Hi welcome to Katsuki Bakugou hell

I love (1) boy

[softer-ua]

Sometimes this fandom confuses it’s cinnamon rolls, yes, Kirishima and Deku are both living beams of kindness but they have very different approach’s to life.

Kirishima tries to win at life using the very manly power of friendship to try and appeal to his opponents

Deku wakes up every morning and chooses violence

And like it isn’t even about winning for him, that’s not the priority in 1/3 of his fights, he’s just making a point that we can either agree to peacefully do things his way or someone’s eating gravel and he doesn’t care if it’s him. That boy is psychotic.

[softer-ua]

[softer-ua]

Bingo!!!!

[oshiawaseni]

There’s something that bothers me about bkdk. I don’t think Izuku truly knows how much Katsuki cares for him lately. He went crazy over him at the hospital without any regard for his own injuries. He tore Izuku’s goodbye letter into pieces, burned it to ash and became the orchestrater of an extract op. He’s always giving Izuku these worried looks like he’s afraid Izuku will slip through his fingers and disappear. These days all he does is think on him and how he can support and lift Izuku up.

For the first time in his life, Katsuki Bakugo is truly putting someone else before everything. He feels like he can’t leave him alone and is desperately trying to compensate for Izuku’s weakness. As the readers we are privy to this, but the one person who should know about it the most doesn’t. So as beautiful as it is to see it all happening, to admire this about Kacchan, it also makes my heart ache a little. Every time one of them shows how much they care, it almost always goes unseen by the other person…

[softer-ua]

Do you think there were signs Bakugou cared about Deku before the war arc? You don't just go from vehemently hating a person willingly sacrificing your life for them after a few months of being a bit less than hostile towards them, right? I don't know... Just need reassurance that Bakugou actually likes Deku from before the war arc because people are acting like his apology and sacrifice came out of nowhere

I absolutely do!

You’re right that deeply held opinions don’t switch on a dime. Bakugo has cared deeply about Deku and his safety from the very beginning

There’s a lot of instances I could choose from like his reaction to seeing Deku at the sludge incident or the USJ attack but I wanna focus on one I don’t think gets talked enough about

Bakugo’s reaction to everything in the sports festival is very telling to his feelings about Deku(mostly how he is derangedly obsessive about him) but imo none show more care than his reaction to his match against Uraraka

Right off the bat Bakugo takes this match way more seriously/personally than he’s taken any other opponent who wasn’t Deku all day.

If you remember he starts off the calvery battle unable to remember a single other classmates quirk or even really recognize them

And unlike Todo who singled Deku as a challenge or Kiri who forcefully introduced himself Uraraka never really did anything that really stood out against the others(it’s one of the reasons she declined Dekus help, she wants to push herself more)

Still Bakugo recognizes her and knows her quirk, and bothers to actually trash talk her something he doesn’t bother to do with his other opponents before or after this match

Sure he’s insulted/threatened them, and continues to after this, but he never taunts them with shit like “crying uncle”, that’s so far been reserved for Deku

(He says nearly nothing to Kiri or Tokoyami, although what he does say to Kiri is nearly identical to something Deku said in the previous match, but that’s a post for another day)

But now Uraraka is getting the same treatment, she’s a threat by proxy because Bakugo has Deku brainrot to the worst degree. He doesn’t know a damn thing about the rest of the class but he’s been paying close attention to who Dekus friends with

He knew anyone who hangs out with Deku would be smart and come to the field with a plan

He treated this match like he’s fighting Deku(again) because he knows that Deku’s the kind of person who would help her, and he believes Uraraka to be someone who would take that help, so in a way it’s Dekus big brain he’s going against now

The part I’m really the most focused on is that Bakugo blames her big move on Deku, not her rushing style or her decoy jacket ploy but just the big sacrificing move

He knew she’d come with a plan but when her big move was so self sacrificing that he doesn’t see it as just brainstorming with Deku, but that had to be Dekus idea entirely

Self sacrificing has to be Dekus idea, because only Deku is crazy enough to risk everything. Wherever Bakugo sees risk taken with near reckless drive he immediately associates it with Deku

And it happens in the worst way.

Bakugo was clearly expecting her to keep fighting and was totally shook when she just collapsed

Because Deku doesn’t collapse, Deku doesn’t ever call it quits

And Bakugo freezes, he doesn’t move a sweat drop more, he just stares. He didn’t even need Midnight to call a time out, he was already stunned into silence

I think her loss reaffirmed and brought to the surface all his underlying nagging fears, and it also made him realize who he was actually fighting and how distracted he was.

In Uraraka Bakugo sees exactly what he fears will someday play out for Deku, that Deku will one day exhaust himself, he’ll push himself past his breaking point, he’ll bet it all, and it just won’t be enough.

Where Uraraka recognizes she can’t move and gives in Deku would double down and rebrakes his broken bones

If Deku has even a shred of consciousness left in him he keeps going, no matter how much damage he does to himself, he’s had the same attitude of “you’ll have to knock me out if you wanna knock me down” since he was 4.

