The best tdmd moments/things (to me; vaguely but not entirely chronological) (also I havenāt read the manga in ages and Iāve only - recently at least - rewatched bits and pieces so some of this is paraphrased while some of it I went back through to get exact quotes and NO Iām not going to do that for all of them it would take too long) (readmore bc itās a lot):
- āAs the crowd shouted, trying to make Sero feel better, Todoroki took a moment to melt his opponent from the ice prison heād created. For some reason, in that moment, he looked very sad to me.ā Ok so this is not the sports festival moment everyone talks about but it LIVES in my head ABSOLUTELY RENT FREE. Itās like, we know Todorokiās been watching Midoriya for a while, mostly due to his obvious connection with All Might, but in this moment, while everyone is focusing on Sero, Midoriya is Watching Todoroki Back. He Sees Him.
- MIDORIYA TELLING ENDEAVOR THAT HE IS NOT ALL MIGHT AND SHOUTO IS NOT HIM. Midoriya is freeeeeaked tf out bc endvr is intimidating + heās worried heāll discover the secret of OFA but the SECOND endvr starts talking like an asshole, Midoriya SHUTS THAT SHIT DOWN. Again, Midoriya has had like ONE conversation with Todoroki and actively Really Wants To Get Away From Endeavor, but he just gets so mad about the way that Endeavorās talking that he pauses his retreat to correct him and I think thatās beautiful.
- One of Todorokiās episodes/chapters being titled āThe boy born with everythingā and how you could easily contrast Midoriya as āThe boy born with nothingā (I could not find a definitive answer on whether canon actually calls him that but like). The juxtaposition of their opposite struggles and the underlying understanding that underneath it all they are really not that different. That they have both suffered, and are both trying to make the most of a power with a difficult legacy. (This brings me to the next point because -)
- āItās your power, isnāt it?ā/āItās yours! Your quirk, not his!ā Yeah. I donāt even have to explain this one I think, everyone knows itās THE tddk moment. Iāll forever die on the hill that Todoroki shouldāve found out about OFA sooner and we shouldāve had a direct reversal while Midoriya was still struggling with thinking of OFA as his quirk instead of All Mightās and Todoroki repeats Midoriyaās words right back at him. I mean, Horikoshi LOVES to do that (see: repetition of ābody moved without thinkingā, āmeddling when you arenāt asked to is the essence of being a heroā, āthatās what friends are for, right?ā etc) the setup was RIGHT THERE, like taking my shipping goggles or whatever off for a second I think it wouldāve been a great addition to the story regardless bc itās an example of how Midoriya has helped other people AND a reminder that he has not quite conceptualized the advice he gives others for himself! Even without that though, we see how important this moment was to Todoroki literally throughout the rest of his arc, to the point that
- āMidoriya, this is my power. Thank you.ā IF WE DIDNT GET TDRK TELLING MDYA THAT OFA WAS HIS QUIRK, AT LEAST WE GOT THIS. MY GOD. I was trying to go mostly chronologically, but since weāre talking about a follow-up to āItās your power, isnāt it?ā I HAD to mention this scene next. Itās a really lovely moment because 1) itās an acknowledgement of how much Todorokiās grown (which he did on his own! Midoriya reminded him of why he wanted to become a hero in the first place, and he had a lot of support from friends (& teachers/family) but TODOROKI decided to put in the work to become the kind of hero he wanted to be!) and 2) itās a reminder to Midoriya that he has made a positive impact and helped the people around him, which I think heās probably struggling with since this is like. Soon after his dropout arc iirc. (Also: itās a cool new super move that Todoroki developed himself to try to create a better future for his family!! Which, setting aside how beautiful it is that Todoroki has crafted his fire into something that wonāt hurt, is also fun bc Midoriya loves quirks and gets to nerd out over Todorokiās cool new move lol)
- TODOROKI SHOWING UP TO THE STAIN FIGHT. Todoroki has been friends with Midoriya for like a week and gets a location pin with no other context and IMMEDIATELY deduces that 1) Midoriyaās not the kind of guy to randomly drop his location so 2) he must be in danger, and 3) IMMEDIATELY TELLS ENDEAVOR HEāS GOING TO CHECK OUT THE LOCATION AND TO BRING BACKUP TO THERE AFTER HEāS DONE FIGHTING BC HE THINKS HIS FRIENDāS IN TROUBLE. When he actually shows up the first thing he says is something like āMidoriya you should include more details at a time like this. It took me a while to figure out what you meant and I couldāve been too lateā but we literally see in the flashback that he figured this all out in like 2 seconds and IMMEDIATELY came to support Midoriya AND SECURED BACKUP. Every person in Midoriyaās phone received the location pin and expressed various levels of curiosity/concern about it in hindsight but Todoroki figured it out right away and immediately came to help (this isnāt a knock on the rest of 1a btw iirc the rest of them werenāt even in Hosu so thereās not anything they really couldāve done about it besides report it - which iirc Kirishima did -, itās just that Todoroki WAS in Hosu and DID figure it out so he immediately went to help and it was that simple for him). Todoroki also just like. Instantly accepts that ok, Midoriya and Iida were fighting a serial killer, Guess Heās Also Fighting A Serial Killer Now. ALL THIS FOR HIS FRIEND OF A WEEK. This is one of the core tenets of tddkism to me: they are as ride-or-die as they come. Also notable: Midoriya is not generally in the habit of asking for help. The fact that he did, knowing nothing might come of it, AND TODOROKI SHOWED UP EXACTLY WHEN HE NEEDED HIM??? Can we acknowledge how much that probably meant to Midoriya. Also the start of tdiimd as a trio, which this post isnāt really about, but I canāt completely leave Iida out when talking abt the stain fight thatād be fucked up :(
