So lately I've reading this shonen manga called Kinnikuman, which many know is hugely popular in Japan. However despite a lot of anime/manga fans being aware of it's existence, the lack of availability really hurts the readership or the viewership of this anime/manga series. While Kinnikkuman Nisei got dubbed into Ultimate Muscle for the West, and that was mildly popular in it's day, the original Kinnikuman series really doesn't see all that much recognition. However that isn't really anyone's fault for this by any means other than the various companies having no desire to localize or release this series abroad in English.
So what is Kinnikuman about? Well I'll tell you.
Kinnikuman is the wrestling manga staring Chojin (Superman) competing in various battles inside the ring. It stars the titular character Kinnikuman, who begins the manga being a complete parody of Ultraman, as well as the various other Superstar Chojin such as Terryman, Kevin Mask, Ramneman, and all sorts of crazy characters. So what sets Kinnikuman apart from other shonen series? Well aside from the wrestling bouts, Kinnikuman is notably extremely weird and strange. In fact,
one arc features the bad guys LITERALLY stealing character's friendship inside a box full of voodoo dolls.
Why is it underrated? Well underrated might not be fully accurate to describe Kinnikuman, but it definitely doesn't get enough respect from a Western audience. A lot of that respect constantly gets shifted to Dragonball, which was a highly influential manga in it's own right with series like Naruto, One Piece, Bleach, and etc., but people treat Dragonball as the very first long-running shonen to introduce common shonen tropes we see today such as:
- Power levels (as in, actual numbers to determine strength)
- Characters dying and coming back over and over again
- Long-Running arcs
- Fights lasting over several chapters
- Main character that is oblivious to his surroundings, but gets serious when he needs to be
- Tournament arcs
- Supporting cast actively being fighters or characters that rival the main character in strength
That isn't to say other elements like the hotblooded hero which largely comes from Mazinger Z wasn't also influential, but people in the West like to give credit to Dragonball that in fact should go to Kinnikuman.
Not only did Kinnikuman start and establish the fundamental tropes and structure of modern shonen manga today, but as a story it's full of really cool dynamic action full of fun moments, badass and brutal shit, manly tears, and the works. If you like Fist of the North Star, believe it or not Kinnikuman is not all that different aside from the inclusion of gag manga content. Kinnikuman can be just as brutal and manly as Fist of the North Star in it's strongest moments, and the wrestling stuff is pretty neat especially if you're a fan of wrestling already. Also the humor in it is really really immature and stupid as well (fart jokes, and it's sequel Kinnikuman Nisei is full of outrageous sex jokes)
WORD OF WARNING!!
Now, there is a bit of racism and strangeness with some elements of Kinnikuman. Like most classic and older manga...the depiction of Africans frequently uses the typical blackface cartoon look, popularized by Osamu Tezuka. Though there is never any malicious intent with any of it despite the racist caricature, similar to Toriyama's Mr. Popo and similar. However the main focus isn't necessarily on this, but rather Brockenman and his son Brocken Jr.
Brockenman was originally a Nazi villain that was quickly defeated by the debuting Ramenman (he was ripped in half in the manga, turned into ramen in the anime, lol). His son, Brocken Jr. (pictured above), donning a similar look and is implied to be a Nazi himself despite never displaying any of the beliefs. Also, Brocken Jr. is one of the main heroes of the series.
If such things offend you deeply then Kinnikuman can sometimes be very hard to read or watch, but with all the other zaniness going on in the series someone being a Nazi is practically normal compared to some of the shit that happens in the series, so it's best not to take it literally outside of using a Nazi design aesthetic. Brockenman and Brocken Jr. are more about using the Nazi theme than actually being Nazi themself, and no sort of racism is displayed by them by any means.
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Now I'll end this with a really sick piece of art showcasing the main Chojin of Kinnikuman:
Same characters though.