Hajime No Ippo, wow, great anime, Ippo is a shy boy who struggles with bullies at school which pretty much make their punchbag of him. In one of this experiences he meets Takamura, a young professional boxer who doesn't have time for boys who won't even defend themselves. As the weeks pass Ippo will show interest in joining Kamogawa's boxing gym, with a born-talent and determination that look very promising for the main coach.
The story is about Makunouchi Ippo and his way to become stronger, both physical and mentally, you can't get more bad-ass than that honestly. The art serves its purpose right, but not the main attraction actually.
The soundtrack is awesome! I have all of it, mostly based on electric guitar riffs and some electronic beats, the music builds the right tension and drama whenever it's needed. The voices where chosen right too.
In this installment we focus on Ippo, but we still get to know some of the backgrounds from his mates, all of them have the discipline and 'fighting spirit' for the occasion. I really enjoyed watching every single episode, they felt so short in length overall, some of the encounters may last from 2 to 3 episodes, still they are very intense and we even have some emotional scenes. I give Hajime no Ippo a 10 because it manages to mix very well shonen elements with actual boxing subjects without ridiculize them, but even if you're not into sports of this kind, the story and determination live for themselves.