Plenty of similarities exist between anime and American comics, but there’s one anime in particular that bridges the gap extremely well.
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That would be Kohei Horikoshi’s My Hero Academia, which finds a middle ground between East and West tastes by including stylish action over a more traditional superhero tale (via Nerdist). My Hero Academia is a personal story about a young boy named Izuku Midoriya, who is bullied for the powers that he lacks.
See, Izuku lives in a world where 80% of all citizens have a superpower, but he’s yet to develop his unique abilities. The story details his journey to become a hero like the ones he has idolized all of his life, and his journey has a great deal in common with American superhero characters like Superman, Batman, and Spider-Man.
That isn’t an accident either. In an interview with Shonen Jump, Horikoshi detailed his love Marvel’s beloved hero, saying “To me … he is the only hero that I think of, that defines the title. The concept of [My Hero Academia] is built around that hero in mind, a hero to me is somebody that helps and brings reassurance to others. In Spider-Man’s case the first experience I had with this character was the movie, in which there were a lot of scenes with him rescuing people, which I felt that was really cool.”
My Hero Academia takes some inspiration from classic comics, sure, but also from the ’90s era. Academia‘s villain is named Stain, who pretty much looks as if all those leftover ’90s comics escaped the 25-cent bin and formed into a living being, excessive pouches and all.
If you’re a comics fan but have been unsure of where to start in your journey with anime, My Hero Academia might just be the perfect place to start.
My Hero Academia Season One is currently available on Hulu, Crunchyroll, and Funimation.
