The Capitalist Hero - The Individual and the Collective in My Hero Academia [Part 2]

[@ExplanationPointAnime]

Hope you all enjoyed the video! Remember to start your free trial of Black Desert Online right here: bit.ly/2WSYmXs

[@thehut7467]

ill pretend for that worthy youtuber bit that you meant pewdiepie just so i wont be disappointed

[@thehut7467]

Also is two heroes canon

[@cantseeme402]

I do not like black desert online. It looks cool but it is a mess to try and figure out.

[@clairetulpa5254]

To put in 2 cents on the Mother's Basement and making money push of this video: I didn't stop liking MB because he made money. I stopped liking it because it got dull and samey and pretty lifeless. I only later learned that he started his heavy SEO optimization around the time the quality dropped, which leads me to ask the question "Did optimizing for views/money harm MB's content?" and the answer is, after looking into it as best I can, yes, this is likely to be the case. (Same shit happens to everyone.)

[@asocksual4910]

just like bart

[@seanmurphy3430]

A Stain action figure feels very much like the MHA equivalent of a Che Guevara t-shirt, i.e. the system profiting off of a figurehead of opposition to the system.

[@hiruyabebaw807]

i mean yea

[@buddermonger2000]

I feel like that's the ultimate sign of the capitalist victory. You now benefit from That opposition.

[@PanAndScanBuddy]

The Stain merch was so questionable already since he killed people but also it's fucked up that he was very much opposed to it.

[@frozenheartedgiant8330]

@@PanAndScanBuddy Che Guevara killed or ordered killed at least 105 people, and during his regime 200 - 700 prisoners and civilians were killed. So really, Stain merch is not so far fetched, been as he killed less people. Although, the people he killed were minor celebrities, so maybe that counts for something.

[@leeroyjenkins7325]

@@buddermonger2000 Some "capitalists" might benefit from that but the "system" isn't (commercialization of anti-capitalist sentiment helps its growth).

[@2MeterLP]

TLDR: Sure altrustic heroism is better, but heros gotta eat and you arent getting saved if Allmight has to work at McDonalds to survive.

[@pacotaconep4433]

True dat

[@LoneWolf-xe6ye]

That would be one famous McDonalds

[@siragon756]

Well, as demonstrated in the spinoff, MHA Vigilantes, there still *are* vigilantes on the loose. And pretty effective at that. But yeah, it's probably better with regulations and all

[@yonatanhoresh2695]

All Might at McDonald's huh? I think we've just found ourselves a new spin off series, bois.

[@winstonvontoast6163]

@@yonatanhoresh2695 I was actually playing Spider-Man on PS4, the new and improved one. There is a collecible that shows that Spider-Man is overdue on his medical bills, as in he can't pay them. Sure, doing Hero work is all well and dandy but if get fucked over and locked up due to your medical bills then you can't do that. Being a hero for the sake of being a hero is lovely, but reality is much more harsher.

[@nbtwall7287]

The quirkless class must seize the means of heroism

[@nanocowie]

No longer will the gentle green-haired shitbird labour under the explosive bourgeois.

[@batrachian149]

inb4 "tHiS bUt UNiroNiCaLY"

[@Arrakiz666]

@@batrachian149 This, but unironically.

[@EllaAngeli]

Batman

[@thescrapsmith446]

And when everyone is super no one will be

[@pj_spirit]

To be fair, I think Stain isn’t against heroes getting paid, but instead heroes doing hero work for any other reason than doing the work itself. If they get paid, that’s fine, but that better damn well not be why they’re doing it. He got mad at Iida for showing up for revenge and not trying to save Native first and foremost. Hell, he knows Iida is too young to be a pro just at a glance. There’s no way he could have thought Iida was getting paid. All Might is the number one hero and is likely paid more than any other hero around but in Stain’s eyes, All Might is a true hero. Why? He sees that the money isn’t All Might’s motivator but instead it’s the sense of duty he feels in being a hero itself.

[@shauncampbell9039]

While I agree on your point about Stain not caring if heroes are paid he is ultimately an Allmight fanboy and would react violently if told or shown Allmight was anything but perfect. He also tried to kill a child for not embodying the career they wanted to go into.

[@pj_spirit]

@@shauncampbell9039 I’d love to discuss this with you but as a manga reader, I don’t know how to without spoilers

[@shauncampbell9039]

@@pj_spirit I'm caught up with the manga so spoilers aren't an issue, I'd also like to discuss this.

[@watchforever1724]

Lol

[@uS0ra]

yea, anti capitalism isnt not paying people, its a dumb strawman to deflect criticism of capitalism

[@MEXICANMAU19]

i feel like this video gets stain wrong. stain's big problem was that hero's were not living up to the name of hero because while they did hero work, saving people and doing good was not their unmoving top priority. thats why he loves and respects All Might. all might does interviews, has merch, and all the stuff everyone does. But the proper rescue and salvation and hope giving of being a hero was his priority. he was an extremist because all might is not the only one that embodies that philosophy, but he didnt acknowledge anyone else because of the huge gap between all might and everyone else that might compare to him.

[@stripedgillette3580]

How does Stain know that?

[@mirroredrealities1639]

Cool motive, still murder.

