Review of "Fist of the North Star: Legend of Raoh - Chapter of Fierce Fighting": A fusion of fierce battles and deep drama

"The Legend of the True Savior: Fist of the North Star: The Legend of Raoh, Chapter of Fierce Fighting" - The ultimate battle and Raoh's journey through the heart

"Fist of the North Star: Legend of Raoh - Chapter of Fist of the North Star" is an anime film that was released in theaters on April 28, 2007, and is the third installment in the Fist of the North Star series. This film depicts the final battle between Raoh and Kenshiro, the most popular battle in the original manga "Fist of the North Star," while providing a new perspective that focuses on Raoh's inner world. Below, we will introduce detailed information and reviews of this film, as well as recommended points.

■ Public Media

theater

■ Original Media

comics

■ Release date

April 28, 2007 - January 1, 0000

■Distribution company

Desperado

■Frequencies

90 min

■ Number of Episodes

Episode 1

■Original Story

Buronson "Fist of the North Star", Tetsuo Hara "Fist of the North Star"

■ Director

Toshiki Hirano

■ Production

Produced by: TMS Entertainment Produced by: North Stars Pictures

■Works

©Buronson, Tetsuo Hara/NSP 1983,
©NSP 2006-2008, Copyright License MG-019

■ Story

With Souther gone, the only force capable of holding back Raoh's forces is the Nanto Volunteer Army, led by the last Nanto general. Raoh accepts the proposal of his chief of staff, Girakku, and decides to defeat the Nanto Volunteer Army. Meanwhile, as Kenshiro is praying at Toki's grave, one of the Nanto Five Charisma Stars, Yama no Fudo, appears before him and tells him that the last Nanto general is Yuria. Kenshiro rushes to the Nanto fortress. Meanwhile, Raoh also learns from Girakku's report that the last Nanto general is Yuria, and heads to the Nanto fortress. Raoh and Kenshiro face off at the Nanto fortress. Kenshiro corners Raoh with the ultimate secret technique of the Hokuto Shinken, "Muso Tensei," but a trap is set off, and Yuria is taken away, allowing Raoh to escape. Raoh, unable to forgive himself for being frightened by Kenshiro's sad eyes, challenges the only man who ever frightened him, Fudo of the Mountain, to a fight in order to erase the fear that has arisen within him. Upon hearing this, Kenshiro heads to Fudo's city to help him.

■Explanation

The third film in the series was released in theaters in April 2007. It re-edits the final deadly battle between Raoh and Kenshiro, the most popular scene from the original work, with new scenes. It also reveals Raoh's unknown feelings, which were not discussed in depth in the original work. An original character is Giraku, the chief of staff of Raoh's army. Reina, the heroine from Raohden: Junai no Shou, also appears. Additionally, Raoh's right-hand man, Varga, and the pirate Akashachi, who first appeared after the end of Part 1 in the original work, also appear in important roles.

■Cast

・Kenshiro/Hiroshi Abe ・Yuria/Yuriko Ishida ・Raoh/Takashi Ukaji ・Toki/Kenyu Horiuchi ・Girak/Masanobu Takeda

■ Main staff

・Original work: Buronson, Tetsuo Hara・Director: Toshiki Hirano・Executive producers: Nobuhiko Horie, Mitsuru Imoto・Screenplay: Nobuhiko Horie, Yoshinobu Kamo, Katsuhiko Manabe, Toshiyuki Tabe・Character design: Masaki Sato・Art director: Shunichiro Yoshihara・Director of photography: Masato Sato・Editor: Jun Taguma・Music: Yuki Kajiura・Sound director: Satoru Koyama・Animation producer: Masahito Yoshioka・Production producers: Kazuhiko Tobitano, Tomonori Kato・Produced by: TMS Entertainment・Produced by: North Stars Pictures

■ Main Characters

・Kenshiro

[Style] Hokuto Shinken [Techniques] Hokuto Hyakuretsuken, Tenpa Katsusatsu, Muso Tensei, etc.

