***Warning, the following may contain spoilers for One Punch Man. Reader discretion is advised.***
Series Synopsis
The world has many strange and powerful monsters threatening the peace of daily life. It is the job of the Heroes Association to counter the never-ending onslaught. This is also a good way for someone to win praise, recognition, and job security. With an ever-growing roster, the Association is ready to face any potential disaster.
Alternatively, the Earth can rely on the one man who chooses to be a hero for fun.
Saitama (voiced by Makoto Furukawa) has always had a strong sense of justice. Though a bit of a derp, he's the first to jump to anyone’s rescue. On a whim, he made the decision to train his body to fight the forces of evil.
As a result, Saitama transformed himself into the most powerful hero in history. He now has the strength to defeat any enemy with a single punch.
Yet the Association’s rigid bureaucracy has left Saitama as a relative unknown. However, his abilities have not gone unnoticed. He even manages to find a disciple, the cyborg Genos (voiced by Kaito Ishikawa).
When all other heroes fail, Saitama is the only one who can do what they cannot. And he makes it look easy.
Series Positives
One Punch Man was a ton of fun. I haven’t seen every anime from 2015, but if there was a better one please let me know.
It’s no exaggeration to say this show was impossible to put down. From the opening theme to the final end credits, this series has you hooked. This made viewing difficult since this was another rare case of me trying to watch on a weekly basis.
The Comedy
One Punch Man was a funny show, but by no means would I call it the funniest. This humor wasn't that unique, and odds are you've seen these types of jokes done better before.
Except what separates One Punch Man from the rest was its commitment to the joke.
This series played up every villain to a ludicrous degree. Hero after hero would fall to unstoppable opponents. With power levels so massive, enemies could destroy many of the Association's best.
Thus, each fight was exciting and great. But also, really one-sided.
Adding to that, each villain talked a big game and had an ego to match. Their cockiness was off the charts, except they were not unwarranted. Most of these fiends would rival the main antagonists of other series. Yet the outcome was always the same.
When Saitama showed up, the fight was over in an instant. It took half an episode, a full episode, or even several to build some of these face-offs. Then to have them come to an abrupt end with a single punch was never not funny.
The Side Characters
As is the nature of a series with a lot of heroes, there was a good mix of personalities and characters to pull from. Granted, many of these people we only saw once. With some of them being around just for buildup purposes.
There were characters I wish this show would have spent more time on. But what we got out of them was good. For example, it would have been nice to learn more about Silver Fang (voiced by Kazuhiro Yamaji) and Tatsumaki (voiced by Aoi Yuki). They got their most screen time near the end of this show. So that’s a bit of a shame since they were both awesome.
Another standout hero was Mumen Rider (voiced by Yuichi Nakamura). We had more time with him than we did with most others. Too bad that wasn't enough to do right by his character.
Like Saitama, Mumen Rider had passion in his work. He fought because it was the right thing to do. Plus, he was one of the few to acknowledge Saitama as the true hero that he was.
Yet while many of these characters fell to the sidelines, Genos was the clear exception.
He may have been a very powerful fighter. He may have earned the highest rank given by the Association. Except no one understood better than him that Saitama was the strongest there has ever been. He would snap whenever anyone claimed his master was not a true hero. In addition, he was no slouch when it came to combat.
Saitama
Much of this review has been Saitama this and Saitama that. I’ve spent enough time beating around the bush so let me come out and say it.
The best thing about One Punch Man was Saitama.
Putting aside his god-like strength, Saitama was an entertaining and likable character. Though his power allowed him to not have a care in the world, he never let it go to his head. He didn’t fight for grandeur.
That said, Saitama did join the Heroes Association because no one knew who he was. But he was only looking for a little recognition, and a paycheck, not admiration.
Saitama was a lot of fun to watch. Yet that wasn't what made him great. After every victory, there were those who were ungrateful to the heroes who saved them. Sure, buildings may have gotten destroyed. True a couple million dollars’ worth of possessions were now gone. But with the alternative being death, some thanks shouldn't have been too much to ask for.
This resentment was crushing to even the greatest of heroes. But this didn't even faze Saitama. In fact, he would confront those who didn't appreciate the work his fellow heroes did. He would shoulder the hatred so his comrades could keep their good name.
This is how I see it. Saitama wasn't a simple outstanding character. He rose to become one of the best heroes in anime.Series Negatives
I love this show and cannot wait for season two. Oh, there will be a season two. There has to be.
My first problem with this series, twelve episodes were not enough. There is still so much potential to One Punch Man. This was only the tip of the iceberg.
The Build Up
This does look like a direct contradiction to what I said earlier, doesn't it? Indeed, one of the best parts of this show was the payoff from the extensive build up. Except while the end result may have been worth it, villain introductions were long and dragged out.
It makes sense why padding would need to occur in a show like One Punch Man. The title gives that away. If Saitama were to go around one-shotting everything, the novelty would get stale. There needs to be some filler.
So why not better utilize that filler?
Instead of focusing on a villain who won't be around forever, why not focus on the characters that will. Give more time to Mumen Rider, to Tatsumaki, to Silver Fang, or to any of the other heroes. Spend more time with Saitama and Genos. Why not have an actual master-student relationship grow between them? It wouldn’t even matter if this would turn out to be a little tongue in cheek.
Throughout this show, there were hints of bigger threats. Especially in the final episode. A touch more intrigue and mystery can go far. This series could go as big as it wanted. Afterward, Saitama could then come along and do what he does best.
What One Punch Man had was great. But there has to be so much more.
Final Thoughts
There was never a non-enjoyable moment in One Punch Man.
There was amazing action mixed with solid comedy. There was a large variety of personalities and characters. Then this series took it a step further by giving us one of the best heroes in anime.
What more can I say to get you to watch this show? It’s big, over the top, and a hell of a lot of fun.
Now, all we have to do is wait for news of a second season.
But these are just my thoughts. What are yours? Have you seen this show? How would you advise One Punch Man? Leave a comment down below because I would love to hear what you have to say.
And if you liked what you read, be sure to follow me on my social media sites so that you never miss a post or update. Also, please share this review across the internet to help add to the discussion.
I’m LofZOdyssey, and I’ll see you next time.
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