BnHA Chapter 340: Now Where Were We
Previously on BnHA: Deku and Iida were all “hey Mei, I know you don’t have a lot of spare time in between constantly launching yourself at people boob-first, and singlehandedly MacGuyvering U.A. into the fucking Death Star, but we were wondering if you could lend us a hand in fixing our costumes.” Mei was all, “sure thing, here’s an upgraded pair of Movie 1 Gloves for you, anyways off you go and have fun saving the world!” Mt. Lady was all, “can you kids keep a secret?? so uh, just between you and me, I’m not a real teacher, and I’m not actually sure what I’m doing here hanging out with you guys right now.” Class 1-A was all, “don’t worry, your secret is safe with us Mt. Lady, well anyways time to assemble our CLASS 1-A SEARCH SQUAD!” The chapter ended with A BUNCH OF DIFFERENT PEOPLE getting ready to DO and/or TALK about A BUNCH OF DIFFERENT THINGS. Classic cliffhanger ending. lol this chapter really did not hold up on a re-read. I’m so sorry BnHA 339. You meandered so that future chapters could hopefully get to the damn point already.
Today on BnHA: All Might is all “time to reveal our shocking and completely unpredictable battle plan of splitting up all the villains for more easily digestible mini-boss battles, using our newly acquired trump card, the handy dandy U.A. traitor!” Aizawa is all, “[cracks knuckles] time to drop some motherfucking love and compassion onto my traumatized student in order to talk him into doing this INSANELY DANGEROUS TASK for us, except that somehow I manage to do it in a way that’s genuinely moving and heartfelt and somehow not manipulative at all lol.” Shinsou is all, “hello, it’s me, making my miraculous return after three whole years of plot inactivity, so anyway what have I missed.” Well shit. Glad I’m not the only one, Shinsou.
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(just a handful of quick notes here since it’s been a while! (1) as always, these are my completely blind first-time-reading reactions to the chapter. (2) as of today, I am very much NOT caught up with the manga, but will keep you posted on my progress. currently I have read up to chapter 340, a.k.a. this chapter right here lol. and (3), I have been spoiled about one major thing (explained more in depth here) which will happen later in the series, and while there are no detailed references to said spoiler in this post, there ARE a couple of vague throwaway lines because I have absolutely no self-control. so just giving you guys a heads up for that! if you absolutely don’t want to risk getting spoiled, I would highly recommend catching up with the manga first before reading any further.
anyways, onward!)
OH MY GOSH IT’S SOME BUILDINGS!!!
WHAT A THRILLING WAY TO KICK OFF MY FIRST NEW CHAPTER OF BNHA IN ELEVEN MONTHS. TRULY HIT THE GROUND RUNNING
lol they literally just thumbtacked a handwritten “LOV/PLF COUNTER-FORCE HQ” sign on a wrinkled piece of paper next to the door. how far we have fallen from the days where the heroes were holding their war councils in huge NASA ground control rooms filled with hundreds of TV screens
okay good, at least they went out and recruited Hawks to be one of the people presumably planning this whole thing
one of only two people (the other being Momo) whom I actually trust to be able to come up with a reliably smart plan. fingers crossed this turns out better than his last big Ultimate Hero Final Battle Plan, though!
interesting! I assume they do still know about the whole Aoyama situation though, seeing as they even told Mt. flippin’ Lady lol
OH MY GOSH, RAGDOLL? heck yeah. great to see her finally back in the thick of things again. even if she can’t participate in the actual battle, she’s still a fucking hero goddammit
wow this entire next page sure is something
“every pre-cat-ion” breaking news, we’ve just been informed that there is a warrant out for Caleb Cook’s arrest
MEOW
MYEAH?
NOT YOU TOO, HAWKS
EVIL MEOW
I know that last part is just her randomly tacking her cute dattebayoisms onto the end of this entirely unrelated sentence, but unfortunately the damage has already been done. now all I can think about is the League of Villains out there rampaging in the streets and meowing menacingly at people
anyway, so on to the planning and stuff
lmao wait, what
DID YOU PAINT THESE BY HAND, ALL MIGHT?? DID YOU BUY THEM LAST MINUTE ON ETSY AND PAY A FORTUNE IN EXPEDITED SHIPPING. surely it must be the latter. but can you just imagine All Might sitting at his kitchen table at 3am, hand-painting a refrigerator magnet to look like an adorable chibified version of HIS MOST HATED ENEMY
hmmmmmmmmmmmm
I’m actually on the fence about this lol. I mean, it makes sense on paper. lord knows they had enough trouble taking on just one massively overpowered final villain, so who even knows what would happen if they added a second one to the mix
but the problem with the “just take them down separately” plan is that it means they’ll also have to split up their OWN forces, which are already heavily depleted. not to mention that the BnHA heroes are always at their best when they’re all fighting together. so anyways, yeah, I’m not too sure about this
so blah blah blah, Tomura is now stronger than crusty!potato!AFO, big surprise. and they’ve also figured out that the two AFOs can communicate with each other via radio waves or whatever. okay yeah, but doesn’t that mean that even if you do split them up, they’ll still have a big advantage? unless you figured out some way of jamming their telepathy somehow
“should they attack together, we have no hope of victory” lol if you say so. I’m pretty sure all of the U.A. kids combined with all of the remaining A-list heroes could hold their ground fairly well, but clearly I’m not supposed to be questioning the authority of this statement so ALL RIGHT THEN
OKAY BUT DOESN’T THIS JUST PROVE MY POINT THOUGH
“if they’re so powerful together then why didn’t they team up against S&S?” “because they definitely would have definitely lost.” ????????
anyway so now All Might is saying that they need to separate TomurAFO and Potato AFO (PotAFO, if you will) by at least 10km. so is that the max range of their telepathy or something then? that’s so oddly specific though
“oh and we also need to split up Dabi from them as well” ah okay lol, I see where this is going. it’s finally time for the final battle, meaning we need to assign each of the main characters to their personal final villain, yeah? great. awesome. except that they only JUST got reunited all together as a class again sob. you’re really going to do this to me again now?? just like that?? goddammit
LMAO I completely forgot that Nao’s right hand man is an actual literal fucking cat
oh my god. what I wouldn’t give to have seen his reaction to all of those puns and MEOW shenanigans from a few minutes earlier. just standing there in the corner with a disapproving frown. “I’ll have you know I find this all very demeaning and culturally insensitive” sorry about that Sansa
anyway so now All Might is all “YEAH EXACTLY, WE HAVE TO DIVIDE AND CONQUER ALL OF THE VILLAINS ONE ON ONE! WHAT DO YOU THINK WE SPENT ALL THAT TIME PAINSTAKINGLY BUILDING THEM UP FOR?? IT’S THE FINAL BATTLE FOR FUCK’S SAKE, WHAT ELSE WOULD YOU HAVE US DO, MAKESTE” okay okay fine I’ll shut up now, geez
oh shit lol
somehow I momentarily forgot all about Aoyama. possibly because I haven’t seen him in eleven months!! so this is where we’re finally going to get into the nitty gritty of that “let’s use Aoyama to set a trap” plan that Aizawa shamelessly stole from Kaminari all those moons ago
All Might is all “it’s actually pretty messed up of us to be using this poor boy when he’s already basically spent his entire life being exploited and manipulated by people” and he’s not wrong though, damn
but Nao is all “very true, but to be fair this is the literal apocalypse, and he did technically make his own bed, and also our backs are REALLY against the goddamn wall here,” which is also true. still leaning more toward All Might’s side in spite of that, though. poor Yuuga
OH SHIT, SPEAKING OF???
OH DANG
do they really have to keep him tied up like that?? he’s just a kid for fuck’s sake. and it’s not like they aren’t capable of handling things if he does try to escape, I mean this is Aoyama we’re talking about here, he’s not exactly an all-powerful criminal mastermind
man they both look so fucking sad. Yuuga looks so ashamed. this is every 1-A child’s worst fear. they can go toe to toe with the scariest villains out there and not be fazed. but a disappointed dad??? have mercy, sweet jesus
“so after going back and forth on it a bunch, we finally decided that he’s probably not going to blow up.” thanks for the update, doc. meanwhile I just had a completely unrelated thought about certain spoiler related things, oh fuck. but now is not the time to start speculating about that! not when we have the world’s saddest detention session unfolding right before our eyes
Aizawa Shouta is sitting here wearing an eyepatch and a hospital gown and probably hasn’t showered in like three days, and despite all this he is STILL somehow the hottest character in BnHA and it’s not even close
okay but there are like a thousand reasons why the threat of imminent murder would be infinitely more useful than an actual murder, though. like this doesn’t really make any sense. “why would AFO bother to threaten Aoyama if he could simply blow him up if and when he betrayed him?” uh, gee, maybe because he would much prefer if Aoyama didn’t actually betray him in the first place?? what, do you think U.A. traitors are so fucking easy to come by? in this economy??
awwww
I mean, of course he is? :( man, and now I’m wondering if there’s been a single day since his enrollment at U.A. that Aoyama has not spent being constantly terrified about a whole damn slew of things. this poor fucking kid. Horikoshi please be kind to him oh my god
oh my god, yes, exactly
he’s afraid that deep down he’s a bad person. he’s afraid that AFO will kill him. but interestingly, what he’s most afraid of, is BEING afraid. he’s afraid that if the others put their trust in him again, that when push comes to shove he’ll still be too cowardly to do what’s right
talk about ironic though. because to me, that’s a sentiment that basically confirms that he does have the heart of a hero deep down. I’m telling you guys, every single time you show me a character who is flawed and afraid, but is trying so hard to overcome their fears, and trying with all their might to become better, you will reel me in hook, line, and sinker every. single. time. seriously, how could you possibly not root for this kid now
OH MY GOD YUUGA NO
holy shit. hey Horikoshi, this is me, a certified angst-lover, asking you to tone it down just a little here, goddamn. yes we get it, he is tormented by years’ worth of accumulated fears and regrets and feelings of worthlessness and he doesn’t see any way that things can possibly get better, holy shit, we get it okay??? THIS IS MY FIRST CHAPTER IN ELEVEN MONTHS! THIS SHOULD BE AN OCCASION OF TRIUMPH, SO WHY THE HELL ARE YOU OUT HERE MAKING ME CRY
HOLY SHIT
somehow I forgot just how utterly ruthless this man is capable of being for the sake of his students. this is a dude who literally expels kids on a regular basis just to put the fear of god into them. also he is seriously so goddamn hot. it’s straight up ridiculous
oh wow this whole page just came straight for my heart
Yuuga’s fear as he tries to talk himself into what he fully believes is a suicide mission. Aizawa’s blunt assessment of the heroes being no less ruthless than the villains when their backs are to the wall. but then the way he just HITS him with that “you’re still my student and I’m still your teacher” line, and how he says it with such finality. and then the face Aoyama makes in response!!
OKAY, WOW
ABSOLUTELY NONE OF THIS IS FAIR YOU KNOW!! YOU CAN’T JUST HIT ME WITH THIS BRUTALLY SIMPLE PANEL OF THE TWO OF THEM JUST SITTING THERE WITH ALL OF THE OTHER VISUALS STRIPPED AWAY SO THE FOCUS IS ENTIRELY JUST ON THEM, AND WITH THE WALL BETWEEN THEM ALSO SYMBOLICALLY REMOVED JUST LIKE THAT
AND YUUGA BEING SO SMALL. AND AIZAWA BEING SO STRONG AND SAFE AND STABLE AND FIRM, AND HIM HAVING SUCH UNCONDITIONAL LOVE AND COMPASSION FOR HIS STUDENT DESPITE EVERYTHING. “FUCK THAT, YOU’RE GONNA HAVE A HAPPY ENDING BECAUSE I FUCKING SAID SO AND I’M YOUR SENSEI AND THAT’S FINAL.” okay yep. tears coming now. thanks a lot, Horikoshi. wow. just wow
lol I truly believe that if Horikoshi ever did truly try to kill off one of the 1-A kids, Aizawa would literally come to life and emerge from the pages and straight up murder him
welp. there you have it. absolutely no room for argument there. SENSEI SAID YOU’RE GONNA LIVE, YUUGA, SO I GUESS YOU’LL JUST HAVE TO DEAL WITH IT!
fsdljkf
yep. that’s right. deal with it. dlfkj don’t mind me I’m just gonna sit here dissolving into sobs again
WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS WARM FOND EXPRESSION GODDAMMIT
I AM ALREADY A PILE OF MUSH, HOLY HECK!! CAN I LIVE. CAN YOU JUST LEAVE ME BE HERE ALREADY HOLY SHIT
wait what
uh. the path of “none of you problem children are allowed to die on my watch, are we fucking clear on that”? that path?? or the path of marching headfirst into very real danger because they have no other choice, because they’re one of the lynchpins in the heroes’ desperate plan? because that latter path is one that I’d prefer to have as few children walk as possible, ngl
-- OH MY GOD
“HELLO, SHINSOU HERE” UH, EXCUSE ME, MISTER, DON’T YOU HAVE ANYTHING TO SAY TO ME? AFTER BEING MIA FOR LIKE A HUNDRED AND TWENTY CHAPTERS AND FOUR AND A HALF ARCS?? YOU’RE JUST GONNA HANG HERE FROM THIS FUCKING TREE ALL NONCHALANT, WITH YOUR FANCY NEW HERO COSTUME AND YOUR SPIDER-MAN POSE THAT YOU STRAIGHT UP RIPPED OFF FROM YOUR DAD?? WHILE SAID DAD SITS THERE CHUCKLING OVER HIS “NEVER FEAR, WE’RE TOTALLY PUTTING SHINSOU IN AMPLE DANGER AS WELL” REVEAL? “DON’T WORRY AOYAMA, WE’RE NOT JUST RISKING YOUR LIFE, WE’RE RISKING MULTIPLE CHILDREN’S LIVES, BUT WE’RE DOING IT ALL TOGETHER AS A FAMILY” truly the most heartwarming of sentiments lmao
well damn. that hype and anticipation is definitely starting to build now. I am so damn fearful for all of these fictional kids’ safety, especially now that I’m watching the War arc play out again in the anime and remembering just how brutal it was. but at the same time I can’t deny that I’m super excited to see the culmination of everything. like, this is IT, though. this is THE moment, THE battle. no more safety arcs. no more training. we are done holding back, and that is as terrifying as it is exhilarating. I am so not ready for any of this, but IT IS HAPPENING WHETHER I LIKE IT OR NOT, so I guess I’ll just do my best to enjoy the ride
-- oh and lastly, I almost forgot. before we wrap up, there’s just one last thing I wanted to add here...
so it begins.
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Doctor Elise Ep 3-4
I cannot express enough how fun of a potato chip this show is. I had a fever this week and this was a great lil show to watch that didnt require me to think.
As a self proclaimed shonen bro whose not normally into shojos, I enjoyed the manga, and the anime is doing a good job despite not being one of the "big names". It might also be my love of medical dramas from the early 2000s peaking in. I can turn my brain off to watch it and just have fun by going "WTF w h y", and poking fun at how broken some aspects of this world are while still thoroughly enjoying it.
It's definitely the kind of show that probably won't hold up to scrutiny for the world building, so. Just. Don't think too hard about the specifics of what's happening! Then the power fantasy pieces won't break through your suspension of disbelief! Because IV bags did not exist during the Crimean War in the 1800s which seems to be where this fantasy setting is taking place.
But I'm gonna go and point out all the broken bits below because its so much fun (not bashing at all!).
Also my favorite boy shows up! Doctor Graham!! We love a boy whose not there to be a rival or love interest, and respects the Lady and they get to be bros!
Look at this silver haired ponce of a bishonen, he's delightful, ascot and all!
He's voiced by Hosoya, Yoshimasa - Rainer Braun from Attack on Titan, Nezumi from NO.6, WOLFWOOD FROM THE NEW TRIGUN STAMPEDE!! Tokoyami from BNHA, and Sousuke from Free!
DAMN THEY PICKED A GOOD VOICE FOR MY BOY.
More spoilers/screen shots below the cut!
Elise shows up for work as Rose at the No Cultural Touchstone For Mother Teresa Hospital, the genius young doctor Graham is supposed to take care of her but he's busy and assumes like everyone else that a young well-off lady will run from the sight of blood soon enough, and so sticks her in the HOSPICE WARD.
HHMMMM I WONDER WHY ALL THESE PEOPLE ARE ON THEIR DEATH BEDS???? COULD IT PERHAPS BE... UH... SANITARY REASON?? SHOULD HOSPITALS BE SANITARY??? NAHHHH THE DIRTY ROTTING BANDAGES ON THE FLOOR AREN'T MAKING THINGS WORSE, NO WAAAAAAAAY.
These poor overworked shift nurses seem to have no idea what they're doing, but thankfully we have a returner with concepts of modern day sanitation who cleans the place up!
She then finds a dude with bed sores and realizes no one knows what SEPSIS IS, and is like. Get me a scalpel, it's my first day, I've never held a scalpel in my read:this life, I'M DOIN' A SURGERY TODAY. I'VE GOT GALAXY BRAIN TO HELP ME.
