‘One-Punch Man’ Anime Production Concerns Reignited Following Confirmation That Season 3 Trailer Was Produced By Lone Animator
It’s been nearly three years since its initial announcement, but at long last, the third season of the One-Punch Man anime adaptation has finally received its first trailer – though sadly, the preview has brought not hype, but instead concern regarding returning animation studio J.C. Staff’s handling of the series.
Released on March 6th in celebration of the anime’s 10-year anniversary, the trailer gives fans their first look at the adaptation’s upcoming take on writer ONE and artist Yusuke Murata’s fan-favorite Monster Association Arc, which will see the Hero Association’s S-Class heroes, as well as a handful of B-Class heroes including the “Caped Baldy” Saitama (CV: Makoto Furukawa – Doug in Lazarus), and their rival organization exploding into a full-on super-powered war for the fate of Japan.
While fans were initially excited for this update, after the moment faded, many began to notice that despite confirming a premiere date of October 3rd.
Further, they also found themselves perplexed by the trailer’s actual visuals, with its ‘quick montage’ presentation suggesting that the featured footage was not taken from the actual season, but was instead pre-animated (a colloquial term for any sequences animated independently from the full production).
And in a sad confirmation that their previous fears regarding J.C. Staff’s potential to drop the ball with One-Punch Man Season 3, especially in light of both he currently abysmal working conditions seen across the Japanese industry and the studio’s specific insistence on pumping out almost a dozen series every season, fans would eventually learn that not only was the trailer in fact a case of ‘pre-animation’, but that its entire creation was the work of one single animator.
Following the trailer’s release, veteran animator Kazunori Ozawaone, whose credits include Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders (2014), the Kamen Rider W spin-off FUUTO PI, and the latest Urusei Yatsura TV adaptation, revealed that the studio had enlisted him “to make a PV”
“This time I supervised the production and did the original drawings,” said Ozawaone. “I think I worked harder than usual because it featured the characters”.
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Shocked by this news, One-Punch Man fan @motcho174298 inquired “Sorry for the inconvenience, Ozawa-san. Did you animate the PV clip alone??”
In turn, the animator confirmed, “This time it’s just one original artist.”
Seeking to get additional context, fellow fan @burstriot asked Ozawaone, “Were you the only animation director or did you have anyone else with you?”
Again confirming their solo effort, Ozawaone reiterated, “There’s only one person involved: the original artist and animation director.”
Suffice to say, with this confirmation that the One-Punch Man Season 3 trailer was the work of just one animator, fan optimism regarding Saitama and crew’s return is in the gutter – after all, if the season is seven months out and they have nothing to show for it, then one wonders just what the situation on the ground will be as J.C. staff scrambles to make their air date.
As noted above, One-Punch Man will return to the airwaves on October 3rd.
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