#heroesrising
I recently read @Imaniiarts's posts about Might+U being played in the finale and got kind of surprised by the comments. Either we're watching VERY different movies, or some people completely missed the point of the final fight. (1)

Unlike all of Deku's other fights, the climax in Heroes:Rising is about endings—a finale of unrecognized dreams and fear of losing the one thing he wanted the most—to be the world's greatest hero and follow in All Might's footsteps. (2)

Deku willingly lost this—gave it away without hesitation because he understood that a sacrifice had to be made to rescue the people of Nabu. So he passed his dreams on like all previous predecessors to his childhood friend and rival, Bakugo. (3)

The stakes are obviously high for Deku who's had to give up his dream for this final fight, but the movie is also extremely significant for Bakugo, who was the catalyst to the Eighth losing his Quirk and is about to watch the Ninth—his rival—give up his. (4)

We've seen how heavily the guilt has weighed on Bakugo and even his VA (along with Deku's) discussed how 'young' Bakugo really is. When they fought, the producer told them: Bakugo is essentially asking himself a series of 'why' questions: (5)

'Why was I the one who ended All Might? Why am I now chasing the back of someone who was always behind me? Was the way that I admired All Might wrong?'
And this guilt will never fade for Bakugo.
(6)

In the climax, he says one thing to Deku: 'This will be the end of your dreams.'
For someone who believes he ended All Might, he's about to watch his rival, friend, and successor to his idol about to lose his. (7)

But leaving room for hesitation, Deku immediately says 'it's fine', followed by him believing that All Might would've also approved of Bakugo to be the Tenth. I also think Deku's trying to say, 'if it's you, I trust that you'll be able to recognize both our dreams.' (8)

Pieces like You Say Run are often played in decisive, final moments of a battle when Deku is victorious and showing yet again that he has what it takes to become a hero, but I argue that this fight against Nine already makes him a hero. (9)

How did Deku even get into U.A? All Might said one of the greatest qualities a hero can show is self-sacrifice, and that's exactly what Deku gave up—a dream that was too big for the body that he was born with. A dream across generations. A dream that his teacher entrusted. (10)

I don't think You Say Run would've been appropriate for this final fight at all. Even if the ending is a cop-out writing wise, the two boys really fought believing that it would be the last. But Deku still fought, as a hero, sacrificing the thing he wanted the most. (11)

And for Bakugo who'd lived with guilt all this time, I'd like to think that Deku's blessings was, in a way, a form of comfort for him—that he IS worthy, and his idol would approve of him as being the Tenth too. (12)

Heroes:Rising put everything at stake for two boys who're still struggling to understand the positions that they've been put in. From 'envy, pride, antipathy, fear, admiration, and rejection' (chapter 63), to one of pity, acknowledgement, rivalry, and acceptance— (13)

It was probably one of the most epic/heartwrenching fights I'd ever watched. In NA, the audience cheered like crazy thanks to the insane animations but when I initially watched it in Japan back in December, the audience was dead silent, save for those who were crying (14)

I think there's a weight to the battle that's completely different from everything else we've watched so far and Might+U is a tribute to Deku's sacrifice, heroism, and short but meaningful legacy. For Bakugo, it's a fight about watching his friend take his final stand. (15)

He was unable to help All Might in Kamino, but having OfA now almost allows him to get redemption by fighting WITH Deku instead of just watching. It's an extremely bittersweet but significant fight for both of the boys. (16)

Not liking the song is one thing, but I wish people actually took time to understand what's happening, instead of just running with feelings or how the animation looked. Heroes:Rising put everything at stake and I think Might+U was actually what gave the fight justice. (17)

I've written more about this on my Tumblr a few months ago right before the movie came out: https://rakuyokoyo.tumblr.com/post/190090899389/heroesrising-notes-deku-and-kacchan

It sounds a little ship-heavy but don't worry, I don't ship anyone in BNHA and I just like watching for what it is

Fun fact: if you were a bit confused by the LYRICS however like I was (they don't really fit the battle imo), Hayashi Yuki (BNHA's composer) mentioned that it's because the song was originally recorded for Eri (which is what we heard in S4E13).

I think the decision to add Might+U into the final battle instead of You Say Run or something similar is pretty symbolic of the fact that everyone thought 'yep this isn't appropriate' and went with something that matched the mood/theme of Heroes:Rising.

If you even got this far, I also write a TON: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13507472/1/Torch-Bearers

...and I'm currently drafting a BNHA story about an OC named Kana! Please check it out if you have time

andpleasewearmasks,bekindtoeachotherandkeepstanningBNHA