I recently binge watched this while on my vacation. Fun show with memorable fight scenes throughout. Unfortunately it suffers with some issues that I will outline here.
Plot/Story(8.5): Although a bit cliche with the noble kid who doesn't have a superpower but wants to be a superhero anyway. Definitely got a Kickass(Movie) vibe going for it as far as the main character is concerned. I do still like the journey and all the possibilities. The dynamic of many superheros, and by extension super villains, existing in a world could bring about many fun, interesting and deep narratives. I like how Deku gets his power and still has to work and develop it. The hero school setting is interesting, although feels a bit Harry Potter Hogwarts-ish with the kids trying to learn but bad guys plot intertwines with the school.
Characters(7.5): There are many characters in this show. All have very unique powers/quirks. When I mean unique..I mean very unique. The names of their quirks give me a chuckle sometimes. I don't expect all the school characters to get developed. So I will go over some of the issues I had with some of the top appearing characters in the show and some that I liked.
Deku is a great character that I enjoy watching develop throughout the series. My only complaint is that he is overly emotional at times(cries a lot). Even the writers, through All Might's character, tell him that he cries too much. It gets a tad bit eye-rolly sometimes.
Bakugo is probably the worst of the bunch. I've noticed that he is a favorite among the fan base so I know I will get ire for this. He is powerful and has a great quirk. Unfortunately, I feel like he is one dimensional and hasn't grown much at all. Him developing his quirk and becoming more powerful isn't the growth as a character I am talking about. Episode 1, we find out he is a hot headed, in your face bully who wants to be the number one hero, just like All Might. Coincidentally just like our main character, but much less selfish. Season 3 episode 12, Bakugo is STILL the same character with the same motivations, with almost no information on his background or home life. We FINALLY saw his mom and dad. His mom being a carbon copy of him and his dad being the chill one. Not much to go off of beyond the mother mistreatment and him emulating his mom. Not very good..of course there is still more to the show but the fact that he is practically the #2 character in this show with so little back story and development is just not OK.
All Might is an interesting one. I like how they show that he has flaws as a teacher even though he is the number one hero. I like his fatherly relationship with Deku. I do have to point out that I am not too fond of the design of his skinny form. His sunken in eye sockets are distracting for me considering that he is supposed to be human (I think).
Todoroki is probably my favorite of the classmates. His back story of how he refuses to use part of his quirk because he hates his abusive father. His back and forth with Deku in the Sports Festival Arc on how Todoroki needs to embrace his other half. His father doesn't own him, etc. So good. Love it. Bakugo needs this kind of treatment.
Stain is my favorite villain and I was sad to see him go. I loved his motivations. I am glad they are continuing his narrative of how heroes need to be truly selfless if they want to call themselves heroes. How he hates all the heroes who do it for money, fame and glory.
Writing(6): I have issues with how this show is paced. And I think that the pacing is off because of their decision to use internal monologue and flashbacks. I don't mind if they use it, very sparingly, but this show uses it a lot. They need to let the visual(animation) speak for itself. Meaning they don't need to explain why (insert character) is (insert emotion) through internal monologue when the audience already sees it in their face. Or they don't need to explain why Deku is doing what he is doing because (insert 30 sec long flash back). It eats up run time. The audience isn't that forgetful. This explains why some episodes have odd cliffhangers in the middle of fight scenes or other places. They also don't need to internal monologue so much fight strategy. It is more fun seeing the strategy play out and the audience saying, 'Wow, didn't see that coming'. So I hope that they would take the audience a little more seriously. I can see why people wait until the whole season is out so they don't have to wait a week to see a fight finish.
All in all, it is still entertaining. I do want to see Deku's journey to the top. I just hope it doesn't take 10 seasons to do it.
Plot/Story(8.5): Although a bit cliche with the noble kid who doesn't have a superpower but wants to be a superhero anyway. Definitely got a Kickass(Movie) vibe going for it as far as the main character is concerned. I do still like the journey and all the possibilities. The dynamic of many superheros, and by extension super villains, existing in a world could bring about many fun, interesting and deep narratives. I like how Deku gets his power and still has to work and develop it. The hero school setting is interesting, although feels a bit Harry Potter Hogwarts-ish with the kids trying to learn but bad guys plot intertwines with the school.
Characters(7.5): There are many characters in this show. All have very unique powers/quirks. When I mean unique..I mean very unique. The names of their quirks give me a chuckle sometimes. I don't expect all the school characters to get developed. So I will go over some of the issues I had with some of the top appearing characters in the show and some that I liked.
Deku is a great character that I enjoy watching develop throughout the series. My only complaint is that he is overly emotional at times(cries a lot). Even the writers, through All Might's character, tell him that he cries too much. It gets a tad bit eye-rolly sometimes.
Bakugo is probably the worst of the bunch. I've noticed that he is a favorite among the fan base so I know I will get ire for this. He is powerful and has a great quirk. Unfortunately, I feel like he is one dimensional and hasn't grown much at all. Him developing his quirk and becoming more powerful isn't the growth as a character I am talking about. Episode 1, we find out he is a hot headed, in your face bully who wants to be the number one hero, just like All Might. Coincidentally just like our main character, but much less selfish. Season 3 episode 12, Bakugo is STILL the same character with the same motivations, with almost no information on his background or home life. We FINALLY saw his mom and dad. His mom being a carbon copy of him and his dad being the chill one. Not much to go off of beyond the mother mistreatment and him emulating his mom. Not very good..of course there is still more to the show but the fact that he is practically the #2 character in this show with so little back story and development is just not OK.
All Might is an interesting one. I like how they show that he has flaws as a teacher even though he is the number one hero. I like his fatherly relationship with Deku. I do have to point out that I am not too fond of the design of his skinny form. His sunken in eye sockets are distracting for me considering that he is supposed to be human (I think).
Todoroki is probably my favorite of the classmates. His back story of how he refuses to use part of his quirk because he hates his abusive father. His back and forth with Deku in the Sports Festival Arc on how Todoroki needs to embrace his other half. His father doesn't own him, etc. So good. Love it. Bakugo needs this kind of treatment.
Stain is my favorite villain and I was sad to see him go. I loved his motivations. I am glad they are continuing his narrative of how heroes need to be truly selfless if they want to call themselves heroes. How he hates all the heroes who do it for money, fame and glory.
Writing(6): I have issues with how this show is paced. And I think that the pacing is off because of their decision to use internal monologue and flashbacks. I don't mind if they use it, very sparingly, but this show uses it a lot. They need to let the visual(animation) speak for itself. Meaning they don't need to explain why (insert character) is (insert emotion) through internal monologue when the audience already sees it in their face. Or they don't need to explain why Deku is doing what he is doing because (insert 30 sec long flash back). It eats up run time. The audience isn't that forgetful. This explains why some episodes have odd cliffhangers in the middle of fight scenes or other places. They also don't need to internal monologue so much fight strategy. It is more fun seeing the strategy play out and the audience saying, 'Wow, didn't see that coming'. So I hope that they would take the audience a little more seriously. I can see why people wait until the whole season is out so they don't have to wait a week to see a fight finish.
All in all, it is still entertaining. I do want to see Deku's journey to the top. I just hope it doesn't take 10 seasons to do it.