To celebrate its 25th anniversary, Keisuke Itagaki's "Baki the Grappler" is planning new episodes for the classic martial arts anime to be released with its 14th manga volume in December.
The original manga series "Baki the Grappler" was released in 1991 with 42 volumes by Weekly Shōnen Champion magazine. It was followed by three more manga series as follows:
- "Baki" or "New Grappler Baki: In Search of Our Strongest Hero" with 31 volumes released in 1999;
- Baki Hanma or "Baki: Son of Ogre" with 37 volumes released in 2005; and
- Baki-Dou or "Baki: The Way" released in March 2014, currently with 13 volumes.
The "Baki the Grappler" new anime series will be bundled as an OAD (original anime DVD) with the 14th Baki-Dou manga volume on Dec. 6, as announced in Akita Shoten's Weekly Shōnen Champion magazine issue no. 32 on Thursday, Anime News Network reported.
Baki is the son of a powerful warrior. His wealthy, psychotic mother wanted him to become like his father and funded his training. At the start of the series, Baki outgrew traditional training methods and went out to follow the footsteps of his father, meeting many powerful people along the way. Baki was also able to meet and fight his father and was easily beaten by him. Baki continued his training by traveling around the world and found an underground arena where he can hone his martial arts by fighting powerful enemies with all sorts of techniques.
"Baki The Grappler" has two television anime adaptations to date, and one original animation video. A 24-episode series which faithfully followed the events in the manga was released in January 2001, and another 24-episode animation titled "Grappler Baki: Maximum Tournament" was released later that year.
A manga spin-off by Yukinao Yamauchi titled "Baki Gaiden: Kizuzura" was also released in the first issues of Bessatsu Shōnen Champion magazine in 2012, and another spinoff, "Baki Gaiden: Kenjin," was released by Champion RED magazine in 2013.
