Highlights
- The way Deku uses OFA is different from his predecessors, showcasing a mastery of multiple quirks in battle.
- OFA users focused on developing innate quirks, while Deku creates synergy between multiple quirks for combat.
- Deku’s unique approach to utilizing every quirk within OFA makes him arguably the best wielder in history.
Warning: The following contains spoilers for the My Hero Academia manga not yet covered in the anime.
Deku received the mysterious quirk known as One-For-All (OFA) at the start of My Hero Academia and has used it numerous times throughout the series to thrive in combat and defeat countless villains. OFA itself is a quirk that can be passed down from one person to the next, and it is also the antithesis of All-For-One, the quirk used by the greatest villain in the story.
While OFA was wielded by some of the greatest heroes in history, such as All Might and Nana Shimura, the way they used this quirk was quite different from one another. Some managed to unlock the full potential of OFA, while others barely used it at all. So, as the 9th wielder of OFA, what makes Deku different from his predecessors?
How the Previous OFA Users Fight
At its core, One-For-All is a quirk that allows its users to stock-pile powers and transfer them to another person. As this quirk was passed down from one generation to the next, the original quirk of the wielders was also transferred along with the OFA. This unique nature created two distinct ways of using the OFA.
Focus on Developing Their Innate Quirks
|
Character’s Name |
Kudo (2nd wielder of OFA) |
|---|---|
|
First Appearance |
Episode 20 |
|
Release Date |
September 29, 2018 |
For those who already have an innate quirk in their body, which was everybody from the 2nd to the 7th wielders of OFA, they mostly focus on developing their innate quirk first. After all, mastering your own quirk is already a big challenge, so it’s nearly impossible to master another quirk at the same time.
That’s why the 2nd to the 7th wielders focused more on learning everything that they could about this strange quirk instead. In doing so, they managed to pass down valuable knowledge to the next generation.
Harnessing the Essence of the One-For-All
|
Character’s Name |
Yoichi Shigaraki (1st wielder of OFA) |
|---|---|
|
First Appearance |
Episode 20 |
|
Release Date |
September 29, 2018 |
Not every OFA wielder has an innate quirk. Just like Yoichi Shigaraki, the first user who instinctively manifested OFA in order to defeat his evil brother, the 8th (All Might) and 9th (Deku) wielders were originally quirkless.
Since they didn’t have a quirk before they received OFA, they learned to harness the OFA’s ability to stock-piled energy instead. Thanks to this, All Might successfully manifested superhuman powers that he wisely used to protect innocent people for decades. When Deku received the OFA, he too tried to use it just like All Might.
Unfortunately, his body is not suited to handle such a massive amount of energy. That’s why he often breaks his bones and tears his muscles when using even 10% of the stocked-piled energy. But as time progresses, Deku finally finds his own way to utilize OFA to the fullest.
What Makes Deku Different From Other OFA Users
Deku usually used All Might’s absurd physical power as his main offense and defense. But everything changed when he suddenly gained access to Blackwhip, the quirk of the 5th user of OFA, during the Joint Training Arc.
Going Beyond All Might
While All Might’s mighty power was too much for Deku at first, he slowly got used to it and eventually succeeded in controlling that absurd power. But ever since Blackwhip appeared out of nowhere, Deku finally realized that there’s more to OFA than All Might’s raw power. So he decided to learn more about this strange quirk that his idol bestowed upon him.
Blackwhip was the first quirk of the past that manifested out of OFA and it was also the first one that Deku mastered other than All Might’s power. As time went by, other past quirks began to reveal themselves. There’s the 2nd’s Gearshift, the 3rd’s Fa Jin, the 4th’s Danger Sense, the 6th’s Smoke Screen, and finally the 7th’s Float. Slowly but surely, Deku went beyond All Might.
In Search of Synergy
Being able to use multiple quirks doesn’t automatically make Deku a powerful hero. Because although it is hard to admit, those aforementioned quirks are not particularly strong. Bakugo even remarks that those past OFA quirks are inferior to his Explosion quirks, which All Might concurs.
They weren’t really chosen ones. Through all those battles…all they could do was receive it and then entrust it to another.
The key is not to use them individually, but rather to find a way to create a synergy between each quirk. The goal is to use the quirks interchangeably so that Deku can utilize them in any given situation against any kind of enemy.
How Deku uses OFA
Purposely using multiple quirks in the same fight is quite overwhelming. But thanks to Deku consistently forcing himself to use these newly-found quirks during his days as a vigilante in the Dark Hero Arc, he eventually finds a way to properly use every OFA’s quirks during live combat situations.
Quirks are Tools
Nowadays, rather than using those quirks as random superpowers, Midoriya is treating them more like tools. They are a means to an end. Once he adopts that mindset, his combat tactics are greatly expanded. That’s why it doesn’t take a long time for handling multiple quirks to become second nature to him.
For example, Blackwhip is perfect for catching numerous people at the same time or traversing from one building to the next. Meanwhile, Fa Jin and Gearshift are better when used in conjunction with other quirks that can increase Deku’s momentum, such as All Might’s power or Banjo’s Blackwhip.
Deku’s OFA vs Shigaraki’s AFO
The moment when it’s clear that Deku has finally achieved the perfect synergy between every quirk within his arsenal happens during his recent fight against Shigaraki. There is one particular scene when Deku uses multiple quirks in succession to land a devastating blow to Shigaraki. It happened during their fight at the U.A. Floating Fortress.
First, Deku narrowly evades Shigaraki’s attack with the 4th’s Danger Sense. Then he immediately activated the 6th’s Smokescreen to obscure Shigaraki’s vision and quickly launched himself upward with the 7th’s Float. After that, he uses the 5th’s Blackwhip to catch and yank Shigaraki into the air.
Deku then unleashes the bountiful energy stored with the 3rd’s Fa Jin which has been boosted multiple folds with the 2nd’s Gearshift to gain an unbelievable amount of downward momentum to deliver a devastating strike to Shigaraki’s body with the 8th’s pure muscle power.
Nobody else had ever used the One-For-All in such a way. Nobody else managed to incorporate every quirk within OFA to execute a continuous chain of attacks like that. That is what ultimately makes Deku different than his predecessors. And that is why he is arguably the best OFA wielder in history.
My Hero Academia is available to stream on Crunchyroll.
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