While My Hero Academia has reached its end in the manga and the anime is slowly catching up with the manga, the world of My Hero Academia still has stories to tell. Some fans already know about the spin-off manga My Hero Academia: Vigilantes. The manga, written by Hideyuki Furuhashi and illustrated by Betten Court, was published in 2017. It introduced the concept of vigilantes, the term that the world uses to describe individuals who carry out the heroic duties of Pro Heroes without caring for the law.
My Hero Academia: Vigilantes not only provides backstory information for characters like Aizawa and Hero Killer: Stain, but also introduces its own cast of well-beloved characters. Each of these new characters has the same motivation and drive that one would expect from aspiring do-gooders in MHA. From a relatable protagonist to a beefy mentor figure, there’s no avenue left unturned in the Vigilantes manga. As such, there are a variety of engaging new characters, and newn depth is added to existing characters, as well.
Updated on May 8, 2025, by Natasha Elder: The intriguing world of My Hero Academia left fans wanting more. Luckily, My Hero Academia: Vigilantes was the expansion that everyone wanted. This fantastic prequel expands upon what it means to be righteous, and the morality behind helping others as an illegal vigilante rather than a licensed hero. There are quite a few new characters, as well as more details given to older characters. We wanted to discuss more of the characters that appear in My Hero Academia: Vigilantes and adjust the imagery to better depict the characters.
Koichi Haimawari is The Crawler
The Main Protagonist of My Hero Academia Vigilante
Koichi Haimawari is the protagonist of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, a slim young man with a plain appearance of brown hair and dark eyes. When he was young, he wanted to be a hero but missed the opportunity. He is now stuck doing civil service duties like breaking up fights, giving people directions, and assisting people with their bags. That is until, just like Deku in the first episode of My Hero Academia, he runs into a hero. In Koichi’s case, he runs into the vigilante hero Knuckleduster, and, as a result, his own vigilante activities increase.
Nothing like doing good to make you feel good!!
Koichi is described as easy-going, mild-mannered, and generous. These qualities would make a great hero. However, Koichi missed his chance to become a great hero because he missed the entrance examination while saving a schoolboy from drowning. As a result, he had no choice but to go to a regular high school instead of a hero one, which in the world of My Hero Academia means that heroism isn’t something one could achieve. While Koichi was upset by this, it never stopped his dream of becoming a hero, nor did it stop his drive to help people with his quirk. The manga follows his adventure as the sidekick vigilante to Knuckleduster.
Kazuho Haneyama is Pop☆Step
The Heroine of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes
Kazuho Haneyama is described as a Freelance idol who uses her quirk Leap to enhance her street performances. It also helps her escape the law, which would arrest her due to her lack of a performance permit. After being saved by Koichi and Knuckleduster, she becomes involved in the case. Knuckleduster is attempting to solve the sudden appearance of villains, and she eventually joins the two as a vigilante.
Heya! Mind if I step in?
Kazuho is a brilliant person and is the primary reason Koichi and Knuckleduster solve the case of the Trigger Villains. Combined with her intelligence is a tsundere-like personality, especially around Koichi, whom she has a major crush on. Kazuho becomes even more important in later arcs, but she is a central character from the start, being the voice against any action Koichi or Knuckleduster takes.
The Vigilante: Knuckleduster
The Mentor of My Hero Academia Vigilante
Knuckleduster takes All-Mighty’s role in My Hero Academia Vigilante — the mentor. Acting as the leader of the vigilante group formed with Koichi and Kauzho, he also acts as the mentor for Koichi’s vigilantism. He is a towering, muscular man dressed in a trench coat and a black turtleneck, not unlike the Absolute Batman. Covering his face is a bandana, and on his hands are dark gloves topped with brass knuckles, where the term Knuckleduster comes from.
Sure, taking out a dangerous villain is high on my priority list…but if I can wring some intel about the ringleader outta you, all the better.
Knuckleduster has a strong sense of justice that borderlines on obsession. He’s known for his cruel violent streak against criminals, especially those with powerful Quirks. This is because Knuckleduster is a Quirkless hero who enjoys putting the beatdown on those who think they are stronger just because they have a Quirk. Despite wanting to punch first, Knuckleduster has a great deductive mind that has gotten him out of many situations. Underneath all that rough edge is a man who genuinely cares about the lives of others, likely motivated by his own background.
Iwao Oguro's True Identity
Knuckleduster is actually the former Pro Hero High-Speed Hero: O’Clock, real name Iwao Oguro. His Quirk Overclock lets him accelerate his brain’s functionality and perception to extreme speeds. This granted him enhanced speed, like the Flash, and made him a great Pro-Hero. Prior to becoming Knuckleduster, he operated in Japan and had a wife and a child. The wife became terminally ill, however, and the daughter ran away.
