MHA: Could Bakugo Become a Villain?
One of the most common tropes in shonen anime is an ally turning into a villain after getting pulled over by one of the villains. This seemed to be the case for My Hero Academia when we met Katsuki Bakugo, whose personality is too mean and rotten to belong to a true hero. Of course, we also know that Bakugo was incredibly mean to Izuku Midoriya when they were younger, as he bullied him for being “useless.” So, could Bakugo become a villain?
Kohei Horikoshi, the author of My Hero Academia, said that he never planned for Bakugo to become a villain. Instead, he was always supposed to be a hotheaded and mean-mouthed character meant to become a true hero instead of turning over to the other side to become a villain.
What makes My Hero Academia unique is that it doesn’t follow the normal tropes we often see in much shonen anime, as it takes a different turn regarding Bakugo’s personality and story. He would normally be a character that would have clashed with the heroes before turning good, but he has always been a hero. So, with that said, let’s look at what we know about Bakugo possibly becoming a villain.
Could Bakugo Become a Villain?
The entire world of My Hero Academia is full of some of the unique personalities and characters we’ve seen in anime history. Of course, when it comes to uniqueness, one of the characters that top the bill is Katsuki Bakugo.
At first, however, Bakugo didn’t have a unique personality. He appeared to be just a generic mean-mouthed hothead that has always been present in shonen anime. He was a bully that picked on Izuku Midoriya when they were still younger. And he always thought of Midoriya as a useless person.
But the thing is that Bakugo eventually got into UA High School, which is the premier school for those who want to be pro heroes. That’s because he wanted to be a hero, even though he spent his earlier years as a bully and as a person who kept picking on other people. And the kicker was that he didn’t stop becoming mean when he entered UA.
His early days in UA showcased that Bakugo was not done being mean because he continued to pick on Midoriya and even treated his classmates like crap. This mean personality got Tomura Shigaraki thinking that Bakugo could be a great ally for the League of Villains in the future, and that was why he abducted him and tried to turn him into one of them.
Shigaraki wanted Bakugo to see the point of the existence of the League of Villains as he made him try to understand his way of thinking. But Shigaraki was unsuccessful in converting Bakugo into a villain as the hotheaded boy attacked him from behind while finding it funny that the League of Villains leader thought he could sway him into becoming evil.
In that regard, Bakugo didn’t become a villain during the earlier part of the storyline, as he never intended to be one. Of course, there’s also the fact that Kohei Horikoshi, the author of the My Hero Academia manga, said that he never intended Bakugo to become a villain. And that means that the young man will always be a hero and never become evil during the storyline of My Hero Academia.
This seems to be one of the best decisions the story has ever made, as it departed from the usual trope in most anime series. Often called the “Sasuke route,” which became famous when Naruto’s Sasuke character turned into a villain but eventually redeemed himself to turn into a hero once more, this anime trope never applied to Bakugo as there was no intention for the author to go down that road to explore his personality and character. As such, it is unlikely that Bakugo would ever become a villain even after the Final War arc events if the series continued beyond that.
Why Didn’t Bakugo Turn Evil?
Of course, the first reason why Bakugo never turned evil is that Horikoshi never intended for him to become a villain. But there are many in-universe reasons why this hotheaded character never turned over to the dark side.
When Bakugo attacked Shigaraki, he said that he always admired All Might and idolized the Symbol of Peace, who always found a way to defeat his opponents and triumph over villains. That means he is just like Deku because they both admire All Might. But while Deku loved that All Might always had a smile whenever he saved people, Bakugo loved how the Symbol of Peace always came out victorious against any villain he faced. As such, Bakugo also aspired to be the top hero in the world.
This allows us to see why Bakugo is fiercely determined and always headstrong regarding his actions. Unlike Midoriya, who needed to find a reason to be determined, Bakugo’s determination came naturally. And this was one of the things Deku admired about him as Bakugo was always someone who never lost hope or gave up because this was a quality he admired in All Might.
It might be true that Bakugo can be somewhat of a jerk that bullied Deku when they were younger and continued to be mean to his classmates. But the fact is that his violent personality and mean-mouthed character were always part of what made him unique compared to other heroes in My Hero Academia.
Nevertheless, the truth is that he never wanted to be a villain at all and always wanted to fight villains and become the greatest hero of all. Of course, Midoriya’s reason for wanting to be the greatest hero is to continue All Might’s legacy as someone who saved people no matter what. On the other hand, Bakugo’s determination was rooted in how he wanted to fight and beat up villains, similar to what All Might did when he was still in his prime.
As such, despite him being mean and violent, Bakugo’s motivation for wanting to become a hero is consistent with his character. In most cases, mean and violent people tend to become villains. But in Bakugo’s case, he was able to find a way to turn his hotheaded nature and mean personality into his fuel for wanting to be a hero. And while he would never admit it, he knows that he has always had the heart of a true hero, even though all he wants to do is to beat up villains and come out triumphant.
Bakugo has long gone past the point of becoming a villain, as he has placed himself in harm’s danger for his friends numerous times already. He would never admit it, but he cares for others in a way that’s similar to how All Might and Deku would rather sacrifice their bodies to keep other people safe from harm. And while he may not have the typical hero personality, Bakugo’s heart is in the right place because he is as true a hero as any other in My Hero Academia.
