Viewer Log: My Hero Academia ep 52

Prepping for tests in the My Hero Academia world sure does look more exciting than here, doesn't it?

Last time on My Hero Academia, it was moving day! Our young heroes-in-training all gathered to move into the spacious Heights Alliance dorm building. Uraraka had a couple of fainting spells, as her rather humble background makes this building the nicest that she has ever lived in by far. The students made a game out of who has the best room, and obviously pick on each other’s tastes in décor. Izuku’s is All Might themed, Todoroki’s is incredibly Japanese, and everyone flat out refuses to see Mineta’s. After deciding Sero the sugar-powered Strongman had the best room, he got the entire female vote due to his baking skills, Izuku and the others from the Bakugo rescue team were called outside by Uraraka. She brings them to Tsu, who vents a little about being frustrated about the whole situation, from her friends harrying off and getting hurt, to her not helping even slightly, and not knowing how to feel now that everything is said and done. But most of all she didn’t like feeling awkward around her friends and wanted to vent to hopefully speed things up to the ‘everyone gets along again’ stage. Which they do. Now that the move is finished, and some relationships have been repaired, let’s finish off this latest My Hero Academia splurge of mine with some special moves. Let’s get to it, shall we?

 

How do you think All Might would react to this room?
Would he be happy? Creeped out? Both?

We open with a clip from last episode, of All Might telling Izuku that he’s lost his powers and is going to go into teaching full time. And him yelling at Izuku for rushing headlong into battle and then complimenting his ability to avoid battle. Izuku then wakes up, and is at first a little disorientated at being in his new dorm room but remembers after a few seconds. He explains that it took a few days to get into the new routine, but he and his classmates have gotten used to their new living arraignment by the time class resumes. 

 

On their first day back, Aizawa reiterates that the focus of their summer training (it’s Japan, they have year-round school) was and still is to prepare them for taking the Provisional License exams in about two weeks. The test will give them Provisional Licenses, which basically means that they can help out in stopping crimes or natural disasters so long as they have supervision of some kind. It’s not the same thing as pro work, but a certain green haired young man wouldn’t be at risk for being arrested for helping in Hero situations anymore. So that’s a plus. As the reward is pretty nice, Aizawa stresses that the test is incredibly difficult and mentions that only about 50% of students that apply pass. In order to improve their chances of success, the focus of the next few days will be on perfecting special moves. It’s something they would have gotten started at during the summer training camp, if it hadn’t been assaulted. He brings in Ectoplasm, Midnight and Cementoss to help with the training and takes the kids to training room Gama.

They're all ready and raring to go. Except Koda,
his natural setting is bashful.

 

The theory that they’re working on is, that having a special move (think like Goku’s Kamehameha from DBZ or Naruto’s Rasengan, or any other attack that the protagonist screams the name of) will hone the kid’s skills overall and thus increase their odds of being in the fifty percent that passes. It’s not entirely combat orientated either, as the teachers mention that Iida’s recipro burst counts as one, as does the hero Kamui Woods’ Lacquered Chain Prison. It’s just a skill that only the student can do which would help in deadly situations. The kids get to work, with Cementoss using his concrete manipulation powers to warp the field, Ectoplasm using his clones to give the kids sparring partners, and Midnight… is there. The kids are also encouraged to use the next ten days to figure out ways to improve their costumes and submit alterations to the Support Course.

 

Well, he still gets points for trying, damn it!

The kids jump whole hog into training. For some it’s easy, like Ashido developing an acid spray attack in like 30 seconds, and for some it’s harder, like Ojiro who apparently needs to figure out how to fight without his massive tail… which is his superpower. Izuku, naturally, is one that it’s harder for, as he’s worried about putting too much strain on his ligaments. All Might stops in, as he’s still on leave and recovering alone is boring. He’s impressed with seeing some of the student’s progress, like when Bakugo obliterates his Ectoplasm sparring buddy, but notes his protegee’s issues. He goes up to Izuku, whom asks the same “how do I fight without damaging my hands?” question. All Might advices him that he’s still trying too hard to imitate All Might and that Izuku should think for himself. He then harries off to help other students, mentally telling us that he’s intentionally not giving Izuku the answer, in the hopes that this will help sharpen the boy’s already keen mind. He helps a few students with minor tips, which impresses Aizawa a little, until he sees the Teaching For Dummies book in All Might’s back pocket. Hey, he still get’s points for trying.

Two of the best, "Holy Crap, what just happened?"
faces I've seen in anime.

 

Izuku, not having much luck with his special move training, elects to visit the Support Course and see if they have or could make him a brace to help take some stress off his arms. He’s joined by Uraraka and Iida a few moments before going in. The former is looking for something to help her with her nausea when she floats herself, and the latter looking for something to improve his leg’s radiator so recipro burst doesn’t stall out his legs as quickly. Izuku opens the door and get’s blasted clear across the hall. No, Bakugo wasn’t on the other side, instead, he’d been hit by a failed experiment by Support student and tech super geek Mae Hatsume… as well as by said student. The Support Course homeroom teacher Powerloader comes out a moment later and chastises Hatsume for nearly blowing up the building, but she’s not listening as she’s partially distracted by Izuku’s surprisingly muscular form. After a minor freak out by Izuku… and Uraraka, at Hatsume’s boobs being pressed up against Izuku, they reintroduce themselves to her. She claims to have no memory of meeting them, or using Iida to show off her gear, during the Sports Festival earlier that year. When Izuku mentions getting new gear for his hands, though, Hatsume quite literally jumps at giving him some new toys to play with, but Powerloader cuts her off.

