My Hero Academia



My Hero Academia (Boku no Hero Academia in Japanese) is a Japanese manga (with an anime adaptation and a video game) about a young man's journey to achieve a life-long dream of becoming a professional superhero.

In a World where 80% of people have some kind of superpower (or "Quirk" as they call it in-universe), Izuku Midoriya is one of the 20% who does not. Even so, he dreams of being a hero, idolizing the legendary All Might and planning to apply to the prestigious U.A. High School, where all the best Heroes went to school (although being "Quirkless" will put him at a disadvantage). One day, he encounters All Might, and impresses him with his strength of character - and while All Might admits that being a hero without a Quirk is basically impossible, he offers to pull a few strings to get around that loophole through training and hard work.

To his own, and many others', surprise, Midoriya gets enrolled in U.A. High School and gets to pursue his dream of becoming a Hero. However, from both the tough lessons administered by strict, no-nonsense teachers and a threat of dangerous villains looming outside the school, it's a lot harder than it seems. Can young Midoriya live up to his dreams in spite of all this?

Written and illustrated by Kōhei Horikoshi. Published on Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump. It was originally reworked from a one-off story and expanded into the series we now know. The English translation of the manga was provided by Viz Media and the English version of Shōnen Jump.

An anime adaptation by Studio BONES was released and began airing in April 2016 and is still in production to this day, with four complete seasons, two feature-length films and several OVAs. The license for the English dub of the anime was granted to Funimation, and began production only a week after the initial episodes aired in Japan.

''There are unmarked spoilers for up to Chapter 70 of the manga, or Seasons 1 and 2 of the anime. Read at your own discretion''.

"Tsuyu: ... [Katsuki] Bakugo's always angry, so he'll never be that popular. Katsuki: WHAT DID YOU SAY?! I'LL KICK YOUR ASS! Tsuyu: See?"
 * Academy of Adventure: Pretty much the whole setting in a nutshell. U.A is sort of the Ivy League of superhero schools, where aspiring Heroes undergo general education, train their Quirks and generally hone themselves for heroics.
 * AcCENT Upon the Wrong SylLABle: The anime's English dub is guilty of this in several instances. Notably, Izuku Midoriya's name is pronounced I-Zoo-koo Me-Doe-riya instead of the Japanese I-zuku MI-do-RI-ya, and Ochaco Uraraka is pronounced as Oh-CHA-coe Ura-RA-ka.
 * Actually Pretty Funny: During the, Camie uses her Quirk to impersonate Todoroki speaking some schmaltzy baby talk to one of the rowdy children the student group was tasked to deal with. Bakugo, of all people, finds it hilarious.
 * Adorkable: Class 1-A's students are generally on the awkward, dorky side, but this generally makes them more endearing than anything. Special mention goes to Midoriya, Uraraka, Iida, Todoroki and Yaoyorozu.
 * The Alcatraz: Tartarus, a prison designed to hold the worst of the worst of villains. Named after the part of the Underworld in Greek Mythology where the Titans themselves are held, this prison is said to be for criminals for whom the death penalty isn't enough. Prisoners there are heavily restrained, kept shackled to chairs in well-lighted cells, with several security cameras monitoring each prisoner; especially dangerous prisoners like are fed using feeding tubes, oxygen masks, and IV devices, being too dangerous for guards to interact with. Other famous villains held there are
 * All of the Other Reindeer: Izuku was looked down on and downright bullied by his classmates for being Quirkless, especially his former friend Katsuki Bakugo. Even his mother reacted to the "diagnosis" with pity and heartbreak, rather than supporting his dream of becoming a hero anyway.
 * Ambiguously Human: Several characters have rather animal-like appearances, which begs the question of whether or not they're 100% human in terms of DNA.
 * Appropriated Appellation: "Deku" was a derisive, mocking nickname that Bakugo christened Midoriya with when they were children, meaning something along the lines of "useless" in Japanese. However, Uraraka later pointed out how it sounded like "dekiru" which means "I can do it". This revelation left such an impact on Midoriya that when it came to choosing his Hero name, he picked Deku.
 * Awesomeness By Analysis: Izuku is utterly obsessed with heroes, filling notebook after notebook with everything he's learned about them. Even without tapping into the power of One For All, he's a cunning strategist whose immense knowledge lends itself well to a slowly growing experience.
