5 My Hero Academia anime story arcs that disappointed fans (& 5 more that rose to the occasion)

One of the most popular anime of the new generation, My Hero Academia (otherwise known as Boku No Hero Academia) is heading towards its final arc. It has received worldwide acclaim from fans for having some of the best action sequences in anime and has generated a huge fanbase over the past seven years.

Over the course of six seasons, there have been several story arcs that stood out and captivated fans with their unique style of storytelling.

There have also been instances where some arcs heavily disappointed fans due to a number of reasons. It included issues like repetitive storylines, several characters with little to no depth, and just uninteresting plots, in general.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the My Hero Academia anime up to the 6th season. Reader's discretion is advised.

5 My Hero Academia story arcs that left fans disappointed

5) U.A School Festival Arc

The U.A School Festival arc in My Hero Academia(image via Studio Bones)

Although not a bad arc by any means, the U.A School Festival arc came directly after the Shie Hassaikai Arc, which is highly regarded as one of the best arcs in My Hero Academia. It provides more of a 'breather' to the viewers, which meant that this would be a storyline involving no major stakes.

In this arc, Class 1-A plans to perform a dance with a live band during the annual School Festival of U.A High. Meanwhile, Izuku Midoriya tries to make Eri smile for the very first time in her life.

While this arc provided a much-needed relaxation to its characters following two major arcs, its overall low stakes prevented it from being one of the better storylines. Additionally, the pacing of this arc was pretty slow, which made it a little less engaging for the viewers.

4) Remedial Course Arc

Todoroki and Bakugo in the Remedial Course Arc(image via Studio Bones)

This is a pretty short arc of just 3 episodes, which take place directly after the Shie Hassaikai Arc in the 4th season of My Hero Academia. The first episode served as an aftermath of the intense arc. Meanwhile, the other two episodes focused on Shoto Todoroki, Katsuki Bakugo, and two other students from Shiketsu High trying to get their hero licenses after failing the provisional hero license exam.

The stakes were pretty nonexistent during this arc, as the narrative was focused entirely on the U.A and Shiketsu High students trying to win over a group of mischievous elementary school students.

This arc provided some much-needed breathing time to its heroes as well as its audience after the previous storyline. Despite featuring some funny and heartwarming moments, it doesn't really add much to the overall storyline.

3) Joint Training Arc

The Joint Training Arc in My Hero Academia(image via Studio Bones)

The Joint Training arc took place in the 5th season of My Hero Academia. Again, it wasn't a bad arc by any means, and also featured new characters from Class 1-B who showed off their quirks in a battle against Class 1-A. Despite the interesting premise, some fans felt that the arc overstayed its welcome as it went on for 10 episodes.

This arc featured a tournament-like battle between students of Class 1-A and Class 1-B, as it seemed that the new characters would finally get their time to shine. The major complaints about this arc were mostly about the irregular pacing of the episodes.

Most of the episodes featured a lot of flashbacks, which didn't add much to the story in any way. At the very least, viewers got to see Midoriya unlock a new power called Blackwhip, which made this arc a bit more significant.

2) Final Exams Arc

Bakugo and Deku face All Might(image via Studio Bones)

The Final Exams arc takes place at the end of the 2nd season of My Hero Academia and lasts for only 5 episodes. It takes place after the Hero Killer arc and features a battle between the students and the teachers of U.A High.

While this arc showcased the abilities of students to work in teams to outsmart their teachers, it suffered from pretty low stakes. It also featured a pretty intense fight between the reluctant team of Bakugo and Deku vs All Might.

There weren't any boring moments in this story, apart from Miss Midnight's fight against Mineta, who's heavily regarded by the fans as one of the worst characters of the series.

1) Meta Liberation Army Arc

The League of Villains(image via Studio Bones)

The Meta Liberation War arc was the final arc that took place before the Paranormal Liberation War arc in My Hero Academia. In this arc, the narrative shifted from the U.A High heroes to The League of Villains and Tomura Shigaraki in particular, who faced a near-impossible task in order to truly become All For One's successor.

This arc had major significance in the overall story as it basically served as a backstory behind the Paranormal Liberation War arc. However, many fans felt disoriented from the core narrative due to uneven spacing.