Uraraka leaves the festival tired with a scrap on her cheek, Deku leaves in double casts, a sling, and a scrap on his cheek because he broke himself beyond what their schools magic healer deemed herself physically capable and morally willing to do

Frankly I don’t think Bakugo’s question here was a snappy threat, but a genuine reflection of how he feels

And Bakugo in his Bakugo fashion tries to expand on that to Deku, and by that I mean he says almost exactly what he means but in such a way it nearly means nothing at all close to what he meant

and Deku, the lovable idiot, in his haste to stand up and support his friend completely misses the points Bakugo was actually trying to make

Bakugo didn’t have trouble fighting Uraraka, at least not physically, and he wasn’t trying to give Deku credit for what she pulled off.

No, his big trouble was not thinking about anything beyond Deku. He wasn’t paying attention to who he was fighting, he was stuck on WWDD(what would Deku Do) mode and watching Uraraka like a knock off Deku instead of an independent variable.

If he had been paying more attention to Uraraka-his opponent, instead of Uraraka-Deku’s friend, than maybe just maybe he’d have noticed what was happening and how there was a pattern to the way she rushed him.

But Deku’s just as likely to rush in seemingly blind and come up with a plan on the fly as he is to come up with an intricate plan 7 steps ahead of everyone

So Bakugo was so busy paying attention to everything he ended up paying attention to almost nothing, he basically fell for each one of her ploys and only his insane reaction time saved him

He had trouble with the sacrificial nature of her plan and how much it reminded him of Deku, he’s still having trouble with it when he runs into Deku.

The scheme and the trouble Deku caused were separate problems, each emphasized on their own panel. His accusation was a complete thought, his confession another monster altogether

A monster he technically didn’t finish explaining, he just trailed off and then Deku interrupted any continuation of that thought with his defense of Uraraka.

To which of course Bakugo had a strong rebuttal to-

So eloquently put Blasty, so glad we got your final thoughts on the matter wrapped up 👍🏼

(low key hc that between this time and current time Iida and Kaminari tutored him in communication skills)

So yeah there isn’t a single moment during the sports festival where Deku isn’t living rent free in Bakugo’s head, but the most concerning was how watching Uraraka be so reckless really upset him to his core

Like it was enough to have Bakugo actually try to have open dialogue, which really only ever happens when Bakugo’s gotta deal with seeing Deku play jump rope with his own mortality, and apparently watching it paralleled by someone else is enough

And that’s fun in retrospect because than Bakugo’s gets to watch Deku actually do way waaaay more reckless shit in his own matches, honestly Bakugo deserves a metal just for making it to the end of his last match before having a nervous breakdown 😅

Actually I think I could trace a direct line from this to this

But again a different thought bunny for a different day

[stanmarsh-deactivated20200427]

so katsuki and izuku only interact ONCE throughout the entire sports festival and it’s just a fruitless discussion about katsuki’s fight w ochako

but if you actually reread the manga/rewatch the anime, at the points where they’re not clashing with each other but rather just watching one another from a distance, there’s little intentional bits and pieces meant to be picked up on and even underhandedly make the arc possibly center around them

like just one small example

“quirks are still just physical abilities. even this guy’s gotta have some kinda limit.” a line spoken by katsuki while analyzing todoroki during his fight with izuku

a few panels later, izuku looked todoroki in the eye during their fight and stated the same thing, the first line actually verbatim to katsuki’s.

when they’re distanced, it’s times like this when you can see their underlying similarities because they’ve subconsciously learned and picked up from each other. their mindsets are the same a lot of the time, which could be one reason why they clash so much as it is. though it just goes to show that they fit together— and despite their immense differences there’s just also something too similar between them.

[stanmarsh-deactivated20200427]

(1) yeah, the sports festival arc was shock full of stealth bkdk, especially in showing them being of one mind. like you said: they analyze todo the same way, and have the same desire for him too (to the point that bkg starts grinning when deku yells at todo to do his best during the tdbk fight). while in the stands, bkg also starts doing the ‘hand-over-mouth’ mumble/thinking at one point. and deku starts trash talking todo (“WHERE ARE YOU LOOKING?!”) as per how he gets when he wants to win.

(2/2) later, bkg uses the EXACT same line in the waiting room and todo straight up says ‘hey midoriya shouted that during our match too.’ which prompts him to remember that deku and baku are childhood friends. for an arc that barely focused on their dynamic, it showed us A LOT about their similarities and how they’ve influenced each other!

EDIT: long post beware

YEAHH I NOTICED ALL OF THIS TOO GHHHHhzhdjjfkf tbh them barely interacting in the arc, if you pick up on the details, makes them even stand out as a duo a bit.

