Joe vs. Joe
 | This article may require copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone, or spelling. (October 2008) |
| Joe vs Joe | |
| File:JoevsJoe.jpg | |
| Genre | Seishun, Boxing, Sport |
|---|---|
| Anime | |
| Directed by | Kouichi Kimura |
| Studio | Proudman |
Joe vs. Joe (ふたりのジョーFutari no Joe) is a Japanese animated OVA consisting a total of six episodes. The show was produced by studio Proudman. The animation is a spiritual successor of Champion Joe (あしたのジョー Ashita no Joe), one of the first dramatic animations to ever be created globally which originally aired back on April 1, 1970 in Japan. Joe vs. Joe was never aired over broadcast since this was an OVA release, in other words, direct to video.
Characters
Joe vs Joe tells the story of two youths from totally opposite life styles. The only way they can overcome their own curse is to fight each other on the ring.
- Joe Akamine: The protagonist of this story. He came from a medium-income family and lived an ordinary life for the most part, except a betrayal incident that haunted him everyday. He is a very bright person and smiles often; because of these characters he has many friends. He works full time as a deliveryman and frequently he attends a gym to box just to keep himself in shape and self-defense purposes.
- Joe Yuuki: The antagonist / rival of Joe Akamine. He was from a well-off family and lives a extravagant life-style. He is also Shibuya's number one DJ. However, Joe Yuuki is like a lone wolf and he trusts no one. After both his father and mother abandoned him, he was afraid of kindness from others (afraid of the betrayal) and did everything to avoid from people being kind to him. Due to this complexity, he had an ambition to be number one at everything to show everyone that he doesn't need anyone. His boxing career started on the faithful day he meets Joe Akamine.
- Ryuichi Suzuki: Joe Akamine's boxing friend and also a mentor. He has a straight forward personality and always looks for ways to go forward. He also hates giving up, being half-willing, and always gives his fullest and best at everything. In other words, he is the ideal athlete.
- Maki Takakura: A model / actress who is trying to succeed in the entertainment business to get back at her dad. She has fallen in love with Joe Yuuki ever since he saved her from a group of Yakuza. Daughter of a champion boxer, George Takizawa.
- George Takizawa: Once a champion boxer, now retired and carries his own gym. He is also responsible for training both Joe Akamine and Ryuichi who attends his gym, the J. Country Gym. Maki Takakura is his daughter.
- Mr. Matsuda: Owner of Matsuda Gym and also the trainer of Joe Yuuki. He passionately disagrees with George Takizawa's style of boxing.
- Setsuko: Mother of Yu, daughter of Koshu (Grampa) and Ryuichi's love interest. She likes Ryuichi as well but is afraid to express her feelings to him since she is afraid that it might jeopardize his boxing career.
- Yu: Setsuko's son and Koshu's (Grampa) grandson.
- Koshu: Setsuko's father, grandfather of Yu and the owner of the restaurant that Joe Akamine, Ryuichi and George Takizawa often visit. He is called "Grampa" by his close friends and family.
- Iwamoto: Current champion of Japan for his class. He is also the number one boxer at Matsuda Boxing Gym and the Ryuichi's upcoming opponent.
Episodes
Two Joes' from different economic background, one came from a wealthy family and the other was from a poverty-stricken. One is Shibuya's city's top DJ and the other is a parcel delivery man. Two different Joes are living an opposite life, both walk on different paths until one day their roads are merged by faith in the boxing ring.
Fateful Encounter
After his DJ gig at a night club, Joe Yuuki encountered a drunk girl named Maki Takakura. At first, he ignored her because he thought Maki was just another prowling drunk in the street. But as Joe Yuukie walked away he noticed she was being attacked by a group of Yakuza. He rescued her and this was the first time he met his future girlfriend. Meanwhile Joe Akamine is a truck driver or package delivery person. He went to a boxing gym to keep himself fit. He wasn't taking boxing seriously although deep down he loves it. Joe Akamine had his own reason for not being serious. Once a week, Joe Akamine goes down to the city streets to put up a street show as a human punching bag. He'll let the people to hit him and he won't throw punches back. But in return he'll try to dodge all the attacks. As he was "performing", Joe Yuuki noticed him. As curiosity got Joe Yuuki's attention, it made him remember about his dark past. He soon was annoyed and he decided to participate. He knocked out Joe Akamine.
Seal the Nightmare
After his incident with Yuuki, Joe Akamine started to think about Yuuki's remarks and those words motivated him to continue to boxing. At the same token both Ryuichi and George Takizawa encouraged him to become a professional boxer by convincing him that he was a one-of-a-kind and a natural talented boxer. Moreover, Ryuichi demanded Akamine to take the boxing matter seriously or else to just simply quit. As the result, it made Akamine befuddled and confused. Joe then assured himself that he'll continue what he loves the most.