cielopotter

Latest Posts by cielopotter

im here now

The brightness of the Sun will give me just enough

To bury my love in the Moondust

About agencies and such

Clip Studio Paint | Dec 8. 2024

Everything is fine, Kacchan was just being dramatic 🫡

What if Tomura Shigaraki becomes a vestige and annoys Deku for all eternity, the comic

Thinking about how this implies that izuku talks about katsuki when he’s with her

just like how izuku never sees the soft longing gazes that katsuki gives to him, katsuki never sees the sharp possessive stares that izuku gives whenever anyone got too close to him

Don’t look at me!

For the rest of our lives <3

side by side, intertwined <3

chat what if your gay lover left you to become a depressed vigilante

Katsuki spent 8 years funding izuku's high end mecha suit so he could keep chasing his dream and competing with katsuki... Oh I can only dream of a love like this

You cannot tell me he doesn't love Midoriya Izuku. There's so much yearning in the soft way he says, Izuku.

Katsuki in love. There are no other thoughts inside that head, only Izuku.

He is dying, and he only cares about Izuku. He is dying, and he mourns the loss of a future with Izuku.

This Katsuki is already thinking about "for the rest of our lives" with Izuku.

This poor little gay boy made sure they put him in the same team as his Izuku for the final battle because there was a tiny part of his brain that probably thought "I might not make it, but I'll be with Izuku until the very end."

But Izuku is not there, and Katsuki cannot bear the thought of spending his finally moments without him, so he talks to him as if he's there. He pretends Izuku is there with him.

Hey, Izuku... Can I still catch up to you?

U CANT MAKE THIS UP 😭

You cannot tell me he doesn't love Midoriya Izuku. There's so much yearning in the soft way he says, Izuku.

Katsuki in love. There are no other thoughts inside that head, only Izuku.

He is dying, and he only cares about Izuku. He is dying, and he mourns the loss of a future with Izuku.

This Katsuki is already thinking about "for the rest of our lives" with Izuku.

This poor little gay boy made sure they put him in the same team as his Izuku for the final battle because there was a tiny part of his brain that probably thought "I might not make it, but I'll be with Izuku until the very end."

But Izuku is not there, and Katsuki cannot bear the thought of spending his finally moments without him, so he talks to him as if he's there. He pretends Izuku is there with him.

Home

When I woke up that morning, I saw everything as normally, however, a new but invisible wall slowly started to raise itself. 

Sometime later, even when years have passed from seeing your soft face emotionless and partially covered in red, I still watched the stars making a silent wish like you taught me to, feeling the breeze of the night without feeling it.

As life passed, as I grew older and so did our friends, I started dreaming more about you, about your blonde, spiky hair, your vermillion and determined eyes, when, suddenly, in one of those dreams, a “Welcome home” escaped your lips.

I knew I was home.

Omae: Complexity of Self-Expression and Intimacy with the Japanese “You”

The anime adaption of chapter 322 is rapidly approaching, so I wanna talk about something really interesting: as far as I can tell, Izuku is the only person Katsuki has ever used the pronoun omae (おまえ) towards in-canon. Furthermore, he has only used omae towards Izuku on three occasions.

The first time is after Deku vs. Kacchan 2 in chapter 120.

The second time is right after his apology in chapter 322. (Katsuki actually uses omae four times in a row in this scene.)

(We'll get to the third time later, just you wait.)

Why does Katsuki address Izuku differently in these scenes? To answer this, we’re gonna commit some language nerdery.

First, let’s be real about the fact that Japanese pronouns can be complicated. There are a ton of them. You learn the common uses—like you could say that, broadly, omae tends to be used by guys for their friends and romantic partners. But the reality is that in a high-context language like Japanese, pronouns can come across wildly differently depending on who uses it, to whom, with what tone, and in what context.

It is difficult to generalize real-life usage, so to be clear, I am talking about MHA as a piece of media. I could try to tell you that omae is rude but also friendly but also condescending but also comedic but also confrontational but also affectionate—and so on, but that wouldn’t help you understand what Katsuki’s omae to Izuku means and why it feels significant.

The thing is, Izuku and Katsuki can each say omae and mean completely different things, because their normal way of speaking tells us how to interpret their words.

