Mina Ashido Guide

Mina Ashido Guide

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Mina Ashido, referred to as Pinky, could just be the most courageous girl in the My Hero Academia 1-A class. She uses a quirk called Acid that allows her to produce acid from any part of the body. Although it seems like a very generic superhero power, Mina can utilize this ability to launch projectiles, glide on the floor, climb buildings, and create a wall of acid.

Pinky is one of the less featured class members. She has just a few shining moments but is, for the most part, overshadowed by other students. Nevertheless, this doesn’t make her less relevant. Mina is a very jovial spirit and is a born matchmaker. On many occasions, she is portrayed as very courageous, cunning, and willing to sacrifice for her teammates.

Key Info Up Front

Mina Ashido is an acid user in My Hero Academia manga. She can utilize her quirk in a plethora of ways for offense, defense, and utility. Pinky can work well with others, even if it’s someone as obnoxious as Mineta.

Mina Ashido’s Personal Info

Mina Ashido

Like many characters in the series, Mina Ashido is presented as an easygoing, young individual that doesn’t have a care in the world. She is constantly smiling and bringing joy into the lives of others. Mina easily makes friends and can adapt to just about any social situation. In fact, Pinky gets very irritated when classmates forget to call her for one of the gatherings.

As for her favorite pastime, Mina is known for shopping sprees. It is an activity that she enjoys with other girls. But she isn’t a one-trick pony. Ashido also loves to dance, which is best shown during the School Festival arc. Here, you can see the other part of her personality. Her easygoing nature is quickly replaced by a stricter, disciplined demeanor as she takes a lot of pride in her dancing skills.

Pinky is among the worst students in 1-A class. The student needs a lot of help with even the simplest equations, and she looks up to Momo Yaoyorozu for guidance. Although she is not necessarily dumb, she is very anxious when facing the tests leading to additional frustration and lapse in judgment. As a result, classmates often tease her for this character trait.

Mina’s Courage

Aside from being fun and jovial, there are a few instances where Mina is portrayed as a valorous student. So much so that many pro heroes and students perceive her as an ideal person for the hero job.

We learn a lot about Mina’s courage through Kirishima’s memories. The two of them went to middle school together, and Kirishima was there when Mina managed to dissuade some bullies from messing with other students. Pinky would face them and convince them to stop such nonsense through her jovial but direct approach.

Despite looking so brave on the outside, Mina is not fearless. In fact, her willingness to defend others usually overwhelms her fears in a particular situation. Only when a conflict is resolved would she fall to her knees and tremble.

You can see this during a scene where she faces Gigantomachia. Pinky told the monster a blatant lie, which he believed leaving the heroes to their own devices. Once the threat had passed, Mina would fall to the ground, crying her heart out.

Mina’s Romantic Persona

Another thing that is her defining trait is her romantic persona. Pinky loves matching classmates with one another, and she doesn’t have any problem poking around their personal lives. In fact, she can even be seen as annoying by some of her friends.

However, Mina is usually wrong about these things. The student sees signs even when they’re not there, even if the classmates are a complete mismatch. As for her own love life, there is a good chance she has a crush on Eijiro Kirishima, who holds Mina in high regard.

Mina Ashido’s Appearance

Mina Ashido is 5.2 feet tall, and, like most characters, she makes her debut in episode 5 of the anime (6th manga episode). One of Mina’s main traits is her wide thighs. Her skin is light pink, her eyes are black and squared, and she has very long but spread eyelashes. According to one of her classmate’s assessments, she has a very strong athletic body type.

When you take a look at Mina Ashido, the first thing you’ll notice is her crazy hair. It is pink, fluffy, and all over the place. It is almost the same color as her skin, and if the creators hadn’t drawn dark edges, it would be really hard to tell one from another. Mina Ashido has two curved horns that look almost antennae and, in my opinion, are totally out of place given the overall character design.

Mina Ashido’s Outfit

Like all students, Pinky wears the standard U.A. uniform when on campus. When in action, she has flamboyant clothes that combine numerous patterns and colors. It is worth noting that the outfit is completely acid-resistant, allowing her to utilize the quirk.

The majority of her body is covered by a camo onesie. It combines turquoise and purple and looks as if someone spilled colors over the fabric. There is a cream vest around her shoulders, with fluffy white fur. She has a white mask over her eyes, looking like a true superhero. As for her boots, they combine cream and brown colors.