 

He explains to the students that he’ll do any small changes to their costumes himself, as he’s licensed for it, but any large-scale changes will require them sending their costumes in for one of the school affiliated support companies to retool and upgrade. But it’s a pretty quick turnaround, three-day average for big changes. Izuku asks again about some kind of glove or bracer to help with his hands, to which Powerloader thinks is doable. Their conversation is interrupted by Hatsume feeling up Izuku again, to size him up for one of her gadgets, I’m sure. She offer him use of a suit of powered armor to help, but unfortunately hers is more HAMMER Industries than Stark Tech, and immediately almost snaps his spine turning his around at the waist. Hatsume isn’t too put off by the failure, and admits she could use the design as a capture weapon so she’s still excited. Iida tries to stealthily ask Powerloader for something for his legs, but Hatsume apparently has the ears of a bat along with telescopic eyes and offers him one of her toys. Her solution is to give his jet thrusters for his arms, which immediately cause him to hit the ceiling. He starts yelling at Hatsume for offering him something, untested, for his arms, when he asked for something for his legs, to which Hatsume cheerily points out, if you want to reduce stress on your legs, use your arms instead. This causes a lightbulb to go off in Izuku’s head and he starts puzzling. While that’s going on and Hatsume is busy looking through her gadgets for something to help, Powerloader apologizes for her… zeal. He reveals, though, that Hatsume is one of those students that is constantly putting in extra effort, constantly designing and redesigning tech even in her off hours. She’s basically the Izuku of the support course, constantly trying, often failing, but never stopping. Izuku finally gets his thoughts in order and asks Iida to show him some things. The confusion of that statement is heightened by Hatsume offering Uraraka a barrel of some kind that would somehow help her nausea, that promptly explodes. I think Hatsume might have a problem.

While I like his suit upgrades overall, I'm still not certain
his hero name with be Deku and not something like the 
Emerald Hare or Jade Jackrabbit.

 

Over the next four days, the other students are constantly training, fighting and improving. Some have added new gear, some have rapidly increased their damage capacity, and Izuku finally gets his new gear. We see that he did indeed get some gloves to help reduce strain on his hands, overall the upper part of his suit is till at least based off his mother’s design. We don’t see the biggest change until about a minute later. In gym Gama, All Might visits again and is impressed by the student’s rapid improvement. Tokoyami has gotten to the point where he can wear Dark Shadow like armor, increasing his own strength and power, which he dubbed the Abyssal Black Body. Which is so metal, I’m surprised he isn’t headbanging. Bakugo has developed a super focused version of his blasts which he dubbed the AP (Armor Piercing) shot. He blows a neat hole in come concrete, much to his own joy, but the piece falls towards a now powerless All Might’s head. Before anyone else can react, Izuku jumps into the air, and shatters the piece into dust, showing off his new armored boots and legs. He figured out that because All Might had always used punches, he’d been subconsciously copying him, assuming that was the natural way to do it. His arms just aren’t designed for that kind of heavy use and abuse. So, if he can’t use his arms, he’ll just use his legs. Thus, Izuku Midoriya has developed his new fighting style, One for All Full Cowling, Shoot Style. The evidence of a bunny motif just keeps piling up.

 

Well, that feels like a good place to stop for now. Technically, it’s the start of the next arc, the test to get their Provisional Licenses, but this still feels like a slightly stronger ending than just making up with Tsu. The students are all growing and prepping for their next big test, and Izuku has finally found a way to keep fighting as a hero without further risking his hands. Progress all around. I liked seeing how each of the students we took a moment to focus on went about developing their special moves. Tokoyami is trying to perfect his control of Dark Shadow, and made a technique that really shows off that control. Bakugo is all about power, so he found a way to focus his power down to a super blast. Meanwhile, people like Uraraka and Iida sought out new tech to overcome physical limitations and improve their skills. While we didn’t see it pay off here, in the test itself their choices in new gear will be shown off. And I laughed fairly hard at the bit where Izuku got blown away, got a little too close to Hatsume, and how he and Uraraka were utterly aghast when they realized her boobs were on him. Just a very teenage reaction. And I liked seeing more of Hatsume. The girl has a really fun energy about her. I liked that she’s such a gear head that, apparently, she can forget the details of students she seemed to have gotten fairly close with in their last outing. Not in a malicious way, but in a “I need more room for Baby designs, out go names and using people memories” way. I honestly hope she ends up being the chief designer of most of the 1A student’s gear by the time the graduate. Some fans might hope that Melissa Shields from the movie might be reintroduced and take that part, but I don’t think she holds a candle to Hatsume’s personality. And Izuku realizing the flaw in his fighting style and figuring out how to employ his power without hurting his hands is a nice visual to close out on. It’s one example that I like to think proves All For One wrong, that Izuku is improving with All Might’s help not in spite of it. But then, All For One is trying to create a monster that can work on it’s own, where All Might is trying to create someone who can stand on his own but is still supported by others. Different end goals for their students necessitate different training styles. Or so I think. When we return, we’ll be seeing class 1A preparing to take on the best and brightest of other hero highs for the right of a provisional license. It’s going to be a heck of a fight.

 

I’m not sure what I’ll be doing next, but we’ll be taking a bit of a break from My Hero Academia. If you have any suggestions of a show that you’d like me to cover a few episodes of, or a character you want me to do a profile of, or a topic you want to hear my take on, just let me know in the comments. Have a good night! And stay safe if you can. 

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Twitter: @BasicsSuperhero

Viewer Log: My Hero Academia ep 51

The students take a day to relax and judge each other's personal space... hooray?

Last time on My Hero Academia, Japan had to start adjusting to living in a world without All Might. Officials in the police had already decided that changes had to be made to how they do things in a world post All Might. All Might scolded Izuku for getting involved with the Bakugo rescue when he was told specifically not to, but then also praises his innovative thinking and the actual rescue he performed. The following day, the All Might and the homeroom teachers were sent out to convince parents to sign off allowing UA to switch to a dorm system for their kids. Surprisingly, the hardest sell we were shown wasn’t the Bakugos, they were 100% for Katsuki continuing at the school despite the kidnapping, but Mrs. Midoriya. The anxiety filled mother of one wasn’t sure she felt comfortable sending her son back to UA given his multiple, horrible injuries, the kidnapping, and injuries Izuku had already received. All Might is able to sway her by telling her that he believes Izuku will be the next Symbol of Peace and literally begs for the opportunity to train him earnestly. She agreed, so long as he promised to live for and train her son, not die for him. Alright, enough recap, let’s get to it, shall we?