THEY DO HAVE THE SAME DESIRE FOR TODOROKI YEAH… they both want him to use his flames for some of the same reasons, but they both execute their desire differently. they both don’t feel todoroki deserves to win if he doesn’t use his full power, and they both also wanna beat him, but the difference between them is how they both go about it. izuku gets his way because he ends up teaching todoroki a valuable life lesson and attempts to “save him” because izuku cares. that’s why the way izuku told him “you don’t deserve to win if you don’t use your full power” works, and it’s not only so he can win, but to help todoroki understand his own family situation as well.

whereas, katsuki wanted the same thing– for todoroki to use his full power so he can win. but, as it is an ongoing thing when comparing katsuki and izuku, katsuki was missing the “desire to help”. izuku wanted to win just like katsuki, true, but in the end he also showed he cared about todoroki’s feelings and familial situation– which is what katsuki was missing. katsuki was more focused on himself, purely so he can feel like a true winner, not because he cared. 

izuku already had the urge to win against todoroki going for him, so did katsuki. they both had the strong desire for todoroki to use his full power, but izuku also had his caring and savior aspect too, which is what he was missing. and that’s also why todoroki used his flames on on izuku, but not katsuki. 

but when they were both fighting todoroki, their desire to win against full power was handled very similarly between them in some ways—

^^^ said by izuku

^^^ said by katsuki

and it’s even way too fucking similar here–

and like you said!!! even todoroki realizes it

but, then again, the only difference is that katsuki was missing the desire to help— which is why he could learn from izuku perfectly  

but, “which prompts him (todoroki) to remember that deku and baku are childhood friends.”

even todoroki probably recognized that since they’ve been so close with each other since a really young age, they’ve absolutely had such a great impact on one another, which possibly seems like to him why izuku seemed to imitate katsuki’s actions and words during their fight. 

AND THAT TOO!!! before todoroki mentions them two being childhood friends, izuku does yell at todoroki during their fight “WHERE ARE YOU LOOKING?!” (i cant find the panel ghghhg) which is… very similar to what katsuki says to todoroki in the preparation rooms

so yeah! those two lines are very similar as izuku trash talks todoroki. izuku even began to run his mouth rampantly with anger and the urge to rise to victory during their fight— “as per how he gets when he wants to win”

and the way he goes off is very similar to how katsuki reacts as shown— and you know why? bc–

^^^ said by izuku

and THE REASON FOR THAT IS BECAUSE OF KATSUKIS INFLUENCE–

which connects back to why he imitated katsuki’s attitude towards todoroki during his own fight. 

PLUS!!! I NOTICED THAT AS WELL!!!! katsuki picked up the mumbling habit from him. so while izuku not only was influenced by katsuki’s raw desire for victory, katsuki was probably subconsciously also influenced by izuku while they were kids.

so YEAH!!!! anyways im sorry i went fucking off but rlly anon ur so right…. the storyline had zero content with them actually interacting. but if you really analyze– the whole arc underhandedly had them stand out to show how perfectly they’ll fit as a team in the future, once they settle their past beef, which they’re slowly doing as they progress! not to mention their evident underlying correspondence to show how much of a subconscious impact they’ve had on each other since they were kids. 

both of them are already amazing alone, but when you put them together, their similarities are undeniable. plus they both can help make up for what the other lacks– while learning what they need to from each other to the greatest extent. they really just??? fit too well, imo. almost like puzzle pieces.

[stanmarsh-deactivated20200427]

oh hells yeah im down to discuss some in depth bkdk! what do you think a hero duo would look like with the two of them? ie: equal, one leads more, they agree on everything, they fight, fighting style, etc.

bro it could go any which way w them depending on how they develop but also because theyre so damn messy and its like. you never know w them but !!!

they already have strengths that complement each other, because those strengths make up for what the other lacks. and simultaneously, those strengths one has that the other doesn’t– izuku w/ his savior complex and at first was lacking the tenacity– and katsuki w/ his raw ambition and at first was lacking general care and teamwork– they’d both be able to fill in for each other in those areas that they lack, and also watching how those strengths supplement each other, but while learning from it too; izuku becoming more aggressive as the story goes on, and katsuki becoming more cooperative as well. 

and having them watching each other while working together, only pushes the two of them to improve in the areas they need to as they work harder. when theyre together, they both get so wrapped up in passion and the idea of victory, so they’d be unstoppable as a team. 

so i’d think they’d have an equal playing field in the future, cause theyre bound to be a hero team– and for that to happen, they have to be on the same level instead of chasing after one another 

i dont think one would lead more than the other tbh??? they’d be sort of known as The Two. That Pair of Heroes. The Wonder Duo… so i feel like i could easily see them doing literally everything together equally

it’s canon that both of them are the same in a lot of ways, and do have similar mindsets because of how much theyve impacted each other. (ie: the sports festival,,, if you really take a look and analyze, they nearly have identical ideas and insights) so they’d have a lot of very similar ideas of how to go about certain things. they really are like puzzle pieces that fit when it comes to being a team. 

but, we all know that they also contrast heavily– so i can easily see them completely disagreeing on some things lmao. they’d probably get caught up in some arguments in how to deal w a task at hand, and then force themselves to meet in the middle lmao 

their fights would be… gosh??? i dont even know??? if theyre up against something big, yall can count on them to settle for nothing less than a clean win with loud and top effort fighting, since they both have such a desire for victory,,,

idk they just???? they complement each other so well, esp as a team. they fit perfectly. they need each other to learn from one another while also supplementing for one another, esp for the future theyre gonna have together. 

