To Be Hero X
| To Be Hero X | |
Promotional poster | |
| Created by | Li Haolin |
|---|---|
| Anime television series | |
| Directed by | Li Haolin |
| Written by | Li Haolin |
| Music by |
|
| Studio | BeDream (Pb Animation Co. Ltd., Studio LAN, and Paper Plane Animation Studio) |
| Licensed by | Crunchyroll (streaming) |
| Original network | Fuji TV (Japan) bilibili (China) |
| Original run | April 6, 2025 – present |
| Episodes | 14 (ongoing) |
To Be Hero X (凸变英雄X) is a Chinese original donghua series and the third series of the To Be Hero anthology franchise. It premiered on Fuji Television and other channels on April 6, 2025. A co-production between BeDream, Bilibili and Aniplex, the series was made at production company and studio BeDream in collaboration with three animation studios, Pb Animation Co. Ltd., Studio LAN, and Paper Plane Animation Studio. It is directed by Li Haolin, with music by Hiroyuki Sawano, Kohta Yamamoto, Hidefumi Kenmochi, Daiki, Shuhei Mutsuki, Hideyuki Fukasawa, Misaki Umase and Ryuichi Takada.[1][2]
Hiroyuki Sawano performs the opening theme song for the series, titled "INERTIA", while SennaRin performs the ending theme song for the series, titled "KONTINUUM".[3]
Synopsis
The story of To Be Hero X is set in a world where “faith” turns people into superheroes, i.e. if people believe that someone can fly, then that person gains the ability to fly. Conversely, heroes lose their powers if people stop believing in them. The trust that people place in heroes is measured and collected as data, and the heroes are ranked according to the public's faith in them. Every two years, the top heroes gather to compete in a tournament and their trust rankings are adjusted accordingly. The number one hero at the top of the rankings is known as "X".
Characters
- Nice (奈斯; Nài sī) / The Commoner (普通人; Pǔtōng rén) / Lin Ling (林凌; Lín Líng)
- Voiced by: Gu Jiangshan[4] (Chinese); Natsuki Hanae[5] (Japanese); Mauricio Ortiz-Segura[6] / Branden Loera (original)[6] (English)
- The 10th-ranked hero and the central character of episodes 1~4. Though publicly known as the "perfect" hero, in truth, he is an impostor who was forced to assume the real Nice's identity after the latter committed suicide as a result of public pressure. Having always wanted to be a hero, he successfully took on the mantle but could not shake the guilt of impersonating the real Nice, even developing a mild identity crisis. However, he ultimately remains true to himself, coming clean to the public and being forgiven, after which he develops his own hero identity.
- As Nice, he had multiple superpowers, including: flight, super strength, and increased endurance. As his own hero persona, he has shown enhanced strength.
- E-Soul (老魂电; Lǎo hún diàn) / Yang Cheng (杨澄; Yang Cheng)
- Voiced by: Yang Kaiqi[4] (Chinese); Nobunaga Shimazaki[5] (Japanese); Stephen Fu / Paige Guillory (young) (English)
- The 9th-ranked hero and the central character of episodes 5~7. He unwittingly became the successor of the original E-Soul, a legendary hero who once saved the entire world, after rescuing a child while dressed as the latter, causing the public to transfer their faith to him. Unfortunately, this resulted in one of his friends being killed by his newfound enemies, prompting him to cut off his remaining relationships and fully assume the E-Soul persona by killing his predecessor in a duel.
- He has electrokinetic abilities, which allow him to move at super speed and manipulate machines with his mind.
- Ahu (阿虎; Ā Hǔ)
- Voiced by: Zhang Fuzheng[4] (Chinese); Koichi Yamadera[5] (Japanese)
- The 8th-ranked hero and the central character of episode 23. He is a talking Shar Pei who gained self-awareness from the public's faith, choosing to be a hero for the sake of his young owner.
- He has shapeshifting abilities.
