is a three-episode anime

Anime

is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

 OVA

Original video animation

, abbreviated as media , are animated films and series made specially for release in home-video formats. The term originated in relation to Japanese animation...

 series based on the 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...

franchise, directed by Takeshi Watanabe

Takeshi Watanabe

Takeshi Watanabe may refer to:*Takeshi Watanabe , first president of the Asian Development Bank*Takeshi Watanabe , a Japanese football player...

 and produced by OB Planning. The story was adapted from , a 1996 Hokuto no Ken novel written 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...

 set sometime after the conclusion of the original 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...

. An English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 dubbed version of the OVA was produced by ADV Films in 2004.

Plot

In the 21st century, a nuclear war turned most of the Earth's surface into a desert wasteland, which also resulted in the contamination of the Earth's water supply. A man named Sanga has built the fortified haven of the "Last Land", where he rules as its dictator by monopolizing the city's uncontaminated water supply. When he learns that the neighboring residents of Freedom Village are trying to dig up a well for their own, Sanga sends his underlings to sabotage their effort. Kenshiro, master of 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....

, gets involved in the conflict between the two regions after saving Tobi, an informant hired by Freedom Village.

Characters

The successor of the assassin's art of 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....

. He gets involved in the conflict between Last Land and Freedom Village after saving Tobi.

A wandering adventurer known for his intelligent service to the people, rescued by Kenshiro when the Sanga's scouting party ambushed him and other villagers searching for water. Tobi was searching his brother Bista while travelling town to town, has a secret crush on Sarah. Later on he incited a religious Jihad in the Lastland using his brotherly connection with Bista, later on he fell corrupted with power that led to his downfall.

, aka

Tobi's little brother known for his illusion and parlour magic also was suffering from amnesia, he was taken by Sanga as a tool for fooling the common people in Lastland as a God. His amnesia was healed by Sarah through acupressure, was remained seriously wounded throughout the OVA.

A kind hearted female healer in Freedom Village where she heals people with a passed down knowledge of Hokumon no Ken through her parents. She uses a healing art which utilizes the bodys keiraku hikō points to heal her patients. Her life was saved by Seiji in the past when attacked by a feral dog.

The dictator of the city Last Land, known for being manipulative and ambitious. He was killed by Kenshiro towards the end of first episode. He was cruel and hard towards his own son Seiji, but later revealed that he did that because he loved Seiji and wanted him to become stronger in this harsh wasteland.

A dropout of the Hokumon temple, who has a love hate relationship with his father Sanga. He took over Lastland while Kenshiro was away to Hokumon temple get medicine for Bista. It was revealed that he learned all the secret of Hokumon No Ken in less than three years. Committed suicide by pressing a fatal point in his body after ridden with guilt over his past crime.

The second of Kenshiro's eldest brothers, who intended to use Hokuto Shinken as a healing art. Appears in a flashback during the first episode of the OVA.

The orphaned son of 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...

, whom Kenshiro intends to train as his Hokuto Shinken successor. Appears in a flashback during the first episode.

Episodes

EP#	Title	Original release	English release

Reception

The ADV Films' dub of the trilogy has garnered positive reviews from critics. Chris Wood of Toon Zone praised "Kenshiro is in fine form, and though the story may not blow you away, it’s plenty adequate to support the action" Mike Toole of Anime Jump says that New Fist is "flashy and a little cheap, but ultimately rewarding." Chris Beveridge of AnimeOnDVD.com was "very pleased with" the first episode, but felt that the second episode could have been "much better written" and that the third episode was unnecessary and that the trilogy "could have been a lot tighter with a bit more streamlining of the script".

External links

• Shin Hokuto no Ken at OB Planning
• New Fist of the North Star at ADV Films

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