Ah, Baki, where to start where to start
At surface level, Baki seems like a stereotypical shounen, about a boy training to become the worlds strongest and face it all head on, and technically that's not a wrong synopsis.
So what separates Baki from other shounen anime? Well, the creator, Keisuke Itagaki, did his homework to say the least, having military experience and a degree in Shorinji Kenpo, he didn’t need to rely on things like ‘increasing power level/chakra/ki’, and instead gave a mixture of fantasy martial arts and real ones taken to the next level, all having basis in the principles and applied knowledge
...
(Physics, anatomy, slight psychological elements, etc) that tend to make up actual martial arts.
As a result, pretty much all of the fight scenes are incredibly detailed and well written, the reader will know exactly what it happening and how, which adds a huge layer of excitement to the many fight scenes in the series. Instead of just blood flying everywhere as characters are slashed and blasted, Grappler Baki makes sure to let the reader know what got hit and why it’s important, giving the reader an idea of how this will impact the fight as well as the fighter, which provides a suspense that can’t be found in most other action anime/manga
This dedication to martial arts not only makes up the combat of Baki, but a lot of the story and especially the characters. In modern martial arts, it’s believed that not only the style is important, but the way each unique individual utilizes it is more. A fighting style tends to be forged by experience and personality, and the series captures this perfectly.
It’s not at all uncommon for flashbacks to be shown mid-fight, showing us how these fighters came to be who they are, the struggles they faced, and how their fighting styles were basically forged by said struggles. Be it the young man who fearlessly took up responsibility after his father’s death in order to be a pillar of strength for his ill mother, the boxer whose warrior spirit was brought out by his heritage and his desire to protect his little sister, the wrestler who went from someone who genuinely loved the sport to rather fame obsessed and self-indulgent.
The thing is, these backstories, regardless of the character, tend to be pretty sympathetic and actually realistic. There were plenty of boxers who used it as a way to survive the crime ridden neighborhoods, and get themselves and their families out of the slums. There are plenty of fighters in general who lost sight of their passion when they let fame get to their head.
To top it off, a lot of these backstories tend to have themes that honestly wouldn’t be expected of a shounen. This especially shows with Baki’s mother, whose story is pretty much a cautionary tale of how a submissive woman having an abusive relationship with a charismatic devil of a man can turn her into just as much of a monster as he is due to her sheer desire for his approval
To get to the titular character himself, he’s a very interesting case of character development. Notably, the series is just as much about Baki’s growth as a person as it is about his growth as a martial artist. It’s revealed rather early on in the manga, Baki was quite literally born to fight. His father Yujiro, the strongest creature on earth, essentially had a child with the intent of making and eventually breaking a warrior that would give him a satisfying fight. The first saga, the champion saga, is merely an introduction for this world of fighters, however, next up is the prequel saga, ‘the child saga’, in which we start to see who Baki is. The young Baki, age 13, is rather hotheaded and impulsive, fighting is pretty much all on his mind. This mindset goes to the point where he goes out of his way to pick fights with gangsters, boxers, and even wild beasts. Starting with that arc, we start to see Baki slowly learn to control his fighting instinct, and after a certain event happens, he ends up developing in ridiculous ways and beginning to see the bigger picture of life.
Finally, what many view as the downside of the Baki series, the art style. Even if you like Baki’s art style, you clearly see why it turns so many people away. As said before, Baki is rather heavy on the detail in pretty much everything it does, this includes the human facial and bodily features, and it has no problem showing the ugly to it. The physiques of the fighters are that of fighters, not male models. There tends to be things like veins bulging from muscles, horrendous scars, no one is that handsome after being constantly socked in the face. Honestly, the ‘ugly’ art style tends to work in the manga’s favor, except when it starts to exaggerate certain features, often the limbs seem to bend in ways they shouldn’t, similar to early JoJo, and, at times, there are clear exaggerated bends and curves that can raise eyebrows. If you don’t mind characters who aren’t sights for sore eyes and can handle the exaggeration, then the art style is both extremely fitting and an interesting change of pace in my opinion.
All in all, as said, Baki, at surface, is your stereotypical shounen, as you start to read it, you realize it’s one of the manliest series ever written, but as you read on and go further and further into the series, you realize something else. An attention to detail that truly makes the series. In the long run, Baki doesn’t just focus on the why and the what, it also focuses on the how. In fight scenes, it focuses on how the action and the injury effects the fight. In the story, it’s a huge aspect to the characters, we not only see how Baki’s experiences and relationships come to start forging him as a person, we see how the people who make up those experiences and relationships came to be who they were up until that point, and we see how their experiences and affiliation with Baki effects them as people.
The final result of this, especially when combining all four series so far, you get the story of Baki’s transition from boy to man to master, seeing how the world impacted him and seeing how he impacted it back, full of some of the best action scenes you will ever see, each fight getting you more and more hyped up as you wonder where it’s gonna go next.
