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EP. REVIEW: My Hero Academia


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Scion Drake



Joined: 25 Nov 2017
Posts: 941
PostPosted: Sat Apr 04, 2020 9:30 pm Reply with quote
Gasero wrote:
Scion Drake wrote:
killjoy_the wrote:
The Nomu fight in season 1 and this fight were both equally as boring. I can never get behind mindless fights like these - if I don't care about the villain in the least, it's just sakuga cuts.


Okay your rather missing the points of these fights by calling them mindless.

For instance this Hood fight is to establish that Endeavor does have what it takes to be the new #1 Hero. In age where the villains are getting stronger & stronger with the side of heroes in disarray with the trust of the public dwindling, Endeavor proves that he has the strength to stand as a unifying point against the onslaught of evil.

He provides hope to people in despair.

I agree with Killjoy_the, but I wouldn't go so far as to call the fights "mindless". What I don't like about the All for One and Nomu battles is that the villain is so clearly evil that they are basically faceless representations of evil itself, and that makes the villains less relatable.

I am much more interested when heroes are challenged by people like Stain and Gentle Criminal. Harmful actors who are representations of social failures rather than blatant evil. I am wondering how Endeavor (and other heroes) will handle challenges that cannot be easily destroyed by "fighting evil".


I mean not every villain needs to be relatable. For instance the Nomu are experiments designed to function as living weapons for the villains. Their primary purpose is still function as brute force instruments to overwhelm the heroes & there’s nothing wrong with that.

Or AFO a person who realizes that he can do whatever he wants because he has to the power to do so & enjoys the position it brings. Him being so evil & forboding is what made him so popular.

Not everyone needs to be like necessarily complex, sometimes simple is good or even fitting for the story.
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Gasero



Joined: 24 Jul 2009
Posts: 939
Location: USA
PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 1:26 am Reply with quote
Scion Drake wrote:
I mean not every villain needs to be relatable. For instance the Nomu are experiments designed to function as living weapons for the villains. Their primary purpose is still function as brute force instruments to overwhelm the heroes & there’s nothing wrong with that.

Not everyone needs to be like necessarily complex, sometimes simple is good or even fitting for the story.

I appreciate that not every battle needs to be complex, but what I don't like about the nomu and AFO battles is that these have been defining battles for All Might and Endeavor. To have defining battles with these characters be against faceless evil seems like such an easy card to play. Stakes are low for the villain and high for the hero.

It's simply a matter of taste I guess. Viewers like me see battles with characters like Stain as more memorable, whereas other viewers may prefer to see battles where characters use maximum power without worry for how it affects the life of the person/thing they are trying to defeat.
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Chichiryuutei





PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 1:29 am Reply with quote
I hope I don't sound like a harsh critic of the finale reviewer but in what pristine cradle have you been living all of your life to give you such a black/white view of life? Or is this virtue signaling?

I'm not saying that giving a horrible father/husband the cold shoulder forever isn't right (that decision should be left to the individuals involved) but for awhile Endeavor has shown signs of trying to mend things with Todoroki (without regards for how long it takes him). Today, we learn that he has been visiting his wife for a long time but never actually seen her (probably because he doesn't feel worthy/feels shame of been in her presence). And, even through his conversion with All Might, Endeavor has shown the gravitas of his new meaning to Japan something he didn't seem to care about because of his public persona. Do I like Endeavor no... So far he has been just a grown up version of everyone's (for some unknown reason) favorite character Bakugo (which may I remind his fans was a huge as***** to everyone weaker than him growing up). Should Endeavor be automatically forgiven NO but should he have a chance at redemption Hell Yeah.

I'm writing this because I'm no saint to my family (even though I've done everything I can to lift them up) but my family has been no saint to me either (or even to themselves with all the infighting that we see in all of our families... Unless yours happens to be perfect saints lol). We're people deeply flawed at the end of the day. What I've learned is to understand the meaning of their actions and to say sorry after I've blown a gasket. Kindness is a virtue after all.

I'll end with a promo to a YouTube video on the importance of fatherhood to children https://youtu.be/RlSwsE22nX0. Maybe Kouhei is trying to highlight another problem with society... Once a criminal has served its sentence (without any transgressions), why does society continue to trample on them once released? Why not give them another chance otherwise, just leave them in jail forever... But then wouldn't life just be Psycho Pass?

