Sansars

Hagakure Toru in my Hero Academia S8

Episode 1 of Season 8

eye on you

So, we all know there’s been drama regarding the aging process of the Toys and the Prototype. I figured I’d give my two cents and hopefully provide some clarity for those stressing out about it.

So, do the toys and the Prototype age? Well, yes... and no. It’s complicated. From what I understand, their bodies do not physically grow like normal human bodies. Some speculate they do, citing the Huggy Wuggy memory scenes in Chapter 5—which allegedly show him getting bigger in each scene—but take it with a grain of salt and form your own conclusions. Personally, I don’t think it’s possible.

Now, do they age psychologically? This is where it gets tricky. Scientifically speaking, since they still have their original brains, one would assume those brains ARE developing (you can’t really stop biology). The brain is the only organic part of them that should still be growing, especially since these toys are biologically organic.

BUT, here is the catch: due to the trauma, abuse, and violence they’ve endured—living in a hellscape for years—many have suffered severe psychological damage. Some have regressed to a childlike state; others are so far gone they’ve become animalistic. Considering some of these toys (especially the Critters) were turned into toys as toddlers or young children (and some as pre-teens or teenagers, like Matthew), they never had a proper environment to mature. They are stuck in minds that are either regressed or stunted.

Then you have characters like Mommy Long Legs, DogDay, Poppy, Gilbet and the Prototype who are either in-between maturity and stunted, stunted or mature. I’m not saying they were "taught" anything or had any experiences—aside from sacrificing themselves for "science" and Gracie Green’s brainwashing—but they have psychologically aged albeit in a warped way. It wouldn’t surprise me if their environment forced them to "grow up" and "change" faster either (this isn’t FNAF by the way).

I know Isaac once said the aging process is complicated but later retracted that (likely due to backlash), saying he believes them to be "always children." The artist Amber said the same. However, while Isaac is the creator, he is no longer part of development, and Amber is not a writer nor a developer. She’s just an artist that makes art. She has been contradictory before. Mob Entertainment has even stated that some team members insert their own headcanons. Mob themselves has stay vague on this topic, likely to avoid drama in an already toxic fandom.

Personally, I think it’s weird to have organic, growing beings but insist the characters remain "children" forever. It feels like the team wants to give the Prototype adult-like qualities while also saying, "But guys, he’s just a little child in a monster body." To me, that feels more like shock value than actual lore because ✨horror✨.

Regarding the Prototype: if Mob is trying to convince me he’s still a child, they’re doing a poor job. Based on the lore, the ✨science✨, and his behavior, he seems like a traumatized, mentally stunted adult man with severe anger issues and violent tendencies that needs hella therapy. Yes, he was a child, but now he is a grown adult—albeit a warped one—hell-bent on his goals. I don't see a "child" doing surgeries, inventing, calculating, using specific speaking patterns, etc. It doesn't scream "child" to me, especially when he told Poppy, "You act like a child because a child is what they made you."

I understand why this is sensitive. Unfortunately, "Weirdos" exist and they will always target child-like characters and mentally vulnerable characters, and that is disgusting. They deserve to be criticized and cancelled for it. But I’m tired of stupid people throwing the term "PDF file" around so loosely and falsely accusing people as such. Most people from what I’ve seen are "simping" for the design, not the child the character once was or still is. You can separate the two (albeit still a tad bit weird). AUs and headcanons exist, and at the end of the day, they are just fictional characters. Calm down.

People are focusing so much on the "child" aspect that they ignore the everything else in the lore/story. Much of the fandom is made up of minors who react with feelings rather than logic, so that doesn’t surprise me, but I digress. Maybe use that energy toward stopping actual predators and helping actual victims if you care that much, I’m just saying.

Anyway, that’s just my takeaway. Let me know what you think in the comments and feel free to thrown in your own theories! Thanks for reading!

(Refer to the screenshots for context!)

I feel like this could count as a theory too, since we still don’t fully know what’s going on behind the scenes yet. I thought it was interesting enough for others to think about and form their own conclusions. I’m also a huge science nerd and love talking about this stuff lol.

Alright, let’s begin.

To the people in the “They’re still children” crowd — while I appreciate the passion behind that interpretation, I strongly disagree with the idea that this is confirmed by the narrative. The claim that Stella’s speech or Ms. Gracie’s ASMR lines in Chapter 5 prove the experiments are children is speculative at best. These are thematic elements, not hard lore. Stella’s monologue is philosophical, not literal, and Ms. Gracie’s “stay a child forever” rhetoric is clearly part of a psychological manipulation tactic, not a biological fact about the experiments.

