Ranked #645

Ashita no Joe

Stretching towards 40 years since its original broadcast on 1 April 1970, "Ashita no Joe" is one of the very first few sports anime and almost certainly the first to revolve around boxing. Based on the manga by Takamori Asao and Chiba Tetsuya, both the manga and anime are noted for being pioneers of the genre as a whole, and are considered classics.

Story: Joe is a deadbeat. He is a troubled orphan who chooses to abandon his orphanage in an attempt to find his own way of life. Walking through the slums of Tokyo, he encounters a drunkard as he is hurled from a bar. Joe disregards the drunk, and ends up in a scuff with members of the local gang. After quickly disposing of the gang members, the drunk is impressed by Joe's instincts and fighting ability. It is revealed that the drunk is Dampei Tange, a former boxing instructor, as he vows to straighten up and fulfill his dream of creating a world champion in Joe. Sounds like a typical shounen sports series in most senses, but it must be remembered that this was the story that pioneered the genre and inspired many future similar titles, and for that it is held by me in highest regard.

Art: The artwork will most likely be hard for the modern anime fan to accept, what with its charcoal-like feel and overall scratchy look, but if you have the right frame of mind to appreciate the fact that it is from an era of anime long past it is sufficient in its own right. The animation is fairly consistent and portrays the action in just the right way to get the viewer involved. Just don't go into it expecting "Hajime no Ippo" standard animation.

Sound: On the sound front, viewers must again appreciate the age of the anime. The opening and closing themes are extremely old-fashioned and do not exactly get your heart pumping in the same way a modern soundtrack might. Having said that, the in-episode soundtrack does contain some pretty classic tracks and certainly serve their purpose. The voice acting is more or less perfect, with each actor giving a truly believable performance for their respective characters. Really top stuff.

Character: "Ashita no Joe" thrives in its array of characters. In the beginning, Joe is our protagonist and is a rebellious youth always looking to cause trouble. It's hard to like a character such as him, and at times you may want to backhand him for being so damn arrogant, but it his arrogance that drives the series initially. As times passes, he becomes tamer and you'll find yourself cheering him on from the sideline as he steps into the rings rather than wishing for his demise. Tange also sees a dramatic change, going from being a lowlife drunk good-for-nothing, to becoming a respectable man, fulfilling his role as the coach in the same way that, say, Mick does in the "Rocky" films. Later down the line, Nishi serves his role as the friend despite their troubled beginnings, Yohko as a potential love interest for Joe, and Rikiishi as a heated rival. I could go on and on about the many wonderful and colourful characters, but I would never be able to provide a complete analysis. There is just so much depth.

Enjoyment: At times, it can be downright depressing, but for all the right reasons. The series doesn't set out to be a happy series, and in that it excels. It manages to capture the emotion of the viewer perfectly, and so, in all respects, this is one of the most enjoyable series I have seen, and it really opened up the doors for similar series down the line. Frankly put, if there was no "Ashita no Joe", manga and anime may not be the same today. It is not often that the death of a fictional character can warrant a real-life funeral. That's just how important this series is.

Overall: Anyone with even so much as a passing interest in sports anime should consider this a must-watch. In Japan it is considered the king of its genre and rightly so. Even nearly 40 years on, the series never fails to provide a refreshing and exhilarating experience. If you can get past the age of the series, consider this highly recommended. read more

Welcome to what I call one of the most epic animes ever. Try to imagine a Japanese version of Rocky, and this is what you get. But I say Rocky is the American version of Ashita no Joe since Rocky came out in 1976, and the original manga of Ashita no Joe started in 1968 and ended in 1975. But anyway, they share the same charms and are both iconic to their respective nations in their owns rights. The story is reasonably paced and easy to follow, and tells a life story about a young man’s career and his struggles in and out of the ring. Initially, Joe was just a bum who had nothing but the clothes on his back. He created controversy that makes Mike Tyson look like Disneyland but yet he was down to earth and had this aura to him in his neighborhood in the slums of Tokyo as if he were Manny Pacquiao in the Philippines. Despite how you can describe Joe in a personal level, it’s bizarre to see him as a hero at the same time. I just find it unique that in real life, people can react the same way when some athlete publicly acts crazy and doesn’t apologize for it, and we don’t really scorn them to some capacity sometimes. The other characters are also unique and some may not be of significant use, but they still have some kind of overall unforgettable impact in advancing the story.

