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北斗の拳 究極版 [Hokuto no Ken Kyūkyoku-ban] #9
Fist of the North Star, Vol. 9
In the original classic manga set in a postapocalyptic wasteland ruled by savage gangs, a hero appears to bring justice to the guilty. This warrior named Ken holds the deadly secrets of a mysterious martial art known as Hokuto Shinken—the Divine Fist of the North Star!
In a postapocalyptic world, humanity has risen from the ashes of all-out nuclear war to a nightmare of endless suffering. It is a time of chaos. Warlords and gangs of savage marauders rule the broken ruins of civilization, terrorizing and enslaving the survivors. Life has become a brutal struggle for existence and death the only release.
After an epic contest, Kenoh leaves his brothers to begin a new reign of terror in the wasteland. But while he was away, Ryuga, one of his lieutenants, turned against him and established his own stronghold. Ken and Toki head there to find out what Ryuga knows about Kenoh. The one force that may still stand against Kenoh is the Goshasei, the Guardian Stars of Nanto, and their last general, whose secret will bring Kenshiro face-to-face with those he thought he’d lost…
In a postapocalyptic world, humanity has risen from the ashes of all-out nuclear war to a nightmare of endless suffering. It is a time of chaos. Warlords and gangs of savage marauders rule the broken ruins of civilization, terrorizing and enslaving the survivors. Life has become a brutal struggle for existence and death the only release.
After an epic contest, Kenoh leaves his brothers to begin a new reign of terror in the wasteland. But while he was away, Ryuga, one of his lieutenants, turned against him and established his own stronghold. Ken and Toki head there to find out what Ryuga knows about Kenoh. The one force that may still stand against Kenoh is the Goshasei, the Guardian Stars of Nanto, and their last general, whose secret will bring Kenshiro face-to-face with those he thought he’d lost…
318 pages, Hardcover
First published January 20, 2014
6 people are currently reading
110 people want to read
About the author
Buronson
457 books83 followersOkamura Yoshiyuki (岡村善行), also known as Buronson (武論尊) or Sho Fumimura (史村翔 Fumimura Shō), is a Japanese manga writer most known by his famous work Hokuto no Ken. known in English as Fist of the North Star.
He graduated from the Japanese Air Force Training School in 1967 and served as an Air Force radar mechanic. In 1969 he discharged from the Japanese Navy and was soon hired by Hiroshi Motomiya as a manga assistant. He started his manga writing career when he wrote the script of Pink Punch: Miyabi in 1972, drawn by Goro Sakai. In 1975 Buronson wrote his first big hit The Doberman Detective, drawn by Shinji Hiramatsu. The famous Hokuto no Ken made its debute as Buronson's greatest hit in 1983, drawn by Tetsuo Hara. In 1989 his story Ourou was released as a manga serialized in Animal Magazine, drawn by Kentarou Miura, and in 1990 a sequel entitled Ourou Den was released by the same manga artist. Buronson also collaborated with the manga artist Ryoichi Ikegami in many works as Strain (manga) , Human (manga) and the famous Sanctuary (manga). Among his other major works are The Phantom Gang, with art by Kaoru Shintani.
Buronson was mainly influenced by movies such as Bruce Lee's, and Mad Max.
The nickname Buronson is a tribute to the American actor Charles Bronson, whose way of growing the mustache was imitated by Yoshiyuki Okamura too.
He graduated from the Japanese Air Force Training School in 1967 and served as an Air Force radar mechanic. In 1969 he discharged from the Japanese Navy and was soon hired by Hiroshi Motomiya as a manga assistant. He started his manga writing career when he wrote the script of Pink Punch: Miyabi in 1972, drawn by Goro Sakai. In 1975 Buronson wrote his first big hit The Doberman Detective, drawn by Shinji Hiramatsu. The famous Hokuto no Ken made its debute as Buronson's greatest hit in 1983, drawn by Tetsuo Hara. In 1989 his story Ourou was released as a manga serialized in Animal Magazine, drawn by Kentarou Miura, and in 1990 a sequel entitled Ourou Den was released by the same manga artist. Buronson also collaborated with the manga artist Ryoichi Ikegami in many works as Strain (manga) , Human (manga) and the famous Sanctuary (manga). Among his other major works are The Phantom Gang, with art by Kaoru Shintani.
