I try to avoid talking about music, since it's not my thing,
but the new theme song for Hero Academia Season 3 - Odd Future by UVERworld is
interesting to say the least where previous heroAca openings were hard rock this one is a bit more hip-hop
Fusion and with that shift in styles comes a shift in pacing to some the OP feels a bit out of sync like the music
Doesn't match the escalation of the visuals the drop where the beat gets faster
and the
instruments more intense comes in really late in the song only 10 seconds before the title card and a lot of the action isn't
accompanied by what you'd think of as action music this has led to
Complaints and even a meme built around pairing the OP with other songs because they're better, but I'm gonna defend this one
I really like odd future
And I think it matches the action perfectly just in a different way from your typical
J-rock opener instead of getting faster with the action the beat gets heavier the key to this Op is the explosive
Bass drop which you're not going to hear if you're listening to it on your phone or tablet
Or crappy TV speakers or in the background of a youtube video
But if you're like me and you have a subwoofer hooked up to
Everything you watch anime on this song will grow on you fast because it
Flat-out rocks now with that little bit of opinion out of the way
How does the actual Op hold up is it as packed with sakuga?
References and foreshadowing as its predecessors or any Utaeba or dare to dream does it once again?
Go beyond plus ultra could this be the new best HeroAca opening. Yes, sorry
I'm Way too excited to be a tease about this this Op is awesome
and I just want to talk about why why
Involves talking about a lot of manga spoilers up to around episode 12 of this season though
So if you're an anime only fan
Continue at your own risk now the Op starts with a zoom out of Deku's
Eye, as he crouches down getting ready to break into a sprint
We see a spotlight on him only natural considering that he's the center of our attention as our
protagonist and also the center of the world's attention as the future symbol of peace and in a flash that spotlight is replaced by
Projected images of his past struggles from finding out that he was quirkless all the way up through his battle with Stain
Lastly we see him dashing out of the Academy training grounds with Bakugo a shot straight from the last season finale
Then we pull down and around behind him as he breaks into a run leaving a trail of dust and broken earth in his wake
The camera moving downwards shows his growth as a character going from being weak and insignificant to a powerful
Dominant figure who we have to look up to if you've seen my previous videos about HeroAca
You know that the series has been gradually building up a narrative in the beginning and ending of its openings about Deku's
Relationship with All Might across three Op's Deku goes from staring at All Might's back from afar to being
Acknowledged by his hero as an equal and now in the fourth Op
We see him in the same barren desert setting as the last one only this time
He's all alone except for Toru Deku has finally succeeded all might and now he needs to learn how to move forward without
His hero beside him which is where this story arc is ultimately going to leave him and this Op spends a lot of its runtime
Reinforcing that idea the very next shot shows a young All Might accepting his quirk, one for all, from his mentor Nana
Shimura with a 3d rotation of the camera
representing this turning point for them this passing of the torch the rotating camera is a
consistent motif throughout this Op there are four rotating shots in the opening and all of them focus on either All Might or
Deku, every time the camera moves in this way
It's showing the transition of one for all's power between them, and that's not the only visual motif in this Op
There's also an extreme focus on eyes
And not just what the obvious zooms in and out of Deku's eyes that begin and end this opening sequence
There are a lot of cuts to and away from close-ups on various characters eyes
Which represent the will power of these heroes and villains to move forward, note
how when Deku is at his lowest here
We don't see his eyes
But we do when he regains his will to fight the same goes for shigaraki in these shots
And there are two characters whose eyes
We don't see at all, All for One who is blind and on his last legs, and Nana Shimura
Who is dead, and then there's All Might whose powers are reaching limit
We only see the glint of his eyes
One time during the final confrontation with All-for-one, which is his last moment acting as a hero. To hammer that home
Just a little bit harder
We jumped from All might with his mentor to All Might with his protege sitting on a bench under a blossoming cherry tree
It's a nice uplifting
Happy image
Which is weird because it's clearly based on a decidedly
somber manga cover.
