The fight intensifies this week, folks, as we watch our favorite protagonists push further into the villain’s den in My Hero Academia! This week, the spotlight is back on Kirishima, his relationship with his powers, and with his new mentor Fat Gum. Read on as we recap the show that continues to shockingly get better and better each week!
1. Amakiji’s Sacrifice
The show opens on a rather grim note this week as we see the aftermath of Amakiji AKA Suneater’s fight from last week. He was successful in incapacitating the three goons from his fight, as he goes on to methodically explain his use of octopus toxin to keep them restrained. It’s a great moment acknowledging that his character arc has come full circle, but alas, it seems that this had to be with the caveat of sacrifice.
We see Amakiji start to fall, as he wonders whether he was successful in helping his peers progress. It’s not clear whether this is his death or merely just a temporary stopping point, but one thing’s for certain: as nicely as this show can develop side characters to be intricate and layered, it can just as easily cut them down to focus on the others again. Yeesh.
2. Loyalty through fear
We circle back to the main group, who are still wandering the hallways, seemingly unimpeded. We get some nice moments of levity from the show, as Fat Gum scoffs at the students’ not having trust in Amakiji when he said he was able to handle the threat. It’s a nice moment to show that the narrative makes a conscious effort not to mire itself in depressing moments. Then we get something MHA always does well: rationalizing and giving realistic flaws to seemingly overpowered quirks. Mimic, who had possessed the building before, can only focus on one group at a time because although he’s inhabiting the whole building, his mind is still human and not omnipotent.
We get a great follow-up scene up the top where Bubble Girls finds out more about the Yakuza goons and their relationship to Overhaul. In the past, it turns out the Shie Hassaikai had a much more honorable and traditional Mafia leader and that Overhaul has made their alignment not only more overtly villainous, but also keeps the members loyal under the threat of death. It’s a neat addition to this terrifying mythos being built up around Overhaul, which makes him all the more effective.
3. Shield and Spear
In an effort to protect Eraser Head from Mimic, both Fat Gum and Kirishima jump in harm’s way, only to end up separated and in a fight for their lives. The matchup here is especially interesting, as the Hassaikai facing them have incredibly powerful offensive and defensive powers, whilst our boys are seemingly both ‘shields’. The show flexes its animation budget here, giving us a super fun and flashy fight between this new villain Rappa, who has hyper-fast bullet-punching abilities, and Fat Gum, the ultimate clash of the unstoppable force and the immovable object.
At the start of the conflict, Kirishima is shockingly easily taken out, even to the point where his ultimate form is riddled with holes. It leads to an instant, crushing depression that cripples Kirishima from being able to further fight, as he instantly doubts his own strength, showing that MHA isn’t afraid to delve into the mental repercussions of these super-powered fights.
4. Chivalry ain’t that bad
The following scene that ensues from this gives us a flashback to Kirishima’s past to flesh him out and explain his motivations a little better. We learn that he seemingly embodies chivalry, as he jumps into situations without thinking or properly strategizing, but he almost always emerges worse for it. It turns out at this stage, Kirishima could only slightly harden his skin, which not only shows how much he’s grown but how much more potential he has to grow in the future. Surprisingly, Mina Ashido from 1-A makes an appearance in this flashback as the hero who picks up from Kirishima’s mistakes, complete with solutions that tend to be non-violent and at times even friendly.
This causes Kirishima to completely lose faith in his ideals for a hot minute, as he finds himself frozen and unable to help others in need due to thinking about possible failure. In his moment of despair, however, he accidentally stumbles on an interview with his personal hero Crimson Riot, who talks about chivalry as not trying to be fearless and feeling like a failure when you can’t be, but acknowledging that all heroes get scared, but still try to live a life with no regrets. This touching moment is what leads Kirishima to try out for UA, where he finally meets Mina at her level.
Continued below5. No regrets
Back to the fight, Fat Gum appears to be wearing thin from Rappa’s constant barrage. Despite it looking like the end for our jolly giant of a hero, he lets viewers in on his scheming, revealing that he’s saving up all the kinetic energy from Rappa’s punches to land his own devastating attack. However, without proper protection, the punch could leave him vulnerable to copping a fatal blow of his own. Before he can risk self-sacrifice, thankfully, our boy Red Riot jumps in as a new and rejuvenated shield, having resolved to live his own life without regrets, in this case, the potential regret of having lost his mentor to a fight. It’s raw and emotional as Kirishima rebuilds his defenses on the fly after each blow, showing his determination to protect what he loves.
In a wild turn of events, Fat Gum is now bursting with a kinetic energy that he’s somehow become super buff and ducks around Kirishima to land a fatal blow that pierces through Rappa and his friend’s forcefield. It’s a moving moment of camaraderie that cements how well this show handles all its characters.
That’s it for this week, friends! Tune in next time as we continue to follow our heroes into the dark chasm of the Shie Hassaikai’s hideout!
