My Hero Academia

The first chapter of the My Hero Academia manga, created by Kōhei Horikoshi, debuted in July 2014 in the weekly Shōnen Jump magazine.  Studio Bones’ anime TV series for My Hero Academia then premiered in April 2016 and has only grown in popularity since. In the world of My Hero Academia, they say that around 80% of people have superpowers called Quirks, but the protagonist Izuku Midoriya was born without any. While dreaming of being a super-powered hero, Izuku meets one of the greatest heroes in the world, All Might, who sees potential in him and passes down his special Quirk that allows it to be passed to others. The story follows Izuku (hero name: Deku) as he attends U.A. High School which is training the next generation of heroes and his quest to become the greatest hero in the world. My Hero Academia is comparable to the likes of Naruto, One Piece and other shonen action anime in terms of graphic content, so it’s probably not for super small children, but can be generally recommended for everyone else who is looking for some anime superhero action.

My Hero Academia: Two Heroes (2018)
Boku no Hīrō Academia THE MOVIE: Futari no Hīrō
(僕のヒーローアカデミア THE MOVIE ～２人の英雄（ヒーロー）～)

Director: Kenji Nagasaki
Last Episode Before Release: Episode 54

My Hero Academia’s first film is a solid entry point for anyone new to the series. With a good helping of exposition, character introductions and character interactions, the heart of the series permeates and uplifts what would otherwise be a fairly standard anime TV series movie. The plot follows Deku as he and All Might are invited by All Might’s former partner, Prof. David Shield, to the public opening of an artificial island where scientists from the world over study the superpowers known as Quirks. Many of Deku’s classmates also happened to make their way to the island, which is helpful when a group of villains takes the island hostage leading to a The Raid or Judge Dredd-style siege on the island’s control tower as Deku and crew try to save everyone. While there is nothing particularly surprising or original about the components of Two Heroes, the movie as a whole is a great time that showcases and celebrates everything that makes My Hero Academia special.

My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising (2019)
Boku no Hīrō Akademia THE MOVIE: Hīrōzu: Raijingu
(僕のヒーローアカデミア THE MOVIE ヒーローズ:ライジング)

Director: Kenji Nagasaki
Last Episode Before Release: Episode 72

Much in the way the first My Hero Academia film was about celebrating the series, the second film is about pushing it to its limits — putting Deku and his classmates up against amazingly powerful villains. In Heroes Rising, we see the heroes of Class 1-A given their provisional hero licenses and sent to Nabu Island off of the coast of the mainland to temporarily serve as the island’s police/emergency/busywork services because their hero in residence recently retired. Their idyllic field training is brought to a screeching halt when a group of villains led by a mysterious man named Nine (shown above) who has the power to absorb and steal others’ Quirks show up and start tearing the island apart looking for someone. This movie is chronologically set in an interesting time for an anime TV series movie, being set well in the future of the current anime episodes, between the two latest arcs of the manga. While perhaps confusing for fans of the anime that are not acquainted with the manga, in practice it serves the movie well allowing the heroes to showcase the utmost of their abilities in dazzling ways. The dazzle does come at the expense of more character-focused moments that the first movie was good for, but for my money, this is more than made up for by the over-the-top action. Featuring some of the series’ best fights and ones that easily stand toe-to-toe with the best from the likes of larger series movies such as One Piece and Naruto, Heroes Rising is a great action movie and definitely the best My Hero Academia movie yet.