"One-Punch Man Vol. 1," by ONE

One-Punch Man, Vol. 1, written by ONE and illustrated by Yusuke Murata, stars Saitama, the titular, "One-Punch Man."  After years of training, Saitama has become so powerful he can defeat virtually every enemy with a single strike.  There's just one problem: according to Saitama himself, "overwhelming strength ... is boring."

This particular volume of One-Punch Man introduces Saitama and sets up the premise.  Genos, a cyborg who wants to be Saitama's disciple, and various enemies for Saitama and Genos to battle with, also make an appearance.

Pros:

• The premise is excellent, and allows ONE to both critique and invert many of the tropes of shonen battle manga.
• ONE's fascinating character work and Murata's incredible drafting talent show in each panel of the manga.
• For having such an off-the-wall premise, the story addresses surprisingly adult themes.  In this volume alone, ONE ruminates on ostracization and the struggles of fitting into society, the costs of pursuing your dreams, and one version of what it can be like when you've "arrived."
• The "omake," / bonus chapter adds further insight into Saitama's thoughts and backstory (and covers content that is never addressed in the anime adaptation of the series).

Cons:

• I know it isn't fair to compare the manga to the anime, as they are different mediums.  With that being said, I found certain actions and interactions much easier to understand / parse out in the anime than in the manga.  One example from this volume takes place during the "final phase" of the encounter with Mosquito Girl.  Specifically, given both the lack of motion and color, I found it hard to parse out which panel was Mosquito Girl sending her bug minions to attack and which was Genos' "Incineration," attack that destroyed them.  Sure, I figured it out based on context clues and my memory of the anime, but my hope is that both the anime and manga can stand on their own merits.  Plus, the manga is much further along in the story than the anime is, so I won't be able to refer back to the anime soon.
• (nit-pick) The drawing on the back cover of the manga just looks wonky to me.

Conclusion:
Fans of the One-Punch Man anime are virtually guaranteed to like this manga.  It has all of the great characters and characterization that they've come to love, with additional insight into Saitama and the world that he inhabits.  At $9 a pop, you can't go wrong.

Final Score:
9/10