My Hero Academia/Recap/U.S.J. Arc

The U.S.J. Arc spans from chapters 12-21 of the manga and episodes 9-13 of the anime.

After news of All Might's new teaching job at U.A. spreads through Japan, the mainstream media flocks in a horde in front of the school's gates, but are kept at bay by the U.A. Barrier (a high-tech security gate). Meanwhile, at Class 1-A, Shota Aizawa orders them to choose a class president. After a vote, Midoriya is elected president (3 votes) and recommendations student Momo Yaoyorozu becomes vice president (2 votes).

Later that day, Midoriya, Uraraka and Ida have lunch together at the mess hall. While Midoriya is worried about his qualifications, Ida assures him that he's fit for the task. When they take note of how formal Ida's attitude is, the spectacled student explains that his family has a long lineage of pro Heroes, including the famous Ingenium (in fact, his older brother Tensei). Suddenly, U.A's sirens go off, announcing a major security breach. This prompts the students to rush for evacuation, but it quickly turns into a stampede. However, Ida notices that it's only the media; therefore, he prompts Uraraka to make him float, while he shoots himself forward with his Engine Quirk to get the high ground. That done, Ida calls out the collective that everything is fine and that there's no reason to panic.

Inspired by his valiant actions, Midoriya cedes his place as class president to Ida, to which most of the students heartily agree. After the break-in of the mainstream media, it's noted that the U.A. Barrier has been disintegrated. When this is brought up before the faculty, the principal, Nezu, suspects that this was done by a villain who lured the press to the school grounds in order to get cover.

Later that day, Aizawa takes 1-A to the Unforeseen Simulation Joint (U.S.J.) to have their first Rescue Trial, administered by U.A. teacher and Space Hero, Thirteen. In a speech, she thoroughly points out that this will be the first time they'll be using their Quirks to protect people, as opposed to hurting them. However, before they can even start their lesson proper, a ghastly black portal appears on the training ground, and several actual Villains come through it.

The ghastly Villain who created the portal, Kurogiri, wonders why All Might isn't here, because he should be, according to the curriculum - this confirms that these are the Villains who invaded the school ground earlier. Another lanky Villain with his face covered in severed hands, Tomura Shigaraki, wonders if he'd come if he heard that the students were under attack. Aizawa orders Thirteen to protect the students and heads to fight off the attackers himself. However, in the midst of their escape, Kurogiri appears and declares that the goal of their organization, the self-proclaimed "League of Villains", is to kill the Symbol of Peace. The Villain then warps all the students into different regions of the U.S.J. before taking on Thirteen. Given that they lost contact with the school, Thirteen orders Ida to dash off for reinforcements on foot. As Ida makes his escape, Kurogiri succeeds in incapacitating Thirteen.

Meanwhile, All Might unsuccessfully tries to contact his colleagues and laments that he used up so much of his power only on the way to U.A. (one of which involved defeating a huge Villain). Before he gears up to head to the U.S.J., he's stopped by Principal Nezu, who ropes him into a long conversation about teaching.

Along with fellow classmates Tsuyu Asui and Minoru Mineta, Midoriya is Warped into a "Flood Zone" in the middle of a large artificial lake. When they're actually threatened by the surrounding mooks, Midoriya enacts a plan, using a One For All finger flick dubbed the "Delaware Smash" to create a maelstrom, while Mineta uses his Quirk, Pop Off, to glue the mooks together as they sink into oblivion. To top it off, both are rescued by Asui from a deadly free-fall.

In the meantime, the rest of the class is doing well in holding back the attacking Villains. Aizawa's managed to use his fighting skills to hold off the attacking mooks, before squaring off against Shigaraki himself: while he isn't stopped, his right elbow is injured by the Villain's Quirk - Decay - which makes anything Shigaraki touches disintegrate into dust. Later, the Hero is overwhelmed by a hulking, non-sapient monstrosity Shigaraki refers to as a "Nomu". Before the Villain can harm Midoriya, Asui and Mineta, who've just reached the shore close to him, All Might arrives, tears off his suit tie and declares to protect the students. He dispatches the remaining mooks and takes on the Nomu, but discovers it isn't taking damage, because its Quirk is Shock Absorption. Eventually, the creature overpowers the Symbol of Peace and Kurogiri arrives to deliver the finishing blow. However, Bakugo and Todoroki foil the move and buy All Might enough time to regroup. After that, he engages the Nomu head-on, and after an intense battle, he overcomes its powers and launches it out of the building with an exceptionally powerful Smash.

Even though All Might won the battle, he can no longer sustain his Hero form; therefore, Shigaraki and his gang decide to attack again. This time, however, they're thwarted by the arrival of the rest of U.A's faculty. All the Villains on the scene other than Kurogiri and Shigaraki (who escaped) are arrested, and All Might is saved at the last moment. The damage is immediately treated and the injured are taken to treatment.

At the hideout of the League of Villains, Kurogiri and Shigaraki speak to a mysterious voice on a monitor, with Shigaraki expressing immense frustration with his failure. The voice merely encourages Shigaraki to try again and do better next time.

