It’s finally here, folks! The much-awaited Season 03 of the chart-topping anime, One Punch Man, has been announced after a three-year hiatus. As the reception for One Punch Man Season 02 was mediocre, there were growing worldwide concerns that the series wouldn’t be renewed for Season 03. As a result, the recent announcement has brought much relief to the fans who had been following the ongoing manga.
One Punch Man Season 02 found itself on the receiving end of criticism, with most reviews coming in as “mixed.” Though the gags and character coherency were praised, the animation style was heavily criticized for adopting techniques that were used more than two decades ago.
But it’s to be noted that One Punch Man Season 01 had certainly set a high bar, and the studio that took over for the second season, found rather large shoes to fill in.
One Punch Man Season 01 and 02 Recap
The story takes place in a world that’s been run over by monsters. In this monster-riddled supercontinent, mutant humans with special abilities (known as heroes), emerges to tackle the rising threats. They form the Hero Association and are respected and treated like celebrities in society. It is in this world that our protagonist, Saitama, appears.
It had been Saitama’s dream to be a hero from the start, and after three years of intense training, Saitama gets powers that are unparalleled to the rest. Now, Saitama has the strength to annihilate enemies with one punch, earning him the titular name, One Punch Man. Though Saitama is a simpleton who is a “hero for fun,” he is discovered by Genos, a powerful cyborg. Along the way, Saitama inadvertently becomes Genos’ master.
As the season progresses, Saitama discovers that the world is still oblivious to his powers and it deeply troubles him. So, for gaining notability, the master and disciple enroll at the Hero Association. Though Genos is instantly converted to the highest possible rank, Class S, Saitama is a class B hero, mostly because he failed the written examination. Certainly, his physical prowess didn’t expand his mental capabilities.
But after destroying a world-killer asteroid and stopping a rogue sea monster known as the Deep Seas King, he is promoted to class B. Here, Saitama gets a small fan following and is assigned the nickname, Caped Baldy. However, Saitama soon faces a formidable enemy when an alien ship under the command of Boros invades the planet. After an epic battle, Saitama manages to neutralize the threat, ending season one on a high note. Season 01 garnered a golden rating of 100% on the aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes.
Season 02 of One Punch Man opens with the monsters appearing faster than before. Along with this, Garo, a former apprentice of Blast, turns rogue and starts hunting down heroes. The ratings of the Hero Association quickly plummet due to these recent developments, and their reputation is at risk. The fact that monsters are also recruiting humans and mutating using monster cells doesn’t help either.
Where season one of One Punch Man excelled, however, season two falters, as the storylines get muddled. The pacing of Season Two, along with fight sequences, was heavily criticized for being sub-par, with the season finale heavily panned commercially and critically.
After the dust of Season 02 settled, however, the fans started to worry that the series wouldn’t be renewed for season 03.
Also Read: Is Genos Dead In One Punch Man Chapter 166?
One Punch Man Season 3 Announcement and Plot
On August 18th, 2022, One Punch Man Season 03 was officially announced on the official website of One Punch Man. However, details regarding the release date, the studio handling the animation, and the expected cast and crew are yet to come out. It was also announced that the release of the One Punch Man chapter 171 would be delayed by a month, as the mangaka would be taking a well-deserved break. With the announcement of One Punch Man Season 03, the series has seen renewed interest, and the topic is currently trending worldwide.
Though the plot for the latest installment has not been confirmed, it’s speculated that Season 03 would follow the path created by the manga rather than finding its own. If that’s the case, One Punch Man Season 03 has a good chance of topping the charts and raising the bar even higher, as Saitama would be facing some formidable enemies including mercenaries of the notorious God, whose existence was foreshadowed in the anime and manga before. It’s also possible that the heroes would fall and the Caped Baldy would have to do Avengers-esque time travel to save the day. In fact, Season 03’s climax could be a potential showdown between a transformed Garo and Saitama (as the early poster seems to tell) while paving the way for the arrival of God in an expected Season 04.
One Punch Man Season 03 is expected to drop by late 2023 or Summer 2024, so instead of leaving “tomorrow’s problems to tomorrow’s me,” stay tuned for further updates by subscribing to OtakuKart’s news list.
Also Read: Top 10 S-Rank Hero From One Punch Man