- āWeāll protect them togetherā. Yes ik, another Stain fight moment, but I believe this line deserves its own point because, again, Todoroki has been Midoriyaās friend for like a week. Immediately prior to Todoroki saying this, he tells Midoriya that his plan is risky. Itās one thing to recognize Midoriyaās text as a call for help and run to be his backup, itās another thing to let Midoriya take the strategic lead when heās already injured and the plan itself could be dangerous. But Todoroki puts his trust in Midoriya and says theyāll protect them together, showing his confidence in Midoriyaās strategic prowess AND battle planning ability.
- āYouāre a kind person, Todorokiā. Ok Iāll get this out of the way: I have issues with how the writing of this chapter could be read as implying that being a kind person automatically means you have to forgive the person who hurt you. Ik Midoriya tells Todoroki that itās ok not to forgive Endvr if he doesnāt want to, but the way he follows it up with the fact that heās a kind person and the assumption that he wants to forgive Endvr...arenāt my favorite. I think it kind of makes sense for Midoriya to think like this given his own experiences (and also. Midoriya is 15, some of his wording is gonna be a little bit awkward sometimes, so I donāt think thatās the only possible interpretation of what he said), but I wish that if that was the intention, thereād be a moment later on where this view was challenged and Midoriya really internalized that you can be kind and still not forgive someone whoās hurt you. THAT BEING SAID, of all the things that Todoroki is called on a regular basis, and of all the qualities Todoroki associates with himself, I donāt think ākindā is necessarily one of them. āKindnessā was not exactly a virtue that Endeavor seemed to prioritize instilling in him (and though Rei probably wouldāve, she WAS absent for much of Shoutoās childhood), and he spent so much time building his walls and striving to defy his dad that itās not something people tend to immediately pinpoint about him. Todoroki really IS kind though, and Midoriya recognizes that AND makes it a point to tell him. For Todoroki, who has worked on himself quite a lot, and just invited friends to his house probably for the first time ever + gone through a tense family dinner in front of them, I think that probably meant a lot (and his expression in that panel is so cute. Ough).
- āThank you for being Shoutoās friendā. I think the fact that Fuyumi recognized how meaningful their friendship was and thanked Izuku for it was so significant for both of them, like neither of them, as far as we know, HAD a lot of friends prior to attending UA so the acknowledgement that it is a big deal that they befriended each other is special <3
- Tdrk catching Mdya (and bkg and endvr but this aināt about them) during the first war arc. He doesnāt know shit about OFA at this point but he followed Midoriya to the front lines anyways.
- Todoroki tucking Midoriya in in 327 and putting a hand on his shoulder in 32ā¦8? 9? Fuck if I know I havenāt read the manga in ages. Anyways. These are both tiny moments but Iām grouping them together bc they really show how Todoroki is there for Midoriya, in the way that heās always noticing things about him, that heās RELIABLE, he WANTS to be there for Midoriya like Midoriya was there for Todoroki and that manifests both in following him into terrifying fights and in the small gestures of support. Todoroki NOTICES when somethingās wrong, and when he has the necessary context he steps up to help.
- the āare you all mightās secret love child or something?ā convo in its entirety. Between the Todoroki Family Trauma Dump, Midoriya sympathizing with Todoroki and realizing that despite how different their lives have been, theyāre very similar, the beginning of Midoriyaās desire to help Todoroki, and the beginning of Midoriya really Seeing Todoroki, it sets the groundwork for the start of something beautiful
- AFO: āpay close attention to them, tomura shigaraki. These two could prove to be formidable obstacles to you one dayā. / AM: āthey may have more in common than they realize. They both have such an intense vibe about them.ā The fact that both AFO and AM comment on the tdmd sports festival match leads me to believe that originally their relationship (in the original story Iām talking about the platonic sense but read this any way you will since. This IS a post abt why I ship them) was supposed to be more central to the plot, in this essay I will - (<- ramblings of a crazy person but like!!! Both AM and AFO!! And youāre telling me it didnāt mean anything??? Come on!!)
