My Hero Academia: Vigilantes is Here!

My Hero Academia: Vigilantes Ep 1 Review

This is something I should’ve been covering from the start, but for various reasons, I put off reviewing My Hero Academia: Vigilantes. However, that ends today. With My Hero Academia due to end this fall, now is the perfect time for longtime fans and newcomers alike to get into Vigilantes. A spin-off of the popular Shonen series, Vigilantes is a smaller scale that focuses on street-level heroes, much like Batman, Daredevil, and other noteworthy examples. Much like the main series questions the idea of what it means to be a hero, though, Vigilantes does the same thing by questioning the morality of performing heroic acts when you’re not legally qualified to do so.

On the one hand, the first episode makes me want to say there’s nothing wrong with it. On the other hand, though, it shows us how those doing hero-work outside the law may not be wholly qualified or have the mentality needed.

In other words, it’s complicated.

The Heroes are Here!

Taking place five years before Deku enrolls at UA High, Vigilantes starts off by introducing us to the main characters, each of whom aspires to do something bigger in life. There’s Koichi, a college student, All Might fan, and someone who wants to be a hero. The only problem is that his Quirk, Slide and Glide, just lets him glide across surfaces slower than some people walk. He’s basically in the same camp as Deku, being someone who wants to be a hero but can’t convince anyone of his worth. However, that doesn’t stop him from moonlighting as a Good Samaritan and helping people out.

Then there’s Pop☆Step, a wannabe idol who regularly uses her Quirk to put on street concerts. It may not seem like a problem to Americans, but apparently, street performances are illegal in Japan. Unlike Koichi, though, Pop doesn’t really have any interest in being a hero. She just wants to perform and make people happy, and she is a good singer. Her Quirk even lets her jump higher, so it’s perfect for performing.

From the outset, it’s established that what both Koichi and Pop are doing is illegal. While Koichi can argue that he’s being a Good Samaritan, openly using his Quirk in public is illegal. The same goes for Pop. However, given how neither are hurting nor inconveniencing anyone with what they do, it’s hard to see it as being morally wrong. Unfortunately for them, they get jumped by thugs, with their resulting rescuer fully dragging them into the world of vigilantes.

Enter Knuckleduster, a vigilante who, as mangaka Horikoshi admits, is Batman if Batman didn’t have prep time or his countless gadgets and tools. He’s also someone who would fit in with 90s antiheroes, as he’s violent, coarse, and his mannerisms give the impression that he’s not all mentally there. For example, after beating up the thugs attack Koichi and Pop, he starts checking their tongues. Then later, he shows up at Koichi’s place, invites himself inside, and starts helping himself to Koichi’s food. He’s like Rorschach from Watchmen, but buffer!

An Unlikely team of Vigilantes Forms

As crazy as Knuckleduster might seem, though, he ultimately has a good heart, as he senses that Koichi wants to do good and gives him a chance to do so. Plus, it’s revealed that he is onto something with the tongue-checking. He’s actually looking for signs of a drug called Trigger that will amplify a person’s Quirk to dangerous levels, turning them into Instant Villains. Black tongues are a side effect of this.

Like it or not, Koichi and Pop☆Step are now part of Knuckleduster’s team of vigilantes for the long haul. And whereas the main series focuses on the overarching threat of All for One, Vigilantes is the series that focuses closer to the streets, so the threats won’t be as big as we are used to. However, superhero comics that focus on the streets do so well because they balance the hero-work with the struggles that these street-level heroes experience. There’s a reason why Spider-Man is so relatable, and that’s because he faces many of the same problems as normal folk. Unfortunately for this new team, the episode ends with them being accosted in the middle of “interviewing” someone by none other than Eraser Head.

It’s official: Vigilantes is going to be fun to watch. Expect the rest of the reviews to be coming over the next few days.

I Give “I’m Here” a 4/5

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