I’ve been waiting nearly five years since I started reading the My Hero Academia spin-off manga series My Hero Academia: Vigilantes. Written by Hideyuki Furuhashi and illustrated by Betten Court, the series began publication in August 2016. The prequel, which takes place five years before the start of the main series, is animated by Bones Film, a subsidiary studio that also worked on the main series.
The story follows Koichi Haimawari, an ordinary college student who once dreamed of becoming a hero but has since given up. Although 80 percent of the world’s population has superhuman powers called Quirks, only a select few are chosen to become heroes and protect society. Everything changes for Koichi when he and Pop☆Step are saved by the vigilante Knuckleduster—who then recruits them to become vigilantes themselves.
Episode 1 of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes matches the original series in both animation style and substance. Brightly coloured comic book-style onomatopoeia flashes across the screen, distinguishing the art style from its predecessor and adding a new layer of impact to the characters’ actions. On the audio front, Pop☆Step’s musical elements shine in this format, offering an auditory experience that can’t be fully captured on the manga page.
“At its core, My Hero Academia: Vigilantes offers a fresh perspective on this established world where All Might is seen as the greatest hero of all time.”
For those expecting the typical shonen style seen in My Hero Academia, guess again. The spin-off delves into the grittier, ground-level crimes of the same city as the main series: Musutafu, Japan in the Shizuoka Prefecture. Where My Hero Academia Season 7’s story shows Izuku “Deku” Midoriya and his friends are now exploring some darker themes, My Hero Academia: Vigilantes begins going into darker themes from the start.
This works because Koichi is slightly older than Deku in Season 1. Koichi has to work, pay rent and attend college. Without a hero licence or protection from school staff, he has no one to back him up when he patrols the streets fighting crime. Pop☆Step is a high school student who maintains her anonymity by wearing a mask, while Knuckleduster is a regular strong guy who leaves a trail of injured gang members in his wake. Essentially, Koichi and his newfound allies engage in riskier crime-fighting situations than Deku and his classmates.
At its core, My Hero Academia: Vigilantes offers a fresh perspective on this established world where All Might is seen as the greatest hero of all time—essentially this world’s Superman. But what if Superman can’t make it in time to stop a mugging in a random alley? Is he willing to investigate a local drug ring to keep dangerous substances off the streets?
Koichi, Knuckleduster and Pop☆Step fill a gap in crime deterrence—stepping in where licensed pro heroes may overlook small-scale crimes. They’re there for the everyday people, where the stakes might not be world-ending but still threaten dozens, or sometimes hundreds, of innocent civilians. This concept fascinated me when the manga first dropped, and it has the potential to attract fans who are fatigued by traditional superpowered hero stories.
“Where My Hero Academia Season 7 explores darker themes, Vigilantes begins there from the start.”
What makes this ragtag team of vigilantes compelling is how Koichi and Pop☆Step have Quirks that aren’t ideal for combat, while Knuckleduster has no Quirk at all. The creators find clever ways to make their abilities work through quick thinking—similar to how pro hero Shota Aizawa emphasizes training his physical skills alongside his nullification Quirk.
For those looking for something slightly different from the main anime series, My Hero Academia: Vigilantes explores local organized crimes and begins with more mature themes. Similarly, the art style is the same, and fans will look forward to seeing familiar faces pop in occasionally. Think: what would happen if Kick-Ass from the Kick-Ass — The Dave Lizewski Years comics, Frank Castle from The Punisher franchise and Seraphine from League of Legends became a local vigilante group? This question sums up the ridiculous team-up of unlikely individuals, but it all somehow coalesces.
