#so lmao i literally forgot about this. teach me to put things in drafts! (i have 60 drafts atm ftr. yike)

[cescalr]

For the ask meme, pumpkin - what’s your favourite weather and why? peach - what’s your ideal aesthetic? cupcake - if you’re treating yourself, what do you do? ?

Pumpkin - overcast, warm (not humid), cool breeze, at twilight. I have photophobia (light sensitivity - ghe sun is my enemy), but I don't like to be cold :D. And bc of my cone and rod dystrophy, I can't see properly at nighttime either, so twilight is the best. Evening/dusk hours, before the sky goes black.

Cupcake - mint chock chip ice-cream with dark chocolate grated over it. Mhmmm yum. And I'll watch an old fav, like buffy or teen wolf or whatever.

Peach - this sort of needs demonstration, so here's my Pinterest. Some stuff on there counts, it’s usually labelled as being things I’d actually wear or own if i could. (Fashion and Furniture boards are the places for this.) In short, though - for building design, interior/exterior, some kind of weird hybrid love child between modern rgb neon gamer shit and. victorian/tudor styles. lol. Clothing... i just like. plaid. yeah. asdfklja;slg :D not good at describing this stuff, so, hence pinterest board. Um, i don’t really ascribe to the aesthetics i know the names of, so. I just. wear what I wear. yeah. :D haven’t paid real attention to fashion since 2007 watching Gok Wan on 4oD. lol. Wouldn’t think it, but i used to want to design clothes.... double lol. Terrible idea. 

[kingyeoms]

dolphin keeper!seokmin

pairing: dolphin keeper!lee seokmin x vet!reader (n) genre: fluff word count: 1,840 a/n: this has been sitting in my drafts for forever, i’m sorry it took me so long to finally finish it!! anyways, this was such a cute concept and i’m so glad i was able to write it :’) thank you for the request!! ♡ best read on desktop, use mobile browser if you can’t read under the cut ♡

lee seokmin is the cutest funniest dolphin keeper in the universe

first fell in love with the ocean when his family went on a trip to jeju when he was eight

they were walking around the coast and seok absolutely?? was just mesmerized with the way the waves crashed against the ocean,, the beautiful tones of blue in the waves,, his big eyes peering into the water to look at the little fish swimming around ugh so precious

literally begged his parents to let him take swimming lessons as soon as he got home

and that was the start of a beautiful perfect pair: seokmin and the ocean

at first he wanted to be a marine biologist, but after a seventh grade field trip to the aquarium and seeing one of the scuba divers in the tanks with the fish, he changed his mind -- he wanted to do that!!

luckily one of his friends seungkwan, who was a sloth cuddler at the zoo, mentioned that there was an opening for a dolphin keeper position!

seokmin at the interview: “wanna see my seal impression?”

at first he was a little nervous since he had no experience whatsoever,, accidentally tripped on the fish bucket when first meeting the dolphins

but once he met gyul and podo? literal heart eyes

as soon as he saw them,, immediately wanted to get into the pool and swim with them

“seokmin wait you don’t have proper gear on” “it’s fine!! i’m willing to take the risk!!”

can you imagine him in a blue wetsuit, yellow fishing type overalls with a cute lil dolphin patch in the middle!! i’m sad

turns out, seokmin is really good with dolphins the same way he’s great with people!!

podo is absolutely enthralled with seok.. she thinks he’s soooo handsome!! always squeaks when he comes into the pool~

gyul gets a little jealous,, but he doesn’t mind since seok always sneaks him extra squid snacks

they’re his actual children, literally seokmin walking into the pool room: “where are my babies~~”

does demonstrations for elementary school kids!! he teaches them how to “speak gyul and podo’s language” and also gives a presentation on how to reduce plastic waste

honestly really cute, super endearing seeing seok and a bunch of eight year olds squeaking with the dolphins

has a bunch of drawings of him and the dolphins hung up on his fridge back home,, he always gets them in his work mailbox as thank you notes!!

okay but listen,, as great as he is with children and dolphins alike,, seokmin wasn’t necessarily the.. most careful keeper at the zoo..

