Kenshiro
Encyclopedia
is the main protagonist
of the manga
franchise Fist of the North Star
by Buronson and Tetsuo Hara
. According to Buronson, Kenshiro's character design was inspired by the character of Max Rockatansky
from the Mad Max
film series and martial artist Bruce Lee
.
In the story, Kenshiro is the rightful successor of an ancient art of assassination
called Hokuto Shinken
, which allows Kenshiro to defeat his adversaries through use of hidden meridian
points. Through the course of the original manga, Kenshiro fights against various ruffians who threaten the lives of the post-apocalyptic survivors, as well as numerous rival martial artists, including his three honorary brothers trained in the art of Hokuto Shinken.
Kenshiro is also known as the , due to the seven scars engraved on his chest patterned after the shape of the Big Dipper
(the symbol of the Hokuto school), as well as the . In the manga, as well as most anime adaptations of the franchise, Kenshiro's catchphrase just prior to an enemy's death is .
originally depicted Kenshiro as a teenager who fought against the rival martial arts school of the Taizanji Kenpō in 1980s Japan
in his two-part prototype version of Hokuto no Ken. This version of the character was given the full name of . In this setting, Kenshiro was the 23rd successor of Hokuto Shinken, preceded by his unnamed father, who in turn learned the art from the 21st successor, Master . This Kenshiro was much more cheerful than the Kenshiro of the serialized manga, having yet to experience the same hardships at the start of the story and lacking his iconic seven scars. After Kenshiro's girlfriend Yuki is murdered and Ken is framed for her death, Kenshiro becomes a wanted fugitive who sets out to overthrow the Taizanji organization.
The character was revised by Buronson when Hokuto no Ken was picked up for weekly serialization. Now turned into a full-grown adult, Buronson has stated that he based the revised Kenshiro on actor and martial arts legend Bruce Lee
and the character Max Rockatansky
from the Mad Max
series. The character is only referred by his given name in the series, which is always written in katakana
in Japanese. The full name Kenshiro Kasumi was reused for the main character of Fist of the Blue Sky
, a predecessor of the Kenshiro from Fist of the North Star, although his given name is spelled slightly differently (拳志郎 instead of 拳四郎).
, along with his future nemesis Raoh
and Raoh's brother Toki, to escape from their homeland, the war-torn Land of Asura. A different origin is depicted in the first chapter of Fist of the Blue Sky
: a newly-born child is brought to Ryuken's dojo in Japan, who names the infant after his older brother (Kenshiro Kasumi, the protagonist of Blue Sky), due to the Big Dipper
-shaped birthmark on his head, although later chapters of the manga makes references to Kenshiro's escape from Asura with Raoh and Toki. Though it is possible that the scene in Souten no Ken that depicts Kenshiro's birth was in the palace of the Hokuto Soke.
Kenshiro is trained in the art of Hokuto Shinken along with Raoh, Toki and a fourth student named Jagi, and is eventually named successor by Ryuken. After surviving the nuclear war, he tries to live in peace with his fiancee Yuria, until Jagi instigates Shin, a jealous rival from the Nanto Seiken
school, to challenge, then defeat Kenshiro. Shin then engraves the iconic seven scars on Kenshiro's chest and leaves him for dead. Prior to this event he was more forgiving of his enemies, as shown in a flashback of Jagi's failed assassination attempt against him, in which Kenshiro chooses to spare Jagi's life after defeating him. When Kenshiro later fights his old rivals in the present, particularly Shin, Jagi, and Raoh, they all remark on Kenshiro's acquired mercilessness.
The initial story arc centers around Kenshiro's quest to reclaim Yuria from Shin. In the very first chapter, he meets a pair of orphans who follow him in his journey: Bat, a thief; and Lin, a young girl rescued by Ken. Throughout the course of the series, Kenshiro protects the weak and innocent from the numerous gangs roaming the post-apocalyptic wasteland, eventually gaining his reputation as the "Savior of the Century's End". Kenshiro's skills improve through his encounters with members of the Nanto Roku Seiken and his Hokuto Brothers. At the end of the first part, he eventually confronts and defeats his eldest brother Raoh and is reunited with Yuria, and lives with her until she eventually dies from a terminal illness.
