Superlatives are missing to talk about the manga Hajime no Ippo . Longest sports manga, with 126 volumes published in Japan. Longest manga published in France with already 111 volumes available. Almost 100 million copies sold and is the third best-selling sports manga in the world, behind Slam Dunk and Touch .
Read also: The secrets of Mitsuru Adachi, mangaka king of romantic comedy
The young Ippo, fatherless since a tragic sea accident, lives alone with his mother. Ippo comes home every night as soon as the bell rings to help him run the store, a privatized fishing boat for amateurs. He is often taken to task by the thugs of the school who take a malicious pleasure in attacking the shy and isolated young boy. One day while he is martyred for the umpteenth time by these thugs, Takamura Mamoru, a professional boxer who passed by, intervenes and hunts them out. The young boy will then discover a world he knew nothing about and discover a passion for boxing by embarking on a quest: to discover what "being strong" means ...
The decor is set, Ashita no Joe , Rocky , impossible not to think of these boxing juggernauts at first. But Morikawa centers its story not on a hero but on a duality between Ippo the shy young beginner and Takamura arrogant juggernaut. These two main characters are accompanied by a rich gallery of secondary characters as engaging as they are original. The numerous gags make the perfect connection between the thrilling combat scenes and the slice-of-life passages, sometimes poignant, sometimes harmless. So many ingredients that make this title one of the best sports manga.
Le Figaro - What made you want to become a mangaka?
George Morikawa: The trigger was Harris no Kaze , a manga by Tetsuya Chiba, the author of Ashita no Joe . I fell in love with this manga and this author. This is the reason that motivated me to do this job.
You became an assistant when you were still 15 in high school. How did you manage between the life of a high school student and that of an assistant?
In reality I did not manage at all, I went to see my head teacher and I told him that I had become assistant to a mangaka and that I would not come to class anymore. They still gave me my diploma at the end of high school but let's say that the mention was the present P rather than fair.
Weren't you afraid to drop out of high school?
I was never afraid. Whether in elementary, middle or high school, nobody ever taught me how to draw. For me school was of no use to me, I had absolute certainty about my love of drawing.
Hajime no Ippo - Full visuals
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Besides being passionate about drawing, you are also passionate about boxing and have even created your own boxing club. Where does this passion come from?
This passion comes from my father. As a child, I remember watching boxing matches on television, sitting on his lap.
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In 30 years of Hajime no Ippo, how do you judge the evolution of boxing in Japan?
I think the world of boxing has changed a lot. 30 years ago, right at the time when I started Ippo, Japan had just let slip a world champion title for the 21st consecutive time. In a century of English boxing, we had never known so many defeats! As I speak, there are triple and even quadruple Japanese champions. When I think about it, if I had been told that there would even be several triple Japanese champions at the time, I would not have believed it.
Do you think that indicates a higher popularity of boxing?
This is a difficult question. I think boxing is more popular today but paradoxically there are fewer boxing fans. I feel that despite the resurgence in popularity, there are fewer fans of boxing, but more fans of boxers. People like Naoya Inoue or Kôki Kameda, they like their personality, the "character". But I don't have the impression that they are interested in the sport itself. I think that when Japan was in a downward phase, the fans were more sympathetic.
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Creed star Michael B Jordan said Hajime no Ippo was his favorite boxing manga Did you know?
No, I didn't know it. You teach me. But it really touches me.
Outside of Ippo, you recently produced a One Shot “I would come back to see you” inspired by a true story. Why ?
This manga was born following the earthquake on March 11, 2011. I went there and helped volunteers on the disaster areas. This manga was born from my desire to tell the life of volunteers. To show the daily life of the reconstruction of a disaster area.
(Editor's note: I would come back to see you is published in France by Akata editions).
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Hajime no Ippo is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, in retrospect would you change anything?
I imagine like all designers, if you look at his drawings from thirty years ago you can only say to yourself "what was I drawing badly". By gaining experience my trait has been considerably refined. I think I am part of a rare species of mangaka because I do not define my scenario in advance. I let the characters guide the story. I am the vessel through which Ippo and Takamura express themselves. If I had fun repeating the story today I'm sure it would give something completely different. Which is to say that it's impossible to change anything because it would call everything into question. So no, I wouldn't change anything.
You recently said you were halfway through the series, is that true?
Today we are in volume 126, I think that we are between two thirds and four fifths of the story. We must also keep in mind that the life of a manga in Japan is not guided only by the author. Feedback from readers is also very important. I am the vessel through which Ippo and Takamura express themselves, so sometimes by starting a narrative arc I don't necessarily know where I'm going to go. It happens that some arcs are longer than expected, or when we shorten some with my editor if we realize that it does not like. That's why it's a bit difficult to predict an end date for a manga like Ippo.
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Which character from Kamogawa's band is most like you? And the least?
