ONE and his Creation of Perfect Imperfect Self-Made Heroes

Heroes have always perpetuated our media in all shapes and forms. However, most mediums portray heroes as perfect unsuspecting heroes that have a mentor to guide them so they can realize their full potential in society. However, the manga artist ONE has created in his mangas, One Punch Man and Mob Psycho 100, heroes such as Saitama and Shigeo who go against the previously mentioned archetype. Instead, Saitama and Shigeo are self-made heroes that do not match the normal hero image. This is done by adding a realistic aspect to the heroes mentioned before based on their attitudes, appearance, actions, and their relationship with their mentors or lack of. In adding these complexities to these characters, ONE brings forth a message that goes against the common structure of superhero stories, which is that some people are inherently more special, and instead preaches that anyone can become great at something.

First, it will be discussed how Saitama and Shiego choose to present themselves, how they develop their attitudes, and how they decide to act do not match up with the typical image of an unsuspecting hero, and instead with that of an imperfect self-made one.

First, in One Punch Man, Saitama’s appearance, actions, and attitude are self-made and not reflective of another person’s ideologies. For example, his superhero outfit is unappealing by his own doing. The color scheme is yellow and red with no additional padding or accessories to the outfit itself aside from the simple white cape and red boots and gloves. This appearance contrasts heavily with that of typical heroes. Superman’s symbol on his chest represents ‘hope’ from his people’s language, but also represents America and patriotism as seen in Man of Steel. In V for Vendetta, the inclusion of the Guy Fawkes mask invokes the idea of revolution. In Carmen Dog, the Rosemary masks are used to invoke an idea of unity which is perpetuated by the true Rosemary. All of these outfits contain symbols that represent a generation or a person’s ideas. In contrast, Saitama’s clothing is so simple and cheap that they constantly get ripped and torn apart. In fact, his outfit has a home made look to it that is similar to Deadpool’s white vigilante outfit shown in Deadpool, David’s outfit from Kickass, or Peter Parker’s first costume seen in Spiderman. Saitama’s clothing and all the previous heroes’ clothings do not represent a typical image of a hero, but instead represents how all of these characters are self-made heroes. However, we see how Saitama’s choice to not improve his clothing to match preconceived ideas of what a hero should look like, indicates that Saitama continues to be a self-made hero.This differentiates with Deadpool’s, David’s, and Peter’s hero title because they all change their costume design with the influence of a mentor or society, changing them into unsuspecting heroes. Deadpool changes his clothing to the typical red suit due to the sage advice of the blind woman. David’s final costume design in based on already preconceived ideas of what hero costumes should look like from comic books. Peter’s costume changes with the death of his Uncle, who teaches him the true purpose of being a hero. Aside from Saitama’s clothing, his actions and attitudes continues to perpetuate the fact that he is a self-made hero. In Episode One,“The Strongest Man”, Saitama defeats a huge giant, who in the process, falls on top of an entire city decimating it. Saitama feels no remorse or responsibility for his actions, stating that it was a small price to pay to test the strength of the giant. In fact, the whole reason why Saitama even fights villains is because he wants to find an opponent that is strong enough that he can actually have a full-fledged fight. This ideology differs heavily from heroes from movies. For example, the plot of Hancock, Captain America: Civil War and Superman v. Batman: Dawn of Justice, centers around the government preaching that heroes should be held at a higher standard and be held accountable for their actions. These heroes conform to societal ideas of what they should do in other to be a beneficial part of society. In addition, heroes such as Batman and Spiderman do vigilante work because they believe in justice and want to make a difference in the world. Both of these heroes have codes that they follow by such as “no killing” for Batman and “with great power comes great responsibility” for Spider Man, which are based or influenced on the words of their mentors. In Batman’s case it is his family and for Spider Man it is his uncle. Such honorable codes differ from Saitama’s own selfish code which is, “I am just a hero for fun,”. Saitama’s code isn’t based on the words of a mentor, but instead reflects his own ideals and desires. Saitama’s entire image and attitude are constructed by himself for himself, without the help of a mentor to guide him, which makes him into a self-made hero.