The later half of the manga (and the corresponding Hokuto no Ken 2 anime adaptation) sees Kenshiro joining forces with the now grown Bat and Lin, who have formed the Hokuto Army to fight off the now-corrupt Gento Kōken warriors. The story eventually takes Ken to the Land of Asura, where he learns of his Hokuto Sōke heritage and fights against the Warlords who control the Land of Asura: his estranged blood brother Hyoh; and Kaioh, Raoh's other blood brother. The final story arcs of the manga (which were not adapted for the TV series) sees Kenshiro taking Raoh's orphaned son, Ryu, under his wing, before continuing on his own.
Although still emotionally repressed and stoic like most male heroes in 1980s media, Kenshiro is notable in anime culture for being a sensitive and kind-hearted man who broke the then-ironclad "men don't cry" cultural expectation. He is famous for openly shedding tears, if not outright weeping for the suffering of innocents and the deaths of his few noble enemies. This trait is downplayed in the 1980s anime adaptations, but comes back into the franchise in the adaptations of the 1990s and onwards.
in the original anime television series and movie, as well as in a few video games, Takehito Koyasu
in the OVA series New Fist of the North Star
, Kunihiro Kawamoto
in the Fist of the North Star arcade game
and CGI
short Hokuto no Ken: Legend of Heroes, Hiroshi Abe
in the The Legends of the True Savior
film series, Hideo Ishikawa
in the video game version of Ten no Haō, and Katsuyuki Konishi
in the video game Hokuto Musō. The child version of Kenshiro has been voiced by Ryō Horikawa
in the original TV series and by Yūko Gibu in the Legends of the True Savior film series.
English voice actors that have voiced Kenshiro include John Vickery
in the Streamline Pictures
dub of the 1986 movie, Lex Lang
in the Manga Entertainment
dub of the TV series and Robert Kraft in the ADV Films dub of New Fist of the North Star. Gary Daniels
also played Kenshiro in the live action film version
. For the American version of Hokuto Musō known as Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage
, Kaiji Tang
voices Kenshiro.
in 2007 between 1,000 people, Kenshiro ranked third place as the "strongest manga character of all time", only behind Dragon Ball
protagonist Son Goku
and Doraemon
.
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
of the manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
franchise Fist of the North Star
Fist of the North Star
is a Japanese manga series written by Buronson and drawn by Tetsuo Hara that was serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump from 1983 to 1988, spanning 245 chapters, which were initially collected in a 27-volume tankōbon edition by Shueisha...
by Buronson and Tetsuo Hara
Tetsuo Hara
is a Japanese manga artist famous for drawing the series Fist of the North Star , which he co-authored with Buronson...
. According to Buronson, Kenshiro's character design was inspired by the character of Max Rockatansky
Max Rockatansky
"Mad" Max Rockatansky, sometimes referred to as The Road Warrior and The Man with No Name, is the main character from director George Miller's Mad Max franchise, appearing in the films Mad Max, Mad Max 2, and Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome...
from the Mad Max
Mad Max
Mad Max is a 1979 Australian dystopian action film directed by George Miller and revised by Miller and Byron Kennedy over the original script by James McCausland. The film stars Mel Gibson, who was unknown at the time. Its narrative based around the traditional western genre, Mad Max tells a story...
film series and martial artist Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee was a Chinese American, Hong Kong actor, martial arts instructor, philosopher, film director, film producer, screenwriter, and founder of the Jeet Kune Do martial arts movement...
.
In the story, Kenshiro is the rightful successor of an ancient art of assassination
Ansatsuken
is a Japanese neologism used frequently in fictional works to describe any martial art style or fighting technique that has been developed with the purpose of killing an opponent. The term is used interchangeably as well.- Examples in fiction :...
called Hokuto Shinken
Hokuto Shinken
is a fictional two thousand year old martial art that is shrouded in mystery, from the eponymous manga and anime franchise, Fist of the North Star. Hokuto Shinken is based loosely on Dim Mak kung fu, but very few conventional martial arts compare to it....
, which allows Kenshiro to defeat his adversaries through use of hidden meridian
Meridian (Chinese medicine)
The meridian is a path through which the life-energy known as "qi" is believed to flow, in traditional Chinese medicine. There is no physically verifiable anatomical or histological basis for the existence of acupuncture points or meridians.- Main concepts :...
points. Through the course of the original manga, Kenshiro fights against various ruffians who threaten the lives of the post-apocalyptic survivors, as well as numerous rival martial artists, including his three honorary brothers trained in the art of Hokuto Shinken.
Kenshiro is also known as the , due to the seven scars engraved on his chest patterned after the shape of the Big Dipper
Big Dipper
The Plough, also known as the Big Dipper or the Saptarishi , is an asterism of seven stars that has been recognized as a distinct grouping in many cultures from time immemorial...
