BOKU NO HERO ACADEMIA FINAL SEASON

DESCRIPTION

CAST

MANGA ActionBoku no Hero Academia
ANIME ActionBoku no Hero Academia 7

REVIEWS

• 

  TheAnimeBingeWatcher

  95/100
  This is what the word "peak" was made for.

  The word "peak" gets thrown around a bit too loosely these days. Peak is supposed to be, well, the peak, the single highest achievement anything can achieve. But it feels like we're just slapping that label on any old movie, TV show, game or whatever that has the courage to Not Suck in today's media landscape. And frankly, that isn't fair to the fiction in question! There are plenty of good, great, and excellent stories that might not be flawless or life-changing, but still offer a valuable experience all the same. Yes, I love a masterpiece as much as anybody, but something shouldn't have to be the literal Greatest Of All Time to be worth watching. And we do ourselves a disservice when we only engage with fiction through such hyperbolic terms. Trust me, the more you learn to appreciate art without needing it to be "peak," the better off you'll be.

  With all that said: My Hero Academia is fucking PEAK.

  In retrospect, it's kind of a miracle how perfectly timed my experience with this series was. After getting sucked into anime in 2017, the very first two ongoing series I decided to follow were Attack on Titan and My Hero Academia. Both were still in their second season at the time, only just starting to show how spectacular they would end up being. But they were far and away the most popular anime at the time, so I dove in head-first and resolved to follow them to the bitter end. And over the years that followed, I've watched them both blossom into not just the best possible versions of themselves, but some of the most staggering, awe-inspiring, and meaningful stories to ever come out of this medium. Growing into a young adult alongside Deku and his friends in class A-1 has been like discovering and re-discovering an old friend over and over again, only falling more and more in love as I realize just how special it truly is. I may have missed out on growing up alongside a long-running series like Naruto or Bleach, like so many of my peers did, but having this series by my side has more than made up for it.

  I've already written extensively about MHA in my reviews for the other seasons, so I'll avoid rehashing myself too much here. Suffice to say, it's a triumph of shonen storytelling that elevates its simple storytelling with fantastic action setpieces, stellar long-term character work, and a gripping exploration of the nature of heroism and its role in building a better world. Last season kicked off the final battle with every conceivable character involved, and with basically every other plot thread and character arc resolved there, the final season can jump straight into the true endgame clash: Izuku, Shigaraki, All Might, and One for All. The greatest of heroes and the greatest of villains locked in an epic brawl for the fate of society itself. It's nothing but one massive conclusion for the hundred-plus episodes we've spent getting here, the grand finale to everything MHA has been exploring with its themes. If this wasn't an absolute slam dunk of an ending, the entire show would be weaker for it.

  Luckily, as we established last season, Horikoshi is really fucking good at endings.

  There's no other way to say it: My Hero Academia's finale is a triumph. It's a bombastic, fist-pumping, utterly transcendent firework rocketing into the sky and exploding in rainbow colors. It takes all the show's commentary, all its build-up toward a greater understanding of heroism, and funnels it into a knockout blow as powerful as the strongest punch All Might every threw. Every episode is a masterpiece. Every episode had me shrieking with joy and/or bawling my eyes out. And watching Izuku finally smash through the old world and redefine what makes a hero matter is confirmation that this truly is one of the greatest shonen series ever made. I always had faith in this show, even when the rest of the anime community turned on it, and this finale has proven my faith justified. My Hero Academia was always great; why wouldn't its ending stick the landing so incredibly hard?

  Of course, it helps that season 8 is far and away the best the show has ever looked. I'm not one of those snobs who thinks MHA's inconsistent production turned it into garbage, even in the admittedly rough stretch from seasons 4 to 5. But it does help when the animation is able to fully capture the grandeur of the story being told. And with only eleven episodes and no movie to steal away talented staff, Bones has polished this finale into a spectacle worthy of such an apocalyptic climax. Every action scene roars with kinetic joy, superpowers smashing across the screen in spectacular sakuga cuts and razor-sharp editing. The cinematography is better than ever too, with some of the most evocative shot composition we've ever gotten from this show, heightening even its quieter moments to gut-wrenching emotional heights. Add to that a much more expressive lighting palette, and the end result is a visual feast that nails every moment, big and small, with the drama it deserves. And when it reaches its absolute peak in episodes 3 and 8, the end result isn't just the best episodes of the entire show; it's a landmark achievement of visual storytelling sure to go down in anime history. I. Am. In. AWE.

