My Hero Academia Season 8: Who Is Kudo? Answered

The third episode of My Hero Academia season 8 is here, and it exceeded every fan’s expectations to become the best MHA episode in history. Katsuki Bakugo is truly back and kicking in his battle against a young All For One. After saving his idol, All Might, Bakugo began to blast All For One apart after awakening his explosion quirk. All For One quickly became enraged after getting cornered by Bakugo. When reflecting on why he is angry with the explosive kid, AFO compared Katsuki Bakugo with Toshitsugu Kudo. So, who is this Kudo mentioned in episode 3 of My Hero Academia season 8? Find out more about Kudo in MHA here.

Spoilers Warning:

This article contains spoilers about Toshitsugu Kudo in MHA. Proceed with caution.

Toshitsugu Kudo in My Hero Academia: Character Explained

To find out who Kuda is in MHA, we need to go back in time to the origin point of All For One and his twin brother, Yoichi Shigaraki. When AFO rose as the great evil with his quirk-stealing ability, he had his brother by his side, whom he deemed weak. During this time, Toshitsugu Kudo led the rebellious force that had the sole purpose of defeating All For One and overthrowing his evil rule.

When Kudo stormed into AFO’s base of operations one day to kill AFO’s brother first, he had a change of heart seeing him in that condition and rescued him. Yoichi decided to support Kudo in bringing down his brother, who didn’t have a heart for humans. However, AFO soon tracked down Yoichi and killed his own brother with his hands.

Yoichi has already blended his ‘quirk bestowal’ and the ‘power stock’ quirks (forcefully given by his brother) to create the “All For One” quirk. Then, he passed down this great power to Kudo, whom he trusted with his heart. Thus, Toshitsugu Kudo became the first inheritor of the One For All quirk in the My Hero Academia series.

What Is the Connection Between Bakugo and Kudo?

So, why was AFO reminded of a character in his past after seeing Bakugo in action? The answer is not because Bakugo and Kudo are related, but because of their similar appearances. All For One was visibly enraged by Kudo, as he was the one who rescued his brother, which would eventually result in the death of Yoichi at the hands of AFO.

All For One would go on to kill Kudo to avenge his brother in a twisted manner and also steal the One For All quirk. Fortunately, Kudo passed the One For All baton to his partner, Bruce, and so he smiled even in his death. Now this added fuel to All For One’s anger, which made AFO massacre the entire family of Kudo. AFO made sure none of Kudo’s kin would exist during his reign. Thus, you now know Bakugo and Kudo aren’t related.

However, Bakugo has an identical appearance to Kudo, such as his spiky hair and red eyes, which must have reminded All For One of his very first enemy, who stood firm against him. AFO began to lose his mind at this point, and his mind played the memories of Kudo upon seeing Bakugo overpower him. In addition, Bakugo also has an ambition to take down All For One as he considers himself the “Final Boss of AFO.”

Kudo wasn’t able to defeat AFO back then with his Gearshift quirk and One For All in the early stages. Now, Katsuki Bakugo, his spiritual successor in a way, was lent a hand by Deku to defeat the evil lord. AFO’s immense hatred for Kudo clouded his mind in his final battle. So you can now understand the connection between Bakugo and Kudo in MHA.

That said, what do you think about Kudo’s character in My Hero Academia? Let us know in the comments below.