Anime

My Hero Academia: What Happens in the UA Battle Heroes OVA?

My Hero Academia screened its new OVA at NYCC, and we’re breaking down what happens in the special.
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My Hero Academia has a number of OVA titles under its thumb, and there are more on the horizon. Not long ago, the team at Bones Studio announced My Hero Academia was working on a new OVA ahead of season seven. The big special had its world premiere at New York Comic Con this past weekend. So if you want to know what goes down in My Hero Academia’s new OVA, we’ve got you covered.

Videos by ComicBook.com

The special, which is titled UA Battle Heroes, takes plenty of license from Yu-Gi-Oh. After all, the OVA is set after the events of My Hero Academia season seven, and the kids of Class 1-A are all but locked in their dorms. The League of Villains has taken over Tokyo, and now that Izuku is back at school, the pro heroes aren’t taking any chances. The students of UA High School are kept in their dorms with only minimum time to visit with family, so Mirio decides to cheer the gang up.

After sneaking into the Class 1-A dorm under the guise of a snowman, Mirio gets the story going. He introduces a card game to the students called UA Battle Heroes, and it pairs with hologram tech created by Mei Hatsume. Essentially, the card game allows two players to pit cards against one another featuring students or teachers at UA High School. Once a player puts down their active hand, the hologram plays out a match as it would happen in real life using some AI algorithm. So of course, Class 1-A is interested.

The students kickstart their own matches as Mina takes out Mineta, and Izuku is left to watch with interest. After all, he loves to analyze quirks, and this card game allows him to test some theories. Deku is allowed to watch up until Bakugo awakes from a nap, and he’s quick to challenge Izuku to a game once he learns the rules. From there, a rather impressive hologram fight plays out between Izuku and Bakugo in-game. We get to hear the pair’s thoughts as they watch their AI alters fight, and it goes to show how much the pair has grown.

In the end, Izuku and Bakugo call a tie. The latter believes he’ll win because he pulls an EX card of All Might while Izuku pulls a NPC puppy. The card game’s AI disqualifies All Might and the dog when the pro hero leaves the game to return the lost pup to its owner. So even in this OVA special, My Hero Academia is unwilling to admit who’d win between Izuku and Bakugo.

At this time, My Hero Academia: UA Battle Heroes is slated to debut in Japan this month. No word has been given on when the OVA will be distributed globally, but fans hope the My Hero Academia special goes live soon.ย 

Are you excited to watch My Hero Academia’s new OVA? Let us know what you think in the comments below as well as on Twitter and Instagram. You can also hit me up @MeganPetersCB to share your take!