And here we are… finally at the end of a journey. It feels pretty surreal, especially having all the characters come so far from how they were in the first season. While the conclusion did feel a tad rushed, I’d be lying if the build up didn’t make me tear up. I don’t think Mob ever made me have tears fall before this episode. I got emotional sure and I did feel the pressure of tears forming, but I was always able to hold it in… I couldn’t hold it in for this finale for multiple reasons. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
I didn’t fully understand it when it was addressed in the previous episode, but it seems like the main reason why ??? ran rampant because it has always been suppressed by Mob. ??? I think is supposed to represent Mob’s powers and when he stopped using them, he was suppressing a part of himself. So when Ritsu was talking about how ??? was a part of Mob and couldn’t be destroyed or be split apart from him, he was 100% correct. And because of the trauma Mob felt when he had passed out and hurt all of the bullies and ritsu, he started suppressing his powers in fear of hurting people again. This really be Persona 4 lol.
A few episodes ago, it was brought to our attention that Mob actually didn’t know why he liked Tsubomi. However, we actually do find out why he liked her and the reason why he couldn’t think of it was because said reason most likely ended up being buried with his suppression of himself. We don’t know too much about Mob’s past. Sure we’ve seen bits and pieces of it, but I don’t think we ever got the full extent of what he must have gone through. From the brief glimpses we got in this episode, he most likely was ostracized and was feared by his peers because of his powers. However, Tsubomi was the only one outside his family that didn’t treat him any differently than she would a regular person. Which is honestly very sweet and understandable why Mob would fall for her. However, in doing so, he essentially started idealizing her rather than seeing her as her true self.
I never noticed it until now, but in the first two seasons, Tsubomi looked SUPER anime compared to everyone else. However, looking at her in this season, her eyes are normal for this world. Which just shows that Mob’s vision wasn’t just affecting how we saw her friends (who looked like a pepper and a potato), but also Tsubomi. Whenever we saw her, she always felt as if she didn’t fit into this world with her generic anime design. However, it never occurred to me that we were only seeing her through Mob’s rose tinted glasses. Though that probably was intentional and it wasn’t until this season where we started seeing the real her. She’s a lot more grounded than I thought and doesn’t seem to care whether things are unnatural or not. Also I gotta give her props for going as far as to stay waiting at the park despite a freaking tornado heading her way just to respect Mob’s request to meet her there. On one hand, you have my respect, but then on the other, gurl you gonna die!
It’s interesting how hyper fixated ??? is towards Tsubomi because she accepted them, but it fails to see how literally so many more people have come to care genuinely for Mob and accept him for who he is despite his powers. Which makes sense as while Mob has been able to move forward, because ??? has been suppressed for so long, it makes sense why it has stood still for so long. And when Mob brings up how Reigen accepts him, ??? denies it as him just using Mob. To which, was true at the beginning, but underneath it all, Reigen genuinely does care for Mob and in Season 2 started to respect him more as a person and was inspired by him. Even now when ??? is running rampant, Reigen is desperately trying to reach out to him and try and help him.
Watching Reigen try to reach Mob while being thrown around like a rag doll made me SO ANXIOUS. Unlike Teru or Ritsu who are able to shield themselves to an extent when being thrown around, Reigen is just a normal person who can’t endure the same amount of damage. I was hoping someone would come rescue him or something. AND THEN THE FREAKING FIRST OPENING STARTS PLAYING. Bruh, I got SO EMOTIONAL hearing that iconic opening play as Reigen goes all out to try and get to Mob. If he were afraid and didn’t care for Mob, he wouldn’t be desperately running after him barefoot. This was probably the first time in the series where Reigen went all out for Mob. He’s gone out of his way for him, but this is the first time we’ve actually seen him put himself into harms way, facing him head on to try and help him rather than running away or using clever tactics.
And then I nearly started crying when FREAKING DIMPLE appeared from possessing Reigen’s body. I literally had to pause the episode because I just got consumed by so much emotion. No tears fell, but I definitely felt them pushing back against my eyes. And while it feels like a little bit of a cop out for Dimple to return after what transpired in the Broccoli arc, it still makes sense since he’s been able to barely escape permanent death countless times being the tenacious little guy that he is. And it’s already been established that if someone believes in something strongly enough, it becomes a reality. Not to mention how I feel there is an extra level of feels in the fact that Mob believed in Dimple so much that he was able to come back… something he had always wanted. UGH MY HEART. He’s always appearing to help Mob when he needs someone most TAT.
And then finally… Mob got me. I actually started crying when Reigen broke down and confessed that he didn’t actually have any powers and was lying to him all this time. This was definitely a long time coming and I kind of thought it was already resolved back in season 2. Though I suppose he never really confirmed anything even though I thought it was silently conveyed. Guess I was wrong. I honestly didn’t expect Reigen to verbally confess to it so the fact that he did made such a big impact. Reigen always acts as if he’s put together, however here, he allows himself to be genuine and vulnerable towards Mob for the first time. When you strip away all of Reigen’s bravado, he and Mob are actually very similar. Both of them suppress their true selves out of fear, disliking those parts of themselves. They also started out lonely and without friends. The series started out with just Mob and Reigen. It only makes sense for Reigen’s words to be the thing that reaches him in the end now that the two are as equals.
