Yusuke Murata, the talented artist responsible for drawing the One-Punch Man webcomic, recently announced some disappointing news for fans eager for a third season of the One-Punch Man anime.
On a popular social media platform, Murata stated plainly that neither he nor the animation studio he started this January will have any involvement with producing the upcoming third season of the show.
ちなみにワンパンマンのアニメ３期に関わってるわけではありません。アニメ制作は自前の企画です。
— 村田雄介 (@NEBU_KURO) February 10, 2024
This means that while Murata will continue creating new webcomic content for One-Punch Man, he will not be contributing his artistic talents or direction to the anime adaptation moving forward.
Like some other industry creators such as Ryu Nakayama, who left MAPPA to start his own studio after directing season one of Chainsaw Man, Murata is choosing to focus his efforts on his own original animation projects going forward rather than collaborating on the next season of One-Punch Man.
The Future of One-Punch Man Season 3 Without Yusuke Murata
It’s disappointing but not entirely surprising that Yusuke Murata won’t be working on the third season of One-Punch Man.
Given that he recently started his own animation studio, fans could guess that his attention would turn to his original projects.
The third season was first announced back in August 2022, but there hasn’t been much news since then over these past two years.
There were rumors circulating that the anime would switch production from J.C. Staff to acclaimed studio MAPPA.
The official One-Punch Man social media account told fans not to believe unofficial reports, but notably didn’t deny the MAPPA claims outright.
Other implausible rumors even suggested a collaboration between MAPPA and studio Bones for season three, but that theory was quickly written off.
So while we know for sure that Murata is out for the next season, most details are still uncertain when it comes to what studio may animate it and when it will actually be released.
The bottom line is that fans are eager for updates and clarity on what’s happening with season three after the announcement over two years ago.
Losing Murata as the lead artist is upsetting, but hopefully, the new studio, whenever formally announced, can still deliver a worthy adaptation true to the spirit of the comics.
For now, fans will have to continue waiting patiently for more concrete details to emerge.
One-Punch Man Season 3 and the Search for Redemption
Fans have high hopes that One-Punch Man’s third anime season can redeem the series after the disappointment of season two.
The first season, animated by the renowned studio Madhouse, was critically praised for its quality.
But when season two switched production to J.C. Staff, many felt the animation quality took a severe downgrade.
So now all eyes are on who will handle season three, with rumors pointing to acclaimed studio MAPPA.
While they’ve created hits like Jujutsu Kaisen and Chainsaw Man recently, MAPPA has actually faced backlash too – some allege the workplace culture leads to poor management and overly demanding schedules for staff.
In fact, Sunghoo Park, director of Jujutsu Kaisen season one, ended up leaving MAPPA altogether. He’s now working on an original anime for Adult Swim called Ninja Kamui.
What To Expect From One Punch Man Season 3
While the exact storyline is still closely guarded, it’s expected that One-Punch Man’s third season will pick up right where season two left off.
It should continue adapting the popular Monster Association arc from the manga source material.
Fans anticipating this next part of the story can look forward to some intense and epic battles between heroes and villains.
Major monsters like the dreaded Monster King Orochi will likely return to wreak more havoc, needing to be put in their place by Saitama and the Hero Association.
Many also predict a sizable role for the character Garou – the Hero Hunter who wishes to be a monster himself. He seems poised to have an impactful confrontation with unstoppable hero Saitama at some point.
Additional manga elements probably to appear include further world-building of the Monster Association network, introductions to some new eccentric heroes and monsters, as well as Saitama confronting ever-stronger foes – but still nonchalantly defeating them in one punch despite struggling allies.
These major battles and plot points should make for an action-packed season three, furthering Saitama’s journey to gain recognition while parodying conventional shonen anime tropes.
As long as the animation quality can match the epic scope, season three has the source material for a potential return to form for the One-Punch Man anime adaptation.
