Warning: SPOILERS for My Hero Academia Season 6 episode #130.In My Hero Academia, Endeavor's redemption in the eyes of his abused family is one of the most controversial storylines, but also one of the best. Endeavor's obsession with becoming the no. 1 Pro Hero turned him into a villain toward his family. The fact that his wife and children decided to forgive him and share the burden of his failures is still a point for debate among fans, but it makes Endeavor's character arc one of the best in the series.
Enji Todoroki, also known as the Flame Hero: Endeavor, was the no. 2 Pro Hero of Japan for decades. Despite being a prodigy, Endeavor could never surpass the no.1 hero, All Might, and began to develop an unhealthy obsession. Giving up on his dream of surpassing All Might himself, Enji decided to conceive a child through a Quirk Marriage that could become powerful enough to fulfill his goal in his place. He married Rei Himura, who possesses an ice-based Quirk, and hoped to conceive a child that would inherit both their abilities. By the time this happened, with their fourth child, Shoto Todoroki, Endeavor's obsession and abusive behavior had already destroyed his relationship with his family.
The Todoroki Family's Forgiveness Comes As A Big Surprise
Shortly after Endeavor was finally able to start patching things up with Shoto and his other children, things took a turn for the worse. The revelation that the League of Villains' Dabi is actually Toya Todoroki, Endeavor's first, supposed dead, son, destroyed the no. 1 hero. Toya's metamorphosis into a murderous villain is the result of Endeavor's actions, which broke him completely in the aftermath of the Paranormal Liberation War. However, episode #130 of My Hero Academia, "The Wrong Way to Put Out a Fire", shows that hope is not lost. While lying in his hospital bed, Endeavor receives a visit not just from his children, Fuyumi, Natsuo, and Shoto, but also from Rei, who spent the past few years in a psychiatric ward. To Endeavor's surprise, Rei has forgiven him and tells him that he will not have to shoulder the burden of Dabi's actions alone.
This development may seem controversial to fans who have just watched how much Endeavor's obsession twisted him into a sick and abusive father and husband. However, My Hero Academia makes a point of showing how even an entire society built on superheroes has its dark sides, and Enji Todoroki is the perfect representation of that. Endeavor's ambitions come from a genuine place: he developed his obsession for becoming the best hero after witnessing his father dying trying to save a civilian from a villain. Surely, this led to Endeavor's terrible behavior toward his family, but during his flashback he shows, more than once, to care about his children. When he finds out that Toya is hurting himself with his Quirk, Endeavor tries to stop him from becoming a hero, but he does not realize that he is just adding fuel to the fire, literally.
Endeavor's Redemption May Be Controversial, But It Makes His Story More Compelling
Overall, My Hero Academia depicts Endeavor as a man who is the first victim of his obsessions and keeps burning everything around him without realizing it. Many fans do disagree that Rei, who is a victim of abuse, takes part of the blame for Toya's fate, but this actually shows that she is much stronger than her husband, who kept running away from his mistakes. When Enji stops running and accepts responsibility for everything he did, that's when he really becomes a hero. Endeavor's actions were not forgiven but, in order to stop Toya, the rest of the family decided to move on and give Endeavor and Shoto the strength they need to fight Dabi. While Endeavor's redemption may be controversial among fans, it makes his character arc one of the most intense and compelling of the entire My Hero Academia story.
Season 6 of My Hero Academia is streaming on Crunchyroll.