The fight scenes in this season are actually most of the video clips I saw on other platforms that made me want to watch BNHA. Majority of the episodes involve the Shie Hassaikai Arc. I like Overhaul as a villain. There's something ominous about him, and the way he choose his words and actions are really chilling.
I like the obvious nonverbal behavior of Eri, Mirio and Overhaul. It made me think of how Mirio is able to compose himself. One could really feel the thrill of being within the reach of a villain and a victim, her helplessness and the heroes' inability to act... Shigaraki Tomura attempted to do this, but he only comes off as a random crazy person.
One thing I did not like about Overhaul's group is that they're actions make it seem that Overhaul is the only one sinister even if they were implied to be equally so. Their group had an eight-person elite team of sorts, and they could have been more menacing if there weren't beaten by student-heroes.
Speaking of heroes, I find it very off that students did most of the dangerous jobs for pro-heroes. I'd also like to nitpick: why are they made to live in dorms if they are still allowed to work as interns outside of their campus?They're provisional heroes, which allows them to help in emergencies if I recall correctly. So why are they performing operations with pro heroes and police?
Other things that bothered me that I'd like to let out:
1. Overhaul seemed to have downgraded.
2. Nighteye's quirk is not clear and I did not feel anything in his piece about the future.
3. Really? with the knowledge that the League of Villains are involved, they've only sent one hero to guard Overhaul, and they've also put the serum in the same vehicle???? That's too sloppy.
4. How did Eri escape in the first place? One pro hero pointed this out, but they did not have a compelling explanation to this.
After the Overhaul arc, I understand that down times are important, but the following arcs seem very much like fillers that we don't really need to watch. Maybe we could have had some hero-work from the other students. Instead we got a school festival (not bad by it self) and suddenly we get told that the students are actually performers. The next arc about Gentle could've also been better.
The fight was amazing, the motivations of Deku and Gentle are compelling enough to give me chills, especially considering Gentle's backstory. What I don't like is the build up to this scene. I understand that the show wants to set the tone lighter after the Overhaul arc. But the slice-of-life theme of the school festival just don't feel right to me as a build up for Gentle and Deku's fight. Even the interactions that lead to the both of them meeting seem too forced.
Fight scenes, especially on major villains, have good animation. But there are lapses, such as on Endeavor's fight. The opening songs are not that bad. Some OSTs don't fit well for me.
a sidenote and a recommendation:
I can't help but compare BNHA to Haikyuu (a sports anime, but essentially a battle anime; and the closest thing I've recently watched that is shounen). I never would have imagined that I would really like a sports anime to the point that I'm recommending it to my friends. Essentially, Haikyuu is similar to most shounen, battle anime; people have their unique skills, they compete. Only difference is that BNHA struggle to show a compelling villain/antagonist while Haikyuu has it easy with worrying only about competitiveness. But the big advantage of BNHA is the freedom to creative quirks that bypass reality. The entire world is involved in the story which allows BNHA to have a diverse set of characters and a imaginative story. Yet I am more entertained with Haikyuu, the rallies and every volley did not disappoint me to feel goosebumps. Watch Haikyuu!
