Summary
While many of the characters seen inMy Hero Academiaare super-powered humans who possess absurdly strong abilities and techniques, if they’re written well, they can also end up being pretty relatable. Considering the staggering number of individuals that have been introduced over the course of this popular anime series, it makes sense that fans would find themselves connecting to at least a few of them, though some definitely feel much easier to relate to than others.
My Hero Academiamay be set in a fictional version of our own world, but the characters still deal with very realistic problems and issues that many fans can sympathize with. Therefore, with the anime nearing its end, it seems like the perfect time to reflect on the memorable cast of characters from the series to uncover which of them have long been praised as among the most relatable of the bunch, and for what reasons.
8Ochaco Uraraka
Uraraka’s Dream Of Making Her Parents Proud Is Hard Not To Sympathize With
The reason Uraraka decided to enter U-A and become a hero is so that she can earn enough money to give her parents an easy life. Of course, this turns out to be much harder than she may have initially realized, resulting in her confidence breaking down at numerous points throughout the Sports Festival. Many viewers have been in the same boat as Uraraka at some point in their lives, and it makes her an intriguing character to watch anytime she’s on-screen.
Another reason she has become such a fan-favorite is due to how she deals withher crushon Midoriya. Rather than confessing her feelings as soon as possible, Uraraka instead tries to switch her focus to her hero career. Everyone struggles with expressing their true feelings for someone they like, so it’s nice to see this reflected in the character of Uraraka.
7Aizawa
Many Can Relate To Aizawa’s Self-Esteem Issues And Love Of Sleeping
Despite being anincredibly strong hero, Aizawa doesn’t seem quite as proactive or serious as many of the other U-A teachers. When he’s not lecturing his class, he can usually be found snoozing away in his portable sleeping bag, with his love for occasional napping being a character trait a lot of viewers can relate to.
However, another reason many people see themselves in Aizawa is because of his self-esteem issues when he was still in school. In the end, it would be his friend Oboro who pulled him out of his rut and got him back on track to becoming a hero. Anyone who has also struggled with finding their place at a young age will find a lot to be inspired by in Aizawa’s story.
6Hawks
Hawks Is A High-Flying Pro Hero Who Just Wants To Chill And Relax
Not long after he’s introduced during the Pro-Hero story arc, Hawks makes his personal ideology crystal clear to Endeavor. Hawks wants to create a society where heroes have time to sit back and relax, while still serving out their duties of protecting the public fromevil villains.
Nobody enjoys being in high-stress situations every minute of every day, which is something that seems to affect many of the Pro-Heroes who are constantly on the move. As a result, it can be easy to sympathize and relate to Hawks' way of thinking, but a lot of fans also connect with his sarcastic and cheeky persona, which is a lot less serious than his fellow Pro-Heroes.
5Gentle
Gentle Felt Abandoned By Society After Making One Small Mistake
The ‘Hero Society’ seen inMy Hero Academiaisn’t exactly all that forgiving, and a prime example of this comes from the character of Gentle. One day, after seeing a man falling from a building, Gentle decided to spring into action and use his Elastic Quirk to save his life. Unfortunately, this ended up getting in the way of another Pro-Hero, resulting in Gentle being forbidden from becoming a hero, and his family being put under mountains of debt.
Because of one small mistake, Gentle would find himselfridiculed by societyas a whole, which is sadly something a lot of people can connect with. Thankfully, Gentle does eventually make a grand return later on to prove that, no matter what he is deemed by society, he can always be a hero, even without a license to his name.
4Hitoshi Shinso
Shinso Was A Loner In School Who Pushed Himself To Become A Great Hero
Technically, any Quirk, no matter how odd or bizarre it may seem, can be made into an effective ability that can protect civilians and defeat villains. For Shinso, though, who was born with the Brainwash Quirk, he was looked down on by a lot of his peers due to his Quirk being more suitable for a villain, rather than a hero.
Despite that, Shinso’s dream of becoming a hero kept him going, eventually leading him to Aizawa, who would agree to act as his mentor. Shinso eventually becomes one of the heroes' most valuable assets during thefinal war,though his journey to becoming the best version of himself is one that’s very realistic and relatable.
3Midoriya
Midoriya Continues To Stand Against Injustice, No Matter How Many Times He’s Beaten Down
Though Midoriya may have inherited an extremely overpowered Quirk in the very first episode, he still struggles to fit into U-A once he enrolls to become a hero. Midoriya has major impostor syndrome when taking the early exams, which is a feeling that many people have difficulty getting over at all levels of education. The main reason Midoriya has become so relatable to a lot of fans, though, is his undying passion to make things right, no matter what it takes.
It doesn’t matter how many times Midoriya gets beaten down by the likes ofMuscular, Overhaul, or even All For One, he will never stand aside while villains are still on the loose, spreading chaos and suffering. It’s this never-give-up attitude from Midoriya that has made him so beloved by a lot of fans.
2Shoto Todoroki
Todoroki Leans To Replace His Burning Hatred With Forgiveness
Saying Todoroki had a rough upbringing would be putting it mildly. As Endeavor’s ‘perfect child’ who successfully inherited both of his parents' Quirks, Todoroki’s father would be extremely hard on his son whenever they trained, resulting in a very dysfunctional family. By the time Todooki entered U-A, he purposefully ignored his fire powers, inherited by Endeavor, as a sign of rebellion against his father for everything he had done.
Slowly but surely, though, Todoroki begins to accept these powers as his own, rather than seeing himself as little more than a product of Endeavor. Additionally, Todoroki would seemingly also be heading in the direction of forgiving his father, which, as many fans will know, can be extremely hard to do when someone has acted so horribly and suddenly tries to repent for their sins later in life.
1Eiji Kirishima
Eiji Slowly Grows Into His Own Skin And Becomes A Hero Others Can Rely On
As a young boy, Kirishima looked up to the chivalrous hero known as Crimson Riot, but due to his own lack of confidence, he always felt as though reaching the heights of his role model would be impossible. Kirishima questions not only his worth as a hero, but also as a man, convincing himself that he simply doesn’t have what it takes to stand near the top of the hero’s pecking order.
His outlook begins to change, however, after he starts being put into high-stakes hero missions where he’s forced to prove himself. His shining moment comes in hisepic fightagainst Rappa and Tengai, where he unleashes his Quirk’s full potential, finally feeling comfortable in his own skin after years of putting in hard work.
