We’re at an interesting point with Boku no Hero Academia.  I know what’s coming up, having read the manga, and the anime has been a hallmark of consistency over its first three seasons.  As such, there aren’t too many surprises in the experience at this point – or at least there wouldn’t be if the series hadn’t seen some changes at the top level of the staff.  The result is working as a kind of reset button for me, keeping things feeling fresh – the show is the same, but it’s also different.  And the fact is that it’s come at a pretty good time.

As excellent as HeroAca has been for three seasons, I’m liking the effect of seeing something new.  Without any question, BnHA under Mukai Masahiro is a much more stylized show than it was under Nagasaki Kenji, who played it very much (literally and figuratively) by the book.  Given how strong the source material is he was perfectly right to do so, and things would have been just fine continuing down that path.  But with the anime entering into a stretch of material that isn’t HeroAca’s “A” grade, a little more flair and flourish isn’t a bad thing whatsoever.

Entering the company of so many larger-than-life figures in this cast is Sir Nighteye.  It’s no secret that Miki Shinichirou is among the best seiyuu anime has ever seen, and he perfectly captures the gravitas and hard-edged flintiness that the role calls for.  His formal introduction to Deku is an interesting one – a bit of cat and mouse regarding their respective status as All Might fans, but this does give the two of them something in common.  I’ve never quite figured out whether Deku was BS-ing about specifically imitating the All Might after the vinegar incident – if so it was a helluva improvisation – but in the end it doesn’t really matter.  He has Nighteye’s attention, and that’s a good start.

Nighteye’s inkan test is a classic HeroAca mentor tough-love move.  Of course it’s really a different sort of test, as he’s already decided he’ll take the boy on – but neither Izuku or we know that as this plays out.  Nighteye’s quirk is an absolute bomb, one of the most singular out there – and it seems to offer Izuku no outs.  But the real meat of this scene is Sir Nighteye’s taunting about Mirio having been his personal choice to be All Might’s successor.  This is all part of the test, and it’s hard to imagine a softer spot at which to strike at the appointed disciple.

The dynamic between Midoriya and Mirio certainly gets more interesting with this out in the open.  Nighteye’s respect for Tintin seems absolutely genuine, and it’s no lie that Midoriya has a lot to prove in his eyes, but this hangs over Midoriya now every time he works with Mirio.  That Mirio doesn’t seem resentful at all is interesting, but we don’t really know all that much about him yet, truth be told.  As for Deku, it’s enough to carry the weight of trying to succeed the most powerful and beloved hero ever – now he also has the burden of knowing he usurped that honor from a student who by most conventional measures seems more logical a choice.

Be that as it may, the inkan is applied to the contract, and Deku has his gig – even if Nighteye says it’s only so he can work with real heroes and find out just how underserving he is.  And the first job is a surveillance gig – which sounds routine enough until we learn that the target is none other than Overhaul.  As the other 1-A students try to line up their gigs (some of these are quite interesting and significant but we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it), Sir Nighteye’s team splits up into pairs and hits the streets.  Izuku has an interesting and disturbing encounter with none other than Overhaul himself, and a chain of events that will shape the next part of the story is set into motion.