 

We open once again on the last minute or so of the previous episode, All Might begging on his hands and knees to train Izuku, and Mrs. Midoriya agreeing. We get a little of Mrs. M’s internal monologue this time, though, and we learn that she hopes Izuku appreciates how much respect his master has for him. Izuku shows All Might out, with the former hero saying that Inko Midoriya reminds him of Nana Shigure in a way. He initially jokes that it’s the hairstyle, but then elaborates that both women have hero’s hearts.

Mama Midoriya isn't crying, you're crying! 

Three days later, the students of class 1A gather at their new dormitory building. They must have worked some construction types all day and night to get six buildings (two buildings per year) in that amount of time. Overhead, Mr. Nezu watches the new dorms and admits to himself (and us) that the dorms aren’t just for student welfare, but also to keep an eye on them. After the multiple attacks on the school, including the one at the training camp that should have been impossible to find, Mr. Nezu has to admit that there is an information leak at the school. And, while it pains him to think of it, they can’t rule out one of the students. So, they’ll be doing some covert monitoring of their charges at the dorm to see if anyone isn’t on the up-and-up. Feels dishonest, but I do agree that we can’t rule anyone out, aside from Izuku obviously.

 

Aizawa greets the students. After a few pleasantries, Aizawa admits that were it up to him, and All Might’s final battle wasn’t so widely televised, he’d expel everyone except Bakugo, Jiro and Hagakure from his class. While giving Izuku, Todoroki, Iida, Kirishima and Yaoyorozu the boot makes sense, he rightly deduced that everyone aside from the three mentioned before knew about the plan and did nothing to stop the five from going. He basically tells everyone that they need to follow the rules to the letter or they’ll be on his $*#% list. On a less dreary note he lets them know he’ll explain more about the provisional license test that they were preparing for during that interrupted summer camp soon, and walks into the building to show off the new digs to the kids. Before entering, sensing the dreary mood that settled over things, Bakugo did the kindest thing I think I’ve ever seen him do… for Bakugo. He grabbed Kaminari, forced him to discharge enough electricity to fry his brain and then let everyone laugh at short-circuit Kaminari’s stupidity. Like I said, kind for Bakugo, he was trying to lift the mood. He also slipped Kirishima some money to replace his camera. Good guy Bakugo.

 

We’re then shown the inside off the building. It’s a massive structure, with living room, kitchen and bathing areas all on the first floor and eight rooms on the floors above, four for the girls on the right, four for the guys on the left. Mineta is told in no uncertain terms to respect the girls only areas or there will be consequences. I swear that kid is going to be on a watch list by the end of the series. Uraraka passes out multiple times as they’re shown around, as the dorm is apparently significantly nicer than any place she’d lived before. It’s a pretty good sight gag.

A valiant effort, but all for naught.

 

The students all unpack by the evening, and start to relax. That is until the girls join the boys and suggest that they all have a look at each other’s rooms. Izuku is horrified by this, but can’t stop them. He apparently brought all of his All Might stuff and decorated his room accordingly. Hey, Uraraka seems into your fanboy side kid, so it’s not as bad as it seems. We’re shown the rooms in rapid succession. Crow headed Tokoyami’s room is as dark as his name (the characters in his name can literally be read as Eternal Darkness, to walk through Shadow). He also has a sword, which is neat. Aoyama’s (laser from belly button) room is super sparkly and includes a disco ball. Mineta’s room is skipped because he’s a creepy little bugger. Ojiro (Big tail) is minimalist, with really only a bed and a desk in his room. Iida’s room is full of books and back up pairs of glasses, because he fully expects them to brake during training. Kaminari’s is like a Hot Topic. And Koda’s (talks to animals) room is super simple, but has a pet bunny which everyone likes.

       It’s at this point that everyone decides to actually turn this little tour as a contest and vote on who has the best room. Mineta is super creepy about his excitement to see the ladies’ rooms after the boys’ showcase is over… why is he still here? Anyway, more rooms. Kirishima’s is like a little home gym, with manly paintings of tidal waves and stuff on the walls. Shoji’s (shapeshifting tentacle arms) room is even more minimalist than Ojiro’s, as he doesn’t have much more than a bedroll.  Sero’s (tape elbows) has got kind of an exotic theme to it, I included it in my screen shots for this episode because I can’t think of how to describe it beyond that. Todorki’s somehow remodeled his room in like six hours to look more classically Japanese. And Sato’s (superstrength after eating sugar) room has a lot of baking supplies and appliances in it, as it’s cheaper for him to make sugary snacks from scratch than to just buy candy when he wants to bulk up. The ladies love the cake he’d just finished baking. Oh, and Bakugo thought the contest was stupid, went to bed, and no one is stupid enough to interrupt his beauty sleep.

So like are the colors super impressive, is the furniture
exotic? Someone help me understand! 

       They then drop back down to the first floor and start up the girl’s side. First is Jiro’s (extendable earphone jack earlobes), which is filled with instruments and sound equipment, all of which she knows how to play. She also sonic attacks Kaminari and Aoyama when they agree Aoyama’s room is “girlier.” You’d think these guys would learn to not push her buttons like that, jeeze. Hagakure (invisible) and Ashido’s (acid spray) rooms are pretty stereotypically girly, think lots of pinks and purples and stuffed animals. Uraraka’s is pretty minimalist, think more of a young person’s first apartment than a teenager’s room. It’s at this point that Izuku and Sero (whom also tied up Mineta in his tape to make sure he behaves, good job) that Tsu is missing. Uraraka explains she wasn’t feeling well and went to bed. Yaoyorozu’s room is last, and it’s got very little in terms of space. She apparently wasn’t given the dimensions of her room and brought her furniture from home and her four-poster king sized bed dominates the space. I hope she gets some new furniture in, as I’ve lived in multiple rooms where my queen-sized mattress takes up 95% of the space and that can be difficult to live in, just sayin’.

 

So the best way to make Mineta behave is to keep
him contained. Noted.