Buronson was mainly influenced by movies such as Bruce Lee's, and Mad Max.
The nickname Buronson is a tribute to the American actor Charles Bronson, whose way of growing the mustache was imitated by Yoshiyuki Okamura too.
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
January 11, 2024
Ken rushes to help Toki who was seemingly attacked by Ryuga last issue. Ryuga implores Kenshiro to defeat Raoh.
Ken meets up with the Mountain. A rather large man who has taken to protecting children.
We meet Juza, a powerful warrior who's turned to pure hedonism. His men are imploring him to fight Raoh (Kenoh). Simply seeing the General's face is enough to get him to drop his selfish ways and fight Raoh.
The reveal of who this General is was incredible. This was the first volume where it actually felt like Buronson has been building up to something, and not just simply presenting a battle of the week each chapter.
Ken meets up with the Mountain. A rather large man who has taken to protecting children.
We meet Juza, a powerful warrior who's turned to pure hedonism. His men are imploring him to fight Raoh (Kenoh). Simply seeing the General's face is enough to get him to drop his selfish ways and fight Raoh.
The reveal of who this General is was incredible. This was the first volume where it actually felt like Buronson has been building up to something, and not just simply presenting a battle of the week each chapter.
June 8, 2024
One of the best volumes in the series so far. Full of suspense, melodrama - and ultraviolence! In its ridiculous epicness there are shades of Three Kingdoms and Orlando Furioso.
March 27, 2025
Questo volume mi è piaciuto un po' meno rispetto ai precedenti, ma l'ho comunque molto apprezzato.
Il fatto è che ho notato che sempre più spesso sono introdotti personaggi che sembra debbano avere una certa rilevanza o comunque diventare parte integrante della storia e poi escono di scena nel giro di pochi capitoli o addirittura nel capitolo stesso in cui vengono introdotti.
Perfino Juza, che è stato uno dei protagonisti di questo volume, mi ha lasciata con un senso di vuoto che non so spiegare.
Non so come saranno i prossimi volumi, ma spero che questo “problema” si attenui.
Il fatto è che ho notato che sempre più spesso sono introdotti personaggi che sembra debbano avere una certa rilevanza o comunque diventare parte integrante della storia e poi escono di scena nel giro di pochi capitoli o addirittura nel capitolo stesso in cui vengono introdotti.
Perfino Juza, che è stato uno dei protagonisti di questo volume, mi ha lasciata con un senso di vuoto che non so spiegare.
Non so come saranno i prossimi volumi, ma spero che questo “problema” si attenui.
October 4, 2023
All for one woman 🥴
June 24, 2024
At that point in the series you know what you're in for. I like it!
January 14, 2024
This book is full of the elements of high drama, if not the logic and setup. Still, it works.
The art of course is stunning and to this day unequaled.
There are no less than 4 heroic deaths of self-sacrifice, and a 5th love suicide. The problem is that none of them make much sense.
The first, Ryuga, kills himself in order to confirm that Ken is the chosen one and relay that message to him. What this accomplishes is hard to say.
Then we have 3 members of the Goshasei who give their lives battling Raoh in order to delay him. But they dont delay him long, the first two are killed in minutes. (This might violate their code of honor, but couldn’t several attack at once?) And it’s not even clear why he needs to be delayed.
Or why Ken needs to meet with their general. Although the scenes are powerful and effective, largely because of the art and the evocation of primal emotions, they would have been much moreso with stronger plotting.
If raoh needed to be delayed for a set amount of time for Ken to arrive (Ken, as usual, is casually strolling about), or recover, or for others to escape. But I can’t see anything the sacrifices accomplished.
There are also a pair of twists. One — Ryuga didnt kill Toki, but only pretended to in order to test Ken’s enraged strength. As mentioned above, this falls flat.