As Overclock, Iwao was a stoic and quick hero. Preferring to snatch and grab the villains. Iwao would later go on to state that Overclock was a failure of a hero because he was just another cog in the machine, solving problems at the surface and forgetting about the common man who needed aid that wasn’t involving a supervillain attacking the city. He believes that he does better as Knuckleduster. Iwao lost his Quirk thanks to All for One, whose act of stealing the Quirk scarred Iwao.
The Playboy Pro Hero: Captain Celebrity
Christopher Skyline is a top-ranked American Pro Hero
Christopher Skyline is one of the significant pro heroes in My Hero Academia: Vigilantes. He’s a tall man with wavy blonde hair like a mohawk. He acts like the stereotypical American jock found in most teen romance movies, which makes his personality rather challenging to stomach. He prefers to show off for the cameras rather than dealing with a crisis or not deploying until his media team is nearby. Despite being married, he was a constant flirt, which resulted in numerous lawsuits against him. Enough that he had to escape to Japan.
Captain Celebrity! I’m the United States’ top-ranked Hero.
The story of My Hero Academia Vigilantes humbles him much later on, but he does retain many of his extravagant personality traits. Noticeably, the flirtatious bit drops once he realizes he’s going to have a child with his current wife, Pamela. She has an unknown Quirk and little history that doesn’t surround Christopher Skyline. His design and personality are very reminiscent of DC’s Booster Gold.
Soga Kugisaki is Villain Turned Ally
A former Instant Villain now Ally to Koichi
Soga is described and shown as a tall, lanky man with blue hair. Like Kirishima, his teeth are sharpened to a point to look almost like shark teeth. He has no significant costume like the others but is often seen wearing a black tank top. Soga is a cruel and violent person motivated by his paranoia and the discrimination he faces, thanks to his Quirk, Spike, which generates spikes from his body. This is one of the harsh realities of having a monstrous Quirk.
You don’t get to die on us…you old fart.
His flaws are heavy, but he is loyal to his allies and friends. This shows that he becomes a good and faithful ally to Koichi and the vigilantes after his turn. Even becoming enamored and entranced by Knuckleduster’s vigilantism. However, one of Soga’s most significant traits is his understanding of vigilantism, stating that it’s needed because there are crimes and problems that Pro heroes simply can’t or won’t face.
Makoto Tsukauchi, the General Manager of the Captain Celebrity Corporation
Makoto Becomes Interested in the Naruhata Vigilantes
Makoto Tsukauchio isn’t a vigilante or a hero. Instead, she operates as the manager for the Captain Celebrity Corporation. She’s also the sister of one of All-Might’s greatest friends, Naomasa Tsukauchi. As General Manager, Makoto attempts to fix Captain Celebrity’s public image while also trying to find out who the Naruhata Vigilantes are. Her Quirk Polygraph makes it so she is always hunting for the truth. This design has made many call out her similarities to DC’s Lois Lane.
If there’s something you need done, feel free to rely on me. I’m the best of the best, if I do say so myself. Final point.
Makoto is an intelligent and independent woman with firm determination and drive for her goals. But she remains kind and generous, even if she’s willing to take an underhanded route to get there. Or if she needs to do something, she’s fine with rebelling. The complexity of her character has immediately made her one of the best female characters in the My Hero Academia franchise. She becomes an ally of the characters, improving everyone’s PR and even helping Kazuho’s idol performances.
Rokuro Nomura is the Main Antagonist of the Series
Rokuro is the Villain Number 06
Rokuro Nomura plays a facade and is actually the villainous Number 6. Suffering from a great agnosia, he is a man without any sense of self, and as a result, All for One molds him to be a villain. Number 6 became obsessed with O’Clock and, thanks to All for One, would be given the hero’s Quirk. Then he leads the Villain Factory, the main group of villains responsible for creating the Instant and Next-Level Villains, as well as the cause of all the tragedies that took place in My Hero Academia Vigilantes.
Garbage like you… who ruins people’s dreams… I’ll make sure you get what’s coming to you!
Number 6 was a confident and self-assured villain with a bad case of narcissism. His primary goal was to create his own identity and be acknowledged as the successor to O’Clock. This motivated his eventual detesting of Koichi, Knuckleduster’s protégé and the hero of Naruhata, believing that Koichi robbed him of his identity. This spiteful personality caused him to want nothing else but to destroy Koichi.