Chapter 96 of the manga opens with a colour splash page featuring Deku and a deflated All Might
sitting sombrely on a park bench under a more green tree next to each other the page marks a
Farewell to the symbol of peace who loses his powers after well
We'll get to that
The pink Sakura blossoms are associated with spring in Japan while green leaves are more associated with summer so the shot in the op is
Clearly a before picture to the manga covers after and I wouldn't be surprised in the slightest if in the last
episode of this core they changed the op to replace the shot with that cover
But that's enough about Deku and All Might for now we jump from them to the rest of class 1-a
Out for a run in their gym uniforms for the most part the kids are just running but Aoyama true to his
Narcissistic character stares directly into the camera the whole time and we see an exhausted, Minetta
Turn and start drooling when the girls catch up with them. Also. Hey. There's To- oh wait Tohru's actually in this shot
I don't know how to
Let's just move on after we meet the kids we´re introduced to the adult pro heroes
Starting with Endeavour who makes a point of getting right up in front of the camera and standing apart from everyone else
This is the first of four times that a shot transition in this Op is marked by flames
A third motif which I believe is meant to hint that endeavour will take All Migth's place
After he loses one for all at any rate. We move on from him to the other pro heroes
This is a very dynamic shot with edge shot in the Wild Wild Pussy Cougars jumping in to strike a pose then gran torino
Sliding into place as mount lady in big uns herself to fill out the top part of the frame
We don't learn a lot about the individual characters from this
But we can instantly tell who actually works at UA
Because they all stand in front of the school while everyone else has to move into position the heroes do strongly
contrasts with the villains though
Who are introduced by Debbie's blue flame instead of endeavours red and who take up a more?
Intimidating position much closer to the screen and while the heroes were all looking in the same direction
motivated by a common purpose of protecting the peace the league of villains
Vanguard action squad is looking all over the place because they all have different
Ideals and goals. Twice and Mr.
Compress are both looking left because they're both loyal to shigaraki and follow his ideals
Dobby and Spinner are looking to the right
Meanwhile because they're both followers of the hero killer Stain and want to create the better world that he envisioned in
Direct opposition though they don't know it yet - to Shigaraki. Also as a neat little aside Mr.
Compress is holding the shrunken Bakugo in his hand the guy in the cloak and mask
Muscular is looking directly at the screen because all he wants is chaos
Likewise Himiko Toga is another villain who just wants to watch the world burn
And she looks directly into the camera when she pops up as well
but she does a little bit more than that she smiles at us as she toys with her needle in an
unmistakably flirty manner then she throws it directly at the camera
Which isn't just a clever and beautifully animated way of cutting to them shots it
Also tells us who she's looking at the camera in all three of these shots
represents Deku's perspective
That's why he's not running with his classmates, and why Aoyama is looking at him although that comes way later
Why the camera frames the pro heroes in such a reverential light, and why the villains look so intimidating by comparison
It's also why Toga flirts with the camera. During the summer training arc
She becomes obsessed with Deku and starts stalking him relentlessly and in light of that
It makes sense for muscular to be staring straight at Deku as well since they fight each other one-on-one
When the villains attack. From Toga we cut to a depressed looking Shigaraki
Slumped against the screen and we see a hand reach out of the screen to pattern on
it's head that hand is All for One, All Mights nemesis
And Shigaraki's mentor. This image either
Represents Shigaraki during the hideout raid arc when he thinks that all hope is lost before his mentor uses
teleportation to save the league of villains from the clutches of justice or it could represent the
Aftermath of that part when Shigaraki is left alone
And his mentor is carted off to jail. Since All for One's influence is still with him now
He's strong enough to move forward on his own
Much like Deku at the beginning of this opening speaking of we return to our hero only to see him limping
Sadly through the snow and shortly after we see what he's sad about, as Bakugo appears behind him and he turns
Gray hanging his head to the feet (bowing in an apologetic manner) at first glance this seems to be a simple character
introduction since the characters hate each other
But Bakugo is notably not in front of the same Canyon background as all of the other
Action shots use and that's because at the end of the training camp arc Bakugo
Go gets kidnapped by the league of villains who hope to turn him to their side Bakugo
Goes angry explosive attack isn't just for show then it's a response to that proposal since he's not
Exactly big on the whole villainy thing despite his abrasive personality after Bakugo we see Iida and
Kirishima engaging in battle which is
Significant because they along with Deku are the ones who charge in to actually save Bakugo from the villains while all might is busy
battling
