It looks nice! I also liked the parallels you showed from mha characters to comic characters. I know mha is inspired by western comics a lot, but I didn't know which specific characters were being referenced
Fun fact: in the manga- during the arc where class 1-A goes to get Midoriya back, Bakugo says ‘look at you! Your even drawn differently!’ I’m not sure if they kept this detail in the anime- but he does look differently drawn in that arc than later, with the shapes seeming to be more blocky. I always thought that was interesting-
It definitely shows that Midoriya went through a lot in the course of a year from being an innocent kid that aspires to be a hero to a very scarred and depressed kid who had to grow up quick to while still having that moral truth behind and a hundred different things he had to deal with too! It makes you empathize with the character more!
He comments on him looking like a villain, which yeah he's drawn in the slightly different style of the villains in that arc. It's actually my favourite of his designs because it's somehow creepy and yet funny since he resembles a psychotic rabbit 💀
Yeah, I noticed while reading that arc, The shadows and line work for Midoriya was almost entirely blacked out, with hatching and cross-hatching indicating lighter areas. Things that Horikishi hardly ever used before in the manga; usually the drawings are cell shaded, or shaded with halftones. It was almost like Midoriya was in a different story with a different tone or genre entirely!
Cool video, I always loved Horikoshi's designs. Also, I appreciate how MHA kept up the tradition of other manga like One Piece of more imaginative and colourful designs, as opposed to a lot of other manga nowadays tend towards more realistic and muted designs for their human characters.
I think both styles definitely have their place. If someone can use a very common style in a new or creative way I think thats a sign of something special :)
And for Horikoshi's designs in MHA, it works a lot more because its a homage to golden and silver age comics, a lot of which had very similar colourful and wacky costume designs
MHA has some of the most iconic designs in anime and honestly just generally in terms of entertainment as a whole. There is a reason why so many people cosplay his characters and they are so huge on the internet. They are very different but very good character designs.
@@stix6278 they are iconic design wise, I’m just saying it’s not THAT iconic and there are people around that age range that I’ve seen that haven’t recognized them.
Looking at Deku's vigilante costume reminds more and of Stain's costume every time I look at it, and merging that with the theme of his costume being questioning everything about hero society and then look at Stain's motivation, being that he believes that most heros only do hero work for the praise and the money, it fits well with Deku's character in his vigilante arc. Just something I noticed as I was watching :)
Finally, someone appreciates the great aspect of MHA. Its character design has been consistently great and unique. Also, love how the costumes change and evolve with the characters and also their looks like Deku and Kirishima.
Really good video! Something I noticed about Dabi's design is that his costume hints at his reveal later in the story. He has a white t-shirt under his black coat, which lines up well with his white hair being dyed black.
I've always felt like Class 1-A and the main characters are extremely well designed, but 1-B and a lot of the side characters are a definitely a bit generic-looking, but its like that for most animes
there's some hits and some misses all over the series for sure. I tryyyy to focus on the positives with videos like this unless an issue is so glaring that it can become a learning moment.
Kohei’s design’s are some of the most fun and creative designs I’ve ever seen in modern Shonen Jump, He knows the perfect balance of wacky & creepy character designs
Todoroki’s scar is from his mother trying to cool his face down with her own quirk, not the boiling water itself! Todoroki’s hot side would have had the heat resistance for the boiling water, considering that it can literally be set on fire and be fine.
Aw, during the hairstyle portion of the video I was really expecting Shigaraki and his hair changes representing the changes in his mental state to be mentioned. He's one of the characters whose designs have changed the most throughout the story.
An interesting aspect of MHA hero designs is that in the story the characters are intentional about the designs of their hero costumes and likely listened to a lecture teaching about it similar to this video.
I enjoyed the video. As a artist myself, I always found the art style and design of my hero are almost always on point and dope. Kohei art work is the perfect blend of Japanese+ American art combined. One of my favorite artists currently along with others.
Your commentary is really amazing! I love when people talk about the character designs in MHA. Horikoshi deserves all the love and appreciation for his characters and manga tbh the way u explained everything was so poetic!
I love MHA’s designs. Except for Momo. It doesn’t display any of her personality with color, shape or style. It is EXPLAINED by her quirk, it doesn’t show off what her quirk IS. Uraraka’s design is pink, tighter and slick. It shows her bubbly personality, her confidence and how she needs a tighter costume for her quirk with the astronaut boots showing what her quirk is. Momo’s outfit is red, revealing and tight. Momo’s personality is kind, intelligent and quieter. These do not match. Yes it would be a good idea to have more skin showing to use her quirk better but she doesn’t need THAT much, they could have had a circle cut out of her back for her to spawn items out of or something else. It was just a cheap excuse to sexualize a minor.
I totally agree! Mirio got an outfit made out of his hair and something similar could have been done for momo. I personally think she should have more muscle aswell since a bigger physique would give her a bigger surface to create things out of. Like let some of the girlies in the class have muscle so we can se different body types like the boys have.
I have a question then, what colors would you use for her then? Because she seems to be taking more of a captain/leader role as the story goes on so I think it starts to fit with the red. As for her openings, a back opening would make sense to also have because when she made the insulated blanket her clothes ripped, however if you wanted to make most things then having an opening in front of you makes more sense because you can then pick it up or drop it easier. I’m not sure where you would cover more of her skin, I think she made blades or something come out of her legs which is cool, and making shields and stuff around her arms sounds useful.
I object a little bit. Momo is the crown leader of all the girls in 1-a, red is a color that takes your attention. It's perfect for someone who is in a leader role. As for her clothing, I believe the front opening is more convenience. Since it's way easier to pick something up from the front instead of the back, and if her created items were to drop onto the floor at any point, she wouldn't need to turn around and risk getting hit in the back. Of course she could also take a few steps backwards, but seeing as villains who are a bit unstable like stain or dabi can always throw projectiles, and especially with people who are fast like toga, it's an extreme risk to make any sudden movements.