[@leeleelee7878]

@@kodakreeeam9971 not a greedy hero? You're watching or breezing the anime? Mt lady was, in s1&2, she only cared about fame and money, only cared about being on camera, tried to seduce a seller to get a free food in s2 etc, she only just developed a bit in kamino arc, endeavor was, he only cared about strength and fame to surpass all might, that's why stain shouted at endeavor in his "last" moment, and bakugo was, he didn't care about saving people he just wanted to win, saving wasn't his priority at first, stain wants people to prioritize in saving instead of other reasons getting ahead first, he just doesn't like selfish heroes like these who do their jobs for selfish reasons, and lastly, have you forgotten that the old iida was selfish af? Stain immediately called him out on spot, his priority was to kill stain like he said instead of saving native, he really put him aside, he was blinded by his hatred and vengeance, stain called him out for not saving native, iida was selfish af and only cared about vengeance, but stain then praised deku instead as he should

[@leeleelee7878]

@@kodakreeeam9971 wait what? Even if he did save shit tons of people, the fact that he did a quirk marriage on purpose by force is a crime, he did sacrifice the relationship with his family for his own good, that was selfish af on its own, morally he was already wrong despite having such a goal and saving a lot of people don't justify his actions in the past, he's still a good character but still, it happened. Same thing with bakugo, he was forced to save, not because he was willing to do so at first, so that's still an issue. So you're saying old iida was completely justified for commiting attempted murder despite having a reason? A selfish one? He was the embodiment of a false and selfish hero to stain, he proved his points completely, no matter what reason he had, he already committed the attempted murder crime and put native aside without mentioning him, he didn't prioritize in saving, but to KILL stain first like he said, so you're saying he was justified? Didn't that put him on the same league as the villain with actions like that? If you're a good hero you'll put your feelings aside and capture the villain INSTEAD of trying to kill him, he was as worse as stain. Just because mt lady changed "drastically" doesn't change the fact that she was selfish before, she was the embodiment of a selfish and fake hero. Stain didn't call everyone a fake hero, he acknowledged all might and deku, he was aware that heroes like these exist, that's why he decided to help deku to get away from a nomu, if a hero happens to be a selfless one and priorities in saving first, he would jump in and beat the villain up and save the hero instead and get away from being captured so he can still continue his tasks, that's his ideology

[@kodakreeeam9971]

@@leeleelee7878 I already gave you the point of Mt.Lady being selfish so I'm not going to argue on that. I'm in no way justifying what Iida did, I'm saying that was literally the only time he snapped and it was only because his brother almost died. Iida's sense of justice is ridiculously strong and is his only ambition as a hero. "Muh Endeavor's forced marriage" Stain has no way of knowing that and neither does the public at large, so that point is moot. The only way the audience knows of that is through Todoroki, so unless he felt like talking about his daddy issues to a serial killer who nearly killed his friends, that point is irrelevant. Now does this make him less of a bad person, absolutely not. "Same thing with Bakugo, he was forced to save, not because he was willing to do so at first, so that's still an issue." Wait so now because he is willing to do so that still makes him a bad person? "Stain didn't call everyone a fake hero" except he did, he called out every hero for being fake and getting compensation bar All Might and later acknowledged Deku because of course he did, the MHA universe revolves around the MC by this point.

[@aceofsharks9837]

I always thought it was odd how people agree with Stain's ideology, despite the arc showing that he was wrong. Remember Iida's brother? He was as selfless & nobel as All-Might, but Stain didn't know that. He just made assumptions.

[@chew.8740]

For a second there I thought you wrote Stalin instead of Stain

[@Cyclonestorm8]

I thought Stain's issue with the brother was that he became a hero because "Welp, this is the family business so I might as well go with that."

[@aceofsharks9837]

@@Cyclonestorm8 No no, that was Iida's original outlook. His brother, Tensei, was motivated to hit the inspirational and kindhearted highs/standards that his sidekicks & siblings saw him as. To say in an easy to understand way: when you're a parent, or older sibling the young ones look up to you with nothing but starry eyes and sheer awe. They see you as a superhero, the ideal person, etc. Knowing how much his siblings and sidekicks looked up to him, Tensei strived to be worthy of that idealistic praise and respect. Stain essentially just assumed he was in it for glory and money, possibly because the Iida Family have always been well respected/known heroes.

[@blackpowderkun]

From what I remember he wasn't a target but just gotten in Stain's way.

[@nerdyspinosaurid]

You can agree with an ideology that a piece of media portrays as bad, and that then simply also means that you disagree with that media's opinion. I don't agree with Stain's ideology because it's too reductive, as it was invented as a strawman. The show's ideology though, oh my god there sure is some garbage there. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love the show, and it's certainly better than some, but the capitalist bullshit and copaganda, no, not a fan of that. Worse than most superhero things even.

[@TGNXAR]

This argument for heroes getting paid can be made for police, military personnel, and firefighters.

[@AtomicBananaPress]

Not to fully disagree, but we also have neighborhood watches, militias, and volunteer firefighters. All of which have drawbacks, but also the benefit of not being tied to capital.

