RJ Writing Ink

My Hero Academia S2 Ep 1 Review

My Hero Academia may be over, but we still got a few years and a few more seasons of the spin-off prequel, Vigilantes. I know it wasn’t written directly by Horikoshi, but like the man himself, Vigilantes shows that it understands the superhero genre pretty well. In this case, it’s through the eyes of heroes who work closer to the streets, given in the form of Knuckleduster, Koichi, and Pop☆Step. As someone who grew up adoring street-level heroes like Spider-Man, the show really captures what it’s like to be a friendly neighborhood hero, and I’m looking forward to seeing what comes next. As it turns out, Koichi and Kazuhiro can’t stay out of trouble even when they try, as they’re about to get roped back into the conflict over Trigger.

Koichi is a Wall Crawler Now

It’s been a while now since Knuckleduster up and left Koichi and Pop☆Step, but the two have been getting by well on their own. Koichi is continuing his unauthorized hero work as the Crawler, but publicly, he’s acting as Pop’s manager. In this case, he’s acting as Pop’s manager, as she’s been asked to appear at a local idol event in Naniwa, but he ends up missing the train. Until, that is, he discovers another application for his Quirk: he can stick to surfaces.

Once again, I love how My Hero Academia wears its influences on its sleeve. If Deku was inspired by the likes of Spider-Man, but on a global scale, then Koichi is inspired by the friendly neighborhood aspects as well as his powers. That second part becomes all the more blatant with Koichi’s new ability directly mimicking the webhead’s wall-crawling abilities. That, and Koichi seems to have the infamous Parker luck, as he winds up having to intervene when he runs into another familiar Pro Hero, Fat Gum. He wins him over by saving his takoyaki, but what neither realize is that they’re both going to be at the same venue. The difference is that Fat Gum is part of a sting operation involving Trigger.

Why can’t they stay out of Trouble?

Even though Knuckleduster managed to stop Queen Bee, the distribution of Trigger hasn’t let up in Naruhata. In fact, doses that turn users into stronger Instant Villains, dubbed “Next Level Villains” are making the rounds. And while Koichi and Pop are at Naniwa, Eraser Head gathers info from some low-level dealers. Meanwhile, its revealed that Fat Gum and Tsukauchi (Makoto’s brother) are surveilling the idol event, convinced that it’s being used as a front to sell Trigger by this “Villain Factory.” To make matters worse, Tsukauchi can’t help but feel that Koichi and Pop look familiar.

At this point, there are several heroes who already know what the Naruhata Vigilantes are doing: Midnight, Eraser Head, and Ingenium. They’ve looked the other way because they aren’t doing anything too reckless and are just trying to help, which they need. Tsukauchi, though, is an officer of the law. He is supposed to arrest them for vigilantism. Plenty of cops in fiction dont do this because the heroes make their jobs easier, but this isn’t always the case. Fingers crossed that Tsukauchi is one of the former.

Parker Luck in another Universe

What makes this funny, though, is that even when they’re trying to have a day off, Koichi and Pop still get dragged into hero stuff. One of the performers they meet, Monika, is an undercover cop. And when she goes to do her actual job, Pop has to step in to cover for her. Thus, they’ve been dragged into this mess without even meaning to!

Like I said, Parker luck.

This was a soft way to start the next season of Vigilantes, in my opinion. I know this show isn’t for everyone, but for those not ready to say goodbye to MHA, I think this show will serve as a good way to enjoy it for a little longer. That being said, Im looking forward to seeing how Koichi and Pop handle themselves without Knuckleduster to back them up.

I Give “Day-Tripping to Naniwa” a 3/5

Click here to see more animanga stuff.

My Hero Academia Final Season Ep 10 Review

We are at the penultimate episode of My Hero Academia, and the show is wasting no time in wrapping things up with its cast. I already know what’s going to happen since I read the manga ahead of time, but it’s still nice to get to see everything play out in the anime. Whereas the last episode more or less focused on the heroes of the story, this episode shifts our attention to the villains. As I’ve said before, I think one of the best aspects of MHA was its willingness to humanize its villains. While All for One could be seen as your generic ultimate supervillain, a lot of the supporting villains were people that society failed, and thus had genuine reasons to hate it. More importantly, they were the kind of villains who inspire the heroes to change things to prevent it from happening again or being forgotten.