I appreciate the compliment, but it's not a competition. We all support and grow with each other, and I learned a lot from them. I think we discuss things in different ways and some prefer theirs, some prefer mine. That said, I'm glad you like mine aha
The designs kind of speak to my favorite aspects of My Hero as a whole. That being that it's kind of a homage and breakdown of comic books and superheroes. Even its weakest character designs have that classic comic book vibe that I find super charming. Not all of them make a whole lot of sense, but that's just part of the fun imo. I even find that some civilian characters have oddly great designs.
So glad you did a video on MHA. I have been looking for a new anime to watch for so long and nothing could satisfy that itch until my friends showed me MHA back in September. Got hooked instantly and they were shocked that All Might was my favorite. After watching your video I understand why. It's that duality of having two forms and seeing what being too selfless can do to a person. Also got to add I love how they show him change mentally from the start of the series to the current season. The fact that he doesn't slouch anymore and now wears clothes that fit his true form. Like he is finally comfortable with himself.
This is a phenomenal look into character design, the idea to put things about the characters story into the design isn't something I would've thought of by myself but this will definitely be something I will wanna keep in mind when I start making characters myself, will definitely have to come back to this if I forget it at some point because this is very insightful stuff.
How to write anime and manga Step 1: Stop sidelining your female characters for no God forsaken reason, or at all for that matter. But, half jokes aside, I'm glad you're covering a topic like this. Character design is, naturally and obviously, one of the most important things to master in an animated medium. Silhouettes, poses, outfits, bodies, all of these can inform you in some small way or another what a character might be like, and if nothing else, despite all of its flaws (like I mentioned earlier), MHA can at least do that part well enough. LOVE the art style and designs...barring a couple of obvious exceptions. Seriously, there's revealing but fitting, and then there's blatant stupid fanservice. This very same show had this dichotomy with Midnight and Momo, or Mt. Lady and Bubble Girl. The leftmost characters were attractive as a core theme and because of having a generic skin-tight suit (which is common in superhero costumes) respectively, the rightmost characters used the "exposed skin" excuse in the worst way possible.
I like midnight, and it its with her aproach to life to be more openminded , and momo, i just wish momo got her ocus, i got no bee with her outit, at least its very thought out, Through mt lady, maybe a bit much. like with midnight it its openminded wanting to inspire. mr lady, a bit too on th nose. I am glad recovery girl is an old lady at least. Like or the most part its helping the character, but mt lady, a bit much. Especially because in other cases its really thought out. Hell even the cats get a serious developement. Like even muscle mommy female almight gets that army bond an er hard work why she is that buff
People that complain about midnights costume is always so baffling to me, yes mha has a sexist issue but midnight is not a good example, midnight LIKES being sexy, it's her whole charecter and she's comfortable in her skin and makes a lil sense for her quirk. Other heroes like Uravity is a valid argument cause she herself says how she dosen't like her hero costume, and while momo "likes" her hero costume, it's not practical at all and clearly fanservice like you said.
@@olaz5131To be fair, Uraraka complains about her costume in season one, but I think the outfit makes sense for her character, she is a character that focuses on melee combat and her power allows her to float so having an outfit that doesn't hinder her movement makes perfect sense, however there are several examples of designs made for this but this is not one of those either.
@@FlavioSantos-uw1mrpretty sure sweatpants and a securely tucked in t-shirt wouldn't be any worse for range of motion .. or a decently loose overall with small enough arms eyes to not mess with shoulder movement? Then again, I don't (think? I) have experience with spandex, maybe that still improves on the flexibility of those
I totally agree, Horikoshi is an incredibly talented mangaka in many regards, and my hero academia is in my opinion one of the best modern shonen out there currently, but an area where the series really shines is it’s excellent character designs. Horikoshi is phenomenal at characterization
I love these videos so much 🥹 you’re so right. I love how they changed his costume over time. And these couple episodes been hitting me in the feels 😭😭
Fantastic video, there is a lot of awesome insight in here that is a great reference for designing your own characters. I thought I'd throw in two details I noticed tgat may or not be intentional from Todoroki and Deku. Todoroki's burn scar may have potentially not been exactly the result of the kettle. It is likely her mother, horrified once she knew what she had done, tried to apply her cold quick on her child: for anyone reading this /DO NOT PUT ICE ON BURNS/. This might signify that sticking to the cold side alone would never allow him to move on, and only by embracing that side, he'd be able to. Midoriya's collar armour still harkons back to the original costume's smile: but with the hood up, it is no longer a smile. It's a beast baring its teeth against their enemies.
really cool video, love the analysis! but i have to wonder why some of the clips you chose are interpolated, or "upped" to 60 fps. it distorts a lot of the frames (and is a little distracting) and contradicts the point you're making about the importance of art and design. i don't mean any hate, i really like the points you made, but the decision to use interpolated footage is a little frustrating. good video overall! :)
Can I say how funny it is, I began work in my own anime recently. Very early, early enough that this week is working on Character design. And then you upload this. I’m gonna be taking notes later tonight thank you very much.
That's who, and you have a video so interesting to watch! I agree that MHA has interesting designs and the style itself seems to give off modernity and old comics, they attract and show a good imagination, I like it, I would like more mangakas with their own unique features in the future, maybe even like One Piece. Horikoshi-Sensei is really good at drawing. I hope that someday I will be able to discuss titles with a person like you, Axel, and also see a video on OP designs separately. Thank you for the video and your efforts!
this video is absolutely wonderful and incredibly well explained. talking about the main features of character design then clearly and simply relating them to how they were incorporated into the characters in mha and was done perfectly, emphasizing and proving your points skillfully! im glad youve made this video because the designs of mha are genuinely stunning and while they already have positive attention, detailing the actual effects the design choices have and how it influences the narrative to further praise the character designs. this video deserves a lot more attention itself, really good work dude!! :3
Over the years I’ve beeen trying to see what I wanted to be my art style and overtime I just realized everything I liked was already in horikoshi’s artstyle😆
Thanks for giving us a look in character design and the deferent elements that go into it, I got to say a lot of helpful and interesting info in this video. These kind of video always teach and show me something new, thanks Axel Bro. I can't wait for your next video~!!!
