When one thinks of boxing movies a single film comes to mind: Rocky. Due to its popularity, Rocky went on to have four sequels. Surprisingly, in an era when many popular movies were made into cartoons (a.k.a. the 80’s), a Rocky cartoon was never made. Even Sylvester Stallone‘s Rambo Series was made into an animated series with a toy line, yet it was more violent and dealt with socially questionable issues. To the regret of many, a Rocky animated series was never created.
Never fear boxing fans, Hajime No Ippo has come to the rescue! While the main character, Ippo is not much like Rocky, the series is as successful as Rocky in creating drama, action, and even comedy. The story is simple enough; Ippo is a good, hardworking kid that is picked on in school. One day, a boxer named Takamura saves Ippo from a group of bullies. Impressed by Takamura's skill, Ippo becomes infatuated with boxing and decides to pursue the sport.
The series chronicles Ippo's rise in the boxing world. There are few dull moments as each of Ippo's opponents present new fighting styles, forcing Ippo to face a new challenge in every match. With each new opponent Ippo must rethink his strategies and training regiment creating new and interesting situations.
While Ippo is very serious about his goal, the other boxers in the gym provide comic relief both for him and the viewers. Whether they are harassing Ippo about his love life, embarrassing him in the shower or making fun of his large… err… extremities (insert elephant sound here) their antics provide tension-relieving laughs. While focusing on Ippo, the series occasionally highlights the exploits of the gyms other boxers. This also breaks any monotony that may occur from following Ippo, as the other boxers have very different personalities and abilities.
The same can be said for Ippo’s opponents. Amazingly, while relatively short periods of time are spent on each one, unique and rather in-depth personalities are created. Instead of taking the easy route and making every challenger villainous and easy to hate, you’ll be drawn to feel for many of them. In fact, there are many points in the series I found myself feeling sorry for Ippo’s defeated opponents. The character development is so well done, in some cases I actually regretted they had to face each other at all!
The Rocky films are known for their great training montages and action sequences. After all, which of us didn’t want to get up and run as Rocky ran down the streets of Philly? Thankfully Hajime No Ippo follows in Rocky’s footsteps while achieving a greatness all its own. While Rocky’s training montages consist of various workouts, Ippo prepares differently for each opponent and great explanations for his training techniques are given. As a result Ippo’s training methods stay fresh and never feel repetitive or boring.
Furthermore, Rocky simply fights his opponents in the ring. Although great, the audience is only presented with action. While the bouts in Hajime no Ippo are intense, they occasionally slow down to delve into the minds of the boxers. Some viewers may consider this slowdown a weakness, but I believe it is a strong point. Instead of simply seeing the action, strategy and intelligence are emphasized once again. I often found myself making judgment calls with Ippo, feeling as if I was in the ring with him.
Hajime no Ippo is a great series and its quality never falters. The training and action scenes are enough to satisfy any Rocky fan. Its technical and reasonably realistic approach should please fans of the sport as well. Its combination of action, drama, and comedy as well as its great cast of characters is enough for any anime fan to appreciate. The analyses of training methods, styles, and access to individual boxers’ thoughts make Hajime No Ippo a unique and worthwhile experience.
