Izuku and friends find their resolve before the big showdown.
Last time on My Hero Academia
the students and heroes prepare for their final battle. The adults try to
figure out a way to convince Aoyama to help lure AFO into a trap, with Aizawa
leading the charge to convince his student to help them and himself. All Might
and the other heroes realize that their best chance at beating the League will
be to scatter the group and try to take on each of them alone. Both to lessen the
ability of the two AFOs from supporting each other and stopping Dabi and the
other League members from backing them up. The students meanwhile prep their
skills, and Izuku and Iida visit Mei Hatsume to get some replacement gear.
While the resident gear head is busy working on a means of making UA go airborne
in the event of a League of Villains attack, she’s able to spare three minutes
to making Izuku new gloves and Iida new armor. She’s talented like that. The students
are then broken up into squads lead by Bakugo, Todoroki, and Izuku and sent out
to try to locate the League of Villains and/or AFO.
While on this assignment they end
up having to face off against an All Might doppelganger leading an Italian crime
family named Valdo Gollini. He was trying to set himself up as the new All
Might, later styling himself as Dark Might, and using a young woman named Anna
to augment his powers. Izuku meets and befriends Giulio, Anna’s butler that
despite being maimed is on a mission to save her from her captors. They stop
the Gollinis and reunite Anna and Giulio. Weird how they probably won’t be
mentioned again, because that was a crazy Tuesday. Enough recapping. Let’s get
to it, shall we?
The story opens with Himeko Toga
visiting her childhood home. The house is trashed and covered in graffiti. She
remembers her parents and friends trying to get her to conform to societal
standards, it’s mostly her mom and dad telling her to stop trying to drink
blood and a friend saying that her face always looks scary. She breaks into her
old room and remembers her desire to turn into a bird. As she sleeps, she bites
herself and draws blood. She dreams about a little red bird landing on her and pecking
at her belly until it draws blood. She says she feels warm and fuzzy in that dream
and how much she loves it. Toga realizes that her parents abandoned the place
and then she leaves. She runs into Dabi, who was watching from across the
street. Since his fight with his father and brother, Dabi’s burns have spread farther
across his face. He says that he never pegged her for the sentimental type.
Toga denies that and says she was just curious what happened to the place
before she starts skipping away. Dabi asks if she’s ready to burn down society,
to which Toga replies she was always ready. Dabi likes the sound of that. He sets
her house ablaze and the two watch it burn to the ground. She says that he’ll
get them caught doing things like that, but thanks him for it. Dabi shrugs,
saying that the heroes are too busy to worry about a house fire, and that he’s
only nice if it causes Endeavor pain. He reveals that he got a sample of Twice’s
blood right after he was murdered by Hawks. He knows that Toga’s power has
increased and that she can copy not only the appearance but powers of the
people she drinks the blood of, if she has strong enough feelings for them. He
knows she loved Twice and suggests that she could unleash his Sad Man’s Parade,
the trick where Twice was able to mass clone himself. With that skill in their pocket,
Dabi is sure they can get what they want.
Deep in the League’s cave, Spinner
hears Tomura screaming in pain and goes to check on him. He sees just an insane
mass of fingers peel back and into Tomura’s body. Spinner is visibly horrified
by that, but AFO tells him not to worry, as that was just a sign Tomura was recovering
nicely. He asks if AFO is sure that is Shigaraki, and AFO confirms it, saying
that Tomura’s… new look is just a sign that the Quirk Doomsday Theory can be
overcome. That’s the idea that Quirks will eventually mutate to the point where
human bodies can’t contain them. Skeptic, the computer expert, wants to use
Spinner as a liaison towards the Heteromorphs. Due to their non-human
appearances, Heteromorphs are often the subjects of bigotry and may be more
likely to side with the villains over the heroes. He says that while Spinner
originally copied Stain’s look to pay homage to him, other Heteromorphs have
copied the look since, in homage to Spinner. Spinner is surprised to hear that,
but Skeptic tells him not to think about it and just do his job. He shouldn’t
focus on Jailbreakers but the common rioters. Tomura limps towards them, muttering
that he’ll destroy it all. Spinner isn’t exactly happy with this job, but he’s
willing to do it for Tomura. AFO smiles as Spinner takes the USB that Skeptic
got him, saying that in this world anyone can become someone’s hero.
We shift to UA where a bunch of
people are milling about. An average looking man goes up to an average looking
woman and gives her their orders. They’re supposed to stirrup the masses and
start a riot as best they can. UA know that Tomura has a week before he’s fully
recovered, and in that time, they need to make certain that UA is no longer a
place where Izuku can rest.
We’re shown Izuku and his friends
working to capture Jailbreakers. Future Narrator Izuku says that they’ve been
working hard to capture the Jailbreakers, but they couldn’t find a trace of the
League. The students return to their dorm, exhausted and burnt out. Iida tells
everyone to rest up; their youthful resilience is their strength. As a man in
my mid-30s I resent them for it. Mineta walks up to Izuku and says they don’t
even time to tell dirty stories. Izuku noncommittally mutters back at Mineta
that that is true. He turns his attention to Uraraka who is chatting with Ashido.
