Ippon Again! Review

Ippon Again!, also known as Mou Ippon, is a judo sports anime directed by Ken Ogiwara. It is based on a Japanese manga series, which has run since October 2018 for total of 21 volumes, written and illustrated by Yu Muraoka. This series was produced by Bakken Record, a division of the Japanese animation company Tatsunoko Production. This post will have spoilers.

This series has a simple premise. Michi Sonoda (voiced by Ayasa Itō) planned on quitting being a judoka, a practitioner of the Japanese martial art of judo, during her final tournament in junior high school. However, this changes due to the encouragement from her friend and Sanae Takigawa (voiced by Yukari Anzai), and presence of a girl named Towa Hiura (voiced by Chiyuki Miura) who caused her to go unconscious during her last judo tournament. All three form a judo club at Aoba Nishi High School, to the chagrin of Anna Nagumo (voiced by Nene Hieda), who wants Michi to join the fencing club instead.

Admittedly, I was not originally planning to watch this anime. But, I was drawn into it because of the simple story, well-animated action sequences, and voice acting. This series is nothing like any of the other sports anime I’ve watched before.

It doesn’t have wild golf games like Birdie Wing, nor the dramatic tennis games of Stars Align, or high-stakes baseball games such as those in Tamayomi. Instead, the series is in a league of its own. There are very few other judo anime out there, apart from Inakappe Taishō, Judo Boy, and Yawara!, two of which were produced by Bakken Record, which also produced Ippon Again!.

While sports anime is not something I generally gravitate towards, this series is well-constructed. At times, it is as strong as Birdie Wing or Stars Align. Similar to some other series in the same genre, there is yuri subtext in the series, especially between Michi and Towa. In fact, Towa comes to the same school as Michi so that she can apologize to her for how she acted during their tournament. This has echoes of Yui Yamada running, in a pivotal scene from the 58-minute yuri OVA Kase-san and Morning Glories, to the train so that she can join another girl, Tomoka Kase, who she likes. Otherwise, the show doesn’t have direct yuri themes, only subtext. It is more than a female-centered version of sports shonens focused on nakama-power.

Ippon Again! has comedic moments, like Michi and Sanae thinking they have found the advisor of the judo club, believing it is a big, burly, tough-looking, and extremely dedicated man, Gondo who teaches gym at the high school. However, the reality is very different than what they believe is the case. A thin, athletic woman named Shino Natsume (voiced by Yumi Uchiyama), who knocks down the instructor, Gondo, by doing a judo move, impressing them all, turns out to be the club advisor.

I liked how Towa becomes more sure of herself as the series moves ahead. Early on, she only has enough confidence if she wears her judo uniform, an item which allows her to feel more self-assured. Her social awkwardness is not unique to anime, as Komi Can’t Communicate, Kaguya-sama: Love Is War, Hitori Bocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu, Mitsuboshi Colors, Asobi Asobase, YuruYuri, and Azumanga Daioh are other examples. Despite this, how Towa is portrayed as socially awkward is unique. She further faces a challenge of fighting her former senpai, which makes the series that much more intriguing, and charming in its own way.

All of this is reinforced by the show’s cast. For instance, the voice actors Itō, Anzai, Miura, and Hieda are known for voicing characters in series such as The Demon Girl Next Door, Revue Starlight, BanG Dream!, Release the Spyce, Cue!, Tokyo Mew Mew New, The Maid I Hired Recently Is Mysterious, and Love After World Domination.

The other voice actors are as talented, with Aoi Koga (voice of Erika Amane) who provided the voice for Kaguka, protagonist of Kaguya-sama: Love is War, and Konomi Kohara previously voiced Mina in Teasing Master Takagi-san and Koyomi Kanou in Bloom into You. Additional members of the cast, Yumi Uchiyama, Maria Naganawa, and Anna Nagase, have lent their voices to characters in Re:Zero, Haikyu!, Kinmoza!, Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, BNA, Your Lie in April, and Cyberpunk: Edgerunner.

Unlike other series, writers of Ippon Again! know the right lingo about judo martial arts style, making the series more authentic in that regard. The first part of the show’s name, “ippon,” means to a throw which plays a opponent on the back, and keep them down, resulting in a victory. If the throw isn’t strong enough, someone only scores a waza-ari (formerly called “yuko”), meaning when a contestant throws an opponent on their side, as noted in Masao Takahashi’s 2005 book, Mastering Judo. An ippon, more simply, refers to the highest score someone can achieve in a Japanese martial arts contest, often in jujitsu, karate, kendo, or judo. Other terms such as osaekomi-waza, meaning “holding or pinning techniques,” are mentioned in the series as well.

The series is not without drama. For instance, Sanae promises her parents she will focus on academics in high school and not join the judo club. But, she decides to do so anyway, and as a result, Michi encourages her when she is rattled. The drama is also apparent for the show’s fight scenes, like those with teams from other schools, such as Kasumigaoka High School. This is offset by the camaraderie among the Judo Club members, who help each other out when anyone else is down, and root for one another.

Ippon Again! may not be a show for anyone, but that does not matter. This series is peak fiction in more ways than one, through its cuteness, or the bonds between the characters, either long-time friends Michi and Sanae, or former antagonists Michi and Towa. Each of the characters has determination to be better fighters and blast through expectations, although they are not all at the same level.

