A good hero is measured by the quality of his villains, and Kohei Horikoshi has managed to create a good cast of antagonists ‘My Hero Academia’ (‘Boku no Hero Academia’) who have managed to crown themselves as iconic villains within the manga and anime industry.
Distinctive features from minute zero
Creating a good villain is no small feat, and the mangaka has developed his own process to make these characters interesting for his readers. In the most recent issue of Jump GIGAthe magazine has dedicated a small section to ‘Boku no Hero Academia‘ where the author explains the keys he follows to create a good villain.
Horikoshi reveals how he creates villains! From a brief JUMP GIGA Interview. pic.twitter.com/8NhjKlZH8m
— Atsu 🍭 (@Atsushi101X) May 1, 2022
Hirokoshi was asked what his method is for creating villains, and he says that he always thinks of a single recognizable trait first. “Like with Toga’s hair resembling a flower from hell. So when you’re talking to a friend and you forget a character’s name you can always say ‘yeah, the one with the burned skin.’
Considering how huge the cast of ‘Boku no Hero Academia’ characters is, It is a good strategy to differentiate the characters from the first moment, And that doesn’t just apply to the antagonists in the story.
The physical appearance of the villains is not the only important trait either, but Horikoshi begins to work with this base to give each one their distinctive traits before polishing their personality. Later, the mangaka is also in charge of giving them their own motivations so that they contrast with the heroes and be able to get more out of their confrontations.
The villains of a manga are an indispensable piece for the story to work, and it is seen that the mangaka have them very present when it comes to weaving the new chapters. Horikoshi isn’t the only one trying to work out these contrasts, as the creator of ‘Jujutsu Kaisen’ also seems to have a similar approach when creating the villains for his own manga.