He says they haven’t had time to chat since he’d been back and he hasn’t even
been able to thank her for her heartfelt speech to the masses. He tries to talk
to her, but All Might, Tsukauchi and Nezu burst in. They ask if they’ve come
with news about Aoyama. Tsukauchi holds up a finger to silence them. All Might
says that they’re here to tell them the plan for what’s to come. It’s a big
secret, though, so they need to keep it close to the vest.
The next morning, Nezu makes an
announcement to the evacuees. He tells them that Tomura Shigaraki will be active
again in four days. The heroes and police have joined forces to stop him. He
warns that in that time the campus will go into lockdown and shift to Martial
Law. He begs everyone’s cooperation and understanding in this time. We get
shots of Kota, Ippon Josei, Inko Midoriya, Mitsuki Bakugo, and the League’s
agent all react to this information. The people Izuku cares about look
concerned, but the Agent looks stunned that UA has admitted to the situation.
That really throws a monkey wrench in whatever they had planned, I’m sure. Izuku
and the other students gather, thanking the civilians for their hospitality. Kota
asks if Izuku is really leaving already. Izuku confirms that, saying he’s gotten
to rest up but now he needs to get moving. Boy, I hope you said bye to your MOM
Deku! I know you have a special connection to Kota but spare a special goodbye
to your primary parent! The agent, after recovering from his surprise, admits
to himself that this is great news for them. It would have been incredibly
difficult for AFO to get to Izuku while in UA, but with him going out, they
didn’t have to even lift a finger to complete their mission. We then get a
quick flash of the students saying goodbye to their families. Izuku hugs his
mom (GOOD!), Shoto says goodbye to his mom and 2/3rds of his siblings, Jiro and
Uraraka see their folks, Bakugo’s mom slaps him on the back and seems to be
encouraging while his dad tries to get her to calm down, and weirdly Shoji shakes
hands with Ippon. Nezu also brings out Recovery Girl, who is looking even older
than when we last saw her after the sports festival (I think?) and Izuku also
says bye to Eri and Kota specifically. They move to Troy, a new fortress that
they build 30 kms from UA.
I’m not sure I love that name.
Troy, if you’ll recall, FELL. It’s rather famous for it.
Snipe tells them that Cementoss, Power
Loader and Ectoplasm, got it set up and that while it’s not as fortified as UA,
Troy will be a hard nut to crack. It looks like one of the UA dorms done in
black and with a bunch more walls. The students head inside and unpack. Iida,
Kirishima, and Bakugo give Shoto a lingering glance. Izuku checks out his room
and sees from his balcony that Uraraka is outside on her own. He jumps out to
talk to her, and thanks her for that speech she gave. She’s clearly flustered,
but happy, with his thanks. He asks if he was interrupting her. She says no,
she was just looking out over the city. She says that she might be a bit weird,
Izuku is vocally against that assessment. He lists off her virtues to prove the
point. She says that wasn’t want she was talking about. She tells him about when
she got up on the roof and started talking, she admits she started to think
about Himeko Toga. She says that while they fought, she thought she told Toga
some pretty common-sense stuff… but Toga look like she was shocked by what
Uraraka had to say. She says that she KNOWS that Toga has done a lot of bad stuff,
the girl is a serial killer after all, but like… she can’t stop thinking about
how Toga might not actually fully comprehend the wrongs that she’s done. She
says that she’s looking at the ruined city to remind herself of what matters.
To focus in on the important thing of stopping the pain that the villains have
caused. Izuku says that he gets it, and points out his weird spiritual connection
of Tomura Shigaraki, he saw a little boy crying in that man and he’s not sure
he can ignore that about him.
We jump to inside Troy and see that
Iida, Kirishima and Bakugo are sitting with Shoto to give him a short of ‘we’re
here for you, man,” speech given what Shoto’s dealing with in regard to
Dabi/Toya situation. Iida mentions that he has a brother too, but Shoto points
out that its hard to compare the paragon of an older brother that is Tensei Iida
to the deranged murder and arson machine that is Toya “Dabi” Todoroki. Shoto
mentions that its weird that he doesn’t even know what sort of food his brother
likes. Bakugo offhandedly says that it’s gotta be the kind of udon that burns
your mouth. Shoto laughs and says if that’s the case, he’ll have to share some
with his brother. All the students resolve to stop their respective villains.
We jump to AFO scrolling through
his phone. He narrates that lies don’t work on him. He reveals that he stole a
lie detection Quirk from someone when he was young, he can’t remember its name
as he mixed the quirk with a few others. He doesn’t remember the person he took
it from either, other than he was a dull man, but he says that that man’s descendants
were far more interesting. I think he’s implying that this was Tsukauchi’s ancestor,
as he says that a twist of fate brought one of those descendants to All Might. He
says that there is no greater joy than watching a seed he planted bear fruit.
