It took me 1 week to read the MHA manga up to it's current chapter release
Lots of things have happened to my 1-A babies since the 4th season of My Hero Academia aired! As most may know by now, that I really hate waiting for things. Last week, I finally decided to start the MHA manga. From start to finish, I sat in numerous positions reading about the little 1-A babies and others. Around 4am this morning, I finally read the 317th chapter and like most manga readers, will be waiting for the next chapter to release in a day or so (booo). I won't lie, because of twitter, I did run across some spoilers (most included Dabi), but I did find myself being surprised at what I read towards the most current chapters. If you are an anime only watcher I suggest not reading this post. If you don't care about spoilers, then go for it. I won't even post panels because I'm nice (I'm lazy, it's too much work loool) Also this post might be all over the place, because I'm coming down from my binge high, and I really had to get this all typed out before I lost it in my head (some of you will know what I mean). I think I proofread this maybe 3 times? Grammar is also a social construct. If there's spelling errors, then blame it on my lack of sleep.
What's exactly happened after the 4th season in the anime?
So, I never actually finished the last 2 episodes of the 4th season, but because the anime is following the manga so closely, I didn't have to. A lot of behind the scene things are going on. Endeavor is struggling to play his role as the number one hero. There's rumors of high end nomu's lurking about. The league of villains are biding their time, regrouping. And our class 1-A babies are doing what they always do :training to be the next generation of heroes! Not gonna lie, I've read a lot of chapters over the past week, so hopefully my order of events aren't too skewed. Its not *really* a review since my memory is terrible.
Between the 4th season of the anime and the current chapter of the manga, things have taken quite a dark turn in this story. Deku has inherited new powers along with his OFA quirk. At first, it was hard for him to control such new powers, but with the help of his predecessors, he's getting the hang of it. Before I start talking about all that the kid has been through, I just wanna talk about my League of Villains homies first.
My Villian Academia
This arc specifically covers Shigaraki, and his will to carry on his master plan with destroying All Might, and heroes in general. AFO is locked up, but has left his protege a trump card. It's a giant monster that is to aide Shigaraki in his mission. The only issue? The giant refuses to follow Shigaraki, until he proves himself as the master's successor. So the zombie faced child, and his crew spend their time trying to beat him to no avail. There's also this weird doctor, who plays an important role in Shigaraki obtaining the power he so desperately wishes to achieve. Also behind the scenes, is another villain organization determined to spread enlightenment, and bring about a world where people with quirks, can use them freely. Think x-men and the brotherhood of mutants. This organization is basically like a cult, hellbent on breaking the rules, and expunging the society of hero roles.
The two groups square off, with Shigaraki being the winner. Did I also mention Twice got over is handicap and managed to finally create doubles of himself? He was a pivotal role in the League's success against the Meta Liberation Army. I really enjoyed reading his character development, and although he was a villain it was nice to see that even bad guys care deeply about their friends. And that not all villains are necessarily bad guys. Really makes me think about circumstances that drive people to commit crimes. He only created doubles because he wanted friends. He lived a shit life, and was often lonely. It's unfortunate, but I think Jin (Twice) would have made a great hero, had he just met the right people in time. I really liked him.
Anyways, the newly formed Paranormal Liberation Front is formed with Shigaraki at the head. They have a big plan to destroy all heroes. Unfortunately, what they don't know is that someone has been spying on them from the inside…from the very beginning
Hawks is the number 2 hero. He was brought up by the safety commission agency to be like some sort of double spy. To be honest, I didn't even know the agency got down like that. Up until now, I never really realized their importance, besides regulating heroes and their role in society, but it's giving very much the Root Foundation. Because why are you raising kids to be double agents? I'm not going to lie, Hawks definitely had me in the first half, especially with the Best Jeanist situation but in the end, he didn't let the heroes down even though his life was literally on the line.
I skipped a lot of important things (not even for the sake of spoiling, it's just too much to cover) but to summarize it all up: Everyone now knows (except the general public) that Deku is now the holder of OFA and that All Might bestowed the quirk unto him. Because Deku was quirkless he is special, and thus a bit more capable of handling the power, unlike those before him who had quirks before OFA. Deku has left U.A. to pursue Shigaraki and AFO. We also learn that AFO had been planning to "take" the zombie faced child's body, to use as his new vessel. Shigaraki however is not letting him take over that easily.
Heroes are also starting to resign and civilians are starting to use their quirks and support items to fight back, despite it being against the law. The safety commission agency and the police has their hands full. And the hero academies are now all safety shelters (in short Shigaraki and his crew messed up alot of cities. AFO also broke out of prison and freed villains who are now causing havoc)
As mentioned before Deku has left the academy, and left a note for class 1-A explaining everything. He doesn't want to put them in danger (since Shigaraki has a quirk to instantly find Deku) Shigaraki was insanely strong, but not enough to take Deku's quirk during the last big battle. Deku now spends his time going around fighting villains, while also trying to find Shigaraki and AFO's new location. He has gained some semblance of control with his new quirks. He's also not the doe-eyed kid we saw the first three seasons. He seems a little more hardened. We no longer see the fanboy who wants to get everything right for All Might's sake. He's matured into a fine young hero, and he's determined to beat AFO for good. It's kinda sad to have to bear such a burden as a teen, but it's literally got to be him. All Might sees the burden he's put on his successor. He wants to watch out for Izuku, but he's noticing now that he may no longer be needed. Deku just wants him to hang back, and stay safe until he can complete this mission. And that's hard for All Might, especially because he made a promise to raise Deku up right.
What's going to happen now?
It kinda sucks things are getting so serious. It also makes me wonder how much longer we have left in the series. The hero society has basically collapsed. Heroes are no longer in high demand, and the powers that regulate them are no longer in place. The civilians have no faith in heroes just as AFO predicted. If Deku were to finally defeat him then what? The damage has been done, but can it be reversed? I also hope we see more of 1-A. They're like a family, and I honestly think it was a little bit cowardly to write them a letter. I know Shigaraki has that tracking quirk, but he cant recoup as quickly, since his body is not used to the AFO quirk. It would have been nice to say one last goodbye to his classmates in person. Granted it might have spurred some of them to try and go with Deku, but still I think he owed them that. I also wonder if he'll ever go back. I know times are troubling right now, but he's still just a teenager. What will be of Deku and his classmates now that the hero society is quickly vanishing?
I really am enjoying reading rather than watching. I didn't actually think I would catch up so I'm a tad bit salty. But I see the hype now. I don't think I'll be actually covering the manga because honestly. I'm probably just going to wait awhile to start back reading it. I really enjoy binge watching things especially when I'm interested in the story.
Also just a random question if you happened to make it to the bottom of this post. Do you enjoy watching/reading series that are ongoing and are quite long? Or do you enjoy short series (shows with 2 seasons, or manga that's concluded in 150 chapters or maybe even less). I don't mind reading or watching something that's long but if it's a series I'm not interested in then I'm not doing it. I've said before I'm sure OP is a great show just like it's fans claim. But I just simply do not have the patience to watch or read it knowing how many manga chapters there are and episodes that have aired. Great gowns though, beautiful gowns.
Hope you are all staying safe. Maybe when I have the time, I'll go ahead and watch the 5th season of MHA. I see that they skipped the villain arc. I'm not sure the purpose for it (I mean despite it being a crazy ass arc and kinda dark) but I'm positive it will be animated. I can't wait to see anime only's reactions to it!