For one, the main character is the ‘caped baldy’ known as Saitama. His appearance is somewhat bland, but there’s a reason: He’s so strong that all his hair fell out. How strong? Well, he ends all his fights with one punch (hence the manga’s name). He’s presumably a parody of all those overpowered protagonists you see in anime and manga, but his uninterested personality is quite unique for an action hero.
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Early on in the series, a cyborg who becomes Saitama’s student is introduced. His name is Genos, and he’s definitely powerful with his cybernetic weaponry and armour. He has that handsome appearance that makes him look like the protaganist, when he’s really just the student of the protagonist. Genos is also more serious and apparently smarter than Saitama, but Saitama doesn’t seem to be bothered.
Onepunch-Man features many villains, and a lot of them are seemingly unstoppable until Saitama gets to them. There’s a giant, an insect swarm and ‘seapeople’, for example. One recurring villain, Sonic, doesn’t fall under the same category as these monsters, but that’s because he’s kind of important.
Eventually, an organization full of heroes comes into the story, which Saitama and Genos join. Heroes are ranked in a system going from C-class to S-class. Many heroes appear in the story, with their ranks and abilities varying (amongst them, there’s an esper, a shiny muscleman and a guy in a dog costume). Once this group is introduced, the fight scenes become all the more epic.
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Speaking of fights, there are a lot of them in this manga. And they are drawn with great detail: They are better quality than the rest of the series, which looks decent at its worst. You may think it’s boring when Saitama wins with one punch, but here’s the thing: He usually only appears late into fights with other heroes involved, and his punches usually have to actually hit to do anything. So fight scenes are really hype-filled when they want to be.
The story of Onepunch-Man… Well, I can’t tell if it’s serious or comedic. I’m guessing it’s both, as it can be funny one minute and intense the next. Each villain has their own motive, some of them based on their past. And there are some heroes that definitely don’t act like heroes. The author is quite interesting, to say the least.
In conclusion, Onepunch-Man is a great series. Read the manga, then watch the anime by Madhouse when it starts.
