One Punch Man - Anime

I love it when a show plays on clichés, it’s especially fun when those clichés have something to do with superheroes. They take what you know and further exaggerate things as they play out the story in a new and refreshing way, just like this recent anime has done with its protagonist. It really is fun and exciting to watch.

One Punch Man takes place in a world where there seems to be a constant threat of some kind to the people in the various cordoned off cities and because of this there exists an organization that employs various individuals who step up to fight against threats, aka our heroes. These heroes sign on to be recognized for their efforts and are allowed to be part of the Hero Association after signing up and being ranked by the organization.

But now aside from all that paper work and rules, we have our protagonist who stands apart from the other heroes as he comes along and does his own thing right off the bat, unaware of the organization rules and regulations. All he wants to do is be a hero for the heck of it. The anime starts off by showing us him saving the day multiple times with an amazing feat of strength, yet seemingly with no recognition as he remains a nobody in the eyes of the public.

Saitaima, our protagonist, remains clueless to all this as he roams around saving the day here and there in places where other highly ranked heroes fail to do so and soon it becomes clear he is in a league of his own, despite the fact that when he eventually joins the Hero association he ranks fairly low.

Enter Genos, a cyborg who witnesses Saitama’s great strength and begs the carefree hero to be his master and teach him his ways in order to grow stronger. Here we have someone that excels so well in all things ‘hero’ that the association practically drools at the idea of having him on board and ranks him in the highest rank straight of the bat.

The story is pretty interesting to watch unfold as you see how the strongest man around doesn’t get your average praise and glory and he doesn’t seem to mind because ultimately he is just doing the whole ‘hero’ thing because he wants to do it and not to get any sort of praise and glory. It’s pretty deep stuff, you know.

The story even gets more interesting as you follow Genos as his character develops and he learns more about his seemingly airheaded master, who might be even more amazing than he actually is. It gives room to admire, through the eyes of learning disciple, the good points of a straight forward personality.

In the end I’d say it’s a pretty good and inspiring anime to watch as it twists and exaggerates a few clichés here and there, while also bringing home a new bald headed hero you can’t help but picturing on your eggs every so now and then.