to be honest, everyone was a little worried at how clumsy seok was,, but they realized how much the dolphins loved him and so they just kinda deal with it

accidentally slipped and fell into the pool while trying to get one of podo’s toys,,,, it’s fine

you, on the other hand, just recently graduated from vet school, and having interned at the zoo for years now, they offered you a job right away

you watched a ton of animal documentaries growing up!! and honestly, going to the zoo was one of your favorite things to do as a kid,,

so it was no surprise that your dream was to work with animals!! but you’ve always had a soft spot for marine life :(

your first encounter with seokmin was super brief, when you had stopped by the break room to buy some coffee,, he was soaked.. bunches of paper towels in his hands,,

poor kid was trying to dry himself with paper towels and so naturally you just offered some help

seok didn’t even notice you come in!! but when he looked over to see whose voice it was,, perhaps his heart skipped a beat or two,,

“i’m okay, don’t worry! it’s just.. i fell into the pool again and i also forgot to do the laundry so we don’t have any towels..” he rambled, his ears burning a shade of tomato red

“i’m sure we have extra towels at the clinic? and i think the others would like it if there wasn’t a huge puddle of water in the break room,,” you giggled, seok shooting you a confused look

“you work at the clinic?” “yeah, i’m the new vet”

and literally seokmin drops his paper towels and palms his forehead bc,, how tf he gonna look so STUPID in front of the new vet

also since when has the new vet been so cute?

“so,, do you still want a towel?” “please... that’d be nice”

and so that’s how seok ends up in your office for the first time, cracking stingray jokes and drying out his hair while you’re sitting on top of your desk, laughing at the very cute but clumsy dolphin keeper

you don’t really see seokmin all that much for a while, since there was a pretty bad infection going around the seals, you dedicated your time to them

but to be honest seokmin can’t get you out of his head,, he keeps thinking about the cute vet that laughs at his jokes

one day seok asks you to come to the dolphin exhibit because gyul isn’t acting like his normal self and he was absolutely worried,, ran straight to your office

turns out poor baby has indigestion :(

the reason? seok tripped when he was feeding them and the whole bucket of herrings fell straight into the pool

you, jaw dropped to the floor: “are you being serious”

seokmin: “yes listen i’m really sorry okay i tried to stop him from eating all of them but he’s just.. too fast”

you can’t help but laugh at how,, silly seokmin is!! literally the kid has a heart of gold but also legs made out of jello

the two of you are just in the pool, gyul is nuzzling you as you rub his belly,, podo is circling seokmin nervously,, he has to calm her down poor baby girl :(

but you figure out the problem, gyul just has to take some meds and go on a strict diet for the next two weeks!!

you offer to stop by everyday to check up on gyul,, in case seok needs help taking care of him or anything

you may or may not… use this.. as an excuse to see seokmin

gyul starts to grow super fond of you,, squeaking and swimming to the edge of the pool every time you walk into the room!!

but podo doesn’t like you bc she thinks you’re too close to her favorite keeper

even if you give her squid snacks,, she won’t eat them unless seok gives them to her

you’re a little bummed by it, but you know not every animal is going to fall in love with you,, it is a little hard though, especially if you’re the one responsible for their health

two weeks pass and gyul is all better, but podo is still a bit aggressive towards you,,

seokmin’s new mission: getting podo to like you!!

him: “have you thought about dressing as a clown? she’d find it funny”

you: “what”

him: “ok i guess we’ll move onto plan b?”

honestly it’s really cute it’s kind of like he’s trying to convince his little sister that his significant other isn’t a bad person

you and seokmin spend the next couple of days,, coming up with a plan in the break room during lunch

the two of you finding out more about each other along the way, sharing your love for the ocean and marine life!!

seokmin finally gets the courage to ask for your number,, the first text you get from him is a photo of him and gyul in the pool :(

honestly?? you squealed into your pillow that night LMAO

you make it routine to send him cute photos of seals and otters,, he sends you penguin memes probably

your coworkers would start to notice,, teasing you while you’re doing paperwork in your office,, nurses “i see you spending time with that cute dolphin keeper,, when’s the wedding?”

they’d tease you even more once they saw how red your cheeks would get,, because honestly, the more time you spent with seokmin, the more you realized that not only is he handsome, but he has the purest heart in the world

even if he is.. a little clumsy.. and forgetful.. he puts the animals before himself and you love that about him!!