Two — Yuria is still alive and is the general they keep talking about. This twist has a spur of the moment, piecemeal feel to it. Buronson wants to write scenes of high drama but doesnt lay the necessary groundwork for them.
Another example is a flashback to Raoh’s childhood used to establish a connection to Yuria. Apparently she wiped his face and he’s been secretly obsessed ever since. It’s pretty weak and would have needed to have been established long before this.
The most dramatic scene in the book involves a tubby giant jumping into a sandpit to save his adopted children, after their real father tossed them in. It was a creative idea with strong visuals, a sadistic villain, a likeable hero. FOTNS is very good operating on this basic level.
Punishing the crimes of the wicked and depraved is an ongoing theme and it never gets old. The author is quite imaginative setting up these scenes of depravity.
The fat giant is made likable through his gentle nature — carrying Lynn and bat on his shoulders and operating an orphanage for lost children, where he crawls around giving a dozen of them a piggy back ride at once.
So, primal, operatic themes & lack of planning. At volume’s close, the stage is set for a head to head battle between Raoh and Ken over Yuria. This rivalry is the main engine driving the manga so it will be interesting to see where it goes afterwards, or if the duel will once again prove inconclusive.
The art of course is stunning and to this day unequaled.
There are no less than 4 heroic deaths of self-sacrifice, and a 5th love suicide. The problem is that none of them make much sense.
The first, Ryuga, kills himself in order to confirm that Ken is the chosen one and relay that message to him. What this accomplishes is hard to say.
Then we have 3 members of the Goshasei who give their lives battling Raoh in order to delay him. But they dont delay him long, the first two are killed in minutes. (This might violate their code of honor, but couldn’t several attack at once?) And it’s not even clear why he needs to be delayed.
Or why Ken needs to meet with their general. Although the scenes are powerful and effective, largely because of the art and the evocation of primal emotions, they would have been much moreso with stronger plotting.
If raoh needed to be delayed for a set amount of time for Ken to arrive (Ken, as usual, is casually strolling about), or recover, or for others to escape. But I can’t see anything the sacrifices accomplished.
There are also a pair of twists. One — Ryuga didnt kill Toki, but only pretended to in order to test Ken’s enraged strength. As mentioned above, this falls flat.
Two — Yuria is still alive and is the general they keep talking about. This twist has a spur of the moment, piecemeal feel to it. Buronson wants to write scenes of high drama but doesnt lay the necessary groundwork for them.
Another example is a flashback to Raoh’s childhood used to establish a connection to Yuria. Apparently she wiped his face and he’s been secretly obsessed ever since. It’s pretty weak and would have needed to have been established long before this.
The most dramatic scene in the book involves a tubby giant jumping into a sandpit to save his adopted children, after their real father tossed them in. It was a creative idea with strong visuals, a sadistic villain, a likeable hero. FOTNS is very good operating on this basic level.
Punishing the crimes of the wicked and depraved is an ongoing theme and it never gets old. The author is quite imaginative setting up these scenes of depravity.
The fat giant is made likable through his gentle nature — carrying Lynn and bat on his shoulders and operating an orphanage for lost children, where he crawls around giving a dozen of them a piggy back ride at once.
So, primal, operatic themes & lack of planning. At volume’s close, the stage is set for a head to head battle between Raoh and Ken over Yuria. This rivalry is the main engine driving the manga so it will be interesting to see where it goes afterwards, or if the duel will once again prove inconclusive.
June 3, 2024
This book is probably my favorite version of “why? Why would you mess with that guy?”
If movies and thriller novels are to be believed, Jack Reacher walks into a diner and a bunch of drunken, loutish locals immediately want to start a fight with him and make fun of him for, basically, being unbelievably jacked. “Oh, what are you gonna do, slap me so hard my head spins all the way around and turns the bill of my hat into a helicopter blade, and my head will achieve liftoff and sail into the upper atmosphere where maybe I’ll still be alive and get to experience both the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen and the pinnacle of horror?”
I get it, Rick Moranis walks into a bar and some chucklehead messes with him because he doesn’t seem like he’d hurt even the biggest, most obnoxious fly.
