REVIEW: ‘My Hero Academia: Vigilantes’ Season 2 Episode 10 – “Zero Hour”

My Hero Academia Vigilantes Season 2 Episode 10 isn’t bad, even if the frustration of Captain Celebrity’s renewed narrative “significance” is aggravating. There’s a lot about “Zero Hour” to like, even. From our favorite to-be-teacher forced undercover to the reminder of the pageantry of heroism in this world to the slick animation that remains indebted to iconic comic book aesthetics, it’s a solid episode that, by the end, advances the story with a major, climactic moment.

But it can’t escape the ongoing, pressing issue with the series and Season 2 as a whole. An issue that will likely be rectified soon, but is no less frustrating, given how close we are to the end of the season.

Why is the protagonist of the series taking such a backseat to the story? At the very least, when Midoriya wasn’t center stage, it was due to another strong, integral character getting the spotlight. Characters like Shigaraki and the League of Villains, Todoroki and his familial drama, or Bakugo coming into his own for a real hero moment. Characters who, over the course of eight seasons, earned their solo adventures, flashbacks, or were simply one of the best deuteragonists in the medium. Vigilantes is hardly out of its second season, and yet other characters continue to drive the plot more than Koichi (Shūichirō Umeda). 

To a degree, this is by design. Unlike My Hero Academia, Vigilantes is meant to take a more grounded approach. Koichi is meant to be an unassuming college student who uses his power in small, beneficial ways that go unnoticed. His working with Eraser Head (Junichi Suwabe) and Eraser Head getting a three-episode flashback makes sense because he’s able to contextualize the world and how easy it is for someone to die in this line of work, no matter the skill or training. 

Eraser Head and Monika go undercover in “Zero Hour.” 

Knuckleduster (Yasuhiro Mamiya), too, made sense to drive the plot in Season 1 because he was, like All Might, the entry point for Koichi becoming a vigilante. The individual who told Koichi that he could be a hero (though not in as many words) in the way that befitted him. I’ll even relent and say that Tsukuachi’s (Tokuyoshi Kawashima) involvement fits due to the investigative work that drives the plotting. But it’s now been ten episodes out of thirteen, and Koichi and Pop (Ikumi Hasegawa) remain background characters in what is meant to be their story. 

Captain Celebrity’s (Toshiyuki Morikawa) involvement is tipping the scales of agitation. My Hero Academia Vigilantes Season 2 Episode 10 once again tries to make him sweet and harmless. He’s just a goof! He’s a good-natured person at heart, with his wife and child back home, and his glee in showing them off to the packed Tokyo Sky Egg theater. But we have zero emotional investment in the character, and the pacing and ping-ponging between storylines have done nothing to help this, even as the series is determined to force the issue, with him clearly racing toward some pivotal tragedy or triumph. 

My Hero Academia Vigilantes Season 2 Episode 10 is split between two slowly converging storylines. The first is Tsukuachi’s investigation into the distribution of drugs that are creating “Instant Villains,” likely tied to the Scarred Man (Taku Yashiro). He enlists the help of Fat Gum (Kazuyuki Okitsu) and Monika (Kana Ueda) to investigate Onomura Pharma Corp, which he believes is involved. In one of the funnier, more playful sequences, Monika and Eraser Head assume multiple disguises to speak to the employees as part of their investigation. 

My Hero Academia Vigilantes Season 2 Episode 10 has a Captain Celebrity problem. Again. 

Through it, they find information on the branch where the Trigger drugs appear to be manufactured, and the group plans to raid it on the same day as Captain Celebrity’s farewell party. The latter of which is the second main thread. They come together following the raid, when the Scarred Man, in an effort to escape, unleashes a group of “Bombers,” with many of them taking flight to the Tokyo Sky Egg and instantly targeting Captain Celebrity. The Scarred Man knows his weakness and knows that there’s a limit to how many hits he can take while mid-flight. 

To its credit, My Hero Academia Vigilantes Season 2 Episode 10 does have a moment of pure, breathless freefall when the first manufactured villain detonates, throwing Koichi from the building. There’s a smooth quality to how the direction captures his scrambling, panicked descent, only able to catch himself through a lucky launching pad from the debris, able to leap from it and click to the structure with his Quirk. 

Meanwhile, Captain Celebrity is the only thing currently keeping the Sky Egg from falling. Yes, there’s an assembly of pro-heroes inside the venue, but how many have the same abilities to go airborne? Who has the same level of strength who bothered to show? It’s a tense, well-shot showdown that highlights the limits of even the strongest hero’s power. It’s just a shame it’s all tied to a character who fails to evoke any feeling. 

The last moments set the stage for Koichi to (hopefully) reclaim his protagonist status. 

What it does present, however, is a fantastic chance to recenter Koichi as the lead of his story. It’s here where the unassuming hero, the one who is, quite literally, often looked over due to his Quirk, has the chance to demonstrate that it’s less about the Quirk and more about how it’s used and who is wielding it.

There are threads of discontent in “Zero Hour” that hint at Koichi’s loneliness as he seeks out the Hotta Brothers to be surrounded by others, while Pop is busy, and Knuckleduster is still absent. Those are the strongest elements because they weave in a more interesting, more centralized story.

Since the start, Koichi has operated as a relatively passive character. He’s likable because he’s not reactionary (even in moments when he should be). He doesn’t give way to anger or impulsive emotions. He’s steady and reliable, and a bit clueless. This feels like the first time any genuine, negative emotion has infiltrated his psyche. We need more of this. 

My Hero Academia Vigilantes Season 2 Episode 10 might not reach the heights of the series strongest moments. Still, it sets the stage for what, hopefully, culminates in a long-earned, long-awaited hero moment. “Zero Hour” continues to misunderstand the series’ draw. But while Captain Celebrity is a narrative eye sore, there are enough comedic moments and an invigorating setup that promise more to come as our protagonist is forced into action. 

My Hero Academia Vigilantes Season 2 Episode 10 is available now on Crunchyroll.

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