusion (from their classmates when he was in elementary/middle school to the entire society against him). His OWN mother had her own troubles to support him over a dream that was impossible to achieve because, once more, confront villian with a broad range of hazardous quirks against a single person was basically suicidal...

On note of all this, I have to mention this scene (which I say now: I'll bring this up over and over again, a thousand times if needed). I've mention this specific situation in one of my posts before, but now I'll explain it more in depth:

ch. 72, pages 19-20

WHAT ABOUT THIS HORI!!??! HUH!!?? WHAT'S THAT?? WHAT IS THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN???!! "BIRTH DEFECT"!?? "HE JUST COULDN'T ACCEPT THE TRUTH"?!?!

This scene has always been stuck in my head since the first time I read it because...here it explicitly shows Izuku's demeaning perspective over 'being quirkless'.

Here he's saying that "it's a defect", an imperfection, something he lacks on (because society has made it a necessity or requirement).

And even in spanish, even though it doesn't translates as 'defect', it highlights the idea of 'he didn't get what he should have received' (in this case, that his parents 'couldn't provide him of that')

In both languages it is mention the phrase where he explains that ' ' 'his friend' ' ' always kept believing EVEN when the universe was proving him wrong again and again.

My point here is: Izuku has a negative view of being quirkless (just as any other person in-universe would have) and with that, the possibilities of him having a list of low self-esteem issues, lack of confidence and self-value even as a human being are REALLY high...

but then, the fact that Izuku, after having been thrown around for the most dangerous villian of all, shirtless and crying with a bunch of ghosts inside his head...when they're telling him of getting rid of what he should have had always what makes him human...he doesn't think of him. of the problems he would have to face. of the pain he would go through again...

Instead, he thinks of 'the gift from All Might', almost as if the quirk were a toy All Might gave him and that he shouldn't lose it because All Might would feel angry or sorry for him...

MAYBE, maybe I'm going around the bush and making no sense... but FUCK IT! I WANT ANSWERS, HORI!!

I NEED THEM!! I'M LOSING MY MIND!!!

Why is he refusing himself again?? Avoiding HIS feelings but worrying about others'? Or rather, worrying about THE THING instead the consequences it causes the lost of it??!

WHY IS HE ALWAYS THINKING OF ANYTHING BUT HIM?!

Second...

Ok. Now that I've calmed myself down and said what i was meaning to say...after having been screaming internally against Izuku and all his shit...the second point I wanted to talk about was that...

With everything that has happened, a GREAT opportunity would be presenting itself to develop the dad-son bond Toshinori and Izuku have been building since the beggining.

Let me explain:

When All Might first came to town and met Izuku, their bond began to form because they were interating with one another because of OFA. The 'you're my successor' was the excuse and only connection they had to be together. And for that same reason is how their relationship exists in the first place.

So...if Izuku loses OFA. If that excuse stops to exists...the only reason for them to continue being together would be the love they have develop for one another as father-son.

If Toshinori could spell out loud to Izuku that he cares for him beyond that 'you're my successor' or 'the one I gave it my quirk'...if they could transcend that lame excuse and finally spoke to each other as human beings...

GOD, maybe I'm projecting myself here because I LOVE their relationship and i would gladly like to see Toshi legally adopting Izuku or them calling each other 'my son' and 'my dad'...but, yeah...

Those are my ideas about the new chapter.

[greenhappyseed]

The debate over translations is missing the HUGE shifts in this chapter:

AFO finally recognizes that “a willful resolve” can “cross[] time and space” like bloodlines. (Except willpower doesn’t require any physical anchor.) AFO spent a hundred years chasing his brother, eliminating the bloodline of each OFA wielder….and it’s only in the last ten years that he’s realized how strong willpower can be against quirk power.

AFO’s warp is neutralized because he doesn’t have any allies nearby. The only people he knows, and who are within range, are All Might and Tomura, and they’re both against him. Yep, the man who bragged about having excess “friends,” and how he would win because of his many paths to victory, is suddenly finding his options are collapsing.

All Might may be injured, but he’s following the fight and still trying to help the heroes win (just like Bakugo did back in 360). All Might instantly recognizes AFO’s desperation and is screaming for Bakugo to dodge and stay alive. NOT sacrifice himself. That implies All Might is banking on Tomura’s ability to fend off AFO one more time, leaving AFO as “just” a baby so Izuku and Bakugo can both handle Tomura, assuming he’s thinking that far ahead tactically. Then again, I think he might just be trying to stop Bakugo from sacrificing again, showing the character growth for both of them.