Former Villains Get to go Free…Except Overhaul

The episode opens up on a very positive note, as we see Gentle Criminal and La Brava reuniting. Having stepped up to help the heroes in the Final War, the two get full pardons and are free to live their lives. And, honestly, they deserve it. They’re not bad, and without them, Deku wouldn’t have been able to defeat Shigaraki. Even better, the entire world now knows how they were overlooked and will not make the same mistake twice. They deserve to live a happy future.

In addition to Gentle and La Brava earning their freedom, another villain gets a full pardon: Lady Nagant. Though calling her a villain isn’t very accurate. She was a woman who was taken advantage of by those in charge to do morally questionable actions, and when she hit her breaking point, she got locked up for it. With the former president of the Hero Commission dead, though, Hawks is now in charge, and he’s working to ensure nothing like that happens again. Nagant, though, chooses to stay behind bars. She doesn’t want to leave until she knows that society really has changed thanks to Deku. That, and she’s getting free food and lodgings.

There is one villain who doesn’t get a happy ending, though, and that’s Overhaul. The former Yakuza is back behind bars while his old boss, Eri’s grandfather, is awake. As expected, he’s furious over the hell Overhaul put Eri through for nothing, with the Yakuza finished thanks to him. He’ll be spending the rest of his life behind bars and forced to reflect on what he did, and hopefully, Eri will never see his face again. And after what he did to Eri and killing Nighteye, that’s the best ending he could hope to get. Some people deserve to be forgotten, just like there are those who shouldn’t be, no matter how bad they are, like Shigaraki.

Spinner, I Would Totally Read your Book

Now that Shigaraki is dead, the public is already trying to judge him for his actions, as the episode contains news footage of people offering their two cents about him. Some are glad he’s gone, others think what happened to him was tragic and pity him, and others say they shouldn’t pity him. However, none of them got to know Shigaraki as a person, or know what he went through, so it’s not like their opinions are wholly accurate. Part of this episode, though, focuses on two people who did actually know him: Deku and Spinner.

Spinner survived the War, and thanks to the research on Nomu, doctors were able to stop him from turning into one. Now that he’s behind bars, all Spinner can do is mourn the loss of Shigaraki, the first friend that he ever had. That’s when Deku comes to visit him and gives him Shigaraki’s last message: to the very end, he kept trying to destroy everything. He died trying to be a hero to the villains until the moment he died.

I always liked that notion of being a hero to the villains. It sounds like an oxymoron, but what it means is that Shigaraki wanted to be a hero to those that society had turned its back on or failed. As My Hero Academia has repeatedly shown, this world of heroes has managed to fail a lot of people who needed help the most, leading them to lash out as villains. Dabi, Twice, Toga, Spinner, and Shigaraki were all the results of a failed system, and I don’t think people should be so quick to judge them. After all, can these people say they could go through what they went through and not crash out over it?

Ultimately, Spinner decides he’s going to write a book on the story of Shigaraki, something that Deku encourages. Neither of them wants Shigaraki’s life to be forgotten, lest another Shigaraki or All for One rise in the future. As a fan of stories like Wicked, I think that what Spinner’s planning is a good idea. If it were a real book, I know that I would buy a copy for myself. If anything, it would make sure the heroes learned a lesson from Shigaraki’s life.

Uraraka, Live your Best Life for Toga

And with that, we have one final story to wrap up: the story of Urakaka and Toga.

Uraraka almost gave her life in the war to get through to Toga, and it was thanks to her that the Sad Man’s Parade was stopped. Fortunately, Uraraka managed to pull through thanks to Toga giving her her blood. Unfortunately, this final act cost the young villainess her own life, something that continues to haunt Uraraka.

Uraraka has tried to put on a brave face and act like nothing’s wrong, but inside, she’s heartbroken over Toga’s death. She regrets how things had to come to this, how she failed to help her when she needed it most, and how the world pushed Toga to become a villain. And now Uraraka’s, ironically, doing the same thing that Toga did: putting on a smile to keep people from knowing she’s suffering inside. But unlike Toga, Uraraka isn’t alone when she needs it the most.

