Summary

The upcoming live - actionOne - Punch Mancould risk repeating the same mistakes that sunkDragonball : Evolutionif it does n’t successfully adapt the original tale ’s distinct tone and character focus . In adapt Akira Toriyama’sDragon Ballfranchise for westerly audiences , the live - actionDragonball : Evolutionlost much of the vivacious and unequalled fun that has long defined the franchise . It ’s one of the most ill-famed example of this tendency in film and TV adaptation of anime by Hollywood , but far from the only one .

This tonal discrepancy has been a problem for severalanime film adaptationsand is one that fans ofOne - Punch Manhave been wary of for the upcoming Justin Lin - directed moving picture . Despite the talent of the film maker involve ( including the two exciting writers make for on to rewrite the script),One - Punch Manhas a very specific tonal balancethat needs to be replicate if the film require to be a successful version . It ’s a particularly tricky one at that , which fuses a satirical approach to a well - trodden music genre to a serious character melodrama .

These actors are ideal choices to play Saitama , Genos , and the other iconic roles in the highly anticipated One - Punch Man alive - action film .

One-Punch Man live action movie casting for Saitama and other characters

One Punch-Man’s Comedic Tone Will Be Very Hard To Nail In Live-Action

Millions Of Dollars In Special Effects, Only To Be Blown Up By A Punch

One - Punch Man ’s tonic balance makes it a course tricky story to adaptfor the large - screen . create by the manga creative person One , One - Punch Manfocuses on a world of pestilent superheroes and supernatural powerhouse , where the Hero Association protects the world from grievous threats . This typical superhero tonal layer is subverted on every level by the nominal character , an retiring and perpetually bore unexampled poor boy named Saitama who is on the lookout for an factual challenge after he becomes strong enough to destroy anything with one punch . It ’s a New Riffian on superheroes that purposefully withdraw any tensity to the action .

The typical superheroic imagery and inspirational archetypes are undercut for comedic effect . Instead , the massive existence - threatening monsters and scoundrel are reduced to smudge in sudden bursts of vehemence from One - Punch Man . All of this is countered by characters like Genos , with the comedy coming frompairing the serious histrionic superhero fiber against a world-weary Superman . The animated nature of the serial allow it to be by nature big and broad in a direction that ’s been unmanageable to contribute to live - action , with monolithic budget on monster transformed into a sudden punchline . Even that subversive chemical element is n’t the real tricky part , though .

One Punch-Man Will Struggle To Stay Authentic To The Original Manga & Anime

Compressing A Show’s Worth Of Drama Into A Film Means Cuts Are Coming

The zany and action - pack elements ofOne - Piece Manhide a surprisingly self-examining tonus , with the characters struggling and grow in grounded ways . Finding that tone Libra was always going to be had for a live - action adaption , especially one that seeks to constrict all that deceptive persona development into a feature film - duration running play - time instead of a long - run show . That ’s what separatesOne - Punch Manfrom other sardonic riffs on the superhero genre . compress the tarradiddle and existence for a moving-picture show will in all probability cost some character focussing and depth . Aworst - case scenario would be adaptingOne - Punch Manjust on a airfoil level .

Dragonball : Evolutiontried to fuse the distinct elements of the dealership with a more traditional high school adventure narration . Arguably more close adjustment likeDeath NoteandCowboy Bebopreplicated the spirit of the original anime but fail to reduplicate the personality that elevated the original show . The clear outlier isNetflix’sOne Piece , which keep a decided wacky flavor and charm to the original narrative . Even then , One Piecehad a long run - time and still needed to compress several elements of the original series . AOne - Punch Manfilm may struggle to make that oeuvre in a feature - length trial - time .

alive - legal action anime adaptations can be hit or leave out , but the most successful ones lean to prise the source material that they ’re based on .

Luffy from Netflix’s live-action One Piece and Edward Elric from the live-action Fullmetal Alchemist

One Punch-Man’s Rewrites Are A Concern (But There’s A Silver Lining)

Rick & Morty’s Tonal Juggling Act GivesOne-Punch Man’s Rewrites

The belated news program aboutOne - Piece Man ’s live - natural process adaptation does inspire some conservative optimism . Rick & Mortyco - Divine Dan Harmonis reteaming with formerRick & Mortywriter Heather Anne Campbell to rewrite the screenplay for Justin Lin ’s upcomingOne - Punch Man . Rick & Mortyhas a like consistently snarky and unflinchingly brutal approach to a sensational literary genre asOne - Punch Man . Moreover , Rick & Mortyquietly explores heavy striking topics with the Sanchez family amid the entertaining topsy-turvyness . If that kind of nifty character perspective is repeat forOne - Punch Man , the film may retain a full of life element of the manga .

Still , the project rest a tricky animate being The fact that the filmrequires a high - profile rewrite at all indicates how heavy it isto bring this universe to the big - screen . One - Punch Manthrives in the middle - priming between serious character introspection and over - the - top legal action spectacle . Trying to compress any of that into a more traditional bodily structure , as seen in failed Zanzibar copal adaptations likeDragonball : Evolution , will in all probability result in failure . It ’s on Harmon and Campbell to plough out a hand that anchor all those elements together well , breakingOne - Piece Manaway from the faults that typically ghost westerly anime adaptation .

In a dusty landscape Finn stares out into the distance in Star Wars: The Force Awakens

cast from Dragonball Evolution 2009

One-Punch Man: Saitama in front of a blue explosion.

Tatsumaki crossing her arms and Saitama smiling in One Punch Man

Custom Image by Nick Bythrow

One-Punch Man Franchise Poster

One-Punch Man