My Hero Academia: You’re Next review – fun but forgettable anime spin-off

There’s a comforting familiarity in the trope-laden structure of My Hero Academia: You’re Next that helps the slightly aimless movie rise above being totally throwaway.

The fourth anime movie in the franchise, My Hero Academia: You’re Next has Deku and Class 1-A take on a villain of truly terrifying proportions – an evil All Might. Known as Dark Might, this baddie believes himself the heir to the Superman stand-in’s position as all-powerful protector.

His forceful methods of taking that position, involving a huge skybound vessel full of other criminals, spur our heroes into action. Captive on-board is a kidnapped young woman, sought after by a mercenary, whose powerful Quirk presents an even bigger threat than any All Might wannabe.

On paper, these storylines complement each other by touching on the desire for absolute power and what that actually looks like. Narratively, though, You’re Next is more meandering and confused, as the plotlines undercut themselves.

You’re Next just doesn’t find balance

Much of the film takes place within Dark Might’s ship, where each section simulates a different environment to confuse the invading U.A. students. Several groups make their way through the structure, each tackling different dangers as they go.

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As is typical of feature-length productions from Bones, this looks gorgeous. The multi-coloured costumes pop against the boldly rendered backgrounds, and the back-and-forth sequences are as compelling as ever.

My Hero Academia might be the best looking anime show of its generation. Kohei Horikoshi’s sugary young heroes’ pastiche becomes a bright, bold cartoon that evokes routine Saturday morning viewing and the likes of Astro Boy and Lupin III in equal measure.

My Hero Academia is a particular kind of a heroism

The movies are the greatest proof of this, allowing Deku and his pals to explode across the silver screen. Though not strictly canon, they make a case for themselves by being louder and more exuberant than the TV show.

Timing is against You’re Next here, because Season 7 just pushed us into the Final War, where the protagonists make their stand against All For One and Shigaraki. My Hero Academia Season 8 has since been announced as the conclusion.

Going from that to a slightly frivolous spin-off comes with some whiplash one struggles to shake. Such tension is common in anime properties of a certain length; both Dragon Ball and One Piece have struggled at different points in the past. Here, it really doesn’t help that the story’s priorities are in the wrong place.

Dark Might, who comes from an organized crime family with aspirations of taking over his father’s empire and expanding exponentially, commands the most attention, when his kidnapping plot is more intriguing.

Dark Might isn’t even the hero of his own story

Anna, who comes from an upper-class family, has a Quirk that can power up other abilities to unknown heights if they’re compatible. Otherwise, people are severely weakened by her presence.

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Her bodyguard, Giulio, is the only known person who can steady her power since his Quirk freezes others. They share a bond as star-crossed lovers, with Deku and his cohort determined to defy fate and find a way for everyone to live in happiness.

Scenes involving Anna have more of both the kind of cheese that makes My Hero Academia what it is, and thematic depth to explore. They expose Dark Might and his entire plan for the overblown distraction it winds up being.

There’s the usual rigmarole, involving a montage of failure as everyone rallies to go down fighting, before a saccharine ending still manages a small lump in the throat if you’re prone to such inspiration. But that emotion is dwindling.

My Hero Academia: You’re Next review score – 3/5

You’re Next brings back all the flash and energy you’ve come to expect from My Hero academia movies, but the lack of any real narrative stakes is starting to weigh these spinoffs down.

My Hero Academia: You’re Next is in US cinemas now, and UK theatres October 18.