DD Hokuto no Ken 2 (anime 2015)

DD Hokuto no Ken 2 (DD北斗の拳2) is a Japanese animated series of 24 short episodes, broadcast in pairs over 12 weekly evenings from October 7 to December 23, 2015 on TV Tokyo, as part of the combined program DD Hokuto no Ken 2 Ichigo Aji+. Produced by studio Ajia-do under the direction of Daichi Akitaro and the supervision of Tetsuo Hara, it leaves behind the konbini setting of the 2013 series for an entirely new setting, the Seikimatsu Gakuen high school.

Synopsis

199X. The Earth has been enveloped neither by the flames of the final war nor by the destruction of nature. In the 21st century, in a perfectly peaceful Japan, Hokuto Shinken, the ultimate assassination art, is still useless. Wandering in search of his lost end of century, Kenshiro ends up at the gates of a promisingly named institution, Seikimatsu Gakuen high school, the school of the end of the century. Mistaken for a new student by the high schooler Rin, daughter of principal Ryuken, he finds himself enrolled in second-year class Momi, alongside Bat. His brothers Toki and Raoh soon show up at the gate as well, and Ryuken will grant only a single enrollment, at the end of missions each more absurd than the last, while Shin schemes from the Black class to seize control of the institution.

A combined program with Ichigo Aji

The series was not broadcast on its own. Each installment of the DD Hokuto no Ken 2 Ichigo Aji+ program brought together two segments of DD Hokuto no Ken 2 and one segment of Hokuto no Ken Ichigo Aji, the other parody from fall 2015 centered on Souther, under shared opening and ending themes: "Seikimatsu School Wars" by the group Ars Magna as the opening and "Kesenai, Nanatsu no Hoshi" by Houkago Princess as the ending. The whole project, planned and produced by North Stars Pictures under the supervision of Tetsuo Hara, was broadcast on TV Tokyo and TV Osaka every Tuesday in the late-night slot, and on TV Aichi on Thursdays. Despite this joint broadcast, the two series remain distinct works, with separate staff and separate home video releases.

A sequel in name rather than in continuity, DD Hokuto no Ken 2 does not directly continue the first TV series. The concept shifts from the konbini setting to a high school setting, greatly increasing the parodies of other works along the way, and several new figures join the cast, from Tou, who ends up marrying Raoh, to the invaders Han, Hyo and Kaioh in the final episode.

Production

Studio Ajia-do returned with the same team as the 2013 series, Daichi Akitaro on direction and concepts alongside Kasugamori Haruki and Mankyu, Sekine Masayuki on character design, and Abe Jun and Muto Seiji on music. The main cast was also brought back, from Tachibana Shinnosuke (Kenshiro) to Horie Yui (Yuria), with Kamiya Akira reprising the role of Ryuken, now a principal entrenched in his famous haribote, his papier-mâché silhouette rendered in a realistic style. A final nod to fans of the original series is hidden in the segment "Hideb na quiz de o-shiawase," where Kamiya, who usually refuses to reprise his iconic role, exceptionally lends his voice to Kenshiro for a spot-the-difference game.

Episode Guide

The series comprises 24 short episodes, broadcast in pairs each week, with each installment of the program ending on a Hokuto no Ken Ichigo Aji segment. No official English titles exist; the translations are our own.

• Episodes 1 and 2, 「ちーさい世紀末見ーつけた」 (I Found a Teeny-Tiny End of the Century) and 「悪党とそのおともだち」 (The Villain and His Little Pals), aired on October 7, 2015.
• Episodes 3 and 4, 「だんごはなくとも３兄弟」 (Three Brothers, Even Without Dango) and 「時計台のエレベーター」 (The Clock Tower Elevator), aired on October 14, 2015.
• Episodes 5 and 6, 「そうだ 保健室に行こう」 (I Know, Let's Go to the Nurse's Office) and 「マジでチャリでデス道路」 (Biking Down the Road of Death, Seriously), aired on October 21, 2015.
• Episodes 7 and 8, 「学校のカイダンのカイダン」 (The Stairs of the School Ghost Stories) and 「ヤムヤムヤミー トキさんとうまい話」 (Yum Yum Yummy, Toki and the Too-Good-to-Be-True Deal), aired on October 28, 2015.
• Episodes 9 and 10, 「なにはなくともピラミッド」 (A Pyramid Before Anything Else) and 「こうかフコーカコーカな校歌」 (A School Anthem That May or May Not Work), aired on November 4, 2015.
• Episodes 11 and 12, 「神回」 (The Legendary Episode) and 「ひでぶなクイズでおシアワセ」 (All the Joy of a Hidebu Quiz), aired on November 11, 2015.
• Episodes 13 and 14, 「トウのかぞえ歌」 (Tou's Counting Song) and 「チャーハンピーマン話もピーマン」 (Fried Rice, Bell Peppers, and a Story as Hollow as a Bell Pepper), aired on November 18, 2015.
• Episodes 15 and 16, 「リュウケン殺人事ケン」 (The Ryuken Murder Case) and 「おれがあいつであいつはダレだ？」 (I Am Him, and Who Is He?), aired on November 25, 2015.
• Episodes 17 and 18, 「アイドルアイドらアイドれば」 (Idol, Let's Idol, If We Idol) and 「アニメＤＤ版モモタローだよ」 (Momotaro, Anime DD Version), aired on December 2, 2015.
• Episodes 19 and 20, 「これが声優なのか!?」 (So This Is What a Seiyu Is!?) and 「まみれ青春！」 (Covered in Youth!), aired on December 9, 2015.
• Episodes 21 and 22, 「兄弟宇宙」 (The Brothers' Cosmos) and 「クリスマスキャロルは突然に」 (A Christmas Carol, All of a Sudden), aired on December 16, 2015.
• Episodes 23 and 24, 「ハリボテ頂上作戦」 (Operation Papier-Mache Summit) and 「ハリボテよ永遠に」 (Papier-Mache Forever), aired on December 23, 2015.

Cast and staff