ONE-PUNCH MAN. The Hero Next Door

Fans of comics constantly argue, trying to determine the ultimate powerhouse, the hero whose strength surpasses all others. Superman, Hulk, and Son Goku have always been at the forefront, but years ago, an unexpected contender joined the fray—a man whose face resembles no one in particular – One-Punch Man.

In an era where realism is expected from superheroes, poor Clark Kent has become a symbol of cheesiness. Superman still has many supporters, but more and more people argue that giving a single character the ability to freeze things with his breath, shoot lasers from his eyes, see through almost any material, and even move planets with his muscles is simply too much. Zack Snyder chose the opposite extreme, and if not for the name of the Kryptonian’s earthly mother, he would have fallen victim to the Dark Knight. Still, it’s hard not to feel that the adventures of someone like that are just plain dull. However, in Japan, they’ve proven that this story can be told in a much more interesting way.

Some movie titles serve as their own best descriptions. RoboCop, Planet of the Apes, or The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then The Bigfoot require no further explanation, and the same goes for One-Punch Man—a story about a completely ordinary man who, through a grueling training regimen, became the most powerful warrior in the world. No opponent can withstand even a single punch from him… Well, maybe the training wasn’t that grueling. It consisted of a simple three-year routine: 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, and a 10-kilometer run every day. It must be said that the mangaka, who goes by the pseudonym One, came up with a clever idea while simultaneously promoting physical fitness worldwide. His hero isn’t an alien who became a mighty warrior under Earth’s conditions, nor a victim of gamma radiation, nor even a Norse god. He gained his strength through exercises that any healthy person could do. Many have taken up the challenge, and you can find videos online of people showing real results from Saitama’s regimen. As far as I know, no one has reached the level of defeating aliens with a single punch yet—but then again, aliens are pretty scarce around here.

The titular One-Punch Man is both an exceptionally powerful being and an everyman with whom anyone can identify. Even his appearance is as average as possible, breaking away from the conventions of Japanese comics and animation. Saitama has neither a spiky, angular hairstyle a meter high nor bangs covering one eye. He doesn’t have large, colorful eyes—he’s just a bald guy (a side effect of his training) with two black dots for eyes. The most interesting aspect, however, is how he is portrayed. He usually appears in one of two modes: a comedic one, where his face resembles a smiling egg, and a dramatic one, where the use of shading and furrowed brows momentarily makes us feel like we’re watching a completely different, more serious story.

The main character—who, perhaps, served as inspiration for David Lynch when creating Freddie Sykes in the third season of Twin Peaks—is the biggest strength of this anime, but not the only one. Viewers raised in pop culture always appreciate hidden references to other works, and One-Punch Man is full of them. Saitama’s first opponent is almost an exact copy of Piccolo (a.k.a. Demon King Piccolo) from Dragon Ball, while the last one is another take on the mighty Saiyan Broly. The giant crushing a city could be mistaken for a Titan from Attack on Titan, and the cyborg learning under the bald fighter, aside from his tendency for stereotypical anime melodrama, looks almost identical to Zangetsu from Bleach. The storyline also subverts the typical shōnen formula. This isn’t a bildungsroman-style story where we follow a young hero growing and improving on his way to defeating an ominous evil. One-Punch Man is at the end of that journey, bored out of his mind, constantly hoping to find a worthy opponent. At times, it seems like this is the moment, that he’s finally met his match—but after a few minutes of monologuing, once again, a single punch is all it takes to claim victory.

How can a story about someone who defeats every enemy with “just another normal punch”, as he calls it, be interesting? Well, it can—and I dare say we’re dealing with one of the best productions in the history of Japanese animation. Excellent entertainment with stunning visuals, a playful take on stereotypes, great humor, a cast of unique and intriguing characters, and an opening theme so catchy that you can’t get it out of your head after hearing it just once—all of these elements contributed to its massive and well-deserved success. However, the second season, currently in production, faces a significant challenge: escaping its own formula. One-Punch Man, while parodying other series, has started to fall into the same routine as Dragon Ball: a new enemy appears, tension builds in the background, and then Saitama saves the day. Always executed with class and wit, but a repetition of this pattern over another 26 episodes could become tiresome. Anyone following the manga knows, however, that we shouldn’t worry—if the anime creators stay true to the source material, we’re in for another fantastic adventure.