#horikoshi will go to hell for killing himiko

[samipekoe]

more of my old bnha art my friend unearthed...I have such a beautiful mind

[bicheetopuff]

Honestly, I appreciate Hori for leaving things open. But I must say that Toga dying... hurt. I don't want to say it was a bury your gays moment, but it felt weird knowing that other more terrible villains were let go and survived. It actually would have been terrible if we got Izu/Ocha after Toga died like that.

I’m actually conflicted about Toga’s death

I still stand on my belief that Himiko shouldn’t have died at all, however I’d be lying if I said I didn’t appreciate the moments leading up to her death and how heart warming her intention was.

She couldn’t imagine a world without Ochako so she made sure that the world wouldn’t have to live on without her in it. So, she sacrificed herself to save her and atoned for her sins at the same time. At least that’s what I took from it, and I saw it as almost like a romantic tragedy.

If you ignore what the themes were in bnha and how inconsistent her death was in accordance to those themes, I thought her death was beautiful.

But, if you’re like me and don’t ignore the obvious inconsistencies, then her dying felt like it came out of left field and it didn’t really make sense. And it made feel a type of way that her actual death was off screened.

I’m not gonna go too far into it because I start talking about how much the ending bothered me, I won’t be able to stop talking about it, but I will say the worse villains who survived (I’m assuming you mean Chisaki?) aren’t exactly living lavishly. While this was never set up in bnha before the final war arc, death for your sins means mercy/living through the punishment of your sins means torture is a popular trope in a lot of stories, which wouldn’t have been a problem if it was actually foreshadowed appropriately…

Chisaki being reminded of what he did every day for the rest of his life and having to live without his arms I feel is an appropriate punishment… however I think if horikoshi wanted to set up the deaths of the main antagonists, he should’ve revealed Chisaki’s personal hell before the final arc started. And if death means a merciful punishment for your sins, I don’t understand why Nagant, Hawks, and Stain are still alive/not confirmed to be dead… I don’t want them to die by any means but if Horikoshi wanted to be consistent then…

Mr Compress and Spinner got to live because (if I remember right, I can’t look it up right now) they never killed anyone. So if that’s the case, why do they get nearly the same punishment as Chisaki who killed people for no real reason and tormented a little girl for no reason other than selfish greed? And if Chisaki gets to live, why is it that AFO doesn’t? Again, I’m not saying any of these characters deserve to live or die and I’m not gonna give my opinion on who should’ve lived and died. I’m just pointing out the narrative inconsistencies.

Anyways, I got really off topic. All of that to say, I agree that it felt super off putting that Toga had to die while different characters of the same/similar sins were able to live. And yeah, if Izuocha happened after the way Toga died, it would’ve been such an insult to her.

She didn’t die for Ochako to throw her arc out the window and go back to being in love with Deku because others told her that she should be. Ochako wanted to be like Toga, who lives and loves as she pleases, and wanted to be able to show her feelings just like she did without feeling the need to hide herself from others. Confessing to Izuku, unless she actually seemed like she wanted to, would’ve negated that.

[super-paper]

Question, since afo is dead (for good?) are also the quirks he stolen dead/unusable? Ex. Search, Bloodcurdle and wings? And also do you have ANY idea where the hell is hawks character arc going😭 your analysis and meta posts are amazing btw!

Yeah, OG AFO's quirks vanish/"die" alongside him in chapter 410:

Not sure about vestige!AFO's quirks yet, it'll likely depend on whether or not Tenko is actually [REDACTED] or if some sort of quirk transfer occurred between him and Izuku (I sincerely hope this isn't the route Horikoshi goes for obvious reasons lmao).

I've been praying for Keigo's character to be involved in the resolution to Himiko's plot for nearly a year now, bc I really can't see how his arc can end satisfactorily otherwise-- but if Tenko is really [REDACTED], then tbh, I really don't know what to expect from the story anymore. 😭 If the theory that Tenko is gonna be the one to save the LOV by unlocking reconstruction is true, then I would still like Keigo to help with villain rehabilitative efforts during the epilogue (More than anything, I still want him to help Himiko even if he just helps with her rehabilitation-- I just feel like it would be fitting to have him atone for killing Jin by helping Jin's best friend start over). I would also like to see him help restructure the HPSC into something genuinely beneficial to society, most likely with Nagant's help.

Like, these specific panels + Keigo reflecting on "seeing everyone united as one" have gotta mean SOMETHING, right? ...Right???? (😭)

[pikahlua]

Well, first of all, shoulds and shouldn'ts don't really have a place in what I'm talking about. It's just the story Horikoshi wanted to tell, and that's only assuming this is the way it actually ends. All I'm talking about is CONSIDERING the idea, not accepting it. I'm just considering the idea that some other twist isn't coming along and seeing what we get out of such a scenario.

What’s the freaking point of that? To show that abuse victims are beyond recovery? To show that they can’t be saved? To say that sometimes tragedy just follows you to the grave and you can never escape it?

I see this question a lot, and I understand where it comes from. However, it's an incomplete question. You're missing some big contextual elements here. Plenty of MHA characters other than Tomura are abuse victims. MHA consistently shows that people often do bad things for meaningful reasons. That never excuses the bad things. Characters that perpetrate such actions like Stain and Endeavor and Overhaul and Gentle Criminal are made to face the consequences of their actions regardless of their reasons. Hell, even Shouto gets his comeuppance. And Katsuki struggles with the nightmare of living with his bad deeds for practically the whole manga. Does being an abuse victim or a victim of society's failings and tragedies absolve a person of their bad deeds?

To ask if this is about what abuse victims deserve is to ignore the fact that the League of Villains are murderers (or most of them are) and have traumatized an entire nation by destroying the country's stability. They frame their actions as the consequences of the heroes' or society's actions. Why are the heroes deserving of karma but the villains are not? The villains believe in a cause and they are willing to do terrible things to demonstrate their beliefs. Even if they have a point, they still do terrible things. Stain commits murder to achieve his better society, and he still accepts that All Might should come kill him for his murders. It's the price he's willing to pay for his goal, and he acknowledges that.

