My Hero Academia takes place in a bizarre future where almost everyone has a supernatural Quirk, and this fact has totally reshaped how society works. In Izuku's world, most forms of discrimination are based not on demographics such as race or sex but on a person's Quirk (or lack thereof). Unfortunately, many Quirks are also curses because of their function and how society views them.

Any Quirk can be used for good or evil, and most Quirks are inherently neutral, such as Eijiro Kirishima's Hardening Quirk or Kyoka Jiro's Earphone Jack abilities. Meanwhile, blood-based Quirks are widely looked down upon, since blood is associated with negative things like injuries, vampires and death. Himiko Toga faced discrimination for having a blood-based Quirk, but oddly, Vlad King does not, and there must be a reason for this evident double standard.

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When Society Labels Quirks as Evil & Problematic

Himiko Toga with a victim

In both My Hero Academia's anime world and the real world, individuals or groups will seize any excuse to look down on others, often for highly subjective reasons. Sometimes, this is inspired entirely by hatred or insecurities, and other times, it's based on a loose, subjective take on what's perceived as good vs. evil or right vs. wrong. In My Hero Academia's world, Quirks based on gruesome or strange effects, or many mutation-style Quirks, inspire disgust and fear in society. Those Quirks' bearers are considered outcasts or villains in the making, no matter the bearer's actual intentions or mental state. This includes not just heteromorph characters like Mezo Shoji and Spinner but also bearers of blood-based Quirks -- or at least, the villainous Himiko Toga's character arc suggests a strong stigma against blood-based Quirks.

Blood is highly symbolic of many things, from injuries and violence to inheritance and ancestry, but the sight of it is usually frightening and alarming, often suggesting violence or torture. When Himiko Toga grew up with a blood-based Quirk, her parents therefore reacted with horror, believing they had raised a wicked child beyond repair. They hoped to merely mask their daughter's Quirk and her love of blood, and that worked until Himiko committed an act of violence, savoring her classmate's blood. It was almost a self-fulfilling prophecy about blood-based Quirks and villainy and how the human psyche plays into all that.

Notably, Himiko's Transform Quirk is about disguises and shapeshifting, not violence, and Himiko can use it without harming anyone, such as by raiding a blood bank. However, she suffered serious mental strain from being forced to suppress her Quirk's true nature and her love of blood, which was bound to boil over eventually. Most likely, other blood-based people like Stain the hero killer faced similar discrimination, especially since the Bloodcurdle Quirk is ideal for capturing or killing paralyzed victims. Then there's Vlad King, class 1-B's homeroom teacher at the UA school, who also wields a blood-based Quirk. However, strangely enough, there's no sign that he went through anything like Himiko Toga did.

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Why Isn't Vlad King Feared for His Blood-Based Quirk?

vlad king in my hero academia

Vlad King is highly respected and admired as a teacher at UA, and everyone in class 1-B looks up to him as their teacher and protector. In every way that counts, Vlad King is Shota Aizawa/Eraserhead's counterpart, yet he wields a gruesome Quirk worthy of any vampire or villain. Vlad King's Quirk is called Blood Control, and with it, Vlad King can eject most or all of his body's blood and manipulate it in the open air. He can even solidify it to trap an opponent, such as the time he trapped a Dabi clone in the forest camp battle, and he can recall his blood at will. Moreover, losing all this blood has no harmful effect on Vlad King's body.

The sight of a man ejecting his body's blood and moving it around could be downright horrifying, and such a Quirk would be perfect for any League of Villains or Meta Liberation Army member who faced discrimination because of that ability. However, in this case, it belongs to an esteemed pro hero who's trusted to be in a room alone with 20 teenagers, so clearly, Vlad King is doing something right. He's not hiding his Quirk either, given his hero name of Vlad King and his costume's equipment, so everyone knows that he's packing a bloody Quirk.

Perhaps Vlad did face discrimination at first, but like Mezo Shoji, overcame it and proved his worth with his deeds and actions as an aspiring pro hero, proving society wrong in the process. Alternatively, perhaps he always had such an upstanding character and warm charisma growing up that people always trusted him and his Quirk and never associated Blood Control with evil or villainy. If so, Vlad has done what few other people can in My Hero Academia's world, overcoming a deep-seated prejudice with sheer force of will and radiant charisma. He talked his way out of being hated and feared as a vampire-like monster, and unlike Himiko Toga, Vlad King evidently never had a "one bad day" incident.

Most likely, Vlad King was never pressured to hide his Quirk's true nature, or if he was, he overcame that situation with grace and dignity rather than an explosive reaction. This is an inspiring thought, suggesting that other people born with "villainous" or heteromorph Quirks might do what Vlad King did and prove that character matters more than appearances or Quirks. It's easier said than done, but at least the audience knows it's possible.