Image Credit: Bethesda
Forgot password
Enter the email address you used when you joined and we'll send you instructions to reset your password.
If you used Apple or Google to create your account, this process will create a password for your existing account.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Reset password instructions sent. If you have an account with us, you will receive an email within a few minutes.
Something went wrong. Try again or contact support if the problem persists.
Collage style image featuring official artwork of Ochaco from My Hero Academia's manga

My Hero Academia’s Ending Hurt Its Best Female Character

While My Hero Academia's finale did a lot of things right, one writing decision majorly hurt Ochacho's character arc.

With My Hero Academia officially over, fans can now take the time to look back and reflect on some of the writing decisions leading up to the big finale. While much of the ending was handled fairly well, one character’s big emotional conclusion was handled rather poorly.

Recommended Videos

Ochaco Uraraka is one of, if not the best female character in My Hero Academia. Her character arc throughout the series has focused on themes of self preservation and building confidence. In the war arc, she shares a powerful moment with Toga, one of the series’ villains, that left an impact on her well into the final chapters of the manga.

My Hero Academia’s Ending Robbed Ochaco Of a Moment To Heal For Herself

My-Hero-Academia-chapter-430-panel-of-Deku-trying-to-comfort-Ochaco
Kohei Horikoshi

Leading up to My Hero Academia‘s final moments, Ochaco begins to reckon with the survivor’s guilt associated with Toga sacrificing her life to keep Ochaco safe. It’s a heart-wrenching moment that challenges the idea of heroes being unflinching pillars that protect and shape society – something that My Hero Academia has, up to this point, balanced relatively well with being an otherwise upbeat shonen action series.

Ochaco is quickly discovered by Deku, though, whose attempt at comforting the traumatized young woman by declaring that she is his hero. The moment is meant to be a hard-hitting emotional revelation to help lift Ochaco out of her grief, but it just doesn’t hit the mark to wrap her character arc up in a satisfactory way. Firstly, Deku’s declaration of everything Ochaco has done for him, as opposed to focusing on how Ochaco is independently processing her grief and feelings toward Toga’s death is instead forced to process her feelings for someone else, and through their personal view of the situation despite not even being a witness to the events that transpired between the two girls.

My-Hero-Academia-chapter-429-panel-of-Deku-declaring-to-Ochaco-that-she-is-his-hero

The moment is far too brief, and too condensed to exude how either character ends up moving forward from the conversation. It leaves readers conflicted: was Ochaco robbed of a moment alone to let her bottled up emotions out? Was she forced to once again shove her conflicting feelings about being viewed as a worldwide hero because of how someone else perceives her?

There are some great aspects of Ochaco’s final moments in the story, though, including the information that she spearheaded a Quirk Counseling initiative to assist individuals like Toga who were told that there Quirks have no place in society. It shows her intent to continue to make society a better place for common people and Heroes, and to turn people away from villainy.

Additionally, My Hero Academia didn’t force Ochaco into a romantic relationship with Deku at the end of the series, instead leaving their relationship to be open-ended, and canonically platonic in nature. While this may be frustrating to some fans, it is ultimately the best possible outcome for both characters, now that they’re adults leading two very different professional lives.

My Hero Academia can be read on Viz Media’s Shonen Jump app, and the anime adaptation can be streamed on Crunchyroll.

Reviewed on

Attack of the Fanboy is supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission. Learn more about our Affiliate Policy
Author
Image of Anna Williams
Anna Williams
Anna Williams -- not to be confused with the Tekken character -- is an editor and writer that has been working closely with the anime and manga industry for over four years for a variety of publications including Comic Book Resources, Screen Rant, and We Got This Covered. She has had the opportunity to sit down and talk with key figures in the industry, and continue to grow a vast knowledge of the art and culture that goes into each new seasonal and ongoing franchise. She's also had the opportunity to work alongside indie game developers like Baroque Decay to edit and localize early devlog materials for their upcoming game Catechesis.