Amazing episode though... The visuals/music were great.
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Just a harmless potato



Joined: 07 Nov 2018
Posts: 3
PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 2:23 am Reply with quote
Okay all the manga readers agree that they kinda f****d up the ending right?
Sure it was hype and visually spectacular but The natural place to end the anime would be att chapter 192...

spoiler[...which is the actual end of the Endeavor arc that way the encounter with dabi and the aftermath at the endeavor familys house would have been included.
The way the anime ended now was like "Oh Endeavor incenerated a Nomu on TV i guess everything is gonna be all right in the Todoroki family now" instead of "yeah you incenerated a Nomu on TV but thats not gonna instantly fix this broken family"]


At first i thougt "sure if they tried to squeese in the last two chapters in the final episode the episode would be way to rushed but considering MHA`s popularity would it really have been impossible to slate the series for 26 episodes?"

then i remembered that they actually started of the season with a filler episode basically wasting an episode and then i honestly got a bit pissed that they botched the adaptation like this for basically no reason.
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MoonStar9



Joined: 01 Aug 2017
Posts: 24
PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 5:51 am Reply with quote
This episode was the best this whole season and one of the best in the series. I wasn't expecting it with how shoddy the directing and animation has been this season but they went higher than even my highest expectations. The only downside is the use of Nomus which has become overdone and uninspired. There is nothing interesting about a fight between a man and a barely sapient abomination.

Regardless of how much I enjoyed the action, I will always have major gripes with how Horikoshi has handled the Todoroki family abuse. Partly because I don't think a redemption is necessary as it scrubs the Heroes' side clean of any internal conflict making them universally "good guys" - completely boring; and partly because its hypocritical that Endeavor isn't held to the same standards the villains are. For what he has done he should be in prison before any attempt at redemption. I'm also incredibly disappointed that Horikoshi went about it by first writing Endeavor's victims more sympathetic towards him. A gesture that says "look, they're willing to give him a chance so you should too". I don't enjoy being told how to feel about a controversial topic.

The children were abused, as was the wife, potentially sexually too since I have serious doubts a woman so terrified of her own husband she would burn her own 5-year-old's face simply because he resembles his father, and remained afraid of him for over a decade thereafter, would willingly consent. spoiler[Then there's the eldest son who is presumed dead because of something Endeavor did.] This should not be overlooked because of a cool fight. I wasn't pleased with it in the manga and I had hopes the anime would re-contextualise somethings for me since I quite like Endeavor in the manga right now, but I'm still unsatisfied with it.

Every time I've brought it up I've been inundated with angry responses that I don't understand domestic abuse and that everybody deserves a second chance. To which I have to then respond that not only was I raised in an abusive household (not that this should make my reasons any less valid if otherwise), Endeavor is also given a chance none of the villains have. In the same season Overhaul was brought down violently for abusing a child, Endeavor is redeemed without consequences for abusing several. I am a manga reader. I am up-to-date. Endeavor has still suffered zero consequences. spoiler[Rather every time Natsuo, the elder son in this episode, makes a valid point about how Endeavor gets to redeem himself on his terms he's made to look unreasonable by others or a villain shows up just in time for Endeavor to look good again.]

Every series has at least one thing that you can never really get behind and for me I guess it will ultimately be this. I like Endeavor as a character and Hero but I just can't bring myself to enjoy the way his personal life arc is handled. Maybe if his image had been destroyed as a result and he faced real legal consequences I would be more sympathetic. Who knows.

I'm fully expecting his series arc is to somehow reconnect with his abused wife and children as a loving family and it will leave a lingering feeling of disgust with me for this series.
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Just a harmless potato



Joined: 07 Nov 2018
Posts: 3
PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 6:01 am Reply with quote
MoonStar9 wrote:
I'm fully expecting his series arc is to somehow reconnect with his abused wife and children as a loving family and it will leave a lingering feeling of disgust with me for this series.


Oh yes that will definetly happen unless Endeavor gets out jail free card by dying (as everyone know the best anime/manga parent is a dead parent)

Horikoshi (and probably shounen jump in general) do not seem to believe in divorces as a solution to dysfunctional family structures just look at Midoriyas family.
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MoonStar9



Joined: 01 Aug 2017
Posts: 24
PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 6:40 am Reply with quote
Just a harmless potato wrote:
MoonStar9 wrote:
I'm fully expecting his series arc is to somehow reconnect with his abused wife and children as a loving family and it will leave a lingering feeling of disgust with me for this series.


Oh yes that will definetly happen unless Endeavor gets out jail free card by dying (as everyone know the best anime/manga parent is a dead parent)

Japan does not seem to believe in divorces as a solution to dysfunctional family structures just look at Midoriyas family.