 * Bad Guy Bar: The name of the place isn't given, but the League of Villains uses one as their headquarters. Kurogiri seems to be the bartender.
 * Bad Powers, Bad People: There are several major villains whose Quirks lend themselves incredibly well to their evil. The main recurring villain, Tomura Shigaraki, has what's essentially a Touch of Death via corrosion and crumpling, the infamous Hero-Killer Stain paralyzes people by ingesting their blood, and.
 * Badass Teacher: According to Midoriya, all of the teachers at U.A. are professional Heroes, which is no job for the faint-hearted.
 * Be Yourself: A common and recurring plot point is how Izuku Midoriya's relationship with All Might can get in the way of his learning how to be a hero. Initially, he tries much too hard to emulate him, from his moves down to even his costume. When doing so causes him some permanent arm injuries, he's forced to find his own way of using his Quirk and working on being a good Deku, rather than a bad All Might knockoff.
 * Beauty Equals Goodness: The series has no shortage of hero characters with odd or unusual physical appearances, but most are of the Little Bit Beastly or Cute Monster Girl (or boy) categories. Villains, however, are almost universally unpleasant to look at. Some are simply ugly or have twisted expressions, some are deformed, and many are outright monstrous.
 * Break the Cutie: Several characters who are now U.A. students suffered badly from this:
 * Midoriya himself was told at around four years old that he was Quirkless from birth. The boy, who was a cheerful and avid admirer of All Might and wanted to become a Hero like him, was sent into what can best be described as a breakdown. His mother Inko couldn't properly support him during these tough times, so she didn't encourage him. Finding out that he was Quirkless led to him being bullied relentlessly by his former friend Bakugo, who now saw him as inferior and pathetic, and it continued all the way into junior high school, leaving Midoriya a timid, reserved young man with no hope of coming through... until he met All Might.
 * Shoto Todoroki was also put through the wringer. First off, he was treated rather neglectfully by his father, Enji Todoroki (the pro Hero Endeavor), who wanted to groom and train him to become the ultimate Hero and surpass even All Might. Secondly, Endeavor also abused Shoto's mother, Eri, to the point of losing her mind and hurling boiling water onto her son's left eye, in pure contempt of her abusive husband's fire Quirk. It's also implied that the marriage was arranged simply so Endeavor could have an heir that could combine two strong Quirks. This left a formerly cheerful and friendly Shoto into a cold, aloof and stubborn teenager.
 * Break the Haughty: The haughty in question is Katsuki Bakugo. First, he's attacked by a Sludge Villain and received help from Midoriya, which was the first blow to his ego. The second came during the Battle Trial, where Bakugo went off to track down Midoriya on his own to take out his hatred on him, but ended up playing into his hands and losing the match, which left him in a state of utter shock and disbelief. The third came when he . The final one is when his foul personality causes him.
 * Card-Carrying Villain: Bad guys actually belong to a group called the "League of Villains". There are also brokers in the underworld who specialize in such a clientele. Himiko and Dabi petitioned to join the League this way. Not to mention that Kurogiri - their most demonic-looking member - is the bartender at the Bad Guy Bar where they hold meetings, a very unsubtle hint that it's not the most welcoming establishment.
 * Career-Ending Injury: Sometimes Stain deliberately spares the life of his victims. On such occasions he sees to it that they can't be a pro-hero any more. For example, Tenya's brother.
 * Cerebus Rollercoaster: The plot of the story interchangeably shifts between lighthearted, school-oriented arcs and dark ones with major and very dangerous villains, where many characters' abilities are put to a test. The former always starts with a Breather Episode.
 * Coming of Age Story: This is the story about how Midoriya became a serious, brave and reliable Superhero.
 * Crime of Self Defense: After Stain is defeated, the students involved are told that they broke the law by using their Quirks without a license. Hosu's Chief of Police, however, says that he is perfectly willing to keep how what really happened a secret and let Endeavor take credit for capturing the aforementioned Villain.
 * Da Chief: Chief Kenji. His quirk - which gave him a dog's head and a Verbal Tic that makes him bark every few words - is kind of silly, but when he's talking, you'd better listen.
