As time goes by and animation techniques improve most anime start to be forgotten in favor of newer titles. But despite the constant uphill battle of time, some anime manage to survive where others are forgotten and earn the title of "classics". Ashita no Joe is one of the best examples of a anime that has and will continue to survive the passage of time and retain its title of a classic.

Story:(10/10)
The story begins with Joe drifting into a slums where he quickly gets into a fight with a local gang. Despite being outnumbered, Joe easily dispatches the entire crew. Watching from the sidelines is a drunken old bum who used to be a boxing coach named Tange Danpei. Seeing Joe's vast untamed potential for boxing he tries to convince Joe to let him train him. Joe is initially uninterested, but after the trainer saves his life Joe reluctantly agrees to learn the sport of boxing.

Where Ashita no Joe differs from other sports anime is in its drama. It would be more appropriate to label Ashita no Joe as a drama that uses sports to tell its story than a sports story that uses drama to enhance its story. The characters have real problems and the stakes can be incredibly high.

Characters:(10/10)

One of Ashita no Joe's strongest points lies within its characters. Each character is incredibly unique with interesting connections to the other characters.

The most interesting character of all is none other than the main character Joe Yabuki. Put simply, Joe is an asshole. He is arrogant, rude, crude, and otherwise indifferent. But despite his rough nature I couldn't help but rooting for him. Yeah, sometimes Joe's character makes you wish some guy would come by and lay him flat, but you can't help but rooting for this guy who came from nothing who is trying to find his place in the world.

Visual:(6/10)

The art and animation for the time period is fantastic but unfortunately it doesn't stand up to modern counterparts. After getting used to the outdated style and animation I was able to appreciate the gritty feel the art gave the anime. But for a newer viewer the art poses one of the biggest obstacles to getting into this anime.

Audio:(6/10)

Similarly to the art, the audio quality doesn't stand up to modern comparisons. The voice acting itself is great but the quality of the sound is what suffers. In the later episodes the quality of the sound increased, however it does take a bit of getting used to in the beginning.

Enjoyment:(10/10)

despite the low quality sound and animation, the story of Ashita no Joe blew me away. At first I was sceptical about whether or not a 50 year old anime would be able to compare to modern anime, but there is a reason that even after 50 years this anime still gets talked about. A true classic and well worth the watch.