One-Punch Man

TV (12 eps)
2015
Fall 2015
4.421 out of 5 from 78,806 votes
Rank #54

In a city plagued with thugs, mutants, and supervillains, Saitama decides to become a superhero for fun. He envisions an exciting life where he is constantly challenged with tough opponents, but after three years of intense training, he's become so strong that he defeats every enemy with one punch! His dream of engaging challenging foes has gone up in smoke, and his overpowered life is filled with overpowering boredom. Then a cyborg named Genos learns about Saitama's amazing ability and begs him to make him his disciple. Saitama isn't interested in taking on an apprentice, but Genos isn't giving up. Can he convince the disillusioned hero to teach him the secret of his strength? And will Saitama ever find a worthy adversary to battle?

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The Strongest Man

Episode 1

The Strongest Man

The Lone Cyborg

Episode 2

The Lone Cyborg

The Obsessive Scientist

Episode 3

The Obsessive Scientist

The Modern Ninja

Episode 4

The Modern Ninja

The Ultimate Master

Episode 5

The Ultimate Master

The Terrifying City

Episode 6

The Terrifying City

The Ultimate Disciple

Episode 7

The Ultimate Disciple

The Deep Sea King

Episode 8

The Deep Sea King

Unyielding Justice

Episode 9

Unyielding Justice

Unparalleled Peril

Episode 10

Unparalleled Peril

The Dominator of the Universe

Episode 11

The Dominator of the Universe

The Strongest Hero

Episode 12

The Strongest Hero

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Reviews

ThatAnimeSnob
4

There is this show that does things like none other. It’s about a protagonist so strong, to the point he can beat any opponent with one punch. And the name of that show is… Dragon Ball, back when Goku was a kid. The reason Toriyama eventually dropped the parody and turned it into a fighting shonen was because he realized the joke of an unbeatable protagonist got old very fast.So, fast forward a few decades and a satire of superheroes came out, in a way that had never been done before. It was about an unemployed and bored of his own life superhero, casually defeating any monster that attacked him. And the name of that anime was… Tentai Senshi Sunred, a very fun and self-aware plotless comedy that even bothered to make the main villains seem like sympathetic fellows, instead of generic monsters of the week that get blown up in a few seconds. And it managed to do all that with a low budget. Unfortunately, almost nobody knows of it and the rest don’t talk about it because it didn’t have pretty colors. But fear not, since quite recently we had another show about superheroes and this one had lots of pretty colors. It was also a deconstruction of the western superhero formula, a thought-provoking masterpiece that was constantly subverting everything you knew about the genre and was presenting things in a way that had never been done before. The name of that show was… My Hero Academia, a generic fighting shonen that everybody overhyped because of the pretty colors. I know what most of you will say. I am being an asshole because One Punch Man looks great. There is nothing wrong with pretty colors, if they are adding to the context. A deconstruction like One Punch Man needs it because it elevates the jokes to new levels. That’s nice and all, but a deconstruction is not defined by how it looks. If it was as good as so many claimed to be, the pretty colors wouldn’t be a defining factor. And look at that; the second season was announced to have not that pretty colors and everybody nags about not being good anymore. It’s almost as if everybody was hyping it only for the animation, while the endless analysis of its deconstructions were just bullshit for excusing their fondness of a typical satire. And by the way, that’s what it is. Just a satire, not a deconstruction. It’s not doing something we have never seen before to count as though provoking, and it doesn’t lead to a permanent, meaningful change in-series to count as a deconstruction of something. I keep hearing how it never gets old because it’s self aware, and that means … absolutely nothing if they don’t do something with it. It also feels pretentious when it tries to sound serious without having consequences, such as the dramatic scenes when Mumen Rider cries about doing his best despite being weak, and everybody blaming the protagonist for not doing his job that well. As soon as the arc is over, everybody go on with their lives, as if nothing happened. If you are poking fun at something without trying to improve it, you are embracing the very thing you ridicule, and on top of that you make it self-indulgent. It’s like a clown who makes fun of other clowns. It’s funny but it’s not subverting anything. The show is just making jokes about the stereotypes of superheroes, and