but this was work,, there was no place for any sort of relationship here

seokmin on the other hand?? has three heart emojis next to your name on his phone

absolutely smitten with you,, knew you were the one for him when you first got into the pool, the smile on your face when gyul swam up to you,, he thought you shined brighter than the sun (as cheesy as that sounds it’s true)

he really wanted to take you to his favorite beach,, in jeju,, where he first fell in love with the ocean

but he had to ask you on a date first and honestly,, he wasn’t even sure if you felt the same way

feelings aside, the two of you come to the conclusion that you should try,, spending time with podo by yourselves, without seokmin

so for the next few days,, while seokmin was on his lunch break, you’d hop into the pool and hang out with the dolphins for a little bit!!

gyul was so happy to see you again,, but podo distanced herself a bit from you,, staying in the corner of the pool until seokmin came back

until one day,, gyul was in a different pool for training, and it was just you and podo,,

and you figured,, might as well try one more time,, holding out her favorite squid snack

slowly but surely,, podo came to you, taking the squid snack,, even letting you pat her head!!

you were absolutely over the moon, because after months of hostility,, this was the first time podo had ever let you pet her,,

as soon as seok came back from his break,, you threw your arms around his neck,, telling him that the plan worked!! and even though she wasn’t in love with you yet,, this was a start and progress should be celebrated regardless of how big or small

seok’s face is literally tomato red at this point but thank god you can’t see it,,

“we should celebrate after work then”

and you look at him,, his eyes trying to avoid yours in case you reject him,,, and you do it

you peck him quickly on the cheek,, and you’re just like, “yeah, i think we should”

before he can say anything,, you realize what you did and your face turns into a tomato,, your hands flying up to your lips,, like i can’t believe i just kissed him 

but he grins, taking your hands into his, intertwining his fingers with yours,, pressing his lips against your knuckles

“so it’s a date?”

[starbudspresents]

DGM 231 - Panthaleia’s Translation Notes

Hello, dear friends and fellow fans! We return to the rubble of Tumblr you with DGM 231, the first chapter of this new year. Thanks for sticking with us!

Please see below the cut for my translation notes and reactions, as per usual. If you have any questions, do feel free to come say hi on Discord at Panthaleia#9705. :3

The Novel I'm Not Writing About DGM & Buddhism

Oooooookay, first things first! The four bubbles across Allen's collar on the cover page say 生々流転 seiseiruten. When spelled 生生流転 (homophonous), it simply means "ever-changing," but when spelled the way it is here (fantastic catch, thank you so much @togaochi​ ♥), it's defined as "all things being in flux through the endless circle of birth, death, and rebirth; the circle of transmigration​."

That concept is much more succinctly described by the Sanskrit term saṃsāra. Now, to preclude confusion: yes, if you look up "samsara" in a Japanese dictionary, you'll get 輪廻 rin'ne rather than this. That said, this term is if anything more specific and descriptive than that one. See also 生死輪廻 seishirin'ne, which has the exact same definition as seiseiruten; think "cell" vs. “cellular phone” vs "mobile telephone." All words for the same thing, with varying degrees of descriptiveness. 

The concept of samsara shows up in several religions (notably Buddhism, Hindu, and Jainism). The one most relevant to DGM by far is Buddhism, and this is far from the first time I've run into it in search of answers.

Crash course on some Buddhist jargon for those of you who aren't familiar:

The word samsara, meaning "continuous flow," describes the beginningless and potentially endless cycle of life and existence, through birth and living and death to re-birth and so on. It could also easily be pictured as a helix, if you'd prefer, and that could in fact make some of DGM a little easier to understand.

(If I may take a moment to get super self-indulgent here: a very related philosophical concept is panta rhei, "everything flows", which is what my "panthaleia" handle is mostly based on. This chapter very nearly literally has my name written on it. IT'S A SIGN. Of.... something. Not sure what, exactly, but IT'S A SIGN.)

Every living thing is trapped within this cycle by its attachments and its ignorance of the truth, which causes great suffering and generates karma, which then affects the shape of one's next life. (Yes, Alma's second name is that for a reason.)

There are a number of branching denominations of Buddhism, much as there are of Christianity, and while they mostly share certain core tenets such as the Eightfold Path, they vary widely in ideals and practice. The influences I see on DGM mostly come from a Japanese variant called Shingon ("True Words") and its predecessors: Shingon is a descendant of Tibetan Vajrayana, which is in turn sometimes considered to be part of the broader East Asian Mahayana umbrella.  

