One-Punch Man (Volume 3) – Nothing Unusual
Saitama and Genos took the entrance exams to officially become heroes with differing results. Both got in, but Saitama is starting at the bottom thanks to his written exam. Looks like he’s going to have to hustle!
One-Punch Man (Volume 3) – Nothing Unusual
What happened?
Genos aced both exams and was awarded an S Rank which has never happened before for a new recruit. Saitama barely passed and has to start at the bottom – Rank C, however, he set new records in every single physical test, making his presence known to the higher-ups who believe a god resides in his flesh. Either way, as a rank C hero, Saitama will need to be active and that means more than defeating supervillains and terrorists. If he goes a week without performing, he will be dropped from the plan.
Worried that Genos’ involvement will nullify anything he does, Saitama goes out alone, leaving Genos to contemplate his spiritual strengths since there’s nothing else he can teach him. After almost a week with no incidents, Saitama is attacked by Speed O’Sound Sonic who is determined to defeat him after their last encounter. Saitama doesn’t have time for this but then another hero comes in and accuses Saitama of being a villain. At the very least, he’s scaring the locals will his worried face. Since Saitama won’t fight Sonic, he attacks the people, forcing Saitama to act. Ironically, that’s just what he needs and quickly defeats him.
There are rumours of hordes of monsters gathering in City-Z, which is where Saitama and Genos live. Most of the other people there have fled to the central cities. Several Rank A heroes have come to investigate the appearances of these monsters and are soundly defeated by a creature with seaweed-like tentacles. Saitama runs into it on the way home which is fortunate because he forgot to buy any seaweed at the convenience store.
What did you think?
I absolutely love this series and am amazed by how quickly I end up devouring these books. Sure, there’s a lot of action which means pages of beautifully drawn action shots with little to no words, but that doesn’t make them any less engrossing. Then, we have the fact that Saitama is such a regular guy who’s always concerned about saving money and how he’ll keep the lights on. He’s such a fresh take on the superhero character, especially how almost everyone dismisses him as nothing until they’ve had the misfortune of fighting him.
It was great that someone from the Hero Organisation noticed just how strong he is despite giving him the lowest ranking possible. Sure, the meatheads and overconfident heroes think little of him, but the people that matter can always tell. It’s a great way of being able to spot the real heroes. In this volume, we also got a couple of side stories which were great. We met Miss Blizzard and Terrible Tornado, and got to see someone similar to Saitama become inspired by his ordinariness. We also saw a story from Saitama’s past where he needed to use the bathroom and took out a giant monster with one punch so that he could get there in time. It’s just brilliantly ridiculous.
Volume highlights
Other posts in the series
Series Information
| English Title | One-Punch Man |
| Japanese Title | One-Punch Man |
| Genres | Action, Adult Cast, Comedy, Parody, Super Power |
| Demographic | Seinen |
Manga
| Author | One | |
| Artist | Yusuke Murata | |
| Volumes | Ongoing | Chapters |
| 1 | One Punch | 1-8 |
| 2 | A Hero for Fun | 9-15 |
| 3 | Nothing Unusual | 16-20 |
| 4 | This is How They React! | 21-24 |
| 5 | To the Hero Saitama, Thank You!! | 25-29 |
| 6 | Can I Have Some Tea? | 30-34 |
| 7 | Prophecies are Unreliable! | 35-37 |
| 8 | His Name is King… | 38-40 |
| 9 | Nothing But Trouble! | 41-47 |
| 10 | With Everything I’ve Got! | 48-55 |
| 11 | I’m Done with Teams! | 56-61 |
Anime
Season One
| Season | Season One |
| Released | Fall 2015 |
| Animation Studios | Madhouse |
| Episodes | 12 |
Season Two
| Season | Season Two |
| Released | Spring 2019 |
| Animation Studios | J.C.Staff |
| Episodes | 12 |
