Disclaimer: this review covers Season 1 of "One Punch Man."Superheroes are a major part of modern Western literature, but to make a compelling character and world for them to fight in isn't trivial. You want to give them a cool power, but they still need to have some weakness to make the reader concerned for their survival. You have to give them a reason to fight, be it to protect a loved one or to maintain justice in an unlawful place. "One Punch Man" seems to ignore all of these conventions. One of the few anime from Japan that revolves around superheroes in tights and capes, it tells the tale of the fabled "One Punch Man," aka Saitama, a bald young adult doning a yellow suit with a red cape and gloves to take down criminals in a single punch. That's his power: he is so strong that he seems to always defeat his enemies in a single punch, something even the cast of "Fist From The North Star" would be scared of. This makes Saitama kind-of unstoppable, and also makes him very bored, given there aren't any real challenges in the world for him to look forward to. So he carries on each day, watching tv, buying groceries, and occasionally stopping by to kill a few aliens or madmen on the way home in a passive manner. Yes, this is technically an action show, but is widley known more as a comedy, and its this simple but silly premise that made the show the talk of 2015. "One Punch Man" originally started as a self-published webcomic written and drawn by an author that calls himself "One." Aside from the premise, the original manga was crudely drawn, further adding to the humor aspect such that a reader couldn't believe the comic existed, let alone what was taking place on the page. When an anime-adaptation was announced, it was a valid question as to what the show would actually look like. Studio Madhouse didn't skimp on the animation, generally animating the show regularly, but keeping both the minimal beady-eyed expressions during jokes and cranking up motion to 11 during the fight scenes. Of course, the fight scenes don't need that much animation, given most of them only need to show a single punch. Most of the character designs and environments all seem generic at best, with only Saitama himself really standing out as a distinct figure one could tie to the franchise, but whether or not this was because of the manga or the studio is a different debate. Anyway, "One Punch Man" and its adaptation(s) became surpremely popular, enough so to make the author "One" a temporary celebrity and hailed genius. He would have a second show adapted called "Mob Psycho 100," but its telling that the next anime based on his work would simply be "One Punch Man - Season 2" (not covered in this review).I found myself enjoying "One Punch Man," but only passively, copying the same interest Saitama shows in the show, building up a little more in the climatic battle at the end. The core joke works well for a couple episodes, but it isn't easy stretching that out for a full season, let alone the multiple OVA's that followed. Admittedly, the jokes are funny, be it Saitama's explanation to how he came to receive his powers (much to the surprise of his friends, he didn't get attacked by a radioactive insect, he just excersised a lot), or the things he tends to show passion in due to his boredom (in the middle of a battle, he screams, realizing he forgot about the half-off special at the grocery store that day), or the epic fight he had against a normal but pesky mosquito on his apartment balcony. When the jokes aren't enough to carry the story, we get peeks into the more fascinating world of how superheroes are treated in the world. Generally, being a superhero is a publically accepted job title, and you can take an exam to be accredited, which gives you a rank (higher ranks show the ability of the hero) and a town to protect. Most heroes treat their work as simply a job rather than a passion, although in the case of some heroes who don't have powers at all (simply acting like a overhyped crossing guard or messenger rather than a God that can fly through the sky), passion is the only thing driving them. Popularity among the masses also affects your rank and wage from the government. Of course, Saitama finds out about this entire process relatively late, and joins because he only just learns that he could be getting paid for being a hero (appropriately, the rocking theme song has a singer screaming "NO BODY KNOWS WHO HE IS!" in the chorus).
I was probably more interested in the other superheroes and how the world was designed, and I can't say the series doesn't deliver on that. But then it feels more like a traditional Shonen show like "DragonBall Z" or "One Piece," where any number of characters can randomly appear and fight for the viewers attention, and where anything can happen but not seem particularly consequential. This type of trope isn't regulated to just Shonen anime either, but to Western comic books in general. Yes, Spiderman is a fun character, but I don't want to read 500 chapters about his life, and simply knowing that this many issues exist makes the first few issues seem unimportant in the grand scheme. Perhaps the show would simply work better taken at one episode at a time rather than marathoning, or would actually improve with the knowledge that more content is coming to show your favorite heroes in action.On the other hand, your average neighbor is likely more willing to sit down and enjoy a story about superheroes rather than some obscure supernatural saga involving robots and samurai. It's no wonder that "One Punch Man" is as popular as it is, as the familar subject matter is something the masses, especially outside of Japan, can feel comfortable with. That the core premise is built on a meme-worthy joke makes it feel a bit more fresh and entertaining. Aside from a few moments of bloodshed (yes, heads do tend to explode when Saitama throws his punch), I could recommend the series as a certain crowdpleaser to just about anyone. Just don't let the hype build your hopes up too high.