Tentacle-Free Anime: "Joe vs. Joe" (2003) & FCBD Manga
I once thought about being a boxer, and then I realized it wouldn’t do me any good to possibly hurt my hands, which I use for art and writing, plus there’s the whole thing about taking punches to the face. As much as I enjoy watching boxing, fighting just isn’t my forte. I really am more a pacifist. That being said, I REALLY do enjoy watching boxing. So a boxing anime felt right up my alley. Here we go.
Joe vs. Joe is a 6 episode anime done in the spirit of another, much more famous, boxing series called Fighting Spirit that in its prime became a staple in manga and anime culture. Joe vs. Joe has never reached that kind of honor, so it can be easily overlooked. It doesn't help that the series was never released on television but instead went straight to DVD. The series, as you could probably guess, follows the story of two young men named Joe from different social classes who form a rivalry in the ring. Simple, but the story actually runs much deeper than that and touches upon aspects of humanity that I will admit not many shows are ballsy enough to discuss.
Akamine is most definitely the protagonist of the story, where as Yuuki is the antagonist, but in a way it is more Yuuki's story as he has to come to terms with his hatred that was deeply seated long ago. One foil in which he is given this chance is through a third main character, a woman named Maki Takakura. A feisty, red head model who resents her father for not being there when her mother died, but instead being in a boxing match which has also led her to despise the sport. She plays off Yuuki as both the damsel in distress in some episodes and his conscious in others. Her path with Akamine never really crosses except for the story thread involving her father. Other than that her story is generally played out on Yuuki's side. 
Joe Akamine ready to fight.
As a whole, Akamine's story is the weakest, in my opinion he comes to his full arc mid-way through the series and what little he has left to learn feels tacked on as last minute drama to draw out the final episode. He is faced with a past deed that is never full fleshed out but in one slight flashback scene, unfortunately that very deed defines his entire character. He is eclipsed, story-wise, by just about everyone else . When it comes to his half of the side characters, the gripping drama belongs to Yu, a kid who looks up to Akamine, and Ryuichi Suzuki, Joe's friend and mentor. Yu suffers from congenital analgesia, or insensitivity to pain. Yu so badly wants for Joe and Ryuichi to teach him boxing but doesn't understand that it's too dangerous, because he can't feel pain at all. No matter how he gets injured, he will not feel any sort of pain. And Ryuichi finds himself dealing with the realization that he has trained so hard to become the boxer he is today, and Akamine is gifted with natural talent rarely seen these days along with an eye condition that is slowly causing him to go blind. When it comes to the side characters, I feel the story does a much better job handling their respective stories than even the main two characters, which isn't necessarily a good thing and can't be overlooked regardless of mature story themes. 
Joe Yuuki challening Joe Akamine to a fight.
In animation, the series definitely shows its straight-to-DVD origins. The budget for this series must've been really low as there are several cuts throughout and some scenes of badly inconsistent animation (to the point of where some characters look like they were run over with a steam roller). The best shots come from the boxing, naturally, with every move feeling clean and concise. But in many mundane areas the motion falters, such as characters simply walking or sitting. The style and quality can be grating to watch and sometimes took me out of the story, which is why I'm sure they were given the okay to discuss real human issues and struggles (if they had a better budget, I wouldn't be surprised if they put how pretty it looks over character substance). If you can get past the lacking quality though, the story in full isn't awful and is better done than majority of the series out there. Voice acting was subpar, as to e expected. I watched the series in dub/English format, and you can tell AnimeWho (American distributing company) didn't have much faith in this series or they would've hired better English voice actors. Or perhaps the best ones were already taken by FUNimation, who dominated the American market for some times with superb voice acting. Tom Wayland, who voiced Ryuichi was in my the best out of the cast, gifting the character with a reserved demeanor that really worked in his favor. Megumi Kobayashi, who surprise surprise, isn't a a child, doesn't do too well channeling her inner little boy voice which leaves Yu with an unnaturally high, raspy voice that I doubt any boy his age (about 5-6 yrs. I believe) would have. And Maki, voiced by Bella Hudson is often times very high pitched as well and screechy or whiny, making her incredibly hard to listen to. I do wish companies would take more pride in a show they're bringing from another country, and realize that if they gave the show the proper voices it needs, there is a brighter chance of it doing better overseas. 
Maki Takakura... modeling to make a living
All in all, Joe vs. Joe isn't actualy a terrible series. In a lot of respects, it's better than quite a few very popular series out there, but it does have its problems that keeps it from rising out of obscurity and into the limelight. I would say if you like some solid sports anime, give it a shot, especially if you're a fan of the original Fighting Spirit series. If you're just getting into anime, this isn't for you, it's just not a good gateway show. Instead check out series like the Prince of Tennis anime or the newest series, Kuroko no Basket (Kuroko's Basketball). They're longer, but I personally enjoy the former and have heard great things about the latter. Final Score: 2 Rounds out of 5. BONUS: TENTACLE-FREE MANGA REVIEWS
FCBD 2013: Dragon Ball & Rurouni Kenshin: Restoration
If you've rad my review on the movie then I really don't need to spell out the story for you. Nobuhiro's art has grown and become more streamlined and clean then when he originally created Kenshin back in the mid-90s. Though personally I enjoy his rougher, straighter style than the more rounded style her has now. Again, because this is only the first chapter, there isn't really much I can say and perhaps it gets much better than I am currently giving it credit for. I will say though, if this series got you to reading or watching more Rurouni Kenshin, then that can only be a good thing.
Final Score: N/A * * * Dragon Ball (1984) FCBD 2013 Chapter This was an interesting choice to market for FCBD, in both terms of it already being a well-known and beloved series the world over, and in the chapter that was chosen to be released. Dragon Ball, as most people know, is the prequel to Dragon Ball Z (and in Japan they are both one long series created by Akira Toriyama), so instead of going with the very first chapter of the series, Shonen Jump Magazine released a random chapter from the days when Goku and Krillin as kids trained under Master Roshi (both of the latter of which are represented here with their original Japanese names: Kuririn and Muten Roshi) to become the fighters we know them to be today. Dragon Ball is much more goofy and world-building than DBZ, so it is sparse on the power ups, constant yelling and poundings of chests. So this chapter focuses on a day when Roshi has the two kids looking for a rock he throws far into a forest and the first one to find and return it to him get dinner, the loser goes without. The two children try to out due each other in finding it, with Krillin being painted as a complete a-hole, which he actually kind of was as a kid, but seeing him like this for the first time to probably many children, isn't exactly a good thing as he's quite prevalent in this issue. The chapter ends with Goku losing but then Roshi, Krillin and their maid Launch (or her Japanese name seen here, Lunch) getting food poisoning. The moral of the story is obviously not to be a douche, but if that were the case, then Roshi and Launch shouldn't haven't gotten sick. It's due to this that I felt they could've chosen a better chapter to introduce to those who've never read the series but if it gets people and children interested, then perhaps it will have done its job. Final Score: 1.5 Sabertooth Tigers out of 5 Have you seen "Joe vs Joe"? Enjoyed the review? Enjoyed the manga addition? Let us know in the comments!
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