Episode 17 (Vigilantes)

A Rational Man is the seventeenth episode of the My Hero Academia: Vigilantes anime and the fourth episode of the second season.

Summary#

The morning after he first tested the ability, Koichi tries to train his new Scrappy Thrust Style technique on a set of soda cans. After finishing his set up, Koichi fires a repulsion blast at the centermost can but is pushed by the recoil before quickly finding his balance again. The student reminds himself to keep his feet anchored properly so he won't fall over, before moving on to practice storing up power in his blasts before firing.

As he charges his force and begins to call out the name of his "secret technique", he hears Kazuho in the distance and flops on the roof, canceling out the attack. Kazuho then Leaps down to greet her friend and immediately grows cross from seeing the college student going against what they promised last night about not using the Scrappy Thrust Style.

Once inside, Kazuho tells Koichi that he can't use his Quirk as a projectile without a Hero License and says it's no better than throwing rocks at somebody to subdue them. While she calls out Koichi for already knowing the legal issues with using his move, the young man justifies it by saying his blasts aren't solid like a rock, and its power can be adjusted. Kazuho shuts down his rationale and says he could get arrested by a Hero or a police officer if they catch him using his Scrappy Thrust Style.

Koichi gives in to the girl's wishes and heads off for another Vigilante patrol, though Kazuho declines to join him due to the mountain of homework she has to take care of. She explains that her school has both middle and high school classes, and they make up for the direct admissions by giving out a ton of homework. Therefore, she asks Koichi to leave and not distract her any further.

On the street, and in the middle of a fleeing crowd, The Crawler is in the path of another Next-Level Villain, the first one in a while, that's rampaging through the city. It's a large, octopus-like Villain known as Octoid, with several arms and shiny black skin. The Crawler instinctively calls Pop for help but remembers that he's all by himself today. Filling in her role, he tells everyone to run to safety and call for emergency services, as Octoid turns his sights on him.

The Crawler tries to flee at first but immediately calms his nerves and slides back around to face the Villain head-on. The man notes his impressive strength, but also the fact that he's lacking in movement speed, meaning he's fine as long as he maintains a safe distance. Just as he thinks he's got a solid strategy, the Villain tears off chunks of the nearby buildings, loads his numerous arms with debris, and begins trying to hit The Crawler with them from afar. This forces the Vigilante to turn back around and escape immediately, as the confrontation is taken to an alleyway.

Meanwhile, at Hoppers, Ichiro and Jiro are busy selling a nutritional livestock supplement to an older man suffering with baldness, with him hoping it will cure his issue. After convincing the man to go through with it after showing it supposedly working with Ichiro's own balding head, Eraser Head walks in. The buyer quickly runs out with the dubious goods, as the brothers nervously smile and tell him to come again. The Hero simply sits down and asks the twins for some black coffee, with Ichiro complaining that their store isn't a cafe.

After getting his drink, Jiro tells the man that he should be only stopping by for business purposes. Eraser Head says it's indeed why he's here, since underground Heroes like him have to stay in the loop of any criminal underworld activity. He specifies that he needs to look for something, since their lead on the Crab Route has dried up thanks to the mess in Osaka.

Jiro promises to tell Eraser Head about any relevant information on the investigation the second they receive it, though the Hero admits that coming to this store in the morning has just become part of his daily routine. Eraser Head says he hates mornings since it takes a while for him get up and running, so he likes to stop by here for some coffee before truly starting the day. While the twins feel like it's a personal issue, Eraser Head thinks it's just logical for him to routinely show up, especially since he considers the brothers' coffee to be the best in town.

As Jiro suggests to his brother that they start charging him for the coffee, a piece of debris obliterates one of their windows and crashes into the store, which puts the three on guard.

Not too far behind, The Crawler stops and shouts through the hole that a Villain is about to pass through, and pleads everyone to get away while his attention is on him. The young man then locks eyes with Eraser Head, remembering him from the time he fought Knuckelduster. The Hero asks if he knows him from somewhere, with The Crawler denying it as he turns back around and tries to act nonchalantly. Unfortunately, the brothers recognize "The Cruller", but that situation is put on ice as the octopus-like Villain surrounds two schoolgirls.

