For many years, Toei Animation tend to create some amazing anime based off of popular manga series like Sailor Moon, Dragon Ball, and One Piece. Along with these, there is one that I really like due to its story and characters, and the anime I am talking about is Fist of the North Star.
Fist of the North Star (Hokuto no Ken) was adapted from the manga series of the same name written by Buronson and illustrated by Tetsuo Hara, and it is famous for its ultra-violent story based around Kenshiro, who is the successor of the Hokuto Shinken technique. The manga itself was presented in Weekly Shonen Jump from 1983 to 1988, and the series was given its own anime in 1984. This particular anime would include both Hokuto no Ken and its anime sequel, Hokuto no Ken 2, spanning the anime into a total of 152 episodes. The both parts of the anime series and the 1986 anime film was directed by Toyoo Ashida, who directed the anime film adaptation of Hideyuki Kikuchi's Vampire Hunter D.
Hokuto no Ken is separated in four arcs that are based off of the first 136 chapters of the manga. In the first arc, we are instantly introduced to Kenshiro, who is on a quest to rescue his fiancee, Yuria, from his former friend, Shin. We are also introduced to the two young companions that follow him throughout his journey: Bat (who is a troublemaker) and Rin (who loves and cares for Ken ever since he saved her life in the first episode). During the series, we meet other characters such as Rei (who uses a technique known as Nanto Suichoken), Mamiya, Toki (one of Kenshiro's adopted brothers), and Raoh (who will become the main antagonist for the series).
The sequel anime, Hokuto no Ken 2, is based of chapters 137 to 210 of the manga, and starts off after a time skip from the events of the final fight in the previous series. Together, Kenshiro, Bat, and Rin must fight against a corrupted ruler, and Kenshiro then returns to the land that he was born in to save Rin once again. This part of the series was much shorter since it was only based on two arcs from the manga, and the rest of the manga was never adapted into any other anime series.
I really enjoyed the first part of the anime series, but I did get bored while watching the sequel as it felt like (without giving away too many spoilers) it was repeating the formula of the first series. However, I highly recommend this particular anime series, and I am planning on reviewing the 1986 animated film when the time comes.
The Fist of the North Star anime series is currently available on DVD from Discotek Media.
Written by Nolan Schmidt
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