Midoriya Izuku
| Character | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Izuku Midoriya (緑谷出久, Midoriya Izuku), Deku (デク) |
| Occupation: | U.A. High School Student |
| Relationships: | Inko Midoriya (mother), All Might/Yagi Toshinori (mentor) |
| Fandom: | Boku no Hero Academia |
| Other: | |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Izuku Midoriya (緑谷出久, Midoriya Izuku), also known as Deku (デク), is the protagonist of the shounen manga and anime series Boku no Hero Academia by Kōhei Horikoshi.
Canon
In a world where having a Quirk is the norm, Midoriya Izuku has no special powers. He's admired the Heroes who fight Villains, but his society does not approve of the idea of a Hero without a Quirk. Enforcing this societal view is Midoriya's childhood best friend turned childhood bully, Bakugou Katsuki. Bakugou calls Midoriya "Deku," worthless. Midoriya meeta his idol, All Might. All Might lets slip the secret that his power has significantly decreased because of a major injury from a Villain battle , and after Midoriya risks his life to save Bakugou All Might agrees to mentor him. All Might reveals that his powers are inheritable, and each possesser of his Quirk One For All chooses their successor. Midoriya inherits the power of One for All from All Might and becomes student in the hero course at U.A. High School.
Midoriya wants to enter Yuuei, or UA, the preeminent high school for teaching future Heroes. On the day of the Entrance Exam, All Might gives Midoriya one of his hairs to eat. With the power of One For All granted to him by the hair, Midoriya saves another prospective student, Uraraka, but using the power breaks his limbs.
Midoriya is accepted into Yuuei and joins Class 1-A with their teachers Eraserhead and All Might. Midoriya struggles to live up to the legacy of All Might, to control his power, and to survive against Villains.
Since he greatly admires Heroes and has always aimed to be one, he has a habit of writing down in his notebooks all he knows about heroes and their quirks, including other UA students. He is a very caring person, and will never hesitate to rescue someone in danger, even if he knows he's not strong enough. He wants to be a hero who, like All Might, can save everyone with a smile on his face.
Quirk
One For All: Given to him from Toshinori Yagi (All Might), Midoriya's Quirk gives him access to stockpiled power, granting him superhuman strength and greatly enhanced agility and mobility by spreading his power through his body.
Since he inherited his Quirk later in life, he has trouble learning to control and often injures himself while using his power. Though he has yet to demonstrate superhuman speed, immense reflexes, and durability on the level of All Might, Midoriya has shown to be able to properly control a small percentage of One For All's power, using it to enhance his strength, speed, and agility. If Midoriya does not keep One For All below his current limit of 20%, his body can be immensely damaged by the force of his movements. Midoriya has also displayed a type of mental connection to the previous users of One For All.
Fandom
Fic Tropes
Two large tropes for the fanfic are alternate Quirks for Deku and Villain!Deku. Many AUs give Midoriya a Quirk from birth, usually one that comes with a problem or which he has to hide during his childhood for some reason, and often Midoriya is still given One For All by All Might. In Villain!Deku AUs, the origin stories for Midoriya's villainy vary, but often he is kidnapped and forced to work by the League of Villains, only to be found and treated mercifully for his still-good heart by the staff at Yuuei--though some fic take a more vindictive route and have him driven to villainy by the poor treatment of those around him, especially Bakugou. Villain!Deku fics also frequently give him a yandere personality type for shipping purposes. Many Villain!Deku fics that take this route are Bakudeku though other ships use this trope as well.
Other common tropes are Vigilante or Quirkless Midoriya.
Izuku is commonly used to explore childhood bullying and abuse, using his experiences with Bakugou and the society prejudiced against the quirkless to look at how this can affect a person and how they might deal with it. Some characteristics might be added, like a persistent stutter, and there are many AUs where he has things worse from changed circumstances or an unfortunate quirk which emphasise how much he has to deal with. Tododeku fics exploring this aspect of his past and character may look at how both he and Todoroki had troubled childhoods, while Bakudeku fics that center this often explore either unhealthy relationships/power imbalance or how a bully and their victim might grow, mature, and reconcile.
Dekusquad
The Dekusquad is the fanon name for Midoriya's friend group. Members always include his canonical closest friends, Uraraka Ochako and Iida Tenya, as well as the popular character Todoroki Shouto. Fic from earlier in the manga's run almost always includes Tsuyu Asui as the fifth member of the group, but which student held the fifth spot in the group began to diversify. Yaoyorozu Momo has become a popular choice, probably for her growing friendship with Todoroki and prominence in the story, as well as sometimes Shinsou Hitoshi. Dekusquad may also refer to the poly ship between the group.
Shipping
With the large numbers of characters, there are many variations of ships, especially since there has not yet been any canon examples of romance. Earlier fandom was interested jn the DekuBowl, a friendly competition over ships involving Midoriya. The most common Midoriya ships are Tododeku and Bakudeku, with the most popular het ship being Uraraka/Deku, a ship close to canon given Uraraka's crush on Deku. As the main character, Midoriya has been involved in a very wide selection of ships- those listed below are just the most popular.
Notable Ships
- Todoroki Shouto/Midoriya or Tododeku
- Bakugou Katsuki/Midoriya or Bakudeku
- Uraraka Ochako/Midoriya or IzuOcha
- Iida Tenya/Midoriya or Iideku
- Toga Himiko/Midoriya or TogaDeku
- Shinsou Hitoshi/Midoriya or ShinDeku
Gen Pairings
Example Fanworks
| Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples. |
Fan Fiction
- In A Sky Of A Million Stars (Who Cares If One More Light Goes Out?) by Stringlish CW: Attempted Suicide
- Yesterday Upon the Stair by PitViperOfDoom
- Hero Class Civil Warfare by RogueDruid (Icarius51)
- Anyone by Gentrychild
- Pied Piper by Blackholeca
Comics and Dōjinshi
Fanart
"Midoriya Izuku as The Kingpin" based on the fanfic Hero Class Civil Warfare, art by meilienne on Tumblr
"Midoriya Izuku as The Kingpin" based on the fanfic Hero Class Civil Warfare, art by meilienne on Tumblr
"Midoriya Izuku Fanart", art by JohnnyAzad on Twitter
Archives and Communities
- Midoriya Izuku on Archive of Our Own
- #緑谷出久 on Pixiv
- [FanFiction.Net story and crossover filters]