Kuin Hachisuka Possesses Others with Her Quirk
She is Known as the Villainous Queen Bee
With a unique Quirk called Queen Bee, Kuin Hachisuka is able to possess the bodies of others. That being said, she typically possesses the bodies of girls with sharp teeth. She would then swoop the hair of her stolen body to cover her left eye. In her own form, she aptly resembles a Queen Bee. For the majority of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, this character uses the body of Tamao Oguro, a fact which puts her in direct opposition with Knuckleduster, Tamao’s father.
I don’t like it when you mistreat my little girls.
Kuin’s personality blends into that of her host. Though she put on a cheerful act of normalcy when around civilians in order to blend in, at her core, Kuin reveled in her villainy. Her bees, which manifested as part of her Quirk, seemed to be one of the few things that she truly cared about. She is also linked to her bees, experiencing pain and even bleeding when one of them is damaged.
Tamao Oguro Serves as Knuckleduster's Motivation
However, She Had a Contentious Relationship with Him Prior to Her Possession
Bad parents aren’t uncommon in anime, and the original My Hero Academia is no exception. Although he eventually underwent a redemption arc, Endeavor is famed for being a terrible father and husband. In a similar vein, My Hero Academia: Vigilantes makes it clear that even Heroes have flaws. Tamao Oguro is the daughter of Iwao Oguro, who was once known as the Pro High-Speed Hero: O’Clock. However, she was often neglected.
My old man’s only good for taking up space anyway
Due to Iwao’s neglect, Tamao developed a rebellious streak. She began to pursue music, knowing that it would make her dad mad. Though she is possessed by Queen Bee for a time, she is eventually saved. She eventually finds a true passion for playing guitar, though. As a result, she has the time to reflect on her purpose. With the support of Soga and his friends, Tamao learns to appreciate her talent.
Oboro Shirakumo's Importance is Explored
He Greatly Influenced the Course of Aizawa's Life
Though he was mentioned in My Hero Academia as a past classmate and friend of Shota Aizawa and Hizashi Yamada, not much detail was given about Oboro Shirakumo at the time. However, My Hero Academia: Vigilantes granted the opportunity for this character to be shown in a fuller capacity due taking place five years earlier. His fun-loving and high-energy personality stood in contrast to Aizawa’s, and he served as a source of encouragement.
The three of us should start our own agency. That’s my plan anyway.
One of Oboro’s defining characteristics is his dedication to doing good. Whether it be saving a cat from the rain or sacrificing his life, Oboro is willing to do what it takes to help others. Oboro was the one that convinced Shota to become a battler. He even gives Shota the advice to wear goggles so that he can keep his eyes open longer by protecting them against dirt, smoke or other air pollutants. His influence was such that even after he died, he inspired Shota to do better.
Naomasa Tsukauchi Takes on a More Prominent Role
Given the Illegality of Vigilantism, Increased Police Presence is Expected
Despite being a detective devoted to helping others, Detective Naomasa Tsukauchi acts as a potential antagonist in the very beginning of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, an indication of the more serious tone of the show when compared to My Hero Academia. Being a vigilante is an illegal action and, as a detective, Tsukauchi feels compelled to hunt down the group composed of Crawler, Pop Star and Knuckleduster. It doesn’t take long for him to redirect his attention to the proper targets, though.
Know this, vigilantes of Naruhata…I’m taking back the reins now.
In fact, Tsukauchi even works with the vigilantes in order to take down the true villains. This willingness to work with vigilantes combines with his commitment to upholding the law to create a formidable investigator. The nature of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes also means that he is present far more often than he was in My Hero Academia, so his personality and morals are on full display. Fans can get a clearer picture of why he is so trusted by heroes like All Might.
Shota Aizawa's Character is Expanded Upon in Vigilantes
His Backstory is Shown in Greater Detail
As someone who is known to work as an underground hero, it makes sense that Aizawa would feature in a manga about vigilantes. Though not one himself, his work certainly overlaps with the subtler, dirty underbelly that vigilantes constantly find themselves working in. As such, while Aizawa still works as a professional hero and has to align himself with the law, he often offers support to the vigilantes. In some ways, this demonstrates how he developed the mentorship skills that he utilized in My Hero Academia as the teacher of Class 1-A.
I’ll be an independent, underground hero. That’s the sort of hero…I’m meant to be.
Aizawa’s backstory is also shown in greater detail. His time as a student and at his hero internship are depicted. The reason that he became such a respected hero is because of the events of those years. Losing Oboro convinced Aizawa to work even harder in order to fulfill the potential that the other boy saw in him. Aizawa sees some of the same qualities that he admired in Oboro in Koichi Haimawari, which is undoubtedly one of the reasons he supports the vigilante’s activities.
