The titular heroes in My Hero Academia are honest, friendly, and unyielding in their struggle to protect innocent people while simultaneously ensuring that the world doesn’t fall to pieces. The responsibilities thrust upon them are certainly cumbersome, but they are more than capable of handling their tasks with both precision and sensitivity.
As such, it’s not surprising that there are so many characters in My Hero Academia who are universally popular across the fandom. Not every fan would actually enjoy spending time (or becoming friends) with their fictional icons, but there are many who might entertain the notion if the choice was offered.
Tenya Ida
Tenya, Class 1-A’s official representative, isn’t the disciplinarian he appears. While strict about most school rules and an occasional stickler for them, Tenya is genuinely one of the nicest characters in the show.
He lacks a certain sense of humor, but given that he usually acts as the adult in his group, his responsibility and perseverance are quite admirable. Tenya might not instantly take a liking to everyone, but time and effort go a long way in ensuring a lasting friendship with him.
Gran Torino
Gran Torino is an ally to both Nana Shimura and Toshinori Yagi, so it’s only natural for him to express an interest in the current holder of One For All.
The old man quickly drops his veneer of senility when training Izuku, revealing that he’s considerably clever — and so effective that his training regimen helps Izuku master his Quirk much faster than All Might ever could. Gran might be a crotchety old man, but beneath all that lies an eagerness to help those in need, an appreciable trait for any friend.
Kyoka Jiro
For the most part, Kyoka prefers her own company, sometimes seeming distant and unempathetic to other people. However, she doesn’t maintain this stoic personality all the time; in fact, she has been shown to enjoy hanging out with other people (as long as she likes them).
Kyoka is emphatically protective of those she cares about, a fact that anyone wanting to be friends with her is certain to acknowledge and respect. Also, she can shred the bass guitar like a rock star, another massive point in her favor.
Mashirao Ojiro
Mashirao Ojiro doesn’t get a lot of screentime on My Hero Academia, but the impact he has on his friends and the world at large is not insignificant. Fans of Mashirao specifically like how his openness and generosity blend with his adorably shy nature (especially when he takes center stage).
A few of his classmates dismiss him for being dull and uninteresting, but that’s just because they don’t take the trouble to learn about him. Fans will have no such problem.
Izuku Midoriya
Izuku Midoriya is nice, sweet, sensitive, and occasionally hyper-reactive depending on the situation. What’s impressive about him is not his growth as a warrior — which is inevitable with One For All — but as a person.
Izuku breaks out of his childhood insecurities over time, evolving into a hero who everyone has come to honor and revere. Fans are going to face exactly zero obstacles in a friendship with him, as long as they can deal with Izuku’s nonsensical mumbling.
Mirio Togata
Mirio is destined to be a Pro Hero, and one of the best in the game, but that doesn’t mean he’s all work and no play. He bears an overwhelmingly positive outlook towards life in general, partly the reason why Nighteye expects him to become All Might’s successor.
Despite the job having gone to Deku, Mirio remains as buoyant and enthusiastic as ever — and fans are likely to enjoy his childishly charming comedy style should they ever be friends with him. Not to mention every time he screams “Power!”, which is undeniably one of Mirio’s most iconic quotes in My Hero Academia.
Fumikage Tokoyami
Tokoyami likes to think of himself as “a creature of the dark”, which isn’t surprising given his difficult Quirk. He’s more reticent than many in his class, but opens up during both practice sessions or real battles, even expressing gratitude for his friends’ help.
More importantly, Tokoyami is humble and down-to-earth, incorporating input about his strengths and weaknesses into his training, rather than discarding (or half-heartedly following) the advice given. His fans might find him a tad morbid, but in terms of solidarity, Tokoyami is solid gold.
Ochaco Uraraka
Ochaco Uraraka is a ray of sunshine in every sense of the phrase; she has yet to turn away someone who has come asking for assistance, and it’s improbable that she ever will (irrespective of the difficulty of the mission entrusted to her).
She is extremely close to Tenya Ida, Tsuyu Asui, and Izuku Midoriya, genuinely taking an interest in their well-being. Uraraka fans are already aware that it’s an easy enough task to become friends with her because she’s such an obviously amicable person.
Tsuyu Asui
Tsuyu Asui looks timid and docile, but her personality is quite the opposite. She is well-known for her unyielding principles, like when she attempts to prevent Deku et al. from saving Bakugo. Tsuyu’s directness, in addition to her rational expectations, is a refreshing change of pace for a show that focuses heavily on emotional interactions.
Regardless, she is loved by most of her class, and she reciprocates by referring to her friends with “-chan”, an honorific indicating affection. As such, Tsuyu will extend her hand in friendship to her fans, there’s no doubt about that.
Eijiro Kirishima
Kirishima talks a lot about masculinity, but his version is more related to the medieval concept of chivalry than anything else. He doesn’t hesitate when it comes to complimenting others for their successes while avoiding negative criticism at the same time.
Further, he is the only character in Class 1-A able to get through Bakugo’s shield of aggression and become close friends with nothing more than sheer willpower. In other words, it’s not possible to resist Kirishima’s charisma for too long, not that his fans would ever want to.
