Ashita no Joe: Fighting for Tomorrow

In a corner of Tokyo there is a place where the garbage flies with the wind, where the stink of the river is intolerable and the outcasts overwhelmed by alcohol go home destroyed by their working day, but not all are abandoned to themselves, not everyone is cut down despite adversity, among them there are those who aim high. Story: The story follow the life of Joe Yabuki, a rude boy without parents that grows thanks to wins and losses. However Ashita no Joe is not only the story of Joe, it represents the post-war Japan, its economic and social condition and the vision of a defeatedpeople in search of a better future, a people represented by a boxer who runs his way with his fists overcoming every obstacle to a brighter tomorrow. Art: Is for sure a dated style that improves over the course of the volumes, in fact, taking the first and the twentieth volumes you may notice the difference, initially is very rounded style, then the faces become more realistic with excellent expressions. Character: There are many characters and they are all different from each other and characterized very well, the relationship that develops between Joe and his rivals goes beyond mere friendship, the relationship between two people who fight with boxing gloves dirties with reciprocal blood and sweat is more than just a friendship based on one million of words. Enjoyment: This manga is very realistic, people can attach themselves to the protagonist that continues to grow despite making mistakes after mistakes. There are also the dramatic moments and breathtaking ones that are able to enter the heart of the reader. This is Ashita no Joe, a manga full of emotion, a masterpiece entered in the collective imagination that has cleared through customs the idea of ​​manga as something targeted only to a child audience.

The intense aura of a wild groan overwhelmed the whole hall, as the two gladiators standed between each other in unsteady gaze. The coach pushed your back, as the 10th round got started, by the decisive ring of the bell, crucial for recognizing the winner during the next 3 minutes. This local hall never felt such big applaud, yet couldn’t predict, that someday it would hold a world title match for their local hero. You can’t recognize anything from these mutters. As a matter of fact, you can not feel anything anyway. There is no fear, no strategy, no meaningless thoughts. Just pure descent intomadness, as the only feeling you can name for a while, the only thing that matters in this world is – your burning flame, once replenished never turned down, once your heart’s volcano errupted with it’s magma, it never stops exploding until it elevate your will, right with your flaming gloves into the Pompeii of your rival. And at the end the only thing that remains, is pure white ashes… Ashita no Joe is a work such underrated and unpopular, despite of it’s uproar back in it’s days, when it was published in late 60’s - it’s utmost sad, no one recognizes it anymore. I could have never stumble onto this if not for mere coincidence of noticing it on this site. This work is like an old man, ready to tell a quaint story from his days, yet there is no one to listen to him, as everyone are concerned with things more important or more interesting to take care about. It’s a work that – for me, as a boxing fan – replenished my love for the sport once more. A slow descent into the most obscure corners of Tokyo’s slums, where people trying their best to survive with their family can not think of anything else, as utter desperation and injustice at the world surrounding them. We did not want the war, why do we have to endure it’s consequences? Yet among them are people, who did not lose their spirit, they are ready to defy their fate and challenge the world, giving everything they can, to put up a fight and strive for more than just surviving – for Tomorrow. Joe is a short-tempered, rude and defiant teenager. Ready to solve every problem with fists, he does not feel any empathy nor humility to anyone. Full of egoism and spite, not think about anything nor anyone, than just his own survival in this messed up world, no matter if it’s by theft, crime or at cost of someone’s own safety. What remains true to Joe is – there is no one for him. Fleeing from orphan, in which he grew since he could remember, he never had a chance to feel love nor friendship. During his lone wandering through the slums of Tokyo, being a frivolous boy, he engaged into a fight again. What remained more shocking to people watching was, that Joe could handle everyone at himself, despite of being enormously outnumbered. Danpei used to be a boxer himself. However, after the loss of his left eye, he was forced to give up on his own boxing career, aiming to become a coach instead. But due to his violent, strict, passionate and even desperate approach in training, his proteges couldn't take it and abandoned him for better gyms. as he became jobless and eventually a homeless alcoholic. A cathartic moment, bombastic