[@JohnDoe-kv3cm]

To be fair though, there are countries that e.g. rely almost entirely on volunteer firefighters. Iirc even in the U.S. only about a third of all firefighters are career firefighters.

[@TheStrangerSpeaks10]

AtomicBananaPress but the point in the video was about capitalism, in mha the heroes are paid by the government like firefighters or police officers.

[@TGNXAR]

@@Thunder-Sky Umm...no. That is naive. There will always be the need to defend one's neighbors, ideals, and nation. Because there will ALWAYS be people out there who wish to suborn you to their ideals, regardless of how it harms you. Force is the ultimate authority, necessary to protect what is important to you.

[@candlelighter1588]

ThunderSky if every nation agreed they’d be eaten like defenceless cattle by hundreds of ex-military, people discontent with statuesque and the power hungry who wish to rule over their nation

[@Crazor2000]

Your point of that 'paid or not, hero's still need a job' reminds me of Spiderman. In most incarnations (i'm not a huge comic reader so sorry if i'm wrong) Peter Parker has because of his hero work, issues with life, his devotion in to the people has resulted in that he can bearly can keep up with money and bills, because he prioritizes hero work over his own well being. And even if that is pretty noble, you can really see the hindrence a truely noble hero has to fight in order to get by. Again, this depends on the incarnation. some incarnations are more focused on the time he is in highschool, so those don't really count i think since he still lives with his aunt. A good example In the ps4 game is in the begining cutscence, where you can bills overdue and the small appartment with no money in his vacation jar and barely any in his new laptop jar. The only time that Spiderman was pretty rich that i know of is when (in the comics) Doc Ock, took over peter's body. in that series Dr octupus took over Peter´s body and started a business which grew into a multinational business, but that was also because he started fighting crime less (he used drones to check the city and tended to ignore lesser crimes) ,which show´s the issues with balancing job and hero work. so either he spent less time doing hero work in order to get money or sacrifices his own financial stabilty to do hero work. i don´t know the exact details, so if i have anything wrong my apologies.

[@kabob0077]

Gerko Gilhuijs With Great Power comes great economic turmoil and a balancing game of Hero Work and Life.

[@Iruka1991]

You can even see it in the second movie of the first trilogy. He is working as a delivery guy but fails becouse he kept on prioritazing hero work even during working hours. The only way he could make money and also keep up with his heroism was by selling photos of himself.

[@kabob0077]

Marcos Bustos Ain't that just sad?

[@LieutenantAmerica]

Spider-Man would likely be both happier as a person and much more effective/present to help people in the society of HeroAca.

[@StealthGamer37]

That’s why Spiderman is almost always able to lift Thor’s hammer (as far as I remember)

[@mangetsu9725]

How dare you have the audacity to make money of of youtube???? I am much disappoint THESE STREETS RUN WITH THE BLOOD OF HYPOCRITES

[@joelsasmad]

KZbinr... I will reclaim the meaning of that word!

[@letsrank9349]

I will only let one man to kill me!

[@orrorsaness5942]

peWdIEpIe!!! peWDIepIe iS wOrTHy!!!

[@austinryder2622]

Mount Lady "Flashlights"... Yeah... That's definitely what it is

[@ARandomGuy24]

The real question is how Stain could cut through Ingenium's suit with his thin, ratty katanas. Those poorly maintained things would snap at the first sign of resistance. They might even snap if you swing them and hit nothing.

[@etrules100]

The suit isn't armored, it's just for decoration.

[@fabulousflufferbum2051]

@@etrules100 I think they were just pads. So yeah they will take a fist or Iida's kick but not a shiv

[@justme22154]

​​@@etrules100Probably just light padding. If they were too tough or strong they'd probably weigh him down, especially since his engines being in his elbows lends himself to high jumps rather than straight running where the legs to all the work. He'd need to be light and agile for that.

[@metageek7878]

I think stain doesn't mind people being paid for hero work, I'm pretty sure All Might gets paid, I think his problem was fame and fortune being a motivation or any other non altruistic motivation, after all Ingenium he decided not to actually kill and he was fairly just but not quite to Stains twisted standards for reasons that still escape me, so he only crippled him point is I think Stain had more issues with the media circus and morals of heroes being skewed than compensation itself

[@Michael_Raymond]

“Would people self-sacrifice to perform a duty for the good of society without substantial monetary reward? Hey, my wife’s a teacher! Let’s ask her about privately funding the school syste- OH GOD HONEY IM SORRY PLEASE STOP

[@frozenheartedgiant8330]

Just saying, public schools are shit because they don't need to compete for students, and hire shit teachers.

[@user-gk6nt5gi5n]

The stain merchandise Ohhh my god that was actually in the show

[@Yal_Rathol]

of course it was. the only thing stopping all for one vs all might figures from being on every shelf is the number of people AFO buried under buildings, the market doesn't care, it sells what people will buy.

[@user-gk6nt5gi5n]

@@Yal_Rathol has I was just surprised that he predicted it

[@sesereddead465]

Yal Rathol but he killed people.... That’s like a German cake shop having a cake that shows hitler appearing like a saint, while killing people with backgrounds that go against his views on the “super-race”.

