Horikoshi Turned His Biggest Creative Struggle Into My Hero Academia’s Most Beloved Pro Hero
Hawks almost never took flight in My Hero Academia. Creator Kohei Horikoshi says the fan-favorite was a last-minute, crisis-born fix to a story jam—not a character planned from day one.
Every so often, a character who feels absolutely essential was born out of pure scramble mode. Exhibit A: Hawks in My Hero Academia. He was not part of some grand blueprint. He was a late-arrival fix who somehow became the franchise’s smoothest scene-stealer.
The late drop-in
Hawks doesn’t show up until the Pro Hero arc, which is pretty late considering how much ground the series had already covered. Up to that point, the story was pinging between Class 1-A’s grind, All Might’s fall from the top, and the villains steadily taking over the narrative. Then this guy with massive red wings flies in, fires off dry jokes like he’s been here all along, and acts with the kind of confidence that usually belongs to day-one characters. It felt sudden because it was.
Horikoshi says the quiet part
Kohei Horikoshi straight-up admitted Hawks wasn’t a long-term plan. In the Ultra Analysis book, during a chat with Bleach creator Tite Kubo, he put it plainly:
"I created Hawks because I needed someone to fulfill a specific role for the sake of advancing the plot."
Translation: Hawks was a pressure-valve character. The villains were starting to hog the oxygen, and Horikoshi needed a hero who could shake the board and rebalance things. Less muse, more emergency tool.
Why he works anyway
This is where it gets fun. Hawks could have read like a soulless plot device. Instead, he’s genuinely likable: razor-dry, unfazed, hyper-competent. And unlike the pros chasing rank or shouting about being number one 24/7, his ambition is refreshingly simple, which makes him easier to root for.
- Personality: laid-back sarcasm without the try-hard edge.
- Clear motivation: not clout-chasing, just doing the job.
- Quirk: Fierce Wings. Feathers that act like precision tools — blades, shields, even rescue lines — so his fights are quick, flashy, and unpredictable.
- On-screen appeal: tailor-made for dynamic panels and eye-candy animation, which fast-tracked him to fan-favorite status.
The ripple effect
Did the gamble pay off? Completely. Hawks didn’t just plug a hole; he kept the hero-vs.-villain balance from tipping too far and gave the story a new axis to spin around. It’s a neat bit of inside baseball about shonen: some of the coolest, most popular characters aren’t painstakingly plotted from day one — they’re built under deadline pressure to solve a problem, then they take on a life of their own. Horikoshi needed a bridge. He ended up with a franchise pillar.
Where to watch
My Hero Academia is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.
Your turn
Would My Hero Academia feel the same without Hawks? Drop your take below — I’m guessing not, but convince me.