The kids return to the living area and vote. Sato wins, because all the women voted for him due to his baking. He’s probably going to be super popular from now on, just sayin’. With the game done, most of the kids prep for bed, but Uraraka asks the five from the Save Bakugo mission to step outside. There they meet Tsu. She admits that the reason why she sat out from the festivities was because she’d been feeling out of sorts since they’d met in Izuku’s hospital room and pitched the plan to save Bakugo. She’s upset at what she said, that they didn’t heed what she said, that she felt like a coward for trying to stop them, that Aizawa threatened to punish them all, and that she’s still upset. If that makes sense. Basically, lots of emotions are warring in Tsu’s head, and she wanted to express them so that hopefully she can move past them and have fun with her friends again. Uraraka lets her know that she wasn’t the only one that felt that way, and that the best room contest was partially to help relieve the tension everyone is feeling. Everybody apologizes for making her feel like that and they all hug it out. The conversation makes Izuku resolve to work harder with everyone so that they can all be heroes together. Isn’t that nice?

The best way to solve problems is to talk it out.

 

Okay, so this was a pretty laid-back episode.  Sorry if it didn’t live up to my promise of it being a more interesting premise than it sounded at the end of the last post, I was mentally adding some stuff from a later episode in this one. I still enjoyed this episode, though. With all the crazy, multiple episode arcs that these kids keep finding themselves in, I do enjoy the occasional slice of life style episode where they get to relax and adjust to changes in the status quo. And it was kind of fun to see the students get some characterization through their rooms. Some were obvious, like Izuku’s fanboy tastes, Kirishima’s focus on manliness, and Mineta’s being too gross to show. Others were less so, like Sero’s baking supplies, Tokoyami’s so dark he might as well be the lead singer of a death metal band, and Uraraka’s simple but sensible room. And the sight gag of Uraraka passing out due to the lavishness of her new accommodations is hilarious. Even more so if you’ve read the manga. Horikoshi has a habit of including pages of behind the scenes info, character designs, and occasionally little additional bits of info at the end of chapters. It’s one of those style of pages that heavily implied that the flying Noumu that tried to take Izuku at the end of the Stain arc was the winged kid that was part of Bakugo’s gang in the opening scene. He also did several that were basically Uraraka’s tips to living on a budget, which included doing things like chewing gum, drinking water and sleeping to avoid hunger when you don’t have enough money for groceries. That situation in and of itself isn’t funny, but seeing a girl who’d mastered the art of living with next to nothing being moved into what amounts to a lavish apartment and her not being able to process it is, if that make sense. I also liked Aizawa’s admonishment in the beginning and Tsu’s sort-of apology at the end. They’re both nice little reminders that while the kids did save Bakugo, their actions have consequences beyond the realm of legality. Tsu’s nerves and twisted up feelings gets more or less resolved here, but Aizawa’s disappointment in them isn’t forgotten any time soon. But more on that when we get to it. Next time, on our final post (for now) on My Hero Academia, we’ll see how Izuku will fight going forward. See you then. Have a goodnight!

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Twitter: @BasicsSuperhero

Viewer Log: My Hero Academia ep 50

After defeating his greatest foe as a hero, All Might has to now face off his greatest opponent as a teacher, a concerned parent!

Last time on My Hero Academia, All Might faced off one last time against All For One (AFO). The two titans battled for supremacy, with AFO’s mix bag of stolen powers making more than a match for All Might in his weakening condition. After receiving a little back up from the other heroes on the Raid teams, All Might was able to recover and muster up his strength. He and All For One collided one last time, with the end result being All Might’s UNITED STATES OF SMASH was able to put the dark mastermind behind Tomura Shigaraki down once and for all. But during the battle All Might was horrified to learn that Tomura Shigaraki was in fact the grandson of his late Master, Nana Shigure. All Might, his power expended once and for all, said good bye to One for All and used his last hero appearance on TV to tell Izuku “Now, It’s your turn.” Damn, that’s a lot to process. Let’s get to it, shall we?

No matter how old you get, (surrogate) Dad can still
spank you if you do something stupid.

 

We open with a group of officials the police force going over what they’d gained from the raid on the League of Villain’s base of operations. They captured the Noumu, but have found these newer versions just as unresponsive to questions as the original Beak version. And the facility that was manufacturing the Noumu was completely obliterated when AFO attacked, so no new info there. They are still investigating the Villain Bar, but aren’t getting much new info. This, coupled with the majority of the League of Villains’ escape and All Might’s quite public retirement makes all of them rather nervous. Some though, have decided to use this experience as a learning opportunity and vow to reorganize how the Hero System in Japan works. They also decide to make capturing Shigaraki priority one.

 

Next, we jump over to All Might, or maybe I should say Toshinori, recovering in a hospital bed. He’s attended by Gran Torino, who looks just as bad as he, and detective Tsukauchi. They’re all surprised to hear the information about Shigaraki’s lineage, with Tsukauchi asking the obvious question of how Nana Shigure’s friend and student could have no idea that she had a grandson. Torino explained that Nana put her only son into foster care after her husband’s death, believing the kid would have a better life away from his superhero mother, and that she specifically asked them to never try to find her son. Damn, that’s a lot to ask of friends. Anyway, Torino tells All Might that he and Tsukauchi will continue to look into Shigaraki, and tells his former student to focus on training the next generation of heroes. And also, to not start changing his mind about how to handle Shigaraki now that he knows the boy’s lineage. Even if his granny was a hero, the kid has done a lot of evil, so has to be held accountable for it.  

 

Catching up with Izuku, we learn he and his crew dropped off Bakugo with the police after things cooled down. And, much to Izuku’s shock, Bakugo was silent the whole time. That’s ominous. The kids then break off, each of them returning home. We’re shown Todoroki returning to his family home first. The youngest Todoroki is met by his sister, Fuyumi, whom lets her him know that their father has been… upset since returning home. Shoto Todoroki goes in to have a look at Enji Todoroki, whom has incinerated his home gym and is sitting, fuming in the dark. He’s apparently quite upset to be given the title of #1 hero rather than having wresting it from All Might himself. Be careful what you wish for, am I right?  

 

Izuku makes it home and almost immediately passes out on his bed. A few hours later he gets a call from All Might, whom he rushes out to meet. They meet at the beach Izuku cleaned. They run to greet each other, with All Might decking the hero-in-training called Deku for going against his word. He explains that he won’t be around to protect Izuku from his occasional reckless actions now that his power is all but entirely gone. He can still bulk up, but not for more than a few seconds at a time. He switches over to praising Izuku for saving Bakugo. The two hug it out, with All Might vowing to double down on training Izuku now that he’s going to be doing that full time, and the two have a good cry as well.

