Ashita no Joe

Joe Yabuki is a troubled youth, whose only solution to problems is throwing punches at them. What he lacks in manners and discipline, he makes up for with his self-taught fighting skills.

One day, while wandering the slums of Doya, Joe gets into a fight with the local gang. Although greatly outnumbered, he effortlessly defeats them, drawing the attention of Danpei Tange—a former boxing coach turned alcoholic. Seeing his potential, he offers to train Joe into Japan's greatest boxer. At first, Joe dismisses Danpei as a hopeless drunk; but after the trainer saves his life, he agrees to live with him and learn the art of boxing. Unfortunately, Joe's personality makes him an unruly student, and he often falls back to his old ways.

To survive the harsh world of his new career, Joe needs to trust his mentor and master the techniques taught to him. However, the road to becoming a professional boxer is rife with struggles that will test his mettle to the end.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Yabuki, Joe Main

Aoi, Teruhiko Japanese

Rikiishi, Tooru Main

Nakamura, Shuusei Japanese

Tange, Danpei Main

Fujioka, Juukei Japanese

Rivera, Carlos Supporting

Hirokawa, Taichirou Japanese

Shiraki, Yoko Supporting

Ebisu, Masako Japanese

Nishi, Kanichi Supporting

Nishio, Toku Japanese

Gondo, Goromaki Supporting

Otsuka, Chikao Japanese

Hayashi, Noriko Supporting

Ozawa, Tomoyo Japanese

Tonkichi Supporting

Yanami, Jouji Japanese

Kinoko Supporting

Dezaki, Osamu Director, Episode Director, Script, Storyboard, Key Animation

Tomino, Yoshiyuki Episode Director, Storyboard

Hata, Masami Episode Director

Saitou, Hiroshi Episode Director

Reviews

Oct 2, 2024

Swackety2

Recommended

Ashita no Joe (Tomorrow’s Joe) is a classic sports anime and manga that has left a lasting legacy, and it’s easy to see why. Here’s why I think it’s a solid 10/10 series:

Characters You Really Care About
The heart of Ashita no Joe is its characters. Joe Yabuki, the main character, starts off as a troubled, rebellious kid but grows into a determined boxer. His journey is full of personal struggles, highs, and lows that make him feel reaaal and relatable. The people around him, like his tough but caring coach Danpei and the talented yet tragic boxer Rikiishi, are just as well-developed, adding more layers ... to the story.
Ther is also the GOAT Carlos rivera who was joes rivals at some point.

A Story That Grabs You
The storyline of Ashita no Joe is packed with emotion. It’s about perseverance, redemption, and the human spirit's ability to keep fighting. There are moments in Joe’s career—his wins, losses, and all the in-betweens—that hit hard and stay with you long after you’ve finished watching. Don’t forget this ISNT A SPORTS ANIME/MANGA
it’s a drama centered around boxing

A Gritty, Real World
Set in a rough, unforgiving world, the series doesn’t shy away from the harsh realities of life. From the slums where Joe grows up to the brutal training and intense boxinng matches, everything feels grounded in reality. This grit makes Joe’s struggles feel even more meaningful.

Inspiring Themes;
More than just a boxing story, Ashita no Joe is about overcoming the odds and pushing through life’s challenges. Joe’s drive to be the best, despite the setbacks he faces, is inspiring. It’s a series that reminds you that hard work, determination, and not giving up are key to achieving your dreams.

A Trailblazer in Its Genre:
Ashita no Joe set the stage for many sports anime and manga that followed. Its focus on deeop character-driven stories in a sports setting influenced countless series that came after. Joe himself has become an iconic figure in anime, and his legacy live on in modern shows.

Striking Artwork and Animatio:
The manga’s art style is intense and expressive, capturing both the physicality of the boxing scenes and the emotional depthof the characters. The anime brings this to life with fluid animation, making the fights and character moments even more impactful.

Memorable Music
The soundtrack perfectly matches the tone of the series, amplifying both the emotional and action-packed moments. The opening and ending themez have become classics, cherished by fans.

Cultural Impact
Ashita no Joe holds a special place in Japanese culture. It came out during a time of significant change in Japan, and its themes of struggle and perseverance resonated with people. Its influence has even been seen in other shows, like a scene in Food Wars that pays homage to Joe’s iconic pose at the series’ end.
In short, Ashita no Joe is a masterpiece because of its rich characters, emotionally charged story, realistic world, and timeless themes. It’s a series that not only shaped the sports genre but continues to resonate with audiences today.

Reviewer’s Rating: 10

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Aug 21, 2022

skyllark

Mixed Feelings

I decided to take a look at this show after seeing the characters and artwork. I've never seen a sports anime before this. So from my limited perspective, I enjoyed the show.

VISUALS-
Since I came for the art, I'll start with that. What's my say on it? I actually love it. There are animation errors galore (mouths flying off of faces), and plenty of wonky movements, but it makes up for them. You may dislike the art, though, if the cheapness or outdated look distracts you.

To begin, there's a ton of beautiful texture throughout all of the drawings in the show. Especially in the more ... emotionally intense or fast-paced action sequences, you get a lot of wild pencil strokes, rough brush lines, and deep, comic-like shadows that are really refreshing to see when compared to the clean, overly sanitized look of the 21st century. The characters are often contoured in a much thicker line than the backgrounds they're placed on, creating a bold, stylish effect. The backgrounds, especially during fight scenes, are beautiful. The artists transport the characters out of the ring and into colorful, psychedelic backgrounds that I always pause to appreciate.

