Extra Content from Volume 15 (Vigilantes).
Number 6: Destruction Style#
The Rough Design#
Number 6 Destruction Style
Jaw Fists > On the small side Legs
Long neck
Early draft
In center is Rock's skull
Skele-jaw goes clack-clack
Behind the Scenes#
The starting concepts here were a "giant energy form reminiscent of All Might's shape" and "top of skull explodes off to reveal brain." But at the last minute, I realized that the skull/brain aspect is barely visible given the giant body, so I panicked and called an emergency meeting with production and design. Good memories. I love how this guy comes off as such an abomination.
-Furuhashi
Giving this giant relatively small extremities only adds to the grotesque vibe – which is great from a design standpoint – but it didn't mesh too well when it came time to draw action scenes. Ultimately, I settled on a more ordinary, balanced design.
-Betten
Master and Pop#
Looking back, the gang actually split up relatively early in the story, but the Koichi/Master/Pop trio was really fundamental. Those days spent with Master and Pop formed the cornerstone underpinning all of Koichi's efforts. At the same time, if those three had stayed together, I don't think Koichi ever could've spread his wings the way he did.
-Furuhashi
Somewhere along the way, I grew really attached to these two. In the behind-the-scenes commentary in volume 1, I mentioned that Koichi's silhouette is meant to be reminiscent of Deku's. Meanwhile, I made sure that Pop gave off the complete opposite impression of Ochaco – the leading lady in the main series. I never had any doubt that readers would be pumped whenever Master showed up in a chapter, so when drawing him, I found myself particularly inspired, honestly and truly.
-Betten
Koichi: The Column#
In middle/high school
His face, early on
Koichi is the sort of protagonist who never judges others. I think that makes him a unique kind of hero, only made possible by the fact that this story is a spin-off of a series about heroes. You come in knowing that there are other people running around who can flex their power and authority in a more official capacity.
-Furuhashi
The thing about a long-running series is, a character's face can really change along the way (woof!). When I was designing Koichi at the very start, I was sure to make him easy to draw, with not too many bits, bobs, and accessories. Why not make my life easy, right? But by volume 3, he'd alredy acquired all these little pieces of armor, and I just wanted to die. Koichi's middle school hairstyle didn't elicit much of a reaction from anyone, but I'm a fan.
-Betten
The People of Naruhata#
The NaruFest group, the Hoppers crew, Soga's gang... The various Naruhata denizens were initially thrown into the story almost at random to serve one small part or another, but once they'd shown up two or three times, they were sort of locked in more solidly as residents of the neighborhood. Most of them eventually mellowed out and settled into their roles, but bigger egos like Miu and Kamayan were key players who helped push the story forward. I was glad to have them around.
-Furuhashi
They all turned out to be pretty great characters in the end... Most of them - including Soga and his two pals - were one-offs who I thought would show up and never be seen again, one and done. When they inevitably did make a reappearance, I was like, "How do I even draw such and such again?" Then I'd have to dig through my old drafts. In a funny way, these minor characters were a big burden on the art side of things! (weeps)
-Betten
The Educators#
Throughout Vigilantes, I consistently characterized Eraser Head (Shota Aizawa) as a wry cynic. Or as someone who puts on a gruff face, but it's mostly an act. That tends to be an attitude taken by people who have trouble owning up to who they really are, so their school friends make an effort to be especially patient and nurturing with them. That was the idea here.
-Furuhashi
Man, Aizawa Sensei's flashback brings back memories. Looking back now, I think it would've made sense to have them wearing summer clothes, but the concept art for Shirakumo from Horikoshi Sensei at the time had him in a winter outfit, so I just kind of rolled with it without thinking too hard... (Currently reflecting on that.)
-Betten
The Top Two and Detective Tsukauchi#
I had a problem, which I'll call the Tsukauchi Casualness Dilemma. In short, I never found the right opportunity for Tsukauchi to switch from formal to casual speech when talking with All Might. In contrast, he's always spoken to Endeavor in a casual way, probably because they've worked together on so many joint operations. In comparison, All Might is all about those solo missions, so Tsukauchi is still a little stiff around him.
