#he also fought Suiryu and now

[handlewcaare]

Garou,,,, w,,,, w short hair,,,,

[gofancyninjaworld]

a few more thoughts: so much for the Neo Heroes

We always knew the pro-heroes were the real deal, but the last batch of chapters has really shown up the Neo Hero leadership for what it isn’t. One by one, the Neo leaders are being tested in the field they claim to be good at and found wanting. 

Blue's sense of justice turns out to be pretty damn empty. He’s looking at evil and letting it go by unchallenged.  Raiden and Suiryu's vaunted martial arts choked when faced with actual resistance -- even though neither of their opponents fought back.  Infelsinave's resurrection skills weren't.  Zaedat's money didn't buy him a good enough suit to protect himself from an actual monster.   Webigaza has shackled herself to the dubious workings of the Neo Heroes in exchange for a shot at fame that's turned out empty.  The only ones it seems to be working out for are A and Ryomon, who are just happy to have license to do their no-good plans freely without fear of interception by pro-heroes.  

The only Neo leader doing okay is Accel.  It’s probably not insignficant that he’s the only one who was actually undertaking heroic activities beforehand.  And he was also the only one appropriately appalled at seeing wanted criminals among their number.

Meanwhile Child Emperor and Metal Bat smelled rats as soon as they laid eyes on the place and went to investigate -- their suspicions are absolutely spot on.  Darkshine has his unease, but right now he’s got his head in the sand.  I hope someone gives him a poke soon.  I could do with Righteously Indignant Darkshine.

[sneky-sneck]

1 :3 I want to hear about Snek

1. Who is your favorite character and why?

As we all know...it's Sneck. :3 So I have answered why I love him in this post

But I will gladly say it again but a bit more different.

So 1 of my things that I like is his looks! I have a thing for characters being in fancy clothes and bonus points for long bangs. Also I thought it was interesting for a guy to be fighting in a snake skin suit and he did it for look but honestly the fact that it's special since it's strong against fangs and claws. Like he could have make a completely different style but no, he made it tailored to be a suit to be classy. Also now that I realize this, he has an Ace Attorney name because of his fucking name being Sneck and what does he wear and pit his hero name as? Yup. Like if he let the H.A name him, it's going to be Snake or something else but still be Sneck so thankfully he thought about it.

Please know that I'm litteraly talking whatever comes out of my head right now.

So I feel like the post I put the link on explains it better but I'll make this smaller.

I know he didn't have a good impression of him in the start with the seminar and the rookie crushing. I already took notice of him but I didn't think anything else. Like "haha he got punch." But in the other episode when they H.A were talking about the heroes in the city, I noticed Sneck being 1 of them and the fact that he protects City F and was observing Hammerhead. So I thought again about how maybe he wasn't lying about him having a say in lower heroes.

Now that I'm thinking, Hammerhead was in his city but we never saw him but I wouldn't blame him because Hammerhead had an army with him so Sneck can't really do anything. Like him of all people know who or what he can't beat.

The Deep Sea King arc is what got me.

We see him again and this time with other heroes but facing a monster that we saw beat an S class hero so we already know their fates. But they all did try to protect people and at that point I love him. Although he wasn't the person who spoke up first. It was a C class hero, All Back man, with ather c and b class hero. But he was the last one to come out. We know that there were heroes on the way to help Stinger but after the DSK makes his appearance, they took refuge in the shelter and we can't blame them. Remember that 1 time Saitama was in one by mistake because he thought that it would lead him to the monster. And who came in later, beaten up heroes. The crowd was not happy seeing them being defeated. So I thought back to this. Not exactly the same situation but one was the threat being far way and the other is the threat right in front of them.

Now that i think about something else... you know how Saitama was talking to that 1 girl about how safe the shelter is and that it's thick or something like that....in the manga Sneck hit the wall and made a crater....anime Sneck however fucking went through the roof. Holy shit. That man was in a body cast after DSK.

I dont really want to go too much about the tournament but it depends on what my thoughts are.

