Viewer Log: The Falcon and the Winter Soldier ep 2

 We meet a new Cap, and an old one nobody talks about.

Last time on The Falcon and the Winter Soldier,  we’re shown how Sam and Bucky have been doing post Blip. Sam is working with the US government, and giving up the Shield to be put into storage. Bucky meanwhile is dealing with his PTSD by seeing HYDRA goons arrested and being friends with the father of one of his victims. A group called the Flag Smashers stole large sums of money while showing off clear superhuman strength and agility. Amidst this turmoil, the US government unveiled their NEW Captain America, John Walker. Bastards. Enough recap, let’s get to it.

 

Opens with the “new” Captain America, John Walker, walking through his high school locker room. His wife, Olivia, comes in to give him a pep talk. Surprisingly, John seems to have a real reverence for the title he’s been given and is worried that he won’t be the Captain America the world needs. Olivia advises him just to be himself. She leaves and tags in his friend Lemar Hoskins. Hoskins also tries to psych up Walker. Walker expresses a desire to just do the job of fighting, but Hoskins reminds him that the handshaking, meetings and politicking is part of being Captain America. Time to get to work.

 

Look at him standing there with his evil, stupid
legs.

Walker walks onto the field to a funky remix of “A Star-Spangled Man with a Plan,” he shakes hands, poses for photos and signs toys. … This MOFO has toys already? What the hell. He makes it to the stage and starts his Good Morning America interview. The interview is clearly a puff piece to show off this new guy in the red, white and blue suit. We’re given a brief background on Captain John Walker, he was the first person to receive three medals of honor, specialized in counter-terrorism missions, and tested off the charts in all categories of strength, speed, and so on. He claims that he has guts, which is the most important aspect of Captain America. Bucky is watching the video and is clearly upset. Walker goes on to say that he never met Captain Rogers, but followed his career since his return and claims to have modeled himself off Cap. He didn’t know him but believed him to be a brother.

 

…

 

I’m picturing that scene in Harry Potter 8 where Harry yells “How DARE you stand where he stood,” at Snape. Seriously.

 

Later, Sam is looking at a picture of John Walker, captioned Cap is Back, before his next mission. He meets with Torres who makes sure he’s prepped. As he walks to the plane, Bucky comes out and yells that he “shouldn’t have given up the Shield.” Sam is clearly upset about the Walker thing as Bucky but he has work to do so he can’t stick around and be angry. Bucky is also clearly pissed that Sam gave up their best friend’s legacy. To try to extricate himself from the situation, he tells Bucky he’s on the way to Munich to investigate and possibly take care of the Flag Smashers. He thinks that they might be part of the big 3, Androids, Aliens or Wizards. It’s the scene from all the trailers, where Bucky reveals he knows who Gandalf is because he read the Hobbit back in the 30s, and Sam explaining that a Sorcerer is just Wizard without a hat.  It’s a fun scene in context as well as out. Despite Sam’s objections, Bucky comes along.

 

I think Bucky is wishing his codename was
the Winter Paratrooper.

There’s an awkward scene of the two of them fly into Munich airspace. Sam seems to be refusing to speak to Bucky as they fly in. Bucky asks if there’s a plan, and Sam does say he has one but not feeling like sharing. Sam leaps from the plane and flies away. Bucky asks for a chute, but Torres tells him that they’re flying to low for one, so Bucky just says screw it and leaps from the plane planning to use his arm to protect him. It goes… badly. He smacks a few trees on the way down and ends up on his back. Redwing flies in and Sam via his radio mention that he recorded the whole thing. Bucky tells him to get that thing out of his face.

 

Bucky catches up with Sam in what looks like an abandoned factory. The Flag Smashers are nearby, Sam wants to do recon, but Bucky is still a fan of the direct approach. He runs in while Redwing follows. Sam comments that a few months in Wakanda turned Bucky into a White Panther, and Bucky corrects him that it’s White Wolf. Bucky finds the Flag Smashers loading up a pair of trucks. They’re lifting a LOT of heavy equipment effortlessly, revealing that they’re all superstrong. Sam joins him a moment later. Bucky wants to go right in, as he just sees two guys, but with his Redwing scanner, Sam confirms seven total goons. They hold back, are almost noticed but get off. As the trucks pull out, Redwing detects an 8^th person in the back of the truck, and assumes that that might be a hostage.

 

They chase after the trucks, with Winter Soldier climbing into the back while Falcon flies behind. Winter Soldier notes that they’re transporting medicine and vaccines. A young red headed woman is in the back, he tries to talk to her, but she punches him out the back of the truck and into the one behind. Yeah, she’s a Flag Smasher. Three more Flag Smashers pull him onto the top of the truck and prepare to beat the crap out of Winter Soldier. Redwing flies in and starts shooting, but the drone gets smashed by Red. Falcon flies in and the two heroes start battling the Flag Smashers.

 

I think Bucky is adding a vibranium gauntlet
to his Christmas gift list from Wakanda.

The group of super soldiers actually hold their own against the veteran heroes, Falcon almost gets curb stomped by Red, but she gets hit back by the Shield. John Walker and his buddy Hoskins arrive in a helicopter. Four on six is much better odds. Winter Soldier ends up nearly under the truck, but holds on with his robot arm. Falcon ends up swooping in, pulling him out and the two end up summersaulting in a field. As they get up and dust themselves off, Bucky points out that they’re all Super Soldiers. Back at the truck, Hoskins gets tossed from the back and is almost gets roadrash, but Walker saves him with the Shield. He tries to hold on but is booted into a car.

 

Sometime later, we see Sam and Bucky walking back to the airport that their plane landed at. They agree that need to figure out where the Flag Smashers got Super Soldier Serum, since it seems really weird that there are now 8 Super Soldiers running around after 80 years. Walker and Hoskins pull up in a Jeep, they want to exchange information, but Bucky is 100% not interested. Walker offers them a ride, which they end up taking because they’re 20 miles from the airport. Sam asks how they tracked the Flag Smashers, and they admit they didn’t, they tracked Redwing, much to Sam’s disgust. So, hearing that they actually don’t have no new info, and hearing Hoskins’ codename of Battlestar, Bucky says screw this and gets out. Walker tries to appeal to Sam, saying he’s not trying to replace Steve, he’s just trying to be the best Cap he can be. He thinks the job will be easier with Cap’s wingmen beside him. That last comment makes Sam also say screw this and get out.

 

Meanwhile, the Flag Smashers make it to their drop off point. A gushing fan led them to a backroom that he and his wife set up for them. As her team gets set up, Red get’s a text from someone accusing her of stealing from them and that they’re going to kill her. Her computer guy checks files and sees that they’re already on most wanted lists, he goes to start trying to cover their internet tracks. We’re shown her mug shot and it’s revealed that Red’s name is Karli Morgenthau. Karli claims that the Global Reparations Council, an international group designed to help people post-blip, cares more about the people who came back than those who never left, and they’re going to fix it. Their chant is “One World, One People.”

 

On the flight back state-side, Sam is annoyed that they did all that and have nothing to show for it. Bucky, clearly uncomfortable the whole time, mentions that there is someone that Sam should meet. They flyout to Baltimore. As they walk to their destination, they walk past some kids that call Sam Black Falcon, and Sam asks that if he’s Black Falcon because he’s Black, does that make the kid Black kid? It was just a funny interaction. They reach a house, and Bucky knocks. A young man answers the door, and tells them to beat it when Bucky asks to speak to Isiah. Bucky stops Eli and tells him to tell Isaiah that the guy from the bar in Goyang is here to see him. Eli goes to talk to him. While alone, Bucky mentions he faced off against this guy during the Korean War.

 

Salute Captain Bradley, you uncultured swine!

