My Hero Academia: You are next This is the fourth tie-in movie in the popular my hero academia TV animation. The movie takes place at the beginning of Season 7 and revolves around a villain who misinterprets All Might’s last words as a hero and becomes inspired in all the wrong ways.
This villain, the Force of Darkness, is a man who believes that All Might is the greatest hero in the world, not because of his heart or good deeds, but because of his overwhelming power. If one person has the same level of power, they can structure society however they want. In other words, for the dark forces, might makes right. So, after capturing a girl with weird amplifying powers, he sets out to rebuild the city in his own way – transforming a large portion of it into a giant flying fortress, trapping hundreds of civilians inside.
Of course, the A-level heroes also find themselves trapped in the fortress. They split into several different groups, each trying to fight the dark forces – despite being thwarted by his super-powered companions and his myriad of monstrous robots.
All in all, this setting is pretty good. Separate from the adult heroes and split into squads as is, everyone has something to do. There are plenty of gorgeous, thrilling battle scenes, and every hero gets at least a few moments in the spotlight. As expected, Izuku, Bakugo, and Todoroki got most of it. The Dark Force’s crazy interpretation of what All Might means to the world doesn’t sit well with them on a personal level. Therefore, it is an ideal battle for the three.
However, like the previous films, this one had to shoehorn in some original characters for plot purposes. Giulio can be said to be the protagonist of this movie. He’s a former butler (now a cyborg) on a mission to kill his former master, Anna. But ultimately, Giulio is nothing more than a collection of clichés—a tortured, perpetually brooding man. Anna, meanwhile, is little more than a walking plot device – a way to enhance the villain’s power and show the audience how close things are to going bad through her changing hair color. She spends much of the film in a mind-controlled trance, with little time to show any resemblance to the real person.
Aside from the Dark Force, the other villains are sketchy at best. They are their powers and nothing more – this is the military task our heroes need to overcome. But even Dark Forces has character issues. While his core ideals and relationship with All Might are interesting, his downfall as a villain is largely due to his stupidity and other reasons. In most cases, it’s not our hero who kills the supporting characters, but the Dark Force himself – as punishment for his failure. This includes one person whose quirk disables all other people’s quirks over a large area (think miles), and who can create bubbles within the area while his allies can still use their quirks. As a result, it feels like our heroes are winning not because they’re stronger or more righteous, but because the villains took an overdose of stupid drugs.
Another problem with Dark Powers is that it feels like a wasted opportunity thematically. There are a lot of things All Might could have done now that he was out of power and forced to reflect on all the unintended consequences of his actions – even something like trying to inspire his successor would have had a negative impact on the world . Likewise, if the power of the Dark Force is more like All Might’s power – i.e. true superpower rather than transmutation – then standing out in battle would show the young heroes that they have surpassed their idol and have Really ready for the big war. But alas, this is not the case.
To be clear, this doesn’t mean the movie is bad or even terrible. Even with its flaws, it’s still a very enjoyable movie. This talk goes a long way in that regard. Bones’ animation is excellent. The fights are well choreographed and realistic. However, for me, the best thing in the movie wasn’t the climactic battle, but the opening battle. Even though the stakes are low and there’s no huge explosions, blood, or tears, watching Deku use all of his different powers to take down a bunch of minor villains makes him feel like an agent of Superman.
The music is also solid. We end the film with two great Wardy songs, as they say, “You Say Run” that goes with anything.
In the end, while it had issues with the new cast of characters and wasted some storytelling opportunities, it’s by no means the worst my hero academia Movie. I would rank it second Heroes Rise. It’s a fun, spectacle-filled two-hour ride, and that’s exactly what it is. While I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone who doesn’t like the series (as it’s not particularly good as a standalone film), I hope fans will have a good time watching it.
