My Hero Academia: The Biggest Changes Between The Manga And Anime

Summary

Season 5 of My Hero Academia is infamous for switching the order of major story arcs, creating confusion among fans.
The anime altered the Meta Liberation Army Arc significantly, cutting scenes and rushing its plot.
Flashbacks and unnecessary filler scenes were added to pad time in certain arcs, which had an impact on the pacing of the story.

The anime adaptation by Bones undeniably played a significant role in making “My Hero Academia,” an outstanding shōnen action series in contemporary times, even more renowned and recognizable. Originally, Kohei Horikoshi’s manga was already a notable masterpiece, but the worldwide success of this franchise can be partly credited to its impressive animated version.

The highly popular anime series “My Hero Academia” stands out due to its exceptional animation, cinematic style, and top-notch voice acting. Interestingly, it deviates from its original source material in some aspects, even though it is generally more faithful than many classic shonen anime. Despite this, there are noticeable differences between the “My Hero Academia” anime and the manga, with eight of these discrepancies being particularly notable.

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This awesome anime, named My Hero Academia, gets praised for its fantastic animation, movie-like camera work, and top-notch voice acting. What’s interesting is that it doesn’t stick to its manga source material completely, even though it’s more faithful than most old-school shonen anime. However, there are some significant differences between the anime and manga versions, and eight of these have been particularly discussed.

The Order Of Some Arcs

The Endeavor Agency Arc And My Villain Academia Were Switched Around

In the fifth season of “My Hero Academia”, a move that was unexpected among fans took place: it swapped the sequence of two significant storylines. Contrary to the original manga, where the “Meta Liberation Army Arc” (also known as “My Villain Academia”) followed directly after the “Endeavor Agency Arc”, this rearrangement allowed viewers to first observe the growth of the League of Villains and then understand how their secret alliance with the Meta Liberation Army influenced hero society from behind the scenes.

The anime chose to reverse the sequence of these story arcs, airing the Endeavor Agency Arc initially and then the Meta Liberation Army Arc subsequently. Consequently, the series unfolded in a disjointed chronology where Re-Destro was initially portrayed as an enigmatic figure, with his true identity revealed at the conclusion of the season. This unexpected narrative shift added an intriguing twist to the storyline, but it also resulted in unnecessary confusion and even spoiled the fact that the League of Villains had grown stronger before their actual rise.

My Villain Academia Is Missing Some Scenes

The Most Egregious Change Of Season 5

Apart from introducing significant alterations to the plot, Season 5 of the anime also substantially modified the contents of the Meta Liberation Army Arc. The pace of this storyline felt extremely rapid, diminishing its overall influence on the narrative, and several crucial scenes were eliminated altogether.

Initially, Spinner played a more significant part in the original manga, with many notable scenes featuring him that didn’t make it into the anime. Although some of these scenes were included later in Seasons 6 and 7, it was already too late to have the same impact. Conversely, Re-Destro’s portrayal as Detnerat’s CEO was more extensively showcased in the manga. He even starred in a commercial that provided an early glimpse of his public image before his villainous nature was unveiled. Unfortunately, this captivating scene was entirely removed from the anime, which had already given away his villain status by rearranging the story arcs.

Unnecessary Flashbacks

Sometimes The Anime Needs To Add Stuff To Pad Time

The anime adaptation of the Endeavor Agency Arc wasn’t only controversial due to its positioning before the Meta Liberation Army Arc, but also because it was filled with lengthy flashbacks that seemed extraneous and were likely included just to extend running time. It’s worth noting that these extensive flashbacks were not present in the original manga.

In a simplified and conversational manner: Seasons 5 and 6 are packed with scenes that take us back to the past, which occasionally enhance the storyline but other times slow things down too much, disrupting the smooth progression of their arcs. For instance, the Joint Training Arc, featuring the highly anticipated comeback of numerous key characters from Class 1-A and Class 1-B, was also affected by this divisive problem. However, Season 7 had far fewer flashbacks, suggesting that the creators of Bones may have finally grasped the issue and decided to minimize this practice.

