Knuckleduster Doesn’t Need No Quirk!

My Hero Academia: Vigilantes Ep 2 Review

Anyone who knows about Batman knows why he’s one of the greatest superheroes of all time. He may have no superpowers save for his intellect, gadgets, and martial arts skills, but he’s able to fight alongside veritable gods like Superman. And he’s able to do that because he’s built different. And while Knuckleduster may not have the money or power of Batman, this episode of MHA: Vigilantes demonstrates that he is also built different.

Knuckleduster Doesn’t Need No Quirk

At the end of the premiere, Knuckleduster was about to interrogate another civilian about Trigger when he got stopped by none other than Eraserhead. As Koichi and Pop watch, the pro hero and the vigilante get into a scrap, only for it to reveal something surprising about Knuckleduster. Just as Eraserhead tries to suppress his opponent’s Quirk, it doesn’t work. And it doesn’t work because Knuckleduster…is Quirkless.

My Hero Academia already proved that in a world full of them, it’s possible for someone to be a hero without any powers. Whereas Deku will gain One for All, though, Knuckleduster has no Quirk. Like Batman, he has no superpowers. He’s just a man with brass knuckles and an insane tolerance for pain. Given how most street-level heroes in comics are the ones with either minor superpowers or no powers at all, this means that Knuckleduster fits right in with the likes of Daredevil, Luke Cage, and Batman. It also means that Eraserhead can’t charge him since he’s not abusing his Quirk. However, the pro hero does warn him that he can only get away with being a “concerned citizen” for so long before it gets them into trouble.

Speaking of trouble, the business man that started this mess turns out to be a dealer for Trigger. And once he injects it into him, he turns into a four-armed version of a Titan and starts to manhandle Pop☆Step. The trio is nearly killed before they manage to take him down! While they do manage to acquit themselves well in battle, it has more to do with them getting lucky than skill. There is some merit to the pro-hero system, after all.

The Crawler Cometh

Yet the next time we see them, they’re back at it. The only difference is that Koichi is now going by the name “the Crawler,” and has body armor from Knuckleduster. It doesn’t make him any stronger, but it helps his durability. Sadly, it remains clear that this “team” is still in over their heads. Koichi fails to convince two middle schoolers to stop fighting; Knuckleduster remains determined to punch his problems. In all honesty, Pop☆Step is the only one who makes any headway, warning the students about Trigger as the boys take down an Instant Villain.

Unfortunately for the trio, their activities have not gone unnoticed. By the episode’s end, the police are after them, meaning they’ll have to fight villains while outrunning the cops. Life as a vigilante is never going to be an easy one!

This is only the second episode, and Vigilantes already has me hooked. As a longtime fan of superheroes, I was always going to like something like My Hero Academia. Vigilantes, though, is a love letter to the gritty street-level heroes that many people find relatable, and I’m enjoying it. Expect more reviews for this in the coming days!

I Give “Takeoff” a 4/5

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