One Punch Man Season 3 has made its debut, and as debate over the show’s quality rages following the release of Episode 1, the anime series has broken an unfortunate record.
The debut chapter of the One Punch Man anime adaptation was an all-timer: impeccable animation, the perfect blend of humor and action, and a sharp subversion of shonen tropes.
But after Season 2 was confirmed in 2016, it underwent a production overhaul, with J.C. Staff taking over from Madhouse. It finally arrived in 2019 to a lukewarm reception, with many fans criticizing the animation and pacing.
As such, there was much anticipation about how Season 3 would look (new director Shinpei Nagai even asked fans to “please stop the harassment” of J.C. Staff). But with Episode 1 landing last week, opinion has once again been split.
One Punch Man Season 3 recap scores better than Episode 1
Although there’s no Rotten Tomatoes score, viewers have been leaving their feedback of One Punch Man Season 3 Episode 1 on IMDb, where it’s received a lower score than the show’s recap.
This is the first time the anime show has achieved this unfortunate milestone. With Season 2, the recap is rated 7.2 out of 10, while the premiere currently sits at 7.9. However, One Punch Man’s Season 3 recap has a 7.3 score, while the premiere is rated 6.3.
The latter makes Season 3 Episode 1, ‘Strategy Meeting’, the lowest rated episode of One Punch Man on IMDb, followed by the OVA episode ‘Puri Puri Prisoner and the Escaped Prisoners’ at 6.6.
Fans have been quick to notice the difference, with one writing on Reddit, “One-Punch Man Season 3 recap episode receives a higher rating than the premiere episode.” Others are sharing their thoughts on what they believe went wrong.
“I really feel there is no way they got any more than like six months to animate that episode, they need a break so they can actually add more animation, and do literally anything to make it better,” wrote one.
“But hey at least the composition of the animation is decent. Still though, I just cannot believe how far OPM anime has fallen.”
Another said, “Man I just finished the episode and it was garbage. We all thought that it would be at least better than Season 2 but it is even worse, how?” To which a third replied, “It’s simply time management.”
“The studio worked on it at last minute notice even though they had all the time in the world. It might surprise many that one of the reasons that Ufotable make stellar animation is their time management,” they continued.
“They take their time producing high quality scenes without rushing, the same can’t be said to OPM treatment, it’s like an afterthought for J.C. Staff. Now I’m not saying I want a Ufotable or Mappa kind of quality (I wish) but at least give us something decent.”
A fourth chimed in, “Wow, the first episode was so dull to watch. Regardless of animation, it was so very boring. I needed three attempts to finish the episode. Non Saitama fans would just switch off.”
Not everyone agrees with the criticism, however, with one writing on IMDb, “Great start to an epic season! I can’t wait to see the final fight with Garou! I don’t know why people are rating it low when it is exactly according to the manga.
“I have to appreciate the efforts made by the artist. I think this season will be the best out of the three so far. We should be patient and wait for a masterpiece.”