Summary
My Hero Academiawould not be what fans know it to be without the existence of quirks. This anime revolves around this superhuman ability that can be found in about 80% of the population of people living in theMy Hero Academiaworld. This existence led to the birth of heroes, people who use their powers for good, and villains, people who abuse their powers.
The origin of this mysterious ability is still quite unknown. It can only be traced back to the newborn baby in Qing Qing, who lit up from birth, but there is nothing other than that. Quirks are passed down genetically, and as each generation passes, the quirk gene becomes stronger and more complex.
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The Genetics Of Quirks
Quirks are dominantly hereditary; a child will most likely inherit a quirk if one or both of the child’s parents possess a quirk. The means of passage are through dominant and recessive traits, where there is a higher chance of passing down a quirk if it is a dominant trait. If the quirk is a recessive trait, it might not be passed down.
Quirks passed down are mostly single abilities or combinations. Quirks are, in rare cases, double, just like Todoroki, who has the perfect combination of his father’s fire quirk and his mother’s icy quirk. There are cases whereby a child does not inherit a quirk, and with over 80% of people having quirks, it is really rare and worrisome. Midoriya, the main character of My Hero Academia, was born without a quirk, which was ruled out asa genetic anomaly.
A child born with a quirk usually manifests at the age of four, and in some rare cases, the child manifests from the moment they are born. A quite fascinating way of telling if a child has a quirk is if they have an extra joint in their pinky toe. If they have an extra,the child is considered quirkless, but if they have just one joint, there’s a quirk.
Variation In Family Quirks
In this world, families are important when it comes to quirks. An individual’s family line will determine the type of quirk they will have. It could be the mother’s quirk, the father’s quirk, or a mix of both that births something new. Based on the type of quirk in their family line, every quirk user falls into one ofthese three categories: emitter, transformation, or mutant.
Emitters are people with the ability to change the world around them.Shigaraki is an emitter, as he uses his decay abilities to destroy people and objects around him. Eraserhead is also one, as he can use his eraser ability to take away one’s quirk for a period of time. Other emitters include Todoroki and Uraraka. These individuals all feel some kind of pain and discomfort when they emit power from their bodies for too long.
Transformation is a rare quirk type that requires concentration.Seiji Shishikurahas this transformation ability. His quirk is the only known transformation quirk that allows him to transform others into lumps of flesh. Easy to identify as it alters the user’s personal appearance permanently, heroes with mutant quirks include Froppy, The Invisible Girl, Sero, and Iida. Froppy has a frog-like appearance to match her frog quirk; the Invisible Girl is invisible just like her given ability; Sero has his body modified in order to accommodate his tape-shooting quirk; and Iida has exhaust pipes at the back of his calves to support his engine-like quirk. All these characteristics are because of their family lineage.
The In-Universe Science Behind Quirk Mutations
The origin of quirks is still quite unknown to viewers and even individuals in the My Hero Academia world. There are scientists who are constantly trying to understand this sudden phenomenon, and there has been little to zero leeway. The known science behind quirk is that it is passed down through dominant and recessive dynamics. Iida’s family has the engine quirk as a dominant gene, so much so that it physically alters their bodies permanently. It is believed that Deku got the shorter end of the stick and was left with his parents' recessive genes, which is why he was born without a quirk.
Quirk mutations can be seen in some of the characters, and fans cannot help but wonder why their quirk has to physically alter their bodies. Quirks combine and grow from generation to generation, and there is this looming fear that as long as quirks are still being passed down and are getting stronger, they will eventually overpower humans.
This led to theQuirk Singularity Theory. This theory suggests that as quirks are combined and passed down, they become stronger, more complex, and more potent. As time goes on, it is believed that quirk users will no longer be able to control their quirks.