- Also āyouāre helping your opponent. Youāre a fool.ā Their matching maniacal grins after Midoriya prompts Todoroki to use his fire. Todorokiās softer smile and little tear. Mdyaās āAmazingā¦ā. Them immediately deciding to go full force regardless if it kills them (IMPORTANT FACT ABOUT THEM IS THAT THEYāRE INSANE <3). āMidoriyaā¦thank you.ā (OUGHHHHHHHHH ššš)
- MDYA YELLING āDONT GIVE UPā DURING THE TDRK/BKG MATCH AND FOR A BRIEF MOMENT TODOROKI STARTS USING HIS FIRE AGAIN. Ik he ultimately doesnāt end up using his fire, but that makes SENSE, you canāt process all that trauma immediately, it takes time!! The fact that for a moment, Midoriyaās voice was enough to allow him to use his fire so soon after his life-altering revelation in the tdmd match is so important to me though :( (and the fact that Midoriyaās willing to 1) root for Todoroki and 2) root for him loud enough that both Todoroki and Bkg can hear,,, ohh tdmd are so special to me)
- their little convo at the training camp. āYou have a habit of sticking your nose where it doesnāt belongā lol (paraphrased). Underrated tdmd thing is that theyāre willing to tell it to each other straight. But also, the genuinely good advice of āwords themselves arenāt enough, actions are also needed to get through to someoneā (again, paraphrased) (reminder of how Mdya helped Tdrk!! W/ words AND actions!! And now heās helping Mdya help Kota!)
- āI donāt know, I think heroes cry when they need to probablyā - acknowledges Mdyaās crying as a positive trait bc when heās not crying it means heās repressing things, also serves as a reminder that heroes are people too (a similar sentiment to Urarakaās āwho will save the heroes when they need saving?ā). Serves to remind Mdya that his crying doesnāt make him less of a hero + itās ok to feel things. Also Tdiimd.
- āYou canāt even cryā/āLet us share that burden togetherā (this is like. Veeeery paraphrased Iām sorry I donāt have access to the chapter and Iām too lazy to rewatch). The whole class said very meaningful things to try to get Midoriya to come back, but even though he wasnāt ultimately the one to fully get through to him (SHOUTOUT TO IIDA ILY IIDA THIS POST ISNT ABOUT HIM EITHER BUT JUST KNOW I CANT WATCH THAT SCENE WITHOUT TEARING UP THEY R SO DEAR TO ME) Todorokiās is one of my favorites bc sure maybe he doesnāt understand what itās like to have no quirk and then suddenly have a quirk thatās actually seven quirks and have a pretty much all-powerful supervillain hunting him down but he DOES understand the burden of trying to shoulder the crushing legacy of a top hero, and here he reaches out to Midoriya once more reminding him that his tears are a good thing and offering to share the burden and help Midoriya like Midoriyaās helped him.
- Light novel moments: Mdya teaching Tdrk how to make AM origami and Tdrk sending it to Rei, Tdrk going to return Mdyas pencil and admiring Mdyas AM figure and Mdya trying to give it to him bc he has another one but Tdrk refuses bc he doesnāt want to damage it so he suggests he just come visit it instead (I havenāt read the light novels but Iāve seen these excerpts and I love them dearly) (these are just all really cute itās nice to see what theyāre like outside of doing hero stuff)
- Todorokiās āMidoriya Senseā (yes this is a fandom joke based on like the stain incident + noticing smth was up during the āheroes cry tooā incident + Todoroki asking abt him before the cultural festival etc but it IS genuinely very sweet that Todoroki is always looking out for Midoriya and trying his best to help when he can)
- TODOROKI TELLING MIDORIYA TO REMOVE THE BATTERIES FROM HIS PHONE SO THE GOVERNMENT COULDNT TRACK HIM WHILE HE WAS ON THE RUN BC HE WAS A MURDER SUSPECT. Now I havenāt watched the third movie so I may be wrong about the details but it was VERY funny of Tdrk to be like ādid you kill people??? Never mind that actually hereās how to avoid the governmentā (paraphrased for comedic effect)
-āMidoriya and the othersā (cute, something Shouto saysā¦several times lmao) (Izuku has also said āTodoroki and the othersā at least once (in the first movie) but Iām not aware of it being a recurring phrase like āMidoriya and the othersā)