[stanmarsh-deactivated20200427]

same sports festival anon here lol but the difference between izuku & katsuki here being selfishness vs selflessness (deku wanting to win but being willing to lose if it meant todo got over his issues vs bkg being too focused on his own desire to win to let himself empathize with todo) really drives home katsuki’s development in this regard. compare to the remedial class arc, with his reaction to being reminded of shouto’s abuse and the subsequent Glances he gives him whenever endvr is involved.

YES i was gonna bring that up actually! it really calls back to this part of the manga—

where katsuki’s eavesdropping intently on their conversation about todoroki’s past abuse. and at first, his immediate concern is to make sure todoroki would use his full power against him for his own selfish desires, rather than becuase he felt actual empathy— unlike izuku.

(which also,,, at first when you take a look, todoroki brings up the fact that katsuki and izuku were close childhood friends. the first thing he did was immediately remember that time izuku tried to ‘save’ him and he automatically grew angry, which correlates to the fact that katsuki fears izuku’s selfless saving spirit. so the first thing katsuki did was reject izuku’s saving aspect, and tell todoroki his feelings ‘didn’t matter’).

and okay. izuku has been the main cause of katsuki’s development overtime. he was the center of katsuki’s character. at first, katsuki refused to learn what he needed to from izuku. he rejected his ways, until finally after their second big fight, katsuki agreed to see him as an equal and to use izuku’s rivalry with him, and his ability to learn from him too, to his advantage.

and in this new, specific case scenario, it ties back to sort of fix how he first handled his first problem with todoroki. at first, katsuki was selfish and uncaring, but the way he handled todoroki currently— using his improved communication skills he learned from izuku and todoroki’s sports festival fight— recalls back to the original situation to mend it in a way.

instead of telling todoroki his feelings and opinion didn’t matter, like he did previously, he actually goes back to what he learned in the first place— and this time around, he uses the information in a more selfless rather than selfish manner,,, like izuku did during his fight with todoroki. in my guess, that’s where katsuki subconsciously learned from.

so it’s like,,, underhandedly, izuku’s character alone really just brings together nearly all of katsuki’s character development. katsuki’s character was centered around him at first anyways. so now that they see each other as equals, katsuki can’t help but learn from him and start letting izuku influence him— while beginning to use what he’s picked up on to his advantage as well.

[thatpinkbetch]

manga spoilers, sorry

Something that i really like about Horikoshi’s plot for Midoriya and Bakugou’s relationship is that, yeah, he’s made them into two halves that create a whole, but their character and relationship development does not have them filling in what the other is missing; they are to help the other become whole on their own. Like, yeah, Midoriya is the one that saves, and Bakugou is the one that wins, and together they form All Might’s legacy, it’s symbolic and sweet and I love it so much.

But also, ever since Deku vs. Kacchan part two, Midoriya has been very obviously more aggressive and ambitious - it’ll be much more clear in the anime when season 4 comes out but we can already see it when he gets off of house arrest (just pay attention to the times when Kirishima is like “wow, I like this new, post-house arrest Midoriya!”) And I know a lot of people like the soft uwu Midoriya who cries - me too! But Midoriya himself wants to be a rough boy! He wants to be like Kacchan! He’s shown this multiple times when he imitates Bakugou. And even since their second fight, he’s been trying to be tough, he’s trying to be aggressive.

Remember during the sports festival when All Might told him he wanted Midoriya to go out there and compete and show off that he was going to be one to beat? That he would be the next symbol? To which Midoriya responded, “Ehhh….I don’t know….I got homework and stuff….” It wasn’t until Bakugou told off the other kids outside of their class and said that he was going to be number one, damn what others thought of him, that Midoriya felt the fire inside of him, driving him to be the greatest hero again.

Midoriya has saving people down; his body moves on it’s own, he doesn’t even need to think about it. But whenever he’s lost in his mission to be the best, his spark is always re-lit by Bakugou (I’m thinking about after the Overhaul arc where he had all those self doubts and then they went to the TDL to train and there was that moment where Bakugou was like “you stronger yet?” etc - you know the one).

And Bakugou, he’s practically perfect. He’s already pro level when it comes to his abilities. He could save people, sure, he’s done it - but that recent arc with 1A vs 1B showed he’d taken leaps and bounds since Deku vs Kacchan part 2. He wasn’t just focused on saving his teammates, he was willing to let himself be saved. It wasn’t so much a drive thing that Midoriya has helped him with; it ‘s a willingness to be open and vulnerable around other people.

In my interpretation of the manga, Bakugou wasn’t that close with his “friends” throughout his childhood. And maybe that’s just me projecting, but for some people it can be hard to show people you care about them, and it’s even harder to let other’s care for you. With Deku, the one who cared the most (cause Midoriya is just a caring person) he fought hardest against. And it’s only after Deku vs. Kacchan part 2, after he fixes his shit with Deku, that we see him able to openly tell his classmates, “when I’m in trouble, you guys can save me.” Cause saying that you need help, or even that you might need help, shows vulnerability, and he’s only able to do that when he addresses his insecurities. I think his five minute win shows that him learning teamwork really does make him unstoppable. It’s even shown that he thinks of his ability to save his teammates as him becoming stronger! And he directs those thoughts towards Deku, kinda like a “see? I’ve gotten stronger, in the way that you’re strong. I’ve got it down too, nerd.” God that moment was so sweet bless Horikoshi for that gift.