 * Deconstruction: This story has a penchant for dismantling several tropes commonly associated with shonen manga:
 * The Anti-Hero: Katsuki Bakugo ticks all the boxes when it comes to being this type of character, but the worse aspects of his personality, unlike in other shonen manga, lend themselves very poorly to his reputation. In fact, his foul behavior and uncooperative attitude cost him victory against Midoriya's team in the Battle Trials, and he even . The pro-Hero Enji "Endeavor" Todoroki also gets flack from the public for being an extremely unpleasant individual lacking in charisma, despite being the number 2 Hero in Japan.
 * The Atoner: The story also takes turns in showing that the aforementioned Endeavor will not be Easily Forgiven for all the abuse he wrought on his family prior. Only his daughter Fuyumi is willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.
 * Badass Normal: Even if they're at the peak of human fitness, a Quirkless person simply can't reasonably aspire to be a pro Hero, because the Quirk-empowered competition they face disproportionately outclasses them (in the case of Heroes) and puts them at risk of death (in the case of Villains).
 * I Work Alone: Rejecting teamwork has had some severe repercussions for Todoroki, Yoarashi and Bakugo..
 * De-Power:
 * In his final clash against.
 * A similar predicament strikes third-year student.
 * Defeat Means Friendship:
 * Inverted in the case of Midoriya and Todoroki. While Todoroki ended up winning their duel, he's incredibly grateful to Midoriya for trying to help him out of his psychological issues. This makes Midoriya his first true friend.
 * Played straight when Kirishima beats Tetsutetsu. The latter accepts his defeat with dignity and they congratulate one another for doing their best.
 * Down in the Dumps: Dagobah Municipal Beach Park, at the beginning of the story, is a literal junkyard, with heaps and piles of different kinds of rubbish smeared all over. All Might chose this place as Midoriya's training ground to receive One For All, stressing that a Hero should be of help to their community, regardless of how stylish or otherwise their help is.
 * Eagle Land: All Might, Type 1. The man is heroic to a fault, boisterous and friendly to all he aids, and calls his attacks names from American geography. "TEXAS SMASH!"
 * Everyone Is a Super: Roughly 80% of human civilization has manifested superpowers known as "Quirks", which allow them to enhance their bodies through otherwise abnormal procedures.
 * First-Name Basis: Tsuyu is somewhat vocal about who she wants to call her by her given name. Izuku often fails to oblige her, which she often responds to with a request to recalled "Tsuyu-chan". This is typically translated as her requesting to be called Tsu. When Himiko Toga calls Tsuyu "Tsuyu-chan" without permission (or Tsu in the translations), Tsuyu requests Himiko to not do that, as she only wants her friends to call her that. In the cavalry battle, Tsuyu requested to be called "Tsuyu-chan" immediately before trying to take Izuku's headband.
 * Foregone Conclusion: From the closing narration to the anime's second episode, we know that Midoriya achieves his dream and becomes the greatest hero Japan has known. My Hero Academia tells the story of how he got there in detail.
 * Freudian Excuse: Todoroki gives himself one not to use his fire side in battle, because it reminds him of his abusive father and all the harm he rent onto him and his family. Midoriya, despite being sympathetic of his rough childhood, calls him out for this being insulting to every other professional Hero, who gives it their all to win, and accurately points out that he is not his father, and that his power is only his own.
 * Heroic BSOD: When reveals that Tomura Shigaraki (a criminal that he's been pursuing) is actually, All Might, over his time limit,  and already badly battered from the previous fighting, is rendered utterly catatonic with anguish.
 * Heroic Second Wind: Following the above, All Might is brought back to his senses by the pleas of a nearby civilian, the encouragement of his peers and the cheering of the people. Then he musters the resolve to crush.
 * Hidden Purpose Test: The entrance exam to U.A. Initially, it seems as though the only scoring criteria for the exam are "villain points" that are practically earned by destroying robot dummies (other than the enormous zero-point robot). When Midoriya's only score was taking down the zero-point robot, he's understandably let down. Eventually, it's revealed that the exam also grades entrants based on "rescue points" - how much they paid attention to their fellow man. Midoriya, having saved a girl's life from said zero-point villain, earns the most rescue points out of all the examinees and passes with flying colors, despite everything implying otherwise.
 * Hour of Power: Well, three hours (per day) and falling, but All Might's incredible powers are on a timer since sustaining a critical injury some time ago. Using them any longer risks injuring or killing him..
 * Humble Hero: The first thing All Might teaches Midoriya during his training regimen is how to be a helping hand for his community. As such, he has him clean up a trash dump at a beach park to restore it to its former beauty, so that people could have another place to go out to, and that Midoriya could train his physique to handle One For All. In general, Midoriya and All Might are the key examples of this trope in the series - their idea of heroism is to do good, even if there's no reward.
