'Fist of the North Star' has no characters. You may be tricked into thinking there are characters, but there aren't. They are just props which Kenshiro ruthlessly destroys. Never, at any time, ever, does any spark of intelligence or emotion ever ignite in these people's (inevitably exploding) heads. They exist to have their heads exploded. Sure, they are capable of speech, motion, and basic interaction with other props, which only exist to make the viewer believe there is a stake at hand. But of course there isn't, our main man Ken will just dispatch them easily.
Is there a weakness to Hokuto? Probably. Does it matter? No, because Ken simply cannot be defeated. You know that. There is no sense of danger, or any reason to root for Kenshiro, because you know he will win .This, ironically, diminishes the man's qualities, instead of enhancing them.
He does not organically push boundaries. He does not learn. He does not grow. He does not become better,because he does not make mistakes.
Kenshiro is not the ultra alpha supra manly man he is praised to be. He is just a boring brick viciously hurled at a window.
Joining him in his adventures as a viewer is a lot like watching a Windows XP screensaver, but with more movement.
There are some kids who join Ken in his murderous rampage of brain dead, deformed beast men, but to this day I have no idea why they exist there in the first place. Nor do I really care about it. I want to see heads explode. Oh yeah, and there's a woman who probably does something.
And no, I cannot be accused of being ignorant and not following the story. I am sure whoever wrote this crap wanted me to not care. Otherwise they wouldn't make everything so void of life and uninteresting.
So is there any reason why you should enjoy this?
Yes!
1. The exploding heads: there is something cathartic about them. Maybe they remind me of simpler, more playful times. They are the main selling point of FOTNS, and I bought it, because sometimes you just need to let your brain rest and let your body take over.
2. Raoh. If he was a character in an actual anime, I would have loved him. Too bad he is wasted here, just another piece of flesh to receive Kenshiro's beating.
3. The Art. It is beautiful. Definitely not the best, there are countless others waaaaaay better; but there is something entrancing about it, and one of the reasons I came back to watching this stupid show, despite taking me more than two years to complete. That, and exploding heads, of course.
4. Ken's voice. It is really cool.
5. The goons' voices. They are actually funny at times. If you're not paying attention, you might confuse them for living, breathing characters, just because of the voice acting.
6. ATATATATATATATATATATATATATATA
7. The memes.
That being said, is it worth watching 'Fist of the North Star'? Possibly not. Watch the YouTube shorts for the exploding heads, and rid yourself of the plodding, uninteresting story. And follow the memes.
Is it enjoyable? Surprisingly, yes. But there's a catch. Should you find yourself loving FOTNS, there's a solid chance you're more alike to the goons Ken effortlessly humiliates, rather than Ken himself. Take what you want from this.
