Kaminari Traitor Theory

I really do like Boku no Hero Academia/My Hero Academia. The writing is good with great characterization and plot; it's by no means original but the very good storytelling made up for it with its twists and turns of expectations. Horikoshi-sensei is a good writer and I am happy about that. The dub was a lot better than the Free! and YOI dub; while the YOI dub wasn't bad, it's at least gotten better with the voice acting later on. Free! dub is all-out bad, almost Hetalia dub bad. The English cast fared better here than the previous anime I mentioned; maybe it's basically superheroes? Everyone and their dog would know the superhero craze and besides superheroes caught the imagination of everyone.

The story is a play on superhero cliches. It's clear that it's made with love in spite of its deconstructions. I always do like how the Japanese joyfully take inspiration from western superheroes to have Tiger and Bunny, One Punch Man, and My Hero Academia. Clearly, the heroes stand up for something different (humility, hard work) from American heroes (justice, truth), it doesn't negate the fact that they are truly saving other people from certain death. I still like how these stories, even that these three deconstruct western superhero conventions with jest, firmly remain on the side of idealism that gave it charm. Yes, even One-Punch Man because there is just something parodic I just love about it. OPM and BNHA are on different spectrums, the latter idealism personified while the former cynicism. T&B is in the middle but leans towards idealism considering the character development that most of the heroes underwent. Honestly, I rather prefer idealistic superheroes that explore consequences for their actions rather than having gritty 'realism'; we live in a bitter cynical world and it's hard-pressed to find something hopeful. That's why I love Cinderella 2015 so much. There are badly done dark cynical superhero adaptations (Man of Steel, Batman v Superman, Suicide Squad) and there are better written cynical dark superheroes adaptations (Nolan's The Dark Knight trilogy, MCU's Netflix series). There are cynical superheroes (OPM) and then there's the idealistic (BNHA).

I don't know at what point that second season will end at which arc, logically, it would be the End of Terms Arc. It makes no other sense when we see the witness to Yaoyorozu's depreciation that will culminate in her self-confidence at the End of Terms arc; the School Trip and the Hideout Raid arcs are conjoined with each other without leaving a kind of cliffhanger...especially the aftermath of the latter arc. The anime is elaborating on the manga single-chapter like giving the rest of the characters time to shine as well as building up the tension to the important fights like Uraraka vs Bakugou, Todoroki vs Midoriya, and Todoroki vs Bakugou.

I am pretty sure that talks of a traitor in-story have to build up to something. I'm sure that Horikoshi is not a lazy writer to discard an idea that was planted in-canon. However, the fact that Horikoshi even mentions a traitor at all twice means there has to be a payoff. With no payoff, then it's bad writing.

Remember this is all speculation and the traitor could be anyone even the teachers and older students at this point. The manga is fast-paced so if Horikoshi deemed that it's time to reveal the traitor, we shall see who is right or not. Hell, there might not even be a traitor at all if we go by paranoia.

So yeah, people can have their fun with Kirishima, Present Mic, Jirou, Aoyama, etc as the traitor. Let's just wait and see Horikoshi work his magic when the reveal comes.

Indeed, the hints that many think Kaminari was the traitor could be red herrings to hide the true traitor.

I'm pretty sure that everyone coming here knows that Kaminari Denki is the traitor theory. It's even in the title.

Here, here, here and here are the careful presentation. Joking from Reddit aside, some evidence is admittedly flimsy (shirt colors, really? It's not Teen Wolf where there is a consistent costuming and coloring but come on) so unless the series confirm something, it's dubious. Some evidence was alarming like the fact that Kaminari, to date, is the only student to have confirmed admiration for Stain and an easily faked drawback. Stain, the Hero Killer, brutally wounded a friend's brother to the point he cannot do hero work anymore and killed many other heroes. Nobody would bat an eye because Quirks are bodily functions after all and there is stranger than having a short-circuited brain.

Look at it from a narrative perspective.

I want to point out some things: the traitor would have to be a character from class 1-A.

It makes no sense for the traitor to be someone from class B or one of the teachers (when some of the teachers barely have a presence beyond being worshiped by the students and public; it would make an impact in-universe but not so much out-of-universe considering we haven't spent time with this traitorous character; that is the key), particularly since we got no hints of a trusted group of highly professional heroes. It has to be a prominent student who has appeared in almost every single arc. Not only it has to impact the characters, but also the readers. The prominence allows readers' investment; which is why Shima's betrayal in Blue Exorcist hurts a lot of fans. The key is spending time with this traitor.

