This article contains spoilers for My Hero Academia chapter 364!
The negative portrayal of America in My Hero Academia effectively ended with the demise of the country's then-number-one hero Star and Stripe. But now the manga's severe criticism of the United States has resumed, with the negativity falling on the shoulders of an all-new target.
Partly what made Star and Stripe so critical of the USA was the satirical nature of her quirk, the name of which even evokes the New World Order conspiracy theory. Called New Order, Star and Stripe's quirk is essentially a metaphor for America's imperialism since it allows her to change the rule of various things that aren't even hers to fit her own agenda and serve her. Even her whole aesthetic was a giant one-up of her main inspiration All Might. Since All Might had two tufts of hair, she decided that the most effective way to convey her superiority was to create eight tufts for herself as opposed to his two. Alone this just seems petty, but it's much worse when considering her superhero name. The fact that Star and Stripe is singular as opposed to representing all 50 stars and 13 stripes of her nation's flag shows humility to her nation, and yet, she isn't humble with her Japanese inspiration, conveying another American stereotype. It's also noteworthy that she doesn't follow orders from her superiors, especially as her actions could have given All For One her New Order quirk.
And now mangaka Kohei Horikoshi is taking more satirical swipes at America in chapter 364 with how he portrays the President of the United States. When faced with the true terror of Tomura Shigaraki, the "Leader of the Free World" actually says that it would be wise to align with the villain in order to minimize casualties. Of course, his plan is to essentially bide time until the heroes can identify a weakness to exploit, but Horikoshi provides a conflicting view that shows just how naive and foolish the president is being because Shigaraki will use that to his advantage.
Although Star and Stripe's depiction took many more punches at the United States, this latest development is much more direct and shocking especially since the president himself is making such ridiculous statements. Horikoshi is portraying the Commander in Chief as an opportunist who will cave into pressure and give up on his country's ideals just to survive. That said, ridiculing the President of the United States is essentially just taking a swipe at American politics, and it's rare that they ever represent what the nation as a whole wants or believes in. At most, it's about 50 percent.
Meanwhile, Star and Stripe seems to embody the stereotypical American. She represents a common view that America is obsessed with making everyone more like them, putting their nation first over others or only respecting American values, and acting irrationally or selfishly if it benefits them even if it could have a detrimental effect on others, even their own countrymen. Although some might find it offensive, hopefully American readers can appreciate where Horikoshi is coming from. Even for hardcore nationalists, it's amusing to see these satirical swipes take the form of metaphors through a medium all My Hero Academia fans enjoy: superpowers and superheroes like Star and Stripe.