The Paranormal Liberation War is Peak My Hero Academia
My Hero Academia is at its best when the heroes and villains are slugging it out, and when it comes to that, the Paranormal Liberation War arc is nearly unmatched. The arc itself is complicated, with a lot of moving parts that need to be accounted for, but somehow everything flows so perfectly that one can't help but get caught up in the story.
The Paranormal Liberation War arc begins with the heroes setting up a raid on two locations known to be housing villains, dozens of miles apart, with both intended to take place simultaneously. While things start off going well, a series of misfortunes leads to Shigaraki, who should be dead, awakening suddenly, wielding the powers of All for One. Shigaraki summons Gigantomachia to his side, who carves a swath of destruction between the two locations while transporting the League of Villains to Shigaraki.
The Paranormal Liberation War is a Slow Spiral into Disaster
One of the things that this arc executes incredibly well is the feeling that each event is directly caused by the event preceding it. It gives the sense of toppling dominoes, something impossible to stop once it's begun. What begins as a simple raid spirals out of control, with Dr. Garaki unleashing Nomu, which leads to reviving Shigaraki, who wipes out the city and then calls upon Gigantomachia, who turns the tables at the other site and then destroys everything between the two locations.
Fortunately, this doesn't just apply to things going wrong, and this idea of a chain of events leading to a major outcome is one of the themes of the arc, most notably seen with the efforts to stop Gigantomachia. Midnight attempts to get close to Gigantomachia, but is repelled, so Midnight calls upon the students, who manage to drug Gigantomachia (but seemingly not enough), until Gigantomachia arrives at Shigaraki's location, where Gigantomachia is tied up by Best Jeanist and beaten by Endeavor, until finally those drugs kick in and sedate the titanic terror. Without anyone's individual efforts, there would've been no hope of stopping Gigantomachia.
The Paranormal Liberation War Handles Its Characters Incredibly Well
The war arc is also a major moment for a great many characters. Hawks kills Twice, making a very difficult decision that's ultimately for the greater good, no matter how slimy Hawks might feel about it. Tokoyami gets to rescue Hawks, and has to contend with knowing Hawks did something so dark. Momo gets to lead the students of Class 1-A, showing how much Momo has grown since freezing up in the Sports Festival. Uraraka gets her moment of confrontation with Toga, in what ends up being a major change for both of them.
Bakugo's sacrifice and the Todoroki reveal are perhaps the biggest moments of them all; Bakugo saving Deku is something that would've been almost unimaginable even just fifty chapters ago, but it shows how much Bakugo has grown, and how Bakugo is starting to truly understand what it means to be a hero. Dabi's reveal, while some managed to guess it, is still one of the greatest twists in the series, leaving Endeavor so stunned that Endeavor is literally unable to move. Shoto proves his heroism by not letting this get into Shoto's head and staying focused on the mission at hand, since so much depends on their victory.
The Aftermath of the War is Essential
Also in this arc is some of the aftermath of the war, which includes characters dealing with what they've done and experienced in a way that shonen Manga often doesn't do. It's clear that Hawks, for example, is really plagued by a guilty conscience over killing Twice, even if there was no choice. Endeavor is shown in the hospital crying over the Dabi/Toya situation, a moment of vulnerability and the true start of Endeavor's redemption. While there's plenty of physical recovery going on, the story doesn't shy away from the emotional recovery that's also needed.
Overall, the Paranormal Liberation War arc is undoubtedly the peak of My Hero Academia. Packed with amazing action scenes, unbelievable plot twists, and killer cliffhangers, the arc is sure to have fans on the edge of their seat for each and every episode. While the arc isn't perfect, dropping the ball with characters like Midnight, the quality is so high in general that these moments can be forgiven. Many fans highly anticipated season 6 for adapting this arc, and the Anime adaptation definitely manages to live up to the manga, reinforcing these moments with great music and stellar performances, both in Japanese and English.