[@Yal_Rathol]

@@sesereddead465 your analogy falls apart, because there is no hero in your analogy. instead, imagine someone selling a cake that shows the allies powers fighting the axis force, that's the an analog.

[@sesereddead465]

Yal Rathol I was talking about stain specifically getting merchandise

[@EnormousApplePie]

"shill" - uses a picture of Mothers Basement. Nice

[@SuperSaiyanD48]

Could someone fill me in on why Mother's Basement is hated?

[@shiki780]

You're officially the first KZbinr I've seen to ever mention Worm, and it's glorious. Thank you so much. That entire web serial deserves more attention and any mention, however small, will help attract new readers.

[@Argusthecat]

Webfiction in general needs more popularity. There's so much great stuff out there, but it's not super approachable to a lot of people.

[@laken6461]

What is it about?

[@joshualin5476]

Laken 64 uhhhh Dark Superhero story in line of Watchmen. Protagonist controls bugs within a range. Having superpowers usually necessitates going through extreme trauma to get them (kinda like the shounen trope of finding great internal power in times of crisis)

[@Clash_In_Saff]

Was this his first Worm mention?

[@TheBaldrickk]

@@laken6461 parahumans.wordpress.com/2011/06/11/1-1/ Probably the best superhero deconstruction story ever. Really, really, really worth the read. Or if reading isn't your thing, the community came together to record an unabridged audiobook version audioworm.rein-online.org/ It gets... more than a little dark, to the point that even early on in the story, the author was literally rolling dice to see if characters would survive. He did this to pretty much the entire cast, including the protagonist, who he would have been happy to kill off. And it's only after that happens that the story goes off the deep end. What it does exceptionally well though is to really explore the consequences that result from people gaining essentially god-like powers, and how that effects the world at large, and by following different characters around in bonus chapters, it explores it from all angles. It's a massive and in depth exercise in world building, and is also utterly compelling. You really don't know what's going to happen next. I can't recommend it enough.

[@RonaldCorbin14]

Worm reference! Yay!!! I love that web series so much. For anyone who wants to read a superhero fic that is dark while still being nuanced, you can't really go wrong with this one.

[@leysonmose]

Nuanced...yeah

[@Clash_In_Saff]

Was this his first Worm reference?

[@creeperkingdom3190]

I read worm, but i still don't understand the joke

[@1Maklak]

In MHA Heroes get recruited and paid by agencies, who are responsible for public events and merchandise for their Heroes, among other things. This resembles sports teams IRL. One Punch Man has a centralised system with just one heavily bureaucratic Hero agency and a strict hierarchy of Heroes and it seems to have more drawbacks than MHA system. Possible material for part 3?

[@sailor664]

DUDE WHEN YOU MENTIONED WORM I ALMOST JUMPED IN EXCITEMENT 😍 Its such a brilliant series, it's a refreshing and realistic take on how a heroic society would actually function. I would love to see you do a video on it (even if its comparing it to hero aca) because it deserves way more recognition than it gets

[@Pigmedog]

"Why cant I have a gun for a head?" *THESE QUESTIONS POSE AN EXISTENTIAL THREAT*

[@nozon5686]

I don't know if its just me but I never got the vibes that stain thought the getting paid part was bad but rather the unwillingness to do anything in one's power to save or help people.

[@SpectralTime]

I wasn't gonna complain about the sponsorship, but I did click-skip it. That said, I really like how you integrated it into the themes of the video overall.

[@RealRaven6229]

Dude wasn’t expecting a worm drop. That’s a reference.

[@Clash_In_Saff]

Was this his first Worm reference?

[@agwic]

@@Clash_In_Saff I know I'm late, but in his first or second video(I forget which) he drops a mention of the endbringers with a picture of leviathan

[@Clash_In_Saff]

I'd murder a god to hear him talk about worn

[@petrkisselev5085]

I feel you've not expanded enough on the more frightening aspects of My Hero Academia's hero economy. Like any economy, the hero economy is based on the theory that there exists an equilibrium between supply (resources) and demand (need). The issue arises in the fact that this theory makes absolutely no guesses as to how this equilibrium is reached, neither does it say anything about how stable this equilibrium is (how hard or easy it is to break the status quo). In the case of the hero economy, one can see this supply-demand dynamic be played by heroes as the resource and citizens in need of rescuing as the source of demand. But that is the ideal case. If you look deeper, you come to the conclusion that in order for citizens to need rescuing, there needs to be crime (natural disasters are just not reliable enough). This fact flips the dynamic upside down: crime and citizens in need of rescue are now the resource and heroes are now the ones in the need of said resource. As you've mentioned in your video, this system is not sustainable if there are too many heroes and too little crime. If their well-being is being threatened, heroes might start to engage into some unhealthy competition. What you've failed to mention, is that some heroes might even be inclined to stage crimes in order to artificially inflate the demand for their services. That has some frightening consequences, especially when you start thinking about the collateral damage. Have you ever read the western comic "The Boys"? Its story explores the idea of what happens when, in a society that worships superheroes, the aforementioned superheroes turn out to be like any other human being: flawed and susceptible to corruption.

