Those who fail will get another chance in a few months, so this arc feels a little pointless. So as our reward for suffering through it, we get round two of Deku versus Bakugo. Oh boy. But first…

— As everyone pores over the big board of names, Deku quickly learn that he has passed. Good for him. Unfortunately, even losers like Mineta get to slip through, so I’m already questioning the legitimacy of this exam.

— Bakugo doesn’t pass. Neither does Todoroki. But again, they will get another chance to get their license in a few months, so this just doesn’t feel very consequential. This isn’t like failing to get into Harvard, so you have to settle for, say, UC Berkeley. This is nothing but a temporary setback, and as a result, I can’t help but feel that we just kinda wasted our time.

— Damn, I didn’t realize Yoarashi was this much taller than Todoroki. Anyways, he swallows his pride and apologizes to his semi-rival in his usual extreme sort of way. If they weren’t squabbling like idiots, they might have passed. Todoroki is also contrite in return. He knows that there are internal issues he has to sort out. On the other hand, Bakugo is anything but humbled.

— God, Mineta is such a loser.

— Anime loves this nonsense. I’m gonna say his name… I’m gonna say it! I said it! I said the guy’s name. Okay, now you say his name! Ugh.

— The students also get their exact score and what they were penalized. What kinda ticks me off is how Momo got a near perfect score, but we barely got to see her do anything during the second part of the exam. On the other hand, Deku scored 71 outta 100, but like Aizawa says, he always finds himself at the center of every single incident in the story.

— Blah blah blah, take a 3-month course then take an individual exam. We want you to grow and become even better than the ones who managed to pass here, yadda yadda yadda.

— After getting his license, Deku proudly snaps a picture to send to his parents. Oh yeah, you bet your pass All Might is included in that. He’s pretty much the kid’s dad. I was gonna say the only thing they don’t share is blood, but since Deku had to swallow the old man’s hair, he has the old man’s genetic material in him anyways. Gross.

— Miss Laughs-a-lot suggests that she and Aizawa run a joint practice, but we barely know anyone in her class. Also, I like searching “joke lady my hero academia” on Google in order to look up her name. Look, I can’t remember these many unimportant people. Now, if she and Aizawa started dating, that’d be one thing… But honestly, who wants to wake up to that guy’s dead eyes every morning?

— Right before Yoarashi leaves at the end of the day, he apologizes to Todoroki again. Why? ‘Cause he still doesn’t like the guy. Fair enough.

— Meanwhile, Deku tries to ask Hairy Boy about Camie, but the girl is long gone. According to Hairy Boy, she had felt sick during the second portion of the exam, so she left early. Hmm…

— We then cut to Camie walking into an alley and melting her face away to reveal that she was actually Toga all along. Oh. Oh, okay. No wonder Camie seemed to like Deku so much. So Toga’s actual Quirk is the ability to impersonate anyone. She just needs to drink their blood, and now that she has a single drop of Deku’s blood, she can do all sorts of fun stuff with that. Like what, though? Plus, what happened to the real Camie?

— If you really think about it, My Hero Academia is pretty much a breeding ground for all sorts of fetishes. Ever curious what it would be like to have sex with yourself? Just let this girl drink your blood! Babe, I wasn’t cheating on you! Technically, I was masturbating!

— Hours earlier, All Might had gone to see All For One in prison. Now, this resembles a classic setup where an evil bastard is locked away, but his undeniable charm still radiates from behind those bars. Unfortunately, All For One is anything but charismatic. He just prattles on and on, and I’ll admit I kinda droned off during this super long conversation between two geriatric old men.

— Basically, All For One knows that the world is anxious without All Might. And this anxiousness will embolden the bad guys. Worst of all, All Might will be powerless. All Might will want to help but he knows he can’t.

— But I mean, it’s fine. All things must come to an end, and that includes superheroes. Out with the old, in with the new. Nobody wants to die, but as we get older, we come to accept that it is a necessary process. As I look around me, I see old people clinging onto their outdated ideals and traditions. I see old people holding onto their ingrained prejudices and hate. It’s too late to educate them. Sure, you can reason with some of them, but a lot of them are a lost cause. All you can hope is that they die out so that the world can finally move forward. And eventually, the next generation will have to retire in the same fashion. Obsolescence is unavoidable.

— You can say that again.

— All Might was a great hero, but he wasn’t perfect. As a result, this story is just as much about him passing on his legacy as it is about Deku’s ascendancy. That’s why I find it kinda hard that All Might keeps insisting over and over that he won’t die. You will die one day, old man. In fact, from a certain point of view, you already have. You just gotta trust that Deku can fill your shoes. Maybe All Might thinks that he can’t be symbolically killed or something, which can be debated…

— Later that night, Bakugo calls Deku out for a private chat. What could go wrong? Narrator: “It went wrong.”

— I have short hair, and it still annoys me in my sleep. I can’t imagine what it would be like to sleep with this much hair.

— Anyways, Bakugo eventually drags Deku to the very first place they ever fought. He then reveals that he pretty much knows where and from whom his former friend must have gotten his Quirk. Bakugo wants to be like All Might, is naturally talented, and works hard as hell. And yet, he failed the provisional exam and Deku didn’t. In his mind, he’s probably thinking, “What’s up with that? Fuck it, let’s fight. If you’re supposed to be the next All Might, you should be able to kick my ass!” Well, I mean, I guess this isn’t surprising. An immature kid is still immature.

— Deku is not stronger than Bakugo. Let’s just get that straight. In a straightforward fight, the blond kid would likely win 8 or 9 times outta 10. But what he fails to realize — and this is because he’s immature and needs anger management therapy — is that Deku inherited All Might’s power not because the kid is physically strong. That’s just stupid, anyways. Oh, you’re strong, so I’ll make you stronger! Rather, Deku had the right ideals that day.

— In a world full of superheroes, it’s for a Quirk-less person to just abdicate their responsibility. “I’m weak, so I can’t help! Someone else can do it!” Hell, you don’t even need to look to superheroes to see this sort of toxic mentality plaguing our society. I see so many people in America litter, because it’s someone else’s job to pick up the trash.

— Being the wholesome shounen hero that he is, Deku tried to save Bakugo back then even though he was powerless. He had the right mentality, and he still does to this very day. Having the right mentality is why Deku passed the exam and Bakugo didn’t. It’s obviously not about raw strength. Hell, just look at Mineta. Does he have raw strength? Of course not.

— This is why it’s so frustrating to see that even after sixty episodes, Bakugo is still so clueless regarding his faults and shortcomings. But he can’t take all the blame, because he’s enrolled in a top school for cultivating heroes, right? So how can he have come this far and still not received proper guidance? Why hasn’t anyone properly taken Bakugo under their wing and beat some sense into the kid? I just don’t know, man.

— Anyways, my point is that this upcoming fight between Deku and Bakugo — as exciting and hype as it might seem because none of the adults are around to tell them to hold back — is ultimately kinda pointless. Because at the end of the day, Bakugo will likely win, but the outcome doesn’t matter. The best hero isn’t necessarily the strongest.