I really, really love the head canons of them becoming a hero team - god that would be so amazing. But I also feel like in canon they wouldn’t want that, simply because their competition with each other makes them better, and helps them work on their weaknesses? I know that’s just my opinion and that’s fine. But again, I really like how Horikoshi really went above and beyond with them. He made them soulmates by making them matching halves, and then he completed it by saying they don’t make each other whole; they help each other become whole on their own.

[bihsnixr]

SO the trailer for Heroes Rising came out and wow - I was looking up what they were saying in the trailer and when  i found out I had some intense thoughts about it (that I feel like some others might of as well. Bear with me, I’m horrible at keeping my thoughts coherent)

The lines “Save to win” and “Win to save” just blow my mind and maybe I’m f*cking crazy but it just got me to thinking. 

Bakugou and Deku’s personalities and how throughout 3 seasons we’ve been introduced to the idea where Deku wants to save people and Bakugou wants to win. However, the idea of Bakugou only caring about winning and Deku wanting to be a hero so he can save people has been slowly chipped away, which you can tell throughout; in the clear competition/rivalry between Bakugou and Deku, Deku wants to win just as badly as Bakugou does (if not more). For Bakugou, on the surface it may seem like all he cares about is being the best, beating Deku, killing the villains, etc., but as the series progresses you can see that he actually does care about saving people, and that he does think about what maneuvers he has to do in order to save those around him.

The order of the words “Save to win” mean that in order to win, you have to save people, and so, the ultimate goal is to win. “Win to save” is the opposite in which winning is just the mission while saving is the goal. When I was first looking at the translations, my brain went to ‘Deku says ‘win to save’ and Bakugou says ‘save to win’ - EXCEPT, it’s the opposite. While this says nothing about either of them caring about winning over saving people or vice versa, I found it so interesting that the words Deku says implies that winning is the ultimate goal and for Bakugou saving is the goal. 

At the same time, it’s also the opposite. “Save to win” could also be interpreted as winning a reward for saving people, that it comes after saving people and is simply the result. Same with “Win to save” where saving people might just be a good side effect of winning. So really, this whole thing I typed up is useless rambling and the boys are mirroring each other but also completing each other in a way and when they’re a hero duo that’s going to be their catchphrase

[sham-za-deactivated20210401]

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery huh

Hmmm...

HMMMM...

[cuteeiji]

I honestly skimmed over this really really clever moment when I first read the manga, but the recent anime episode drew my attention to it. At first glance the first four panels seem like their purpose is to show that it’s late, that Deku and Bakugou are breaking the rules, and that the rest of the class is sound asleep. But that could have easily been achieved with just the bottom panel, when Deku explicitly states that they shouldn’t be outside at this time. Horikoshi didn’t need to draw their classmates sleeping, so why did he? That’s when I realized that the top four panels are showing the people (sans Deku) who went to rescue Bakugou from the League of Villains.

What’s the significance of this?

There is a clear juxtaposition here. Kirishima, Yaoyorozu, Todoroki, and Iida are all shown in their rooms, sleeping unbothered. The scene immediately cuts to Deku following Bakugou to Ground Beta. Bakugou then a.) shares that he knows how Deku received his quirk, b.) challenges him to a fight, and c.) confesses his feelings of guilt and inadequacy regarding All Might’s retirement.

Ground Beta is an important setting for this arc, because it is where Bakugou fought and lost to Deku, subsequently realizing that he is no longer the figurative big fish in a small pond. He brought Deku to a place of insecurity in order to express those insecurities, and there is a reason that he ended up communicating them to Deku and not anyone else. Even those who had a large role in his rescue. 

This visual contrast between Deku (in action, following Bakugou) and the rest of the Bakugou Rescue Squad (inactive, asleep) emphasizes that it does have to be Deku that Bakugou vents his feelings to, at least in that moment. Deku (narrating) says as much:

“Because right now, the only person who can receive Kacchan’s feelings is me.”

[mysterylover123]

Datte Atashi No Hero, aka the BKDK Theme Song: meta

“ ▪ While writing the song, LiSA imagined what it would be like if Izuku Midoriya were to sing his honest feelings to Katsuki. In a way, this is a song dedicated to Katsuki from Izuku.”

