While Deku is a firm fan-favorite protagonist of My Hero Academia, not much can be said against Mirio Togata’s amazing heroism or his prospects of becoming the #1 Hero one day. Even though Lemillion is currently living a Quirkless lifestyle, that doesn’t stop anyone from dreaming about what might have been; if Deku wasn’t the lucky recipient of One For All and if Overhaul hadn’t ruined everything.
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Mirio is arguably one of the most honorable and optimistic students to walk the halls of UA High School, spreading laughter and joy like confetti with every step he takes. His energetic enthusiasm is simply contagious, and that goofy, genuine smile inspires one in return from every fortunate recipient. Even when everybody seems against him, teasing Mirio for his “useless” Quirk, that unwavering upbeat confidence never falters, and he doesn’t even consider shying away from uplifting a downtrodden comrade in return. Who better to inspire an entire population of fearful citizens than the one-and-only Lemillion?
The Magnificent Mirio
Although every Hero has to put in extensive training to master their abilities, Mirio had a particularly rough start due to the temperamental nature of his Permeation Quirk. While the value of being able to walk through basically anything is quite obvious now, the poor youngster kept tripping up in the technicalities that require him to keep one foot cemented to the floor whilst simultaneously holding his breath and blindly navigating through the situation. Without his specialized Lemilliosuit, this Big Three big boy also happens to lose his clothing in the phase-shifting process, which makes him an easy target for teasing yet again.
Despite all the limitations, and with a great deal of help from Sir Nighteye, Lemillion learned to overcome the obstacles before him to create a practically unstoppable fighting style perfect for the battlefield. Not only does Permeation grant him extra mobility, but it can also be used defensively if activated at the right time. Anyone attempting to strike Mirio with any kind of attack is almost guaranteed to miss, as it simply passes straight through the young Hero as if he were a hologram floating in thin air.
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Mirio also manages to unlock a bonus feature of his Quirk, which requires an understanding of the Pauli Exclusion Principle to be used most effectively. Breaking things down to an atomic level, the Physicist Wolfgang Pauli proposes that two identical electrons cannot occupy the same area simultaneously, which means that one must be evicted. In Lemillion’s case, this repossession of space is quite forcefully achieved, which propels him in a particular direction at a considerable speed. Unplanned occurrences of this nature could end in disaster; however, Mirio has learned how to carefully manipulate the circumstances in his favor to have greater control over the orientation of his thrust with an Ultimate Move called Phantom Menace.
The Symbol of Hope
Where All Might made the perfect Symbol of Peace, Lemillion could have been an equally adequate Symbol of Hope, leading civilians’ mindsets out of the darkness with a sparkly white grin and a poorly delivered joke. Not only do the two Heroes share a similar Herculean physique (and matching blonde locks) but their inspirational personality traits are what set them apart from the rest. Those who know about Mirio’s past struggles (which, on a public platform with #1 Hero status, would likely be most people) would probably regard him with great respect and admiration, while also finding solace in the sheer amount of determination he bears. The citizens are clearly affected by the concept of hope (arguably above all else), which is evident when the “Quirkless” All Might raises his fist in the air after the epic battle against All For One. As Hawks has already noted, being the #1 Hero has as much to do with likeability (and motivational capacity) as their power level; and Mirio certainly ticks the boxes in this regard.
Complimentary Quirks
If All Might went along with his original plan to pass One For All over to Mirio, their Quirks could have worked quite harmoniously together (and also for future wielders to come.) Lemillion would have fun with the Gearshift ability, which allows its user to change the speed of anything they come into contact with, and, seeing that Mirio essentially has unlimited maneuverability, everything is a potential target. He could also receive a personal surge in acceleration with this Quirk, over and above his near-warp-speed movements, potentially making him the fastest man alive.
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Fa Jin is a unique ability within One For All’s arsenal that allows the user to collect kinetic energy and release it as a concentrated surge of power and, considering how much distance Mirio can cover in a short amount of time, this Quirk would undoubtedly be well-used! Still, a permeable Hero is not exactly the best equipped for making contact with their opponent, as keeping different body parts within separate phase-shifting states surely takes a toll on the mind. Without having to deactivate Permeation on his hands, Mirio could restrain his foes by using Blackwhip instead, and potentially create some technical difficulties for them in the process because, theoretically, Permeation should also transcend through these whips when required. So, if he sends these dark tendrils through a wall, for example, and grabs the enemy, he could pull them back at full force and subsequently slam them straight into the obstacle, inflicting significant damage in the process (and a good deal of chuckles while he’s at it!)
Considering that Lemillion suffers from stifled senses when Permeation is activated, adopting the Danger Sense Quirk would significantly alleviate the threat of being caught unawares. As the name suggests, this ability is a Spidey-Sense of sorts, alerting the user of any incoming hazards. Furthermore, Nana’s Float could plausibly counteract that sinking sensation that Mirio experiences during a phase shift, as his Quirk would happily pull him into the earth if given the chance (which is why he always has to keep one foot grounded at all times.) These Quirk combinations should effectively eliminate the major weaknesses of Lemillion’s abilities and would make him an even better candidate for the #1 position (if only given the chance!)
The Benefits of Being Quirkless
The biggest counterargument to this whole debate speaks to one of the main reasons Deku was chosen as All Might’s successor, which has everything to do with his Quirkless-ness. Due to the considerable power encapsulated in One For All, a prodigy already possessing a Quirk would most likely be overwhelmed by all the additional energy, with potentially fatal consequences. Much like the Quirk Singularity Doomsday Theory suggests, the human anatomy can only control a limited amount of superhuman force before it essentially implodes from the effort, as can be seen in Eri’s case. As awesome as Mirio is, he might need to exist in a near-permanent state of Permeation to potentially counteract the damaging effects of One For All (particularly at full power), disrupting the destruction on an anatomic level by never allowing his body to “catch up” with the damage, so to speak.
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