The heroes recognize that there is a point of no forgiveness for certain actions. Izuku and Ochako both talk about it. Their interests in saving Tomura and Himiko stem from how they realize they don't understand where their counterparts are coming from. They want to understand. Maybe if they wanted to understand sooner, things would have turned out better. Maybe Tomura and Himiko can still be saved, or maybe it's already too late.

This post by @codenamesazanka illustrates how Horikoshi symbolizes the concept that Izuku is (possibly) too late to perfectly save Tomura from the consequences of his own actions. One reading of this could be that this is a depiction of the cycle of karma, where Tomura still has to answer for his crimes in some form. Another interpretation is that Izuku is being punished for failing to reach out to Tomura soon enough, such as was his opportunity at the mall. Or maybe this is just the punishment phase, and what Izuku did accomplish will soon be duly rewarded. He did manage to reach out to Tomura and help him let go of the hatred inside him, after all.

uhm tbh tomura is a martyr at least from the narrative's pov. his character was there to show the mistakes from modern hero society that felt so safe on the outside and ''allowed'' afo to groom him into believing he was evil incarnate, or at least he represented that in the beginning. tomura's storyline also felt rushed with this ending (it was acknowledged that he never chose anything for himself and then.. ganbare izuku ^_^). the build up for izuku saving tomura also became a pile of nothing.

Do you know what a martyr is? I don't think you know what a martyr is. Especially because Tomura did not believe he was evil incarnate at the end there. His beliefs changed. Pretty much the opposite of a martyr. And I think it's a bit wild you think it's viable to blame all of society for AFO grooming Tomura, wtf? I don't think even Tomura believed anything like that. He hated that society wouldn't try to save him because he was deemed an undesirable.

And I keep seeing this idea that he "never chose anything for himself." You know there is no requirement that that has to happen, right?

But even allowing for that, of course Tomura chose things for himself. He chose to exact vengeance on AFO when he could have just faded away. He chose to be a hero for the villains, and it was acknowledged that came from something fundamental to him since childhood. Just because AFO had a hand in everything in his life since birth doesn't mean Tomura made 0 choices. You don't have to take AFO at his word, you know.

Y'all keep railing on ideas that you see as flaws in the story without a mind for that they may actually be features. You're just not willing to countenance the thought that Tomura's story may be a tragedy or have a bittersweet ending. I'm kinda shocked, because I really kinda dug that Tomura got one last hit in and that he let go of his hatred but still retained his identity as the hero of the villains. You do you, I guess.

Izuku's story is another matter, but it's also the most obviously incomplete at this time, so there's not much for me to do there but speculate.

[hamliet]

Ending = the Ending

So, I’ve been rereading BNHA lately and realized something I feel... dumb AF for not realizing earlier. 

Continuing Horikoshi’s pattern of... being subtle as a flamethrower with his foreshadowing, “Ending” the villain likely foreshadows, well, the ending of the manga. (It’s literally “Endingu” in Japanese, so yes, the moniker’s meaning is the same.) Or, at least, it foreshadows the ending for the Todoroki’s subplot, and a bit of the overarching plot as well.

In what way? So, we know from chapter 290 that Dabi sent both Starservant and Ending to attack Endeavor. 

Both Starservant and Ending are thereby foils of Dabi. Starservant tried to alert the public to Endeavor’s... not-so-great backstory. He is probably somewhat symbolic of what Dabi sees himself as right now, but I find the Ending fight much more interesting because it involves their family and is framed as an answer to the question Endeavor begins the “Ending” chapters asking. 

The chapter then concludes with this, and then the very next chapter Ending is introduced. Touya is the answer for how Endeavor can truly atone and redeem himself to his family. But who is Touya now? Enter Ending, to show Endeavor just what it will cost. 

Like Dabi, Ending obsesses over misfortune he blames Endeavor for (though, in Ending’s case, it’s likely his own doing; in Touya’s it most definitely is not). He spends time researching and watching Endeavor, plotting revenge. Oh, and Ending is suicidal as hell. 

This panel of Ending being pleased Endeavor remembers him is reminiscent of Dabi’s confrontation with Snatch.

Especially because Ending says pretty much the same thing: your job is to save, right? Haha, what a joke. Kill me. 

I know Dabi wants to kill Enji, but he clearly doesn’t intend to survive his revenge. Shouto noticed that his brother was hurting himself even more than he was hurting Shouto. And Ending literally taunts Endeavor using pretty much exactly what Dabi says to him in this confrontation:

As I said before, Endeavor shows in the current fight that he hasn’t grown much since this moment, because his response to Shouto and Touya is the exact same as his response to Natsuo being in danger. 

So what then happens? Indeed, Endeavor hesitates. But the kids get it together: Shouto, Deku, and Bakugou move when Endeavor can’t. We see that a bit this arc too, with Deku saving Shouto, but there’s an aspect we haven’t seen and probably won’t until the end of the manga:

Give me back my brother!

It’s easier to save your brother from a villain when they are two distinct people than it is to save your brother the villain, when they are one person. Shouto will at some point likely have a moment like this, where he’s determined to save his brother from himself. 

In what sense? Well, Ending wanted to die and take others with him, which is exactly what Dabi seems to want as well. But here are the kids’ responses to him:

I’m pretty sure they aren’t gonna let Touya die (or Shigaraki or Himiko). 

Anyways, at this moment, Endeavor finally acts and helps save Natsuo. Again in the current arc, Endeavor’s inspired by Deku saving a son of his, but Endeavor specifically screws up by choosing to be a hero and punch Gigantomachia instead of saving Touya. Or Shouto. He hasn’t grown since Ending’s attack. He doesn’t want to quite face what his Ending will be (pun intended).

