Book Review: My Hero Academia Vols. 23 and 24 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 23 by Kohei Horikoshi

The big battle between Class A and Class B finally finishes with dramatic (and expected) results. As the kids go back to their school routine, the story shifts to the villains. The band of bad guys has some potential new resources offered by a mysterious doctor. He'll let them have the stuff if they can defeat a powerful monster that he unleashes on their leader. Meanwhile another group, the Meta Liberation Army, is going public in an effort to let those with quirks do whatever they want. 

The story takes an interesting shift, showing some of the villains' plans as the heroes retreat to the background. The MLA has a lot of corporate sponsors who are ready to unleash over 100,000 followers, or so they claim

Mildly recommended--it's fun to come back to this story but readers need a lot of the backstory, this is not a good starting point.

My Hero Academia Volume 24 by Kohei Horikoshi

The next big battle is between the League of Villains and the Meta Liberation Army. The MLA is ostensibly pro-quirk, wanting those with special abilities to be treated equally. They see the League as an obstacle to their agenda, so they start a fight in their headquarters's home town. The story delves into the backgrounds of a lot of the villains with nary a hero in sight. The drama is good with the weird shift into sympathizing with, if not rooting for, the bad guys. The author does a good job showing how the bad guys wound up on the side of evil and develops some more of the bigger story of quirk development and enhancement.

Mildly recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 22 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 22 by Kohei Horikoshi

The students go through more rounds of training by fighting in an empty landscape. The battles between groups of students from Class A and from Class B provide plenty of  action and introduce new characters with new quirks. But the story is not really going anywhere interesting for me and I am having a harder and harder time keeping track of everybody. A lot of the action seems like it is better suited to anime than to manga.

Slightly recommended. I might be bailing on this series.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 21 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 21 by Kohei Horikoshi

Endeavor proves himself as the new number one hero (replacing All Might) with an epic battle against Dabi. He's helped out by number two, Hawks, but the secondary hero has another agenda going on. The intrigue is sidelined when the story goes back to the school where Class A and Class B students are training together by being matched up against each other in team combat. So it's another quirk-a-palooza as the new characters from Class B are introduced. Midoriya, the latest wielder of All Might's quirk (which All Might gave to him), has some strange visions about the earlier users of the One For All quirk. 

More questions are brought up than answered in this issue. The school conflict is getting a little less interesting to me. The battles are fun but probably work better on the anime screen than the manga page. It is still very entertaining.

Slightly recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 20 by Kohei Horikoshi

 My Hero Academia Volume 20 by Kohei Horikoshi

The school festival starts with a bunch of antics that are mildly entertaining but don't impact the larger story. Things pick up halfway through the book when Japanese Billboard announces their ranking of heroes. With All Might out of the picture, a new number one hero has to be announced. Endeavor, the fire-quirk-powered hero, finally gets to be number one, just in time for an overpowered bad guy to challenge him. The back half of the book is more enjoyable than the first half.

Slightly recommended--this is almost a skippable volume.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 19 by Kohei Horikoshi

 My Hero Academia Volume 19 by Kohei Horikoshi

The students are back in school and getting ready for another school festival. This festival is focused on entertainment with different booths hosted by different classes. Class 1-A (which has all the characters we are following) decides to have a band and dancing as a way to raise the spirits of the rest of the school. While they are prepping, a new villain shows up. He's Gentle Criminal, a guy who wants to be a streaming media sensation. His sidekick has a camera to record all his crimes. He wants to gets lots of views, which means going after the students at their festival. The morning of the festival, a chance encounter with one of the students may mess up Gentle Criminal's plans, but the book leaves a cliffhanger ending.

Recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 18 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 18 by Kohei Horikoshi

The battle to save Eri finally wraps up as the villains try to hang on to her for her quirk-ending abilities. The heroes save the day, naturally, and then have to head back to school. The story shifts to some of the characters who have to do make-up work for their provisional licenses. They face one of the most challenging tests ever inflicted on high school students--try to get a group of early elementary students to behave for a day!

After a lot of big drama, it's nice to have a light-hearted diversion. Some new characters are introduced (as if the series needed more characters) and things end with a return to regular school time and a potential new drama.