Mina Ashido’s Appearances in Manga and Anime

Mina Ashido

Pinky is a minor character in the story. However, like most other heroes in My Hero Academia, she did receive some airtime and development.

First Few Arcs

Mina barely got any screen time during the initial few arcs. She is introduced during Quirk Apprehension Test Arc, where viewers see her quirk for the first time.

In the second Battle Trial Arc, the students are paired in teams of two and have to battle each other, performing roles of villains and heroes. Mina works with Yuga Aoyama taking on Koji Koda and Rikido Sato. Unfortunately, we don’t know how this battle ends.

A similar can be said for U.S.J Arc, where Mina is barely shown. During this set of episodes, our young protagonists are forced to fight a large enemy force known as The League of Villains. Although the pro heroes managed to dispatch the threat, we learn how tough it is to be a hero student.

U.A. Sports Festival Arc

U.A. Sports Festival is an annual event where U.A. students have the opportunity to show their prowess to the world. They attend three elimination competitions, and the last person standing is declared a winner. It consists of an obstacle race, a cavalry battle, and a battle tournament.

The first event goes by rather quickly, and only a few students are shown during it. During the second cavalry event, Mina Ashido is paired with Katsuki Bakugo, Eijiro Kirishima, and Hanta Sero. The point of this competition is to get as many headbands from the opponents as possible. Each of them carries a certain number of points, and the top four teams go to the last competition.

While creating a strategy, team Bakugo is quickly ambushed by Neito Monoma and his comrades. After provoking Bakugo, Katsuki is completely enraged and decides to scrape all previous plans to pursue Neito. Mina was crucial for their strategy. By using her acid and Sero’s tape, their horse manages to glide around the field and would eventually steal back their headband, also taking the other ones.

The Battle Tournament

Mina Ashido

Before the tournament can even start, one of Mina’s classmates, Mashirao Ojiro, decides that he should withdraw from the competition. According to him, the cavalry battle wasn’t fair, and it would harm his dignity if he was to proceed. Pinky and Toru Hagakure try to dissuade him but to no avail.

During the first round, Mina was rather successful. She quickly disposed of Yuga Aoyama by making his utility belt not work. Unfortunately, during the second round, she was paired with Fumikage Tokoyami, who was just too much for her.

Vs. Hero Killer Arc

Vs. Hero Killer Arc is a very important set of episodes for the development of villains. During them, our main student protagonists will battle notorious Stain, the hero killer. Although they would eventually prevail over this enormous threat, the battle would echo through the villain’s society, uniting numerous warring factions against the hero system.

There are just a few scenes where we can see Mina, and both of them are at the end of the arc. First off, students were given the opportunity to pick their hero names. Mina was very creative when she presented her new name, “Alien Queen.” Unfortunately, the strict teacher, Midnight, didn’t like it and she had to go with Pinky.

She is also seen briefly during foundational hero studies. The class is split into 4 groups of 5 people, and they race against each other, trying to reach the victims. Mina Ashido is placed together with Sero, Tenya, Ojiro, and Midoriya. Izuku takes a quick lead but would slip on one of the obstacles and would ultimately finish last. Sero was the winner, and we don’t know how Pinky faired.

Final Exams Arc

In this arc, we have the opportunity to watch Mina for a bit longer. The final exam consists of theoretical and practical tests. Mina and Denki Kaminari are very anxious about the test, as they haven’t prepared well enough. Pinky is naturally anxious in such a situation. Mineta makes fun of them, infuriating both Mina and Kaminari in the process.

To Ashido’s joy, Izuku finds out the content of the test. Nevertheless, Mina is not complacent and decides to properly prepare for the exam together with a few other students. Momo takes up the mantle of a teacher and creates a group of Mina, Hanta, Kyoka, Denki, and Mashirao, preparing them for the upcoming exam.

Unfortunately for some of the students, teachers have a nasty surprise. Although the written exam was not that hard, and all of the students would eventually pass, the practical test would turn out to be much harder than anticipated. Students are to form groups of two, and they would go against one of the teachers.