I love these shots they're great.
SHE PROCEEDS TO CUT INTO THE DUDES BACK LIKE SHE'S DRAWING FREE FORM SELECTION ON MS PAINT AND THEN JUST HITS CTRL-X DELETE.
That's not A tissue, that's HIS (necrotic) tissue! I sure hope this dude has pain killers or is drunk off his ass with vodka because DAMN.
All the other in-patients are so happy she's here, they feel better already with her bright and happy personality! Normally this would feel really creepy and sexist, but this juuuuuust squeaked by as not coming off that way.
Jump cut to the King! Only 12 people in this world know what diabetes is! How is Elise going to get away with having known about it?? Probably more hand waving!!
Now, we either get a time skip, or she's literally been working all night, but Dr. Graham walks in on her dozing, thinks he's got the wrong place, and proceeds to scold her for performing surgery without permission. But then he takes her on rounds and we're in a medicial show!!!!
IS THAT A FUCKING IV BAG?
IT IS!!!! THOSE WEREN'T INVENTED UNTIL THE LATE 1800s!! At least its a glass bottle, and not a plastic bag like I initially assumed?? But I guess the Crimean War was in the 1850s and this type of open glass bottle IV was from the 1900s so... Wooo Fantasy Europe!!
-waves hand rapidly to shoo you on-
This man is having a time trying to figure out what the fuck. But he's pretty.
It takes him a bit to come to terms with her abilities but then he's just so happy to have another Doctor Bro who Actually Cares that he's behind her with full support! Which yay! But also becomes a tool of sorts, to kind of hand wave away the concept of sexism in the medical field to the point where it doesn't seem to exist. Which is also what makes this such a light show, because it doesn't even try to handle said topics, it just erases them completely with regards to medicine.
Equal numbers of men and women as doctors! The women aren't relegated to nurses! Yay! No critical thinking needed here.
My favorite part of this though, is that they DO tease at it. When Elise makes a different call from the doctor she's following in Ye Olde ER, he kind of stutters and is flabbergasted and panicked, while the female doctor is immediately like, I GOTCHU SIS, and steps in to help her as she proceeds to STAB A DUDE IN THE CHEST WITH A SYRINGE.
She's so pretty with blood on her face.
We're in episode 4 by this point, and its the "Festival Episode" common to many isekai romance manhwas, but of course, Elise is a doctor and so she's working the ER instead of attending.
However this is the episode that proves there is magic in the world, and WE GET A SECOND VA FOR THE PRINCE. He transforms into "Lord Ron". We also get a glimpse of his tragic back story!
His bodyguard gets a knife pulled on him and THEN A GUN. New Technology Discovered: Guns! I should hope they had those figured out before IV tech, but you think they'd know about general sanitation being important as well.
Dude's been shot in the SPLEEN!!! OW MY SPLEEN! They don't have a splenectomy in Fantasy Europe, oh no!
Elise puts up such a persuasive argument, and the dude is dying, so they might as well let her try to save him. And look, the prince Lord Ron has field surgery experience and offers to help!
SUDDENLY THERE IS ELECTRICITY. WHAT WERE THOSE OIL LAMPS IN THE GRIMEY DEATH WARD???
MS PAINT SCALPEL FTW!! It's not bad for the limited time they likely had to anime each episode, and the fact that they're putting more emphasis on the conversations. For comparison, this scene in the manga ↓
Surgery is a success! Yay! Elise is asked to write up a report abotu the surgery as it will be the first ever recorded splenectomy.
and then. Blushing Prince is Adorable, even in disguise. Love us some blushing boys.
But by far the most accurate part of this show so far...
Even in a Fantasy Europe Hospital the doctors have shitty handwriting lmfao
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Kismet Flames
Okay so, *claps* I had a manic episode, created a fanfic, and now I won’t get sleep if it’s done correctly.
I rushed to make it because I couldn’t find a fanfic exactly like it and I was like YUP I must write it I guess.
Unfortunately, I can’t stand the way I opened the first chapter, nothing too wrong with it, other than the fact is kind of feels sped up as you read along with it.
No one on here prolly cares though about this fic, but today I will be scrapping the first chapter and completely re-writing it all and because I really love music, I’ll be posting a playlist that should give you the vibes I want you to feel while reading this book.
I may also change my OC Scarlett’s last name but I may just say that Parker is her mom’s name as for some reason I made her Russian-American?? Bro idk 🤔
Past me got me fucked up!!
I’m doing finals right now and next week, so after that I WILL BE FREE TO WRITE AS MUCH AS I WANT. Unless I do work in the summer but besides that I will be writing regardless. ✋🏻
I also didn’t like the first chapter was a little short my ADHD brain said HURRY as if someone other than my own self was hurrying me up to finish writing the first chapter.
SO I will be deleting the first chapter, upload instead a playlist, and then start writing the new first chapter before finally uploading that either tonight or tomorrow.
If you’re wondering what this fanfic is about here’s a my little rundown:
Scarlett Parker lives at the dorms at UA (this fanfic doesn’t really follow the plot of BNHA but will contain spoilers) and she is sixteen (I’ve decided to make her 18 instead because just i didn’t like her being a minor) but moved to Japan about a year ago to live with her sister, Viktorea and her wife Akuri.
Scarlett, under Japan’s government is required to take some type of training to control her quirk as its very emotionally driven and she hasn’t had the best luck in life including in her childhood.
Her entire family is also somewhat prosecuted because her older brother was a villain and was sentenced to prison and eventually the death penalty in the states. A lot of dark secrets in the past and you’ll be able to see these in flashbacks in case you were curious.
Scarlett has strained relationships with everyone in her family as she was really close to her brother but is also considered the if-anyone-would-follow-in-his-footsteps-it’s-going-to-be-her and not a lot of people besides Class 1-A and her now, if you could even call him that, “father figure” Aizawa is set to train her in a program where she must learn to control her power while alongside Shinsou, a more or less friend and big brother figure, as well as Class 1-A.
When a blue portal opens up in the sky, it’s kind of normal in the villain-hero world as far as anything can happen goes, until she’s informed that there’s a person her age saying that their her future child…that she has with villian, Dabi.
Drama, flashbacks to how Dabi and her come together will be seen, while also seeing an entirely new way of how her and Dabi come together in this timeline as the timeline is fixed. Nothing will change fate and nothing will change how they’ll end up together.
I want this fic to be really detailed and good, so I may be working on this during the night and may have to edit it every so often, please keep this in mind! Feel free to point out mistakes and I do take constructive criticism very well :) I may not notice something because of being so busy so please comment if you see anything and if you have any ideas or what you want to happen!
If you wanna be on the taglist lemme know and I will be posting the link today for the new and improved one on Ao3, here. :) =
https://archiveofourown.org/works/38390263
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Oh goodie!!! I'm so happy you write for Shigaraki haha, so I was wondering if I could request something?
Just something fluffy with Shiggy where he's dating the reader but he's obviously new to such things and stiffens up every time they try to show him affection. So they think they should give him some space and then he's just like, "Where do you think you're going?" (In a cute way of course).
It's totally fine if you don't write it tho💕Have a great
Note: I actually love your energy lol
Warnings: spoilers for the last (most recent) season of BNHA - just a bit of his back story
Characters involved: Shigaraki Tomura
Gender-neutral reader, you/yours
Shigaraki thinks this is what love feels like.
He's never actually felt the emotion, at least, not before he started dating you.
He's read about it in his video game monologues, seen it in those shows he used to secretly watch when he had nothing to do and too much time to kill growing up.
Shigaraki had never actually felt love.
Sometimes, as he thinks back on the memories recently presented to him, Tomura can swear that what he felt for his mother was love. A feeling so beautiful and pure it allowed him to be his weakest around her, knowing that she would be there no matter what.
But this love isn't like that one.
That was the second lesson Shigaraki learnt after asking you out: love comes in different forms.
Much like everything else in his life, the way he loved others was also affected by the tragic events of his childhood: events that shaped him into who he was today.
Shigaraki might have been vulnerable, pure, and loving as a child, but as an adult, those attributes were regarded as nothing but weaknesses, ones that had to be hidden away behind doors locked and bolted shut.
Yet somehow, you seeped through the cracks of the doors, whispering to those parts of him and tempting him to let them see the light of day.
"Tomura."
Your voice was just as sweet as it had always been, with his name rolling off of your tongue in a way it had never been spoken before: with affection.
A chaste kiss was planted on his cheek as you leaned towards him from the back of his chair, your arms automatically wrapping around his shoulders just as they had every other time.
"Hi."
And just like every other time, even if he hated himself for it, Tomura couldn't help but flinch at your touch, having been so used to the feeling of pain following after every physical contact with another human.
Your reaction was instant, with your arms leaving his form to instead hang limply at your side and your face swiftly moving away from the side of his.
Yet even with your reaction, you never quite left his side. You were there for him, ready to coerce him out of his shell of hatred that forced Tomura to shove away all things happy and loving: all things that reminded him of people like you.
But this time was different, this time you seemed to be shutting yourself away just like he did.
"Um- I think I forgot something in my bag I-"
Your voice seemed smaller than it had before. Softer, monotonous, with a hint of hurt in it even as you tried to hide it.
Perhaps that was what prompted Tomura to finally turn towards you and let you in for the first time, for the threat of losing you was far greater than the one of his weak feelings taking over.
"Where do you think you're going?"
One of his hands reached out to rest against your arm hesitantly, with his pinkie and ring finger hovering over your arm even if Tomura had his gloves on.
His voice sounded almost weaker than yours as he let the question slip, allowing you a glimpse at a weaker, vulnerable side of him that no one had seen since he was four.
Tomura couldn't help but hold his breath as he awaited a response, only allowing himself to let oxygen into his frame once a soft smile formed on your face.
"Nowhere, 'Mura."
It was that nickname again, the one that you had used the day you said yes to him: accepting him for all he was worth even if it meant standing by him when his ugly side reared its head.
And just like you had promised that day, you stayed. With your hand hesitantly resting on his and interlocking your fingers, finding a middle-ground that didn't make his heart race with the worry of accidentally dusting you.
Tomura couldn't help but smile at the gesture, and he was certain you could feel his grin and the slight heat in his cheeks when he leaned forward to kiss you, initiating affection for the first time in his life.
Shigaraki didn't know what love was, having not felt it for so long and never truly been on the receiving end of it, but as his red eyes peeled open to stare into yours, he couldn't help but let emotions he considered weak control him for a moment or two.
Because he might have not felt love his entire life, but he was certain that was what he felt for you.
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why tomura reads like a sexual abuse survivor
ive noticed that a lot of survivors - including me - easily read tomura as a csa survivor. ive decided to try to put these impressions into words, mostly for myself, but also for anyone curious as to why he’s so frequently read this way, or why i personally write him as such. i will mostly be elaborating on the reoccurring sexual assault imagery and csa survivor traits tomura exhibits.
triggering themes ahead, including discussed child sexual abuse, incest (sibling and pseudo), trauma and its effects, and sexual assault imagery (from the bnha manga itself). also spoilers for the most recent manga arc.
(disclaimer: i realize symptoms of trauma are pretty much common all across the board, and depression also comes with a lot of these behaviors - but there are some that crop up more commonly in cases of sexual abuse (especially from a young age) than in others. csa survivors also frequently end up with depression, too, so that doesn't necessarily take away from it.)
i’ll start with the cover above. the hands touching him here are much more expressive than the ones he usually wears. it's also framed in a way where you can't see the ends/cap things very well, and they don't appear so symmetrical, making them feel much more like real, living hands grabbing him.
there's also the fact that his face is exposed, which is something we had rarely seen him do willingly at this point in the manga, and even when he had he was still covered up with a hoodie or completely alone. the way he's covering half his face gives off the impression that he's not okay with the way he's exposed.
all of that, plus the obvious distress tomura is in, gives this very glaring assault vibes.
also, the hands on his head are clearly someone's actual, living hands as well. my guess is afo, especially since they seem to be petting him, which is reoccurring imagery between tomura and afo.
tomura's total lack of privacy
there's a clear lack of boundaries between tomura and the adults in his life. most of the spaces that seem to belong to tomura (the bar - he feels safe enough there to take Father off, and his room) are accompanied by cameras and audio transmissions from afo. he has no privacy, and doesn't even seem bothered by this fact.
he also doesn't seem to set boundaries with other people in general. toga can hold a knife to his neck, spinner can grab him and yell in his face, the doctor can shout over his earpiece, dabi (or anyone, really) can say whatever rude or callous things he wants to him… really the only time i can think of that even comes close was when mr. compress made a joke about working with overhaul and tomura said "hey, not funny."
he seems to kinda just let whatever happen to him. earlier in the series, tomura seemed to rely on kurogiri to notice when he needed space and step in for him rather than ask for it himself. that's a pretty telltale sign of someone who's had their needs and boundaries violated (or even punished) for a long time.
Tomuras over-attachment to afo and his praise/affection
obviously afo groomed tomura whether it involved sexual abuse or not, but it is something that could have easily lended itself to that as well. early in the series, tomura clearly highly valued afos opinion of him, and seemed to strive to please and repay him for his kindness. these are feelings afo incited in him on purpose and did, canonically, take advantage of to turn tomura into a villain and pawn - who's to say he didn't use it for other purposes, too?
it's also the kind of thing survivors tend to latch onto to cope with their abuse. it can be easier to think of the event as being affection, returning a favor, and/or special treatment, than to think of it as abuse. tomura looked up to afo so much that it's possible he could have considered (or been convinced) that it was special that someone as great as afo wanted to do something so intimate with him.
also, if this is really tomura realizing his sensei isn't as special and powerful as he'd been led to believe, then his reaction being to cover up while looking angry might, well… be a reaction to feeling used.
Tomura & older men
there's not a lot of people besides afo that tomura seems very quickly, openly… invested in. there are two major ones i can think of, and they are both 1. older men, and 2. mentor figures (even if not to tomura.)
the most obvious of the two is aizawa, who tomura has seemed pretty fond of since his first appearance and, even in the most recent chapters, can't seem to help but think about how cool aizawa is. aizawa isn't a mentor to tomura, obviously, but he is a teacher and tomura knows this. (and seems impressed by the way he tries to protect the students in his care--something afo very specifically does not do for tomura.)
the second, and perhaps less obvious to most, is Stain. i wrote up a whole post trying (trying.) to explain the way tomura seemed interested in him, and you can see a bit more about that and how tomura was hoping he'd be a mentor to him here.
in other words, tomura has shown reoccurring interest in older men, who are mentors, that he does not show for anyone else.
early sexual abuse can influence a person's attractions. survivors tend to be drawn to what is familiar, even if it hurt, and so it's pretty common for them to be attracted to and/or desire a relationship with those who resemble their abuser(s).
and afo is an older man who is a mentor to tomura (and others.)
immaturity (& age regression)
tomura, in early canon, is often described by characters in-universe as being childish, especially in regards to how he processes his emotions. (i don't really like to conflate these things with "age" or "being childish" - but the way the manga itself presents these qualities is clearly intended to give tomura a immature/childish vibe.)
tomura's emotional processing, simple motivations, fixation with video games, toys littering his room, and need for close caregiving (kurogiri) all give off the impression that he's had trouble developing the way he "”should”" have--kind of like he didn't really move on at all.
this sort of stunted development tends to occur in people with childhood trauma, especially csa survivors. ptsd at its core is the brain getting "stuck" in the moment of trauma, so if the trauma occurred as a child, then one's development is somewhat halted there, especially in areas of emotional processing, because the brain and body have to dedicate so much energy to just trying to cope and survive. it's pretty common for csa survivors to have trouble coping with and controlling their emotions.
relatedly: i have no real way to confirm this right now, but i’ve heard that during the mla arc, while tomura was kind of going in and out of flashbacks, he started switching to using “boku” - a self pronoun for young boys - as opposed to his usual “ore”). ive since had to wonder if this is a reoccurring state for tomura - it might partly explain why he keeps his toys around despite never showing interest in them on-screen, and has such close supervision from kurogiri.
again, age regression can go for any kind of childhood trauma, but seems very common in child sexual abuse survivors in particular.
Lack of hygiene (esp oral)
look at how tomura's teeth are drawn compared to even another villains. dabis teeth are straight and clean, whereas tomura's have holes and chips, and tend to be drawn uneven with wobbly lines, like they're covered in plaque.
not caring for one's hygiene is common for people with depression too - but failure to care for teeth also frequently crops up in survivors of sexual abuse, due to an aversion to things touching or being inside their mouth, because it can remind them of the abuse.
in a similar vein, tomura's hair looks unwashed and greasy to me, especially when it gets long. it sort of gathers in clumps and appears heavy. survivors may avoid taking showers because they aren't comfortable removing their clothes for long periods of time, or because the abuse occurred in proximity to bathing. (which is a convenient time for parental figures to groom and abuse their children, since it already involves them being naked and the parent touching them closely.)
in general, there just seems to be something off about tomura's relationship with his body. maybe it's the way he barely bats an eye at major injuries, doesn't care for his hygiene, self-injures, and didn't mind undergoing a surgery that altered its shape and function pretty heavily--but i get the impression that tomura sees his body as just a tool more than anything.
which, if someone grew up having their body regarded as nothing but a means of pleasure, kind of makes sense.
his clothing
im not sure if this has the same “connotations” (for lack of a better word) for flat chested people, but tomura always wearing a lowcut shirt that shows off a fair amount of his chest, but covering the rest of himself head to toe--including his face--feels significant to me. as well as the way he covers up even more (his hoodie) when he’s stressed. the hands, too--being covered up seems to be calming for him.
the placement of the hands afo gave him
you can't tell me little tenko placed these hands where they are by himself. the ones on his chest aren’t even from his family or meant to resemble them - they’re additional hands afo gave him to wear. pretty weird place for “afo”’s hands to go...
