Welp, the Eri Arc is officially over, well, not “officially” (Support the official release!), and it pains me to say my honeymoon period with My Hero Academia is over.
Not to say the series is going down the toilet. While not a huge fan of the wrap-up, the overall arc was good. Red Riot, Suneater, Lemillion, Toga, Rappa, Shigaraki and Twice all deserve praise. Even Eri found the courage to help save herself in the end, quite the millstone for a kid pretty much at the end of her rope. I look forward to re-reading all the parts I liked. But, there was a HUGE hiccup I want to address.
Why didn’t the female heroes get more chances to shine? I was so excited when Uravity and Froppy were coming along to the yazkuza stronghold. I really thought those two would get to showoff a new attack or have a character defining fight. To say I’m disappointed is an understatement. No one-on-one fight equal the their male counterparts, no cool new attacks, nothing but basic hero roles any nameless grunt could do.
Even Nejire, one of Yuuei’s Big Three AKA the STRONGEST STUDENTS IN THE ENTIRE SCHOOL got shunned. Yeah, she had a fight, mostly off-screen, and against an opponent she needed help taking down. The hell, Hirokoshi? Look back at Suneater’s fight against three yakuza. Look at Lemillion’s fight against three yakuza plus their leader, Overhaul. Both scenarios showed the two fighting against odds, alone, with success. Mirio failed to beat Overhaul but he did beat the other three and gave Eri the motivation to fight for her freedom in the end. Even Kirishima got a moment to shine AND a backstory. Uravity and Froppy are popular characters, among the top ten in the last Japan popularity poll. What happened?
Sexism.
This was the shounen jump series to break that glass ceiling. A manga based on western superhero comics. Wonder Woman, Ms. Marvel, Batgirl, Black Widow, Gamora, the list goes on. So many female kick ass characters waiting for Hirokoshi to emulate, to proudly show female superheros being just as smart, tough and courageous as their male counterparts. Hirokoshi adding LGBTQ characters to the series without fanfare was the perfect primer, the guy seemed progressive, not caring as long as characters contributed to the story. I had such high hopes. And, maybe that’s the problem. Everything in my mind lead to equally good, strong heroes across the board no matter the gender, but, sadly, it was not to be.
I really want to know if Hirokoshi purposefully gave the girls a smaller role or if the decision came down from some editor or upper Shounen jump big wig. And if so, why? Do they not think boys like reading about girls whooping ass? Like when I hear over and over about companies in the west wanting kid shows starring kids because they think they somehow appeals more when it’s clearly not true (most superheros aren’t kids). Are they afraid of some kind of social backlash showing women bruised as a result of fighting? Or, is it just plain sexism, thinking all women, even ones with the strength to be accepted as potential heroes, a job requiring you to risk you life, should be forced to the background, backups for their better male teammates. Total. Bullshit.
I’ll continue reading My Hero Academia, just like I still read One Piece but the shine is gone. The anticipation shrunk, my expectations lowered. It really could’ve been great. To whoever mandated female characters to the background, to Hirokoshi, IF he did so intentionally. FUCK YOU! Fuck you, you sexist piece of shit.
It really was a fun honeymoon. Back to reality.
Mammoth Base Opera Castle 