All Might was once the Symbol of Peace in the My Hero Academia universe. His sole responsibility was to keep Japan safe and set an example for future generations of heroes to follow. Ultimately, the man went above and beyond in his duties; he was respected even by villains like Stain and Overhaul.
However, confident presentation belies the many failures that All Might has suffered over his career. Through identifying them, we can better glimpse that in spite of the godlike legacy the Symbol of Peace has left, he's still only human.
10 All Might Failed To Prevent Nana Shimura's Death
Nana Shimura was All Might's first mentor and the previous user of One For All. As the Symbol of Peace herself, she was responsible for confronting and attempting to defeat All For One.
Unfortunately, not only was her Quirk considerably weaker than it is now, as it had fewer previous hosts, the villain she faced was stronger. All Might watched helplessly as his master was slain, only attempting to avenge her many years later after a trip to America.
9 All Might Needed Help To Escape From Kurogiri And The League Of Villains
When the League of Villains arrived at U.S.J., All Might wasn't as useful as many assumed he'd be. He was almost immediately captured by Kurogiri's Warp Gate, with the villain attempting to close his portal around his adversary's chest in hopes of ripping him in half.
Thankfully, the students of Class 1-A managed to free their mentor before he could come into significant harm. However, it was still humiliating and demonstrated that the Symbol of Peace was well past the prime of his career.
8 All Might Took A Permanent Injury In His Battle Against All For One
Although All Might would eventually return to defeat All For One, it wasn't without grave cost. During the battle, he took a hit to the side of his chest that permanently inhibited his capacity to protect the people.
By the time he first debuted in the series, he could only maintain his muscular form for a maximum of three hours. After the League's initial raid, it became extremely dangerous for him to push himself beyond one hour, though could maintain his bulky aesthetics longer for public appearances when necessary.
7 All Might Let Principal Nezu Distract Him From Saving The Students
In addition to his underwhelming performance during the League's first attack on Class 1-A, the circumstances leading up to it don't put All Might in a favorable light. He already exhausted much of his strength thwarting petty crimes arranged by Shigaraki's criminal resources, ensuring that he couldn't fight the real threat at full strength.
Worse yet, Principal Nezu occupied much of his time while the students were in active danger. If Aizawa didn't negate Shigaraki's Quirk, Tsuyu would have been murdered outright before All Might even showed up.
6 All Might Pushed Himself So Hard That Even Fellow Professional Heroes Worried About Him
Instead of retiring after his fight against All For One, All Might flagrantly denied the reality of his situation and attempted to keep forging on. However, every usage of his power slightly reduced the duration of time he could harness his Quirk, which soon spiraled out of control. Nighteye even predicted that the Symbol of Peace would die sooner rather than later.
Should he have attempted to find a successor to his strength immediately after he was severely wounded, both he and One For All's next user would have been better off for it.
5 All Might Failed To Teach Deku How To Wield One For All Properly
Although All Might's natural affinity for his Quirk meant that he was always a strong fighter, it limited his capacity to teach Midoriya because he didn't know how to explain his abilities. As a consequence, the young boy repeatedly broke his limbs and was beginning to accrue permanent bone fractures for his recklessness.
Were it not for Gran Torino's guidance, Deku's hero career might have been cut tragically short, ironically for a similar reason his mentor's was.
4 All Might Was Defeated By Deku And Bakugo
When Class 1-A was paired off against the Pro Heroes in order to gauge their skills, Bakugo and Deku — predictably — faced All Might. Given how the other mentors didn't hold back against their students, it stands to reason that the Symbol of Peace wasn't pulling punches, either.
Although he managed to subdue Bakugo successfully, Deku returned to the fray, punched All Might in the face, and fled with his rival over his shoulders. All Might's powerlessness to stop his own apprentice indicates his pernicious decline in power.
3 All Might Became Powerless After Defeating All For One A Second Time
During the second fight against All For One, All Might was publicly humiliated. His desiccated body was put on display for all of Japan to see, with the lie he'd been carefully cultivating finally unraveling at the worst possible time.
After defeating his arch-nemesis, All Might lost what remained of his Quirk. Now, all he can do is activate his muscle form for a brief few seconds as a nostalgic throwback to a better era.
2 All Might Failed To Kill All For One
Despite the chaos All For One unleashed because he wasn't killed the first time around, All Might still made the bizarre decision to spare him after the battle for Kamino. This was likely to salvage what was left of his crumbling reputation and prove that he was still in control.
However, All For One retained the Quirks he stockpiled for decades, whereas All Might was now powerless. Should the increasingly active League of Villains liberate him from prison, a third rematch between the Symbols of Peace and Evil would be appallingly one-sided.
1 All Might Couldn't Save Shigaraki From All For One's Influence
After the passing of Nana Shimura and the accidental death of his own parents, Tomura Shigaraki was in dire need of guidance and affection. As his grandmother's former student, it follows that All Might should've extended a hand and at least offered him a spot at U.A., if not a direct apprenticeship.
Unfortunately, All For One found him first. Over the years, he twisted the young boy's mind and convinced him that everything wrong with his life was due to hero society. By the time his master was imprisoned, Shigaraki had become the evil equivalent of Izuku Midoriya.
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