Fist of the North Star Vol. 13

北斗の拳 究極版 [Hokuto no Ken Kyūkyoku-ban] #13

by Buronson

Laut kematian... Konon, tak ada seorang pun yang kembali dalam keadaan hidup setelah menyeberanginya. Di penghujung laut itu terdapat negeri yang hanya melahirkan Asura petarung. Kenshiro menginjakkan kakinya di negero itu demi menyelamatkan Rin yang dibawa pergi oleh Jask. Duel dengan banyak Asura dan para Rasho yang tangguh pun dimulai!

"Orang yang mencemari harga diri seorang pria layak untuk mati!"

Genres: Manga, Comics, Science Fiction

296 pages, Paperback

First published April 19, 2014

About the author

Okamura Yoshiyuki (岡村善行), also known as Buronson (武論尊) or Sho Fumimura (史村翔 Fumimura Shō), is a Japanese manga writer most known by his famous work Hokuto no Ken. known in English as Fist of the North Star.
He graduated from the Japanese Air Force Training School in 1967 and served as an Air Force radar mechanic. In 1969 he discharged from the Japanese Navy and was soon hired by Hiroshi Motomiya as a manga assistant. He started his manga writing career when he wrote the script of Pink Punch: Miyabi in 1972, drawn by Goro Sakai. In 1975 Buronson wrote his first big hit The Doberman Detective, drawn by Shinji Hiramatsu. The famous Hokuto no Ken made its debute as Buronson's greatest hit in 1983, drawn by Tetsuo Hara. In 1989 his story Ourou was released as a manga serialized in Animal Magazine, drawn by Kentarou Miura, and in 1990 a sequel entitled Ourou Den was released by the same manga artist. Buronson also collaborated with the manga artist Ryoichi Ikegami in many works as Strain (manga) , Human (manga) and the famous Sanctuary (manga). Among his other major works are The Phantom Gang, with art by Kaoru Shintani.

Buronson was mainly influenced by movies such as Bruce Lee's, and Mad Max.

The nickname Buronson is a tribute to the American actor Charles Bronson, whose way of growing the mustache was imitated by Yoshiyuki Okamura too.

Reviews

[Agnese Rosengren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Questo arco narrativo mi sta prendendo molto più di quanto mi aspettassi.

[Andy Cantrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ken visits an island of basically Spartan killing machines, and one punches his way through them all while looking like Cobra-Era Sylvester Stallone.

[Paul Spence · Rating 3 out of 5]

Volume 13 is an odd mixture of elements and novel concepts that dazzle visually while being all right otherwise.

I hate to sound like a broken record, but many of the same strengths and weaknesses seen here have been with the series since Volume 10. There is a lot to enjoy, especially with the artwork and character designs. The medium is used well, and the new setting is a big first for the series, providing novel environments and concepts. The ongoing issue remains whether all of these new ideas and characters will gain the same ground in the reader's admiration as the previous arcs and whether this just feels like everyone involved is simply making more because, hey, why stop?

The Land of Asura is the marquee element of this volume. Fist of the North Star has had Kenshiro travelling all over the wasteland, wandering from one environment to another, but this is the first time he has made the journey to a truly novel location. This is a landmark moment in and of itself. It gives Tetsuo Hara and Borunson a license to create new concepts, set new expectations, and make a significant break from what has come before.

They do get decent mileage out of these new ideas initially. It's quite astounding to see Tetsuo Hara drawing vast seas and oceans after years of Kenshiro drawn against the harsh, sandy backdrops of the world that we knew. He is no slouch in this regard – but I'm sure that's no surprise to you, dear reader. The oceans are inky and unforgiving, thrashing about on the page despite being still images. The ship that Kenshiro rides to get to the Land of Asura is a massive one, as this ocean mimics the land only allowing the strongest to survive.

We get a complete rework of the average population in the Land of Asura. Back in the wasteland we had grown accustomed to, many of the average people were hapless civilians terrorized by the strong, elite few. Sure there were armies of bemuscled and bemohawked warriors, but they were always portrayed as being less in number compared to the swathes of survivors dotting villages or serving as slave labour in various strongholds. The Land of Asura on the other hand only really has two occupations: those who kill and those who are killed. Every man is trained from boyhood to succeed or perish, and even within those ranks, there are further stratifications of power.

These elements coalesce into a rather fearsome reputation indeed. Harsh seas, harsh lands, harsh people – the legend of the Land of Asura looms large in these early chapters.

Sadly, this effect starts to wear off rather quickly. Once Kenshiro arrives at the Land of Asura and starts getting into his usual shenanigans (punching people until they explode, being the coolest guy ever – you know, typical Kenshiro stuff), it ends up feeling not all that different from the wasteland he just vacated. Kenshiro still ends up walking around a mostly empty landscape broken up by a few ultra-bizarro torture dungeons, fighting villains, and doing his usual stuff. It is technically different in theory, but in practice, it's more of the same Fist of the North Star.

