A-TIER: One Punch Man (Season 1)
Premise:
One Punch Man's premise is exactly how it sounds, a guy who is so strong that he takes out all his opponents with one punch. A shounen, comedy, and a satire, One Punch Man offers a lot of fun squeezed into twelve short episodes. (This review covers only season one and stays away from season two.)
Animation:
Animated by Madhouse (Hunter x Hunter 2011, Death Parade) the animation for this show is the biggest reason to watch it. It somehow makes the fight scenes (most of them ending with one punch) interesting, satisfying, and exciting. There is a lot of creative energy infused into the animation making it obvious that the creators loved making this show. Along with the incredible animation itself, there is a lot of visual humor stuffed in that make a multiple viewings a must.
Story Critiques and Other Thoughts:
One Punch Man is an anime that is good for many reasons, but the three biggest are that it is a genius satire that flips years of anime expectations on its head, it tells a compelling story about a guy who is trying to find meaning in the world, and it has one of the best themes in all of anime, (and I'm not talking about the OP, although that could be argued as well.)
Genius Satire:
One Punch Man is the most prolific shounen satires ever created. The author ONE must have seen these never ending shounen shows (such as Bleach, Naruto, and Dragaon Ball Z) and dared to ask: What Next? Once a protagonist has absolute strength, or becomes the Hokage, or whatever goal, what comes next?
This show simultaneously explores what would happen after a characters quest for strength is already fulfilled while also poking fun at pretty much every single cliché that these big-time shows have, including a traumatic backstory, long monologues, unrealistic training regimen, and that long hair = more power.
It's as if the author listened to all the critiques of anime and used them to create the protagonist for this show, and he did so beautifully.
This show emphasizes Saitama's anti-shounen behavior by contrasting him with a cast of characters that one might find in a regular fighting show, including the loyal apprentice, the dark rival, and flashy bad guys.
The contrast between these characters and Saitama makes a hyper-relatable main character who he himself seems to be exploring the world of anime.
Good Story:
One Punch Man is a brilliant satire on the shounen genre, but surprisingly has a good story with emotional moments that bleed through the sly humor and conflict that Saitama with the world around him.
We meet our protagonist, Saitama, in the midst of a mid-life crisis. Plagued by boredom he spends his time trying to find fun in the thing he had dedicated his life to: being a hero. The story starts by letting us know two things, he is incredibly powerful and incredibly bored, and then it builds on that by introducing new variables into Saitama's life, usually interactions with people who notice his incredible strength.
Like Genos, his side-kick and secondary protagonist really kick-starts the story by introducing Saitama to the Hero Association and by studying his abilities.
Speed-o'-Sound Sonic, the self-proclaimed rival who pushes himself to catch up with Saitama,
Mumen Rider, the one who realizes how strong Saitama is,
and many others, each one bringing in a new perspective on the protagonist's abilities.
The true value that comes from One Punch Man's story is that by making the protagonist so strong it takes all of the physical danger and brings that tension onto a mental and emotional level. Instead of feeling concern for the characters' physical well-being, with Saitama that never comes into question, all the emotional investment in One Punch Man goes towards Saitama finding purpose in life. This, coming from an anime that is born from a genre that is usually only concerned with the physical well-being of its characters is what brings One Punch Man onto a whole new level.
Awesome Theme:
The final reason, the overarching theme, is one of the reasons I love this show. In a nutshell, One Punch Man says that it doesn't matter who you are, how much money you have, or where you're from. If you work hard enough for it, you can accomplish anything you want.
Saitama is a regular guy, who does a regular workout, to accomplish the impossible. That theme is the most important thing a show can tell you, and it is so different from any other series out there, not that they don't have similar motifs, but how they demonstrate that motif. Other shows have crazy unrealistic training regimens, supernatural situations, or just impossible circumstances that make the character feel out of reach to the audience.
But One Punch Man differs, it tells you that through small and simple means, with a little bit of conviction, allow regular people to do the impossible.
A little bit cheesy but incredibly told, One Punch Man's theme is one of its top selling points.
Before getting to the conclusion, I wanted out point out that Saitama's routine is so regular that there are a plethora of videos of people in real life copying his workout to see what will happen. No other anime has encouraged so many people to change themselves the way One Punch Man has.
Conclusion:
One Punch Man is a beautifully animated, brilliant satire, with a great story. It dares to ask questions that would usually destroy a regular shounen series, but that barely unlock this show's premise. It's re-watch-ability is off the charts due to its animation and hilarity, it conveys an incredible message to the audience while also not taking itself to seriously. One Punch Man has what seems like a boring and simplistic premise, but within its creative boundaries it creates an original and exciting story.
One Punch Man holds a special place in my heart, it was the show that got me into anime. I've lost counts of the times I've re-watched it and it still delivers every time.
If you like top-tier fight scenes, fun characters, and a great theme, then this show is for you.
*On another note the OP is sooooooooooooo good! check it out here: The Hero: The JAM Project
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