I'm pretty sure at the point, most people will now change thier mind about how Sneck .

Although when we see him again, the first thing he talks about, his rank so we probably think he didn't change and even when he thought about beating Suiryu when he fought Max.

But when we hear his inner thoughts that's where it really got me. The fact that he believes he's not strong because of what he saw S class can do and people who are not heroes that are very strong. The way he felt appreciated when he was first an A class but the way reality sent when we see him with the DSK and the fact that more monsters continue to come. Then he asked himself if heroes are necessary but then again who would fight monsters for the people who can't fight. As I said on the other post, if he has all of these thoughts, Suiryu is the worst person to talk to.

Now im not going into it that much because of the other post but I do want to talk about something else.

My favorite arc is the DSK for many reasons.

Ok so hear this. When Saitama finally ended the DSK everyone was happy but that 1 guy who vocally said that maybe the other heroes were too weak and looked down on them and sadly we couldn't see him changing his mind and now I think how many people actually felt that way. I mean they almost died and how can he say that. Now let's see who else said heroes were unnecessary....Suiryu. He didn't see the point in heroes but the difference is that he is actually strong an believes that he doesn't need to worry about monsters. However this time we see him having to deal with the monsters so he actually knows how it feels to be in a hero's shoes.

Now even after dissing Sneck and all the others things he said...Sneck and Max still went to save him. As I said in the other post. Sneck was forced to get out to save a crowd when he knew they couldn't win....this time it's to save Suiryu while everyone ran and knew that they couldn't win but to at least made sure Suiryu escaped. Even when it didn't work well, the actions that Sneck and Max did, really changed Suiryu. Of course Saitama defeated Bakuzan but Suiryu was yelling for anyone. I mean they could have run to help other heroes and left him but they came back more prepared.

So yeah....Sneck is my favorite

[alexthegamingboy]

Toonami Weekly Recap 11/09/2019 (The Forge Edition, Week 1)

My Hero Academia Shie Hassaikai Arc Season 4 EP#64 (01) - The Scoop on U.A. Class 1-A: Freelance journalist Taneo gets an exclusive with Class 1-A in hopes of uncovering the new Symbol of Peace after the retirement of All Might.

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind EP#03 - Meet the Gangster Behind the Wall: Bucciarati agrees to introduce Giorno into the Passione organization, but he has to be evaluated by Polpo, a morbidly obese capo. Giorno visits him in prison and realizes that he is a Stand user. Polpo tasks him with keeping the flame on a cigarette lighter burning for 24 hours as a test of his trust. Giorno arrives back at his dorm with the lighter, but he is forced to evade Koichi, who has come looking for his passport. The lighter is accidentally doused by a janitor; the janitor reignites the lighter, causing Polpo's Stand Black Sabbath to appear. Black Sabbath kills the janitor by grabbing his soul and piercing an arrow through it, then turns to attack Giorno.

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba EP#05 - My Own Steel: The demon's body disintegrates and the souls of Urokodaki's students he killed depart to the afterlife. As the demon dies, he remembers when he was turned into a demon as a young boy and even after his transformation, had always been longing for a warm hand to hold, specifically that of his older brother's. Tanjiro smells sadness from its body and holds its hand, causing the demon to cry. For the next week, Tanjiro continues to survive, asking every demon for a method to turn a demon into a human again, though none answer. At the end of Final Selection, Tanjiro and three others are the only survivors, all of whom are assigned the lowest of 10 ranks, Mizunoto, as well as a Kasugai crow to help in communication. They are also give uniforms and allowed to chose the ore of their personal Nichirin Blades. Tanjiro returns to the cabin bruised and exhausted, as Nezuko arrives to greet him, having awoken from her year-and-a-half long slumber. Urokodaki deduces that Nezuko is making up for not eating humans by sleeping to gain strength. 15 days later, Tanjiro's sword is delivered by Haganezuka, the swordsmith. As Nichirin Blades change colour depending on the wielder, his turns black, a rare colour that superstitions make out to be unlucky. Now having a sword, Tanjiro's Kasugai crow delivers his first mission: to head to a town in the northwest where young girls have been vanishing nightly, and kill the demon responsible.

