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Mod Unbreakable is still salty about Dabi’s scars not being from frostbite. I would like to let you all know this.

-Mod Breakdown

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[Manga spoilers up to 222]

Mini Theory:

Dabi is going to be at Ujiko’s lab, and Ujiko’s going to hand him a Nomu, and then Ujiko will say something like, “Try to bring back at least some of this one’s remains, Touya.”

And that’s it. That will be the end page of a chapter. That’s how we’ll find out Dabi is Touya Todoroki.

Then we’ll have to wait fifty chapters for any of the other characters to find out.

From a writing perspective, this makes sense, because it would double the impact of that reveal. First, we’d have the audience freaking out and going “#CONFIRMED.” Then, there would be the suspense because no one else knows. And finally, we’d get to freak out again when another character figures it out.

-Mod Breakdown wrote this post, but Mod Unbreakable agreed with me

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I am so sorry.

-Mod Breakdown

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[Manga spoilers: 221]

Mini theory: Shigaraki is growing out his hair to get a quirk-compatible costume like Mirio’s.

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Yes. Agreed wholeheartedly. Mod Unbreakable and I were just about to write the same thing when I came across this. There’s no way Ujiko’s “I might have seen some of you in passing” was a throwaway line.

-Mod Breakdown

Ujiko & Dabi Know Each Other

Okay, we all had lots of speculation about ‘Ujiko’, considering Dabi referred to them as ‘-san’, which is incredibly respectful. And given his position as a doctor (which would really merit ‘sensei’), that respect makes some sense, but…

Ujiko praises Dabi for sharp eyes. Twice. He also recognizes his voice through the radio, specifically calls him Dabi.

He’s the only one he does that to. Not only that, but after Dabi speaks, Ujiko introduces himself to the rest of the League and says ‘you might have met me before’.

Hear me out, this is a long shot, but I think Ujiko knows him. And Dabi might remember him.

Now, Ujiko is clearly Izuku’s doctor. He’s a pediatric doctor who deals with quirks, most likely. He’s been a doctor for a while. In that case, he practices in Shizuoka prefecture, and probably near or in Musutafu. I mean, it’s a fairly large city, why would Inko take her son elsewhere? And we know he had a grandson in a local school.

Let’s go down a list what’s at Musutafu, shall we?

The Midoriya Household

The Bakugo Household

U.A.

Aldera Junior High

Izuku and Katsuki’s kindergarten

And….the Todoroki household.

Once again, when concerning quirks and children, obviously the local options are considered first. Ujiko would have been one of the doctors to potentially look at any child Rei has that might be having issues with their quirk. 

Right? Right?

Ujiko was Touya’s, now Dabi’s, pediatrician. He knows exactly who Dabi is, and Dabi knows that he knows, and for that reason, affords him the respect he shows him.

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Mini Theory: Fatgum will teach at UA

[WARNING: MANGA SPOILERS]

This is one of those theories that started as a dinner-time tangent, and then we grew attached to it.

Cheerily, the conversation started with, “Hey, so if All Might dies (as proposed in an earlier post), who would become the new heroics teacher?”

After a very short debate that partially consisted of charades (because this was dinner and it’s rude to talk with your mouth full), we thought, hey, Fatgum. Logically, he’s a hero we’ve already been introduced to in-depth that we’ve seen works well as a teacher. More importantly, though, we just like him and it would be cool to see more of him in the story. He’s shaped like a friend, and  well, that’s just great.

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These are all good points.

-Mod Breakdown

Chapter 213: The Nomu connection

With the newest chapter out, I’ve been thinking a bit about what this whole revelation of One For All would mean for the overall plot. I don’t really think it’s OP, given that A) Deku needs to first deal with them and B) he’s got a history of shattering his bones with this Quirk, nevermind the self harm he does to himself when he first uses it.

But, after trying to link the Nomu with a few things, it suddenly struck me:

One for All is suspiciously akin to the Nomu in a way. Both are basically several Quirks in one, and within a human body (or inhuman given the appearance of the Nomu so far)

And in addition, the Nomu have just been appearing now, starting with the USJ incident. Interestingly coinciding with not just the 9th User but also with One for All hitting Quirk singularity barely a year afterwards.

