My Hero Academia's Symbol of Peace concept does more harm than good

Modified Nov 05, 2024 16:32 GMT

While everyone in My Hero Academia loved All Might as the "Symbol of Peace," the question remains whether he was the reason villain activity increased in society. As one might remember, the first person with a Quirk wasn't born ages ago. The villain All For One was not born much after the Luminescent Baby was born.

Hence, realistically, All For One was the only big villain in society. However, this changed after the emergence of All Might. Does this mean that All Might's Symbol of Peace does more harm than good? Is he the reason why people became highly dependent on heroes?

Disclaimer: This article reflects the author's opinion.

How does the Symbol of Peace concept do more harm than good in My Hero Academia?

All Might, as seen in My Hero Academia anime (Image via BONES)

All Might's Symbol of Peace concept is problematic because it has caused people to become dependent on heroes to help them in every situation. The concept has created an unrealistic standard in society, causing people who can help others in tough times to stand still and wait until someone with a better Quirk arrives to help them.

Such a change in attitude has caused more villains to emerge as people know that only heroes with stronger quirks than them would come to stop them. They should be fine as long as they can avoid contact with them.

Izuku Midoriya and Katsuki Bakugo as seen in the manga (Image via Shueisha)

This was evident in the anime's first chapter itself. Just as a villain held Katsuki Bakugo captive, the Pro heroes at the location did not jump into the scene to help him. Instead, they stood there waiting for someone else with a stronger Quirk to step in. The people's mindset in society had become so bad that Izuku Midoriya, a boy with no quirk, was the one who jumped into action to save his friend.

This was bad as the Pro Heroes did not do anything other than hold back the civilians from getting closer to the villain. Kamui Woods was shown saying that he couldn't help Bakugo because of the Explosion Quirk, as his own quirk was weak against it. Even Mt. Lady backed off from the action simply because it was a single-lane street.

Stain as seen in the anime (Image via BONES)

Effectively, society had become one where people refused to help others if there was even a small possibility of failing. True heroes would rather fail trying to help others than never try at all. Unfortunately, this culture had been cultivated in society following the emergence of All Might and his Symbol of Peace concept.

However, that's not all the Symbol of Peace concept is responsible for. As one might remember, both Shigaraki Tomura and Stain shared similar beliefs that society shouldn't be dependent on heroes and that heroes should want to save people over wanting fame and fortune. This belief saw both of them commit crimes to prove their point.

Dark Might, as seen in the anime (Image via BONES)

Lastly, admiration for All Might as a "Symbol of Peace" also led to the emergence of villains. The most recent one among them was Dark Might from My Hero Academia: You're Next movie. So yes, My Hero Academia's Symbol of Peace concept perpetuates more harm than good.

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Edited by Gokul Chettiyar