Introduction

One of the beautiful elements of a franchise like My Hero Academia (Boku no Hero Academia) is that it is a world where you can keep adding story/lore without much consequence. That’s why I wasn’t too surprised when a fourth movie was released to the world and would once more take our heroes like Deku, All Might, Bakugo, and the other heroes of Class 1-A, on another thrill ride of battles against the forces of evil.

Today, I was kindly given an early screening of My Hero Academia: You’re Next and I have much to say about this fourth feature-length film. Did Class 1-A enter a worthy new battle to witness or are we finally reaching a point where maybe this world is a bit too big even for the all-powerful student heroes?

Let’s find out in our My Hero Academia: You’re Next review!

Story

Taking place after the events of the Paranormal Liberation War, My Hero Academia: You’re Next—I highly recommend either reading the manga or watching the anime to avoid spoilers—Class 1-A has been dispatched to clean the city of radical villains. While things seem normal at first, a new threat encroaches in a very unlikely form…All Might?! This doppelganger of sorts brings with him a new crew of threats each with their dastardly quirks! Class 1-A has faced their toughest threats before but can they eliminate an enemy that is possibly on par with All Might?

Here’s one of the issues I have with all of the My Hero Academia movies, My Hero Academia: You’re Next included. While they are exciting to watch and have fun stories that feel interwoven into the main story, they also feel very unneeded. We’ve all wondered at one point what if All-Might was a villain or if he was used for evil purposes but My Hero Academia: You’re Next ends up feeling like a fan fiction film more than a needed component.

I won’t deny having Deku show off his powers a bit more is nice but again…unnecessary. Fans will no doubt just be happy we are getting more My Hero Academia and the fan favorites but recommending to non-fans is a bit tricky. Then again, who would be watching My Hero Academia: You’re Next if not to keep up with the anime or manga? I don’t want to seem like I’m knocking on the story, cause I actually liked this evil All Might and the mob-like Gorrini family but if you aren’t like us, MHA viewers, then My Hero Academia: You’re Next will be a pass for most.

Animation

Studio Bones (Bungo Stray Dogs, Space Dandy, Full Metal Alchemist) never fails to deliver quality-looking animation—I would be kind of surprised if they ever did, at this point. My Hero Academia: You’re Next, from start to finish, is a testament to their incredible talent.

Early on when you see Deku unleashing his barrage of abilities, you can’t help but compare it to the anime. Now on its 7th season—believe it or not—I’ve grown accustomed to the animation evolving to higher levels but none of the seasons have ever been on par with the films.

My Hero Academia: You’re Next is yet, again, a showing that extra funds and care can do wonders.

Sound

I knew that this would be another solid element of My Hero Academia: You’re Next, especially when we got a great new opening song for the film called “Homunculus” by Vaundy. The voice acting as usual is solid and whether you watch My Hero Academia: You’re Next in English Dub or Sub, you’ll be happy the cast returns in full force.

Hearing the theme song play during the final battle was also a nice touch, that song never grows tiring and still gives me goosebumps.

Characters

I won’t bore you all by talking about My Hero Academia characters and how they are because if you’re watching this fourth film, you probably love these characters and know all about them. Instead, I’ll talk about the new characters we get and why they are good/bad. Dark Might—All Might in evil form—is what you can envision. Dark Might talks like a cliché liar hero who then reveals how evil he truly is.

Who steals the movie more is the new Akira-Bike riding character Giulio Gandini who we discover has issues with his former family and how they treated one of the females he clearly has feelings for. Other than that, most of the other Giulio family don’t shine for long and often are used for just a few scenes.

These new enemies do have some interesting quirks—and we won’t spoil who does what as that would ruin the entire plot—but they are gone in what seems like a blink. The usual heroes of Class 1-A shine but fans of some of the bigger heroes don’t worry, they do show up here and there.

Conclusion

My Hero Academia: You’re Next was a fun movie that fans will no doubt love and adore just for being My Hero Academia. Plus, seeing our heroes rise to a new challenge is always a treat. However, this movie feels like it was made only for that purpose, to appeal to fans. I highly doubt anyone with no love for My Hero Academia will rush to theaters to watch it and it can’t be watched by those not caught up with at least season 6. If you push those issues to the side though, you’ll see that My Hero Academia: You’re Next is an overall solid movie.

I enjoyed the nearly 2-hour experience and that speaks volumes in itself. Watch My Hero Academia: You’re Next while not expecting much—and do not try to compare it to the second movie which is my favorite—and you’ll leave the theater smiling that your favorite heroes are still going strong in 2024!

—Aaron