Days after a fortune teller predicts a great calamity
befalling the planet, a giant spaceship appears over Z-City. Threat level “Dragon” is declared and the
entire S Class roster is summoned to the Heroes Association HQ. And because he’s got nothing better to do at
the moment, Saitama comes along too at Genos’ request. As an army of powerful heroes prepares to take
on an Alien invasion, it’s Saitama who will stand as the chosen one for Boros,
the Dominator of the Universe. He’s long
sought a foe to reignite his passion for battle and even Saitama’s one punch
victory wont be enough to bring him down…and Saitama could not be happier about
that.
You know, there are some points when watching a certain
show, that you have to just take a breath, sit back, ignore logic, shut off
your brain and say “Yep…that just happened.”
While it wasn’t a totally perfect finale, the end of One Punch Man had a
lot of moments that fit that description.
I was hoping Saitama would knock it out of the park at the finish
line. When it comes to him and his
character, FRAK YES he did just that.
With the end of the season (yes season, more on that in a
bit) in sight, it was time to pull out all of the stops. This meant an epic gathering of heroes,
unstoppable henchmen and, most importantly, a villain even Saitama couldn’t
beat in one punch. The Class S heroes
left a lot to be desired. Like many
other characters, they boast way too much and don’t seem as impressive as they
should. Martial Arts Master Bang was
probably my favorite just because he’s cool with Saitama and Genos. But thankfully, my girl Terrible Tornado got
to finally show off her amazing powers and she left me wanting more. I think I at last have found a new waifu who
can stand with my infamous trio of Sailor Mars, Misato Katsuragi and Rin
Tohsaka. That being said, if Tornado can
basically summon meteors and stop giant projecticles with her powers…how come
she couldn’t end this all on her own?
She is the second highest ranked Class S hero after all. Thankfully, the C class heroes, led by Mumen
Rider, stood out once again. They
weren’t focused on showing off or glory like their higher ranked comrades. They wanted to save lives pure and
simple. So…are the rankings kind of BS
cause the ones with little power and in the lower classes feel more like real
heroes here compared to the upper echelon (except for Genos, he’s a hero
through and through, even if he doesn’t do anything in the finale).
Well the good stuff had to fall to Saitama and his long
awaited battle with the space warrior Boros did not disappoint. I haven’t given Studio Madhouse the credit it
deserves for its astounding job animating One Punch Man, it truly is a good
looking show. Watching some of the final
battle, especially when Boros powers up beyond and beyond all manners of
reason, I felt like I was watching a Studio Gainax production like FLCL or Gurren
Lagann. Lots of sketches and colors
flashing across a page at once in a wacky fashion, not that im complaining, it
just felt like another animation studio.
But yeah im not knocking it. The
overall battle blew everything before it away.
For a while, I was worried Saitama would come out a little worse for
wear. But as the battle got more
intense, the more One Punch Man stuck to its brand of humor. Hell Saitama got knocked to the Moon and he
spent a couple seconds testing the gravity like trying out a new mattress
before going back to Earth. It was a
battle you could take seriously, especially when Boros didn’t die from one
punch like everyone else, but one where you still cant stop laughing at the
absurdity of it all. And according to
Boros, he could tell Saitama wasn’t even at full power…FREAKING
WHAAAAT!??? That just makes your head
spin from all the awesome. This showdown
is the stuff legends of Anime are made of.
Which leaves the fallout a bit…of a letdown. The S Class heroes recover and wonder how the
hell the alien spaceship fell and how the battle was simply over. Amai Mask shows up to poster and show off a
bit of why he might be the series greatest threat one day. Genos, who does absolutely nothing in the
finale, gets a hint of a traitor in the Heroes Association. And Saitama emerges, with a bit of dirt but
alive, only to be berated by Tornado, who boasts about how she could’ve settled
this all on her own (so why didn’t she?).
That last part was probably the only bit I didn’t mind, back to business
as usual…just with some cute Tornado action thrown in to make me happy. Actually, it’s kind of a good thing OPM is
getting a second season. Because if the
show was ending with so much mystery behind the scenes with the Heroes
Association, id have to dock a point or two cause that group was easily one of
the low points of the season, for me at least.
I guess that brings me to my Final Thoughts. If you’ve grown tired of the recent trend of
superhero films (whether too formulaic like Marvel or too depressing like DC)
One Punch Man is the series for you.
Every superhero trope is targeted and joked about from super serious
heroes to the elaborate backstories of even the most minor of bad guys. Saitama is one of the best Anime characters
hands down in recent history. He’s an average
joe with the power of a God but he’s the most down to Earth guy you’ll ever
meet. While there were one or two “ok”
episodes in the first season, Saitama always had a stand out moment in each,
even if it was just a simple reaction to the danger around him. Plus you’ve got a pretty diverse cast (youre
sure to find a favorite like Genos, Mumen Rider, Tornado or Bang) and some of
the most creative and overthetop battles in Anime period, some that even make
DBZ drop its jaw. Had the Heroes
Association been a bit of a stronger element and the S Class heroes done a bit
more to entertain, One Punch Man could very well have gotten a 10/10 (and if I
had judged this based on the first 3 episodes alone, you bet this would have
that number). In the end, ill give it a
9/10. If you want to laugh at the
superhero genre in all the right ways, this show is for you. And yes, this is only the first season (it is
based on a Shonen Manga after all).
Which means that hopefully in 2018 we’ll see Saitama’s return to the screen…and
hope that his second outing can measure up to, if not surpass, this stellar
first season.
Whew, hard to believe it’s over. But 2018’s just getting started. Check back next week as I begin an Adult Swim
Anime Classic that they say is pretty terrible.
Will I find something to like about Pilot
Candidate? Or is this the next
Silent Mobius for me? The journey to the
answer begins next week. See ya then
everyone.
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