My Hero Academia You’re Next Is Just One Big Homage

Key Takeaways

• My Hero Academia: You’re Next echoes Fullmetal Alchemist, showcasing a homage to Bones’ popular franchise.
• The film’s characters, themes, and powers draw clear parallels to Fullmetal Alchemist in fun, sometimes subtle ways.
• Through references like Dark Might’s “Alchemy” quirk, and the central narrative surrounding Giulio and Anna, You’re Next pays tribute to Bones’ iconic anime.

My Hero Academia: You’re Next exploded into North American theaters this past month, keeping the series’ winning streak strong with another spectacular, fun action film. However, it didn’t take long after watching for fans to notice similarities between this movie and another project from the same studio, leading many to ask, “Is this just a Fullmetal Alchemist tribute?”

For perspective, Bones, the studio behind My Hero Academia, is celebrating a quarter-century of animated works this year, to which You’re Next certainly feels like the biggest gift to longtime fans. Fullmetal Alchemist, written and illustrated by Hiromu Arakawa, was adapted not once, but twice by Bones, and is by far their most popular franchise in an already impressive portfolio.

The Many Mounting Similarities

Prior to the release of My Hero Academia’s new film, one could be forgiven for not noticing the similarities, largely because of how they are implemented in the story. At most, it might have struck some fans as a fun coincidence that the main theme by musical artist Vaundy was titled “Homunculus”, the same title used to describe the villains in Fullmetal Alchemist. Plus, it is Bones’ 25th anniversary after all; a cute little nod would make sense.

But then the film came out, and the accumulation of coincidences signaled something a lot more conscious. The logline of You’re Next is that a powerful villain bearing the face of the former #1 hero, All Might, is wreaking havoc alongside seven members of his crime family. Similarly, Fullmetal Alchemist’s main villain wore the face of the protagonist’s father and commanded the seven homunculi, all of whom were based on the Seven Deadly Sins.

The Gollini Family & The Homunculi

The members of the Gollini Family each vaguely evoke members of the homunculi – some more heavily than others. For example, Deborah is probably the easiest to place, resembling Lust in both style and performance. One prominent villain from the first act even seems to be a clear analog for Gluttony, but he’s not even technically a member of the crime family.

Granted, if one counts Gil and Hugo as one person – seeing as how they are never apart – then the whole cast of baddies fits the mold well enough. This is just the tip of the iceberg by the way, but if the threads connecting these stories seem thin so far, the overall vision truly starts to come into focus during the final act, with the utterance of a single word: “Alchemy”.

Dark Might’s Quirk Is A Blatant Love Letter

In Fullmetal Alchemist, alchemy is the story’s magic system, wherein users can alter matter through the process of transmutation, such as changing the shapes of objects. Dark Might, the antagonist of You’re Next, possesses a quirk simply called “Alchemy”, which operates in the same way. Up until the explicit explanation of his quirk, though, that’s not exactly clear; for all anyone knows, it’s some ability that lets him broadly alter reality.

Funnily enough, My Hero Academia perfectly demonstrates how simple yet deep Fullmetal Alchemist’s magic system is by wholly transplanting it into a different story. The rules governing his power are extremely versatile, creating something of a mystery as to what exactly his quirk is for the film’s duration. All it takes is a few lines of dialog and the start of the final battle for even a viewer unfamiliar with Fullmetal Alchemist to understand how “Alchemy” works.

As for those who are familiar with the series and its unique style of action, You’re Next feels like it’s actively rekindling the magic from the days of Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. No alchemy fight would be complete without pillars of earth shooting out from the ground to pummel and entrap opponents, and somehow, no one can quite animate that effect like Bones does.

Giulio and Anna Take These Comparisons Even Further

Part of what makes these references so effective is the same reason why not everyone may notice them. Namely, the way they are presented is rather subtle. Take the new supporting character Giulio Gandini, for instance. He bears very little resemblance to Fullmetal Alchemist’s protagonist, Edward Elric – in aesthetic or personality. Yet, notice how both are missing the same arm and leg. Added to that, both characters transform their prosthetics into weapons.

Giulio is a special case in general because his character feels like a reference to more than just Edward. As we pointed out in our review of the film, his quirk lets him nullify other quirks and he’s voiced in the Japanese version by Mamoru Miyano. Osamu Dazai from Bones’ adaptation of Bungo Stray Dogs, also voiced by Miyano, has the same power. Throughout the film, there are likely callbacks to way more projects than just Fullmetal Alchemist waiting to be discovered.

Anna is Practically a Philosopher’s Stone

Anna Scervino, another major character in the film, is especially puzzling because although the intent behind her similarities could be purely coincidental, there are a lot of them. The way she looks, especially when the roots of her hair start changing color, is reminiscent of the character Rose Tomas, and funnily enough, her ability is visually represented by roses. Most crucially, however, her function in the plot makes her a living Philosopher’s Stone.

In Fullmetal Alchemist, the Philosopher’s Stone is a powerful item, sought for its ability to override the limitations of alchemy, albeit at a great cost. Anna’s quirk is “Overmodification” and is manipulated by the villains to give their quirks a significant power boost, much like how the homunculi are so powerful because of the Philosopher’s Stones within them. It also explains how Dark Might can use alchemy to such an elaborate extent.

Why Fullmetal Alchemist Specifically

It’s no mystery why Bones would pack so many references to a single story into such a momentous theatrical event. More than a decade after its release, people still love Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood and consider it to be one of the greatest anime of all time. Even the original 2003 version, which infamously diverged from the manga with the creator’s blessing, has received a re-evaluation and is appreciated for what it does better than Brotherhood.

To many, it is the ideal adventure series; one that excels in characters, plot, and spectacle, all leading to a grand conclusion that ties everything together neatly. Seeing how the My Hero Academia anime is nearing its own grand conclusion, it seems only appropriate to pay homage to Bones’ previous shōnen masterpiece.