My Hero Academia – Ep. 39 (Season 3 Premiere)

School’s back in session.

One of these days, I’ll properly review Seasons 1 and 2 of My Hero Academia but to sum things up, I think this show has shaped up into one of the best recent shounen anime. Season 2 may have gotten ridiculed for nabbing all the Crunchyroll Awards but whatever, I still think that was among the best anime of 2017. The cast is colorful and memorable, the action is terrific, and the world presented is a lot more interesting than one would initially think. Getting hyped for Season 3 was ultimately a no-brainer for me.

Sadly, the first Season 3 post will have to be a little short because Episode 39 is a stinking clip show. I doubt it’s the usual budgetary problem but it does make for an underwhelming start. Personally, I preferred that Season 2 had its recap air as a sort of “Episode 0” kind of thing, separate from the actual 25 episode run. And while you can get creative with incorporating an in-universe recap, I can’t help but feel that the clips kind of just happen at the most obvious moments. Aizawa reads off a class list to reintroduce everyone and everyone just spouts exposition so that clips can happen. It’s pretty weak set-up.

That said, I thought the pool scenes weren’t half-bad. It’s especially fun to sit through since the eyecandy ultimately leans more towards the guys than the girls, which is much to the chagrin of Kamitari and Mineta. I’m not a big fan on fanservice in general but give HeroAca credit, it’s at least being atypical with the pool scenario. And I must say, those are some buff anime boys. I keep forgetting that Deku is rocking a six pack.

The racing scene is fun to watch too, especially because a lot of the boys flat out use their powers to get across the pool without swimming. A massive shame then, that we don’t see the three way race between Deku, Bakugo, and Todoroki. Damn you, Aizawa!

While all this is happening, we do get a glimpse of what’s to come. Shigaraki clearly has something up his sleeves and it seems that U.A. is tightening its security to ensure our heroes are safe during the training camp. Chances are that that this camp won’t go exactly as according to the curriculum.

A clip show isn’t an amazing way to get Season 3 rolling but then again, I do remember Season 2 starting off lowkey as well. And let’s be real here: we all know there’s something crazy in store here. I’ll just accept the episode for what it is and hopefully, things will begin in earnest next episode.

OP: “ODD FUTURE” by UVERworld

An UVERworld song in My Hero Academia? Pinch me, I must be dreaming! But seriously, this OP was super catchy and had a lot of great animation. Seeing Deku stand with All Might as his successor and equal at the end really shows how far this mentor-student relationship has come.

ED: “Update” by miwa

I really like the use of line sketches and comic/manga panels. Combined with Miwa’s song, they give a sort of nostalgic feel to the ED.

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Thanks for reading!

My Hero Academia is officially available on Crunchyroll & Funimation.

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