One-Punch Man 2 EP#05 (17) - The Martial Arts Tournament: Metal Knight tries to defeat Elder Centipede, but fails to even scratch the behemoth monster. After a lengthy battle Garou defeats Metal Bat, but grudgingly admits that Metal Bat would have won if he managed to hit him even once. Metal Bat gets up and nearly kills Garou when Garou's back is turned, but stops when his younger sister, Zenko, finds him. Garou counterattacks, but Zenko gets between them and orders them to stop fighting. Garou relents (having a soft spot for kids) and walks away to find Watchdog Man. Metal Bat tries again to go after Elder Centipede, but collapses due to too much damage from his battles with Elder Centipede and Garou after Zenko slaps him back down to get him to stop. The two C Class heroes (Pineapple and Mohican) who have Narinki and Waganma are confronted by Rhino Wrestler and are swiftly defeated, which causes the monsters to capture Waganma. Two Monsters named Phoenix Man and Sludge Jellyfish try to persuade Garou to join the Monster Association, but Garou refuses. Phoenix Man promises Garou that they will meet again if Garou will continue to hunt for heroes, and tells Elder Centipede and the rest of the monsters to retreat, with Metal Knight following them. Bang and Bomb continue to try to find Garou, and Bang lets out his frustration on a Demon-level monster named Boxing Demon, killing him violently with a ruthless barrage of blows. Many monsters of different disaster levels (Martial Gorilla, Do-S, Hundred Eyes Octopus, Pure-Blood, and Make Plasma) start attacking heroes, which worries the Hero Association. Before Do-S can kill Dynamite Man (her power being that if she whips someone, they will be under her control) with her mind controlled heroes, Fubuki stops her attack. Meanwhile, in the Fight Tournament Saitama is introduced to Bakuzan, Suiryu, Lightning Max, Ring Ring, Hamukichi, Choze, Zakkos and Snek, with Genos watching in the crowd. Suiryu notices Bakuzan's bloodlust toward him, and is only after the prize money, although Suiryu wishes he could have fought against WolfMan (Garou in disguise). After Lightning Max defeats Ring Ring, Zakkos reveals that the fighters are often paired up based on their looks. Saitama deduces that Zakkos is weak since he's paired up with Saitama (Saitama being sorted due to him appearing "weak.") which angers Zakkos. In the post credit scene, Saitama slaps Zakkos, defeating him in one hit, much to Saitama's annoyance. Suiryu notices Saitama's strength and is excited to face him in the finals.

Dr. Stone Kingdom of Science Arc EP#12 - Buddies Back to Back: The silver spear made by Senku is revealed to be a sensor to detect poisonous gases coming from a pool of sulfuric acid, which they need for the antibiotic. Knowing the risks involved, Senku offers to teach Chrome everything he knows about science on the off-chance that he dies, but Chrome refuses, instead proposing a tag-team style approach. While gathering the acid using special gas masks, Chrome nearly falls into the pool but is saved by Ginro, who overcomes his fear and helps the duo obtain a bottle of the acid.

Fire Force EP#15 - The Blacksmith's Dream: Knights of the Ashen Flame, Yona and Arrow, report Shinra's Adolla burst to their commander, Sho Kusakabe, Shira's brother. Meanwhile, forensic scientist, Viktor Licht, is assigned to Company 8 and Shinra is selected to take Arthur and Iris to recruit the crackerjack engineer, Vulcan. He has an intense dislike for Haijima and the Fire Force, but at his junkyard workshop they meet Vulcan's apprentice, Yu, who agrees to take them inside. Vulcan explains his a dream of recreating animal life on the planet. While there, Captain Dr. Giovanni from Company 3 arrives to ask Vulcan to join him, but he refuses even though Giovanni has stopped supplies getting through to Vulcan's workshop. Vulcan's assistants, Lisa and Yu, explain that Giovanni was one of Vulcan's grandfather's two apprentices, who joined Haijima after the other two died suspiciously. Meanwhile nearby, Giovanni prepares to kill Vulcan, however Shira detects his presence.