I feel like theres a little bit something to tomura frequently having his clothes ripped off during fights
not that it's particularly uncommon for bnha characters to get their clothes a bit shredded during fights, but i can't help but feel like there's something to tomura getting torn down to nothing but his pants twice, with both battles heavily involving tomura's traumas, including the ones related to afo. the vs mla arc with how tomura met afo and how he turned him into what he is today, then the war arc where the methods afo used to control and abuse tomura (the hands) are brought back again--and afo repeatedly takes tomura's bodily autonomy away from him.
AFO's predatory behaviors
tomuras own behavior aside, All For One himself has some behaviors and imagery that gives off very predatory vibes. i’ll start with Ragdoll…
most people theorize that she was going to be turned into a nomu, but there are two important things here. ragdoll was found 1. alive, and 2. naked. all nomu are made from corpses - if afo had time to take her quirk and undress her, he certainly had time to kill her, especially since three days had passed since she was kidnapped. (and, what benefit would there be to making a nomu out of a quirkless hero?)
her dazed state is also curious - we've never been told taking or giving quirks has a side effect like this, and i would think itd at least wear off after three days…
there's also not actually a lot to suggest she was submerged in one of the tanks (that i know of); in the full body image, she doesn't seem to be soaking wet or anything. there's no water dripping off her. there's just a bit of liquid on her face and neck, which could merely be sweat, or… other fluids.
this next part is more debatable due to it being more dubiously canon (although My Hero: One’s Justice has been known to basically spoil villain related lore before it appears in the manga) - but he has some dialogue that makes him sound... pretty fuckin enthusiastic about sexual violence.
and time and time again, afo has been... very creepy and obsessive about his brother. who happens to look an awful lot like tomura, and is vaguely connected to nana as a user of OFA, and we know how far afo would go to spite both of them.
The "wow this is pretty much confirmed now" page
i always thought i was just projecting when i read tomura as a csa survivor - until i saw this page, which was so viscerally uncomfortable that it made me nauseous. it definitely made me decide i wasn't just reading into things that weren't there. that's not exactly to say this panel 100% confirmed it (though it certainly did in my mind, personally) -- but the imagery here can't not be deliberate.
tomura is literally shirtless and bent over before afo, and sure, afos not completely standing behind him, but that's partially because his lower half is inside of tomura. and from our previous example of afo taking over tomura's body…
i wish i could find the translation i first saw - this is the viz translation, which is notoriously horrible - but the one i read felt much more along the lines of "i saved you, so i get to do what i want with your body."
that is a line of logic that could have EASILY applied to their earlier relationship. the way afo saved tenko was very much on the forefront of tomura's mind early in the series, possibly either an idea he clung onto to justify the abuse he experienced from afo, or something afo personally reminded him of frequently.
also… part of afos body is definitely wrapped around tomura's upper thigh, and in certain panels seems to be emanating from between his legs.
speaking of, tomura's stance is also notable to me. compared to the panel where tomura first realized afo was taking control of him, where his knees are pretty straight on or outwards in a powerful balanced brace, in these panels his knees seem to be bending in towards his body, like he wants to squeeze his legs shut. huh.
i touched on this before, but it's interesting to me that what finally let afo fully take control of tomura's body, was having a hand (one afo very specifically used to control and abuse tomura into doing what he wanted) placed upon his body without permission.
so, all in all, afo is "inside" tomura's body, using it for his own means, against tomura's wishes.
what else does that sound like? no wonder deku feels like tomura needs help, despite everything...
again, this isn't to say that csa is definitely the cause of these things, just that tomura does have an abundance of behaviors and imagery that could easily be read that way.
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BNHA MANGA 291 SPOILERS
(I GET MOST TRANSLATIONS/INFO FROM @.atsushi101x ON TWITTER)
Title: "Thank you for being fine"
TW CHILD ABUSE, OVERWORKING, DEATH, SWEARING
This chapter we got the rest of the Todoroki family reacting to Touyas reveal and pictures of baby Touya :))
Lets start with the other Todoroki siblings reaction to Dabi coming out as Touya
(THEORIES + PICTURES BELOW)
(is this a bad time to talk about how pretty Fuyumi is)
We know Touya and Natsuo were the closest as kids and he seems the most hurt by this.
A lot of people were theorizing that Natsuo knew about Dabis plan but this proves otherwise (there is still a chance but its a LOT less).
He was watching the broadcast and seems really hurt by this (mfer HUG ME I LOVE U), while Fuyumi was in the classroom and the school staff had to call her.
We all believed Endeavor forced Rei to keep getting pregnant until they had the "perfect child" but this scene shows that Rei was the one that suggested it.
I wonder if she ever regretted that choice.
Even with both Fuyumi and Touya not having the quirk Enji wanted. at the time he was okay with that as Touya already had a more talent that him.
BABY TOUYA BABY TOUYA !!
translation (text on full picture that i cant find): "if its you" (I DONT KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS !! AT ALL !!)
We see Touya burning his own skin, so his current scars are probably self inflicted.
Enji noticed that part of Touyas hair turned white in this picture, which he at the time didn’t take seriously by saying ‘No way, I’m a grandpa?!’.
He quickly moved on after that.
translation of this scene (not by me) below
"You possessed a fire power even greater than mine."
"Nevermind that! Show me your special move!"
("special move" can also be seen as finishing blow/ ultimate move)
It seems that Dabi wasn't abused from a young age like Shouto, but this doesn't mean that Enji was any better at parenting him.
Oh god look at this ANGEL !! I LOVE HIM !!
Not shown here but we're told that Touya 'died' in a "Sekoto dake" (Im sorry I have no idea what that is but its described as a fireproof place where Endeavor trained him) with temperature reaching 2060C, its implied that Endeavour wasn't with him at the time it happened.
They only found a piece of lower jaw bone. (DABI ARE YOU OKAY BB WHATS WRONG WITH YOUR JAW ???)
Back on the battlefield Endeavour didn't believe Dabi, but this smart bastard showed his DNA test with a 99.99% match, the results were broadcasted. Who the hell gave Dabi a DNA test? I have no idea.
He used the blood he had gotten from Endeavour in the kyuushuu encounter for the test.
The rest of the league of villains were shocked, saying it was the first time they heard about this.
He also explained his view on Endeavour, the way he was using them, Shoto's birth, and saying that Endeavour never thought of anyone but himself. He asked the public if such a person was worthy of having the NO.1 hero title.
The kyuushuu kid didn't want to believe it, but Dabi began to expose Hawks by showing a video of him killing Twice.
The fact that Dabi was RECORDING this leads me to believe he may have known about Hawks being a traitor and that Twice would die.
He told the public that Hawks killed both him and Best Jeanist. He then went on to explain that Hawks father was a villain (more specifically a serial killer and robber) and Endeavour picked him up.
In the broadcast he said that he cannot forgive Endeavour for being a man with such a dark background and becoming a hero.
Hawks wings are still burnt off but Tokoyami is taking care of him. Cause hes a GOOD BOY !!
Endeavour was too shocked to move while Shoto was screaming at him to move back, he said that him and Nejire will handle Dabi.
EVERYONE STOP HURTING SHO CHALLENGE. (please give him forehead kisses and cold soba after this he deserves it)
I mean... even heroes have to cry when they need to.
While Endeavour was still not moving and Shoto was in a panic, Dabi jumped towards Endeavor, most likely to kill him, ‘Thank you for being fine until today’.
Dabi was caught by a wire, before Best Jeanist appeared (MFER WHY ARE YOU NOT DEAD !!) saying that he will be returning to work.
(WILL REBLOG WITH MORE PHOTOS AND STUFF SO CHECK NOTES !! )
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my grievances with BNHA
(Spoilers below)
I’m long-winded today cos I had some Thoughts to get off my chest in regards of how I feel about the storytelling of BNHA.
TL;DR: I don’t think Horikoshi understands the value of ma. Maybe he believes that his target audience would grow impatient, and I have to remind myself that BNHA is a shonen and is made for young people and my storytelling tastes probably aren’t what he’s marketing towards- but I still think there is a lot that could be improved about BNHA if Horikoshi spent a little bit more time in the slow moments, and valuing the emotions and relationships of the characters instead of rushing to the next plot point.
He also made way too many characters, which is typical of shonen, but the more characters he has to cover, the harder it is for him to provide content for all the people who have picked a favorite character out of the sprawling cast. Everyone is forced to find satisfaction in table scraps, but if he stuck to a strong core cast, there would be plenty to go around.
Long version:
"Ma” is an extremely important storytelling concept. Ma is the Japanese word for 'negative space.' In visual art, negative space is the empty places on the canvas where there's nothing important to look at. After all, if every single square inch of your canvas was filled with something exciting to look at, like character faces or action scenes, your illustration would be very hard to take in at a glance, there'd be no distinction of character silhouettes and nothing would be readable.
The same concept applies to storytelling. You need ma to achieve a greater emotional impact when the heavy, loud moments occur.
Let's take a look at how Hayao Miyazaki of Studio Ghibli writes ma. In My Neighbor Totoro, 80% of the film is slow-paced slice of life moments where two sisters explore their new house, and discover supernatural creatures living peacefully beside them. Then, at the end of the movie, something distressing and horrible happens to the two sisters' mother, who has been hospitalized since the beginning of the film. The film's final 20 minutes or so are about them discovering this distressing event, and the emotional climax of the film feels extremely powerful because we were given time to live with these sisters, observe their peaceful daily life, and grow attached to them. Suddenly, something important to them became jeopardized, and we care.
Miyazaki often uses ma with food. Characters cook for each other, or eat together. The detail of the food in the animation is often exquisite. Miyazaki and the Ghibli animators want us to notice the way light refracts through the glossy surface of an egg on toast, or the lines of fat on bacon sizzling in a pan. He wants us to exist in these quiet moments of daily life.
I can't tell you the last time My Hero Academia actually had an extended scene of ma. Maybe it was the bench scene, where Eraserhead and All Might share a moment. It was a powerful scene in the manga, and it was powerful because it wasn’t about the plot at all. It was about the intimacy between two characters who have grown close over shared adversity, and All Might struggling to find purpose in his hard life. After this scene, however, the story has been one distressing event after another without any breaks to breathe. And, since it has so many characters, it has failed to prioritize the emotions of significant characters.
How did Eri feel when Aizawa was maimed? Who is watching her?
How did Inko feel when she saw her son mangled, even after All Might promised to protect and raise him?
How much raising has All Might actually done in Midoriya’s life? It seems every time the two of them have a conversation, it’s about One for All, not about Midoriya’s growth into manhood or his emotional development as a suffering teen who’s picked the world’s worst profession.
Will we get assurance on the safety and wellbeing of favorite heroes like Fatgum and the Big 3?
Will Mic and Aizawa properly grieve Midnight? What about the rest of the UA staff?
How does Nezu feel when UA was turned into a safe haven for civilians?
How have the parents of all these students processed all this grief?
How has Class 1-A handled their painful struggle?
The story has been, instead:
>heavy, distressing, lengthy action sequences where everyone is hurt >immediately following that, a prison breakout
>immediately following that, scattered moments of characters in a hospital with dramatic flashbacks of their lives and burdens, yet none of them fleshed out to their fullest potential because there’s too many injured characters
>immediately following that, heavy and intense emotions all focused on the plot of One for All, yet All Might is a mute ghost and has no actual bonding with Midoriya since they don’t even speak to each other
>immediately following that, more heavy and intense emotions as Horikoshi rushes to show that Izuku is gone and has slapped together letters about his departure
>immediately following that, more villains attacking heroes and civilians because of the prison break.
There has been no ma. We haven't had a single quiet moment that isn’t focused on bulldozing into the next plot point or action sequence.
What about a scene like Eraserhead sharing a meal with Eri, or talking to her calmly about life? How about the neglected characters like Fatgum and the Big 3 recovering in their own way? How about the moms of all these hurt children actually coming in and getting involved in their lives? How about the students of class 1-A trying to do something fun to diffuse the tension and show how they have grown close as friends or a found family?
Sometimes Horikoshi tries to show ma in tiny snapshots rather than entire scenes; for example, there's a snapshot in one of the earlier chapters of Aizawa putting Eri's hair in a hair tie. This is a single panel. It's not enough to have a single panel. What we needed was an entire scene or chapter dedicated to Aizawa and Eri and Friends. Show her with her found family, show her going out in town or playing with a cat or talking to Mirio or Aizawa for an extended period of time. Show us scenes about nothing particularly important.
When your story is plot, plot, plot, you're deciding that human moments and human interactions aren't important. And at the end of the day, no one watches a show for the plot. They come to be validated as a person, and relate to the characters. I came to MHA because I relate to All Might, his disability, and his desire to be strong and fight through his suffering so he can selflessly help other people. That character resonated with me. I saw myself on the screen.
Unfortunately MHA stopped being what I came to see a long time ago. I’m here because I like drawing my favorite characters, and the fandom has introduced me to a lot of wonderful friends, I’m not ready to give it up. But I wish it had more of what I was hoping to get out of it.
I understand that making a manga is extremely difficult. And I understand tons of people enjoy it and have no issues with it whatsoever- all power to you! I just haven’t gotten what I was personally hoping to get, and this is why. :(
ANNNND SEASON 5 JUST STARTED AND IT’S AN ENTIRE SEASON OF CHARACTERS I DOOOOON’T CARE ABOUT AT ALLLLL! HEY WE REALLY NEEDED AN ENTIRE SEASON DEDICATED TO CLASS 1-B CHARACTERS THAT ARE COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY IRRELEVANT AFTERWARDS, THEREFORE WASTING SCREEN TIME ON FORGETTABLE UNIMPORTANT SIDE CHARACTERS INSTEAD OF THE CORE CAST THAT WE DESPERATELY NEED CONTENT ABOUT
ALSO THANKS FOR FORGETTING ABOUT DADMIGHT HORIKOSHI
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BNHA Chapter 318 Quick Spoiler Analysis: Lost and Found
Ok, I think I need a few days to process everything that’s happened during this chapter and I might make a longer analysis for this chapter later, but holy shit when I tell you I ascended, I ASCENDED! That page of Deku thinking about his classmates with a genuinely big smile on Shoto’s face and the last pages of Bakugo straight-up watered my crops, cleared my skin, expended my lifespan, and sent my soul into the great unknown for a bit. I screamed happy sounds last night. With that in mind, some very quick thoughts today:
Hooray for overseas Pro Heroes coming over to help Japan! This means that Deku and Co. will have more allies on their side and Deku doesn’t have to take care of everything. I hope and pray he listens to Endeavor and get some freaking sleep.
I’ve heard people mention that Endeavor’s been treating Deku like an adopted son lately and I can see it. It’s almost like he’s trying to become the good father he wasn’t with his own children. Like he’s making it up with Deku this time as the son figure. I kinda like it actually. It’s good character growth for Endeavor.
The panel of the OFA Holders trying to get Deku to rest is a parallel to the chapter where we go into Shigaraki’s psyche and we see his family trying to grab him and stop him too. Of course, both Deku and Shigaraki ignore the spirits and just move on with Shigaraki moving towards AFO and Deku moving onto the next villain to beat. I really like it when Horikoshi parallels these two characters and their symbolism. I actually just like it in general when it’s done right.
It’s clear that the OFA Holders feel like that maybe they pushed Deku too far with their words and motivations. But, this is ultimately what Deku wants. For better or worse, he chose the path of a hero and he’s bent on getting to the finish line. Though it’s interesting that the 2nd Holder is the only one who thinks that Deku pushing himself so hard is the right thing to do. I don’t think the 2nd Holder is being malicious in saying this. I think there’s something to his character and backstory that molded his reasonings. I mean, Deku really is the only one who can do this, but he does need help. If Deku can get some help then he can finally rest and fight properly instead of exhausting himself to death.
God, it’s upsetting to see Deku actually being feared by people despite saving them. Just the way Deku looks alone is scary enough. The kid doesn’t remotely look like a hero anymore. He’s not the hero who’s presence can put everyone at ease right now. Deku’s strayed so far away from his original origins. The main thing staying there is his want to save people.