This is not a problem, mind you! “Oh no, not more chapters of one of the greatest shonen fighting tales ever told,” is a complaint you will never hear me utter. But it is worth pointing out that for all the additional setup and preparation to establish new norms, this does not feel measurably different than what came before. In that sense, it is easy to understand why people criticize this stretch of the series after the final battle with Raoh.

Or is it the final battle with Raoh? Some rumours are already flying in the text about Raoh being the legendary warrior. Is it just hearsay, or will he return? I won't spoil it for you if you don't already know. That said, even in the text of the series the shadow of Raoh hangs over everything that is happening, and that makes it a challenge to escape those comparisons.

One of the big standout new characters is Shachi. Shachi is another long-haired companion for Kenshiro and is more interesting than he first seems. At first blush, you might fear he's a pale imitation of Rei, Toki, or Shu. Shachi's long hair has certainly been adjusted for inflation. But he actually manages to find a distinct identity despite his short time with Kenshiro, mainly because he wields a sister style to the Hokuto Shinken: Hokuto Ryuken. This is a situation where the new island actually creates storytelling opportunities that are just unique enough without rocking the boat too much. It makes sense that the Hokuto school would have branching paths of understanding separated by major geographical features. I think the reason Gento Koken sort of flopped for me was that it was hard to buy this brand new style existing so close to the other two main styles that had dominated the narrative for so long. Here we have a new but not totally new style with a clear reason for its separation – that's great!

The art is excellent as always. I've been beating on this drum forever, but if you want to see amazing art and a keen understanding of the comic medium, here it is. Even when Tetsuo Hara is so obviously pulling on outside references, he manages to make it feel distinct. Sure, Kenshiro looks like Stallone in Cobra, but he also looks like Kenshiro realizing that same basic outfit without it feeling like awkward cosplay. It's masterful stuff, alongside all the usual gore and great action.

The volume's a strong package, but at the same time, I wouldn't blame someone for feeling like there are diminishing returns in this latter era of the run.

[CesarSadAsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Este arco de la isla de los Ashita, baff ha revivido la historia (y no me pondré a pensar en que parezca una novela familiar todo el reguero de hermanos perdidos en esta obra, tiene toda la violencia, el Gore, las peleitas épicas, los perros giros del guión que necesito.
Pd: Solo me disgusto que nuevamente desperdiciaron un personaje tan poderoso como Falco solo peleando con un simple enemigo

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly when the Raoh story arc concludes it takes a bit a of hit story/art wise. I wonder if there was a staff change-up

[Diogo Muller · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is another fun, if a bit repetitive volume. At this point, the whole "asspull some new thing" the plot always does is getting a bit old, but the series itself is still fun to read.

[David Austin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ken in the land of the Asuras, Falco puts them over, enter Scachi. The usual silliness, but this time Ken wears sunglasses.

[Shin Donghae · Rating 4 out of 5]

Meski terkesan repetitif, namun jilid ini adalah salah satu yang 'menyenangkan'. Pada titik ini, Buronson sensi memberikan sesuatu yang baru (tapi stok lama hha) pada keseluruhan plot di arc kedua. Setidaknya ini masih tetap menyenangkan untuk terus disimak. Atatatata!!!

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like when American pop culture gets referenced in media from other countries because it’s interesting seeing what stuff from here was popular enough in other countries to warrant referencing. Here we get multiple panels of Kenshiro looking conspicuously like Sylvester Stallone in Cobra, and a bad guy in a flashback modeled after Sloth from The Goonies.

[Ruz El · Rating 4 out of 5]

13 volumes of basically the same "rinse and repeat" formula, but here I am done with a goofy grin on my face. It's as silly as the rest of the series, but this one ends setting up a hell of a fight sequence so I'm in for Vol 14.

[Reyne Derrick · Rating 3 out of 5]

What is with buronson’s obsession with killing off all his supporting characters. I swear the worst thing you could do in this universe is spend any time around Ken. Anyone who dies dies a volume or two after being intrigued. Bizarre.

[Leonardo Tupinambá · Rating 5 out of 5]

Terminou na melhor parte 😭

[Federico Lucifredi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great illustrations. Incredibly violent, and needlessly so (but still less than Battle Angel Alita). A classic, written by the master himself, Buronson.

[Omar Villafane · Rating 5 out of 5]

The stars have to align first. Then the chosen one arrives 💫♾️💪🏼

[Davide Pappalardo · Rating 4 out of 5]

What can I say? Extra violence, extra drama, bigger than life and over the top. That’s the series at its best, and it only gets better

[Etienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great one! I thoughts the island of elites soldiers would have bring something different, in the end it was more or less the same but I do enjoy it every time nonetheless.

[Al Capwned · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just more of the same as most of the times in this manga.

[Oliver Bateman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read the full review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...