Hajime no Ippo is a 2000 Japanese anime series based on the manga written by George Morikawa. The first 75-episode anime season, produced by Madhouse, Nippon Television and VAP and directed by Satoshi Nishimura, aired on Nippon TV between October 4, 2000, and March 27, 2002.[1] The episodes were collected into twenty-five DVDs released by VAP from March 16, 2001 to March 21, 2003.[2][3] The last DVD includes a special episode which did not air in Japan, numbered 76.[3] A television film titled Hajime no Ippo: Champion Road aired on April 18, 2003.[4] An original video animation (OVA) titled Hajime no Ippo Mashiba vs. Kimura was released on September 5, 2003.[5]
A second season titled Hajime no Ippo: New Challenger aired on Nippon TV from January 6 to June 30, 2009.[6][7]
In 2009, Rikiya Koyama, the voice actor of Mamoru Takamura, revealed in his blog that a sequel to the Hajime no Ippo: New Challenger season was being planned. At the end of his blog entry, he wrote, "Of course, a sequel is also being planned!!".[7] In July 2013, it was reported in that year's 34th issue of Kodansha's Weekly Shōnen Magazine that a third season of Hajime no Ippo would air in the fall 2013 season.[8][9] The third season, titled Hajime no Ippo: Rising, ran for 25 episodes from October 5, 2013 to March 29, 2014.[10][11] Hajime no Ippo: Rising was streamed on Crunchyroll.[12]
In North America, the first season was licensed by Geneon Entertainment in 2003, which released it under the name Fighting Spirit.[13] Geneon distributed Fighting Spirit on 15 DVDs with five episodes per disc. The first DVD was released on July 6, 2004 and the fifteenth released on December 19, 2006.[14][15] The DVDs included English and Spanish language tracks, as well as the original Japanese. The TV film Champion Road was released on North America on January 9, 2007.[16] There were no plans to release the OVA, Mashiba vs. Kimura. Disc sales of the series did not perform well.[17] In September 2020, Discotek Media announced that they have licensed the series for a 2021 release, including the 76 episodes, Champion Road and, for the first time in North America, the OVA Mashiba vs. Kimura.[18] The first Blu-ray Disc set (episodes 1–24) was released on January 26, 2021.[19] The second set (episodes 25–48) was released on March 30, 2021.[20]
- ^ "Madhouse.co.jp" はじめの一歩 (in Japanese). Madhouse. Archived from the original on September 15, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ はじめの一歩 Vol.1 (in Japanese). VAP. Archived from the original on June 3, 2004. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ a b はじめの一歩 Vol.25 (in Japanese). VAP. Archived from the original on August 17, 2004. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ はじめの一歩 Champion Road (in Japanese). VAP. Archived from the original on August 1, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
2003年4月18日にはテレビ・スペシャル「Champion Road」が金曜ロードショーにてオンエアされました。 (The TV special "Champion Road" was aired on April 18, 2003)
- ^ "VAP Official Site" はじめの一歩 間柴vs木村 (in Japanese). VAP. Archived from the original on August 1, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ Loo, Egan (November 27, 2008). "2nd Hajime no Ippo Show Named, Dated: New Challenger on January 6". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on June 16, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ a b Loo, Egan (June 12, 2009). "Sequel to Hajime no Ippo: New Challenger Being Planned". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on June 30, 2017. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ Nelkin, Sarah (July 19, 2013). "3rd Season of Hajime no Ippo Anime Green-Lit". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on June 16, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ Nelkin, Sarah (August 23, 2013). "Hajime no Ippo Rising TV Anime's Cast, Staff Announced". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on June 16, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ #1（10/5放送）「最強の挑戦者」 (in Japanese). Nippon TV. Archived from the original on February 21, 2009. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ #25（3/29放送）「誓い」 (in Japanese). Nippon TV. Archived from the original on July 4, 2009. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ Hodgkins, Crystalyn (October 4, 2013). "Crunchyroll to Stream Hajime no Ippo Rising Anime". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on October 24, 2019. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ Macdonald, Christopher (November 1, 2003). "Geneon Licenses". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on April 19, 2017. Retrieved April 4, 2007.
- ^ "Fighting Spirit - (V.1) The First Step". Geneon Entertainment. Archived from the original on October 20, 2006. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ "Fighting Spirit - (V.15) One Step Further". Geneon Entertainment. Archived from the original on October 20, 2006. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ "Fighting Spirit - Champion Road TV Special". Geneon Entertainment. Archived from the original on October 20, 2006. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
- ^ Koulikov, Mikhail (May 13, 2007). "Geneon Entertainment - Anime Central 2007". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on August 1, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
During the question and answer session that concluded the panel, they mentioned that because Hajime no Ippo did not perform as well as hoped, it is not likely that Geneon will acquire the 2003 Hajime no Ippo - Mashiba vs. Kimura OVA.
- ^ Pineda, Rafael Antonio (September 14, 2020). "Discotek Licenses Rose of Versailles, Hajime no Ippo, Project A-Ko Anime". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved September 15, 2020.
- ^ Sherman, Jennifer (January 27, 2021). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, January 24–30". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on October 22, 2021. Retrieved May 19, 2021.
- ^ Mateo, Alex (March 30, 2021). "North American Anime, Manga Releases, March 28-April 3". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on May 19, 2021. Retrieved May 19, 2021.