When Izuku speaks, he is polite and considerate. He uses the boyish first-person pronoun boku (僕). In Japanese, avoiding second-person pronouns is the polite thing to do; you use the person’s surname and an appropriate suffix instead, and this is the tactic Izuku uses to address others. When he does say “you,” it is usually the familiar kimi (君) towards Katsuki.

We see Izuku use omae in only a few circumstances: he uses it towards himself during inner monologues when he is trying to figure out what to do or compel himself to act, and he uses it when he faces All For One.

Both of these involve what I think of as “tough talk”—Izuku talks tough to himself to push past his fears and be a hero. With AFO, he is talking to a villain, someone he has to defeat. From someone like Izuku who speaks with such politeness and humility, omae reads as aggressive and confrontational.

Katsuki, on the other hand, is always aggressive and confrontational. He uses the masculine, somewhat boastful first-person pronoun ore (俺) and the second-person pronoun temee (てめえ) towards just about everybody. Temee is an extremely rude, combative word; Japanese descriptions usually point out that it reads like fightin’ words—it’s what you’d call an opponent, someone you are confronting, challenging, or belittling. As mentioned, you’re supposed to avoid “you” words to be polite, so the fact that Katsuki whips out temee constantly and makes up insulting nicknames instead of using anybody’s real name is just like, damn, dude!

Unlike Izuku, Katsuki sounds like he is challenging everyone all the time. This means that, coming from him, omae actually seems gentler.

After Deku vs. Kacchan 2, he opens his sentence with omae, and Izuku looks startled by this.

They just had a huge, emotional fistfight, and Katsuki… isn’t addressing him as an opponent, like he always has before. For once, he is addressing Izuku not as his enemy, but his equal.

This scene is the first time Katsuki properly grapples with the truth of their mutual weaknesses and comes to an understanding about it. It leaves him frustrated and unsure, but he walks away seeing himself and Izuku as being on the same side.

Because he takes All Might's words to heart: they are two halves of what makes a hero. They need to learn from each other and push each other to truly reach their best—as rivals, not enemies.

In chapter 322, Katsuki talks Izuku through how he felt about him all these years. He goes over all the things he's had to face to see how wrong he was, to see his own weakness and Izuku's strength. The whole time, he uses the "you" word he always has: temee.

But when it comes time to tell Izuku his true feelings, he calls Izuku by his given name, apologizes, and then right away he says this:

This is a direct call-back to the core question that Katsuki posed to Izuku during Deku vs. Kacchan 2: "Is my way of admiring All Might wrong?"

The second half to that question has always been, implicitly, "Does that mean yours is right?"

Here, Katsuki acknowledges Izuku fully as All Might's successor and affirms that Izuku's path is not wrong, using omae to tell him so. And then he uses it three more times to convince Izuku to come back with them and fight together, "because saving people is how we win."

To me, omae in this scene comes across with such softness. He's speaking with more humility than we've ever seen, both in what he's conveying and his word choice. (There is a whole other conversation to be had about Katsuki's word choice for "I'm sorry," but that is for a different time.)

This omae is not just a sign that he sees Izuku as his equal, it's expressing care for him. Katsuki sacrificed his life for Izuku, telling him, "Stop trying to win this on your own." He is trying so hard to make Izuku understand: Come back, I was wrong. Come back, I care about you.

Which brings us to the third time Katsuki uses omae: chapter 362.

That's right, the infamous "Can I still catch up to you?" / "Can I still reach you?" line uses omae.

Here's the thing that's unique about this omae: it's in Katsuki's head. This is internal monologue; he isn't talking out loud to Izuku, he isn't trying to convey something to him face-to-face, he is just thinking about Izuku.

The word choice isn't for anyone else's benefit or any external purpose: this is just how Katsuki sees him.

I can't overstate how soft, vulnerable, and sincere this moment is for Katsuki. And what gets me about him thinking of Izuku as omae is, it makes me wonder, "How long has he thought of Izuku this way?"

When did Izuku stop being temee in his head?

Changing how you address someone is a big deal in Japanese. Whether it's a name or suffix change (Deku -> Izuku) or a pronoun change (temee -> omae), it represents a significant shift in the emotional dynamics of a relationship.

It crops up a lot in media as a dramatic moment of intimacy, sometimes even being a part of love confessions. This heightened drama is exactly what we see with Katsuki's apology when he calls him Izuku.

