Boku No hero Academia I: because it deserves a thread.

[lord_khaine]

AfO has an unknown number of unknown Quirks, each of with of an unknown potential, that he can activate in unknown ways. Personally, it streches my suspension of disbelief a bit that they left him alive instead of tossing him into a volcano or something and then claiming he died of his injuries during his latest fight with All Might.

Yeah it would even be merciful compared to what they did instead, and certainly not like AfO's crime is not severe enough for it. He is a monster without equeal. But i guess its very hard to just casually drop someone into a volcano without people noticing or writing annoying headlines about it.

At the same time, solitary confinement is a thing that is allowed for extended periods of time if the prisoner is too dangerous, or their situation in life is too dangerous. Many criminals who have, for example, hurt the very young or very old are fast tracked into solitary because it's better than risking them getting shanked to death by the "noble" criminals who sure, would kill a man, but would never harm a child.

Even people in solitary, at least in most civilised countries, are not strapped down in some little dark pit without anything but the sensation of being watched by cameras and gun turrets.

But a dog cannot be convicted for crimes... Or even commit them, maybe, but that's stretching forum rules. But how would you treat a person on a threat level as AfO?

I would have given him a radio and a lifetime supply of audiobooks for a start, since his danger level does warrant some additional precautions. Then after that look into the possibilities of leaving him at the bottom of a bunker on a isolated island or something like that. With several explosive deterents to trying and break any of the walls.

As for Stain, well he did only target heroes as far as we saw, to a degree where he were straight up ready to work along with the villain alliance. I do think thats rather strong signs of his focus being strong enough to not really wanting to bother with minor or petty criminals. And if he tried anything there then you can always thrown him into solitary confinement afterwards.

[Kato]

I would have given him a radio and a lifetime supply of audiobooks for a start, since his danger level does warrant some additional precautions. Then after that look into the possibilities of leaving him at the bottom of a bunker on a isolated island or something like that. With several explosive deterents to trying and break any of the walls.

As for Stain, well he did only target heroes as far as we saw, to a degree where he were straight up ready to work along with the villain alliance. I do think thats rather strong signs of his focus being strong enough to not really wanting to bother with minor or petty criminals. And if he tried anything there then you can always thrown him into solitary confinement afterwards.

Would that be much better? Okay, less isolation, but we don't know if he can't have TV, just no news. That's not too hard to handle.
Also, while you can certainly argue whether total isolation is worse than death penalty, from a legal standpoint it is pretty clear Japan does not support the latter, so this is acording to their laws, killing him way not. And you don't change laws because of one person. (Okay, sometimes you do)

I don't think Stain wanted to work with the alliance They tried to recruit him and he told them to eff off, no?

[GloatingSwine]

Also, while you can certainly argue whether total isolation is worse than death penalty, from a legal standpoint it is pretty clear Japan does not support the latter, so this is acording to their laws, killing him way not. And you don't change laws because of one person. (Okay, sometimes you do)

Which is odd, because IRL Japan does have the death penalty.

On the other hand, with all of AFO's powers hanging probably wouldn't work....

[Fri]

Basic problem with these kind of stories is just we don't actually have reference in real world, because in real world we don't have supervillain with teleporting or wall dissolving power or whatever. I'm not just talking about BnH, but all fantasy and sci fi settings with supernatural power and supernatural prison. So whatever security protocol they put to a wall dissolving supervillain might be too much, might be just as needed, might be actually too light, and we don't actually have real life comparison.

[Kato]

And now...

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for some talk. Bakugo plays detective and whil it seems to me slightly weird how he got the right result, he does.
I guess decent look into his psyche but hardly enough to fill a chapter...
Next week: Deku vs Kacchan, clash of the AM fanboys.

I mean, I'm curious but it's not like the fight will lead anywhere... or will it?

[lord_khaine]

You might want to work on your spoiler techniques Kato....

[Haruspex_Pariah]

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If Bakugou can get over his emotional problems he'd be a pretty sharp and all around capable hero. I have no idea what he expects to gain, regardless of who wins the fight. Is Deku supposed to surrender One for All if he loses? Or if Deku wins, Bakugou will be completely accepting of the situation? Neither seems plausible.

[LaZodiac]

And now...

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for some talk. Bakugo plays detective and whil it seems to me slightly weird how he got the right result, he does.
I guess decent look into his psyche but hardly enough to fill a chapter...
Next week: Deku vs Kacchan, clash of the AM fanboys.

I mean, I'm curious but it's not like the fight will lead anywhere... or will it?

