My Hero Academia: Two Heroes

Since it began serialization in Weekly Shonen Jump in 2014, My Hero Academia, a manga about a boy named Izuku Midoriya born Quirkless (without superpowers) in a world where just about everyone has a Quirk, has been highly successful, spawning a popular anime series, three spinoff manga, two video games and a feature film, Two Heroes, with a second film, Heroes Rising, due later this year (the popularity in the US was also such that it almost shut down San Diego Comic-Con 2018). Two Heroes, the subject of this review, saw theatrical runs in both Japan and the US in 2018 and released to positive reviews from critics and grossed nearly $28 million dollars worldwide. While I hadn’t seen the movie during the limited US theatrical run, I did buy it on Blu-ray, but didn’t watch it until right after I had seen Episode 58 of the anime, which served as a lead-in, through a Toonami broadcast. Now that I have seen it, I found it a worthy addition to the My Hero Academia universe, despite a lack of accessibility.

All Might (Chris Sabat), the Symbol of Peace, is invited to a summer trip at I-Island, a man-made island where the world’s top scientists research Quirks. He brings Midoriya (Justin Briner) along as a guest and introduces him to Professor David Shield (Ray Chase), his good friend, former partner and the island’s top scientist. After the reunion, David’s daughter, Melissa Shield (Erica Mendez), shows Midoriya around the island, where he discovers that his classmates from UA Academy have also arrived for one reason or another. Meanwhile, David performs tests on All Might and realizes that his friend’s Quirk is nearly depleted, though he can’t figure out why. Unbeknownst to everyone, however, a mysterious villain, Wolfram (Keith Silverstein), has infiltrated the island for malevolent purposes.

David Shield (Ray Chase) and All Might (Chris Sabat) reunite.

Before I review the story, I should mention that Two Heroes takes place at a particular point within the story of My Hero Academia. More specifically, it takes place before the Training Camp Arc, which for anime viewers would be between seasons two and three.

With that out of the way, Two Heroes is well-written and stays true to the world and characters while moving along at a good pace. The new characters, David and Melissa Shield and Wolfram, are interesting in their own ways and feel fairly fleshed out for characters who never appear again within the series. The friendship between David and All Might also feels fairly believable, helped by the fact that the audience is able to see some of their past together in America, as opposed to only telling. There is a twist right before the third act that is admittedly kind of predictable, though the movie compensates by piling onto the twist and making it feel more interesting than it might have otherwise.

True to the series, Two Heroes also has a number of flashy action sequences, including a large-scale final battle at the end, all of which are aided by a noticeably higher budget by comparison to the TV anime (though the movie does occasionally use footage from the anime during flashbacks). The look of the world is consistent, but has higher visual clarity and looks cleaner and more detailed, especially in the backgrounds. There is also some very noticeable use of CG towards the end, though it felt more justified than in other instances due to the complexity of what’s happening onscreen at that time. Fans of the anime may also recognize some familiar background music recycled throughout the movie, which helps keep some consistency between mediums.

As enjoyable as Two Heroes is, however, it’s not very accessible to those who are unfamiliar with the property. The movie does what it can to lay down the basic groundwork, including the premise of a superpowered society and a quick recap of some relevant info, but the relationships within the ensemble cast and some additional events that are casually referenced are really only appreciated fully by viewers who are already familiar with the series going in. Even then, it’s best if you’re able to watch Episode 58 of the anime, “Special Episode: Save the World with Love!”, beforehand, as it provides a direct lead-in to the events of the movie.

My Hero Academia: Two Heroes is an enjoyable and worthy addition to the My Hero Academia franchise. The story is well-written for a one-off adventure, the world feels consistent with the franchise and the final battle is suitably climactic. I would instantly recommend this to existing fans of the series, though prospective viewers who are unfamiliar with the series may not get as much out of it.