Fixed that for you. There's social stigma regarding divorce in Japan as far as I'm aware. Alongside abuse, there are many cases of cheating and these rarely lead to divorces. I suspect it greatly influences creatives subconsciously. Better to artificially rework a failing marriage regardless of the circumstances than have the characters separate. While anecdotal, I can think of a few badly portrayed divorcees in the anime and manga I've consumed.

Though, now that you mention it I can also picture Endeavor dying a martyr's death that leaves him on a positive note with both the characters and readers without him actually suffering the fallout of his actions. Like the character, hate the way his personal life arc is handled.
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v1cious



Joined: 31 Dec 2002
Posts: 6199
Location: Houston, TX
PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 6:52 am Reply with quote
That last episode more than made up for that weak festival arc. Bravo Bones!£
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chemicalpoisons



Joined: 05 Apr 2020
Posts: 1
PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 11:16 am Reply with quote
I am honestly sick and tired of seeing people come up with the faintest excuse on the planet to hate on Endeavour other than the actual facts. Sexually abusing his children? Hitting his wife? Where the hell do you come up with these things?

Endeavor is a horrible father and husband, there is no denying that. He has screwed over four (and possibly more) people on his quest for power, and there is nothing that will ever erase that. His latest redemption arc does nothing to erase his past. Actually, and it seems like most of you couldn't realise it beyond your hating glasses, he is facing his past and family, not expecting to be forgiven, not expecting to be loved, just to try and atone for his mistakes.

Because probably most of you live in a world where no one is abusive, let me tell you; you always want the abuser to change. No matter what they do, until the glass shatters completely, you want them to change. Having someone in a family circle is a whole different matter. And let me tell you a secret: most abusers not only do not attempt to atone, they don't even recognise they're abusive. They don't understand that they are hurting someone.

Endeavor does, and Horikoshi deftly handles his arc without cutting him any corners. You'll see it later, too. There's no "oh, he's a good guy now, let's have fun". His character development is one of the most complex in the shonen anime world, and both the reviewer and some of you in here would do good to leave your rose coloured world, and actually try to wait and see what will happen next, and mostly appreciate how Horikoshi denies giving the quick erasure to Endeavor's sins.

The guy fought, basically, himself in the latest episode, a feat few people will ever attempt, and even fewer will come out winners against. This is not the end of his redemption; it's merely the beginning on a very harsh road.

If such character development and dive into so complex matters grates your nerves, I am sorry. I really am.
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Marimo0



Joined: 06 Sep 2016
Posts: 186
PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 11:41 am Reply with quote
chemicalpoisons wrote:
Hitting his wife? Where the hell do you come up with these things?

In the anime during Todoroki and Deku's fight, when it flashes back to Todoroki's childhood at the moment where his mom is telling Endeavor to stop because he's only 5 years old and his training is causing him to throw up, though the shot is focused on Todoroki and his expression, we hear this exchange:
Rei: Please stop pushing him. He's only 5 years old.
Endeavor: He can take it. Get out of my way.
*hitting noise*
Rei: Ah!
Todoroki: ...Mama?

How can you not make the conclusion that Endeavor hit her away for trying to stop him?

The sexual abuse against the children thing is unfounded, but I don't think anyone accused him of doing that to them, only to Rei since there's the whole thing about their relationship being based more on Endeavor trying to find someone with a good quirk to go with his and wanting to make children. The audience was never actually shown any reason for why Rei would want to be with him, so some people would question how much consent Rei gave.
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Chichiryuutei





PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 2:09 pm Reply with quote
MoonStar9 wrote:
Just a harmless potato wrote:
MoonStar9 wrote:
I'm fully expecting his series arc is to somehow reconnect with his abused wife and children as a loving family and it will leave a lingering feeling of disgust with me for this series.


Oh yes that will definetly happen unless Endeavor gets out jail free card by dying (as everyone know the best anime/manga parent is a dead parent)

Japan does not seem to believe in divorces as a solution to dysfunctional family structures just look at Midoriyas family.


Fixed that for you. There's social stigma regarding divorce in Japan as far as I'm aware. Alongside abuse, there are many cases of cheating and these rarely lead to divorces. I suspect it greatly influences creatives subconsciously. Better to artificially rework a failing marriage regardless of the circumstances than have the characters separate. While anecdotal, I can think of a few badly portrayed divorcees in the anime and manga I've consumed.

