My Hero Academia: Vigilantes Surprises With One OG Character’s Makeover

My Hero Academia’s new spin-off, Vigilantes, has finally made its anime debut, introducing fans to the series’ new protagonist, Koichi Haimawari, and kicking off his grand adventure with a truly stunning prologue episode. In setting the stage for the series, which is technically a prequel to My Hero Academia, the first episode of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes also introduces many familiar faces, such as All Might, Aizawa, and many more pro-heroes. That said, the best cameo in Vigilantes so far is one that fans may have missed entirely.

About halfway through the episode, and introducing Koichi, Episode 1 of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes sees Koichi put on a mask and an All Might-themed hoodie and help civilians around him with small, everyday tasks under the pseudonym Nice Guy. In a very ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ type of moment during this scene, one of the people that Koichi assists appears to be Deku’s mother, Inko Midoriya, who surprisingly appears as her younger, slimmer self seen only at the very beginning of My Hero Academia. Though only a momentary appearance, Inko’s cameo adds to the immersion of Vigilantes while also sending fans of the original series down memory lane.

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My Hero Academia: Vigilantes Gives Deku’s Mom a Cameo

Though she appears for only a split-second, fans of the original series are sure to instantly recognize Inko by her signature hairstyle and the deep green hair that she shares with Deku. In the episode, Koichi helps Inko find the late-night bus stop. Inko is seen holding a suitcase and a shopping bag, with the cameo being just as is in the manga. In My Hero Academia, fans only see this version of Inko at the very beginning of the first episode until a young four-year-old Deku finds out he is quirkless.

After this, at some point during the ten years between Deku finding out he is quirkless and his meeting All Might, Inko gains weight, supposedly from the guilt, but also the pressure of raising Deku all by herself, which is how fans then see her for the rest of the series. It is easy to forget just how beautiful Deku’s mother used to be, and this cameo in Vigilantes is a pleasant reminder in that regard. More importantly, Inko’s cameo helps place the timeline of Vigilantes, which presumably takes place five years before Deku’s meeting with All Might. Nonetheless, it will be fun to see what other fun cameos My Hero Academia: Vigilantes has in store, as so far, the series is shaping up to be an absolute treat for fans of My Hero Academia.

My Hero Academia: Vigilantes is now streaming on Crunchyroll.