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One Punch Man [Limited Edition] (TheaterByte Blu-ray Review)

One Punch Man: Limited Edition Cover Art (Viz Media)One Punch Man started life as a self-published web comic by manga artist One. It was eventually remade as a digital manga illustrated by Murata Yusuke before being adapted into this 12-episode + 6 OVA anime series produced by animation studio Madhouse, directed by Natsume Shingo and written by Suzuki Tomohiro. The story revolves around everyday hero Saitama AKA One-Punch Man who has trained so hard that he has lost all of his hair, become indestructible, and can destroy all of his opponents with one punch. Since none of his battles pose much of a challenge Saitama has become bored with his life as a hero and even worse – no one knows who he is, partly because his fights are over so quickly and partly because he failed to sign up with the Hero Association. Saitama, who gains a disciple named Genos, a cyborg who wants to train under him to learn the secret to increasing his strength, decides to join the Hero Association to gain recognition and fight the constant stream of monsters that are attacking the super city that the series is set in. What happens, however, is One-Punch Man ends up at the bottom category in the association and Genos goes straight to the top, despite One-Punch Man being the strongest hero the Association has on their registry.

This series is a highly addictive blend of comedy, action, and camaraderie between unlikely friends doing their best to be superheroes. It’s sort of like the anti-Watchmen, of there is such a thing. Where Watchmen is veiled in angst and darkness, this is really about an average guy who worries about specials at the grocery store who made himself the most powerful hero on the planet and just wants a challenge and some recognition. The different levels of heroes in the Association provide lots of comic relief as well, particularly Mumen Rider, who’s really just a well-meaning guy on a bike in body armor catching criminals. Still, near the end when he shows a lot of heart trying the impossible to take on an incredibly powerful monster that takes out even the S level heroes, one can’t help but root for the guy.

For those fans of series like Dragon Ball Z and Naruto in particular, this series will hold many similarities, from the driving heavy metal soundtrack to the constant, over-the-top fight sequences. And those sequences are gloriously animated with a style that at times mimics the manga, but with a real sense of kinetic energy and detail and seamless blend of CGI. The character designs and backgrounds are really creative and keep your eyes engaged.

[envira-album id=”101402″]

The Video

One Punch Man is encoded in a beautiful AVC 1080p framed at 1.78:1. I’ve sampled the HD stream of this series on Netflix, which looks solid, but this Blu-ray is legions above that. No color banding, no compression noise, no softness, and excellent colors and contrasts define this reference quality anime release.

The Audio

The original Japanese-language soundtrack and an English dub are both offered up in dynamic mixes with wide stereo imaging and clean, full dialogue encoded in DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0. The English vocal cast and Japanese cast are pretty evenly matched on this one and the English subtitles are solid, so take your pick. I’m a fan of Japanese original soundtracks, so I go with that as my references, but I can’t complain about this dub at all.

The Supplements

The 6 OVA’s continue the quirky fun and additional swag like the art cards and 96 page booklet make this Limited Edition set well worth the extra coin.

  • 2 DVDs with series in standard definition
  • OVAs:
    • 01: The Shadow that Snuck up Too Close (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 00:12:30)
    • 02: The Disciple Who Stinks at Storytelling (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 00:11:41)
    • 03: The Overly-Complicated Ninja (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 00:12:06)
    • 04: The Excessively Pushy Bang (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 00:12:06)
    • 05: The Sisters with Too Much Going On (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 00:11:55)
    • 06: The Zombieman Murder File (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 00:12:21)
  • English Credits
  • Clean Opening
  • Clean Ending
  • Cast and Staff Interview (1.78:1; 1080p/24; 00:10:12) – With English and Japanese Cast
  • Viz Media Trailers
  • 6 Art Cards
  • 96-Page full-color booklet includes Chapter 1 of the One-Punch Man manga, interviews with the director and writer, character bios, and more.

The Final Assessment

An action-packed series with stunning graphics and a compelling every-man superhero who packs a powerful punch, One Punch Man offers up great fun mixing together comedy, sci-fi, and monster of the week hijinks. This Limited Edition set provides a good bit of collectibles for otaku, but a standard Blu-ray set is available as well sans the art cards, booklet, and DVDs.

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4.6 / 5 TheaterByte Rating
{{ reviewsOverall }} / 5 User Rating (0 votes)
TV-14TV Rating
MadhouseAnimation Studio
Viz MediaDistributor
Natsume ShingoDirector
Suzuki TomohiroWriter
25 Apr. 2017Release Date
$59.99MSRP
1.78:1Aspect Ratio
AVC 1080pVideo
Japanese DTS-HD MA 2.0 StereoAudio
English DTS-HD MA 2.0 StereoSecondary Audio
English | English Songs & SignsSubtitles
The Story
The Animation
The Video
The Audio
The Dub
The Supplements
Summary
Strong writing, gorgeous animation, and fantastic action sequences make One Punch Man an instantly enjoyable series that packs one helluva punch. This Limited Edition set also comes with a reference quality Blu-ray transfer and ample extras housed in a collectible chipboard slipcase.
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