Eli lets them in. They walk in and meet Isaiah Bradley. Bucky mentions that they met in 51, but Isaiah corrects him by saying he whipped his ass in 51. The only reason he let Bucky in was to see if he got a replacement for that metal arm he ripped off. Bucky says he’s not a killer anymore, but Isaiah doesn’t think it’s that easy to change his stripes. Bucky explains that they’re there because there are more of them running around, and that makes Isaiah get pissed. He tosses a metal case and embeds in the wall at the mere mention of it. He tells them that, after getting the injections and serving his country, he was arrested and held for 30 years as the US government and HYDRA experimented on him. He kicks them out.

 

Outside, Sam is clearly pissed he didn’t know about this Black Super Soldier. Bucky explains that he never told him or Steve about Isaiah, believing the old soldier had enough to deal with. They start arguing, and cops pull up. Oh… this is not going to go well… the cops clearly have their backs up about Sam until they realize he’s the Falcon. They go to their radio to call off more patrol cars, but then come back and inform them that Bucky is under arrest. Turns out, he missed his therapy appointment, so his parole was revoked. Yikes.

 

Sam makes it to the lockup, and meets up with Bucky’s Therapist, introduced to us as Christina Raynor. Sam thanks her for bailing Bucky out, but she admits he just came because she was called. No, turns out the bail was posted by John Walker. He tells her to sign whatever she has to, to get Bucky cleared, as he won’t exactly be having a regular schedule from now on. Raynor tells both the released Bucky and Sam to come with her for an emergency session.

 

More chemistry here than between the two cops
in 12 episodes of that old USA show Common Law

She’s going to treat this as a couple’s therapy session. She tries to ask them what is one thing they’d want to change about their partner, but neither gives a real answer. She has them face each other and do a soul gazing exercise. They have to face each other and get in real close, legs interlocked together. They stare at each other, Raynor realizes they’ve turned this into a staring contest and makes them blink. She asks Bucky why Sam aggravates him so much. Bucky asks why he gave up the Shield. Sam acts like he’s being a dick again, but then Buck digs in deep and lets everything out. Basically, he knows Steve trusted Sam and knew he’d be a good fit for Captain America. But Sam doesn’t want to be him. So that means that Steve was wrong about Sam. And if Steve was wrong about Sam, what if he was wrong about Bucky? Okay, yeah, I can see why he’d be upset if that was running through his mind. Sam says that he thinks he did the right thing. They agree to work together this one last time, and then take a long, separate break from each other for a while. Sam walks out. Bucky gets up to follow, asking what rule 2 was again before departing.

 

Outside, Sam and Bucky run into Walker and Hoskins. They found Karli’s name and think she’s taking the meds to a refugee camp in central Europe. Walker wants to work with them, but Sam thinks that the public eye and regulations that go with being “Captain America” means that he wouldn’t be a good fit for free agents like Bucky and him. When he brushes them off again, Walker warns them that they need to stay out of his way. Super.

 

The Flag Smashers are loading up a plane in Bartislava, Sakovia. They get a text telling them that the Power Broker’s men are after them. One of the Flag Smashers volunteers to stay behind and hold them off. Karli and her crew load up the last of their supplies as he drops a powerline to delay them. He gets gunned down while the plane takes off.

 

Back state side, Bucky has an idea of who they could contact to get info on the Super Soldier Serum. Someone who knew quite a bit about HYDRA’s projects. Sam is vehemently against contacting him, but they have no other leads. So, they’re off to Munich to have a chat with the single greatest terrestrial villain the Avengers ever up against, Baron Helmut Zemo.

 

I liked how this episode characterized John Walker in the first few minutes. He’s a confident man, but a tad arrogant. He believes in the importance of Captain America, but doesn’t seem to get that one can’t be NAMED the Captain, Captain America is made not chosen. I don’t think he’s a bad man in this episode, just not the right man for the Shield. But we’ll go into more detail about him as we go. The Flag Smashers are an interesting crew. I like how they’re in principle a group that believes they’re bringing about a better world, even if their methods are far too extreme. Fun fact, Karli Morgenthau is a gender swapped character of Karl Morgenthau. In the comics he’s part of an international terrorist group called ULTIMATUM and goes by the alias Flag Smasher. He’s an anti-Captain America of sorts, being against nationalism and government in general. The depiction of the character as a teenager seeking to break up nations again is a nice spin on the character, I think. We’ll see more of Karli in the episodes to come. Oh, and I loved seeing Isaiah Bradley. For those who don’t recognize the name, he starred in a miniseries called Truth: Red, White, and Black. The story is of a group of Black soldiers that were given a copy of the Super Soldier Serum and sent on suicide missions for the government. There were some 300 men in his original unit, 150 that made it through the procedure, and eventually it was whittled down to Bradley. He raided a concentration camp, but was arrested for stealing a Captain America Uniform. That version of Bradley only spent 15 years in prison, but he was in solitary for the majority of that time (that is soooo screwed up) and that coupled with side effects of his imperfect serum left him mentally diminished. Like, not braindead, but it’s implied his family has to help him with just about everything and he’s pretty much incapable of speech. They updated his background, obviously, so he didn’t work concurrently with Steve Rogers, but otherwise it sounds like it’s very similar to his comic book origin. His Grandson, Eli, end up carrying on the legacy of patriotic heroism as the Young Avenger, Patriot. I’m hoping we’ll see some of that down the line. The legacy of Captain America and Super Soldiers is going to be explored in this series, so I hope you’re ready for that. Oh, and Zemo is coming back. How fun. Have a good night, everybody.

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Viewer Log: The Falcon and the Winter Soldier ep 1

 Sam spreads his wings and Bucky fights his demons.

WandaVision was a swell start to the new Disney+ Marvel series. It was a weird, psychological piece about grief, about growth and just a fun story that helped shift two minor MCU characters into big characters. Hopefully, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier will do just that for Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes. Enough preamble, let’s get to it.

 

We open on Sam in a black suit. He has the Shield on his bed. He gives it a good, long look before putting it back into a carry case. He remembers his conversation with Steve when he passed the metaphorical torch to Sam.

 

“How does it feel?”

 

“Like it’s someone else’s.”

 

“It isn’t.”

 

We cut to Sam helping save a captain kidnapped by a terrorist group called LAF. Falcon is told that he needs to fly in fast and undercover to avoid violating any treaties. Falcon, the guy who flies with a jetpack and artificial wings, is told to be subtle. Huh. On the ground, Lt. Joaquin Torres is his info guy, uploading information to his HUD as he goes.

 

I'm so glad they started adding color to his costume.

Falcon flies in. He circles around to the cockpit, sees that the pilot is dead and a LAF goon is flying the plane. The pilot sees Falcon but he falls back before the goon can get a good look at him. Interestingly, the guy leading this squad of goons is none other than Batroc the Leaper. I guess super goons aren’t as impressive as they used to be. Batroc seems to be under the impression that the pilot, Louie, is an idiot. Win for Sam. Falcon locates everyone through the plane’s hull with his HUD, and sends his drone, Redwing, out. The drone slices the door off the cargo bay. Falcon flies in and takes out several goons before one guy starts shooting at him. Falcon’s wings form a shield that protect him, but unfortunately the ricochet hits and kills Louie. The plan drops several feet before the autopilot engage and levels off. Batroc faces off against Falcon, and oh, right, I forgot this version is actually a fairly competent fighter. He’s able to hold off Falcon long enough for his guys to bail and for him to follow, they’re all wearing those squirrel flight suit things. To which, I have to point out the stupidity of trying to escape in those gliding suits when you’re up against someone who can literally fly.