Why? Well...

Endeavor knows what this means, but he doesn’t want to face it right now. He knows what he has to do to atone: admit responsibility and take the consequences (he should give up being a pro-hero eventually to be a hero to his family). These words he says to Natsuo show us he knows, but they’re just words. They are not actions yet. Which is precisely what Natsuo challenges him on:

Enji then makes a minor sacrifice, moving towards another answer to the question he asked at the start of the Todoroki dinner/Ending attack chapters, a movement towards making his dream a reality. 

He knows he has to sacrifice. But right now, he’s willing to sacrifice his role in their family (and I’m not saying this is inherently bad; on the contrary, it’s progress in a sense that he’s listening to Natsuo’s and Rei’s feelings), when what he needs to sacrifice is his pro-hero reputation. Yes, Dabi’s now dumped gasoline on his reputation and lit a match, so a lot of it’s gone, but we also know the hero commission probably isn’t going to view Touya any kinder than they view Shigaraki (which is to say, they don’t give a damn). But he needs to be willing to sacrifice it himself, lay it down and lay everything he wants down, even his own life, to atone via saving his son from himself.*

Anyways, all that to say I’m pretty sure “Ending” is the ending of the series (or at least the Todoroki plot point) and this is how it’ll play out in a much longer, more drawn-out sense. Endeavor will sacrifice himself, and Shouto, Bakugou, Deku, and Ochaco will be the ones who say “come back, my brother,” and “no one is dying” to Touya, Tenko, and Himiko.

*my personal guess is that endeavor will sacrifice his life but will survive that sacrifice; he just won’t necessarily intend to survive it. his willingness to die will probably be rewarded with a life. this isn’t preference either (I don’t like fakeout deaths and I don’t personally like Endeavor); it’s based on what i see as likely in the text and framing/popularity of Endeavor thus far, but we’ll see.

**don’t take this too literally: a foreshadowing metaphor doesn’t mean a 1=1 parallel; I doubt Touya, Himiko, and Tenko will end up in prison like Ending.

[linkspooky]

What are your top 5 MHA characters?

I love to talk about the reasons why I love the characters I love. If you ever ask want to ask me who my faves are for a series feel free to send me an ask.

# 1 The Future King - Shigaraki Tomura

Shigaraki is the character who I talk about the most so the fact he is my favorite is probably honest. With each of these characters I am going to elaborate one aspect of them that makes them a fave for this series. For Shigaraki, my favorite thing about him is not that he’s a bastard, but that he’s a wannabe bastard. 

Shigaraki wishes he could be the kind of person that All for One is, who controls everything, who crushes people in his hands, who feels nothing and wants for everything. Shigaraki ultimately will always fall short of All for One the more he strives to be like him, and that’s what I love about his character. Ultimately, he’s a child throwing a self destructive tantrum. 

The greatest thing about Shigaraki is how much he sucks, and how visceral his failures are. Everything he does explodes in his face in the most disastrous way possible. Even when he succeeds, he invites another worse fall for himself. When he manages to kidnap Bakugo succesfully, not only does Bakugo have no interest at all in becoming a villain, but the heroes track down his location and he loses All for One after that. He exeriences what can only be referred to as “fuck up cascades”.  The point is through watching Shigaraki struggle harder than any character in the manga you get a much deeper connection to him. Shigaraki fights in the mountains with no food or water for a month until he goes half insane, and then it switches back to the heroes and they’re all having a fun christmas party and wearing santa outfits. 

All for One is a king who basically exists to be the villain. He’s stopped being a person and only exists in the role of villain he assigns himself. Shigaraki is so desperate to kill the idea that he’s a person, that he feels anything other than an urge to destroy. The more he suppresses himself though, the more he ends up lashing out again. He’s so undeniably human and in paint that it’s impossible for me not to feel for him. He wants to grow up into All for One so bad, but he’s never going to be AFO he can only be the terrible child that he is. 

#2 Himiko Toga - A Normal Girl 

The main villain trio have always been my top three favorite characters, and the dynamic I’ve been most invested in. Himiko emobides why I tend to gravitate towards villains. They are allowed to be themselves more than protagonists tend to be, because protagonists usually have to be relatable to the audience in some way. Himiko is the most well written female character in My Hero Academia. She’s also a weird serial killer. Somehow these two facts are not mutually exclusive. 

In a series where most of the female characters are like one of three “nice girl” personalities, and are at all times cute or presentable Himiko gets to fight right in the center and covered in blood. The reason I like villains so much is because they own their flaws so much. Himiko is half insane and nobody else can understand her, and she already knows that. 

Yet, Himiko is on this self destructive quest to be true to herself that makes her fight along with the rest of the League of Villains. There’s a lot of ideas present in Himiko’s character, and because she’s a villain she gets to be selfish and explore those ideas. I’m not trying ot make some kind of point here, I just like how messy and lopsided Himiko is. She doesn’t know what she wants, she’s continually running away from everything, she’s so so desperate for some kind of love. She’s independent, but also needy as hell. She exists in her own little world, and yet at the same time she’s vary aware of the world around her. I like that she’s hard to understand, and someone you cannot possibly accept either. Himiko just wants to be herself, no matter how ugly or grotesque that self is. 

#3 Dabi - Self Immolation

Yes, a lot of what I like about Dabi is actually what he might be if he turns out to be Touya. At the same time Horikoshi’s writing is not subtle at all, and you can infer a lot of his character based on what little we have. 

One of my favorite characters are those who are motivated by some deep scar to burn everything around them, and don’t care if they themselves are burned up in the fire as well. Dabi strikes me as that kind of byronic hero. A self destructive person barely holding on, and yet his emotions burn so much he has to act on them. 

