Another month, another illustration released as part of J.C. Staff's hero Visual Project for One-Punch Man Season 3. The 8th installment in the ongoing series is of Child Emperor and illustrated by Ryosuke Shirakawa, the character designer for the third season.
Isamu, known by his hero alias Child Emperor, is the youngest hero of the Hero Association. Despite his young age, Child Emperor is a genius with a very analytical mind. As such, he's one of the most mature S-Class heroes.
Rather than relying on physical strength, Child Emperor maintains his high-ranked S-Class due to his brainpower. He defeats his enemies through the use of battle tactics and gadgets, mixing intellect with strength. That said, he does boast some physical abilities such as enhanced strength, speed, reflexes, and durability.
In the key art below, you can see Child Emperor using his signature backpack with large spider-like limbs that he uses for movement and combat. Also within this backpack are multiple tools and weapons, including what looks like a saw.
Child Emperor is the eighth character spotlighted in J.C. Staff's Hero Visual Project. Previously released artwork highlighted Saitama, Genos, Hellish Blizzard, Silver Fang, King, Terrible Tornado, and Atomic Samurai. It's unclear how many visuals will be released, but fans are understandably eager to see a proper trailer for the highly anticipated third season of the anime series.
Season 3 was first announced back in August 2022 and is currently in production at J.C. Staff, the same studio that produced the second season. A teaser trailer for Season 3 was shared seven months ago, but nothing else besides these monthly illustrations.
The One-Punch Man anime series is an adaptation of the popular manga written by ONE and illustrated by Yusuke Murata, which itself is based on the original webcomic by ONE. the series first debuted in Japan in 2015, and was followed by a second season in 2019. The synopsis reads:
Saitama is a hero who only became a hero for fun.
After three years of "special training," hes become so strong that he's practically invincible. In fact, he's too strong—even his mightiest opponents are taken out with a single punch. Alongside Genos, his faithful disciple, Saitama performs his official hero duties as a member of the Hero Association.
One day, monsters claiming to be from the Monster Association suddenly appeared, taking a child of Hero Association executive as a hostage. The S-class heroes gather and plan a raid on the Monster Association hideout to rescue the hostage. Meanwhile, Garou, a "human monster" who was taken by the Monster Association during a battle with the heroes, awakens in the Monster Association hideout.
There were hopes that One-Punch Man Season 3 would air this Fall but seeing as how we're now in October and nothing has been announced, we are most likely looking at a 2025 premiere. Many believe we'll get a few more illustrations released through the Hero Visual Project before the official trailer is released, which means a few more months of waiting.