Food Wars!: Shokugeki no Soma EP#18 - The Karaage of Youth: Noting that the shopping district focuses more on walk-and-eat food, as opposed to Mozuya's packaged approach, Soma shifts his focus towards creating a karaage that can be enjoyed straight out of the fryer. Opting to go with chicken thigh meat with a chilli-based marinade, Soma gets inspiration from a bento shop owner and decides to serve his karaage in rice flour wraps with salad, providing enhanced flavor, portability, and appeal all at once. This brings a large amount of business, which in turns helps the rest of the shopping district come back to life, and Nakamozu has no choice but to admit defeat. Afterwards, Soma puts Mayu in charge of helping with the karaage's sales, having noticed her good qualities. Returning to the academy, Soma is brought before Mozuya's puppetmaster, Etsuya Eizan, the ninth seat of the Elite Ten, who informs him that he has been chosen for the Autumn Elections.

Lupin the 3rd Part 5 Enzo Bron Arc EP#21 - An Outdated Master Thief: Enzo Bron, the president of the global IT company Shake Handz, officially presents his company's new app called PeopleLog, a service linking facial recognition with global databases to create publicly accessible personal profiles. Lupin and company soon find that PeopleLog has become widely used to check people's identities, making it impossible for them to appear in public and easy for the police and Lupin's enemies to track his movements. Also, the apparent reliability of PeopleLog easily sways public opinion, and the world's governments become concerned that the app may cause political control to slip from their hands. As Lupin and Jigen head to rejoin Goemon, who has retreated into the mountains, they encounter Zenigata, who tells them that Fujiko has been captured by Enzo.

Black Clover: Elf Tribe Reincarnation Arc EP#94 - New Future: Yami attacks but is too late to stop Licht retrieving the stones and disappearing through a portal. Rhya activates his self-destruct spell to kill Mereoleona. Asta, having seen the same spell used by Vetto and Fana, nullifies it. Asta demands to know why the Midnight Sun hates humans when they themselves appear human. He also insists on trying to understand the Midnight Suns motives and making peace with them, echoing the Wizard Kings wishes. Rhya realises Asta sounds exactly like Licht used to. Julius realises that Licht had enough power by himself to kill everyone in the kingdom; therefore the stones must have another purpose. Julius entrusts his dream of a better world to Yami and all the other magic knights before finally dying. Yuno approaches the mage, who has the ears of an elf. He also notices another black sword nearby. Licht betrays Rades, Sally and Valtos, revealing his total contempt for their human greed and selfishness and also that the stones will not grant them greater magic power but will in fact use them as sacrifices to fuel the resurrection. As he places the stones in the tablet light covers the entire kingdom. Rhya reveals the resurrection has begun as he transforms into an elf. The elf in the sphere of light suddenly awakens while Yuno also begins to transform into an elf.

[the-nysh]

Throwback to the time when saitama met syriyu, (If I spelled his name wrong, sowwi) and when he begged Saitama to not go after the crow man and when he was being dragged against the ground grabbing sai's leg! :O I was shocked because I've never seen a man act like that in a manga before, who's so determined and kind loyal to him right then and there (esp since he was a bit cocky when they fought in the tournament earlier) I just thought it's a refresher to see a man not have the mentality

Yesss, Suiryu’s humbling character development was one of the best things about the tournament arc! The striking contrast from before and after he met Saitama, from a cocky & lazy narcissistic asshole, to fully understanding the merits of true heroism, and genuinely caring for the safety and wellbeing of ‘his hero.’ Oooooh, it was a glorious sight to behold. 8D (when ONE humbles his characters, he punishes them HARD ohoho) It was refreshing to see! Also because Suiryu’s a manga-only character not seen in the webcomic, so all his development came blind to most opm readers. :D I’m really curious what will become of him now - if ONE will allow him to return later in the story or not. It will be fun to see what’s up with him after he’s reformed his ways! 