I like the idea that Dabi himself is aware that Touya is long dead and he looks like some kind of sewn up corpse acting on Touya’s desires. I love the idea that Dabi is aware himself that he’s slowly going crazy but keeps pushing himself anyway, because otherwise why did he burn half of his body up to reach this point? The fact that he isolates himself from others and keeps secrets when the league would obviously help him kill Endeavor if he wanted them to, shows how committed Dabi is to his act of self destruction. Either the world will burn or he will. I find those kind of sentiments deeply moving in characters. 

#4 Hawks - Pride Comes Right Before the Fall 

I adore Hawks for the same reasons I adore Dabi. The tragedy surrounding both of their characters are so similiar and complementary I basically consider them a set. 

Hawks is always putting on a happy face when he’s more miserable than anyobdy else. He’s always pretending to be carefree when he’s more burdened than anybody else. Hawks is losing himself slowly and smiling all the while because he thinks this is what he wants to do. 

He’s interesting because in traditional tragic fashion, his good qualities, his total selflessness towards others, and how observant he is of other people’s needs and desires, are what drive him completely to ruin. People are going to pluck every single one of Hawks’ feathers out until he cannot fly anymore as he keeps letting himself be used again and again. 

#5 - Aizawa Shota - Wannabe Batman

As stated above with Shigaraki there are characters who I love because they are wannabes, that is they are not who they desperately pretend to be. Aizawa is introduced to us a sa strict, unrelentingly cold and logical person. 

While the rest are villains or characters who are expected to fall to villaintry in some way, Aizawa is someone I admire even as a hero because of how complex he is written as a character. Aizawa has set up so many hoops for himself to jump through. He passes himself off as someone who is cold and detached when it’s obvious he’s an overly anxious nightmare who is constantly thinking about others rather than himself. 

He’s someone who believes he cannot show that he is caring in a direct way, so he always has to go through indirect ways. The cirlces he runs himself in around his students is always fun to observe. Aizawa’s big brain and analytical thinking are both his enemies, because they make him think of the ways absolutely everything can go wrong, and on top of that it’s implied Aizawa has lost someone in the past because of an unexpected accident which pushes him even further into wanting to expect everything and be in control of it all. What I like is of all the flawed mentors in the series, Aizawa is presented as one of the more flawed, but also someone who is actively trying to grow and learn as much from his students as they are him. As opposed to All Might who is stuck in his ways. Aizawa’s flaws are never glossed over but are right there for all to see, and his harsh personaltiy is what we are introduced to first before ever getting so much of a glimpse of his soft side which makes him all the more likable to me. 

But then again I just love unlikable people. 

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 225: Interview with a Vampire

Previously on BnHA: The Shigaraki Squad (after some debate) set out to rescue Giran from the Liberation Army’s clutches. Tomura plans to sic Gigantomachia on them, although the guy is still a-snooze for the next two and a half hours, so who even knows how that’s gonna work. Anyways though, the rest of the gang, Dabi included (over his protests), arrived at the designated meeting location in Aichi prefecture to be greeted by none other than Slidin’ Go, because apparently you can’t fucking trust anyone nowadays. He led them to the center of the town, which turned out to be populated by members of Re-Des’s army, including his top brass. Everyone attacked at once, and the League set to work kicking ass and not even bothering to take names because they’re just gonna kill everyone anyway so who cares! The chapter ended with Toga gettin’ ready to throw down with Kizuki, a.k.a. my new badass lady villain fave who can blow shit up with her mind, holy crap.

Today on BnHA: The Liberation Army continues to battle the League, confident in their eventual win, mostly because Re-Destro has somewhat smugly deduced that the League currently has no Noumu to spare. Kizuki, who is apparently a journalist, faces off against Toga and hounds her with questions about her past. Seems she’s specifically the type of journalist that likes to harass people about all of the most personal and private details of their lives. Toga sets to work stabbing all of Kizuki’s redshirt goons and sucking their blood, but this winds up backfiring as Kizuki makes brutal use of her quirk to blow up said blood. So basically she explodes Toga from the inside out. Somehow Toga doesn’t fucking die, and although I Have Questions About This, we can save that for later since the story is moving forward with or without my suspension of disbelief, and next up on the agenda is a motherfucking Toga flashback, folks.

(As always, all comments not marked with an ETA are my mostly-unspoiled reactions from my first readthrough of this chapter. I’m caught up with the manga now at chapter 226, so any ETAs will reflect that.)

hahaha

welcome to Deika City, population: villains

holy heck

so that’s how it is, huh Horikoshi. just make all of my jokes for me before I ever even get the chance. who cares if the references are American. it’s 2019 and our mangaka are international now. next up is Homestuck jokes. I feel attacked

anyway so we’re zooming in on the observation tower again. how nice. is Giran fucking dead yet I wonder

oh hey

not only is he not dead, he’s smiling and taunting RD in spite of having recently lost a hand piece by piece!

you guys. Giran is legit the most OG motherfucker in this entire series, dead to rights. I adore him

and he can’t say he wouldn’t love to watch all that unfold

by the way, getting back to that earlier panel for a second, it occurs to me that of the three “rescue” arcs we’ve had thus far, only one has featured an actual damsel, and that was a baby damsel at that. like, a six-year-old girl. so like, that was more about her being a small child than her being female. and meanwhile the “damsels” in the other two arcs consisted of (a) the toughest motherfucker in class 1-A, and now (b) the most hardboiled fucking guy in the entire series. and by contrast, female characters have played critical roles in all three arcs on the rescuing side, and now we’re about to see two lady villains fucking throw down

like, I know I give Horikoshi a lot of shit for not having more badass female characters, but a lot of that is because BnHA honest to god is a cut above most other shounen manga to begin with when it comes to feminism. and it just makes me want it to be even better, because I know it could be

god, I can’t wait to be reading manga like 20 years from now, though, when Japan is (hopefully) finally a bit more woke