Katsuki addresses only Izuku with his given name and omae, and in the whole run of the series, he only uses omae in a few select instances. I would argue that this is really important, subtle character writing.

Looking at the scenes, at least to me, each omae reads as progressively more honest and intimate. Each time Katsuki uses it, he is reaching for Izuku. Each time, it means more.

Like everyone else, I’m in love with Dynama. However, this little Kacchan statement wouldn’t leave me alone. This phrase ‘dreadnought love’— what the hell is that? To Google!

The kanji 超弩級 is for the word ‘Choudokyuu’, which is literally a ‘super dreadnought’, or a warship consisting entirely of big guns, but also a word used to describe something extraordinary, the best of the best. (Don’t bother searching the romaji, all you’ll get is a manga about a giant girl).

An image search of the kanji however (i.e. the imagery Japanese readers will associate with the word) results in pretty much every image being a trading card of this super tank/canon war machine thing, frankly one of the most Kacchanish things ever. The rainbow background was a happy surprise. 😏

So, basically, he’s saying that he wants love to hit him like a fucking canon (as opposed to Cupid’s piddly-ass arrow I guess?). He demands to be seen as cute, and demands a love as powerful as one of his own special moves (howitzer, panzer, dynamite etc.)

THIS BOY is READY to be considered a love interest.

————————-

EDIT 29.12.22:

Hold the goddamn phones oh shit there’s more!!

Okay, so I was thinking about the fact that this mini comic was supposed to come out with the Chiikawa collab, and wondered what was going on with the manga at that time (April).

Well, while Kacchan was wishing for a transcendent warship of love to come smash him right in the heart (sorry), guess which shitnerd was, at that exact moment, propelling himself across the ocean like a canonball to come back to his side? FHDIKSBDAJSSJ

It’s me, ya boy Choudeku.

I’m palpitating. Maybe Hori decided not to release it at the time because it’s so on the feckin nose?!

Shiggy-AFO Has been a bkdk stan/anti since the start, good for them, good for them

In hindsight this moment has a lot more weight and foreshadowing to it! Gives me the chills

Guys look

Bakugou is canonically the closest person too Deku.

Plus,this was stated as non platonic nor,romantic.

So..I was right about shigaraki purposely targeting bakugou on purpose because he's dekus close-ish. Relationship. In general, it's very important that bakugou is close to deku.

And I do have a theroy about how love breeds hurt in the mha universe ,i'll put it in short,it can be used against you in multiple ways,villains may hurt your loved one. You get really mad,which makes you vulnerable,which gets the villain going at you.

I think shigaraki and all for one know that bakugou ,is near and dear to dekus heart. So bakugous a target.

And oh. Oh . Boy. He knows where to go .

Because him doing that makes deku get hurt BAD,but! It fucking shigaraki up too.

Remember this? chapter ?

Then shigaraki went

His FACE got fucking CUT OPEN.

HE LOOKS SCARED TOO-

like if this is when bakugou got cut open from shigarakis quirk.

Bakugou now has LOST A ARM,AND EYE.

imagine

WHATS GOING TO HAPPEN TO HIM THESE CHAPTERS.

Like- his face got cut open,now this is going to be about 10x worse.

TEN TIMES

If shigaraki doesn't think smart and use up a lot of power,he might be quite fucked.

LIKE

F U C K E D

DEAD

We know that Shigirake (wrongly) thinks Bakugo is no threat so imagine he taunts Deku with something like 'you're the weilder of one of the most powerful quirks in the world - why do you care so much for this insignificant miserable little bastard...how does he make you so weak ?' Deku would be taken aback I think

Like this would just be Shigi's "I know what you are" part 2 adjsktv

The fact that ochako is REPEATEDLY shown to us that she is not as important as Katsuki in Izuku’s story is a queer narrative. There’s no denying it anymore. This is a queer story now whether you like it or not.

Now, I do genuinely like izuocha, but I like it in the same way that I like any other ship. It’s decent and cute. It’s built off of supporting each other. But lemme paint something that should have been clear to everyone when they read this manga: bkdk is built entirely on completing a puzzle piece, izuocha is built on supporting another person. But you do not complete that person. And no one will ever complete Izuku like Katsuki does, and the fact that shigaraki outright SAYS IT is pretty fucking gay. The series literally said it to your face, these two, complete each other. You cannot have one without the other.

