Denki Kaminari. Is he the U.A. traitor? Is he working for the League of Villains? Is he working for the Meta Liberation Army? Is it both now because they merged? Let’s talk about where Kaminari’s true allegiances may lie.
First things first, is Kaminari working for the League of Villains? NO. I mostly think this because Hagakure seems like the most likely traitor given her unconfirmed location during the USJ arc, her invisible quirk being the perfect ability for a spy, and her seemingly overall being a character who isn’t overly forward but not super passive either. She does just enough to make herself noticeable while being unnoticeable if you get my drift. Plus, I think she’s way stronger than she lets on (ex. blinding people during the Provisional License Arc) and to me, hiding your true power is a big red flag she’s actively keeping attention off herself.
Okay, so, Kaminari may not be working for the League. But, is he working for the Meta Liberation Army? My answer is YES.
Woah, woah, woah! Hold on fellow My Hero fans! It’s more complicated than you may think. I believe our favorite battery charger is working for the MLA’s ideals, not, I repeat, not feeding them intel on U.A. or any of his classmates in general. Keep in mind that becoming a hero doesn’t conflict with the MLA basic ideology. In fact, it actually helps fulfill it on some level. Think about it, what job in the My Hero Universe allows someone permission to use their quirk on the job in an almost unlimited fashion? A Hero. To someone like Kaminari, becoming a hero could mean having the most freedom in a society built on quirk restriction. Could that be why we’ve seen several heroes revealed as MLA members? Possibly, but we can’t dismiss a hero’s popularity too. If a large number of famous heroes pushed for less quirk restriction the public would listen. It’d be the easiest way of getting the average citizen on your side. Not to mention, the added intel you’d gain from working with the police and government officials. It’s the perfect job for someone who believes in what the MLA stands for.
So, we have reasons why an MLA member would become a hero, but why is Kaminari part of the group in the first place? Did he think they were cool and joined? Did someone from the MLA secretly recruit him back in junior high? Nope. I think he’s always been a member because his parents are. The MLA is made up of many types of people, most of who you’d call at first glance average citizens. People wanting to be free to use their quirks however they like. People who may have grown up being taught that’s how the world should be. We can’t forget the Meta Liberation Army is decades old and they’ve been in the shadows since the original Destro’s defeat biding their time. It’s possible, just like with Destro’s family, the Yotsubashis, the Kaminari family comes from a long line of loyal MLA members. If that’s true then Kaminari’s been indoctrinated since birth. It was never a choice to join, he’s always been one of them…just like Re-Destro.
How much does Kaminari know about the organization? Did he know about the plan to kill the League of Villains in Deika City before it happened? Hm…I’d say no. The Meta Liberation Army has kept under public and the government’s radar for decades. A group like that has to be really good at keeping secrets and the fewer people know about a secret the better it stays kept. I’m positive everything about the MLA is on a need-to-know basis.
So, what happens now? If Kaminari truly has no desire to destroy the government and he’s under the impression the Meta Liberation Army isn’t nearly as fanatical as it actually is, what will he do? It’s a tough question to answer. We still don’t know exactly how much bad behavior he’s willing to excuse from the group or if his family are also in the dark on how extreme the organization is. Yes, the original MLA were basically terrorists under Destro’s leadership but for all we know most lower-ranked members may not realize how extreme the usually calm Re-Destro really is. Or, maybe most don’t care as long as they get what they want. Whatever happens, once Kaminari knows how far the current Meta Liberation Army is willing to go he’ll have to make some hard decisions.
And, yes, I’m talking about the Meta Liberation Army merging with the League of Villains. It’s bad enough trying to excuse the actions of the MLA, but at least you can say what they want on a very basic level isn’t horrible. The problem comes with the ensuing chaos likely to happen afterward and the fact the current quirk restricted society fundamentally works. If the Meta Liberation Army didn’t rally for total freedom without consequence or created a solid plan eliminating the possibility of sheer chaos throughout the streets (training people, a local test, slowly removing quirk laws over a long period of time allowing folks to adjust, etc,), it could work. But, that’s not the case. The real MLA will do anything to win, even becoming flat out villains with no justifiable wiggle room. There’s no coming back from that for the group as a whole, but is there still time for Kaminari to get out before it’s too late? I certainly hope so.
Mammoth Base Opera Castle 