 

Falcon flies off after LAF, their guns slowing him down just enough that he doesn’t intercept them immediately. They glide into a tight canyon where Falcon’s wings slice into the rock, slowing him further, and then attack him with a helicopter. Redwing takes it out. They take out the gunner from a second Helicopter before crashing it as well. Falcon almost catches the captain, but another goon dives on him, distracting him just long enough for them to land. Batroc gloats that Falcon won’t follow once they’re over the border, just as Falcon lands in the helicopter opposite him. He tossed a guy from the helicopter. Batroc shoots his pack before grabbing the captain and flying off again. Falcon follows, but is slowed by his damaged pack. Torres warning that they’re about to go into Libyan Airspace. Falcon dodges around another attack helicopter as he chases Batroc. He takes it out with its own heat seekers. Torres tells Falcon they need to fall back, just as Falcon’s pack finishes self-repairs enough to let him zoom out at top speed, grab the captain and blow up the copter. Batroc leaps out at the last second, so we will probably see him again.

 

After the mission, Sam travels to the city of Tunisia with Torres to celebrate their victory. They have lunch while Sam makes some repairs to his wings. Torres points out that Sam has a tech team that could do that for him, but Sam just laughs and says that anytime anyone else fixes his wings some other new glitch pops up. A passing couple thanks Falcon, the Avenger, for his role in bringing the wife back. Torres tells Sam that things aren’t as calm as he might think. He tells Sam that he kind of gets LAF, but another group called the Flag Smashers are the ones to worry about. It’s a group of terrorists that believe the world was better during the Blip, that want things to go back to a world united. Solid idea, but I’m not a fan of Terrorism. Torres promises to keep an eye on things online and tell Sam if something happens. Sam gets up to leave, and Torres asks Sam if he knows anything about Steve. Sam just shrugs and says that he isn’t on a bunker on the moon. That’s a conspiracy theory, Torres isn’t crazy.

 

This better be Wakandan diamond glass or something.

Sam arrives at an event honoring the Steven Grant Rogers aka Captain America wing of the Smithsonian. Rhodey is in the crowd as well. Sam gives a speech about honoring Steve’s legacy but looking to the future. Sam, despite being given Cap’s blessing, doesn’t wish to be a new Captain and puts The Shield into a display case. Afterwards, Sam and Rhodey chat. Sam thinks that the world survived without Captain America for a long time, and it’ll be able to survive after him, but Rhodey is less sure. As they stand amongst Steve’s memorabilia, Rhodey says that he thinks the world is broke and it’s looking for someone to fix it. The two part-ways, with Rhodey saying he’ll be around.

 

Side note, I truly hope the Shield is better protected than it looks. A glass case is no place for The Shield, it should be on a Captain’s arm and/or hurled at enemies.

 

We cut to some fancy looking foreign hotel. Some guys are going up to their rooms when Winter Soldier bursts in. Winter Soldier kills a lot of people before finally grabbing his target, crushing his windpipe as he whispers “Hail HYDRA.” A random young man witnessed all of this; he tries to get into his hotel room but can’t get the door open. He begs for his life, telling Winter Soldier he didn’t see anything. Winter Solider pulls a gun on him…

 

Bucky wakes up with a start as he kills the young man. Yep, that was a nightmare. No, I don’t know why Bucky sleeps on his floor. Later that day in therapy, he lies about having Nightmares and claims he’s doing better. His therapist, whom is ex-military and specializes in PTSD and other trauma cases, knows he’s lying and calls him on his bs. She also points out that a condition of his pardon is participating in therapy. Bucky get’s annoyed when she starts writing on her notepad, and she just shrugs and says “You don’t talk, I write.” Bucky tells her that he found someone on his list, Senator Atwood. Bucky, apparently, has a list of people that he needs to do something about, to make up for his actions as the Winter Soldier.  Atwood was HYDRA affiliated and continued to use her connections for shady deals. As we see how he handles the situation, we’re told his three rules. Rule One, he can’t do anything illegal, his therapist says over a scene where he uses a device to hack her car, lock them in and drive it around to disorientate them. He says he just gave info to the DA and wasn’t involved in the rest. Rule Two, nobody gets hurt, as he injures, possibly kills, her fixer. Rule Three, the only one he seems to stick to, he tells her he’s no longer the Winter Soldier. He’s James “Bucky” Barnes, and you are a part of my effort to make amends. He walks off as the sirens draw close.

 

His therapist claims that he doesn’t trust anyone, which Bucky disagrees. She takes his phone and points out that he has less than 10 numbers in his phone and the only one he is in consistent contact with Sam and he’s ignoring Sam’s texts. Bucky sighs and points out that, excluding the calm he felt in his few months in Wakanda, he’s been moving from one fight to another for 90 years. He wants peace but doesn’t know how to get it. She calls him on this BS again, as a former solider herself she knows that being alone is probably the most counter-productive thing Bucky could do to find Peace. She tells him that he’s free and he asks, “To do what?”

 

Weird how this the average age of any Bucky's
friends.

After his therapy session, Bucky meets up with an old Asian man that he’s been spending time with named Yori. Bucky stops him from fighting with a neighbor. They go for lunch, chat, and Yori actually get’s Bucky a date with a cute hostess. Things take a turn, though, when Yori brings up his son. His son had been killed a few years back, wrong place, wrong time situation. The fact that Yori will never completely know what happened is clearly eating the old man up.

 

Sam and Sarah Wilson have a great family dynamic.

We cut back to Sam who is driving to Delacroix, Louisiana, to see his sister, Sarah, and her kids. Sam’s sister seems like a fairly normal sister, these two have great banter. Things take a turn, though when the banter ends and it’s brought up that Sarah wants to sell their parent’s old boat. Sam is 1000% against it, as it has sentimental value, but Sarah can’t make ends meet with it just sitting there taking dock fees. Sam wants to talk to the bank with her, clearly planning to use his star power to get her a better deal. She’s apprehensive but agrees to go along with it.

 

Meanwhile, Bucky returns to the restaurant for his date. He brought her flowers, since, you know, he’s an “old soul.” She asks some questions about Bucky; he answers honestly but she thinks he’s being cute. He’s 106, and he’s a bit out off practice. They do something kind of cutesy, playing battleship while taking drinks. They talk about Bucky’s life, he’s honest-ish. Mentions he had sister, his parents are long dead (I somehow doubt they made it to the 80s), that sort of thing. She thanks him for spending time with Yori, as she likes the old man and knows he’s been suffering since his son died. Bucky kind of freaks out and bails. He goes to Yori’s place and gives him money for lunch. We see a picture of his son on a shrine… it’s the kid Bucky killed in his nightmare-memory. After walking away, he opens up his notebook and at the top of his “Amends” list is Y. Nakasima. Well, crap.

 

Okay, Torres, what did you think was going happen? 

In Switzerland, Torres attends a Flag Smasher rally he found info on online. Masks are handed out and they’re told to put them on and run around. Most people do, just as some kind of super-human smashes out of a nearby bank. The running, screaming people in masks are the ideal cover for the goon and his crew. Torres tries to stop him, but gets tossed around and a boot to the head. From the strength this guy showed off, I think he should count himself lucky this brute didn’t cave his skull in.

 

This MOFO. Oh and John Walker is there too.
Yes, the Senator is really the bigger asshole.

Meanwhile, Sam is at the bank with his sister, trying to get the loan. While the accountant they’re speaking with is clearly impressed with Sam, he’s not helping. He claims that the five-year gap in Sam’s financial history, (you know, when he was blipped), lack of consistent funds (Sam explains he’s mostly paid via donations), and an abundance of people looking for funds (gotta look out for the white folks) means he’s not a safe investment for the bank. … Yeah, if I’m being too subtle, it’s quite clear he didn’t get the loan cause they’re Black. Dude has the audacity to ask for a selfie with him. Outside, Sam wants to keep trying, but Sarah is all kinds of done with this. Sam still won’t sell without trying to save it. He goes to the boat and tries to fix it up, but it won’t start. He’s interrupted by a text from Torres, telling him to get to a computer to look at some secure files he sent. At home, he does, the files which includes a picture of the Flag Smasher he met. Sam chastises Torres for not just monitoring online like he said, but Torres just kinda shrugs. They note this guy is incredibly strong. Sam clearly thinks something else is up, but keeps it close to the vest. Sarah comes in and turns on the news. The Defense Department, same dude that thanked Sam for giving them the Shield, reveals that the US government thinks that the world is in peril, and needs a new symbol, a new shield for America. And introduces the world to John Walker, the “new” Captain America. Those MOFO’s gave him the SHIELD, you bastards!

