My Hero Academia: Dabi Was Always Looking To Self-Destruct

My Hero Academia is diving deeper into why Dabi became the villain he is now, and it’s really making one mater clear, Dabi’s always had one goal in mind. From the very first time he was introduced to the series, fans were instantly drawn to Dabi. His mysterious aura continued throughout the series as fans had many theories about what his true identity could be, but it wasn’t until the Paranormal Liberation Front War that he had finally opened up about his identity. But that was only the first real layer to him as a villain overall as demonstrated by the latest chapters.  

The more Dabi’s flames continue to burn and the more he self-aggrandizes himself as the Todoroki Family’s ultimate failure, the more his body is burning away. He clearly is burning hotter than ever but his own life is the last thing he cares about. He in fact wants a total destruction of himself from the inside and out because he wants to scar Endeavor’s reputation (and thus the faith people have in heroes). The ultimate death for the ultimate failure. 

Chapter 349 of My Hero Academia interestingly shows a whole new side of Dabi’s fight with his brother Shoto. As they ready for their final battle, Dabi opens up about the disappointment that he doesn’t get to confront his father directly. Notably he mentions how watching Endeavor’s fight in Hosu spurred him into his real phase of action, and then once again laments how he’s been essentially forgotten by his father. Then he starts to get into his ideas about how it’s people who want to do things but are caught within societal limitations. 

Then he interestingly looks back on his life as the “story” of how he became Dabi and how his villainous turn is a “tale” of why he’s still alive today. Thus he’s at the point where it’s all become about the story for him. At this point, no matter what Shoto might say, Dabi’s always moved forward with the idea of his self-destruction. Toya’s already dead, and now he wants to make it count. It’s why he didn’t reveal himself until it was such a public matter that it would deal Endeavor where he cared about it the most. 

Because this whole time Endeavor has been living his life as “Endeavor,” and has only recently made efforts to be more “Enji Todoroki.” Physically hurting him or his family wouldn’t do any real damage, when you really think about in Dabi’s terms. What better way to completely ruin everything than literally ruin himself in the process? What do you think? What do you think Dabi’s ultimate goal really is? Let us know all of your thoughts about it in the comments! You can even reach out to me directly about all things animated and other cool stuff @Valdezology on Twitter!