And as all these burdens are on his shoulders, the most important thought in his head are his classmate’s smiles. Everyone is smiling from Ochaco to Shoto who’s pure, rare smile will remain in my head rent free for the rest of eternity 💙. Deku wants a world where there’s peace and smiles even if he has to suffer for that. Throughout everything, he’s never forgotten about his friends and their happiness. I really do love this kid, guys.
As Deku’s facing this other assassin, Dictator (who’s Quirk is similar to Shinso’s except the people he’s controlling are conscious), Deku looks so, so tired. He’s thinking of ways to save all these controlled civilians while being attacked by them, but he’s just standing there exhaustingly. There’s a small panel of his eye and it looks so tired. I know I keep saying that, but he is. There’s a small flicker of light in his eye too. I looks to me like it’s going to go out at any moment really. Deku needs to get a proper meal and sleep before he collapses in on himself.
AND NOW WE GET TO KATSUKI BAKUGO!!! HOLY SHIT WE HAVEN’T SEEN THIS DUDE IN SINCE LATE LAST YEAR AND HE’S BACK AND HE’S SO BEAUTIFUL 😭💥🧡 The internet’s still going nuts about him I can tell. He blasts Dictator with an AP Shot and Deku sees him with some life back in his eyes. Bakugo then pulls out his phone and tells someone “Guys, I found him”! Which means that Bakugo wasn’t the only one searching for Deku!!! Please tell me who else joined him, Horikoshi! I’m betting on Shoto, Ochaco, and maybe Iida, Momo, and Kirishima since they helped Deku rescue Bakugo back in Kamino (which is where Bakugo actually found Deku ironically enough; right in Ground Zero where the All Might statue is).
Also, the 2nd Holder mentioned before “But if there is someone who could make Midoriya Izuku whole at the moment, that would be…” and then we go right into the big Bakugo panel! BKDK’s rise 🧡💚!!! But seriously, this is amazing. These two really do complete each other not just as rivals, but as friends. And it’s great how this goes to show how much Bakugo’s grown from the beginning. This kid who wanted absolutely nothing to do with Deku at the beginning became one of the people actively looking for him and even found Deku first. Bakugo’s character development truly is one of the best in the series.
And this would be a great time for Bakugo and Deku to finally have that talk they’ve been needing to have for a long, long time now. I almost hope that the other kids don’t reunite with Deku next chapter because I really want that talk if they didn’t have it back at Central Hospital. A glimpse of the other kids would be good and I’d love to see Shoto again, but I NEED THAT ANGSTY TALK! I wonder if we’re going to have a roll reversal here too: Bakugo lends out a helping hand towards Deku and asks him to rest, but Deku ignores Bakugo’s hand and turns away and leaves again instead. That would absolutely kill me. Just as much as the All Might angst we got last week. If that happens then the turns really will have tabled. I will cry again for a week straight. I would still thank Horikoshi for his masterful storytelling though. I would also cry if Deku does take Bakugo’s hand though. God, there are so many feels to these two characters it’s wonderful. I need Chapter 319 like yesterday.
But unfortunately, we won’t get that for a while. Horikoshi is taking a break next week and so is the anime on July 3rd I think. So, we’re going to have a dry spell for a week straight my MHA friends. I’m honestly ok with this though. For me, the new OP and ED and Horikoshi sketch will tide me over with their bangers (I hope) and Horikoshi needs as many breaks as he can get. He’s been drawing and writing pure 🔥 this arc and I want him to get some much deserved rest. Especially after Berserk’s Kentaro Miura’s passing and JJK’s Gege Akutami taking his month long break. Hey, Jump? Please give your mangaka better schedules. I hate seeing them so exhausted. Anyway, enjoy your break, King 👑!
Me reading Horikoshi’s last few arcs:
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how his hair do that, 5 options
the following is a crack fanfic in five parts, each section on the same premise but not same continuity. also, very spoilerish
bnha manga spoilers below! very recent leaks below! very spoilery!
Better than a charcoal milkshake v 1
--------
When the heroes first attacked, alarms blaring, compound up in chaos, Dabi snuck away. He let the others pour out of the doors and down the stairs, and crept backwards, turning and running once he was certain no one would notice him.
Not that it would matter much if he did, but why waste the energy on killing them too? He’d need all his firepower today.
Dabi tore through the halls to his room, making it there and slapping his card against the scanner. No time to lose, not when he knew he needed to take care of a few more things before locating where Endeavor was in this heroes’ mission.
He kicked open his bathroom door, hands occupied with carefully pulling the black wig off his head- snagging that on his staples was just the worst, and he couldn’t have blood messing this up today.
Not yet, at least.
Under the bathroom cabinet he grabbed the bag of powery charcoal. It was supposed to be used for some beauty purpose or another, something about enriching hair that didn’t even work- but it would work to darken his white locks.
He poured it on, barely bothering to lean over the sink and keep it from going everywhere. As a final test, he once more wet a bit of it, the color seeping from the hair as it dripped.
He already knew it would work, that’s why he had intercepted so much of it before the quirk cultists could offer it to Toga or Hawks or whoever, but his heart was racing with both nerves and pure excitement.
Finally. The day he’d burn it all down, and make them see why.
He left his door open as he ran back out into the hallway, making a beeline for where he left Hawks. First things first, take care of that, then find Endeavor.
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Better than a charcoal milkshake v 2
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“Hey, put me down by that camping supplies store. And Skeptic too.” Dabi ordered, surveying the carnage of Jakku and glancing over at the man hunched over his laptop.
Said man looped up sharply at that, frowning and spitting that he wasn’t going to do that or something.
Dabi didn’t really pay attention to that.
“Where?” Gigantomachia asked, still rumbling forward towards whatever he smelled. Two masters or something.
Compress cleared his throat and translated for the currently blinded giant. “It’s at 4:05 o’clock, I’d say thirty feet forward.” He then looked over at Dabi, mask as unsettling as any of them. “You’ll be carefull too, on your personal mission?”
“Yeah, yeah, whatever.” Dabi waved him off, snagging Skeptic by the back of his shirt and tugging as Machia scooped them up and placed them on the pavement.
He ran inside the evacuated store, mercifully empty and not decayed, and started looking for the bags of charcoal.
When he found one, he tore it open. Charcoal fell to the floor, and he ground his boot down into it.
“What…” Skeptic seemed without words, for once. Good.
Dabi tore off his black wig, tossing it aside. He wouldn’t need it anymore.
“You wear a wig??”
“Yeah.” He started to scoop up handfuls of the charcoal, rubbing it into his hair. “Hey, go grab me some water, and then go set up the cameras. We got a show to put on.”
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Stinky dumpster boy
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“But my good name?” He sneered the word and all it implied in the world of false heroes, “is Todoroki Touya.”
With that, he dumped the water over his head, and it streamed down over his face, filthy.
The dirty water, practically mud, stung the places on his face where his skin was barely stapled together, and Dabi was reminded of why he didn’t bother with showers anymore- the pain.
But now his true colors- literally- were revealed and it was all worth it. All the truth was out, and the truth had always hurt him.
Shoto, who seemed to be trying to juggle first aid on like, five different people with two random heroes he didn’t know next to him, gaped.
“Come on, I know my face has changed, but my own family should still be able to recognize me, yeah? But you never did. You never did, Todoroki Shoto.”
Dabi suddenly found himself encased in ice.
Ah, this again.
“Yumi’s is colder.”
Shoto’s jaw dropped, then he glared. “Stand back.” He said as he stood up. “He just dunked water on his head, to cool him off I bet. If he is Touya, his body never could handle his own heat. If he’s not… those burns come from somewhere at least.”
Ok, now Dabi was offended.
“What do you mean, ‘if I’m not’?” he demanded. “I just revealed my white hair? I know that’s what the picture on my shrine looks like, you never even looked at that?”
“How do you even know what your shrine looks like?” Shoto sounded dangerously close to judgmental for a little brother who was probably as emo as Dabi had been at his age. “And wait, that cup of water was supposed to wash out your hair? What, do you never bathe or something?”
Ok, now Dabi was really offended.
“Of course I bathe! I just have to sponge bath, because I don’t know if you’ve noticed from having your own scars, but when they take up most of your body and are killing you they end up controlling a lot of your life!”
Ugh, asking him if he didn’t bathe. He’d understand that asked of Shigaraki, sure, but him? Shoto had gotten close enough to smell him, at least.
“Um, sorry to interrupt,” the hero in blue, the one that was tending to Eraserhead, raised his hands. “But uh… do you want some help with that?”
“I’m fine, don’t want to cool him off too much so he can fight longer.” Shoto shook his head.
“I was talking to him.”
“Oh.”
“What?”
The hero waved his hand, bubble of water pulling up from the ground. Then he pointed to his own head. “I can take care of that? At the very least it’ll be cleaned out and um, whatever color it should be?”
Dabi stared at him. Shoto stared at him. The other hero in green stared at him, and the one who’d offered help started to sweat noticebly.
“Eh, sure, whatever.”
The hero nodded, and the bubble of water floated over to him, disappearing in his hair.
The bubble floated out a couple of time, murky brown and black with ash, dirt, oil, blood, anything else he’d never thought about too much. It would wring itself thin, much dropping, and return to cleaning.
Finally, his hair was mostly white and thoroughly soaked.
“Thanks.” He called over.
“Yeah.” The hero answered, still frantically trying to help Eraserhead with his free hand, which he’d gone back too as soon as he thought Dabi was distracted. Buying time.
The other hero was on his fourth facepalm.
Shoto just looked contemplative.
Endeavor, one of the ones receiving treatment, sat up but looked like he was going to pass out.
Well all right then. Time to really start- the hair snafu didn’t matter. They were all going to die that day anyway.
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Weirdest commercial I’ve ever been in.
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“We’ll be dancing in hell together, Todoroki Enji.” Dabi finished his speech with a sneer.
The watching heroes were all stunned silent, mouths open, eyes wide. The revelation must be sending them, like it would all who were watching Skeptic’s broadcast. This would burn it all down, perfect.
“I don’t understand…” Enji managed to say, spitting out a bit of blood.
“What, you don’t understand how I survived, or how I hate you so much I’d hurt innocent people over it? Because that second part is exactly what you did, take out all that self-loathing and insecurity, rage at your shortcomings and condemn children not born yet to them. Guess it’s a family trait.”
“No, not that,” He waved a hand. “I mean, I totally get how you’re a wreck, even if all of your other siblings managed to not become mass murders, I mean- I don’t understand, how did that pint of water wash out all of your hair dye? Aren’t you better funded after the Deika merger, can’t you afford proper hair coloring?”
“I was also wondering that.” Shoto admitted.
“Same.” The hero in blue nodded. The hero in green facepalmed.
“Water?” Dabi repeated, then looked at the can he’d tossed aside. “Oh, no. This isn’t water- it’s a momento of the only true hero.” He bent down, picking up the can and studying the image on it.
“Stain was right, you know.” He mused. “About hero society being rotten. So rotton, so full of fakes, that there was only one that deserved the title. He just got the wrong hero, guessing All Might.” Dabi snorted at the very idea. “No, the only real one, the pure one, the one that defines heroism, the only one with a kill count higher than me- for all the dear old man and his biggest fan Hawks tried, of course- is Wash.”
“… Wash?” Shoto cocked his head. “Wait, like, Wash, Wash?”
“The one and only. That’s how this Official Wash’s Hair Washing Serum, the only product that can wash out all dirt, dye, and any other kind of grime, in just one go.” He shook the can around so they could see. “What, you all thought I could just magically lighten my hair from black to white in the space of one fight?”
“No,” Shoto said, like a liar, and then he threw a glacier at Dabi, and the fight was on in earnest.
--------
Old news
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“And now you’ll see who I really am, who you’ve created.” Dabi poured the bleach over his head, giving it a moment to sink into the hair before he shook it out, grinning wide enough to tear his staples.
The heroes on the ground and the few tending to them stared in shock.
Then Shoto gasped.
“Hawks?”
“What? Where?” Dabi whirled around, looked up, because he was really sure he had managed to make sure that pest wouldn’t be flying or fighting again, but well… he’d thought that once before and been wrong then.
“No, you- you’re Hawks, you dye your hair black when its in Dabi mode, and its that beachy yellow blond in Hawks mode.” Shoto nodded to himself.
Blond? Dabi tugged at a lock of hair, and huh. It did seem more yellow than white.
“How could he be Hawks?” The hero in green demanded incredulously, before the hero in blue grabbed his arm and pulled it back to holding down Eraserhead for bandaging.
“The burns and staples are part of the disguise,” Shoto explained. “Fake, and misdirection. You were trained from young childhood to be a hero, sent to join AfO and the league as a spy, where you gained a fire quirk and decided to switch to the villains’ side because you hated the life you were forced into.”
Dabi stared at him.
Shoto stared back.
Enji stared at both of them.
“How are you so smart and so stupid at the same time?” Slipped from chapped, burnt lips.
Shoto looked offended at that.
“I mean, you’re half right, yes that’s what up with Hawks, yes he was sent as a spy, but I knew and I killed him at the compound. And not, like, in a metaphorical way.” He added when he saw something spark in Shoto’s eyes. “Literally. I’m not him. He is completely separate person and body than me and I totally literally killed him.” Or like. Close enough. “And like, thirty other people who were completely innocent.”
Or close enough, he really didn’t bother to keep track, but thirty sounded like a big number. Especially of murders.
“So then who are you?” Shoto asked.
“What, you don’t recognize me, little brother?” He almost growled it, feeling very tired of this all of a sudden.
“Little brother?” Shoto repeated, eyes wide, then narrowing. “Wait, how…”
“Oh not again.” Enji muttered.
“Not again?” Dabi asked. “Wait, you actually managed to drive one of the others to this too? And cover it up? Man, Enji, you’re more rotten than even I knew then!”
“One of the others?” Shoto looked around wildly. “What are you talking about?”
“I was talking about how Shigaraki also randomly showed up and called a first year student “little brother”.” Enji looked back over at Dabi. “What were you talking about?”
“Shigaraki did what?” The pyro looked over his shoulder, finding the villain looking absolutely stoned on the ground, almost as vacant as some of the unconscious heroes, with a curly haired student laying bloodied nearby, staring up at him. “Wait, which student is his little brother?”
“Midoriya, apparently.” Shoto shrugged.
“Midoriya?” Dabi almost choked on the name. “As in, the green bone-breaking kid? Isn’t he like All Might’s lovechild or something?”
“That’s what I said too!”
“I mean, his hair was also lighter when he showed up today.” The hero in blue pointed out to his fellow in a voice that would have been too quiet for Dabi to hear had everyone else not gone silent as well.
“And bleach boy tried to do the same thing with the bleach, yeah. Here, I’ll tie this off, you go take care of Bakugo.”
“I’m Todoroki Touya!” Dabi snapped. “Or I used to be called by that name, anyway, before you nearly killed me, Enji. Let’s just- get back to fighting, yeah, I’m going to kill you.”
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WHUMPTOBER DAY 1
Alt. Prompt - Comfort
content warnings: au for final battle of bnha, description/mentions of injuries, throat injury, somewhat oc insert (reader’s quirk is described, but no features), possibly ooc bakugou, hurt/comfort to the extreme, spoilers(??) for bnha war arc, brief mention of a character death, mentions of blades/knives
your quirk:
banshee: in the simplest terms possible, banshee is essentially banshee physiology. it allows the user to use the abilities of the banshee, an otherworldly creature often seen as an omen of death. they have the ability to use a sonic screech to cause damage to their enemies. in essence, banshee grants access to the abilities the creature possesses. includes audiokinesis, sonic screeching, and audiokinetic combat. prolonged use of audiokinesis at high frequencies or loud volumes may lead to hearing loss in the user. in addition, the user tends to be quite sensitive to noises and is often bothered by loud noises.
story is beneath the cut
it had been a week since the battle ended. seven days. seven days since all might perished in the final struggle against all for one. seven days of recovery, of grieving, of healing.
it had been seven days since the last time class 2-a heard a word come out of y/n’s mouth. a week since they last saw their smile or laugh, a week since the last time anyone had seen them walking around the dorms. they’d sustained quite a few injuries during the battle, among them a concussion, a broken rib, and a very large cut across their throat. the doctors had said it was quite possible y/n would never be able to speak again, let alone use a vast part of their quirk.
it had been seven days since the last time they’'d been awake. a week since their friends had decided to take shifts in sitting in the room, watching carefully in the hopes that the [color] haired hero would soon wake up.
right now, there was one person sitting in the room with them. he'd sent the others out to go get some air, not wanting them to be stuck in the dreary hospital room for any longer than they had to be. besides, he reminded himself, it's my fault they’re like this. if he'd been paying closer attention, he could've stopped that damn blade from hitting them. he could've stopped them from letting out one final, ear-splitting screech as the blade sunk into their neck, cutting deep enough to reach their vocal chords. he could've been there to get them to safety. instead, he was sitting in the hospital room next to his partner, a distant look in his eyes.
