Analysis of Tsubasa and Dr. Tsubasa in My Hero Academia
Tsubasa and Dr. Tsubasa are minor but significant characters introduced in the earliest chapters of My Hero Academia (Chapter 1, Episode 1), with their roles expanded through supplemental materials like the databook and omake. Despite their brief appearances, their connections to major narrative elements—particularly the Nomu and All For One’s schemes—make them pivotal to the series’ exploration of bullying, identity, and villainous manipulation. Below is a detailed analysis of both characters, their actions, their impact, and the implications of their potential fates.
Tsubasa
Overview
Debut: Chapter 1 (Manga), Episode 1 (Anime)
Voiced by: Kenta Okuma (Japanese)
Quirk: Unnamed Demon Wing Quirk (allows him to grow and retract red, draconic wings for flight)
Appearance: Tsubasa is a chubby young boy with short brown hair and Eyes Always Shut, giving him a Gonk-like, unappealing appearance. His red, bat-like wings manifest instantly, marking him as a Winged Humanoid.
Personality: Tsubasa is a mean-spirited bully, part of Katsuki Bakugo’s childhood posse alongside an unnamed friend. He participates in tormenting Izuku Midoriya for being Quirkless, embodying the Fat Best Friend archetype to Bakugo. His actions lack the malicious leadership of Bakugo, suggesting he’s a follower rather than a mastermind.
Role and Actions
Childhood Bullying: Tsubasa is introduced in flashbacks to Midoriya’s childhood, where he, Bakugo, and another friend relentlessly bully Midoriya for his Quirkless status. They beat him up and belittle him, reinforcing Midoriya’s early feelings of inferiority. Tsubasa’s involvement is minor but contributes to the trauma that shapes Midoriya’s determination to become a hero.
Quirk Usage: His Demon Wing Quirk allows him to grow wings for flight, demonstrated briefly in Episode 1. The ability to manifest and retract wings at will suggests versatility, though his young age limits its combat application in the narrative.
Mysterious Disappearance: Tsubasa does not attend the same middle school as Midoriya, Bakugo, and their unnamed friend, a fact noted in the databook. This absence, combined with Kohei Horikoshi’s hints, fuels speculation about his fate.
Narrative Significance
Bullying and Societal Prejudice: Tsubasa’s role as a bully reflects My Hero Academia’s theme of societal prejudice against the Quirkless, mirroring real-world discrimination. His actions highlight the cruelty Midoriya endures, setting the stage for his underdog journey.
Connection to the Winged Nomu: Horikoshi’s Volume 7 omake strongly implies that Tsubasa may have become the Winged Nomu encountered in the Hero Killer Arc (Chapter 47). This Nomu, which grabs Midoriya specifically from a crowd, suggests a subconscious recognition, possibly due to Tsubasa’s retained memories (Fighting from the Inside). The Nomu’s wings resemble Tsubasa’s, and its death by Stain could be interpreted as an unintentional Mercy Kill if Tsubasa was trapped in a mindless, monstrous form.
Ambiguous Fate: The Ambiguous Situation of whether Tsubasa’s Quirk was stolen by All For One for the Nomu or if Tsubasa himself was transformed remains unresolved. If he was turned into a Nomu, the implication that his grandfather, Dr. Tsubasa (Kyudai Garaki), facilitated this is horrifying, adding a layer of familial betrayal to his story.
Impact
Tsubasa’s bullying contributes to Midoriya’s emotional growth, pushing him to persevere despite adversity. His potential transformation into the Winged Nomu ties him to the broader narrative of All For One’s experiments, illustrating the villain’s callous use of children for his schemes.
The Fighting from the Inside implication adds tragedy, suggesting Tsubasa’s consciousness may have been trapped within the Nomu, unable to act on his own. This parallels Vigilantes’ themes of lost agency (e.g., Pop☆Step as Bee☆Pop) and underscores the horror of Nomu creation.
As an Asshole Victim, Tsubasa’s possible fate elicits mixed sympathy: his bullying makes him unsympathetic, but his potential transformation into a Nomu evokes pity, highlighting the moral complexity of MHA’s villains.
Connections to Broader MHA Universe
Tsubasa’s Demon Wing Quirk and potential Nomu connection prefigure the Villain Factory’s experiments in My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, where individuals are transformed into Next-Level Villains. His wings resemble those of the Suicide Bombers, suggesting a shared design ethos in All For One’s bioengineering.
His role as a childhood friend of Bakugo ties him to the main series’ exploration of Bakugo’s growth from a bully to a hero, with Tsubasa representing a darker path Bakugo could have taken.
The Good Wings, Evil Wings trope, with Tsubasa’s red, draconic wings, aligns with MHA’s use of visual symbolism to indicate moral alignment (e.g., Hawks’ angelic wings vs. Nomu’s monstrous ones).
Dr. Tsubasa (Kyudai Garaki)
Overview
Debut: Chapter 1 (Manga), Episode 1 (Anime)
Voiced by: Minoru Inaba (Japanese), Mark Stoddard (English)
Quirk: Unknown Life Force (revealed in later chapters as part of his true identity)
Appearance: Dr. Tsubasa appears as an elderly doctor with a mustache, glasses, and a Labcoat of Science and Medicine, complete with a stethoscope. His resemblance to Kyudai Garaki is later confirmed to be intentional, as “Tsubasa” is a pseudonym.