I've talked a little bit about Shingon before, because all the chanted spells used throughout the series follow the pattern of Shingon mantras and Kanda's tattoo is written in Siddhaṃ (theorized to be the predecessor of both modern kana systems, by the way).

Shingon shares its overarching goal with its predecessors: rather than seeking to break the cycle just for one's own self and achieve individual escape from suffering (as in Theravada, for example), one should seek to become an enlightened being — a bodhisattva — and willingly continue to subject oneself to the cycle in order to help those who are struggling and thereby bring the whole world closer to moksha ("liberation") and subsequent/synonymous nirvana one step at a time.

Obviously, reincarnation and transmigration play a massive role in DGM. Let me list just a few of the ways in which this particular concept is a running theme throughout the story:

The Noah fragments being reincarnated into new bodies without also reincarnating the human souls they previously coexisted with;

The Earl's victims having their souls transmigrated in the bodies of their loved ones to rebirth them as Akuma;

The Third Exorcists, also transmigrated into new bodies to bring them back (Helix magic in general, really, including the Atuuda);

Nea's transmigration into Allen (not a rebirth, but an avoidance of death while waiting for a chance at rebirth), as well as Allen's regression to childhood via de-aging and memory loss;

The original Earl (Adam in my theories, fyi, in case I reference that later) deliberately rebirthing himself in smaller pieces for goals as yet unknown;

The Bookmen keeping records of each iteration of the repeating narrative, ever-changing but eternal themselves;

Even fukkin Komlin, lmao, constantly destroyed and improved and remade.

So many others? Soooo many others.

The eureka moment (for me): this chapter is subtitled "Curtain Rise," as in the beginning of a stage play when the curtain goes up. If you'll think all the way back to the very first chapters of the series, you may remember that the Earl's Scenario is meant to bring about curtain fall... on humanity.

Looking at that in the context of samsara, that whole thing suddenly looks very different. Our heroes assumed that the Earl's victory would result in the destruction of the world, the destruction of humanity, but I've never bought that idea from the very start. When the curtains finally close on samsara, the cycle of death and rebirth, humanity will not be "dead" in the tragic sense, but free. Nirvana =/= death. Nirvana is the peace of being one with all, knowing all, loving and being loved by all without the need for suffering. It isn't "heaven" in the Christian sense, but it is an end to suffering, without also being an end to existence.

Tragedy and suffering are the consequences of remaining bound to the cycle. Directly using the energy of them in order to break the cycle creating them, as the Earl claims to be doing with the Akuma, is a very very Vajrayana idea, and fits seamlessly into my existing suppositions as to what the Earl is doing and why. Here, have a relevant quote:

Negative mental factors such as desire, hatred, greed, pride are not rejected as in non-Tantric Buddhism, but are used as part of the path. As noted by French Indologist Madeleine Biardeau, tantric doctrine is "an attempt to place kama, desire, in every meaning of the word, in the service of liberation."

 And another, from the Hevajra tantra:

Those things by which evil men are bound, others turn into means and gain thereby release from the bonds of existence. By passion the world is bound, by passion too it is released.

One more, same source:

One knowing the nature of poison may dispel poison with poison.

Bluntly put, I think the (original) Earl was an enlightened soul — a bodhisattva — who voluntarily returned to the cycle via deliberate rebirth into multiple ignorant beings in order to help heal the struggling world of its suffering via bringing about enlightenment viiiaaaa SUFFERING HARDER. Good Plan™?

Here are a few more related meta posts from a few years ago, just so I can find them again when I inevitably decide to delve deeper into this:

Helix magic will be the key to the plot

It's all happened before

Destroyer of Time

2.) I'm so delighted to see Mana as he was when Allen knew him before, genteel and whimsical and delighted with Allen's existence. It's easy to understand why Allen would become so attached to him.

3.) Raws for the "Therefore I write many of them, as if God can see me doing so. / As if He might find me" lines: こうして神さまに見えるように沢山書くんです　／　見つけてもらえるように  These don’t sit well with me, so I’ll probably change them in the future. The gist is that he’s drawing them in order to draw God’s attention to him.

Raws for "Here I am": 私はここにいる。@togaochi and I concur that he uses watashi here instead of his own preferred boku because he's teaching it to Allen, and means it as a more general "I."

Anyway: hooooo boy, here's some more evidence for the Two Gods theory. And how!

