10 Reasons You Should Be Watching
My Hero Academia
My Hero Academia (Boku no Hero Academia) has been enjoying quite a bit of success since it’s debut during the Spring 2016 anime season. But, despite its growing popularity, I was still wary of jumping on the MHA bandwagon, since I’m not really a fan of mainstream shonen anime. You can call me an elitist if you want, but over the years, I’ve found that I’ve outgrown anime series like My Hero Academia.
After months of listening to a friend of mine rave about the series, I begrudgingly decided to give My Hero Academia a try, and after just one episode, I was hooked! I quickly breezed through all of the available episodes on Crunchyroll and even that wasn’t enough. It’s been years since I was this invested in an anime (my love of Haikyuu notwithstanding) and to think it was an over-hyped shonen anime of all things!
For those of you that have been carefully avoiding the series, My Hero Academia is an ongoing superhero manga series by Kohei Horikoshi that debuted in Weekly Shonen Jump back in 2014. The series follows Izuku Midoriya, a young boy born without superpowers in a world where 80% of the population are born with special abilities. Izuku desperately wants to become a superhero, but with no powers of his own, being a hero is just a pipe dream. That changed when his idol, the renowned hero All Might, takes Izuku under his wing and bestows upon him the One For All Quirk. Armed with his new power, Izuku enrolls in the prestigious U.A. Academy and embarks on his very own hero’s journey.
The premise is as cliche as you can get, but despite having the same copy-and-paste underdog story found in every shonen anime series under the sun, My Hero Academia managed to make me fall in love with shonen anime again. Whether you’re reluctant to jump on the MHA hype train or one of those people that are too cool for mainstream shonen anime, here are the TOP TEN reasons you should start watching My Hero Academia right now!
Deku as the emotional core of the story:
Izuku “Deku” Midoriya is a hero fanboy, tragically born without any kind of power of his own. He is an analytical and intelligent boy who keeps a detailed record of every superhero he knows, but despite his tenacity, his dreams of becoming a hero himself are utterly doomed. That is, until he meets his idol All Might, the most famous hero ever. All Might reveals that his particular power is transferable and he wants Midoriya to be the next heir.
He is the poster child for the underdog shounen protagonist; a weak boy bullied for his otherness, but who finds the resolve to change his life and rise to the top. He is not a complicated character; just a smart boy who is driven, selfless, and lives to attain a perfect ideal of heroism. However, he is endlessly lovable and it’s easy to get swooped up in his emotional nature.
Fans joke about Midoriya crying over everything, but when it matters, you really want to cry along with him. He is constantly pushing himself further and reaching new heights—constantly facing new challenges—and the show keeps finding ways to keep his story captivating.
Season 4 has been the most devastating yet, as it puts Midoriya in a situation where he had no choice but to give up on rescuing a little girl imprisoned against her will. This failure wrecks him with guilt, while also driving him to put everything on the line to organize a second attempt. A second attempt that pits him against one of the most formidable forces of the criminal underworld and which will surely claim lives on both ends of the conflict.
The feels are strong. So so strong. Yes, you will find humour in MHA, but you’ll also find plenty of tears too. Filled with bittersweet moments and inspirational events that strike you square in the chest, this anime has it all. Happy tears, sad tears, fist-pumping tears – you name it. If you’re anything like me, we recommend you have some tissues on standby (better safe than sorry, right?).
MHA is so well animated that you won’t ever want to tear your eyes away from the screen. The bold lines, vibrant colours and slick sequences are all done so superbly, it truly makes each and every episode a feast for the eyes. You’re sure to find yourself captivated by what you’re seeing plenty of times throughout the series.
Animation quality can be pretty hit or miss in anime. Some scenes are so crisp and clean, it’s hard to believe they were crafted by mortal hands. On the flip side, there are some scenes that are so cringe-worthy, they make you wanna cry. Thankfully, the animation in My Hero Academia is pretty spot on, and at times, a vast improvement on the art in the manga, most noticeably during the action/fighting sequences. Fluid doesn’t quite capture the beauty of these scenes. Every movement is a feast for the eyes. Whether a character is leaping into action or powering up their Quirk, you are in for a treat!
It’s inspiring:
Izuku is constantly surrounded by others telling him he’ll never make it as a hero without a Quirk, but he keeps moving forward against all the odds and fights to make his dreams come true. I’m getting emotional just thinking about how admirable Izuku’s drive to succeed is.
I had reached a crossroads in my life when I stumbled upon this anime. At a time when I had convinced myself it was no longer worth trying because I would never amount to anything, Izuku taught me that if I believe hard enough in both my dreams and in myself, I can make it too. It’s saccharine and cliche, I know, but I don’t care, because My Hero Academia helped me have more faith in myself, and that’s not something you come by every day. In the simplest of terms, MHA pushed me to try harder.
Okay, sure, you might not have the same personal experience as me, but regardless of what’s going on in your own life, this anime has one heck of an uplifting story that will leave you feeling like you can do anything if you put your mind to it.
Well established and fleshed out great detail:
Most shows require a bit of world-building to get the ball rolling. My Hero Academia takes the extraordinary and builds a world around it. Pro-heroes are government employees with pensions and allowances. There are special schools dedicated to training the next generation of heroes. If you took away the fact that 80% of the population has superpowers, the world of MHA is indistinguishable from our own. But because the premise is grounded in reality, it makes it easier to flesh out the often overlooked institutional details giving the show a rather solid foundation, especially given the fantasy elements of the series.
The characters are well fleshed out:
While the story of Boku no Hero Academia reels you in with the premise of superheroes and a promise of epic battles with villains, it’s the backdrop of the story that will make you stay. They managed to create a world that, while fantastic, is still relatable. They took the time to develop elements of the story that details the more mundane components of the superhero world, such as the way “quirk-less” people are living ordinary lives much like our own, commuting to work and collecting government pensions and allowances.
The diverse range of characters and their array of different Quirks are at the heart of why this anime is so good. Beyond our protagonist Izuku Midoriya, we meet a host of characters that all have their own story arcs, which adds a lot of dimension to the supporting cast. From All Might to Todoroki, and Eraser Head to Uraraka, each and every character will pique your interest. Simply put: the character design is magnificent.
They also explored how a mother worries about her son while training in the hero schools, and the more dangerous implications after graduating. It gives audiences the choice of empathizing with the regular characters, not just the superheroes or villains.