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I bet it leads somewhere. This is going to be a big turning point.

And to be honest it makes perfect sense how Bakugou figured it all out. He knows Deku the most, out of everyone. He WOULD notice those changes.

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If Bakugou can get over his emotional problems he'd be a pretty sharp and all around capable hero. I have no idea what he expects to gain, regardless of who wins the fight. Is Deku supposed to surrender One for All if he loses? Or if Deku wins, Bakugou will be completely accepting of the situation? Neither seems plausible.

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Sometimes a bro needs to punch his bro in the face a couple of times to get over how they feel. I think it's like that here. The only time he's angry is when Deku interrupts him. He's actually pretty calm for Bakugou.

[Kato]

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I bet it leads somewhere. This is going to be a big turning point.

And to be honest it makes perfect sense how Bakugou figured it all out. He knows Deku the most, out of everyone. He WOULD notice those changes.

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Sometimes a bro needs to punch his bro in the face a couple of times to get over how they feel. I think it's like that here. The only time he's angry is when Deku interrupts him. He's actually pretty calm for Bakugou.

Oh, I'm not talking about bakugou figuring anything out, but I'd suspect AfO to be in on it based on his deduction.

Punching people is always the solution. Countless shounenl ike ttgl taught me that.

[Haruspex_Pariah]

This is a point not specific to Boku No Hero Academia (BNHA) but it is part of it so...

Both BNHA and One Punch Man (henceforth OPM) have a system where there is an in-universe method for ranking superheroes. OPM uses a bigger system, with numerical rankings separating heroes of various tiers denoted by letters (S-class, A-class, all the way down to D-class I believe). BNHA has a simple numerical scale, with All Might being at the top for the longest time, and I don't know how far they count (10?). At first I didn't think much of it, but sitting in my car today I wondered if it's a Japanese thing.

How does a ranking system actually help heroes do their work. Maybe it's like a, i can't recall the exact term, workplace performance measurement thing, that lets people know generally how capable a hero is. In OPM especially there appears to be some tension and expectations related to rankings, and it (partially) led to Saitama having to pretend he didn't actually defeat the Sea King. In BNHA it likely contributed to Endeavour's obsession with beating All Might.

It's clear based on their powers that some heroes are better at some tasks than others. A linear scale misses a lot of the nuance related to that. Yeah. It's just something I was thinking about.

[GloatingSwine]

This is a point not specific to Boku No Hero Academia (BNHA) but it is part of it so...

Both BNHA and One Punch Man (henceforth OPM) have a system where there is an in-universe method for ranking superheroes. OPM uses a bigger system, with numerical rankings separating heroes of various tiers denoted by letters (S-class, A-class, all the way down to D-class I believe). BNHA has a simple numerical scale, with All Might being at the top for the longest time, and I don't know how far they count (10?). At first I didn't think much of it, but sitting in my car today I wondered if it's a Japanese thing.

As far as I'm aware, the in universe "ranking" of heroes in Boku no Hero is actually more of a public popularity thing. Endeavour wasn't just #2 because All Might was that much stronger, but because he was a bit of a git and the public didn't like him as much.


In One Punch Man the Hero Association is relatively routinely portrayed as incompetent and their ranking system is part of the joke (particularly how badly it copes with an outside context problem like Saitama).

[Friv]

Yeah, I think in the case of Academia it's an in-universe exaggeration of the popularity polls that manga actually do on a regular basis, and which don't have an equivalent in Western comics or television. Like, I don't recall Marvel comics putting out a yearly "X-Men Popularity Poll" with results.

So it is, a bit, a Japanese thing.

[lord_khaine]

Good observation, it is clearly a Japanese thing. We can find the sort of ranking there is in OPM in a lot of other mangas, and as pointed out almost all of them got the sort of popularity polls/contests that we also see in Hero Akademia, but dont have in either Marvel or DC comics. Dont know enough about the culture to comment further on that though.

As far as I'm aware, the in universe "ranking" of heroes in Boku no Hero is actually more of a public popularity thing. Endeavour wasn't just #2 because All Might was that much stronger, but because he was a bit of a git and the public didn't like him as much.

Well.. it cant purely be based on popularity, or else Endeavour would not have been nr 2. I dont recall ever hearing about anyone who actually likes him.

In One Punch Man the Hero Association is relatively routinely portrayed as incompetent and their ranking system is part of the joke (particularly how badly it copes with an outside context problem like Saitama).