[lyco-riis]

I've been thinking about it and I think the reason why such a vocal part of the fandom has been twisting the ending of MHA into such a negative thing is because the concept of being content with one's situation is something they don't take into consideration. Or not properly, at least.

The story has always put an emphasis on how much Izuku wanted to be a hero and I guess that's why it's so difficult for people to grasp that... his goals/wishes might have changed. Quite a few years passed between the final war and the end of the manga. It's more than feasible that his wish has changed or adapted in that time. And overall, his desire to help people still remains the core aspect of his goals. Being a teacher is a great way to achieve that—he had the experience, the skills and the personality for it, too. Plus, as someone who had a not so great school experience (middle school), he understands well how to help the students.

That said, the one thing that seems to bother a part of the fandom the most is that they think the manga paints him in a position where he just accepted the teacher position and his life, because of the loss of his quirk and thus is forcing himself to be content with the outcome.

That's honestly a really depressing way to view the ending. It's also wrong.

I'm not going pretend losing OFA didn't make him reconsider things—that's a big, sudden change, after all. But like, Midoriya Izuku is literally written as one of the most stubborn characters ever. He wouldn't have quit and packed it up just because of that. Maybe middle school!Izuku would have, but the final war!Izuku is different, he has a lot more confidence, knowledge and experience. He has grown as person and I doubt losing OFA would have truly stopped him.

I feel like it's wrong to even consider him becoming a teacher as him stoping being a hero. Overall, the Izuku during the finale has one big difference compared to the one from the beginning—he's content/confident about being quirkless. It's not really something that's holding him back anymore, that's making him falter. I don't think people realize it even though Hori kind of spelt it out. But 14-year-old Izuku let his quirklessness hold him back. It's obvious in the way he searched for validation in others (the rooftop scene with All Might). Meanwhile, during the finale chapter, it's very obvious that it's not really something holding him back. He's the one to reassure a kid that he can be a hero—because Izuku has been, still is, a hero. Because now as adult he simply knows it's possible. He doesn't need the validation of others and the lack of a quirk is not something that will hinder him.

I think this is a very important point to understand about his character, because I believe it... puts his job as teacher into a whole new light.

A large part of the fandom read the scenes where he talks about his former classmates and his loneliness with Aizawa and somehow created a misconception about the situation in their head.

They see this scene and so on as proof that Izuku isn't content with his job. As mentioned, I think, people don't really understand what being content with one's situation actually means. Feelings of what-ifs and loneliness and other stuff like that are normal, even if you are truly content with something—as long as they don't appear in an excessive amount. Even if you truly love your current job, there might still be times you're going to think, 'What if I chose that other job...' But as long as you don't think like that constantly, it's not regret. The loneliness comment isn't meant to be proof that he's unhappy with the situation. It's natural to feel lonely once in a while, especially if everyone's busy with packed schedules and you can't meet up until, like, two months pass. Missing people is normal, y'all. That doesn't mean Izuku has been abandoned by anyone.

(That whole debate about 1-A abandoning him is so ridiculous, because anyone who's ever had a job, knows it's damn tough to find time to meet up with people because you can't always have off at the same time and weekends aren't a guarantee either. Plus, that doesn't count how expensive meeting up can get when you don't live near each other. Also, I've seen someone say, Hori should just have not done that part based on reality then because it's a manga about heroes with superpowers—are you serious? If Hori has always done one thing in his writing, it's that he still made the world of MHA somewhat realistic despite the superpowers. The kids school life, the discrimination, the job aspect of the hero industry as well the entertainment aspect—of course, he was going to keep it realistic. Anything else wouldn't even make sense. Being a hero is supposed to be a demanding job. If they all had constantly time to hang, that would be questionable too.)

It's also baffling me that the concept of Izuku shifting his goal from being a hero on-field to training future heroes as teachers is so unbelievable to a part of the fandom. If you ask me it makes perfectly sense. Izuku wants to save people, to help people. Training future heroes is an indirect way to do so... But also a direct way. You can't tell me his whole story with Shigaraki didn't make him think about his situation. You can't tell me, he completely forgot about his time during middle school.