[@chodori2041]

As a spinoff, the low barrier of entry + extreme variability in Quirk potential would probably result in a hierarchy similar to the acting pyramid. There would be a few huge winners, a smaller pool of heroes with a decent living standard and a ton of struggling aspirants making the bare minimum. Not to mention dynasties would be all but assured despite any nominal legislation to curtail them. Considering equilibrium, I assume heroes would begin acting as an interest group and attempt to self-perpetuate their importance, artificially propping themselves up and squashing alternatives that could challenge their hegemony. It would be standard behavior for any group that seizes unchallenged control over a "market".

[@justme22154]

In short, if heroes are as effective as the PPG, Major Man's gonna need to come in and make some crime to stop.

[@jackie7988]

Tiger & Bunny is another anime that deals with the themes of being a hero and earning money through it! I think it does it even better than Hero Aca

[@TDSFounder]

In that series the television portion almost completely hampered their ability to work. Fun abridged series too.

[@CmdrRenegade]

Thank you for mentioning Tiger & Bunny, that wonderful hero anime no one's heard of. That one's another where heroes are corporate owned and on a reality show with all the pressures that come from balancing that and truly being a good hero.

[@lucyarisato6850]

GOD you have no idea how happy I was to hear the worm reference. Then again, with the way your channel keeps growing, you're gonna need more worthy opponents soon. God bless you and god bless this video.

[@JohnSmith-dz2dc]

I love your example of a hero working a job and having to decide whether to leave to fight crime across town risking their job while also thinking about the sore state of their costume. This perfectly encapsulates like 3/4th of Spider-Man’s problems: making ends meet due to how much hero work affects his personal life

[@cameronjadewallace]

I mean... Well, look at Aizawa

[@drbeeant]

The mention of Worm a big pleasant surprise. Nice.

[@giraffedragon6110]

Holy shit... this is the ultimate mind blower because it’s simple. The only reason being a vigilante like Batman works is because he’s a multi billionaire philanthropist. He has the money AND the time to do so. It’s a similar prospect with police work

[@marlom7882]

Welp he (or is getting ready to) uploaded a video see guys next time in several months

[@cooldude56g]

*sees Eraser Head for the first time with a literal pencil eraser for a head* "Guys I'm sorry I have to say it. We need to protect Explanation Point. We need to protect him because he is a treasure and a special boy and we need to lock him up somewhere he will be happy and safe and free to make more videos."

[@videogamebuster]

The big difference in hero and the real world is that in the real world people will try to cash in on the idea of "good will" for instance they will act and pretend they are not in fact getting paid but are just doing this out of the kindness of their heart and look how nice they are. And they want all the "rewards" that comes with being selfless and a genuinely good person despite it not really being selfless. NOW in hero, no one is under the impression the heros are doing this purely for "the good of all" it is clearly stated this has become a job and people get paid to do it. Some heros are more self sacrificing then others, obviously but they are not benefiting from the social "rewards" that being a hero with out pay would give, and they are not asking for that kind of thing. I think thats why people in the real world get frusterated, When a youtuber tells thier audience how much they love them and how they do all this work for them, and then turns around and takes a big sponsor deal, and then follows that up with the expectation for the audience to still be super appreciative for "all the selfless work". I can get people calling some youtubers a sell out. However i have seen youtubers, just like you, who own up the the fact that yes, you need to make money, and yes, while you like us, you probably would not do this full time without the money, and that is ok. THATS the huge difference. The attitude of the creator and the subtextual expectations they have from their audience. You do not get to ask for the socal glory of being "sefless" while not being selfless, thats what pisses people off. IMHO.

[@changhyon92]

^this right here is the truth

[@danidm5820]

In the great words of Dan (Game Grumps): "It's easy to call someone a sellout when... you're living with your mom... and you got everything taken care of... you know... I got medical bills, dude!"

[@videogamebuster]

@@danidm5820 Well thats kind of the point, dan is not walking around looking for good will from his lovelys trying to make himself look like a selfless being, he and arin are very clear that, they want to make money AS WELL as make people happy, but if they stopped making money, they would stop making videos. Sellouts are people who take the money and also want the "social reward" of being selfless and or "one of you guys"

[@kamronspencer4910]

Ehrenberg Films I’ve never really seen both my hero’s system/world and the topic of advertising and “sell outs” so perfectly summed up before. Well done

[@videogamebuster]

@@kamronspencer4910 I try :P

[@StealthGamer37]

12:58 This is honestly the only point you need to make. Pay Heroes and they can be a hero all the time; don’t pay Heroes and they need to get a normal job (making them far less present and effective). In season 3, they touch on the idea of being payed for hero work again, but it is put in a tainted light. The proctor of the provisional licensing exam says that it is only natural to want a reward for risking your life for others, but that only taints the notion. It is not a far cry from robbing a store owned by the person you just saved, “because they owe me” when they really don’t. Doing good deeds out of the kindness of your heart doesn’t mean you are entitled to compensation. But when you are promised a payment from the act before hand, it allows you to do the good deed, knowing that you could lose valuable money if you don’t. It gives the incentive to have integrity.

[@noahg6024]

"We've got to have... MONEY!" Also, I should probably start reading Worm.

[@Hayseus712]

Oh hey, the annual Explanation Point video!