Practical Exam and its Aftermath

During the exam, Mina and Kaminari, two anxious participants, would go against principal Nezu. The only way they could beat the test was if they handcuffed Nezu or escaped the facility. To their dismay, the principal is not willing to budget.

He starts pummeling their position with a wrecking ball preventing the duo from escaping the facility. According to Recovery Girl, the principal is the last person they would like to go against. As someone who was abused in the past, Nezu is particularly cruel towards humans. Although this cannot be noticed in regular situations, his true nature emerges during engagements.

Ultimately, Kaminari and Pinky would fail the test together with Rikido and Eijiro. As a punishment, they were supposed to miss a forest field trip, something that students were looking forward to. However, they rejoiced when they learned that everyone could attend it. Although they failed the practical exam, they still managed to pass the theoretical part making them eligible for the trip.

Forest Training Camp Arc

During this arc, the League of Villains strikes once again. They have a hidden agenda that we’re acquainted with later on in the story.

The whole point of the camp is to hone survival skills. The class gathers around with Mina and Shoto Todoroki setting a fire. They prepare curry and chit-chat with one another.

Later on, all students are split into two groups. The first group consists of students that have failed the exam, including Kaminari, Mina, Sero, Kirishima, and Rikido. They are to remain in the camp while all other students go into the forest and play pursuers and pursuees.

Briefly, after students go into the woods, the League of Villains causes a major forest fire. The teachers, Vlad King and Shota Aizawa, decide to head out and address the threat, only to be intercepted by one of the villains that goes by the name Dabi.

The fight: Seeing that the threat is much bigger than initially anticipated, Aizawa orders Vlad King to retread to the forest facility with Kaminari, Mina, Sero, Kirishima, and Rikido. They are to wait inside until the teacher takes care of the problem. Mina and Kirishima wanted to go outside and help out, but Vlad didn’t allow them to.

Aizawa has the upper hand over Dabi. At one moment, the villain decides to burn down the nearby facility where the students are held. The flames would endanger Mina and Eijiro, but with a quick reaction, Vlad King manages to save the day. Eventually, Aizawa managed to fend off the attack, which turned out is nothing but a clone.

Meanwhile, in the forest, the enemy manages to capture Bakugo and teleport him back to the base. The majority of the students were injured during the event. The only exception is Mina, who suffered no injuries whatsoever.

Provisional Hero License Exam Arc

Provision Hero License Exam is a major city-wide test where students from different hero schools are pinned against each other. If they manage to pass the test, they get a temporary hero license that would allow them to catch perpetrators as if they’re real heroes.

During one of the initial episodes, the students are allocated to a dormitory. Each one of them gets a room, and they make a showcase competition. During this event, we can see the inside of Pinky’s room, which, as you might’ve presumed based on her character, is full of cute girlie objects.

After going through quirk development training, the girls gather around in the common room. They talk about their progress and all the cool moves they’ve been working on. During the conversation, Ochaco has her head in the clouds. Noticing this strange behavior, Mina starts to prod. Pinky asks Ochaco whether she has a crush and, if she does, whether it’s Midoriya or Tenya.

Shocked by such a blatant invasion of privacy, Momo and Tsuyu warn Mina to stay out of Ochaco’s business.

The start of the exam: The point of the exam is to eliminate as many opponents as possible until just a handful of students remain. Izuku shares a strategy where 1-A classmates would stick together and try to beat the odds. During the initial skirmish, Mina groups up with Midoriya, Fumikage, Ochaco, and Minoru.

They go against a student called Yo, who starts throwing a plethora of balls at opponents. At one point, Mina even saves Minoru from elimination by using her Acid Veil. Through cooperation, our protagonists manage to pass the first round.

In the second round, Mina once again groups up with some of her fellow classmates in Toru, Mashirao, and Minoru. After going back and forth between several battles, the story pans to Yuga and Tenya, who are in a precarious position. With Yuga on the ground, Tenya scrambles to protect his teammate, saying that this is his responsibility as a class president.

However, Yuga doesn’t accept Tenya’s sacrifice and fires Navel Laser into the sky to create a distraction for him. To their surprise, this doesn’t attract enemies but, instead, their friends. Minoru, Mina, Fumikage, and Mashirao have seen the beacon and came to help them.

The only way to pass the test is to acquire special balls. Mina gives them to Tenya and Yuga, and together, all the protagonists pass the exam.