Y'know, considering he had such questionable teachers in middle school and then such great ones in high school (seriously, Aizawa and All Might did a lot), it wouldn't be surprising if he realized that he might be capable of helping the students, even if it's just to reassure them that everything's going to be fine and stuff like that.

I'm not saying he completely gave up on being an on-field hero (the ending with the suit is a clear indicator on where he stands there), but acting like he's miserable as teacher and hates it and is unable to shift his goals and dreams, is a disservice of his character, in my opinion.

Anyway, sorry for the rant, this was building up over the days.

[theetwinkleboy]

just. when i think about the way that yagi toshinori transformed one for all and its purpose.

i'm on ch 305 rn, aka the izuku's-coma-slash-ethical-debate chapter, and just. it's really really striking me how much one for all, and the users' understanding of it, has evolved over history. We know that they didn't know it could be passed on until after Yoichi's death, and Banjo says that AFO tried to steal OFA from him and En twice, and failed both times, and I wonder if the users even knew it was unable to be stolen until Banjo figured it out.

It brings this moment from a previous chapter to mind:

"They weren't really chosen ones"--they were just trying to keep the quirk alive, even as they died. And it's kept alive because, as yoichi says in this chapter--

This quirk was an unwanted gift, followed by a mutation and a happy accident, and then, until Nana, it was kept alive to keep the fight against AFO going, with the hope of someday killing him at last.

And then along comes Yagi Toshinori.

It's so telling that Nana abandoned her son to keep him safe, but then this other kid tells her his dreams and plans for a safer society, and she gifts him with a death trap target on his back of a quirk in response.

I think i'm about a hundred chapters off from Toshinori's origin story, so I don't know the exact details of a lot of vestige stuff, but like. This quirk, up until now, has been passed on in desperation. But All Might inspired something in Nana so clearly that she made him a chosen one in a way that she and others before her never were.

And then he takes this quirk that has been kept alive specifically to kill one man, and he uses it to save. He uses it to transform society. And both he and that transformation had shortcomings. but that's another post because this post is about the vision of this man.

And all might is able to defeat one for all, able to become the number one hero, BECAUSE the users before him kept this quirk alive for him to be able to use to achieve his vision. And then here's what the successor Toshinori chose (another chosen one, the second of his kind) has to say when even Nana says that Shigaraki can't be saved:

Yagi's the only user of all for one that's not fully there in this meeting, but nonetheless, his presence is still SO loud.

It's so important to me that All Might didn't choose Izuku as a successor to defeat AFO. He chose him as a successor for his other vision for his quirk.

And Izuku's not All Might. He's a transformation himself, one that gets me all kinds of emotional, but that is ALSO another post. But the thing is, he's able to use this power to save in part because it was given to him in order to save people, not in order to kill. And that's because of Yagi Toshinori.

[smallmightsupremacy]

So that translation was... something. A good one? Well, that's up for debate. Personally, I think that it's a bit iffy, and decided to make a post about why I think that way along with my own personal translation of that scene (you know the one) (disclaimer: I am by no means fluent in Japanese so take what I say with a grain of salt and please, for the love of god, correct me if I get anything wrong)

So before I get into why this isn't a good translation of the Japanese version, I just want to say that even when you don't consider the Japanese version and just look at what's being said in this panel, it doesn't make a lot of sense for Katsuki's character to be saying something like this at this point in the story. Like, it sounds like he's saying "OFA isn't strong enough to stop you but my quirk is" and it's just insinuating that he believes he's on par, perhaps even stronger and more capable than OFA. That itself seems like something a very early bully Kacchan would say, and it just takes away a lot of his growth. I refuse to believe that current Katsuki "Izuku will I reach you someday?" Bakugou thinks that he's still above and better than OFA. Making him say something like that to me just seems like all his growth has been thrown out the window. Now moving on to the actual translation, I'm going to break down the Japanese for you guys and explain how I got to my own translation:

Okay, so after using a Japanese keyboard, this was the kanji I extracted from the page to use: "OFAに拭えねーもんは こつち で 拭うつてな ぁああ!!!"