- Lucky Cyan (幸运青; Xìngyùn Qīng) / Cyan (青; Qīng)
- Voiced by: Zhao Shuang[4] (Chinese); Inori Minase[5] (Japanese); Jill Harris (English)
- The 7th-ranked hero and the central character of episodes 8~10. An orphan with supernatural luck, she grew up being exploited by others for her gift. This prompted her to run away and become a street performer to make a living, eventually growing into a popular idol.
- She fights using music empowered by people's faith, and her songs are said to bring good fortune to those who hear them.
- Loli (罗莉; Luó Lì) / Luo Li (罗莉; Luó Lì)
- Voiced by: Qian Chen[4] (Chinese); Ayane Sakura[5] (Japanese); Sarah Wiedenheft (English)
- The 6th-ranked hero and the central character of episodes 13~14. She is a genius engineer who wanted to be a hero since childhood, but no one took her seriously, prompting her to become an online influencer and gather public faith that way.
- She fights using a mechanical suit and gadgets, which she designs herself.
- Little Johnny (小强; Xiǎo qiáng) & Big Johnny (大强; Dà qiáng)
- Voiced by: Chen Jinwen[4] (Little Johnny) (Chinese); Yoshitsugu Matsuoka[5] (Little Johnny) (Japanese)
- The 5th-ranked heroes and the central characters of episodes 17~19, individually known as "Little Johnny" and "Big Johnny". Big Johnny is a cute mascot, with Little Johnny being its owner.
- Little Johnny can speak with animals while Big Johnny can become a monster, though the latter is prone to losing control in this state.
- GhostBlade (默杀; Mò Shā)
- Voiced by: Chang Wentao[4] (Chinese); Yuichi Nakamura[5] (Japanese)
- The 4th-ranked hero and the central character of episodes 15~16. He was raised to be a trained killer, which left him traumatized and unable to smile.
- He is a highly skilled assassin who fights with blades.
- Dragon Boy (梁龙; Liáng Lóng)
- Voiced by: Chenzhang Taikang[4] (Chinese); Koki Uchiyama[5] (Japanese)
- The 3rd-ranked hero and the central character of episodes 21~22. He is a delinquent who loves getting into fights.
- He possesses enhanced strength and can assume a more powerful form.
- Queen (女王; Nǚ Wáng) / Liu Yuwei (刘宇唯; Liú yǔ wéi)
- Voiced by: Liu Xiaoyu[4] (Chinese); Kana Hanazawa[5] (Japanese); Morgan Lauré (English)
- The 2nd-ranked hero and the central character of episodes 11~12. She is a prodigy who strives to become the #1 hero and abolish the current, corrupt hero system.
- She fights using a spear and can create an "area" where she can dictate the laws of the world to a limited extent.
- X
- Voiced by: Chao Wei[4] (Chinese); Mamoru Miyano[5] (Japanese)
- The top-ranked hero and the central character of episode 24. Despite being #1, he remains unaffiliated with any hero agency, and his true identity is a mystery; "X" is not his real hero name but an epithet given to the top-ranker. In actuality, he is just an ordinary office worker.
- He can control space and manipulate reality, which is primarily displayed in-universe through the animation-style changing.
