My Hero Academia‘s latest season is gearing up for its final arc, and over the first half of the season fans saw how much Izuku Midoriya has grown as a hero as he fought against the Shie Hassaikai group in order to help save Eri. But the latest few episodes of the series have shifted their focus to Katsuki Bakugo and Shoto Todoroki as they try their best to pass some extra classes to eventually retake and pass their Hero License Exam. This has served as a way to also show how much Bakugo has changed as a person since we’ve last seen him in action.
Videos by ComicBook.com
With the latest episode confirming how much the two of them have come since their fight after the end of the Hero License Exam, and Bakugo learning Midoriya and All Might’s All For One secret, there’s a scene that shows how much their rivalry has changed for the better now that Bakugo has calmed down and Midoriya has become more confident in himself.
Episode 80 of the series returns the action back to Class 1-A as they take on another training exercise. It’s now September, and each of them is training to make the most out of their quirks once more. Bakugo quickly bumps into Midoriya and asks if he’s made any progress, but Midoriya is shocked to realize that he can only respond with disappointment. He tells Bakugo that he hasn’t made any progress at all, and Bakugo chastises him by reminding him that Midoriya once said he’d go higher.
As the two of them grow as people and heroes, their rivalry has undergone several changes. Now that Bakugo shares in his secret, he’s genuinely concerned about Midoriya. Although he’s masking it with his usual abrasiveness, it’s a far different kind of “challenge” he makes to Midoriya as it’s clear that he wants his rival to grow.
Earlier in the episode, when dealing with the kids, Bakugo tells one that they shouldn’t look down on others less they overlook their own shortcomings, and he puts it into practice here. He’s no longer going to look down on Midoriya, and there seems to be a small part of him that hopes that they’ll grow together. But what do you think? Is their rivalry really changing? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or talk to me directly about all things anime and other cool things @Valdezology on Twitter!
My Hero Academia was created by Kohei Horikoshi for Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump in 2014. The story follows Izuku Midoriya, who lives in a world where everyone has powers, even though he was born without them. Dreaming to become a superhero anyway, he’s eventually scouted by the world’s best hero All Might and enrolls in a school for professional heroes.
