Hajime no Ippo
- Hajime no Ippo: Fighting Spirit!
- はじめの一歩
- The Fighting!
- Fighting Spirit
- The Fighting! Ippo
- Hajime no Ippo Gaiden: Naniwa Tiger
- Ippo
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About this title
Synopsis
Makunouchi Ippo is a 16-year-old high school student who helps his mother run the family business. His hefty workload impedes his social life, making him an easy target for bullies. One day, while being beaten up by a group of high school students, Ippo is saved by a boxer named Mamoru Takamura, and is brought to the Kamogawa Boxing Gym. This afterschool bullying session turns his life around for the better, as Ippo discovers his latent talent for boxing and decides to practice the sport professionally. However, Mamoru doubts Ippo's determination and assigns him a task deemed impossible to complete; but the resolute Ippo trains tirelessly to fulfill his mission. Along the way, he finds out what it means to attain true strength while making new friends and fighting formidable foes. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Publication notes
Hajime no Ippo won the 15th Kodansha Manga Award in the Shounen category in 1991. As of July 2023, over 100 million copies of the series are in circulation. The series has been published digitally in English as Hajime no Ippo: Fighting Spirit! by Kodansha through K Manga.
Published
Sep 27, 1989 to ?
Authors
- MAL rank
- #57
- Members (MAL)
- 101,778
- Favorites (MAL)
- 7,633
Related titles
Main characters
Ippo Makunouchi8806 fan favoritesExternal profileBirth Date: November 23, 1973 Homeland: Tokyo, Japan Gender: Male Family: Hiroko Makunouchi (Mother); Kazuo Makunouchi (Father); Wanpo (Pet) Occupation: Professional Boxer; Makunouchi Fishing Boat Weight Class: Featherweight (Weight Limit 126 Pounds) Height: 164 cm (5'5") Reach: 165 cm (65") Style: Infighter; Peek-A-Boo Style Current Affiliation: Kamogawa Boxing Gym Trainer: Genji Kamogawa Specialty/Signature Blows: Liver Blow, Gazelle Punch; Dempsey Roll, The Anti-Anti Dempsey Roll, The "New Evolved" Dempsey Roll (Dempsey Roll 2.0) Ippo Makunouchi is the main protagonist of the series. He lives with his mother, Hiroko Makunouchi, and helps with the family charter boat fishing business. Ippo is a classic power in-boxer and is well known for his Peek-a-Boo style of boxing and hard punches which include three signature punches: a rib-cracking liver blow, Gazelle punch (an uppercut variant), and the Dempsey roll technique. His signature punches appear to be modelled after Mike Tyson, Floyd Patterson and Jack Dempsey respectively. Ippo is bullied throughout most of his school life. After being rescued by Takamura, he ends up being brought to Kamogawa Gym, where he displays an explosive punching power. After seeing a video of Mike Tyson, he becomes inspired to take up boxing to feel reborn with strength. He soon proves himself to Takamura and Kamogawa, and starts on the path to being a pro boxer. His Pro-Debut Match was against Oda Yusuke, He was largely regarded as a lazy and unmotivated boxer, but when his girlfriend threatened to break up with him, he committed himself to training. From the first time the boxers met, there was tension between them, as a misunderstanding led Oda to believe Ippo made fun of him. On the actual fight, Ippo seemed to have the advantage from the beginning of the match, but was saved by his coach from losing the fight due to a cut. Ippo managed a comeback by knocking Oda out with a series of jabs, thus winning the fight.