And SPEAKING of datte atashi no hero, I WILL be posting my analysis of this song and what I think of the lyrics. Maybe some other mha songs while I’m at it too to really show how implied these mf have always been.

If this is how Deku reacted to Kacchan being taken from him

And this is how Deku reacted to Kacchan getting stabbed

THEN HOW THE HELL IS HE GOING TO REACT WHEN HE SEE KACCHAN LOOKING LIKE THIS

Not to mention the fact that when Kacchan got captured from the L.O.V Deku was close to Kacchan

As well in this this moment Deku was close to Kacchan

So now how is Deku going to feel that he was pulled away from the fight he needs to be in (and is currently returning to). That the fact that Kacchan is f**ked up all because he wasn’t there to do what needs to be done.

To Deku his feelings for Kacchan are on another level. Deku can’t control his heart when it comes to Kacchan. Deku gets extremely emotional when it comes to Kacchan. AND the first time we see this is with the sludge incident, Deku is in f**king tears claiming he couldn’t see him (Kacchan) die. That he couldn’t just stand there. Deku ran in trying to save Kacchan WITHOUT A DAMN QUIRK! And now that he has the power to help Kacchan, especially right now in this moment, isn’t there and is trying to get back he is now going to have more motivation to beat/defeat Shigaraki because Kacchan, his childhood friend his rival his image of victory his Kacchan, is extremely injured.

Haven’t they figured out that Deku has no control when it comes to Kacchan yet? Almost everyone has seen it yet they act almost slightly blind. Like hello wake the hell up and smell the damn roses. Deku’s body moved on it’s own, no other thoughts, no thoughts about other people, no thoughts about his own safety, no thoughts on wether he could die or not just Kacchan.

It’s just pure hearted Kacchan! Nothing else nothing more just,

Kacchan

YOOOOOO ‼️‼️‼️‼️

who fell first?

who fell harder?

Deku doesn't consider Kacchan when Toga says imitation = love

Deku immediately imitates Kacchan after escaping

“Deku knew well that he and Kacchan are polar opposites. But even so, Deku couldn't imagine a world in which Kacchan doesn't exist. ” — Midoriya Izuku, Chapter 4 of MHA Light Novel "Celebrations" “Deku had a presence that Bakugou doesn't understand, which frustrates him” — Bakugou Katsuki Chapter 3 of MHA Light Novel "Cherry Blossoms"

Rivals and Heroines: a lesson in expectation

I’ve thought for some time that Horikoshi is most likely knowingly taking advantage of the fact that most people see BNHA as predictably shounen, in more ways than one. Stories can receive a lot of recognition and acclaim for dismantling tropes outright, but what about a story that pretends to play along? Previously I’ve had a hard time presenting evidence for Horikoshi possibly having hidden motives, but now, after ch 348, I think I have a slam dunk. What used to be little more than my musing about what kind of writing I would love to see has become a subtext so obvious it’s basically just- textual. 

Now I can finally lay out how we expected these past few chapters were going to go, vs how they turned out: 

Toga + Uraraka + Izuku in a fight together looked at the very least like it would = Izuku finding out about Uraraka’s crush. Even I thought this. I called it “inevitable.” And whether folks wanted it to happen or not, that looked an awful lot like a setup for canonizing them as a couple. It would be pretty cliché and ill-timed, but what do you expect? Of course a shounen would do that. My optimistic prediction was that it would be an opportunity for Uraraka to dismiss the whole thing once and for all, but I knew what was far more likely: Toga acting as a catalyst for Izuku and Uraraka discovering they have feelings for each other, because Toga likes both of them too and of course she’s gonna gush about that and make them flustered. 

But let’s talk about that word, “likely.” Based on what? Not Horikoshi’s own pattern of writing, but of those around him. It’s “likely” because shounen media is always heteronormative, usually reducing female characters to their romantic potential, and generally prone to neglecting the overall narrative complexity of a romance subplot. He’s a boy. She’s a girl. Can Hori make it any more obvious? But if you consider Horikoshi as one individual storyteller, it all falls apart. Suddenly there is no basis for assuming anything. (I have talked about this aspect already so I’m just gonna link to that.) 