Nevermind that during the same period that All for One starting hearing his little brother’s voice is during the same time Deku met the first user during a dream of the Vestiges.

In fact, given this recent revelation about One for All makes the existence of the Nomu makes a lot more sense.

First off, you might be asking how?

Given his age, his vast knowledge gleaned from his life, and his resources, I firmly believe that All for One knew One for All was evolving and would hit Quirk Singularity soon. He also knew that the assorted Quirks were being absorbed into One for All because if All for One’s Quirk took Quirks then One for All would be stockpiling Quirks. I also feel like he knew what he was doing with One for All, after all, why drop a Quirk that stockpiles power on to someone who doesn’t have any. I actually feel like he figured this out early on, maybe with one of the users of One for All.

To me, there’s a painfully good reason why the Nomu have just started appearing. It’s not just a way to keep All Might and any other Pro-Hero occupied, but also as a fail safe and a way to shake the public’s faith in hero society. And given Deku starting to develop more Quirks is going throw a huge wrench in hero society as a whole, because once you think about this line of thought, it will become clear what All for One is doing.

Consider this: some UA kid, who previously had no Quirk, constantly lauded and taught by All Might, former Symbol of Peace, former #1 hero, suddenly doesn’t just develop powers similar to All Might but what also multiple other Quirks that it becomes a question of what is this kid’s Quirk anyway? Also place in the fact that the Big Bad is a person who is known to steal and give away Quirks and also is associated with and creates artificial humans/Nomu who manifest multiple Quirks and we start seeing how the public might question hero society, and UA in particular. People might consider Deku to be some kind of Nomu or perhaps a creation of All for One. And if the Dad for One theory is correct, this heaps a load of more troubles for Deku. I kind of file this as All for One’s Gambit, in that he’s been realizing this would happen eventually and has been planning for this. And Deku is his pawn of sorts, even if he is or isn’t his son.

The Nomu are not just a physical threat to hero society, they are also a psychological threat to undermine One for All and hero society.

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Theory: Why Can All for One Hear His Younger Brother’s Voice?

[Warning: Manga spoilers]

The “Core” of One for All is tethered to All for One, which is why All for One says that he can hear his brother’s voice.

Basis

Boiled down, the One for All quirk is “stockpiling power” + “transference.” Both of those elements would have still been present while All for One held the stockpiling quirk. Given that One for All and All for One are blood relatives, it would make sense if their quirks had a lot of similar elements to them, which is why the One for All quirk would recognize him as part of it, and he would be able to hear the vestiges, including his younger brother.

Questions:

If All for One is killed, would he become a vestige?

Dunno, probably not.

If he’s killed, would the One for All quirk itself overload and disband, taking the vestiges with it?

If the All for One quirk disbands, this could be extremely tragic. As we mentioned in an earlier post, we think All Might’s death is pretty close on the horizon, specifically because the vestiges are now fully established. This would lead to All Might becoming a full vestige, living only inside the One for All quirk. (Which, while sad, would also allow him to reunite with Nana, as foreshadowed.) However, if the One for All quirk disbands, we would be left with a tragic scene of All Might fading away.

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Theory: Deku Will Be Immune to Decay

[Warning: Manga spoilers]

We know from chapter 213 that Deku will be developing a grand total of six new quirks, inherited from the previous users of One for All. Now, Nana Shimura’s quirk hasn’t been revealed yet, despite her being part of the story for some time. We know that quirks tend to be passed down and modified through generations, and we know that her grandson, Shigaraki, has the decay quirk. Therefore, it’s very possible that Nana had a similar quirk, or at the very least had some way of interacting with it.

As of right now, the idea of people generally having an immunity to their own quirk has been well established. It’s even been played with as an important part of the tale of the Todorokis (in the form of Endeavor overheating and attempting to bypass this effect for his children via a forced marriage). Assuming these “sub-quirks” grant the holder immunities, it may be passed down through the inheritance of One For All. When Deku inherits Nana’s quirk, he might also inherit the immunity to that quirk, meaning that he could be at least partially immune to Shigaraki’s decay quirk.

