You’ve seen Eraser Head taught hero classes at U.A. Then, give hardcore training exercises to his students under the guise of a possible expulsion.
And finally, see Eraser himself defend his beloved students from several villains during the U.S.J. and the forest training camp attacks!
What an incredible man and mentor! That’s the one and only Shōta Aizawa for you!
Even if we’ve known this awesome dude since the start of the series, there’s one item that fans are always curious about. And that’s Aizawa’s scarf!
Aside from his Erasure Quirk, this long white scarf is the only arsenal weapon that Aizawa possesses up his sleeves (or rather, around his neck). Without it, he would be defenseless against his enemies!
Eraser Head folds himself with this all the time. So, allow us to explain the proper name of this cloth, its properties, usage, and more!
1. What is Shōta Aizawa’s scarf made of?
The scarf is made of steel wire alloy woven with carbon nano fibers. This tidbit of information is easy to miss. But Eraser Head mentioned this himself in Chapter 7 of the Boku no Hero Academia series.
Very easy to miss! So, read back on this chapter to check again. If you want to check supplementary information made available for Aizawa, check out the character book of My Hero Academia!
What’s interesting to note are the speculations surrounding it before its proper reveal in Chapter 197 of the manga (Season 5, Episode 4 of the anime).
From tissue paper, toilet paper, and mummy wraps — you can only imagine the fandom going wild with their guesses! LOL! 🤣
That’s why we’re here to clear the second mystery: its official name!
2. What is his scarf called?
The first time Eraser Head’s scarf is given a proper name in the series is in Chapter 197 of the manga. It’s finally revealed to be a “Binding Cloth” or “Sōbakufu” (操縛布), a Chinese word that means, “Tie the Cloth”.
Since the release of the scarf’s official name, “binding cloth” was expected to repopulate the My Hero Academia board discussions.
However, that didn’t erase nor overwrite the trending “Eraser Head scarf” or “Shōta Aizawa wrap” nicknames woven by the fandom for 4 to 5 years!
Even if it was only a temporary nickname, it’s difficult to change and remove it from the minds of many fans.
Let me say this at least though: when Season 1 of My Hero Academia premiered in 2016, many fans thought it was called “Orbital Floor” because this phrase appeared while the binding cloth was being shown on screen.
But that phrase is misleading because “Orbital Floor” is the damaged eye socket on Aizawa’s skull! (Eek!)
Anyway, that misunderstanding cleared up and was easily replaced by “Eraser Head scarf”, “Shōta Aizawa cloth/wrap”, and the likes.
It’s silly to call it “Orbital Floor” now given Eraser Head’s Pro Hero status in the fandom. Aizawa is popular even if he’s just a supporting character in the My Hero Academia universe! So, changing the name of his capture weapon would be a disservice to fans!
In any case, Horikoshi-sensei hasn’t thought about a name for Eraser Head’s capturing weapon back in those days. So, he just let it go.
It’s an irrelevant detail no one cared about until the Joint Training Battle arc began; hence, the weapon’s proper re-introduction in Season 5 of the anime series. 😁
3. How does he control it?
At first glance, the audience might think the scarf is part of Aizawa’s Quirk; but it’s not. The scarf is only a supplementary item to his combat ability.
Aizawa controls the binding cloth through static energy via levitation. If he activates his Erasure Quirk, the cloth swirls; his tangled jet-black hair also stands up!
Also note that the cloth floats midair; that is, about 12-inches at a time, and not altogether. This happens because the carbon nano fibers embedded within the binding cloth (made of steel wire alloy) responds to Aizawa while he emits electrifying static energy.
For 5 to 6 years, he self-trained and used the scarf himself as a combat and defensive tactic. That’s no easy feat especially since he started from scratch (according to Chapter 214 of the manga).
When the time the U.S.J. attacks rolled out, Eraser Head flawlessly maneuvers his scarf to defend himself and his students.
4. How does Shinshō control the scarf?
Hitoshi Shinshō is a Class 1-C student of the General Studies Department. He was a supporting character in Season 2 and is now making a big comeback in Season 5 of the series!
Eraser Head took a liking on Shinshō and offered him training lessons off-screen. Since his re-introduction in the Joint Training Battle Arc, Shinshō has been wearing a binding cloth like Aizawa’s!
Since he doesn’t possess Aizawa’s static energy to mobilize the capture weapon, Shinshō develops his own close and long-range attacks to utilize its ribbons.
Some examples of Shinshō’s physical attacks using the capture weapon include tripping his opponents with it; tying them down; and using it like a whip to defeat his enemies. He also uses the binding cloth to throw heavy objects to one of his attackers during the Joint Training Battle.
For example, during the battle in Episode 4 Season 5, Shinshō used the cloth as a pulley! He threw the stiffened whip-like binding cloth midair and disassembled the water pipes, so they came crashing down on Class 1-B’s Jurota Shishida (who possesses a bestial Quirk)!
We must also bear in mind that Aizawa told Shinshō off-screen to undergo endurance muscular training. In this way, Shinshō would be enhancing his reflexes so he can throw the binding cloth’s steel wire alloy from a distance.
While we’re at it, the U.A. teacher must have also taught various levitational techniques to his disciple. Those levitational methods must be tricky for a non-Heroics student like Shinshō because:
- the “hardened scarf” is made up of multiple steel wire alloys (it restrains the user’s control handle while the alloys are thrown in midair);
- the carbon nano fibers must remain activated during battle (it restricts the user’s maneuverability since the cloth cannot imbue its whip-like properties).
Shinshō’s binding cloth moves are 80% Aizawa’s and 20% his own during the Joint Training Battle. This explains why he’s frustrated with his performance during his face-off with Class 1-A!
He loss to Deku because he barely applied the offensive moves that he learned from Aizawa’s personal training. And since he’s a fresh face in these training grounds, many manga-readers sympathize with his loss.
But Shinshō doesn’t want to remain a copycat. Aizawa’s a wonderful mentor and he’ll surely utilize his trainer’s techniques as a ramp for his next moves. If he can branch off on those defenses he learned from his mentor, Shinshō will motion forward on his own speed! 😄
5. Conclusion
Well, that’s it for Aizawa and his mentee’s (Shinshō’s) scarf! What do you think about it being called a “Binding Cloth”? Is it better than the trending “Eraser Head scarf”? Do you find its techniques and properties fascinating as I do?
How do you think Shinshō will handle the binding scarf? Think he’ll succeed in maneuvering it? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below! 😀
6. About My Hero Academia
My Hero Academia is a Japanese superhero manga series written and illustrated by Kōhei Horikoshi. It has been serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump since July 2014, with its chapters additionally collected in 37 tankōbon volumes as of February 2023.
It follows a quirkless boy Izuku Midoriya and how he backed the greatest Hero alive. Midoriya, a boy who has been admiring heroes and their ventures since the day he was born, came into this world without a quirk, where almost everybody is born with one.
On one fateful day, he meets All Might the greatest Hero of all time and discovers that he was quirkless as well. With his diligent attitude and unwavering spirit about being a hero, Midoriya manages to impress All Might. He is chosen to be the heir to the power of One for All.
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