Eraser Head slips on his goggles and rushes in to help them, telling The Crawler to stay safe and that they'll talk later. The student uses this opportunity to take his leave, which confuses the Hottas, with the Vigilante admitting that the underground Hero scares him. The Next-Level Villain is about to beat on the girls, before Eraser Head snags his fist with his Capturing Weapon and uses Erasure on him.

His Quirk proves ineffective and reveals that the Villain's body is a permanent modification instead of a conditional ability. Eraser Head goes on the defensive and swiftly dodges Octoid's numerous punches while keeping his distance and bouncing off the walls. After jumping above the unruly criminal and getting some proper spacing, Eraser Head successfully binds and restrains all six of his powerful arms.

With the Villain struggling and stationary, Eraser Head gets a thank you from the girls, before the man tells them to get to safety quickly. From the open spots on his waist, two extra arms fly out of Octoid's torso, smacking Eraser Head so hard that his goggles fly off and he is sent crashing into a nearby wall. The twins then usher the girls out of the alley, as the Hero tries to refocus on the Villain attacking him. It's easier said than done, as that last attack immobilized him and dislocated his left shoulder.

Wide open, Octoid goes for another set of punches, as Ichiro screams out. But out of nowhere, The Crawler flies in-between the Villain and Eraser Head, while charging up a repulsing shot of his Scrappy Thrust Style move. The Crawler fires his blast right into the Villain's throat and falls into a roll. As Eraser Head gets on his feet and addresses the Vigilante, the young man tries to play off the legally incriminating use of his Quirk as a random occurrence.

At the same time, the Villain gets back up, as The Crawler's blast only angered him more. Ichiro and Jiro then rush in and join the fight while stabbing Trigger vials into their necks and transforming using their Grasshopper Quirks, before hitting Octoid in the torso with a Double Hotta Kick.

The Brothers then ask Eraser Head that if their current actions fall under self-defense and clarify that they're using a legal version of Trigger, with The Crawler quickly jumping on grouping his actions with the former point. The Hero supports his injured arm with his Capturing Weapon and says they'll hash out the details later, as the four of them still have a Villain to deal with. Eraser Head says they need to keep him away from the street to prevent others from getting hurt, but the Brothers doubt it since he easily shrugged off their Ultimate Move and the Hero has a major injury.

The Crawler tries to leave to flag down help, but Eraser Head quickly stops him and questions the move he used on Octoid. He asks about his range and if the Vigilante can boost its attack power, with the young man saying it can if he charges it while anchoring himself, though the increase in size wouldn't be by much. The Vigilante points out there wouldn't be time to do that anyway with the Next-Level Villain pursuing them, though Eraser Head quickly finds a compromise.

The Hero tells The Crawler to keep Octoid's attention on them by firing weaker shots and asks the twins if they know of an open area that's far from any nearby civilians that the men can take the fight to. Ichiro reluctantly says he knows a place and starts running towards it, though Jiro objects to the idea. The other three follow close behind, as The Crawler slides backward, before jumping up and firing a set of smaller repellant blasts at the pursuing Villain to keep his focus corralled on them, realizing that the recoil of his move is cancelled out of he doesn't use it on the ground.

In the Hottas' warehouse, Kirihito is currently lounging on the sofa, while drinking tea and listening to classical music on his MP3 player. Jiro then pushes open the door and tells the man to leave immediately, which he barely budges on since he feels like he's getting unfairly evicted. The Crawler then comes in to ask if this is the location they're taking the Villain to, as Kirihito recognizes him from their fight several months ago, before threateningly walking right up to the Vigilante's face.

The Crawler freaks at the unexpected appearance of his old adversary, which makes Kirihito assume that the Vigilante is treating him like a Villain just by the look of him. The college student can only stutter nervously while vaguely alluding to his appearance, before the other man accuses him of bigotry and tells The Crawler to not be prejudice and judge people off appearances.

The Crawler meekly apologizes for his "unacceptable behavior", but Jiro tells him it is fine and that it's best not to engage with Kirihito's ramblings. Ichiro and Eraser Head then run into the warehouse, as Kirihito whines about the four interrupting his teatime. The Next-Level Villain then barges in and smashes Kirihito's table and tea set, which sends the man into the rage.