 

The next day, the homeroom teachers Aizawa and King along with All Might have a meeting with Mr. Nezu. The little weasel-dog let’s All Might know that he’ll be kept on as a teacher at UA, despite some people’s misgivings that he’s the cause of all of UA’s current trouble. And that they’ll be spending the day talking with UA parents. Why? Because Mr. Nezu has decided to restructure UA as a Dorm campus. Well, so long as they’re not charging extra for it, I think they won’t have to do any convincing of the Uraraka household. What? Money is tight with their family.

 

All Might: So, we're just going to ignore this?
Mr. B: If you try to stop them, they'll just scream at you.
Best to just let them get it out of their system.

King goes to speak with his student’s families alone, while All Might and Aizawa tackle the 1A students. They start with the Jiro household. While Mr. Jiro puts on a stern face and makes it seem like he’s not sure about leaving his daughter in UA’s hands anymore, Kyoka Jiro herself reveals her dad was moved by All Might’s performance and had already decided to keep her at UA no matter what. Show of hands, who wasn’t surprised to find out that Mr. Jiro was apparently some kind of rock star?

 

The two then move onto what they assume will be their most difficult conversation of the day… the Bakugo house. To their immense shock, the Bakugo’s are both 100% okay with their son continuing at UA. They feel that their son has grown a lot there and that they have confidence in the school’s ability to continue to look after him. And both were impressed with Aizawa’s speech the night before, basically saying that their son had too much heart for the League of Villains to break easily. Mrs. Bakugo basically says its his own damn fault for getting kidnapped. FYI, Katsuki definitely got his personality from his mother. As the two educators depart, Bakugo runs out to ask All Might a question. He wants to know what Deku is to him. All Might gives him the standard speech about Izuku being one of his precious students, but Bakugo is clearly not buy that as the whole truth. But he lets it go, for now.

 

I'd like to think that, where ever he is, Mr. Midoriya
is also making this face. He has no idea why, but 
sense's his wife and son's nerves and reacts accordingly

The two teachers decide to split the list from this point on, and All Might goes to the Midoriyas. Both mother and son are incredibly nervous to have All Might in their house, but they get onto the meeting rather quickly. And to literally everyone’s shock, Mrs. Midoriya says she doesn’t want Izuku going to UA any more. She sites her son’s numerous injuries, the ones so bad he’s at risk for losing the use of his arms, the several attacks on the school, and her son’s hero worship of All Might as to why she no longer feels comfortable with him attending. She claims she was proud as a citizen to see All Might battling AFO, but terrified as a mother because she knew that Izuku would be eager to follow in All Might’s footsteps. The thought of her son following the trail of blood terrifies her. Izuku tries to defend All Might and the school, taking responsibility for his actions in saving Bakugo, but that seems to make it worse as Mrs. Midoriya notes that by his own logic he didn’t learn from his past mistakes at the school. Izuku storms off… but comes back in a moment later with Kota’s letter. He explains that he wants to be a hero no matter what, that he’ll just go to another school if his mom doesn’t like UA any more, because he knows what it’s like to be a hero now and won’t give it up. Way to go Kota, your ball punching antics helped Izuku after all. All Might is able to bulk up, and he drops to his hands and knees before the Midoriyas. He begs that Mrs. Midoriya allow Izuku to attend UA, as he wants to do everything in his power to shape his successor. Yeah, while All Might and Izuku haven’t mentioned One For All to her, he does tell Mrs. Midoriya that he thinks Izuku will be the next Symbol of Peace. He vows to lay down his life to protect Izuku next time. This seems to shake Mrs. Midoriya and causes her to drop to her knees. Clearly moved, she asks that All Might not do that. If he’s willing to train Izuku, to live for him and not die for him, then she’ll allow Izuku to return to UA. Once she gets Izuku to also promise to be careful, she agrees.

 

After the credits roll, (damn it, Studio Bones), we’re shown All For One being brought into prison. While being captured certainly wasn’t part of his original plan, he’s actually happy for it, and believes that this will help prepare Shigaraki for what’s to come next, and screw Izuku in the long run. He believes that it’s a mentor’s duty to disappear at a certain point to help their charges grow and take charge. In that regard, he robbed All Might of the ability to do that, while giving that end to Shigaraki. He believes his student will rise to the occasion. That’s pretty ominous too.

I wonder if seeing my worlds version of Superman
bow his head and profess his belief that my child would
succeed him would increase or decrease my anxiety on the
subject? Totally increase. 

Not a lot happened this episode, in terms of earth-shattering revelations or brawls, but we did get to see the ramifications of the retirement of All Might. The Symbol of Peace’s retirement is effecting everyone, from the police, to his students, to his rivals, and how they’re taking it seems to be a mixed bag. Most of the students that we’re shown are taking it well. All Might is done as a hero, but he’ll still be training them so things won’t change too much on that front. Or so it seemed with the Jiros, Bakugos and Midoriyas. The police are clearly terrified at the thought of the uptick in crime, and seem to be prepping for some major changes in a hurry. I liked that Endeavor finally got what he wanted and is furious about it. He’s finally the #1 hero, if only unofficially at this point, but he didn’t get it because he beat All Might but because All Might can’t do it anymore. So, he’s not the best, he didn’t get sweet victory, he got the metaphorical gold medal because the real winner can’t compete anymore. That’s galling to him in every sense imaginable. I wonder if he’d say abusing his children and wife, and being a bastard for years is worth it now? Yeah, probably not. When I first got to this point in the story, I was shocked to see Mrs. Midoriya be the one to object to seeing her son at UA. Don’t get me wrong, I saw all the signs that she was putting on a brave face and was constantly on the verge of a heart attack, but for her to be the one to stand up and express her feelings was kind of out of left field. I totally was expecting her to bottle up her emotions for a while longer before expressing her concern to Izuku in private. That’s kind of the character I was led to believe that Inko Midoriya was. Someone who would worry, and worry, and worry but not do anything about it until said worry just about killed her. I’m glad she did finally speak up, as the course of action I was expecting this to take probably would have irreparably damaged her relationship with Izuku. Or at least it would have in real life, and any “well it’s a story” reconciliation between the two would have felt forced. Just saying. Also, loved the little bit we got of the Bakugos. I get the sense that Masura has spend the vast majority of his married life apologizing for his explosive wife, and the vast majority of fatherhood apologizing for his explosive son. It was entertaining as hell to see Bakugo snap at his parents, while at the same time making little attempt to stop his mother from forcing him to bow his head in respect or slap him upside it for being an idiot. Families are funny that way. All For One’s creepy declaration that this will make Shigaraki stronger made me nervous when I first heard it, and given now that I’m rewatching the series, I can tell you that AFO is pretty spot on in his assessment. Next time, we’ll see how the students adjust to dorm life. It’s more intense than it sounds. 

