Summary
The Provisional Licensing Exam arc showcases student growth through battle royale competition against other hero schools, introducing important new characters. This arc provides an opportunity for Deku's character development with the introduction of Shooting Style and for Bakugo to face his personal and trust issues after the exams. Although the anime expands on the manga's content, adding additional elements, it still maintains a sense of uniformity and highlights important moments for characters like Todoroki and Yaoyorozu.
Temporary licensing round of My Hero Academy continues the pattern of alternating main villain storylines with school-based storylines, this time tasking the students of Class 1-A to obtain temporary hero licenses by participating in a major competition with some other schools. This arc offers some great action as well as perspective on the series' wider world, but it's the excellent character development of Deku and Bakugo that ultimately seals the deal.
This arc is a huge step forward for all students, and its wild battle royale nature gives many students a chance to shine, especially in the anime, which expands on it considerably. It then turns the tables by forcing the students to work alongside their former enemies, offering the chance to see a different side of them than what was revealed in battle. Of course, not everyone can work together, leading to some potentially catastrophic mistakes.
The Provisional Licensing Exam arc covers chapters 98-121 of the manga and episodes 51-62 of the anime (with episode 58 being an unrelated movie).
Expanding the world of My Hero Academia
The series so far has focused almost exclusively on UA and a few other pro heroes, but it makes sense that there should be other schools of heroes in Japan. The provisional licensing exam provides a convenient excuse for these hero schools to gather, introducing UA's rival school, Shiketsu, and another school, Ketsubutsu, whose students will serve as the main opponents. of Class 1-A in the competition. Many of these characters would continue to appear in the series after this point, although usually only in minor roles.
Chief among the new characters is Inasa Yoarashi, who quickly becomes Shoto Todoroki's rival, holding a bit of a grudge against both Shoto and his father, Endeavour. Inasa uses a powerful wind-based Quirk, giving him elemental powers on par with Todoroki's. Their rivalry ultimately becomes proof that the heroes cannot have bad blood between them, as they cannot work together and set themselves up to fail – a bold move.
And, despite having been introduced before, this arc gave Himiko Toga a bit of the spotlight, first showing off her Quirk when she transformed into Shiketsu's Camie and then into Uraraka. Toga's disguise as Camie wasn't revealed until the end of the arc, but it was strongly hinted at, with Inasa's overzealous welcome causing blood to flow from his head, which immediately attracted Camie-Toga's attention. Once it was known that Camie was Toga in disguise it became obvious, but there was no reason to suspect anything other than that this girl was quite strange.
Deku and Bakugo's development reaches new heights
In addition to the licensing exam, this section also covers some of the preparation steps for that exam, as well as the consequences after finishing it. Deku is shown developing his Shooting Style, which includes more kicks than punches, allowing him to fight without putting his injured arm in more danger. This was a pivotal moment for Deku, as he stopped copying All Might and started finding new ways to use the power of One for All. The only real problem with this is that Shoot Style ends up disappearing in favor of later punches without any real explanation.
The licensing exam shows that despite being an adult, Bakugo still has some problems. While he was able to perform well in the combat-oriented first round, the second round, which required cooperation, ultimately got him involved. Bakugo, of course, takes this into his own hands and arranges a fight with Deku in the school's training area. late at night after the exam ended. Here, Bakugo breaks down while fighting and admits feeling like All Might's retirement was entirely his fault.
It was an important moment for Bakugo, and after their battle ended, All Might arrived to reassure the young hero-in-training that it wasn't his fault. Bakugo learns the truth of One for All, bringing him into a very small club and showing how much both Deku and All Might truly trust him. Knowing the truth helped Bakugo feel better, finally accepting that All Might's power had weakened before the incredible All for One fight. Even though things didn't change overnight, it was a big step forward in Deku and Bakugo's relationship.
My Hero Academia's anime creates new content, but does it add up?
The Provisional Licensing Exam section is the second longest in the series to date, second only to the Sports Festival. This is also the first episode to feature a decent amount of original anime content, with 2 episodes worth of content created for the anime and interrupted by a special episode tied to the first movie, Two Heroes, in That was established earlier in the series. However, original anime content can be controversial. Is this really just the dreaded “extra” in the workplace?
While these episodes could technically be considered filler, as they extend the length of the plot without significantly changing the outcome of events, they feel quite natural and those unfamiliar with the manga may not realize this is a supplement. The anime takes advantage of some of the events that took place off-screen in the manga, such as Todoroki's victory in the first round, and expands on that in a fairly satisfying way. This also helps this arc introduce characters other than Deku, giving Todoroki and Yaoyorozu standout storylines.
That said, overall, this arc is a bit long, and upon rewatching it, it's clear to see why those side events were omitted from the manga. The pacing of this arc slows down quite a bit due to their involvement, which can be frustrating to watch on a weekly basis, especially with Deku and Bakugo's main character waiting moment at the end of the arc. It's hard to say whether their involvement is a net benefit, but at least it helps the series maintain a more overall feel.
The provisional licensing exam is a major step forward for almost every character, and those who don't pass the exam (Bakugo and Todoroki only) have moments involving character loss. The fight between Deku and Bakugo is both a great action scene and an emotional catharsis for a character who has suffered more than he's willing to admit. Although it may not be one of the best parts of all time in My Hero AcademyThe provisional licensing exam contains some very important moments and greatly expands the world of the series.