-BNHA Wiki entry on Datte attashi No Hero (Link: https://bokunoheroacademia.fandom.com/wiki/Datte_Atashi_no_Hero )

For those not in the know, Datte Atashi No Hero is the 3rd ED of BNHA. The one with the Fantasy AU theme. The lyrics by Lisa are explicitly stated on the wiki to have been written about Izuku’s perspective of Katsuki. I’m not used to hearing that an OP/ED in anime was specifically written to be about the story at hand - they usually seem to be songs off the singer’s album that happen to fit with the theme of the story (see: Again by Yui, FMAB OP1). So if we’re reading the translations of the lyrics, offered on the DVD release of BNHA S2, with this in mind, I can only come to the conclusion that studio Bones and Lisa must ship BKDK at least a little, because damn, these are awfully suggestive for platonic rivals. Let’s get into it:

The Lyric: “I can’t imagine you ever giving up”

Opening line of the song. Now, I can imagine this line being from many different perspectives: Izuku on Bakugo or All Might, Uraraka on Izuku, any of Baku’s friends on Baku. But it is still a bit of a stretch to apply this line to anyone but Izuku watching Katsuki, and since we know it was written that way…The line fits really well too with the Final Exam arc bit where Deku socks Kacchan in the face and chastises him for accepting loss.

The Image: This is paired with Fantasy AU Izuku leaving home and waving goodbye to Inko. This situates us in Deku’s POV, which is reinforced by the rest of the ED. This song is definitely Izuku’s point of view. Pairing this lyric with this image, I think, means Izuku is inspired not to give up by Bakugo’s determination - inspired to leave home and pursue his dreams.

The Lyric: “But I’m sure you’ve had days that were empty and miserable”

This line establishes that Deku has empathy for Bakugo, and sees him as human and fallible - connecting with him over their shared feelings of misery. Again, I can think of a few BKDK scenes this pairs well with, especially DVK2 (“Why was I the reason for All Might’s end”).

The image: Deku trips over himself. I guess this is relating to that empathy idea I had earlier. Both Deku and Baku have times where they’re empty and miserable. Deku is greeted then by Uraraka and Iida, symbolizing the moment in the series where he meets them (At the entrance exam), and they pull him up and support him. (not BKDK related but it is cute, and helps establish the ED as a metaphor for the story so far - and in the future).

The Lyric “If you think you’ll have many once in a lifetime endeavors/Then I want to see those moments”

This one also translates into something like “I want to be with you/around you” in different versions. Basically, Izuku wants to be around Katsuki, to see what he becomes and what he’ll achieve. He wants, in short, to be with him.

The image: Shoto on horseback, greeted by Iida Uraraka and Deku. Deku looks super urgent and Shoto, after looking a little bewildered, smiles and joins them. They cheer. Obviously, this symbolizes the Sports Fest w/ Todoroki; Deku (and later Iida in the Stain arc) bringing Shoto along on the mission to become great heroes. It’s paired up with the lyric about ‘endeavors’, also, which might be a coincidence but probably isn’t. For BKDK, there’s a difference in the way Deku interacts with Shoto here (urgent face, all business) to the way he does with Kacchan in the next scene.

The Lyric: “Even if there’s only one lifetime there are many chances to BE TOGETHER.”

I capitalized the last lyric; it follows on the last line about being together. This one is very shippy sounding, like something straight out of a wedding vow or marriage proposal. Again, this was written to be Izuku expressing his genuine feelings about Katsuki.

The image: Fantasy AU Bakugo pops up looking dramatic. This image is paired with this lyric, making sure you know he means Kacchan. Big close-up on Kacchan’s eyes, zooming out to reveal his badass, shirtless, dragon riding glory as the camera pulls back to make this look extra awesome. This is Deku’s POV on Kacchan, as something mythical and larger than life, that starts out close to him and pulls away.

The Lyric: “You’re the strongest, giving me, with absolutely nothing, meaning in life.”

Yep. This could only apply to All Might or Kacchan in Deku’s life. To quote from DVK2  again “It’s precisely because I had nothing that I kept chasing after you…your sheer amazingness at everything you do was so brilliant to me it was blinding.” I’d imagine that Lisa had this line in mind, because DVK2 was published long before Season 2 of the anime. Kacchan was the one who inspired Midoriya and gave his life new meaning.

The image: The quartet stare at Kacchan (cept Todoroki, who’s worried about his horse). Iida, with glasses blocked out, looks offended; Uraraka looks flabbergasted, Deku looks…in love. He even has his hand over his heart (holding his pack). We get Deku, in profile, presumably asking for Kacchan’s help, and Kacchan, also in profile, acting annoyed - but when the monsters pop up, they both turn to notice. This seems to be Deku reaching out to Bakugo to fight villains together and Bakugo rejecting him, which happens a lot, but the villains showing up will force the two to cooperate (USJ, Camino Ward).

The lyric: “Hooray, hooray, what’s this ability you have to make me say this over and over? “

So Kacchan has the ability to make Deku believe. He gives Deku faith and power, makes him say hooray. This is Deku’s feelings of inspiration when he looks at him, the Symbol of Victory idea. ‘Hooray’ is what you say when you win. Deku tries to speak like Kacchan when he wants to win. And being around him makes him happy.

The image: Basically just Class A fighting, particularly Deku with a sword and some quick flashes of the others. I guess this is Bakugo and Deku’s ability to inspire each other seeping out to the rest of the class, like Aizawa highlights in the Twin Stars speech.

The lyric: “Keep standing your ground and giving me courage”

Pretty simple I guess. Bakugo must keep fighting, and this helps Deku believe.