 

So, this is a great beginning episode. Sets up how the world is right now, with people still adjusting to missing five years of life and that things didn’t just slide back into place after Thanos was defeated. Sam doesn’t seem like he had the right amount of confidence in himself to be the person that Steve knows him to be. I liked seeing him both on the job, which we only got to see a little of in the movies, and at home with his family. His sister Sarah is great, they’re banter is real fun and I like seeing how she tries to keep him grounded. No pun intended. While it’s only touched on here, the issue of race and of how being a Black man and a Superhero work both with and against each other is a big part of this series. I liked seeing Bucky dealing with his PTSD. While he’s undoubtedly in a better place than he was when he was still the Winter Soldier, Bucky is still working through what he did while he was HYDRA’s preferred Wetworks man. It was really quite sad to realize that Yori was the father of the man that Bucky killed in his nightmare. I’d hoped that Yori was an old war buddy, or maybe the son of a war buddy, so finding out that Bucky killed his son was pretty sad. Oh, and that reveal. As I said above, this is John Walker, portrayed by Wyatt Russel. Fun fact, he’s the son off Kurt Russel and long-time partner Goldie Hawn. We only get a cameo of his here, but be prepared to hate this guy. Even knowing that Walker, who’s been Captain America but is also known under the alias US Agent, was involved I still felt slapped when he came out with the Shield strapped to his back. I promise you, this decision to hand the Shield to someone that was chosen by committee will have consequence. Oh, and the Flag Smashers are an interesting terrorist group. Obviously, they have a lot of power, but we’ll see what they use it for soon. Have a good night, everybody. 

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Viewer Log: My Hero Academia ep 72

Red Riot and Fat Gum take on a crazed brawler and his barrier maker. 

Last time on My Hero Academia, Suneater took center stage against three of the Eight Bullets of the Shie Hassaikai. The three members, Setsuno: Quirk Larceny, steals equipped items; Hojo: Quirk Crystalize, can cover his body in harden crystal; Tabe: Quirk Food, he can eat and quickly digest anything. The three on one strategy kept Amajiki on his toes and very nearly overwhelmed him. He was ultimately able to defeat them, knocking all three out. Way to go, Amajiki, you beautifully socially anxious SOB. Enough recap, let’s get to it.

 

Amajiki down!

We return to Amajiki and the Eight Bullets trio. He explains that he made sure that his tentacles had a highly concentrated form of octopus neurotoxin. Not enough to kill these guys, but enough to keep them unconscious. He breaks off his tentacles and uses them as ropes to restrain them. He tries to follow after his fellow heroes, but passes out by the door. As the lights go out, he muses that those three must have worn him out more than he thought.

 

Back with Izuku and the other heroes, they’re running hard to catch up with Overhaul. Izuku and Kirishima are both nervous for Amajiki. Not too surprising, given that Amajiki is constantly putting himself down, I’d also be nervous for him. Fat Gum tells them that he has confidence in him, which is all Kirishima needed to change his mind on the subject. They note that Mimic doesn’t seem to be altering the halls around them. They believe that this means that his awareness is limited to a specific area. That he’s less within the whole building, and more in the given hall or floor, monitoring specific areas and distorting the area he’s in.

 

As they figure this out, Mimic is in the room where Amajiki fought the trio and is hyper pissed that they only stopped one hero. Imagine how much more annoyed he’d be if he realized Amajiki is a high school senior. On the top floor, Bubble Girl and Centipeder have gotten their guys restrained and are trying to figure out the situation. She is rather shocked to find out that, actually, many of the Shie Hassaikai don’t much care for Overhaul. The goons that they have explain that their boss tried to keep their organization separate from the hero/villain system. They’re fairly disgusted with Chisaki going by Overhaul, and by the Eight Bullets and the other new members of their group that are feverishly loyal to him specifically. Despite their dislike, these guys are fairly confident that Overhaul will get away.

 

Okay, after seeing his Unbreakable form take so much
damage last time, seeing it crack now is legit freaky.

Back with the heroes, Mimic tries to stop the most advanced group. He tries to knock Eraser Head into another lower room, but Fat Gum dives into the way and pushes him aside. Fat Gum lands in a dark room, along with Kirishima whom had also dived to save Eraser Head. They run into another member of the Eight Bullets, a massive man called Rappa. Rappa charges them, hits Kirishima’s hardened arms and almost takes him out, and repeatedly smacks around Fat Gum. Fat Gum tries to take a swing at him, but an energy barrier leaps up around him. This is thanks to Rappa’s partner, Tengai. Tengai notes that both Kirishima and Fat Gum are defensive orientated, while he and Rappa are defensive and offensive. Or, more simply, two shields vs. a spear and shield. Kirishima’s arm’s are pretty badly damaged, it looks like the one punch nearly shattered his bones. Fat Gum tries to motivate him by reminding him that he’s unbreakable.

 

Gotta love a good Odd Couple.

Rappa is excited to keep fighting. The dude is a real battle nut, telling Tengai that he shouldn’t interfere. Tengai tells him that he’s being an idiot and Overhaul paired them for a reason. Annoyed, Rappa attacks him, but Tengai puts another barrier around himself. Rappa doesn’t care what the boss wants, he just wants to enjoy a deathmatch. Tengai lowers the barrier and lets Rappa do his thing. Fat Gum isn’t sure how this’ll pan out. He thinks it’ll come down to if Rappa’s arms or his body give out first. Rappa is SUPER excited to hear this “Oh yeah, you get me, Fatso,” I believe were his exact words. He reminds Tengai to stay out of this and charges.

 

Kirishima is still frozen in place while Fat Gum takes Rappa’s beating. He notes that Rappa is hitting Fat Gum harder and faster. Kirishima calls himself a useless bastard. Tengai claims that Kirishima won’t be a problem, thinking that he’s finished. Kirishima tells himself that nothing changes.

 

Dark Haired Kirishima is weird to look at.

Kirishima flashes back to middle school. A black, limp haired Kirishima tries to help a student that is being bullied into using his Quirk to make counterfeit bills. Kirishima tells them to back off and goes at them, but one of the bullies throws a heavy rock in his face, noting that Kirishima’s quirk just makes his skin a little bit harder and isn’t that impressive. The bullies grab their target and start walking off. Kirishima’s friends tell him that he should just give up. He goes to try and stop the bullies again, as he’s trying to live up to the ideals of having an honorable heart like his hero Crimson Riot talks about. But before he gets there, the bullies run into Mina Ashido. Yeah, the pink skinned girl that shoots acid. They’re far enough away that they can’t hear the interaction, but, somehow, she gets the group of them to do some breakdancing and then everyone walks off, seemingly as friends. Huh, you go, Mina. Kirishima’s friends note that Ashido’s got a pretty great power and solid charisma, so she’ll get into UA and be a hero.

 

I need to stress this. Mina Ashido was the BAKUGO of her school, and Kirishima was an IZUKU. That blew my damn mind when I first saw this.

 

Later on, Kirishima vows to train his body and that his spirit will make up for any deficiency in him. His friends are planning to go to more average schools, but Kirishima’s one and only choice is UA. As Kirishima walks home, he wonders if he’d have the confidence to apply to UA if he had a more impressive power. He’s brought out of his musing by seeing some of his classmates trembling in fear by an enormous, hulking dude that’s asking for directions to a hero agency. He does ask, but it’s quite clear that if he doesn’t get an answer soon, he’ll get mad. He grabs the concrete of the building behind them and cracks it when he asks again. Kirishima wants to help but can’t move his legs. Before he can do anything, Ashido rushes in and gives him an address and directions. The hulking creature thanks her and walks off, saying everything is for his master. Ashido drops to her knees and starts sobbing. Her friends grab her and exposit that the address Ashido gave was to the police station.

