Fans are still waiting for One Punch Man to announce its next season’s premiere date, but that isn’t the news they got today. Instead, the fandom was rocked by some creative changes that are more than a little controversial.
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Earlier today, news broke that One Punch Man would be changing both its production company and director. The second season will be overseen by J.C. Staff Production and helmed by Chikara Sakurai. The series was originally overseen by Madhouse with Shingo Natsume directing its first season.
The update confirmed Chikashi Kubota would return as the show’s character designer while Tomohiro Suzuki does series composition. Makoto Miyzaki will be in charge of music while Shoji Hata takes over as sound director.
As for its cast, One Punch Man will bring back its original talent. Saitama will be voiced by Makoto Furukawa while Genos is brought to life by Kaito Ishikawa. Returning talent will also voice King, Hellish Blizzard, and more.
For fans, the One Punch Man reveal has come as a shock, but many are not saying they’re surprised by the changes. Madhouse ushered One Punch Man into the world, animating it and its action scenes with robust movement. However, the studio does have a reputation for passing off franchises if a second season is involved; If it were up to Madhouse, the studio simply would forego anime continuations altogether.
Many fans of One Punch Man hyped Madhouse’s participation with the anime, but it’s the loss of Shingo Natsume that should be mourned. The director had lots of ties within the industry which helped One Punch Man nab freelance animators. Chikara Sakurai is a noteworthy replacement as the artist animated plenty of Naruto episodes, but fans are concerned One Punch Man will lose much of its aesthetic next season thanks to the director switch-up.