it does it without even having much variety. The reason they often call the show “One Pun Man”, is because everyone keeps repeating the same one joke in every episode. It gets old and stops being funny very fast, because it becomes predictable. Just compare it to something like the recent version of Mahoujin Guruguru. A great satire of heroes in JRPGs, vast variety of jokes, many of which are plot related, and no attempt to sound serious by mentioning bullshit that are forgotten soon afterwards. Mahoujin Guruguru makes no attempt to be more than a satire, and thus does not come off as a pretentious pile of shit for overthinkers. Did I mention how it also has a plot?One Punch Man does not have a plot. The only thing that changes is adding more characters in every arc, with each one repeating the same one joke in every episode. That’s not plot progression, in the same way Bleach did not have plot progression when it kept introducing more characters and bankais that didn’t matter in the longrun. Saitama’s journey to be an S rank hero is also not plot. If he showed his true power, he could instantly get to S rank. But he didn’t because he’s bored and stupid. Just like in Dragon Ball Super the only way for a broken hero to not achieve everything he wants in an instant, is through self-sabotage. Oh, I forgot to press the Zeno button, oh I forgot to keep my guard up, oh I’m so bored to do what I want to do. Better do nothing and then complain about the injustice of the hero association while sounding like a pretentious cunt. How is it possible for so many people to be motivated by Saitama, a guy who is bored of his life and who can defeat everybody in a fraction of a second? How did he even get so strong with basic training? Not even his power makes any sense to be relatable. Many say he’s a brilliant deconstruction of superhero clichés because it proves heroic achievements or raw power do not make someone a hero. Okay, so Saitama has terrible social skills and makes everybody unable to take him seriously no matter how many times he saves them. The ranks heroes are getting do not have to do with how strong they are but rather how lovable they are in the eyes of the people. Going by this logic, he truly doesn’t deserve to be a top hero, so what’s so compelling about him when he goes against the very logic of the show?In fact, it’s extra infuriating when the show keeps trying to victimize him by having the people accusing him of not doing his job, as if he did nothing wrong besides not giving a shit about his own job and defeating cosmic horrors anticlimactically with a single punch. Which even that is overthought too much, as they keep saying there are some enemies he does not defeat in a single punch. There, see, it’s subversion, you didn’t see that coming. At least until you realize he was holding back the whole time. He could defeat them with one punch as well, and didn’t for some bullshit philosophical debate, which just like everything else does not lead to something.You just have to accept that about the show. There is not much thought put into its conception, since characters are one pun jokes, and cities are named with single letters. There is no world building, and there is no consistency, as monster factions keep appearing out of nowhere. How the hell was humanity fending them off before the hero association was formed? You get no answer because there is no answer. The author didn’t bother to think of one.How about the concept of heroism, which just like in My Hero Academia, that other super original show which does things like none other, is all about popularity instead of good deeds? How is that thought-provoking when it’s also used for nothing more than cheap laughs? There is no in-series exploration on the topic of heroism, so where the hell is the deconstruction, besides in the minds of the pretentious overthinkers? What I am trying to say all this time is that there is absolutely nothing special about this show. Everybody who watched it after the hype died, was completely disappointed with how unfunny and boring it was compared to what they expected from a show that was once in the top 10 of all major databases. One Punch Man is just another example of a bland show that got overrated by sakuga tards, before all of a sudden being considered awful because the second season will no longer have pretty colors. Just like a soap bubble, it came out, it flew high for a season, and then popped. Everybody afterwards jumped ship to the next craze that was the godawful Erased, and then to My Hero Academia, which is the exact same thing. It was the product of manchildren needing to circlejerk around something while it airs before completely abandoning it to go jerk around somewhere else. It is nowhere near as good as they made it up to be and I don’t even consider it above average.

