Hajime no Ippo

Manga


This manga, created by  Jōji "George" Morikawa and ongoing since 1989 (!), is one of the best I've read so far which is really something coming from me as I'm usually not all that fond of sports manga. This particular manga however, was able to keep me interested for a very long time, 945 chapters to be exact.


It's about a young boy named Makunouchi Ippo, who starts out as a weak character. He's part of a single parent family and spends his free time helping out the family business. Because of this he often gets bullied after school until one day he's saved by a professional boxer. After this fateful meeting, Ippo enters the world of professional boxing facing his enemies head on one at a time.


The supporting characters are also worth mentioning, they provide comic relief for the series. Where Ippo is a bit gullible and sometimes even plain boring, the supporting characters are always up for some mischief causing many hilarious situations.


Anime

The anime adaptation is called 'Hajime no Ippo: The Fighting' and started airing in 2000. The series consists of 76 episodes which stay true to the manga. Apart from the first season, 2 OVA's were also published, 'Fighting Spirit: Champion Road TV Special' and 'Kimura vs. Mashiba'. In 2009, 7 years after the conclusion of the first season, the second season called 'Hajime no Ippo: New Challenger' aired. One of the voice actors confirmed in 2009 that a sequel to 'New Challenger' is being planned, but so far, no official news has been published.