He calls up the Aoyamas and in code sets up a plan to meet with Yuga. He says
that he detected no lies or malice from her, so he’s confident that she’s still
under his thumb. He says they’ll see him soon.
We find Izuku meeting with Aoyama in
a deserted parking lot. The twinkling boy is looking very disheveled at the
moment. He’s not even talking in his faux French accent! Izuku asks what he’s
doing there, and Aoyama says that his parents got him released from police
custody. Izuku offers to get the others and get him into a search party, but Aoyama
stops him and says that he wants to talk to Izuku in private first. Aoyama
thinks its funny that the courts are still in session even in this insanity. He
offers to explain AFO’s plan to Izuku. He says that the war with AFO is causing
massive problems globally. The yen is dropping in price, Japanese companies are
failing, and villains are growing bolder. He compares it to the Great depression
or the chaos of the early quirk days. Izuku is clearly scared of what he’s
talking about. Aoyama explains that All For One is basically trying to throw
the world into chaos so then he can step in and use his numerous powers to seize
control of everything. The Demon Lord indeed. Izuku says that people wouldn’t
allow that, and that heroes are still standing. Aoyama says he knows, and that’s
why he has to be removed. AFO floats in sporting a new armored helmet. He
applauds Aoyama’s explanation of his goals but says that it’s not totally
accurate. He starts mockingly complimenting Aoyama, saying what a good boy he
is, and how hard it must have been to betray his friends when they put their faith
in him yet again.
Aoyama agrees that it was distressing
as Izuku shouts “I Trusted you!” Aoyama then turns, firing off his belly laser
and saying “I won’t betray my friends!” He burns a hole in AFO’s suit. That’s about
the extent of the damage, but AFO is clearly pissed when he calls Aoyama an
ungrateful little worm. The smoke clears and Izuku and Aoyama are standing together,
the blonde trembling so bad it looks like he’s having a stroke why they try to nonchalantly
banter about how good their acting was. Aoyama swears that, despite his fear,
he’ll stand up and fight AFO. AFO is confused by the Aoyama’s ability to hide
their intent from him… but he decides it doesn’t matter. Bold statement… He
says that with Search he knows that the heroes that could actually be a threat
to him are scattered across the country. He opens those slime portals and draws
his League of Villains to him. He announces that it’s too late for anyone to
save Izuku now. A Kurogiri portal starts to open, which shocks AFO, as they shouldn’t
have been able to make use of Kurogiri’s powers. He decides that also doesn’t
matter, this makes it easier to find him. Aoyama keeps on talking, saying that
his parents said that the one thing that AFO would hate most would be if Japan
proved that they’re still standing. That the country is still Twinkling even
after his assault. Heroes start leaping from the portals, Endeavor, Mirko, Edgeshot,
the Big 3 of UA, Fat Gum, Mt. Lady and the rest. Aoyama announces that they’ll
see AFO defeated! Hell of a time to end on episode.
This was a strong start to this
final battle arc. Izuku and his allies have clearly been working overtime to
formulate this plan to draw out AFO to the field of their choosing. They got
the Aoyamas to convince him to make a move, they somehow got Kurogiri’s power
to portal in the heroes after convincing AFO that they’re all too far away to
help, they even got the justifiably scared Aoyama to be brave long enough to
get a kick ass declaration from him. This multi stage plan is going to need a
lot of explaining, me thinks. I liked the slower moments in this episode as well.
Izuku and company saying goodbye to their families was sadly sweet. I have to
imagine that the parents are stressed out as hell right now. Izuku finally got
the chance to talk with Uraraka and learning that they’re both in this kind of
weird space where they empathize with their respective villains and understand
them in a way that makes fighting them hard but necessary. They can’t forgive
Toga and Tomura for what they’ve done, but they can’t just think of them as
generic bad guys anymore. It was a nice bonding moment between our love interests
that haven’t gotten much screen time together in ages. I also liked the short scene
with Bakugo, Shoto, Iida and Kirishima. It was a little moment, but it showed
that these kids are friends and aren’t just connected because of their relationship
with Izuku. They know their friend is going through some stuff, so they take a
moment to talk with him. Do they say or do much? No, but the gesture is what
mattered. Same kind of goes for that moment with Dabi and Toga in the opener.
Its weird to think of them as like… friends. But if you recall, they joined the
League of Villains at the same time, they’ve worked together for over a year at
this point, and while Dabi probably still would incinerate her at a moment’s
notice, it still seemed like they connected in their own way. He knew that burning
the house down would mean something to Toga, so he did it. The fact that she has
Twice’s blood and the emotional connection to him to use his power is… horrifying.
I hope the heroes figure that out sooner rather than later. But we’ll have to
wait and see. Good night everyone, and stay safe.
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/posts/viewer-log-my-ep-154373428
Bluesky: @basicssuperhero.bsky.social
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