So if we break down the first line, we can see there are four parts to it: OFA, に .... は,  拭えねー, もん (OFA, the particles, the verb, the noun) Now, I'm not exactly sure what the particles do in this context, and I don't want to feed anyone false information, so I won't be touching on that. However, the verb 拭えねー (nuguenee) is a negation that originates from the base (nuguu) 拭う which means to wipe. It can also mean 'to get rid of', which I think better suits this context so we'll go with that and make nuguenee mean 'can't get rid of'. Finally, the noun もん (mon) can be used as a word to say a thing or object. So when you put that all together, the sentence 'OFAに拭えねーもんは' roughly translates to: "What OFA can't get rid of (handle)"

Moving onto the next line: 'こつち で 拭うつてな ぁああ!!!' Once again there are 4 parts to it: こっち (Kocchi) which means here when talking about a place in close proximity to the speaker 拭う (Nuguu) which means to wipe or get rid of in this context

なあああ (Naa) which can be used when you express what you feel or think

And the rest are particles, which, once again, I won't be touching on

So what do we get when we put this all together? こつち で 拭うつてな ぁああ!!! = 'I'll get rid of (handle) right here!!!"

So the full translation? 'What OFA can't handle, I'll handle right here!!!' Now, I know that my Japanese is by no means amazing and that I probably made a few mistakes along the way... but I do feel like Katsuki saying something along the lines of 'what OFA can't handle' instead of 'OFA couldn't keep you in the ground' gives Izuku a lot more credit and makes it seem less like Katsuki thinks lowly of him and more like he wants to help out. Okay okay. So now you may be wondering why I used 'handle' when translating the verb (拭う) nuguu into english after I told you that it means to wipe/eliminate. Well, let's take a look at the apology scene, particularly the bit where Kats tells Izuku 'we're here to step in when you can't handle it all on your own'

If you haven't noticed it yet, nuguenee (拭えね) is used here to mean 'can't handle' as well. I'd like to think that Horikoshi deliberately chose nuguu as the verb to mean to handle in this most recent chapter to be a callback to the apology and Katsuki following through with his promise. It makes his apology feel even more genuine than it already was because he's following through on his words. That's the part I'm most upset about. The English translation has no callback to the apology when Horikoshi deliberately made the stylistic choice to use that specific kanji for the sake of having it be a reminder of Katsuki's growth and development/that chapter. It's a shame that the English translation seems to have the opposite effect.

But those are just my thoughts 🤷‍♀️ let me know what you think!!

[kitsunefyuu]

I got in an argument with two bkdk shippers AT THE SAME TIME on a thread on twitter and it was just.... DELUSINAL

Sorry if this bothers you, I just need to share this with someone else cuz I'm so shocked after that.... If you don't want to post this then don't.

I thought that I knew how they can be but having a direct confrontation made left me literally SHOCKED because I've never encountered & talked with people so onto something to the point that they misunderstand what they read with their own eyes.

They claimed that Bakugo and Izuku's character developement only happeneds when they are together wich is just SO WRONG. For Bakugo you could argue that it is like that because he learns to calm down and accept other ppl but with Izuku it is clear as hell that it's not the case. Take vigilante deku arc as an exampre, take those last chapters as an example of Izuku's developement that is not done alongside Bakugo's.

But what actually shocked me the most was the "Bakugo saw All Might's vestige so he must be inside ofa" but it didn't go in the direction you might think it went.

Instead of saying that he still has ofa embers left or something the guy who started the thread with their bkdk ramblings said that it was confirmed by Hori that Bakugo has no embers left and that the reason why he can join the vestige realm is because his "feeligs of love" broke the rules of ofa. Wdym broke the rules of ofa you ask? Well he was bringing up the panel in which it was explained Afo's plan to steal ofa by using Tomuras hatred. Yeah. That is how Bkg "broke" ofa's rules. Bc if Afo is "enhanced" by hatred, whatever this means, it has NEVER happened nor implied, then ofa's rule for new users to be passed on/someone to exist in the realm can be affected by love. This was never even implied to be able to happen. It's just bullshit. HE AIN'T COMING BACK THIS ARC LET HIM STAY PASSED OUT WHAT DO U HAVE WITH HIM AND LET IZUKU HAVE CHARACTER DEVELOPEMENT WITH TENKO

I SHOULD'VE SAID THIS TO THEM BUT I DIDN'T CUZ I COULDN'T CONTINUE WRITING TO TWO FRIKIN ANNOYING, DELULU PPL AT THE SAME TIME.