Or Nic Cage in Con Air. I kinda get that. He doesn’t look all that terrifying. The scariest thing about him was the legal representation he received. The man and his pregnant wife were attacked by three dudes, who had been harassing them all night in front of everyone, with a knife, and Cage kills one and gets sent to jail? Who was his attorney? Did he represent himself? I find it hard to believe that these three dudes haven’t been in front of a judge a time or two already.
But in movies you’ll have a guy who is wearing a gold medal from a jiujitsu competition, a man’s tooth still embedded in his forearm, and these guys are like, “Yeah, him. He seems like the one to harass.”
Ken from Fist of the North Star will punch a hole though a man like a fuckin all-steel Bostich hole punch through tissue paper, and everyone is like, “Get ‘em!” Instead of being like, “Nevermind! I terribly misjudged this situation!”
Is this a real thing or a Hollywood thing? Do big scary guys get involved in fights all the time? Because I think I’d take a look a Ken and be like, “Eh, pass. I mean, if we want to beat someone up in this post apocalyptic wasteland, some half starved child will be shambling along in ten minutes.”
If movies and thriller novels are to be believed, Jack Reacher walks into a diner and a bunch of drunken, loutish locals immediately want to start a fight with him and make fun of him for, basically, being unbelievably jacked. “Oh, what are you gonna do, slap me so hard my head spins all the way around and turns the bill of my hat into a helicopter blade, and my head will achieve liftoff and sail into the upper atmosphere where maybe I’ll still be alive and get to experience both the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen and the pinnacle of horror?”
I get it, Rick Moranis walks into a bar and some chucklehead messes with him because he doesn’t seem like he’d hurt even the biggest, most obnoxious fly.
Or Nic Cage in Con Air. I kinda get that. He doesn’t look all that terrifying. The scariest thing about him was the legal representation he received. The man and his pregnant wife were attacked by three dudes, who had been harassing them all night in front of everyone, with a knife, and Cage kills one and gets sent to jail? Who was his attorney? Did he represent himself? I find it hard to believe that these three dudes haven’t been in front of a judge a time or two already.
But in movies you’ll have a guy who is wearing a gold medal from a jiujitsu competition, a man’s tooth still embedded in his forearm, and these guys are like, “Yeah, him. He seems like the one to harass.”
Ken from Fist of the North Star will punch a hole though a man like a fuckin all-steel Bostich hole punch through tissue paper, and everyone is like, “Get ‘em!” Instead of being like, “Nevermind! I terribly misjudged this situation!”
Is this a real thing or a Hollywood thing? Do big scary guys get involved in fights all the time? Because I think I’d take a look a Ken and be like, “Eh, pass. I mean, if we want to beat someone up in this post apocalyptic wasteland, some half starved child will be shambling along in ten minutes.”
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March 27, 2024I was obsessed with the first arc in this series but felt like it's been spinning it's a wheels since then.
Needless to say the reveal in this is a VERY welcome change and it feels like the stakes matter again.
Needless to say the reveal in this is a VERY welcome change and it feels like the stakes matter again.
July 26, 2024
Uno de los mejores volúmenes hasta el momento.
June 4, 2024
I have to hand it to Kenshiro, the man knows how to make an entrance! The real question, however, is, "Why do his shirts and arm bands always disintegrate when he powers up, but never his pants?"
The five chariot generals of the Nanto Rukusei, Gosha stars were a great additional albeit a bit of a letdown when compared to Kenoh.
Juzah of the Clouds might be my favorite new character so far, and he also knows how to make an, ahem, damp entrance.
Judo is just the best. A loveable lug with a heart of gold. The pain of this wound will last for a moment... but the pain of your death will last a lifetime ❤️
The reveal of the last general. Is Yuria the key to everything with her compassion, or does her compassion make her the villain all along?
The five chariot generals of the Nanto Rukusei, Gosha stars were a great additional albeit a bit of a letdown when compared to Kenoh.
Juzah of the Clouds might be my favorite new character so far, and he also knows how to make an, ahem, damp entrance.
