Because Licenseless Rider is ultimate-bro-tier.

He's a great character and a perfect foil to both Genos and Saitama, so it's a pity he just kinda disappeared from the manga. I'm really kinda hoping he gets more on-camera time in the anime, something to build off that note and the noodle stand thing.

 

So, I suppose I'm the only one who doesn't give a shit about Licenseless Rider and is, in fact, happy that he doesn't get even more screentime.

 

Well, that's just because you're a peasant who doesn't understand the power of the Justice Crash, Rep.

 

I mean sure, he's a cool dude and stuff, but while he's funny in a pathetic sort of way I don't get why people think he needs more screentime. Characters like this need little screentime, imo.

 

Just watched episode 8. You'll see why people like him in the next one, I should think.

 

Unless it deviates a lot from the manga, I already know what will happen.

 

It doesn't deviate that much. I agree that Licenseless Rider should be used sparingly, there are much more interesting characters that I want to see.

 

Wow, I'm kinda surprised it needed to be spelled out, but alright, I will proceed to word-vomit.

It's mostly what Jon said: In a world with walking engines of mass destruction, Licenseless Rider is a normal, a nobody, a complete and total chump who has (probably) never won a fight that mattered in his life, and he knows it. And despite all that he still goes out there every day doing whatever little he can to make that shithole of a world a better place. He's the only real hero, in the modern sense of the term, in the entire series. Every single one of the other "heroes" play the game for entirely selfish reasons.

Compare that to Saitama, who has overwhelming power, but couldn't possibly give less of a shit and only does whatever he happens to feel like at the time.

It's a fascinating contrast, and the author could easily use it to go into real depth on some really interesting philosophical themes, such as what it means to be a hero (something the series has lightly touched on already), the obligations inherent to power, strength of will versus strength of arms, another fresh perspective on the Lawful vs Chaotic Good debate, emotional connections and empathy with people who seem completely alien, etcetera, etcetera.

Alternatively, you could contrast him to Genos, who is similarly driven, but for typical-shounen-protagonist reasons and goals, and has achieved substantially better results, which lets you dive into such topics as the price of power/success, the meaning of failure, and acceptable sacrifices.

There's a lot of really, really interesting things that can be done with a character like Licenseless Rider in a series like this, and a lot of it fits right in with the commentary it's already making on superheroes, shounen, and Japanese society in general. That's why I've been hoping for him to have more of a presence. I doubt he'll ever be more than a background character, but I can't help but wish he'll end up with enough screentime to get into some of the really intriguing possibilities of his character.

 

I think one of the main themes about Saitama is that at heart he really does care about saving people. He just has no drive. Most of the "hero as a hobby" is basically aa mental defense, such as after the meteor where he lost is desire for popularity.

But yeah, there are very few heroes doing this for purely altruistic reasons. You have some that are just good people (Bang, LR), some that got Saitamajacked into being altruistic (Genos), but most are just regular people who can do good but do enjoy the perks and can be assholes

 

I'm gonna watch this... is anyone reading the onepunch man(ONE) ? I'm excited how the fight between the 2nd s-class hero vs. saitama will turn out...

 

I just watched the last episode (8). It contain the first ever deviation from the manga, in that they cut a lot of what in the manga seemed like filler. It wasn't really filler, but was character exposition that really felt needless and served to just drag the fight longer. On the other hand, it also gave us perspective on the characters and made us root for them more as they fought.
Not sure which one I prefer.

The Sea King battle is the second best in the series so far (soon to be overcome if things go as they seem to in the manga), so I'm happy to see it go down, even if the cutting of the extra bits has really dropped the overall level. It now lacks the urgency and seriousness that it had in the manga.

 

I'm... What? Am I just reading/ watching this show wrong?

What battles?

I'm liking the show a lot, but I liken it to the manga/anime version of Stanley Parable...

 

Is it just me or this show's OP makes it look way more serious than it is?

But the anime was pretty good so far, though I get kind of creeped out every time Sonic shows that face of his.

 

For the longest time while reading the manga I was convinced Sonic was a girl.

 

I thought that right up until he got nutted.

 

Getting nutted by the One Punch Man and still standing after that? He may be creepy but I can't deny that the guy has a will of steel.

 

Episode 9 is out. It stays pretty close to the manga which I'm perfectly okay with because it has my second most anticipated scene

Spoiler

Licenseless Rider standing up to Seaking, and it also sets up the Boros arc with the after credits scene.

 

We had our second deviation from the manga, and one that made me insanely happy. In the manga, right after Saitama one-shots the Sea King, some brats starts dishing the Hero Association, claiming that since a monster that beat a bunch of S and A class heroes was one-shot by a C class, the A and S must not be really that strong and unable to protect them, which caught with the masses, forcing Saitama to loudly proclaim that he only got lucky and that the monster was very weak from the heroes and now he's just stealing their credit, making the entire crowd hate him and call him a cheat, fraud etc.

I understood why they did it, but I disagreed with it. It removed any feeling of satisfaction the conclusion of the fight brought by shoehorning 'oh noes there goes my rep' conflict into it.

I am very happy the anime ignored that.

Edit: I feel very stupid right now. That'll teach me to pause after the scene ends. I suppose I was just so happy that I didn't think this would happen.

 

God I love that opening theme. Wish it was on Spotify.