Yes, the art and animation are old and outdated which is something that many people today can’t really get past by which I can understand, but if you’re a type of person that can still appreciate the old Rocky movies or old movies in general, then this shouldn’t bother you. After all, Chiba Tetsuya, the artist of the manga still draws in that manner to this day and if he were to draw the manga all over again for today, he’d still do it the same way. But getting past the outdated style, it still does an excellent job of bringing out the expressions in the characters and their builds are well appropriate for their respective weight classes. It’s also interesting to note that with some characters, they will show age and change such as Joe, Nishi, and Noriko. They will look more refined, taller, and have different looking hair to symbolize that they are growing up which I found very unique. I also thought they did a great job of making Rikiishi look dehydrated to make it to Joe’s weight class at 118 pounds, bantamweight, when his best weight class is at 126 pounds, featherweight.

Sorry to bring up another Rocky comparison, but the fights are on the same epic level and Joe’s fighting style can be compared to that of the Rocky Balboa character himself. They are both in no ways text book boxers like Floyd Mayweather, Winky Wright, or Pernel Whitaker, and they are go for broke brawlers like Ricardo Mayorga, Rocky Marciano, Antonio Margarito, and Daniel Ponce De Leon. Every punch they throw, is intended to knock you out. Every fight in Ashita no Joe is truly different from the last and brings a different kind of flavors of intensity and will keep you on the edge of your seat. As I described Joe’s fighting style, sometimes you think you’re watching a street fight instead of a boxing match and I mean a brutal street fight. And the ending fight when Joe finally get his shot is one of the best pieces of work I’ve ever seen. Nothing, and I MEAN NOTHING in American, Japanese, Korean, or Mexican or whatever country’s animation or cinema industry can ever come near that fight except real life bouts such as the trilogy between Erik Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera, or the Thrilla in Manila, and the final fight sets up for the best ending you can ever get.

The seiyuu cast is wonderfully top notch. Johnny’s singer Aoi Teruhiko does the voice of Joe Yabuki. He does an excellent job of making Joe sound like a smart ass. Ryuusei Nakao, the voice of Freeza in DBZ, in some versions has played Carlos Rivera and current J-Drama actor Kishibe Shiro does the voice of Nishi. Nishi always came across to me as a Japanese version of Lenny from Mice and Men at a physical level and his voice does come across in that manner also, but his way of speaking symbolizes his good intended heart as well. Unfortunately, some of the other cast members have now passed on but they created a legacy with this anime.

Naturally, the music is just something that defines the old school feel to it. A strange way to describe it that, it’s just so masculine and touching at the same time. It’s about conquering adversity and how it will make you a man. But other than that the soundtrack is just one of the passionate singing I’ve ever heard.

Well, I’m not sure if Hajime no Ippo fans will like this, but I say if you’re more of a fan of Rocky, than this is probably more for you, while Hajime no Ippo on the other hand, tends to have more of the charms and appeal of the Karate Kid. Many other animes and mangas since then have paid tribute to this wonderful classic by restating lines or re-enacting scenes from it such as episodes and chapters of GTO, Fushigi Yuugi, Berserk, FLCL, Ranma ½ and Urusei Yatsura. If you want to know impact this series has, when one of the characters died, the fans even held a funeral for him. That’s how big it was there, but unfortunately, Ashita no Joe never really made it to America until recently under the title Champion Joe. But to conclude this review, I will say one thing, REAL MEN WATCH ASHITA NO JOE. read more