My Hero Academia: Winners and losers of Episode 81

Episode 81 of My Hero Academia gives Class 1-A an all-new threat to deal with: Putting on an exciting school festival. Plus, another mysterious new villain is teased.

Yes, yes, I know, the recaps have been a bit sporadic lately. Chalk that up to me being both lazy and stacked with work, not because the whole Overhaul arc concluded and I’ve lost interest. Indeed, I will never lose interest in My Hero Academia, for better or worse.

It turns out that the last few episodes—as reserved and minor as they may be—have been a welcome change of pace. You just have to appreciate the whole school spirit thing going on here, and I’m excited to see where it goes. As always, it’s time to talk about the winners and losers. Let’s get into it.

Winners:

Mina Ashido / Alien Queen

So you think you can dance? Ashido’s remarkable physical prowess has been mentioned a few times over the course of the series as well as her dance moves, which were fully on display here. She even attempts to teach people like Midoriya on how, exactly, you do the way of the dance. That’s all there is to say on that matter. Ashido is basically supremely talented and (unfortunately) hasn’t always had the spotlight to show as such.

Class 1-A’s festival suggestions

More from Streaming

• The story of a French emperor: Here’s where Napoleon will stream after theaters
• ACOTAR on Hulu: Is A Court of Thorns and Roses based on a book?
• Bridgerton season 3: All the details to know about Penelope and Colin’s love story
• Is Lawmen: Bass Reeves based on a true story?
• The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes: The Hunger Games prequel will come to Peacock but not until 2024

This is a minor thing, but I appreciated it! As part of the school festival, the class decided to get everyone’s input on what exactly they should do. The bit was enjoyable to watch unfold, as each student suggested something that fits perfectly with their character.

In the end, however, Jiro ended up the true winner, as the class ended up deciding to do a concert. Why did I not just write about Jiro, you ask? Well, that’s actually a good question; I’ll look into it.

Danjuro Tobita / Gentle Criminal

Not only do we have the giant mountain monster from Episode 78 to worry about, but now My Hero Academia goes out and introduces us to this dude. He’s clearly going to be one of the main antagonists for the new arc. It’s unclear exactly what his quirk is, but he was able to dispense with a number of pro heroes in an instant.

Impressive, certainly, but it’s also interesting to see that Gentle seems to be all about accruing fame by being an internet sensation. Robbing stores and easily beating pro heroes then uploading the footage? That, my friends, is a flex.

Losers

Mirio Togata / Lemillion

Am I reading too much into this? No, I don’t think I am. Mirio refers to him looking after Eri and taking her to the school festival as a date.

Okay, maybe that’s just an odd phrasing that was overlooked. But then the next line proceeds to reference it directly, almost saying how it’s supposed to be a funny joke—and let me tell you, it’s not funny. I am truly not in the mood for My Hero Academia to be making these kinds of gross jokes, since they’ve already got their hands full with the usual anime fodder. Speaking of Mineta…

Minoru Mineta / Grape Juice

Until this boy grows up past the age of 12, I will continue to place him on the loser’s list. It’s just a shame because his character is one of the great hold-ups I always have when deciding whether or not to recommend My Hero Academia to someone (Dorkly actually did a nice video about all this; I’m not the only one that shares this sentiment of hatred for Mineta).

Anyways, Mineta did his usual stupid thing again this week. After making another perverted comment—this time about Ashido while she’s doing her whole breakdance thing—he’s depicted as being tied up and hung by Asui in a joking, shut-up-you-perve-or-else fashion. This show is weird, but I promise you its upside is better than the slums of stupidity and unacceptable themes it occasionally dwells in.

Scary moments indeed, My Hero Academia; that’s for damn sure.

As always, remember that you can tune in every Saturday for new episodes of My Hero Academia on Funimation and Crunchyroll followed by breakdowns here on Hidden Remote.