"please... please don't leave me..." he mumbled, reaching over to squeeze their hand lightly in the hopes that they could hear him. "you're not allowed to die on me, dumbass." he blinked a few times, trying his hardest to fight off the (extremely rare) tears he felt in the corners of his eyes. he couldn't lose them. not today, not tomorrow, not ever.
after he spoke, he went silent. he closed his eyes, feeling a few drops of water slip down his cheeks. he couldn't hold the tears back any longer. "fucking hell. you can't leave me, [nickname]. you can't. you're not allowed to." he repeated.
he opened his mouth to speak, only to be met with a light squeeze to his hand, followed by what sounded like an attempt to speak and a pained groan. y/n sat up, eyes wide with fear as they blinked, so confused as to where they were and why their throat felt like it was on fire.
"hey hey hey... don't... don't try to talk, alright? lemme explain what happened and then you can ask questions. sound good?" he said. after seeing them nod, he took a moment to compose himself, wiping the tears from his eyes. "you got a nasty cut on your throat during the battle. it uh... it partially hit your vocal chords. doctors said you might not be able to use the screaming part of your quirk ever again." he refrained from adding the part about them possibly never speaking again. it was better that way, for both their sake, that they didn't know that information at the moment.
they blinked a few times, tears streaming freely down their face as he moved to comfort them, wrapping his arms around them gently. their body shook with silent sobs, terrified at the prospect of never using a large part of their quirk again. they pulled away from him for a moment, hands shaking as they signed. are you okay?
"i'm fine, [nickname]. just... just a few minor scrapes. nothing i can't handle."
i meant mentally, idiot. i can tell you're fine physically. they paused for a moment, as if they were unsure how to communicate their thoughts. it isn't your fault.
"but if i-" he began, only to be cut off by y/n pressing a kiss against his lips.
shut up. they signed after pulling away, a smug smile on their face as they saw how flustered he was. i'm the one who got hurt, it's my fault for being dumb. stop blaming yourself.
"fine." he conceded, knowing it wasn't worth it to argue at this point.
will i ever be able to speak again? they asked after a moment. my throat burns. a lot.
"i..."
be honest, kat. i'm a big kid, i can take it.
"the doctors said it's possible you won't be able to talk anymore."
y/n closed their eyes, blinking a few times as they swallowed hard. they opened their mouth, a choked sob coming from their lips. i'm useless. how can i be a hero if i can't speak to people? how can i be a hero if i can't-
"hey... you're gonna be okay. i promise you. i'm not gonna let anything happen to you, dumbass. who cares if you can't talk or sing? there's other things about you that make you a wonderful person to be around." he interrupted, grabbing their hands gently to stop the rapid stream of worry. he removed his hands after a moment
i feel like i'm just gonna be a burden. they signed back to him, a dull look in their eyes.
"you're never a burden."
can you just hold me? i don't wanna think about this right now. just wanna be with you.
"of course." he replied, sitting down next to them. the blond pulled them against his chest, arms wrapped loosely around them to prevent from aggravating their mending ribs. they curled into him, eyes closed as they tried to calm themself down. "i'm right here, baby. i'm not going anywhere."
things were quiet for a while other than an occasional sniffle from y/n. after a few minutes, he felt y/n pull away from him a bit. "what's up? are you uncomfortable?"
i love you. they signed, not looking at him. i love you so much.
pressing a kiss against their nose and pulling them back into him, katsuki did the only thing he felt he could in that moment. "i love you too, dumbass."
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BnHA Chapter 332: This Fight Has Actually Taken More Than a Month
Previously on BnHA: Horikoshi was all “please enjoy these three whole pages of exposition about how New Order works. Spoiler alert, it all boils down to how much the user understands the nebulous inner vibes of their target, so I hope you’re all taking notes for the inevitable Final Battle Shenanigans to come.” Tomura was all “well I sure can’t wait until I get my hands on this quirk, wonder how many more chapters it’s going to be.” S&S was all “nothing else we’ve tried has worked so why don’t you Air Force guys ask the Secretary of Defense to send a few missiles our way, and in the meantime I’ll hold Shigaraki off by punching him a bunch with my giant LoK Season Two Homage.” Fandom was all, “[checking to make sure that they’re still reading the correct manga which somehow they are].” Btw how much longer are we going to let Horikoshi keep pretending that he’s never heard of A:TLA lol.
Today on BnHA: Horikoshi is all “I’m just gonna draw the most ludicrous attack I can think of” and has Star’s giant sky avatar make the hypersonic missiles do a couple of loop-de-loops for absolutely no reason before detonating with a giant FSHAM. Everyone is all, “I WONDER IF IT WORKED.” Tomura is all, “IT DID NOT WORK.” Star is all, “WELL I’M ALL OUT OF IDEAS, GUESS I’LL JUST STAND HERE AND FUCKING DIE THEN.” Weekly Shounen Jump is all, “WHAT IS THE OUTCOME OF THIS DECISIVE BATTLE!?” like GEE I WONDER. You’ve put us all on the spot here, WSJ. Idk, what do you guys think.
oh goody a Star and Stripe flashback, this is definitely the order Horikoshi should have done this in. who says we have to put foreshadowing before the actual thing. aftershadowing, that’s what all the cool kids are doing now
so she’s hanging out with a bunch of muscle bros in tank tops in the military or whatever I guess, and being all frustrated that her quirk doesn’t always do everything she wants it to do. though to be fair, if there was ever a quirk that desperately needed an instruction manual it’s gotta be this one
wowwww lol
“isn’t it such a shame that our sexist society is filled with men who are constantly demeaning women and refusing to acknowledge them as equals” -- man who is already well on his way to pseudo-fridging his third female character in the span of a year, in his story which already features a cast that is 75% male, which runs in a periodical which has never hired a single female editor in its entire history
-- actually you know what, just in case this winds up being one of Those Chapters, I should probably press pause for a sec and post a few Clarification Bullet Points just so that we’re all on the same page before we continue here lol. so here goes:
BnHA is kinda sexist you guys
no, it’s not as sexist as it could be
no, I’m not saying Horikoshi is a bad person, or the most sexist person who ever lived, or even in the top 100 (maybe even 1000) of sexist manga creators. BnHA is actually very progressive for a shounen manga in a lot of ways. he’s definitely trying
that being said, all the A’s for effort in the world won’t change the fact that WSJ is a boys’ club, and shounen manga’s idea of progress is “look at that, our female characters don’t all have to wear high heels all the time, and sometimes we even give them plotlines about stuff other than doing the boys’ laundry!!” I mean, pretty much anyone is going to look like a paragon of feminism when the bar is that low lol
tl;dr, I appreciate what we get, but that doesn’t mean I’m gonna fall on my knees in unreserved gratitude just because Horikoshi isn’t out here zooming up his female characters’ skirts every three panels. and this also happens to be the one and only thing about the series that I often find it very difficult to lighten up about, because of how it reflects circumstances in the real world. so yeah. apologies in advance, but if you continue to read this recap I can’t promise you won’t be subjected to occasional random chill-less remarks about gender equality or the lack thereof. it may happen at any time without warning! I, a person who is reading this manga on the internet for free, do in fact have the audacity to complain about some of the things that happen in said manga from time to time! and then I keep on reading the series anyway even though I only enjoy 95% of it and not the entire 100%! it’s some straight up r/choosing beggars shit! I might even choose to make a couple of critical remarks that aren’t watered down by jokes! right here on my own blog where anyone can read them!! it’s a lawless jungle out here!!
anyways lol so I think that’s about as clear of a disclaimer as I can possibly make. don’t say I didn’t warn you. now back to our regularly scheduled programming
anyway so after all of that ranting, these military (Air Force?) bros are actually being pretty chill though
(ETA: in hindsight, writing this rant seems to have used up most of my fucks lol. the rest of this chapter wasn’t really that bad so I managed to coexist with it peacefully pretty much right up until the last page, and even then it was mostly just eye-rolling and sighing. the type of situation “I’m not mad, just disappointed” was coined for, I guess.)
and you know what I like about this, is that Horikoshi actually took the time here to ask himself how S&S’s journey of becoming the number one hero might differ from All Might’s journey, and what kind of challenges and pushback she might come up against which a male character in the same situation would likely not encounter. this wasn’t necessarily the most graceful way of bringing that up, but I do appreciate that he was being thoughtful enough to consider any of this stuff at all, let alone actually work it into the character’s backstory
THAT BEING SAID, while I do appreciate what Horikoshi seemed to be going for here, I would have preferred if the message was more of a “you’re just as strong as All Might, your quirks just work in different ways” thing as opposed to “don’t sweat it if you’re not as strong as All Might, it’s not you it’s the quirk”
to be clear, it’s not that I have any kind of problem with All Might being the undisputed Strongest Character In The Series; it’s just that I still can’t really see why he’s considered to be stronger than S&S. it’s like they randomly decided that physical strength was the only metric actually worth considering. like sure, S&S may be having trouble trying to catch up to All Might in terms of bench presses, but All Might is probably having trouble catching up to her in terms of Turning Himself Into A Massive Laser-Wielding Sky Kaiju so I would think it evens out lol
anyway so Horikoshi is just not doing a good job of selling me on this Super Strength > Magic Reality Bullshit thing. and for that matter, it’s in his interests not to convince us, because aren’t we supposed to be worried that Tomura will be unstoppable once he gets his hands on this?
but these are all questions I’ll have to ponder more at some later date, because the flashback scene has now ended and we are cutting back to everyone’s favorite hypersonic missiles
so the missiles are almost there now, and Star says she’s going to have to release the laser rule in order to set up a new rule for the missiles. man, what? so you knew all along that the missiles on their own obviously wouldn’t be enough to stop him?
okay so real talk, how is this going to be any more effective than the lasers were. because regardless of whether it’s a laser or an explosive, at the end of the day we’re still dealing with thermal energy here right? meaning that you’re still going to run into the exact same problem you had with the lasers, and with Endeavor’s Prominence Burn, which is that FIRE IS NOBODY’S FUCKING WEAKNESS my god why doesn’t anyone in this manga listen to me. I’M TRYING TO HELP YOU
so now there’s an entire page of Tomura just chilling in the midst of the laser bombardment like it’s an afternoon at the sauna, and wondering what these explosive-vibes-giving things are that he can feel approaching. probably explosives, Tomura
fffffldkjl “LOL NO WAY, THIS WOMAN REALLY LAUNCHED A BUNCH OF HYPERSONIC MISSILES?” I know, right??
and there’s another page of Star giving a countdown to whatever bullshit she’s about to do, and then the bottom panel is showing the missiles breaking through her giant sky titan’s hand, which is some hella trypophobic shit that absolutely nobody in the world asked for
hey, Horikoshi? file this one along with the centipedes and the mushrooms. let’s not have any more of this ever again please and thank you
lol what the actual fuck
? ???? ??
LOL, WHAT
?????????????
is anyone going to explain to me how this makes the attack more powerful, or should I just keep reading. “keep reading makeste, duh” yeah you’re probably right, I keep going off on random tangents for no reason. I really need to focus up here
huh
well, you guys. so it appears that Star’s trump card was [checks notes] randomly having the missiles spiral around a couple of times for extra fanciness before they finally hit him. you know, for that extra spiraling power boost. the coveted spiral bonus
A WHOLE TWO PAGES OF EXPLOSIONS WOOOOOOOOOOOOO
FINALLY, SOMETHING BOTH AMERICAN SUPERHEROES AND SHOUNEN MANGA HEROES CAN AGREE ON. WHEN IN DOUBT JUST MAKE THING GO BOOM
WOW ANOTHER PAGE OF THE EXPLOSION. JUST IN CASE THE PREVIOUS TWO PAGES WEREN’T ENOUGH
I HATE TO BREAK IT TO YOU, MISTER SIDE CHARACTER GUY ASKING ABOUT TOMURA’S STATUS WHILE YOU WAIT FOR THE DUST TO SETTLE FROM YOUR MASSIVE EXPLOSION ATTACK, BUT THE ANSWER ISN’T GOING TO BE ANYTHING THAT YOU’LL PARTICULARLY LIKE. I JUST GOTTA WARN YOU NOW. YOU MIGHT NEED TO SIT DOWN FOR THIS ONE
MAN WHY ARE YOU ALL TRYING SO HARD TO PRETEND LIKE THERE IS ANY TENSION HERE LOL
“WELP, THAT WAS IT. THAT WAS THE MOST POWERFUL ATTACK WE HAD. I WONDER IF IT WORKED. LET’S ZOOM IN ON THIS MASSIVE CRATER THAT WE JUST BLASTED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE OCEAN. I GOT A GOOD FEELING ABOUT THIS ONE YOU GUYS” yep. for sure, Star
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH hahahaha oh no
“NOPE NEVER MIND. GOOD FEELING’S GONE”
OH MY GOD I ACTUALLY LOLED FOR REAL
her faceeeee oh no. oh, Star, we’re really in it now
lol this motherfucker used Decay to burrow underground to hide from the explosion. what a power move. “if I was even a millisecond late it would have been a fatal wound” lmao you asshole. “good game,” Tomura says placatingly as he shakes Star’s hand afterwards. “that was a real nail-biter right up till the end. all the respect bro, you’re one hell of a competitor. let’s keep in touch.” follows her on Twitter after. “Shoutout to my homegal S&S, we had a WILD ONE this weekend [fire emoji] [fire emoji] [fire emoji] Down to the wire! Nothin but respect [100 emoji] [100 emoji] [100 emoji] [flexed bicep emoji]”
lmaoooo now all the Air Force bros are like “OH SHIT OH SHIT” and flying around all panicked lol
“OH GOD, OH FUCK” somebody help me please why is this chapter so unexpectedly funny
NOW WHAT LOL
did the Noumu explode??
(ETA: this page is literally indecipherable to me.)
and now AFO is suddenly taking over and Tomura’s landing on one of the fighter jets still all crazed
SIGH
I’m sure you will lol. a James Patterson ghostwriter could put this quirk to better use than we’ve seen it used in this fight tbh
“do it now, Star” do what now??
oh for fuck’s
are you really gonna pointlessly squish your Respect Women Juice-drinking Air Force bros just so we can all feel even worse about this situation sob
FUUUUUUUUUUUUU
NOPE, INSTEAD SHE HESITATED FOR TOO LONG AND HE GOT HER
holy shit she basically just gave up? just straight up stopped fighting basically
I mean it wasn’t like the options were suddenly reduced to a binary “kill your buddies or let TomurAFO get you.” there were seriously more than just those two options here. you could have dodged him, or done literally anything else other than just standing there with your vaguely wistful expression and letting him grab you, Star
anyway so that’s it I guess. not one single person reading this was ever expecting any different. like Mirko and Nagant before her, S&S gets to be show-stealing and badass for approximately 1.5 to 3 chapters before her fairy godmother Horikoshi’s magic finally wears off, and her resourcefulness turns back into a pumpkin
I mean, idk. like I said, I never expected anything else. it would just be nice if we could get a fight like this where the badass lady character actually won. or lost, but still stayed relevant to the plot afterwards (and was actually relevant in any way before the fight, for that matter). or if Horikoshi would stop doing this every few months just because he can lol
anyways but good game. down to the wire. nothin but respect
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Ultimatum: The Art of Lying In A Made Bed
(Or Why My Experience With Chapter 285 Is Contrary To Everyone Else's)
[Manga Spoilers Ahead. Also Opinions. Feel Free To Ignore.]
After Chapter 284, many fans were wondering how the story of BNHA would follow up on Katsuki's development. Now that Chapter 285 is officially out, fans are clamoring about Katsuki's latest acts of heroism, about how his arc is finally kicking it into high gear.
I'd be inclined to agree, but… you know how these things go.
[Heads up fans/stans, if you like Katsuki you might wanna bail. The word vomit that follows is pretty much incoherent and reflects my disaster of a thought process.]
I was looking forward to Chapter 285. I had my reservations on the execution of Chapter 284, but if the next chapter could follow it up and then some, I'd be pleasantly surprised. But then the leaks came out. And then the fan translation. And as of today, the official VIZ translation.
While everyone else is cheering for explosion boy, I'm just… done.
285 didn't get me to see how far Bakugo's journey has come. 285 didn't get me to finally root for him. And maybe I am making this decision prematurely, maybe I am missing something, but…
...the way things are going in the story I just- I just CAN'T root for him.
And I'm not saying the rest of you can't, if you're still reading. Katsuki is definitely a different person compared to Chapter 1, a better person, and he's definitely been heading on the up and up! If you can and want to support him, then by all means, go for it, don't let me stop you! It's just…
For me, chapter 284 was a wavering torch: a flicker of hope that sometimes dwindled, but was still there. Chapter 285 was the moment where I wanted to jump on the Katsuki Development Train, to finally gain some semblance of respect for him. But when I jumped, I landed on the tracks, and had to crawl back onto the platform.
I missed my chance to jump on that train. Whether it's because of previous circumstances or recent circumstances, I'll never know…
You probably wanna ask me at this point, "But Crimson, why DIDN'T Chapter 285 make you see the awe inspiring pinnacle of character development that is Katsuki Bakugo???"
To put it simply: it's a culmination thing.
