Not everyone can be a hero. Not everyone can fly high enough to touch the sky of success or claim the title as number one. But when the symbol of peace shatters before the public and the once invincible UA is no longer untouchable, the new darkened state of the nation is on the brink of falling apart. Can Class 1-B fight through their second-rate title and be worthy of being heroes?
Change Up is a Submit Your Own Character fanfic co-written by WaterliliesDust
and LunairiaBlaze.Taking place in the fantastical universe of My Hero Academia, following three years after the Hideout Raid Arc, Change Up follows the adventures of a new, fresh wave of Class 1-B students! Showing an alternate version of how the world, and the school, reacts to the loss of their greatest powerhouse alongside a series of tragedies that shake the public's faith in the hero system. All from the perspective of a large group of fresh-faced newbies!
Story can be found on Fanfiction.net.
Warning: Unmarked spoilers for My Hero Academia up until the Hideout Raid Arc, and for Change Up until the end of the Spotlight arc.
My Hero Academia provides examples of:
- Action Girl: Much like in the source material, female heroes are pretty common.
- Bloodier and Gorier: The anime could be surprisingly darker than the color pallet and art style would have you believe. Still, it was kind enough to wait an arc before introducing truly malevolent characters, and not thrust a brutal murder scene on the audience in the very first chapter. Highlighting the brutality of a post-All Might world.
- Central Theme: Appearances matter. So far, most of the conflicts arise because of individuals giving off poor first impressions or allowing space for their actions to be misinterpreted. In the greater scope, this is a problem that the school itself is dealing with, following the retirement of All Might, the death of a school teacher on school grounds, and their enrolling a known criminal into the program.
- Climax Boss: The conclusion of the Chapter 1 (Spotlight arc) ended off with the class 1-B students having to face off against their upperclassmen.
- Damsel in Distress: Gracelynn ends up this way in the Spotlight arc due to her crippling shyness in the face of any form of conflict, requiring her to be saved by other entrance examinees.
- Deconstruction: In the aftermath of All Might's retirement, not helped by the murder of a teacher right in front of the building, the school is under heavy scrutiny from just about every news outlet in the country.
- Foregone Conclusion: One can reasonably assume that if a character's name was on the roster of characters posted prior to the story proper, they're going to pass the entrance exam in the Spotlight arc.
- Little Bit Beastly: Pompom's arms are so freakishly large and muscular that they reach the ground before her legs, making her walk resemble that of a gorilla's. Doesn't keep her from being cute as a button.
- Mass "Oh, Crap!": The entrance examinees in the Spotlight arc all share one of these when they realize that the robots in the final phase can use quirks.
- Off Screen Moment Of Awesome: Not everyone on the character roster got any focus on them during the Spotlight arc. But, seeing as how they're in the classroom alongside all those who were, we can assume they were similarly impressive in their own right.
- Rotating Protagonist: Given the nature of the fic, there isn't really a main protagonist to be seen.
- Scavenger Hunt: The first training exercise that Class 1-B is assigned is to split into randomly selected teams of four to go out and hunt for items.
- Sliding Scale of Idealism vs. Cynicism: While the opening may be a bit darker than My Hero Academia, it's still My Hero Academia. Much like the original, the story maintains a grounded outlook while focusing on the core principles that make true heroes.