The image: Nice panning shots of Class A. I think this is the symbolism I mentioned before, Aizawa’s Twin Stars speech, all of Class A taking inspiration from their passion. Deku glances back at Class A and smiles, showing how he takes inspiration from others.

The Lyric: “Hooray, hooray, even all the insignificant things are calling out” I’m not as sure what this means - what are the ‘insignificant’ things? I guess that around Bakugo, to Deku everything, even the things he didn’t notice before, becomes better.

The Image: Shoto sword-fighting followed by Bakugo sword fighting. Again, this part is a little vague, but we do have a compare/contrast invitation for Shoto and Kacchan - one then the other, both riding something. Horseback and Dragonback. Paired with this lyric it has…kind of an anti TDDK slant, (“insignificant things”) but I don’t like anti-shipping so I won’t go there.

The Lyric: “When I look at your eyes, I can run too”

(all my instincts, they return/and the grand facade so soon will burn…in your eyes) Sorry, I had to. Anyway, the top lyric (which could also relate to a certain famous song that goes with everything) from the ED says explicitly that looking into Kacchan’s eyes gives Deku the strength to run, to move forward. This is easily the most romantic sounding line in the whole thing; it’s really hard to interpret ‘Looking into your eyes’ platonically. And if you have any doubt that he means Kacchan…

The Image: Deku and Kacchan, panting and out of breath. Deku looks at Kacchan, who looks back. He means Kacchan. He means looking into his eyes. This moment, and the following, probably symbolizes both DVK2 and the pair’s future as the ultimate Wonder Duo, who inspire each other to become the greatest heroes.

The Lyric “I want to try carving out the best finale”

I hope the finale of BNHA is good too! OK, more emotionally, Deku wants to do his best because of Kacchan. He wants to fight by his side to the end. He wants to end up with him. Paired together with…

The image: Facing the fight, Deku and Kacchan stand side by side, with big smiles, fighting together. They’re meant to be together, as a team, to face down the villains side by side and make each other stronger. Some day they’ll be unstoppable.

The Lyric: “Cause you’re my hero”/Datte attashi no hero”

Now of course this applies to everyone. But again, this song is about Kacchan. And Kacchan is Deku’s hero. This line right here says it, loud and plain. And DVK2: “All Might was my hero but you were the one actually in my life/To me you were an amazing person, much closer to me than All Might”. To sum it up, obviously All Might is Deku’s favorite pro-hero, but Kacchan is a different kind of hero. Plus another lyric that we tend to associate with romance (“did you ever know that you’re my hero/and everything I would like to be…oh dear god wind beneath my wings is way too fitting for this, go look up the lyrics it sounds like BKDK).

The image: Everyone watches on as Deku uses All Might’s sword to fight villains. Now we do see Bakugo on the sidelines, despite them working together before - but paired with the lyric, I think this is just reinforcing that Kacchan motivates Deku to be his best.

[dekatsu]

This is a sentence that summarizes Bakugou’s character development during the whole series up perfectly. 

Because Bakugou started at a horrible place, as a bad character but the more he grew up and learned, the more he changed.

He never took a step back but took steady steps ahead after every confrontation with Deku. Sometimes his steps were small and almost invisible but ultimately they added up to a point, where he left his false understandings behind and grew up.

His growth stands out especially, if you look at him at the beginning of the series and after Kacchan vs Deku 2. But with all the small instances and conflicts in between, his steady growth doesn’t seem that grand. 

He honestly reshaped his whole understanding of Deku, himself and the whole hero gig. And he became a character the viewer learned to love, not a character who was lovable from the very beginning. He didn’t deserve it at the beginning but he sure as hell earned it throughout the series.

In the end, he was just a confused boy, who got build up too high and had a wrong image of himself and everyone around. But once he learned that he, too, was nothing more than a boy trying his best to become a hero and not some unequalled boy genius, he tried to see beyond his ego. He didn’t become a good person, but he tried and ultimately, he succeeded in leaving his old views and misunderstandings behind.

Because he only ever focused on being a hero and because he only ever got buildup as a hero, he only learned to be a hero. But being a hero and being a good person are two different things. And he’s trying to be better now, in a way that doesn’t totally destroy his self image and leave him with nothing.

Since he successes at everything he puts his mind to, he will surely succeed in being both. 

But those are just my thoughts so thanks for listening. 

[katsukixizukus-blog]

This is perfect

[explodo-smash]

I think there’s one question that often comes up about the future of Bakugou and Midoriya’s relationship, and that question essentially is: 

What would Midoriya gain in reconciling with Bakugou?

Bakugou and Midoriya seem to represent each other’s pasts– their deepest-rooted weaknesses, their worst moments. Any communication with the other brings forth many (often intense) emotions, which many people tend to read as destructive upon first glance. Of course, who enjoys the feeling of shame, humiliation, and self-reproach? But it’s more than that, as evidenced by the narrative regularly and stubbornly pushing them back towards each other. WHY? Why is it so important to highlight them? What’s the point?

