Souten no Ken (Anime)

Souten no Ken (蒼天の拳) is the animated television series adaptation of the manga by Tetsuo Hara, broadcast from October 4, 2006 to March 14, 2007 on TV Asahi. Directed by Yamaguchi Yoshihiro, with Imagawa Yasuhiro as head writer and scriptwriter, it comprises 26 episodes, four of which were not broadcast on Japanese television.

Synopsis

Shanghai, 1930s. The city, carved up into concessions where over sixty nationalities coexist, lives under the thumb of secret societies: the Qing Bang, bound by a code of honor, and the ruthless Hong Hua Hui wage a merciless war against each other. It is to this land of every danger that Kenshiro Kasumi returns, sixty-second successor of Hokuto Shinken, the freest and most feared man in the history of Hokuto, once known to the underworld by the name Yan-Wang, the "King of Hell."

Having returned to Shanghai for his peng-you, Kenshiro faces killers and masters of Hokuto's rival schools, Hokuto Sonkaken and Hokuto Sokaken, while the destiny of the Big Dipper lineage takes shape. The series adapts roughly the first third of the manga, which was then being serialized in Weekly Comic Bunch.

A chaotic production

The animation is credited to a mysterious "Souten Studio," a structure created for the occasion. The production was actually handled by studio A.P.P.P. (Another Push Pin Planning), which itself largely subcontracted the work to studio Palm. Character designer and general animation director Yoshiaki Tsubata publicly lamented on his blog the production conditions of the series, whose uneven animation quality was extensively commented on by Japanese viewers. The music was entrusted to American composer Marco d'Ambrosio.

Broadcast and unaired episodes

Deemed too violent for the late-night time slot, episodes 16, 17, 18 and 21 were never televised. Only 22 of the 26 produced episodes were broadcast by TV Asahi and Asahi Broadcasting, with the four missing ones accessible only on DVD. The complete series, including unaired episodes, was subsequently made available on the satellite channels Animax, Family Gekijo and MONDO TV, as well as on DVD.

The music

The opening theme, Bara ga saku Bara ga chiru, is performed by Rina Aiuchi. Two ending themes follow one another: Kokoro no Rhythm tobichiru Butterfly by the group doa (episodes 1 to 12), then Kissing til i die by Jun Manaka (episodes 13 to 26).

Episode Guide

• Episode 1, The One with a Bounty on His Head: Yan-Wang, aired on October 4, 2006.
• Episode 2, The Code of Honor, aired on October 11, 2006.
• Episode 3, The Heir of Hokuto, aired on October 18, 2006.
• Episode 4, Pray to the Blue Sky, aired on October 25, 2006.
• Episode 5, On the Soil of Shanghai, aired on November 1, 2006.
• Episode 6, Massacre in the Death Game, aired on November 8, 2006.
• Episode 7, Ultraviolent Confrontation, aired on November 15, 2006.
• Episode 8, Pray to the God of the Underworld, aired on November 22, 2006.
• Episode 9, A Blood-Stained Destiny, aired on November 29, 2006.
• Episode 10, The Battle of the Grand Masters of Hokuto, aired on December 6, 2006.
• Episode 11, Ask the Dragon, aired on December 13, 2006.
• Episode 12, The Sign of Rebirth, aired on December 20, 2006.
• Episode 13, At the Edge of Madness..., aired on January 10, 2007.
• Episode 14, Journey Through Destiny, aired on January 17, 2007.
• Episode 15, The Beautiful Outlaw Horsewoman, aired on January 24, 2007.
• Episode 16, In Search of a Haven of Peace, unaired on television, released on DVD.
• Episode 17, Death Sentence! The Palm of Evil, unaired on television, released on DVD.
• Episode 18, The Fighting Aura of Hokuto Sokaken, unaired on television, released on DVD.
• Episode 19, The Flowers of Determination, aired on January 31, 2007.
• Episode 20, Twist of Fate, aired on February 7, 2007.
• Episode 21, Fiery Face-Off, unaired on television, released on DVD.
• Episode 22, The Secret Technique of Zhang Tai-Yan, aired on February 14, 2007.
• Episode 23, A Suffering Anchored Forever, aired on February 21, 2007.
• Episode 24, Powerful and Profound Feelings, aired on February 28, 2007.
• Episode 25, Gunshots at the Banquet, aired on March 7, 2007.
• Episode 26, Toward Better Tomorrows, aired on March 14, 2007.

Cast and staff