This video got me thinking about how character names can fit into their designs, thinking of them through the lense of the Rocky Movies. As I was thinking about it to my self, here's what I came up with: Mickey Goldmill: The name Mickey is something I most strongly associate with Mickey Mouse, and thus in turn relate to things that have been around for a long time but still sound somewhat chummy. Using a strong 'M' sound in a name to me usually evokes a sense of power. Goldmill on the other hand makes me think of riches and workers, combining to mean that the character is a hard worker or pushes others hard to success. Rocky Balboa: The Rocky name is actually pretty easy, as to me it invokes a sense of meaning well but not quite right. Online definitions involve the idea of unsteadyness. Having a 'B' sound in a name is something I associate with soft squares stable, strong, but with a soft side. Adrian Pennino: The Pinnino name I just think of as an italian name, and italians I associate with family. Adrian on the other hand is a name I associate with boys which makes the fact she's a girl a bit of a contrast and shows that she's not like other girls. Then her taking on the Balboa name is a signifier of her gaining confidence and strength.
This was a fantastic breakdown! I'd love it if you turned this into a series even. Like which character designs are the weakest in MHA and how could they better represent the aspects you highlighted here? Are there other series that shine with the majority of its character designs being strong tools for the story?
This is a fantastic video my dude. This is helping me so much for the book i'm trying to write. You've gave me so much inspiration and insight i've never would have thought about, otherwise.
@Axelbeats funny enough horikoshi interviewed Kubo. Kubo said "he could never draw those bacground,your details are amazing Horhi said " well i cant make my characters stand on there. So injust said I gotta get detailed in the background.
This was a really great video! I kinda wish you could've spoken a bit about brown and gray as colors too but I don't mind. Still a great video overall despite those two oversights.
MAN WHY DOES NOONE EVER TALK ABOUT HOW MIDORIYAS CURRENT LOOK IS SUPPOSED TO MIRROR STAIN at least imo. Hes become a fanatic running on pure resolve. He acts just like stain but his fanaticism is saving people and putting nobody but himself in danger not even stopping to sleep.
Character design is one of the things that really puts me off of My Hero Academia. There's just something about a lot of the designs for characters that is just... off to me. It's like lands in the middle of multiple styles or something. Excited to see this video; maybe it'll turn it around.
It's definitely a unique style, which might lend towards some people not vibing with it. I grew up with a lot of western comics and I always thought it was really interesting to see the blend, but I wouldn't blame someone at all for not liking it
It just seems strange to me that there is so much overlap between colors and meanings, in both directions. Like, two people could interpret the same character in two completely different ways and both would be plausible until the author reveals how that character really ticks.
I like how Kengan Ashura was adapted. The art style goes overkill but not in any way similar to either shounen nor seinen’s big 3. It’s like if stylization and realism got into a fight and a winner was never decided. Not to mention some obscure outfit knowledge (where other mangaka would have Fang in either a traditional gi or MMA apparel, the guys who wrote Kengan went with full body compression gear to specify which Jiujitsu style he trains)
*video not vid. I do not understand the concept of wanting to shorten a word that is already short enough as it is. I find it ridiculous. But I do understand wanting to shorten long words.🤦♂
@@SuperPlacido1 i understand wanting to use a common shorthand much more so than trying to correct strangers online for behavior that is very normal and socially accepted to try and prop yourself above them in some weird way 🤦♂
@@AxelBeats Did you read my comment? I don't think you understood what I said! Think about it! Prove to me that you are not an idiot! WHY SHORTEN A WORD THAT IS ALREADY SO SHORT?! IF A PERSON CAN WRITE THREE LETTERS THEN TWO MORE SHOULD BE NOTHING! THINK ABOUT WHAT I JUST SAID! IF YOU THINK THAT IS STUPID, THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE INTELLIGENT EXPLANATIONS TO WHAT I THINK IS WRONG!
Homie, you're insane if you are getting this worked up over this. Literally the stupidest thing I've seen someone complain about in months. Giving me and the lads a good laugh, though :) have a good wkend
Hey your video is filled with design gold🤩🤌 It's so helpful and I fill like i should rewatch it with a pen and paper in hand to take some notes🤓. Also whats the bg song called? It's vibe is just immaculate 🤩🔥
before i watched the anime i used to think that shoto's design is cringe, like, heterochromia, scar on the eye, those were a lot for one character and just screamed a beginner artist who tried a bit too hard to make their character stand out. but now that i know his backstory i think it's fitting and makes sense.
NGL as a big fan of MhA and lots of anime etc. not gonna lie every genre of anime..Mostly shonen here or color scheme that shows the variety for each themes chainsaw man is dark so the tone is more realistic base than vibrant yet there’s cyberpunk edge runners that is beautiful at best of vibrant etc.
Yk, if humans are still around in a century, BNHA may not be talked about in history books, but I’m sure it’ll still be talked about in deep dive videos and articles :D
Also i like how hes the more fansevicey stuff with being thought ou in character, like momo, yeah thats her quirk, midnight is a free spirit an her acktory in vigilante is really fun, but also tells a story how she its that side in pragmatic with what she wants to do, be a teacher, and so she leans into being the sexy tacher teenagr will pay attention too an to inspire. And even froggy , yeah thats intentional, but also very in character because she is basically a friendly frog. Its just nice having the anservice o anim being thought out an nuance of a character than being too obvious. Also generally that ouji is, like i like him. And yeah he dosntneed much time becaus ehe is not tht complx and thats great., becaus he is a very good everyman. Also hawks is hawks.