 

I like the idea that they've been friends this whole
time, but we didn't see much of it because they're
not POV characters. Yes, I ship them.

Kirishima laments the fact he froze. In his room, Kirishima mentions that he heard about the Bakugo incident with the Sludge Villain, but also remembers hearing about Izuku running in to help. He thinks his spirit isn’t making up for anything. He crosses out UA from his application list in disgust. He mentions that when his Quirk firsts manifested, he cut his eye with his fist and then spent the next few weeks whining and crying about his power. He mentions that he admired Crimson Riot because they had similar powers and he was still able to be a hero. He gets mad and throws some of his memorabilia around. He knocks down one of those hologram projector things, and it plays an interview Crimson Riot had. In the interview, the interviewer asks if he’s afraid when he rushes in to save people. Crimson Riot says of course he is and anyone who isn’t is an idiot. He goes on to tell a story about how when he first got started as a hero, someone who died. He couldn’t have done anything, he knows that, but the look of terror on this person’s face stuck with him, and pushes him to do better. He’s called the chivalrous hero, and to him, chivalry is to have a strong spirit, living a life with not regrets. Hearing this make Kirishima to vow to never freeze up again.

 

Over the next few months, he apologizes to the girls for not helping, trains constantly and pushes his body to the limit, ends up taking the UA entrance exam, and passed. On the first day, presumably while Izuku was nervously walking up to the UA campus, Kirishima meets up with Ashido again. She’s rather shocked to see that he’s dyed his hair and spiked it up with gel. She’s impressed with his new look. She realized that the villain encounter messed him with him more than anyone thought. Because of this, she says she’ll keep his makeover a secret for now, but one day she’ll tell everyone.

 

Fat Gum gets the knock out. That's 5 Bullets down,
1 Occupied, and 2 to go.

Back in the present, Fat Gum is still standing, much to Rappa and his own surprise. Fat Gum mentally lets us know that this isn’t as bleak a situation as we thought. Turns out, his body is able to absorb kinetic force as well as physical objects. Doing so takes energy and burns his fat, so he has been taking more damage with each hit, but this has let him forge a spear to break through the Eight Bullet’s defenses. Rappa takes a break, and Fat Gum tries to move, but the damage slowed him down. Rappa goes to make another hit, but Kirishima dives into the way, arms up and blocks. He takes multiple hits from Rappa, much to everyone’s shock. He vows to never give up, if he cracks, he’ll harden again, and he’ll save people even if it costs him his life. Both he and Rappa swing at each other and almost have their fists collide, but Tengai throws up a barrier again. Rappa is clearly pissed but Tengai doesn’t apologize. He claims that nothing can go through his defenses, and Kirishima’s attack was in vain. Fat Gum catches his student, saying it wasn’t in vain. Rappa wants Tengai to drop the barrier, but he’s confident in his barrier. Fat Gum tells them that everyone made a mistake, and that was underestimating Red Riot and his Chivalrous spirit. Fat Gum’s punch destroyed the barrier and knocks both of them back and into the wall. Fat Gum claims victory for the pair.

 

Alright, I love this episode. I’ve said before that Kirishima is my favorite non-main character in this series, so seeing him get more screen time is phenomenal. I gotta say, I was shocked when I realized that when you do the math, Kirishima has been the Kirishima we know for like six months. That blows my mind. It was interesting to see the origin of his inferiority complex. And, when we see that where he started off with, that feeling that his Quirk wasn’t impressive does seem legit. Part of me kind of wishes we could get the My Hero Academia spin off of his journey, just saying. I also liked the background with Mina Ashido. She’s a fun side character and knowing that she’s kind of always been a chipper girl is great. Not going to lie, after this episode, I ship them. Not apologizing. I also really loved Rappa. The fact he’s just this battle crazed brawler that just wants a good fight is fun. When Fat Gum promised him a good fight, it was like seeing a kid be told they’re getting a PS5. Super jazzed. His dialogue with Tengai is also great. I like the “calm guy, angry guy” dynamic they have. It’s pretty clear that Tengai was partnered with Rappa to make sure that he stayed on task. Fat Gum mostly had to stand there and take damage, which isn’t that fun, but hearing how he basically used Rappa to charge him up with enough power to take them down. Just fun writing. Well, this has been a fun string of episodes. But, I guess it’s time to talk about another big show… April is the month of The Falcon and The Winter Soldier. I’m looking forward to it! 

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Viewer Log: My Hero Academia ep 71

 Amajiki shows how a balanced diet can help you win fights.

Last time on My Hero Academia, after a few days of investigating, the heroes tracked down Eri. Nighteye had a lucky lead of seeing a Hassaikai member, whom I dubbed Mop-Top, buying a doll and not having an obsessive knowledge about the doll, proving he’s not an adult who likes a kid’s show. The heroes gathered and Izuku and Togeta resolved to save the abused girl, Eri. The raid got screwed up almost immediately when an enormous member of the Hassaikai, Katsukame, charged out and ended up in wrestling match with Ryuku, the dragon hero. Izuku, Togeta and the rest of the heroes rushed in to raid this metaphorical castle. Enough recap, let’s get to it, shall we?

 

I kind of get his inferiority complex now, you know?

We open with a quick memory from Amajiki. He remembers when he transferred into a new school in the third grade, and how he was so painfully awkward and quite that he was sure no one would want to be friends with him. That changed almost immediately when a chipper boy named Mirio Togeta came up to him and the two bonded over a love of heroes. Amajiki remembers thinking that Togeta was so warm and bright, even back then. As he comes back into the moment, he sees Togeta leading the charge into the Hassaikai base and wonders if he can shine as brightly as he does.

 

Ryuku and her crew are still battling Katsukame, and the non-important heroes elect to stay out in the courtyard and battle the grunts while Izuku, Togeta and the rest of the named cast rush in to find the girl. Amajiki wonders if maybe the Shie Hassaikai were tipped off to the raid, but the pros doubt it, as they think the Hassaikai would have a more unified, cohesive counterattack if so. Nighteye sees an alcove that he recognizes from viewing Mop-Top’s future. He quickly hits a series of hidden buttons to open the secret passage. A trio of goons leap out to try to stop them, but Centipeder and Bubble Girl disable them with little trouble. They’ll hold them while the others continue onward.

 

They reach the bottom of the stairs, but hit an immediate dead-end. Togeta puts his head through and sees that the hall continues beyond the wall. It’s at this point we also learn that Togeta’s costume is made of a fiber from his own hair, meaning that it passes through objects with him much more easily than his gym clothes. Meaning that we won’t have to risk seeing his butt at a dramatic moment. Upon hearing the scout report from Togeta, Izuku and Kirishima rush forward and smash through the wall.

 

We cut over to Overhaul’s diminutive general manager Joi Irinaka aka Mimic. He takes an injection of a power stimulating drug. You can tell because it uses the same syringe as the blade guy from Kirishima’s episode. He slips out of his tiny costume and plague mask, revealing he’s at least twice as tall outside of his costume as he was within and then phases into the closest wall. The moment he’s inside, the walls, floor and ceiling all began to churn and writhe, knocking the heroes about. Amajiki notes that this might be Irinaka, as his power lets him slip into in animate objects and manipulate them like they’re part of his own body. It doesn’t seem likely to the pros, at first, because Mimic is supposed to only be able to enter objects about the size of a refrigerator, but then they remember the enhancement drugs. Eraser Head can’t turn off his power, though, as Mimic’s main body isn’t it his line of sight.

 

This image is far scarier than the activities he
performs warrants.