Judo is just the best. A loveable lug with a heart of gold. The pain of this wound will last for a moment... but the pain of your death will last a lifetime ❤️
The reveal of the last general. Is Yuria the key to everything with her compassion, or does her compassion make her the villain all along?
June 28, 2023
It's always nice to read a brand new volume of Fist, enough time passes before I get nostalgic again :)
Drawing is exceptional and it's hard to believe that the artist drew like that from the very first volume. There are examples where the artist improved/changed only much later like Hajime Isayama or Eiichiro Oda, but in this case you stand amazed at the detailed lines and character designs.
Anime came first for me and I remember how devastated I was because of Yuria's suicide, quitting the anime altogether (for a time at least). She was loved by many, not as a femme fatale, but a beautiful and compassionate woman. Knowing she's alive gives Kenshiro a new hope.
Drawing is exceptional and it's hard to believe that the artist drew like that from the very first volume. There are examples where the artist improved/changed only much later like Hajime Isayama or Eiichiro Oda, but in this case you stand amazed at the detailed lines and character designs.
Anime came first for me and I remember how devastated I was because of Yuria's suicide, quitting the anime altogether (for a time at least). She was loved by many, not as a femme fatale, but a beautiful and compassionate woman. Knowing she's alive gives Kenshiro a new hope.
August 15, 2023
I look forward to a new volume every time, bring on the next one.
September 17, 2023
One of the best volumes so far, with lots of colorful characters, twists, and wacky murders. Juza of the Cloud might be my new favorite character.
November 25, 2024
4.6/5
This is the best volume in the series so far. Fudo and Juza quickly proved themselves to be two of the most compelling characters up to this point. The art continues to impress with its insane action scenes, incredible attention to detail, and darkly humorous visual gags (the stone wall decapitating a guy trying to listen to what's on the other side of it might be a new favourite for me).
On top of this, everything seems to be coming together in a way that's surprisingly compelling. The emotional story beats are more effective here than they have been in the past, and while I think it's utterly ridiculous that every student in Ken's old martial arts school all fell for the same woman, it somehow befits the shocking amount of compassion in this story's themes. I'm hoping it won't take me as long to get to the next volume as it did with this one. I've always enjoyed Fist of the North Star because of how ridiculous the anime is, and for the memes, but the manga is quickly turning me into an unironic fan of the franchise. Hell, I'm all for it.
This is the best volume in the series so far. Fudo and Juza quickly proved themselves to be two of the most compelling characters up to this point. The art continues to impress with its insane action scenes, incredible attention to detail, and darkly humorous visual gags (the stone wall decapitating a guy trying to listen to what's on the other side of it might be a new favourite for me).
On top of this, everything seems to be coming together in a way that's surprisingly compelling. The emotional story beats are more effective here than they have been in the past, and while I think it's utterly ridiculous that every student in Ken's old martial arts school all fell for the same woman, it somehow befits the shocking amount of compassion in this story's themes. I'm hoping it won't take me as long to get to the next volume as it did with this one. I've always enjoyed Fist of the North Star because of how ridiculous the anime is, and for the memes, but the manga is quickly turning me into an unironic fan of the franchise. Hell, I'm all for it.
July 1, 2023
Fist of the North Star continues to plod on with its fine balance between the melodrama and the action. This volume is a bit more packed with story than preceding volumes - Raoh faces off against Juza, Shin decides to be a martyr, and Yuria becomes a warlord all within the second half of this book. It's a bit of a deviation from the formula since Ken isn't as featured here and most of the action involves other characters, but the high stakes drama continues with characters acting like they're more at home in a soap opera then they are in a martial arts story. It's still highly entertaining for sure, and the soapy quality to the storytelling is undeniably more of a feature than a fault. The artwork by Tetsuo Hara continues to impress and the color pages in this edition are getting much better looking as well.
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October 20, 2025Me quedan 9 tomos más para leer. Sabía que el manga era una historia de artes marciales sin pretensiones, pero hasta ahora me ha parecido que la historia es un cúmulo de casualidades, ya que todo el mundo al que se enfrenta Ken es conocido de su infancia o tiene relación con Julia.