anyway I went on a tangent there didn’t I. so yeah, Giran. MVP

holy shit

son of a bitch can we just take a moment to appreciate how good the villain of this villain arc has been so far, though? like, he’s straight up evil, but not in an obnoxious way like Stain or Overhaul. this piece of shit knows what he’s doing and is cold blooded as fuck and actually seems to have a plan! I hate him and he’s been awesome so far

anyway so here’s his three reasons then

brb just gonna :| about that a bit, and also wonder why the fuck we apparently don’t have anyone this smart on the heroes’ side. except Hawks, maybe. goddamn

although he’s slightly off the mark there though, isn’t he! it’s astounding to me how much these villains -- and well, everyone really, except Bakugou Fucking Katsuki -- are underestimating All for One, though. like, they really think he’s gone for good. Overhaul was out there trying to become the new kingpin, and now RD is smugly monologuing about how the weapons All for One left behind are all gone and the League has no remaining assets left. well, a month and a half ago you wouldn’t have been wrong, RD. but things have changed now pal

and shouldn’t he know about Gigantomachia, though? even the heroes know about that one. if they were spying on the League with a fucking satellite, wouldn’t they have noticed the giant boulder man continuously trying to crush Tomura for two-day stretches at a time??

you guys it’s going to be so fucking satisfying when Tomura crushes this jackass though

and we’ve got some very interesting quirks going on here! someone here seems to have a targeting scope, and they’re firing a fucking laser from their mouth like fucking shoop da whoop lmao

and then there’s that one dude about to throw a fucking Volvo at everyone. and lots of elemental quirks, and one guy who seems to look weirdly similar to Kurogiri. it’s like a fucking Where’s Waldo of villains though

what in the hot hell

??? !?!?

oh I see. so it’s exactly what it looked like

(ETA: but you guys why does it remind me of this:

?????)

Spinner what the fuck is your quirk!?!?

now we’re cutting back to Kizuki yesssssssssssss

she says that all of the army’s soldiers have undergone daily training. oh wow, whoopty freaking doo. good for you guys. so like every other character in this series, then

these “late starters” are going to whoop your ass and I’m so freaking here for it

oh dear

well there goes a great deal of my fondness for Kizuki straight out the fucking door. asshole journalists are pretty high up there on my list of types of people that I hate

(ETA: you know what though, I like that she has a unique personality. even if it’s one that annoys me. she doesn’t just blend in, unlike some other villains I could name (there were eight of them, and they were named after Buddhist precepts, hint hint). plus she really does have the best quirk in the business. Kizuki you’re a real piece of work but I respect you dammit.)

anyway Toga so whose ass do you want to kick first. you got this girl I believe in you

:DDDDDDDD

probably shouldn’t be loudly cheering at this man’s extremely gruesome murder. and yet. here we are

lmaoooooooooooo

while you were talking my girl up and absconded hahaha

friendly reminder that Toga Himiko is like #9 on my list of favorite characters and I would kill for her! I stan one (1) fearless bloodthirsty bitch

wow

all right, geez! fuck, y’all are real sensitive about a little attempted murder

so now Kizuki is asking Toga what kind of life she’s led to end up like this

I honestly want for nothing more than for Toga to have not had any sort of tragedy in her young life whatsoever, and to just be Like That. please. Horikoshi. this better be good

(ETA: it’s mostly good! we’re fine.)

anyway so Toga’s crashing through some stunt glass in the front window of some janky little bar, and skidding to her feet because she’s amazing and won’t let a little thing like being flung through a storefront window stop her

but as she skids, Kizuki is telling her to watch her step and Toga’s looking behind her, startled

oh fuck

joke’s on you, Toga’s amazing and won’t let a little thing like being blown to bits stop her

...right?

(ETA: lol)

interesting that the word “superpower” was used again here instead of “quirk”! what the hell do these guys have against that word anyway. I get that they’re following Destro who laid down the law in his book which is basically their personal bible, but that shit was like 200 years ago though. ah well, cults are weird

anyway so her quirk is Legit though, ngl. what can I say, I have a weakness for quirks that go boom

haha so Toga is fucking fine apparently and she’s sitting there kind of smoking a little and looks a little singed but otherwise not too worse for wear

there’s about half a dozen people attacking her from all sides, though. one of them is carrying a giant stock pot. that shit better not have boiling water in it. listen Liberation Army do you guys want to die fast or slow

oh shit

looks like my girl went and made that decision for you huh

oh my god

finally an explanation for the mask!! after... 150 chapters. holy shit

anyways. thirsty girl. Horikoshi’s got me out here rooting for some decidedly morally grey people, sob, and I ain’t even mad

so Kizuki looks very excited and is realizing that ingesting people’s blood is what lets Toga transform into them. so I guess she knew about her quirk, but not the mechanics of it

(ETA: her interest in this makes sense, though, as it explains the whole “attacked her classmate with a knife and sucked all his blood” thing.)

omg

(ETA: hey, we never did get an explanation for this! Toga are we still waiting on part two of your flashback where you interned at Cirque du Soleil.)

lady. me too. I’m still mad at you, but. we’re on the same side in this instance

DSFKJSDLFKJDSKHFS

NEVER FUCKING MIND!!!!! WHAT THE FUCK

FUCKING -- BUT THEN --

WELCOME TO BNHA WHERE CHARACTERS WILL INDEED DO ALL OF THE FUCKED UP SHIT YOU WERE WONDERING IF THEY WERE CAPABLE OF DOING WITH THEIR POWERS. HOLY SHIT

(ETA: I mean, it’s brutal and I’m mad she hurt my girl, but I’m also so impressed that Kizuki went and used her quirk in such a logical and devastating way. haha but Toga should still be dead though.)

so Kizuki is chiding Toga for attempting to disappear into the crowd, and she says she’s taken measures to ensure that she goes along with her interview

oh my god. fuck her up Toga please. make it hurt. girl

so now she’s bragging about how their soldiers will gladly become detonators! wow!