They ended up telling me that I didn't read the manga. Yeah, sure, I didn't read.

Oh and the guy that rambled about bkdk had 'proshipper' in his bio so, yeah, he was already disgusting.

And it seems that the other bkdk's also think the same delusions bc this is what I found on another unrelated post: "Soooo Izuku going to share Explosion Quirk with Kacchan. This really have sense, he losing every Quirk he have but Kacchan went to OFA alive, since Deku will not lose OFA but only OFA quirk he can share Explosion Quirk since Kacchan break OFA rules."

Frickin delusional

Sorry if I bothered you.

And this is why I just avoid talking to BkDk shippers or interacting with anyone on twitter in general. Sorry twitter users I know you need to rely on it but I draw the line at interacting with insane people. You should just block them there no reason to debate them.

On another note, Proshipper was originally meant to just say for shipping. As in leave people alone and let them ship, it other people who turned it into problematic ship. Just wanted to clear that up since it feels like Anti's have took something meant to be about being inclusive into something disgusting, and people with bad intentions ran with it. It sad.

Now back to BkDk, don't worry most of these delusional people aren't going to stay long. With how shallow and delusional their love for the series is they will eventually run out of steam once the series in. That's my hope anyway, love or hate the DFO theory but at the least the people in the fandom are actually talking about the plot and story.

While BkDk are only hyperfocused on their ship to the point of obsession. Ignoring everything that contradicts it like you can enjoy a ship and not be insane about it. I like TdDk but you don't see me trying to twist canon into something unrecognizable for it. As I know it not end game nor is romance even important.

It's a shonen manga first. Romance is not it main goal or purpose, again it's twitter. Just ignore them or block them. They aren't worth your time at ALL, your mental health will thank you for it.

[transhawks]

I remember that Hori referred to Hawks (and Ochako) being a 'light of hope' in 2021. It's also interesting that it was Hawks who commented on Ofa and how it connects people's hearts. Do you have any thoughts on this?

I think that arc was very dark for Hawks specifically and the anime's rendition of it is very dark. However these chapters... in 323-325 it is a bit different. It's where I think Hori was honest and where I do think Hawks and especially Ochako are at their brightest, narratively. So, uh, to go back to my writing for Graduation Day, I remember debating whether to analyze this scene because I thought it was relevant. I eventually decided that six thousand words is enough and to spare y'all, but let's get into it because I think it confirms my thesis that vulnerability is needed for connection in BNHA.

Ochako's first panels in 324 have her saying, admitting actually, that she cannot reassure people. She acknowledges they're all scared and worried.

This was the best thing she could have done.

The deification of heroes was something that led to the system they have now. Somewhere in the glitz and hero rankings people forgot these are regular people.

We see this repeatedly as an issue of identities - why Toshinori seems a shell of himself outside of All Might, most of Enji's issues boil down to him not knowing how to be Enji versus Endeavor and screwing his family up for it, and Hawks is...well, everything about Hawks is about being a Hero rather than a person, which is why Horikoshi had him kill someone literally named "humanity".

Ochako doesn't allow this to go on. She makes it clear they're all scared, they're all people who want safety, comfort, and want to be clean from mud and dirt, same as any other. It's why she's one of the Savior Kids; she's geared to try and humanize the other side. It's why she's paired with Toga. See below, as she thinks of Toga while giving a speech.

Essentially she reached the people in that crowd by reminding them who Deku is - a kid with way too much on his shoulders, a person just like them. Not a symbol, not a quirk, like AFO is treating him as. A boy. Or "regular high school kid" - yeah, I should have put this in Graduation Day, lol.

Symbols aren't meant to be fragile or have to come out from the rain. Deku does because he's a person.

So what about Hawks?

This isn't the last time Keigo is going make metaphors about One for All. Remember the line so many people read in bad faith about him comparing Endeavor "linking" people together too? He was talking about connection, pure and simple, realizing that much of his own motivations and Inasa's are connected through Endeavor, or their perceptions of him.

Truly, it's just him remarking that seeing society as holistic, as a whole rather than a part, is the key to solving their issue.