We’re shown Overhaul and Kurono, they have Eri with them and are making a break for it. Amajiki starts falling into a depression spiral, “oh, we’ll never reach them, woe are we,” type stuff. He’s broken out of it by Togeta telling him to not give up, and that so long as the path forward remains, he can still reach it. He races ahead. Mimic isn’t concerned with stopping him, though, as what can a single hero do? Famous villainous overconfidence. To ensure that Togeta is alone, Mimic opens up a pit beneath the heroes and drops them in lower. He keeps the cops on his level to deal with.

 

They’re dropped into a room with three members of the Shie Hassaikia’s Eight Bullets. One is a normal looking dude with a simple mouth covering plague mask, another is wearing a scarecrow mask, and the third is a bald fella in a medical mask. Fat Gum is ready to fight, but Amajiki says he’ll battle them, as the pros should save their strength for Overhaul. He remembers that Togeta once told him that he is only so good because Amajiki believes in him, so he’s trusting in Togeta’s confidence in him. One of the goons tries to do “something” but Eraser stops him with his power. Amajiki quickly wraps the three up in his tentacle fingers, slamming them around. He lists off their names and powers. The blonde in the plague mask is Setsuno and his quirk is called Larceny. The guy in the scarecrow mask is called Tabe and his quirk is Food. And the big guy in the medical mask is Hojo, his quirk is Crystalize. He tosses them aside, gather’s their weapons and crushes them in a crab claw. He tells the others he’ll handle things, so they can go. Before leaving, Eraser stops Setsuno from using his power again and gives Tabe a hard knock on the head. He tells Amajiki to handle them fast and catch up. Amajiki tells Izuku to look after Togeta. Fat Gum believes in Amajiki, claiming that his only weakness is his self-confidence, so if he believes in himself, Fat Gum believes too.

 

Octopus tentacles, great for restraining enemies
and I'm told they're tasty.

Amajiki focus on making sure they can’t get up for a while, slamming his tentacles repeatedly into the trio. Setsuno does get up, though, and rushes him with a blade. Hojo covers his body in crystalized armor. Amajiki tries to defend himself with a clam fist, but Setsuno uses his Quirk to pull it out of his hand and into his. Larceny lets him steal anything in his line of sight. He notes that because Amajiki can’t kill them, he’s at a marked disadvantage. He goes on, giving Amajiki a speech about how they’re all trash that Overhaul has lifted up, and even trash has pride.

 

Amajiki remembers a class he had back in the day. At the time, he couldn’t manifest more than a green shoot. Togeta has a similar issue, being unable to pass more than his head through a board. He doesn’t let it get him down, though, as he’ll get it next time or sometime after. Amajiki is envious that his friend is so positive. Togeta repeats the line Amajiki remembered earlier, about how he’s only so good because Amajiki believes in him. He thinks that Amajiki has the better power, but he just needs to get confidence in himself to see it. He tells Amajiki, and us, that he calls Togeta “the sun” but if that’s true, then Amajiki is something more, a light that can consume the sun. A Suneater. Now you know the origin of his name.

 

There are few powers cooler than the "I can mimic
lots of powers" type powers.

Back in the fight, Amajiki takes a punch from Hojo, crushing the crystal fist in his hand. He manifested octopush tentacles in his hand for strength and crab shell for protection, turning his hand into a seafood gauntlet. Hojo manifests thicker crystals and throws him off. Amajiki plans to use his full power, explaining that he’ll be using multiple manifestations at once, picking and choosing the effects he wants. Suneater’s ultimate move, Vast Hybrid: Chimera Kraken. Cool name. In execution, he’s basically manifesting octopus tentacles covered in crab shell for protection. He whips these armored tentacles around, and it looks like that’s the ballgame, but then Tabe wakes up. The man in the scarecrow mask dives at him, opens his jaws wide and takes a massive bite out of Amajiki’s tentacle.

 

Tabe’s Quirk, Food, gives him powerful jaws, massive teeth, and a lightning-fast metabolism makes him the perfect counter to Amajiki. Huh, I guess his digestive system must be 100% efficient, or he’d be crapping his pants. Just saying. Amajiki realizes that Eraser Head must have known about this, and it’s why he specifically targeted Tabe to keep him out of the fight for as long as possible. Now that Tabe is up, it’s three-on-one and they start overwhelming Amajiki. Hojo beats the crap out of him, and Tabe and Setsuno keep him from using his powers effectively. Amajiki manifests more tentacles with hyper concentrated octopus’ neurotoxin in it to hopefully disable Tabe, but Setsuno steals the tentacles. Apparently, he couldn’t take the larger tentacles, but now that he’s manifesting smaller ones, Setsuno can take them.

 

For a group with a pretty kick ass name, one is
tangling outside, and 3 are unconscious. 4 to go.

They get Amajiki pinned up against a wall under Hojo’s massive crystal covered arm. Amajiki points out that their fight is kind of pointless as they’ll be arrested regardless of if they kill him. The Eight Bullet members give him their annotated sob stories, Tabe was “thrown away” by society, Setsuno’s lover left him with massive debts, and Hojo had someone who he trusted try to sell his crystals only to beat the crap out of him when his crystal was determined to be fake. They claim to have no lives, anymore, beyond the life that Overhaul gave them, so they don’t care if they’re arrested. Amajiki decides that if he can’t defeat the group, he’ll break their teamwork. He manifests a chicken foot, grabs a bit of crystal with it and throws it at Setsuno’s face. He has to see things for Larceny to work. Hojo tries to take Amajiki out by slamming a crystal fist into him to take him out. But, Amajiki is able to manifest crystal armor. He swallowed some of the crystals when Hojo wasn’t looking. He supersizes his chicken foot, grabs all three Eight Bullets members and slams them into a wall, knocking them out. He acknowledges that they were more than teammates as the credits roll.

 

This was a solid fight episode. I think that Amajiki’s power is really cool, and seeing how he can use it in combat was interesting. Shows how the Japanese seafood diet is really useful. I liked seeing the history of his relationship with Togeta and see why he seems to idolize his friends. I’m a fan of seeing a two friends relationship that is like the anti-Izuku/Bakugo relationship. One friend idolizes the other, and rather than be a bully, the idol just tries to push his friend to do better. The Eight Bullets as a concept is kinda cool. I read a translation of their name a few years before this season came out, and I think it did have a better name for the group. It called them the Eight Precepts of Death. But I could see that getting to be a bit wordy. Probably why they shortened it to Bullets. They’re a bit basic, I mean it’s a group of insanely loyal to a clearly abusive boss, it’s not ground breaking, but insanely loyal goons make for kick ass fights. Oh, and their backstories are incredibly basic. Debtor, social outcast, and abuse victim, it’s a standard three pack of tragic backgrounds. Despite the genericness of their backgrounds, I liked how Setsuno, Hojo and Tabe’s powers complimented each other, with Setsuno disabling their opponent’s abilities and gear while Hojo beats them and Tabe eating anything too big for Setsuno to steal. They could probably overwhelm a less skilled opponent, but thankfully Amajiki is DAMN good at hero work. Using manifest for Area-of-control effects like when he whipped his tentacles around or more focused like with his octo-crab fist to give him pseudo-superstrength were brilliant. Mimic using his Quirk to break up the cops and the heroes was a fairly good way to trim the pack down, and he’ll do so again next episode to force another hero/student pair into a brawl with an Eight Bullets member. If you noted an inconsistency involving the Hassaikai’s knowledge of the raid, that’ll be explained a bit more later. Suffice to say, the Yakuza group is a bit more complicated than everyone just doing what Overhaul says. But, we’ll get to that next time. Have a good night, everybody. 

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Viewer Log: My Hero Academia ep 70

 After some investigating and a lucky break, the raid begins!

