My Hero Academia fans forget the difference between Dabi and Toya Todoroki

Dabi, aka Toya Todoroki, has been one of the most interesting characters in My Hero Academia since his introduction. After stepping into the story as a mysterious villain with a burnt face, he soon grows to be one of the major players in the story.

Over time, Dabi's villainous motivations, coupled with his use of blue flames and the knowledge of genetics in Quirk-making, caused a popular fan theory to surface that connected Dabi to the Todoroki family. Fan theories are hit or miss, but in this instance, readers of Horikoshi's magnum opus could not have been more right.

Dabi was revealed to be Shoto Todoroki's eldest brother and a fellow victim of Endeavor, aka Enji Todoroki's abusive parenting style. However, whereas Shoto managed to overcome his trauma to a degree and find a way to be a hero, Toya was unable to do so. Thus emerged a complex individual with trauma who constantly kept fans on the edge of their seat.

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After My Hero Academia chapter 390 showcases Dabi's fate, fans are divided as to whether he deserved that ending.

After a seeming hint that there is redemption for Dabi, Horikoshi decides to take a more difficult and nuanced role. As per the spoilers of the latest chapter, Shoto covers the entire area in ice using his Great Glacial Aegir. He is delighted that his entire family is present and understands that his ice by itself would not have been sufficient, though, as it is not enough to perform the function.

When Toya regains consciouness from his stupor-like state, the temporary love for his family and hope he had expressed for a better life seeps away. Instead, he hatefully wishes death on his entire family. Natsuo wonders what his brother will do when he declares this anger. Dabi's body is in ruins, his jaw and eyes have been damaged, and even if he survives the various medical procedures required to save him, he will be disabled.

My Hero Academia chapter 390 spoilers suggest that he is held together by Shoto's ice, which is covering him. Before going to sleep, Endeavor offers his family, particularly Rei and Toya, his condolences. The conclusion might not have satisfied everyone, but it was a fitting end for Dabi, as he is a mass murderer at the end of the day. While his trauma can explain it, it can never excuse or justify what he did.

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Why the conclusion of Dabi versus Toya has divided fans

Naturally, Horikoshi's desire to end the story as he did in My Hero Academia showcases how everyone cannot be saved. Lady Nagant and Gentle were not mass murderers, while Toya had shown his obsession to follow in his father's twisted footsteps and dedicate his life to becoming a hero, so much so that he even attempted to kill his young brother who might be a potential threat when he was eight years old.

Shoto forgave his father, whose own redemption arc received mixed signals but delivered an emotional moment. However, Enji Todoroki had never killed anyone, but even that too had messed Toya up. As it happens, several fans have taken to Twitter to voice their support for or against the idea of redemption arcs for the Todoroki family, considering the messed-up family dynamics they all have in My Hero Academia.

Dabi and Toya have become different entities in the minds of people, where the former is a vengeance-obsessed Nomu in My Hero Academia with little to no trace of his former empathy, while the latter is a tragic character that goes astray and destroys himself due to a combination of his own and his father's actions. The latter, one can understand, but Dabi can never be considered an innocent victim.

However, despite all these replies, it is no wonder that fans have remain heartbroken. The idea of a shattered family with a formerly abusive father, his abused wife, and his traumatized kids is sure to evoke discomfort considering their similarities to real world tales of family abuse and betrayal, even though the same is less dramatized in My Hero Academia.