 * I Resemble That Remark: When Tsu comments that Katsuki is always angry, Katsuki... gets really angry.


 * Jumped At the Call: Upon being offered All Might's powerful Quirk, One For All, and a chance to become a Hero, Midoriya didn't hesitate to say "yes" with a determined look on his face.
 * Lemony Narrator: Any time a character has an important role in the plot for the first time in the anime, Present Mic breaks in to give a brief (five seconds or so) description of the character's Quirk.
 * Most Common Superpower: Lampshaded and Discussed in one episode where a talk show host asks his guests - Midnight and Mt. Lady, two heroines who clearly have this "power" - whether it's truly necessary for heroines to have it. The segment ended with both heroines shouting at each other and each calling the other an Attention Whore; which both of them obviously are.
 * Ms. Fanservice: There are plenty of female Heroines and students in this show who are dressed in this kind of way. Most of the time, it's their very form-fitting costumes that highlight their figures above all things. The best examples of this are Midnight, Mt. Lady, Yaoyorozu and Camie.
 * My God, What Have I Done?:
 * Endeavor is overwhelmed with confusion, and eventually guilt, when he finally realizes what his relentless pursuit of usurping the number one spot on the Hero chart from All Might has brought him -
 * Not So Different: All Might and Midoriya have a lot more in common than initially meets the eye: while both share an idea of heroism that is to do good onto others, even if there's no reward, it's also revealed that All Might himself was also born Quirkless and granted One For All by his mentor before becoming a Hero.
 * Organic Technology: Sort of. Some Quirks seem to alter the users' bodies in ways that resemble machinery. For example, Tenya's Quirk gives him Super Speed due to what looks like jet engines in his calves, while Hanta seemingly has tape dispensers in his elbows.
 * Passing the Torch: The story of how Izuku Midoriya became a hero begins with this act: All Might, moved by Midoriya's selfless sacrifice to summon his power even though he reached his limit, judged that the fearful, Quirkless boy was worthy of succeeding his Quirk, because he was losing power and on the way to becoming powerless again.
 * Personality Powers: Many pro Heroes and Hero trainees have Quirks that are excellently congruent with their personality traits. Notably, Jiro's Quirk being related to her interest in music, Shigaraki's Touch of Death being a reflection of his raging nihilism and.
 * Police Are Useless: Subverted. All-Might does say police are a respectable - if overlooked - profession, and a few - like Chief Kenji - stand out, but they're only rarely part of the plot.
 * Power Crutch: Some costumes are made to allow characters to use their Quirks in ways they are unable to without them. For example, Jiro can use a ranged sound attack by plugging her ears into her boots.
 * Power Incontinence: Until he learns control, Izuku's super-strength destroys whatever part of his body he empowers.
 * Pretentious Latin Motto: U.A.'s motto is "Plus Ultra", or "Go Beyond", which conveys their desire to supercede expectations and get out of a tough spot with determination and ingenuity.
 * Pyrrhic Victory:
 * Midoriya and Uraraka's victory against Bakugo and Iida in the Battle Trial: even though they met the conditions to pass the test, Midoriya suffered grievous injuries and Uraraka ended up heavily nauseous, whereas Bakugo and Iida were unharmed. It's acknowledged as such by other characters.
 * Retired Badass: After, he's forced to retire from his Hero work altogether.
 * Riddle for the Ages: Exactly how humans started to develop Quirks is an unanswered (and mostly unexplored) mystery.
 * Ship Tease: Izuku Midoriya and Ochaco Uraraka are heavily implied to have a crush on one another, often finding themselves in awkward, yet endearing situations when they're together. It's even confirmed that Uraraka likes Midoriya, but chooses to keep it to herself for the time being to focus on her heroics.
 * Skyward Scream: Midoriya lets out a couple of epic ones at the end of his Training From Hell, standing atop the pile of rubbish after having it all cleaned from the beach.
 * Stepford Smiler: All Might is known for smiling broadly, under all circumstances, but his smile (and his heroic demeanor in general) is in part driven by the world's need for a symbol of peace.
 * Stripperiffic: While most female members of the cast actually Avert this sort of costume, Midnight notoriously once had a costume that was so risque that it led to government regulations limiting how much skin a pro-heroine's costume could show.