As the test continues, our protagonists join forces to help civilians during an evacuation trial. During this ordeal, Mina mostly works with Fumikage. They manage to stave off the enemy, thus showcasing their calmness under pressure.

Shie Hassaikai Arc

Mina Ashido

During this arc, the heroes are faced with a terrifying threat that can shake the entire society as we know it. There is a new drug on the streets that can completely nullify people’s quirks, and heroes are trying to find its source. Eventually, they will track it back to the yakuza organization known as Shie Hassaikai, which is led by villain Overhaul.

At the start of the arc, our students meet Mirio Togata, Nejire Hado, and Tamaki Amajiki, third-year students who are appropriately called the Big Three. While chatting with the group, Nejire Hado shows interest in several quirks and 1-A students. Here, we can see a brief shot where she plays with Mina’s horns.

Later on, the whole class would face Mirio Togata, a wunderkind who can make parts of his body untouchable. That way, he can pass through objects and people at will. The students, including Mina, tried a joint attack but to no avail.

Eijiro’s memories

This arc is very important for the development of Mina’s character. Through Eijiro Kirishima’s memory, we learn much more about this brave student.

Kirishima is a person who was deeply affected by Mina’s personality. On one occasion, he saw an underclassman getting bullied by a few older guys. As Kirishima was getting ready to help, Mina jumped in front of the bullies and told them to get along. Interestingly enough, the bullies listened to Pinky, who managed to defuse the situation without having to resort to violence.

This shook Kirishima to his core, and he started thinking that he was not cut to be a hero. Later on that day, he noticed a shadowy figure as it approached some of Mina’s friends.

The villain demanded information from the young girls, who started trembling in their boots. Once again, Mina appeared to save the day. She popped out of nowhere and gave the villain false information. He believed Mina and went his own way.

Eijiro was completely disheartened by the fact he didn’t act sooner. Somehow, he managed to find strength watching an interview with a pro hero, Crimson Riot, who would become his role model.

In the following days, he would approach both Mina’s friends and Mina, apologizing for his cowardice. To this, Mina responded that he shouldn’t beat himself up about it. Instead, he needs to find inner strength and work on his character.

These scenes teach us more about Mina’s strength of character, determination, and ability to think on the fly.

U.A. School Festival Arc

Mina also has a significant role during this arc. Here, students are trying to put on a public performance for the whole school. As they go through each one of their talents, we learn that Mina is a great dancer. She would eventually teach some of her classmates to dance, and they would go on to perform in front of the whole school.

Joint Training Arc

During Joint Training Arc, our protagonists perform 4v4 and 5v5 battles with class 1-B. The goal of the exercise is to incapacitate the enemies and put them all in jail. A team wins when all the members of the other squad are in this makeshift jail.

Pinky performs during the 5th round. She is paired with Izuku Midoriya, Ochaco Uraraka, and Minoru Mineta. They group together to discuss strategy. Due to differences in quirks, Mina and Ochaco believe that their team is at a heavy disadvantage. Ashido shows doubt in her abilities, but Midoriya reassures her, telling Pinky that everything’s going to be fine.

As Izuku is battling the enemy leader, Neito, the rest of the team tries to capture other students. Mina has a few bright moments protecting her allies from enemy projectiles with an acid veil. However, as she goes on the offensive, she is thwarted by Yui Kodai.

Later on, we can see Mineta and Mina battling side by side. They take on Yui and Nirengeki. Here, we can see that Mineta and Mina have good chemistry. They even developed a joint move called Grape-Pinky Combo Mineta Bounce. Through good cooperation, team Midoriya would take full victory, apprehending all four enemies without losing any of the team members.

Paranormal Liberation War Arc

In this arc, our heroes go against Meta Liberation Army. During the first few episodes, we see Mina’s newly developed attack called Acidman. Pinky can envelop her body with acid, which can be used both offensively and defensively. Later on, she told Kirishima that the move is a variation of his Red Riot Unbreakable.

Later on in the arc, Mina faces Gigantomachia. The encounter reminds her of the day in middle school when she encountered the shadowy figure. Once again, she was struck with fear. Gigantomachia makes a move against her, but Kirishima gets in the way and saves his classmate.