Ippo and Takumura are the ones who resemble me the most because they both have a facet of my personality. And in fact they are also those who resemble me the least because they have only one facet of my personality and that I supplemented their personalities with feelings different from mine.
How much of Ippo is you like? And Takamura's?
As Ippo is passionate about boxing I am passionate and I work hard on my manga. To the point that when I draw my manga you can imagine me concentrated, curled up on my desk. Kind of like Ippo when he trains. And at that moment I don't like to be disturbed, especially if it's someone noisy and painful. Conversely, when I am not drawing a manga, I am rather noisy and expansive. And I even tend to annoy the shy people who stay in their corners. I am a little ying and yang.
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Kentaro Miura was one of your assistants. Berserk is completely different from Ippo's style, did you feel that darkness in him?
When I started out, I was 19 years old and I needed help. I was not sure how to do it so I asked my editor and they found me the young Kentaro Miura who came to help me temporarily to finish the drawings. He was a student in the Faculty of Art at the time. When he came he had his portfolio under his arm, I asked him to draw a picture to see how he was doing. I was immediately impressed, he drew much better than I did. Curious, I couldn't resist asking him to show me his portfolio. And when he opened it I discovered a dark warrior with a gigantic sword. Guts as we will discover ten years later. It's a universe he already had in mind when he was in college. And you could say that I was one of the first to have seen the character of Guts. And he had already greatly impressed me at the time.
Read also: Kentaro Miura: "I am jealous of Yukito Kishiro and his alita"
What does it do to you when a fan tells you that he started boxing with Ippo?
Whether it's readers, or even famous actors like Michael B. Jordan we were talking about earlier, I don't feel like that. It was not me who inspired people via Hajime no Ippo, but it is these people who inspire and motivate me every day to draw my manga.
Speaking of which, how do you resource yourself when you need inspiration?
In 30 years I have never really had white page syndrome. In terms of history anyway. But even with 30 years of practice there is a part on which I still experience difficulties is the cutting. Knowing how to cut a scene well is the most difficult faculty to master.
Mangas from Hajime no Ippo
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And how do you manage to overcome this difficulty?
In recent years I have found a tip for staging. I always work in pairs of pages, and for me a double page of manga must be like a house, have an entry and an exit. I try to create a fluid path within this double page. If you take my double pages you will always find a box where to go in the top right and one where to go out in the bottom left. And from this straitjacket I still have to make a breakdown so that the progress of the reader is fluid and accompanies the story. While respecting the idioms of the manga and the temporality. And it is this part which is the most difficult, because as soon as a box is not in its place I feel obliged to redo everything, because it breaks the rhythm of reading. It gives me the effect of a false connection in a film, we lose the immersion. The staging, the cutting of a manga is much more difficult than a script. History comes to me quite naturally, but knowing how to present it is the most difficult part of my job.
Were Ippo's doubts yours as a young mangaka?
Absolutely, Ippo's doubts completely reflect mine. Before I started Hajime no Ippo , I did three manga at Kodansha which were shot down in mid-flight for lack of popularity. And when I started Ippo my editor told me that it was my fourth and last chance to break through. At that time I plunged back into the manga of Tetsuya Chiba wondering what was the recipe for being a good mangaka. What is strength when you are a mangaka? And I believe that is where Ippo's questioning "what is it to be strong" came from. And you ask me if 30 years later I found the answer, unfortunately no. This is why Ippo continues his quest.
The professional's verdict
What did you think of the manga Hajime no Ippo?
I liked this manga. It is fairly representative of the daily life of the boxer. It's still a manga, there are exaggerated things. The hardness of the training is very realistic. The share of time spent too. It takes incredible discipline to be a boxer. We are in our bubble, we are matrixed.
You can't cheat in training.
Is weight control that hard in reality?
The first fight is weight. We are struggling, we are nervous. It is very well described in the manga.
Which boxer do you feel closest to in the manga?
I recognized myself in the character of Ippo. I am very reserved, calm. Everyone at my house was surprised when I started boxing. Through hard work, determination, sacrifice I arrived where I am today.
Ippo wonders what it is to be strong, and you?
The 12 rounds are a journey where anything can happen. Belts are not an answer, we are a champion but that does not define strength. It is after the first defeat that we recognize strong people. Being able to get up and apply the coach's instructions with lucidity is the real strength.
What advice would you give to a reader who would like to start boxing after reading this manga?
Beyond all that Boxing is a leisure, a pleasure. It doesn't have to be a constraint. You have to go there with envy. Without denigrating the other sports it is one of the most demanding in terms of sacrifice. But with self-sacrifice one can progress quickly. I started at 14, and in 18 months I became champion of France Cadet. I thought boxing, I slept boxing, I lived boxing. I was not gifted but through hard work I became a good technician.
Souleymane Cissokho
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