My Hero Academia’s 5 Most Underused Quirks, Ranked by Potential

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Throughout My Hero Academia, some character abilities, called Quirks, develop in compelling ways and become crucial to the plot. However, others with significant potential sadly aren’t used much. While the story mainly follows Izuku Midoriya as he learns to control One for All and the Quirks it contains, he isn’t the only hero whose power is highlighted. We see a lot of action from those with showy, strong Quirks like Bakugo and Todoroki, as well as from those with subtler but helpful abilities like Aizawa’s Erasure and Eri’s Rewind.

Now that My Hero Academia has finished, we’ve seen every Quirk the main story focused on. While the creator, Kohei Horikoshi, is happy with how things turned out, a few Quirks with a lot of promise didn’t get enough attention. Here are five that feel particularly underdeveloped, even though they had interesting possibilities.

5) Anivoice (Koji Koda)

Koji Koda is a frequently underestimated student in Class A of My Hero Academia, much like Rikido Sato and Mashirao Ojiro. While Sato and Ojiro’s Quirks don’t offer many exciting possibilities, Koda’s Anivoice has a lot of potential. Anivoice allows him to talk to and control animals and insects, and though he usually uses this ability to create diversions or launch small attacks, it could be used in much more creative ways.

Koda’s ability to talk to animals had potential beyond what was shown in My Hero Academia. He could have been used for spying, or even controlling powerful creatures to help in battles. Sadly, the series didn’t explore these possibilities, and his power wasn’t fully developed. While not the most overlooked ability in the anime, it still feels like a wasted chance to create a more impactful character.

4) Lizard Tail Splitter (Setsuna Tokage)

In My Hero Academia, students from Class B often don’t get the spotlight, and Setsuna Tokage is a prime example of this. Her Quirk, Lizard Tail Splitter, is incredibly powerful, as demonstrated in Season 5’s Joint Training Arc. It allows her to break her body into multiple, independently controlled pieces, while still being able to hear and communicate with each one.

What’s really cool about that ability is it allows Setsuna to be a real threat. She’s able to secretly explore areas and gather information on enemies – something the heroes in My Hero Academia‘s big battles don’t always do well. It’s a missed opportunity, because this power could be incredibly useful. While it’s not about brute strength, it offers a lot of strategic advantages.

3) Blood Control (Vlad King)

I’m a huge My Hero Academia fan, and honestly, it feels a little sad that Class B gets overlooked so much. It’s almost like their teacher, Vlad King, doesn’t get to really shine either! His Quirk, Blood Control, is seriously cool – he can manipulate his own blood once it’s outside his body. It reminds me a lot of Marie Moreau’s ability in The Boys’ Gen V – the main difference is Vlad King can only control his blood, not anyone else’s. It’s a shame we don’t see it used more often, because it has so much potential!

Marie really shows how useful this ability is, whether she’s fighting or trying to hold someone back. Vlad King had the potential to fight alongside Aizawa against the League of Villains, but he stayed out of the battle, and we missed out on some awesome, albeit a little disturbing, action scenes.

2) Compress (Mr. Compress)

Mr. Compress was captured early on in the League of Villains’ story, meaning we don’t get to see his growth or battles like we do with other members. This might be a good thing, though, because his ability is incredibly powerful and could easily have made the villains too strong. We see just how effective it is in Season 3 of My Hero Academia when he shrinks Bakugo and Tokoyami – two of U.A. High’s most powerful students – and traps them in marbles. If he’d used this ability later on, it likely would have given the villains a significant advantage.

Compress is a surprisingly effective Quirk. It doesn’t inflict direct damage, but shrinking opponents essentially guarantees a victory for the user. By safely removing people from the fight, Mr. Compress makes it incredibly difficult for them to retaliate or break free. Even though the effect isn’t permanent, it gives the villains valuable time to gain an advantage.

1) Black Hole (Thirteen)

In Season 1 of My Hero Academia, we meet Thirteen, a hero with a potentially powerful Quirk. However, their ability, Black Hole, is primarily used for support rather than direct combat. Black Hole allows Thirteen to create small vortexes from their fingertips that can absorb and destroy objects. They mostly use this for cleanup, which makes sense given the anime’s rule against killing – Thirteen’s power could be very dangerous if used offensively.

That’s why Thirteen’s Quirk has so much untapped potential in My Hero Academia. It’s likely the Pro Heroes would have allowed its use against major villains like Shigaraki and All For One. Thirteen could have easily defeated them, particularly if they weren’t expecting it. While it might not have made for a compelling narrative, it would have been a truly shocking display of power.

What unique abilities (Quirks) from My Hero Academia do you wish the show had explored more? Share your thoughts in the comments and discuss with other fans on the ComicBook Forum!

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2025-12-28 06:13