The complete and utter downfall of the One-Punch Man anime is nothing short of a tragedy; after delivering a phenomenal first season filled with gorgeous, cinematic visuals, the series has been plagued with increasingly terrible art and animation, with season 3 being almost unanimously despised for its ugly animation and inarguably lackluster quality.
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It’s unfortunate to see just how much One-Punch Man fell off, so fans would probably see their time better spent watching anime with similar appeal, but without the massive drop in quality. A few anime like that especially stand out, as any One-Punch Man fan would be far better off giving them a shot than continuing season 3.
10) Heroman
In Bone Film’s Heroman, Joey Jones’ ordinary life takes a sudden turn when a bolt of lightning gives his toy robot the power to turn into a living, all-powerful robot named Heroman, and the two of them will have to learn to work together if Joey wants to protect his home from being invaded by the evil Skrugg.
The legendary Stan Lee created Heroman to be a superhero story for the 21st century, and sure enough, the series is a fun love letter to classic superhero stories from start to finish, all with plenty of great animation. It’s a criminally underrated anime, and above all else, it’s a perfect alternative to One-Punch Man.
9) The Disastrous Life Of Saiki K.
J.C.Staff’s The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. stars Kusou Saiki, a boy with powerful psychic abilities who, nonetheless, just wants to live a normal life. Unfortunately, his life is filled with quirky people always getting into trouble, and despite how much they often annoy him, he always finds a way to use his powers to help them.
Saiki K.’s premise of a superpowered person living a normal life strikes a great parallel to One-Punch Man, and the stellar comedy makes it especially great at every turn. The fact that it’s animated by J.C.Staff is another bonus, as it shows that, fortunately, not everything they make will turn out as bad as One-Punch Man.
8) Mashle: Magic And Muscles
A-1 Picture’s Mashle: Magic and Muscles stars Mash Burnedead, an eccentric young man who happens to be the only person in a world of magic with zero magical power. Mash has gotten around that by devoting his life to extreme physical training, though, and that bizarre lifestyle might end up being the key to saving the world.
With its parody stylings, stellar action, and surprising amount of heart, Mashle: Magic and Muscles is essentially a fantasy version of One-Punch Man, with Mash even vaguely resembling Saitama at times, as well. It’s a truly underrated gem of an anime, and with Mashle: Magic and Muscles season 3 in development, there’s plenty more in store.
7) To Be Hero X
BeDream’s To Be Hero X takes place in a world where superheroes draw their power from how much people believe in them. Naturally, this has led to a group of ten heroes standing out more than anyone else, but what most people are unaware of is the drama and trauma that is going on behind the scenes with them.
With its clever take on superhero stories and stylized 2D and 3D visuals. To Be Hero X is one of the most inventive animated projects of 2025 and contrasts nicely with how utterly disappointing One-Punch Man has been. Chinese donghua have become immensely popular in recent years, and To Be Hero X is poised to be the biggest one yet.
6) Tiger & Bunny
Bandai Namco Pictures’ Tiger & Bunny takes place in a world where superheroing has evolved to be more of a celebrity gig than something genuinely noble. Veteran hero Kotetsu T. Kaburagi rejects that idea, but to keep his job, he’s still forced to partner up with Barnaby Brooks, Jr., an up-and-coming hero who might have more going on than Kaburagi thinks.
Not only do Tiger & Bunny and One-Punch Man both center around deconstructing and parodying superheroes, but with Tiger & Bunny’s corporate take on things, it offers fans a wholly unique experience, especially when that’s used to build into its more sincere story points. Add in some great visuals across every story, and Tiger & Bunny is essential anime viewing for superhero fans.
5) Gintama
Sunrise’s Gintama takes place in an alternate Edo-period Japan where aliens took over the country and outlawed samurai. Gintoki, a former samurai who fought in the war with the aliens, is now living as an eccentric freelancer, and after unwittingly taking on an apprentice in Shinpachi, his freelancing becomes a full-fledged business known as the Yorozuya.
While Gintama and One-Punch Man’s stories couldn’t be any more different, both stories have a penchant for comedy that tends to reach utterly absurd heights, and that, alone, gives them plenty of overlap. Gintama is also far more visually and tonally consistent than One-Punch Man, so anyone tired of One-Punch Man would be remiss to not give Gintama a try.
4) Dragon Ball
Toei Animation’s Dragon Ball tells the story of Son Goku, a boy with a monkey tail who goes on adventures with his friends, often in search of the titular wish-granting Dragon Balls. While the series began as a martial arts comedy, it eventually became a sci-fi epic with over-the-top battles that often tasked Goku with protecting the entire universe.
Dragon Ball was the anime that pioneered mixing fun comedy with over-the-top action, and even after 40 years, Dragon Ball and its various sequels and spinoffs are still some of the best at that. There’s never been an action series like Dragon Ball, and anyone tired of One-Punch Man should give it a watch, even if they’ve already seen it.
3) Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End
Madhouse’s Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End stars Frieren, the unaging elven mage of the hero’s party who just completed their journey to defeat the demon king. It isn’t until the hero, Himmel, dies decades later that Frieren realizes how much she cared about them, though, and so she decides to go on another journey to learn how to understand others better.
Frieren and One-Punch Man have plenty of overlap in their visuals, especially since Madhouse worked on both of them, and since Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End season 2 is poised to be even better than season 1, despite a major staff change, it will be great to watch for anyone wanting to see the right way an anime deals with that.
2) My Hero Academia
In Bones Film’s My Hero Academia, Izuku Midoriya dreams of becoming a hero, despite being born without any powers, and after a chance meeting with his idol, All Might, Izuku will finally get a chance to prove that he has what it takes not just to be a hero, but to be the greatest hero of them all.
As the premiere superhero anime, My Hero Academia has clear overlap with One-Punch Man, and with its fun cast of characters, the fact that the story is actually complete, and, of course, its consistently great art and animation, it’s a much better superhero anime for anyone who’s become frustrated with One-Punch Man.
1) Mob Psycho 100
Bones Film’s Mob Psycho 100 stars Mob, a boy who has to suppress his emotions at all times to control his powerful psychic abilities. Despite that, Mob constantly tries to better express himself as he strives to make friends and impress his crush, all of which is made even harder by the constant supernatural threats he has to deal with.
Between its stellar comedy, gorgeous animation, and incredibly heartwarming coming-of-age story, Mob Psycho 100 is a phenomenal anime in every regard and one of the best works in modern anime. Despite also being created by ONE, Mob Psycho 100 is even better than One-Punch Man, and there’s no better anime to watch for anyone tired of One-Punch Man’s disappointing lows.
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Courtesy of Netflix