Now let’s talk about what actually happened. BECAUSE NONE OF THAT^ ACTUALLY WENT DOWN. Bless her, it was Tsuyu who really came through and personified how brutally our expectations were defied. She arrives at the last second just as Toga is about to reveal Uraraka’s crush, which obviously cannot be a coincidence. She’s all like nope! Now is not the time! Izuku doesn’t belong in this fight, and Uraraka can handle it herself. While technically this could just constitute a tease, like, “whoops! guess you’ll have to wait for the big reveal until later!” The dismissiveness of it reads a lot more final. This is self-awareness on Horikoshi’s part, showing us he’s conscious of the cliché. Through Tsuyu, he is telling us that it all ends here. No more coy blushy flirty immature shallow nonsense. No more stringing you along. No more red herring. Because it’s time to show you what’s really going on. This is the chapter that reframes everything. 

There’s a whole cyclone of ideas circulating in this chapter and all the other moments it harkens back to, spinning around each of these characters, who are learning from each other. These are the real reasons all of them had to collide in this moment together. They are as follows-

1. A lesson for Uraraka: villains are people worth saving

This idea was first mentioned by Toga, technically, as she wonders in the wake of Hawks killing Twice, whether any of the heroes think of villains as people. Izuku also independently arrives at the idea of saving Shigaraki. Uraraka has a less concrete inkling toward that conclusion, and it is ultimately Izuku’s perspective that gets her to realize she wants to save Toga, and that it’s a valid goal. 

2. A lesson for Toga: love is kind

A seed of this idea was most likely planted by Twice, because he cared for her and showed her kindness, and his death broke something in her. But the world has rejected her, so she rejects the world. Her parents never showed her love, so she had to define it for herself based on the desires of her quirk. If Uraraka can find out about how Toga is mourning Twice, she can use that knowledge as a tool for uncovering Toga’s desire to not only become like her loved ones, but to value their wellbeing. Toga also deep down wants someone to value her wellbeing, and to accept her. This could play out a number of ways, and tbh my prediction confidence on this front is not strong so I won’t dwell on it, but I did notice one thing: In the midst of Toga confessing to Izuku and asking him her question, Uraraka is panned over to two times: 

ya know, in a Realizing Things kinda way. The first is ambiguous, but in the second, she’s having a flashback to when Toga asked her that same question, noticing that when she and Toga had their confrontation during the first war, Toga approached her in the exact same way. It may seem obvious to us, but perhaps Uraraka here is realizing for the very first time that Toga had romantic feelings for her.

3. A lesson for Izuku: the depths of admiration

Up to this point, Toga’s idea of love has only been explained to Uraraka, because Toga says the two girls are alike in that their love for Izuku manifests in wanting to be like him. Now, Izuku is prompted to look inward and see if he can relate to admiring someone the way Toga does. In the moment, the first person he can think of whom he admires is All Might, but Toga wasn’t talking about that kind of admiration, she was talking about romance. Izuku is currently incapable of conceptualizing the depth of admiration beyond his fanboy comfort zone. 

Let’s get into the details of 348 here. Izuku says he “can’t imagine wanting to share the same heart and mind as (All Might).” What a romantic phrase, “share the same heart and mind.” He knows what Toga is talking about, but not who he would apply it to. He admires All Might, but not like that. This shortsightedness is also highlighted at the beginning of the chapter, where a narrator calls Izuku out for being, despite his heroic accomplishments, essentially still (as I heard JP twitter calling him) a virgin otaku (lol). He’s oblivious, awkward, inexperienced, and possibly in denial. The whole narration sounds affectionately chastising, wistful and almost nostalgic looking back from some hindsight. 

Now… the question on everyone’s mind: if this is a gag meant to point to how Izuku is oblivious of and/or awkward about Uraraka’s feelings (assuming that all of this was supposed to lead to them being a couple, as was our expectation), then why, oh why, was the phrase “kuso nado” (translated in officials as “damned nerd”), used by the narrator? That’s Katsuki’s phrase, obviously. So Katsuki is the one calling him oblivious to someone’s romantic feelings, almost as if this is something Katsuki already knows about him, from previous experience, and it is relevant to their own relationship? This is what I was talking about with speculation turning into blatant subtext. There really is no other explanation for this. It’s just. Right there.