  But as obviously incredible as those big action shots are, it's the smaller beats and more subtle emotional threads that tie everything together. This finale has to do so much heavy lifting in tying together the complexities of the hero system's failures and Shigaraki's place as the hero for villains. How do we sympathize with the forces that drove Shigaraki to darkness without forgiving the blood he's spilled? How do we acknowledge the humanity of the villains who knew this world wasn't enough while building something better instead of tearing it all down? For a show that started so simply, My Hero Academia has painted an incredibly nuanced picture of a society's responsibility toward its citizens, and what responsibility those citizens have to society in turn. And I think a lot of manga readers were sour on the ending because they just weren't prepared to grapple with that level of nuance. So many people would rather pick a side and complain about their faves being "done dirty" than acknowledge that storytelling is more than seeing your favorite blorbos get glazed.

  Luckily, I already went through this song and dance with Attack on Titan, another manga crucified by fans because the ending asked them to face questions with no easy answers (though obviously to a much greater extreme). And just as AoT's anime ending proved the haters wrong, the complexities of MHA's finale are why this story was worth telling in the first place. No, this is not a universally happy ending, and it will leave you with uncertainties to ruminate on instead of wrapping absolutely everything up in a neat little bow. But those solemn notes are just as essential to its message as the final, glorious return of You Say Run. They're reminders of what was lost, suggestions of what could have been, and proof of why this society needed to change in the first place. It's only in grappling with those imperfections, of trying to understand and untangle where the world falls short, that MHA makes its statement on heroism so damn powerful. And the final conversation Izuku and Shigaraki share will linger in my mind for a very long time to come.

  Most of all, though? What My Hero Academia offers is hope. Hope that things, however bleak, can get better. Hope that people are capable of radical change on an individual and social level. Hope that if we truly come together and fight for a better world as one, there's nothing we can't accomplish. The hero system's great failure was instilling the belief that ordinary people are meaningless, that only the select few Great Men and Woman can enact change for all of us. But no matter how strong he becomes, Izuku Midoriya is no Symbol of Peace. He's not a god among men standing above the rest of the world. He's just... a boy, scared and uncertain, but trying to do the right thing regardless because every bit of good he can accomplish matters. And watching him live up to his hero name, doing his best no matter the odds, is proof that everyone, no matter how insignificant they feel, has what it takes to become a hero. The power to change the world for the better does not belong to the elite few; it lies in US. We alone, with our own two hands, can fix what's broken and transform society into a place where everyone truly belongs.

  All we need is the courage to do our best.

  It's that message that stays with me now that My Hero Academia is finally over. In the 8 years I've been watching it, I've graduated college, moved to a foreign country, watched the world fall apart in so many different ways it feels hopeless even trying to fix it. I'm not the same person I was in 2017; I've grown older, wearier, more disillusioned than I'm comfortable admitting. But as I finally say goodbye to this show I've spent so much time with, I realize I believe in its vision for the future now more than ever. I may not have "grown up" with MHA in a literal sense, but it has shaped my understanding of the adult I want to be and the world I want to pass on to the next generation. This show has made my life better. It's made ME better. And now that it's finished alongside Attack on Titan, I can say goodbye to the person I was when those shows brought me into anime, looking forward with the lessons they taught me to the person I know I can still become.

  Are there flaws? Sure there are. All for One is still a boring final boss whose master plans are so overwrought he might as well have an Author's Immunity sticker slapped on his forehead. Some of the side characters remain underutilized to the end, while others probably should've been focused on less. There are countless nits to pick if you go looking for them. But just because it's an awkward, gangly show at times doesn't make this finale any less of a home run. So rarely do these long-running shonen series pay off every single promise this perfectly, or make you feel like every step of this long journey was worth taking. But that's what makes anime so damn special; when it's done right? It makes you believe anything is possible. From now on, this is the bar all future shonen will be compared to. Forget Jujutsu Kaisen, or Demon Slayer, or any other wannabe series that's pretended to hold the crown; My Hero Academia is the kind of magic that will stand the test of time for many, many years to come.