 Alternative TitlesSynonyms: Baki the Grappler Japanese: グラップラー刃牙 InformationType: Manga
Volumes: 42
Chapters: 371
Status: Finished
Published: 1991 to 1999
Genre:
Action
Demographic:
Shounen
Serialization:
Shounen Champion (Weekly) Authors:
Itagaki, Keisuke (Story & Art) Statistics Ranked: #15132 2 based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded. Popularity: #665
Members: 26,783
Favorites: 589 Available AtResources | Reviews
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Oct 27, 2017
Ah, Baki, where to start where to start
At surface level, Baki seems like a stereotypical shounen, about a boy training to become the worlds strongest and face it all head on, and technically that's not a wrong synopsis. So what separates Baki from other shounen anime? Well, the creator, Keisuke Itagaki, did his homework to say the least, having military experience and a degree in Shorinji Kenpo, he didn’t need to rely on things like ‘increasing power level/chakra/ki’, and instead gave a mixture of fantasy martial arts and real ones taken to the next level, all having basis in the principles and applied knowledge ... 
Jan 4, 2021
Grappler Baki is a long-running action, martial arts manga, written and illustrated by Keisuke Itagaki.
Grappler Baki is a massive manga, having over 130 volumes and is still publishing to this day, the series is currently divided into 5 parts: Grappler Baki (1), New Grappler Baki (2), Hanma Baki Son of Ogre (3), Baki Dou Part 1 (4) and Baki Dou Part 2 (5). The core focus of Grappler Baki is fighting and fighting only, to quote Super Eye Patch Wolf “Baki is a series for fighting, for fighting sake.” Realism? It does not exist in Baki, what you get out of Baki is high amounts ... 
Nov 13, 2019
Baki is not really defined by having a great narrative structure, as the arcs are almost separate from each other, save a few characters and overarching plot that crawls bit by bit. Its most defining features, in my opinion, are in its dedication to the battle manga ethos and the mastery of this by Keisuke Itagaki. The fight scenes are well drawn and the mangaka's understanding of body mechanics clearly lends itself to the quality. The characters *generally* serve the plot or the main character, so if you are not interested in Baki's character and his version of the hero's journey, this may not be
...
Feb 6, 2018
Like I've mentioned many times before I really don't like doing a review until the series is finished(this one is), but this is one of the very few exceptions, mainly the scanners are for some reason way behind in the original series but have most of the others finished, lol.
I really do like this manga it is one of the many I would recommend to old and new alike. But the one main thing that nags at me the entire time I was reading it is that Baki is an arrogant asshole. Now i would like to mention that as of now(11/03/17) only 197 chapters ... 
Aug 31, 2022
I'm a good target for this since the author is heavy on k1 and combat sports as me, but even so this is not that good. I feel his love for it and that passion, but the execution is too farfetched. Always in a really narrow line between being based on realistic fights but also on absolute fantasy as if they were superheroes.
Who I find believable and somewhat rooted on the personality of some women is Baki's mother, usually portrayed as one of the worst manga mothers. And yeah the main motive for it it's her sex drive and animal instincts that the ones that ... 
May 12, 2022
°English Version°
After so much time I finished Grappler Baki by Keisuke Itagaki and it effectively becomes one of my favorite works by now. A manga full of incredible moments, completely exaggerated and surreal. But besides that, a frantic madness that does not stop. The story also engages very quickly, especially when they tell us the most pre-adolescent part of Baki, with the theme of his mother and showing him that he is also as strong as his father. The hardest moments for him take place here and that greatly improves the work later on. The tournament arc is excellent on its own, one of the best tournaments ... 
Sep 15, 2022
Grappler Baki is a simple and straightforward story about becoming the strongest man in the world, make great largely by its brilliant execution that makes it the giant that it is today.
To start with, I believe that Baki series as a whole is one of those shows where your experience is far better now that you can binge-read it rather than waiting for the next weekly or monthly for chapter. I know the same can be said to other series too, but Baki is different because the pages can be filled with tons of fight choreography and very little dialogue, making your reading-time a lot ... 
Jul 9, 2022
Grappler Baki is the first serialization of the Baki series, an absurdist martial arts manga that's still going on today. I started the Baki series with the Netflix adaptation of the next serialization, so I decided to read this for more context (Although context is only somewhat helpful when it comes to this series). While it is heavily flawed, I did very much enjoy it.
The setup is very basic for the most part. Baki Hanma is a 15 year old who wants to beat his dad Yujiro Hanma, who is the strongest creature in the series. I have no issues with a basic setup, but ... 
Jul 31, 2021
Grappler Baki
The first part of an extremely long manga series that cost me a lot of time. To be honest, the manga itself wavers between hate and love until the current Baki-Dou part. The manga always manages to create completely bizarre fights in which you have to rearrange the power of the characters again and again according to fluctuating proportions, especially later it becomes extremely difficult to determine who is above whom in the food chain. In any case, the author loves to bring bizarre visualizations of strength, training, and explanations into the manga. I have always found this aspect very appealing and at the same time ... |
