While anime always did feature superhuman warriors capable of performing feats that the average person could only dream of, the kind of superhero societies shown in franchises like Marvel and DC have been largely absent. The Z-Fighters in Dragon Ball Z might save the Earth numerous times, but they're all martial artists before they're heroes. Fans of Demon Slayer have seen Tanjiro and other members of the Demon Slayer Corps take out powerful demons, but we wouldn't call any of them heroes since their morals are just as scrambled as anyone else's.
One-Punch Man and My Hero Academia have depicted hero societies that revolve around those with superpowers who've made conscious efforts to protect the weak. While both universes have some similarities, we can't help but think of their many differences, and if given a choice inhabit one superpowered society over the other, the selling points of each makes it difficult to make an immediate decision.
10 My Hero Academia: Greater Chance Of Being Born With Some Kind Of Power
In many superhero origin stories, those born with strange powers are looked at as outcasts. My Hero Academia flips this trope completely on its head. By the time Midoriya was born, Quirks were pretty common, and Quirkless kids like Midoriya were often teased by their classmates, even if their classmates had Quirks that weren't particularly impressive.
While there's still a good chance that people born in My Hero Academia's universe wouldn't have a Quirk, there's a better chance than in One-Punch Man's universe that they'd be born with some kind of ability that can help them navigate a world that's filled with villains at every turn.
9 One-Punch Man: The Strongest Hero Hasn't Lost His Powers
Fans often forget that All Might was nowhere near his peak strength when he hurled a Nomu into the stratosphere. Even so, he was still the strongest hero in My Hero Academia up until he lost his powers during his battle with All For One. Since All-Might is officially retired from being a hero, the rest of the pros were left struggling to fill a spot that only someone as strong and charismatic as All-Might could fill.
While Saitama isn't formally recognized as the strongest hero in his universe, he's definitely demonstrated that he is, and from what we can tell, he won't be losing his powers anytime soon, so even if the other heroes fail, Saitama will always be there to bail them out of any harrowing situation they may find themselves in.
8 My Hero Academia: The Existence Of Schools To Improve Powers
While there are martial arts dojos in One-Punch Man, there aren't any formal schools dedicated to teaching future heroes how to best utilize their abilities. While Genos is learning from Saitama, he'd be able to grow faster if there was some sort of training academy similar to My Hero Academia's UA that he could enroll in.
Saitama could even learn how to exercise some self-restraint as a result of formal hero training. In My Hero Academia, even heroes with seemingly useless powers can be taught to make effective use of their abilities.
7 One-Punch Man: A Smaller World
The world in My Hero Academia mirrors the real world in many ways; the main story takes place in Japan, but All Might has been to America. This means that My Hero Academia's world is just as large as ours. In One-Punch Man, as far as we know, most of humanity lives in a cluster of large cities, each one housing multiple heroes and citizens alike.
It's because these cities are so close to one another that vast groups of heroes can be assembled rather quickly to deal with God-level threats, as opposed to My Hero Academia where even All Might can't get to crime scenes in time.
6 My Hero Academia: Greater Regulation Of Superpowers
Villains won't hesitate to use their abilities to harm others without even a moment's notice, so in a world of superpowers, it makes more sense to have rules in place regarding when and where these superpowers can be used. The government of My Hero Academia's society has gone out of its way to limit anyone using their Quirks outside of specific institutions (like schools) without an official license.
The laws around these rules are strict, even to the point where Midoriya, Iida, and Todoroki faced repercussions despite defeating Stain. In One-Punch Man's universe, heroes are similarly entered in a database, but lone warriors like Saitama, who'd already been taking out monsters on his own before joining the Hero Association, faced no kind of punishment for his actions.
5 One-Punch Man: Less Political / Moral Tension
It's pretty difficult to feel bad for the monsters that populate the world of One-Punch Man. They seek mindless, indiscriminate destruction, with villains like Boros even going so far as to kill his subordinates as a result of his reckless fighting without a second thought. This makes it easy for people in this universe to constantly praise heroes and root for the defeat of any villain.
In My Hero Academia, villains are given more depth. Stain disagreed with society's definition of a hero and took it upon himself to kill those he thought weren't worthy of that title. He wasn't just out for bloodlust: in his battle against the UA students, he had no intention of killing Midoriya or Todoroki. Long after his defeat, his provocative philosophy fueled other villains like Chisaki and Spinner of the League of Villains. Because villains in this My Hero Academia aren't so black-and-white, it becomes difficult to outwardly despise them.
We'd rather live in a world that makes it easier to root for the good guys since less political tension just lets them do their job more efficiently.
4 My Hero Academia: A Symbol Of Peace Existed To Give People Hope
Despite being the strongest hero for several years, All Might can't be everywhere at once. Still, having him as a symbol of peace and justice goes so much further: in trying times, heroes and Quirkless civilians alike can look towards All Might for that motivational boost they need.
Although Saitama could easily be this symbol of hope for his world, he doesn't care as much about celebrity status. There have even been instances where he's been depicted as a villain in the eyes of the public.
3 One-Punch Man: Stronger Heroes To Eliminate Stronger Villains
While every hero is a case-by-case basis, we haven't seen heroes or villains in My Hero Academia capable of destroying entire cities like they have in One-Punch Man. Still, despite how powerful the threat, there are many unbelievably strong heroes like Saitama, Genos, and Tornado, waiting in the wings to take these villains down as soon as they appear.
Could the same be said for the heroes in My Hero Academia? It's hard to believe All Might could take out the Elder Centipede after struggling so much with a Nomu, and if Boros arrived to this universe, Earth would be destroyed in a matter of minutes.
2 My Hero Academia: Villains Are Humans And Not Full-Blown Monsters
While My Hero Academia's villains shouldn't be taken lightly, they're all human, despite many of them containing mutant Quirks that alter their appearance. Most villains in One-Punch Man are actual monsters!
The thought of fighting these scary-looking creatures is paralyzing enough, but with these monsters joining forces to form the Monster Association, things just got ten times worse for One-Punch Man's world.
1 One-Punch Man: Multiple Ways To Get Powers
In My Hero Academia, only those born with Quirks can become heroes. In One-Punch Man, there are definitely some abilities that characters are born with, like Tornado's telekinetic powers, but the Super Fight martial arts tournament proved that many heroes train hard to get their strength: even Saitama!
And if none of these options work, you could always eat a monster cell to reap a quick power boosts at the cost of your appearance and sanity!