One-Punch Man Season 3: Fans Reaction to Director & Studio News

Anime fans have been buzzing since the One-Punch Man Season 3 announcement – but not all the buzz is positive. The new season (premiering Oct. 5, 2025) will once again be animated by J.C. Staff, with Shinpei Nagai (known mainly for smaller comedies like Dogeza) and some adult animations. On paper, it sounds promising: key staff return (composer Makoto Miyazaki, character designer Chikashi Kubota or Kubo) and JAM Project + BABYMETAL will handle the OP.

Still, many fans immediately pointed out that J.C. Staff also did Season 2 (2019), which was widely seen as a drop in quality after Madhouse’s masterpiece Season 1 (2015), the new directorial change also adding to the frustration. So before the premiers of the new One-Punch Man Season 3, let us look into some of the reasons why many fans have lower expectations on the new release.

Studio Choice Complaints:

Almost as soon as the news broke, fans took to Reddit and Twitter to express their frustration about J.C. Staff coming back. One top Reddit comment said that fans “damned near killed themselves” when J.C. Staff was announced as the studio. Many remember how S2’s animation suffered (stiff motion, odd CGI effects, weird framing). For example, Twitter users mocking the Season 3 trailer, with one fan tweeting “The animation looks so mid, even worse than Season 2,” and demanding they “bring back studio Madhouse”. Another Redditor flat-out called S2 “just a generic anime with no flavor and a big waste of epic moments”. It’s a common issue, since Madhouse left after S1, people feel the quality has took a nosedive. Even fans who tried to stay positive have aired doubts. At Anime Expo 2025, there was still no real trailer or new footage – just brief commercials and static key visuals, which only made fans more uneasy. In short, many fans feel the Season 3 rollout has been oddly underwhelming, and they’re pessimistic about J.C. Staff’s ability to deliver the high-quality action they witnessed in Season 1 by Studio Madhouse.

Director Choice Concerns:

The reveal that Shinpei Nagai is directing further fueled the fans rage. He’s not really a high-profile name – beyond niche shows like Dogeza: I Tried Asking While Kowtowing, he hasn’t led many big action anime. On social media some fans bluntly pointed out his “lack of credentials” and even noted his past work on adult animations. Director Nagai himself even addressed the uproar. In an English message he posted online, he asked fans to “calm down and hear me out”. He explained that he’s been a behind-the-scenes anime freelancer for years and had asked to keep his involvement secret so as not to “give a bad impression”. Nagai apologized for the secrecy, promised that “the team is giving it our all,” and said he’s trying a new hybrid 3D/2D workflow to boost efficiency. Notably, veteran director Kento Fukuda publicly defended him, calling Nagai “an underrated director”. Even so, fans remain split on whether to trust him; as one hopeful Reddit viewer wrote, “give him a chance” but pleaded “just don’t be Season 2”.

What’s Next:

The community reaction is a mixed pile of concern, frustration, and a bit of quirky humor. Sentiments on Reddit forums like r/OnePunchMan and r/anime ranges from: “Yeah, it’s not looking good, I’m fully expecting it to be a disappointment” to “Hey, I trust J.C. Staff will surprise us”. Popular fan voices on Twitter and YouTube have been even more bold, calling out the lackluster promo and pressuring the studio, one angry fans tweeting “J.C. Staff refuses to show any official trailer… just 3 months ahead of release” or mocking the teaser’s low framerate. On the positive side, some fans remind each other that criticism is fine but also note that delays and tight schedules may have forced the studio’s hand.

Looking Ahead, Ultimately all fans want One-Punch Man Season 3 to succeed. The manga’s popularity is still strong, and the Monster Association arc is eagerly awaited. Many comments showing hope, such as one wrote “The trailer looks promising,” while many are also in doubt. One commenter wrote, “it won’t be genre-defining, but I’m not asking for that. Just don’t be Season 2”. Director Nagai’s pledges to push animation quality and the return of the original voice cast give some fans reasons to stay optimistic. But the disappointed tone of fan communities right now is most certainly cautious. All we can do right now is hope for the best and who knows, maybe we are in for some big surprises in the future. Some stemmy Fubuki fan service from former adult animations director Shinpei Nagai doesn’t sound bad either 😉.

💭 Keeping the controversies in mind, what’s your opinion on how the upcoming OPM Season 3 might do? Share your thoughts on the comments below.

Image credit J.C. Staff