Category: My Hero Academia

Star And Stripe ain’t done, yet!

We learn a bit more about New Order but nothing that matters, at least for now. It’s an overpowered quirk with restrictions. That’s all we need to (and already) know.

So, Shigaraki. What’s gonna become of him? At this point, I’m thinking this merged Shiggy/All For One version IS the new mind. The only question is whether the AFO vestige or Tomura will emerge as the bigger influence. Of course, Shigaraki will come out on top at some point, meaning he’ll be a more cunning version of himself thanks to the AFO merger. Yep. Think Shigaraki, but with AFO’s experience. Scared yet?

Things aren’t looking good for Star And Stripe…and Tomura Shigaraki.

New Order is the name of Star’s quirk. And, boy is it overpowered. Basically, the number 1 U.S. hero can warp physics on any target she touches and knows the name of, living or non-living. That explains why she looks so much like All Might. She literally turned herself into a version of him!

And with the ability to keep two rules active (herself and one other) at once, Star is pretty much a weaker All Might with a quirk. Yeah, that’s why she’s America’s top hero and Captain Celebrity isn’t. Hmm… I wonder how much weaker she is compared to All Might? Given Star probably gave herself the All Might rule when he was in his prime, even becoming HALF as powerful would be pretty damn strong! And, that’s me low balling it. The lady can survive travel on top a stealth fighter. She’s got to be legit tough to do that!

Obtaining One For All is the mid-game goal? Hmm…

Then, what’s AFO’s ultimate goal? If I had to guess: World Domination. Why be content ruling a country when he could rule the entire planet with the combined power of the All For One quirk, One For All, and Star And Stripe’s quirk. Plus, all megalomaniacs want to rule to world. It’s in their contract.

Heteromorphs. Discrimination against them has been peppered throughout the series. Now, Horikoshi’s bringing it to the forefront. I’m excited about it. Horikoshi has done a good job so far blending real world issues into his story, and he’s had a long time to prepare for this one. I’m very hopeful for this sub-plot.

Well, hello there U.S. Number One.

Was not expecting to see America’s top hero in this chapter. And I sure wasn’t expecting them to be Star And Stripe. She called All Might “Master”. Was she his student once? Just how long did All Might live in the States before returning to Japan? 6 years? 10 years? 15 years? I sense a flashback coming.

And what’s her quirk? She’s standing on a stealth fighter jet flying to Japan. That’s quite a feat! Magnetism? Solar Powered (like Superman)? Apple Pie? I can’t wait to find out.

This chapter truly felt like the end is nigh.

So, the heroes have about a month to prepare before Super Shigaraki/AFO reaches full power. The final war is indeed coming. I’m a bit sad about it. There’s so much the series could’ve done before reaching the endgame. Inter-school tournaments, trips abroad, an A.I. arc villain, so much more about this world could’ve been explored. Oh well…

Did you notice Hagakure wasn’t among the students talking in the living room area? Just making a note of it.

A chapter featuring Toshinori and his biggest fan. No, the other one.

Stain and Toshinori finally meet! Who knew the Hero Killer would give the former number one hero the pep talk needed to keep fighting. Crazy as Stain is, Toshinori’s positive influence on Japan is still indeed alive. Hope, like crunk, ain’t dead. Right Lil’ John?

We only got a couple panels of young Toshinori, but did you notice the panel of him running similar to Deku saving Bakugo in the first chapter? A Toshinori: Origin/All Might: Origin may be on the horizon. It’s about time we learned the full story on how Toshinori meet Nana and why he was chosen to receive One For All. Wouldn’t mind seeing All Might and All For One’s first battle too. Will we ever see it? I’m not sure, but chances are O’Clock from My Hero Vigilantes discovered AFO’s location for All Might meaning the high-speed hero could make a future cameo at some point!

We’re all in this together. Well, not me. The second Gigantomachia attacked, I fled to New Zealand. But I’m here in spirit.

Kota and Giant Fox Woman stepped up, leading to a wave of Deku support. No surprise there, but the emotions still got to me. What a lovely couple of chapters! And someone finally said it: The citizens need to get off their butts and do something! Support each other, support heroes. Don’t just turn your head if something bad is going down and hope a hero comes by. Don’t kick the remaining heroes while they’re down and still fighting for you. Step the hell up! Even if it’s just that crowd of people, it’s a start.

Oh, and a big F.U. to the shelters turning down Giant Fox Woman. Heteromorph discrimination still exists in case you forgot. Horikoshi is leading us somewhere with this. Don’t forget, Spinner’s full backstory hasn’t been revealed yet.

That reminds me, how come NO HERO has ever addressed discrimination in the series yet? Even Deku, back when he first saved Giant Fox Woman, didn’t chastise those jerks for trying to KILL GFW (Giant Fox Woman) based on her looks. What the ever loving fish, Deku? Yeah, I’m still pissed at that.

I got emotional reading this chapter, Y’all.

Ochaco’s speech wasn’t the stuff of legends, but it was overflowing with love. Love for her friend, her classmates, her teachers, and other fellow heroes. Heroes. Need. Support. Too. The public doesn’t have to keep putting heroes on a pedestal. No, it’s the opposite. Citizens need to realize heroes are people too. And they need their support to continue fighting. Everyone is in this awful situation together and they better start acting like it instead of hating heroes because they can’t save the day all the time, every time.

It happened. It finally happened. Bakugo apologized! Now I can like him.

Or, more acutely, I don’t have to feel guilty about liking him anymore. And he did it in front of the entire class! Good on you, Bakugo. And good on you, Horikoshi, for slowly developing Capt. Kaboom and Endeavor into likeable characters. Your hard work has really paid off!

Aoyama and Hagakure didn’t have a “moment” with Deku in these last few chapters. Just thought I’d point that out. Also, Hagakure mentioned knowing the details on U.A.’s security system. Yep, it’s coming. There was a reason Horikoshi hasn’t revealed the U.A. Traitor. SHE still has a big part to play. I’m keeping an even closer eye on Hagakure from now on. Yes, yes, I know she’s invisible. You know what I mean!

I would rather walk with a friend in the dark, than alone in the light.
-Helen Keller

Show, don’t tell. A phrase uttered describing the best kind of storytelling. It’s also a good way of showing resolve. In this chapter, we got both.

Deku had to be shown Class A isn’t weak. That they can keep up with the power of One For All. It looks like they finally got through to him. Seriously, do you know how insane it is for Ida to grab Deku going at Faux 100% speed? That’s quite the feat! Props to Ida, Uraraka, Bakugo and the entire freaking class for pulling that off. Passing grades all around!