"I almost cried"— My Hero Academia fans can't believe what Studio Bones did with Gentle Criminal's return in season 7

My Hero Academia season 7 has recently released episode 16, and while it was filled with action, a moment that stood out was the return of Gentle Criminal to aid the protagonist, Izuku "Deku" Midoriya. While initially a minor antagonist, Gentle has become a fan-favorite in the community and most people were happy to see him return in a much more heroic fashion.

As Skeptic manages to hack the U.A. system so it can fall into the ground, Gentle Criminal arrives at the scene to hold it up in the air thanks to his Quirk. His return, alongside La Brava, who is working as a hacker to counter Skeptic, has been one of the biggest highlights of My Hero Academia season 7 thus far, and that is because these two beloved characters managed to get their redemptions.

Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the series. Any opinion expressed here belongs to the author and people quoted and not Sportskeeda as a whole.

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My Hero Academia fans celebrate the return of Gentle Criminal in seventh season of anime

Most fans of the series have praised Studio Bones for the stellar animation during Gentle Criminal's return into the story. A lot of people have highlighted how they managed to add a few flashbacks of his youth and his struggles to further emphasize the importance of this moment for this character, as well as improve the display of his powers.

It was revealed in this episode that Gentle Criminal was the one who helped keep all the criminals within the prison he was a part of when All For One assaulted it, which gave him goodwill with the authorities. He was willing to help in the battle against Tomura Shigaraki, because his Quirk was practical to keep the UA building afloat, which was something paramount for the heroes' plan.

It was also a moment of triumph for the character after years of failing and not having a clear path in life. This is something that Studio Bones emphasized with the flashbacks, thus showing how Gentle wanted to make a difference in life, which is shown through his inner monologue where he mentions Deku's help to save him.

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Reactions online

Gentle Criminal and La Brava have a minor role in My Hero Academia but serve as more normal examples of being rejected by society and still striving to be better. While the likes of Shigaraki, Dabi, and Himiko Toga resorted to terrorism, these two characters were trying to find a healthy path in life, mostly doing harmless videos and also finding comfort in each other.

That is part of the reason why fans were so happy to see Gentle Criminal in action against Shigaraki in the final war arc: that he was finally the hero he always wanted to be. He was also getting a boost in power because of La Brava's Quirk, whose relationship is one of the most popular in the entire fandom.

"Gentle being a hero for a once. He made a lot bad mistakes over the years but this is making things up for it. He’s doing this his own way…not the hero way the Gentle way," someone said.

"I think it's safe to call him gentle hero now," another person said.

"GENTLE, MY GOAT!!! He finally gets the chance to be the hero he always wanted to be!" someone else said.

While a minor character in the grand scheme of things, Gentle Criminal managed to win over the hearts of several My Hero Academia fans, and this moment is a great example of that.

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