The Eastern Japan Rookie Championship Tournament Begins is Round 13 of the Hajime no Ippo anime, which is the adaptation of Jōji Morikawa's Hajime no Ippo series.
Details[]
- Characters Introduced: Jason Ozuma, Hachinohe Coach, Hachinohe Coach's Wife, Hiroyuki Ōta
- Locations Introduced: Hachinohe Boxing Club, Nerima Boxing Club
Summary[]
Ippo, Aoki, Kimura, and Takamura celebrates Ippo's one year anniversary at the Kamogawa gym by eating at Iwata's Chinese Noodles. Ippo asks Aoki and Kimura how their All Japan Rookie King Tournament went, Takamura commented on how they failed. At the gym, while Ippo is sparring, Yagi and Kamogawa comes in and announces that Mashiba and Miyata is in a separate block in the tournament and that Ippo's first opponent will be Jason Ozuma. Kimura and Aoki comments that "Jason" is a bold and gruesome ring name. Takamura teases Ippo that the latter needs a new ring name, he then gives suggestions titled "Big Mutha' Ippo" and "Big Daddy Third Leg". Fujii enters the gym and gives details about Ozuma, showing he's from the United States of America and Jason is not a ring name. At the Hachinohe Boxing Club, Ozuma downs a sparring partner. The coach comments on his powerful hook. After training, he sees the coach's wife sewing a punching bag, Ozuma says that he will use his money to buy gloves and punching bags, so that she doesn't have to keep fixing them. Ozuma prepares to leave for Nerima, he receives money and words of encouragement. At the gym, Ippo worries about fighting Ozuma, but then remembers that after winning a lot, he will eventually face a strong opponent, he regains his fighting spirit with Miyata in his mind. At Nerima Boxing Group, while Ozuma is training with a punching bag, Hiroyuki Ōta invites him to a sparring match. Ōta refuses to put on headgear as he rushes to punch Ozuma. After a couple exchanges, Ōta begins to throw a huge punch, he misses, Ozuma delivers a right hook that knocks Ōta out and sends him to the hospital. At the gym, Yagi and Kamogawa discuss about Ozuma's hook, realising that Ippo needs to train to dodge the hook, Kamogawa calls for Takamura and Ippo into the ring. Kamogawa explains how powerful and fast Ozuma's hook is and how Ippo needs to dodge it. He fails to dodge Takamura's hooks and he starts training with hanging bars outside for days until finally he dodges Takamura's hook.
Anime-Manga Differences[]
See also: Anime-Manga Differences
- In the manga, there is a scene of Ippo and Takamura doing road work while Ippo recaps his matches against Yūsuke Oda and Yoshio Fujiwara, in the anime however, this scene is omitted.
- The anime removed a scene that was shown in the manga where Aoki appears to have painted his skin black in order to help Ippo face against the black boxer, Jason Ozuma.
- The anime didn't mention the following boxers; Fighting Harada, Jirō Watanabe, Muguruma Takuya
- In the manga Ippo says that Takamura is six classes above him. In the anime it is seven classes.
Credits[]
Characters are named as they appear in the credits.
Episode Credits[]
| Role | English Name | Japanese | Rōmaji |
|---|---|---|---|
| Screenplay | Kenji Sugihara | 杉原 研二 | Sugihara Kenji |
| Storyboard | Nanako Shimazaki | 島崎 奈々子 | Shimazaki Nanako |
| Director | Nanako Shimazaki | 島崎 奈々子 | Shimazaki Nanako |
| Animation Director | Toshiyuki Kan'no Kōji Sugiura |
菅野 利之 杉浦 幸次 |
'Kan'no Toshiyuki Sugiura Kōji |
[]
| Rookie King Tournament: First Rounder Arc | |||||||||||||||||||
| Manga Volumes | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | ||||||||||||||||
| Manga Rounds | |||||||||||||||||||
| 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | ||||||||||
| 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | ||||||||||
| 44 | 45 | 46 | 47 | 48 | 49 | 50 | 51 | ||||||||||||
| Anime Rounds | |||||||||||||||||||
| 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | |||||||||||