Originally, I stuck this to a re-blog of another post, but then I decided it would be best to make my own. Below features anti-Bakugou and Bakugou Critical. I’m being polite and hiding it under the ‘keep reading tab.’ As always I try to be fair, but this is based on opinions and the like. I’ll also admit that this is coming from a slightly bias POV. You have been warned and if you choose to continue that’s on you.
There seem to be a lot of reasons people relate to Bakagou. Some people relate to Bakagou being unable to express his emotions properly. Others relate to wanting to be a winner or strong, but never quite reaching their goal. (There are also fanon reasons, but I won’t go into too much detail on those. Everyone has headcanons and theories. These are fine to have so long as you don’t get them confused with canon or attack others who feel differently.)
However, I believe one of the biggest explanations lies within the manipulation of the narrative;
Something that’s not often talked about outside of writing circles is how important “tone” is for stories. The characters move the story, but the narrative controls how they and their actions are perceived by the viewer (YMMV).
At the start of the manga Bakagou’s actions are presented as horrible as they were. Even with the whole class on his side, the story shows that this isn’t right. Bakagou’s attitude is shown as bratty. His attack on Izuku, backing Izuku against a wall, burning his shoulder, destroying his notebook, threatening him not to go to UA just because it threatens the narrative Bakagou’s trying to make, the scene where he tells Izuku to jump off the roof—all of these actions are shown as antagonistic. Not only that, but it displays it in a way that so powerful a lot of people can’t forget it. For whatever reason, personal or otherwise, it STICKS with them. All because the tone does all it can to show these things in that light.
But then all that changed.
For whatever reason, the narrative seemed to switch sides. Throughout 300-200 chapters (depending on your view when it happened) it downplayed Bakagou’s actions. Suddenly they were presented as no big deal and played them for humor (or tried to). Meanwhile, whenever Bakagou felt bad in anyway it hyped up those scenes and showed them as raw as it could to make people sympathize with him.
The story also uses the other characters to manipulate the audience as well. Whenever someone calls Bakagou out on anything he does this person is treated as being in the wrong, or an asshole. As a result, most readers will ignore what they say, however valid they are. Meanwhile, it uses characters the audience does like to praise Bakagou or wave his actions as no big deal, such as All Might, Aizawa, or even Izuku.
After a certain point, the readers aren’t even really allowed to see Bakagou’s effect on Izuku. In the beginning, we see how the bullying hurt Izuku and made him, the victim, feel—or at least we saw the start. Before we can go any deeper though, all the flashbacks changed. Now the flashbacks are on Bakagou’s side and worked to make him sympathetic. Again, they downplayed what Bakagou did to Izuku. (Not to mention other kids. People tend to forget that while Izuku was the main focus of Bakagou’s ire, he attacked and bullied others as well). When those points are focused on they're used to make the readers feel for Bakagou. Not on his actual actions and how they affected others, but on his feelings.
Now the story has Izuku shrug off whatever Bakagou does and reacts the bare minimum to Bakagou’s attitude. This is supposed to be Izuku becoming less intimidated by the other, but I don’t see it that way. I see it as erasing something that was a big part of Izuku and his arc. Acknowledging it though would place King Explosion Murder in a bad light, so readers are no longer allowed to see it.
With all that in mind, it’s not that hard to see why people feel for Bakagou when the story is going out of its way to make people do just that. It uses every means it can to make them feel that way; tone, lighting, characters, etc.
Personally, that’s why I’m more upset with ‘the narrative’ than Bakagou. The characters can do whatever they want, but it’s the narration’s job to show us whether or not it’s right.
As I’ve admitted however this is fairly bias and I’m not an expert. So, take all of this with a pinch of salt as they say.
