My Hero Academia Flips the Script with Deku Acting Like a Villain for Once

My Hero Academia‘s Cultural Festival arc has been unlike any other arc that has come before. As it has been relatively focused on other non-combat elements of the franchise, it has also introduced an interesting new set of villains who are also mostly non-combatants as well. Gentle Criminal and La Brava have been doing their best to make Gentle’s name known online, and has been committing crimes with the intention of getting noticed or bringing attention to something he believes is foul play. So while Gentle and La Brava’s combat against the heroes was inevitable, its portrayal in the anime was certainly unexpected.

With Izuku Midoriya running into Gentle Criminal and La Brava as they tried to make their way into U.A. Academy, Deku was right to begin the fight almost immediately. The first episode of the fight definitely made Deku the hero as Gentle seemed to pull all sorts of tricks to put others in harm’s way. That’s different in Episode 85 of the series, however, as the more we learn about Gentle and his sidekick the more it seems like Deku just might be the bad guy in this situation.

Deku’s fighting for the sake of his friends and the sake of Eri’s smile, so he’s carrying the hopes and dreams on U.A. Academy’s shoulders in this fight. But as we see in Episode 85, that drive to defeat the villains is more intense than Gentle Criminal and La Brava are used to. The episode begins to shift more in their perspective as Deku continues to look more manic and frayed with each successful blow.

Gentle and La Brava get more desperate as a result, and their villainous facade begins to crumble. As Gentle tells Deku that he’s fighting for the sake of his dream as well, we learn that the hero world actually chewed him up and spit him out long ago. It’s the same for La Brava, who ended up finding Gentle when she was at her lowest. The two of them found peace in one another and their less than intense crimes (which are basically cartoonish antics in the grand scheme of things).

La Brava’s quirk is even pure, and is fueled by her love for Gentle. Seeing her cry and break down as the two of them fail to reach U.A. Academy was honestly heartbreaking, and the fight itself ended with Gentle looking like the victor at the end of the day. Deku had for all intents and purposes “won,” but Gentle had launched him away in order to turn himself in and keep La Brava out of trouble by pretending there wasn’t a fight at all.

This noble act will not only most likely keep La Brava safe from harm as Gentle wanted, but will save Deku’s skin as well. Because if there’s no fight, the Cultural Festival will not be canceled. Deku was so singleminded in this fight that he almost threw everything he was fighting for away. But what do you think?

Was Deku like the villain here as the fight with Gentle came to its end? How do you feel about Gentle and La Brava’s partnership so far? Who was the real winner in this fight? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or talk to me directly about all things anime and other cool things @Valdezology on Twitter!