My Hero Academia movies do to Deku what Horikoshi couldn't in the manga

The popularity of My Hero Academia has seemingly declined slightly in recent years. While many factors may be responsible, the drop in animation quality is certainly a major reason behind this decline. The newer seasons feel lackluster and struggle to hold the attention of fans, especially with shows like Jujutsu Kaisen and Chainsaw Man now in the spotlight.

However, the My Hero Academia movies avoid this fate, with their animation elevating certain characters from Horikoshi's magnum opus. The films effectively showcase Deku’s growth, making it believable that he is now either at the same power level as All Might or even stronger.

Disclaimer: This article reflects the author's opinions solely and not Sportskeeda as a whole.

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Why are the My Hero Academia movies better at showing Deku's powers?

Deku (Image via Studio Bones)

My Hero Academia tells the story of a Quirkless young boy, Izuku Midoriya, who is chosen by No. 1 Pro Hero, All Might, to become his successor and inherit the One For All Quirk. As the story progresses, Midoriya, through training and determination, learns to use the full power of One For All, surpassing All Might and becoming the strongest user to ever wield this Quirk.

To complement his strength, the story also provides an extremely powerful villain, Tomura Shigaraki. So, it stands to reason that Midoriya will feel like the strongest character by the end of the series. However, according to many, the manga rarely gives off the feeling that Midoriya, aka Deku, is on a higher or even the same level as All Might.

Deku using Black Whip (Image via Studio Bones)

While some of Deku's fights might make fans think otherwise, the overall impact of his powers doesn't translate well in the manga. This makes the power Deku wields feel a little underwhelming, making the narrative less engrossing. Horikoshi should have made One For All feel more grandiose in the manga, reinforcing the idea that Deku is on the same level as All Might.

Oda made Luffy's Gear 5 so ridiculously broken that fans had no problem believing he could take down a Yonko like Kaido. Another great example is how easy it was for fans to believe that Naruto surpassed all his mentors, with his fight against the Six Paths of Pain solidifying that fact.

Deku going all out against Overhaul (Image via Studio Bones)

While the My Hero Academia anime started off strong and had moments where it looked like Deku was on his trajectory to surpass All Might, the latter seasons did little to further that cause. Due to story constraints and pacing issues, large-scale fights were often held back. On top of that, the animation quality also made fans less invested in Deku's powers.

However, the My Hero Academia movies seem to have cracked the code for how to make All Might's successor truly feel worthy of the power he holds. The movies have a much higher budget to work with, allowing animators to go all out on large-scale fights, providing dynamic and fluid action sequences that showcase the true extent of Deku's One For All Quirk.

Bakugo and Deku as seen in My Hero Academia: Heroes Rising (Image via Studio Bones)

In movies such as Two Heroes, Heroes Rising, and World Heroes' Mission, Deku gets pushed to his absolute limits and must unlock his full potential, going all out against powerful villains like Nine in Heroes Rising or Flect Turn in World Heroes' Mission. Unlike the anime, where he gradually unlocks his powers over multiple arcs, the movies condense the plot, forcing Deku to rise up to the occasion.

In the end, we need to remember that Deku is just a young boy who is given very little time to master the One For All Quirk, which All Might had years to perfect. So, it's perfectly normal for him to appear a little out of his depth and not like he is the next All Might. With everything that happened, Deku did his best in the series, and it would have been better if the manga and anime did his powers justice.

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