*This theory was born because we wondered why Nana wouldn’t have been the first quirk Deku inherited from One for All, given that she’s already part of the story, and the most recent holder to have their own quirk. Hence, the revelation of her quirk would have to be very dramatic. Imagine, we have a cliffhanger chapter where Shigaraki literally has his hand on Deku’s face. The chapter ends. The next chapter picks up, and nothing happens. This is exactly the kind of intense ass-pull that a final encounter between the two deserves. 

-Mods Unbreakable & Breakdown

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Theory: Batman Mirio

[Warning: Manga spoilers]

Batman Mirio. Batmirio, if you will.

Not literally, but in terms of concept. Like Batman, Mirio is competing in a field where all of his colleagues have superpowers while no longer having any himself. Of course, Batman can only do this because of his strength training and high-tech gear. We know Mirio has the strength training, but who could provide the high-tech gear?

Mei Hatsume.

This would actually be a fascinating team-up. It would also pave the way for a quirkless superhero, as was Deku’s original intention. We know from the first few chapters that UA technically accepts quirkless students to the hero program, but that their tests are so difficult that they would be almost impossible to pass without a quirk. Having Mirio graduate the hero course without a quirk would bring this full circle--set the precedent that Deku subverted.

Also, they’re both so enthusiastic that they would make adorable friends. Add Eri into the mix (who Mei would have a blast making semi-hazardous toys for) and we’re gold.

-Mods Unbreakable & Breakdown

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Theory: All Might Will Die and Become a One For All Visages

[Warning: Manga spoilers]

Pretty much as the title says. While Izuku Midoriya seems intent on “twisting fate,” there’s plenty of foreshadowing that All Might will die in the near future and become one of the One for All Vestiges.

The main reason we think this will be the near future? Izuku has started being able to communicate with the vestiges.

This would be a good way to kill the character off and fulfill Sir NightEye’s prediction without truly killing him off for good. Kind of a cop-out, but in this way the world at large still gets the impact of his death, while Izuku can still stay in contact with him in some way. 

-Mods Breakdown & Unbreakable

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League of Villains Civil War

[Warning: Manga spoilers]

Theory: At some point, the League of Villains is going to have a civil war.

THE DIVIDE

When they start out, three members specifically mention joining because of Stain’s ideals: Dabi, Toga, and Spinner.

Shigaraki, however, doesn’t adhere to the same principles. His initial intention was only to use Stain for the publicity. We can see here that Stain and Shigaraki don’t agree with each other’s ideals.

Later, as the League goes to take out Overhaul, and they attack the police protecting him, Spinner expresses concern that this is not really what he signed up for.

This suggests that the League isn’t a fully cohesive unit, and that their methods and goals might not align all the way. Furthermore, it suggests that Spinner is starting to see that he was deceived, and that Shigaraki never truly wanted to carry on Stain’s mission.

CHOOSING SIDES

Spinner

In the event of a civil war, we predict Spinner would side against Shigaraki, given that he’s vocally addressed his disagreement with Shigaraki’s methods.

We see three potential outcomes for this:

He’s killed.

If a new faction is created, he defects to that. (Which may also result in him dying.)

He betrays the League to the police. (Which would probably also result in him being super-dead.)

Toga

Would stay loyal to Shigaraki. Despite initially joining under Stain’s ideals, she quickly noted that she’s really just looking for a place where she can let her freak flag fly without judgement. She also seemed to trust Shigaraki pretty deeply during the Overhaul arc, and he expressed trusting her in turn.

Twice

Would also stay loyal to Shigaraki because:

He showed trust in Shigaraki during the Overhaul arc.

He’s looking for a place to belong, so while the civil war would take a toll on him, he’d stay with the people he’s most comfortable with, especially if it was the side with the most people on it. He and Toga have also shown to be extremely close, almost romantic, during the Overhaul arc, and it’s hard to see the two parting ways.

Mister Compress

We’re undecided on him, mostly because we don’t have much information. We don’t know his backstory or why he joined the League in the first place. For that reason, it seems like he would stick with Shigaraki, but new information could also come to light that would explain why he’d defect.