Episodes
To Be Hero X is structured into 11 narrative arcs that are told out of chronological order.[7]
Nice / The Commoner
| No. in season | Title [8] | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Nice" | April 6, 2025 | |
|
After being fired from his job at an ad agency for making a commercial claiming "anyone" can be a hero, Lin Ling is about to jump off a building when the popular hero Nice suddenly walks past him and commits suicide himself. Nice’s manager, Miss J, then appears and kidnaps Ling to prevent news from spreading. Realizing Ling resembles Nice, Miss J forces him to impersonate the hero while covering up his death by releasing an article claiming Ling was the one who died. Ling pulls off the act quite well, to the point that the Trust system physically changes him into Nice and gives him his powers. Soon, Ling goes on a talk show run by the hero Enlighter with Nice's girlfriend, the hero Moon. Enlighter attempts to slander Nice by bringing out Ling’s old boss, who became a villain empowered by fear, and blaming him for Ling's supposed suicide. However, the boss goes on a rampage, demanding payment for his services to Nice's agency. Though initially scared, Ling perseveres and defeats his former boss. Afterward, Ling goes to sleep in Nice’s house when he finds Moon lying on the ground, seemingly dead. | |||
| 2 | "Moon" | April 13, 2025 | |
|
Waking up to find Moon is okay, Ling concludes that her death was a bad dream. However, Moon deduces that Ling is an impostor and reveals her relationship with Nice is a fabrication. While Moon wants out of her contract, Miss J announces that they plan for the two to get married and locks them inside Nice’s apartment until they agree. However, after bonding with Moon, Ling proposes an alternate plan to Miss J: faking Moon's death. They stage a fake proposal and plan to have it attacked by Wreck, Nice’s best friend and fabricated nemesis. Unfortunately, Wreck sees through Ling's impersonation and goes on a rampage upon learning of Nice's suicide, forcing Ling to defeat him for real and resulting in Wreck falling to his death. Ling and Moon then successfully fake the latter's death by pretending she was hit during the battle. Afterward, Ling says goodbye to Moon as she uses her powers to teleport herself to an uninhabited island. Elsewhere, Enlighter deduces Ling is impersonating Nice when he is approached by a group of villains known as the Spotlight Organization, who offer him the power of Fear, which he accepts, becoming the villain God Eye. | |||
| 3 | "The Ever-Standing Hero" | April 20, 2025 | |
|
To break into the hero ranking's top ten, Miss J tasks Ling with apprehending Wolf Girl, the nemesis of the current tenth-ranked hero—Firm-Man. Discovering Wolf Girl's hideout, Ling uncovers that she plots to bomb a statue of Firm-Man. The bombs explode, causing the statue to almost fall on a child until Firm-Man stops it. However, Wolf Girl captures and threatens the child unless Firm-Man lets the statue fall. Fortunately, Ling arrives and reveals that Wolf Girl is, in fact, the first person Firm-Man ever saved and that she wants him to lose his power—unbendability—so he can stop suffering from its side effects. This causes Firm-Man to cry publicly, plummeting his Trust Value and removing his powers. The statue begins to fall, but Ling stops it, causing his own Trust Value to skyrocket, making him the new number ten. Afterward, Ling meets with the now-retired Firm-Man and confesses that he is not Nice, but the latter claims not to care. However, God Eye then publicly broadcasts that he has kidnapped Moon and threatens to expose Ling. | |||
| 4 | "The Commoner" | April 27, 2025 | |
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Ling wants to save Moon but is stopped by Miss J and the public's will. Instead, Miss J’s boss—Shang De, CEO of hero agency TREEMAN—sends the hero Blankster, whose punches can erase memories, to cover up the situation. However, God Eye defeats Brankster after plummeting his Trust Value by exposing his past as a cheating boxer. Miss J’s goons interrupt God Eye's broadcast with the same commercial Ling made the day he was fired. This inspires Ling to go against the will of the people, which undoes his powers. Arriving at the scene, Ling publicly comes clean about Nice's suicide and tries to fight God Eye, but gets repeatedly beaten up. However, Ling’s determination and confession of love to Moon inspire the audience, giving him his own Trust and power of super strength, allowing him to defeat God Eye. Moon is rescued but revealed to be a fake, exposing God Eye as a fraud himself. Afterward, God Eye is arrested, and Ling develops his own hero identity, The Commoner. Later, Ling uses Moon’s teleport gun to visit her, only for her to then be assassinated by the ninth-ranked hero—E-Soul. | |||
E-Soul
Note: This story occurs before Nice's / The Commoner's in the timeline.
