Knuckleduster (Iwao Oguro) has made a name for himself in My Hero Academia: Vigilantes. He is a powerhouse individual who strikes fear into everyone he meets. His intense personality and even more extraordinary strength make him the perfect person to deal with Instant Villains. The most surprising thing about him is that he does all his vigilantism without a Quirk. His strength is far above what any normal person could do, yet he does not possess the superpower that would augment his abilities. In this way, Knuckleduster proves that no one — not even Izuku Midoriya — needs a Quirk to become a Hero.

Midoriya (Deku) was always of the opinion that he would do his best to become a Hero despite his Quirklessness. He never seemed to have the drive to do anything concrete about it until All Might handed him a Quirk. However, Knuckleduster never seemed to let losing his Quirk get him down. Instead, he channeled his anger into his superior strength. Though it is not necessarily legal, Knuckleduster still fights crime in his own way, proving Deku could have done the same one day as well.

Deku Felt Useless Before His Quirk in My Hero Academia

Deku Feels a Lot of Self-Pity

Ever since he was a child, Deku has wanted to be a Pro Hero. He would watch endless clips of All Might rescuing people, all while maintaining a dazzling smile. Deku dreamed of being just like All Might as an adult, but his dreams are summarily crushed when he learns that he does not have a Quirk. This made him feel betrayed and helpless at first, but he put all his energy into learning everything he could about Pro Heroes. Unfortunately, he put so much stock into cataloging the Pro Heroes and their moves that he forgot to develop any of his own.

​​​​​​Because of this, Deku was facing the potential of trying to get into U.A. without any appreciable physical talents. He was determined to be a Pro Hero but lacked the physical capability — that is, until he was rescued at the last minute by All Might’s generosity. Suddenly, Deku’s entire Heroics profession hinged on his new Quirk. As shown at the end of the manga, Deku is essentially powerless without it and isn’t much of a Hero any longer.

However, in My Hero Academia: Vigilantes, Iwao Oguro (Knuckleduster) takes a vastly different approach. Knuckleduster was originally a Pro Hero named O’Clock. After his speed-based Quirk was stolen by All For One, he did not give up fighting Villains. Instead, he trained his body to become strong enough to face the Villains without a Quirk. Unlike Deku, Knuckleduster didn’t let his Quirklessness end his career of helping people — even if he is currently not working legally.

Knuckleduster Used to Be a Hero in My Hero Academia: Vigilantes

Knuckleduster Did Not Let Quirklessness Get Him Down

When Oguro was the Pro Hero O’Clock, he used his Overclock Quirk to literally race through time. He would move so fast that everyone and everything else would seem to stand still by comparison. One would think losing such an overpowered Quirk would be devastating to a Pro Hero’s personality. After all, learning how to handle such a powerful Quirk would have taken up most of Oguro’s life. Audiences have seen what losing a Quirk does to a person with Pros like Ragdoll and Deku at the end of the manga. However, Oguro did not let it get him down. Instead, he chose to pivot.

Although All For One took his Quirk, Oguro did his best to stay in the Hero profession. He trained his body and mind to make himself just as powerful as some of the strongest Pros — without a Quirk. Now, as Knuckleduster, Oguro strikes fear into the hearts of everyone he meets. He may not have a Quirk anymore, but his presence is just that intimidating.

Knuckleduster is so strong now as a vigilante that even Shota Aizawa has a tough time fighting him at the beginning of My Hero Academia: Vigilantes. The thugs tormenting Crawler and Pop Step are also threatened by Knuckleduster, despite having impressive Quirks themselves. This goes to show that Knuckleduster never lost his edge, even after he lost his Quirk.

MHA: Vigilantes’ Knuckleduster Is Still a Hero in His Own Way

Knuckleduster Helps the Legal Heroes

Even if he is not a true Hero by prefectural standards, Knuckleduster is still a Hero in his own right. He has a propensity for violence, but it is all in the name of keeping Villains off the streets. His quest to tackle the Trigger drug situation is also an admirable, if misplaced, use of his newfound physical power.

When it comes down to it, Knuckleduster never let his Quirk define him. Rather, he labels himself as someone who would go to extreme lengths to keep people safe. He risks both physical injury and the law just to try to make the world a better place. Though everyone is afraid of him, Knuckleduster teaches Quirkless people (and people with menial Quirks like Crawler) that they can aspire to more. The only obstacles in the way of their dreams are themselves and their perceptions of their abilities.

As much as law enforcement and other Pro Heroes hate to admit it, Knuckleduster is helping them to some degree. Both Knuckleduster and the government recognized Heroes want the same thing. The only difference is that Knuckleduster is not bound by bureaucracy. He can utilize any force he deems necessary. Whether or not this is a good thing is up for debate, but at least he is attempting to be a helpful member of society. Deku is determined to feel sorry for himself and pretend like he wants to be a Hero, but sits on the sidelines. Until he gets One For All, he continues to long for a dream that he could already be attaining if he just put in the physical work.

My Hero Academia’s Deku Would Not Have Become a Hero Without a Quirk

Knuckleduster Became a Vigilante to Save More People

Even though becoming a Hero was Deku’s ultimate dream, he had no drive to train his body to be physically ready for such a career. He focused so much on knowledge that he forgot that heroism takes brawn as well as brains. Deku had no prayer of becoming a Quirkless Pro Hero and most likely would have ended up at a menial job behind a desk. All the bluster of becoming a Hero despite his limitations would have been in vain and would have proven to his detractors that Quirkless people can’t be Pro Heroes after all.

However, Knuckleduster proves all of this wrong. He very easily could have given up fighting entirely and quietly retired. Instead, Knuckleduster let his anger and righteousness fuel him to become (one might argue) a more effective “Hero”. His methods are not on par with the law, but at least he is working toward a goal larger than himself. Knuckleduster has built himself up so much that he is becoming a second All Might in the community. People now look up to him to be the face of the night, protecting them from the Villains that All Might can’t see.

Although Deku is mostly sidelined now that the My Hero Academia manga has ended, Knuckleduster proves that Deku never needed One For All at all. All Deku would have had to do is train his body with as much discipline and fervor as he did once he got the Quirk, and he could have been the second coming of Knuckleduster. The fact that Deku was not becoming the person he wanted to be was because he was getting in his own way. He got too much in his head and let others dictate his reputation.

Knuckleduster does not let anyone tell him who he is. He fights when he needs to, and he does his best to keep innocent people out of harm’s way. It does not always work, but he does his best. If Deku had followed suit to Knuckleduster’s return to crime fighting, it might have helped Deku come out of his shell and begin achieving his dream. Just because someone is Quirkless does not mean that they are helpless. On the contrary, a powerful Quirkless person only serves to inspire people who are just like them. If Deku had put the work into becoming a Quirkless Hero, he could have potentially had even more of an impact on the world than All Might. Everyone loves an underdog, especially when they have worked so hard to finally achieve their dream long term.