So anyway, the whole All Might comment reiterates how Izuku is really out of touch with romantic feelings. Uraraka could relate to wanting to “share the same heart and mind” with someone, but Izuku says he can’t. And yet, that is not exactly the crux of the irony, or else Uraraka would have been the narrator at the start of the chapter, maybe referencing how she originally called him plain, not “damned nerd.” I swear, this is so cut and dry. Actually, when you think about it, Izuku’s obliviousness has never been a source of dramatic irony for Uraraka’s crush in the first place, like, ever. It’s never, “ooooo if only he knew~” it’s just, “ooooo you like him~” and that’s it. On the contrary, Izuku never knowing about her feelings can hardly be his fault considering Uraraka intentionally shoved down and ignored them.

(edit: turns out the “same heart and mind” line is a mistranslation ! luckily it doesn’t really affect much)

 On the flips side, obliviousness and misunderstanding have always always ALWAYS been a part of Izuku and Katsuki’s relationship. Oh boy, let me count the ways. From when they were little kids and Izuku tried to help Katsuki up out of the river and Katsuki mistook it for being looked down on, to the bullying, to Izuku having to tell Katsuki about getting his quirk from someone else, to Izuku having no idea how All Might’s forced retirement was weighing on Katsuki, to Izuku being embarrassed to admit he saw Katsuki as his image of victory (*ahem* a level of admiration more personal than what he had for All Might!), to Izuku hiding the fact that emotions related to Katsuki triggered Black Whip, to Katsuki being unsettled by Izuku’s self-sacrifice, to Katsuki sacrificing himself, to Izuku running off to fight alone again anyway, to Izuku being shocked by Katsuki’s apology…. every. step. of. the. way. 

I feel like a broken record but seriously everything is all so obvious now. There is nothing tongue-in-cheek-shipping-brainrot about this. This isn’t rivals being accidentally homoerotic, or a female character being neglected by a misogynistic male author. I practically have no choice but to assume that Horikoshi has been planning a complete 180 fake-out and Izuku and Katsuki are about to be canon instead, or at least left open. I truly do believe now that this whole time, narratively speaking, Uraraka has been masquerading as the heroine/love interest, while Izuku and Katsuki have been playing rivals, all in service of Horikoshi leading us to expect this manga to turn out like any other shounen. But now he’s finally starting to show his hand. It’s like a trope-defying plot twist. I know a lot more of y’all can feel it now too. I bet even the homophobes are about to jump out in a big way, from the sudden insecurity. It’s. I’m. I dunno what to say, man. This is really wild and I can’t believe we’re here.

Folks, the end is nigh. I can’t wait.

…And that’s all the hyper-analyzing of quotes I got in me today, yep. No more. That’s definitely it. 

(major spoilers for Blue Flag/Ao no Flag under the cut)

Seguir leyendo

Why Bakugou Katsuki being the 'Love Interest' actually works

The main purpose of the love interest is to be the protagnist's main emotional connection (or should I say trigger lmao)

Their dynamic is crucial to the advancement of the story

The love interest is often the deuteroganist

The narrative often rewards their attempts to reconciliation

Bring out each others strengths and flaws

From the very first episode, Izuku has always reacted strongly when Katsuki is involved. He is a spectator to the Sludge Villain till he realised who was trapped. Then his body moved on its own

Katsuki didn't know that Izuku had a quirk till their first day at UA--he assumed that Izuku had gotten into the school without a quirk and went 'yeah that checks'

Izuku tells him the secret of OFA on the very first day--he doesn't even tell anything to his mother

Izuku escapes the villains in USJ by copying Katsuki and screaming DIE as he jumps off a boat

Seriously, most people would think 'What would Bakugou do?' and then proceed to do the complete opposite. Everyone except this mad lad apparently

Izuku wins the sports race by doing what he thought Kacchan would do

Omfg I completely forgot the nicknames. Nicknames

Especially Kacchan--Katsuki doesn't even protest to this cutesy nickname even once during the entire story. Sus.

Katsuki wins his match against Uraraka because he thought she had taken advice from Deku and he prepared the required counter attack

Seriously these guys can anticipate each others movements so well it's scary

Izuku masters some control over OFA by once again thinking 'What would Kacchan do?'