| No. in season | Title [8] | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | "One Actor" | May 4, 2025 | |
|
Yang Cheng is an orphan working as an E-Soul actor at a children's theater under the employ of ice-ko shop owner Rock. He gets hired by his school crush, Xia Qing, who cannot tell it is him under his costume, to be a personal entertainer for her little brother, Pomelo. Cheng and Pomelo bond as the latter helps him prepare for a competition to be a part of E-Soul's hero anniversary presentation. However, his zero Trust Value results in him losing. Still too afraid to confess his feelings towards Qing and sad over his loss, he leaves. Pomelo finds him but gets kidnapped by two of Cheng's former co-workers. Cheng gives chase and causes the kidnapper's vehicle to crash. Though no match against the kidnappers, Cheng refuses to give up, and Pomelo places faith in him upon seeing his determination. This gives Cheng his first trust value, unlocking electric power similar to E-Soul's, allowing him to defeat the kidnappers. Afterward, Cheng brings Pomelo home to Qing when he is confronted by one of the competition's judges, Shang Chao. | |||
| 6 | "Two E-Souls" | May 11, 2025 | |
|
After getting Pomelo checked out, Chao shows that Cheng has gone viral as New E-Soul. Chao offers to become Cheng's manager, even building a small HQ for him in a warehouse, and his Trust Value continues to increase as he begins working as a hero. However, as Cheng's popularity starts eclipsing the real E-Soul's, the latter's manager attempts to frame him for being behind Pomelo's kidnapping to increase his Trust Value, causing Cheng to get arrested. Fortunately, Chao hires Enlighter to gather evidence of Cheng's innocence, and he is cleared of all charges. The next day, Cheng and Qing go to meet with Chao at the HQ—only for one of the same assailants who tried to kidnap Pomelo to kill Chao as Cheng and Qing watch on in horror. | |||
| 7 | "Three Seats" | May 18, 2025 | |
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Cheng blames himself for Chao's death, believing he could have stopped the assassin but hesitated. Learning from Enlighter that the culprits have a powerful benefactor, Cheng assumes it is E-Soul trying to sabotage his hero career again and publicly challenges him to a duel; E-Soul is convinced to accept by his manager. Qing repeatedly tries to talk Cheng out of fighting E-Soul, but he refuses, causing the two to fall out. During the duel, Cheng uses a strategy devised by Rock to get around E-Soul's electromagnetic shielding: forcing him to use his signature move, Lightning Slash, by starting an online campaign against him. With E-Soul's Trust Value plummeting, he is convinced by his manager to use Lightning Slash, but Cheng counters, killing the hero in the process. Afterward, Cheng—now the sole "E-Soul"—absorbs his predecessor's Trust Value and becomes the 9th-ranked hero, unaware that Rock—actually the CEO of hero agency Might Glory—is the true mastermind behind Pomelo's kidnapping and Chao's assassination; all to prop Cheng up. | |||
Lucky Cyan
Note: This story occurs before E-Soul's in the timeline.
| No. in season | Title [8] | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | "The Cyan Girl" | May 25, 2025 | |
|
A young girl miraculously survives a plane crash and is found by journalist Liu Zhen. Suspicious that no hero intervened in the incident, Zhen smuggles her away before leaving her with a friend, who is the dean of an orphanage, naming her Cyan. She is soon revealed to be incredibly lucky, which the other orphans, the caretakers, and eventually even the dean begin to exploit. As a result, five years later, the orphanage has become a cult centered around her. However, this leaves Cyan isolated from her peers until she meets a new boy named Luo, who is said to bring misfortune. Confiding in him about her desire to be "average", he helps her feel normal, and the two bond. Another six years later, the now-teenage Cyan and Luo attempt to escape from the orphanage but are intercepted by the dean, who reveals himself to be a former hero with intentions of raising the orphans into heroes as well. | |||
| 9 | "Loss and Gain" | June 1, 2025 | |