While some may think there are suspicious or problematic moments, the truth is that these moments are primarily instances of the characters fighting each other in intense judo style. At other points in the series, Michi smacks Sanae on her butt, while other characters do the same, smacking their teammates in the same manner. Some may think it is “cringeworthy,” it is done with a purpose: to snap their team members back to reality so they will be ready for the fight. As for Michi, her action makes sense as she is a bit of a joker at times, even saying that Sanae should lose her match so she can have a better opponent. Furthermore, throughout Sailor Moon R, Usagi occasionally smacks Chibiusa on the bum, so it makes no sense for people to make an issue out of it. Even so, I would say that Ippon Again! has mild fan service, although not as much as Kandagawa Jet Girls by a long short.

I liked how strength is not the only thing that allows characters of Ippon Again! to win in judo. Their determination and strategy is just as important. Being stronger is not everything in this series, as their coach/advisor Shino reminds them, part of building a backbone for the team to rely upon. Sometimes that person has strength on their side, but other times they inspire other team members to work together to win, all while sweat drips down their faces.

A key message from this series seems to be that hard work, and gumption, can lead to success. However, this idea has been questioned, with some saying it is a component of being successful, that it is a myth entirely, or that neither makes life better or fun. Others have said that this concept, especially when it relates to material success, is no longer “a uniquely Western value.” In any case, this anime makes clear that anyone can improve themselves. For instance, even though Sanae is visually impaired, she fights in judo like everyone else, although she does judo while not wearing her glasses.

Ippon Again! goes the typical route by having a rival-of-sorts: Erika Amane. She is the former senpai of Towa and the person who got Towa interested in judo in the first place. The intense fight between Amane and Towa has some of the best animation in the episode, and perhaps the entire series. Michi sees it as so cool that she is left speechless. In typical fashion, the episode ends before the battle is over, hooking you to watch the next one. In the episode following that, there is a powerful judo match between Michi, and her competitor, Ami Shiraishi. All the focus is on the match, and nothing else, pulling you into the action.

The show’s choreography is one of the series’ strong suits, making you feel like you are part of the action, as is the yuri subtext, as noted earlier, with possibly some subtext between Amane and Towa. This is mixed with the fact that the protagonist struggles with feeling she has “hit a wall of physical ability,” all while the show has some feminist potential.

Ippon Again! is markedly different than any of the other shows airing during this Winter. It is not an idolish series like D4DJ which mainly focuses around different music groups, nor is it a yuri isekai set in a medieval world such as The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady. Instead, it has clear yuri themes throughout, but is not outright yuri. For instance, Towa describes Amane as “terribly precious,” while Anna describes Michi as “incredibly precious.” Similar to Do It Yourself!, the romantic feelings between the show’s characters are never directly expressed, only implied with words, blushing, or other actions.

The series generally focuses on sports matches, specifically judo, after the characters prepare themselves for the tournament at their school dojo, even recruiting a new member, Tsumugi Himeno (voiced by Anna Nagase) to join them. While continuing matches means that there isn’t much story development, apart from flashbacks and the camaraderie, especially between the show’s five protagonists (Michi, Sanae, Towa, Anna, and Tsumugi). Even so, there is undoubted romantic tension between some characters, and strong animation in the fight scenes, with the characters trying to get ippons to win the match.

After finishing Ippon Again!, my previous thoughts about the series were reinforced, as I came to the realization that the series is only yuri-ish, and is primarily a sports series. However, one of the many crinkles in this supposition is the fact that an opposing team coach, Rinka Inui (voiced by Chinatsu Akasaki), is overly excited to see her “senpai,” Shino. Her entire demeanor to changes when she sees Shino. I found this funny because it shows that Rinka and Shino have cool demeanors when preparing for a match, but have different personalities otherwise. In some ways, it makes me think of the dual personalities of the characters in Yuri Is My Job! who act one way in front of patrons and another way in private.

While saying this, I enjoyed the fact that Ippon Again! is all about the love for the game (in this case judo) rather than about winning. The series ends with main protagonists losing to a better team, which has a powerful blond-haired exchange student named Emma Duran (voiced by Akira Sekine). There seems to be the message that you should love who you are, no matter your body type, coupled with the value of teamwork, and having fun, even if you lose. One character, Michi, even laments that they could have spent their summer getting boyfriends instead, but admits she enjoys the company of her fellow teammates.

Even so, I found it unfortunate that some character development can be weak. For example, in the final episode, Sanae calls herself nothing but a “burden,” and is reassured by Himeno. However, such character traits for Sanai are only hinted and implied in other episodes of the series, showing that such a focus could have been emphasized more consistently in the show as a whole. In fact, the young adult animated series, RWBY, does a much better job of this: the character Ruby Rose blows up on her teammates as her trauma and low self-esteem comes to a head, with her going to even more extreme measures in another episode.

Surely, Ippon Again! is different, but it could have had character development, for all its characters, as good as RWBY. Perhaps another season could expand upon this. Sadly, it very unlikely the series will get a second season. Nowadays, many anime only run for 11-13 episodes, and never come back for more, in contrast to Western animation which, generally, run for longer.

Ippon Again! comes at a time that various anime with direct and in-direct yuri themes are airing, such as the Kuma Kuma Kuma Bear, Alice Gear Aegis Expansion, Tokyo Mew Mew New season 2, and Yuri is My Job!, or have ended including the D4DJ and The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and Genius Young Lady. Soon, Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury season 2 will be airing, as will season 2 of Birdie Wing. Unlike those series, I’m not sure that Ippon Again! will have staying power, but I’ll surely remember it for its judo fights, strong animation, music, and yuri subtext.

Ippon Again! is currently streaming on HIDIVE.