Datamari
10

Fall 2015 wasn't a fantastic season for anime, but this particular one shined out above them all. One Punch Man is a very enjoyable anime, and I loved every single moment of the show.  It's an action-comedy anime that quickly became one of the most popular animes of this time.  It's even recognized to people who have only watched a handful of anime. Story: The story follows Saitama, a man who is so powerful, he can defeat his foes with one punch, hence the name.  He doesn't do his "job" for the fame or fortune, he's just "a hero for fun."  One day, he meets the cyborg warrior Genos after fighting a mosquito queen.  They eventually team up and join the Hero Association, who recruit heros to protect the city from monsters.  (Which is pretty common in the city.)  It seems stupidly simple, and I almost dropped the anime due to it's predictable first few episodes, but after sticking around for the rest, I wasn't disappointed.  The idea that Saitama can finish foes in one punch adds the charm to the show, having Genos or another hero fight the monster to show their potential, then Saitama come in and finish the job.  It's an interesting idea, and I personally really like it. Animation: This anime was brought to us by MadHouse, the same people who made animes like Death Parade, Hunter X Hunter, Hajime no Ippo, and more.  The company did a fantastic job making intense fight scenes, beautiful backrounds, and nicely designed characters. Sound: I absolutely LOVE the opening theme to One Punch Man, easily falling under the category of my favorite anime theme songs of all time.  The soundtrack is really enjoyable to listen to, and the voice actors did a fantastic job as well.  Miyana Mamoru, Sakurai Takahiro, and more are here, and they don't disappoint. Characters: Easily the best part of One Punch Man is the characters themselves.  Each having their own powers and personalities.  The main character himself, Saitama was a very lovable and relatable character; his care-free and laid-back personality makes him more interesting to watch, and while I enjoyed other characters like Bang or Genos, Saitama was my favorite character of them all.  The characters are quirky and unique in their own way, which made watching them all the more fun. Final Verdict: One Punch Man is a fantastic anime that can be enjoyed by both avid anime fans and newer fans alike.  Yes, Saitama was way too OP, but that combined with his quirky personality made him enjoyable to watch.  I can't express how much I adore this anime with it's great visuals, fantastic characters, and an overall entertaining story.  I WANT to see a 2nd season, but maybe in the future when the manga has material for a new season, maybe it'll be even better.  But even in it's current state, One Punch Man is by far the 2nd best anime i've ever seen, and it shouldn't be overlooked. One Punch Man gets a 10/10.

Vorosh
8

Madhouse has been showing that they are still sitting on top of the animation world. No Game No Life and Parasyte -the maxim- both ended up being hit shows in the past few seasons. Now while on the surface One Punch Man seems like a mindless monster of the week type show it is anything but, in fact it's one of the most clever satire's I have seen in a very long time. I'm sure you know the backstory, it was a internet comic and then stuff happend and now it's an anime, yawn, boring, don't care. on to the review. The show takes a satirical approach at the whole monster of the week type of show and pulls it off so masterfully. The contrasting characters all stood out and I really want to get to know more about them, personally Saitama is my least favorite. While I absoultly love his look, with the old school anime superhero suit and cape he seems more like the kill switch than a person. He is the fully relized hero, so he doesn't have anyway to progress or grow or change the same way Genos did. I also thought the predictable ending of every fight would ruin it for me since, we all know how the show got it's name. But honestly I was excited to jump into every episode to see what happens next. I also felt the show was very funny. Anime and comidy don't usually mix, Otaku humor is just awful and it results in meme level jokes forced into a script that would work better without a not funny joke ham-fisted in. But One Punch Man never breaks up the flow of the show it just sneaks it's way in and reminds you at the best moment HEY, YOUR WATCHING A SATIRE!  I feel like my only few beefs with this show are that they don't flush the cast out enough, one of my favorite elements of the show is the wide supporting cast. Each hero has their own personality and reasons for being a hero. Even some of the ones who suck like Licenseless Rider or Stinger are hard not to love. Also the power scale seemed to jump kind of fast at the end, the Deep Sea King was strong but I feel like with more time there could have been 4 to 6 bad guys and a few more episodes between that and the final battle. I never looked up the comic/manga or whatever but I just think some extra content would have helped flush out the story and help better captavate the viewer.  Still with that being said I had a blast watching One-Punch Man, the animation was stunning. I loved every single fight and all the little touches like the way they run or jump added alot of flavor to the show.

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