realization of Danpei Tange’s problem was finnaly understood by him, when he saw that boy fighting, as he could see with his very own eyes him standing on the top of the boxing world. In order to give Joe a training placement, Danpei tries to build up a low-standard boxing gym, for which he takes up a job in the mine, where he works horrendously long shifts – for Tomorrow. Despite of Danpei’s dedication to his plan, he could not hope for convincing Joe , he does not feel the need of listening to some crazy grump, nor some stupid-ass sport – as he does not listen to anyone in this world, which tries to preach him. Joe, due to his shameful conditions and constant crimes he commites, Joe goes to a juvenile prison miles away from Tokyo, where he meets Rikishi Toru – a boxer prodigy, who as the first one in Joe’s life could outclass him in his violent way of solving problems. Being at the verge of desperation, due to his lose, there is a tiny fire released in his heart, an uncontrolled passion of rivalry, which forces him to face Rikishi again, hence why he spents all nights in juvenile prison hitting his filthy mattress, according to Danpei’s training tips sent by letters to him. Where the boxing tournament is organised in the middle of juvenile prison, every uncontrolled delinquent faces a big change, a pure passion which can only be embraced by fists. Ashita no Joe is not just a story another inspirational story, following the same trope from zero to hero, rising to the top of his particular sport. It’s a story about the whole lifetime of it’s character, an as introverted, lonely and unstable human garbage, who cares for nothing but himself, that makes the lives of others a misery, that goes against every modern civilization rule, yet we see how he changes to a person, who is not good at treating women, who does not try to understand him, yet how he grows to appreciate his new friends and rivals. gaining empathy, learning how to check his temper and how to morally define the world around him. We observe his every thought and move, every expression of his suffering and his solitude and as the story progresses his pride, determination and uncompromise. It’s at no means lightheartening nor cheerful in it’s delivery. It’s a heavy collapse into the harsh reality of a boxer, where nothing is predictable and no one is truly safe, between the four corners. Mililiters of sweat, fear, anger, pride and the blood on gloves. Ashita no Joe is never going to lie about the harsh reality, nor going flashy about the confrontations of them and does not hold punches for a reader naïve enough to think of it as a game. People in this world can lose their health or lives, as what they can receive is far more meaningful, as Joe’s only salvation in his life was passion he gained by training boxing. Later on, the story gets extremely grim and does not hold any shock factor nor depressing motives, as what only remains in the end is white ashes… As how Ashita no Joe’s ending remains one of the most iconic moments in the anime history, I won’t hesitate of spoiling it. During the literature’s history, certain works or genres are often defined to their specific times, representing it’s values, motives and bright impact on the history of art, such as timeless Shakespearean tragedies, romantic poems or moving war diaries. Next to them, there are timeless pieces as Ashita no Joe to it’s nation’s history, while could be described as a sport series or a story about one man's life and his struggles, the writer’s message throughoutly transcendents the world of boxing and only the life of the protagonist - even the work itself, placing itself as one of the biggest cultural impacts manga has ever recorder, directly inspiring many boxing stories, as more famous Rocky Balboa and being the target of countless refferences in the anime medium. During the ending of the first season of anime adaptation airing in 1970, there was a special funeral for Joe’s rival – Rikishi, where about 700 people packed the streets dressed as Rikishi in his training suit. I could never feel so much emotions for a fictional character as much as I did for Joe. I loved Joe, i saw him grow from a snotty 15 year old to going toe to toe with the world's best boxer. When he finally finished the match and sat down on the chair and died, you could see he was happy... This scene is what made cry a lot of men throughout the 40 years from it’s publishing up to now and this work is what made me love this sport once again. “Ashita” in Japanese means “Tomorrow”, when bringing out the whole title could be free-translated to “Tomorrow’s Joe”, as Joe represents the struggle of the lower class of Japan, during it’s economic transformations, where in spite of hopelessness and vain ordinary people faced, there were people like Joe, who shined a light, giving hope and doing impossible, a story not only about boxing and Joe, but about people, who did not lose the sight of what remains true to them, aiming higher and putting up a fight with all their might… for Tomorrow!