[gofancyninjaworld]

The World of Heroes. Part 2: What is a Hero, Anyway?

Part 1 here

I realise that one of the things we think everyone agrees on is what a hero is.  We also tend to think we know what ‘hero’ means in One-Punch Man.  But let’s walk this thinking back a bit. 

A Chimera of a Beast

To start with, there are many definitions of hero. Originally, a hero was a man (or woman) who opposed great adversity with strength, courage and ingenuity. Critically, they did this for the sake of personal glory. If it helped anyone, that was nice, but it wasn’t the point.  We have the one many are familiar with from the Bible (and from Maccabees, if you’re Catholic), where the idea of sacrificing oneself for the sake of others was held up as both a heroic and loving thing to do. The hero is an altruist.  More modern readings (Middle Ages onwards), have conflated 'hero' with 'champion' (a defender of a cause or person) and have the hero doing these acts for the sake of others, sacrifice optional. 

Tying these definitions together would be Philip Zimbardo (yes *that* Zimbardo), who sees heroism in terms of the willingness to act for what one perceives to be right. Crucially, he sees the choice to act when one might otherwise have stood by as the key definition of a hero: the opposite of heroism is not villainy, but indifference. The bystander, the person who could have acted but chose not to, is the one complicit in evil.

So which one is right for One-Punch Man?

All of them. 

We get all these strands in OPM, in all their uneasy contradictions. It’s rare to find any hero who doesn’t have more than one of these ideas motivating them at the self-same time. The heroes whose strongest motivation is to act to show their power and gain recognition rub shoulders with those 'just doing what is right'. The strong desire to experience triumph butts heads with the satisfaction of knowing one has helped someone. Often, they're the same damn person. 

Does it make sense to talk about acting with moral courage when one gets a paycheck at the end of the month? After all, we don't go lauding the police or doctors as heroes -- unless they do something that is truly over and above the call of duty. If we say that a hero is one who is not just willing to act to oppose evil, but do so to the point that they would put their lives on the line, what if they're so strong that this resolve is not tested?   It’s no wonder that within the story, we have so many differing views on heroes from near-worship to regarding them as self-indulgent fools.  And it’s no wonder that outside, fans find plenty to argue about which hero is better. 

How do we unpick all this?  So this isn’t too long, I’ll just pick on Saitama, not just because he’s strong, but also because he wrestles with many of these aspects within himself.  

Even He Contains Multitudes

Philosophically, is Saitama a hero? I'm with Zimbardo on this one: a hero is the one who sees a clear moral line that once crossed, compels them to act.

The important part is choice. So heroism is not being a trauma surgeon saving a patient's life -- that's just her job. On the other hand, if a group of armed men burst into the theatre, hold a gun to the surgeon's head and demand that she stop operating right away to focus on saving their bandit chief, heroism would be keeping calm, persuading the men to quit menacing the surgical team and work out a way to save both original patient and bandit.

Even if the choice is far less drastic, the fact that a person has a) noticed the problem, b) decided that it is a problem and c) decided that it's one they should do something about is what makes a hero a hero. Heroes are busybodies. They're pests. They're the ones who harsh the vibe in the room by telling people about Steve -- you know Steve, the one who's a bit of a laugh (but you don't want to be alone with him when he's been drinking). They hound, they ferret, they badger, they wear out their friends in their pursuit of what they think is right. Until such a point as their efforts are noticed, many a hero is a pest who keeps harping on about the same old shit.

This willingness to personally step up despite the potential for embarrassment or worse is something that ONE refers to when he's thinking about heroes. As ONE puts it, when you see a child being abused, you want to step in and stop it. However, if the abuser is bigger than you, what do you do? Whether or not he has the means to change things, Saitama is one of those people who simply couldn't walk away when he saw a child in danger. Saitama is a hero. A hero might be about taking a stand, but a hero who can WIN, now that is a mighty one indeed.