To have a traitor that hasn't been there in the story for some time would lower the significance of such an event.

It will hurt, in and out of the universe. Yet the fact still remains that if there is a traitor in the UA's midst, then it has to be a memorable side character who had gained investment, in and out of universe.

Basically, have a friend you trust with your life betray you with no remorse for their actions. They may or may not have good reasons but that doesn't mean they hurt you. There is well-intentioned hiding like Merlin's hiding of his magic from Arthur where Arthur and Merlin are both justified with their reactions.

Kaminari is a popular character in the fandom yet we barely got anything on him; his reasons for being a hero, his backstory. If he is already popular (in the western and Japanese fandoms), then why Horikoshi show anything regarding his reasons? We could say the same for so many characters, but at least there were focus on them at times and I do mean at times including snippets of their lessons, even Mineta got some good character development at his End of Terms test sequentially passing.

...To be honest, I will not like it that Kaminari became a villain, not out of choice. Not only it wouldn't give depth to the character, but it will also ruin anything calling a redemption. A redemption, defined by the Oxford Dictionary, is "the action of saving or being saved from error, sin, or evil". Not having Kaminari expressing regret for his own actions that he did out of his volition will ruin the point of a redemption arc.

Yeah, those people just don't want to have their fave do bad things out of their own choice rather having it fall the blame on a third party is bad. It's one thing if it's cultural where the children's misbehavior is laid on their parents but it's another when the characters did them; I don't hold against Captain America for his kills nor do I hate Sasuke for his revenge-driven mad schemes. I want people to make their own choice, even out of traumatic events that broke them. Allow characters to have agency rather than to have the Sins of Their Fathers laid on their shoulders. Edmund Pevensie betrayed his siblings out of his volition (manipulated yes but he has a choice; even though people argued the Turkish Delights are brainwashing tool, it wasn't exactly confirmed; I'm pretty sure at that point, the temptation would lure Edmund and brainwashing would reduce the point of Edmund's character development).

It can't be Uraraka because we actually heard her parents as well as the rest days afterward. It can't be Kirishima because we actually see more of his reasons for being a hero and his hard work as well as his impact on the plot (Hideout Raid Arc) and Bakugou's character development as one of a few friends in UA. It can't be Ojirou and Satou because it literally made no sense. Kouda actually has a highlight alongside Sero, Mineta, and Aoyama, all of which give reasons for their future heroism. It can't be any of the girls because we don't even see an inkling of traitorous hints.

Horikoshi may have trouble balancing his cast but he has shown that he can show their character if focused enough or even make an important part of the plot.

He's a minor character yet he, a glue of the class, did not yet to do anything meaningful in the actual plot. He just seems there, memorable but still a minor character.

So what if the glue of the class, the class clown, the dumb blond, the sweet boy turned out to be the opposite: cruel, manipulative, intelligent, and hateful.

Just imagine the possibilities with Kaminari as the villain, revealing himself to be that kind of character, the one who despite spending time with his classmates who exemplified heroism of the new era, cannot see eye-to-eye. Like he uses Aizawa's teachings to his advantage and mocked his former teachers for lending him the capability to extend his Quirk. Imagine him ridiculing the values of All Might and Deku and happily cause terror among his former friends, his traitorous reveal affecting them so much they are afraid they would hurt him despite spending god knows how long with him. To class 1-A, their experiences together might not be as genuine as they might have thought if Kaminari, the class clown, has been continuously stabbing them on their back ever since they came here. They will be grieving but their situation would not allow them to grieve for too long.

Yes, it opens doors to a redemption arc. His true self might not like that little niggling fact and would do anything to stamp out his and his former friends' friendships with easy-to-do torture and chaos. It will take a while for it to come through but Kaminari would come to join them again despite his true personality.

So if this guy who spent time with them all went behind their backs and been teaming up with the VA since forever would hurt everyone. I don't think even Neito Monoma would mock class 1-A out of jealousy for that because not only the remaining class and Aizawa would feel the betrayal, everyone else like All Might and Principal Nedzu would feel the impact. Someone they believe to be so nice and have fun with them betrays them and their cause without a glimmer of regret.

