Fist of the North Star out on US DVD

[Cthulhu]

My finance and I have been enjoying the wonderful absurdity that is Fist of the North Star for a little while now. It's one of those things that I wanted for years and it's _finally_ gotten a nice release in the US. Yes, the show is hilariously bad in many places, but that's the point! Reflecting knives at people's faces with nunchuks! Killing 100 people with one spinning kick! Giant pink afro endowed vampires! It's all here and it's all ludicrously awesome.

Well worth picking up if you're a connoisseur of Cheez Action.

[drauch]

Dude, yeah, I've been so pumped for this. I love Fist of the North Star and it's great they finally re-released it. I don't really agree that it's cheesy, but more so just brutal as hell.

[Battlesmurf]

http://www.amazon.com/Fist-North-Star-6 ... 465&sr=8-1

Okay- so let me get this straight (i've been out of the loop on this stuff).

There are 2 series. Original + New. This link is what you're talking about- this is the first chunk of the 1st series. Then there are a few specials and a movie?

My history with the series goes as far as watching a few of the new series, reading some of the US manga (which was discontinued before it was finished). I'm completely out of the loop with the anime stuff.

[drauch]

Yeah, the series that just got released is the one based on the manga. It spans 109 episodes and has a movie, which is awesomeeeeee. I've never seen any of the "new" stuff. Personally I think it kinda looks like garbage.

[Battlesmurf]

Yeah, the series that just got released is the one based on the manga. It spans 109 episodes and has a movie, which is awesomeeeeee. I've never seen any of the "new" stuff. Personally I think it kinda looks like garbage.

Is it know whether or not they're going to release all 109 eps and the movie in their entirety? (I'm also assuming that cropping/censoring is a non issue?)

[drauch]

Yeah, from what I've read they plan on releasing the entire series. The movie has already been re-released awhile back. But yeah, everything seems intact and un-edited. Shame about the movie, however. I guess the original print got caught up in some fire, or something. It's got some weird animation on some of the really violent stuff, but moviegoers who originally saw it say that's how it was. Hard to say.

[BIL]

Okay- so let me get this straight (i've been out of the loop on this stuff).

There are 2 series. Original + New. This link is what you're talking about- this is the first chunk of the 1st series. Then there are a few specials and a movie?

There were two series of the FOTNS television anime, which together covered about 90% of the manga (the manga's very last story arcs were never animated anywhere). The 1986 theatrical movie is a rough adaptation of the earlier manga volumes. That's all the series' anime for the 80s.

More recently there's also the three "Shin Hokuto no Ken" OVAs, which took place after the manga's end, and several movies and specials again based on the manga. The newer stuff is really easy to spot, completely different art style compared to the 80s animation.

I just stick with the manga, myself (about 95% of it is fully scanlated now). Less flamboyant character designs, undiluted violence and better pacing overall. Still re-read it every now and then, some of the drama is actually pretty compelling and the silly violence never lets up. I do love the voice acting in the first anime series, though. Raoh's VA sounds like he gargles broken glass and shits TNT. "MUAHHHH!"

[ZOM]

Best anime show evar.

The 1986 theatrical movie is a rough adaptation of the earlier manga volumes.

very very very, very rough adaption.

Haven't seen the newer stuff either, looks like crap to me too.

[BIL]

Yeah, a ton of stuff is missing / changed from the manga volumes it's based on. A lot of it is understandable minor incidents, but Toki (and his humanist face breaking fist) should've been fit in somehow. Toki vs Raoh sibling rivalry is among the best parts of the early manga. No Mamiya means Rei is nowhere near as developed either. Still worth a watch for the vivid animation. Nice soundtrack too. Ease my pain, ease my roneryness!

Of the new animation, I've only seen the Raoh Gaiden movie of the Souther arc. It's decent in some regards (a certain iconic death scene is handled brilliantly), but I hate how how Kenshiro is portrayed. He's a perpetually scowling "badass" with none of the manga / tv anime's humanity or likeability. On the other hand the gore is virtually non-existent, so it's a bit of a washout there too. Not worth watching if you've not seen the original anime.

[Obiwanshinobi]

DUAL SHOCK!!!
Manga is the shit, though.

[ZOM]

It's "You は shock!"

[JoshF]

Animu doodles can't match Tetsuo Hara's style.

[drauch]

Best anime show evar.

The 1986 theatrical movie is a rough adaptation of the earlier manga volumes.

very very very, very rough adaption.

Haven't seen the newer stuff either, looks like crap to me too.

Yeah, it's quite the change...

One thing I can agree with a bout the show is the lack of violence compared to the manga. It's still really violent, yeah, but hardly any blood at all.

[Daigohji]

It's awesome that this iconic series looks set to get a full release, finally. The 1986 movie was one of the first anime tapes I owned (a birthday present in 1993, along with 3x3 Eyes and Venus Wars). I'd advise anyone interested in the TV series to snap it up immediately, as 80s anime tend to be poor sellers and can vanish suddenly. I remember how disappointed I was when Imaginasian's releases of Orguss and Cat's Eye went out of print after only a few months and became impossible to find; I've still got an Orguss series box that only houses the first three of eight volumes.