Mildly recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 17 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 17 by Kohei Horikoshi

The heroes continue their attack on the yakuza secret base. They are trying to free a young girl named Eri who has been used for her blood. That blood is a key ingredient in a concoction that erases quirks, the special abilities that almost everyone has, resulting in the huge number of superheroes and supervillains in the story. This issue is mostly the battle, though the heroes discover (the hard way) that the bad guys have perfected the formula and weaponized it in the form of special bullets. Being My Hero Academia, even when a character loses his quirk he still fights like a hero. Heroism is a choice, not an accident.

Surprisingly little happens in this issue, other than lots of fights. The situation is sapping my will to read. I'll give this another issue, hopefully the story will pick up.

Mildly recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 16 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 16 by Kohei Horikoshi

The heroes team up with the police to raid the Yakuza headquarters. They want to save a girl who is being used to create a serum that will deprive heroes of their quirk powers. This book is a long battle sequence, punctuated with backstories of some of the characters. The main backstory is of Eijiro Kirishima, a student who goes by the hero name "Red Riot." He has a lot of personal, internal difficulties he's been trying to overcome. Kirishima is interning with Fat Gum, a hero who may just bring out the best in him. As they go deeper into the HQ, the group gets split and the fights get more challenging.

This is another entertaining volume with a good blend of action and character backstory/development.

Recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 15 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 15 by Kohei Horikoshi

The Yakuza's plan to work with the League of Villains moves forward. The heroes realize something is going on and begin to investigate. Midoriya happens onto a key element of the Yakuza's plan when he encounters a young girl. She is the daughter of one of the organized crime bosses. She has lots of bandages on her arms. The situation looks like abuse but the investigation uncovers a more disturbing possibility.

The story is moving along nicely and the creators have even introduced a character created by a fan. With a world full of super-powered people, it's easy to run a contest to add some other super-powered character. I read this as a digital edition on loan from my library. I was lucky they had it and am looking forward to Volume 16.

Recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 14 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 14 by Kohei Horikoshi

A new villain appears on the scene--a member of the Yakuza. Organized crime has been low-key in the My Hero Academia universe. This new character, Chisaki, tries to recruit the League of Villains for his plans but they are not interested. Meanwhile, the second semester starts for Midoriya and his classmates. The new challenge is to have work studies with heroes (which doesn't seem all that different from the internships the previous semester). Midoriya hopes to get one of All Might's former sidekicks. Can he prove himself worthy?

This is another fun story. The new villain is intriguing and some older students are introduced who have interesting quirks.

Recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 13 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 13 by Kohei Horikoshi

The provisional license exam continues with a rescue exercise designed to check the students' ability to work together and save civilians during a disaster. Personality conflicts abound, especially with the Shiketsu High students also participating. In a surprising twist, not all of the U.A. students succeed. Meanwhile, the regular heroes are putting plans together to deal with the social impact of All Might's retirement. Villains are getting braver and teaming up in the aftermath of the League of Villains. All Might visits All for One in jail to find out what the League's plans are and finds out little.

The story moves a bit further than it did in the last issue. This part of the exam was a lot more interesting and renewed enough faith in the book to keep on reading.

Recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 12 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 12 by Kohei Horikoshi

The students work on signature moves and upgrading their costumes as a prelude to their next test--the Provisional Licensing Exam. It's another all-out battle between the students of several schools, with the top one hundred qualifiers moving on to the next round which will happen in the next volume.

The book has a lot of action but little else going on story-wise. I'm not sure there's any reason a reader couldn't just skip this volume. Only one new character is introduced and most everyone we care about makes it through the exam. It reads like one of those filler episodes on TV shows.

Slightly recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 11 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 11 by Kohei Horikoshi

The rescue mission continues as the heroes face off against the League of Villains, including an epic battle between All Might and the villains' boss All for One. The students watch from the edge of the battle since they've been ordered not to fight. Midoriya hatches a plan to save the kidnapped Bakugo that won't involve fighting or getting in trouble. The mission goes well though All Might has to make a big sacrifice to win his part of the mission. After the battle, the school staff faces the problem of public trust. The students have been attacked three times in very public ways. Parents are starting to question their kids' safety. Who can blame them?

This issue is another fine step forward for the story. Various relationships grow and interesting changes happen for the characters, some very significant.

Recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 10 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 10 by Kohei Horikoshi

The attack on summer camp ends with the kidnapping of student Bakugo. The League of Villains wants to recruit him, but Bakugo's stubbornness and egotism in class is only amplified by his situation. Meanwhile, the U.A. has to face public scrutiny since their students were in jeopardy yet again. As the teachers plan an offensive to get Bakugo back, the students make their own plans to rescue their classmate even though they have been forbidden to fight.

