What They Say:
#12 The Strongest Hero
The inconceivably powerful Lord Boros has traveled untold distances in search of someone who can cure his boredom: Saitama! With the fate of humanity in the balance, will the two champions at last find in each other the worthy opponent they’ve been searching for?
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
The final battle is here. Saitama has spent episodes tearing through a massive ship to reach the apparent strongest being in the universe, Boros. As it turns out, Boros has a similar story to that of Saitama, having never found an opponent who could give him a good fight. Prophecy has brought him to Saitama, and considering the bald man instantly destroyed his armor that nobody else could’ve touched and in fact was only holding back his full power, all indications are that this is indeed the clash of the strongest that both have been longing for. We’ve seen some of the best animation in existence from the most trivial monsters for Saitama to annihilate, so this has no choice but to blow everything else out of the water. That would seem impossible if we hadn’t already watched eleven episodes of this series constantly exceeding its own bar-setting feats.
And sure enough, it’s everything we could’ve dreamed of and so much more. Boros is an amalgam of all the greatest fighters of anime and manga history, with the production quality that hasn’t been achieved until now. That would be enough to make One Punch Man one of the greatest action cartoons of all time, but even while it stands atop countless series that exist entirely for that purpose and possibly for the first time makes that its priority over the lighter elements, it never forgets that, as a series, it’s still fundamentally a comedy, or at the very least one that puts its initial premise above all else, even when the stakes are this high. That may be the most important part of what makes One Punch Man so great, because the ability to keep that joke going with everything else at hand helps it become the most satisfying joke a series could hope to have, and the inherent brilliance of the writing really shines through. For a series this good, even with such a short length, it’s like there’s a constant battle between the different elements over which is the most spectacular. At the end of the day, though, there’s nothing jarring about the diversity of these elements, all of them instead working together in wonderful harmony.
If there has ever been a question of what will happen in the core plot of this series, it’s the question in this finale of whether or not there could possibly be anything to question after all. Of course Saitama will win. If a series is banking on the audience wondering whether or not the good guy will beat the bad guy, it’s not going to be very engaging. But thanks to the unique gimmick that has remained consistent throughout this show’s run, there’s legitimate suspense in wondering whether the need to put this battle on a different level than the rest will finally outweigh that same consistency that seemed essential to the show’s identity by this point. If there’s one statement vague enough to apply to One Punch Man in any context, it’s that it always manages to please everyone. That could be used in a negative context when referring to series that simply go for the easy resolution that’s most likely to keep the average viewer content, but in reality that’s also guaranteed to infuriate those looking for more. One Punch Man delivers it all, and with style.
Even after having accomplished the necessities of a climax, a series in this position still has to find a way to find an ending that feels like a real conclusion while also whetting the fans’ appetite for the hope of more. Sure, it’s easy to say that this show doesn’t need to do any more of that when everything about it will naturally draw that reaction, and really that’s a lot more valuable than some contrived cliffhanger to tell the loyal followers to buy enough copies of the manga and home video releases to get another season. Fortunately, we get nothing so cheap. There are teases of the future and an epilogue that shows that the story never ends, but it also functions to make this an effective finale. Should there be more? Of course there should be. But even if we get an announcement for more in a week, these twelve episodes stand perfectly well as a series.
In Summary:
One Punch Man is beyond perfect. It takes source material so good and so masterful at using its medium to its utmost – so much so that I was worried any adaptation couldn’t live up to it before it started – only to enhance everything it can, showing what can be done with its own medium. This is the gold standard of what animation is capable of, with its storyboarding, direction, line work, photography, and every other piece of the puzzle far better than it ever needs to be, all beginning with Murata’s insanely intricate artwork rendered magnificently in full color and motion. Past all the incredible action is a comedic core that’s not just hilarious but truly brilliant. One Punch Man is impossible not to love; it’s a rare case of a series that will work for any audience, and on top of that it’s one of the greatest anime – and TV series in general – of all time. I don’t care if A++ isn’t a real grade; this is a masterpiece that transcends conceptions of what can be accomplished in this format, and a normal grade can’t do that justice.
Grade: A++
Streamed By: DAISUKI, Hulu, VIZ.com – NEON ALLEY
Review Equipment:
Roku 3, Sceptre X425BV-FHD 42″ Class LCD HDTV.