It seems pretty safe to assume he's not calling out to the Order's God, since that god would pretty happily wipe him off the face of the earth. The Noah have called that god "false," though, and expressed their intent and desire to kill it, while still referring to a "God" entity of their own whom they regard as being on their side (or perhaps, they're on its side).

Mana calling out to the Noah god to come find him, without remembering why he wants that, is very interesting. I wonder if and how anyone answered him.

4.) I have a strong hunch that Mana's "secret alphabet" is also related to Siddhaṃ, but that language is written in such a complex way that it's actually impossible for me to be sure without just... learning it. Which! To be clear! I fucking well might. WATCH ME.

5.) This entire scene is so much to me. How furious they both are that the other won't just let themselves be saved/protected. Allen wanted to leave Kanda behind so he and the others would be safe from everything that's hunting him. Kanda wants Allen to stay put so they can save him from what he can't fight alone. All that rage and frustration, because they care.

Quick note: in the first draft we initially posted on Imgur via our Discord server, I had the subject wrong for one of Kanda's lines here, which I caught and fixed. Sorry for any confusion that may have caused!

5.5) ETA: Forgot to mention that I’m fairly sure the beautiful Grecian-style temple they’re hanging out in is referenced from St. Bernard’s Well, again in Edinburgh. Excuse me, “Edinston.”

Thanks to an enterprising anon, we have a much better match for that structure: the Dugald Stewart Monument! 

6.) "maybe I'll go sucker-hunting" CARD SHARK ALLEN LIIIIIVES, where's Tyki when you need him (to lose his shirt again)

7.) fjkldjlkagd the turnaround where Allen finally cracks and is like "fine!! you want in?? IN YOU GET. no take-backsies! happy now???" and Kanda's like "yep, here I am" and neither of them have ANY IDEA how to deal with ANY OF IT. Kanda struggling to pull Allen's story out of him without throwing up his hands and quitting. Allen baffled and twice as guarded as before, put off by Kanda's uncharacteristic interest.

So beautiful, it brings a tear to my eye. (Actually, many tears. So... so many tears.)

8.) That apology, which I never thought I'd get, for Allen having seen what Kanda would never have consented to show him. It wasn't his fault, and they both know that, but the fact still remains that it was a violation, and I've always always wished for that to be addressed somehow and HERE IT IS. RIGHT HERE.

I want to tattoo that look on Kanda's face onto my brain.

9.) And then they're FUCKING INTERRUPTED, AGAIN

But Allen's "ask me again when we're done dealing with this" was such a promise of trust that I can't even be that mad, augh.

Onward to the bitter end, I guess!! Haha!!!! · ͜͜  · - 

Thank you all so much for reading and following along! I’d like to tip my hat to Kougeki Scans, who love this series too and are helping us spoil the fandom rotten. :P  Again, if you have any questions or comments, feel free to either find us on Discord HERE, find me on Discord at Panthaleia#9705, or use the comment box on MangaDex! I’m always happy to geek out with fellow fans. <3

[makeste]

BnHA Chapter 026: Obstacle Course Part 2 (Conclusion)

Previously on BnHA: The kids of class A busted their way through the sports festival obstacle course like the young gods-in-the-making they are. Everyone was like, whoa, these kids are kicking ass. Momo made a gun and I may have cried a little. Some girl from the support course macguyvered her way through with moon shoes and a utility belt. Fucking Deku tore through the entire thing carrying a giant metal plate and just whomping robots left and right and shimmying across the floating islands of Pandora like fucking Spider-Man. He then catapulted himself onto a bunch of mines in a fucking minefield and fucking surfed the resulting explosion and I’m fucking done you guys.

Today on BnHA: Deku nearly commits a murder but it nets him first place. Todoroki spits in the face of continuity. Everyone in class A advances to the second round of the festival. Midnight announces that round 2 will be a cavalry battle. Deku has a target painted on his back because no good deed ever goes unpunished.

(As always, all comments not marked with an ETA are my unspoiled reactions from my first readthrough of this chapter. I’ve read up through chapter 48 now, so any ETAs will reflect that.) 

oh my god look at these huge text boxes. are these all Deku?? this kid is fucking twacked out on something right now I swear

yeah I guess this is Deku’s POV from when he was like “RARRRRRRRR [BOOM]” from before

seriously this kid is out here channeling the Hulk or something

holy shit he actually dug up the mines in order to jump on them??

