My Hero Academia Season 1 Review

Izuku has dreamt of being a hero all his life—a lofty goal for anyone, but especially challenging for a kid with no superpowers. That’s right, in a world where 80% of the population has some kind of super-powered “quirk,” Izuku was unlucky enough to be born completely normal. But that’s not going to stop him from enrolling in one of the world’s most prestigious hero academies. Now, the only thing standing between him and his first class is the academy’s formidable entrance exam—nothing a little private tutoring from the world’s mightiest hero can’t solve. My Hero Academia.

The Story

The new super hero series franchise, My Hero Academia is everything you could hope for. You get the slice of life school setup, super hero’s and students with all sorts of “quirks”. The two main characters of Izuku and Katsuki remind me of Naruto and Sasuke from Naruto. However, don’t let that scare you away from this series. This fresh take on the super hero/school story avoids feeling like a repeat of history and more like a fresh and fun new franchise to sink your teeth into.

As our young lead Izuku navigates life without a quirk, we dive right into the secrets of the worlds greatest surer hero All Might. And as the narration at the start suggests, the story quickly turns into Izuku’s story to becoming the worlds greatest hero. The way in which Izuku ends up with a quirk is very different (and no its not falling into toxic waste or a spider bite) and thats a good thing. It creates a unique and fun way for our character to explore and learn how to use his new found quirk.

From there we dive right into school life and watch as each student shows of their quirk. They train on how to use it and how not to use it. Their teachers in each class are famous heroes in their own rights. The typical student bullying and rivalry occurs as expected. Most notably between Izuku and Katsuki, who are childhood friends. At least that is one way to put it.

The story doesn’t waste any time dropping the villains on us. Unlike many series which take a long time to establish a larger villain, this series sets that up rather quickly. Yes the big super heroes step in the save the day before its all said and done but the students spend the majority of the time fighting back as best they can.

Season 1 finishes with an attack on the school training grounds by a group of villains whose goal is to bring out All Might and kill him. However, they are not prepared for this class of first years; who are not going to put up with losing.

The Characters

There is also a clear setup for the groups of friends that form as they enter UA. Deku (Katsuki’s nickname for Izuku) finds himself spending most of his time with Ochaco and Tenya. Tenya comes from a family of famous heroes, and has his own expectations of what he will become.

Ochaco is more modest as she is simply looking to earn money as a hero to support her family. While Katsuki spends his time with Eijiro and Shoto. Eijiro reminds me of your typical goof ball who is very laid back but serious when it comes to helping his friends. Shoto has a chip on his shoulder and is trying to make a point to his father. In many ways he and Kacchon are the same; which means they butt heads a lot.

The history that Deku and Kacchon (Katsuki) have is probably a bit of a troupe in anime. As mentioned above it reminds me a bit of Naruto and Sasuke. Though I see that changing as the season finishes. Deku still cannot control his power without hurting himself badly. However, he continues his training and even his teachers who know of his power have hope.

I am happy to say that season 2 just started airing and the new season is just as exciting as the first. Funimation is continuing its mind blowingly fast dubbing of the series airing the dubbed episodes of the new season the same week as it airs in Japan. Here is a sneak preview of season 2. You should start watching it over on FunimationNow.com

I highly recommend My Hero Academia to anyone who loves super hero/powers origin stories. This is not a replay of anything we have seen recently. Its fresh and fun. Plus Ultra! Rating 5/5

Pickup your copy over on Amazon.com today. The limited edition is worth it for fans as it comes with a great amount of extras.