I love how Horikoshi makes the distinction between villains who at least care about their own, and villains who don’t give a fuck about anybody. like, the League is still evil -- Toga stabbed a man in the neck not ten pages ago -- but there’s no doubt whatsoever who we’re supposed to root for her. Toga is just as crazy as this lady, but she tied a handkerchief around Twice when his mask got torn. meanwhile Kizu blows up her own subordinates so she can get the hot goss from her victims before she murders them

OH HEY TOGA BACKSTORY

(ETA: I’m not sure if the phrase “eldest daughter” implies she has siblings? the flashback wasn’t exactly clear on that either. imagine the drama though! omg.)

this! I’m here for this! details without context! if you show us the context you had better not try to make it all saccharine, Horikoshi, do you hear??

MORE DETAILS

because she felt like it, Kizuki. fuck off

I love the description of her as a bright and reasonable girl, though. back when she first disguised herself as Camie I suspected that it might be her, but it seemed far-fetched because she showed herself capable of being perfectly logical and sane while disguised, and it was a side of her we’d never seen before. but I love that, though. I love that Toga’s particular brand of being unhinged doesn’t require her to be dumbed down. she’s brilliant. she just also happens to really, really like stabbing people

fffffffffdslkaj

(ETA: just for the record, I’m not on Team This Guy Is Somehow Related To Deku, sorry guys. he does look like him, I’ll give you that, but I think it’s just a coincidence. Deku is frequently described as having a very ordinary, plain appearance, so I don’t think it necessarily means anything if we happen to see another minor character who bears a slight resemblance. who knows, though, maybe I’m wrong. we’ve had important characters make their first appearance as background characters before -- Kirishima and Ms. Joke come to mind -- so it’s possible! but for the time being I think the likelihood is fairly low.)

TOGA YOU BETTER NOT DIE. YOU BETTER MURDER THIS LADY WITHOUT GIVING HER THE ANSWER SHE SO DESPERATELY CRAVES, AND ONLY THEN THINK THE ANSWER TO YOURSELF AND YOURSELF ALONE. AND THE ANSWER BETTER BE SOMETHING LIKE YOU WERE TIRED OF BEING NICE AND WANTED TO BE YOUR ACTUAL CRAZY SELF

so help me god you guys I’m like two seconds away from adopting a serial killer. she will not get along with her other siblings and it will not be pretty. but I love her though omg

(ETA: yeah it’s done. it’s a done deal. the boys can look after themselves so it’s not a problem, and Eri... well they’ll just have to keep an eye on Eri. as long as they don’t leave the two of them alone it should be fine! Mirio will look after her.

what even is my current adopted kid count anyways. let’s see... Katsuki, Izuku, Shouto, Mirio, Tamaki, Eri, Hawks, and now Toga. am I missing anyone. -- oh right, Shinsou! so that’s nine. plus the 17 other 1-A kids who are quasi-adopted as well. shit, did I adopt Tomura. I think I was on the fence. my fictional family is getting so complicated lol.)

lol sob

yes Toga you’re so normal. and she likes the Liberation Army sob. of course she does. she likes them so much she’s gonna murder the shit out of them

how is that the end of the chapter. shit. one more week to go and then the Golden Week break fffffff Horikoshi you’d better be kind to us with next week’s cliffhanger. please. omg

(ETA: no complaints whatsoever. that was some good shit.)

[bokunometacademia]

Theory time! A lot of other people have had their take on this theory (AFO is Izuku’s dad) but I have yet to see any of them address the obvious elephant in the room. Why would Inko marry AFO?

They conclude either:

Inko must be evil (which would be horrible and feel out of character)

Inko must not know (but then why would AFO choose such a sweet lady with such a low powered quirk)

At the end of the day it just doesn’t make any sense...or does it? 

(warning: manga spoilers)

I’m not gonna worry about proving AFO is Izuku’s dad too much, enough people have already done that, I’m gonna focus on why he would choose Inko.

The only reasons I can think that AFO would marry Inko (aside from her being evil, unlikely) were if he had briefly in his life turned over a new leaf (unlikely), or if she had something that he wanted...

AFO is a really powerful guy (THE most powerful guy, really). And One for All users may not have been too much trouble for him at first. But with each new iteration of OFA, as it gets passed down user to user, it gets more powerful. They don’t just get the quirks of the previous users, they also get the physical capability of each quirk user added to their own. OFA users get amplified quirks, amplified physical abilities, AND the ability to use the previous quirks.

It’s to the point where All Might almost killed AFO, he genuinely thought he had. He was surprised that AFO was still alive.

So AFO would have been getting a bit scared, or at least if not scared, a bit concerned about OFA continuing to exist. What’s a guy to do who can steal and use quirks though?

Well, as I have discussed much more thoroughly in this meta about AFO’s weaknesses, AFO wants as much power as possible in as easy a way as he can. The best way for him to do that is to:

Get powerful quirks that require very little training and have few drawbacks

Get quirks that specifically cover the weaknesses of his own quirk

Do it all without too many people noticing

What’s the best way to do that?

Well, I would say that the best way to steal quirks without anyone noticing is to steal them from other villains who no one will care about (although this could leave AFO vulnerable if his minions turned against him) and/or steal quirks from children who have not fully manifested their quirk yet.

Which sounds eerily like what could have happened in BNHA if Izuku’s doctor was in fact evil or something...but he’s not...right?

(although this is a meta for another time my friends)

The other question is what’s the easiest way to find and steal a quirk that would specifically cover one of AFO’s weaknesses?

I mean, that would require a perfect quirk. A quirk that fits like a puzzle piece, related just enough to AFO to meld with his own quirk perfectly, but different enough that it solves one of the drawbacks of his own power (and like I already pointed out in this meta that I linked just above and will link again, there are many potential limitations to AFO that may or may not be true)

But that would require a quirk that was essentially made for AFO. How can someone make a quirk, like if they wanted to become the top hero so bad they wanted to make a quirk that could do just that, how would someone go about doing that?

