Star & Stripe: Star & Stripe misused New Order in My Hero Academia (& its potential shows how)

Star & Stripe misused New Order in My Hero Academia (& its potential shows how)

Modified Mar 15, 2025 18:32 GMT

My Hero Academia's Star & Stripe, might be an amazing Hero, but she is one of the series' most controversial characters. Starring only for a brief while, she put up a valiant battle against the Villain Tomura Shigaraki before meeting her demise at his hands. Even in death, she had a smile as she disintegrated. However, her contribution did mean something in the grand scheme of defeating Shigaraki.

Her Quirk, New Order, seemed overly powerful. Due to its nature and potential, many feel that she may have misused it. In fact, some even opine that using it as a support tool rather than for front-line battle could have even Star's life in the process. But again, it could have also been that due to New Order's potential Horikoshi decided to only tease it.

Disclaimer: This article is a speculative theory and reflects the writer's opinion.

My Hero Academia: New Order's potential shows why Star & Stripe might have misused it

Before delving in, it would be beneficial to refresh what New Order could do. Used by Cathleen Bate aka Star & Stripe, New Order permitted her to set a rule onto her surroundings after touching a target and announcing its name. Doing this would then allow her to manipulate and bestow new properties onto herself and her immediate surroundings.

The range of the rules was vast - from straightforward descriptions to more condition-based ones, i.e., cause-and-effect. Star & Stripe could even bestow upon herself extra abilities and manipulate the state of her opponent's body, too. Physical entities aside, New Order could also affect incorporeal things like laser beams, air, and even other Quirks.

So according to this logic, many opine that New Order would have been better utilized as a support-type Quirk. That was one of its most compelling aspects, i.e., the sheer versatility. By playing to its ability to impose rules on physical and incorporeal entities, Star & Strip could have fundamentally manipulated the battlefield in ways that exceed just offense.

For instance, quite a useful application of New Order in My Hero Academia would have been as a support ability to enhance her allies' Quirks. In a team-based setting, Star & Stripe could have been able to bolster Heroes with defensive augmentations, like reinforcing armor-like durability for frontline fighters or accelerating regenerative abilities. As a result, squads would be significantly more resilient and effective in prolonged confrontations.

Moreover, New Order could have highly useful in threat neutralization through creative environmental manipulation over direct engagement. Shifting focus from overpowering foes, Star & Stripe imposing restrictions on enemy movement. These included altering the gravity in an area, restricting mobility (like setting the rule to stop Shigaraki's heart) or even rendering Villain Quirk activation more difficult.

Undoubtedly, these strategies could systematically break down a Villain's effectiveness thereby reducing the need to engage in dangerous close-quarters situations. My Hero Academia's New Order could also work as an espionage tool, i.e., by imposing rules on information itself. For instance, truthfulness could be compelled or undercover situations unravelled giving immense tacitical edge.

Final Thoughts

Ultimately, while Star & Stripe’s heroic resolve shone bright, the full strategic potential of New Order may have been underutilized. Its power as a support-type Quirk seems revolutionary when considering the possibilities. Truly, it could have been an immensely valuable asset in coordinated efforts against threats like Shigaraki and All For One.

However, it felt like Star & Stripe was pushing New Order to be more offensive. While its potential was massive, its drawbacks likely held it back from being a true attack-type Quirk. Had she explored its versatility rather than pushing it to be used in front-line fights, New Order could have been a revolutionized superhuman society. Instead, its brilliance was cut short, leaving a glimpse of potentially game-changing force.

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Edited by Madhur Dave