Hokuto no Ken or Fist of the North Star is one of the most famous and often parodied mangas of all time. The Japanese don't even need to have read the manga to know the story and characters because 'you are already dead' is parodied everywhere, you have Hokuto no Ken pachislot machines everywhere. In short every Japanese knows who Kenshirou, Yuria, Raoh, Toki etc are and the 'You are shock' theme song.
When I saw the title, I did not even realise who the Kenshirou in the tile was referring to. Matsuda Ryuhei plays Numakura Koichi who had a really shitty childhood and wants to get revenge against this yakuza guy played by Nakamura Shido who took away his mother.
To achieve his dream of revenge, Numakura studied the Hokuto no Ken manga and in the process becomes a master of Hokuto Shinken but can only use it to give massages.
The first two episodes of Kenshirou ni Yoroshiku is one of funniest episodes I have ever seen. Just when you thought Hokuto no Ken has been parodied to death, episode one had me in stitches all the way through. I put it up there with Manhattan Love Story.
Matsuda Ryuhei's deadpan delivery is perfect for this type of comedy. In the world of jdorama where everyone overacts, his underacting makes him stand out but he is playing the straight man oblivious to all the Hokuto no Ken jokes.
Episodes 3-6 are not as laugh out funny but still good and also sad with depictions of violence that made me think this is not just a simple comedy, there's a story here.
Loving the addition of Kurashina Kana as the reporter who links Numakura to the yakuza he wants revenge on.
Not ready to give it a must watch but Kenshirou ni Yoroshiku is very, very watchable. Can it sustain the comedy and storytelling for the 2nd half of the series? I can't wait to find out. Very watchable and huge thanks to earthcolors for subbing!
On a side note, I really feel like rewatching Hokuto no Ken. Have to decide between the series which will take forever or the Abe Hiroshi animated movies. Or even the RGG spinoff game which was so so. Its interesting that this old martial arts manga inspired by Bruce Lee and Mad Max would be so influential to Japanese entertainment.
Also interesting that this dorama is by DMM who I did not realise did a lot more things than AV. They should pay the money so that 'You are shock' will play at the climax of Kenshirou ni Yoroshiku! Also while Bakarythm is the scriptwriter, according to jefftiger the dorama follows the manga closely.
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