  So thank you, Horikoshi. Thanks you, Studio Bones. Thank you Bakugo and Endeavor, for two of the best redemption arcs I've ever seen. Thank you Shoto, for showing how we can rise above the demons dragging us down. Thank you Iida, for your endless compassion and loyalty. Thank you Ochako, for being the best goddamn shonen heroine ever written.

  And, of course, thank you to one Izuku Midoriya, a crybaby weakling who showed the entire world what it truly means to be a hero.

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• 

  SaiHoshizora

  87/100
  "The End of An Era, And The Beginning" My Hero Academia shows that not all farewells have to be sorrowful

  The final season of My Hero Academia doesn’t try to be louder than what came before. Instead, it chooses to be heavier. More deliberate. It understands that this isn’t about spectacle anymore; it’s about closure.

  At the heart of this season lies Bakugou Katsuki, and the quiet triumph of watching a decade-long arc finally reach the dignity it always deserved. His conflict with All For One isn’t just a battle against evil, but the end of a shadow that loomed over his growth for years. What made it devastating wasn’t the violence; it was the humanity. Watching Bakugou smile genuinely, not out of pride or victory, but from being seen by his idol, All Might, felt like a release long overdue. That single smile carried seasons of tension, insecurity, and self-loathing dissolving at once.

  Even more piercing was Bakugou’s reckoning with Deku. The boy who once lashed out now stood capable of reflection, remorse, and vulnerability. Watching him break into tears, not from anger, but out of fear of loss, pierced deeper than any explosion ever could. It wasn’t an apology spelled out in words; it was growth shown in its rawest form. And it sank my heart.

  All Might’s arc, too, ends not in glory, but in grace. His story understands when to step aside. His legacy isn’t in one final stand, but in allowing the next generation to finally stand on their own. For the first time, the world doesn’t need him to say “I am here.” And that silence says everything.

  The season’s strength lies in how little it explains itself. It trusts the audience. Nowhere is that clearer than in Shigaraki’s farewell. We learn more about him, yes; but it’s how he leaves that matters. His final moments aren’t consumed by All For One’s manipulation, nor by the monster he was molded into. Instead, his design subtly shifts back—blue hair, familiar eyes—returning him to the version of himself that once found belonging in the League of Villains. Not a demon. Just a broken boy who finally gets to say goodbye.

  His message—to Deku, to Spinner—lands quietly, but with devastating weight. It’s acceptance. It’s release. It’s Shigaraki moving on for the first time in his life as himself, not as a tool, not as a weapon.

  Then comes Deku’s defining moment in what is arguably the best episode of the year, Episode 8. Stripped of his powers, he confides only in Aizawa, and with a voice equal parts desperate and resolute, he cries out for a path to be cleared. At that instant, no one knows that his final ember could extinguish at any moment—but they believe in him completely. Every ally risks their own safety to give Deku the singular chance he needs to deliver the final blow. In the franchise’s most emotionally charged scene, "You Say Run" swells for the last time as everyone rallies behind him, and we finally understand the truth behind Deku’s words: he never sought to be Number 1, only the greatest hero in spirit. And in that moment, we finally witness his dream reach its heartrending, inevitable conclusion.

  By the end, My Hero Academia doesn’t scream its themes at you. It lets them settle in. Growth, legacy, forgiveness, and letting go are woven into expressions, pauses, and final glances. It’s a season that understands that endings don’t need to be grand—they need to be honest.

