Author: Kohei Horikoshi
Series: My Hero Academia
Publisher: VIZ Media LLC
Released: October 6^th, 2020
Received: NetGalley
Rating:

I received a copy of My Hero Academia Vol. 25 in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Man, are we already twenty-five volumes in to My Hero Academia? That’s almost hard to believe. Then again, there’s been a lot going on, so maybe it isn’t all that surprising. Either way, it’s been a thrilling series, and I hope that the end is nowhere in sight.

My Hero Academia Vol. 25 has two major plot arcs running through it. The first revolves around the one and only, Shigaraki Tomura. His origin story was left unfinished in the last volume, and now it’s time to see how dark that is going to get.

With Shigaraki new and greater understanding of himself, things are about to get worse for the heroes of this world. The League of Villains and the Meta Liberation Army are about to become one and the same – and that cannot be a good sign.

Meanwhile, the students at U.A. are still actively in training, while the heroes are struggling to find what it means to be heroes in a world where All Might has retired.

It’s so hard to believe how much ground was covered in My Hero Academia Vol. 25. Not just the two major plots mentioned above, but everything else that was tucked into these pages as well. Because honestly? There’s a lot to take in here.

The Shigaraki arc is probably one of my favorites so far, from the villain side of things. I knew that it was only a matter of time before we learned of his true origins…but even so I hadn’t expected something quite this dark. It was shockingly powerful, especially when combined with the events that triggered those memories.

This volume did an excellent job of highlighting the efforts that the heroes have been going through as of late. I had been wondering how they would handle a world without the hero All Might (yes, I know he’s still alive, but he’s retired, and thus…). I feel like those questions are starting to be answered.

All while raising even more questions, naturally. My favorite hero has what appears to be one of the more complex arcs right now, though it is one easily pushed to the sidelines if you’re not paying attention. I’m not sure how I feel about what he’s doing, or what his goals are. Only time will tell, I guess?

Along with plenty of intense moments are the parts that just make you want to laugh out loud. This series has always been good about balancing reader emotions, something that was used to great effect in this volume.

Confession: I’ve actually been reading each chapter as it drops on VIZ Medias app, so I’m way ahead of this volume. Still, it was totally worth coming back and reading this all in one go. I picked up on details that I had missed (or forgotten). Though now I do want to go and read what will eventually become volume 26 again…