'My Hero Academia' Gets A Perfect '90s Anime Makeover

My Hero Academia has become fertile ground for fan art, and the latest makeover puts its [...]

By Michael Hein

My Hero Academia has become fertile ground for fan art, and the latest makeover puts its characters in a 90s anime style.

Illustrator Evelyn Gonzalez posted her vintage take on class 1A across social media earlier this week, and quickly captured the attention of the entire fandom. She put the Boku no Hero Academia characters into the exaggerated, charmingly grainy aesthetic that is like familiar to old school anime fans.

"Well here it is!" Gonzalez wrote on Instagram. "BNHA season 3 90s style :D. Thanks for the screenshots you guys sent in, tried to do as many as I could."

She produced eight illustrations in total, including a shot of Midoriya, Yaoyorozu and Kirishima in disguise from their attempt to rescue Bakugo from the League of Villains. She also drew a fittingly maniacal 90s style Himiko Toga, and a blushing couple of cocky Bakugo portraits.

The pictures sparked a remarkable response. Everything, right down to the dull yellow subtitles, captured the 90s anime feel. Some of the pictures even had the bottom quarter or so chopped and slightly off center, as though they were a paused VHS tape.

"Damn I really love these," one user fawned. "I can only imagine how much time and effort went into these, none the less I would say these are both well worth and came out amazing."

Gonzalez was open about how much time and effort went into her creations, but she was generous as well. She gave several Twitter users permission to use her drawings as their icons at no charge.

The pictures gathered about 27,000 likes and 11,000 retweets on Twitter. They reached over 12,000 likes on Instagram, and a staggering 28,000+ notes on Tumblr. While they went particularly viral, they weren't the only widespread fan art.

My Hero Academia has become a staple of online fandom communities, and there's something about its expressive, fantastical character designs that just beg to be drawn. Fan art of all styles, mediums and skill levels has taken over social media, and it shows no signs of stopping yet.

Meanwhile, the series itself surges forward with its provisional lisencing exam. Midoriya and his friends are at a severe disadvantage, as all of the other classes have gotten a good look at their quirks in action, while their opponents are a mystery to them. The students need to acquire their provisional lisences to give them legal hero status, so that they next time they are forced to use their quirks out in the world, they won't be breaking the law.

New episodes of My Hero Academia premiere on Saturdays at 4 a.m. ET. The show simulcasts on Hulu and Crunchroll.

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