I think the emphasis on showing your soul, ugliness and cracks and all is one of the keys to reaching the villains. Something that doesn't position them as moral superiors, which is where Keigo failed drastically with Jin. He didn't give him a good choice at all. He also wasn't willing to be fully vulnerable with him. But I also think there's another dimension to this. More and more I think Horikoshi is actually criticizing individualism and the idea of "the great man". In his depicting of bystander system that has become an issue from society delegating acts of kindness and heroism to an actual career, I think he's critiquing the idea that one person can shoulder that burden.

It shouldn't be a person but a village, so to speak. It says a lot that the characters we know as villains are both seeking connection but also saying, in the depths of despair, that their individual will can change the world.

I still interpret this scene as Dabi deep in denial. Uh oh, he actually FELT something, time to double down and reiterate he doesn't give an actual fuck when truth is he DOES, he just doesn't want to. Otherwise he has to FEEL.

Anyway, the emphasis on the single person and single convinction is another one of those clues I think Horikoshi is leaving us about the "Great Man theory".

The great man theory is a 19th-century approach to the study of history according to which history can be largely explained by the impact of great men, or heroes: highly influential and unique individuals who, due to their natural attributes, such as superior intellect, heroic courage, extraordinary leadership abilities or divine inspiration, have a decisive historical effect.

I remember balking when I read this. Maybe it's because here in the West, there's little uhh agreement over Napoleon being heroic. Maybe it's because my history teachers were unsual but I've never really seen anyone seriously consider Napoleon heroic. There always seemed to be agreement he was a power-mad tyrant who took advantage of the Revolution to enact a military coup and then actual progress made by the Jacobins. So the fact chapter 3 of BNHA has Mic quoting him as a great hero was always weird. At the time of my first read through, I wrote it off as maybe Japan doesn't take this approach to Napoleon and the Revolution. One person's tyrant is another's hero, you know? But more and more I think Horikoshi has been debunking Great Man Theory with his manga. First off the premise of Great Man is usual that the Great Man is born, that his Greatness is congenital. That there's a natural aptitude for greatness, like superior intellect, etc. BNHA is absolutely refuting that, has from the first page. In fact the characters who get into the trap of believing they are born "anything" are shown to be trapped or not in a good way (see Redestro, or see Tomura and Keigo believing they are born to destroy/have dirty wings respectively). So much of who Deku has become is supposed to change this idea of biological predisposition to greatness.

Even Dabi, who has struggled against the circumstances of his birth, falls into the trap of believing some people are born with everything and are born to everything, essentially internalizing the worst of his father's own beliefs.

The story isn't kind to people who give us this rhetoric - that depending on others is wrong, or weakness. It's why Deku had his arc, after all.

Which brings us to my second point - the story isn't the triumph of individuals against evil. It's about people coming together. That's why Ochako and Keigo had their moments of realization in 323-325.

It's not about one person. It's about people.

Lastly, and this is conjecture, but there's a curiosity to the Great Man theory from a cultural standpoint. Now each culture has its Great Man to some extent. I've spoken about how All For One is likely trying to emulate Oda Nobunaga with his Demon Lord talk. But the emphasis on individual actions over collective ones, the commercialization of heroism, and the idea of competition breeding innovations/results are distinctively Western Capitalist ones. And in...a clumsy way, I think Horikoshi has been hinting at this being part of his own criticism.

Did you ever notice how the Japanese anime has them say "Hero/Hiro"? It's an imported word. Japanese has other words that mean hero, like yusha or eiyu, which have different meanings that all relate to the English hero as either a brave person (yusha) or a person of greatness/importance (eiyu). Why then use hiro, a foreign word as the title for this career?

Because the hero system is canonically imported. And so perhaps are the ideals it brought with it.

[darkcircles4lyfe]

Hii I’ve stumbled across a few of your posts and haven’t even gleaned the tip of the iceberg that is your blog, but I would love to hear a more fleshed version of your Bakugo with AFO post (if you have more that you wanted to share), because that is such a cool concept???

Like, it’s such a nice way to address the symbiotic nature of the two quirks + Bakugo’s relationship with Midoriya at the same time, and there’s also so much to explore in terms of the repercussions of that (not just the symbolism of it, but also the parts you’ve mentioned like what that would mean for people who’ve had their quirks stolen, how they will deal with all the stockpiled quirks, or even on a wider scale of how the media would react if AFO/OFA is leaked/ revealed to the public).