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Viewer Log: My Hero Academia ep 49

Two titans clash and all of creation trembles.

Last time on My Hero Academia, old foes faced off once again. All Might met and began to battle All For One, the criminal mastermind behind Shiguraki’s League of Villains and the murderer of All Might’s master. The two titans faced off, but All Might kept coming up short. Why? Because he was concerned for the safety of Bakugo and the bystanders. Meanwhile, All Might’s apprentice Izuku frantically tried to find a way to get Bakugo out of harms way. After a lot of thinking and what seemed like numerous scrapped plans, he figured out how to do it. Using Kirishima’s… Kirishima-ness, they were able pull Bakugo out of the fray and All Might was able to let loose. He got one masterful punch on AFO, burying him in the ground, but AFO didn’t seem too worried to have his skull mask cracked up. The real fight is about to begin.

 

We open with a flashback, been a while since we did a real one of those. We’re thrown back some twentyish years to when a young man named Toshinori Yagi met Nara Shigura. The young UA hopeful impressed the professional hero with his belief in heroism and the idea that a Symbol of Peace that people can rally behind.

All Might is hitting the wall, but won't stop hitting All For One 
anytime soon 

 In the present, the whole Kamino ward is kind of in chaos. Though, that is what happens when roughly a quarter of the buildings in town are demolished in a single blast. Todoroki and Yaoyorozu make contact with Izuku and his team via the phone. They confirm that everyone escaped, and are making their way out of the area. Izuku is clearly torn between doing the right thing and leaving things to All Might and doing the heroic thing and try to help All Might. At that moment, both groups make it to a jumbotron showing the AFO/All Might fight, and any thoughts of leaving exit their minds.

At the fight, AFO mocks Nana Shigura and All Might and their “pathetic” ideals. He keeps pushing the Nana button until All Might snaps and tries to crush AFO’s skull. AFO blasts him at the last second with another shockwave. Gran Torino grabs All Might just before he collided with the new copter capturing the fight. Torino quickly does his best to focus All Might, telling his former pupil to stay focused, that AFO’s powers are totally different, and that he’ll need to past his limits to defeat AFO.

Really want to hear how he survived getting most of his head crushed.

 

We’re shown a brief few second of every non-Bakugo saving students reacting to the destruction in Kamino Ward while random citizens provide terrified commentary. Everybody is tense.

 

AFO admits that he feels a little conflicted that he might drive the final nail into All Might’s coffin himself when Shigaraki did all the work to destabilize things, but said conflict doesn’t seem to stop him. He forces All Might to take a full power blast, or else risk a civilian getting killed by the shockwave. To make matters worse, his body is deflating and the camera is capturing his mostly withered form on camera. AFO claims that all of this, more than anything, was about obliterating All Might. He wants to not only kill him, but destroy everything he’s worked to build, to crush his image and legacy, not unlike what All Might did to his empire… and face. All Might claims that he’ll remain the symbol of Peace regardless of what happens in his heart. And that’s when AFO digs the knife in. He reveals that Tomura Shigaraki is in fact the grandson of Nana Shigura. All Might doubts him at first, but then hears AFO rational. “I mean, come on, using your master’s grandson to #$%# you up is totally something I’d do.” I’m paraphrasing. He rather sadistically asks All Might where his smile is.

All Might's Fist of Justice!! 

All Might is clearly shaken to the core. I have to admit, finding out you’ve been battling your master’s grandson, the one who taught you the whole “Smile to prove you’re strong” thing, will screw anyone up. He’s also about out of power and is 90% in his withered form. The random citizen he protected from the shockwave earlier begs him to keep fighting, which seems to cause everyone watching to cheer as well. Their voices seem to help to reinvigorate All Might, he’s able to bulk up one of his arms and is prepping to fight again. He visualizes One For All as a flame, and hears Shigura to keep his origins in mind.

 

AFO, clearly unimpressed flies upward and continues to mock All Might and his ideals. He powers up another blast and fires at All Might. He’s saved at the last second by a fireblast from Endeavor, whom had just arrived with Edgeshot and the other heroes. He is furious at All Might, at seeing the hero that was so far beyond him humbled, and demands that All Might beat this guy. “Show why you’re better!” were his exact words. He and Edgeshot keep AFO so that All Might can catch his breath, the other heroes like Kamui Woods and Tiger grab the civilians.

 

Gran Torino remembers being told about Toshinori Yagi by Shigure. How she thought he was a funny kid but worth training. He tells All Might that he is a Pillar, and must not be broken. We’re then shown all the student’s cheering All Might on before the battle resumes.

All For One's Fist of... Villainy 

      AFO unleashes another massive blast, knocking everyone but All Might away. Once they’re alone, he starts listing off powers again. I don’t recall them all but he basically pumps a dozen different powers together into his arm. It morphs his right arm into a deformed monstrosity, a spear that he believes will destroy All Might. He also reveals that he knows All Might’s power is fading, the flame is fading, that One for All is no longer with him… and that it now resides in Izuku Midoriya. Well, it’s been nice knowing you AFO, you threatened Midoriya… nobody threatens Midoriya…. Except Bakugo.