I think that Horikoshi shot himself in the foot when it comes to villain designs. Twice. The first villain that Izuku encounters is a slime or sludge monster that tries to drown him _from the inside out_ , even taunting Izuku about being "his hero". It's, quite frankly, an Eldritch abomination and fearful and shocked reactions to it are understandable, natural even. Even dealing with it involved literally dividing it and taking it away in trashbags piece by piece. How do you go from here? Well, if you're Horikoshi, the answer is simple. Move away from the grotesque appearance and simple motivations and encase perverse, dark, twisted and broken, yet sometimes relatable personalities into a shape of a human. That's the standard MHA villain for you. So, how can you mess this up? Kurogiri or, as I like to call him, Noumugiri. The fact that Kurogiri was a noumu was awful and my heart would've gone out for poor Oboro if not for two things: a) being a Noumu just doesn't fit how Kurogiri was sold to us. Up to being captured, Kurogiri was the only sane man in the League of Villains, one willing and capable to advise Shigaraki without ending up Decayed, but also one who was trusted by All For One to make intelligent and strategic decisions, ones that even a High-End Noumu that we see later on wouldn't cook up and b) it's not original. It's made even worse by the fact that Noumugiri has a tie to Class 1-a's teacher Aizawa. A best friend of the mentor ends up dead (or seems to) and later appears alive (sort of, in Noumugiri's case), brainwashed and evil. Gee, wonder if we've heard _that_ one before? *cough*Obito*cough* Honestly, it's sad that the same man that managed to cook up an Eldritch horror _Sludge_ for a villain was left using the same humanoid villains with overused monsters that outlived their fear factor as backup and a villain capable of portal creation and just being capable of being a villain in general being given a used background that will be a cliche in a decade or so. Don't get this wrong. I don't hate Horikoshi. I have no complaints on his artistic skills. Heck, some of his panels are downright masterful artwork wise. I just think the guy could use a break, you know. Take a deep breath, relax and come up some new villain designs that we could tremble in front of. I know he could do it. He was, after all, a mangaka that started with a bang. I just hope that he doesn't end the manga with a whimper.
If I can add a bit of useful feedback in general to your videos, the typical "like and sub if you like the video" is way more effective mid-video or/and at the end of the video. I can't like the video if I haven't even started it yet, I won't sub to you if I haven't seen your style and how you explain stuff. It also make it seem more genuine, and if you really think about it- it makes more sense to ask for that like when you've shown how good the video is, not when it hasn't even started yet.
That interrupts pacing and lowers the number of eyes on the cta. I'd rather say it up front and if they enjoy they can subscribe or like and if they don't they can click off.
Shigaraki changed 4 times💀 (Kinda spoilers for s-7 not really) Season 1-3 he’s a tired guy 4-5 he got his voice cleared and looks better 5-6 white hair now and looks better 7 idfk what’s happening to his body 💀
My sister and plenty of my cousins were artists growing up. I always was SUPER interested in the theory but was never good at the practical portion aha
I tried some stuff with a few animated manga panels in this video. Let me know what you think of them! Should I do more in the future?
The eyes on todorokis mom moving added a lot of emotion to the panel, keep it up 👍
@@rexeshd5759 Thank you! I was really happy with how that one specifically turned out aha
It was a nice touch and helped with the storytelling.
It looks nice! I also liked the parallels you showed from mha characters to comic characters. I know mha is inspired by western comics a lot, but I didn't know which specific characters were being referenced
Please make a video all about the history of the wolf demon tribes from the inuyasha franchise please
Fun fact: in the manga- during the arc where class 1-A goes to get Midoriya back, Bakugo says ‘look at you! Your even drawn differently!’ I’m not sure if they kept this detail in the anime- but he does look differently drawn in that arc than later, with the shapes seeming to be more blocky. I always thought that was interesting-
It definitely shows that Midoriya went through a lot in the course of a year from being an innocent kid that aspires to be a hero to a very scarred and depressed kid who had to grow up quick to while still having that moral truth behind and a hundred different things he had to deal with too! It makes you empathize with the character more!
He comments on him looking like a villain, which yeah he's drawn in the slightly different style of the villains in that arc. It's actually my favourite of his designs because it's somehow creepy and yet funny since he resembles a psychotic rabbit 💀
Yeah, I noticed while reading that arc, The shadows and line work for Midoriya was almost entirely blacked out, with hatching and cross-hatching indicating lighter areas. Things that Horikishi hardly ever used before in the manga; usually the drawings are cell shaded, or shaded with halftones. It was almost like Midoriya was in a different story with a different tone or genre entirely!
They used to say the same thing about All Might in the earlier chapter in the Manga
Randomly dropping a grenade on the 4th wall
I always liked how the characters hair is done differently during down time. (like Kirashima’s hair is all flat, Aizawa’s hair is in a bun, ect)
Ngl, seeing Aizawa during down time had me blushing 🤭 😂
Especially Ochaco in a ponytail ITS SO ADORABLE
Shigaraki's design evolution is possibly Horikoshi's greatest banger
Cool video, I always loved Horikoshi's designs. Also, I appreciate how MHA kept up the tradition of other manga like One Piece of more imaginative and colourful designs, as opposed to a lot of other manga nowadays tend towards more realistic and muted designs for their human characters.
I think both styles definitely have their place. If someone can use a very common style in a new or creative way I think thats a sign of something special :)
And for Horikoshi's designs in MHA, it works a lot more because its a homage to golden and silver age comics, a lot of which had very similar colourful and wacky costume designs
MHA has some of the most iconic designs in anime and honestly just generally in terms of entertainment as a whole. There is a reason why so many people cosplay his characters and they are so huge on the internet. They are very different but very good character designs.
It’s big but some of the most iconic in entertainment is a big stretch there
@Jeff Ali I mean, I don’t know a single person under the age of 30 who doesn’t recognize Bakugo and Todoroki. I’d say that makes them pretty iconic
@@stix6278 they are iconic design wise, I’m just saying it’s not THAT iconic and there are people around that age range that I’ve seen that haven’t recognized them.