The story telling is still top-notch, with interesting discussions about the issues and creative twists popping up. The author says at the beginning of this volume that the television version of the story was beginning, adding some extra pressure on him.

Recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 9 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 9 by Kohei Horikoshi

The students are at summer camp where they are improving their ability to use their quirks. Training is going well until the camp is attacked by a group of villains. An academic test of courage turns into a real test of courage as the students work together to save each other.

This volume is full of action and tactics, with some interesting fight scenes. I enjoyed it but the ongoing story doesn't get much development, other than the villains' intriguing targets. So there's not much to write about!

Slightly recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 8 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 8 by Kohei Horikoshi

The freshmen students at U.A. continue their final exams. Since this is a manga (i.e., a Japanese graphic novel), naturally the focus is on the practical side of the exam. Students are paired up and have to handcuff or escape from a teacher, who acts as a villain in the practical test. The two students need to work together, coming up with a plan to use their skills in some complementary way. Who will pass the exam, thus getting to go to Hero Summer Camp, and who will fail, thus winding up in Hero Summer School? The story gets as far as the start of summer camp, with a slight detour into the actual villains' plans to take down the legendary hero All Might.

This is another fun issue. The story is moving at a good pace and the blend of comedy and action works quite well.

Recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 7 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 7 by Kohei Horikoshi

Hero killer Stain is in a big fight with a bunch of heroes and a few students from UA. Midoriya is one of those students. They work together to defeat the bad guy but not before he gets to make is evil manifesto that is rebroadcast by the media. Will there be a massive upsurge in villainous activity? Will a lot of ne'er-do-wells join in the League of Evil? And can the students score well enough on their final exams to avoid summer school?

The story is very exciting and moves along at a good pace. I am still enjoying this a lot and will read more.

Recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 6 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 6 by Kohei Horikoshi

Now that the sports competition is finished, the freshmen class is on to their next assignment: internships. Heroes draft the students based on what they saw at the competition; undrafted students wind up at superhero agencies. Midoriya is chosen by All Might's mentor, Gran Torino. Gran Torino at first seems like a crazy old man, but he has crazy Yoda moves too (you know, that light saber fight with Christopher Lee), so he gives Midoriya a better workout than expected. Meanwhile, the League of Villains tries to recruit the hero killer Stain, with mixed results. On the other hand, the results are completely bad for the civilians in the neighborhood.

The shift into mentoring with an older hero is interesting and gets the students some actual street experience. The ongoing plot against the heroes develops some nice changes and surprises. This book has a huge cliffhanger ending, so I may be reading Volume 7 sooner rather than later.

Recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 5 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 5 by Kohei Horikoshi

The competition between the first year superheroes continues as the individual contestants go to the final four. The focus shifts from the main character, Midoriya, the quirkless (i.e. powerless) teenager who wants to be a hero and has received the power of All Might, currently the most popular hero. The focus is on Todoroki, another first year student who inherited his quirks from his parents. His dad is Endeavor, a fire-wielding superhero who is number two to All Might's number one. Naturally dad wants his son to be not only better than him but also better than All Might. Todoroki's mom has ice powers, so Todoroki is split--he has both fire power and ice power. But he's shunned his fire power because of his anger at his dad. That issue is explored in depth with Midoriya being a catalyst for change in Todoroki. But is the change for the better or for the worse?

The surface story of the rivalries between the students in the stadium is interesting enough. The deeper story of Todoroki's motivation gives this a lot more emotional and intellectual heft and interest. The bad guy conspiracy to take down heroes is revisited, keeping that narrative from being forgotten. Overall, this issues is better than the usual.

Recommended.

Book Review: My Hero Academia Vol. 4 by Kohei Horikoshi

My Hero Academia Volume 4 by Kohei Horikoshi

The sports/Olympics competition for the students continues with a team event called the Cavalry followed by a one-on-one event that is a classic bracket system starting with a sweet sixteen. This volume only makes it through the first round of battles. Lots of action in this issue!

Bits of character development are squeezed in during the fights, making it more than just a long series of conflicts. None of the battle are outstandingly clever, but the match up of various abilities makes it interesting. Quirkless hero Midoriya is slowly developing more control over his inherited quirk from the hero All Might. His hero's journey continues at a good pace.

Recommended.