All-for-One and with their help the
Despondent Deku reclaims his resolve and gets ready to fight
Coming in with that base drop all might flies down to deliver a devastating punch to the center of the city
This is him charging in to fight All-for-one one last time then we cut back to shigaraki
Walking forward purposefully in front of a creepy grasping horde of Nomus. He is now moving forward on his own
Truly leading the league of villains instead of just following orders and leaving his defeated mentor behind
Which is exactly what All-for-One wants to let Shigaraki's hatred fuel him to achieve even greater
Levels of villainy now that his mentor is gone after that we jump back to the training camp arc to see all of Deku's
Classmates jumping out of an explosion in the woods giving everyone a chance to let their powers shine literally in Aoyama's case
There are a few points of interest here. Firstly
It's worth noting that Tetsu Tetsu Tetsu Tetsu is mixed in with Class A in place of Kirishima
And he does play a key role in taking down one of the villains secondly
It's significant that the explosion starts with an immense burst of power from Dark Shadow who goes out of control
When the villains attack during this arc and for the most part. That's what this shot is meant to convey
It's just a crazy burst of action meant to show the chaos created by the villains attacking
but even if it's just for a few frames every character gets a chance to show off their unique designs and
Personalities we see Todoroki break away from the chaos and fly above it on his ice readying a blast of flames
And I guess he's too important to not get his own character shot at this point
But it's a bit out of place
considering that he doesn't really accomplish much during either the training camp or the hideout raid still his flames serve as a cool transition to
Deku as he powers up and gets ready to throw down with muscular
This is a beautifully animated sequence that really sells Deku's desperation and power as well as Muscular's insane
overwhelming strength which dominates every frame he's in you get an instant sense of the
David-and-Goliath nature of this fight from just looking at the two side-by-side
The rotation around Deku tells us that this is a key moment for him
This is his first time fighting as a real hero giving his all to defend someone
he doesn't really know thus it is a
Huge step toward realizing his destiny as All Might's eventual successor that idea is
Reinforced as he goes in for the knockout blow and just before he lands his 1,000,000%. Delaware Detroit
Smash! We zoom into Deku's eye
And see what's inspiring him the ferocious fighting spirit of All Might conveniently this also serves as an excuse to
highlight the final battle between All Might and All for One from behind the villain we see all my
Crackling with energy ready to release every last ounce of one-for-all in his final attack
"United states of smash" which is the coolest ataque name ever just as an aside we then zoom in across the battlefield
To All Might and see his face twisted not in his iconic smile or even a serious grimaced, but rather pure
unrestrained rage for the first time in the whole series
We are seeing all might get truly mad and combined with the tempo of the music finally speeding up. It is a bad-ass
Moment and if the significance of that is lost on you the importance of this moment is further emphasised by another camera turn
Mirroring the one that we just saw around Deku's face
He is finally passing the torch to Deku just as Nana passed it to him so many years ago
We see a quick montage of
Eraserhead, Edge shot, Best Jeanist, Mount lady, Kamui Woods and Endeavour using their powers to fight
Nomu's during the hideout raid arc each of them collectively inspires Deku who at last
Unleashes his power on Muscular breaking through the screen to bring us to the title card which appears in color negative for a moment perhaps
Representing all for one's evil before a flash of lightning wipes it away to leave us with a shining
Heroic symbol or maybe the graphic designers, just thought the effect looked cool
I don't know after the title card we see one last shot of Deku rising up from the ground
Growing in power and stature before our eyes until he stands equal with all night behind him which is really
Significant, in all of the other Op's Deku was constantly chasing after his hero in this one
He doesn't actually look at him even once
This is a badass image to end on with some very impressive animation as Deku stands up but again
I wouldn't be surprised if they changed it for the final episode of this arc
All Might
Conveniently on his own layer behind the dust so it wouldn't be at all
Difficult to swap him out for his weaker form if the animators want to deliver one last gut punch before the Op
changes that is but hey, that's just a theory ah
Film- wait no run show it is amazing
How bones manages to keep raising the bar with each successive HeroAca Op. Twice now I found myself thinking well
it's all downhill from here and been swiftly proven wrong and I can't wait to see what they bring out for the
Second core of this season having broken and become a filthy manga reading degenerate
I can say with certainty that the next arc will give them a wat to work with if you want to see more of me
Covering HeroAca and also a bunch of other anime because there are so many good anime this season
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I'm Jeff thew professional shitbag signing out from my mother's basement