...oh...

We’ve long since been introduced to the idea of quirk marriages. And if it’s not above a particular hero to quirk marry than it’s certainly not above the worst villain of them all.

Now I would imagine at this point (this point would be while AFO is still concerned for his safety, but before his epic beatdown by All Might) All For One is contemplating quirk marriages to either create epic quirks that he could later steal or to create a successor that would kill OFA should he fail. He would have already had Shigaraki as his ace in the hole, so I’d guess the former.

But now who to pick as his bride? And I wouldn’t imagine he’d stop at one bride, I’d imagine he has a few ladies he’s using for their quirks. 

I’d also like to pause for a moment to point out that there are a couple quirks that strike me in the series as similar to AFO in some way or another, the obvious being Monoma’s copy quirk (although it’s significantly less powerful than AFO, so it makes sense that AFO wouldn’t even bother stealing it) but another more recent one that’s come to light is actually Himiko Toga, who can borrow people’s likenesses and also their quirks if she knows them well enough.

Now I’m not saying they are also AFO’s experimental quirk children, but I am saying we should definitely watch these experimental quirk children.

And now back to the AFO’s brides...

I think it’s important to point out at this moment that Horikoshi takes words very seriously. He is incredibly specific with what words he decides to use, from character names describing their powers and what we should expect from them, to using Star Wars names for the locations in BNHA, to describing powers in a very particular manner as I discussed in this meta about OFA.

We’re introduced to Inko’s quirk through a single line of dialogue.

A lot of people interpret this to mean that Inko has psychokinesis. She can move objects around with her mind.

But that’s not true. Her ability is less powerful than that and two fold.

She can only use it on small objects

She can only bring those objects towards herself (she can’t send them away)

This is exactly how Horikoshi intends her power to be, not psychokinesis, but acting more similarly to a positive magnet when turned on.

And if you have already read my incredibly long meta about AFO’s weaknesses that I’m now pointing out for the third time (kudos if you did), you know that of the numerous potential weaknesses to AFO’s power one such possible weakness is the distance in which AFO would have to be to be able to steal someone’s power.

Specifically that he may have to be touching his victim to steal their power.

This is of course an assumption, but it’s a possible assumption, probable even.

If AFO is capable of stealing OFA, when is he gonna get the chance to lay a hand on the forehead of the current OFA user? Even if it turns out he can’t steal OFA, the ability to steal quirks from a distance would increase AFO’s power considerably.

And what was Inko’s quirk again? Oh right, the ability to attract small objects towards her.

It’s not a stretch at all to assume an all powerful quirk-stealing quirk + a very specific attracting telekinesis quirk would make a mega all powerful quirk-stealing quirk that could steal from a distance.

It may only be able to steal small quirks, or it may not be able to steal from very far away, but hell, it’s still fixes a problem AFO has, and it does it without AFO lifting a finger. 

He just has to pretend to be a doting husband, do the hanky panky, and pretend to work abroad the moment he has a kiddo. He can leave the child-rearing to his wives, and the moment the kids are gonna manifest quirks, pull them into doc’s office to see what they have. He can steal the ones that are worthwhile and leave the ones that are useless to him alone. He could even do it face to face, what kid’s gonna be afraid of their own father touching their head?

Of course then All Might had to go and smash his face in.

But not before Izuku turned 5...and found out he didn’t have a quirk...but the scarier question is what if he did?

...

I don’t imagine we’re gonna find out anytime too soon, but if any of this is true it makes me hope Izuku really didn’t have a quirk. Because if he did...welp...AFO’s more powerful than we realize. 

Anyway this is why you don’t underestimate women. 

[hamliet]

So one of the things I want the absolute MOST right now is to get some sort of confirmation that Shigaraki is going to be okay by the end of this story. I know the way it stands right now it’s impossible to see where Horikoshi will go but I just don’t see how he could end this story with the villains just being imprisoned and locked away to be forgotten. I just wanna know what you think with the current chapters since you are big on his redemption also, hopefully I can get some peace of mind lol.

Hello! So, I will caution that I can’t guarantee things; I’m not Horikoshi! 

Bad writing can and does happen, unfortunately. How sad, Hamliet, lol. 

I’ve been burned by Tokyo Ghoul:re, Star Wars, and Game of Thrones most recently. I’ve heard Things about Demon Slayer’s and Beastar’s endings. At the same time, SnK seems like it’s heading towards a satisfying conclusion (for me *knocks on wood*) that’s a direct contrast GoT’s disaster ending. No story can be perfect, but: I am honestly not worried about BNHA blowing Shigaraki’s and Dabi’s redemption arcs. I’ll talk about what I am worried about a bit later. 

See, this week I’ve been rereading the series, and Shigaraki’s and Dabi’s redemptions have both been built up pretty much the entire time they exist in the story (Himiko’s less so, but that’s pretty... on par for the course for a female character in this manga). I’ve covered Dabi’s build-up at length, but Shigaraki’s is also extremely obvious. He doesn’t have a save-the-cat moment like Dabi does (not for the first few arcs; later he does), but he has another trope that works to foreshadow redemption: 

If only, indeed. This is chapter 22. It’s child coding. I don’t mean that in the weird way people talk about child coding, but this is A Thing in stories wherein a technically adult character like Shigaraki is coded like a child. You don’t kill kids as “justice” or send them to prison; you get them help (think about FMA where the surviving homoculus is... the child). 

(I also know people will be screaming HE’S TWENTY HE’S AN ADULT and yeah, sure, legally, but a story is not a court. I call this a side-effect of GoT: the belief that every story must repeat gritty reality and also a grimdark reflection of that reality. BNHA is not that. It’s optimistic, upbeat, and hopeful.)

