My Hero Academia: Training of the Dead
Synopsis — from MyAnimeList
Returning from their internships, the students of Class 1-A are immediately thrown into more training by their homeroom teacher, Shouta Aizawa. For this exercise, the class will be joining four students from Isamu Academy High School to compete in a survival game. Split up into groups of four, students must either eliminate each other or stay hidden until time runs out to win. The training also acts as a reunion between Tsuyu Asui and her friend from middle school, Habuko Mongoose. However, not all the students from Isamu are friendly—Katsuki Bakugou almost instantly picks a fight with Romero Fujimi. The conflict between the two leads Romero to angrily release his Quirk, a gas which zombifies anyone it comes in contact with. How will the remaining students deal with the situation after most of the people around them turn into zombies?
Audience Consensus
Audience reception for this OVA is generally positive, with many enjoying its comedic elements, fun action, and focus on Asui's character. However, a significant portion of viewers felt it was ultimately skippable filler with a somewhat forced plot and underdeveloped new characters, leading to mild disagreement on its overall value.
Strengths
- Good animation for action sequences like Bakugo's fight.
- Enjoyable humor and comedic timing.
- Strong character development for Asui (Tsuyu).
- Introduces interesting new quirks and characters.
- Maintains character consistency (not OOC).
- Offers a fun and lighthearted experience suitable for an OVA.
Weaknesses
- Story is somewhat unoriginal and predictable.
- Plot development is minimal and doesn't significantly impact the main series.
- New characters, apart from a few, can feel underdeveloped or derivative (e.g., zombie-quirk guy as a Bakugo copy).
- Animation can be choppy or bland in some scenes.
- Lack of new music or memorable sound design.
- Felt like filler and not essential to the main narrative.
- The zombie theme felt somewhat out of place for the MHA universe.
- The ending felt rushed.