There are so many manga easily available that as a reader it is hard to decide which one to read. Many are just good, some are very good and sometimes we start reading something that we don't want to finish. Rarely we come across a manga that transcends time and brings joy and tears to the reader. Such a manga can be called a Masterpiece. Ashita no Joe is one such manga. This is the story of a boy who became a great boxer. If I write like this I won't be able to convey my feelings and anyways the summary has been provided. Many atimes summaries can be deceiving and reviews too. What I can tell you for sure is that there is lots of action and drama in this story. The story is gripping from the first page to the last and keeps the reader spellbound. The characters are real and relatable. You fall in love with them. The art is beautiful. The expressions are conveyed clearly and the story really flows from page to page. That is to say the direction is extraordinary. Subtle marks on the page give meaning to it and this happens often in this manga. Some may say that the style is old, but all I care for is value. If its good I'll like it no mater what time it was drawn in. As for enjoyment this manga is the pinnacle of enjoyment. I can not ask for more. So, in a nutshell what I want to say is that: 1 This is a Masterpiece. 2 This is a must-read(especially if you like drama, sports and action.) You can not go wrong by reading this manga. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Read Ashita no Joe, they said. It's one of those recommendations that say absolutely nothing... And holy shit. Truth be told, this was tougher to read than Berserk. It certainly doesn't feel that way at first, owing to its classical cartoonish style and setup. You couldn't guess how deep this goes on first glance. On second glance. On third glance, because Joe just keeps going. Because unlike Berserk, which requires a good attachment to the cast in addition to its bountiful artwork, Ashita no Joe does not care about your feelings. It only requires you to keep reading, to keep watching Joe in the same wayhe asks Shiraki Yoko to never turn away from true greatness. The story kicks off with Joe being a dexterous ruffian. But when he finds himself in juvenile detention, he answers his life's calling to become a boxer. Throughout his journey, he quickly realizes that he is alone in the ring and revels in it. Fight after fight, Joe defies all expectations. The beauty of tomorrow is promising yet ephemeral. Tomorrow will only feature brutal bruises, bloody wounds, and the dust of dust. To everyone else, it is a revolting sight. But to him... That's tomorrow's Joe. One thing I found very appalling is the sparse development among its well-written characters. Of course, it's not to say that there's a lack thereof, but it's assumed because the manga overall doesn't need it. Most side characters only grow through the passage of time. Joe goes through intense arcs of emotion and isolation, but quickly grows from it and subtly matures into an apex predator, looking forward to yet another tomorrow. He might continue to thrash around like an unhinged monkey, because one can argue that Joe's fists go through more character development than what Joe displays. But deep down he is one of the most mature sportsman you'll ever witness. All it took was a few moments of tenderness, ones that showcased how attuned he is to reality moreso than anyone else in the room. And he's the one taking all of the punches! My god, dude. From his clash with Rikiishi all the way to the final bout, there's this uncanny hook in this manga that keeps you reading. A significant part of it is due to its simplistic structure and pacing, never dragging on and never a bore. Another significant part is the timeless style this manga is drawn in, giving it quite the unique and fresh vibe even today. And what would the manga be without the titular character himself? What would Joe be without the ego, the triple counter, the tenacity of a god to eat all of those punches? One word. Weak. So, if you want to set baseline expectations, you should watch Megalobox first. It's a show that's directly inspired by Ashita no Joe, though set in a different universe and much more digestible. Megalobox's characters, premise, and some story beats are vastly similar to Ashita no Joe, though their journeys are wildly different owing to its styles. Megalobox presents boxing as a symphonic spectacle. While Ashita no Joe is basically the same thing, it's much more nuanced than a symphony. It's a deathmatch in hell. In conclusion, It's very difficult to describe the entirety of Ashita no Joe in a single word, but I think I can. Tomorrow's Joe is UNBELIEVABLE. 10/10. Until next time.