The story is in part about Shigaraki’s growing into an adult and choosing what kind of person to be, as is par for the course for coming of age stories (nota bene: the central question of the characters in MHA, which they repeat to themselves constantly, is “who am I?”). Considering how controlled and infantilized Shigaraki is by AFO (who doesn’t seem to want him to grow), it seems like he and Deku will have a common enemy at some point. 

Not to mention Shigaraki himself seeks out Deku to ask advice, like about ideals. Considering their ages it’s ironic, but Deku seems pretty likely to be the heroic example Shigaraki needs at some point. Deku’s whole thing is saving people. I really don’t see how people think a manga with the ideal of “saving people” even those who expressly do not want to be saved or whom the cost seems to great to save (Kouta and Eri) is going to end with “winning” over “saving.” 

Also, prison isn’t saving. It kinda sucks, even in BNHA’s world. I am fully expecting some sort of prison break at some point, but the point is that prison isn’t acknowledged as a place to save people or even to rehabilitate them within the text of the manga. It’s a place of punishment for Stain, Chisaki, and AFO. Why would you send the redeemed/saved there? Also, Shigaraki has never been allowed to be free his whole life. Trading possession by AFO for becoming a possession in prison is... ick. 

My main anxiety about the story which to be clear I don’t think will happen is that Shigaraki and/or Dabi have redemptive deaths. Their redemption I am 0% worried about, but the after I am a little nail-bitey because of the pro-punishment twists in media lately (Star Wars, Beastars, Demon Slayer). I have trust issues, lol. I don’t think this is likely to be the case because of what I outlined here for both of them. 

Saving spiritually but not physically doesn’t really work for these characters and the specific roles they fill in the story. Redemptive death works best for older characters (I am not trying to be ageist, please; I am just saying that this is a trope) like Darth Vader, for characters who have not suffered very much (Shadow Weaver in SheRa), and for characters who “shoot the puppy.” The redemptive death of Kylo Ren in Star Wars was... not critically well-received because a character who suffered much, who is young and in love and has so much to live for, just dies for... what really? It feels bleak. It doesn’t work in hopeful, optimistic stories. 

Shigaraki and Dabi have been suffering their whole lives. They are going to suffer more, both of them, so be prepared for that. They want their pain acknowledged; Shigaraki wants to be saved and Dabi wants justice and to matter to his family. Having neither of them get the peace they want is cruel and not remotely hopeful; having Shigaraki end up forgotten and Dabi end up dead again would demonstrate that nothing at all has changed and make the reader question what the hell this story was even about. It’s not a satisfying definition of saving. 

[hamliet]

I had a hard time deciding if my fave BNHA character was Shouto or Dabi, but now it's Dabi. I told my friend this and we got into an argument because I told him that I don't think the League are evil and I think they'll be redeemed. He thinks they are evil because they've killed innocent people and only thinks Twice is innocent cause he didn't. I told him by his logic, Hawks is evil then for killing Twice. He just ignored that & it became a circular argument. What do you think?

Side note: I relate to you on the Shouto/Dabi internal debate; currently Dabi has the lead but still love Shouto!!

So, I think this depends on your definition of “evil.” Is evil something we do? Is it something we are/become? If the latter, is it something permanent, or can one escape it and redeem oneself?

My interpretation is that yeah, the League’s made of villains. They Do Bad Things. That’s what villains do.  Shigaraki’s Gigantomachia plan is evil in that it’s killing thousands and I’m glad the giant’s rampage has been stopped.

But then where does that leave Hawks, as you said? Where does that leave Endeavor, since he might as well have--according to he himself--killed Touya? Where does that leave Nana Shimura, who abandoned her child and clearly left him with serious agony and anguish over it? (People need to do research into the psychological effects of abandonment, which Hori depicts well, before saying “it’s for his own good” is a good enough excuse; it’s “good enough” depending on how you define “good”: is it just being alive? What is life if you feel worthless and unwanted?).

Hell, where does that leave Bakugou?

I mean, the story will play out how it will play out no matter how we debate on it. But the text itself seems quite clear on Shigaraki, Dabi, and Himiko’s redemptions at least, and I’ve gone over the former two of those quite a lot! If you plan to argue for redemption (if you are both happy to debate and enjoy doing so!), here are some things to note:

Horikoshi is heavily inspired by Star Wars to the point of naming several places after Star Wars settings (Jakku Hospital in this arc, for example). Star Wars redeems its villains.

BNHA’s main theme is that heroes are people who save. Winning itself is not upheld as a valid heroic achievement. Why would the ending be winning over saving, then?

“Save the cat” is a well-established trope in writing used to make someone like a character. Google it. It basically entails a character doing something merciful or nice for someone who cannot give them something nice in return. Dabi has this when he spares Aoyama, who then almost ruins their entire plan.

Shigaraki is commented on as being a child who needs guidance after his first appearance.

All Might, upon discovering Shigaraki’s identity, comments how he wants to go and save him. Gran Torino talks him out of it.

Side note: Horikoshi commented at GT’s introduction that he was a Yoda-like character, referencing “Dagobeh” which is where Yoda is found. Guess what Yoda does in SW. Try to convince Luke not to save his friends and tries to goad Luke into killing his own father out of ignorance. Guess what happens. Luke saves his friends (after failing a bit along the way) and shows his father a path to redemption, which he takes.

Dabi is the only character in the entire series to show regret over killing and express that children in battles is bad; to comment that child soldiers are victims.

Hawks’ story clearly illustrates that Dabi is correct about child soldiers being victims. He has no agency. See chapter 191.

We have a literal panel of Endeavor asking a literal picture of Touya how to redeem himself to his family and saying that he wants Touya to be there. I mean... it’s hard to get more obvious than that.

Shouto also says his forgiveness of and reconciliation with Endeavor is dependent on him as a father, not as a hero. Fathers and sons killing each other is tragedy, not good parenting.

Shigaraki is being manipulated by AFO and portrayed as a victim of him.

Hope that helps, and happy debating!