Personality: As Dr. Tsubasa, he is professional but brutally honest, delivering Midoriya’s Quirkless diagnosis with little tact. His true identity as Kyudai Garaki, All For One’s lieutenant, reveals a cunning, morally bankrupt scientist who facilitates horrific experiments.
Role and Actions
Quirkless Diagnosis: Dr. Tsubasa diagnoses four-year-old Midoriya as Quirkless, explaining that the presence of two joints in his pinky toe indicates a lack of Quirk genetics. This diagnosis devastates Midoriya and his mother, Inko, shaping his early life and dreams.
Mr. Exposition: He provides critical world-building by explaining the biological basis of Quirks, establishing the societal divide between Quirk users and the Quirkless.
True Identity: Later revealed as Kyudai Garaki, All For One’s confidant and the mastermind behind the Nomu. His role as Dr. Tsubasa is a cover, allowing him to operate in plain sight while conducting experiments for All For One.
Narrative Significance
Small Role, Big Impact: Dr. Tsubasa’s brief appearance in two flashbacks has a profound effect on Midoriya, crushing his hero aspirations until he meets All Might. His diagnosis sets the narrative’s emotional stakes, emphasizing Midoriya’s underdog status.
Garaki’s Duplicity: As Kyudai Garaki, he is a Diabolical Mastermind, responsible for creating the Nomu and supporting All For One’s schemes. His use of the Tsubasa pseudonym hides his true nature, allowing him to interact with society undetected. This mirrors Vigilantes’ Trigger Mastermind, also All For One, highlighting his penchant for operating through proxies.
Familial Horror: The databook reveals Dr. Tsubasa as Tsubasa’s grandfather, making the possibility that he turned his own grandson into the Winged Nomu deeply disturbing. This aligns with Garaki’s callous disregard for ethics, as seen in his Nomu experiments in the main series.
Impact
Dr. Tsubasa’s diagnosis is a catalyst for Midoriya’s journey, pushing him to seek heroism despite his perceived limitations. As Garaki, his actions drive major plot points, including the creation of the Nomu and the escalation of All For One’s threat.
His Inexplicably Identical Individuals trope (resembling Garaki in appearance and voice) serves as a subtle clue to his true identity, rewarding attentive readers when the reveal occurs in Chapter 259.
The potential betrayal of his grandson ties into MHA’s themes of sacrifice and manipulation, paralleling All For One’s exploitation of Shigaraki and Number 6 in Vigilantes.
Connections to Broader MHA Universe
As Kyudai Garaki, Dr. Tsubasa is central to the Nomu’s creation, linking him to the Villain Factory’s experiments in Vigilantes. His Life Force Quirk, revealed later, explains his longevity and ability to sustain his experiments, tying him to the main series’ exploration of Quirk enhancement.
His role as a Bearer of Bad News mirrors real-world experiences of receiving life-altering diagnoses, grounding MHA’s fantastical elements in emotional reality.
The implication that he experimented on Tsubasa connects to the Creature Rejection Clan’s bigotry and the Villain Factory’s exploitation of societal outcasts, highlighting the systemic abuse of vulnerable individuals in MHA’s world.
Speculation: Are Tsubasa and Dr. Tsubasa Still Alive?
Tsubasa
Evidence of Fate: The Volume 7 omake strongly suggests Tsubasa became the Winged Nomu, which is killed by Stain in the Hero Killer Arc (Chapter 57). If true, Tsubasa is likely deceased, with his death serving as a tragic end to his bullying past. The Fighting from the Inside hint implies he retained some consciousness, making his fate an And I Must Scream scenario.
Alternative Possibility: If Tsubasa’s Quirk was merely stolen by All For One, he could still be alive, potentially stripped of his wings and living an ordinary life. However, his absence from middle school and lack of further mentions make this less likely.
Speculation: Given Horikoshi’s penchant for tying loose ends (e.g., Vigilantes’ connections to the main series), Tsubasa’s transformation into the Winged Nomu seems the most plausible outcome. His death by Stain would close his arc, but a future spin-off could explore whether other Nomu retain fragments of their past selves, offering closure to his story.
Dr. Tsubasa (Kyudai Garaki)
Evidence of Fate: As Kyudai Garaki, Dr. Tsubasa is a major antagonist in the main series, arrested during the Paranormal Liberation War Arc (Chapter 260). By August 18, 2025 (the current date), Garaki is likely imprisoned, as the manga’s epilogue (concluded August 2024) does not indicate his release or death.
Speculation: Garaki’s arrest suggests he is alive but neutralized as a threat. His Life Force Quirk could prolong his lifespan, potentially allowing future appearances in spin-offs or flashbacks exploring his experiments. However, his role as Dr. Tsubasa is likely concluded, as his cover is blown.
Narrative Legacy: Garaki’s actions continue to impact the MHA universe through the Nomu and All For One’s lingering influence. His potential involvement in Tsubasa’s fate could be revisited in supplemental materials, deepening the tragedy of their family dynamic.
Conclusion
Tsubasa and Dr. Tsubasa, though minor characters, have outsized impacts on My Hero Academia’s narrative. Tsubasa’s role as a childhood bully underscores the societal prejudice Midoriya overcomes, while his potential transformation into the Winged Nomu adds a layer of tragedy tied to All For One’s experiments. Dr. Tsubasa, as Kyudai Garaki, is a linchpin of the series’ villainous infrastructure, his Quirkless diagnosis shaping Midoriya’s journey and his true identity driving the Nomu’s creation. Their familial connection amplifies the horror of Garaki’s actions, making them compelling figures in MHA’s exploration of morality, identity, and the cost of villainy.