What It Takes to Be a Hero (ヒーローの条件 Hīrō no Jōken?) is the second episode of the My Hero Academia anime.
Summary[]
Near Tatooin Station, Katsuki's friends comment that he may have gone too far bullying Izuku this time in reference to Katsuki telling Izuku to take a leap off the school's roof, to which he replies is Deku's fault, and he needs to learn how the world works. While they're talking, Katsuki is attacked by the same Sludge Villain that had attacked Izuku.

The Sludge Villain finds Katsuki.
Meanwhile, All Might and Izuku are talking on top of a building. Izuku asks the number one hero if someone who doesn't have a Quirk could also be a hero like him. As Izuku explains his ambitions, All Might reaches his limit and transforms into a lanky human. Izuku is shocked to see his true form, and All Might explains his transformation by showing the boy a wound he'd gotten five years prior and gives the boy a lecture on the responsibilities of a pro hero: a pro must always be ready to risk their life, and so he cannot tell Izuku he can do it even while being Quirkless. As he takes the stairs down the rooftop, he notices that the villain he had captured is missing and that there are explosions in another area of the city.
At the scene of the explosions, Death Arms and other heroes are trying to fight the Sludge villain attempting to take Katsuki's body, but to no avail. All Might watches, scolding himself for wasting time and now being unable to fight. Izuku thinks about All Might's words while walking down the street and approaches the crowd watching the explosions. He notices it's the villain All Might saved him from and realizes it must be his fault. The hero is now unable to save the new victim, mentally apologizing.
However, after realizing the villain has Katsuki hostage, an erratic Izuku rushes to his rescue, while All Might is stunned at this as the other heroes attempt to stop him. Izuku remembers his notes and strikes the sludge villain with his bag, giving him an opening to get close to Katsuki. As Izuku desperately tries to help, Katsuki asks why he's there, and Izuku answers that it is because Katsuki's eyes were pleading for help, and he couldn't bear to watch him die.

All Might saves Izuku and Katsuki.
The Sludge Villain recovers and attempts to attack Izuku, but All Might protects him. All Might admits he scolded the boy for something he hadn't done himself: risk his life in order to save other people, as a pro hero. Inspired by Izuku's bravery, All Might uses his great strength to destroy the Sludge Villain with a Detroit Smash while freeing Katsuki at the same time.
Afterwards, the heroes scold Izuku for risking his life and praise Katsuki for fighting back. Later that day, Katsuki confronts Izuku and tells him that he never asked to be saved and that Izuku shouldn't look down on him. Then, All Might meets up with Izuku again and says that the boy was the one who made the difference in the previous situation, despite being Quirkless, and that he did the same thing other top heroes had done before: move before he could even think in order to save another person. At last, All Might tells a crying Izuku that he can become a hero.
Characters in Order of Appearance[]
- Izuku Midoriya
- All Might
- Sludge Villain
- Katsuki Bakugo
- All For One (Mentioned)
- Toxic Chainsaw (Mentioned)
- Death Arms
- Slugger
- Mt. Lady
- Kamui Woods
- Backdraft
- Inko Midoriya (Flashback)
Quirks[]
- All Might's Power
- Texas Smash (Flashback)
- Detroit Smash
- Explosion
- Unnamed Sludge Quirk
- Unnamed Arm Strength Quirk
- Gigantification
- Arbor
- Water Pump
Locations[]
- Musutafu, Japan
- Aldera Junior High (Flashback)
- Tatooin Shopping District
- Midoriya Apartment (Flashback)
Battles & Events[]
BGM[]
- I Am Here!!
- You Can Become a Hero
- Mind of Evil
- Stealthy Steps
- Uh-oh?
- I Will Become a Hero!
- Mind of Evil
- Rampaging Evil
- Spreading Anxiety
- You Say Run
- I Am Here!!
- I Am Here!!
- You Can Become a Hero
- I Am Here!!
Anime & Manga Differences[]
- In the manga, before Katsuki kicks the soda bottle holding the Sludge Villain, they are walking around in an open area. In the anime, they're walking through an alleyway.
- In the anime, Katsuki chastises his friends for suggesting take money from others to play arcade. In the manga, he chastises them for smoking. Also, he is captured by the Sludge Villain while he was distracted scolding them, while in the anime he still has time to turn around and see his attacker.
- After his conversation with All Might, the anime adds a scene of Izuku seeing the smoke caused by the Sludge Villain's second rampage from the rooftop, before stopping himself from investigating it due to the "advice" of the earlier conversation.
- When walking down the street and looking at "Hero Analysis For the Future No. 13", the anime shows Izuku flipping through All Might's autograph and his pages on Kamui Woods and Mt. Lady. In the manga, he just stares at the cover.
- Additionally, the last statement Izuku thinks about was his homeroom teacher's in relation to seriously thinking about the future. In the anime, it was All Might's advice in making sure Izuku's dreams are realistic.
- Additional scenes for the Heroes fighting the Sludge Villain are added:
- Death Arms, Slugger, and Hitchcock Doodle trying to fight the villain.
- Mt. Lady trying to get to the villain before getting stuck behind the buildings.
- Kamui Woods lifting Katsuki's friends and some other civilians to safety.
- Before the Sludge Villain is defeated by a Detroit Smash, the anime adds an extra shot of the Villain making one last attack before being blown away.
- All Might also executes the attack with a forward punch in the anime, while in the manga he punches downward.
- In the anime, the Heroes at the scene were shown saluting and addressing the press and police in the aftermath of the battle. In the manga, they're all shown collecting rubble or stuffing the Villain's body into garbage bags.
Trivia[]
- Hana Aoi, the heroine from Kohei Horikoshi's previous work, Oumagadoki Zoo, has a cameo appearance in this episode.
- This episode is the first, and one of the very few, to have a title not based on a chapter.
[]
Entrance Exam Arc | |
---|---|
Chapters | 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 • 10.5 |
Volumes | 1 |
Episodes | 1 • 2 • 3 • 4 |
Battles and Events | Kamui Woods & Mt. Lady vs. Giant Villain • Sludge Villain Incident (All Might vs. Sludge Villain • All Might vs. Sludge Villain: Rematch) • U.A. Entrance Exam |