Mammoth Base Opera Castle

The comedic calm before the storm.

Yep, that’s what the chapter was. A little lighthearted breather before things ramp up again. Maybe we’ll get one more. Whether or not we do, it’s nice seeing Hatsume again.

Aizawa’s got a plan. But what is it?

Heck if I know! Maybe the “him” Nezu’s referring to is Stain? Or, Rappa? Or, Gentle? Or, The Crawler? No, no. Let’s not get crazy. Hmm… What about Mr. Compress or Kurogiri? I can definitely see Kurogiri getting involved from a narrative point-of-view. And, Aizawa is the one who made the plan so… Okay! Let’s go with Kurogiri, Y’all!

That’s right, Aoyama. You can still be a hero. …As long as you help us trick All For One.

I’m still disheartened by the traitor revelation. Aoyama or Hagakure, I just wanted a true villain as the spy. Instead, we get a by-the-books betrayal ending with everyone seemingly forgiving Belly Laser, with a chance at redemption thrown in for good measure. What’s Aoyama’s chance at redemption, you ask? Getting Deku alone, of course. That’s one of the orders AFO gave our sneaky friend. U.A. simply needs to have it appear Aoyama does exactly that to lure AFO in. Not AFO himself, mind you. He’s too smart to go himself, but U.A. can work with that somehow.

Deep breaths. Relax. Don’t panic. Now, where did I put my chainsaw?

Aoyama’s a traitor.

He’s the one who led the villains to USJ and the summer camp. Okay. He and Hagakure were the top two suspects. I get that. See, Horikoshi? I understand. I’ll even admit I like the Aoyama family drama. The general revelation coupled with learning Yuga’s parents put him in this precarious position along with Yuga’s sorrow of having to keep doing All For One’s bidding, knowing the current dreadful state of the entire country is solely on that megalomanic and his allies was enjoyable. I ‘m shocked. I’m intrigued.

I’m massively disappointed.

Having an unwilling participant be the U.A. traitor is so amazingly underwhelming I wanted to scream! Where’s the conflict? What about the repercussions? Will Aoyama get kicked out of U.A.? Of course, not. None of this is his fault! Years of wondering what the traitor will do next. Years of anticipating the sweet drama of Class A dealing with having a monster living with them this whole time, a person they thought a friend seeking their very destruction, gone. And in its place? A kid in over his head who will no doubt be forgiven because Horikoshi won’t push the envelope. Yes, this news makes sense, but it still sucks.

I was so excited last chapter at the prospect of having a willing betrayer in U.A.’s mist. Someone secretly more powerful than she let on. Damn! I was wondering why Horikoshi revealed Hagakure as the traitor last chapter without her doing something or entering her POV. This is the answer. Ugh!