He then hits Octoid and calls him a "disgusting octopus" before locking his scythes with the other person's arms, with the hypocrisy going over his head and confusing The Crawler, while the Brothers just saythat's just how their egomaniac of a friend is. The brothers' egg Kirihito on as he scraps with the Villain, though the mantis-like man is quickly overpowered.

The twins ask for suggestions from Eraser Head in how to end the fight, with the Hero saying he's got a plan, but he needs an opening made for him. The Hottas then leap into the Hotta Jump to distract the rogue Villain, as Eraser Head blinds him with his Capturing Weapon. Now vulnerable, Kirihito locks the Villain in a full nelson hold, but he quickly knocks the large man back and tries to tear the Capturing Weapon off his eyes.

Just as he succeeds in removing the cloth from his eyes, he gets an eyeful of The Crawler anchoring his feet and charging up an attack at close range. Now fully charged, and having a clear aim at Octoid, the Vigilante releases his secret technique, the Shooty-Go-Blam, right in his opponent's chest. Unfortunately, this attack also does pitiful damage and sends the Villain into an even bigger rage.

As The Crawler keeps dodging and weaving around Octoid's attacks, the Brothers and Eraser Head, who were hanging up on the ceiling, tell the man to keep buying them time. The Vigilante then leads the Villain near the exit as the three up above crash through the window and set up a net with the Hero's Capturing Weapon to fully restrain their enemy.

Shortly after, Kirihito hoists Octoid up, before Eraser Head tells him and the Brothers to alert the authorities. After checking on his arm, The Crawler decides to leave, but the Hero stops him before he gets the chance to do so, since the Vigilante is still a person of interest.

As Kirihito walks to get his phone, he then elbows Octoid in the face, which only aggravates him into grabbing the man and starting the fight all over again. With all the shaking, the warehouse eventually gives in and crumbles, breaking the Villain free by accident and allowing him to escape. Kirihito says that what happened is not his fault, but the others tell him to shut up and everyone goes after Octoid again.

Day eventually turns to evening, as the Scarred Man is reading a file on Octoid in an alley, revealing that his body modifications has increased his aggression along with muscle mass and movement speed. The dealer assumes the Villain is the type to rush someone down and wail on them with a flurry of attacks like he does, as he confidently turns around to see Octoid running right at him.

With not a single iota of fear, the Scarred Man fires up his Quirk and dodges Octoid's punch, before countering all his arms with eight instant punches and knocking the Villain down easily. The Scarred Man thanks and retrieves a fluid sample from him before taking his leave so Octoid can run loose again, while poking fun at the four chasing after the Villain for how much they're struggling with his test subject.

When he was about to leave, the battered Octoid throws a rock at the man's face, scratching his left cheek and making him draw blood. The man then spirals into an intense fury, before rushing back to Octoid and crushing the arm he threw the rock with under his boot. He coldly tells Octoid about the lightning bolt-shaped scar on his face, telling the Villain that he gave it to himself on purpose, since he wanted to match the look of someone he looks up to.

The enraged Villain screams out that it's his branding and sign that he's the successor to his idol, and if anyone other marks get on his face, then it'll soil his image and the point of why he scarred himself will be totally lost on others. He kicks Octoid in the air and gropes him by the neck, asking him how he's going to fix this as the muscles in his arm swell and tear off the sleeve of his jumpsuit.

He then throws Octoid forward and activates his Quirk before doing another rush of punches that beat the modified Villain into the ground. This time, he ups his punch count to ten, at the cost of the skin on his arms tearing up and gushing blood, as well as intense, aching pain.

Irritated by the limit of his Quirk, the man fights through the pain and steps on Octoid again, telling him that he has about five seconds before his cooldown period ends, after which he's going to speed up again and repeatedly stomp a hole clean through his head like a jackhammer and kill him.

As the man counts down and prepares to finish off Octoid, The Crawler spots him at the opening of the alley and tells him to run, thinking he's a civilian putting himself at risk. Not wanting to get caught, the Scarred Man speeds off to the other end of the pathway. The twins and Eraser Head check on the pummeled Octoid, as The Crawler tries to figure out who he just saw and where he ran off to.