The major complaint about this arc was that it felt a bit rushed in the anime. Considering that this arc had about 19 chapters in the manga, fans felt that the anime failed to fully flesh out the story in just 6 episodes.

5 My Hero Academia story arcs that are widely loved by the fans

5) Hero Killer Arc

Stain in Hero Killer Arc(image via Studio Bones)

Stain is a villain whose motives and ideals clearly differ from other villains in the series. He considers All Might to be the only hero who is deserving of the title and wishes to destroy the other 'undeserving and fake' heroes in the world.

Although he was eventually arrested by the police at the end, he left a lasting impact on both the heroes and the viewers. At the end of this arc, Tomura Shigaraki uses Stain's reputation to recruit more members into the League of Villains, as he finally transforms the group into a truly terrifying criminal organization.

4) Shie Hassaikai Arc

Lemillion vs Overhaul(image via Studio Bones)

The fourth season of My Hero Academia featured one of the best story arcs of the series. The stakes were pretty high this time, as the U.A heroes and the police went up against Shie Hassaikai. The criminal organization was led by the formidable Overhaul, who was shown to have one of the deadliest quirks in the series.

While going up against Shie Hassaikai, Mirio Togata, aka Lemillion and Deku had a clear motive. After they came across Eri, a young girl who was clearly being abused by Overhaul, they were dead set on rescuing her from his clutches. Not only did this arc feature some of the best fights in the series, but it also saw the tragic death of Sir Nighteye, one of All Might's subordinates.

3) Hideout Raid Arc

All Might vs All For One(image via Studio Bones)

The Hideout Raid arc finally featured one of the most awaited and epic battles of the series, i.e. All Might vs All For One. Preceded by the Forest Training Camp, where Bakugo was kidnapped by the League of Villains, this arc starts with a group of heroes raiding the villains' headquarters. However, things go awry when All For One enters the fray, forcing All Might to face his greatest opponent once again.

This arc not only featured the U.A students successfully rescuing Bakugo through an ingenious plan but also saw the final stand of All Might, who drained all his power in his battle against All For One. It was arguably the best fight of the series, followed by an emotional victory celebration by the No.1 Hero.

2) Dark Hero Arc

In the sixth season of My Hero Academia, the Dark Hero Arc serves as an aftermath of the Paranormal Liberation War, which shifted the balance of the entire world. In this arc, Izuku Midoriya is on the run from the assassins that All For One sends after him.

Viewers get to see a very different version of Midoriya in this arc. Desperate to protect his friends, Deku drops out of U.A High and lives out on the streets. He tries to protect as many civilians and remaining heroes as he can while having no food or rest for several days. At the end of the arc, Deku has an epic confrontation with his friends from Class 1-A, who insist on him returning to the school with them.

1) Paranormal Liberation War Arc

Paranormal Liberation War arc in My Hero Academia (image via Studio Bones)

The latest season of My Hero Academia completely shifted the tone of the show with the Paranormal Liberation War Arc. It's easy to see why this is considered to be the best arc of the show so far. The story begins with the heroes conducting a raid on the villains' hideout. However, things begin to change for the heroes when Shigaraki, who underwent a procedure to receive All For One's power, wakes up and goes on a rampage.

With their strongest hero All Might unable to fight anymore, it looked like the time had finally come when the villains emerged victorious. With his new power, Shigaraki destroyed an entire city and overwhelmed pretty much all the heroes on his own.

Another twist in this arc came when the notorious villain Dabi revealed himself to the entire world to be Endeavor's son, which turned pretty much the entire world against the hero. The results of the war were catastrophic and took away the faith of many heroes.

To conclude

While some of the story arcs in My Hero Academia may be considered disappointing by the majority of the fans, they might still be enjoyable to others. Then again, it's not possible for an anime to please every fan with all of their story arcs. The overall success of a storyline is subjective and varies from person to person.

Despite its shortcomings, My Hero Academia remains one of the most beloved anime of the new generation with a dedicated fanbase. Fans are eagerly awaiting the 7th season of the anime, which will likely prove to be even better than its predecessors.