Shin Hokuto no Ken

After a brief recap of chapter one, Kenshiro's latest adventure continues: Ken must get medical supplies to save the young water-maker from death within two days, but he must take on the deadly dwellers of a forbidden mountain to get what is needed. The cliffdwellers fight with a style similar to Ken's, and they prove to be guardians of a grave secret...

Back at the city of Lastland the vanquished dictator Sanga is replaced by the bitter Seiji, a man whose evil is rooted in his tragic childhood. Sara the healer looks to be the target of rape by Seiji; will she escape his lustful clutches? And what will happen to the people of Lastland when Seiji orders his army to kill all who oppose him, in other words the entire population? TO BE CONTINUED (if you bother to stay awake.

I'm a huge fan of Hokuto no Ken series since the early 80s and I was very disappointed when I saw this "Shin hokuto no ken". Everything seems made to be a mere marketing operation. The 3D scenes don't always match correctly with 2D, the animation is not so good, the plot is a bit boring and the new voice of Kenshiro is much worse than the original one by Akira Kamiya. And, the last but not the least, what's that horrible part of a samurai armor in Kenshiro's right shoulder? That's crap I say!

I bought the 3 DVD set of Shin Hokuto no Ken and I liked what I saw. when I was young I was hooked on the fist of the north star after seeing the animated movie. I managed to get my hands on a few of the original series, but alas not all. So I was pleasantly surprised that there was a new series out. After watching all three DVD's back to back. I felt like just eating a great 3 course meal but my hunger wasn't stilled. The new series just lacks all of the spices the Animated movie and series had, although nothing was wrong with the graphics, some of the 3d animation were great to see but didn't really add something to the story or the overall of the new series.The story was just not that great, it was mediocre to say the least. It would be really great if they could get some great writers for this new series or guest-writers for each 3 series story. Lets just hope they don't mess this up.

The third and final chapter of the new Hokuto No Ken is a crushing bore and a staggering disappointment for fans. The one thing that you could always depend on the '80's original for was a ton of ultra-violent martial arts action in each installment, and those responsible for the current version have completely forgotten forgotten that golden rule. The final hour-long segment is virtually nothing but a festival of talking heads engaged in uninvolving and boring dialogue, and the raison d'etre of the series, the fighting, does not turn up until the last five minutes, by which time the audience has lost both patience and interest. Adding insult to injury is the fact that the battle that is supposed to offer a satisfying climax is a stone-cold dud in which the villain is no challenge for Kenshiro whatsoever.

The bottom line on this one is that even if you, like me, are a hardcore North Star fan you should avoid this DVD at all costs; by the end of this installment my eyes were fighting to stay open (a far more compelling fight than anything found in the story) and when it was over I napped out for a couple of hours despite having had a full night of sleep. If this crap is what may await fans in future entries, I sincerely hope that just let Kenshiro stay dormant until someone has a decent idea for any continuations.

Seriously, folks, SHIN HOKUTO NO KEN is a massive failure all around; from the ugly character designs and dearth of action to the awful soundtrack and sheer boredom of the plot, this just plain sucks. Next to the obscure Chinese live action version from the late 1980's (not the version where Gary Daniels plays Kenshiro and Malcolm McDowell whores himself out yet again), this is the darkest chapter in the history of HOKUTO NO KEN adaptations. AVOID LIKE THE PLAGUE!!!