Looking at Deku's vigilante costume reminds more and of Stain's costume every time I look at it, and merging that with the theme of his costume being questioning everything about hero society and then look at Stain's motivation, being that he believes that most heros only do hero work for the praise and the money, it fits well with Deku's character in his vigilante arc. Just something I noticed as I was watching :)
Finally, someone appreciates the great aspect of MHA. Its character design has been consistently great and unique. Also, love how the costumes change and evolve with the characters and also their looks like Deku and Kirishima.
Really good video! Something I noticed about Dabi's design is that his costume hints at his reveal later in the story. He has a white t-shirt under his black coat, which lines up well with his white hair being dyed black.
I've always felt like Class 1-A and the main characters are extremely well designed, but 1-B and a lot of the side characters are a definitely a bit generic-looking, but its like that for most animes
there's some hits and some misses all over the series for sure. I tryyyy to focus on the positives with videos like this unless an issue is so glaring that it can become a learning moment.
1-b doesn’t even look generic other than Sen an Yui
The pro heroes and class B are well designed too wdym
@@felipekane9611 Agree completely. I think 1-B just didn't get utilized enough.
Kohei’s design’s are some of the most fun and creative designs I’ve ever seen in modern Shonen Jump,
He knows the perfect balance of wacky & creepy character designs
Todoroki’s scar is from his mother trying to cool his face down with her own quirk, not the boiling water itself! Todoroki’s hot side would have had the heat resistance for the boiling water, considering that it can literally be set on fire and be fine.
Shinzo always had 1 of the coolest designs in MHA how his look evolved over time plus Mr. Compress, Best Boi Jeanist, Bakugo, Mirio and Dabi for sure
Aw, during the hairstyle portion of the video I was really expecting Shigaraki and his hair changes representing the changes in his mental state to be mentioned. He's one of the characters whose designs have changed the most throughout the story.
I’m so mad I just got the fact that Deku wears his SMILE as ARMOR
Horikoshi is a genius, that’s so cool, I didn’t realize that either.
An interesting aspect of MHA hero designs is that in the story the characters are intentional about the designs of their hero costumes and likely listened to a lecture teaching about it similar to this video.
I enjoyed the video. As a artist myself, I always found the art style and design of my hero are almost always on point and dope. Kohei art work is the perfect blend of Japanese+ American art combined. One of my favorite artists currently along with others.
Your commentary is really amazing! I love when people talk about the character designs in MHA. Horikoshi deserves all the love and appreciation for his characters and manga tbh
the way u explained everything was so poetic!
I’m a mom that watched MHA/BnHA with my son. My first Anime was Naruto. I think what MHA did for anime becoming mainstream is absolutely epic.
I was just going to click on the video to tap on the watch later thing but I straight up ended up watching all 40mins of it 💀
I love MHA’s designs. Except for Momo. It doesn’t display any of her personality with color, shape or style. It is EXPLAINED by her quirk, it doesn’t show off what her quirk IS. Uraraka’s design is pink, tighter and slick. It shows her bubbly personality, her confidence and how she needs a tighter costume for her quirk with the astronaut boots showing what her quirk is. Momo’s outfit is red, revealing and tight. Momo’s personality is kind, intelligent and quieter. These do not match. Yes it would be a good idea to have more skin showing to use her quirk better but she doesn’t need THAT much, they could have had a circle cut out of her back for her to spawn items out of or something else. It was just a cheap excuse to sexualize a minor.
I totally agree! Mirio got an outfit made out of his hair and something similar could have been done for momo. I personally think she should have more muscle aswell since a bigger physique would give her a bigger surface to create things out of. Like let some of the girlies in the class have muscle so we can se different body types like the boys have.
Momo pulling a giant hammer out of her back Tom and Jerry style would've been awesome
I have a question then, what colors would you use for her then? Because she seems to be taking more of a captain/leader role as the story goes on so I think it starts to fit with the red. As for her openings, a back opening would make sense to also have because when she made the insulated blanket her clothes ripped, however if you wanted to make most things then having an opening in front of you makes more sense because you can then pick it up or drop it easier. I’m not sure where you would cover more of her skin, I think she made blades or something come out of her legs which is cool, and making shields and stuff around her arms sounds useful.
I object a little bit. Momo is the crown leader of all the girls in 1-a, red is a color that takes your attention. It's perfect for someone who is in a leader role.
As for her clothing, I believe the front opening is more convenience. Since it's way easier to pick something up from the front instead of the back, and if her created items were to drop onto the floor at any point, she wouldn't need to turn around and risk getting hit in the back.
Of course she could also take a few steps backwards, but seeing as villains who are a bit unstable like stain or dabi can always throw projectiles, and especially with people who are fast like toga, it's an extreme risk to make any sudden movements.
@@charlieflight6124I seriously feel like a short tank top would be a little better.
Your videos are up to par with bigger channels, keep on grinding.
Thank you aha and I should hope so, I have worked for plenty of them at this point 😂
I know, I stopped watching AnimeUproar after your videos on JJK. IMO you are a better content creator then mac or gouzen.
I appreciate the compliment, but it's not a competition. We all support and grow with each other, and I learned a lot from them. I think we discuss things in different ways and some prefer theirs, some prefer mine. That said, I'm glad you like mine aha
@@AxelBeats appreciate that your humble about it, love to see it 💪
@@Wisdomv3 i am the most humble. And handsome. Smart too. And once i was even called a cutie patootie.
MHA is like the perfect starter anime for someone who's never watched anime before
The designs kind of speak to my favorite aspects of My Hero as a whole. That being that it's kind of a homage and breakdown of comic books and superheroes. Even its weakest character designs have that classic comic book vibe that I find super charming. Not all of them make a whole lot of sense, but that's just part of the fun imo. I even find that some civilian characters have oddly great designs.