The 64th successor of the Hokuto Shinken. As a baby, he was sent to Ryuken along with Raoh and Toki, where he trained as a successor of the Hokuto Shinken. Although he lost a battle with Shin after the outbreak of the nuclear war, he challenged Shin to a rematch a year later, defeating him when Shin reigned as the leader of the KING army. Furthermore, in order to resolve the unrest that began with the issue of who would succeed the Hokuto Shinken, he rescued Toki, who had been imprisoned by Raoh, and clashed with Raoh, the eldest of the four Hokuto brothers, in a fierce battle to a draw. After defeating Souther, he faced Raoh again in a battle over Yuria, and won after a fierce battle. After Yuria died of illness, he joined the Hokuto army, which was rebelling against the Imperial army, led by Ling and Bat. He engaged in a deadly battle with Falco of the Imperial army. After suppressing the Imperial army, he traveled to the Land of Asura in pursuit of the kidnapped Ling. He defeats his brother Hyou and Kaioh, who rules the Land of Shura. After pacifying the Land of Shura, he tells Raoh's son Ryu how to prepare himself as the successor to the Hokuto Shinken, and then disappears into the wilderness.

·urea

Born as a commander of the Nanto Rokusei, she is destined to be the Mother Star in the Nanto Rokusei Ken. She is Ryuga's younger sister, and Juza is her half-brother. She was determined to live with Kenshiro, but was abducted by Shin and was later left in the care of Rihaku and the others. When the Kenoh army led by Raoh became more active, she led the Nanto Gosha Sei to clash with the Kenoh army in order to cooperate with Kenshiro. After Kenshiro defeated Raoh, she spent some time at rest with Kenshiro before passing away due to illness.

Raoh

[School] Hokuto Shinken [Techniques] Hokuto Goshoha, Tensho Doretsu, Muso Yinzatsu, etc.

The eldest of the four Hokuto brothers. He is the older brother of Toki and the younger brother of Kaioh, who ruled the Land of Shura. When his homeland was invaded by a military nation, he was sent to Ryuken along with Kenshiro and Toki to pass on the Hokuto Shinken. When Kenshiro was chosen to be the successor to the Hokuto Shinken, he killed Ryuken, who tried to seal his fist. After the nuclear war, he imprisoned Toki and organized the Kenoh Army, creating a large force. When Kenshiro freed Toki, he went out to battle himself, defeating Rei and Toki, and then confronting Kenshiro. When this battle ended in a draw and the Kenoh Army collapsed, he focused on treating his wounds for a while. After that, when Souther of the Holy Emperor Army, who was considered his greatest enemy, was defeated by Kenshiro, he declared the revival of the Kenoh Army. He clashed with the army of Yuria, which began to act at the same time. Through this battle, he defeated all of the Nanto Gosha Stars, including Juza and Fudo. However, in the final battle with Kenshiro, he was defeated by a powerful blow and died with his fist raised to the sky.

・Toki

[Style] Hokuto Shinken [Techniques] Tensho Hyakuretsuken, Hokuto Yusei Danjinken, Hokuto Yusei Haganken, etc.

He is the second son of the four Hokuto brothers, and the younger brother of Raoh and Kaioh. When his homeland was invaded, he was entrusted to Ryuken along with Raoh and Kenshiro. At one point, he was expected to be the next successor to the Hokuto Shinken, but he was exposed to the fallout from the nuclear war and gave up on that path. He then pursued his long-held dream of becoming a doctor. He then revived a village full of sick people, but when the village was attacked by bandits, he was replaced by Amiba and imprisoned by Cassandra. After being rescued by Kenshiro from Cassandra, he challenged Raoh, but was defeated. After the Kenoh army temporarily lost power, he cooperated with Rei, who challenged Juda, and watched the battle between Kenshiro and Souther with Raoh. When Raoh regained power, he faced Raoh again, but was unable to show his true strength due to his illness, and was defeated by Raoh. He then offers himself to Ryuuga, who is trying to gauge Kenshiro's strength, and finally passes away after witnessing Ryuuga's death after being defeated by Kenshiro.

