OP2: “Star Marker” by KANA-BOON

Boku no Hero Academia has adopted the classic approach of changing OP and ED themes not with a new cour but a new arc, a la Hunter X Hunter.  Thematically that makes sense, because this too is a series that follows the arc structure pretty rigidly.  Naturally enough there are plenty of spoilers here if you choose to look for them (especially in the ED), but the songs themselves do reflect the change in tone pretty well I must say.  “Shie Hassaikai” is behind us, and a new chapter begins.

Without going into plot detail, this next stretch of anime comes from a somewhat troubled time in the HeroAca manga.  Horikoshi-sensei was taking the odd short hiatus for health reasons, chapters tended to run short (12-13 pages), and there was a noticeable drop in the art’s detail level.  We’re not talking about anything on the level of HxH but it’ll be interesting to see how Bones and the new anime team choose to adapt this stretch.  There’s a little more room for interpretation here, both visually and narratively – and that’s another reason why this season’s shift to a new director and key staff who treat the source materially a little less reverentially might have been a good thing.

There’s no question things slowed down a good bit here, as they almost always do with BnHA after an episode like last week’s.  There’s some aftermath to contend with above and beyond the emotional kind, as Gran Torino heads to the mountains with the cops after a tip that League of Villains power player Kurogiri has been spotted.  He’s there, but not alone – he says he’s come searching for Gigantomachia, one of All For One’s inner circle who we haven’t seen for quite some time.  Kurogiri is captured but Gigantomachia is not – a tradeoff that Gran Torino is not at all convinced was a good one.

As for the good guys, everyone is more or less in recovery mode both physically and emotionally.  Deku, being Deku, bombards himself with second-guessing about what he might have done differently.  Eri remains unconscious, and Mirio under observation.  When Deku goes to see him Mirio seems oddly upbeat, but it’s clear he’s overcompensating – trying to react in the way Sir Nighteye would want him to.  The question of One For All and who should rightfully have received it is the elephant in the room – Izuku even suggests he should give it to Mirio to replace his own lost quirk – but of course Mirio is having none of that.  Smile through the pain is clearly his approach to life and he’s sticking with it through the toughest of times.

Meanwhile Kacchan and Shoto have started their special training, and with Aizawa-sensei more or less required to be Eri-adjacent at all times while she’s incapacitated, it falls to Present Mic and All Might to babysit them.  Todoroki seems taken aback by All Might’s presence, and the reason becomes clear soon enough – Endeavor is present at the training site, seemingly keen to stake out a presence in his son’s life, and Endeavor and All Might is complicated.  As for Kacchan he’s just being Kacchan – perpetual bitching about his circumstances and a relentless desire to get all this over with as quickly as possible.

As for me, I’m glad to see all (most at least) of the 1-A gang back together again.  That element has been missing from the story for a long time, and the camaraderie that exists between these kids is an important part of HeroAca’s dynamic.  Maybe I’m projecting but I think Horikoshi sensed that too, which is one of the reasons he followed up the Shie Hassaikai arc with the one that’s coming.  You can’t go for epic all the time, even in a shounen epic, and BnHA has always been at its best when it manages to be personal as well as sweeping.

ED2: “shout Baby” by Ryoku Oushoku Shakai