For starters, there's a sort of… whiplash with Katsuki's development in the last few chapters. People like me will complain that Katsuki's development is too slow, in the case of the last 2-3 chapters, it feels like a switch was flipped, and now it's become too fast. Perhaps it's a me thing, but let me try to explain…
Shoto starts out as a standard background character. By the time he gets his spotlight in the Sports Festival, he comes off as reserved and antagonistic. After the whole "it's your power" moment, Shoto is finally able to accept the side he always hated. Then Katsuki fights Shoto, and we're shown he still needs time to grow; his left side comes with a lot of baggage he can't just brush off in the span of a single sparring match.
Fastforward to Hosu. Shoto's starting to take other people into better account. He's starting to learn to better control his fire. He's reconnected with his mother. His goal is no longer one-upping his old man; he has goals, people, that he wants to protect. He's coming into his own and wants others to do the same, like Tenya.
He joins the Katsuki Rescue Squad because, like Izuku, he had an opportunity to save Katsuki, didn't, and now he wants to make up for it. When we get to the Provisional License Exam, we're yet again slammed with the fact that his growth is still not done via Inasa, that there's still a bit of Endeavor he has to shake off, even if it was in the past. And he does progress towards that with the Remedial Course Arc. And while I have my opinions on the Endeavor Agency Arc, I'll admit that it was another development opportunity for Shoto and the Todoroki family. Shoto's growth comes with setbacks, but overall it's consistent.
Let's shift gears to Tenya, who's characterization I find fascinating. He starts out opposed to Izuku when they first meet at the Entrance Exam. He sees how Izuku is (for lack of a better phrase) "better qualified" at heroics thus far, reassesses his position, and apologizes whilst making amends. When Tenya resorts to LITERAL MURDER against Stain, the narrative does not let him go off without reprocussions. His arms are damaged, his supervisor's teaching license is revoked, and while he managed to avoid legal charges via police cover up, it still came close. Tenya listened to Stain's words, and opted to improve himself by that notion. He tries to set a better example, be a better class rep. It isn't a one and done.
Him lashing out during the Hideout Raid Arc is an offshoot of that. He doesn't deck Izuku just to be a dick; he's trying to knock some sense into him. They're so focused on Katsuki that they're forgetting about everyone else. Their friends, their teachers, their parents. If they f*** up like Tenya almost did at Hosu, they'll have hell to pay, and he doesn't want that. Of course, once they explain that combat/murder is not their M.O., Tenya tags along, if only to ensure the operation goes smoothly without this hitch. And again, Tenya keeps up. He looks after his classmates, looks after Izuku during the Shie Hassaikai arc. His growth is also consistent.
There are probably more characters I could elaborate on (Ochako, Momo, Eijiro, etc.), but I'll stop there. So, what's the deal with Katsuki's arc?
Well, it's… frustratingly back and forth.
It's one thing to have setbacks like Tenya and Shoto. It's something else entirely to have multiple setbacks and to keep trucking on with only abstract signs of development, but otherwise feeling like a very similar character compared to several chapters ago.
This is (in my opinion) Katsuki's problem. If we're going by what the manga stated, his arc technically started in Chapter 11: "Bakugo's Starting Line." But this is a rocky start. Izuku tells him about OFA right from the getgo out of guilt, but this neglects the fact that he's technically lying to everyone about it (including his new friends Ochako and Tenya), that OFA is a world-shattering secret, and that Katsuki is likely the worst person to tell this to considering that Izuku just handed Katsuki's ass to him and Katsuki was willing to use lethal force in their Trial. That aside, instead of say, sucking up his pride and opting to try and learn from everyone else, Katsuki doesn't really change strategies or approaches. He essentially does what he was planning to do since the start of UA; he's only crying because, SURPRISE, people are better than him. You'd think he'd expect that considering he called his middle school crappy…
After the USJ, once everyone had their "Lol Bakugo sux" moment on the bus ride, we get to the Sports Festival and everyone is clamoring to join Katsuki's team despite his apparent unapproachability. This feels less like something happened in the two weeks leading up to the Sports Festival, and more like history repeating itself from middle school. Moving on to the tournament, we don't even get to see how capable Katsuki is at serious combat. Two of his matches resort to Deus Ex Machina pulls, and the other two are in his corner by principle instead of difficult.
First off, Katsuki vs Ochako. I don't know why people praise this fight. For starters, it makes Katsuki HEAVILY OoC. Ochako is the only person he asks if she wants to back out before the match even starts. The ONLY person, which kinda undermines the whole "he didn't underestimate her" thing. Then he takes a reactionary stance the entire battle. Like, I thought we were still dealing with the "fist first" Katsuki. He does this to Eijiro, Fumikage, even Shoto, but Ochako? Stay still and then attack. Even if he did get his gravity removed, couldn't he just… propelly himself and let her have it. If he was proactive, he could have ended the fight quicker. Instead, he just plays sitting duck and headless chicken. If you're gonna have Katsuki win the fight, don't bulls*** it.
Which brings me to the final bit of that fight: the meteor shower. Having Katsuki blow that away after supposedly expending most of his energy earlier in the match just does NOT sit right. Ochako gets the upper hand, and then you just… negate that? You expect me to believe that Katsuki could generate an explosion at that magnitude, if nothing else? And what exactly does that do for him in the end? No one else tires him out for the remainder of the festival, which is pretty sketch.
(And yeah, I know I know "What part of her was frail?" but that's more of a retrospective thing than in the moment, coupled with the facf that it's never elaborated on again in any capacity, with Ochako or with someone else. It's a throwaway moment; a waste. Moving on…)
You really can't say much about the matchups with Eijiro and Fumikage. With Eijiro, it's an endurance match, and Katsuki apparently has infinite stamina and is on the attack. And he just… rushes him, which I'm pretty sure anyone else would do. Then with Fumikage, Dark Shadow is weak to light. Katsuki's explosions emit light on contact. Do the math.
And I am especially mad at Katsuki vs Shoto because one, he stays in place yet again at the start of the match, and two, he can apparently ignore his Quirk' weakness to low temperatures. In a gym uniform. Against a glacier the size of a building. Even with his power output, you don't see his explosions dampening in magnitude. It's obviously in his favor, which defeats any tension the fight could have had. It sucks, and in the long run, as a wise man once said, "Todoroki should have folded [his] ass."
Then we get to the Final Exams (ABOUT DAMN TIME) and… Katsuki hits Izuku for trying to cooperate, nearly gets knocked out once, and gets knocked out the second time around. He does not want to work with Izuku despite it being All Might, is petty enough to consider losing, and actively grumbles against working with Izuku. And all of his supposed self-preservation goes flying out the window when he's willing to try and beat All Might, leaving Izuku having to come and carry this boy out of the gate, which should not have let him pass.
Then there's the Training Camp attack. The second Izuku is mentioned, Katsuki decides to go AWOL, and while being kidnapped sucks, I am less sympathetic when you're boneheaded enough to help them capture you because you wanted to fight villains instead of getting to safety like the professionals recommended, all because of your one-sided hatefest with one of your classmates. Congrats, you played yourself.
Then we get to the Provisonal License Exam, which feels like a step in the right direction… until you realize this will boil over into Deku vs Kacchan 2, which will get both of them in trouble, which will give Katsuki insight into OFA while Izuku gets shunned by his classmates, and which will prevent Katsuki from the one ass beating that could have potentially taught him something. It's essentially the narrative covering his ass, and then he has the gall to be happy about other people potentially getting set back just because he was set back. Geez dude.
The Cultural Festival essentially undoes what the Remedial Course Arc accomplishes, having Katsuki look down on the rest of UA when he said NOT to look down on people earlier. And then his speech is still heavily antagonistic to the rest of the school, and to the idea of basic human decency and kindness in general. And if I'm being honest, that whole "he can play drums" feels like a big ass pull to keep him in the spotlight. At least the story brought back his ability to cook down the line.
The Joint Training Arc is just shoe horning in regards to Katsuki. It acts like his gearing up towards saving, but the circumstances are heavily, heavily in his favor, and not in a good way. I've already brought up how Katsuki won't get "saving" until the Endeavor Arc, and how here he's just doing it to show off, so I won't go into it here. Then apparently he gets to outwit a recommendation student 'cause why not? It makes him look more impressive than he actually is, even though he outright states he hasn't changed much if at all. Not to mention the narrative makes it sound like he was some sort of underdog, even though he only got kidnapped and didn't get his license. And I know those are big things, but not enough to warrant his victory feeling that triumphant. I'd probably buy it if he didn't win the Sports Festival or pass the Final Exam. Keep him in that slump for longer than you actually do, or it lessens the impact. And let's not forget, he might have been willing to help Izuku with Blackwhip via fisticuffs, but the second he realized he wasn't getting anything out of it, he noped out. And it's been what, almost 200 chapters since his "starting line?"
I don't have much to say during the Endeavor Arc (that was its own can of worms), but as for the War Arc thus far… here's what I mean by "whiplash." The arc begins in Chapter 253. By Chapter 257, Katsuki will demonstrate how much he just does not give a f*** about Izuku's mastery over OFA so long as it looks like he'll come out on top. By Chapter 274, when Izuku's gotta split, it'll look like Katsuki has been thinking about some stuff, but by 275 he's gonna throw that out the window so he can attempt to one up Tomura and Izuku, and then he'll nearly get killed for it. And we won't know what exactly Katsuki is thinking until a flashback in Chapter 284 (which chronologically takes place after 257), where he has a conversation with All Might about his past with Izuku. Or at least the bullet points. If you're me, the start of the conversation feels less about Izuku and more so about his situation: his situation with OFA. And as much as I want to believe there was at least one good kernel in Katsuki that he was too stubborn to let out with Izuku, I feel like Katsuki only brings up him and his capabilities now because he got a Quirk. That's what put him on Katsuki's radar. That's what forced Katsuki to take notice of Izuku, what caused him to be unable to ignore his own weakness. Because of a Quirk. That's… borderline shallow, if not remarkably so.
And even when Katsuki is attempting to save Izuku in 285, his first thoughts are still on OFA. And even if we go by the line of thought that Katsuki is thinking "Even if OFA sucks, it's still Izuku's Quirk." And that's nice and all, but the flashback makes it seem like the Quirk is still All Might's Quirk as well. That all of Izuku's worth is hinged on the fact that he got a Quirk now and therefore can't be written off. Maybe he doesn't owe this to his accomplishments, but the narrative is terrible in its implications that Izuku wouldn't have gotten as much attention without it. At the end of the day, Katsuki is still associating Izuku's worth with his Quirk. And as much as I want to vaguely, vainly hope that this will change later on, I'm already at my limit
...and now that I've said my piece on almost the entire narrative thus far, let's shift gears to a few more tidbits in 285.
Again, the flashback. I think it's significant that they're shifting the focus briefly on middle school again. But you wanna know what sent me the wrong way? They didn't include the god forsaken suicide instigation. They can show Katsuki gloating. They can show Izuku up against a wall. They can even show a notebook and Izuku's face during the Sludge Villain rematch. But they can't show Izuku reacting with sorrow mixed with almost fury. That can't show Katsuki threatening him with a mere "What?" and the sparks on his palms. They can't show Izuku standing and crying, small and defeated.
"BUT HORI SAID HE WENT TO FAR WITH THAT SCENE!1!" Blah blah blah, doesn't change the fact that it still happened. Doesn't change the fact that it should be addressed, at any capacity. Doesn't change the fact that the story had the balls to recall middle school but couldn't bring itself to remember the one thing that could get its audience raising eyebrows.
But that's alright, it gave you the notebook; clearly it's done enough.
And maybe in another timeline, I could have let my jaw drop when Katsuki was hit and the chapter title was revealed. "Katsuki Bakugo: Rising" It would have been pretty damn powerful too.
...but with all the previous crap the narrative has pulled, it feels like more shoehorning. It feels like more Erasehead stepping in and shaming the audience. It feels like more All Might letting Katsuki in because he's not completely familiar with the finer details. It feels like more people. In narrative parroting that Katsuki changed when he does the bare minimum, as a hero or as a person. I can't treat this development legitimately, because so many other "legitimate" developments pulled a "psyche!" and headed out.
So, I'm done. I'm done with Katsuki, done with hoping his development will be done in a somewhat satisfying manner. Done with people telling me "it's actually good though!" like I'm blind and deaf or something, when I have enough brain cells to formulate my own opinions, and we both have enough brain cells to leave each other alone if we don't agree. Maybe when the series ends and we can all look at this in hindsight, and Katsuki has either found a way to redeem himself, or remain deplorable, I might talk about it then. But for now. I'm drawing the line. I might talk about what we've gotten up to this point, but everything past 285 I'm taking with a grain of salt. 'Cause I'm sick of hoping for something that obviously won't come through, and it's better for me and everyone involved if I just pack up and move on. BNHA isn't just Katsuki's story after all.
And if you made it to the end of all this… I hope you'll either respect my opinion, or respect my thought process. That's all I can ask.
-Crimson Lion (27 September 2020)
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Spoilers for the latest chapter of Something!
I'm gonna go ahead and apologize now because this is long; please feel free to ignore my wordy ass, I just have a lot of feelings about a certain someone that showed up in the new chapter lol.
I am still trying to get my shit together enough to write a proper review, but I did want to come yell at you for making the grape boy somewhat likeable, like...
Firstly, how???
Secondly, why?????!?!
Lmao, in all seriousness tho, it's nice to see him have a personality that isn't just "Mmmm, tits" *drools* I like to think that everyone in the series grows up and (mostly) out of the worst of their habits, and while Mineta is still a bit of a lecher here he isn't nearly as offensive/creepy as he comes off in show. In fact he's actually sympathetic in a lot way. The bit about seeing his first dead body before "getting laid" hit different like... He tries to play it off like a joke, but dude has to have just as much PTSD as the rest of them, maybe even more given that he wasn't able to fight back in the same way as someone like Bkg or Deku would be able to with their super powerful offensive quirks. They were all just kids, but they had to face hell full on from jump, and let me stop before I get too in my feelings lol.
In a lot of ways, he reminds of you the boys from school — crude. Taking for granted the safety from being in a pack, unchallenged. Leering at posters, saying off-colour things because no one corrects them.
That's exactly the way I view him, just a crude little thing that refuses to be put in his place for long lol. Still, with his being a hero I would hope that he keeps a cap on it while he's on the job--in fact I'm sure he does; if he didn't I'm sure that Aizawa would've yanked his licence by now, the likes of Deku and Kiri wouldn't continue to associate with him, and that's saying nothing of the shit that would get posted to social mead and such. I feel like the only reason he says what he says to the Reader is b/c she's a little gremlin herself and he knows he's got a bit more leeway, yanno?
The little hangout session that they had at the end of the chapter was weirdly heartwarming?? I want a friend(???) that I can be a surly little shit with and draw on and that will call my bf that's not really my bf but should be my bf because he's (that is Mineta) got more emotional intelligence than me lmao. Never thought I'd see the day when the grape would make for such an excellent wingman--tho I gotta wonder what that text he sent to Deku said. Probably something along the lines of "come get yo girl, she must be bored/lonely af because she asked to hang out with me" followed by "are you ever gonna close the deal or not? or have you already hit it??? >:)" just to give the guy an extra push (or maybe he's got a better sense of self-preservation than what I give him credit for, idk lmfaooo...)
Okay, this is WAY too long, I just had to get it out of my system lol. I loved the new chapter lots and I cannot wait to see how things play out in the next one!!
LOL, oh Puck, i adore you sdlkfjsdlkfjsdlkfj
me being a shit-stirrer/asking myself questions i don’t have answers for under the cut
Cat asked me this question earlier today, actually — why Mineta. And honestly? Part of it is the challenge he represents — like, how do you write him into a fic and mature him up so that he’s at the very least, tolerable, but also keep the backbone of his character (which is being a little degenerate). Like, is it possible? One of the most popular tags on ao3 for mineta minoru is something along the lines of “mineta minoru is replaced with shinsou hitoshi” LOL so…….. why didn’t I just use Shinsou? Or Aoyama or Iida, as Cat suggested? And beyond the part of me that delights in giving myself perceived challenges, there were two stark reasons that stuck out to me, when i was first mulling over his inclusion.