Well actually the ranking system is quite good, it correctly placed Generos in S-class from the start, and just about every other hero we have come across seems to fit into the tiers correctly.
Its only Saitama thats the actual outlier, and huge part of that is his complete and utter lack of actual ambition. I guess that and having the problem solving skills of a guppy..

[Slayn82]

Regarding OPM Hero's Association rankings: I agree it's a quite efficient system. Notice that originally, heroes were ranked from C to A, and only later, as they noticed some heroes who were all over the rankings, but who consistently managed to beat insanely impossible odds, that they introduced the S class rank, promoting those from whatever category they were.

Saitama is just someone so outside their expectations, in part because of his personality as mentioned, in part because most of the credits for his accomplishments already went for someone else. His physical tests broke all previous records, but his answers in the hero test were probably on the vein of " I punch him" or "this kind of dilemma is too bothersome, I want to go home eat ramen".

[Kato]

Yeah, Japanese love to rank things, I feel. You need to know who is better after all, and rankings do that... in a way I also feel on BnHA it's much more something people just say, like how successful heroes are and how beloved. Endeavor might be a weird example for that, but even if he is not nice, he gets stuff done.

Well actually the ranking system is quite good, it correctly placed Generos in S-class from the start, and just about every other hero we have come across seems to fit into the tiers correctly.
Its only Saitama thats the actual outlier, and huge part of that is his complete and utter lack of actual ambition. I guess that and having the problem solving skills of a guppy..

Well, there is another outlier....
Saitama's problem is... that he is in a freaking comedy story. No serious association would have ranked him like that after he broke the laws of physics in his physical exam. No matter how dumb he might be. Also, the fact that he never got credit for anything he did. But really, it's a problem of the genre.

[GloatingSwine]

Well actually the ranking system is quite good, it correctly placed Generos in S-class from the start, and just about every other hero we have come across seems to fit into the tiers correctly.
Its only Saitama thats the actual outlier, and huge part of that is his complete and utter lack of actual ambition. I guess that and having the problem solving skills of a guppy..

Saitama isn't the only outlier though. The end of the Boros arc clearly shows that there are several orders of magnitude between Tatsumaki and every other S class hero put together, meanwhile Amai Mask is close to or stronger than most of the S class. (And y'know, his whole thing about trying to prevent heroes from rising to S class who aren't worthy, he's not wrong he's just an *******)


And then there's King....

[lord_khaine]

Well, there is another outlier....
Saitama's problem is... that he is in a freaking comedy story. No serious association would have ranked him like that after he broke the laws of physics in his physical exam. No matter how dumb he might be. Also, the fact that he never got credit for anything he did. But really, it's a problem of the genre.

Well yeah, at times it almost feels like some sort of curse he is suffering from. Being more or less invincible, but also suffering from not being allowed to ever get real recognition for his deeds.
But i guess the association just had some rather tight rules in place about the ranking system, with no exceptions allowed. Suposedly the idea is that if someone is placed in a wrong catagory they will rise or fall on their own.

Saitama isn't the only outlier though. The end of the Boros arc clearly shows that there are several orders of magnitude between Tatsumaki and every other S class hero put together, meanwhile Amai Mask is close to or stronger than most of the S class. (And y'know, his whole thing about trying to prevent heroes from rising to S class who aren't worthy, he's not wrong he's just an *******)

Mhm.. well.. if those in S class is just those who are noticeable stronger than A class, then Tatsumaki is as such placed correctly. She is after all #2. And creating a S+ rank for her and Blast does seem a little unnececary.
Amai Mask is then meanwhile something the system most likely had not though to take into account, a hero who willingly chose not to rise as high as his power would allow. That is honestly something thats a little hard to deal with, mainly since they do need him all the same.

And then there's King....

Oh yeah, forgot about the other huge outlier.
I think the only explanation for King, and something that also covers Saitama, is that at times its a very, very stupid world..

[Kato]

Spoiler: Fight Club

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Not much to say.. We learn katsuki's problem was his fault for the big battle and AM's reveal/loss.
Also, his jealousy of Deku, up to a point. Decent reasoning, but spread over a chapter it still feels dragged out... Oh well. It's still good. I hope we get a good Naruto / Sasuke fight next time.

[Haruspex_Pariah]

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Yeah, what's the term for this? Decompression? On a positive note, we do get to hear something from Bakugou heart that isn't an irrational hatred of someone who's never done him wrong. The boy just needs...better coping mechanisms I guess. Just hope the consequences for an unlicensed fight aren't too harsh, that would be a shame.