Let’s also remember that the developers themselves have expressed differing views. Amber’s headcanons are not canon, and she has contradicted the lore multiple times. The lore is intentionally ambiguous right now — MOB has been vague on purpose, either because the story is still developing or because they’re trying to avoid unnecessary conflict in the fandom.

The main argument for “they’re all children” hinges on trauma causing regression. And yes, trauma can cause regression — but regression ≠ childhood. A traumatized adult can act childlike without being a child. The Prototype is a perfect example: he shows severe psychological damage, but his actions — surgeries, inventions, calculated manipulation — do not match a child’s cognitive abilities. He reads as a mentally stunted, traumatized adult, not an eternal child.

The toys’ psychological states vary. Some may still be children because they were transformed as toddlers or young kids. Others were older children or teens when transformed, meaning they would have continued developing mentally. The narrative does not confirm that all toys are children, and the evidence used to support that claim is interpretive, not definitive. Many may be children — but not all. You can’t give certain toys adult-coded traits and still expect everyone to believe they’re children. It feels more like shock value than consistent storytelling.

And unlike FNAF, these characters are organic biological beings with their original human brains. We have no confirmation that the devs removed:

• Growth hormones

• Thyroid hormones

• Adrenal hormones

• Myelination processes

• Synaptic pruning

• Neurotransmitter regulation

• Environmental stimulation

The lore never states this. In fact, Huggy Wuggy is supposedly confirmed to still have a thyroid (don’t quote me on that though), and Bron’s thyroid glands were devoured in the “RESTRICTED_restoration.mp4” tape — meaning he had them to begin with. Thyroid glands produce hormones. So the “they stay children forever” idea doesn’t hold up when you consider these biological factors.

If the toys still have:

• Their original human brains

• Organic biological systems

• The ability to think, learn, and adapt

Then they cannot be permanently locked into a child’s mind unless:

1. The devs explicitly state all hormonal and neurological development was removed

2. The brain was artificially frozen in a prepubescent state

3. The experiments were designed to suppress all cognitive maturation

None of this is confirmed in canon (as of now).

So the “they stay children forever” argument is based on assumption, not evidence.

Why adult-coded behaviors break the child theory

You still cannot explain:

• The Prototype performing surgery

• Gilbet showing adult emotional restraint

• Mommy Long Legs demonstrating complex manipulation

• Poppy using advanced vocabulary and reasoning

These require:

• Developed frontal lobes

• Executive function

• Long-term planning

• Emotional regulation

• High-level cognition

Mental age ≠ physical age.

What if the devs removed all hormonal components?

If they removed every hormone needed for brain maturation, the toys would:

• Have no emotional regulation

• Have no long-term planning

• Have no impulse control

• Be unable to perform complex tasks

• Be cognitively frozen at the age they were turned

But that contradicts:

• The Prototype’s intelligence

• Poppy’s reasoning

• Mommy Long Legs’ manipulation

• DogDay’s emotional nuance

• Gilbet’s maturity

And again — adults can act childish too. “Childish” describes behavior, not biology. Adults can:

• regress

• throw tantrums

• act immature

• be impulsive

• behave younger than their age

That doesn’t make them children.

In short

Childish behavior ≠ being a child.

It just means someone’s behavior is underdeveloped, not their age.

The only thing that might have been removed is puberty — which would make sense, since they’re toys.

On the sensitive topic

I understand why this topic is sensitive. Unfortunately, weirdos exist and will always target childlike or mentally vulnerable characters. That’s disgusting and deserves criticism. But people are throwing around accusations like “PDF file” way too loosely. Most people are simping for the design, not the child the character once was. You can separate the two (even if it’s still a bit weird). AUs and headcanons exist. These are fictional characters.

If people care that much, maybe put that energy into stopping actual predators and helping real victims.

I just wish people would focus more on the lore and science instead of obsessing over the “child” aspect, because it’s causing unnecessary drama — and MOB being intentionally vague isn’t helping (for now, anyway).

So what do you guys think about all of this? Let me know in the comments below and tell me your own thoughts and theories on the topic. 🤔

(No arguments in the comments please 😑)

Bonus (these go into more depth):

ggulp hello I'm feeling called out OP...

.🦾.

—Update some of my Drawing Process,because some people think that my art use ai—

Drawing process

Painting process

And I think that as many people as possible should hear this.

The transcript is below if you can't watch the video, but I highly recommend hearing it with audio. Because he's fucking crying in there.

Various renders I've done of this awful guy I love <3