Warning: SPOILERS for Versus chapter #1
In his new manga Versus, One-Punch Man‘s author ONE proves that he has moved past his most famous characters, Saitama and Mob, to produce an incredibly original work that flips the stereotypes of fantasy and isekai manga on their heads. Versus begins as a classic fantasy tale of heroes facing demons with the fate of humankind at stake, but it immediately turns into a weird but compelling take on the popular isekai genre. ONE’s unique brand of storytelling shines from the first chapter, and the series promises to be one of the most interesting currently on the market.
ONE became famous thanks to his One-Punch Man webcomic, which was then adapted into a smash-hit digital manga through the cooperation of Yusuke Murata. ONE then confirmed to be one of the most original mangaka in activity with his next work, Mob Psycho 100, which he both wrote and drew. The protagonists of the two manga, Saitama and Mob, share many traits. They are both “overpowered characters” who don’t face the classic struggles of shonen manga protagonists due to their overwhelming strength. Thanks to this, the two manga can focus on other aspects of the story while their protagonists, freed from the shackles of the classic “train-become stronger-beat opponent-repeat” sequence, evolve into some of the most original characters ever portrayed in shonen manga. While One-Punch Man and Mob Psycho 100 follow similar patterns, ONE’s new manga, Versus, takes a very different path.
Versus is written by ONE and drawn by Kyōtarō Azuma. In the first chapter, published on Kodansha’s Shonen Sirius magazine, readers are introduced to a classic fantasy world, where humanity is threatened by the race of demons, who have conquered almost all of Earth. Forty-seven heroes are trained and equipped to defeat the 47 Demon Kings, but things don’t go as expected. Demons are simply too powerful, and they get rid of the heroes just as easily as Saitama usually defeats his opponents. When all hope seems lost, a secret plan is revealed. Human mages have created a planet-wide summoning circle to conjure the inhabitants of a parallel world. These “other humans” are technologically advanced, with guns and battle suits, and they can kill demons easily. However, their race is also on the brink of destruction, and they have actually come to ask for help from the “magical humans” to kill their enemies.
VERSUS Makes The Villains Overpowered, Not The Heroes
Through a quick sequence of plot twists, Versus establishes itself as one of the most interesting new releases in the overcrowded manga market. Contrary to ONE’s previous characters like Saitama, in this series the villains are overpowered, not the heroes. The dual-world setting, a fantasy and a sci-fi one, greatly expands the canvas on which the authors can paint their story. It seems clear enough, from all the talk of “natural predators” in the first chapter, that the magic humans will fight against whoever the enemy of the tech humans is (perhaps aliens), and vice versa. This will shake up the stereotypes of both genres, while also putting a new spin on the overused isekai premise, as the summoners and the summoned will have to switch places. The art provided by Azuma is also excellent, even if it’s clearly inspired by Yusuke Murata’s style and character design for One-Punch Man.
Versus was advertised as a fantasy-themed battle manga, and it both flipped and exceeded expectations at the same time. ONE’s involvement is once again a guarantee of both originality and high-quality storytelling. While the influences of the author’s previous works, One-Punch Man and Mob Psycho 100, are clearly present, Versus feels like an incredibly fresh and intriguing mixture of genres, and it promises to be a must-follow manga for 2023.