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Despite the dean's attempts to stop her, Cyan escapes when a combination of her luck and Luo's misfortune causes a truck to crash into the orphanage. However, Luo gets injured and is left behind. With her luck gone due to her Trust Value collapsing, Cyan becomes a street performer to earn money and afford necessities, finally giving her a semblance of a normal life. She soon becomes popular, causing her powers to return, and is scouted by hero agency DOS in exchange for their help in saving Luo; however, they lie to her that he is dead. Two years afterward, Cyan is now a famous idol under the name "Lucky Cyan", with people flocking to her for her music rather than her luck. Back at the orphanage, Luo learns about Cyan's new life and is happy for her. However, the dean then whispers something in his ear, shocking him. Later, all the orphanage's inhabitants are seen having been transformed into zombie-like creatures. | |||
| 10 | "The Truth behind Luck" | June 8, 2025 | |
|
The zombification of the orphanage's inhabitants is revealed to stem from public fear after their connection to Cyan is exposed; the populace learned about her surviving the plane crash, spreading rumors that her luck comes at others' expense. As the negative press impacts Cyan's Trust Value, her colleague—the hero Queen—comes up with a plan: unveil the truth behind the incident using the plane's black box, which Zhen salvaged and entrusted to the dean. Returning to the orphanage, Cyan takes the recorder after defeating the zombified inhabitants, including the dean. However, she is then attacked by a zombified Luo, who reveals his parents died in the crash. Fortunately, Cyan manages to replay the recording, revealing that her luck originates from the passengers praying for her survival, causing Luo to come to his senses, and the two reconcile. Afterward, Cyan becomes the 7th-ranked hero once her name is cleared, unaware that Zhen and DOS's CEO—Mickey—masterminded everything to unveil the existence of the power of Fear to the public. | |||
Queen
Note: This story occurs concurrently with Lucky Cyan's in the timeline.
| No. in season | Title [8] | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | "Road to the Crown" | June 15, 2025 | |
|
Liu Yuwei is a prodigy who announces during her university graduation at the age of fourteen that she intends to become the number one hero and change the current Trust system. Four years later, she has signed up with DOS and is now the youngest hero to ever break into the top ten, with the public naming her "Queen." Her debut also generated support for heroines, which gave her colleague, Bowa, enough Trust Value to win the 16th biennial Hero Tournament and become the first female top-ranked hero in over twenty years. However, Queen and Bowa do not get along, since Mickey treats the latter as a stepping stone for the former. Another four years later, Queen participates in the 18th Hero Tournament. While it was expected to come down to a match between Queen and Bowa, both are easily defeated by a mysterious participant who instantly becomes the new first-ranked hero; with his true identity unknown, people refer to him by the top-ranker's epithet—"X". Afterward, Queen becomes depressed as she is faced with failure for the first time while Bowa succumbs to the power of Fear after learning that Queen is Zhen's daughter. | |||
| 12 | "Fall of the Star" | June 22, 2025 | |
|
Queen snaps out of her depression upon learning of the controversy around her junior—Cyan—leading to her formulating the plan of recovering the plane's black box. Shortly afterward, Queen begins working harder than ever as a hero. Conversely, Bowa becomes a Fear-empowered villain as she deludes herself that Queen's rise stems solely from Zhen's connections with Mickey. Two years later, on the night before the 19th Hero Tournament, Bowa ambushes Queen to eliminate her competition, even though she cannot compete due to dropping out of the top ten. In the end, following a fierce battle, Bowa is defeated and taken into custody. Unfortunately, Queen is also injured and falls unconscious for several days, causing her to miss the tournament, which X once again wins. Although Queen is devastated, Cyan comforts her and tells her to stop overworking herself. By next year, Queen has fully recovered, but Mickey forces her on a vacation, which she accepts. However, while on a ride with Cyan, they stumble upon their colleagues—Little Johnny and Big Jonny—the latter of whom has transformed into a monster and is going on a rampage. | |||
Loli
Note: This story occurs after E-Soul's, Lucky Cyan's, and Queen's but before Nice / The Commoner's in the timeline.