Coming to Saitama specifically, he's an old style hero with more modern motivations. Sometimes. He really wants the joy of a hard-fought battle, for his own glory and self-satisfaction.  This is a real and valid part of Saitama: 

AND Saitama is also someone who will literally give the clothes off his back to get a child shivering with cold and humiliation safely home. Clothes he really needed himself at that time to not make a fool of himself at a competition.

AND Saitama is someone who consistently defends the very idea of heroes, even to the point of sacrificing what would have been a very easy ride, not just out of Class C, but all the way to Class S. He did so that the greater sacrifices other heroes had made to keep the crowd alive long enough for him to come  save them would not be disparaged.  

All of these are part and parcel of Saitama. With so many different motivations, it’s little wonder that Saitama struggles with what and why he decided to become a hero in the first place.

He Who Raises Himself Up Is Watched

The ancient world has one crucial aspect right about heroes: they are watched.  Because they take a stand, heroes stand out.  And thus, they are noticed, whether with disdain or admiration.  Better make sure the figure you cast is worth watching.

Whatever Saitama’s still-evolving thoughts on why he became a hero and what heroism means to him, by his actions, his heroism has had some profound impacts on others.  Which is worth examining as different characters draw very different things from Saitama. 

Suiryu would say that Saitama's heroism lies in his power to restore hope to people. No matter how black things are, don't give up; someone might yet save you.  From chapter 74, page 34. 

  "Only now do I understand... that when people find themselves in darkness, they seek light. And it doesn't matter how faint or small it is, as long as it's there." (emphasis in text)

There is an important psychological truth to this -- in disasters, the ability to hang onto hope influences one's ability to survive. Knowing that help is coming or might yet be coming can have a huge impact on people's willingness to do more for themselves and so survive. A hero is the one who gives you reason to avoid despair.

To Genos, Saitama's heroism is something different: he is the symbol of strength, the strength to end evil. From chapter 84, page 131.

 "Master Saitama's battles are showing me the way forward. The symbol of strength. That is the goal towards which I should strive.. That is where I’m headed." (emphasis in text). 

A hero is the one who has the power to end an oppressive situation. Justice may be the heart of a hero, but justice without power is empty. Without that power, courage, good intentions, a strong sense of right and wrong, fighting technique, intelligence, self-sacrifice, all of them are for nothing -- the situation doesn't change. Those on whose behalf you act are betrayed.

Glasses sees Saitama's heroism in yet another way -- it's the courage to follow your own path, despite what others might say. From chapter 20.6, pages 26- 27.

Glasses: "Normal people have limits! Talented people are fundamentally different from us!" 

Saitama: "Who said so?"... "Who decides limits? And based on what?"

 And from then on, Glasses quit the Blizzard Group and started running. Why? A hero sticks out -- standing up for something when you might otherwise have walked by means going your own way and not being constrained by what others might think of you. That is the aspect that Glasses wants. As he says much later in volume 16's bonus chapter, 

"Knowledge, experience, decision making... I am lacking in all of those things. The only thing that has changed for me is determination. I have decided not to be bound by my limits."  (emphasis mine)

Whose version is right? Which one would Saitama agree most with? Who knows? It depends on which day of the week you ask Saitama! And in a way, it doesn't really matter. What matters is first, that Saitama is taking a stand against the evil that monsters wreak on society: he did it before he was strong and he's not stopped doing it now that he's overwhelmingly powerful. Second, what matters is that Saitama inspires others. He might not be getting the parade he hoped for, but he's sensitive to the fact that a hero is as much a symbol as an action. We sing songs of praise to heroes because they inspire us to do better in our daily lives, they challenge us not to ignore what we might by our action end.

From the start, the point has been made that there is too much evil in this world for any one hero, no matter how powerful, to stop. The argument has been made that in a sense, heroes act out of self-satisfaction. Nevertheless, heroes matter. Someone has to stand up for what's right. 

But man, heroes can't win. If they work for extrinsic reward, like recognition and money (ha!) they're shallow and hypocritical. If work for intrinsic motivation, like justice, they're deluded. If they find intrinsic reward in helping, they're self-indulgent.

Part 3, I plan to look at the world of pro-heroes.