My Hero Academia FINAL SEASON

Episode 163

Man, these weekly reviews are going to be hard if this episode is anything to go by, because I feel like I could write entire thesis papers on character analysis and thematic relevance. It's been a while since I've seen such an epic downfall to a major villain, and I'm not just talking about the animation, which still looks spectacular, but also because of how this man almost went through a negative character arc that was brought full circle at the very end. I mean, the episode literally starts with the birth of our villain and ends with unbirthing out of existence. This maniacal sociopath, who came out of the womb a stone-cold killer, left this world crying like a baby. This is absolutely brilliant writing.

Everything about All For One has always been about control. The first gift this man ever received when he was born was a quirk that he stole from his own mother, and the only way this man can express love for his brother is by dragging him around like a teddy bear. Control is the only way this man can feel anything. He loves his brother because he can control him, and the first time he was ever truly angry was when he felt like his brother was stolen away. All this time, All For One's generational obsession with getting back One For All has just been the cries of a desperate man trying to get back the first thing he ever really had control over. It's so ironic that One For All was created from one of the first real gifts that All For One gave his brother, and yet it became the ultimate act of rebellion against him. He never cared about the power; he just wanted to get his brother back because he couldn't stand losing something.

This does not make him sympathetic in any way, shape, or form. Rather, it's supposed to be cathartic because All For One thought his story was that of an evil emperor who could rule everything by fear. He wanted to be the big bad comic book villain because of what they represented. Well, he got what he wished for because he ended up going out just like classic super villains do, with the power of friendship and hubris. The show lays it on a little bit thicker than it needs to, with Bakugo looking identical to the man who took All For One's brother away from him. Even the way the characters talk about the similarities makes it sound like it was a retcon. But I think the show earns that obvious parallel, considering that this also acts as a great closer for Bakugo.

I'm not sure if the show is trying to highlight that All For One represents a dark reflection of what Bakugo could have been if he had just made one or two missteps. Bakugo lived his life thinking that it was his world and everybody was just living in it. He thought it was his story, and he kept crashing out every time he was reminded that it wasn't. All For One never had his crash out when he was younger, so he was forced to have it here. But Bakugo was humbled, and now he's able to put a stop to one of the worst embodiments of what quirks could've meant for this society/ It's funny that the loudest and most abrasive character in the entire show was one of the final acts of defiance towards this man who could not emotionally handle people saying no to him.

All For One lost everything. He lost his brother, he lost his pupil, he lost his air of sophistication, he lost literal years of his life, and at the end of it all, he even lost all of the quirks that he spent decades accumulating. There was no victory unless all of these different things came together to put a stop to this man, and while it is telling just how powerful a threat he was that it took this long to finally put him down, it's also thematically relevant for the next generation. Generations of people, young and old, needed to be able to come together if they wanted to be able to put a stop to forces like this. There will always be another person like All For One out there in the world, even when this incident settles itself. But as long as these kids and adults can continue to inspire each other, working together to make sure that people like this never stand on top for very long, then the future will be as bright and explosive as Bakugo during this entire episode.

P.S. I'm holding off on rewatching the dub until after this season is over for a full rewatch, but it goes without saying that based on what I've heard so far, it's fantastic. What Christ Sabat brings to All Might defines the role as iconic, Eric Vale as Shigaraki is dripping with evil, and I love all of the layers that Ryan Negron brings to the younger version of All For One. I especially like that in episode two of this season, the performance sounds like a mix of Eric Vale and John Swasey to emphasize the effect Shigaraki is having on All For One. But I'm writing this review right before we get to the big push from Clifford Chapin and Justin Briner as Bakugo and Deku, respectively. This show helped push their careers into the stratosphere, and I am eagerly waiting to hear how they close out this show.

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