You know how everyone has that one movie or TV show that has such a deep emotional effect on them that all they can do in response is cry, yeah well that’s me with anime. Put me in front of any other Western film and I’ll usually be fine (Bridge of Terabithia and the memorial Glee episode is an exception to this), but anime just knows how to hit me in all of my soft spots, and here’s why. As a POC who has some serious self-esteem issues and is a self-proclaimed Type A perfectionist, I am constantly having to prove my worth to society and will never execute anything that is truly up to my standards of approval. This has been especially true as of late.
As a college senior I try my absolute best to advertise myself in a way that employers want to work with me regardless but call me Angelica Schuyler because I am never satisfied whether it’s with myself, my work, or my life. As a singer, I dislike the sound of my voice; as an actor, I find my performances to be downright cringey; as a dancer, I am not even close to being considered competition. But the sad part about all of this is I truly couldn’t imagine myself in a future where I’m not performing and doing what I love every day. Unfortunately, because of the way that I view myself, my self-confidence as a performer has been severely lacking and to be quite frank I doubt anyone would want to hire me with the way that I am now.
To help me deal with my anxiety induced by my lack of ability, I decided to rewatch My Hero Academia to help get my mind off of reality, and although this was my second time rewatching the series it did not stop the fact that I did cry for the majority of each episode. My Hero Academia is about a young boy born into a world where having superpowers, or Quirks, is the norm. This boy, Izuku Midoriya, was part of the 20% world population born without a quirk but is later passed on the same quirk as the No.1 superhero, All Might. The show follows his journey adapting to his newfound powers and becoming the next No.1 hero.
This show has made me realize many things, but one of the most important being that if I am truly serious about where I want to be in life then I should be giving it 1,000% effort and going beyond any set expectations about myself regardless of my self-concept. The common phrase said throughout the series is “Go Beyond, Plus Ultra,” which essentially means go beyond going beyond your limits. During times when the characters feel sadness or helplessness at their lack of ability, I feel for them because I experience that feeling every other day. But, I also feel their joy when they overcome an obstacle and break through barriers, their desire to be better than they currently are, and their anger at themselves for being insufficient in some part or another. Of course, I am just speaking of one anime out of a plethora that I can emotionally relate to, and I haven’t even begun to elaborate on the other reasons as to why this show is amazing.
But the reason why I truly love not just watching this show in particular but anime, in general, is because I learn things that I just don’t feel any other western culture show has sufficiently taught me. Anime has taught me that if I’m unsatisfied with my lack of ability then I should work harder and smarter to change that. Anime has taught me to never settle for good enough and to aim to be the best that I can be in every aspect of myself. And most importantly, anime has taught me to become a more empathetic and caring person towards others. While for the most part, I do tend to get swept up in the moment of the show, the majority of the time it doesn’t deter the fact that I am still learning valuable lessons that I will carry with me throughout my life thanks to these amazing and complex characters.