Deku and Uraraka have a heart-to-heart at the place they spoke before the war, and he opens up about how much she means to him. She was the first friend he made at UA, the first one to believe in him, and when he tried to push everyone away, she stepped up for him. She’s one of the strongest people he knows, and he refuses to let her wallow in regret. Because as much as heroes have to give people hope, they’re still human. And even a hero needs help every now and then. And thankfully, Uraraka has her entire class there to help her.

The Best Heroes are the Most Human

This is honestly such a sweet lesson about what it means to be a hero. As much as we like to see them as these infallible figures, Horikoshi understands that the best heroes are still human, and there’s only so much us humans can do on our own. When we are struggling or suffering, we want help. And if we don’t get it, we risk giving in to despair and hurting the people around us. That’s as true for this anime as it is in real life, and that’s one thing that I’ve loved about My Hero Academia. It’s not just a power fantasy about being a hero. It’s about what it means to truly be a hero, and that means stepping up even when it seems scary.

And now, we are at the end of the story. The next episode is the last one. So, one last time, let’s go beyond, PLUS ULTRA!

I Give “The Girl Who Loves Smiles” a 4/5

Click here to see more animanga stuff.

My Hero Academia Final Season Ep 9 Review

Well, the heroes did it! They won! They beat All for One, Shigaraki, and the League of Villains. Deku and his friends are the heroes who saved the world. But just because the war is over doesn’t mean that everything will go back to normal. In fact, for some people, things will never be normal again. The war has scarred them too deeply for that to be possible. With the climax of My Hero Academia over, now comes the falling action and then the epilogue. And much like how it was in the manga, I cannot help but feel like the anime didn’t do as good a job as it could have.

To be fair, though, the Naruto manga never really dealt with the aftermath of its final arc. The next chapter just skipped straight to the epilogue.

Bakugo’s…not Happy about Deku Losing his Powers

With the death of All for One and Shigaraki, the final war against the greatest villains in history is over. Now comes the harder part: cleaning up everything. The fighting between the heroes and villains tore up huge chunks of Japan, so there’s going to be a lot of rebuilding to do. Thankfully, a practical perk of living in a world where superpowers are the norm is that it doesn’t take long to start rebuilding. Japan will be back on its feet in no time.

Sadly, the same cannot be said for the heroes. Many of them are scarred, both mentally and physically, some even permanently, like Hawks. Others like Bakugo are facing a protracted period of physical therapy to make up for the injuries they suffered. Bakugo even refuses to get a prosthetic arm since he needs them intact for his Quirk to work. Everyone knows that he’ll be fine, though…at least, physically. Emotionally, though, he’s devastated by the toll the war extracted. Not on him, but on Deku.

Given how badly Bakugo reacts to learning that Izuku sacrificed One for All, I think Horikoshi was using him to voice the fans he knew would be upset by this. I should know, as I was one of them! I understand why he had to do it to save Shigaraki’s soul (which he did), but it still felt unfair. Without a Quirk, he wouldn’t be able to be a hero for much longer. His dream was now over! Just when Bakugo was getting used to the idea of the two of them pushing each other to the top, this happened to them. I mean, everyone knows that Deku is a hero, but this means that the actual profession is beyond him.

Still, this is a small price to pay compared to what a family like the Todoroki’s have endured.

The End of Endeavor

The Final War had plenty of moments where each of the main cast got to shine, but out of all of them, I think one of the best were the ones with the Todoroki family. The reveal that Dabi was the brother and son they thought long-dead almost destroyed the family. But at the same time, it drove them to come together as an actual family for the first time to stop Toya. Now they all bear the scars of that fight, and they’re never going to fully heal.

Endeavor officially retires as a Hero. Not because he lost an arm, but because he doesn’t feel deserving of being one after everything he did to his family. His other son makes it clear he’s cutting all ties with him, which, while sad, is understandable. Not everyone can forgive someone even after they start making amends.

As for Toya himself, he somehow managed to survive his attempts to go nuclear. His injuries are so great, though, that his death is inevitable; the most the doctors can do is slow it down by keeping him asleep most of the day. Despite this, the Todoroki’s still reach out to him. It’s touching to see how much they care about Toya, even after everything he’s done. But they’re doing it because they want to make peace with Toya before the end; otherwise, they will never find peace.