Meanwhile, Midoriya and All Might are visited by All Might's friend, detective Naomasa Tsukauchi, who reports that, while seriously injured, Eraser Head and Thirteen will make a complete recovery in due time. All Might notes that the students deserve a lot of credit for holding off the threat for as long as they did, and that they'll all make fine Heroes by the time their schooling is over.

The next day, Aizawa arrives, bandaged from head to toe, and announces that the U.A. Sports Festival is due to commence moderately soon.


 * Adaptation Expansion: The anime has Present Mic showcase his Voice Quirk for the first time here, instead of in the Final Exams Arc, shouting down some thugs headed his way.
 * Big Damn Heroes: Two instances:
 * All Might's arrival to the U.S.J. - he bursts through the doors and paces forward in silence, but without his trademark smile this time.
 * Ida bringing reinforcements to U.A. - Snipe fires off at Shigaraki and Kurogiri, while Present Mic makes short work of the thugs, just in time to save All Might.
 * Bloodier and Gorier: The anime skimps on far less details of the Family-Unfriendly Violence dealt to Aizawa and Shigaraki.
 * Body Horror: Kurogiri ends up making Thirteen using her Quirk on herself, with gruesome results. Fortunately, she made it out alive, due to the unusual constitution of her body.
 * Clothing Damage: In order to prevent herself and Jiro from being electrocuted by Kaminari's Quirk, Yaoyorozu uses her Creation to make a large insulation sheet. However, since she uses it through her back, she ends up completely ripping apart her already skimpy costume. She's only hidden by Censor Steam.
 * Curb Stomp Battle: Shoto Todoroki once again effortlessly defeats his enemies by freezing them into the ground and casually walking past them.
 * Dudley Do-Right Stops to Help: All Might ends up wasting a significant portion of his daily power on stopping a villain on his morning commute, as well as other similarly mundane distractions.
 * Establishing Character Moment: This arc fully introduces us to Big Bad Tomura Shigaraki, his goal and his overall attitude - destroy Hero Society no matter what the means are.
 * Flash Step: Midoriya tries to use One For All this way to stop Shigaraki, but it naturally ends up breaking his legs.
 * Giant Mook: The U.S.J. Nomu is enormous - it dwarfs even All Might with its sheer size and it's made to fight All Might at full power.
 * It's Up to You: The whole point of the arc. The students didn't exactly come expecting to fight actual villains, and have no plan to do so, but they have to gain the incentive and enthusiasm to do it, quick.
 * Media Scrum: A whole sea of reporters turns up to U.A. hoping to score an interview with All Might and pegging every student they come across on what he's like as a teacher. Goes From Bad to Worse when a villain destroys the security gate and the media group marches onto the campus, causing a security breach.
 * Megaton Punch: All Might finishes off the Nomu by Smashing it so hard it's hurled through the roof of the U.S.J. and sent flying several more hundred meters into the sky.
 * Oh Crap: All Might appreciates Kirishima's concern about his friends' well-being, but he's absolutely mortified by the prospect of him coming close enough to see his true form. Fortunately, Cementoss prevents him from doing so.
 * Plot Tailored to the Party: Fortunately for 1-A's students, Kurogiri ended up placing them all in very convenient locations for their Quirks to be used to their utmost extent.
 * Portal Cut: How Kurogiri plans to kill All Might; he naturally doesn't get the chance.
 * Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs: All Might and the Nomu engage in a slug fest that blows nearly everyone away; over 300 speedy hits at using more than 100% of All Might's power. The Symbol of Peace eventually gains the upper hand.
 * Secret Keeper: Detective Naomasa Tsukauchi is one of the few people outside of U.A. that know about All Might's true form, as he drops in on him and Midoriya recovering.
 * Spanner in the Works: The villains' plan was to assassinate All Might but it hit a snag quickly because the hero had to deal with a powerful villain on the way, using up a lot of his limited power to do so.
 * Thanks for the Mammary: When Mineta is overcome with joy at the news that he, Asui and Midoriya are safe for the time being, he hugs her. Except that he also ends up grabbing one of her breasts. She dunks him in the water as punishment.
 * This Is Not a Drill: Starts as one, and a false alarm tripped by the media almost causes a crisis. And then the League of Villains shows up and the Trope is played out for real.
 * This Looks Like a Job For Aquaman: Asui and Mineta's Quirks, while not being remarkably powerful in their own rights, prove to be instrumental in stopping the thugs attacking them and Midoriya in the shipwreck zone and allowing all three of them to escape.
 * Tranquil Fury: All Might, of all people, enters the fray like this, instead of with his usual beaming smile.
 * Villain Exit Stage Left: Kurogiri manages to use his Warp Gate to get himself and Shigaraki out of the U.S.J. in the nick of time. The rest of the mooks weren't so fortunate.
 * Villainous Breakdown: When the Nomu is completely defeated by All Might, Shigaraki pitches a frustrated fit and is later furious that his creation failed him.
 * Won't Work On Me: Subverted. The Nomu's Quirk is to absorb shock, not nullify it. When All Might realizes this, he starts hammering at the monster harder and faster to break the limit of what it can take.
 * Wrestler in All of Us: When first engaging the Nomu in combat, All Might performs a German suplex on it to keep it down.