Quirks are special abilities that have slowly become a part of society living in the world of My Hero Academia. They're extensively used by people, especially the Villains and the Heroes in the series. Quirks grant their users some of the most incredible powers such as Izuku Midoriya's One For All, which augments his physical ability to sky-high levels, and Bakugo's Explosion, which lets him produce explosions from his palms.
Although Quirks have been seen at use right from the very first episode of My Hero Academia, there are some things about them that are hard to understand. Here are 10 things about Quirks that you probably didn't know.
10 The First Quirk
Quirks didn't always exist in the world of My Hero Academia. The first known Quirk is said to have been wielded by a baby in China's Qing Qing City. While the reason behind the sudden appearance of this Quirk is unknown, it is said that the baby wielding this Quirk glowed with a luminescent light, and was thus called the 'Luminescent Baby'.
As evident from the name, the Quirk ability of the Luminescent Baby was to emit bright light from their skin. The exact usage of the light remains largely unknown.
9 Mice And Quirks
After the birth of the first Quirk in the Qing Qing City of China, more cases of people exhibiting weird abilities were reported by people. As expected from standard Quirk behavior, people witnessed various meta abilities within them and it kept growing at a tremendous pace.
Although there is no concrete evidence on how it happened all of sudden, some believe that a virus carried by mice was responsible for spreading Quirks and for their development in society. The spread has been so fast that about 80% of the entire population is said to be in possession of a Quirk ability now.
8 The Vigilantes
By virtue of the Quirks, there were those in the society who used their abilities for crime and their own benefit, oppressing the defenseless and the weak. To defend them, some of the civilians decided that it was their job to defend the weak from evil and thus came about the first heroes, known as the Vigilantes.
Once the powers of the public were regulated by the Government at large, many vigilantes were upset, while some managed to gain their licenses and hence, act as the first known Pro-Heroes of the era.
7 Quirk Manifestation
Since people are born with the ability to use Quirks, some show the ability right since the time of their birth. For most cases, however, it takes until the age of 4 to manifest the Quirk properly. Most of the Quirks are inherited through Mendelian Inheritance.
In most cases, the child manifests one of their parents' Quirks, which has been seen in cases such as Mirio's or inherits a different Quirk formed by the mixture of both of the parents' abilities, such as Todoroki's Half-Cold Half-Hot Quirk.
6 Quirk Diagnosis
Quirks aren't the only things that have evolved over time. Studies have as well and, as such, being able to study Quirks is easier than it once was. Quirks are broadly referred to as the next step in human evolution, and there are ways that have been established to check if a person will manifest a Quirk or not based on the presence or absence of an extra joint in the pinky toe.
Its presence denotes that a person will have a Quirk, while its absence hints that the child will instead remain Quirkless throughout life.
5 Animals And Quirks
In the world of My Hero Academia, Quirks aren't exclusive to humans only. In extremely rare cases, Quirks are also manifested in animals. A prime example of this would be Principal Nezumi from U.A, who possesses the Quirk known as High Spec, which gives him intelligence higher than that of humans.
Despite not being a human, he's integrated among them surprisingly well. While we haven't seen any other animal manifest a Quirk, Principal Nezu's existence means that more such characters could pop up in the future.
4 Quirk Mutation
Under some unspecified conditions, Quirks can possibly undergo mutation, and change their properties. A prime example of this would be the One For All Quirk. The Quirk traces its origins from All For One's brother. Surprisingly, One For All wasn't always the Quirk that it is now.
All For One's brother was once considered to be Quirkless. Forcibly, he was given a Quirk that stockpiled power and that was the first step in the formation of One For All. Unbeknownst to All For One, he did have a Quirk which let him pass power to another person. The combination of the two Quirks is how the One For All was originally created.
3 Unsuitable Quirks
Since Quirks are manifested in kids by the age of 4, they usually display their abilities and train them accordingly. However, in some cases, the Quirk that a person awakens isn't suitable for their bodies. A prime example of this would be Aoyama's Navel Laser, which hurts his insides when he uses its powers excessively.
Similarly, Izuku Midoriya's One For All possesses so much raw power that he isn't able to use 100% of it without shattering his bones. Akin to these two, there are countless cases where the Quirk of a user is actually unsuitable for heavy usage.
2 Quirk Level Measurements
Technology has come far in the world of My Hero Academia. In My Hero Academia: Two Heroes, a scientist named Dave had created a device that could strengthen a Quirk by multiple times. Similarly, another technological development allows scientists to measure Quirk Levels. Toshinori Yagi, commonly known by his Hero name of All Might, measured at 15,000 AP in his prime, while in the present time, his Quirk level went down to 2,500 AP.
Interestingly, no other person has had their Quirk level measured in the series, but maybe we'll see that change in the future.
1 Quirk Awakening
Under certain circumstances, Quirks can be awakened, and a new door of possibilities is unlocked when this phenomenon takes place. While how it happens is unknown, we do know that something about being close to death is what triggers it.
Himiko Toga and Shigaraki Tomura both showcased this ability and evolved their Quirks to a new level in the Meta Liberation Army arc of My Hero Academia. It is largely unknown if Quirks can be taken to a level even beyond awakening, or if they hit their limits once awakened. Only time can tell.