[@satansenpai383]

Explanation Point mentioned Worm... my life is complete

[@jordanspencer2157]

I'm sorry. I didn't quite catch that. Did you say Mt. Lady fleshlight?

[@StealthGamer37]

Jordan Spencer he said flashlight, but the joke was 100% a fleshlight

[@sophiawiener7849]

aw yeah those sweet sweet acknowledgements of worm as something that exists.

[@PyroMancer2k]

Stain's argument of Hero's shouldn't receive pay makes no sense because it's like saying we shouldn't pay police or firefighters or any first responders because they should being doing it out of the kindness of their heart and if they don't then they are being greedy. Just because the Hero's have powers above that of normal people doesn't really matter because you can make similar arguments to anyone with a natural talent.

[@enzojose4001]

He never said that heroes shound't receve pay, he said that when you become a hero just for the pay, without truly thinking about protect other people, you are ruining the image of heroes.

[@rexwrecks92]

WORM! YES! MY GOD!

[@xSkyDestroyerx]

Dude you have Got to buff up your home security This is the second time the same guy broke into you place You have been lucky that he has been distracted by these Awesome Games that he didn’t get to use his Deadly weapons before they spoiled

[@22myguy]

You know about Worm, cool!

[@KillerXSquirtle]

I can't help but remember that half of Spiderman's problems is that he's broke and super-heroing gets in the way of him having a healthy work-life balance

[@joerivera5194]

In the BNHA episode where they go to the mall and Deku encounters Shiguraki, in one of the opening scenes of the mall it shows two little boys trying on a Stain mask the store was selling

[@Silverias_IR]

Holy shit, Worm reference!

[@Clash_In_Saff]

Was this his first Worm reference?

[@eisgnom7383]

when you said "what if the public makes it so that heroism is strictly volunteer based?" i remembered that i read a comicbook about that. well not EXPLICITLY that, but one of the interludes covered it.

[@maguffium2397]

You read Worm! You're now my favorite KZbinr 😍

[@YayapLives]

Seriously there is a lot of space for a side by side of MHA and Worm. both try to approach the concept of how could a society exist in which people have powers. I would watch that video.

[@romanaxton4710]

Hi Explanation Point, great video! I'd never heard of Worm before but it looks cool! Your comment about "Stain action figures" made me wonder if you have any thoughts about the tendency for capitalist systems to co-opt and commodify dissenting views, and if that might play into mainstream views on Stain. It's something I first heard about with regards to ...certain events in the biking episode from black mirror season 1. You can see a little of this already from the League of Villains ironically, with Shigaraki using a watered-down version of Stain's ideology to attract new members to the League of Villains even though Stain made it painfully clear that he would never side with Shigaraki voluntarily due to the more nuanced differences in their stances.

[@Violettica5000]

That was the best segue *out* of a sponsorship I've ever seen.

[@lyssam100]

YO, WORM! Worm doesn't get enough love.

[@mouseprotector5081]

Hey cool Exp reads Worm. Never thought id ever see a Big youtuber reference Worm

[@TheJFKWahoo]

was that a freaking worm mention?! awesome

[@AraumC]

One of my favorite bits of My Hero Academia content comes from the parody manga "My Hero Academia: Smash!!" In this otherwise mundane humor show attached to a large shounen jump brand, there's a few pages where Stain comes to visit Class 1-A in his time off from prison, apparently. Uraraka confronts this directly, stating her money motivation, and Stain responds: U:"I'm actually hoping to become a hero... in order to save my parents' company, which is failing. Is that bad?" S: "You can't turn to others for that answer. You need to decide that for yourself. S: "Sigh. There's something wrong with the world if you're even asking that question. Why should your saving lives be linked to your family's company?" Kaminari: "But having a stable income would allow us to better focus on the hero work, no?" S: "True, but not my point. Your logic is flawed to start with. People give donations to monks after a funeral, but would those same monks say 'I have no money, so I refuse to read the rites for your loved one?' Same thing with heroes. You can't put a price tag on people's lives. It's that cynical side of society that I really hate." (My Hero Academia:SMASH!!!, vol. 5, pg. 83-84) Proving he's not against the idea of money being given to heroes, just a system built around it, and showing he puts at least a bit more thought into his ideals than some give him credit for. This isn't canon, but it still is something really worth talking about in relation to this topic.

[@OnDavidsBrain]

Now I'm just wondering how Stain would react to being in a more traditional Superhero universe like DC. Though speaking of DC I'm betting that just one Dr Manhattan or The Comedian to get that hypothetical legislation off the ground, or hell just the events of Marvel's Civil War comic could shake the My Hero Academia world to its core, just imagine if the Super Hero Registration passed, it'd be insane.

[@nomingyu4026]

A Worm reference! My life is complete...again...

[@toastghost9145]

You mentioned Worm. I can't give this video enough likes (I had liked it before that, but alas, I can't do it again). Also, I should mention I never thought about the societal detriment that Stain posed, which makes the whole issue much more fascinating.

[@uluapoki]

I think another point worth mentioning about paying heroes for their work is the regulatory aspect, which I think you briefly touched on. While altruism is good and wanting to help others is good, if they aren't properly trained or screened in how they perform there's definitely more harm than good that can come out of it. It's like healthcare in that sense. It's similar to the premise of The Incredibles. If more harm was caused with intervention, then that intervention should not have happened. So yeah, involving money in this creates the need for training, regulation, and liability for heroes, which is incredibly high-risk for all parties involved.

