Summary
My Hero Academia: Vigilantesis a spin-off manga of the iconicMy Hero Academiaseries that has captivated readers since 2016. Now, it’s doing the exact same thing to anime viewers with its 2025 animated adaptation. After all, writer Hideyuki Furuhashi and illustrator Betten Court did an excellent job at showing a new and refreshing side of Kohei Horikoshi’s fascinating world about super-powered people.
Just like the original manga,the spinoff’s creators also included many funEaster Eggsthat may have gone unnoticed by most fans, some of which were also adapted into the recent anime. Whether they are references to beloved comic book and video game characters, or brief but fascinating cameos, the following Easter Eggs inMy Hero Academia Vigilantesare worth pointing out.
8Deku’s Mother Makes A Cameo
Koichi Helped Inko Midoriya
In the very first episode/chapter ofMy Hero Academia: Vigilantes, audiences got a glimpse at the life of protagonist Koichi Haimawari, a young man who becomes an illegal vigilante in his spare time in order to help people with small tasks. During a quick montage, there’s a blink-and-you-miss-it cameo fromInko Midoriya, Izuku Midoriya’s mother, whom Koichi can be seen giving directions to.
This Easter Egg is obviously a fun way of reminding fans about the connection betweenVigilantesandMy Hero Academia,and how both stories take place in the same world. In the recent animated adaptation, Inku was portrayed as her younger and slimmer self from Deku’s childhood flashback, whereas in theVigilantesmanga she looked shorter and older. This was an odd change, because this spin-off takes place just a few years before the start of her son’s story, so it would make more sense if she looked like her current self.
7All The Marvel & DC References
Vigilantes Introduced Characters Based On Batman, The Flash, X-Men, Etc
Like most superhero media, theMy Hero Academiafranchise owes its existence to the classicMarvelandDCcomic books. As a result, it features a multitude of fascinating Easter Eggs that reference these two iconic companies. Kohei Horikoshi had already included a lot of blatant references in the main series, but Hideyuki Furuhashi and Betten Court took it to a whole new level inVigilantes.
For example,Knuckleduster is a quirkless vigilante who patrols the streets at night, making him an obvious parody of Batman. But he used to be a powerful Pro Hero with a red bodysuit who could use his Overclock quirk to accelerate at extreme speeds, which Furuhashi confirmed was based on The Flash. On top of that, there’s also Ichimoku Samazu and Jube Namimaru, two middle school students who possess designs and quirks that parody Cyclops and Wolverine from theX-Menfranchise. Lastly, while All Might is already an obvious Superman analog, he shares that distinction with Captain Celebrity, who also references some prominent elements of Superboy and Booster Gold.
6Pikachu & Red’s Cameo
The Iconic Pokemon Duo Made A Brief Appearance
It is not uncommon forMy Hero Academiato feature mind-blowing video game and comic book references in the form of random background characters, andVigilantesis no different. Early on in the story,when Kuin Hachisuka releases her swarm of bees that turn a bunch of people into Instant Villains, two civilians that look a lot likePikachuandRedfrom thePokemonfranchise can be seen in the crowd, trying to escape from the chaos.
Due to their designs and outfits, the brief appearance of these background characters is a pretty obvious but fun Easter Egg. These two also appear in Episode 3 of theVigilantesanime, but their color schemes make it a lot harder to discern that they are supposed to be blatant references to Pikachu and Red.
5Monster Cat Is A Reference To My Neighbor Totoro
A Weird Instant Villain That Looks A Lot Like The Iconic Catbus
While the animals of theMy Hero Academiauniverse can also wield quirks, this has not been shown very often. Fortunately,Vigilantesis an exception. It features a brief but exciting arc centered on the sudden appearance ofMonster Cat, a small street cat who uses its quirk to fuse with a bus after Kuin Hachisuka injected Trigger into its body.
The idea of a bus with the physical features of a feline may sound weird at first, but this is obviously a reference to the characterCatbus, from the classic animated movie by Studio Ghibli,My Neighbor Totoro. This is such an iconic and beloved film (especially in Japan) that it directly inspired the creation of many mammal/vehicle hybrids in fictional media, like Appa fromAvatar: The Last Airbenderand the Morgana Car fromPersona 5.
4A Group Of Villains Called The Mazinger Brothers
An Obvious Reference To The Mazinger Series
My Hero Academia: Vigilantesintroduced fans to a collection of unimportant but memorable villains that the Pro Heroes always defeat in an instant, and most of them are actually bizarre references to other media. One of the most prominent examples of this phenomenon is a group of minor villains called theMazinger Brothers, the leaders of the Mazinger High Karate Club.
Their name and robotic appearances make them a pretty obvious reference to the classic mecha series,Mazinger Z. On top of that, their quirk is called Rocket Thrust, and it allows them to shoot their right fist at people at extreme speeds, referencing Mazinger’s signature technique, the mighty Rocket Punch.
3Thomas The Tank Engine Is A Villain
One Of The Next-Level Villains Looks Like A Classic Children’s Character
This series doesn’t just make references to classic Japanese video games and manga.Vigilantesalso features a bizarre but hilarious Easter Egg related to a classic British animated show.Tommy S. Gordonis the name of a Next-Level villain who wields the Tank Engine quirk, which allows him to transform into an anthropomorphic sentient locomotive.
Due to his name and his quirk’s name, Tommy S. Gordon is an obvious reference to the iconicThomas the Tank Enginefranchise. Weirdly enough, this is not the only reference to a British children’s show about trains in this spin-off. Another Next-Level Villain called Willy Wanda appears in the very next chapter, and he’s obviously based off Wilson, a character fromChuggington.
2Prince Is A Famous Pro Hero
His Purple Highness Is One Of The Most Flamboyant Heroes In The Series
TheMy Hero Academiafranchise is brimming with memorable Pro Heroes, most of whom are based off of classic comic book or manga characters. But, curiously enough,Vigilantesintroduced fans to an extravagant hero who is seemingly based off of a real-life musician.
His Purple Highness(real name: Tenma Nakaoji) is a famous Pro Hero who mentoredMidnight, Eraser Head, and Loud Cloud when they were younger. Needless to say, he’s a pretty blatant reference to the musician Prince, who famously made both an album and a song titled Purple Rain. On top of that, His Purple Highness and Prince have the same birthday, June 7th, making this reference even more obvious.
1Kirby Is A Dangerous Villain Named Garvey
An Adorable Video Game Mascot Was Turned Into A Terrifying Villain
Shota Aizawa’s flashback featured the appearance of a gigantic and powerful villain namedGarvey, who could use his Stock quirk and his enormous vacuum-like mouth to eat someone else’s attacks, store their energy on his back and release it back at them in the form of a destructive attack whenever he wanted.
Garvey is a reference to Kirby, from the legendaryKirbyvideo game series. He’s a rounded being with a huge appetite, and he can absorb attacks in the same way Kirby can absorb and copy his enemies’ powers. His name can be written in Japanese as Gāvī, while the pink puffball’s name can be written as Kābī.
