Episode XX – Review: My Hero Academia​ (Season 1)

“All men are not created equal.” – Izuku Midoriya

Written by,
J. Johnson
@sparxmediaz

For many years, Shonen Jump has been the high spot for compelling Manga as it’s illustrated through Dragon Ball, Naruto, Bleach, and many others. In this one, Shonen Jump delivers a steadfast series that quickly provides its viewers with a ready adventure fare created by Kōhei Horikoshi. My Hero Academia or Boku no Hero Academia features 13 episodes during Spring 2016.

My Hero Academia is the story of Izuku Midoriya, a teenager who has lived out his life as an oddity in society due to the lack of ‘quirks’. Over 80 percent of humanity possess quirks which allow them anything from manipulating things to shapeshifting. Unfortunately, the other 20% doesn’t have any powers, Midoriya is one of them. As a young boy, he always aspired to be a hero and admire one hero that would be his soon-to-be mentor and the number-one hero, All Might. All Might‘s quirks allow him to inherit power, so long as he chooses someone to be their successor. After being named the inevitable inherit one by All Might, Izuku joins AU High to hone his skills and further develop his powers.

Personally, My Hero Academia has a lot to offer anime viewers and Manga readers as the characters and story all share the common goal to improve with each episode. The rivalry between Izuku Midoriya and his friend Bakugou Katsuki is your typical rivalry with Bakugou vowing to become the best hero in the world. Despite these two literally battling each other to become the best in the world, they meet numerous other heroes that have their own individual powers that are very unique in style.

Each helps carry the story to the next episode as we get to know the ones that are extremely determined to do anything to become the best in the world. It’s that diverse pool of identities that cause Midoriya coming the realization that he may never become the hero he dreamt of being. There are two characters that grabbed my attention, one is Asui (Frog Girl) for the simple fact that her personality adds so much depth to the story.  Second is Shoto for his cold and aloof personality along with his well-composed demeanor in battle. Always admire one of these characters in an anime as they add that little push for not only the main character but the others around them.

One of the anime’s greatest strengths is the premier artwork. My Hero Academia has a lot of styles and from each episode, the art is very polished especially the character designs. The highlight of the show in terms of animation is All Might, who transforms from a scrawny, wasted old man to the impressive, most buff hero EVER! Like any anime there are some cons to the animation such as the fight scenes tend to look the tension is a little too much to focus on. Another con is the camera lingering on a certain frame midst fight scenes.

Overall, the show is really as it echoes the sentiments of X-Men with the characters having various powers and others being mentors like Professor X. The action is good, with it shake of funny moments that will have you chuckle and one thing this series has that most don’t depict is characters with hearts. You get a sort of interesting cliffhanger as the season ends with some villains introduced to the series which leaves plenty of room for some development in future episodes.

Since season one’s release the development of a lengthier sequel and a third season. That’s lots of content to keep fans occupied, especially for those looking for a brand new anime to enjoy.

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