I couldn’t help the proud smile stretch across my face when Mob finally… FINALLY accepted his powers whole-heartedly. All the while thinking of all the people who love and accept him for who he is, powers and all. From this point on, he won’t suppress himself anymore and be free to show his emotions once more. And then I got all emotional again when he reached 100% Shigeo Kageyama for the first time and not just a single emotion. He is all of himself now with just a single sunflower left in his grasp. To which was foreshadowed in the second season ending where it constantly showed him with that flower. And when he gets rejected by Tsubomi, to which, I feel like it was to be expected she wasn’t going to accept his confession since the two of them haven’t interacted through out middle school, he actually openly starts crying without his percentage ticking. He’s finally allowing himself to express his emotions and not hold himself back anymore. T^T I’m just glad that Reigen and Dimple were there to pick him back up.
We get a little bit of a time skip afterwards to see where everyone is now. And while I feel like Mob’s rampage through the city was brushed under the rug without any severe repercussions, I’m just glad that Mob seems overall more happy. And look at my boy being the vice captain in his Self Improvement Club all the while being able to lead the pack of underclassmen without any issue. I guess this answers the question as to why Jun was the one to try and get through to him since the two are now the head of the club with Jun being captain. I didn’t realize that they were in the same year lol. Ritsu is now vice president in the student council and Teru is sporting yet another new hairstyle. Though not gonna lie… he still looked the best with his Naruto haircut lol. Tome is working with Serizawa and Reigen in the Consultation Office with Serizawa finally seeming a lot more calm with his work and how he presents himself. All of the psychics from the research facility seem to be doing well and Sho seems to have gotten on better terms with his dad now that’s he sporting the same hairstyle.
Despite having rejected his confession, I am happy to see that Mob and Tsubome are actually continuing with their friendship and seem to have phone calls with each other from time to time. I appreciate that they essentially leave it open to whether or not they’ll get together in the future and I’m content that they’re just getting to be closer as friends in the meantime. While I am still an avid Mob x Emi fan, I have warmed up to Tsubomi and would not mind if she eventually did end up getting together with Mob. Especially now that he seems to have stopped idolizing her and is getting to know her as a person.
And then I got emotional AGAIN when everyone started hiding when Reigen showed up when I realized: ARE THEY CELEBRATING HIS BIRTHDAY??? Since in the second season, no one besides Mob and his mom remembered his birthday and due to him having that fall out with Mob, he had no one to really celebrate it with. So the fact that SO MANY people are now celebrating his birthday with him this year felt all the more heartwarming. He and Mob started out alone with no one but each other that really stood by the other. But now they’re surrounded by so many people who care and love them for who they are. And with the series ending with Mob genuinely laughing for the first time since he was a kid just felt like the cherry on top of an already happily made sundae. I couldn’t help but just smile with him. He’s come such a long way and I couldn’t be prouder. TwT
Final Impressions:
This season was a great send off to a fantastic series. While there were some odd episodes here and there glances at the alien arc, overall, it still felt like a solid wrap up and conclusion. This season was all about comparing how the characters were from previous seasons to how they are now. So many callbacks were made and how things were both similar and different at the same time. It was honestly a great way to see just how far everyone has come, especially Mob. He went from being this emotionless and lonely kid to someone who has fully embraced his emotions again and surrounded by so many people who care for him.
When I first started watching this series, I honestly didn’t expect the themes it presents to hit me so hard. ONE truly understands people and what drives them but also what they really need, community. I feel like people can only go so far on their own and they eventually need support from others to bring them further. I feel like everyone expected this to just be One Punch Man but with psychics, but it turned out to be SO MUCH MORE than that. Mob definitely was ONE’s passion work because you can feel just how much thought and emotion he put into it. Combined with BONES’ animation and great cinematography, you could tell a lot of love went into this series.
The stand out this season, besides Mob had to be Dimple. Ever since near the end of season 1, Dimple has just been an outstanding support whether it be in combat or just emotional support. This season delved so deeply into Dimple and Mob’s relationship and just how close the two have come. Dimple started off as an antagonist in the first season, but ended up becoming one of Mob’s closest friends. We also got to know a lot more about Dimple and what actually drove him and it was both heartwarming and hearbreaking to find that he just wanted to have friends in the end. While him coming back in the end did feel a little cheap, I honestly didn’t even care because Mob deserves to have ALL of his friends with him.
But of course, being the titular character, Mob is absolutely the biggest standout amongst all the characters by far. Just comparing him to how he was in season 1 just shows such a steep contrast. He speaks his mind more, he is able to confide in others, he’s more expressive and in this episode, he’s learned to accept himself and his powers. He’s essentially a different person and we were able to watch his progression. He’s such a great character and has to be one of my top favorite main characters if not my absolute favorite. And while I wish we got to see him more with his newfound acceptance, it was still a great journey to watch.
While not as strong as the second season, this season still had a lot of emotional impact with what transpired while also showing so much character progression. There were a few episodes that I wasn’t too keen on such as the yokai episode and the cursed alien arc. But overall, this season was solid and I loved seeing all the callbacks to previous seasons. This season is a 9/10 but the series is a solid 10/10. I’m definitely going to miss this series and for sure it’s going into one of my top anime of all time. I’ll definitely be looking back fondly at this series as it inspired me a lot and offers so many great morals and themes that can be used in daily life. Thanks for the ride Mob, it was one of the best ones I’ve been on and I will miss you dearly.
