Most anime watchers can agree that “My Hero Academia” is an enjoyable anime. What many of those people can’t agree on is who is the best character from the anime. This is where my absolute biased opinion comes into play. Whether you think I’m right or wrong, I know that Denki Kaminari is the best character in the show without question.
Denki Kaminari is an underrated character. He may get more screen time than the other characters and more interaction, but he is largely overlooked by the MHA fandom community. He is often seen tagging along with Kirishima and Bakugou and is a known member of the Bakusquad. Although he is more popular, or rather well-known, than Sero Hanta, he is not given the credit and attention he deserves. How often do you see merchandise of just Denki Kaminari, or even of a group of MHA characters with Denki included? If you do see merch of just him, how much variety does it come in? Not much. You have to dig to find things specifically of Denki Kaminari; and even when you do find things, they are most of the time of poor quality. Denki deserves better.
Denki may get a bad rep for joining in on the schemes with the perverted Minoru Mineta (almost puked just writing his name), but he has innocent intentions compared to the grapeball. Just like most 15/16 year old boys, Denki Kaminari could be going through puberty. Which would reasonably explain why he a little hung up on girls. Yet just because of him associating with Mineta, he is deemed a pervert. Denki Kaminari is not a pervert, he is a flirt. He doesn’t take things are far as Mineta and he, Denki, himself seems disappointed in Mineta’s actions. Even despite this, Denki still gets labeled as a pervert by many people, which is absurd.
Kaminari isn’t the smartest person in class, in fact, he’s ranked dead last. However, though he may not have the brains, he does have the personality. Who doesn’t like a loveable idiot? Denki Kaminari provides comic relief, relieves tension, and brightens up the other characters’ day. The way he smiles his toothy smile can put even Deku to shame. He has a bit of a habit of saying the wrong things, but in his mind, he means well, it just comes out wrong. Denki truly cares about all of his classmates and keeps his friends close. He has a bubbly personality and seems to always be in a good mood.
Denki struggles to control his quirk, often feeling like he won’t be of much use in battle. I take a look at this and see a student struggling to keep up with the achievements of his classmates. I feel as though many people can relate to struggling in class and life and wanting to do just as good as the people around you. Another thing is that we don’t know anything about Denki’s parents. Not once does he mention them or the things that go on at his house. By that standard we don’t know how he lives or how he grew up. Which adds an air of mystery about him.
Denki Kaminari may not be the bravest, or the smartest, or the strongest, but he doesn’t have to be. He is amazing how he is and is my favorite character in the “My Hero Academia” universe. Yes, this article was almost completely biased, but isn’t that the point of an editorial? Sharing your opinions. Next time you watch MHA, don’t overlook Denki, pay more attention to him and maybe, you’ll come to like him just as much as I do.