 * Super-Hero School: U.A. is one of the most prestigious, although given that 80% of people in the world have Quirks, most schools devote at least some time to handling and training Quirks.
 * Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: During the Final Exams arc, Midoriya is forced to form a very uneasy alliance with Bakugō, going against All Might. While they encounter several major hiccups, they manage to pass.
 * Three Amigos: Midoriya, Iida and Uraraka generally form a closely connected friend group and often hang out together. Later on, they're occasionally joined by Tsuyu or Todoroki.
 * To Be a Master: While Izuku usually states his dream is to simply be a hero, on at least one occasion he states he wants to be the best hero. Katsuki also wants to be the best hero... and is utterly consumed by the thought that some of his classmates might be better.
 * Took a Level in Badass:
 * Protagonist Izuku Midoriya takes several levels throughout the story; the most notable ones being the first - he obtains the opportunity to compete for becoming a Hero by gaining the Quirk One For All from All Might, stands up to his childhood bully and later hones the use of the aforementioned power to an amazing extent. He's still training, and still developing as a Hero, physically and intellectually.
 * Took a Level In Kindness: If only slightly, Katsuki Bakugo has started working on being a better man to his fellows. . While he still has a tripwire temper, he's started to become more cooperative, more willing to bail his peers and innocents out of danger and less fixated on his ego.
 * Training from Hell: All Might developed a ten-month training regimen and diet to prepare Izuku's body to receive All Might's power. It was grueling enough on its own, consisting of clearing garbage (like tires, refrigerators, and other heavy detritus) from a beach with alternating muscle groups, but then Izuku added his own studying on top of it, and nearly destroyed himself.  (Fortunately, All Might caught on in time and reined him in.)
 * Twenty Minutes Into the Future: Zigzagged. The story takes place decades, probably even over a century in the future from now. But technology is largely the same because in the very near future Quirks emerged, and then most of the time between now and then spending its efforts to adjust to the emergence of quirks. And that was not an environment optimal for technological innovations. Things didn't really calm down until All Might became the "symbol of peace". One person said that if it wasn't for quirks humans would have been on the planet Mars by now.
 * Viewers Are Goldfish: As of the second half of the anime's 2nd season, a title card appears whenever a character with a Quirk makes their first appearance in a given episode.
 * Villain Has a Point: Hero Killer Stain believes that the term “Hero” has lost its meaning, and most Heroes have become little more than greedy, selfish Attention Whores and worse, those who are Only In It For The Money and take from society far less than they contribute to it. The only person he considers a true hero is All-Might himself. Thing is, he's not completely wrong in his views. Many pro-Heroes in this series are indeed selfish narcissists caring little for anything but their own glory, folks like Endeavor being good examples.
 * Wacky Homeroom: Class 1-A is all over this: more than a few of the students boast very bizarre superpowers, pretty much every student has a distinct personality with unique traits and quite a few of these students are Adorkable.
 * We Will Not Have Appendixes in the Future: As is hinted in the first episode of the anime, people who have Quirks lack an extra toe joint. Those that have normal toes are born Quirkless.
 * What the Hell, Hero?:
 * Todoroki is quick to call Iida out for being too hung up on personal vengeance and urges him to accept the help he's been granted by Midoriya and he.
 * All Might chides Midoriya for
 * When He Smiles: Todoroki is generally seen with a disinterested frown on his face, but when he does smile, it highlights his handsomeness all the more.
 * World of Ham: Comes of being a world with heavy influence from superhero comics. All Might and Present Mic stand out, but on the student side, Tenya and Katsuki give them a run for their money when the adrenaline starts running.
 * You Are Better Than You Think You Are: When Yaoyorozu has a lapse in confidence during her final exam against Aizawa, Todoroki lifts her spirits by saying how much he counts on her ability to make good decisions on the spot, and that he gave her one of the two votes to be Class Representative.
 * World of Ham: Comes of being a world with heavy influence from superhero comics. All Might and Present Mic stand out, but on the student side, Tenya and Katsuki give them a run for their money when the adrenaline starts running.
 * You Are Better Than You Think You Are: When Yaoyorozu has a lapse in confidence during her final exam against Aizawa, Todoroki lifts her spirits by saying how much he counts on her ability to make good decisions on the spot, and that he gave her one of the two votes to be Class Representative.