Vigilante: Boku no Hero Academia Illegals

In a world filled with superpowered Quirk users, college student Kouichi Haimawari's dream is to become a hero just like the ones he so admires. Unfortunately for him, he finds out that there is only so much he can do with a sliding ability that gives him about as much speed as a bicycle. Thus, he is drawn to extra-legal, simpler work and takes on various local tasks beyond the grasp of the police and licensed heroes.

However, a chance encounter with two misfits, a brash brawler vigilante who goes by Knuckleduster and the online sensation Pop☆Step, gives Kouichi the opportunity he has always dreamed about. With a dangerous new Quirk-enhancing drug turning ordinary people into instant villains, Kouichi finds himself accompanying the two in a quest to stop the drug from spreading. As the trio tries to get to the bottom of the case, the chaotic team looks to put a stop to wrongdoers that go overlooked by the law.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Haimawari, Kouichi Main

Umeda, Shuuichirou Japanese

Knuckleduster Main

Mamiya, Yasuhiro Japanese

Haneyama, Kazuho Main

Hasegawa, Ikumi Japanese

Midoriya, Izuku Supporting

Yamashita, Daiki Japanese

All Might Supporting

Miyake, Kenta Japanese

Aizawa, Shouta Supporting

Suwabe, Junichi Japanese

Iida, Tenya Supporting

Todoroki, Enji Supporting

Inada, Tetsu Japanese

Akaguro, Chizome Supporting

Inoue, Gou Japanese

Yamada, Hizashi Supporting

Yoshino, Hiroyuki Japanese

Kondou, Anna Producer

Suzuki, Kenichi Director, Episode Director, Storyboard

Mima, Masafumi Sound Director

Hori, Motonobu Episode Director

Reviews

Nov 10, 2025

_Bubassotto_

Recommended

A spin-off that expands the world of My Hero Academia!

I wouldn't say I loved this spin-off because I'm not such a big fan of My Hero Academia anymore, but as a separate series, I can't deny that it makes the world of My Hero Academia feel more alive.

A long time ago I thought about collecting the Illegals manga, but I ended up letting it go. However, what matters is the reason for this interest. It came at a time when My Hero Academia was receiving a lot of criticism (at least here in Brazil) about the main plot, and people were comparing the main story ... to Illegals, saying that this version of the work was better than the main one. I believe my admiration for this version comes from the fact that it remains more faithful to its initial premise, being more grounded and bringing the reality of an older audience (20+ years old). In my opinion, it's easier for this audience to identify with the characters' experiences.

Anyway, I do recommend watching this spin-off because it has a more grounded plot focused on the initial premise of BNH. There are no promises to be fulfilled in the future or anything like that; all we have is the experience of people trying to be heroes despite all the responsibilities of their daily lives, whether it's studying or working. My final rating is a 7; it's nice to watch to pass the time.

=================================================================================================================Versão em Português=====================================

Um spin off que expande o mundo de Boku no Hero!

Não digo que amei esse spin off pois não sou mais tão fã de BNH, mas como uma serie a parte eu não posso deixar de admitir que ela torna o mundo de BNH mais vivo.

A muito tempo cheguei a pensar em colecionar o mangá de Illegals mas acabei deixando passar isso, porem o que importa é o motivo desse interesse, ele veio na epoca em que BNH estava recebendo muitas criticas (ao menos aqui no Brasil) sobre a trama principal e comparavam a trava principal com essa de Illegals dizendo que essa versão da obra estava melhor do que a principal. A admiração por essa versão acredito que venha do fato dela se manter mais fiel a sua proposta inicial sendo mais pé no chão e trazendo a realidade do publico mais velho (20 anos +), aqui é mais facil para esse mesmo publico se identificar com as vivencias dos personagens na minha opinião.

De todo modo, recomendo sim que vejam esse spin off pois aqui você tem uma trama mais pé no chão e com foco na premissa inicial de BNH, não há promessas para se cumprir no futuro ou algo assim, tudo que temos é a vivencia de pessoas tentando ser heróis mesmo com todos os afazeres do seu dia a dia, seja com estudo ou trabalho. Minha nota final é um 7, é legalsinho de se ver para passar o tempo.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Aug 16, 2025

Otaku_Senpai

Mixed Feelings

the show has potential. The main characters have all have limited power and will have to use them efficiently. They don't have the training from a proper school like Hero Academia. So it would make sense if they are not that good at fighting as pro heros.
The vigilantes are not that strong and take on smaller villains. I like that. My favorite character is the buffed dude who doesn't have any quirk but is so tough he is the strongest of the Vigilantes. He has Batman vibes, maybe he was inspired by Batman?
One of my minor gripes with the show is this. {Spoilers} ... During the concert I thought one of the blue haired girls sprained her ankle and was suppose to take the center position as she wouldn't have to move then. Yet at when the concert was live all that plan was forgotten? Did the writer forget?

I am looking forward to more seasons. What I like most about the show is our protagonists are often weaker than the villain's and often need help of pro hero's to save them. They are nowhere near as strong as Deku or Midoriya.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Jul 12, 2025

MrPositron

Not Recommended

What a let down.

In a series that has had a serious rollercoaster in quality every season, Vigilantes is a chapter that is a low point in a completely different way than the main series.

The idea behind the show is a good one. A chance to have a hero plot like the main series, but lower stakes in small city. But instead it gets distracted constantly. The main plot was supposed to be the instant villains popping up and finding who's behind the distribution of the drug trigger, but it quickly shoved that to the side. It focused much more on the other characters and ... the little subplots they were involved with for an episode. Another issue carried over from the main show where the side characters get way too much time in the plot.

This is exacerbated by the fact that the main character basically does nothing the entire season. They throw in minor developments to how his powers could develop, but after teasing it a couple episodes it swings to the next distraction. He's constantly just being dragged around to help out various characters, but never actually seems to make an impact, or even defeat a villain in a way that feels earned. Even in the final major fight of the season he's not present, or even aware that it was going on, instead being involved with another side plot. Even Midoriya was somewhat involved with each season's major confrontations. Kouichi is basically invisible.

And perhaps most annoying of all is the frequent dropping of characters from the main series into the plot out of nowhere. It's as if they thought you would forget it was a MHA spinoff unless they added one of the teachers into an episode fighting a villain. And an origin story for why a particular character looks the way they do is hilariously added as if you need an explanation for a minor detail.

The show ends up feeling like a waste of time and neither separates it from MHA in a way that's interesting or supplements the main series in a satisfying way. It just ends up falling flat and doesn't give enough interesting directions the plot can go that can justify a person watching the second season.

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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