[@TheDracoStar]

Holy shit that last part... it kind of gave me chills like... damn... now I'm starting to have a better idea of this kind of thing then I initially first thought.

[@gamefan553]

10/10 for the Worm reference

[@Mariodash23]

This is certainly a fascinating video topic. Considering KZbinrs are the new celebrity in our culture much like how heroes became the new celebrity in Hero Aca, I’m curious if this kind of thought experiment could work when questioning how content creators make money and how their representation in media and entertainment shapes their overall success.

[@watchforever1724]

I mean he did videos on this back in 2017

[@stardestroya15]

14:11 made me subscribe. That "capitalism is a beast" portion of the monologue was f---ing amazing. Great work.

[@sailor664]

GUYS, if you like Hero Aca but wish it was much darker, PLEASE read the web serial "Worm" by Wildbow, its phenomenal!

[@trygveplaustrum4634]

11:23 "All Dogs Go Straight to Hell." The spinoff movie which didn't quite make as much money as its predecessor. I wonder why...

[@windwatcher460]

Wait. Worm is popular enough to be a reference point in a mass audience video?

[@VagabondTE]

Uraraka really isn't a good example for representing the capitalistic side of things. Not just because she wants the money for altruistic reasons.. But also because she doesn't even want the money. Let's not forget her parents actual job. They are specifically furniture movers. Her qwerk is perfectly attuned to make their life easier and they won't let her. She's seeking money solely to go around their heads. It is true that your reasons don't matter but I think this is different. If she was allowed to use her qwerk to help her parents she wouldn't even consider money so I think that changes things. Basically, the reasons do matter for her because she specifically has a better alternative that she doesn't have access to. Also she's is an animated gollum of kittens, rainbows, and strawberry pudding and I would justify her actions even if she was trying to Thanos snap the universe.

[@ObaREX]

Enjoyed this very much. I never was on the Stain train like most edgelord wannabes. But I never thought of the money making aspect of hero work as something THAT necessary. I always thought of it was just a nice and totally acceptable perk. So when you said that the heroes NEED to be paid in order to devote more time to hero work, it kinda blew my mind. Spider-Man could easily save more people if he didn't have to worry about paying for college and being an underpaid photographer. The Avengers are only able to jump on the seen when they do because of their Stark Industries funding. Nice vid.

[@watchforever1724]

Okay then

[@8citani8]

Its my fist time catching a World Wide live presentation. So exciting!!!

[@Ralathar44]

Exclamation Point: Well done 16 minute video. Comment sextion: OMG a Worm reference, I love WORM! :)

[@julianb188]

This video made me go read Worm and that shit is criminally obscure. I'm halfway through and somehow it's still upping the ante with each chapter.

[@Nameguy2]

how was golden morning?

[@julianb188]

@@Nameguy2 Legitimately caught me off guard. I didn't predict it at all. Such a good story and it's not even wildbow's best.

[@omniboo1762]

Will Deku eliminate the middle class?

[@davidthorp01]

I would hope he would bolster it, as the middle class is the balwark of the capitalist ideal. You know, not only are they skilled labor, but also movers and shakers.

[@DUUDE101]

Looking forward to Deku overthrowing capitalism

[@petrolandcoffee]

You know you're doing something right when the ad is as funny as the content we are here for

[@CobalionRider]

Called the one true youtuber being digibro the moment that line started lol

[@BenersantheBread]

"Digibro is worthy!" killed me

[@marsupialmole3926]

Stain doesn't argue that heroes shouldn't be paid, he argues that any hero who wouldn't be a hero if they weren't getting paid shouldn't be a hero. This is why All Might and Deku are worthy in his eyes. This is what makes him scary, in all honesty, he is entirely right, but if people just take what he says at face value it's so structurally destabilizing to society that it can't be allowed to happen, because of the importance of the public having faith in heroes.

[@BacchaeOphanim]

Not to mention the health benefits that must come with being a pro hero. Like, heroism is guaranteed to cause frequent injuries, and being a professional guarantees that will be covered. Not so much if you're basically just a hero for hobby.

[@xvincplayerx8]

Good job for the sponsor, it's a great game Edit: Was not ready that you talk about it after

[@rhettoric5796]

9:46 Your way of sponsoring is hilarious and awesome. Good info breakdown. Great video.

[@WindupCrow]

Don't pick Shai if you're a new player, she's a bit useless for soloing and grinding. If you already have friends who play and can boost you go for it

[@CandyThePuppy]

2:01 _literally wheezing out loud_

[@TDSFounder]

Worm reference. Nice.

[@ghostwriter5685]

Holy shit! A worm Reference at 8:11?! You’ve read worm?! Defuq?! I am now happy.

[@lukeoreilly464]

Last night I literally saw a video of yours recommended to me and I thought “huh, I wonder why he hasn’t uploaded in a while” as I proceeded to watch other vids

[@takeru3159]

Part of the reason threre can be such large in his release schedule is because he primarily does work as editor for other anime youtubers.