(the symbol of the Hokuto school), as well as the . In the manga, as well as most anime adaptations of the franchise, Kenshiro's catchphrase just prior to an enemy's death is .
Concept and creation
Artist Tetsuo HaraTetsuo Hara
is a Japanese manga artist famous for drawing the series Fist of the North Star , which he co-authored with Buronson...
originally depicted Kenshiro as a teenager who fought against the rival martial arts school of the Taizanji Kenpō in 1980s Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
in his two-part prototype version of Hokuto no Ken. This version of the character was given the full name of . In this setting, Kenshiro was the 23rd successor of Hokuto Shinken, preceded by his unnamed father, who in turn learned the art from the 21st successor, Master . This Kenshiro was much more cheerful than the Kenshiro of the serialized manga, having yet to experience the same hardships at the start of the story and lacking his iconic seven scars. After Kenshiro's girlfriend Yuki is murdered and Ken is framed for her death, Kenshiro becomes a wanted fugitive who sets out to overthrow the Taizanji organization.
The character was revised by Buronson when Hokuto no Ken was picked up for weekly serialization. Now turned into a full-grown adult, Buronson has stated that he based the revised Kenshiro on actor and martial arts legend Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee was a Chinese American, Hong Kong actor, martial arts instructor, philosopher, film director, film producer, screenwriter, and founder of the Jeet Kune Do martial arts movement...
and the character Max Rockatansky
Max Rockatansky
"Mad" Max Rockatansky, sometimes referred to as The Road Warrior and The Man with No Name, is the main character from director George Miller's Mad Max franchise, appearing in the films Mad Max, Mad Max 2, and Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome...
from the Mad Max
Mad Max
Mad Max is a 1979 Australian dystopian action film directed by George Miller and revised by Miller and Byron Kennedy over the original script by James McCausland. The film stars Mel Gibson, who was unknown at the time. Its narrative based around the traditional western genre, Mad Max tells a story...
series. The character is only referred by his given name in the series, which is always written in katakana
Katakana
is a Japanese syllabary, one component of the Japanese writing system along with hiragana, kanji, and in some cases the Latin alphabet . The word katakana means "fragmentary kana", as the katakana scripts are derived from components of more complex kanji. Each kana represents one mora...
in Japanese. The full name Kenshiro Kasumi was reused for the main character of Fist of the Blue Sky
Fist of the Blue Sky
is a martial arts/noir manga series by Tetsuo Hara with plot supervision by Buronson that was serialized in the Weekly Comic Bunch from 2001 throughout 2010. It is a prequel to Fist of the North Star, which Hara originally illustrated and co-wrote with Buronson...
, a predecessor of the Kenshiro from Fist of the North Star, although his given name is spelled slightly differently (拳志郎 instead of 拳四郎).
Character overview
Kenshiro is characterized as the youngest of four adopted sons trained by the previous Hokuto Shinken successor, Ryuken. His origin is revealed during the latter half of the Fist of the North Star manga, in which he was sent to JapanJapan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, along with his future nemesis Raoh
Raoh
is a fictional character in the Fist of the North Star manga franchise by Buronson and Tetsuo Hara. He is the eldest of four honorary brothers who trained alongside the protagonist Kenshiro in the ancient assassination art of Hokuto Shinken...
and Raoh's brother Toki, to escape from their homeland, the war-torn Land of Asura. A different origin is depicted in the first chapter of Fist of the Blue Sky
Fist of the Blue Sky
is a martial arts/noir manga series by Tetsuo Hara with plot supervision by Buronson that was serialized in the Weekly Comic Bunch from 2001 throughout 2010. It is a prequel to Fist of the North Star, which Hara originally illustrated and co-wrote with Buronson...
: a newly-born child is brought to Ryuken's dojo in Japan, who names the infant after his older brother (Kenshiro Kasumi, the protagonist of Blue Sky), due to the Big Dipper
Big Dipper
The Plough, also known as the Big Dipper or the Saptarishi , is an asterism of seven stars that has been recognized as a distinct grouping in many cultures from time immemorial...
-shaped birthmark on his head, although later chapters of the manga makes references to Kenshiro's escape from Asura with Raoh and Toki. Though it is possible that the scene in Souten no Ken that depicts Kenshiro's birth was in the palace of the Hokuto Soke.
