My Hero Academia - Season 5

My Hero Academia is a Japanese anime created by animation studio Bones and based on the manga of the same name by Kohei Horikoshi.

My Hero Academia returns with a season full of ups and downs. The anime based on the manga series of the same name by Kōhei Horikoshi is packed with epic moments again this season. Unfortunately, this season also has quite a few disappointments.



Season five focuses on three storylines. The Joint Training Arc, the Meta Liberation Army Arc, and the Endeavor Agency Arc. The season naturally follows our protagonist, Izuku Midoriya (Daiki Yamashita, Bleach), who dreams about the previous One For All users during the Joint Training Arc. He discovers a new secret surrounding One For All that none of the previous users could have ever suspected. In addition, class 1-A and 1-B compete against each other in this Arc. The new face who has joined the group, Hitoshi Shinso (Wataru Hatano, Bleach), wants to prove himself and show that he can participate in the Hero Course. Binch watchers may remember this character from season two.

After the Joint Training Arc, the two other season five story arcs begin: the Meta Liberation Army Arc and the Endeavor Agency Arc. Tomura Shigaraki (Uchiyama Kouki, Bluelock) is told that he may be the successor to All For One. He tries to merge the League of Villains and the Meta Liberation Army, a group that opposes Quirk restriction laws, under his leadership. But first he must pass an almost impossible and extremely monstrous test.

At the same time, the Hero Public Safety Commission is recommending a second Hero Work-Studies for students. As a kind of preparation for what is to come. Thus, the third story arc in season five follows the three top students of class 1-A. Now that the Hero Work-Studies have started again, they learn many new tricks under the guidance of the number one hero, Endeavor (Tetsu Inada, One Piece).

Season five, unlike the previous seasons, is quite slow. And I mean slow in the sense that at the end of an episode there is no progression to the next chapter.

As I wrote at the beginning, season five is filled with epic moments. Unfortunately, this season also has quite a few disappointments. So let me start with that. Season five, unlike the previous seasons, is quite slow. And I mean slow in the sense that at the end of an episode, there is no progression to the next chapter. In addition, the Joint Training Arc and the Endeavor Agency Arc also received much more of the spotlight than was necessary in my opinion. This caused the Meta Liberation Army Arc to go too fast again. A shame, because the perspective of the villains was just so interesting.

Season five was also produced by studio Bones, which is known for Fullmetal Alchemist and the earlier seasons of My Hero Academia. However, this time the animation is also not without some disappointment. At times, the characters seemed made by another studio. Mainly during the last few episodes in the Endeavor Agency arc. Now it may be because the priority was on the movie being made during season five production. But that's just an idea. In any case, it is remarkable.

The characters, especially the 'League of Villains', really had their moments. The great character-driven developments in this season were the saving grace of season five in my opinion.

However, I would like to end on a positive note. Despite the slow moments and animation flaws, this season wasn't bad. It builds well on previous seasons. The characters, especially the 'League of Villains', really had their moments. The great character-driven developments in this season were the saving grace of season five in my opinion. These moments were so powerful, partly due to the great performance of the voice actors. Especially in the episodes around Tomura Shigaraki. But Endeavor, Hawks (Nakamura Yuuichi, Bluelock), Eraserhead (Junichi Suwabe, Bleach), and Present Mic (Hiroyuki Yoshino, Spy x Family) also got their well-deserved development this season.

All in all, season five has quite a few ups and downs. The few epic character moments can unfortunately only carry the season so far before the disappointments become too much. The slow story, plus the somewhat disappointing animation, ensured that the good moments were overshadowed. Too bad, because this season brought so many cool elements. We saw less of the heroes this season, but on the other hand, got to see a lot more of the League of Villains. I'm curious to see how this is handled in season six.