-Furuhashi
I tried to make the Vigilantes version of Tsukauchi resemble the way he is at the start of the main series... but then Tsukauchi in the main series drifted further and further from his original vibe, which filled me with anxiety whenever I had to portray him. (LOL) Drawing All Might and Endeavor was always fun but difficult!
-Betten
All For One and Rock#
While writing up scenes with Rock (Number 6) where he's this unidentified creeper plotting in the shadows, I naturally arrived at a new personal motivation for him. Namely, that he'd try to take Koichi's place as a way to give himself the identity he's been missing all along. It was a similar process that led him to be drawn in by Koichi and pulled away from All For One's own wicked designs.
-Furuhashi
When it came to O'Clock II (a.k.a. Rock), I actually had his deign ready to go really early on, but his appearacnes were few and far between. I spent time drawing him anyway. (LOL) I really wish we could've seen a showdown between him and Koichi, after Koichi was more or less recognized as a hero by society.
-Betten
Makoto and Captain Celebrity#
Initially, Makoto existed mostly to give lectures about heroes and society, and Captain Celebrity was a pretty generic, obnoxious elite dude. But put them together, and the ball really starts rolling. Cap's development partially came about through happenstance, but from the very start, I had a feeling that he'd be a lot more fun as a character when he's being dominated by the women around him.
-Furuhashi
In creative works, I love it when two characters get along really poorly, but in a fun way. So as soon as Cap came onto the scene and was a real jerk in his interactions with Koichi, I was digging it. Makoto came off as more of a gyaru archetype at first, so I feel like her wardrobe expanded dramatically as time went on. She's the type who knows just how to conduct herself according to the time, place, and situation, so the varied wardrobe also worked with that angle.
-Betten
The Hero Cadet in "What-If" World#
Koichi at U.A. High
Iwao Oguro Rogue Educator
Knuckleduster: Punch dem villains.
Illustration: Betten Court
The Skycrawler#
- Real Name: Koichi Haimawari
- Birthday: 2/22
- Height: 172 cm
- Favorite Thing: Mild Curry
- Quirk: Flight
The Rough Design#
Skycrawler Skintight suit befitting a hero
Hood on
This could work too?
Standard style
Theme color is in between sky blue (like C.C.) and royal blue (like All Might)
Behind the Scenes#
The plan was always to have him end up as a hero overseas, but I didn't want people to think that Koichi was just handed this golden opportunity out of the blue, so I had to spend years building up his character and spirit to show that he'd earned it. Fun fact: his code name over the comms is "CCC-02" because he's the second hero at the Captain Celebrity Corporation. You pronounce that "cee-cubed-oh-two"
-Furuhashi
The request from Furuhashi was something like, "Make him look like C.C.'s sidekick while preserving the Crawler look (All Might hoodie)," I think? Then I added a bit of a Spider-Man vibe. Look at our boy, so impressive...
-Betten Court
Afterword#
The world of My Hero Academia is one where the existence of heroes has been formalized, but before that system was in place, we can assume there was a period when people deserving the title of hero emerged all on their own (chapter 1 of the mains series touches on that concept).
I thought it would be amazing to portray people who by all accounts you wouldn't expect to exist in the current, modern society. Natural-born heroes. Throwbacks to those progenitors. Especially the moment when someone ordinary becomes a hero.
I'm grateful to My Hero Academia for providing a setting for my side story about regular people in a society full of heroes.
Thank you to Horikoshi Sensei, Betten Sensei, everyone we work with, and all of you readers!
-Hideyuki Furuhashi
June 2022
Afterword 2#
All along, I've been getting these awesome storyboards from Furuhashi and practically drooling as I got the chance to draw them out, and before I knew it, almost six years had passed...
I'm torn between profound satisfaction over doing what we set out to do and the desire to have kept it going just a little bit longer. I wish we could've spent more easy-breezy days with Koichi, Pop, and Master. Or seen more of C.C. and Koichi squabbling, back in those early days. Or witnessed Koichi's struggles as a hero in NYC (okay, that's actually a lot of things)...
I hope we can meet again someday, and I'll do my best to make that happen!
Thank you ·
-Betten Court
June 2022
Art Contribution from Horikoshi Sensei#
Congratulations on Finishing!
Thanks for getting people even more excited for MHA over the years! I've learned so much from your efforts ·