My Hero Academia: 8 Unpopular Opinions About The Anime According To Reddit

Fans often get together on Reddit to discuss speculation about the students, heroes, villains, and plotlines of My Hero Academia. The conversations can sometimes turn to agreement, disagreement, or just overall understanding of why someone formed the opinion in the first place. The topics range from whether or not someone is a good villain to how the creators could have made a fight more meaningful and why an in-depth look at that would have resonated better.

With the ongoing fifth season and anticipated U.S. movie release of My Hero Academia: World Heroes’ Mission, fans have been excited to revisit their thoughts on the show and the manga and took to Reddit to discuss what could’ve, should’ve, or would’ve happened to their favorite and least-favorite characters from My Hero Academia.

8 All Might’s Anticipated Death

A discussion prompted by Redditor Shradow expresses how fans felt after All Might’s fight with All For One at Kamino Ward. Most viewers were pleasantly surprised that All Might didn’t die since it would have proved a climactic conclusion to his character arc. But, it also would have been very early to leave Deku behind when he still had so much more to learn about their shared quirk, One For All.

Some fans in the thread even headcanon that All Might technically died in that battle and only Toshinori Yagi lives on. While this is an interesting take on the outcome, it doesn’t ring true for the citizens of Musutafu in MHA; they still regard him as All Might, and, after the initial shock dissipated, they remember him as their number one hero.

7 Midoriya Is Their Least Favorite Character

Izuku Midoriya always felt lesser because he grew up quirkless. He usually reacted to emotional situations, happy, sad, overwhelming or not, with tears and sometimes muttering. These qualities aren’t uncommon for underdog, goal-oriented main characters, but Reddit user JKONGTCHEU still didn’t like Midoriya’s behavior and subsequently found that he was their least favorite character because he was also rather boring comparatively.

JKONG explains their preference of Shigaraki’s characterization, development, relationships, and parallels compared to Deku’s. Both are great characters in their own right, but their different backgrounds warranted different reactions to what they encountered, and, unfortunately, MHA‘s villain Shigaraki didn’t get the All Might he needed in his life. Midoriya may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but he is sure to grow with the goal of being a hero that keeps smiling.

6 Bakugo’s Development

One of the most intense characters from the very beginning of the show is Katsuki Bakugo. He bullies Midoriya only to have Midoriya learn what truly bothers Bakugo and want to be there for him whether he likes it or not. This eventually reaches Bakugo’s understanding and they grow together in heroism and friendship.

Some fans feel strongly about Bakugo’s bullying to the point of him being undeserving of growth, and others feel like his characterization is exactly what the MHA world calls for to create a variety of characters and plot development. Redditor winter-r0se even points out that he is finally in a positive environment for maturing even if what he goes through isn’t exactly called “redemption.”

5 The Show Peaked During The Sports Festival

The Sports Festival is often a favorite arc among fans, but carbonauts on Reddit points out that the show “has never managed to surpass the quality in spectacle and story-telling,” since Izuku “Deku” Midoriya faced down his classmate and now friend, Shoto Todoroki.

This opinion remains unpopular because, when the sports festival aired in season 2, the show was still fairly new, and the characters had a lot of development, battles, and lessons to get through. The sports festival wouldn’t necessarily be considered a filler episode because it was early enough that it was a good establishment arc for the students, their blooming relationships, and their powers, and it gave insight into the characters outside of their quirks.

4 Shoto Todoroki Is Boring

According to Reddit user @sonicsucks23, Shoto Todoroki lacks ingenuity as a friend and a hero. This is largely an unpopular opinion because of the dedicated Shoto fans, but also because, like most stories, each character’s unique personality brings something to the main entourage.

In Shoto’s case, his calm demeanor and troubled past leads him to a quieter life as a student but a determined mindset as a hero overcoming his trauma and finding himself in a loud and demanding society. His motivation comes from the determination to avoid using his fire quirk, but also from understanding that he doesn’t have to define that power by his father. The more he learns about himself, the more comfortable he gets as a future hero.

3 Aoyama As The Traitor

Yuga Aoyama is one of the lesser known but most outgoing students in Class 1-A, and it is often theorized that he could be the U.A. traitor, feeding information to the League of Villains. This theory fluctuates in popularity, but it has recently resurfaced and is unpopular amongst the majority of fans.

Reddit user @enigma_024JA brings up the points of interest where Aoyama makes weird side comments in regards to Bakugo’s rescue and has even been seen on display next to creepy creatures at exhibitions. It can almost be immediately debunked by Aoyama rescuing Tokoyami by shining light on Dark Shadow and his genuine fear of Dabi and the forest training arc attack.

2 Stain Was Bad, Not Just A Villain

Stain, The Hero Killer, believed heroes should be worthy of their position and the true traits of a hero are different than someone who just wants to use their quirk. He was the motivating force behind Himiko Toga, Dabi, and Spinner joining the League of Villains because each of their personal vendettas were rooted in his mission to rid the world of unworthy heroes.

Lukundra on Reddit said, “Stain is pure evil, just as bad if not worse than villains.” They even specify later in the thread that Stain believes what he is doing is good, so he has the same determination as a hero, making him worse than generic bank-robber villains. Fans flooded to the comments to break down the true meaning of heroism and how to go about a corrupt system. One of the most powerful things about Stain is that, in creating the world of MHA, he brings up the faults of the hero system from a different perspective rather than just wanting to be the villain that attains power, teaching both fans and the hero students a lesson.

1 The Show Is Overhyped

Fans of the show would obviously disagree, but casual fans keep the opinion that the hype is far more than what the show provides. Reddit user CringeFandomTrash comments that it is a decent show, but it features bland archetypes. According to other users, the manga progressively gets better, and the original poster offers the possibility of reading that some time to see if it is worth the hype the show receives.

My Hero Academia is a Shonen anime, meaning it falls into a lot of tropes like tournaments, training montages, and sometimes a simple-minded protagonist. MHA features classic archetypes that are separated from the blandness by the uniqueness of this superhero universe where it doesn’t make them stand out to have a power it makes them stand out when they decide to do something with it, good or bad. The show has a long way to go and much more to explore to allow it to stand out.

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