My Hero Academia: You're Next Review: A Stellar Final Movie To Complement The End Of The Manga

Warning: Contains spoilers for My Hero Academia: You're Next.My Hero Academia: You’re Next is the latest, and presumably final, movie in the My Hero Academia franchise. While preparing for the final battle against Shigaraki, Izuku and his friends are forced to fight the Gollini Family, a European crime family led by an evil All Might doppelganger named Dark Might, and their plans for the world are all centered around the mysterious Anna Scervino and her one-eyed butler Giulio.

My Hero Academia: You’re Next has been marketed as the biggest My Hero Academia film to date, and for the most part, it does plenty to deliver on that. While there are some shortcomings in the writing that are typical of the My Hero Academia films, especially with the new characters, overall, the writing, characters, and visual aesthetic of My Hero Academia: You’re Next make it one of the best films in the franchise. The My Hero Academia manga ended around when the film premiered in Japan, and there couldn’t be a better complement to the manga’s ending.

My Hero Academia's New Characters Are The Best & Worst Part Of The Movie

Why My Hero's New Characters Are A Mixed Bag

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As with previous movies, My Hero Academia: You’re Next is built largely around its original heroes and villains, and the ones introduced here are excellent characters for the most part. For starters, while the Gollini Family isn’t all that developed compared to the villains of the anime, My Hero Academia: You’re Next spends enough time on the Gollini Family to give them all unique and engaging personalities, with Deborah, Paulo, and Bruno especially standing out in that regard. That made every villain feel like a fully realized character, and they were all fun to watch because of it.

For the heroes, Giulio was also a great addition to the cast. Not only was it refreshing to see a movie character participate in the fighting for a change, but between his great character design, tragic backstory, and the fun dichotomy between his polite demeanor and his violent behavior, Giulio is one of the most entertaining original characters ever introduced in a My Hero Academia film. Much of what was great about You’re Next came from the great writing surrounding Giulio, and it made for a strong and dynamic arc for the film from start to finish.

If any original character detracted from the film, however, it was Anna Scervino. The story is structured in a way that prevents Anna from doing much as Izuku and Giulio try to save her, but with how little time is spent on her as a character while she’s either brainwashed or losing control of her Quirk, Anna Scervino is the least interesting part of My Hero Academia: You’re Next for being little more than a typical damsel in distress, and since so much of the film revolves around her, her presence drags things down far more than it should.

My Hero Academia: You're Next Has Some Of The Best Action In The Anime

A Gorgeous Film From Start To Finish

My Hero Academia’s films are known for their impressive artwork and animation, and fortunately, You’re Next is no different in that regard. Every scene in the film features a lot of great artwork, animation, and overall direction, the film’s opening theme essentially just being an excuse to show off what viewers are in for, and it all builds into My Hero Academia: You’re Next having two separate, but equally gorgeous climactic fights against Dark Might. From a purely visual standpoint, the film is one of the best in the franchise, and it’s plenty of fun to watch just for that.

A lot of why the film looks as good as it does stems from its director, Tensai Okamura. While Okamura has only recently gotten involved with My Hero Academia, he’s a seasoned director with decades of experience; most notably, My Hero Academia: You’re Next’s Tensai Okamura famously created both 2003's Wolf’s Rain and 2007's Darker than Black, two of Bones’ most celebrated projects that are also known for their stunning direction and animation. Okamura is one of the most talented and experienced animators associated with Bones, and his work is undoubtedly the biggest reason why the film looks so good.

My Hero Academia's New Movie Has One Of The Best Villains In The Anime

Why Dark Might Is Such A Great Villain

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Another big selling point of My Hero Academia: You’re Next is its main villain, Voldo Gollini i.e. Dark Might. Befitting his role as an evil version of All Might, Dark Might constantly uses the over-the-top mannerisms of All Might’s hero persona like dramatic posing and gratuitous English, even when it doesn’t make sense and everyone else is trying to be as serious as possible. Add in a Quirk just as overpowered as One For All, and Dark Might works as a villain for how well he flips All Might’s goofiness on its head to be a wonderfully over-the-top villain.

Even better than Dark Might’s personality, of course, is where he stands as a villain ideologically. Dark Might is under the mistaken belief that All Might was a great hero simply because he was strong, something he’s repeatedly told is wrong, so fighting Dark Might forces Izuku and his friends to directly reinforce All Might’s ideals and stop them from being perverted. The film doesn’t dwell on that as much as it should, but what is done with it goes a long way toward making Dark Might one of the best villains in the entire anime.

My Hero Academia's New Story Perfectly Plays Into Its Final Arc

How My Hero Academia: You're Next Fits Into The Story

One of the major points of My Hero Academia’s final arc is the heroes needing to take a final stand as the world falls into chaos, and with the film revolving around a new group of villains trying to use the chaos as an excuse to take over, My Hero Academia: You’re Next does a great job of extending the main story of the final arc. The film also references where it fits into canon far more often than previous films, and that practice does a great job of further emphasizing that idea.

That idea is also another reason why Dark Might is such a great villain for the film. Dark Might’s goal of becoming the new Symbol of Peace is a call for society to regress as opposed to move forward, something at the heart of the final arc’s story, so fighting Dark Might is another way for My Hero Academia to reinforce the idea that hero society needs to change. The film hits the thematic elements of My Hero Academia’s final arc on all fronts, and overall, it’s great to watch it play out.

While the characters and overall writing might not get as much depth as they could, with the depth they are given, combined with the flawless animation and thematic elements, My Hero Academia: You’re Next has one of the best handlings of action and story of any My Hero Academia film to date. My Hero Academia: You’re Next is great for anyone who wanted the series to go out with more of a bang, and any fan of the series would be remiss to pass it up.