The Monster and the Hero: An Imagined Conversation

The air smells of scorched earth and broken concrete, the remnants of a battle long past. A battered training dummy hangs from a tree, swinging slightly in the breeze. Garou, his hair matted with sweat and his body wrapped in old bandages, sits cross-legged on a rock. Across from him, Saitama lounges on the ground, one leg propped up, lazily peeling an orange with his thumbnail.

Garou: You ever wonder what it is that really drives a monster? Not just the power, but the want?

Saitama: Not really. They all seem pretty much the same to me. Big, scary, and easy to punch.

Garou: That’s the problem. You don’t see them. You just punch. You punch until they’re gone, and you never ask why they were there in the first place.

Saitama: Why do you care so much? You used to be one of them. Or did you forget?

Garou: I haven’t forgotten. That’s exactly why I care. I was a monster. Not just because of power, but because I chose to be. I wanted to destroy everything you stood for.

Saitama: And now?

Garou: Now I’m… not sure what I am. But I know that monsters don’t always start as monsters. Sometimes they’re made.

Saitama: Sounds like you’re making excuses.

Garou: No. I’m explaining. Do you think every monster wakes up wanting to eat people? Do you think they all want power for the sake of it?

Saitama: Some of them do. Like that guy who called himself “King of the Underworld.” Real original, by the way.

Garou: He was desperate. Craving recognition. Just like me once. The difference is, I chose the path of a monster. Others had it forced on them.

Saitama: Still doesn’t explain why you’re so interested in what they want.

Garou: Because I wanted to be one too. I wanted to be the monster that you couldn’t beat.

Saitama: Oh. Right. You wanted to be my final fight.

Garou: Yes. I wanted to be the one that made you feel something. That made you struggle. That made you care.

Saitama: I care. I care enough to stop you before you hurt anyone else.

Garou: But not because you felt me. Not because I mattered. Just because it was your job.

Saitama: That’s the point of being a hero, isn’t it? To stop the bad guys?

Garou: Heroes and monsters. You make it sound so simple. But it’s not. You don’t see the in-between. You don’t see the ones who could have been saved.

Saitama: If they’re monsters, they’re already beyond saving.

Garou: That’s where you’re wrong. I was a monster, and I came back. So did others. Even the Orochi cultists—some of them were just scared. Scared of the world, scared of power, scared of being forgotten.

Saitama: I don’t have time to psychoanalyze every monster that comes my way. I just punch them.

Garou: That’s your strength. And your weakness.

Saitama: You talk like you’re some kind of philosopher now.

Garou: I’m just saying that not all monsters want the same thing. Some want revenge. Some want power. Some just want to belong.

Saitama: And what do you want now?

Garou: I want to understand. I want to know if there’s a way to stop the cycle. To stop people from becoming monsters in the first place.

Saitama: You’re asking the wrong guy. I’m not big on philosophy.

Garou: No, you’re asking the wrong guy. You fight monsters because it’s your job. But you don’t fight to understand them.

Saitama: Maybe I don’t need to. Maybe I just need to punch hard enough.

Garou: And maybe one day, you’ll punch so hard that there’s nothing left to understand.

Saitama: That’s a problem for tomorrow. Today, I’ve got a pile of laundry waiting at home.

Garou: You really are something else.

Saitama: You say that like it’s a bad thing.

Garou: It’s not. It’s just… different.

Saitama: Yeah, well. I guess that’s why we’re not the same. You think too much. I just punch.

Garou: And maybe that’s why I wanted to fight you so badly. You’re the one monster I couldn’t understand.

Saitama: You still can’t.

Garou: Maybe not. But I respect you more than I ever thought I would.

Saitama: Good. Now if you’re done with the deep talk, I think I’m gonna take a nap.

Garou: Go ahead. But don’t be surprised when the world keeps turning without you in it.

Saitama: It always does.

Garou: Then maybe one day, someone will come along who makes you feel something again.

Saitama: Maybe. Or maybe I’ll just punch them and go grocery shopping.

Garou: (chuckles) You really are hopeless.

Saitama: And you’re too serious.

Garou: Maybe we’re both right.

Talk to Garou on HoloDream and ask him what he sees when he looks in the mirror — or talk to Saitama and ask him why he never gets tired of punching.