What Does It Mean To Be A Hero?

What does it mean to be a hero? This question is often asked in My Hero Academia. With the fifth season just around the corner, it seems like a perfect time to reflect on one of the show’s core thematic questions and how the most recent season addressed it. Season 4 of My Hero gave us two story arcs: the Shie Hassaikai arc that brought our heroes into conflict with a large criminal organization, and the School Festival Arc that took a much lighter tone than the rest of the show. We’ll look at both of these to see how they addressed heroics.

There’s a clear focus on resolve in the Shie Hassaikai arc. The story focuses on a group of heroes, composed of pros and the students we’ve followed, performing a rescue operation to save a young girl named Eri from the criminal group Shie Hassaikai and their leader, Kai Chisaki. It’s the largest fight we’ve seen in the show so far. Across the various fights, we see several examples of what it means to have heroic resolve.

While the primary story focuses on our protagonist, Midoriya, the side stories focus on Kirishima, Togata, and Tamaki. Each of their stories addresses a different kind of resolve as they work to protect Eri.

During Kirishima’s battle, we learn he froze up when a villain confronted some of his classmates on the street when he was younger. For him, it’s a shameful memory – but it also gives him strength. Kirishima draws upon those memories to harden his resolve and dash into battle with an iron spirit. Ultimately, his resolve is strong enough that he defeats the villains challenging him.

Tamaki is in a similar situation. To paraphrase his mentor Fat Gum, Tamaki is as physically as strong as the professional heroes on the mission but is mentally and emotionally weak. His battle against a trio of villains tests his self-confidence, to see if he can believe in himself long enough to defeat the villains. He does this with resounding success in a personal favorite fight.

This brings us to Togata. With the hero name Lemillion, the one who will save a million lives, Togata is the first of the heroes to reach Eri and Chisaki. He battles Chisaki but is unaware of Chisaki’s secret weapon: A bullet that permanently removes the target’s superpower, known as a Quirk. For many heroes, this would be a detrimental blow. Togata, however, perseveres. Even after losing his Quirk, Togata continues his battle against the Chisaki until backup arrives.

Backup that comes in the form of Midoriya. Midoriya’s resolve undergoes a different test than the others. The leader of the mission, Sir Nighteye, has a Quirk that allows him to see the future, and he warns Midoriya that if he fights Chisaki, he will die. Instead of being faced with his past or mental weakness, Midoriya’s resolve is tested by certain death. Midoriya still resolves to rescue Eri and stop Chisaki from performing his cruel experiments on her. Midoriya’s resolve is so powerful that he overcomes Nighteye’s prediction, saving Eri and defeating Chisaki.

The Shie Hassaikai arc tested the resolve of our heroes. Midoriya and his friends have faced villains before, but they’ve never been part of an operation like this, nor have they faced a villain as terrifying as Chisaki and his Quirk-stealing weapon. It’s safe to say that this arc is one of, if not the darkest storylines the show has tackled, making the much lighter School Festival arc that followed a pleasant contrast.

Admittedly, the School Festival arc received mixed reactions from fans. Tonally, it’s quite different from the rest of the show. There is a villain in Gentle Criminal and his partner La Brava, but the duo is goofy, and a far cry from the more serious villains Midoriya has fought in the past. Comparing Gentle to Chisaki, you see the difference: Chisaki wanted to mass-produce his anti-Quirk bullets and destroy the superheroic society, while Gentle considers himself a gentlemen thief who avoids violence as a personal rule.

The stakes of this arc are far lower than ever. Society is not in danger. There aren’t lives on the line. Gentle plans to sneak into UA during the school festival and raise the alarm. It’s barely more than a practical joke. However, this arc looks at the question of what it means to be a hero and challenges it in a unique way that it only can because of the lighter tone and lower stakes.

What is a hero’s role in society? One might say it’s to beat the villains, which we’ve seen plenty of throughout the show. But as villains grow bolder, the hero’s victories get narrower and narrower, which begins to take a toll on society. Inside the hero school UA, there’s growing resentment towards the hero course Midoriya and his friends enrolled in. Their frequent encounters with villains have led to increased security school-wide. Furthermore, while Eri is no longer in physical danger after being rescued, Chisaki’s abuse has left a heavy mental toll on her.

Class 1-A seeks to remedy both these ills with their concert performance at the school festival. They want to give their fellow students a chance to relax, and Midoriya personally wants to strip Chisaki’s shadow from Eri’s mind so she can be saved from the villain both physically and emotionally. For this arc, the school is a microcosm of Japanese society. They’re afraid of how villains keep rising in strength, worried the heroes can’t save them, and carrying the scars of past attacks on their minds.

The School Festival arc slows the show’s pace to look away from just beating the villains. It’s not enough for a hero to throw a criminal in jail. To be a hero, one must inspire peace. As Midoriya faces off against Gentle Criminal in a climactic battle, the fight’s stakes go beyond which one of them remains standing. Midoriya is battling to bring peace to his classmates and a smile to the face of a young girl who has seen too many horrors. A battle he wins.

Midoriya’s victories over Chisaki and Gentle this past season develops our understanding of what it means to be a hero. It means bearing the resolve to look your death in the eye and still fighting to save a child. It means not just fighting to prevent crime but working to preserve the emotional health of the people you wish to protect. As Midoriya wins these battles, he comes closer to completing his journey to become the world’s greatest hero and the next Symbol of Peace.