| No. in season | Title [8] | Original release date | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | "Tough Girl" | June 29, 2025 | |
|
After hearing Queen's university graduation speech as a child, mechanic Luo Li gained aspirations of becoming a hero. Unfortunately, she struggles to gather people's Trust since her cute appearance does not fit the stereotypical view of heroes. Not giving up, she becomes a vigilante—naming herself "Loli"—disguising herself with a robotic suit she built using components from her scientist father's lab. However, when her helmet accidentally comes off and she gets called "cute" by a girl she saved from a stalker, she nearly reaches her breaking point. Fortunately, Loli's father recognizes his daughter's genius and arranges for her to work under him at the technology firm Glimmer Lab. There, Loli reunites with the girl she saved—Wang Nuonuo—and bonds with her over their similar experiences as they work together to improve the former's suit; despite her electronics degree, Nuonuo was relegated to receptionist due to her gender until Loli's father took her under his employ. However, the lab is then attacked by former first-ranked hero-turned-villain DJ Shindig. | |||
| 14 | "Impromptu Counterattack" | July 6, 2025 | |
|
Shindig's objective is revealed to be a power of Fear container that Glimmer Lab has been experimenting with. However, he is confronted by Nuonuo, who mistakes him for her stalker, and Loli in her upgraded suit. A fight ensues, resulting in Loli throwing Shindig into the Fear container, causing the substance to break free and corrupt him. Loli's father then arrives with a response team led by the hero GhostBlade. However, although they contain the Fear, Shindig escapes. Seeing that Loli is unaffected by the Fear, her father deduces that her suit is resistant to it. Later, Loli's father reports to the hero agencies' regulator—the Hero Affairs Commission—where he reveals that the suit's components originate from a crashed UFO and requests permission to investigate the craft, which he is granted. Elsewhere, Shindig flees back to his benefactor—the Spotlight Organization—and is given a new mission. | |||
GhostBlade
| No. in season | Title [8] | Original release date |
|---|---|---|
| 15 | "[TBA]" | July 13, 2025 |
| 16 | "[TBA]" | July 20, 2025 |
The Johnnies
| No. in season | Title [8] | Original release date |
|---|---|---|
| 17 | "[TBA]" | July 27, 2025 |
| 18 | "[TBA]" | August 3, 2025 |
| 19 | "[TBA]" | August 10, 2025 |
????
| No. in season | Title [8] | Original release date |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | "[TBA]" | August 17, 2025 |
Dragon Boy
| No. in season | Title [8] | Original release date |
|---|---|---|
| 21 | "[TBA]" | August 24, 2025 |
| 22 | "[TBA]" | August 31, 2025 |
Ahu
| No. in season | Title [8] | Original release date |
|---|---|---|
| 23 | "[TBA]" | September 7, 2025 |
X
| No. in season | Title [8] | Original release date |
|---|---|---|
| 24 | "[TBA]" | September 14, 2025 |
References
- ^ "To Be Hero X Anime Debuts in April 2025 - Crunchyroll News". Crunchyroll News. December 9, 2024. Retrieved April 11, 2025.
- ^ "Top 10 Heroes in To Be Hero X – Ranked and Powered Up!". FandomRadar.com. 2025-05-11. Retrieved 2025-05-16.
- ^ "To Be Hero X Animated Series Reveals April 2025 Debut, Theme Songs, Artists". Anime News Network. December 9, 2024. Retrieved April 11, 2025.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Moegirlpedia (May 6, 2025). "Convex Hero X". Moegirlpedia. Retrieved May 6, 2025.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Pineda, Rafael Antonio (September 16, 2024). "To Be Hero X Animated Project's Video Reveals Cast, Staff, 2025 Premiere Date". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 17, 2025.
- ^ a b Hazra, Adriana (April 6, 2025). "To Be Hero X Anime Gets Same-Day English Dub, Reveals Dub Cast". Anime News Network. Retrieved April 17, 2025.
- ^ "🗓️开播在即，小凸先为大家奉上追番日历！". x.com (in Chinese). 2025-04-02. Retrieved 2025-06-28.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Watch TO BE HERO X - Crunchyroll". Crunchyroll. Retrieved April 13, 2025.
External Links
- Official website (in English)
- Official website (in Japanese)
- To Be Hero X (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia