REVIEW: ‘My Hero Academia’ Episode 152 — “Together with Shoji”

While titans clash for the world’s fate, another emotional struggle plays out at Central Hospital. My Hero Academia Episode 152, “Together with Shoji,” directs its narrative to the hospital as the League of Villains leads the masses in an attempt to free Kurogiri. To do this, they utilize the long-simmering anger and pain of the heteromorph community. But how far can they get the disenfranchised community to go for their goals?

When people are mistreated, they get angry. This is a reasonable reaction. When that pain is continual without any signs of stopping, it only makes sense that the anger and resentment towards those causing their pain will build over time. If left unresolved long enough, it will explode. However, while those who have been hurt may seek justice for their pain, some who assume leadership for such groups are not always well-intentioned. How this communal pain can be manipulated and twisted for a less worthy goal comes to be the focus of My Hero Academia Episode 152‘s story.

My Hero Academia Episode 152 takes place entirely outside Central Hospital. As thousands of heteromorphs march on the structure, heroes lead by Present Mic (Hiroyuki Yoshino, Metallic Rouge) and local law enforcement block the crowd’s access to the structure. As tensions rise, the crowd looks to Spinner (Ryô Iwasaki) as their representative.

But Spinner isn’t his usual self. Having accepted new quirks from All For One, Spinner’s mind struggles to focus, frequently becoming lost in a mental fog. While Spinner struggles to keep what’s happening straight, another individual enters the picture to “translate” his wishes to the gathered masses.

The way the PLF uses Spinner in My Hero Academia Episode 152 as a symbolic leader is painful to see. Spinner was never looking to lead anything when he chose to follow Shigaraki. He was like so many of the people now gathering outside the hospital. Hurting and scared, desperate to find a way to change the system that felt indifferent to him. Now, thanks to the manipulations of One For All, he can barely talk in complete sentences and is driven to violence for a cause he believes in, but not in a way that will positively affect it.

Bringing voice to the counter-productive nature of the PLF’s goals at the hospital is Mezou Shoji/Tentacole (Masakazu Nishida). As a heteromorph himself, he speaks to the gathered crowds on an equal footing as he, too, has suffered at the hands of discrimination.

Throughout My Hero Academia Episode 152, we get a series of flashbacks that reveal a painful moment in Shoji’s past. We see members of the small village he grew up in assaulting him and screaming for him to leave. They view him as a blight on the land and declare they will never accept “his kind.” What makes the memory even more heartbreaking is the revelation that an act of heroism spurred the entire event.

Near the end of the episode, we see Shoji pull a small girl out of a harsh river current. His interaction with the child is what spurs the crowd to violence, most likely unaware of why Shoji was with the young girl. This twist to the moment makes an already terrible scene even more heartbreaking.

Despite the ultimately unfortunate nature of this moment, Shoji chooses to focus on his actions that day. He keeps the girl’s thankfulness toward him as a reason to strive to be a hero. He consciously chooses to hold onto the good of that day rather than clinging to the pain.

The visual presentation used to bring Shoji’s memories of that painful day to life is inspired. The moments are shown with a rougher approach to lines, giving the scenes an aged feeling. The coloring is kept exclusively to shades of blue, which help to magnify the sadness that exists within the memories.

In the present, My Hero Academia Episode 152 uses Shoji’s convictions to address the crowd well. The show is careful not to have its leading protagonist question the crowd’s pain or complaints, only their goal where the hospital is concerned. While never expressly stated, it is clear that Shoji knows the crowd is being manipulated in the service of All For One. He tries to steer them away from the hospital by asking how their actions will help them. He also tries to compare their actions to the heroes when they had to storm a hospital in the last season.

Before the heroes confronted the villains, they cleared all the innocents from the building. Shoji demands to know if they have plans to provide for those caught in the crossfire if they storm the hospital or if they will be left to fend for themselves. While his words begin to reach those who can hear him, agitators with the PLF quickly turn the crowd’s attention back to their pains and the injustices they have endured. When Spinner begins to attack, Shoji is forced to abandon his efforts to dissuade the crowd to confront the unhinged villain.

My Hero Academia Episode 152‘s delivery of its action is well-executed. Much like other highlight fights in the series, the battle between Shoji and Spinner is utilized wonderfully to bring even more tension to the emotional scenario rather than interrupt it. Shoji’s struggle to quell Spinner’s single-minded assault physically manifests the emotional war around the hospital.

My Hero Academia Episode 152 uses a delicate but firm hand in portraying its serious subject matter. How it tries to explore social injustice without painting those driven to speak out for their cause as villains is exceptionally executed.

My Hero Academia Episode 152 is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.