Mamoru Takamura7640 fan favoritesExternal profileBirthday: July 7, 1969 Homeland: Tokyo, Japan Family: Takamura Suguru (older brother), Takamura Kyouka (older sister), Takamura Wataru (little brother) Occupation: Professional Boxer Weight Class: Junior Middleweight/Super Welterweight Weight Limit: 154 Pounds, Middleweight Weight Limit 160 Pounds and Super Middleweight Weight Limit: 168 Pounds (keep in mind Takamura will rehydrate heavier around 15 to 25 pounds heavier on fightnight after passing the weigh-in) Natural Weight: 200 Pounds Height: 185 cm (6'1") Reach: 189 cm (74") Style: Hybrid Stance(s): Orthodox Stance, Brawling Stance, Hitman Style Current Affiliation: Kamogawa Boxing Gym Trainer: Kamogawa Genji He is a multi-weight class (currently Super Middleweight) hybrid boxer affiliated with the Kamogawa Boxing Gym. He is the Former unified WBC World Junior Middleweight/Super Welterweight Champion , WBC and WBA World Middleweight Champion. Takamura is currently WBC Super Middleweight Champion (Takamura is currently a 3 Weight Class World Champion). Takamura Mamoru's Main Goal is to be a 6 Weight Class World Champion from Junior Middleweight all the way to Heavyweight (to his Natural Weight) no matter the cost. (The real life 6 Weight Class World Champion is a Mexican-American boxer named Oscar De La Hoya who is also an Olympic Gold Medalist, his professional boxing accomplishment is what Takamura is trying to achieve in the Hajime no Ippo manga, to become World Champion in 6 Weight Classes. Oscar De La Hoya inspired both the characters David Eagle as an Olympic Gold Medalist and Takamura Mamoru with his real life accomplishments trying to become World Champion in 6 different Weight Classes which both were achieved by Oscar De La Hoya) Takamura is very hearty, rude and often behaves vulgarly. He is a loud arrogant boaster who tends to refer to himself as Ore-sama (a Japanese name suffix intended for people of great importance) and he rarely ever shows a shred of consideration towards other fighters after a loss. Takamura was discovered on the streets by Coach Kamogawa Genji, and his speed, power, and technique are all high-level to the point that he is capable of handling both In Fighters and Out Boxers without too much trouble. Unlike most characters in Hajime no Ippo, he has no special finishing blow, but every punch he has possesses killer destructive power. With the wild power to always force out any situation he claims will happen, he is a man who does everything he says he will. As the one who got Ippo, Aoki and Kimura into boxing, he is well respected at the Kamogawa Gym. Even though he constantly looks down on and ridicules their achievements, his unrivalled strength and the few moments his true kindness leaks out prevent them from losing their respect for him. Takamura loves to pick on his fellow gym mates, with Aoki usually the first on his list. Although he tends to get more serious when hearing about or training for his next match, he still finds the time to play pranks on everyone and goof around. He is the current WBC Super Middleweight Champion, former WBC and WBA World Middleweight Champion and former WBC Junior Middleweight Champion. He was also the JBC Middleweight Champion, but relinquished it after 4 title defenses. He lives alone at the Ohta Inn apartment complex, and his room is littered with junk, old food, pornography, and even his Belts. He still lives there even after becoming World Champion, preferring a simple life. The character for Taka (鷹) in his name means hawk, and as a result he is sometimes nicknamed The Japanese Hawk by announcers and spectators (most notably during his matches against Bryan Hawk and David Eagle). His pompadour hairstyle is his trademark. Current Record:
Masaru Aoki383 fan favoritesExternal profileBirthday: September 9, 1971 Homeland: Tokyo, Japan Occupation: Chuuka Soba chef Weight class: Lightweight Height: 171 cm (5'7") Reach: 171 cm (67") Style: Unorthodox boxing style Stance: Orthodox Stance Current affiliation: Kamogawa Boxing Gym Trainer: Shinoda He is an unorthodox lightweight boxer and one of the core members of the Kamogawa Boxing Gym. He, along with Kimura Tatsuya, are known to have been scouted into boxing by Takamura Mamoru, an individual they swore to defeat but eventually came to admire. Aoki was a punk from his childhood up through high school, at which point he encountered, fought and got beat down by Takamura Mamoru (who was then a middleweight with two wins under his belt). This loss motivated him to quit school along with his close friend Kimura