Last time on My Hero Academia, Nighteye called in heroes to begin discussing his Hassaikai case. After explaining the highlights of the case, seeing the Shie Hassaikai make contact with the League of Villains, the quirk destroying bullet, and Izuku and Togeta meeting the Hassaikai’s leader Kai “Overhaul” Chisaki and his daughter Eri. We then hear the most disturbing part of the situation, that the quirk destroying bullet has blood and other cells in it, and that mixed with Eri covered in bandages makes it clear where THAT came from. Izuku and Togeta vow to save Eri. The heroes are sent out to investigate Shie Hassaikai affiliated buildings to find Eri. Enough recap, let’s get to it.

 

That's certainly disturbing imagery.

We open a few days after the meeting with the heroes. While the investigation is going on, Izuku and his friends are continuing practice. They’ve been told to keep the investigation under wraps, and that is clearly eating at Izuku. The other students note that the work study kids are vastly improved, much to Bakugo’s annoyance.

 

There’s a quick flashback to Aizawa’s conversation with the UA students. He explains that the Big 3 seniors will be given autonomy on par with professional heroes, as Aizawa thinks they have the experience to handle it, but the other UA students will be severely restricted. He actually gives the non-Izuku members the chance to opt out. All three refuse to be left out. Aizawa lets them know that the League of Villains involvement complicates things a little. Because of what they saw at the warehouse, it seems unlikely to them that The League will be involved. IF it turns out to be wrong, he’s going to pull them out immediately.

 

In the present, the stress and anxiety of the situation is clearly eating at Izuku. He wants to talk to someone, but can’t even go to All Might due to the hush-hush nature of the situation. Iida and Todoroki note that Izuku has been depressed and edgy lately. Iida wants to be supportive and tells Izuku to talk to him if he needs to. The same olive branch Izuku extended to him just before the Stain incident. Izuku is moved to tears for the first time in a while. Izuku mutters that a hero shouldn’t cry, but Todoroki thinks that isn’t the case.

 

Sad Togeta.

Later, we’re shown the heroes investigating each of the Hassaikai buildings that Nighteye noted. Rock Lock (the anime calls him Lock Lock, but that name is silly so I’m sticking with Rock Lock), Ryuku, Fat Gum, and the others are closely monitoring each site. We’re told that the heroes were given three criteria while investigating each facility. 1. Could the facility manufacture bullets? 2. Are people frequently coming in and out of the facility? And 3. If there’s an uptick in drug trafficking in the area. Gran Torino is the one to let us know that half the potential locations they’ve looked into have been crossed off the list. We’re shown that Togeta is incredibly depressed with the situation. In a voice over, Izuku begs the heroes to find Eri as quickly as possible. On screen, we’re shown Nighteye spotting Mop-Top entering a department store. Oo, the plot progresses.

 

Two days later, late at night, Izuku gets the call. He meets up with Uraraka, Kirishima and Tsu, whom also got the call. They, as well as Aizawa, and the Big Three are all prepping for the case. The next morning, everyone else notes that the work study kids were clearly on edge. Once again Izuku was staring intently at his food without eating. Guess it’ll always be easy to figure out when Izuku’s in a funk. They think it’s probably no big deal. … oh, how little the others know.

 

It is weird to see a man so serious next to something
so cutesy.

The heroes gather and Nighteye reveals that Eri is being held at the main headquarters of the Shie Hassaikai. Rock Lock and the others point out that that kind of made their investigation kind of pointless, but Nighteye says that they did learn new information, so the investigation was worth it. When asked how he found Eri, he pulls out a magical girl doll and explains he saw a Hassaikai member, Mop-Top, buying this doll which is currently popular with young girls. Fat Gum points out that really isn’t proof, that maybe Mop-Top just likes sparkly toys, different strokes for different folks. Nighteye explains that he witnessed the guy speaking with a store employee. He clearly only had the vaguest idea what the doll related to, so Nighteye took a chance, touched the guy’s shoulder and made him make eye contact while Nighteye pointed at where to find the toy. The activation requirements met, Nighteye saw the guy’s future, and saw him enter the Hassaikai building, go down a secret entrance and presented the toy to Eri. Rock Lock is clearly pissed that Nighteye ended up using his power, even though Nighteye did say he’d use his power when they had a better idea of their situation. Their stake outs gave them a better idea of the Hassaikia’s members schedules and when they’ll be at the HQ. And because they had prep time, they have a warrant to search the premises and the full backing of the police.

 

Hearing that they’ll have a chance to save Eri, both Izuku and Togeta are fully charged up and ready to go. Nighteye, who is happy to see his protégé is back in better spirits. He hopes that Togeta realizes that because he stuck to listening to Nighteye, that they no have a chance to save Eri and stop the Shie Hassaikai. He says that regret and failure are a part of life, but what’s important is what you learn from it. This bit of wisdom is played over a scene of All Might in the hospital following his battle with All For One, where he touched his mentor and saw how All Might would ultimately die. His power makes him unsure if one can change the future, but he believes that you can change how the past affects you in the present. Everyone suits up and preps for their mission.

 

At the same time, the Hassaikai get a call. Apparently, they have an informant of some kind amongst either the police or heroes and they tipped them off. Overhaul tells his minions to prepare for battle, but he’s going to have to take care of something.

 

At 0800, the heroes and police gather. They’re know that the Hassaikai base has a vast network of tunnels under it, and while they haven’t mapped it out in detail, they believe that through the future he saw, Nighteye has the quickest route to Eri. The police had out a list of Hassaikai members and all of their known quirks. Izuku notes that Gran Torino isn’t present. Aizawa tells him that the older hero is with Tsukauchi, they got a tip that the League of Villains will be moving and that’s their top priority. Aizawa tells Izuku he’s going to keep an eye on him in this mission. Everyone is prepping and told that their operation is going to start at 0830.

 

While this is happening, Overhaul goes to see the head of the Shie Hassaikai, he’s on life support. He apologizes to his boss and says that things are about to get noisy. Oh, yeah, I might not have explained this well. While Overhaul runs the vast majority of the organization, he’s technically the group’s number 2.

 

Okay, so the Shie Hassaikai are playing hardball
got it.

The heroes are gathered outside the Hassaikai base. The plan is to wait for the police to read out the warrant, then storm in and take care of things as quickly and efficiently as possible. This plan is ruined immediately when a massive member of the Shie Hassaikai burst through the wall of the Hassaikai building and rushes the police. Ryuku dives into the wave and transforms into her draconic form. She wrestles the bruiser, Katsukame, to the ground. She tells the other heroes to go on ahead and that she and her interns will handle him. So Uraraka, Tsu, and Hado run over to assist.

 

Police and the other heroes rush in. Lesser members of the Shie Hassaikai try to stop them, but they’re quickly taken out by less important heroes and police. The episode proper ends with Izuku and the others rushing for the door for the building.

 

In a post credit scene, we’re shown Overhaul and his minion Kurono. Kurono senses/hears what going on above. Overhaul knows that their work is too important right now to be interrupted. They have a contingency plan for this situation, though. Overhaul’s special unit, the Eight Bullets. The big bruiser Katsukame is one of them, and we’re shown the other seven in a flash. The plan is to use them to cover their escape, and for Overhaul, Kurono, Eri and the evidence of their experiments to run and regroup. Dastardly plan.

 

Okay, so this was the last build up episode for a bit. I liked that that they made a point of showing both Izuku and Togeta were having major anxiety about this whole thing. Good to see how these two are similar. Though, it seemed more noticeable in Togeta given how his incredibly over the top happy demeanor was gone. I also liked how Nighteye ended up breaking the case, sure, it was convenient as hell, but the fact it came down to observational skills and timing was great. That said, the fact that Nighteye can only use his foresight was a bit too major of a handicap. Like, using a power once a day is just crazy. At least give him a few charges or something. The fact that their raid didn’t last more than 15 seconds before a major brawl broke out is just great. The heroes are going to be in for a real battle here with the eight bullets and Overhaul’s main force. I’ll see you all next time. 

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Viewer Log: My Hero Academia ep 69

The big meeting before the big raid. 