Eso también hace que me dé la impresión de que el autor improvisa a medida que avanza la trama, y eso se ve reflejado directamente en la infancia de Ken, sus hermanos y Julia.
También estoy teniendo la sensación de estar leyendo una obra de Shakespeare por las "tragedias" que van sucediendo durante la trama, sobre todo me ha pasado en las ultimas páginas de este tomo.
un punto muy a favor es el mundo a lo Mad Max en el que sucede todo.
Eso también hace que me dé la impresión de que el autor improvisa a medida que avanza la trama, y eso se ve reflejado directamente en la infancia de Ken, sus hermanos y Julia.
También estoy teniendo la sensación de estar leyendo una obra de Shakespeare por las "tragedias" que van sucediendo durante la trama, sobre todo me ha pasado en las ultimas páginas de este tomo.
un punto muy a favor es el mundo a lo Mad Max en el que sucede todo.
July 31, 2023
I don't know why I am so attached to this series. The whole world is a kindergarten; the backstory is constantly being adapted to make sense of the new characters who came out of nowhere and most of them are completely useless; some chapters seem more like "proof of concept" than fully developed story arcs; and, finally, there is one of the silliest plot twists I have ever read (even during the 1980s, watching the anime, I had the same feeling).
However, in this volume there is the best character in the whole series: Juza.
He, alone, manages to save everything.
However, in this volume there is the best character in the whole series: Juza.
He, alone, manages to save everything.
September 30, 2023
Penuh gonjang-ganjing. Tapi udah ketauan Jenderal siapa dari awal² karena petunjuknya jelas sekali.
Cuma berharapnya Jenderal jangan jadi "saksi bisu". Bisa ga ada sesuatu yang dia lakuin 😅
Biar ada setidaknya sosok yang kuat di "kalangan tersebut" (mau ngomong takut spoiler pula). Ga kalangan itu itu aja
Cuma berharapnya Jenderal jangan jadi "saksi bisu". Bisa ga ada sesuatu yang dia lakuin 😅
Biar ada setidaknya sosok yang kuat di "kalangan tersebut" (mau ngomong takut spoiler pula). Ga kalangan itu itu aja
January 12, 2024
Hokuto no Ken is extremely cheesy. This volume in particular brings the cheese to a whole new level. It's so bad, that it actually becomes good and fun to read in a way.
If you like violence and melodrama, again, this book delivers it in spades.
If you like violence and melodrama, again, this book delivers it in spades.
August 20, 2022
urrrrraaaaa! ternyata bermunculan begitu banyak kekuatan yang seperti tak diduga bisa ada mengumpulkan pasukan sebegitu banyaknya! dan ternyata yulia!!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 17, 2023
Bing bang boom violence.
December 13, 2023
As good as its ever been. People are sacrificing themselves every 3 pages, Kenshiro is putting his whole fist through the front and out the back of peoples heads, it all rules.
October 29, 2024
Disini ada plot twist. Jendral Nanto ingin bertemu dengan Kenshiro lebih dulu. Dan Ken Oh si bintang kekejaman tak kan membiarkan itu.
November 3, 2024
More epic martial arts violence with amazingly detailed line art.
I wasn't expecting the twist at the end!
I wasn't expecting the twist at the end!
February 25, 2025
Some very interesting new characters and a huge plot twist in this one.
April 13, 2025
Read the full review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
June 23, 2024
Menuju akhir arc pertama. Setelah Toki, Raoh vs Kenshiro. Partai puncak!!!
Tak perlu dikatakan lagi, pengungkapan ini adalah perubahan yang SANGAT disambut baik dan rasanya pertarungan kembali penting.
Tak perlu dikatakan lagi, pengungkapan ini adalah perubahan yang SANGAT disambut baik dan rasanya pertarungan kembali penting.
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July 5, 2023Ahh tetsuo hara of my heart
Never has there been a manga such as this to have captured my desire to always read it over and over again except maybe the guyver from its era.
Never has there been a manga such as this to have captured my desire to always read it over and over again except maybe the guyver from its era.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews