One-Punch Man: The Strongest Man Review

What makes One-Punch Man so effective is how its premise turns the most common Shounen trope on its head. Instead of struggling to become the best in the world,  salaryman-turned-superhero Saitama struggles to find a worthy opponent in battle. As “The Strongest Man” shows, his entire city is overrun with all sorts of bizarre monsters, yet none of them can withstand a single punch from him. Rather than feeling a sense of satisfaction from being undefeated, Saitama (who’s trained so hard his hair has fallen out) feels only boredom. Isn’t there a single monster who can withstand his fists?

That’s not to say the battles are boring. On the contrary, snappy direction and aggressive enemies make some of the fights look like a close-run thing. Until of course One-Punch Man blithely appears from the wreckage and destroys his opponents with a vicious right hook. On any other show these fights might make for some heavy viewing (they can be surprisingly gruesome), but luckily One-Punch Man’s KOs are accompanied by a great bit of comedic timing, which keeps the tone light and prevents the viewer from thinking too hard about a monster’s innards being spilled all over the place.