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Branson Garza
Published 2 hours ago
Branson is a Senior Writer for ScreenRant. Anime has been a major part of his life since he was able to raise his hands in the air for a Spirit Bomb. As a journalist, Branson focuses heavily on listicles and op-eds detailing the industry's greatest shonen series.
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My Hero Academia has thrown the franchise for a loop in its most recent, jaw-dropping episode. The series has always been filled with some of the best villains in anime, but one of the series' most notable villains might not be a villain after all.
It's a hard concept to fully understand, but Shigaraki, easily one of the most powerful characters in the franchise, might not have been as evil as his actions led him to be. The final arc of the series has revealed some of the most ground-breaking truths so far, and it'll only get better from here.
All For One has always been an amazingly evil villain, but his latest act might have cemented him as one of the best villains in the entire art form.
My Hero Academia Is Peak Shōnen
Its Final Season Is One of the Best Ever Made
My Hero Academia, for the past decade, has been considered one of the best shōnen anime series of the modern day. The past three seasons, especially the most recent, final season, have not only cemented its status as a new generation great, but thrown it up there with some of the best anime of all time.
Each character seems to peak in the final season, with characters like All For One, Deku, and especially Bakugo taking the series to an entirely new level. Bakugo has always been one of the most exciting parts of My Hero Academia, and his character arc has reached an all-time high during the final season.
Bakugo is deranged in the best way possible. He was chasing down the strongest villain in the series with a smile on his face, shouting that he was in fact "The Final Boss", not All For One. The moment was only made better by the absurdly good animation that brought it to life, creating a fitting end for All For One's original body.
There Are a Ton of Amazing Villains in the Series
Dabi, Twice, Himiko, and More
Himiko Toga giving her blood to Uraraka Ochaco in My Hero Academia season 7
There aren't that many shōnen series with multiple amazing villains. Usually, a great shōnen series has an equally great main antagonist, but that's about it. Side villains can feel flat, boring, and nowhere near powerful enough to justify feeling afraid. My Hero Academia fixes that by including a litany of deep, thought-provoking villains that add a ton to the franchise.
Dabi is a terrifying character. He's one of the strongest characters in My Hero Academia, with firepower that equals, and sometimes outmatches, his father's. His character is as rich as his power, as his background is one of the most intriguing parts about him.
Dabi was once Endeavor's son and a character with a ton of potential. After being neglected by his father, Dabi lost his mind, nearly killing himself in an attempt to master his dangerous ability. He's one of several side villains with a gripping story, showing just how diverse and heart-breaking the villains in the series are.
Shigaraki Was Never a Villain
He Was a Pawn in All For One's Game
There's no denying that Shigaraki has done terrible things. Next to All For One, he's been the biggest antagonist in the series from the very beginning, terrorizing both the students of U.A. High School and the general population of Japan. His Quirk, Decay, allows him to destroy anything he touches, making it one of the strongest Quirks in the franchise.
While Deku and the rest of the Heroes were led to believe that Shigaraki has always chosen evil, a recent revelation may question his entire existence. All For One admitted that he's been orchestrating Shigaraki's entire life in an attempt to make a perfect host body for himself.
Shigaraki has been evil, but was any of it his choice? All For One argues that Shigaraki never had a choice in the matter, even giving him his brutal Quirk in an attempt to break the young man's spirit before he could ever walk.
This, at the very least, poses a lot of questions. How culpable is Shigaraki after this information has been revealed? Shigaraki himself said that he only ever wanted to be a hero to his friends, showing that he never truly wanted to be evil. It's a moral dilemma that only makes My Hero Academia stand out as a top-tier series.
All For One Is One of the Best Villains in Anime
Creating Another Villain like Shigaraki Takes All For One to Another Level
The younger All for One, de-aging thanks to the Rewind drug.
While Shigaraki's status as a villain is questionable, there's no questioning that All For One has just cemented himself as one of the best villains in anime, if not the greatest of all time. He's such a great villain he could be the main character of his own series, showcasing his rise to power and his manipulation of friend and foe alike.
There are plenty of great villains in anime: Frieza, Meruem, Pain, and more, but none of them were as methodically evil as All For One. He created a fellow villain equal to him in evil just so he could use his body later.
He didn't care to raise Shigaraki like many thought; instead, he used him as a pawn even before he was born. He manipulated Shigaraki's father, gave Shigaraki a terrible Quirk and took away its reversibility, and used his body as if it were nothing more than a vessel waiting for his return. He's one of the many reasons that My Hero Academia will go down as an all-time great.
My Hero Academia
Movie(s)
My Hero Academia: Two Heroes (2018), My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising (2019), My Hero Academia: World Heroes' Mission (2021)
First Film
My Hero Academia: Two Heroes (2018)
Cast
Daiki Yamashita, Kenta Miyake, Nobuhiko Okamoto, Ayane Sakura, Yûki Kaji, Aoi Yuki, Kaito Ishikawa, Toshiki Masuda, Marina Inoue, Yoshimasa Hosoya
TV Show(s)
My Hero Academia
Video Game(s)
My Hero Academia: Battle for All, My Hero One's Justice, My Hero One's Justice 2
Character(s)
Izuku Midoriya, All Might, Katsuki Bakugo, Ochaco Uraraka, Shoto Todoroki, Tsuyu Asui, Tenya Iida, Eijiro Kirishima, Momo Yaoyorozu, Fumikage Tokoyami
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My Hero Academia
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