My Hero Academia features an ensemble cast of young shonen heroes, and protagonist Midoriya Izuku is just the start. Izuku is a classic shonen lead who will fight hard to save the day and prove himself to the world, but many of his classmates have fully fleshed-out personalities and character arcs of their own, including Todoroki Shoto.
Shoto is the product of a controversial Quirk marriage, born with the sole purpose of surpassing the invincible All Might with his superior natural gifts. This put a lot of pressure on Shoto, deeply affecting his personality and worldview. Shoto's grim but compelling characterization can be described not only with his astrological sign but also his Dungeons & Dragons alignment.
The Tenets Of A Neutral Good Character
Shoto can best be described as a Neutral Good character, meaning that he strikes a balance between authority and independence while aiming to improve society and the lives of others. Unlike a Lawful character, Shoto doesn't adhere too tightly to the law or a chain of command, but unlike a Chaotic character, he doesn't despise society's rules and regulations and puts only a limited emphasis on the concept of personal freedom. Shoto, as a trainee hero, has a more moderate approach and tends to avoid extremes. Thus, he is Neutral Good, even if he's bordered on Chaotic a few times.
In the eyes of a Neutral Good character like Shoto, the negative extremes of authority and chaos must be avoided, and the polar opposites of authority and chaos keep each other in check in a happy medium, which is the best route to promoting happiness, prosperity and protection for all. The law serves a purpose and should be followed, and leaders such as mayors, pro heroes and military officers should be obeyed. Then again, blind dogma will suffocate free thought and creativity, and people must use their discretion and exercise freedom if the law or the leaders are corrupt or ineffective. In short, Neutral Good characters follow the law when they can and break it when they must.
To a Neutral Good character, a careful balance of authority and personal freedom is what allows people to live a good life, no matter their station. A dash of freedom encourages creativity and competition, while laws and order protect the weak and prevent society from falling apart entirely. Neutral Good characters largely agree with Lawful Goods that the law brings safety, but rigid dogma can become a problem, and the law should be held accountable to itself. Similarly, Neutral Goods agree with Chaotic Goods that personal freedom is essential for self-determination and creative expression, but freedom must have some restraint so that it doesn't threaten the cohesion of society.
Todoroki Shoto As My Hero Academia's Neutral Good Hero
Shoto suffered greatly under his father's abusive care, and he deeply resented Endeavor viewing him as a tool to be hammered into shape. Shoto does have goodness in his heart though, or else this home environment would have driven him to become a villain -- likely a Chaotic Evil one. Shoto grew to resent authority due to Endeavor's methods, but that was tempered by his natural Good, so he never became fully Chaotic or Evil, let alone both. Instead, Shoto adopted a more flexible and practical mindset, vowing to break free of Endeavor and find his own route to becoming a true hero.
This borders on Chaotic territory, but Shoto remains Neutral because he still respects the authority and power of pro heroes and his teachers at the U.A. school, such as his homeroom teacher, Aizawa Shota/Eraserhead. Shoto has a fairly aloof and independent mindset as a U.A. student, as his classmates have noted, but he still yearns to be a great hero, and he will accept teammates and allies if he must.
He was rather self-absorbed during the U.A. sports festival, but he later cooperated with his classmates after the League of Villains, and he was a fine teammate during the third battle of the joint training arc at school. Shoto doesn't strongly believe in the power of friendship, but for duty's sake, he will work with any team he must to find victory and trust his teammates to watch his back.
When it comes to his family, Shoto is slowly repairing his relationship with Endeavor, which is an expression of his Good side, but he's still cautious about it and won't let Endeavor control or manipulate him. Shoto is only barely giving his father a chance to atone for his past wrongs, and as a Neutral character, he sees no need to defer to his pro hero father, even when he formally became Endeavor's intern along with Izuku and Katsuki. Shoto will play it by ear, as any Neutral Good character would.