So glad you did a video on MHA. I have been looking for a new anime to watch for so long and nothing could satisfy that itch until my friends showed me MHA back in September. Got hooked instantly and they were shocked that All Might was my favorite. After watching your video I understand why. It's that duality of having two forms and seeing what being too selfless can do to a person.
Also got to add I love how they show him change mentally from the start of the series to the current season. The fact that he doesn't slouch anymore and now wears clothes that fit his true form. Like he is finally comfortable with himself.
This is a phenomenal look into character design, the idea to put things about the characters story into the design isn't something I would've thought of by myself but this will definitely be something I will wanna keep in mind when I start making characters myself, will definitely have to come back to this if I forget it at some point because this is very insightful stuff.
How to write anime and manga
Step 1: Stop sidelining your female characters for no God forsaken reason, or at all for that matter.
But, half jokes aside, I'm glad you're covering a topic like this. Character design is, naturally and obviously, one of the most important things to master in an animated medium. Silhouettes, poses, outfits, bodies, all of these can inform you in some small way or another what a character might be like, and if nothing else, despite all of its flaws (like I mentioned earlier), MHA can at least do that part well enough. LOVE the art style and designs...barring a couple of obvious exceptions.
Seriously, there's revealing but fitting, and then there's blatant stupid fanservice. This very same show had this dichotomy with Midnight and Momo, or Mt. Lady and Bubble Girl. The leftmost characters were attractive as a core theme and because of having a generic skin-tight suit (which is common in superhero costumes) respectively, the rightmost characters used the "exposed skin" excuse in the worst way possible.
Oh crap, I lost my heart :( Can I have another, Axel senpai?
I like midnight, and it its with her aproach to life to be more openminded , and momo, i just wish momo got her ocus, i got no bee with her outit, at least its very thought out,
Through mt lady, maybe a bit much. like with midnight it its openminded wanting to inspire. mr lady, a bit too on th nose. I am glad recovery girl is an old lady at least.
Like or the most part its helping the character, but mt lady, a bit much.
Especially because in other cases its really thought out. Hell even the cats get a serious developement. Like even muscle mommy female almight gets that army bond an er hard work why she is that buff
People that complain about midnights costume is always so baffling to me, yes mha has a sexist issue but midnight is not a good example, midnight LIKES being sexy, it's her whole charecter and she's comfortable in her skin and makes a lil sense for her quirk. Other heroes like Uravity is a valid argument cause she herself says how she dosen't like her hero costume, and while momo "likes" her hero costume, it's not practical at all and clearly fanservice like you said.
@@olaz5131To be fair, Uraraka complains about her costume in season one, but I think the outfit makes sense for her character, she is a character that focuses on melee combat and her power allows her to float so having an outfit that doesn't hinder her movement makes perfect sense, however there are several examples of designs made for this but this is not one of those either.
@@FlavioSantos-uw1mrpretty sure sweatpants and a securely tucked in t-shirt wouldn't be any worse for range of motion .. or a decently loose overall with small enough arms eyes to not mess with shoulder movement? Then again, I don't (think? I) have experience with spandex, maybe that still improves on the flexibility of those
I totally agree, Horikoshi is an incredibly talented mangaka in many regards, and my hero academia is in my opinion one of the best modern shonen out there currently, but an area where the series really shines is it’s excellent character designs. Horikoshi is phenomenal at characterization
I love these videos so much 🥹 you’re so right. I love how they changed his costume over time. And these couple episodes been hitting me in the feels 😭😭
Man, I'm learning to draw and strive to create memorable characters and your video had been enlightening!
I'm surprised you didn't mention shigiraki once cause he's the character that fits through the most design changes in the series
Fantastic video, there is a lot of awesome insight in here that is a great reference for designing your own characters. I thought I'd throw in two details I noticed tgat may or not be intentional from Todoroki and Deku.
Todoroki's burn scar may have potentially not been exactly the result of the kettle. It is likely her mother, horrified once she knew what she had done, tried to apply her cold quick on her child: for anyone reading this /DO NOT PUT ICE ON BURNS/. This might signify that sticking to the cold side alone would never allow him to move on, and only by embracing that side, he'd be able to.
Midoriya's collar armour still harkons back to the original costume's smile: but with the hood up, it is no longer a smile. It's a beast baring its teeth against their enemies.
really cool video, love the analysis! but i have to wonder why some of the clips you chose are interpolated, or "upped" to 60 fps. it distorts a lot of the frames (and is a little distracting) and contradicts the point you're making about the importance of art and design. i don't mean any hate, i really like the points you made, but the decision to use interpolated footage is a little frustrating. good video overall! :)
when i say THIS LOOKS CRISP AF
Can I say how funny it is, I began work in my own anime recently. Very early, early enough that this week is working on Character design. And then you upload this. I’m gonna be taking notes later tonight thank you very much.
This video was really really well done, I didn't even realized 40 minutes have passed! Keep up the good work!!
I just heard the Moonlighter Ost, Got hooked immediately
That's who, and you have a video so interesting to watch! I agree that MHA has interesting designs and the style itself seems to give off modernity and old comics, they attract and show a good imagination, I like it, I would like more mangakas with their own unique features in the future, maybe even like One Piece. Horikoshi-Sensei is really good at drawing. I hope that someday I will be able to discuss titles with a person like you, Axel, and also see a video on OP designs separately. Thank you for the video and your efforts!
this video is absolutely wonderful and incredibly well explained. talking about the main features of character design then clearly and simply relating them to how they were incorporated into the characters in mha and was done perfectly, emphasizing and proving your points skillfully!
im glad youve made this video because the designs of mha are genuinely stunning and while they already have positive attention, detailing the actual effects the design choices have and how it influences the narrative to further praise the character designs.
this video deserves a lot more attention itself, really good work dude!! :3
cant wait to watch this later
Enjoy :)
So educational! Thank you AxelBeats! I love MHA!!!
Another great video. I'll eventually watch the series someday.
Great vid, crazy to see how so much thought and effort can be put into a design but many people will glance right over it
Another sick video to listen to at work. Thanks my guy
Enjoy!
