My Hero Academy is one of the most successful manga/anime franchises of the past decade, but if it stays true to the premise of the first chapter it could become an unparalleled masterpiece. In the world of the series, the majority of the population has Quirks that give them superpowers. Protagonist Deku is one of the few people without a Quirk, but despite being a completely mundane high school student with no powers of his own, living in a world full of superpowers, Deku wants more than anything. anything to become a hero, utterly refusing to give up on that goal despite the seemingly impossible task before him. However, this immediately changes when Deju not only has any powers but also has one of the strongest powers in the series, One for All.
Being able to overcome super-powered enemies through sheer hard work and determination could be a lot more interesting conceptually. There are so many other directions the series could go in by focusing on a powerless Deku trying to become a hero without his Quirk. He could learn to fight using his wits instead of his strength like Batman, or build a super suit like Iron Man. He can even take on the role of leader or tactician rather than a frontline fighter. Instead, with no foreshadowing or build-up, not even three chapters in, the series returns to the promise it had made up to that point.
Deku should have kept his quirkiness in My Hero Academia
Suddenly, Deku is given All Might’s One for All Quirk. While there’s no denying that author Kohei Horikoshi has built a compelling and interesting story out of it, Deku taking on All for One is the least interesting direction My Hero Academia could have taken. It feels like a betrayal of the premise established in the first chapters. It’s the fastest, easiest, and cheapest way possible to solve the problem of Deku not having a Quirk. A storyline that should have driven the entire series is dropped immediately. Sure, Deku then has to learn how to properly use One for All, which also takes a huge toll on his body, but it’s not the same as having to fight and survive without superpowers.
Deku winning All for One may have been conceptually boring and thematically inconsistent with previous episodes, but at least he got to earn his new powers. It’s not as interesting as Deku being helpless, but admittedly it still has character. His training with All Might and the gradual process of learning how to exploit One for All without harming himself brought out the “work hard, never give up” aspect of his personality. He gets some time to shine, but him getting his Quirk still feels completely out of place. left the field after putting so much focus on how he wanted to succeed as the only hero without a Quirk in the first chapters/episodes. However, the theme of hard work also disappeared completely when Deku completely mastered One for All and awakened all the other Quirks contained in his incredible power.
My Hero Academia has betrayed its original promise
Deku going from a Quirkless child to using his strongest Quirk feels like a betrayal of the promise the series established. It’s a testament to Horikoshi’s storytelling abilities that he not only managed to make My Hero Academia interesting, but also continued to develop Deku into a compelling character that remains inspiring despite his immediate which means getting what he wants. Even so, there’s no shaking the feeling that a simple choice to keep Deku powerless could have made for a much more interesting version of the story. My Hero Academy.
