My Hero Academia is set in a world where supernatural gifts are the norm, but not all Quirks are created equal. Some are incredibly powerful and grant their wielders incredible talent, while most are unsuited for pro hero or villain work. Many characters in this series only became powerful after they trained hard to unlock their true potential and learn some new moves.
This fits the shonen theme of hard work overcoming raw talent, and this applies to Quirks as well as real life. Which My Hero Academia characters only became powerful after they unlocked their true potential partway through their careers or lives?
10 Izuku Midoriya Was Born Quirkless
As the shonen star himself, Izuku Midoriya couldn't possibly be born loaded with raw talent and power. In fact, he was born with nothing, not even a disappointing bendy fingers Quirk or his mother's token Quirk. However, Izuku had the true heart of a hero, and All Might soon discovered that fact for himself.
Izuku trained hard for a year to become worthy of the One For All Quirk, and once he received it, his career as a shonen protagonist and a hero truly began. By now, Izuku is a powerhouse fighter who can perform Smash attacks, Full Cowling, Shoot Style, and more.
9 All Might Was Also Born Quirkless
Incredibly, even the symbol of peace himself, All Might, was born Quirkless. Fortunately for him, One For All was an option, and its current bearer, the pro hero Nana Shimura, trained the young Toshinori Yagi along with Gran Torino.
All Might became One For All's 8th bearer, and for decades on end, he defended justice and the law as the invincible symbol of peace, the ultimate bulwark against crime and villainy. Now he is powerless again, however, since he's passed on his Qurik to Izuku.
8 Ochaco Uraraka Has Come A Long Way
Ochaco Uraraka was indeed born with a decent Quirk, but at first, she could only make limited use of it. Ochaco nearly failed the U.A. entrance exam until Izuku fought off a giant robot, and Ochaco made her way into class 1-A along with her new friend, Deku.
Ochaco lost to Katsuki Bakugo in the U.A. sports festival, but she got an upgrade when she trained with Gun Head to learn close-quarters combat. Later still, Ochaco began performing combos with her friend Tsuyu Asui, greatly boosting her combat effectiveness.
7 Mirio Togata Struggled To Master His Quirk
Mirio Togata is loosely similar to Izuku Midoriya, but not completely. He was born with the Permeation Quirk, and he struggled greatly to control it and make use of it. At first, Mirio was last in his class, and he might have flunked out of U.A. But through sheer hard work, he turned things around.
With a combination of endless training, real-life experience, and physical conditioning, Mirio Togata became a true melee powerhouse, to the point that he can fight most of class 1-A's members alone and win. He has made outstanding progress in a short time frame.
6 Gentle Criminal Learned To Use His Quirk Effectively As A Villain
As a student, Danjuro Tobita didn't have what it took to go pro, and he slipped through the cracks of the system. He became dejected and invisible, and his massive frustration led him to a new career in villainy. He became Gentle Criminal, and he became a better criminal than student, tragically enough.
Gentle Criminal has learned to use his Elasticity Quirk to create bouncy sheets of air to boost his mobility and block his opponents, and he can also get a boost when his partner, La Brava, strengthens him with her Love Quirk. Eventually, he was captured.
5 Hitoshi Shinso Got A Major Upgrade
Hitoshi Shinso was in the gen-ed department of U.A. for a time, and he didn't receive any meaningful combat training there. After all, Shinso has a rather villainous Quirk, and he didn't make it into the heroics department the normal way. He lost to Izuku in the U.A. sports festival, with a dismal 0-1 record.
All that has changed after his loss. Shinso rallied himself and began training hard, and he got help from Shota Aizawa to enhance his combat abilities. Now he has new equipment, including his voice modulator and a scarf-ribbon to match Aizawa's.
4 La Brava Learned To Fight After Joining Gentle Criminal
La Brava has minimal physical combat skills, but she does have some hacking abilities, and she can also use her Love ability to enhance a partner whom she genuinely likes on a personal level. At first, she was a powerless shut-in who hid from the world, but then she started making a difference, albeit a negative one, with Gentle Criminal.
La Brava became powerful as a supporter of Gentle Criminal's, and when she uses her Love Quirk, Gentle got a huge boost and was able to fight Izuku on even terms for a short time. It's unfortunate that La Brava used her newfound team-based abilities for villainy rather than hero work, though.
3 Shota Aizawa Struggled As A Student
Shota Aizawa, AKA Eraserhead, is a powerful pro hero who uses his anti-Quirk ability and his advanced techniques to track and capture villains with ease. But he wasn't always so powerful. In his student days, Aizawa had a tough time keeping up with his classmates, since his Erasure Quirk doesn't do damage.
Fortunately, Aizawa got some help from his classmates. For instance, it was Oboro Shirakumo's idea to use goggles, and Aizawa later became a powerful hero who was interning with pros all the time. By now, he is truly formidable.
2 Eijiro Kirishima Has Made The Most Of His Boring Quirk
Eijiro Kirishima was born with a "boring" Quirk: Hardening. He felt terribly disappointed, and he believed that he would never match his role model, the man's-man hero Crimson Riot. One day, though, Eijiro saw his middle school classmate Mina Ashido confront a terrifying villain, and that scene inspired him.
Eijiro hadn't trained much his Quirk until then, but now, everything was changing for the better. Eijiro started practicing with his Quirk to qualify for U.A., and as he had hoped, he made it into class 1-A. Eijiro is also training his resolve and courage as a hero to enhance his Hardening ability, and he was further inspired by the actions of Fat Gum.
1 Dabi Overcame His Weakness As A Fire User
Fans of the My Hero Academia manga know that the true identity of villainous Dabi is Toya Todoroki, Endeavor's firstborn, and he has an awkward combination of Quirks to his name. He inherited fire-based powers from Endeavor but cold resistance from Rei, meaning he kept burning himself during his boyhood training. So, Endeavor gave up on him.
Toya kept training on his own, though, and grew more powerful, even though he burned himself badly at one point. Now, as a member of the League of Villains, Dabi can safely use his overwhelming fire Quirk to blast away pro heroes and other opponents without any notable side effects. He has finally mastered himself, but unfortunately, he did it as a villain.