Just imagine the amount of continued exploration in terms of the nature of quirks v nurture of society, because AFO/OFA has so far been (imo) one of the few evidence that quirks carry personality, which is so awesome because it’s like saying a quirk literally holds a part of you through the vestiges while demolishing this idea through basically the entire plot of the manga loll. (To phrase it slightly better, the manga is sort of reaching the conclusion that a quirk is a part of you and you only, without being all of you, and that it’s exactly what the name says it is: a quirk.)

The thing I don’t really like about this conclusion is the blatant disregard for the quirkless community, which was the initial point of discussion and social commentary in bnha. This is why I think Bakugo being given AFO would be great fuel for the debate of should we be allowed to mess with the quirks we are given.

As in, who gets to decide? Who gets to play god? How will it be regulated? Should it even be regulated? How do you do all that without dehumanising Bakugo the same way society dehumanised pro heroes? (Bonus points for linking this to real life because I’m all for social commentary/ reflections in fictional media)

And then on a personal level, what will it take for Bakugo to be able to control AFO’s personality (hello, eye symbolism + name symbolism) within the quirk? How will All Might handle this info? How does this all relate to the conflict of children in war? The development of the league of villains’ character plots (esp Tomura’s)?

I have a lot of questions with very few answers loll, I would love to hear your thoughts on this!!

this post, for reference

Gosh, I am so sorry for taking forever to answer this. But you ask so many good questions! And I think this is actually a pretty good time, after 419.

I guess where I stand with the idea now is still somewhat ambiguous. All for One as a power is too big and interesting to go away--or at least, if it did go away, it would speak volumes. It feels like an almost elemental, fundamental, and even spiritual power, something beyond the man himself. So I'm still wondering about its future.

While a lot of other characters' narratives, including Katsuki's, are about this "nature of quirks vs. nurture," with the original Japanese name for quirks literally meaning "individuality" ("個性" or "kosei"), All for One (the power) oddly represents a lack of individuality. Like a shapeshifter with no form of its own. With that in mind, might we actually compare it to quirklessness? This is worth considering if we're trying to guess who might be a fitting person to inherit it.

I'm at least certain that Tenko shouldn't keep it, since he was literally groomed for it, to be a vessel. For him it represents a lack of individuality in the absolute worst way: a lack of agency, and an identity determined by/in the image of someone else since before even the moment of conception. Actually, as of 419, it seems like if there is any echo of him left after being possessed again, Tenko needs to get rid of the quirk. If he is able to regain control for even a second, the most logical action he can take to save himself and do something of his own free will for once, is to pass the quirk on to someone else.

What I'm a little less certain about is who should get it. On the one hand, Katsuki has a very strong sense of self, especially now. As I said before, this would make him an interesting candidate because he wouldn't want AFO, and thus wouldn't use it for his own gain, on principle. However...

In between now and when I wrote that little post, the future of One for All has also become ambiguous. Does Tenko have it even though All for One does not? (because of Izuku's intent in passing it on?) I've wondered for a long time what would happen if OFA and AFO combined. Would they become more than the sum of their parts, creating something new? Maybe something that can connect with other people and build them up? Perhaps it would develop some aspect of agency that takes away its capacity to exploit people. I'm just speculating...

And I haven't wanted to talk about it, but I'm ambivalent about Izuku becoming quirkiness again. As in, I think Horikoshi could pull it off either way. So this is just an idea:

Izuku could also be a candidate for AFO because he lacks a sense of self, in his own way, as I've gone into before. At best, this means a lack of an ego, the opposite of AFO's personality. In AFO's words, Izuku is the boy born with nothing, who now has less than nothing. There's also a nice symmetry to this idea: Izuku giving OFA to Tenko, then Tenko giving AFO to Izuku. It would be interesting to see what the power would be like in the hands of its antithesis.

But like I said, if you ignore AFO's own selfish interpretation of the power as a tool for domination and a sign of his natural superiority, its essence is a lot more comparable to quirklessness. Just as one's quirk does not encompass one's entire self even though it is unique to them, so too does the quirk have potential beyond its user's point of view. It is potentially ideal for someone who wouldn't make it a part of who they are or use it to enforce their desires, and this applies to both Izuku and Katsuki.

The final thing to mention from your question is the possibility that whoever received AFO would have to deal with overcoming his possession. Maybe this is too much for one person to handle. Maybe Katsuki plays into this either way.