Kohei Horikoshi

Kohei Horikoshi is a Japanese manga artist known as creator of My Hero Academia, the superhero series he wrote and illustrated for Weekly Shonen Jump. Born in Aichi Prefecture in 1986, he studied at Nagoya University of Arts and began publishing professionally through Shueisha. His early one-shot work included Nukegara, which earned an honorable mention in the 72nd Tezuka Award.

Before My Hero Academia, he serialized two shorter series: Oumagadoki Zoo, a fantasy manga set in a zoo run by an animal-like director, from 2010 to 2011; and Barrage, a science-fiction adventure, in 2012. These series ended quickly in Jump.

My Hero Academia began serialization in Weekly Shonen Jump in July 2014. Its protagonist, Izuku Midoriya, is born without a superpower, or “Quirk,” in a society where most people possess one. After meeting the celebrated hero All Might, Midoriya inherits All Might’s power, One For All, and enters U.A. High School to train as a professional hero. The manga follows his classmates in Class 1-A, including Katsuki Bakugo and Shoto Todoroki, while confronting villains such as Tomura Shigaraki and the mastermind All For One. The final chapter appeared in August 2024, bringing the decade-long serialization to a close in Japan.

Horikoshi’s work became the basis for a television anime produced by Bones, which premiered in 2016. The franchise also generated animated films, including My Hero Academia: Two Heroes, Heroes: Rising, World Heroes’ Mission, and You’re Next. My Hero Academia won the Harvey Award for Best Manga in 2019 and again in 2020. Horikoshi has cited Naruto creator Masashi Kishimoto as an influence, and his pages frequently emphasize bold action, dense linework, and exaggerated expressions. In 2024, Shueisha published the series’ 42nd and final collected volume, which included an epilogue. Horikoshi’s manga has been translated internationally, making Midoriya’s journey his defining achievement.