[LaZodiac]

New chapter~

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This is a good one. As as been said, this is a decompression chapter. It's basically just one scene: Bakugou explains that the reason why he's feeling bad is because he blames himself for his hero having to quit being a hero.

Even if it does feel a little dragged out, I think this is a VERY good chapter that really strikes to the heart of Bakugou's issue. Even when he's told outright, constantly, that "you are amazingly strong, and as such it's hard for you to make as much progress as Deku, who is not" he still can't quite grasp an understanding of it. So when a moment of weakness comes, it hurts him intensely. He doesn't know how to cope.

[Kato]

Ew, more emotions...

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Not much to say, boys talk about their feelings. Nothing bad but... nothing I, as a person who is terrible at reading people, couldn't already have told you... but I guess Deku doesn't have our perspective on Kat-chan.
Also: 8% power!

[Haruspex_Pariah]

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Yup, this is looking to be a drawn out fight sequence indeed. Personally, kind of bothered about how Deku can see Bakugou with anything other than caution and disdain given their history. Did we not get the complete picture before? Pretty sure Bakugou was a jerk, at best, towards Deku. Maybe the author is trying to forget that ever happened, or Deku just processed it differently.

[LaZodiac]

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Yup, this is looking to be a drawn out fight sequence indeed. Personally, kind of bothered about how Deku can see Bakugou with anything other than caution and disdain given their history. Did we not get the complete picture before? Pretty sure Bakugou was a jerk, at best, towards Deku. Maybe the author is trying to forget that ever happened, or Deku just processed it differently.

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Before he got his Quirk they were best friends. After he got his quirk...he became an *******, but they were still best friends. It's just that that gap grew wider as they grew older. Hormones, the way people grow, it all served to deepen the gap to put it into the position we saw at the start. Friendly ribbing becomes exploding your notebook.

I feel like as outside observers we see more clearly what is "bad" with Bakugou, while Deku can still see the good in him. I like where this is going though. A lot.

[Haruspex_Pariah]

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Before he got his Quirk they were best friends. After he got his quirk...he became an *******, but they were still best friends. It's just that that gap grew wider as they grew older. Hormones, the way people grow, it all served to deepen the gap to put it into the position we saw at the start. Friendly ribbing becomes exploding your notebook.

I feel like as outside observers we see more clearly what is "bad" with Bakugou, while Deku can still see the good in him. I like where this is going though. A lot.

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I suppose I can see that. Deku's known him his entire life, but our first impression of Bakugou is that of a complete jerk and bully. With Bakugou that's also the second, third, and fourth impression though.

Maybe things were better before Bakugou got his quirk. We didn't really get to see much of that though.

[Kato]

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Yeah, while Deku's character certainly serves to make it more believable he'd still like a jerk, I can kind of see where he's coming from.
We know Kat-chan is actually kind of nice but it's hidden under many layers of jerk. If we took the very early version I would agree, he is an irredeemable *** but now we know him better... he may not be a great person but he kind of has his reasons.

This is interesting as a moment for him to break out but also... I hope this fight doesn't last too long.

[Spacewolf]

So did anyone notice the Cover page for one piece had Deku dressed up as Sanji, fitting for someone who fights with kicks now.

[lord_khaine]

So, not to much to comment on here, except a fitting conclusion for this episode.

[Kato]

Ah, Japan, you love popularity contests... wait, how does kirishima beat AM? The eff? Also, surprised at toryu's ranking...

Spoiler: five

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five people, kohei... I mean, I get the point but it's still five. Also, why do I feel Aizawa also figured it out?

But good chapter, again. Nothing much else to say.. nice look again into both boys' minds. If I didn't know better I thought this was a well done s shonen ai story.

[LaZodiac]

Ah, Japan, you love popularity contests... wait, how does kirishima beat AM? The eff? Also, surprised at toryu's ranking...

Spoiler: five

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five people, kohei... I mean, I get the point but it's still five. Also, why do I feel Aizawa also figured it out?

But good chapter, again. Nothing much else to say.. nice look again into both boys' minds. If I didn't know better I thought this was a well done s shonen ai story.

It just goes to show you that All Might's time has passed, symbolically as well as actually.

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Well, All Might DID say that some of the teachers are also in on it. Eraserhead clearly knows.

Ah, such a good chapter. Such a good finish for it. The two of them are actually going to grow from this and that's awesome.

[Spacewolf]

Ah, Japan, you love popularity contests... wait, how does kirishima beat AM? The eff? Also, surprised at toryu's ranking...

Who's the normal looking guy who got 20th place anyway? Cool to see Jirou placing so high, and did the Author come in at 26th?