What exists in all positive interpretations of their future relationship is the idea that their presence is a mutual catalyst for overcoming those deeply-rooted weaknesses.

–Which brings us to our overarching theme: 

Bakugou and Midoriya mirror each other, 

and with constructive purpose.

Keep reading

[explodo-smash]

“Why do you ship Bakugou and Deku if its abusive?” (X)

“Okay, but someone else told me it’s definitely abusive” (X)

“But I read – !” (X)

Please be aware if your argument stems from any of the last two links you’re fighting based off translations from a group that adds hateful commentary along with transphobic and ableist slurs. Any meta or argument you have that comes from their words is not only uncredible but unacceptable.

[bakugou-ou]

I don’t ship KatsuDeku, so my only dog in this fight is inaccurate representation of Bakugou, but I’m reblogging this because the latter two links are very important topics to me. I mean, I’ve reblogged the first link a couple of times too, but in the second link, that first one is expanded on, and then proof of their points regarding inaccurate meta and fan translations is provided in the third link, which I’ve also reblogged separately.

And if you wanna be mad at me for agreeing with these posts then feel free to unfollow, because I don’t want to fight with anons again about Bakugou’s validity to exist as a character and how he is different from actual garbage people like Endeavor, an abusive father who has shown no redeeming qualities until recently and even then it’s a bit of a stretch, and Mineta, a dude that sexually harasses his female classmates (which is a crime) on the daily and has no redeeming value. And no, Mineta’s “comedic relief” is utter shite. If you want a well-rounded comedic character with a perverted streak, look no further than Kaminari. We don’t need Mineta.

[color-division]

I love this pic so much. We all know Bakugou and Deku split and are sharing All Might’s sword from the previous Popularity poll

They are both carrying his legacy together, complementing each other, and wearing the same matching gloves to wield their swords, but what’s interesting to me it’s the gold in their swords.

There’s a Japanese art called ’Kintsugi’, it means ’golden joinery’. It’s used to fix things with gold. There’s a philosophy behind the concept that treats breakage and repair as part of the history of an object, rather than something to disguise. I think it’s very fitting of Bakugou and Deku’s relationship. 

Circumstances made it for them to share All Might’s legacy together. His sword split apart was already old and full of scratches taken from battles, broken it would have been in a worsened state and none of them would have a use for it. Using gold would not only fix the sword but strengthen it.

Their relationship was broken due to a misunderstanding and miscommunication, now they are slowly getting closer and fixing it. They won’t deny their past, it’s part of their lives but that doesn’t mean they can’t make it better. 

All Might trusts them, they finally have each other’s backs and can talk about their feelings with no barrier between them. There’s an improvement from the destruction and also a rebirth. It certainly fits them.

Horikoshi, at this point, is not being subtle about their shared destiny and them fighting together as a team.

[dekatsu]

See this? This is how Katsuki thought about Izuku, therefore he called him Deku. But you see, this is Katsuki’s image of Child!Izuku, the one from back when they were in pre-school. These are the thoughts he literally clung to, because he needed to. He’s got a bad case of inferiority complex when it comes to Izuku.

But as the conversation goes on, Katsuki says this:

“This guy” meaning, he can’t even recognize the Izuku right now anymore, and that the Child!Izuku and this Izuku are not the same anymore and he’s forced to acknowledge that. The image of Izuku he build in his mind just doesn’t agree with the Izuku that entered U.A and forced Katsuki to pay attention to him. 

His statement above doesn’t apply to Izuku anymore. 

But the funny thing is, Izuku never changed, he just finally got the ability to make his dreams and ambitions a reality. Katsuki clung to the fact that Izuku, quirkless as he was, couldn’t be anything but useless. Now he is literally forced to see Izuku in a new light. Especially after he figured out All Might’s role in this whole situation. 

So he blames the change on All Might, when in fact, Katsuki just refused to see Izuku for who he was because Izuku is a threat to him, especially with a quirk.

This whole scene just shows how far Katsuki’s misconception of Izuku goes. Because he plainly refused to see Izuku in a way that would mean he’s a danger for him. 

But thanks to All Might acknowledging him, Katsuki finally puts down the version of Izuku he clung to, to understand and find out who he’s facing now. It’s a fucking grandiose step on his part and an even bigger step for his character. 

This is Katsuki finally acknowledging Izuku as something. Only the end of the fight will show us how far in his acknowledgement Katsuki will go. I said this before but just this one sentence shows his mentality towards Izuku has changed. Izuku is not useless anymore, he is someone who can take Katsuki on in a fight, someone worth the fight. 

Now I don’t want to spoil anything but obviously the misunderstanding goes both ways. That Izuku still hasn’t figured out Katsuki thinks of him as a legitimate threat is because he, too, clings to their past interactions just like Katsuki.

Deku vs Kacchan 2 is what will allow them both to finally open up for this “new” version of their childhood friend and see who this person grew up to be. It’s what will allow them to build a new relationship and leave their old, wrong perceptions in the past, since these obviously don’t apply anymore.

And that’s why this fight is so important! Because these two idiots can’t use words well and have to feel and see for themselves.

Thanks for listening to my thoughts!