1) the fact that he can draw. it’s literally as simple as that. ever since the BNHA exhibition opened up in Japan and it was revealed that there was a scene in there with a class blackboard and the kids having their little drawing competition — and that Mineta was objectively the most skilled — i was like, “i have to include that”. LOL. it’s like you say, Puck, our Reader is a little gremlin herself — i thought if I was going to write a Reader that could handle interacting with him (ie, be in a position to pay him out) it was going to be this one. I think being in the manga industry and starting out on this journey of creating and drawing a Shonen manga sort of put Reader in this unique position of… being in what seems like a boys’ club? So she’d be used to the male gaze within her field. I follow Horikoshi’s assistant (former assistant?) on twitter and let me tell you, that man is not shy about the things that he likes to draw LOL.
the 2) thing was the philosophy i’ve sort of accidentally given myself LOL and that’s the fact that — as a Bakugou stan, if i’m giving grace to a character who was a literal violent bully then………. i can use my magic powers and hand it around to the other characters, too, LOL. and like, i would argue that with Bakugou it’s different, like we’re currently seeing in the manga how he has grown and learnt and is actively changing, which is the key to any kind of redemption. do i think Mineta will ever undergo that in cannon? absolutely not lmao, i see him as being being Hori’s idea of comedic relief, he’s always going to be a horrible little degen. but i want it for him…… if only to justify why the boys of Class-A collectively ignore his bullshit, for the most part? Like, none of them actively call him out on it?? i think of the time he tried to climb the wall to spy on the girls in the onsen — and how it was literally only Iida scolding him and how it took a child to stop him. Or the one when he found the stupid hole into the girl’s changing room and while the boys all looked grossed out….. Jirou’s the one that point an end to that?????? I saw a TikTok (derogatory) suggesting how like, none of the girls of Class-A would trust Aizawa, as adults, because he didn’t do anything to put an end to Mineta’s bullshit, and it was a devastating suggesting. None of us want to believe that our favourites would be passively okay with this kind of behaviour, right?? Which means……. Mineta’s gotta change LMAO. And if Hori isn’t going to do it then imma borrow him and do it myself. Does it work? I have no idea LMAO i can’t judge anymore, my meter is broken. but i’m gonna work with what i’ve given myself and it either will, or it won’t LMAOOOO kldsfjlksdjflkdj fic is about having fun at the end of the day. :’)
But it’s like you point out, Puck — Mineta is also a child, when these kids get trotted out to their first War. And he’s also not as offensively built as the hard-hitters like Deku and Bakugou and Shouto are. Even if it’s not explored in the manga, that War is going to change them all somehow.
So, my gameplan for Mineta was to grab ahold of the tiny things about him — the talent for drawing, the like one [1] observation he has about the wreckage of the war/pro heroes during the war arc, his tears for Bakugou when B wakes up afterwards and how he tells Deku how cool he was and how much he admires him, in the current Bring Deku Home chapters — and try to envision a sleaze bag who learns that the bullshit he pulls won’t be tolerated, even if he’s still ultimately a skeeze LOL. i mean, he’s never going to drop that er…. appreciation for the female form. and i mean, hey, live your best life King, i’ve distinctly noticed a hand-fetish floating around on this site lately so i’m not gonna be like “NO men can’t like ANYTHING”. But the thing with him being a sleaze and open with his leering is like, he’s actively made the girls of his class uncomfortable with that in the past — how do you write it so that he’s not doing that in a position of power with the women he works with (and saves!), as an adult?? Maturity only goes so far. How much can I bank on the war and the subsequent bullshit they’re gonna face from it on…. transforming him??? It shouldn’t be up to the girls he’s learning with to police him, they’re just children. I have a vague gameplan for it — whether or not it works will be one thing; whether i can naturally shove it into the fic is another, LOL. Guess we’ll see. 🧐
SAYING ALL THAT,,,,, i’m actually really glad you liked (???) the ending scene with him because it’s my favourite LMAO lkdjflkdsjflkdjfkldsjf. 😭😭 Reader is by no means perfect, and she and Mineta both need to start treating each other with more respect, but her bullying of him was fun to write and I like imagining a Mineta who considers himself to be close with Deku (whether or not Deku thinks the same is up for debate) going along with it. i could see this version of Mineta being enough of a shit-stirrer to say something like, “gotta lock that shit down” to Deku LMAO kdfjlkdsjflkdsfjdklsfj and then getting left on a skyscraper somewhere…. RIP short King.
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To Dye For
Fandom: Boku no Hero Academia
Relationships: Dabi | Todoroki Toya & Todoroki Natsuo, Todoroki Family
Genre: Gen, Angst, Canon Compliant, Random Encounters, Character Study
Word Count: 1.6k | AO3 Link
Synopsis: Natsuo encounters a mysterious man in the hair care products aisle at the grocery store.
Warning: The following contains mild spoilers for the Endeavor Agency Arc and the Paranormal Liberation War Arc.
Natsuo stared at his reflection in the mirror and frowned.
As a college student, hustle and bustle filled his everyday life. He attended classes, studied diligently, moved from one deadline to another, and participated in extracurricular activities. It was a lot to get used to at first, but the newfound freedom he had was nothing short of amazing. He could do whatever he wanted whenever he wanted to, and he wouldn’t have it any other way.
When Natsuo had spare time, he would usually spend it going on dates with his girlfriend or visiting Rei at the hospital together with Fuyumi. As of late, however, he had little time to do either. School activities had caused his schedule to become more hectic. The upcoming final exams would signal the end of the academic year, and Natsuo had a lot of tasks to accomplish in preparation for them.
He had been so preoccupied with his responsibilities that before he knew it, the streaks at the sides of his hair had grown crimson.
Growing up, Natsuo detested the crimson strands on his head. He didn’t mind how they stood out against his predominantly white hair at first, but as his hatred for his father grew, the sentiment spread to the biological traits he inherited from him. He loathed how those crimson streaks were the same shade as his father’s. In time, Natsuo despised how their resemblance was uncanny. People had always pointed out how his face and frame looked like a younger version of Enji. It was one of his pet peeves.
Natsuo would never forget how, for a long while, he was prohibited from visiting his mother at the hospital because she couldn’t bear to see him. He reminded her too much of Enji, even though his father was as good as a stranger to him. Natsuo wasn’t like him at all, but even if that was the truth, his physical appearance alone was an undeniable indication that he was his son.
When he was in his early teens, he started bleaching and dyeing the six streaks of his hair white. He had a way to lessen his likeness to his father, and he took the opportunity to do so. Now, truth be told, Natsuo had come to the point where he was unused to seeing his crimson hair. It was an odd feeling, but he had learned to live with it.
In retrospect, he should’ve requested a touch-up last week when he went for a haircut at the barbershop, but he had been in a rush. He disliked freeloaders and didn’t want to be one, so he prioritized attending the group meeting he had instead. With a sigh, he shook his head but didn’t regret his choice. He considered dropping by the barbershop again but thought otherwise. He could do it by himself. It had been a while since he had done the bleaching process on his own, but it was simple enough. He could do it.
Natsuo slipped his navy blue coat on and went on his way to the grocery store near his dormitory. The winter chill felt soothing and nice against his skin. It eased his mind and relieved the stress he was under, and he felt glad he decided to go out today.
At the grocery store, he proceeded to the aisle of hair care products and grabbed his favorite brand of hair bleach kit. He hummed to the tune of the music playing through the speakers and looked around, wondering if the hair bleach kit would suffice since he had the other products he needed in the dormitory. Now that he thought about it, he could do some grocery shopping as well. He should get a shopping cart.
A fellow customer entered the area he was standing on. The lanky man wore a hooded jacket that covered the majority of his face. He had his hands inside his pockets as he browsed the shelves.
The man seemed to be someone around Natsuo’s age, more or less. Natsuo was taller than him but granted, he was taller and burlier than most of his peers. He wondered if he was also a college student like him and, if so, if he attended the same institution he did. Natsuo attempted to catch a glimpse of the man’s face but failed. The stranger wore sunglasses, obscuring his features even further, except for the ebony hair hanging across his forehead. Although uncertain, Natsuo considered the possibility of this stranger’s covered-up attire being connected to his Quirk.
With a gloved hand, the man picked up a box of black hair dye and read the description on the packaging.
Oh, no, Natsuo thought, Anything but that one.
“Hey, man,” Natsuo called, approaching the stranger in a friendly manner. “I wouldn’t recommend that brand. The quality isn’t very good.”
The man stiffened but, nevertheless, replied, “Is that so?”
“Yeah. I used that brand when I dyed my hair blond when I was younger, and it completely faded after a few washes.”
“Why?”
“Well, as I said, the quality is—”
“Not that,” the man interjected, not bothering to face Natsuo fully, “Why would you dye your hair blond?”
“Ah, well… to piss my old man off,” Natsuo admitted.
“Why?”
“He has this… rivalry with a certain blond man, so he hates him. I thought it would irritate him.”
Natsuo was oversharing, and he knew it. His hand came up to rub the nape of his neck as he chuckled in mild embarrassment. He had nothing to be embarrassed about when he was just answering the man’s question, right?
To his surprise, the man probed, curious about his story, “And? Did it do the trick?”
“Nah.” Natsuo shook his head. “He just glared at me for a bit and went back to pretending I don’t exist.”
The man let out a humorless chuckle. “Figures.”
Looking back, Natsuo realized how petty of a prank that was. Of course, the man would think so, too. “Yeah.”
There was a lull in the conversation. The man shifted his head to look at Natsuo.
Natsuo was unable to see the man’s face due to his sunglasses, but he could feel his eyes as they traveled from the hair bleach kit in his hand and then to his hair.
The stranger’s shoulders shook as he stifled a laugh. He turned away and placed the low-quality hair dye back on the shelf.
Natsuo scanned the items near him and pointed to a certain section. “If you’d like a really good hair dye, this is the brand I’d recommend.”
“There’s no need.” At a leisurely pace, the man turned around and made his way to the shelf across them, grabbing a medium-sized bottle.
Hair dye remover, Natsuo noted, which made no sense to him. Wasn’t he looking for hair dye?
The man inspected the item in his hand and put it inside his pocket.
Natsuo’s eyes widened at the scene in front of him. “Hey, what do you think you’re—”
Ignoring his question, the man stepped closer to Natsuo, and with amusement laced in his voice, spoke, “Make sure to watch the news, okay?”
Natsuo froze. Why did this person seem almost… familiar?
“See you around,” the man said and walked away, “Todoroki Natsuo.”
Alarm bells rang inside Natsuo’s head. This stranger called him by his full name. He had never introduced himself nor was he wearing anything that would give away his identity.
The second Natsuo was able to collect his thoughts and get over his initial panic, he ran after the man to question him, but he was nowhere to be found. The security alarms didn’t go off despite the man stealing something from the grocery store, his escape successful.
Natsuo reported the shoplifting incident to a staff member. Since the man’s physical appearance was too obscured, the authorities had very little clue to his identity. They recorded the theft but could do nothing much about it, ultimately deciding to watch out for similar incidents from now on. When they asked Natsuo if there was anything else he had to say, Natsuo contemplated it but chose not to inform the authorities of the fact that the man knew his identity and was, most likely, after him.
On his way back to the dormitory, Natsuo clutched the handle of the paper bag of hair products in his fist, wary of his surroundings. He couldn’t help it. Having been targeted and attacked by a villain in the past, he had to stay vigilant. Moreover, why did that person tell him to watch the news? The crime he committed was theft—a petty one at that—and would hardly be worth a headline.
Still, it worried Natsuo. He sent Fuyumi a message subtly informing her of his whereabouts in case something happens to him. Not wanting to cause her unnecessary panic, he decided to leave out the details of the encounter he had at the grocery store. He’d tell her later, but for now, he reminded her to take care of herself. Shoto was at U.A., at least, he would be fine there. Rei would be safe at the hospital while Endeavor could handle himself.
Natsuo boarded the train and sat down. He set his elbows on his knees and shut his eyes, the pads of the fingertips of his right hand gently touching their counterparts on his left as he leaned forward and bowed his head, lost in thought.
Who was that man?
The question plagued his mind for a long time but held no answer.
Notes: This was supposed to be a humorous fic… but here we are.
When I was writing this story, I thought a lot about that panel in Chapter 302 where Rei said she “started seeing hints of [Enji] in the children’s faces,” and while Shoto’s left side was shown, Natsuo’s entire face was beside him.
I hope you’re all enjoying Season 5 so far. Thank you for reading! ♡
BNHA Masterlist | Main Masterlist
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Night Owl
WARNING: SLIGHT SPOILER FOR PAST THE END OF SEASON 4!!
Summary: Shinsou has recently joined class 2-A. He’s always seemed to be a little tired, but is it your imagination or are those bags under his eyes getting darker?
Warning(s): Small use of language, that’s all!
Pairing: Shinsou Hitoshi x Reader
Genre: Fluff, honestly just fluff uwu
Word Count: 2,700+
A/N: Hello and welcome to my first bnha fic!! I’ve written quite a bit of fanfiction but this is my first time doing it on tumblr :3 Also yes, this fic is technically set in the class’s second year, and with my headcanon of Shinsou being placed into class 1-A (or I guess 2-A now) because I won’t accept it any other way. I’m also considering taking requests if anyone is interested in that (:
You puff out your cheeks, brows furrowed deep with thought. Aizawa’s droning lecture faded into the background as your focus deepened. Chin resting in your hand, you tilted your head as your eyes burned (metaphorical) holes into the back of Shinsou’s head. While you had known of him for a while because of the sports festival, you’d only begun to actually know Shinsou much more recently. Watching him during his secret-but-obvious test for the hero course was fascinating, and it was clear to your entire class that he had the potential to become a great hero. As soon as Aizawa announced that he had passed his test, your class had been persistent in persuading your teacher to add him into your class. Something must have worked, or maybe it was just by chance, but it was announced that 1-A would be receiving a new classmate the following school year.
Unsurprisingly, Shinsou fit into your class well. He seemed a bit reluctant to try to connect at first, maybe nervous to be put into such a new atmosphere, along with the pressure of now being a part of the hero course. But really, all it took was one night of you, Kaminari, and Kirishima forcing him to play a Mario Kart tournament and he settled right in. Since then, you found yourself getting along with Shinsou pretty well. It felt like the two of you shared a sort of natural connection, and you were sure he had to feel it too.
But there was a problem. A personal problem, for you really, because Shinsou was hot. And it was fine before he joined the class, really. You were simply content to occasionally see him around school, daydream from afar of running your fingers through his luscious hair while he had no idea who you were.
It was MUCH harder to innocently have those thoughts with the two of you being friends, and when he now sat in the seat directly in front of you. It was actually harder and easier; easier to get side tracked and zone out staring at him, and a lot harder when you’d miss important parts of class or, even worse, he’d almost catch you staring.
You couldn’t help but stare at him now, though. You’d seen him almost nod off in class at least three times today, and while Aizawa’s lectures could feel long winded, Shinsou didn’t seem the type to knock out in the middle of class. Something is definitely off about him today.
“Y/L/N.” You shot up straight in your chair at the sound of your name, panicked eyes meeting those of your teacher. “I hope you’re paying attention to class today, or do you find the back of Shinsou’s head to be more interesting?” Your cheeks flared with heat as the bell rang, saving you from having to give some kind of answer. Aizawa’s eyes glittered with something that you couldn’t quite read, but had you tensing up even more regardless. “There will be a quiz on all of this next week, so come prepared. You’re dismissed.”
Several of your classmates groaned about the quiz the second Aizawa left the room, and you were pretty sure Kaminari was crying. But it all faded into the background as you shoved everything on your desk into your bag, prepared to make a desperate not-quite-running fast walk out of the room when Shinsou turned his chair around and planted his hands on your desk. Ah shit, I was too slow.
“Soooo y/n,” he drawled, leaning down to rest his head on his folded arms. He blinked up at you through lidded eyes, a small lazy grin resting on his face. Oh god it should be illegal to look that good. “Is there something I can help you with?”
You willed your cheeks to not become even redder and slung your bag over your shoulder. You flashed him a wide grin, “Class can get so boring when it’s not hero stuff. And I mean, can you blame me for wondering how you get your hair to look so soft?” Shinsou’s eyebrows quirked up and his grin spread further.
He sat up in his chair with a mischievous look on his face. “What can I say? Having hair this gorgeous is a burden I must bear.”
“You poor soul, braver than Japan’s pro-heroes,” You reply, one hand on your heart and the other wiping away a fake tear. He gave a small laugh and you found yourself lost in his lovely purple eyes, eyes that took your breath away and made your heart do a flip inside your chest. But your grin slipped away as you really looked at him. Is it just me, or do the bags under his eyes seem darker than normal?
“But really Shinsou, I kinda noticed that you almost fell asleep like three times in just the last hour and, well, I was wondering if you’re doing okay?” Your hands gripped your skirt as you looked down at your feet, toeing at the leg of your desk. “I mean, I don’t want to be too intrusive or anything, but I just wanted to let you know that if- if you need anything…” You trailed off, looking back up at him.
His smile faltered and his eyes slid away from yours. He brought a hand up to run through his hair. “Ahh yeah, it really isn’t a big deal. I’m just a little tired.” He then stood up and grabbed his bag, backing away from your desk. “Anyway I should probably study for that quiz, I’ll see you around, y/n.” You blinked and Shinsou was already out of the room.
You stood there for a second, feeling lost at his sudden rush to leave. I know that I was hoping to make a quick escape before too, but I don’t understand? Why did he just leave?
You were shaken out of your stupor when a pair of hands wrapped themselves around your arm and started to tug you towards the door.
“Hellooo?? Earth to y/n? Anyone there?” Mina called as she led you out of the classroom, waving a hand in front of your face. “Or are you too busy thinking about a certain purple haired boy named Sh-”
“Mina!!” You hiss, cutting your friend off as she cackled to herself. “I will literally destroy you if you try to finish that sentence,” you say, shooting her your best pouty glare. She withdrew her hands from your arm, holding them up in front of her in surrender.