A highlight of the artwork is the facial expressions. When characters are punched, knocked out, or physically tortured in any way, their faces contort into these brutal, lifeless expressions that really communicate what they're feeling. They always make me go "Oof!" and cringe when I see them take a hit. Their eyes become empty husks. It's very effective.

The art also makes great use of "line of action" or "arcs". These aren't weak punches being thrown. The artists will place the most extreme line they can on the page and draw a punch over it, I swear. There are some really great frames in here to study if you want to learn about drawing great arcs and great punches.

Other than that, you get a strong 70s aesthetic with the art style itself, as well as the outfits and settings depicted. My only qualm with the art, besides the errors and reused animations, is that it suffers from (I hate using this phrase, but) "same face syndrome"-- every notable lady in this show looks identical (Noriko, Yoko, Yuri, and even Sachi), and most men that Joe goes up against in the ring resemble Rikiishi in some way.

THE ANIMATION ITSELF-
The show has a great look to it at times, but the animation itself isn't very special. You occasionally get clips that are well animated, like some punches, which tend to have more frames than a typical shot, but for the most part, the movements themselves are average, sometimes a bit wonky, or just very cheap. Simple lip flap animations, no interesting camera movements, and sometimes wonky/shaky scenes. Very standard of the time it was made, so I can't really complain much about that.

CHARACTERS- SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!!!! SKIP THIS SECTION TO AVOID SPOILERS.
I love a good antihero. Joe, at first, is a frustrating character to watch. You will find yourself yelling at him through the screen for the majority of the first half, but that somehow made me all the more invested in him. I couldn't help but to keep watching as I waited for him to finally do the right thing.

And then, of course, there's Rikiishi: Joe's rival. He's got ruggedly good looks, a deep voice, a wicked backstory where he ended up in jail after nearly killing a heckler at one of his boxing matches, effortless skill and charisma, and when he gets out of juvie, he's always dressed to the nines and has an inventory of multiple vintage sports cars. He's hard not to admire. At least to a chick like me..!

So you have these two characters that you get invested in, and then you just.. Watch them waste away.
You watch them, for seemingly no good reason at all, go down a road of destroying themselves for the sake of their own foolish pride. "This is a man's world," Rikiishi says, as he develops an eating disorder and suffers a brain hemorrhage all in a span of roughly 10 episodes. It's hard to watch.

But the show handles the loss beautifully. I watch a lot of soap operas-- those characters drop like flies, and the cast forgets about them within three or four episodes. Not Ashita no Joe. Joe dedicates a lot of time to mourning Rikiishi. You watch Joe battle in agony with so many feelings that finally make his character a lot more sympathetic. He drops the tough-guy act and you hear him admit that all of this time, it was love and admiration that kept him so enthralled with Rikiishi, it was never the hatred he claimed it to be. Echoes of his death are felt for the rest of the series, as Joe can never return to the fighter he once was. Every match brings him flashbacks of his tragic fight with Rikiishi, forcing him to go into shock and throw up in the middle of the ring.

As the audience, you go from rooting for Joe to join boxing, thinking it'll help get him off of the streets and give him a solid job and purpose, to feeling very conflicted and almost guilty that you ever wished that for him at all.

NOTES ON THE SHOW- NO SPOILERS
In regards to the show as a whole: There were a lot of moments where the slow pacing felt like filler and dragged the show out, but other moments where the slow pacing was perfect and gave the audience the exact emotional time frame it needed to feel the impact of important moments. Past around episode 60, I was surprised that I still felt engaged at all with the character of Joe and the show as a whole, but even with that being said, it wasn't the same after that point. As other reviews have pointed out, Nishi has a confusingly fast turnaround and Joe has very, very strong plot armor. Nevertheless, I was impressed that this show got me to cry multiple times. I fell for every emotional beat!

The troupe of children are the weakest characters in the show. They're annoying. The only time I enjoy their presence is when Joe bonds with them, it can be touching and softens Joe's frustrating-at-times exterior. In my opinion, it's okay to skip their scenes and episodes at your discretion.

ENDING REMARKS-
If you have an appreciation for older films and older anime, and if you like dramas, I recommend this. Especially if you like grungy, bloody, scratchy art and plenty of pretty boney looking men, hahah! As a horror fan, I sure do! It's a very masculine show.

I need to read the manga! From these reviews, it seems like I'm missing out! If the show's pretty good, I'm sure the manga is a masterpiece.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Sep 17, 2024

Raewulf

Not Recommended

Funny

This is not a show about boxing. It's about domesticating a delinquent orphan. Joe does not learn from his mistakes nor does his coach seem able to instruct him the most basic techniques. Every bout had this pattern: Joe brawls, Joe is beaten badly, then Joe comes out swinging and lucks out.

As a character, Joe is unappealing. The way he conducts himself I'd say he sustained brain damage as a kid. He is confusing, aggressive, and snobbish. The people who cheer him on possibly relate to his psychological problems. At one point, he was treated with kindness, and attacked her for it.

Danpei, his ... trainer, is the reason I stuck around. He was a miserable drunk and a doting father to Joe. He nearly gave up on him but he was set on his mission to make Joe a boxing legend. There were only two episodes I can positively say were redeeming. Joe and Danpei argued on the merits of his coaching, considering his history, and Danpei was so upset by Joe's tone he suggested he should look for a better trainer, possibly from the gym his present rival inhabits. You could feel the tension in the room. There was one other episode, which I had expected at some point, where Danpei had pushed Joe to try real boxing techniques, as opposed to his amateur slugging. In sum, this is not a boxing show; it is a splendid demonstration on what not to do in the ring.

I chose not to make an additional post for the second season. It had the same issues, but with a different style and speed, without any exceptional episodes to redeem it.

Reviewer’s Rating: 2

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