The Provisional Hero License Exam Arc Is Slightly Longer In The Anime

The Adaptation Added Some Filler Episodes That Elevated The Narrative

Unlike many traditional shonen anime series, “My Hero Academia” remarkably features a minimal number of filler episodes. Interestingly, the rare instances where it does include filler actually enhance the storyline by revealing significant events that were omitted in the original manga. The Provisional Hero License Exam Arc, in particular, gained more from this approach than any other arc.

In simpler terms, during the anime, Shoto Todoroki interacted briefly with Seijin High School students and Momo Yayaorozu faced off against Saiko Intelli – these scenes were exclusive to the anime and effectively illustrated how certain members of Class 1-A grappled with a pivotal exam. Furthermore, the anime also expanded upon Tsuyu Asui’s internship with Selkie, an event that was only briefly mentioned in the manga.

The Manga Is Creepier

Its Disturbing Art Doesn’t Translate Well To The Anime

Although My Hero Academia is generally a light-hearted superhero series, it can unexpectedly delve into somber and unsettling territories. This is particularly true of the original manga, as artist Kohei Horikoshi’s artwork has a knack for being both shockingly intense and grotesque at times. Given his past work, it’s not surprising that he plans to create a horror manga in the near future.

In the anime adaptation, some spine-tingling moments from the manga, such as Shigaraki’s chilling smile at the mall or All for One emerging from within Shigaraki’s face, undeniably give off a creepy vibe. However, these scenes do not have the same intense impact in the anime. This is due to the fact that the original manga panels were enhanced by Kohei Horikoshi’s exquisitely detailed illustrations and the stark contrast of black-and-white shading. In comparison, the animated versions appear more polished and colorful, which could be attributed to TV regulations, budget constraints, or censorship requirements.

Censorship

The Anime Is A Lot Less Violent

Because of the stringent guidelines set by Japanese television, animated versions of shōnen manga often undergo significant editing or modification, a process that is commonly referred to as being extensively modified or toned down. For instance, shows like Dragon Ball, One Piece, and My Hero Academia have all been affected by these modifications on multiple occasions.

In a straightforward and conversational manner, this statement could be rephrased as: The original manga isn’t hesitant to depict graphic violence that is essential to the story (and isn’t overly gory), but the anime often softens these violent scenes quite a bit. This reduction in intensity can lessen the impact of certain key moments, such as when Overhaul kills Rappa, Re-Destro amputates his own legs, Mirko fights against the Five Nomu, and the tragic death of Tenko Shimura’s family, among others.

Minor Design Changes

The Anime Often Alters The Character’s Designs (Especially Women’s)

It’s indisputable that the character designs in “My Hero Academia” stand out uniquely and intricately among action shonen genres, with this observation holding true for both its heroic and villainous characters. Manga, being a medium of static illustrations, tends to provide more room for authors to create complex character designs. In contrast, animation like that found in anime, which includes movement, offers a distinctly different level of visual depth and dynamic character portrayal.

Due to practical constraints faced by the animators, the anime adaptation of “My Hero Academia” needed to simplify certain complex character designs. Notable examples include Deku’s Vigilante form, Hawks, Shigaraki, All for One, Inasa Yoarashi, Re-Destro, and Armored All Might. It’s important to note that the anime has also made adjustments to the proportions of some female characters, making them less realistic as depicted in the manga. These modifications have drawn strong criticism from viewers, particularly women.

Connection With My Hero Academia: Vigilantes

Manga Readers Enjoyed A Certain Plot Twist A Lot More

The manga titled “My Hero Academia: Vigilantes” is a companion piece that ran concurrently with the primary “My Hero Academia” manga. Though the two narratives generally stood apart, one substantial plot twist became more engaging and understandable for readers who were following the spin-off at the same time.

The revelation that Kurogiri was created using the remains of Oboro Shirakumo, a friend from Present Mic’s childhood who also happened to be Eraser Head’s comrade, left a significant impact on readers of “Vigilantes”. This was particularly poignant as they had spent a long time getting to know Shirakumo through a heartrending flashback arc. Unfortunately, those who have only watched the anime missed out on this shocking moment as it had already been adapted in Season 6. On the other hand, the “Vigilantes” anime didn’t start airing until early 2025, meaning that the Shirakumo flashback won’t be adapted for quite some time yet.

2025-09-12 16:36