All Might what have you done. look what you’ve created

more like blasting shounen maniac

also I forgot Kacchan’s arm was frozen and I had to stare at it for a sec before my memory filled in the blanks there

so we’re all in agreement that Deku has actually gone crazy right?

“yup this is intense” totally fucking bananas

Kacchan has such an over the top wtf expression that for a moment I actually thought Deku had hit him in the head on the way down

he didn’t think about the landing. of course not. shounens never think about the landing

well maybe this guy can inadvertently help you out with that somehow

wow look at his face. Deku what have you done

now Todoroki’s making an ice path

by the way, so Todoroki apparently doesn’t need to physically touch whatever it is he’s freezing, then? because here he’s just stomping on the ground and it’s immediately turning to ice, but he’s wearing shoes. I can’t remember if he’s done this before, but I feel like up till now it’s always been his hands

in fact, I just went back and checked his intro in chapter 11 and it specifically said he freezes things with his right hand (left hand is the fire one). so I consider this panel a plot hole unless Horikoshi decides to come along and explain it later

(ETA: not only did they not explain it, they didn’t change it for the anime either. WHAT KIND OF GARBAGE IS THIS. I CAN’T BELIEVE THE ENTIRE SERIES IS RUINED JUST LIKE THAT OMG.)

Deku seems more worried about losing time on his landing than he is about, you know, landing badly and breaking every bone in his body. I guess once you’ve already done that a few times, you kind of become accustomed to it and it’s no big deal anymore

(ETA: let’s not talk any more about Deku not giving a shit about his own broken bones holy shit.)

why do shounen people always take such a long fucking time to fall

lol the other two are rushing past him while he’s slowly drifting into the frame upside-down

grab onto them and use them as your sled dogs!

holy fuck what is he doing lmao

this kid is really out here with his HEEERE’S JOHNNY face deadass about to commit murder live on camera in front of 100,000 people

oh thank god he didn’t actually hit them. though I feel like it wasn’t for lack of trying

he hit the ground again and of course, more land mines

I feel like he ended up murdering them anyway tbh

“WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TEACHING THOSE KIDS ERASER HEAD” lmao sob this chapter is epic

and EH is all “I didn’t even do anything they’re just like this”

Deku actually made it back first! holy shit. and all he had to do was go completely off the deep end and murder two of his classmates to do it

oh my god his mom is watching

I mean, of course she’s watching, but it only just occurred to me. is he actually going to use his quirk here at some point or what? and if he does, just what the hell is she going to make of that?

I hope he comes clean with her afterwards, honestly. I have faith in her ability to keep a secret that would put her child’s life in jeopardy otherwise

(ETA: Deku is a liar and a thief and his poor mom deserves better)

and speaking of that, scrolling back up to the panel above Izumama, there’s this other random guy watching Deku who seems to also recognize him

what’s this about exactly? a year ago would be right around the time of the Sludge Incident. does he remember him from that? or does he somehow know Deku from back in his middle school days?

(ETA: it’s the former, I overthought this)

actually there are a lot of people who went to school with Izuku and specifically knew him to not have a quirk, come to think. what are all of them going to think if he suddenly busts one out here in front of the entire country? I feel like that’s going to seem really fucking suspicious and raise a lot of questions

anyway, moving on here, it seems Tomura is watching too. what a creep

and his hands are gone, just like when he visited the school that day and (presumably) broke in

aww. Deku sought out All Might’s face in the crowd and he’s grinning at him and he looks so proud. he’s crying again sob. and All Might looks fucking ecstatic

now All Might is having an internal monologue about how so many modern heroes are in it for the fame and so they’re selfish, but Deku isn’t like that, and that’s why he chose him. and interestingly he says he thought that quality would be a potential weakness, but he’s happy to be proven wrong

“but you gotta stop crying all the time!” aww, let him be, he’s emotional, there’s nothing wrong with that. I was gonna add “and he’s still a kid”, but that implies that there’s anything wrong with an adult being emotional which isn’t the case either. I know he’s all about the whole “smiling through the pain” thing, but Deku’s not the type to keep his feelings so hidden, and honestly I think that’s also a strength rather than a weakness

people from the business course are discussing Deku’s draft stock now, and speculating on how they would market him

yeah All Might I kind of see what you mean here. it’s all about the PR, and the actual hero stuff has almost been taken out of the equation

there’s a panel explaining how the business course members don’t participate in the sports fest directly and instead they just walk around doing boring business things. I’m not at all interested in this but I am dutifully making a note of it

(ETA: though I would be interested if they did some more shit dealing with sudden fame and celebrity and marketing deals. it’s still ridiculous to me that a country with as huge an idol culture as Japan would not be attempting to do this with at least some of these U.A. kids.)

