Fist of the North Star
Fist of the North Star (北斗の拳, Hokuto no Ken) (often called Hokuto no Ken and shortend to FotNS or HnK) is a shonen manga written by Buronson and illustrated by Tetsuo Hara, and the main subject of this wiki project.
Profile
Fist of the North Star was serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump from 1983 to its completion in 1988. The series is collected in a variety of formats ranging from standard tankōbons to special edition volumes such as the Ultimate Editions, all of which contain the manga as it was serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump with differences such as art retouches and dialogue changes.
The manga has sold over 100 million copies, making it one of the best-selling manga series in history. It has been adapted into two anime television series produced by Toei Animation, which together aired on Fuji TV and its affiliates from 1984 through 1988, comprising a combined total of 152 episodes. It has since expanded into a media franchise, including several anime films, a live-action film, OVAs, video games, and a series of spin-offs centering on other characters from the original story. It also has a number of video games and pachinko machines produced by Sega Sammy.
Plot Summary
Part 1
Shin and the King Organization
Golan
Jackal and the Devil Reborn
Part 2
The Fang Clan
The Battle Against Jagi
Toki, Ambia, and the Village of Miracles
Encounter with Kennoh at Cassandra
Yuda Arc
Part 3
The Holy Emperor Souther
Characters
Disclaimer: The romanization of character's names comes from the 2021 English release by Viz Media. Some other media such as the official English localizations of video games done by Sega or Crunchyroll subtitles feature slightly different romanizations.
Battles
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Manga
Anime
Soundtracks
Opening Themes
Ending Themes
Legacy
Fist of the North Star is considered one of the most influential shonen manga series of all time. Online reviwers have called it "an epochal, generation-defining work that introduced madcap ultraviolence to the page and inspired tons of other mangaka." Berserk creator Kentaro Miura named Fist of the North Star as the work that had the biggest impact on his own. Vinland Saga author Makoto Yukimura was first inspired to become a manga artist after reading the series as a boy.
It also had an influence on video games. Technōs Japan game designer Yoshihisa Kishimoto cited it as an influence on the setting and art style of arcade beat 'em up game Double Dragon, which had a disaster-ridden city inspired by both Mad Max and Fist of the North Star. It has also been credited with originating the fatality finishing move concept which later appeared in the Mortal Kombat series of fighting games.
Trivia