One Punch Man: Pre-cosmic Garou's feats against Saitama made Boros look like a joke

The One Punch Man fanbase is eagerly waiting for the third installment in the series, as it has been quite some time since anime episodes have been released. The third season will mark the beginning of what is considered the most exciting story arc in the series so far.

The Monster Association arc of the manga has some of the best fight scenes, and it has packed a ton of action over the 91 chapters that were released. Naturally, those who have already read the manga are revisiting some of these older chapters, and this has sparked plenty of interesting conversations on various social media platforms and forums.

Fans compared Garou to Boros, one of the most prominent villains in the series, who was introduced towards the end of season 1. Many are keen to understand how Garou fared in comparison to Boros, before the former attained his strongest transformation.

Disclaimer: This article contains massive spoilers for the One Punch Man manga series.

---

One Punch Man: Comparing pre-cosmic Fear Mode Garou to Boros

Cosmic Fear Mode Garou is undoubtedly the strongest antagonist that has been introduced to the series so far. While God has been introduced in the series, the entity’s powers haven’t been revealed yet. Cosmic Fear Mode Garou is the transformation that he undergoes when God gives him a new set of abilities that make him understand the flow of all energy in the world.

Prior to this, however, all the abilities he showcased were the result of his hard work. There came a point where he turned into a monster, and this was his awakened state. This was purely because of the rage he felt when he faced off against Saitama in the manga series. This form of Garou was so strong that even Boros’ feats couldn't be compared to it.

The fight between Saitama and Boros was quite brief. Half of the fight was just Boros rambling about his power and how there wasn’t a single being that was able to last as long on the battlefield. When Saitama used his Consecutive Normal Punches, it completely ripped Boros into pieces.

However, he was able to regenerate within seconds. He also revealed that he needed to focus all of his energy on this ability to regenerate that quickly.

Garou distorts the magnetic and gravitational field, making Blast worry (Image via Shueisha)

Meanwhile, pre-cosmic Fear Mode Garou, also fondly referred to as Gargoyle Garou, managed to withstand all of Saitama’s Consecutive Normal Punches. His body wasn’t shredded into pieces. However, he ended up on the ground due to exhaustion.

This alone shows that Garou had better endurance. He also managed to alter the Earth’s magnetic and gravitational fields by creating a spatial distortion with his attack. This attack was so powerful that Blast was worried and forced to intervene.

Garou also lasted way longer in this battle because he managed to constantly evolve during the course of the fight. An argument that most fans would have is that Saitama was actively trying not to kill Garou. On the other hand, Saitama didn’t have such limitations while taking on Boros. While that might be the case, Saitama’s strength against Garou was way higher in comparison to his strength when he first fought Boros.

One Punch Man manga panels explaining Saitama's infinite potential and constant growth (Image via Shueisha)

Later on in the manga, it was revealed that Saitama is someone who has experienced constant growth and also has unlimited potential. This means Saitama’s base power levels were far higher when fighting against Garou, simply because Saitama grew as a fighter ever since he fought Boros.

Therefore, the Consecutive Normal Punches were way stronger in comparison to the same attack he used against Boros. This is why fans believe that pre-cosmic Fear Mode Garou was more powerful than Boros.

Stay tuned for more anime and manga news as 2024 progresses.

---

Related Links:

Saitama could hold the key to Blast's ultimate plan in One Punch Man

Will God appear in One Punch Man season 3? Explained

Redrawn One Punch Man Chapter 197 sets up Flash vs Sonic as Blast remains on standby to fight Empty Void

One Punch Man manga creator shares a new update on a release schedule