Quirk and Abilities

Mina Ashido

Quirk – Acid

Mina Ashido can create acid from her skin, use it as a projectile, or envelop her body with it. Although her skin has a high natural resistance to the substance, the resistance will weaken over time, so there is a limit as to how long she can use the quirk.

Pinky can change the thickness of the liquid and even utilize it for climbing and sliding. Furthermore, she can create a non-acidic version of the substance. One of the main focuses of her training was to increase resiliency to acid.

Her moves are Acid Veil, Acid Shot, Acid Layback, Acidman, and Grape-Pinky Combo Mineta Bounce.

Good Mobility

Although not as mobile as Tokoyami, Mina can utilize her quirk to increase mobility. She can glide, climb, and her dancing training allows her to execute certain moves that other students can. Overall, Mina Ashido has great control over her body.

Equipment

Special Clothing

Given the nature of her quirk, Mina needs to release her acid without having to think about a potential wardrobe malfunction. All of her clothes are resistant to the substance.

Special Shoes

Like clothing, her shoes are resistant to acid. Furthermore, she can use them to release acid from soles which allows her to glide.

Mina Ashido’s Strengths and Weaknesses

Mina Ashido

Although Mina’s quirk looks very useful, it does have its drawbacks. The ability has its limits, which is especially noticeable when you compare her to other top students.

Strengths

  • Mina is very mobile and can nicely utilize her physique.
  • The quick can be used defensively, offensively, and as a utility tool.
  • She can use it to protect allies.
  • The acid is a great counter for many physical-based quirks and different equipment.
  • Pinky is very courageous and doesn’t mind putting her body on the line for her teammates.

Weaknesses

  • Mina Ashido is a subpar decision-maker.
  • Although very courageous, this can sometimes work to her detriment, putting her in precarious situations.
  • Although acid can be used as a projectile and, in theory, can dissolve everything in its way, it isn’t as wide as some other elemental projectiles. In other words, she would easily lose to someone like Todoroki.
  • Limited to how much acid she can produce.

Mina Ashido Trivia

Jovial Character

Pinky is one of the happiest characters in My Hero Academia, which says a lot given how many positive people there are in her class. Although many characters are portrayed as courageous and relentless, Mina is the only one who is constantly battling through fear. So much so that she has become an inspiration for Kirishima.

Special Clothes

Although we can say that every student relies on clothes and equipment, this is especially important for Ashido. Without special acid-resistant clothes, she would be constantly naked. In that sense, Pinky would be very similar to Mirio, who needs to undress to utilize his quirk.

Dancing Prowess

As mentioned a few times, Mina has great control over her body. Her dancing training was crucial for developing hero abilities. Not only does she use it to increase her overall battlefield mobility, but you can also notice it in some of her moves.

FAQs

Question: Why is Mina Pink?

Answer: Like many other students featured in My Hero Academia, Mina Ashido has non-human characteristics such as pink skin. This is caused by Acid quirk that changes the color of the tissue. You can also notice that her eyes are black and yellow, but we don’t know for certain if this is also caused by the quirk.

Question: Who is Mina Ashido’s Crush?

Answer: Mina Ashido and Eijiro Kirishima have a special relationship that dates back to middle school. After seeing her face bullies and, later on, a nasty villain, Kirishima developed a respect for Mina, which slowly grew to something more. During Paranormal Liberation War Arc, we can also notice that Ashido molded one of her moves according to Eijiro’s Red Riot Unbreakable.

Question: Was There a Different Model for Mina?

Answer: There are a few fan theories circling around the My Hero Academia community that pertain to Mina and her original color. In the manga, the character is black-coded, and her skin is completely different than that of other characters.
As a result, many fans believe that she was supposed to be black even though she has pink skin in anime. However, the author negates this claim and says that the character was meant to be pink from the get-go.

Mina Ashido Guide: Conclusion

Mina Ashido is a very likable character from My Hero Academia. She can utilize a powerful quirk called Acid that allows her to create acid from her skin. The student can use the substance to create a wall or projectiles, to cover her body, glide over the ground, or climb the walls.

Despite being a very versatile quirk, Acid is not as powerful as some other abilities. Furthermore, Mina is not the most gifted student, so, despite her courage and good physical traits, she ranks pretty low within the My Hero Academia hierarchy.

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