[@avery4983]

I'm actually pretty happy you got sponsored by black desert. I've been looking for an excuse to mess around with that character creator since borth samson

[@Rex10111]

Ochako Dollars are the only acceptable form of currency

[@davidthorp01]

If i could, I’d ask her to open up a go fund me; we make a video of her explaining her situation, and we make it rain because she is so wholesome and sweet damn it

[@Arrakiz666]

D O Y O U H A V E T H E C U R R E N C Y ? ? ?

[@Elfos64]

Stain's issue wasn't that heroes started making money as public figures, his issue was always that their public fame persona seems to supersede their duties of saving people from danger, it became too much about the fame and not enough about saving and inspiring others with selfless acts. Like Yaoyorozu's internship for example, she didn't do any hero work or training whatsoever, she did a glorified modeling job. Look at his objection to Iida, Iida wasn't operating for profit nor as a public figure, he was neglecting what should have been his priority- saving Native. A profitable public figure All-Might may be, his public life never came at the cost of his integrity or dedication to saving and inspiring others.

[@ViolentlyCumin]

Hahaha Mt. Lady Flashlights, I bet that was a different joke in draft 1

[@ZekeStaright]

A typo he decided to roll with.

[@imaginaryboy2000]

You know your editing is so fast-paced and off-the-walls that it's hard to really appreciate all the unnecessary but amazing details you put in, like the Oppai WcDonalds hat Saitama wears.

[@TheSugarRay]

This video is 30% more defensive than I thought it would be.

[@TylerMartin-lf8wk]

Technically, if Uraraka REALLY wanted to make money, she should’ve just became a software engineer, the pay is good and it’s an expanding industry

[@blummie1215]

I’ve never gone into the beginning on a video after the ad and just thought “thanks. I hate it” more than now

[@SuperCaleb283]

I don't think I have ever seen a video transition in or out of an embedded ad so perfectly. This is why I'm subscribed, I got a good laugh from that.

[@ElysianLys]

Listen, we all gotta survive capitalism. Good on you for doing what you need to make it through the month.

[@Odinsday]

Nothing wrong with making it slightly less toxic. America especially needs a complete work around.

[@Nanook128]

Or we can end capitalism so we don't keep having to struggle to survive.

[@ElysianLys]

@@Nanook128 Eat the rich and redistribute their obscene amount of wealth to the people who need it most, I'm all for it, but until the revolution comes we gotta get by somehow.

[@Christian---]

@@ElysianLys Deserving of wealth is not based on labor or need but by ownership, merit and contribution. You will never be able to change any of this without colossal reduction in peoples liberty and/or security.

[@Odinsday]

@@Christian--- Capitalism and liberty go against each other. America has proven this time and time again.

[@raisadiamantabingei8460]

this video aged like fine wine as of the manga's current development...

[@TheSugarRay]

Why do I grunt every time I see Mt Lady?

[@nothinmulch]

I love this. Now I want to show this to anyone who doesn't understand the concept of paying people. If you want something for free, like art, you're going to have to wait a lot longer for it to come out, and rely on people who already have decent, not stressful jobs with a lot of free time and joy for the craft to do it for you. Or you could pay that person adequately to do it, and get more content more often at a higher quality. It also helps when the people who are paying for your craft also have extra money to spend, and aren't hard pressed to pay bills, which is why minimum wage, healthcare, ect, are very important. This all begs the question: what would happen if hero work worked the way American healthcare did today, instead of it, presumably, coming from tax dollars?

[@TililioChaosLord]

Love of the craft doesn't feed ya you know. Starving artists is a thing. So sponsoring is good (but please, don't chose RAID, their game is an awful pay to win that's advertised by everyone now T_T)

[@majicflyingmonkey]

You are so good at this. First the tournament arc and now making the viewers journey the same as the heroes journey through shilling. great work

[@JohnDoe-kv3cm]

I'd like to point out that there are ways to reconcile volunteer work with having a job. For an example, the firefighting force of germany is made up almost entirely of volunteers who'll leave their normal jobs to respond to emergencies as needed. At about one million men the german firefighting force is also almost as big as that of the U.S.A., so they are not exactly lacking in people willing to put their lives on the line without compensation (apart from receiving the same pay they'd get as if they didnt leave work). Mind, I stumbled upon this video while trying to figure out whether my hero academia is worth watching, so I dont know how applicable this real-world example to its setting (guess I'll find out). It just seemed to me that the idea of a volunteer force was dismissed far too quickly by you for reasons that *can* apply but dont neccessarily have to, depending entirely on how a society is structured and the mindset of its people.

[@cerdon4076]

Well you also have professional firefighters, volunteer firefighters exisf everywhere but as backup in huge emergencies. Similar to how most countries have a reserve military force.

[@JohnDoe-kv3cm]

@@cerdon4076 German firefighting force is 4% career, ~2% factory and military fire brigades and 92% volunteer fire brigades (with conscripts making up the rest). outside of big cities volunteers are the first and usually only ones to respond. Though you are correct that the medical and technical disaster relief teams are volunteer forces as well. Even in the US around two thirds of the firefighters are volunteer, you so most responses there are dealt with by volunteers too.