Ring ni Kakero is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masami Kurumada. It was published in Weekly Shōnen Jump between January 1977 and October 1981. The individual chapters were compiled by Shueisha into twenty-five tankōbon volumes. A sequel entitled Ring ni Kakero 2 was serialized in Super Jump between 2000 and 2008. An anime adaptation produced by Toei Animation premiered in October 2004. It was followed by a second season premiered in April 2006, a third season in April 2010 and a fourth season in April 2011. Ring ni Kakero is one of the Jump magazine's best-selling manga seriesof all time, with over 13million copies sold since its first publication until 2008.
Plot
The story centers around the life of a young boxer named Ryuuji Takane and his sister Kiku, who is his coach. Ryuuji and his sister both inherited their father's talent for boxing with Ryuuji inheriting his strength and techniques while Kiku picked up his talent for analysis and strategy. In the past, their father was a famous boxer. Ryuuji and Kiku went away from home to train and become famous in order to help their lonely mother. On the way to stardom, they have to defeat the strongest challengers all over the world. In Ring ni Kakero 1, the characters are briefly introduced, telling the story from the moment Ryuuji and Jun Kenzaki fight for the National Boxing Title and having both achieved stardom. Ryuuji's sister then tells the story from the beginning which starts from when Ryuuji is the finalist in a local youth championship and had to compete against Kenzaki, the latter winning after an almost tie and K.O. one-to-one fight. Afterwards, most of the series tells about Ryuuji being the successor of Kenzaki, who competes in the Japan National Boxing Championship, where he encounters strong and deadly opponents, including Ishimatsu Katori, Takeshi Kawai and Kazuki Shinatora. Other opponents make cameo appearances, such as the USA and France Champions. Also Führer Skörpion had an appearance, who ordered a fellow member of the Boxing Team to "follow" Kenzaki and Ryuuji, as possible threats to the World Championship. Later on, the Jr. Japan team facing Blackshaft's team was adapted into an anime. Ryuji, Jun, Katori, Kazuki, and Takeshi represented Japan. Blackshaft had no intention of taking Japan seriously in a boxing match so he recruits Mick, leader of the Great Angels New York Branch, a deathrow inmate Monster Jail, Missie Charnel, a mysterious androgynous boy boxing champion known for his unhealthy obsession with his own beauty that knows no bounds as well as that in which he savors reducing the "pretty" faces of any opponent he faces in the ring into mush, along with hypnotic powers that he casts upon his opponents to leave them as sitting ducks for his attacks and high-speed punches and fancy footwork, and N.B. Forrest, also known as the emperor of the south and a Ku Klux Klan member. The second season ends with The Shadow clan, formed by a boxer who used the sweet science as an assassination art, aiming after Team Japan. The main techniques of Ryuuji are his Left-Right Jabs, his stubborn courage and his special technique, the "Boomerang Hook" and "Boomerang Thelios". Ryuuji and Kawai were the finalists of the tournament.
Ring ni Kakero is written and illustrated by Masami Kurumada. The series was published in Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump between January 10, 1977 and October 12, 1981. Shueisha compiled the individual chapters into twenty-five tankōbon volumes published between January 31, 1978 and January 15, 1983. The series was re-released into a 18-volume deluxe edition published between September 9, 2001 and May 6, 2002. In 2000, a sequel entitled Ring ni Kakero 2 was published in Shueisha's Super Jump, a seinen magazine. Ring ni Kakero 2 tells the story of Kiku and Jun's son, Rindo Kenzaki, who is raised by Katori Ishimatsu after losing both of his parents. The series ran on an irregular basis until 2008. Shueisha compiled the individual chapters into twenty-six tankōbon volumes published between July 9, 2000 and February 9, 2009.
Anime
27 years after the first chapter debuted, the manga was finally adapted into an anime series by Toei Animation. The series premiered October 6, 2004 and was broadcast on TV Asahi. It covered the first story arc of the manga. Since Ring ni Kakero 2 was being serialized in Super Jump at the time, the anime was titled Ring ni Kakero 1 to distinguish it from the more current manga. A total of 36 episodes were made, published in format DVD for the world market.
Episode list
Season 1: ''Carnival Champion'' arc (2004)
Season 2: ''The Pacific War'' arc (2006)
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Season 3: ''Shadow'' arc (2010)
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Season 4: ''World Tournament'' arc (2011)
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Video game
Ring ni Kakero - Super Famicom
Reception
Ring ni Kakero is one of the Jump magazine's best-selling manga series of all time, with over 13million copies sold since its first publication until 2008.
