~{Story}~
Okay, I’m not going to tell you that Boku no Hero Academia has a creative and inventive premise, because it doesn’t at all. Actually, this is the most cliché a battle shounen anime could ever be. The setting takes place in an alternate world where people manifest supernatural powers know as quirks. Only 20% of the population ends up without a quirk. Our protagonist, Midoriya Izuku, falls in that 20%. Midoriya, a superhero fanboy, who always wants to be a hero is the one without the chance of being one. One day after certain situations happened, the greatest superhero gave him the opportunity to manifest his quirk and become a hero. The whole series revolves around Midoriya and his journey in a superhero high school. Sounds original? Of course not! But where Boku no Hero Academia shines isn’t in its premise, but rather its execution. It’s hard to describe what it is that makes this series enjoyable to watch. The characters are just so well done, despite its tropes, and they’re easily relatable. The series goes through some really interesting situations the revolves around its characters. And the series ends on a high note due to an action-based arc. The only problem is that the series doesn’t cover much, therefore it doesn’t get the opportunity to showcase its biggest talent – when the series tackles darker themes. But there’s always a second season!
Story: 7/10
~{Presentation}~
Despite its cliché premise, what makes Boku no Hero Academia so good is its execution. The series is filled with heart. It only takes two episodes to show that the series has an emotional touch to it. And the series manages to tackle some pretty important themes, such as bullying, what media portrays, and what decides the good and evil. Boku no Hero Academia is an excellent underdog story. But the series isn’t just about Midoriya, but it’s also about his friends, his rivals, his mentors, and his opponents. Boku no Hero Academia is a story about everyone, and how everyone makes one, which is a nice contrast to Midoriya’s quirk “One for All”. The series is primarily arc based, and this format works well for this series, and every other shounen anime. The biggest problem with Boku no Hero Academia is its pacing. It’s quite slow for a shounen anime with a 13-episode first season. In its 13 episodes, the series only manages to adapt a little over 20 chapters. So the average pacing is less than two chapter per episode. It may be a slow adaptation, but it’s a loyal one too. Nothing from the manga is skipped, and the tiny, anime-original moments are top notch (for example, a fight was extended to be twice as long in the second last episode). True dedication was put into this series.
Presentation: 8/10
~{Character}~
The best thing about Boku no Hero Academia is it characters – they’re marvelous. What seemed like clichés on paper, turned out to be three-dimensional in reality. Every character is special in every way, no matter how minor they are. As you can see from the key visuals that the cast in Boku no Hero Academia is humongous. Our protagonist, Midoriya Izuku, is one of the best shounen protagonist you’ll ever see. Yes, he may be too much of a geeky fanboy at times. Yes, he might be a crybaby at times. Yes, he doesn’t deserve his powers. Yes, he’s not flashy like every other shounen main character. But what makes him so good is that he’s filled with heart. Nicknamed as Deku, Midoriya’s Deku means to never give up (according to him), and that suits him. Even after having no hope, he still never gave up. And his reward came to him. And he’s not the only star of the show. His mentor, All Might, is a fascinating character. What seems like perfection in front of the world, turns out to be imperfect in reality. All Might’s a great representation of what eyes can deceive. His imperfectness is what makes him human, and what makes him a good character too. Bakugou Katsuki, who started off as the cliché bully for Midoriya, ended up being, well, still the same. But Bakugou never feels irritating, despite his attitude. He’s both badass and (unintentionally) funny enough to be a great character. Next we have Midoriya’s love interest, Uraraka Ochako, who ends up being a loveable character despite her cliché characteristics. And she’s really funny too. And then we have Iida Tenya, who gives you more Genos vibes than anything (and what a coincidence that his seiyuu is the same as Genos’s). And he too is really likeable and understandable. We do meet the antagonists of this series, but not much has been done to develop them, though that’ll be saved for the later seasons.
Character: 8/10
~{Art}~,
As you can see from the key visuals, Boku no Hero Academia has quite a unique, yet pretty, art style. Colors are more deeper and outlines are more thicker, and all of this looks great. Considering the fact that it’s Bones behind this anime, it’s not a faraway guess if you predict that the series will have good art. Thr backgrounds look amazing and it’s really pretty to look at. The art style is much more cartoonish compared to most anime, yet the series manages to look prettier. And the amount of detailing given to architectures and backgrounds are amazing. The art style resembles an American cartoon or comic, which matches its whole superhero concept. And the character designs are also fantastic. The characters look younger than other anime characters of the same age, because Boku no Hero Academia takes a more realistic approach in character proportion. And some of the superhero costume designs are absolutely phenomenal. Just look at Bakugou and Iida’s costume – they look incredible.