Second, in Mob Psycho 100, Shigeo’s choice of appearance and actions do not match that of a typical Shonen protagonist, which makes him a self-made hero in that genre. To begin, Shigeo's chosen appearance is bland, from his clothing to his actual character model. He has a typical Asian bowl cut and wears an all-black school uniform with no special markings or accessories. Shigeo’s image creates the idea of sameness, making him appear not special at all compared to other highly eccentric and colorful characters from the show such as Teruki and Shou. This is seen with The Beatles and how they all have bowl cuts and wear similar types of clothing in other to create an idea of sameness, making sure that no one person stands out against the other. Or how the 1984 commercial for the Apple Macintosh showcased how all the grey colored background characters as submissive and non-individualistic compared to the colorful blonde athlete. Shigeo’s simple image is strange for Shonen shows because there is a common trope within the genre that a viewer can tell who is the main character based on how different and unique they are compared to the background characters. Shows such as Yu-gi-oh and Dragonball Z have characters whose hairs are eccentric with multi-colored layers and spikes that emerged from their heads. Another example are the clothings and how despite the likeness of the uniforms the male characters are still able to express their individuality. For example, most shows have colorful school uniforms such as My Hero Academia and Full Metal Panic. However, those colorful uniforms are mostly for the girls, with guys having a plainer outfit similar to that of Mob’s. Nonetheless, to compensate for this the male characters are known to have more differentiating hairstyles and their facial expressions are more animated. For example, Naruto from Naruto has blonde hair and whiskers on his cheeks with a personality filled with hope and perseverance. Luffy from One Piece has an optimistic personality and scars underneath his eyes and across his chest. In fact, the two characters mentioned above all fit into the common image of what a Shonen protagonist should look and act like. Mob does not like to dress eccentrically like the typical shonen protagonist, so he does not conform to the established idea of what a Shonen protagonist should dress like. In addition, he is also against any type of outward expression of emotion, which goes against the trope commonly seen by Shonen or male heroes. In fact, a major characteristic of Shigeo is that he locks up his emotions as seen in Episode 3, “An Invitation to a Meeting- Simply Put, I Just Want to be Popular-” that explains that he does not express any emotions because he is afraid of himself so he bottles them up in order to limit his power. This is quite strange for Shonen protagonist because it is common to see the hero let their emotions dictate their actions. One example, is Naruto from Naruto: Shippuden who despite being afraid of the demon that lingers inside of him, still taps into the demon’s power when angry. Another example, is Light Yagami from Death Note, who allows his anger over L calling him evil take over and kill the fake L, giving away an important fact of how he kills people. Both Naruto and Light do not get chastised by their emotions or the consequences of their outbursts by their mentors, who are the Hokage and the Shinigami respectively. Instead, their emotional outbursts are seen as normal and a way for them to grow as characters. In contrast, Shiego has no one to chastise him when he loses control of his emotions so he does it himself. As seen in Episode 5, “Ochimusha- Psychic Power & Me,” Shigeo cries over the fact that he couldn’t change himself when he accidently lost control of his power and attacked another student. The way that Mob presents himself and chooses to act goes against the established image created by the anime industry, which in turn makes him into a self-made hero.

The second part will discuss how Saitama and Mob fit the archetype of self-made hero due to the fact that they do not need a guide to reach their full potential, which is the opposite of what in seen with the unsuspecting hero archetype.

First, what makes Saitama a self-made hero is the fact that he does not have a mentor, but instead is a mentor himself. This is different from many movie were the hero has a clear mentor such as Neo and Morpheus from The Matrix. Instead, Satima is constructed with a mentor image of an older bald man being a mentor that teaches valuable skills and knowledge. This is seen with Charles Xavier from X-Men, Walter White from Breaking Bad, Doc Brown from Back to the Future, and Rick from Rick and Morty. However, Saitama contrasts with the previous mentioned mentors due to the fact that not only is he not smart but he is a horrible mentor who does not even want to be a mentor in the first place. For example, during Episode 2, “The Lone Cyborg”, Saitama tells Genos that he does not want to be Genos’s mentor because he has nothing to teach him. He only relents when Genos offers Saitama a wad of cash for compensation. This scene matches other scenes of bribery as seen in Superbad with Seth and the driver that ran him over and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade concerning the bribe between Donovan and the Sultan. In both mediums, Seth and the Sultan’s attitude changes the moment money or priceless items are being offered. This shines a negative light on people who accept bribery, which when applied to Saitama illuminates the fact that Saitama did not teach Genos out of the goodness of his heart, but because he was going to be paid. This reasoning contrasts with other hero mentors who take students under their wing out of the goodness of their heart. One example is Karate Kid, where My. Miyagi decides to teach Daniel karate in order for him to fight off the bullies that have been tormenting him. The second example is seen with Star Wars, and how Yoda teaches Luke to ensure that he has mastery of the force. The third example is seen in Batman, and how Batman takes Dick Grayson under his wing after he becomes an orphan. Another difference between Saitama and the mentors mentioned beforehand are the lessons that they teach their disciples. Mr. Miyagi teaches Daniel resilience against situations that seem hopeless. Yoda teaches Luke control and conviction in order for him to use the force. And Batman teaches Robin that revenge is not the answer for everything. Saitama, in contrast, has nothing of merit to teach Genos. For example, in Episode 3, “The Obsessive Scientist,” Saitama reveals to Genos how he became the powerful being that he is. Saitama explains that his path to becoming a hero was working out so hard that he lost all of his hair. Genos responds to Saitama’s secret with disbelief and calls Saitama's explanation illogical. Normally in other movies when the mentor gives their student a lesson that the student believes is idiotic, the disciple soon will realize the merit of their mentor’s lessons. For example, when Mr. Miyagi has Daniel waxing the car and painting the fence as training Daniel gets irritated at him. However, Daniel eventually realizes that those tasks were to teach him the proper form for blocking attacks. Saitama does not experience that because Saitama has no knowledge to pass down to Genos. Instead Saitama teaches Genos lessons such as how it is important to never underestimate a person’s ability based on how they look. Saitama is more similar to the protagonists seen in The Book of Eli, Man on Fire, and Taken. The protagonists of these movies all become heroes by themselves and at the same time are mentors to girls that looks up to them. Similarly to Saitama they do not have anything of skills to teach their students but instead teaches them life lessons that apply to being a better person.

