If you’re one of the millions of anime fans from all over the world, then there’s no way you wouldn’t know who Deku is. Izuku Midoriya, also known by his hero name Deku, is the main protagonist in the popular manga series “My Hero Academia”. This very timid, reserved, and polite boy’s superpower includes the ability to move faster than the eye can see and take down a gigantic villain bot with a single punch. Despite being short for his age, Deku was known to have immense physical strength even before he received his Quirk (superpower).
Deku is not just a fun character. He is well-written with several amazing characteristics. This is what sets him apart from other anime protagonists and makes him a favorite among manga fans. There is no doubt that he is one of the most beloved Shōnen protagonists of today.
However, fans of the hit anime series had always been curious about his sexuality. Is Deku gay? Let’s find out.
VOTE: What is Deku’s Sexuality?
Why ‘My Hero Academia’ Fans Think Deku is Gay
Shipping is very common among fandoms, even in anime. And fans of “My Hero Academia” are no different. They love to ship the characters together.
For non-anime fans out there (although the term is not only exclusive to anime), the term ‘ship’ or ‘shipping’ comes from the word ‘relationship’. So when you say you ship two people (either real-life people or fictional characters), it basically means you want them (or imagine them, at least) to be in a romantic relationship.
And one of the most popular ships in the series is Deku and Bakugo. Yes, it’s not uncommon for fans to ship characters of the same gender. And fans especially love the enemies-to-lovers trope, making Deku and Bakugo the most shipped characters in the series. The idea of turning rivalry into sexual attraction simply thrills fans.
But being a part of a same-gender ship does not necessarily mean that the character or characters involved are gay. It’s just how the fans prefer to perceive them, but it doesn’t depict the character’s personality or sexuality at all.
Fans should learn to differentiate canon from fanon. Canon refers to something that is true to the original story. Fanon, on the other hand, refers to the concepts and ideas that are normally used in most fan fiction, but don’t really exist in the real story’s canon. Most of the time, fanons contradict the original narrative of a series. Thus, the idea of Deku being gay for Bakugo may exist in a lot of fanons but it doesn’t necessarily mean to be true in the original concept of the story.
Therefore, fan theories of Deku being gay don’t really mean that he was created that way.
Is Deku Gay?
Although Deku’s sexuality wasn’t really established in the manga or anime, there were a few hints that he was actually straight. From the very first episode, there were subtle clues that Deku and Uraraka Ochaco, one of the female protagonists in the series, were meant to end up together. It was obvious that she liked him from the very start.
But since Deku’s character doesn’t really focus on acting on his sexuality, whatever it may be, it was really hard to tell what his sexual preference was. He doesn’t display any romantic interest at all in any of the other characters, so assuming his sexuality at this point is just baseless.