Art: 9/10
~{Animation}~
Bones not only delivers in the art aspect of Boku no Hero Academia, but also the animation aspect too. For most of the series, the animation quality is consistent and fluid and there’s never any noticeable hiccup. The character animations are fluid, the background animations are lively and the lighting animations look great too. There are moments in the series where the animation quality takes a sudden jump. These moments are absolutely beautiful to watch and can challenge One Punch Man quality (and that says a lot). The two most beautifully animated moments from Spring 2016 comes from Boku no Hero Academia (a small-scale fight in episode 7 and a large-scale fight in episode 12). The fight in episode 12 in particular was amazing. The cinematography, the fluidity, all felt amazing. Rarely do I ever watch a fight 10 times back-to-back.
Animation: 8.5/10
~{Voice Acting}~
The voice acting in Boku no Hero Academia is also very good, with some very good standout voices. Yamashita Daiki does a very good job as Midoriya. He does the zealous part and the emotionally moved part of him amazingly, while at the same time he manages to do the strategic and calm part of his character too. Miyake Kenta does a perfect job as All Might, as he captures his strength and weakness perfectly. It’s surprising how he was able to make one voice match both All Might personas. Okamoto Nobuhiko is probably the best choice for Bakugou. He does his aggressive and egotistical character with ease. There’s absolutely no complaints about his casting. Ishikawa Kaito coincidently got to play as another character that follows the rules and is righteous. He does Iida excellently. Sakura Ayane does an okay job as Uraraka. It doesn’t stand out as much as the other seiyuu work in this series, but it works. And Kaji Yuki is surprisingly a good fit for Todoroki. I expect great things from him in the next season. And the rest of the supporting seiyuu do a good job too. Boku no Hero Academia already has a dub going on, so you can check that out too if you want. From the couple episodes I’ve heard from the English dub, it’s pretty average, nothing too special. Some miscasting is present though.
Voice Acting: 7.5/10
~{Music}~
There’s only one word that can describe the music in Boku no Hero Academia: godly. Considering the fact that we have Haikyuu’s music composer, one can expect some good music in the series. There’s just so many memorable background music from this series. The rap music that is played throughout some moments in the series, such as Midoriya’s training montage, is absolutely addicting and cool to listen too. It really gets you pumped up. The main background theme used (the one used in the previews) is also really good too. But my personal favorite background music has to be the theme for the villains. When they appear, and when that track starts, you know sh*t’s about to hit the fan really hard. The OP and ED in the series is extremely good too. The OP, “The Day”, is absolutely fantastic and enthralling. The music is great and the vocals are exciting. The verse before the chorus always gets me, and the chorus exists to hype up the upcoming episode. The ED, “HEROES”, is a very good song that has both good music and vocals that complement each other. And it adds to the emotional aspect of Boku no Hero Academia.
Music: 9/10
~{Enjoyment}~
If it wasn’t obvious by now, yes, I loved Boku no Hero Academia a lot. Maybe I like it more than I should, may you like it less then you are, but Boku no Hero Academia is something fresh in the shounen genre, despite not looking like so in the initial looks. The series is filled with heart and emotional impact and the serie manages to tackle some really important themes. And the characters are so enjoyable. Not a single one of them end up being underdeveloped. And the art and animations are fantastic. Though I would have enjoyed this series a little more if the pacing was a lot faster, since it’s quite slow in comparison to its fast-paced manga. But other than that, this is one hell of a ride.
Enjoyment: 8/10
Boku no Hero Academia is an absolute must watch for those who are fans of the genre. If you like superhero or battle shounen anime and you haven’t tried out this anime yet, you’re wasting your time. And for those who aren’t fans of the genres, you should still try it out. It’s not the most original anime out there, but the execution makes up for it. It’s got a great cast of characters and the main plot and world building is great. And Bones delivers with their amazing art and animation. Add in some kickass background music and some solid voice acting, you’ve got yourself a solid anime. It takes time for it to get to the good part, and this season didn’t even adapt the best parts of the manga yet, but still this series manages to exceed expectations and be better than almost all the anime from this season. Boku no Hero Academia is an anime that lives up to its expectations and can prove to be a big franchise in the future.
+ Proves that solid execution can make a generic script into a unique one
+ Fantastic characters, which each of them being special in their own way
+ Fantastic action sequences, boasted by great art and animations
+ Great underdog story with a spectacular final arc, which warms up the second season
+ Outstanding background music complements the content
- Pacing can be too slow at times
Overall: 8.1/10