Hawks

We’re just going to address quickly that if Hawks is introduced to the rest of the League before the split, he would be obligated to stick by Shigaraki’s side for the Hero Commission. However, if he’s not introduced before the split, the only contact he has is Dabi, which leads to the final debating point.

Dabi

Saved for last because he’s the most complicated in this scenario, and one that could really determine the end of the civil war. Reasons for this:

He allegedly joined the League under Stain’s ideals.

Shigaraki trusts him enough to put him in charge of the Nomus, and made him leader of the Vanguard Action Squad. He calls Shigaraki “Boss” now, at least to Hawks.

We don’t know if he’s mentioned Hawks to Shigaraki, or if he’s running that on his own.

The only time we saw him meeting potential League recruits, he killed all of them purely because he didn’t like them.

We haven’t seen much of how he fits into the League’s dynamic. He was absent for the entire Overhaul arc, only showing up to help kill Overhaul. Ultimately, we don’t know how well Dabi is adhering to any of Shigaraki’s plans.

That said, we have three possible results, and each of them would really impact how we see him as a character.

Dabi switches over to Shigaraki’s way of thinking and sides with him.

Dabi will be the leader of the new faction, holding over his authority from the Vanguard Action Squad.

Dabi goes rogue.

Conditions: Spinner is killed and Compress sides with Shigaraki.

A rogue League member would be highly valuable, and the police may focus on capturing him to try squeezing him for information on the League. We know the police has him pinned for at least Snatch’s murder, and he’s suspect or confirmed for killing a lot of other people

He could go the vigilante route, and work similarly to Stain.

OUTCOMES

1. The civil war is a minimal event, ending in Spinner dying alone and unsupported. However, the League would form more cohesive goals, and we might even get a glimpse at what Shigaraki’s master plan is.

On a side note, Mod Breakdown thinks that Shigaraki’s goals will eventually diverge from All for One’s, especially with all of this time spent apart. All for One emphasized that he wanted to nurture Shigaraki’s growth as a leader, and it would be wonderfully ironic if that backfired on him in such a way that Shigaraki would no longer fully follow All for One’s wishes.

2. A new faction forms, consisting of Dabi, Spinner, and probably Mister Compress just to balance it out.

Note 1: We like the Dabi-is-a-Todoroki theory, too, and we think it would be a really good parallel if Dabi is leading a villain group while Endeavor is the #1 hero. It could put them on parallel footing. Just as Endeavor went from #2 Hero to #1 Hero, Dabi would go from the lieutenant of an organization to the leader of one. This would make the reveal really powerful.

Note 2: Mod Unbreakable pointed out that at least some of the Nomus have been coded to Dabi’s voice, meaning that Dabi could feasibly have a Nomu army backing him as well. (Separate theory post coming soon to a blog near you.)

3. If Spinner is killed and Dabi goes rogue, the League will be down two key members, which means they’d really need to fill in the extra spaces with new people.

CONCLUSION

Most likely: Outcome #1. This actually strengthens the League and makes them more formidable, while giving us insight into what the end goal is. It also allows Shigaraki to make a power play, showing that he can and will dispose of anyone who goes against him. The way he dealt with Overhaul started cementing him as a leader and a villain to consider seriously, but this would solidify it.

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Our Favorite Theories

Warning: Manga spoilers ahead.

1. Dabi is Touya Todoroki.

See basically anywhere. It’s a very popular theory and we are holding it in a white-knuckled grip.

See this variation on the theory, in which Dabi’s scars are caused by frostbite instead of burns.

2. Uraraka is the traitor.

Tumblr user nejiree wrote a really comprehensive two-part piece on this theory and it’s one of our favorites.

Part 1

Part 2

3. The League of Villains will, at some point, have a civil war, caused by differing goals. Spinner is still much more on board with Stain’s ideals than the rest of the League seems to be, although we know that Dabi and Toga also joined with those same ideals.

More on this in a later post.

4. Nana Shimura’s quirk is lethal, possibly the same as or similar to Shigaraki’s. We’re assuming she used OFA primarily because of this, but we’ve never seen her fight, so it’s a solid maybe.

5. All Might will die, but will stick around in the One for All dream realm.