Over the years I’ve beeen trying to see what I wanted to be my art style and overtime I just realized everything I liked was already in horikoshi’s artstyle😆
Tbh I know people rag on the story of mha, but I think the art is absolutely stunning
Mirio's mask also has the yellow shades that poke out and can kind of resemble All Might's hair,
Thanks for giving us a look in character design and the deferent elements that go into it, I got to say a lot of helpful and interesting info in this video. These kind of video always teach and show me something new, thanks Axel Bro. I can't wait for your next video~!!!
This video got me thinking about how character names can fit into their designs, thinking of them through the lense of the Rocky Movies. As I was thinking about it to my self, here's what I came up with:
Mickey Goldmill: The name Mickey is something I most strongly associate with Mickey Mouse, and thus in turn relate to things that have been around for a long time but still sound somewhat chummy. Using a strong 'M' sound in a name to me usually evokes a sense of power. Goldmill on the other hand makes me think of riches and workers, combining to mean that the character is a hard worker or pushes others hard to success.
Rocky Balboa: The Rocky name is actually pretty easy, as to me it invokes a sense of meaning well but not quite right. Online definitions involve the idea of unsteadyness. Having a 'B' sound in a name is something I associate with soft squares stable, strong, but with a soft side.
Adrian Pennino: The Pinnino name I just think of as an italian name, and italians I associate with family. Adrian on the other hand is a name I associate with boys which makes the fact she's a girl a bit of a contrast and shows that she's not like other girls. Then her taking on the Balboa name is a signifier of her gaining confidence and strength.
This was a fantastic breakdown! I'd love it if you turned this into a series even. Like which character designs are the weakest in MHA and how could they better represent the aspects you highlighted here? Are there other series that shine with the majority of its character designs being strong tools for the story?
This is a fantastic video my dude. This is helping me so much for the book i'm trying to write. You've gave me so much inspiration and insight i've never would have thought about, otherwise.
Same
Was wanting to sketch some of the characters, this video was perfect :3
did not expect to hear music from fe3h that was a nice surprise :3 awesome video
@Axelbeats funny enough horikoshi interviewed Kubo.
Kubo said "he could never draw those bacground,your details are amazing
Horhi said " well i cant make my characters stand on there. So injust said I gotta get detailed in the background.
This was a really great video! I kinda wish you could've spoken a bit about brown and gray as colors too but I don't mind. Still a great video overall despite those two oversights.
You missed Sword Art Online. That might have been on purpose but that was one of those gateway shows. You couldn't escape it anywhere back in the day.
outstanding video exactly what i was looking for to help me write characters. hats off , amazing video
I was watching the colors bit with inverted colors, and was very confused for a bit
Another thing with Lady Nagant, her hair was kept short so she couldnt use it to make her bullets
Great video, love the geekery and im also a big fan of costumes and colors in mha :)
Banger video
Thank you :)
THIS VIDEO IS SO GOOD
THX SO MUCH I SUCK WITH COLOR THEORY SO THX SO MUCH 😊
MAN WHY DOES NOONE EVER TALK ABOUT HOW MIDORIYAS CURRENT LOOK IS SUPPOSED TO MIRROR STAIN at least imo. Hes become a fanatic running on pure resolve. He acts just like stain but his fanaticism is saving people and putting nobody but himself in danger not even stopping to sleep.
Character design is one of the things that really puts me off of My Hero Academia. There's just something about a lot of the designs for characters that is just... off to me. It's like lands in the middle of multiple styles or something. Excited to see this video; maybe it'll turn it around.
It's definitely a unique style, which might lend towards some people not vibing with it. I grew up with a lot of western comics and I always thought it was really interesting to see the blend, but I wouldn't blame someone at all for not liking it
One of the reasons on why i like mha design is bcuz it’s unique
Oh my god is that Moonlighter music? Amazing video btw!
Not sure if it is good at these ideas or not, but Soul Eater has great character design, too.
It just seems strange to me that there is so much overlap between colors and meanings, in both directions. Like, two people could interpret the same character in two completely different ways and both would be plausible until the author reveals how that character really ticks.
Please make a video all about the history of the wolf demon tribes from the inuyasha franchise please
I don't do inuyasha anymore.
Me: trying to focus on what purple can mean in character design
My brain, dangling Mineta behind my eyeballs: Looking for this?
I rlly like the late s6 art style it's dank yet cool tbh
I like how Kengan Ashura was adapted. The art style goes overkill but not in any way similar to either shounen nor seinen’s big 3. It’s like if stylization and realism got into a fight and a winner was never decided. Not to mention some obscure outfit knowledge (where other mangaka would have Fang in either a traditional gi or MMA apparel, the guys who wrote Kengan went with full body compression gear to specify which Jiujitsu style he trains)
Considering the fact that Fire Emblem Engage is already out, I appreciate the Three Houses music with this video.
Glad that u like MiA, its my no.1 anime ,yes I watch almost all anime, i think MiA is special for me, not saying its the best tho
i love there character designs its one of my main inspo
Well said!
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Aka All-might to Alright..
This video is amazing 🤩! Can you do an antihero analysis video Mr. Beats?
what incredible editing
Thank you
Great vid bro, you definitely deserve a break for your hard work.😺
I always try to take 1 day off after a video goes up, then grind until the next release. Glad you enjoyed!
*video not vid. I do not understand the concept of wanting to shorten a word that is already short enough as it is. I find it ridiculous. But I do understand wanting to shorten long words.🤦♂
@@SuperPlacido1 i understand wanting to use a common shorthand much more so than trying to correct strangers online for behavior that is very normal and socially accepted to try and prop yourself above them in some weird way 🤦♂
@@AxelBeats Did you read my comment? I don't think you understood what I said! Think about it! Prove to me that you are not an idiot! WHY SHORTEN A WORD THAT IS ALREADY SO SHORT?! IF A PERSON CAN WRITE THREE LETTERS THEN TWO MORE SHOULD BE NOTHING! THINK ABOUT WHAT I JUST SAID! IF YOU THINK THAT IS STUPID, THEN YOU SHOULD HAVE INTELLIGENT EXPLANATIONS TO WHAT I THINK IS WRONG!
