Hajime no ippo

Hajime No Ippo (Knockout in Philippines and Fighting Spirit here in the US)is a must for all sports fans. Heck, I recommend this series to anyone. If you like sports (especially boxing), you will love the authenticity in which the animators present the boxing concepts and realism, not to mention the gradual development of the protagonist, Ippo Makunouchi. In addition,all the other characters are well-developed, so well-developed that you might even cheer for the guy Ippo is fighting. If you just like animé in general, this series has superior animation. You could feel the punches grinding on the boxer's bodies. If you are a newcomer, fear not. This series is one of the funniest animés ever. This is an overall superior animé. If you never watched animé in your life, or just looking for a good series to watch, this is it.

Whether you're a boxing fan or not, the sharp writing, lovable characters, and inspirational nature of this Anime will definitely be able to hold your attention. The OST is composed brilliantly and fits perfectly with a boxing atmosphere. The pacing of the Anime definitely breaks any monotony it may build up as the passage of time leads to the characters having improved so much they almost box entirely differently. The back stories are well written and hard to forget, even the filler which is extremely rare feels like a treat to watch as you wait to uncover the back story of a character you've known for quite awhile.

Ippo's story of his struggle to overcome the challenges he faces by sheer effort and willpower will inspire you, and the twists and well placed cliffhangers will keep you wanting to watch more by the end of each episode.

I strongly recommend Hajime no Ippo (Fighting Spirits in the US) to anyone of nearly any age.

What does it mean to be strong? How do you know when you are strong? Hajime No Ippo is a wonderful sports shonen anime comparable to Slam Dunk. It has the vibes, development, and technicality that seperates it from most sport/shonen animes.

The story is pretty good though not perfect. It has light immature comedy, and a tiny bit of romance. The directing knew how to main proper atmosphere and tone in different backgrounds such as in the boxing ring. There is seriously nothing that is flawed or something particularly bad about this anime, it a well rounded anime. The pacing is great though a tad bit inconsistent especially during matches. When you are feeling down this anime is a definite go to to bring your mood up. Most of the matches were really good, full of action and dialogue but was predictable at times. And what happpens outside the ring is just as great. Mostly focues on Ippo but some on Miyata and the group as a whole and the opponents. And themes about family and commitment, the whole story felt like a motivational video.

Ippo is the main character in this anime. Ippo's perserveance and strength are two of Ippo's most unique traits. No matter how many times you hit him he will get back right up. He is considered wimpy/weird by many of his peers and gets bullied occasionally. But one day he found his destiny(boxing) with the help of a certain person. He simply asks himself"What does it mean to be strong?". He is truly a kind hearted person and is humble and doesn't take things too personally and his development is great. Even though Takamura might seem like a bad person from the outside deep down he a good person. The enemies have their own origins and story. The supporting characters are pretty good some such as Aoki and Kimura serving as comic reliefs while others as detailed characters such as Kamogawa and Sendo and Miyata that have their own story. Overall a wide variety of characters that are solid for the most part.

Even though Ippo is like 20 years the animation is smooth with pretty good shading and the character designs are great, the only problem with the visuals is the clarity and sharpenss of the world. Ex. If they do a long shot for the camera everything seems a bit undetailed and you can't tell how the character's face looks like and etc. The close ups for the camera were great. You could tell when the boxer was in pain and what his emotion was like and you could see how poweful the punches were up close. And lastly it had hilarious icongraphy when the characters would be in awkward/funny dialogues.

The music is great and was really enchanting. Especially the electric guitar symphony which is great. The use of the violin, guitar, drums, trumpet, and paino it made such a difference in the tone and atmosphere of the story. The songs they used were pretty good also. Though there are no intro and outros. Very diverse set of instruments but mostly consisted of electronic music.

Overall a very enjoyable anime. The second anime I watched after AOT and ranks as one of my top 3 favorite animes of all time. After watching this show I can't stop myself doing jabs every once in a while. Though in my opnion it's not bingey worthy and requires some patience from the viewer every once in a while cuz it might be a bit dull or repetetive at times though near the end it does get better.

Memorable: YES Rewatchable: Yes.

I have watched this series countless of times, i love it, the story build up, the characters the comedy. This anime has motivated me to keep working out.

I am a kickbokser because i love to use my legs, but Ippo gave me the courage to step in the real ring. It may be a cartoon but the realism is good the dramatization is for the better and gave me goosebumps so that was a good thing.

To keep it short, If you haven't seen Hajime No Ippo, just start an enjoy, maby you will lose some weight and get fit like all the others also. And if you are a boxer, the tips givin in the series are usefull in real life.

Note, i am 34 years old and build up the fitness to train 3 to 4 hours a week with the professional kickboksers, If one thing is sure it is that Ippo can give a person so much energy they will pick up sports and go for it, Ippo = getting better by working hard.

This is no exaggeration, Hajime no Ippo changed my life, and i can't wait to watch this Anime with my kids!!

Well what can I say? I watch a lot of Japanese anime like Bleach, One Piece, Naruto Shippudden and pretty much everything that involves fighting. Came across this, just recently and couldn't keep my eyes off it. From start to finish, it's just a trip of great training, great fights, great comedy, really great great fun. The characters are just perfect. We have Makunouchi Ippo the main character who is a shy type of lad, but on the ring... The supporting characters are awesome, all of them, Takamura, Miyata, Coach, Aoki, Kimura and all of the opponents fit in very nicely with the main crew. The interaction between Ippo and his opponents is also great! If you are not an anime fan then I assure you after watching this you will be converted. This is really great stuff and mainly for adults. Cartoons are for kids people, but this is way beyond that!!!