  And so, this five-year journey finally comes to rest. It’s strange, realizing there won’t be another season to look forward to next year, no familiar return to this world that quietly followed me through some of my most formative years as an anime fan. My faith in My Hero Academia wavered at times; some seasons disappointed, others surprised, and none would ever rank among my all-time favorites or even break past a nine in my personal scale. But that was never the point. What mattered was the journey, watching this series alongside my own growth, from my earliest days discovering anime to standing here now with the perspective to truly understand it. So, thank you to Studio Bones for the unforgettable five years, to Kohei Horikoshi for showing me how powerful subtlety and theme can be, even amid inconsistency in mind, and to everyone involved for the memories they gave us. And above all, thank you to the voice actors—for letting me hear one final “I am here,” one last “Plus Ultra,” and that everlasting echo of “Smash.” It wasn’t perfect, but it meant something. And I wouldn’t trade that ride for anything.

  PS: There will also be additional comments about this season added to my profile entry for it during the course of the day and this will be edited when that's done.

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• 

  Niclas8201

  83/100
  Despite a heavy downfall in Season 6 and 7 in my opinion, the Final Season managed to perform oddly well

  So, I have loved the superheor franchise for a long long time and thus I absolutely enjoyed and loved My Hero Academia. It was my favorite Anime for years, I think Seasons 1 to 3 are probably one of the best Anime experiences I ever had and I can recommend them to absolutely everyone who loves the Supernatural and a lot of Action. From Season 4 on the Anime started to become a bit crazy, but not necessarily bad. Arc 1 was still pretty fire and Arc 2 was a little letdown but ended with a pretty nice to watch bang so it was fine. in S5, especially second arc, everything began to derail a bit I would say, but not completely terribly. Giving the League of Villains more screentime and meaning was a pretty good idea, especially because there was so much to discover for every member and it was overall a pretty crazy Arc. It was also, unfortunately, the first major point were "Powercreep" started to take effect (maybe the second if we account for Deku in S5 Arc 1 I suppose). And while that wasnt a major Issue for S5, it kinda started to become one in S6.

  Now, while I was being pretty brief above, I have to take a little, more spoilerheavy dive into S6 and 7 here, so be warned (If you read a review about final Season it prob wont matter but still).

  S6 and S7 were, in my opinion, easily the worst BnH Seasons. The entire beginning of the war was kinda rediccolous. Gigantomachia is probably the worst plothole I've ever seen in an Anime, holy shit that guy is whack. Shigaraki starts to become too insane for his Own good. Especially physically, not really mentally. The Anime starts to approach a point were you realize that nothing really matters anymore. Shigaraki is absolutely broken with all for one's Quirk, he is basically unbeatable, and whenever something MIGHT be able to actually beat him, the Anime just gets rid of it via some weird shit (Like Aizawa, atleast partially). It doesnt get any better with other LoV character either. Of course, Twice is dead which was a pretty bold but necessary move, but somehow they still managed to go completely crazy with his Quirk with Toga, Dabi is just a big LMAO moment, even tho I would say his Storyline with the Todoroki-Family is still the best out out of all them but it's kinda....eh, yea. Spinner, who solely lives off of his personality suddenly gets broken because "We need MORE troublemakers" and now his personality gets kinda gutted for the rest of the war (Final Season not included!) and don't even get me started with AFO. How they managed to make one of the coolest and most interesting Villains ive ever seen into such a whack ass mess is a mystery for me. AFO is really one of the biggest let-downs together with Shigaraki during this War, except for the little, minor difference, that Shigaraki kinda manages to get a proper, final moment. AFO just sucks through and through lmao.

  From the Hero-Side, I don't have as much criticism honestly. Deku is kinda redicolous of course, Bakugo just patching himself up by sweating really hard and with a bit of help was defenitly something, and the entire stuff were all the Heroes start to get discorouged feels a bit odd at times ig, but its not as big of a deal. I actually even think that the second Arc in S6 was a pretty pleasant surprise. Of course, it only adds to the craziness that is Deku, but atleast it was a bit different and brought up some much needed "calm" compared to the shit that was going on before and continues after.

  Now, about the actual important part. If Season 6 and 7 went so crazy in a bad way, what does the Final Season actually do to patch this up? Pretty good Question, and I don't quite understand it myself. I'll just say it right away, I feel like there is quite a lot of nostalgia going on that may manipulate my reasoning a bit, but I still gave it my best effort to kinda figure out what I actually like so much about it.

