Kenshiro
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“
You are already dead (お前はもう死んでいる)
”
—Ken's catchphrase
Kenshiro (ケンシロウ, Kenshirō), also simply known as Ken (ケン, Ken), is the main protagonist of Fist of the North Star. He is the 64th successor of the Hokuto Shinken (北斗神拳, lit. Big Dipper God Fist) style and considered one of the greatest successors in its 1,800 year history.
Appearance
He often wears a blue jacket-like shirt with a red undershirt, or no undershirt at all exposing his chest, with mettalic shoulder pads and a leather cufflet on his right arm and bandages on his left arm. He also wears pants of similar coloring and a belt and boots.
One of his most recognizable features are seven circular-shaped scars on his chest in the shape of the Big Dipper given to him by his former rival Shin. Ken's apperance is highly influenced by that of martial artist Brunce Lee as well as action film actor Yūsaku Matsuda and the Mad Max film series.
Personality
Although emotionally repressed and stoic like many male heroes in 1980s media, Kenshiro is notable in manga and anime culture of the time for being a sensitive and kind-hearted man who broke the established "men don't cry" cultural stereotype. He is famous for openly lamenting, if not outright despairing over, the suffering of innocents and the deaths of his few noble enemies. He is also shown to be more openly unhinged on the rare occasions where he does get angry, and rather than deny or attempt to rationalize it, he fully accepts his rage and his wish for revenge, along with the motivation they give him, disregarding any moral ambiguity.
Abilities
Hokuto Shinken
Personal Skills
Relationships
Creation and Development
Gallery
Kenshiro as drawn by Araki