 

 The two titans collide, their right hands exploding with blood. Most of it All Might’s as AFO activated “Impact Recoil” so most of the damage flies back at All Might. We’re seen a mental image of One For All’s flame being protected by All Might’s body, as he tries to wring out every second of OFA he can. This is all happening while their fists are still connected by the way. He swears to never give up until Izuku is ready. He’ll survive until his successor can stand on his own. He whirls around AFO’s fist, bulks up his left arm and SLAMS it full power into AFO, claiming this time he’s putting his back into it! He blows AFO into the ground. All Might powers up his right fist one more time, mentally, he says Goodbye to All For One, to Nana, and to One for All. He unleashes The United States Of SMASH, piledriving AFO into the ground, defeating him at last.

The People's Champion, now and forever.

 

He’s able to bulk up one last time, pointing towards the camera in victory. Everyon cheers the #1 heroes final act. By sunrise, the heroes are still clearing up the damage and finding civilians. We’re shown All For One being loaded into one of the prison transports as All Might watches. The Kids go to tell the heroes that they got Bakugo. All Might, withered, injured, and on his last legs, points to the camera. He announces “Now, it’s your turn.” Everyone seems to take that message a little different, but Izuku thinks he knows the real meaning. That it’s time for him to step up, and be the hero. The credits begin to roll.

 

And so ends the reign of All Might as the #1 hero. The Symbol of Peace is broken. That was an intense battle. Sure, I think Dragonball or Fairy Tail would have performed a more… elaborate final battle with more punches and kicks and blasts, but I like this one. We’d seen the measure of All Might’s strength, even as his power was fading, so I think the fact All For One is able to take each punch and throw it back at him speaks to how powerful he is. It’s like two comets colliding, you don’t need to know the exact force of the impact to know the devastation. Plus, knowing that All Might was able to overcome a punch created and customized to destroy him is so freaking cool. I should note, it’s due to this ending that they came up with the plot for the My Hero Academia film. As All Might canonically lost his powers before he and Izuku could have ever fought together, Horikoshi created a situation where the two could both punch an opponent into oblivion. I’ve heard of dumber reasons to make an anime movie. So yeah, we’ve seen the end of All Might. But, not the end of his job as Izuku’s master. Next time, we’ll see the ramifications of Izuku’s actions and of All Might’s very public retirement. I think you’ll be surprised as to who is the most upset that the students almost got killed. But that’s for next time. Have a good night. 

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Viewer Log: My Hero Academia ep 48

Heroes clash with villains while a student frantically figures how to save his frenemy. 

Last time on My Hero Academia, two plans were launched to try and save Katsuki Bakugo from the League of Villains. The professional heroes used a tracking device stuck to a Noumu and intel they’d picked up on the movements of Dabi, one of the League of Villains’ (LoV) newest and most visually distinctive recruits, to track down the bases of operations of the LoV. They broke into two teams with All Might leading the charge against the Villain Bar, and Best Jeanist leading their strike on what turns out to be the Noumu producing factory. At the same time, Izuku Midoriya, Iida, Kirishima, Todoroki and Yaoyorozu used a duplicate tracking device as part of a hairbrained, We’re-too-frustrated-to-stay-out-of-it plan to try and save Bakugo. They made it to the Noumu production facility just in time to see the raid… and the entrance of All For One (AFO), Tomura Shigaraki’s master and the brains behind the LoV. He obliterated the forces sent against him, as well as a good chunk of the buildings around him, and send in Noumu using his own teleportation power to surprise attack the victorious heroes, in a bid to free his people before they could be taken away. Not going to lie, this is a pretty dicey I left you hanging on for about a month… but hey, that’s just how I tend to roll. Let’s get to it, shall we?

Bakugo: Damn it, could I please go more than six months

without barfing something slimy up?

 

We open with a quick recap of the last few minutes of the last episode. Heroes bust in, get villains in a lock, just for AFO to start teleporting in Noumu in to fight the heroes. AFO then teleports Bakugo and the League of Villains out, with them seemingly barfing up gray ooze that pulls them through. All Might and the others try to follow, but can’t follow through the barf portals like they could through Kurogiri’s portals. All Might leaves the fight with the Noumu up to Endeavor, launching into the air after the villains.

 

We then jump over to the remains of the Noumu factory. All of the heroes appear to be alive, much to my own shock. We’re shown a flashback as AFO explains, that Best Jeanist used his fabric controlling powers to pull all of the other heroes out of the way and took most of the brunt of the blast. He’s alive, though, and kind of freaking out. He got some warning about AFO’s personality and power, and they’d all believed he was going to stay out of things until the last moment. He refuses to give up, though, and tries to attack AFO. AFO, unimpressed, blasts a hole through Best Jeanist’s belly, claiming he doesn’t need Jeanist’s power. The kids were watching all of this from their hiding space and are obviously freaking out as well. They’re pulled out of their shock a little by hearing Bakugo portaling in, along with the League of Villains. AFO chastises Shigaraki just a little for failing, but tells his protégé that he’ll let Shigaraki try and fail as many times as he needs to win. I can see why Shigaraki might worship this guy.

 

Izuku, having seeing Bakugo, begins to try and figure out a plan to save him. Unfortunately, he can’t find a good plan to save Bakugo. He starts moving to try and find a new angle, but is grabbed by Iida. He also grabbed Todoroki, and Yaoyorozu grabbed Kirishima. The two trainees that are only here to stop the gung-ho kids from doing something stupid are living up to that goal. They’re both trying to think of exit strategies, but are hitting similar walls to Izuku.

I pity the fool that made All Might make this face when

he catches up to them.  

All Might flies in and slams himself into AFO. Their power seems to be about equal, which is terrifying. They leap apart, and the shockwave that it releases knocks the bystanders around. Both of them mock the other’s failing bodies, which feels weird. All Might swears he’s going to save Bakugo and make sure that AFO is locked up for the rest of his miserable life. He charges AFO again, with the villain blasting All Might away with an air pressure shockwave. He explains that he combined several powers together to get this devastating effect and states that he could add more modifiers to increase the damage. He turns to Shigaraki and tells him to leave with Bakugo and the League. He uses another aspect of his power to force an unconscious Kurogiri to open a warpgate to get everyone out of there. Magne asks why he’d risk injuring Kurogiri like this and not just use his own warp power. AFO claims that his power is rather new, and is much more limited at where he can send people. Kurogiri can teleport anywhere, pretty much, where as AFO can only transport things to or from himself or someone he knows really well. Nice little bit of exposition to explain why OFA never tries to portal out if/when All Might starts getting the upper hand. All Might finally recovers, launches into the air and slams into AFO again. They start fighting as the LoV prep to fall back. Mr. Compress shrinks and pockets Dabi and tells Shigaraki to grab Bakugo. Shigaraki and co attack Bakugo in a group. Bakugo is able to dodge and hold his own, but it’s 6 on 1, he’s not winning that fight. All Might keeps trying to get him, but AFO is keeping him from Bakugo.

