Summary
Becoming the Number One Hero inMy Hero Academiacomes with prestige, wealth, and respect from civilians and villains alike. All Might has always strived to become a Symbol of Peace, a strong pillar that will bring hope to citizens and fear to villains. Likewise, Endeavor wanted to become the Number One Hero, although he wanted to become a strong Hero that protects.
Unfortunately, along the way, Endeavor lost sight of this ambition and thus made it his life’s mission to surpass All Might. This would lead him to make decisions that affect his family negatively and ultimately make him question what it means to be the new Symbol of Peace.
What kind of Hero was All Might?
All Might strives for peace and thus becomes the symbol that represents it
All Might had always wanted to becomea Hero that brought Peace. Toshinori Yagi was a Quirkless young man when he first met Nana Shimura, the seventh user of One For All. Although the Heroes of his time were working their hardest to control the villain’s unrest, there was yet to be a Hero who would instill fear in them.
At this young age,All Might knew the world needed a Symbol of Peace, a pillar representing justice, faith, and hope for the general public. This inspired All Might to become one of the strongest Heros, his urgency to turn the chaos into hope. After explaining his ideals to Nana Shimura, he becomes her appearance and is made the eighth user of One For All.
During his time as a Pro Hero,All Might accomplished multiple featsthat inspired hope among the citizens. His incredible strength and determination to save others helped him become the Symbol of Peace that quelled the unrest among the villains. However, it was not only his actions that proved he was worthy of this position. His words and iconic smile would help the victims and the public truly believe they were safe.
If a citizen in need of help was told All Might would save them, they would feel relief and have faith that he would. While the innocent would feel safe, the villains would feel apprehensive. This had a massive consequence on society; the villain crime rate would drastically decrease, making Japan safer, although there would always be light crime.
Unfortunately, the opposite is also true. Once Japan and the world lost their Symbol of Peace, the villain crime rate significantly increased as villains no longer feared Heroes. Ultimately, All Might always wanted to be a Hero who brought Peace; the fame and wealth that came with it never bothered him, unlike Endeavor, who just wanted to be the Number One Hero.
What kind of Hero was Endeavor?
Endeavor was constantly trying to prove his worth, and along the way, lost what he was really fighting for
Like many other Heroes, Endeavor idolized All Might and his accomplishments. After witnessing his father die from saving a young child from a villain,Endeavor strove to become a strong Hero. Throughout his Hero career, Endeavor would always be the Number Two Hero in Japan, always short of losing to All Might.
Endeavor’s ambitions pushed him to become a better Hero, and while his strength and merit always saved the day, his aggression and stoicism would push fans away. Endeavor was never the kind of Hero similar to All Might, as they fought for two different things. All Might has always wanted to be the Symbol of Peace, saving others from harm and actively wanting to curate a better society.
Endeavor was likely a product of All Might’s success, and their ambitions and aspirations of being the Number One Hero were inherently different. Endeavor always saw All Might as a mighty obstacle he needed to surpass. He believed that his hard work and strength would lead the way to him becoming the next Number One Hero.
Consequently, although his action in saving others physically made them feel safe, his personality and aloofness prevented others from approving him as their Number One Hero. This, in turn, would lead him to achieve his dream differentlyby producing a childwith multiple Quirk that can surpass All Might. Unfortunately, this decision would ultimately lead to Endeavor mistreating his family, as his oldest son would later become a villain.
As All Might is much older than Endeavor and sustained a severe wound from a previous fight with One For All, after the Kamino incident, he would later retire. Endeavor had always wanted to surpass All Might with his own strength, so when he became the new Number One Hero in Japan, this title felt empty, as he was merely placing first as a default.
However, by the timeEndeavor became the new Number One Heroin Japan, he had already lost what it might to become the next Symbol of Peace. Consequently, Endeavor would speak to All Might at length about what it means to be the Number One Hero, as he had always been striving to become the top hero, but he did not understand the repercussions of what this title meant.
Unfortunately for Endeavor, he would spend his remaining time as the Number One Hero, asking the general public to watch him and see what kind of Hero he would become. This occurred on two occasions; the first was when Endeavor was announced as the Number One Hero on the Japanese Hero Billboard Chart and during the press conferencewhere Endeavor confirmed the allegationsagainst him after Dabi’s announcement.
As Endeavor began to settle into this role, he learned what it meant to become the Number One Hero, to keep the citizens safe, and to build faith in his abilities as a Hero. During this time, he also changed as a father toward his children,wanting to right his wrongs. While Endeavor tried to become the same Hero that All Might had been, he always felt that he was lacking and thus not worthy, so in Chapter 426, Endeavor retires as a Hero. This was done not only because of his lack of mobility but also because this was his atonement for his past.
My Hero Academia
Cast
In My Hero Academia, some humans have superpowers called quirks. Izuku Midoriya, nicknamed Deku, is not one of them. Deku has always idolized heroes like the number one hero, All Might, and since he was a child, he has always wanted to be a hero. However, his lack of a quirk has always held him back, but a chance encounter with All Might after discovering a classmate in danger sets Deku on the path to becoming a true hero. My Hero Academia centers around Deku and a class of heroes-in-training at UA. This school shapes young quirk users into future heroes through fake rescue missions, combat training, and other hero-tempering tasks. With young Deku inheriting the “One-For-All” quirk, he will learn what it means to be a true hero while facing off with dastardly supervillains.