...Hmm, there were issues like how do Kaminari knows the teacher's schedule and the USJ's surroundings unless a teacher is a traitor? Ooh, how about Kaminari being an awesome hacker on top of his powerful electrification? He could hack into UA and especially the government's database whenever he can and send the information to the VA, leaving no traces behind.

There are other theories like Dabi being Shouto Todoroki's brother - the reason why he chose to go by his alias rather than give his name and the fire Quirk - and Overhaul/Chisaki being Momo Yaoyorozu's relative - the fat cells and the rich factor. There is much to back up on the former theory but not so much the latter. The former theory would make sense from a narrative point of view, considering this is Endeavor we are talking about here; I would put more stock on this theory than even the traitor theory itself. However, it's too early in the game for these two villains to have a "Luke, I am your father" moment just as much as it's still early for the traitor to be revealed so again, wait for Horikoshi to work his magic.

The theory opens doors to angst yet it will still be telling the story of superheroes. I am sure Horikoshi-sensei will tell a good story because as I stated before, a great storyteller. While not quite Oda Eiichirou or Arakawa Hiromu or Yoshihiro Yogashi, he's still hell better than Kubo Tite and probably Kishimoto Masashi. While Bleach failed after Soul Society Arc, Naruto maintained Part I really well while Part 2 was a mess where there was clearly a war between Kishimoto and SJ's editors. There is something there he wanted to tell including making Madara the true Big Bad, not Kagura and the very fact he had to fight to have the Reverse Harem Jutsu (which I have to remind you never animated in the anime until the battle with Kagura). <- Edit.

Characters will be updated. It doesn't help the lack of focus on several characters to give way for backstory, character development. It's not that they're just there for the sake of having more students in the class, they do have their part in the plot. I gave Magician to a lot of people so if there is a focus on them at some point, I will change it. I don't know enough of three girls to give the designated card; it's Ashido, Jiro, and Hagakure who aren't approved yet. For the boys, it's a lot of trouble since I know nada; so far from class I-A, Iida, Mineta, Todoroki, Midoriya, Bakugou, Kirishima, Aoyama, and Shouji are confirmed here. The villains, some of the students, and some of the pro heroes aren't official yet.

For right now, it's just the first year and I hope that Horikoshi, like Rowling, goes through the school years until the ultimate final battle with the successors at the helm. Yes, I will await the final battle with Tomura and Midoriya, both of whom will have full access and versatility, to their predecessors' powers. I will be so happy to witness it unleashed.

It certainly will give time to give all the characters, even Monoma, character development.

Character - Arcana

Izuku Midoriya - Fool

Bakugou Katsuki  - Chariot

Ochako Uraraka - Priestess

Tenya Iida - Justice

Shouto Todoroki - Tower (pre-character development) -> Judgment (that is funny because Zuko is also the Judgment but his pre-character development card was the Hanged Man, not the Tower)

Momo Yaoyorozu - Empress

Tsuyu Asui - Lovers

Kyoka Jiro - Strength

Tooru Hagakure - Lovers

Fumikage Tokoyami - Emperor

Eijirou Kirishima - Magician

Mina Ashido - Star

Minoru Mineta - Hanged Man

Mashirao Ojiro - Sun

Hanta Sero - Magician

Yuuga Aoyama - Moon

Mezou Shouji - Hermit

Kouji Kouda - Temperance

Rikido Satou - Strength

Denki Kaminari - Magician

Neito Monoma - Moon

Itsuka Kendou - Empress

Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu - Magician

Mirio Togata - Chariot

Yoarashi Inasa - Magician

You Shindou - Star

Hitoshi Shinsou - Death

Mei Hatsume - Sun

Inko Midoriya - Empress

Shouta Aizawa - Hierophant

Yagi Toshinori/All Might - Fool -> Death

Present Mic - Magician

Recovery Girl - Priestess

Endeavor - Tower

Midnight - Lovers

Mount Lady - Devil

Thirteen - Justice

Nedzu - Hierophant

Gran Torino - Hierophant

Sir Nighteye - Hermit

Tensei Iida/Ingenium - Lovers

Naomasa Tsukauchi - Hierophant

Kouta Izumi - Hanged Man

Tomura Shigaraki - Magician -> Death

Sensei - Devil

Himiko Toga - Devil

Stain - Wheel of Fortune

Chisaki - Wheel of Fortune

Eri - Hanged Man