Oh my goodness gracious me, more todoroki drama! What are your thoughts on this chapter from your translations?
I'll forever be heartbroken at the panel of the happy family minus shoto.
I don't have a ton to say. We got like one flashback and 10 seconds of story. But I do think a lot of people are sleeping on what's happening in this chapter. It's a chapter about the Todoroki family, particularly those who are NOT Enji, Shouto, or Touya (well okay, maybe a bit about Touya, too). No, I don't mean that Enji or Shouto are being excluded as some sort of message. I mean that the other characters also need their moments to further their own arcs.
All the characters who expressed their regrets in the above scene are now showing up in chapter 388 to confront their demons (although I do think there is a translation or update issue regarding Rei's panel in this version of the page.) Note that Shouto had no regrets to express regarding Touya and was instead called "his family's hero" because of his desire to rescue all of them. Shouto has no place in this chapter specifically because it's about the family's regrets towards Touya.
So their actions in this chapter are meant to reflect each of their regrets.
Enji, who harmed his family, is now trying to protect them all and take all the damage unto himself.
Rei, who felt powerless in her situation and was repulsed by Enji and her children, takes responsibility and apologizes while actively pushing her way onto the battlefield to use her power to cool down Enji and Touya.
Fuyumi, who kept up appearances that things were fine even when she knew the family was falling apart, expresses her repressed thoughts and her desire for the family to actually be okay by begging for no one to leave (it's hard to capture the nuance of what she's saying literally in Japanese, something like "Don't not be here, don't go away.")
And Natsu, who regrets brushing off and not confronting Enji or Touya before it was too late, directly tells Touya to stop bothering everyone. (Now, the nuance here is probably dicier to explain, but essentially there is an implied note of selfishness being attached to Touya's actions, even if Touya's feelings are justified. This is a collectivist society sort of thing, but think back to when Katsuki mouths off to Fuyumi and Shouto for talking about sensitive subjects where those uninvolved can hear. Basically, Natsu is saying Touya should find a way to deal with his problems himself rather than making them problems for everyone else--and let's be real, Touya's currently threatening other people's lives because of his personal problems.)
The paradox is that Rei, Fuyumi, and Natsu are all expressing their honne, their true feelings. In Japan, to the rest of the world you are to present your tatemae, which is your polite mask or the character you are assigned to play in any situation (Fuyumi would have her teacher persona with her students, for instance). People are only supposed to express their honne to those very close to them, with the most common example being: their family. The Todoroki family has been forced to hide their true feelings over the years even from the rest of their family, and now they are finally getting to express everything they bottled up. So while it may feel like some of the things they say are cruel or selfish, this is actually meant to be a sign of love. They are in a situation where they feel comfortable enough with their family and even compelled by the dire circumstances to reveal their honne. Honne are SUPPOSED to be selfish and rude. To express one's honne is to express how close one is with the person who hears them. You can even see Dabi as Touya's tatemae, and the Touya we see in the panel at the end is his honne finally coming out.
And that's the crux of how I view this now infamous final panel. It's a reflection of the family coming together by expressing their regrets. It's a symbol of the people they could have been if only they could have dealt with these things in the first place. They are healing in this moment. They are healing as a family and as themselves. And now Shouto, who has already gone through that same process in the Sports Festival, is going to come in and be his family's hero once again.
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