One Punch Man is a pop-culture phenomenon. Any exercise-hardy would tell you that they have tried to imitate the 100 Pushups, 100 sit-ups, and 100 Miles Running a day formula. The understanding that calculating the moon’s gravitational pull and analyzing the force needed to jump straight out from it isn’t a manageable feat even then. Yet who dares stop the fire of those who have given themselves to the ember of fiction? One Punch Man manga chapter 168 dropped Garou into a self-retrospection that led him to some honorable choices. But did One Punch Man Chapter 168 do itself and Garou justice?
What Happened In One Punch Man Manga Chapter 168?
One Punch Man Manga Chapter 168 concluded the fight between Garou and Saitama. Both had returned to Earth in their post-battle period in Io. Garou notices Tareo’s dead body and despairs into irreparable misery.
Garou falls into an existential crisis and ponders how he could never manifest absolute evil but instead fell into the ploy of God. In remorse, he teaches Saitama how to travel back in time and actually even expects him to attain that feat. Now Saitama has no power from God, he is just a guy who’s a hero for fun. Yet Garou and the entirety of Earth could trust him to do things that defy the laws of nature. Our caped hero then reverses the entire timeline, preventing all of Garou’s causalities, including Genos’ death.
Garou goes on to lose his abilities from God for teaching Saitama the forbidden Jutsu of time traveling.
The Legacy of Garou in One Punch Man
With God’s powers, Garou was a formidable power, yet such an overwhelming nemesis deserves a justified end. One befitting of his morale, one that honors his legacy and philosophy. Garou is no simple villain, he has a cause.
Garou’s vendetta against Heroes
- Garou has a vindictive attitude towards heroes. This is explained through Garou’s childhood, in which he was conditioned to believe that those who are popular (i.e heroes) will always win.
- Garou’s rebellion is not simply a means of ego satisfaction, but also a rebellion against the hegemony of those at the top of the social hierarchy. This philosophy is shared by Stain from My Hero Academia who also scorned the privilege of heroes.
The Strength Of Characters With A Cause
- Villains with philosophy have always garnered a huge following. Naruto from Pain was almost unbeatable. Naruto despite going full hauling with Tailed Beast had still failed. Villains like Pain deserved not a mob kill, but one that changes the autonomy of their being.
- Now I do not mean to say that Garou compares to Pain. Pain is a deservingly complex character and Garou would pale in relative comparison. Yet in a scaling based on all the villains in One Punch Man, Garou and Boros seem to fall in a special category.
A Comparision With Conquerer Boros
- Villains with a cause differ in the sense that their entire being is based upon intelligence and reason. They aren’t mobs, like Mosquito Queen or Pollution Man in One Punch Man. The initial storyline of One Punch Man began with Saitama One-punching through countless monsters whose intellect ended with the typical “I will eat you all” mindset.
- Boros was the first string of change, a mighty conqueror of the universe. Such can be proved through Boros’ acknowledgment of Saitama’s strength. For the universal conqueror to admit he lost to Saitama, there must be some sense of self-worth.
- It’s at this point that one can instantly connect to the defeated villain, even feel a glimpse of sympathy for them perhaps. What moves villains is not simply their brute force, but the depth of their existence.
Did One Punch Man Manga Chapter 168 Do Garou Justice?
Yes, it did. Yusuke Murata’s illustrations are no small feet. The entirety of the chapter felt alluring not only visually but also dynamically pulling. Illustrations aside, the chapter was a great adaptation of ONE Sensei’s web novel.
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The question at this point may be more towards the angle of “Did ONE himself do justice to Garou?” because the manga is an adaptation of ONE’s work. The story felt fitting. Garou’s entire cause was to manifest the doom of all heroes and had the daunting habit to make sure he never killed anyone. Such was the mercy and enigma of the hero-hating monster.
Upon going to the lengths of killing Genos only to incite the anger of Saitama and ultimately seeing how he caused Tareo’s death, Garou was tarnished. Tareo was the one boy for whom Garou wanted to change the world. Yet he failed this same boy, and let GOD take over his mind. Garou failed the moment he realized his cause was lost. Characters like Garou are killable, even if not physically, but by the means of showing them the defeat of their cause.
Garou had the most befitting end one that allows redemption.
Conclusion
One Punch Man Manga Chapter 168 was a banger. The entire fandom went haywire over one panel, that Saitama need not even One Punch to beat Garou. Ultimately, Garou himself was the one who caused his own defeat.
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One Punch Man is a Japanese webcomic by ONE which is adapted into a Manga and an anime adaptation. The web novel started in July 2009 and despite its unconventional illustrations, it crossed over 100 million views. Shueisha’s Young Jump decided to adapt the series into a manga and took Mangaka Yusuke Murata for the same along with the original writer ONE. Now, I am done for the day.
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