English Dub Review: My Hero Academia “A Season for Encounters”

Tis the season.

Overview (Spoilers Below)

Change is coming to the world of heroes and villains, as the world evolves in response to the loss of All Might. From the perspective of the villain Twice, also known by his normal name, “Bubaigawara”, we watch the comings and goings of the new generation of villains growing ever larger in Japan. Villains are forming their own groups, separate from the League of Villains, while the League continues to expand its membership. In addition, we learn of Twice’s backstory, and the madness he faces from his ability to copy himself many times over, essentially making his own gang. Unfortunately for Twice, things go sour when his own copies begin to fight each other, each thinking they’re the real one. Eventually, they killed each other, but this left Twice traumatized, forever wondering if he can be considered the “original” as well.

In the second story of the episode, we follow Class 1-A as they’re taught about the work-study programs UA is going to be doing in the coming year. Essentially expanded internships, these work studies allow student heroes with their provisional licenses to go out and perform hero work with professionals.

Midoriya, who unfortunately isn’t able to attend class because of his house arrest, has also earned the eye of one of the top heroes at UA, a member of the schools “Big Three.” Midoriya learns that he’s being talked about, and that he’s left quite an impression on people. An expectation he’ll no doubt be challenged to live up to in the days to come.

Our Take:

There’s a lot to love in this week’s iteration of My Hero Academia. A glorified exposition episode, this episode uses the perspective of both hero and villain to further craft and expand the world of its characters, and hype up the audience for the stories to come. Excellent writing and voice acting build a characterization that makes even the villains exciting to watch, and sets up for next week’s finale to the season.

The first half of this episode is nothing short of delectable. A foray into the mind of an almost-insane villain, giving us insight into the way the world of villains is changing with All Might’s retirement. Twice’s monologues about villainy and what it means provides a perspective on My Hero Academia we haven’t really seen before: the pathos of being a villain. In addition, it serves as an immersive and entertaining way to deliver a preview of what’s to come next season. Not satisfied with just dumping exposition on its viewers, this week’s episode makes Twice’s scenes as chilling as they are informative. The audience is placed into the mind of a villain, and shown a world far different from the happy ideals of UA. Tempering that sense of idealism reminds us of the stakes, and builds an enormous amount of tension for the next episodes to come.

The second half of the episode offers a story similar in scope, but different in execution. With the first ten minutes of the episode pulling the audience deep into a grim tone, the second half adds a lot more levity, while also introducing new characters to come. Necessary, but not as exciting as the first ten minutes of the episode. Yet, there is still a sense of gravity delivered by Nezu’s speech to the students of Class 10A. Things have gotten more real than ever. The story is evolving; this show is not as much about our characters proving themselves, but now focuses much more on the actual evils of the world.

The goal of this episode is nothing more than to leave the audience hungering for more of the sweet, sweet taste of My Hero Academia, and to that end, this episode earns top marks. There’s so much to love here than a viewer can’t help but be floored by the sheer amount of hype in this episode. Those who read the manga already know what is to come, but the style and heart that the anime brings the story is strong enough that even a hopelessly addicted MHA fanboy like myself feeling desperate to see what happens next. One of the best episodes of the season, by far, and a fantastic opening to the finishing blow of next week’s season finale.