Second, in Mob Psycho 100, Mob’s mentor, Reigen, is an imperfect mentor who has nothing to teach Mob, which in turn makes Mob a self-made hero since his student-mentor relationship with Reigen is not the same as those of unsuspecting heroes. Reigen is a self-proclaimed psychic who actually gets all of his business by using Mob. Essentially he is a con man to his customers, ignoring their real problems and instead using other skills to solve their supernatural issues. This is different from other superhero mentors such as Aquaman, Green Arrow, and the Flash, who all have good traits and respectful jobs that their disciples could emulate and look up to. Instead, Reigen is more similar to Haymitch from Hunger Games or Hank from Detroit: Become Human, who both have questionable professions and bad habits that cause their disciples to worry about their wellbeing. However, despite all of Reigen’s shortcomings, he still worries about Mob. For example, in Episode 12, “Mob and Reigen” Reigen tells Mob that it is okay for him to run away from his problems and let the adults take care of it. This is quite different from other narratives of unsuspecting heroes that are told how to tackle a problem by their mentors. One example of this is in Harry Potter: Deathly Hallows and how Harry Potter has to fight against Voldemort despite being only a teenager, and his mentor Dumbledore expects him to die to stop the war. Another example is in Heroes of Olympus: Blood of Olympus and how Percy Jackson and his friends are told by the Roman and Greek gods that they have to fight against the goddess Gaea and stop her from destroying the world. The last example is seen with My Hero Academia tries to become the best hero possible by listening to his mentor, All Might, whose encourages Midoriya to fight against villains despite being only a student. Reigen is a more realistic representation of a mentor, someone who is not perfect but still cares about the people in his care. Similar mentors are seen with Iron Man from Spiderman: Homecoming who does not want Peter Parker to fight against the Vulture because he believes it is too much for Peter to handle. Another example is Leon from Leon: The Professional, who decides to attack Matilda’s attackers in her stead to ensure that she does not get hurt in the process. However, what makes Reigen even more different from other mentors is the fact that he has no defining abilities or strengths that he could teach Mob. He is not a psychic in real life and neither can he physically fight. Normally someone of his caliber would be seen as a joke, such as Master Roshi from Dragon Ball Z and Makarov Dreyar from Fairy Tail. It is because of Reigen’s imperfect persona that Mob only has Reigen as a mentor for the social aspect of life and not the hero portion. Instead, Mob has to teach himself how to fight and be a hero, which is similar to movies such as Suckerpunch and Kickass that have heroes who teach themselves how to fight.

ONE has been known in the anime and manga community as one of the greatest manga writers of the twentieth-first century. As discussed above, he is able to present characters that are self-made heroes. The heroes of the stories, Mob and Saitama, do not meet any of the characteristics that are expected of them, ranging from their appearance, actions, and attitudes. The mentors, which are Saitama and Reigen, are presented as imperfect mentors or not necessary for the hero to develop into their full potential. However, the fact that these characters do not meet any of the norms that are typical of popular hero narratives makes them much more realistic and perfect in their own merit. This challenges our own societies idea that some people are better than others and that we need people to help become successful. Instead, One Punch Man and Mob Psycho 100 teaches us that anyone can be great if they work hard toward that goal. ONE goes on to add to this idea by showing that even self-made heroes do not need to be this perfect visage, but just realistic representations of people. This is an important idea because many people who are of Generation X or Millenials feel that they have to do things by themselves and do not really worry about what society expects them to be. In fact, such a story can be applied to ONE himself. ONE despite being an amazing storyteller is not the best artist, and many have chastised and refused to read or serialize his work due to the childish and crude art style. However, ONE for a majority of his career refused to hire someone to draw his mangas and continued to draw them himself. And despite that he was still able to publicate many volumes and have anime productions for his mangas, showing that anyone can be great if they work hard enough toward that goal.