Last time on My Hero Academia, Kirishima had his debut as Red Riot. While on patrol with Amajiki aka Suneater and their hero mentor Fat Gum. They stop some drug peddling gangsters, but one hidden in the crowd shoots Amajiki with a bullet that disables his power. Kirishima chases him down, but the gangster takes an enhancement drug and nearly slices Kirishima to pieces even in his armored form. He reveals his new ultimate move, Red Riot Unbreakable. He defeats the gangster and sees him arrested. A few days later, Izuku is still musing about failing Eri and resolves to save her. Enough recap, let’s get to it.

 

We open with Izuku meeting with Kirishima, Uraraka and Tsu as the four students head out to their work study. Despite getting on the same train (they usually work in different areas), walking in the same direction and all arriving at the same building, the four of them don’t get that they’re all going to the same place until they see the Big Three. Like, guys, did you not chat at all on the ride over? Oh well, they enter the building and see a bunch of heroes gathered. The only ones I’ll draw attention to are Aizawa, Gran Torino, and a new hero known as Rock Lock. There is way more heroes than those three and the hero work study advisors there, but they’re almost all more or less seat fillers. The kids speak with Aizawa briefly, who reveals he got the call to show up super last minute, before they’re brought into the meeting. And yeah, this is the Shie Hassaikai case.

 

I think I found a worse power than The Blob's
super strength but also massive BMI situation.

The meeting begins with Nighteye’s sidekicks Bubblegirl and Centipeder (yes, his head is a giant centipede) explaining the situation. Basically, they started investigating the Shie Hassaikai after the incident with a gang calling themselves the Reservoir Dogs. Remember, they’re the crew that stole an entire cash register counter, were seemed to be brutally killed, but were then shown to be fine later and were arrested. They also found the abandon building that the League and Hassaikai met up in, you know, because of the big freaking hole. When the League was shown to be involved, they got Gran Torino and Detective Tsukauchi involved. Gran Torino apologizes for not bring Izuku into the loop, but obviously this thing was super hush hush. Kirishima is impressed with Izuku’s connections.

 

This is Rock Lock. Do not judge him too harshly
for being a dick.

The one new hero I mentioned, Rock Lock, asks the obvious question as to why a bunch of high schoolers are here. Fat Gum reveals his students are there to pass on information. Fat Gum explains the situation that happened with them, how Amajiki was shot with something that blocked his powers, and Kirishima was also hit but the bullet bounced off. Aizawa takes over, as the expert on stopping powers. He explains that his vision basically blocks the use of quirk genes, the bullet, in contrast, literally damaged Amajiki’s genes. He’s recovered, but the effect was worrying nonetheless. They recovered the bullets that bounced off Kirishima and they found something incredibly disturbing, analysis shows that the bullets have human blood and cells in them. Those words seem to freak out Izuku and Togeta, but they haven’t completely gotten it yet.

 

Fat Gum mentions that while they haven’t found a direct connection, the enhancement drug that the blade guy used went through a middle man group with ties to Shie Hassaikai. Ryuku pipes in and mentions that one of the giants from the fight that she and her group stopped also used the enhancement drug and had ties to Hassaikai. Some of the other heroes are convinced, as they feel that Nighteye and the others are making vague ties as evidence that Shie Hassaikai is involved. Then they bring up the piece that makes the Shie Hassaikai connection fit more than circumstantial. Kai Chisaki, aka Overhaul, his power allows him to break down or reassemble anything he touches. Izuku and Togeta get the implications of this just as Nighteye explains it. Chisaki has a daughter named Eri, she has no birth certificate or any record of her birth, and children often develop powers similar to their parents. Kirishima doesn’t get it, so an annoyed Rock Lock spells it out, they think that Overhaul is using his daughter to make these bullets.

 

Is... is this a vision? An artistic rendering?
I have no idea.

Nighteye thinks that the bullets aren’t perfected yet, but Shie Hassaikai is handing out samples for different criminal groups to use. Everyone is clearly horrified at the idea of a perfected Quirk destroying bullet. Cat’s and dogs living together, MASS HYSTERIA! Rock Lock makes a fairly dickish comment that this would be easier if Izuku and Togeta had just taken the girl when they had the chance. Nighteye deflects some of the blame on himself, as their superior. Izuku and Togeta are clearly pissed and they jump to their feet, vowing to save Eri. Rock Lock tells them that they need to be more realistic. Nighteye tells the group that due to the importance of stopping these Quirk destroying bullets is so high, their initial strike has to be perfect. He shows a list of Shie Hassaikai bases and wants each of the heroes present to investigate them. Fat Gum wants them to just rush in and take these guys out, but Nighteye preaches caution, knowing that if they botch this mission it might just serve as another rallying point for villains like what happened with Stain.

 

Aizawa asks the obvious question, why Nighteye doesn’t use Foresight to figure out where they go. Nighteye explains that his power is very limited, in that he can only use it once a day, and even when he does the perspective is tight on the person that he uses it on. He describes the vision like looking at a film strip in his mind, one where he views his target in a pretty extreme close up. He seems hesitant to use his ability for any substantial look forward, presumably he’s still gun-shy after seeing All Might’s death. Rock Lock demands that Nighteye use his power on him anyway, but Nighteye refuses. He’ll only use it if he’s certain. After an awkward pause, Ryuku gets things going again.

 

Aizawa gotta make sure the youngest heroes in
Japan don't bite off more than they can chew.

Sometime later, the UA students get together and Izuku and Togeta talk about what happened when they met Eri and Overhaul. Their friends empathize with them. Aizawa joins the students, and tells them to call him Eraser out of school. He admits that he was going to suspend the students’ internships when he heard about this joint taskforce, but has decided against it. Mostly to keep an eye on Izuku and keep him from doing reckless and stupid on his own. He tells Izuku that he still needs to earn back his trust. Izuku agrees to doing what he can to regain Aizawa’s trust.

 

Meanwhile, Gran Torino has a meeting with Nighteye. The younger hero figured out that Torino sent Izuku to him as part of a scheme to get Nighteye and All Might to start talking again. Torino does admit it, as he’s an old man and old men like to meddle. He asks what Nighteye thinks of Izuku, and he does say that Izuku and All Might are similar. They have the same madness in their eyes. I believe he means the burning desire to help people, but I guess that’s a kind of madness.

 

In a post credit scene, we’re shown Eri in her room. She’s joined by one of Overhaul’s subordinates. I can’t find a name for him, so I’ll just call him Mop-Top. Mop-Top tells Eri that he’s going to be the one in charge of her from now on. He complains that she hasn’t touched any of the toy’s he got for her, and scold her, since if she isn’t happy her dad is going to murder him. He leaves her. ON the walk out, he remembers Overhaul telling him that he needs to be someone that Eri can trust and confide in… Overhaul, at least get subordinate with kids to do this. You know, someone that might have some insight into seven-year-olds? Mop-Top decide he’ll buy her a magical girl doll to see if that’ll get her to like him. In her room, Eri is crying, remembering Izuku and actually felt safe when he hugged her. Well, that’s depressing.

 

Okay, so this was mostly an exposition episode. We’re introduced to the concept of the next few episodes, the investigation into and ultimately the raid on the Shie Hassaikai. I enjoyed seeing how their investigation developed pretty much from a random incident into a full-on drug plot that could completely destroy life as they know it. The revelation about how Eri fits into the plot was particularly disturbing. Like, you expect things to be bad for her, but not her father to literally be harvesting her flesh for profit. Like, that’s freaking ghoulish! I especially liked how they drew Izuku and Togeta’s reactions to their realization. They’re clearly mortified that the kid they had the chance to save is now being used as genetic experimentation. Creepy. I ask that you don’t judge Rock Lock too harshly. Yeah, he’s a dick in this, and most off his following episodes, but I promise that he’s got reasons to be hyper critical of kids. The Shie Hassaikai arc is one of the best in this franchise, so I’m excited to get to talk more about it soon. Have a good night, everybody. 

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