The Japanese Fan Reaction to Live-Action 'My Hero Academia' is Very Telling

Live-action anime adaptations have gotten a bad rap among anime fans, and it's the same in Japan as well. When Legendary Pictures announced they were producing a live-action My Hero Academia, early reactions weren't so hot.

In Japan, fans are imagining a pretty spicy set-up for one of the more popular connections between Bakugo and Kirishima in a "Hollywood" style adaptation.

“So Hollywood KiriBaku huh, wonder if that means sexy music playing with Bakugou in front of Kirishima and sitting in his lap and doing a strip show or something...”

I LIKE HOW THIS IS SOME JAPANESE AUDIENCE’S IMAGE OF HOLLYWOOD LOL //t.co/mIRA4a77fS

— ☆オードリーAudrey☆ (@aitaikimochii) October 26, 2018

As spotted by @aitaikimochii on Twitter, one Japanese fan imagined quite the interesting possible set up for Kirishima and Bakugo, "wonder if that means sexy music playing with Bakugo in front of Kirishima and sitting in his lap and doing a strip show or something..." and that says a lot about how fans outside of the United States view Western adaptations.

One of the most poplar underlying elements of the series among fans is the close relationship between Bakugo and Kirishima. While there have been hints at their closeness throughout the series, it's never been defined one way or the other. Fans have latched onto whatever few moments there are, however, that seemingly confirm their assertions. It's more of a subtle enjoyment of hints (though a confirmation would do wonders for the series), but this fan in Japan highlights how little subtlety there can be in a live-action Hollywood adaptation.

Western adaptations in the past have never quite relied on subtlety to tell their stories, so fans think if Bakugo and Kirishima's relationship was hinted at, or confirmed, it would be dealt with a much heavier hand than fans would find in the original. This goes to show how little faith fans have in live-action anime projects, even if the quality of them has improved overall in recent years. It's an uphill battle in the United States and Japan.

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 super 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.