WARNING: The following contains spoilers for My Hero Academia Season 5, Episode 18, "The Unforgiven," now streaming on Funimation, Hulu, and Crunchyroll.
The unforgivable sins of Endeavor's past make it easy to take for granted how far the Number One Hero has come in My Hero Academia. Endeavor's impressive character growth is front and center during Season 5, Episode 18, with his son Natsuo's life on the line after the appearance of a villain who has been fixated on Endeavor for years. Ending's obsession with Endeavor's past arrogance and his disappointment in Endeavor's newfound humility illustrate the stark contrast between the fiery hero's past self and the man he is today.
Ending has always been awed by the fierce, shining light of Endeavor's flames, so when he gets out of prison he heads straight for the Todoroki family. With perhaps the most specific Quirk ever, Ending, or "White Line Chump," as Bakugo calls him, uses his ability to control painted white lines to hold Natsuo hostage to goad Endeavor into killing him. Ending, who clearly has severe psychological issues, feels as though he has nothing to live for and is desperate for the privilege of having his life ended by Endeavor.
Ending's strategy of taking Natsuo hostage can easily be misinterpreted as a grudge, but he's just being practical. He knows that killing goes against the moral code of heroes, so Ending needs to give the Number One Hero proper motivation to kill him. Ending even goes as far as to compare himself to a Nomu to see if that makes Endeavor feel any better about taking his life. Unfortunately for Ending, his abduction of Natsuo is how he finds out how much Endeavor has changed since they last met.
The Endeavor that Ending knew might've rushed into battle with minimal concern for a hostage -- family or not. But now Endeavor treads lightly, unwilling to risk Natsuo's life. Having a child is supposed to change a man's priorities, and in Endeavor's case, better late than never. Although, he's apparently traded in one obsession for another, as his desire to atone causes him to freeze on the battlefield. Surprisingly, Endeavor realizes that if he rescues Natsuo, it will end what little relationship they do have, because his son hates him enough already without feeling like he owes his father a debt.
Ending is distraught when he's apprehended by Shoto, as his only hope in life is to die by Endeavor's hand. Worse, he's forced to watch as Endeavor and Natsuo have a heart to heart where Endeavor reveals that he doesn't seek his family's forgiveness. He knows he's unworthy of it, and it'd be selfish of him to only want to change to ease his own conscience. Endeavor wants to atone by helping his family move on from what he's done to them by giving them a new home to live in without him. This display of humility from Endeavor devastates Ending, who feels as though the beautiful, arrogant flames of the man Endeavor used to be have been extinguished forever.
Endeavor's past obsession with surpassing All Might led to him harboring such an inferiority complex that he couldn't even take a compliment, only able to interpret it as a jab at his inability to become the Number One Hero. Using a villain with a death wish who's fixated on Endeavor's past is a strange, but effective, way to show how much progress Endeavor has made, as he is now far removed from the caricature he used to be. As for Ending, it just goes to show you should never meet your heroes.