(ETA 2: finally in the latest chapter I read we at least had someone filming a commercial.)

Kacchan and Todoroki have arrived back at the stadium out of breath as losers. sorry losers

poor Todoroki. IN FRONT OF YOUR FAMOUS DAD AND EVERYTHING

Kacchan’s super pissed but what else is new. is your arm okay bud. also you probably could have blasted your way across that final part of the course similar to how Deku did, but you didn’t. you literally have only yourself to blame

oh wow, Ochako and Iida rounding out the top five! what a pleasant surprise

(ETA: yeah this misconception will be rectified shortly, so I’m leaving it)

Iida’s depressed because being fast is His Whole Thing and he still came in like fifth. honestly I feel like that does hurt him a little more than the rest, because if any heroes out there are on the lookout for a speedster, they’re probably going to be less taken with a guy that didn’t even manage to make the podium in the speed competition. but you still have the rest of the festival, Iida. and if all else fails, you’ll still have two more chances after this

Deku is literally hiding his face because Ochako came right up to him and started talking about how great he was

it was not close, Deku

now he’s saying he got lucky. that was part of it, sure, but dude you were a fucking beast out there. honestly it was scary

Momo made it in sixth! along with this piece of drifting garbage that seems to have gotten stuck to her somehow

I’m sorry you had to see this, everyone. Momo is brilliant, but I feel like she missed a golden opportunity to make another gun or something and solve our Mineta problem for good. they did say no rules, after all. any lawyer worth their salt should be able to work with that

oh wow, I thought Iida and Ochako were fourth and fifth, but apparently that Poison Ivy girl came in fourth! Ibara, huh? I like her a lot

and this Dia de Muertos guy came in fifth!!

MY GOD IIDA, SIXTH?? YOU HAD ONE FUCKING JOB

and Ochako is #16?? EVERYONE, WE’RE GONNA RIOT

class B seems to only have a few standouts, really. thank god tbh. it was hard enough trying to memorize the first twenty kids’ names

(ETA: for a brief moment it looked like this might not be true, but then it was true again lol)

can’t believe Kaminari’s all the way down at #24. what happened?

are there... two invisible kids here?

(ETA: this literally never came up again??!)

and Aoyama barely made it. the cutoff was at #42 for some reason. they could have easily set it at the much more normal number of 40, but they just liked you that much, Aoyama!

Midnight’s about to announce the second event, but she’s dragging it out so damn much and I can’t take it

“Cavalry Battle”! yay! what’s that

Tsuyu says they’re teaming up but imma need more deets

“participants will form, on their own, teams of two to four members each” okay I can already foresee a few problems here

-- and get into a horse and rider formation, oh my god

I LOVE IT

for a brief moment I was like “wow this is really tame compared to the first event.” but then I remembered that they all have powers and will presumably be trying to kill each other and I can see this getting really fucking violent actually

that said! I’m definitely here for it lol

damn she’s still going on. apparently each kid has been assigned a point value based on the results of the previous event. so that means Deku has the highest value I guess. well, he wanted to stand out

TEN MILLION POINTS wow. this seems a bit broken to me

Deku’s face is

pretty good

what kind of fucked up olympics punishes you for doing well though

ten million points, though. damn. and meanwhile that lucky s.o.b. Aoyama is only worth five

and wow, we’ve reached the end of volume three already! well that sure was fun

BONUS:

Mt. Lady again?

she’s ordering takoyaki

she’s trying to get it for free omg

it worked omg

that’s it. that’s the comic

wow

now there’s a second comic that seems almost identical to her first comic from an earlier volume. this accountant guy is complaining that she’s lost them so much money

she can apparently grow from her normal size up to about 67 and a half feet. and that’s it. nothing in between

aside from that slight bit of additional detail, this is literally the exact same comic strip from before. I want those twenty seconds of my life back damn it