“Okay, okay! Will not mention mister hot-and-broody outside of our rooms, got it,” Mina said, giving you a mock salute. You playfully slap your hands at her as she easily dances out of your reach, laughing gleefully at your feeble attempts. “Come on though, y/n/n, what was up with you today? You must have been really zoned out for Aizawa to have called you out like that during class.” The two of you passed through the doorway to outside, heading towards the dorms.
You huff out a sigh, clasping your hands together. “I know that I probably watch him a lot more than you do, but haven’t you noticed that Shinsou has been kinda out of it this week? Like he was super into class and hung out with everyone, but now he just looks, I dunno know, exhausted? Eternally tired? I’m worried about him,” You confessed.
Mina hummed in thought, staring down the path that led towards your building. “Did you try just asking him if he was alright?”
“Yeah, I did today. He said he was fine but he was definitely lying,” you say, frustrated. “His eyes were one hundred percent more dead than they usually are. And I don’t want to seem insensitive or force it out of him, I just wish he would let me help with whatever the hell is bugging him, cause I care about him, you know?”
You look over at Mina with big, sad puppy dog eyes. “Oh y/n/n,” she coos, wrapping her arms around your shoulders and smooshing you into her as tightly as possible. “I know you’ll find a way to help him. You’re the purest, most kind soul in our entire class. Plus your looove for Mr. Purple is stronger than any- EEEEK!” Mina shrieked as you tickled her sides.
“I WARNED YOU!! ” You shouted over your shoulder, laughing as you sprinted into your class’s dorm building, Mina yelling and giving chase just a few steps behind.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
You rolled over in bed, huffing out a sigh as you looked at the clock.
2:38A.M.
“Uhhhhggg,” you groan out. You’d been trying to fall asleep since eleven, but apparently your mind was set against resting. You slapped your hand over to your bedside table, grabbing your water cup, trying to take a sip but getting nothing.
“Empty? You gotta be fucking kidding me right now,” you mutter out loud to yourself. With an annoyed sigh, you roll out of bed and make your way down to the kitchen.
You step out into the common room and stop short of the kitchen, hearing a faint sound from the living room. Did someone leave the T.V. on? Tip-toeing, you head towards the living room to turn off the television, but freeze behind the couch when you notice that it’s occupied with a lump of a person under a blanket. Who the hell is asleep on the couch??
And then the lump moved.
Okay not asleep. Oh god what if they think I’m being creepy and watching them?? Gotta go gotta go gotta-
“Hey who’s there?” The muffled voice makes you stop in your tracks, and you watch the mystery person sit up and turn around.
You blink. “Shinsou. What are you doing down here still?” You ask, his face bathed in shadows from being backlit by the T.V.
“Oh, y/n/n it’s you,” he says, flopping backwards onto the couch. You make your way around the side, setting your water cup on the coffee table before collapsing down next to him. You run your gaze over his face, taking in the heavy lidded, bloodshot eyes, his messy unkempt hair.
“Have you slept at all tonight?” You ask, trying to casually probe to see how he’s doing. “Or is it a binge-shows-until-the-sun-rises kind of night?”
He huffs an amused sigh, fixing his eyes on you from his corner of the couch. “Well I didn’t really mean to be awake still, but here I am.” You flash him a sympathetic smile. “Hey, listen,” he says, becoming a little more serious. “I know that you were worried about me in class today, and it really isn’t a big deal, but the truth is, I just sort of have a tough time getting comfortable in new places.”
“Oh,” you say quietly, putting the pieces together. “So you probably haven’t been sleeping well lately since you moved into our building.”
“Yeah not really,” he admits. “And there’s something else- but it’s stupid, really.”
“I’m sure it’s not,” you assure him, scooching closer.
“No, no it is, I shouldn’t have even brought it up,” he says, shaking his head. You do a big scooch along the couch, getting even closer and start to poke him all along his side. His mouth splits into a toothy grin as he starts to try and shove your hands away.
“Shinsoouuu,” You coo, your pokes becoming incessant as he laughs and grabs for your hands to stop you. His hands find your wrists, flipping you over and pinning you on your back. You freeze, blushing furiously and blinking up at him in surprise. You become hyper aware of the way he was straddling your body, his knees on either side of your hips. His hands held down your wrists as he leaned over you, some of his hair hanging down to tickle your face, his nose a few inches away from yours. “Well that was uh, kinda fun,” you breathe.
He was completely still for a moment, seeming as surprised as you were. Then he was releasing your wrists, moving back off of you and onto the couch. “Sorry, I got caught up in the moment,” he says, running his hand through his hair and averting his eyes. Your breath caught in your throat at the sight of him. Is… is he blushing??
“It’s okay, you really don’t need to apologize,” you say, giving him a shy smile. “I didn’t mind at all.”
Shinsou looks up at that, and seems to come to a decision. “So, the stupid thing that I mentioned? I had to leave my cat at home when I first moved into the dorms, and I sleep worse without having her to cuddle every night,” he says. “I even got this like, weighted blanket thinking that it’d help? And it kind of does but not always. It doesn’t have the same feeling, you know?”
Your heart went out to him in sympathy, understanding. It must be hard having to say goodbye to his cat. “Shinsou I-”
“And I’m sort of a night owl anyways, but without Muffin I just can’t seem to sleep well.” He concludes. “So yeah, that’s it. Silly, right?”
You reach out and firmly take his hands in your own. “No, it’s not silly. It’s normal to feel sad having to leave your pet, I’m sure you really love Muffin” you say, looking down at your joined hands. “Sometimes it can take awhile to adjust. I know I was anxious during the first few weeks moving on campus, and it’s probably extra hard having to move again.” You look back up at him. “I just wish there was some way I could help.”
You start to pull away, but his grip on your hands tightens. “Maybe there is a way? For you to help?” he says hesitantly. Shinsou looks up at you through his lashes, eyes lidded, hair messy, cheeks flushed- and whatever it is he was about to ask you to do, you were already sold. If he keeps looking at me like that I might stop breathing.
“You could stay down here with me so I can fall asleep, just for tonight?” He asks quietly.
“Yes,” you breathe. “Of course I will.”
Shinsou worked his way back to where he’d laid his pillow on the couch, scooping his blanket up from the floor. He fluffed the pillow and moved to the inside of the couch, against the back cushions.
He looked back at you with a tired smile, and patted the space beside him. “Ready to sleep, kitten?”
You inhaled sharply and your heart skipped a beat, every part of your body melting at the nickname. You crawled across the cushions, settling on your side facing Shinsou. He sprawled out beside you, pulling the blanket up over your bodies. He turned onto his side, his eyes meeting yours.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve had a sleepover,” he whispered, making you smile. He shifted a little bit, and asked, “Hey y/n, can- can I hold you?”
“Yeah, sure,” you whisper back, face warming. He moves closer, sliding an arm around your waist and pulling you into him. You take a deep breath and close your eyes in bliss, enjoying the feeling of being held close by Shinsou. “You know,” you murmur to him. “I think I almost passed out at the new nickname.”
You feel the vibration of his laughter through his chest. “Are you saying I should call you that from now on, kitten?” You feel a big grin spread onto your face as you let the nickname sink into you.
“I don’t know if I’ll be able to function right if you call me that all the time,” you mumble, nuzzling into his chest. Shinsou reaches up and runs a hand through your hair.
“Special occasions only, then,” he whispers, letting his hand fall down to your waist again and fully settling in. You feel Shinsou’s breathing evening out, the tension in his body leaving as the both of you edge towards sleep. Before drifting off, you hear Shinsou murmur, “Thank you, y/n. I’m glad I have you.”
“Always, Shinsou.”
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I was gonna do a “missing the point”-style meme but I’m honestly not sure that would even work tho so:
Harry Potter and My Hero Academia/Boku no Hero Academia have similar issues with introducing and then immediately ignoring ENORMOUS issues re: ableism.
I think these two series in specific come to mind bc it’s ableism within a specific empowered community, and in both cases the series are pretty well-known and the community (Wix/Heroes) are immediately identifiable to many audiences.
[WARNING: Discussions of ableism, child harm, and abuse on multiple levels.]
What’s the problem?
SQUIBS.
[This post got stupid huge SO here is a tl,dr for all you lovely people who understandably have no time for this.
TL, DR: Both Harry Potter and Boku No Hero have a bad tendency to implement or imply a level of disability regarding unempowered people in empowered societies. They then continue on to completely disregard important conclusions to these implications, such as how heavily it is implied that these unempowered people (Squibs) are so ‘worthless’ to those societies that their very deaths are merely a byline rather than an actual tragedy.
This is especially troubling in MHA/BNHA when so many other political and worldbuilding considerations HAVE been planned out, and seems to be less-discussed in the fandom as a whole, so that’s a much larger chunk of this post.]
That’s your tl, dr!
Here’s the Harry Potter angle:
HP has a bit that I’ve seen people discussing already: Neville’s magic was discovered when his uncle dropped a literal child a potenial lethal distance.
Neville activating his power and surviving is celebrated, and then JKR immediately glosses over the glaring issue this has introduced: the heavy implication that a Squib dying from this incident would have not have been mourned or even really commented on.
The few adult Squibs (and isn’t that a whole new slice of wonderful /j) are generally disliked and ridiculed for some reason or other. Now, while obviously there are plenty of places where the Venn diagram of “disabled” and “asshole” intersect irl, when your ONLY presentation of a disabled character or group is, every time, an asshole or a fool or both, boy! That’s bad!
Neville (who is generally presented as magically, physically, and mentally weak and often treated as comic relief) is a bit better via the POV Character constantly having positive interactions with him, but this is still a mess. Yes, Neville canonically is not a Squib, but it’s not subtle that he’s on the cusp OF being a Squib, and that is a key element of ridiculing him in many situations (also the whole trauma thing multiple times, like if I really get into it I could do a whole double-size post of how Neville was done dirty or nearly dirty by JK all the time but this isn’t that post).
This isn’t even the point of this post. Let’s move to MHA/BNHA
Hero Academia has differing but honestly even worse issues. And I’m aware that different countries handle ableism and accessibility in different ways, but if you think too hard about it this is an absolute clusterfuck.
What is the problem now?
Squibs! Or rather, the main character of the series, Midoriya Izuku.
Deku (a nickname meaning “useless”! Imparted after his disability is recognized! hilarity!!) is also born without powers. Even worse in some ways, he is born without powers in a world where the overwhelming majority of the global population has some kind of empowerment. I can’t recall if it’s outright stated or only implied that someone with a functionally useless (and hoo boy, usefullness to society is its own post nope not today i do not have that much energy) Quirk is still more of a person than a Quirkless human.
That sink in? Okay, let’s move on.
In a narratively not-uncommon turn of events, Deku gains power. This is partially a product of, and directly tied to, his own work and determination, as well as his willingness to help even when physically outmatched.
To an American audience (NOT the intended audience though I wouldn’t doubt it if Horikoshi meant to have international appeal more or less from the start), this is a deeply satisfying narrative. Who doesn’t love an underdog story? And we even learn that the strongest hero of all time (til this point, anyways) was ALSO born Quirkless!
However, from here, things take a nosedive.
The key problem is a combination of story progression and overall thought put into worldbuilding. Horikoshi’s efforts may not be the MOST thorough, but he has put a great deal of work and thought into his creation (he at least understands the concept of implications and sometimes plans accordingly, looking at you JKR). However, that tied with story progression and personal repercussions actually works to the detriment of the matter.
Especially given recent turns of events.
[BIG MEGA SPOILERS FOR FAIRLY RECENT PLOT
STOP HERE IF YOU’RE NOT CAUGHT UP
SERIOUSLY]
What I mean by this is the current state of events re: two particular recent/recent-ish plot arcs.
First, Quirk Removal, and second, Endeavor’s comeuppance.
Quirk Removal/Loss was the start of my realization to what the narrative was doing regarding Izuku’s Quirklessness and the state of being overall.
This arc was a perfect time to bring up Midoriya’s past! A lot of Western works certainly would have done so! And yes, it may be bordering on done-to-death, but many elements of Hero Academia put new twists on common themes and cliches; it wasn’t unreasonable to hope that he might do it again.
Instead, little to NOTHING is discussed during this time! In fact, iirc I’d go so far as to say Midoriya straight-up never considers his past at any point during this arc!? If I’m wrong then it obviously made little impact.
NOW, not every disabled character needs to incorporate their disability and/or skills gleaned from living with it in every narrative. In fact, it would get tedious and questionable if they did (note: this does NOT mean ignoring/forgetting the character is even disabled when convenient. Like, I’d like to think that’s the obvious point of this post but... *gestures at tumblr*).
But the complete lack of it here feels really weird. Like, almost hollow. I think Midoriya makes some kind of suggestion to Mirio of his former Quirklessness at the end of the arc, but nothing that made any kind of impact.
Let’s move on.
Endeavor.
Now, the problem with Endeavor’s arc is not the arc itself. Or, rather, it’s the fact that Endeavor’s Comeuppance is pretty good.
This is a problem because someone else should be getting this exact same arc, yet the issue is never even RECOGNIZED, let alone addressed.
Endeavor’s abuse of his wife and children, all in the name of creating a Heroic legacy, is publicized and tanks his popularity. The general public is now aware of what he’s done to the people closest to him, which aside from giving him a more correct reputation, means they can’t trust him to protect them if they can’t trust him to protect his own family.
This isn’t the goal of this post and I’m no expert regardless, but up to this point (around chapter 290) this was handled in an interesting way. Endeavor is humanized and often shown interacting with people in a way that, while often domineering, isn’t always aggressive or abusive. He runs a Hero Agency for crying out loud! But abuse in the real world often isn’t constant, nor happening to everyone in contact with the abuser. So this is a surprisingly good lead up to the reveal, where you can understand how most people never realized this was an issue.
But here’s my main point. Let’s examine some traits and actions that come up:
physically abusive to a child (often dangerously so) to the point of permanent trauma and severe scarring in some cases
target of abuse was weaker (physically and/or regarding Quirk power)
often abused victim emotionally/psychologically, bringing this weakness up again and again
own immense power led to rising in the world of Heroics
comrades, fellow Heroes, UA teachers etc. not aware of prior abuse issues
Who does this sound like?
Endeavor, who has a whole fucking arc dedicated to this reveal and repercussions?
Or Bakugou?
Reminder: This isn’t a hate post. This isn’t a character post, or even an abuse post. This is about ableism.
Bakugou exhibits many, many traits and actions that Endeavor was literally just punished for. So why does the treatment of these characters in-universe differ so drastically?
Two primary reasons I can think of, which feed into each other:
1) Bakugou was a child (still technically is a minor, remember! Still a first-year high schooler!) when this started. This doesn’t mean he’s strictly innocent, but it’s an important point, because it leads us to
2) Bakugou Katsuki’s abuse of Midoriya Izuku is socially accepted.
Reminder of the audience’s first encounter with Katsuki. The very first page with him is him and his grade-school posse picking on a kid that Izuku is trying to protect. His posse is showing off their Quirk powers and mocking Izuku’s lack thereof.
Then we flash forward to late-middle school versions of the kids. Bakugou, in front of a fucking teacher and entire class, is verbally, physically, etc. abusive to Izuku. He trashes his stuff, threatens him, tells him to kill himself (which, as Izuku notes later, is a fucking felony in Japan too).
No one stops him.
No one criticizes him.
We don’t even get a shot of like, some more ‘regular’ students being like “man Bakugou’s kinda fucked up but we’re too scared to do anything about it” NO. NO. Everyone more or less either backs Katsuki up or straight up doesn’t care.
Remember that this started when Katsuki and Izuku were four. Remember that Katsuki’s power is absurdly dangerous, ie. LITERAL. GODDAMN. EXPLOSIONS.
Izuku has scars. He probably has hearing loss! He may have gotten at least one concussion which can cause serious neurological issues and open him up to further risk!
He could have died.
And?
NO ONE. DOES. ANYTHING.
THIS is the point of the post. THIS is the value placed on Quirkless people in this society.
And yet. Despite Endeavor’s comeuppance. Despite All Might and Izuku’s blatant ‘value’ to society through Heroics. Despite so many other political implications and quandaries address in the Hero Academia series.
Nothing. Nothing. Nothing about this is addressed. The nearly-lethal ableism towards Quirkless people in this society is never ONCE brought up properly once Izuku receives One For All.
There is so much potential here! There is so much worth talking about! And yet we’ve moved into what feels very much like the Final Battle without it being addessed, despite numerous, numerous opportunities for a meaningful conversation about it along the way.
Mirio losing his power! Hell, Mirio’s powers’ drawbacks (and pretty much every Quirk’s drawback! if acknowledged properly!) border on a disability-analogue, and even more when Yuga’s laser comes up, and yet again and again we fail to truly engage with the matter in a meaningful way.
At this point, even if it comes up in the finale, I’m going to be disappointed in this particular aspect of the series due to the complete and total shut-down it’s been given so far.
What the FUCK, Horikoshi?
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