Two diametrically opposing forces clash and cause
devastation. 

      Izuku is still hiding and doing his damnedest to figure out a plan to save Bakugo. He keeps hitting his head on the fact that by law that the kids can’t face the villains in a fight. But then everything clicks and he figures out a plan that will let them save Bakugo without fighting. Iida and Yaoyorozu are 100% down for that. Izuku rather mysteriously says that his plan is “all going to depend on him,” pointing at Kirishima.

 

Meanwhile, All Might keeps charging at AFO but isn’t getting anywhere. AFO’s power seems to be able to completely neutralize All Might’s power each time. Everyone watching in universe realizes that All Might is holding back. Why? Because he knows if he goes all out, Bakugo would get hit with the shockwaves of the battle and get hurt. Good guy, All Might.

Not a graceful exit, but any escape you
can walk away from is a victory, right? 

We then hear Izuku’s full plan, and it’s pretty bonkers. Basically, he and Iida grab onto Kirishima’s waist and use their powers to launch themselves forward. Kirishima uses his hardening power to slam through the wall they’re hiding behind. No, that’s not why he’s the key. After the rubble is cleared, Todoroki makes a massive ice slide for them to slide across and high into the air. While in the air, up and out of the Villain’s reach, Kirishima reaches out to Bakugo. Why did it have to be Kirishima? Because from day 1, he’s tried to bond with Bakugo, fought with him and ultimately became Bakugo’s only non-frenemy friend. Izuku believes that because of this, Bakugo won’t put his back up to this expression of aid. It won’t be like when he tried to help Bakugo out of the river when they were kids, someone weaker than him offering him aid, he’s hoping Bakugo will see it instead as an equal offering him a way out. And Izuku is right. Bakugo is able to swallow his pride, launch into the air and grabs Kirishima’s hand. And while that’s going on, Todoroki and Yaoyorozu slip away while everyone’s attention is away from them.

 

Shigaraki snarls at Izuku getting in the way yet again. The villains try to follow, having Magne use his power to give magnetic polarity to Mr. Compress and launched him after them. He, instead, slams into Mt. Lady’s face as she grows and blocks him. Gran Torino then flies in and disables Magne and Twice. All Might, knowing the shackles are off, charges AFO and Gran Torino goes to try and take out Shigaraki and Toga. He’s knocked aside by AFO’s finger tentacles. He forces Magne’s power to activate, and cause all the men of their group, polarized south, to fly into Toga, polarized north. I assume he can control the strength of said polarity, or something, because I doubt Toga (as a teenage girl) has mass on par with several grown men. Just sayin’. He also throws Magne though the portal, as Magne’s power doesn’t work on herself. He then uses his gunk teleportation to pull Gran Torino in front of himself to block All Might’s punch. Thankfully, All Might was able to pull back to not shatter his mentor’s face. He tosses Gran Torino out of the way.

I'm not saying it absolves him of his crimes, but I can
kind of understand the All Might hate. I'd be furious too
if my face was so screwed up it cost me my eyes! 

All Might charges AFO one more time, and hits him with a full force smash. He hits AFO hard, slamming his opponent into the dirt, claiming that he’ll protect everyone and finally stop AFO. All Might is clearly hitting the wall, as he’s now halfway between his sickly true form and muscle form, but he thinks he’s stopped AFO. Unfortunately, the villain is still awake. His mask has been smashed in and All Might’s fist is adhered to his face, but his skull is still whole. He tells All Might that he knows he hit a nerve, as it’s similar to what Nana Shigura, his former master and previous OFA user, said in their last battle. And that’s how we end it, with this smug SOB smiling evilly. Damn.

 

Okay, so this was a buildup episode, lots of talking, dramatic pauses and only some action. And yet this is probably the scariest episode that we’ve had thus far. Why? Because All For One is terrifying. It’s not just his his compiled powers and skull face mask, but the dude’s very presence seems to weigh everyone down. I like that his power seems to deform his body as he uses it. His arm expands to an INSANE level when he uses his air blasts, his fingers elongate and rip apart as he stretches out and force powers to activate. I like when a villain’s powers look damaging or painful, bad guys should hurt when they use their full power, or at least they should for me. The fact that this man is able to basically obliterate several heroes, keep a bunch of rookies frozen in place, and takes punches from All Might is freaking scary. And yet, he’s this super understanding and forgiving mentor to Shigaraki. Like, just by watching him, you know that he’s manipulating Shigaraki, aiming him and trying to use him to destroy his enemy. And yet, it’s the kind of manipulation where, if you’re the target of said manipulation, you fall for it hook, line and sinker. AFO is a monster and he took someone vulnerable and weak and turned him into a monster as well. He killed him, metaphorically speaking, with kindness. Not saying this absolves Shigaraki of all the terrible things he’s done, but it puts things into context. And obviously, this is going to be a pretty tense fight since we’ve seen All Might throwing himself at AFO without much damage, and he’s hitting his limit. He’s running out of power, and AFO is clearly a villain that he needs to go full force against. And I liked Izuku’s B plot. He spends the entire episode trying to find a way to save someone that HATES being saved. Coupled with how he can’t actually help Bakugo fight the villains without a license. And I like that Izuku finds a way for him save Bakugo without breaking the rules. He knew his friend well enough to save him despite Bakugo’s stubbornness, which I loved. Sure, these guys have a ton of issues, but Izuku probably understands Bakugo better than anyone. With that understanding came their little Hail Mary play to get Bakugo out and let All Might let loose. Next time, we’re going to see what happens when All Might’s unstoppable force meets All For One’s immovable object… or maybe All For One is the unstoppable force… I’m thinking too hard on this metaphor. Let’s just watch two powerhouses collide. It’s going to be fun! 

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