Summary
Many fans ofOne-Punch Manwill recognize the monster-hunting hero Genos. His early appearance in the series has produced many gags, especially at the expense of Saitama as his self-proclaimed apprentice. His past is full of tragedy and mystery, with an arc that has yet to play out in full detail. One thing that is clear is that Genos is an advanced cyborg, which has led to his infamous hero name Demon Cyborg. But, just how much of Genos is cybernetic? Is there anything human left in Genos or is he a walking, talking, killing machine?
One thing is clear duringGenos’ debut against Mosquito Girl, he’s intelligent, strong, and serious, if not a little naive and reckless. Mosquito Girl was a vicious foe that led Genos to fight to the extreme, even causing him to believe the only way to victory was self-destruction. Simultaneously, Satiama is chasing a mosquito through Z-City, which eventually leads him to Mosquito Girl. As it come to be expected inOne-Punch Man, Saitama defeats Mosquito girl with a single, half-hearted slap - not even giving her the honor of a punch - giving Genos another chance at life. This fated encounter between these two heroes causes Genos to beg to become Saitama’s apprentice, even going so far as to pay to live with Saitama.
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How Genos Became A Cyborg
After Genos misinterprets Saitama’s sarcasm, he delivers a lengthy speech about his past. What his story boils down to is that Genos was a normal teenager before his life was turned upside down after a rampaging cyborg destroyed his home and killed his family. He eventually met the genius Professor Kuseno who was following the trail of the “Mad Cyborg.” Genos asked for Professor Kuseno’s help by modifying his body, turning him into a cyborg with the hopes of destroying the rampaging cyborg. Since then, Genos has fought countless monsters and evil organizations. Unfortunately, nothing has come from this search andYusuke Murata, the creator ofOne-Punch Man, has yet to bring the tragedy full circle. While Saitama may be annoyed that his story wasn’t shortened to twenty words or fewer, that’s everything fans need to know.
Since then, Genos has seen upgrade after upgrade, improving on his original body and eventually trying toexceed Saitama’s power.He can fire cannons out of his hands, detach and reattach limbs, fly, and take on mid-battle upgrades. While his cybernetic body allows Genos his senses, nearly none of it is helped by anything organic. Professor Kuseno upgraded Genos with the ability to taste and eat, his ability to cry with the help of oil, and even his skin is synthetic.
However, a cyborg is both organic and artificial, implying that something in Genos must still be from his original body. It’s heavily implied that the only part of Genos’ body that remains organic is his brain. This might be the only reason Genos retains his original memories of his past and why he hasn’t become a cold-blooded, robotic, killing machine.
Many fans are eager to see what Genos’ arc has to give. There’s been a few hints here and there that Metal Knight and Drive Knight have some knowledge of the Mad Cyborg, but nothing they’re willing to share. Until then, there’s nothing more for Genos but to upgrade his body, protect citizens from danger, andlearn as much as he can from Saitama.
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