The following content contains spoilers fromMy Hero Academia,Season 6, episode 21, currently streaming onCrunchyroll.As far as viewers can tell, Lady Nagant and Hawks werethe only Pro-Heroes privyto the dark side of the Hero Public Safety Commission and assigned to assassinate whoever appears on the hit list. Both powerhouses have been groomed since childhood to “purify” the city with bloodshed, and be grateful for the opportunity of accessing fame and fortune in return.
It’s safe to say that both Kaina Tsutsumi and Keigo Takami received insufficient amounts of praise and love in their youth and thus found the concept of being appreciated for once rather appealing, if not irresistible. However, with age comes wisdom, and the corrupt nature of this whole secretive setup became more difficult to ignore, which led Lady Nagant to snap and, unsurprisingly, suffer severe punishment for questioning the powers that be.
RELATED:My Hero Academia: The Villains Who Had The Best Introductions, Ranked
“The Truth Hurts, But Lies Can Kill”
Anyone with a Quirk could potentially cause death and destruction, whether intentionally or not, and, with the ever-growing rate of powerful people in the world, laws were implemented to prevent an overabundance of disasters. As a result, the Public Safety Commission was introduced to help maintain orderin this Hero Societyby enforcing laws and keeping a close eye on the local superpowered crime; essentially the middleman between the government, civilians, Heroes, and the schooling system. However, everyone knows that power corrupts, giving the Public Safety Commission a bit of a God complex with a plethora of pawns to play with.
During Lady Nagant’s height of success as the Safety Commission’s go-to guy for problem-solving, troublemakers"all disappeared along with their sins, without being judged by the law,“which is a polite way of saying that guilt is assumed, and murder is the consequence (instead of being sent away to Tartarus.) The same concept isapplied to Villains and wayward Heroes,who aren’t maintaining the desired public image; instead of tarnishing the Heores' good name with a controversial trial, they are simply removed from the equation, permanently. The Public Safety Commission only wants to display the best they have to offer which, according to Lady Nagant, is tantamount to brainwashing.
Lady Nagant’s Harsh Lesson
As fans are well aware, one of the golden rules of being a Pro-Hero dictates that no harm must be inflicted on any target for any reason and thatQuirks should be predominantly used to defendthe innocent. The mere fact that Hawks gets berated for murdering a known villain is a testament to how seriously society takes these conventions, as the death toll was not even an option when All For One was captured. Little do they know, their oncebeloved Hero Society is dripping in blood,and not only provoked by villainous hands. As far as Lady Nagant and Hawks are concerned, they were saving lives by following orders and"being shown only the sparking stars, while the truth gnaws at someone else.”
RELATED:My Hero Academia: Lady Nagant Makes Her Move As The “Hired Gun”
As with any infamous gang, readjusting one’s moral compass is not encouraged, and withdrawing from the ranks poses quite an issue, so when Lady Nagant decided to call it quits, she was well aware that things wouldn’t go down without a fight. Refusing to sacrifice her life to justify the Safety Commission’s actions, Nagant took matters into her own hands by fatally shooting the current Chairman, point blank, and taking out several other Safety Commission members (much like Re-Destro, all these years later.) Surprisingly, she escaped with her life but was given a buzz cut and imprisoned in Tartarus, where her hatred for this false Hero Society festered until it wasripe for All For One’spicking.
Hawks, The Replacement
The #2 Pro-Hero hasn’t gone into much detail regarding his time with the Hero Public Safety Commission, which isn’t necessarily confirmation that they have cleaned up their act under the new regime, particularly sinceHawks killing Twice was more of a moral dilemmafor the winged wonder, and not an issue of legal retribution. However, Hawks was essentially purchased,almost with a child trafficking set-upwhereby his mother was paid off and removed from the child’s life, so that the Safety Commission could have a new powerful plaything.
Hawks suggests that the only reason he made it out with his smile still attached and a sparkle in his eye is because of the support of hisunwavering faith in his role model, Endeavor.Nevertheless, there is still much pain hidden behind the #2 Pro-Heroes' optimistic facade and regret for not looking after his mother once the Safety Commission’s promises captivated all his attention.Hawks spent his life training to lie and deceive, which has undoubtedly affected his ability to form genuine relationships with others; pulling the wool over Twice’s eyes was clearly a heartbreaking task for the Hero to carry out (never mind eliminating him, on top of everything!)
The Villains Might Be Onto Something
AsMy Hero Academia’sstoryline unfolds over time, it becomes more and moredifficult to refute the Hero Killer Stain’s claimsthat the world is truly broken. And besides,how are Stain’s actions any differentthan Lady Nagant’s, at the end of the day? He too targets the corrupt idols giving Heroes a bad name and criticizing those who blindly worship these overrated celebrities, corroborating his sense of justice without external influences but by making his own assessments of the situation.
RELATED:My Hero Academia: The Most Virtuous Villains, Ranked
EvenAll For One and the League of Villainsessentially wish to open people’s eyes about the ongoing corruption around them, having suffered firsthand because they were born “broken.” How is anything about the Hero Society dynamics fair? It might just be time to redefine the term “Villain"inMy Hero Academia’svocabulary, as there appear to be plenty who qualify for that list, while others don’t entirely make the cut.
Deku’s Burden ofTruth
Deku has learned the hard way that the world is not black and white and that most people are swept into a moral gray zone; however, he refuses to let this destroy his hope of creating a peaceful society. As Martin Luther King Jr. stated:“Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.”Succumbing to defeat, as Nagant has done, only perpetuates the problem.
Deku remembers reading reports about the Safety Commission Chairman’s death, which was chalked up to a “dispute with a Hero” and nothing more; conveniently withholding information about the internal conflict and rebellion. Izuku has also proven to have a sympathetic side when it comes to villains and would personally rathersave Shigaraki than see him killed.With a foot on both sides of the fence, One For All’s Ninth User is just what the world needs right now;an open-minded symbol of hope, truth, and justice.