・Jagi

[Style] Hokuto Shinken, Nanto Seiken [Technique] Hokuto Senjusatsu, Hokuto Rakan Geki, Umami Bari

He is the third son of the four Hokuto brothers, and is adept at using both Hokuto Shinken and Nanto Seiken. When Kenshiro was chosen to inherit the Hokuto Shinken, he attacked Kenshiro, but was counter-attacked and his face was disfigured. When Nanto fell into disarray, he secretly operated as a member of Kenoh's army, instigating Shin to steal Yuria. He also carved seven scars into his chest, falsely claiming to be Kenshiro, and committed all sorts of evil acts. This prompted him to reunite with Kenshiro, and he challenged him to a fight again, but he was made to realize the overwhelming difference in their strength and was killed in an explosion.

■ Related works

・The Legend of the True Savior Fist of the North Star: The Legend of Raoh - Chapter of Martyrdom ・The Legend of the True Savior Fist of the North Star: The Legend of Yuria ・The Legend of the True Savior Fist of the North Star: The Legend of Toki ・The Legend of the True Savior Fist of the North Star ZERO: The Legend of Kenshiro

■ Theme songs and music

・TM1
・Lonely Stars ・Lyrics by Koshi Inaba ・Music by Takahiro Matsumoto ・Arrangement by Takahiro Matsumoto, Koshi Inaba, Daisuke Ikeda ・Singer by B'z

Evaluation and Impressions

Fist of the North Star: Legend of Raoh - Chapter of Fierce Fighting is a must-see for fans of the original work, and has been especially praised for its deep exploration of the character of Raoh. Below, we will provide a detailed review and impressions of the work.

Story and Characters

This film is notable for its story development that focuses on Raoh's inner thoughts while focusing on the final battle between Raoh and Kenshiro. It depicts Raoh's feelings and conflicts, which were not mentioned much in the original work, allowing us to understand Raoh's humanity more deeply. In particular, there is a moving scene in which Raoh's weakness and strength intersect, in which Raoh is frightened by Kenshiro's sad eyes and challenges Fudo on the mountain to a duel in order to erase the fear that has arisen within him. Additionally, Yuria's presence is depicted as an important element of the story, and one of the highlights is how her fate will affect the battle between Raoh and Kenshiro.

Visuals and Music

Visually, the film faithfully reproduces the imagery of the original work while adding new cuts to create more dynamic battle scenes. In particular, the scene in which Kenshiro uses the ultimate Hokuto Shinken technique, "Muso Tensei," is powerful and draws the viewer in. Additionally, Kajiura Yuki's music effectively brings out Raoh's inner conflict and the tension of the battle, enhancing the atmosphere of the story as a whole. The theme song, "Lonely Stars," also leaves an impression with the powerful voice of B'z, and is a perfect fit for the theme of the film.

Cast and acting

The acting of the cast is also superb, especially the voice of Takashi Ukaji as Raoh, who realistically expresses Raoh's dignity and inner conflict. Abe Hiroshi as Kenshiro also embodies the image of Kenshiro from the original work, and Ishida Yuriko as Yuria also plays her kindness and strength well. Takeda Masanori as Girak also shines with his performance that conveys the cold-heartedness of the chief adviser of Raoh's army.

Recommended points

"Fist of the North Star: Legend of Raoh - Chapter of Fierce Battle" is recommended for the following reasons.

Deep character portrayal of Raoh

The story focuses on Raoh's inner thoughts, and fans of the original work will likely find many new discoveries. The scenes where Raoh's weaknesses and strengths intersect are moving and touching.

Powerful battle scenes

The battle scenes, which have been newly added, are more powerful than the original. In particular, the scene where Kenshiro uses his ultimate technique, "Muso Tensei", is a must-see.

Inspirational Music

Yuki Kajiura's music and B'z's theme song "Lonely Stars" further enhance the emotional impact of the story. Recommended for music lovers.

A must-see for fans of the original

For fans of the original work, this is a valuable work that allows them to see the final battle between Raoh and Kenshiro from a new perspective. By enjoying it together with related works, you can gain a deeper understanding of the world of Fist of the North Star.

Conclusion

"Fist of the North Star: Legend of Raoh - Chapter of Fierce Fighting" is a work that features a story that focuses on the inner world of Raoh, powerful battle scenes, and moving music. It is a must-see for fans of the original work, and is an important work for gaining a deeper understanding of Raoh's character. Please experience the excitement at the theater.