Tired of the same old shounen anime, where it seems that everything is solved by a teenager protagonist that is overpowered but refuses to beat the crap out of the villain, but instead talks and convinces the villain to surrender? Do you want something more manly, more inspiring, and more exciting? Do you want charismatic characters that have unique styles and personalities, and can sometimes be as amazing as the protagonist itself?
Let's go back 37 years go, returning to 1984 where we will find the solution for your problems: Hokuto no Ken, or Fist of the North Star for those who like to call it like that too.
In my first review here, I want to show you the power of the 80's anime, and try convincing you that besides being famous for it's violence, Hokuto no Ken is more than just brutes hitting each other.
Hokuto no Ken tells the story of Kenshiro, the only sucessor of a 2000 year old assassination martial art called Hokuto Shinken, that can defeat oponents with swift strikes, making them explode from inside, and it can only have one sucessor. But of course, if you are here reading this review and thinking about giving a chance for this anime, you already know that much.
And you also know that this anime is something fully action packed, with tons of blood, exploding heads, amazing fights, etc...
But let's talk about something that you might not expect: this anime has a really wonderfull and great story too.
This anime is more of a journey. Kenshiro's journey, that starts with him going on a quest for revenge after his best friend stole his wife from him after leaving him deadly injuried on the desert, waiting for death. But this is just the beggining of a journey that will lead Ken to face formidable oponents going from ruthless emperors that slaves children, to even enemies that were once dear brothers to him.
Also, this is worth noting. Kenshiro is a good and righteous person. He helps those who are in need, and don't think twice before helping someone in danger. But he also can be ruthless with those he considers unworthy of living. THIS is a trait that you rarely see on protagonists nowdays. Usually someone can kill a city of innocents, and just be forgiven. Not for Kenshiro. Kenshiro punishes those who commit crimes and hurt good people. For him, it's not a matter of revenge, it's a matter of punishment.
This is something I love, this is something unusual for most shounen protagonists I've saw. You can be good, but you don't need to be an angel. Kenshiro thinks it's right to kill bastards that live by abusing and hurting others. And if you are satisfied seeing bad people getting what they deserve.... you will love Kenshiro.
But although yes, he IS strong, and he can defeat most punks with his fingers alone, Kenshiro also must face enemies that knows dangerous martial-arts and can sometimes, leave Kenshiro defeated on the ground. And this, is also something that I love about this anime. Kenshiro is strong, but there are people who can be as strong or even stronger than him. Ken evolves during his journey after facing foes like no other.
And while yes, those guys can be really jackasses most of times, they do have strong motivations and interesting backstories. And even after Ken defeats them, Ken will respect the honor of these amazing foes.
It's an amazing journey, where Ken will find great friends like Mamiya, Toki and Rei, but also amazing enemies like Shin, Souther and Raoh. And these characters are so great that you might fidn yourself crying alonside Kenshiro sometimes.
But that's it for the journey, plot and characters, let me talk about the anime itself for a bit.
Being honest here, althought It's a great anime and it IS my favorite anime of all time, it's not flawless.
The anime is really showing it's age with sometimes robotic animations and recycled scenes. But at least, the anime gets more "polished" with time.
The first arc can be really tiresome, because it's packed with fillers (it took about 24 episodes to Ken face shin, while it took 1 volume in the manga), but the anime itself doesn't have a whole lot of fillers at least.
The pacing can be a little bit troublesome, but the main fights, are simply great and will make it worth it. Ken Vs. Souther or Ken Vs Raoh, are amazing and exciting fights.
The OST... is amazing.
Ai wo Torimodose is one of the most catching openings that exist, and the fights have amazing tracks, and some scenes have gorgeous music too.
Silent Survivor and Heart of Madness really give that 80's vibes, and it's amazing.
So in summary, Hokuto no ken delivers what it's promissed: a fully action-packed anime with amazing characters and fights and with great story alongside. It might not be everyone's cup of tea, and since it shows it's age, some people might have some prejudice or worries with it. But if you did enjoy everything I told here, from characters and protagonists personality, to its journey and evolution as a character, I have no doubt that you should try giving it a shot.
"Pick a spot, I'll make sure... to bury you there." _ Kenshiro