A Celebration Overdue

The war is over, but scars have yet to heal. Yet all is not doom and gloom. The Big 3 of UA High are able to have their overdue graduation ceremony, much to everyone’s joy. Knowing them and how amazing they each are, they’ll be in the top ten heroes of Japan right off the bat. They deserve it for how amazing they were in the final war. As for Aoyama, while everyone at UA chooses to forgive him for being All for One’s unwilling spy, he still chooses to leave UA, wanting to atone on his own terms. The plus side is that Shinso will be joining the Hero Course alongside Class A. Too bad that we will never get to see how he fits in with everyone because the series is ending.

I really wish that the anime had decided to extend this epilogue for a few more episodes. Maybe build on everything that the cast went through in a way that the manga couldn’t. At the same time, though, I’m grateful that we managed to get what we did, knowing we could have gotten nothing. It evens out, and to its credit, the final chapters are pretty good at being emotional. Come back tomorrow and you’ll hopefully see what I mean as we go beyond, PLUS ULTRA!

I Give “Epilogue: The Hellish Todoriki Family” a 4/5

Click here to see more animanga stuff.

My Hero Academia Final Season Ep 2 Review

Back when the My Hero Academia manga was still running, a big question was about the fate of All Might: would he live or would he die? Sir Nighteye’s Quirk had him convinced that the hero would die if he continued down his path. However, he had said the same about Deku during the fight with Overhaul, and Deku proved him wrong. There were, in fact, moments in the final battle where I thought All Might wasn’t going to make it. They had been building throughout his fight with All for One, but it was at this point that the fears really hit their peak. All for One is just that strong a villain!

Stain Goes Out Like a Badass

This entire episode can be summed in one answer: All Might keeps getting lucky breaks. By this point, his armor and AI are both spent. He’s used up every trick in the book, and he knows that continuing to fight will lead to his death. But being who he is, he keeps on fighting anyway to buy Midoriya more time. He keeps gambling on All for One’s hatred for him overriding his sense of urgency to distract him, but even that has a limit. However, that’s when he gets the first of several breaks when Stain jumps in to save him.

Stain is not a good person, by any stretch of the imagination. He hates evil as much as most heroes do, but he was so jaded by people becoming heroes for fame and fortune that he thought the only solution was to kill the fakes. But despite his twisted nature, he does believe in heroes, and will applaud when he sees people being truly heroic. Plus, when All Might was doubting himself, it was Stain who gave him the pep talk he needed. Stain is not a good person, and he knows that he’s going to Hell when he dies. But that’s not going to stop him from helping the heroes one last time.

I won’t lie when I that I loved how Stain managed to turn the tables on All for One, however briefly it might have been. Conversely, I was equally saddened to see this final gambit fail, and end with All for One killing Stain. The man may have been a killer, but I still respected his belief in true heroism. And dying at the hands of the biggest villain in the story is a pretty good way to go out of this life.

Bakugo Comes in to Save the Day!

Despite no longer being in any shape to fight, All Might refuses to take the L. And thankfully, All for One’s ego compels him to drag the hero with him just so he can show off his broken body to the world. Once again, that almost costs All for One as it gives him another opening to try and take him out. Unfortunately, that also doesn’t work. And neither does the last-minute save by Star and Stripes squadron. For a minute, it actually looks like All Might might die, with even the episode title grimly noting this is the end of an era.

But then, we get a deus ex machina. Bakugo re-enters the fray.

Some fans have taken issue with how Horikoshi initially chose to end MHA, and part of it is how Bakugo escaped certain death. It looked like Bakugo was going to die when Shigaraki ran him through, and had he done so, that would have been legendary. I’m happy that he survived, but I also don’t like how it takes away the emotional weight of what happened. However, what he ends up doing next will more than make up for it. Trust me when I say that what happens next is Bakugo’s finest moment.

Then again, the next episode is already out, so I don’t need you to trust me. I would like to end things, though, by mentioning how much I love the final ED for the series. It’s a recollection of the entire series in notebook form, and I think that it’s the perfect way to encapsulate the series. It’s come so far after all these years. Go beyond, PLUS ULTRA!

I Give “The End of an Era, and the Beginning” a 4/5

Click here to see more animanga stuff.