[xris]

^agreed, if you want something on dvd, you better get it quick, just about all animation becomes difficult to find.
I've only seen the previous third of FONS series, seems pretty good. I had goten the movie on dvd at the begining of the year, my fourth copy, that will never be loaned out again. The OVA that were made a couple af years ago are pretty terrible, but if you're a fan it was something new at the time.
However, the latest tv series from last year, Legends of the Dark King, is awesome!! It covers all the stuff about Roah coming to Asura and setting up his rule, and doing all that cool shit you hear about. Plus, it shows how Toki ends up in Cassandra, and even has Souther in it. This was a great series based on the current gaiden manga series that has been running, focusing on the individual charactures. I really hope that the rest of these see the light of television. Would love to see the one about Rei, and the traitor Jagi.

[Battlesmurf]

I wonder why someone like Dark Horse hasn't scooped up the manga. You'd figure it'd be a good fit. I think the last english manga I have the first (6?7?) out of 8- the company went under before they finished. I doubt dark horse is going anywhere for awhile.

[xris]

I think the Fist manga is just cursed to never see the light of day. I slowly had to piece together as much of the rest of the series in Japanese as I could get when I was younger. Boy, was I confused by the guy that was running around impersonating Toki. Everything else was pretty straight forward and easy to figure out. They tried selling The Fist of the Blue Sky, which, erm, sucked.

[TLB]

What?

Please explain why you believe fist of the blue sky sucks. I would like to understand your opinion.

[Chacranajxy]

I just finished watching this set a few days ago. I'd never seen more than a few episodes of FOTNS (though I was a huge fan of the PS2 fighter), and I ended up really enjoying it. It gets particularly good after that first chapter ends. The video quality on this set is pretty damn amazing... for a show produced in '84, it looks remarkably clear.

[Daigohji]

I wonder why someone like Dark Horse hasn't scooped up the manga. You'd figure it'd be a good fit.

It's the same reason we've never had Rose of Versailles: any series that's more than a few years old is considered a high risk, high cost, low reward proposition for licensing. A classic 70s/80s series that's a big seller in Japan will command a huge licensing fee from the publisher, but the western audience for that series could be tiny. Consider how long it's taken for a good selection of Osamu Tezuka's work to be published in English. It's good fortune that we ever got a full release of Black Jack, and I'm amazed that we ever got a translation of Buddha. The current focus of the market is to slap out the lastest releases as soon as possible, before scanlations/fansubs kill all interest in a legitimate release.

[JoshF]

I do remember seeing the manga in stores a few years ago, but it was digitally colored or something. Totally ruined Hara's detailed hatching.

[Octopod]

The live action film was awesome.

[xris]

^No
I think I don't like Fist of the Blue Sky 'cause of the setting. The charas make sense to me in a postapox world, their extreme martial arts were preserved for this time. (modern ninjas practice under this ideal)
1920's (or whichever old timey decade) China just seems silly to me, but this is just me, I guess there would always be the trials that come with this level of extreme bad ass, this would have to take place somewhere. These two points go double for the villains.
I'm a big fan of The Blood Sword (Chinese Hero) by Ma Wing Shing (Jademan Comics, unbelievably well drawn, watershed moment for martial art entertainment. Absolutely one of my all time favorite illustrators) and Fist of the Blue Sky seems like some kind of weird fan project mix of the two, like a Gaiden.

[TLB]

Alright, I suppose I can dig that viewpoint. I actually read Fist of the Blue Sky before I ever read Fist of the North Star, so '20s Shanghai or wherever seemed perfectly fine to me. All a matter of taste and how it strikes you personally, I guess. To be honest, '80s postapocalyptic wastelands seemed out of place when I first read HnK, so I can relate.

Speaking of SnK, I should catch up on that shit. A few chapters have probably come out since I last read.

[Obiwanshinobi]

It's "You は shock!"

YOU DON'T SAY!!!
VISUALSHOCK! SPEEDSHOCK! SOUNDSHOCK!
NOW IS TIME TO THE 68000 HEART ON FIRE!

[Cthulhu]

Wow, I had no idea this would get such a response. Makes me happy though!

As far as the show being cheesy or not goes... well, when the story isn't stuck on crap filler it's not cheesy. The filler is cheesy as hell. (See pink afro vampire ep again, if you must, for proof.) The problem is that in the original manga the confrontations are closer than the anime producers wanted, and so they shove random junk to spread things out. Hence, episodes 5-17 or something nutty like that are mostly fluff that's not in the original at all. Still fun to watch though, if you're that sort of person. (I am!)

My understanding of their license is that they do indeed have all of the TV episodes (from both series). They want to release them all but are a small company, and so I don't think they can really "commit" to putting out any more than will sell. If you like the show, please support them and buy the sets as they can release them. They're reasonably priced and high quality. And Fist.

[cj iwakura]

The game's also getting a US release soon. Coincidence? (The PS3 beat'em'up)

[BIL]

To be honest, '80s postapocalyptic wastelands seemed out of place when I first read HnK, so I can relate.

It's not 80s, it's 199X.

[D]

I saw all 152 episodes and all the movie.
Love it.
I also love the fighting ps2/AW fighting game!

[TLB]

To be honest, '80s postapocalyptic wastelands seemed out of place when I first read HnK, so I can relate.

It's not 80s, it's 199X. :wink:

:)

Tell that to everyone's hair ^_-