#so hopefully weiting it out like this made snese! i actually condensed this twice

[charswithbatsmybeloved]

I really like My Hero Academia but there's only one major thing that I would change (except for the Bakudeku thing ending as the longest enemies-to- obsessive compulsive will they won't they) and that's probably the structure and power of One for All. While all the other powers in MHA are very niche, very unique, and very simple, one for all isn't just one power but several incredibly powerful quirks all mashed together into one. And thats fucking stupid.

Wait, don't leave yet! I can explain!! When we first meet deku, the first thing we learn about who he is other than being quirkless is that he's incredibly intelligent and very competent at understanding and strategizing related to quirks. Despite not having a quirk of his own, or maybe because of it, Deku has almost an obsession with learning about people's powers and understanding exactly how they work and their limits. This makes him a great candidate for a power that requires a lot of careful use because he's so good at understanding his own limits and strategizing from every aspect.

But the power of One for All doesn't allow for Deku to use his crazy intelligence to build strategy or find unique uses for his ability. He has 7 powers to master to become a master of OFA. This overabundance of incredibly strong powers means he never truly gets creative with their use. He's a jack of all trades, sure, but he doesn't really struggle for his powers in the same way that everyone else does. Everyone else has to be inventive, crafty, and skilled to become great. But Deku, the character most suitable for that development, never gets to show it.

Intelligence and creativity related to your quirk are highly valued in this world. Because powers are so niche, to use them effectively in many situations often requires a high level of training and you have to know every limit of your power. Heroes aren't directly police sanctioned and can't make proper arrests. They're not legally authorized to kill or detain villains long term, their main job is to protect the peace by taking down enemies who're using their powers to hurt civilians. This makes combat tricky because you aren't supposed to seriously injure someone if you can help it at all.

Because of that combat heroes have to be very careful about their training. This also means that more damaging and dangerous quirks like Bakugous have to be managed by him for nonlethal combat. OFA is the kind of powerful quirk that could kill if Deku isn't careful. But he never shows concern or does any proper training to manage his power levels in that regard. He's never shown worrying about the kind of damage his power could do to the people he's fighting, and his hero warship of All Might prevents him from considering the risks of the power. This could have serious risks but they're never explored like the rest of the world is.

Deku knew he was trying to be a hero. And before he met All Might, he had full intentions to become a hero without a quirk to his name. So it makes no sense that this analytically intelligent aspiring hero wouldn't have started strength training to be strong enough in the hero course until All Might begins training him for the quirk. At least to me, this struggle feels artificial, something to handicap Deku without affecting the actual ability he was given. The truth is, Horikoshi wrote an imperfect, gorgeously thought out world that I wouldn't have even dreamed up the implications of. But he didn't want to give All Might and by extension OFA any real deep flaws. Because of that, when Midoriya inherits the quirk he breaks his limbs unable to control it. But once he understands how to use it, all of his problems with it vanish. There are no actual side effects once Deku has the physical ability. After that, we only see deku developing more powers. And he has to master them as he discovers them, sure, but it's never really an issue to seriously struggle with his powers afterwards.

If I were to change One for All, I would dramatically tone down the power Deku has. In my version, he only has the major strength increase, but no matter which one he inherits, it needs to be just one, Comparable-To-Todoroki strength power. Maybe Dekus power is weaker than All Mights because he hasn't trained the power to its full strength. Maybe it has to be managed by releasing excess energy because Deku is so constantly restless. Maybe the lightning it releases could hurt someone past a normal punch taking them down. But it needs to have a proper side effect apart from Dekus body being unused to it and unable to really master it for the first 2 seasons. I would make Deku physically strong enough, or close to it, when the show starts but Deku can still struggle with letting the quirk flow through his body. Maybe his anxieties limit the quirk from kicking in in dangerous situations. It can be anything, something simple, but it has to be a valid side effect from a severe and sudden physical enhancement.

But more than anything else, I want Deku to grow using his own analytical skills. While Deku is behind his classmates on training at the beginning, he has no issue surpassing all of them in class and he understands theory really well. Let him use his already developed character to make himself more powerful. Let him get creative with it, improve and grow without artificial hacks propelling him so far ahead.

Thank you for coming to my very long Ted talk.