Kenshiro is trained in the art of Hokuto Shinken along with Raoh, Toki and a fourth student named Jagi, and is eventually named successor by Ryuken. After surviving the nuclear war, he tries to live in peace with his fiancee Yuria, until Jagi instigates Shin, a jealous rival from the Nanto Seiken
Nanto Seiken
is a fictional martial arts style featured prominently in the manga and anime series Fist of the North Star. It is the opposite style of Hokuto Shinken, the main fighting style of the series. While Hokuto Shinken focuses on pressure points to destroy an enemy from within, Nanto Seiken teaches how...
school, to challenge, then defeat Kenshiro. Shin then engraves the iconic seven scars on Kenshiro's chest and leaves him for dead. Prior to this event he was more forgiving of his enemies, as shown in a flashback of Jagi's failed assassination attempt against him, in which Kenshiro chooses to spare Jagi's life after defeating him. When Kenshiro later fights his old rivals in the present, particularly Shin, Jagi, and Raoh, they all remark on Kenshiro's acquired mercilessness.
The initial story arc centers around Kenshiro's quest to reclaim Yuria from Shin. In the very first chapter, he meets a pair of orphans who follow him in his journey: Bat, a thief; and Lin, a young girl rescued by Ken. Throughout the course of the series, Kenshiro protects the weak and innocent from the numerous gangs roaming the post-apocalyptic wasteland, eventually gaining his reputation as the "Savior of the Century's End". Kenshiro's skills improve through his encounters with members of the Nanto Roku Seiken and his Hokuto Brothers. At the end of the first part, he eventually confronts and defeats his eldest brother Raoh and is reunited with Yuria, and lives with her until she eventually dies from a terminal illness.
The later half of the manga (and the corresponding Hokuto no Ken 2 anime adaptation) sees Kenshiro joining forces with the now grown Bat and Lin, who have formed the Hokuto Army to fight off the now-corrupt Gento Kōken warriors. The story eventually takes Ken to the Land of Asura, where he learns of his Hokuto Sōke heritage and fights against the Warlords who control the Land of Asura: his estranged blood brother Hyoh; and Kaioh, Raoh's other blood brother. The final story arcs of the manga (which were not adapted for the TV series) sees Kenshiro taking Raoh's orphaned son, Ryu, under his wing, before continuing on his own.
Although still emotionally repressed and stoic like most male heroes in 1980s media, Kenshiro is notable in anime culture for being a sensitive and kind-hearted man who broke the then-ironclad "men don't cry" cultural expectation. He is famous for openly shedding tears, if not outright weeping for the suffering of innocents and the deaths of his few noble enemies. This trait is downplayed in the 1980s anime adaptations, but comes back into the franchise in the adaptations of the 1990s and onwards.
Voice actors
Kenshiro has been voiced by Akira KamiyaAkira Kamiya
is a Japanese voice actor. He has been represented by Theater Echo, Aoni Production, and others. He is currently represented by Saeba Shoji.-Career:Kamiya made his debut on Mahou no Mako-chan in 1970 while working for Theater Echo...
in the original anime television series and movie, as well as in a few video games, Takehito Koyasu
Takehito Koyasu
is a Japanese voice actor.-Career:Koyasu is part of the voice actor quartet Weiß consisting of Weiß Kreuz voice castmates Shinichiro Miki, Tomokazu Seki, and Yuuki Hiro...
in the OVA series New Fist of the North Star
New Fist of the North Star
is a three-episode anime OVA series based on the Fist of the North Star franchise, directed by Takeshi Watanabe and produced by OB Planning. The story was adapted from , a 1996 Hokuto no Ken novel written by Buronson and Tetsuo Hara set sometime after the conclusion of the original manga...
, Kunihiro Kawamoto
Kunihiro Kawamoto
is a Japanese voice actor and part of 81 Produce.-Anime:*.hack//Legend of the Twilight Bracelet *009-1 *Baccano! *Claymore *Gakuen Alice *Ginban Kaleidoscope...
in the Fist of the North Star arcade game
Fist of the North Star (arcade game)
is a 2D competitive fighting game produced by Sega and developed by Arc System Works, based on the manga series of the same name. It was originally released in as a coin-operated arcade game for the Atomiswave hardware. A PlayStation 2 port, retitled , was released in Japan in March 2007...
and CGI
Computer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in art, video games, films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
short Hokuto no Ken: Legend of Heroes, Hiroshi Abe
Hiroshi Abe (actor)
is a Japanese model and actor.He began his career as a model, but he successfully made the transition to acting, becoming one of the most regularly visible presences in Japanese media. He is a 1988 graduate of Chuo University.-Career:...