Seriously that's like his foolproof plan for every situation and it works???

Aizawa placing them against All Might for their exam solely because of their dynamic--he knew what a powerhouse they could be together if they just learnt how

Izuku: *hears that one of the objectives of the training camp attack is to kill him*

Izuku: *completely ignores that* omg kacchan!

*life or death situation where accurate information is necessary* Izuku: One of the targets is Kacchan!

Hero: Who???

1a: omg it's midoriya (love how that's how they recognise him, it's so distinct)

Stay back Deku

Izuku's complete break down screaming when Katsuki is kidnapped

"It was a complete failure"

He literally risks everything to save him

Deku vs Kacchan Part 2 *ctrl+c*

The highlights: 'you're my image of victory', 'closer to me than All Might'

Cannot believe I almost forget the several panels towards the end of DvK2

just leaving these over here

s4 didn't really have a lot them because it was focused on other things (and it actually gave them the space the needed after whatever DvK2 was) so moving onto the Joint Training

"Keep your eyes on me Deku"

Izuku just,,, ignorning everything else and focusing on Katsuki's match (when he was constantly talking and analysing for the last three)

Katsuki being Izuku's trigger for blackwhip *chef's kiss*

Okay, detour for a second. Ochako hugging Izuku when his quirk goes crazy can be likened to a very similar scene between Aang and Katara in Avatar. However, Katara succeeds in calming him down. Ochako is not.

More than that, the narrative seems to punish Ochako for her feelings towards Deku. Punish is a harsh word but that is exactly what is happening

When she realises them, she almost fails her exam

Toga is able to get away with Ochako's blood during the training camp because she gets distracted

It inhibits her performance in the joint training arc

She consciously realises that her feelings are pulling her back during the war and makes an effort to ignore them

And during chapter 342, it is a perfect opportunity for her to tell Izuku how she feels. A confession before the final battle is such a staple. But she doesn't. She's not even thinking about them at that point, instead, focusing on what she has to do as a hero.

On the flip side, we keep seeing how Izuku and Katsuki becoming closer is actually rewarded by the narrative?

You get Katsuki being his confidant about OFA (which he learns about 200 chapters before everyone else, not considering when Izuku flat out tells him in s1)

Izuku often becomes a better hero by taking ideas from Katsuki

The war arc--omfg the war arc

Katsuki coming along with Izuku when he's going after Shigaraki

The flashback to training with All Might, where he's like, I want to keep him at arm's distance

I feel that Katsuki is talking about how Izuku continuously keeps disregarding his own well being and that makes it so difficult to be close to him because witnessing that over and over again?

His sheer panic when he's not able to help

Taking charge of the situation (even when you have the number one pro right there) and making a plan on the spot that no one argues about

My body moved on its own

The parallels fuck me up every single time

I very much appreciate that this chapter is called Bakugou Katsuki Rising

Izuku's sheer rage when AFO insults Katsuki's sacrifice--he just snaps

Katsuki literally had a quirk evolution so that he could reach Izuku in time

I have never felt this way before, like I am on death's doorstep

Katsuki you were no were near the fight happening in the sky. You have almost died several times. But this is the closest you've been to feeling like you were dying???

Katsuki running through the hospital (including ripping out the IV???) to find Izuku when he heard he was in a coma

Omg I almost forgot Izuku's 'Kacchan and everyone else' agenda

Time and time again during even the vigilante arc we see Izuku thinking about war and Katsuki is almost always at the forefront of that

The sheer poetic brilliance of when Izuku is just about to give up, his symbol of victory shows up to save him

Katsuki saying he's the one who knows Deku best and absolutely no one disagrees

Every single fucking thing that Katsuki tells Izuku when they're trying to get him to come back, it's all so hard hitting and exactly what he needed to hear

The apology! Hallelujuah

Izuku--

Like seriously, which fanfic is this

Katsuki was actually so much further away than the others but guess who caught Izuku when he fell--

His continuous effort to be better is just--I have many emotions

Katsuki is always by Izuku's side after the vigilante arc--even during the UA traitor reveal, he was there right next to him

I really like the symbolism behind it

Their whole dynamic is flawless

I love them

Everything I see is bakudeku