My Hero Academia: Winners and losers of Episode 75

Izuku and others finally confront Overhaul in yet another bonkers episode in the Overhaul arc. Here are the winners and losers of My Hero Academia episode 75.

Remember how I mentioned I was nervous for our boys Mirio and Midoriya? Folks, I may have had a point! Such a good point, in fact, that it might’ve been a sharp point. How sharp, you ask? I’d say sharper than the ground spikes that Overhaul savagely unleashed with no regard for human life.

Let’s get into the episode and break it all down like Overhaul breaks down matter.

Winners

Hari Kurono / Chronostasis

First up is, unexpectedly, one of Overhaul’s right-hand men. I say “unexpected” only because the guy got dropped by Mirio faster than an intro to philosophy course last week, and I’d assumed he was down for the count. My friends, that was simply not the case! Turns out this “Chrono” fella can use his quirk to seriously slow down anyone he’s able to hit. This turns out to be a particular issue for Mr. Aizawa (more on him later), who is left completely defenseless after the villain takes him down. Can I say sheesh? Because, man, that is a real sheesh moment.

Kai Chisaki / Overhaul

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Look, at this point, I think Overhaul is veering into a Lebron on the 2018 Cavaliers situation. He’s out here carrying the Yakuza to a potential victory even after getting pummelled by Mirio, who might have been the greatest prodigy the show had seen up to now. There really isn’t much else you could say about Chisaki at this point, as his quirk is used to fuse himself and one of his henchmen together to create, like, Four Arms from Ben 10 on steroids. He’s absolutely nuts.

Izuku Midoriya / Deku

And yet, even with all of that danger to face, my beloved Izuku still shows off his courageous spirit and truly earns his first-time entry into the winner’s section. Not to suggest that this season of My Hero Academia has been cluttered with too much filler (I’d say the opposite, actually), but this confrontation between Midoriya and Overhaul feels like it’s been building up for an eternity. We finally got our first taste of that, and I’m really excited about it! You should be too!

Whether it was him powering up to 20%, showing off a “Manchester Smash” move, or ripping out a spike from his leg and crushing it with his hand, Midoriya is, indeed, here. The lattermost action was particularly hype since it made me want to run 47 miles as fast as I could. Did I actually run those 47 miles? Absolutely not! But I am certainly amped to see how my favorite character steps up in what is sure to be an unforgettable episode next week.

Losers

Shoto Aizawa / Eraser Head

Do you know what’s the one quirk that could have stopped Overhaul from transforming into a terrifying demon of death? That’s right, erasure, and unfortunately over favorite teacher gets taken out of the fight so quickly that he becomes an afterthought. It’s like last year’s NFL playoffs when the one team (the Saints) that was clearly designed to prevent the Patriots from winning another Super Bowl lost due to one tragically incorrect call. Yes, this is exactly like that. Don’t question me, just run with it.

Shin Nemoto

Let’s all pour one out for Nemoto, who also made the loser’s section last week and now finds himself obliterated thanks to Overhaul, who somehow used his powers to fuse the two of them together. Nemoto was a promising guy, and his confession quirk had huge potential, but instead, he was done in and reduced to ash. I highly doubt there will be a tougher two-episode stretch for another character, but then again I’m also a fool.

Mirai Sasaki / Sir Nighteye

My Hero Academia was not playing around this week. Despite his uncanny foresight quirk and commendable fighting capabilities, Overhaul seemingly murdered him without breaking a sweat. I’m not exaggerating, either, and while I know that surviving being impaled is somehow possible in anime, I don’t feel very good about our guy here. I was genuinely shocked by this, and if this really is the way the character ends I’ll be kind of heartbroken. It makes the wait for next week’s episode all the more difficult.

Fans Who Fear the Escalation Problem

Here’s the thing: I love My Hero Academia, and I sincerely doubt anything can change that. But this episode’s showcase of Overhaul made me a little fearful that he might be just a tad overpowered for a character in season 4 of, what I’d expect, will be a long series. The escalation problem is one that many action-based anime run into, as characters and stakes reach such a high level that the series hardly resembles what made it so special in the first place. This could easily be an overreaction, but nonetheless I feel it’s a fair criticism for a show that’s done so many smart things with establishing its universe and characters.  Also, admittedly, it’s not going to be a killing blow if the escalation problem does take effect at some point. It’s still cool to see massive action set-pieces! I just hope they don’t become a regularity.

If the promotional teaser suggests anything, it’s that the next episode is sure to be one for the ages. Remember that you can watch new episodes My Hero Academia every Saturday on Funimation and Crunchyroll.