‘My Hero Academia’ Reveals Intense New Ashido Art

My Hero Academia has just released its latest volume of the series in Japan, and like the rest of the volumes released thus far there are several extras packed in for longtime fans of the series. But one bit of extra art has gotten a lot more attention than the others.

As shared by @aitaikimochii on Twitter, the latest volume has an extra page featuring an intense, close-up look at Class 1-A’s Mina Ashido as she ridicules series creator Kohei Horikoshi about messing up while illustrating the latest cover.

Like many of the students in Class 1-A, Mina Ashido quickly became a fan-favorite for her unique design and personality, though she does not often get time in the spotlight. That changes with the latest volume, however. @aitaikimochii notes that on an extra page in Volume 22 of the series, Ashido is looking at series creator Kohei Horikoshi dead in the eye and berates him for apparently losing the cover he was working when his computer froze.

It’s pretty notable that she gets such a focus, even for an extra bit of official art, as the latest arc of the manga has shifted more toward a focus on the other students not seen during the “Internship” arc and beyond. Ashido is one such character, and while fans have seen bits of her development here and there throughout the series, the latest chapter has shown more of what she’s capable of. It’s certainly something on Horikoshi’s mind, clearly, as he shared a piece of art like this.

My Hero Academia was created by Kohei Horikoshi and has been running in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump since July 2014. The story follows Izuku Midoriya, who lives in a world where everyone has powers, even though he was born without them. Dreaming to become a superhero anyway, he’s eventually scouted by the world’s best hero All Might and enrolls in a school for professional heroes. The series has been licensed by Viz Media for an English language release since 2015.

Fans are currently waiting for the series to make its anime return later this October, and it’s one of the most anticipated anime releases of 2019 overall. It’s hard to blame fans for their eagerness as the third season of the series ended on a major cliffhanger with the introduction with the Big 3, new Pro-Heroes like Nighteye, and new villains like Overhaul, and each of these new elements coalesce in big ways over the next arc of the series.