My Hero Academia Vigilantes: Is Koichi Haimawari Based On Spider-Man?

My Hero Academia: Vigilantes is still in its first episodes, but the series has already shown what it is made of. Vigilantes is proving to be a refreshing addition to the My Hero Academia universe, focusing on “heroes” who act regardless of the law.

Vigilantes is really grounded when it comes to the plot, and it has a somewhat darker tone. However, some fans have been paying attention to the “Spider-Man vibe” they get, especially from the main character, Koichi Haimawari. Could the creators really have been inspired by Spider-Man to create this protagonist?

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My Hero Academia: Vigilantes: When Does the Story Take Place?

With familiar characters popping here and there, when does the story of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes take place?

Were The Authors Inspired By Spider-Man?

Anyone who watches or reads My Hero Academia: Vigilantes will soon find themselves thinking about the parallels between Koichi Haimawari and Spider-Man. Not only does his Quirk remind fans of Spider-Man’s abilities, but he also acts like “your friendly neighborhood The Crawler”.

Even before Koichi joined Knuckleduster as a Vigilante, he used to help people with everyday tasks, calling himself “Nice Guy”. Koichi has the soul of a superhero, but his attitude seems more like Peter Parker than All Might. Furthermore, he is just a young guy living an ordinary life before embarking on his journey as a Vigilante.

Of course, Koichi is not a knockoff of Spider-Man; he is an original character with his own traits, desires and dreams. Plot-wise, he follows a different journey than Peter Parker, but he does have that “Spider-Man vibe” that many people enjoy.

In an interview at Naples Comicon 2019, creator Hideyuki Furuhashi actually admitted that he is based on Spider-Man:

So, for those who were wondering if there was any inspiration: yes, Koichi is based on Spider-Man, and that is probably one of the reasons why fans find him so charismatic. It’s also interesting that there is another character in My Hero Academia who is commonly associated with Spider-Man, Froppy.

Even Marvel May Have Seen Similarities

It wasn’t just fans who noticed the similarities between Koichi Haimawari and everyone’s friendly neighborhood Spider-Man; Marvel noticed as well – and apparently they liked it.

My Hero Academia: Vigilantes opened up a huge opportunity for Furuhashi and Betten Court, and together they wrote Spider-Man: Octo-Girl, an official Spider-Man manga, from 2023 to 2025, after they had already finished serializing Vigilantes.

Octo-Girl recently concluded, and the authors haven’t announced yet if they are working on a new series — they could write more Vigilantes stuff due to the anime adaptation.

Where to Watch My Hero Academia Vigilantes?

My Hero Academia: Vigilantes is streaming on Crunchyroll in most regions of the world. The series is also available on Netflix in select Asian territories, as Netflix Asia typically airs most major anime releases in a few countries.

The series may also be available on other streaming services in many countries around the world. However, Crunchyroll is probably the only one that streams it with simultaneous dubbing in some languages (including English).

Is My Hero Academia Vigilantes Canon?

Since Vigilantes debuted, many fans have wondered if this story is canon to the main series. Vigilantes is set five years before Chapter 1 of My Hero Academia, and, even though it wasn’t written by Kohei Horikoshi, it is considered canon.

Good evidence for this is that Koichi actually appears in the final arc of My Hero Academia, leaving no doubt that Horikoshi considers the events of Vigilantes to have truly happened in the universe he created. So those who are enjoying the series will probably like to see Koichi briefly at the end of the year when My Hero Academia Final Season finally airs.

My Hero Academia: Vigilantes

Release Date

April 7, 2025

Network

Tokyo MX, BS Nippon TV

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  Shuichiro Umeda

  Koichi Haimawari / The Crawler (voice)

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  Ikumi Hasegawa

  Kazuho Haneyama / Pop☆Step (voice)