Tetsuya to become boxers at Kamogawa gym. Although their initial goal was to land a clean hit on Takamura, they grew to love boxing and develop their own skills. Aoki became a clownish boxer whose signature techniques, the Frog Punch and Look-Away, eventually led him to a draw in a Japanese title match with then-champion Imae Katsuka. Currently in the series, Aoki had a going rivalry with Papaya Dachiu, the lightweight champion of the Philippnes, with whom he has drawn two consecutive matches. In a flashback shown in the series, Aoki is known for his troubled school life as a delinquent. He, along with long-time friend Kimura, were known to participate in countless fights and brawls with 'rival' schools. Throughout the series Aoki has shown a rather playful, immature, and mischievous personality- an attitude he reflects in his boxing matches where (due to his comparatively unexceptional boxing skills) he constantly thinks of methods to to deceive, confuse, or even ridicule opponents to a certain extent. A very long-running gag is that Aoki keeps revealing impressing talents, that sadly have no connection with boxing. Another one involves his girlfriend's friendship with Kumi that has made made contacting her far more easy than Ippo could ever hope, so Aoki often helps him out. His prankster personality extends to his own teammates and is most notably reflected in his attitude towards Makunouchi Ippo and (at times) Takamura Mamoru. Together with Kimura he is paired into the Aokimura duo by Itagaki Manabu. Aoki's taste in women is seen as a running joke in the Hajime no Ippo series where, in contrast to the tastes of his gym mates, Aoki places his preferences in women considered 'ugly' by everyone else. This may be due to an incident where he was cruelly dumped by a beautiful girl, psychologically turning him to prefer uglier girls. Even though he may have a taste for "ugly" girls, he is able to hold a girlfriend, Tomiko, longer then any of the other guys with the exception of Ippo but it remains to be seen if he and Kumi will ultimately be together. Current Record
Genji Kamogawa301 fan favoritesExternal profileBirthday: January 15, 1917 Homeland: Japan Tokyo, Japan Family: Nekota Ginpachi, Mamoru Takamura Occupation: Kamogawa Gym Founder and Coach Weight Class: Bantamweight (115 to 118 Pounds Weight Limit) Style: Brawler/In-Fighter Current Affiliation: Kamogawa Boxing Gym Trainer: Himself Date(s) Retired: 1947 Speciality/Skills/Signature Blows: Feints, Tekken/The Iron Fist (Bone Breaking Body Blows) Kamogawa Genji is a deuteragonist in Hajime no Ippo. His influence on the story rivals those of Takamura Mamoru's and Miyata Ichirou's; all three inspire Makunouchi Ippo to continue boxing. Kamogawa is the head coach of the Kamogawa Boxing Gym and is close friends with Nekota Ginpachi and Hama Dankichi. As a coach he is strict and holds high expectations for his trainees but is also shown to genuinely care for the well-being of his fighters (albeit in a more silenced, aloof way), forging a strong bond with each and every one of them through trust and spirit. He possesses an extremely sharp sense for boxing and a large wealth of knowledge in regards to boxing, able to give strategies to his fighters that often cause turnabouts in matches. He is shown throughout the series to be most proud of his two most prominent boxers: Takamura Mamoru and Makunouchi Ippo. He is a retired boxer who founded the Kamogawa Boxing Gym. He acts as the trainer of both Ippo and Takamura, as well as a cornerman for the boxers under Shinoda Tomoyuki. Kamogawa worked as a prizefighter in Japan shortly after the end of the Second World War. He has exchanged blows with former prizefighter Nekota Ginpachi multiple times. He was also friends with fellow prizefighter and future trainer Hama Dankichi. During the American occupation of Japan, Kamogawa harboured strong feelings of national pride, refusing to accept food handouts. Sometime later, Kamogawa opened his own boxing gym, where he trained the future manager of the gym Yagi-chan, the then-OPBF Featherweight champion Miyata-san, and the budding counter specialist Miyata Ichirou. By chance, he encountered Takamura Mamoru and convinced him to enter the world of boxing under his tutorship. Takamura then scouted Aoki Masaru, Kimura Tatsuya, and Makunouchi Ippo to the gym. Though he chose not to train Itagaki Manabu, he is present in his matches as a cornerman. He is equally as surprised at Itagaki's speed and boxing skills as he is at the talents of his own trainees. Record:
Tatsuya Kimura273 fan favoritesExternal profileHomeland: Tokyo, Japan Weight Class: Junior Lightweight Height: 171 cm (5'7") Reach: 171 cm (67") Style: Out Boxer Stance: Orthodox Stance Current Affiliation: Kamogawa Boxing Gym Trainer: Shinoda Ippo's senpai and Aoki's best friend. He is the smooth, collected type and a romantic at heart, but trains as hard as anyone. His style incorporates a fast left and faster footwork. In the past, he and Aoki were the toughest high-school thugs around, but now Tatsuya's real job is at his family's flower shop. He is a junior lightweight boxer. Along with Makunouchi Ippo, Takamura Mamoru, Aoki Masaru, and Itagaki Manabu, he rounds out the core members of the Kamogawa Boxing Gym. His main fights in the series are against Mashiba Ryou and Eleki Battery. Kimura and Aoki Masaru were best friends since kindergarten. In high school they began brawling and causing trouble with students from rival schools, namely North High, which eventually led to their expulsion. Kimura was the most affected by this because he was worried he had disappointed his mother. One day the pair attacked North High's Takamura Mamoru and lost miserably. Seeing Takamura's strength as a boxer, they decided to join the Kamogawa Boxing Gym to try and become strong too. Kimura became a delincuent beacuse he was bullied by an older boy, and when his father went to confront the boy's father, he was pressured and ended up apologizing, this made Kimura lose all respect for his father, becoming more violent in both his house and in the outside, and decided to quit highschool without his parents knowing. Like Aoki, his boxing ability is also downplayed for much of the series (albeit not quite as badly). Despite this, he has proven to be a good boxer with solid all-around ability. Miyata stated that as a boxer, Kimura had no weaknesses (despite also not having any strengths) and Miyata's father said that although he was only ranked third before his fight with Mashiba, his talent surpassed that ranking. Mashiba himself admitted that Kimura was his strongest challenger. He shows strength around the level of a national champion, as he was able to draw with Eleki Battery twice and only barely lost to Mashiba. As fast outboxer, Kimura is often asked to be a sparring partner for as Makunouchi and one time for Miyata, though Kimura benefited more from Miyata's sparring. Current Record
Manabu Itagaki55 fan favoritesExternal profileBirthday: August 14, 1975 Homeland: Japan Tokyo, Occupation: Professional Boxer, Makunouchi Fishing Boat worker Weight Class: Featherweight Height: 168 cm (5'6") Reach: 168 cm (66") Style: Out Boxer Stance: Orthodox Stance Current Affiliation: Kamogawa Boxing Gym Trainer: Shinoda The most recent addition to the roster, the charming Manabu has a prodigy's talent and was the captain of his high school's boxing team. Cheerful and a lover of bad puns, Manabu is a fierce outboxer with extremely high speed and reflexes and whose fighting style is uncanny in its resemblance to Miyata's. His most powerful technique is a furious hail of mid-power blows known as the Hedgehog or Porcupine, which was employed in an East Japan Rookie Kings showdown with his longtime nemesis, Kyosuke Imai. Outside of boxing, Manabu is employed as an assistant at the Makounouchi family's fishing business. Itagaki's character is based on former world champion Oscar de La Hoya for his prodigy-like natural ability and good looks, whom Itagaki has admitted to idolizing in the manga. He is a Featherweight out boxer renowned for his speed and genius boxing talent. His trainer is Shinoda Tomoyuki. He, along with Makunouchi Ippo, Takamura Mamoru, Aoki Masaru, and Kimura Tatsuya, round out the core members of the Kamogawa Boxing Gym. Itagaki originally tried out and prevailed at many sports, but when he tried boxing he came across Imai Kyousuke and was defeated by him 3 times. In order to defeat him no matter what, he skipped college and instead joined the Kamogawa Boxing Gym, where his idol, Ippo, trained. After Umezawa Masahiko retired from the Makunouchi Fishing Boat in order to pursue his own dreams, Itagaki took over his job and started receving the same kind of work training that Ippo goes through. He achieved revenge on Makino Fumito, who had defeated him in his debut match with a foul, in the opening round of the East Japan Rookie Kings. At the finals, after a tough fight with Imai, Itagaki captured the East Japan Rookie King title and seemingly tapped into his true fighting potential; his speed, reflexes and timing are now said to be at genius levels. Current Record
