WARNING: The following contains spoilers for My Hero Academia Season 5, Episode 2, "Vestiges," now streaming on Crunchyroll, Funimation and Hulu.
My Hero Academia's fifth season continues with "Vestiges," which takes a much more focused look than the premiere's broader reintroduction. Here, we dive more into Endeavor, Hawks and Deku, who are each dealing with their own unique set of issues.
Season 5, Episode 2, does a solid job establishing some storylines that will likely dominate much of the upcoming season. The titular "Vestiges" mainly refers to Deku's encounter with the previous wielders of One For All -- though it could be applied to the situations Endeavor & Hawks are facing too. Either way, all three face down the past here, and it's up to them to determine how they'll handle it.
We pick up immediately where "All Hands On Deck! Class 1-A" left off, with Dabi advancing toward a wounded Endeavor and Hawks, immediately making a show of power and surrounding them in a ring of blue flame. Endeavor angrily remembers Dabi for his killing of Snatch, to which Dabi couldn't care less about, asking, "Who was that again?" Though he lunges towards the two heroes, he is warded off by the Rabbit Hero Mirko. As Dabi vanishes, he calls out to someone named Ujiko before taunting Endeavor -- similarly to how he mocked Shoto by calling him his full name -- before disappearing.
The moment, or more specifically the one that follows, raises some continued reservations about Hawks, who meets with Dabi and reveals that they're working together. However, their relationship seems new, and there is not much trust between them. Hawks is angry that the Nomu was a new, stronger type, while Dabi is unhappy that Hawks brought Endeavor. The plan was to test out a Nomu on a strength-type hero, but not necessarily the new Number 1. Dabi is suspicious, but Hawks says he sympathizes with the League of Villains and wants to help their cause.
The truth behind Hawks' apparent betrayal of heroes is revealed in a flashback, showing he is given the mission to go undercover and infiltrate the League of Villains. Due to Hawks' keen senses, rapid ability and the fact that he wasn't present during the Kamino incident, he's been specifically chosen for this job. They also think he'll be able to stand by and ignore the damage the League does, knowing that he's acting for the greater good.
Dabi, meanwhile, is brooding alone. Blood seeps out from under his burnt eyelid, and he mutters how he hasn't forgotten about Snatch, who, in their fight, asked if he'd ever thought about the families of those he's killed. Dabi admits that he thinks about it all the time -- and that it's affected him. Dabi is a frightening and powerful villain, and all the more disturbing in that it seems he does have a conscience but chooses to ignore it.
Later, Hawks and a recovered Endeavor -- now sporting a huge facial scar, not unlike that of his son -- approach a train station. Endeavor still has questions about the fight with the Nomu, but Hawks plays it off as a strange coincidence. Hawks is a good liar, but it's clear he doesn't like deceiving him. Another flashback reveals Hawks as a child saved a group of people. Those same suited individuals who asked him to go undercover decided to support him and his family to facilitate his transformation into a hero. Plus, he's clutching an Endeavor toy, further linking him to the hero he must now deceive.
At the Todoroki household, Shoto is eating dinner with his brother Natsuo and sister Fuyumi. Endeavor arrives, and it's immediately clear that Fuyumi has set up this dinner in the hopes of family reconciliation. Natsuo isn't having it, blowing up at his father and making it very clear that he won't forgive him for the abuse he'd heaped on his family -- notably referring to an incident with their older brother Toya.
On the other hand, Shota tells his father that he's willing to give him a chance because sometimes the smallest things can alter someone. We know that Endeavor wants to do right by his family through internal monologing but won't be seeking forgiveness since his previous vision of the future brought everyone down this path. Shoto appears to see that even if he's not exactly enthusiastic about it.
Back at U-A, Deku stumbles into bed after a double helping of training, passing out and immediately finding himself in a strange dream we've glimpsed before. He faces the past users of One For All, each waiting in a line watching two figures. Deku can't move or speak, making him a silent observer to what transpires in front of him: the origin of One For All. We see All For One talking with his Quirkless younger brother, who voices his disgust at his older brother's actions. All For One mocks his brother's sense of justice and proceeds to swap two individuals' Quirks, or "meta powers," as they're called here. Rather than helping these two, it's clear that he's simply playing God and guaranteeing their loyalty through manipulation.
All For One mentions how his followers blew up a building without him asking them to -- they correctly intuited it was what he wanted and acted accordingly. And All For One loved every moment of it. He then tells his young brother that he's found a Quirk even "You, with your withered body, can use," and proceeds to force it upon him.
Afterward, Deku is in a white fog as All For One's younger brother advances towards him. He calls Deku the ninth user and admits that he wanted to show more, but with Deku only being at 20% power, he's not ready. The brother then tells him, "Be careful. We're long past the singularity point," and the episode ends similarly to how the last season did -- with Deku waking up, shaken by his dream and the activation of his Quirk.
As mentioned in Season 4, Quirk singularity is the point where Quirks become too powerful and can't be controlled anymore. It's certainly interesting to hear the originator of One For All saying they're long past that point since, in a sense, he's right -- and Deku will have to be careful. With the vestiges of One For All, and its mysterious origin beginning to unravel, Deku looks poised for some significant developments this season.