in the The Legends of the True Savior
Fist of the North Star: The Legends of the True Savior
is a Japanese animated film series produced by TMS Entertainment and North Stars Pictures based on the manga Fist of the North Star written by Buronson and illustrated by Tetsuo Hara...
film series, Hideo Ishikawa
Hideo Ishikawa
is a male Japanese voice actor born in Hyōgo, Japan. His nicknames are "Hide" and "Hide-chan" and he works for Aoni Production. He is married and has two children....
in the video game version of Ten no Haō, and Katsuyuki Konishi
Katsuyuki Konishi
is a Japanese voice actor from Wakayama, Wakayama Prefecture. He is currently affiliated with Ken Production. His debut role was Volfogg/Big Volfogg in GaoGaiGar....
in the video game Hokuto Musō. The child version of Kenshiro has been voiced by Ryō Horikawa
Ryo Horikawa
is a Japanese voice actor. He is married to fellow Japanese voice actress Hitomi Oikawa, whose birth name is also . His former stage name is also Ryo Horikawa, which has his given name, Makoto, pronounced as Ryo.-Career:...
in the original TV series and by Yūko Gibu in the Legends of the True Savior film series.
English voice actors that have voiced Kenshiro include John Vickery
John Vickery
John Estill Vickery is an American stage and film actor known for his work in Babylon 5 and Star Trek. Vickery grew up in Oakland, California. He attended the University of California at Davis, where he pursued a degree in mathematics...
in the Streamline Pictures
Streamline Pictures
Streamline Pictures was an American media company that was best known for its distribution of English dubbed Japanese animation. -Founding:Founded in Los Angeles, California, in 1988, Streamline Pictures was one of the first North American companies that was created primarily for the intention of...
dub of the 1986 movie, Lex Lang
Lex Lang
Walter Alexis "Lex" Lang is a two-time Emmy Award–winning American voice actor, producer and entrepreneur. He is the cofounder of The Love Planet Foundation, a non-profit organization which creates educational materials for children on the importance of recycling, world water awareness, and the...
in the Manga Entertainment
Manga Entertainment
Manga Entertainment is a producer, licensor and distributor of Japanese animation in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France, Australia and New Zealand...
dub of the TV series and Robert Kraft in the ADV Films dub of New Fist of the North Star. Gary Daniels
Gary Daniels
Gary Edward Daniels is a British kickboxer and martial arts actor. Daniels appears mostly in action-oriented B-movies. Daniels has been in over 50 films since his start as an extra in an episode of the 1980s television series Miami Vice. He is best known for playing Kenshiro in the live-action...
also played Kenshiro in the live action film version
Fist of the North Star (1995 film)
Fist of the North Star is a 1995 American straight-to-video live-action film based on the eponymous manga by Buronson and Tetsuo Hara. The film was directed by Tony Randel, who also co-wrote the script with Peter Akins, and stars Gary Daniels, Costas Mandylor, Chris Penn, Isako Washio, and Malcom...
. For the American version of Hokuto Musō known as Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage
Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage
Fist of the North Star: Ken's Rage, originally released in Japan as , is a 3D beat 'em up for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 developed by Omega Force and published by Tecmo Koei. It is a spin-off of the Warriors series based on the manga franchise Fist of the North Star by Buronson and Tetsuo Hara...
, Kaiji Tang
Kaiji Tang
Kaiji Tang is an American voice actor working primarily out of Los Angeles.Kaiji transitioned from screen acting to voice acting when had his first major role as the unusual character of Sputnik in Kite Liberator...
voices Kenshiro.
Reception
In a survey conducted by the OriconOricon
, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
in 2007 between 1,000 people, Kenshiro ranked third place as the "strongest manga character of all time", only behind Dragon Ball
Dragon Ball
is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Akira Toriyama. It was originally serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump from 1984 to 1995; later the 519 individual chapters were published into 42 tankōbon volumes by Shueisha. Dragon Ball was inspired by the classical Chinese novel Journey to the...
protagonist Son Goku
Son Goku (Dragon Ball)
Goku, known as in the English-language manga and original Japanese-language version, is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the Dragon Ball franchise created by Akira Toriyama. He is loosely based on Sun Wukong, a central character in Journey to the West...
and Doraemon
Doraemon
is a Japanese manga series created by Fujiko F. Fujio which later became an anime series and an Asian franchise...
.