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Time and time again, quintessential hero narratives like My Hero Academia have proved that even the purest of hearts can harbor darkness deep within and that even evil can be redeemed.
The series contains a plethora of characters, each neatly classified as the good or the bad guy, but it hasn’t stopped many of them from showing contrasting demeanors at some point or another. Sometimes, just circumstantial luck played a huge part in determining their allegiance.
Let’s look at five heroes from My Hero Academia who would be menacing villains and five villains who could have been one of the good guys.
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Disclaimer: This article expresses the author's views on the subject and contains spoilers for My Hero Academia.
5 Heroes from My Hero Academia who could be villains
1) Katsuki Bakugo
Easily one of the most popular characters in My Hero Academia, Bakugo’s personality has been deemed quite polarizing among the fandom. His constant anger and self-centered attitude have caused an uproar, with the majority claiming him to be too proud and full of himself, every trait a generic villain seems to have. He even told Deku to kill himself, although he later apologized.
The series has succeeded in keeping him on edge, occasionally taking care that he wouldn’t turn dark as this man is willing to do anything to see himself be the best. There is no denying that if his conscience was not clear, he would have turned out to be a terrifying villain with his explosive quirk.
2) Endeavor
Honestly, it is a miracle that he isn’t a villain, with many still questioning the position he currently holds. Despite a supposed redemption arc, Endeavor might never be able to overcome his past mistakes. His constant abuse of his wife and children had already made him a villain on the inside.
He was single-handedly responsible for traumatizing his wife, sending her to a psychiatric hospital, physically abusing Shoto, and giving him a burn scar on his face. If he had not gotten in touch with his conscience and tried to make things better, there is no way he would still deserve to be called a hero.
3) Hitoshi Shinso
He is cunning, smart, and has a quirk that allows him to manipulate people. In short, Shinso has all the ingredients required to conjure up a perfect villain.
Shinso also carries a dark and looming aura about him which gives him an intimidating presence among his peers. His out-of-the-box quirk, Brainwashing, isn’t particularly designed for the generic hero work, which might further give him the benefit of the doubt.
He would have been a force to be reckoned with had he decided to join the dark side. One mustn’t be too quick to make him a favorite character in case he does end up switching sides.
4) Romero Fujimi
Although he does not feature in the core series, appearing only in the OVA Training of the Dead, Romero Fujimi of Isamu Academy immediately comes to mind when discussing heroes who could potentially be nefarious villains. Everything from his appearance and snobbish disposition to his nightmarish Zombie Virus quirk screams ‘shady bad guy’.
His personality is quite similar to that of Bakugo - the reason why they immediately clashed after meeting each other for the first time. Considering how dangerous his quirk is and his overall demeanor, it is advisable not to get on his bad side even though he’s a hero.
5) Principal Nezu
Do not let the fuzzy exterior fool you because Nezu is an unpredictable genius, an excellent combination to become a villain. You can already imagine that securing a position as the Principal of a hero academy is no small feat.
Although he may initially give the impression of a polite gentleman, he can be a sadistic menace if the situation calls for it. Since he is a result of some form of an unethical experiment conducted by humans, he still holds a grudge against them and occasionally acts on it.
5 Villains from My Hero Academia who could be heroes
1) Shigaraki Tomura
Shigaraki is a classic example of what emotional abuse at the hands of a parent can potentially do to a child. Born Tenko Shimura, all Shigaraki wanted to be as a kid was a hero. He was a zealous child who, despite evoking his stubborn father’s anger, held his resolve to be a hero until the bottled-up anger finally exploded.
He accidentally killed his dog when his quirk got activated by tremendous sadness, and the final ball was dropped when he killed his father. His initial compassion as a kid and his powerful quirk could have been nurtured to turn him into a great hero had his father been more accepting of his wishes.
2) Stain
If anything, this guy has massive respect for his convictions and is willing to go to great lengths to see them get upheld, something a good hero must possess. Stain’s idea that heroes were a product of mere capitalization was not entirely wrong, but the extreme measures he adopted to single-handedly take care of it were flawed.
Despite his hostility, it would be a stretch to call him an evil person because he genuinely respects those that deserve it. He believes that All Might is a hero who has risen above the monetary significance of the profession and that he is an example of a true hero. Stain was also formerly a vigilante and only targets heroes he considers fake. This further validates the idea that he could actually be a good hero if he wanted to.
3) Twice
It is safe to state that the fandom had never considered him a purely villainous character. He was a victim of unfortunate circumstances and did not deserve to turn out the way he did.
Twice’s motivations were never evil, and all he ever wanted was a normal life which was shattered when he lost his job due to an unfortunate motorcycle accident. His use of his quirk to create clones to have someone to talk to resulted in the loss of his sanity when the clones turned against each other.
The League of Villains gave him refuge which led him to his dire fate. He was a good guy who did not deserve to endure hardships, and fans truly feel sorry for him.
4) Kurogiri
Here’s another villain whom the fates were cruel to. Oboro Shirakumo was a student at the U.A academy and was friends with Aizawa and Yamada before he was turned into Kurogiri.
After getting killed in combat with a villain, his body was recovered by All For One and was turned into a nomu by Dr. Daruma Ujiko. It was not fair what had happened to a perfectly normal person who would have easily gone on to become a pro hero alongside his friends. A figment of his former self still exists within him, which makes his situation even more tragic.
5) Gentle Criminal
Gentle Criminal had explicitly worked towards becoming a Pro Hero, but the constant rejections left him feeling dejected and drove him to villainy. His zeal alone could not help him achieve his dream as he lacked merit.
He failed the Provisional Licence exam four times, and adding salt to the injury, caused a civilian to suffer major damage while trying to save them. As a result, he was expelled from the academy and thrown out of his own home. His family had been swimming in debt and couldn’t tolerate failure.
He chose to turn to villainy to satiate his obsessive desire for fame. Gentle Criminal’s initial heroic ideals have not faded completely, and he still holds truly evil villains with disregard and deems them disgusting. The fact that he despises violence proves that had the fates not been so cruel, he could have made it as a hero.
