My Hero Academia was never about only Deku (and Horikoshi's comments prove it)

The main focus of the My Hero Academia series was Deku from the start. Being the main protagonist of the series, his character was developed as a quirkless boy who got the strongest quirk in the world and chose to become a hero and help others.

However, as the series gradually progressed, the focus slowly shifted solely from him to the exploration of other potential characters in the series. While the fans had their discussions about these instances, recently, Kohei Horikoshi, the mangaka, made his intentions clear about the matter.

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Horikoshi comments on his intentions with the My Hero Academia ending

Very recently, during the My Hero Academia Exhibition 2025 pamphlet, Kohei Horikoshi was interviewed regarding his intentions with the storyline and ending of the series, especially regarding Deku, the protagonist. The main question was regarding how chapters 1, 324, and 430 differed in their monologue.

While chapter 1 of the manga states, "This is the story of how I became the greatest hero", chapter 324's monologue states, "This is the story of how we all became the greatest heroes". The final chapter, chapter 430's monologue, states, "This is the story of how we all continue to reach a hand out to others together."

When asked whether the change was intentional and Horikoshi's plan from the very beginning of the My Hero Academia series, he replied:

"No! It wasn't! I originally planned for it to end with Deku becoming a teacher and saying 'You can be a hero'. Having used up his powers but looking fully confident... like that. The reason it changed is that this series was no longer a story just about Deku and One For All."

He further added,

"In this series I was exploring 'What does it mean to be the greatest hero?' and the answer this manga came to is that it means 'reaching a hand out to others', so I thought I would put the answer in writing and that's how the final monologue of chapter 430 became what it is now."

While the My Hero Academia manga series began by focusing on Deku and his feats after acquiring the One For All quirk from All Might, it gradually changes its course to provide a different meaning to what it means to be a hero. Horikoshi himself was still in a phase exploring the meaning of the phrase, which was reflected in the monologues in the series.

By the end of the series, several main characters were brought into the limelight, like Katsuki Bakugo, who made immense contributions towards the end of the series. If Horikoshi had stuck to his original plan, the only hero in the series would be Deku, while others would have remained side-characters.

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Final thoughts

The My Hero Academia series is not just an average, typical superhero manga series, where there is one hero and others who assist them. Horikoshi has written it in such a way that every character has something to contribute to the story and becomes an integral part of the storyline.

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