REVIEW: ‘My Hero Academia: Vigilantes’ Season 2 Episode 3 – “Public and Private”

In many ways, not a whole lot happens in My Hero Academia Vigilantes Season 2 Episode 3. And it’s wonderful. More shows could benefit from vignette-style episodes that simply touch base with a selection of previously introduced characters, enriching their backgrounds without taking away from the current storyline. There’s a lot of silliness in “Public and Private,” which includes the escapades of a younger, incognito All Might and his Inspector Gadget best friend, and a scrappier Eraser Head who makes do with the coffee he can get on a freelancer budget. 

My Hero Academia Vigilantes Season 2 Episode 3 begins with our first look at the prequel’s interpretation of the Symbol of Peace. Flying through Okinawa, All Might (Kenta Miyake) stops for a small detour to fight off three enormous, kaiju-scale villains (albeit in the form of tofu, Goya, and a Shisa statue), before making his way to a lunch date with Tsukauchi (Tokuyoshi Kawashima). In his everyday form as Toshinori Yagi, he realizes that Tsukauchi is injured, revealing the nature of their friendship as All Might worries over him, and the two of them even exchange souvenirs from their travels. 

It’s a funny, unexpectedly sweet moment that further emphasizes the series’ point: these are, at the end of the day, humans. Humans with, often, extraordinary gifts, yes. But humans nonetheless. While it’s certainly something that My Hero Academia did as well, especially with a character like Izuku Midoriya at the center, it’s driven home all the more in Vigilantes.

My Hero Academia Vigilantes Season 2 Episode 3 injects a much-needed silliness.

All Might spends most of the episode in his skinny form rather than in his iconic hero suit because that’s the point of the spinoff: to see both ground-level heroes and to see heroes we’ve already met without the starry-eyed perspectives of teenage students. 

For all that Tsukauchi’s storyline dragged down the momentum of Season 2 Episode 2, he delivers a fantastic bout of hilarity in My Hero Academia Vigilantes Season 2 Episode 3. First, in his admonishment of All Might when the hero suggests Tsukauchi should reach out to him whenever he’s in trouble. Tsukauchi rightly points out that, as a hero, he can’t play favorites. 

A running gag throughout also centers on the gift All Might gives him, rose-scented bath salts that he suggests he pass off to his sister, Makoto (Asami Seto). Makoto, who, much to Tsukauchi’s chagrin, continues to work directly with Pop, denying him access to her for questioning following the attack by the crab mecha, which had both her and Koichi on the scene of an ongoing crime involving the Scarred Man. 

Characters from the original series, such as All Might and Eraser Head, get the spotlight.

All in all, it leads to a very relatable sibling standoff where Tsukauchi storms off with the gift, and the next few scenes culminate in others picking up on it. It is relentlessly ridiculous and even unnecessary, but it gives the series – and an otherwise forgettable character – a spark of personality that makes both more memorable. It isn’t just a copy of the original series, but it’s own well-defined entity that just so happens to share worlds and some characters. 

Tsukauchi is spending time with all of the My Hero Academia cast as he works with Eraser Head (Junichi Suwabe) as well. While trying to find the identity of the Scarred Man, the two work together to determine just who the mysterious figure could be and how he might relate to another famous speedster hero, O’Clock. As a fan favorite of the original series, Eraser Head is a more playful version of the character, even if he retains a familiar sardonic drawl.  

Despite the looseness and the off-kilter pacing, there is forward momentum. The series just does it with playful asides and joke-heavy banter. For instance, Koichi (Shūichirō Umeda) is actually making tremendous strides throughout the first three episodes of the new season. He’s actively learning more about his Quirk and how it works on his own by simply trying new things and finding himself in increasingly odd situations. 

“Public and Private” examines how different Quirks can manifest.

He isn’t forced to be in the position that gave him his would-be hero name if others hadn’t butchered it so badly. He’s now about to use his hands as both minor force fields, both able to deflect incoming objects while also able to use them as an attack rather than strictly a defense.

His off-the-beaten-path style of training is another potent reminder of how, despite this hero society being structured around rules, regulations, and school systems that only guide the most powerful, there are ways around it that make for just as interesting stories while also asking if those rules and regulations are as beneficial as they seem.

The training he does with Pop (Ikumi Hasegawa) is also a cute reminder of how much their dynamic has grown, turning them into easy friends. It also gives us our first real nod to Knuckduster (Yasuhiro Mamiya), as she warns him not to just rely on brutish force for attacks, lest he become like his mentor. 

There’s a fun, scrappy aesthetic to Vigilantes. 

My Hero Academia Vigilantes Season 2 Episode 3 also highlights the series’ stylistic differences. And it’s not just in the comic-inspired graphics and pop-art aesthetic we’ve grown accustomed to. Instead, with the inclusion of characters like All Might and Eraser Head, we see more differences in how they are drawn, with more notable comparisons to make. They’re rounded, softer around the edges. They’re less larger-than-life and more scrappy. 

It’s a fun distinction because it truly separates the styles of both worlds, even with their similar aspects. And it also, in its own way, ensures the timelines are distinguished. These aren’t the more hardened versions of the characters we come to know. Nor are they the versions guiding younger students. They’re either on the job or in their downtime, expanding the world through small beats of charming interactions. 

My Hero Academia Vigilantes Season 2 Episode 3 accomplishes a lot through subtle plotting and stage setting while settling into a low-key and silly tone. Tsukauchi is clearly a prominent figure in the series, so letting him be more playful instantly makes him a more enjoyable character. If anything, here’s hoping the series can blend the different storylines a little better going forward. In the meantime, at the very least, maintain the light on its feet, energized pacing, and fun atmosphere it’s been displaying. 

My Hero Academia Vigilantes Season 2 Episode 3 is available now on Crunchyroll. 

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