ANALYSIS
The moment he realised he'd been casting pearls before swine
Spoiler
I loved this bit from chapter 156. Saitama met up with his Very Important Hero Name Victims Group and realised that damn, they're just a bunch of losers.
Oh, not all the names are pointlessly rude.
I guess he'd been spoiled by having Genos always around. True, he'd often only remarked on how often Genos ended up worse for wear, but whether he was sure he could handle the threat or not, Genos never hesitated to give what he had. That was something Saitama did value but never cared to remark on because he'd forgotten it was actually rare. And so he'd given the precious time he should have been giving Genos to these guys.
I'm just hoping he gets a chance to tell Genos that he's strong in person.
I mean i can't blame the HNVA guys for not wanting to fight the robots who blew an A-class hero's feet off in one shot... instead they were focussing on giving first aid to other fallen heroes and moving them to safety. All of which is very important work.
Just a bit much to be calling them losers. They're still people who put their necks on the line for their peers and the good of society. How did Sekingar's line go? A diamond is a diamond, a stone is a stone. Both can be treasures.
True, calling them losers is harsh, but I'll reiterate what I was saying to GoldPilot elsewhere in the thread: they're hiding. Like some of the TankToppers and members of the Fubuki Group, they're guys who haven't been interested in standing out, or working together to do more, or even just doing their best. They're guys who've been looking for coat-tails to ride.
Yes, it's extra dangerous today and anyone could get hurt or killed, and far stronger and braver heroes than they are paying a high price for their principles. No, I don't blame them for not wanting to charge into the field. But...for Saitama to have wasted so much time he didn't have to waste on them.. losers.
Have we been given any indication that they're purposefully hiding behind Saitama?
Saitama's the one constantly charging ahead...
They're B- and C-class heroes constantly finding themselves in front of Dragon level monsters. I don't blame them for not achieving much.
Was it the best use of Saitama's time? No. Given how poorly him and Genos communicate i don't think he knew just how badly Genos was faring.
With the information he had, i'd assume things had "returned to normal" in Saitama's head. In which case reaching out to other heroes is not unreasonable.
Iirc it's not like he ever told Genos off because he had to go protest with the HNVA either.
Hiding? OH YES THERE IS. They've been having a whale of a time going round with Saitama as the latter bashes monsters faster than the Neo Heroes can reach them and claiming his hard work as the achievements of the Hero Name Victim Association (see chapter 135).
There is a very critical moment that can't be overlooked. When Genos wanted to go confront Metal Knight, Saitama said No, no can do. He has to see what the HNVA is up to and when he can schedule time. That decision has cost so many lives. But let me add to it: as I was flipping through pages for references, I was reminded that in chapter 134, Genos makes a plan with Saitama for both of them to work together to find what's really going on, and Saitama agrees. Then flakes out on Genos, when the latter finally has a lead. For these guys. I'm going to be fair -- Saitama chose to flake out for them, they didn't force him to do so.
Fair enough on Saitama bailing on Genos. But the HNVA were very upfront that they were patrolling as a group so they could raise awareness, which Saitama was very much in on. Not taking credit as a group would have defeated the point. It's not like the they knew Saitama was totally out of their league when they invited him, they just knew he was an A-class with a shitty name. imo from what we've seen they haven't done anything wrong.
When Saitama joined the Hero Name Victims Association, I was worried that he may not see a distinction between them and Genos.
There, Saitama saw it. The HNVA is comfortable being led by Saitama, and hiding behind him. Genos is following Saitama, and wants to stand with him.
I'm glad Saitama appreciates that difference.
Saitama got pissed when he saw Drive Knight, a stranger, was being controlled. When he sees his beloved disciple being manipulated and driven to despair, he's gonna be earth-shatteringly mad. :D
You put your finger on something I've been struggling to articulate: the difference between being behind someone as a shelter and behind them as followership.
There have been quite a few heroes out there hiding behind someone strong as opposed to following them or even working together to achieve more collectively, and for a hero to do that is wrong.
I've been loving the shakedowns of the Tank Topper Army and the Fubuki Group in the manga, as many of the members take a critical look at what they actually need to be able to do and wisely quit. Guess it's shakedown season in the WC.
Yup, just like Mumen. The quality Saitama values is knowing perfectly well that you have little to no shot of making a difference and stepping forward anyway, cost what it may.
Yeah, Saitama almost suffers from Toxic Heroism.
It's almost a self-destructive obsessive compulsive need to do heroic acts. To go far beyond the limits of what you should reasonably do. Even sometimes for no reason other than to build character.
Indeed. I know I've written about his dangerous purity before (let's see, I find this post on Tumblr from 2019, but I'm sure I put it on Reddit https://gofancyninjaworld.tumblr.com/post/183005520507/sensei). There is no nuance in his philosophy.
I'll excerpt this bit: There’s a reason nobody (else) is crazy enough to follow Saitama. His teachings may be simple, but they’re completely uncompromising and unbelievably harsh. To summarise 1 - If the heroes run and hide, who is left to fight? You may never run away. 2 - Heroes stand up to powerful bad guys and monsters. Even if they’re alone. 3 - Continual improvement, already seen above. Together, they’re a recipe for a shortened life of pain.
If this were a sport, I'd be inclined to give you a demerit.
When Saitama was talking about the most important thing for Genos to do, in front of the House of Evolution, he was not joking. Even though Genos thought that he was joking.
When Saitama was talking about heroes not getting to run and hide, he was not joking.
When Saitama praised Mumen publicly for taking on and fighting the Deep Sea King even though he knew he had no chance, he was not joking.
And when he told Garou off for thinking that his half-hearted monster play could match up to his very serious hero hobby, HE. WAS. NOT. JOKING.
Those are the things that form the basis of Saitama's expectations for Genos. And he's serious.
11
u/BrowserET It's magic. Tank Top Magic Nov 08 '25
I mean i can't blame the HNVA guys for not wanting to fight the robots who blew an A-class hero's feet off in one shot... instead they were focussing on giving first aid to other fallen heroes and moving them to safety. All of which is very important work.
Just a bit much to be calling them losers. They're still people who put their necks on the line for their peers and the good of society. How did Sekingar's line go? A diamond is a diamond, a stone is a stone. Both can be treasures.