Two days later, Eraser Head is walking while conversing with Naomasa, who's discussing Octoid's case. The detective said they don't have any leads on who assaulted the Villain, and no other Heroes in the area reported any possible suspects. Given the nature of how Octoid was attacked, being an aggressive series of physical blows, Naomasa suggests that might be the infamous Naruhata Vigilante that brutalizes Villains with raw strength, that being Knuckleduster. Eraser Head doubts it and tells the man to drop the idea and focus on cross-referencing Octoid's situation with any recent cases.

From behind, Koichi calls out to Eraser and thanks the Hero for keeping people like him safe, while Kazuho asks her friend if it's even okay for him to be conversing with a Hero. The student thinks it's fine since they got to know each other the other day, though he turns back around to see Eraser Head scowling at him. Koichi then steps back and looks the other, still scared by the man, while the girl chastises him for not thinking far ahead about how their reunion might play out.

As the other men continue their walk, Naomasa asks Eraser Head if he knows Koichi. The Hero quickly says no, "assuming" that the young man is confused about something.

Characters in Order of Appearance#

Koichi Haimawari Kazuho Haneyama Makoto Tsukauchi (Pictured) Sisters of Saint Lila's Academy (Pictured) East Naruhata High Dance Squad (Pictured) Mad Hatters (Pictured) Miu (Pictured) Yu (Pictured) Ichimoku Samazu (Pictured) Jube Namimaru (Pictured) All Might (Pictured) Octoid Jiro Hotta Ichiro Hotta Eraser Head Knuckleduster Kirihito Kamachi The Scarred Man Naomasa Tsukauchi Akira Iwako

Quirks#

• Slide and Glide
• Wall Cling
• Scrappy Thrust Style
• The Crawler's Shooty-Go-Blam
• Leap
• Octopus (Squid)
• Erasure
• Grasshopper
• Double Hotta Kick
• Hotta Jump
• Mantis
• Overclock
• Instant Eight
• Hardening

Locations#

• Naruhata
• Koichi's Penthouse
• Recycle Shop: Hoppers

Battles & Events#

• Iwao Oguro vs. Shota Aizawa
• The Crawler & Knuckleduster vs. Akira Iwako
• The Crawler, Eraser Head, the Hotta Brothers & Kirihito vs. Octoid
• The Scarred Man vs. Octoid

Anime & Manga Differences#

• In the manga, Koichi falls at the same time Kazuho leaps to him on the roof. In the anime, he hits the ground before she appears.
• When Kazuho is lecturing Koichi, the anime shows closeups of the corkboard and all of its photos. It also adds some additional reaction shots from Kazuho, instead of just showing Koichi's.
• In the anime, when Koichi is analyzing Octoid, the Villain's feet crack the surface of the street as he's running.
• The anime extends the scene of Octoid throwing rocks at Koichi and shows them turning into the alley that eventually leads to Hoppers.
• When Eraser Head compliments the Hottas' coffee, the anime shows him smiling at them after he says so.
• Koichi thinking about how his Quirk functions before unleashing the "Shooty-Go-Blam" for the first time is omitted from the anime.
• The anime slightly extends Eraser Head binding Octoid's arms.
• The anime slightly extends the flashback of Koichi spotting Eraser Head on the street.
• In the manga, Koichi doesn't begin to walk off to get help before Eraser Head stops him.
• The anime extends the scene of Octoid chasing after the group.
• The anime shows the type of music Kirihito was listening to on his MP3 player.
• In the manga, Koichi doesn't stutter and cut off his words when Kirihito accuses him of labeling the man as a Villain off instinct.
• In the anime, Kirihito insults Octoid's appearance on top of calling him a Villain before they fight.
• The anime extends the buildup to the The Crawler debuting the Shooty-Go-Blam.
• The anime extends The Crawler stalling Octoid in the warehouse.
• The anime extends Eraser Head and the Hottas catching Octoid in the net.
• The anime also shows them jumping out the window before setting up the trap, instead of presumably the open door in the manga.
• In the manga, the Scarred Man mentions how he has to wait ten seconds before he can accelerate again to kill Octoid, while in the anime he says he only has to wait five seconds.
• The anime adds a shot of the Scarred Man walking away as The Crawler wonders where he ran off to.
• When Naomasa suggests that the person that beat up Octoid could be Knuckleduster, which Eraser Head disagrees with, the anime removes him thinking back to Koichi wanting to call an ambulance for Octoid.

Trivia#