VK11

You are a person who loves fighting anime and is looking for something with epic battles and intense rivalries. Or you are someone who is looking for a good laugh and an entertaining anime that will last you for awhile. Or, you are somebody who is simply looking for an amazing anime that has all the right pieces that make it extraordinary. If any of those above scenarios fit you, simply put, Shijou Saikyou No Deshi Kenichi (History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi) is a must-watch anime for you to pick up on. The story, although simple at heart, becomes more complex at the surfaceas the anime progresses through the episodes. Kenichi is your run-of-the mill weakling kid who is always getting picked on by everyone and has no confidence in his abilities whatsoever. But that doesn't stop him from doing the right thing and stepping into some pretty hairy situations despite his shortcomings. The story begins with Kenichi wanting to get stronger because of his will to protect his friends. As a result, he joins the Ryōzanpaku dojo and from there on out, every episode has meaning, and will have you wanting for more. The story ends with Kenichi in an final showdown verses the leader of the most intense gang in Japan - Ragnorak. Just from that, it gives you the sense that the plot development is spectacular in this show. The art for Kenichi is well done. All of the characters are drawn very well and have distinguishing characteristics that cosplay members will love to create. Animation is also done very well, as you have great battles and very few repetition of frames. Arguably, the sound is probably the weakest point of the anime, and its not even that weak. Opening/ending songs are pretty good and the scores used throughout the anime fit quite well with the current scene you are watching. However, it is the voices to each character that really brings all the characters alive, as you can feel the emotion from all of the characters. The character design in HSD Kenichi is so original and great, that you'll wonder why nobody has ever came up with this before. Kenichi is trained by six masters, who all specialize in a different form of martial arts. All of their personalities are so different and unique, you'll also wonder how each of them get along in the first place. Hence, the many comedic moments and episodes that you'll inevitably witness as they all fight amongst themselves to be the one who trains Kenichi. Ah, and let's not forget the beautiful Miu Furinji, Kenichi's love interest, who, unlike other female protagonists of similar plots, is one hell of a fighter and the reason Kenichi joins the dojo. As the anime progresses deeper in the story, you'll be unveiled to a plethora of unique characters who have different fighting styles and unique personalities, which will all amaze and have you laughing at the same time. For the sake of keeping this section as short as possible, I'm simply going to say character development is flawless in this anime. Even with all of this that I have written about, this anime would be nothing without its comedy, and that is what makes Kenichi so much fun and enjoyable to watch. You will be literally laughing out loud at some of the hellish training that Kenichi is forcibly put through and will wonder why he hasn't died yet. (Yes, the training is that hellish). Even with 50 episodes, the comedy of Kenichi never gets old and you'll find that to be the case right up to the very last episode. Hell, sometimes you'll wish that they had more comedy than serious fights, because its that good. All in all, Kenichi is one of those rare anime shows out there that is able to blend in comedy with the overall serious plot extremely well. One of the few qualms that I did have with this show was that the ending occurred a little to quick and you'll also wish that they gave more information about the history of each of the masters, as they provide you with relatively very little on each one of them. In the end, once you watch the final episode of this anime, it will take you five seconds or so to wish that there would be a second season to it.

Master10K

History’s Strongest Disciple Kenichi is a Shounen, Action, Comedy about a typical high school boy (Kenichi) who’s always being bullied, until one day, he learns of a special dojo that teaches many forms of martial arts. From the start, this anime has a very typical story and plot. Having a high school setting, the story is about Kenichi’s quest to become stronger. The story itself is incredibly basic that any idiot can grasp its concept. The way in which the story flows makes it feel like a game; Kenichi gains some experience points => clears a stage => levels up => makes it to the nextstage. This makes it really enjoyable to watch him develop but its overall simplicity is also its downfall, due to the lack of depth to the story. This doesn’t matter too much, to the average viewer because of than the awesome fights and there’s plenty of comedy that will make it hard to take the show seriously. This anime is full of so many interesting characters and it’s not only the 2 main ones (Kenichi & Miu). Some of the supporting characters are also great, as their little quirks make the series more enjoyable. With Kenichi being the main titular character, he proves to be quite an amazing well developed one. It just makes it so interesting to watch a "loser-kun" character with no natural talent become such a great fighter. The quality of the animation is very peculiar because most of the time it looks really simple and crude. The action on the other hand can be pretty intense but the character’s thoughts tend to slow down the pace. The music has to be the weakest aspect of the show, as there is nothing particularly special about it. Not only that but the background sounds (birds & cicadas) don’t sound good but the SFX during fights help add to the intensity. Overall History’s Strongest Disciple Kenichi proved to be a really enjoyable and addicting Shounen Action anime to watch, as it didn’t rely on typical “power ups” and “special techniques” but just traditional fighting styles and clichés. Of course this anime would have been so much better if it was produced by a different studio but even then the story would still be very linear. If you’ve seen and enjoyed shounen action animes like “Tenjou Tenge” & "Naruto" then you’ll definitely enjoy this one. ^_^