Though, now that you mention it I can also picture Endeavor dying a martyr's death that leaves him on a positive note with both the characters and readers without him actually suffering the fallout of his actions. Like the character, hate the way his personal life arc is handled.


Japan has so many stigmas. The right age to marry, age when a woman is past its prime, family hierarchy, and so on. This isn't because the Japanese are weird but because of their religion/Myth stories and low conflict society norms. We all have weird norms... In India, people still have parent-assigned marriages. US has marihuana as a class 1 schedule substance (equal to heroine), etc.

I think you're missing the point. Endeavor isn't meant to be a pristine hero. He's the person that wreck the world (think CEO of a plastic company) finally understanding the gravity of his actions and trying to fix them knowing full well... He'll never be able to erased his past
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Chichiryuutei





PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 2:18 pm Reply with quote
Marimo0 wrote:
chemicalpoisons wrote:
Hitting his wife? Where the hell do you come up with these things?

In the anime during Todoroki and Deku's fight, when it flashes back to Todoroki's childhood at the moment where his mom is telling Endeavor to stop because he's only 5 years old and his training is causing him to throw up, though the shot is focused on Todoroki and his expression, we hear this exchange:
Rei: Please stop pushing him. He's only 5 years old.
Endeavor: He can take it. Get out of my way.
*hitting noise*
Rei: Ah!
Todoroki: ...Mama?

How can you not make the conclusion that Endeavor hit her away for trying to stop him?

The sexual abuse against the children thing is unfounded, but I don't think anyone accused him of doing that to them, only to Rei since there's the whole thing about their relationship being based more on Endeavor trying to find someone with a good quirk to go with his and wanting to make children. The audience was never actually shown any reason for why Rei would want to be with him, so some people would question how much consent Rei gave.


You could make that deduction or you could deduce that Endeavor brushed her aside, she hit a wall (or something else) and felt down. We just don't know but your deduction depends on how you want the action to be viewed so that you can strengthen your already made up view of Endeavor (or any other character you might not like).
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NeverConvex
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Joined: 08 Jun 2013
Posts: 2267
PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 2:32 pm Reply with quote
Chichiryuutei wrote:
You could make that deduction or you could deduce that Endeavor brushed her aside, she hit a wall (or something else) and felt down. We just don't know but your deduction depends on how you want the action to be viewed so that you can strengthen your already made up view of Endeavor (or any other character you might not like).


What would be the narrative purpose to including the sound of her "falling down because Endeavor gently brushed her aside" in the flashback?

I don't think there really would be one. It seems quite clear that the purpose of including her protests and the sound of a *thwack* was to intimate to the viewers that Endeavor was physically abusive of her.
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Hiroki not Takuya



Joined: 17 Apr 2012
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PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 2:34 pm Reply with quote
Maybe I missed something, but before Ep88 I never saw a single hint that Todoroki had siblings. I'd been wondering all season who the girl/boy in the Ed photo were and looking for them, now I know. Heck, I even found LaBrava in one. Could someone shed some light on this, because this seemed like an "out of left field" addition for no discernible reason except to get focus off Todoroki's reaction...
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Nyren



Joined: 07 Oct 2014
Posts: 702
PostPosted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 2:41 pm Reply with quote
Hiroki not Takuya wrote:
Maybe I missed something, but before Ep88 I never saw a single hint that Todoroki had siblings. I'd been wondering all season who the girl/boy in the Ed photo were and looking for them, now I know. Heck, I even found LaBrava in one. Could someone shed some light on this, because this seemed like an "out of left field" addition for no discernible reason except to get focus off Todoroki's reaction...
To my knowledge they appear as early as the match between Shoto and Deku during the Sports Festival as part of a flashback. You see them playing down in a courtyard while Endeavor drags Shoto by the hand. The whole point of Endeavor marrying their mother as part of a Quirk Marriage aka Arranged Marriage, was to produce a "perfect" quirk aka his hellfire and Rei's ice. The fire offsets the frostbite of the ice and the ice cools off the heat from the fire. All THREE of his siblings did not turn out the way that Endeavor was hoping. Shoto, on the other hand, did. So Endeavor largely neglected the rest of his family and focused on training Shoto, brutally. And like I said, he has three total siblings. The third is shown in that same flashback playing with the others, the boy with the completely red messy hair. He does not appear in this latest episode nor is he ever mentioned. The implication being that something happened to him at some point and he's no longer around. The prevailing theory is that Endeavor did something to him. If you want to take that theory a step further spoiler[people speculate that after whatever happened he grew up to become Dabi.]
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