Today, anime has risen as one of the most followed genres in the world of series. Beyond action and drama, Japanese animation has carved out its own space and gained a loyal audience worldwide. And that’s something, of course, that streaming platforms couldn’t overlook.
Both Crunchyroll and Amazon Prime Video are two VOD services to be highly considered by the otaku audience, but Netflix still leads in many ways. The platform offers both new and original anime as well as classics in its catalog, and one you shouldn’t miss is Hajime no Ippo.
The definitive anime about boxing
“Hajime no Ippo,” known as “Espíritu de lucha” in Latin America and “Fighting Spirit” in the United States, is an anime about boxing created by the mangaka Jyoji Morikawa. Netflix’s official synopsis makes it clear that it has all the ingredients of the best sports anime:
“Hajime no Ippo tells us the adventures of Makunouchi Ippo, a young man who at the age of 17 decides to shake off the karma of always being considered weak and being pushed around by stronger people. To do this, he decides to enter the world of boxing, which he discovers through the indirect influence of Mamoru Takamura, a professional boxer who has been in the sport for years and is considered one of the strongest boxers in Japan in his category.”
With a total of 76 episodes of 25 minutes each, the series premiered in 2001 and was a huge success in the early millennium. However, it has found new life on Netflix, introducing many to it for the first time. The series follows the rise of the protagonist, Ippo, from being a boxing novice to becoming a professional boxer and winning championships. So, it also serves as inspiration for enthusiasts of this sport.
