REVIEW: ‘My Hero Academia,’ Episode 108 – “My Villain Academia”

My Hero Academia is a superhero-shonen anime produced by studio BONES. After last week’s look into the student years of Eraserhead, Present Mic, and Kurogiri, this week’s episode once more jumps back in time, but only a few months this time. Its focus is to catch up on what the League of Villains has been up to as they search for the power to bring down the superhero society in My Hero Academia Episode 108.

One of the more unique aspects of My Hero Academia is the slow burn approach the show takes to the League of Villains plotline that has been woven throughout the show ever since the first season when they attacked the students of class 1A at the training facility. Whether they are at the center of the action or lingering in the shadows, the League, led by the villain Shigaraki, has had an omnipresent position in the show’s developing story.  But while they have always been there, the show has been slow to explore its key villain group fully. With this episode, that all begins to change.

My Hero Academia Episode 108 opens with Shigaraki and the League searching out the power they’ve been told was left behind for them by All For One. This power takes the form of Gigantomachia. Why this character’s power would be useful to the League is instantly apparent. But, unfortunately, he isn’t willing to help the League unless Shigaraki can prove he is powerful enough to be worthy of his devotion as One For All was.

Along with the League’s test to win over the powerful Gigantomachia, this episode also features a peek into the past of Shigaraki himself. While not a full reveal yet, we see the villain’s first meeting with One For All and how he was gifted his most striking visual element. It delivers some interesting moments while also leaving many questions that will undoubtedly leave fans needing to know the rest of this up-and-coming villain’s story.

The final element of My Hero Academia Episode 108  is the full introduction of a group previously mentioned but not yet fully introduced into the story. The story brings the group into the limelight in a way that instantly makes them a force to be taken seriously and possibly a bigger threat than the League itself.

The art in this episode brings several new elements to the story, each delivering something unique to the show’s visual range. The new character designs are cool and feel well suited to the personalities they represent. The show also goes all out to deliver the emotional moments in its look back at Shigaraki’s origins.

When all is said and done, My Hero Academia Episode 108 brings the show’s next story arc to the fore with numerous standout moments that look to shake up the status quo of the show’s balance of power. Where the story leaves off this week promises a huge episode to wow viewers next week.

My Hero Academia Episode 108 is streaming on Funimation and Crunchyroll.