One Punch Man anime could be set up for long-term failure, and it's not J.C. Staff's fault

Modified May 24, 2024 16:30 GMT

One Punch Man anime could be set up for long-term failure, and it — Saitama as seen in One Punch Man anime (Image via J.C. Staff)

With the One Punch Man anime having announced the production status for season 3, fans have been looking forward to its release window. While fans were excited by the trailer, they were also disappointed to learn that J.C.Staff was animating the third season, despite the poor reception after the second season's release.

Fans were hoping for Madhouse to take over the anime's production from J.C. Staff. Unfortunately, that did not come to fruition. To make matters worse, it seems like fans are being set up for another long-term failure. Surprisingly, it won't be J.C. Staff's fault, but they will certainly get criticized for the same.

Disclaimer: This article may contain spoilers from the One Punch Man manga.

One Punch Man anime is bound to fail at adapting the manga

Saitama as seen in One Punch Man anime (Image via J.C. Staff)

As one would remember, the anime's second season was very poorly received by fans. Fans saw a drastic drop in quality between the second and the first season, with the latter being produced by Madhouse. It had amazing animation sequences, brilliant soundtracks, voice acting, etc.

In comparison, the second season that J.C. Staff produced featured lazy animation. To fans, it seemed like the anime was a half-baked attempt at staying relevant rather than creating something watch-worthy.

Garou as seen in One Punch Man anime (Image via J.C. Staff)

With that season in mind, fans were worried about J.C. Staff again animating the One Punch Man anime. Unfortunately, as revealed in the trailer, the anime's third season will also be animated by J.C. Staff.

While the trailer looked good, fans were worried whether it was actually a good sign. There was a good chance that the trailer was a compilation of the best the animation studio could muster up from the episodes.

Otherwise, there was also a chance that the trailer was animated separately from the main anime. Hence, fans weren't entirely confident about the third season's animation.

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Discouragingly, no matter what J.C. Staff do, they are bound to disappoint fans with One Punch Man season 3. This is because manga creator Yusuke Murata's artwork in the manga is way too good, and has only improved over time. This means that, as the story progresses further, it would become much harder for J.C. Staff to faithfully adapt the scenes.

It is already considered very difficult to transition a manga into an anime. However, with artworks as detailed and intricate as Yusuke Murata's, there is no chance that the animation studio would not end up disappointing fans in the process.

Given the budgets anime are usually provided with, it is almost guaranteed that J.C. Staff has been set up to fail with One Punch Man anime's third season. Hence, there are only two ways the animation studio can bypass their issue.

They can willingly produce the anime at such a quality that they'd be losing money regardless of the critical reception and sales. Otherwise, they may need to hire freelance animators who could help them push past their current limits.

That said, the adaptation of One Punch Man anime season 3 could also be viewed as a golden opportunity for J.C. Staff to shine. If they somehow deliver the One Punch Man anime in a decent state, they could get rid of all the criticism they face.