Anime Best in Show

My Hero Academia Season 6 Episode 131: Favorites

Quick SummaryBest MomentSetupDeliveryOther Posts

My Hero Academia Season 6 Episode 131 – Quick Summary

My Hero Academia Season 6 Episode 131, “Izuku Midoriya and Tomura Shigaraki,” Izuku Midoriya/Deku had still not regained consciousness. But it wasn’t due entirely to his injuries. He was carrying on an interior dialogue with the previous bearers of One for All. Nana Shimura, maybe because of her own feelings of guilt, had a terrible, terrible question for Deku: could he kill Tomura Shigaraki? On that question hung their entire future. How would Deku respond? Could Toshinori Yagi/All Might do anything to help him? Or was this a question Deku could only answer on his own?

Note: This post may include spoilers, so be cautious.

Favorite Quote from My Hero Academia Season 6 Episode 131

My Hero Academia Season 6 Episode 131: Nana Shimura has been through a lot

You never know where someone is in their journey. Or how heavy the burden they bear. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

I don’t do well with guilt. I’ve been called moral before, but I’m not sure that’s right. I think it’s more that I just can’t bear the idea of having to bear the shame of having screwed up. That’s not the same as being moral, is it?

It’s that perspective that gave me such sympathy for Nana Shimura in this episode. Her decision, which at the time seemed to be so right, set into motion the events that culminated in All for One manifesting within Tomura. Guilt has eaten away at her. It has to be as painful as it ever has been. Not only that, but she took point on testing Deku. That also had to take its toll on her.

Yet, she soldiered on. She did what she could. And when Deku passed his test, after apologizing for testing him, she said something that showed just how much she still hurt.

“Gran Torino is still alive,” she said (14:09). “When you wake up, tell him I said hi.”

This show excels at putting characters in tough moments. This wasn’t the most difficult, but it was among the most human. I really hope she finds some peace through Deku’s quest.

Favorite Moment from My Hero Academia Season 6 Episode 131

My Hero Academia Season 6 Episode 131: Deku's on his own now

Deku’s decided to do what he knows has to be done. Alone. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

My favorite moment is just a shot. What makes it so special to me is how we got there. A hundred and thirty episodes built up the mythos and characters. Specifically, we saw how selfless Deku can be, which is to say: to a fault. Literally. Just look at Ochako Uraraka/Uravity’s response after she read Deku’s farewell letter (21:07): “Idiot.”

We know that Tomura/All for One are after Deku. Based on that alone, we could anticipate how he would react. We knew he would go out on his own. What else would Deku, being Deku, do? We know he would try to shield his friends. Just as surely as we knew how his friends would be angry about that. Angry, but understanding. They know him as well as we do. 

My favorite moment is the culmination of those understandings. It’s a quick shot (21:34). Deku’s dressed in a ragged version of his uniform. His eyes are no longer bright with hope and promise. They’ve seen the world. They know the score. 

My Hero Academia Season 6 Episode 131: Deku's eyes have seen some stuff

It’s a tragedy that we have come to associate coming of age with the death of hope. But it is what it is. Capture from the Crunchyroll stream.

Deku has decided what he has to do. And he’s about to get started.

The moment perfectly captured who Deku was. It had all of the drama of a hard decision; all of the tragedy of his unwillingness to ask for help when he clearly needed it. And all of the bravery of a young man following his convictions, regardless of the cost.

Like Fred (Au Natural) said in the comments for my review of episode 130, “This started out such a happy-go-lucky shounen piece.” The series has grown well beyond that. It’s become an example of why I invest so much time in anime, or science fiction, or whatever. It’s because I’m looking for stories like this, as exemplified in this single moment. And it’s not done yet!

What did you think of All Might’s avatar’s reaction to Deku insisting that he wanted to save Tomura – if he could? What were your favorite moments? Feel free to let me know in the comments!

My Hero Academia Season 6 Episode 131: Other Posts

Other Anime Sites

This Site (Crow’s World of Anime!)

tcrow
Copyright 2022 Terrance A. Crow. All rights reserved.
https://www.crowsworldofanime.com

2 thoughts on “My Hero Academia Season 6 Episode 131: Favorites

  1. Sorry AOT fans. I know it is a different genre but MHA has you beat. AOT started out as AOT and just got more and more AOT. That’s not a bad thing but it never really grew from there. Except for the time jump when it became incomprehensible.

    MHA has grown up from an idealistic kid to a realistic adult trying to hang onto their moral foundations.

    1. I’ve been thinking about your comment, and I’ve come to the conclusion that I have to agree. I love AOT; I’ve watched it since the beginning. But it’s just heart-breaking from start to finish. Whereas MHA has the gravitas, but it maintains a (slightly) hopeful outlook. Or maybe an outlook where hope might be possible.

      And maybe it’s just as you said: the depiction of an idealistic kid trying to hold onto his ideas is just so relatable.

Please let me know what you think!

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.