The most underrated characters in My Hero Academia are like finding diamonds in the rough.
With a large cast of bright and colorful personalities, a few of them tend to slip through the cracks. Sometimes, My Hero Academia fans tend to underestimate their fighting prowess or forget about their role in the story. There are many reasons why characters tend to be underappreciated.
This list will include My Hero Academia characters who are considerably underrated, for one reason or another. All of these specific characters have their respective fanbases. However, they can also be undervalued in some particular category, which is what makes them underrated.
My Hero Academia characters that are consistently underrated by the fanbase
10) Mashirao Ojiro
Ojiro has ranked consistently well in popularity polls, so My Hero Academia fans have taken a liking to him. However, the term "underrated" generally means "not valued highly enough." Ojiro is still very much slept on because of his basic fighting style.
Nonetheless, this Class 1-A student has made good use of his Tail Quirk, or at least as good as it's going to get. For example, he can spin around like a tornado to defend himself against projectiles. He might be a jack of all trades and master of none, yet his "boringness" is endearing in its own way.
9) Toru Hagakure
Until the very end of the series, Hagakure didn't have much to do in My Hero Academia. Of course, this plucky comic relief does cheer up the mood whenever she is around. Her main gag is her invisibility, so expect plenty of jokes anytime she sppears.
Hagakure may not be very important in My Hero Academia, but she is the perfect background character.
8) Hanta Sero
Hanta Sero is just like Ojiro, where he also places high in the polls. However, he often suffers from really terrible performances. Whether it's getting knocked out by Midnight in the Final Exams, or being frozen solid by Todoroki in the Sports Festival, Sero can never catch a break.
Regardless, My Hero Academia fans shouldn't underrate his fighting prowess. Sero's Tape Quirk is quite versatile, since he can perform barricades and trap opponents. He is the perfect support unit for My Hero Academia.
7) Mezo Shoji
Mezo rarely gets focused on, yet he always manages to stick out from the crowd. His unique character design is unlike anything else in the series. Despite his frightening appearance, Mezo is a very kind person. He doesn't have any intentions of harming anybody.
His Dupli-Arms Quirk makes him perfect for reconnaissance missions, since he can grow several ears and eyeballs. This makes him a very interesting character to watch in various situations.
6) Shihai Kuroiro
Class 1-B is underrated in general, but Kuroiro deserves some particular love. He makes the most of his little screentime in the Joint Training arc.
When his team went up against Class 1-A, he used his Black Quirk to briefly take control over Fumikage's Dark Shadow. Kuroiro also managed to escape a net meant to capture him, just by falling into a shadow. His team would later go onto to win the entire round, the only one from Class 1-B to do so.
Kuroiro also had some fun moments with fellow classmate Kinoko Komori. Given that she likes mushrooms and they grow in darkness, their friendship makes perfect sense.
5) Burnin
Endeavor's personal sidekick made her first appearance back in the pro Hero arc. She doesn't spend much time fighting personally, but she does like to crack jokes at Bakugo's expense.
What really makes her stand out is her unique hair, which is shaped like a greenly lit flame. Series creator Kohei Horikoshi is certainly very creative with his artistic decisions. She is extremely minor in the grand scheme, yet she does add flavor to My Hero Academia.
4) Kendo Rappa
Overhaul tends to overshadow his entire crew in the Shie Hassaikai arc, with the exception of Kendo Rappa. This muscular behemoth uses brute force to get his way, thanks to his Strongarm Quirk. He can rotate his shoulders without issues, allowing him to punch multiple times.
This was the fight where Eijiro Kirishima broke out his new super move, Red Riot: Unbreakable. Rappa was very impressed when Kirishima directly withstood several attacks in a row.
3) Gentle Criminal
Gentle's name rarely comes up when discussing the best My Hero Academia villains. He may not have a cool design like Shigaraki or Stain, and he may not be a meme like Re-Destro, but Gentle does stand out in his own way. He is a completely sympathetic character in My Hero Academia.
After failing to become a hero several times in his early life, he turned to a life of crime and became a gentleman thief. However, after Deku stopped him in the School Festival arc, Gentle realized the error of his ways and turned himself in. Not just any villain would allow that to happen.
2) Edgeshot
Edgeshot is a Pro Hero with not much story relevance, beyond infiltrating the main hideout for the League of Villains. However, the fourth-ranked hero does have a sharp fashion sense. It can be argued that he has one of the coolest designs in My Hero Academia.
His unique Quirk also stands out among the Pro Heroes. Foldabody lets users flatten themselves completely, which can turn their bodies into different shapes. During the Hideout Raid, Edgeshot took out several League of Villains members without much issue.
This Pro Hero can get the job done when he needs to.
1) Geten
Geten is a top soldier from the Meta Liberation Army. Leader Re-Destro personally took Geten under his wing. During his particular arc, Re-Destro also trusted Geten to fight directly with Dabi, in a literal battle of ice versus fire.
While he doesn't get much screentime in My Hero Academia, Geten did stand out in his brief appearance. He quickly figured out that Dabi couldn't use his fire in extended bursts. This allowed him to engage in combat without burning out so easily, which not many can say in My Hero Academia.
Note: This article reflects the writer's personal views.