  The first part is probably just the fact that all the chaos actually gets resolved. That was inevitable, obviously, but it's still overall just a good thing. With all the single fights coming to an end, you actually get the feeling that something happens. Progress, yooooo. Something that was pretty much absent for.....46 damn Episodes. Yea, sounds crazy, I know. Either way, that alone doesn't help with all the issues that the war brought with it of course. Especially not with the 2 biggest issues: AFO and Shigaraki. And I'll just be straight forward. Basically all of the Issues I have with this Season are completely tied to AFO. He is dead! Oh no, he isn't. But NOW he'll die!!!! Oh....yea no, nevermind. Well but NOW he must be dead for sure!!!!!! Oh........ Okay but this time he literally evaporated into nothingness due to Eri's Quirk, there is no way he'll come back aga-...... Yea, that is pretty much all there is to him for this. His entire Persona get's just smacked around in the room, he is completely broken and unkillable for hardly a reason and it just feels redicolous. Throughout the entire time the Heroes fight him, you never have the feeling that any of this achieves anything which is a major issue from S7 that carries over to Final Season. Of course, you get a few snippets and pieces from his backstory, and being completely honest, I think they are pretty nice as well, but it's just gets overshadowed by how much nonsense he brings apon the entire franchise. That he manages to overtake Shigaraki after he lost wasn't even a got plottwist either, because of course their had to be one final battle with the power of Friendship against the truly big bad evil demon lord!!!! Urgh, atleast the one Episode with the fight wasn't completely bad I guess, so let's just move on to Shigaraki.

  For the most time I despised Shigaraki way more then AFO, but that actually changed through Final Season. He is of course completely redicolous and doesn't make any fucking sense with his Powers, but atleast in the Final Season, that hardly matters. Changing the fight with him and Deku into a fight with One for All against All for One and Shigarakis mind was actually.....a pretty decent Idea? Okay so, maybe the idea sounds pretty whack on paper, but in all honesty, Shigaraki was so blatantly OP and unreasonably broken, how on earth would you find a way to actually beat him without raising the stakes over and over again. So they had to introduce some way to stop that continuisly raising ceiling, and that was honestly pretty well done. It feels like Shigaraki was never truly beaten, because thats what the devs made him. Something unbeatable. And forcing a way to let him "give up" was fine imo. It was also emotionally pretty well done and it kinda helped Shigaraki to redeem himself as a Character which I am extremely glad it happened. Because I did like him a lot, but not as a overpowered beast, but instead just as a kinda weird but also enjoyable Villain that you could follow along. (Unlike a certain other Villain that just went out of a serious as a massive joke....cough AfO cough)

  ANYWAYS! So what about the conclusion of the Anime? The final few Episodes? Hard to say. I think they were good. Deku doesn't just managed pull through by the power of.....believing, but instead found another way. And that kinda just goes for everyone? Spinner managed to do what he set as his own goal without stopping being the kind of Villain that once entered the League. Dabi still being alive is extremely questionable of course, but I think it kinda helps with the Todoroki plotline and giving Endeavor a proper chance to atone, and I kinda appreciate that. The family is still broken apart, but it feels like it all had a meaning and something actually happened. Not all the students just becoming broken new Heroes either helps a lot with realism and you get a feeling that.....sociaty actually changed a bit from these events.....which, yea, makes a lot of sense. It's a happy ending that just kinda feels well rounded with some edges that are there for a reason and shouldn't just disappear. It doesn't unnecessarily try to extend it's duration either.

  The Story Boku no Hero tried to tell was Dekus from the very first Episode, and it does truly end with most things rounded up and resolved. Character-Growth and changes that feel earned, and when all is said and done.......I still think that BnH created one of the most mesmerizing worlds in Anime history, even tho it kinda lost its track for a final, way too long and redicolous, war. I dropped the Anime during S7 but decided to give it another shot to redeem itself with its ending, and I don't regret it. Despite a lot of frustration over the years, I can say, that as a big, old fan of the frenchise......I am quite happy that I witnessed an End, that gave me the opportunity to realize one final time, that this Anime did have, in fact, a lot of Magic too it.

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