My Hero Academia Season 5

My Hero Academia's fifth season is a long one, with 25 episodes spread over two cours, which means two three-month blocks of TV time. It aired on ytv and NTV in Japan from March 27 to September 25, 2021. Studio Bones made it again, with Kenji Nagasaki as chief director and Masahiro Mukai as director. The season adapts roughly chapters 190 to 258 of Kohei Horikoshi's manga, or volumes 21 to 26.

For anyone new, the show is set in a society where almost everyone has a Quirk, a personal superpower. Izuku Midoriya, known as Deku, is a student at U.A. High School who wants to become the greatest hero, just like his idol All Might. All Might has now retired, and the country is still getting used to life without its symbol of peace. That worry hangs over the whole season.

The opening stretch is a big school event. The kids of Class 1-A face off against Class 1-B, their neighbors in the same grade, in a series of four-on-four practice matches inside a mock city. Each group must catch the other side's members and lock them up. Hitoshi Shinso, a quiet boy whose Quirk can take control of people who answer him, has been studying under teacher Shota Aizawa. He hopes to move up from the general studies class, so he joins the matches to show what he can do. These episodes are full of clever plans, teamwork, and funny moments. They also let many side characters shine. During one match, Deku's own power begins to act in a strange way, and this opens a new mystery about the force he inherited.

In the middle of the season, the show turns to the villains. Tomura Shigaraki and his League of Villains clash with a large secret group called the Meta Liberation Army, led by a man known as Re-Destro. This part gives the bad guys a lot of time on screen. We learn more about villains like Twice and Dabi, and see why they feel the world has treated them badly. It is darker and more violent than the school episodes, and it makes the villains feel like real people with their own reasons.

The last section is a work-study program. Deku, Katsuki Bakugo, and Shoto Todoroki go to train at the agency of Endeavor, who is now the top hero in the country. Endeavor is also Todoroki's father, and the two have a painful past. Watching Endeavor try to be a better hero and a better parent, while Todoroki decides how he feels, is one of the most human parts of the season. The young pro hero Hawks also plays a key part, as he works on a risky secret mission. The season ends by setting the stage for a huge clash to come.

Themes this time include rivalry that turns into respect, the meaning of family, and the question of what turns a person into a villain. Fans have mixed views on the slower pace, but many enjoyed the deeper look at the cast on both sides.