Homie, you're insane if you are getting this worked up over this. Literally the stupidest thing I've seen someone complain about in months. Giving me and the lads a good laugh, though :) have a good wkend
Love the video and keep up the great work axel
Hey your video is filled with design gold🤩🤌 It's so helpful and I fill like i should rewatch it with a pen and paper in hand to take some notes🤓.
Also whats the bg song called? It's vibe is just immaculate 🤩🔥
just noticied u didnt do a description for orange😭
before i watched the anime i used to think that shoto's design is cringe, like, heterochromia, scar on the eye, those were a lot for one character and just screamed a beginner artist who tried a bit too hard to make their character stand out. but now that i know his backstory i think it's fitting and makes sense.
NGL as a big fan of MhA and lots of anime etc. not gonna lie every genre of anime..Mostly shonen here or color scheme that shows the variety for each themes chainsaw man is dark so the tone is more realistic base than vibrant yet there’s cyberpunk edge runners that is beautiful at best of vibrant etc.
You should do video on Xenoblade series character design.
Yk, if humans are still around in a century, BNHA may not be talked about in history books, but I’m sure it’ll still be talked about in deep dive videos and articles :D
Sorta like how we still talk about Shakespeare, y’know?
Great video
Also i like how hes the more fansevicey stuff with being thought ou in character, like momo, yeah thats her quirk, midnight is a free spirit an her acktory in vigilante is really fun, but also tells a story how she its that side in pragmatic with what she wants to do, be a teacher, and so she leans into being the sexy tacher teenagr will pay attention too an to inspire.
And even froggy , yeah thats intentional, but also very in character because she is basically a friendly frog.
Its just nice having the anservice o anim being thought out an nuance of a character than being too obvious.
Also generally that ouji is, like i like him. And yeah he dosntneed much time becaus ehe is not tht complx and thats great., becaus he is a very good everyman.
Also hawks is hawks.
As long as they made it to _the_ “rule”, im fine with the character.
If someone watches aot based on what you said in this video they will be so disapointed xD and you put many clips from the last season to boot hehe
Vigilante Deku's outfit reminds me of the Donnie Darko bunny
I think that Horikoshi shot himself in the foot when it comes to villain designs. Twice. The first villain that Izuku encounters is a slime or sludge monster that tries to drown him _from the inside out_ , even taunting Izuku about being "his hero". It's, quite frankly, an Eldritch abomination and fearful and shocked reactions to it are understandable, natural even. Even dealing with it involved literally dividing it and taking it away in trashbags piece by piece. How do you go from here? Well, if you're Horikoshi, the answer is simple. Move away from the grotesque appearance and simple motivations and encase perverse, dark, twisted and broken, yet sometimes relatable personalities into a shape of a human. That's the standard MHA villain for you. So, how can you mess this up? Kurogiri or, as I like to call him, Noumugiri. The fact that Kurogiri was a noumu was awful and my heart would've gone out for poor Oboro if not for two things: a) being a Noumu just doesn't fit how Kurogiri was sold to us. Up to being captured, Kurogiri was the only sane man in the League of Villains, one willing and capable to advise Shigaraki without ending up Decayed, but also one who was trusted by All For One to make intelligent and strategic decisions, ones that even a High-End Noumu that we see later on wouldn't cook up and b) it's not original. It's made even worse by the fact that Noumugiri has a tie to Class 1-a's teacher Aizawa. A best friend of the mentor ends up dead (or seems to) and later appears alive (sort of, in Noumugiri's case), brainwashed and evil. Gee, wonder if we've heard _that_ one before? *cough*Obito*cough* Honestly, it's sad that the same man that managed to cook up an Eldritch horror _Sludge_ for a villain was left using the same humanoid villains with overused monsters that outlived their fear factor as backup and a villain capable of portal creation and just being capable of being a villain in general being given a used background that will be a cliche in a decade or so. Don't get this wrong. I don't hate Horikoshi. I have no complaints on his artistic skills. Heck, some of his panels are downright masterful artwork wise. I just think the guy could use a break, you know. Take a deep breath, relax and come up some new villain designs that we could tremble in front of. I know he could do it. He was, after all, a mangaka that started with a bang. I just hope that he doesn't end the manga with a whimper.
Shy, now in emition.
Bruh I made it to the end
I think I'm one of the legends
Now watch my 7 hour video on demon slayer 👀
@@AxelBeats 😭😂😂😂
can you represent thing video using other anime outside of my hero please or other shounen manga or other manga genre?
ssscwfb got me 🤣
To me, MHA character design is the best hands down. every single character, you know what they're about just by looking at them.
If I can add a bit of useful feedback in general to your videos, the typical "like and sub if you like the video" is way more effective mid-video or/and at the end of the video. I can't like the video if I haven't even started it yet, I won't sub to you if I haven't seen your style and how you explain stuff. It also make it seem more genuine, and if you really think about it- it makes more sense to ask for that like when you've shown how good the video is, not when it hasn't even started yet.
That interrupts pacing and lowers the number of eyes on the cta. I'd rather say it up front and if they enjoy they can subscribe or like and if they don't they can click off.
Who's the artist that drew that ochako? Love it
All of the art used in this video is official art or created and posted by the actual team behind the manga
Shigaraki changed 4 times💀
(Kinda spoilers for s-7 not really)
Season 1-3 he’s a tired guy
4-5 he got his voice cleared and looks better
5-6 white hair now and looks better
7 idfk what’s happening to his body 💀
Bruh you know way too much about color language not to be an artist 😭
My sister and plenty of my cousins were artists growing up. I always was SUPER interested in the theory but was never good at the practical portion aha
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