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Baki the Grappler
グラップラー刃牙 (Grappler Baki)
Genre	Action, Martial arts, Shōnen
Manga
Author	Keisuke Itagaki
Publisher	Akita Shoten Raijin Comics (former)
Serialized in	'Weekly Shonen Champion'
Original run	1991 – 1999
Volumes	42[1]
Manga: New Grappler Baki
Author	Keisuke Itagaki
Publisher	Akita Shoten
Serialized in	'Weekly Shonen Champion '
Original run	1999 – 2005
Volumes	31[2]
TV anime: Grappler Baki TV
Director	Hitoshi Nanba
Network	TV Tokyo FUNimation channel & CoLours TV
Other networks: GMA 7, HERO
Original run	8 January 2001 – 25 June 2001
Episodes	24[3]
TV anime: Grappler Baki: Maximum Tournament
Original run	23 July 2001 – 24 December 2001
Episodes	24[4]
OVA: Grappler Baki: The Ultimate Fighter
Episodes	1[5]
Released	21 August 1994
Manga: Baki: Son of Ogre
Author	Keisuke Itagaki
Publisher	Akita Shoten
Serialized in	'Weekly Shonen Champion '
Original run	2005 – current
Volumes	8[6]

Baki the Grappler or Grappler Baki (グラップラー刃牙) is a manga and anime series by Keisuke Itagaki. It was originally serialized in the Weekly Shonen Champion from 1991 and 1999, lasting 42 collected volumes. It was followed by two sequel series, New Grappler Baki (バキ, Baki^?) (serialized from 1999 to 2005) and Baki: Son of Ogre (範馬刃牙, Hanma Baki^?) (which began in 2005 and currently in serialization).

The 24 episode anime aired in Japan between January 8, 2001 and June 25, 2001. A second 24 episode series called Grappler Baki Maximum Tournament was released on 22 July 2001. The story revolves around Baki Hanma and his quest to proclaim himself as the strongest grappler in the world, thus taking the title from his father. Baki also fights to gain the trust of his overly psychotic mother, which gives Baki a minor Oedipus complex. The OVA was released by Manga Entertainment in Australia and the UK.

Contents 1 Characters 1.1 Tournament Contenders 1.2 Other characters 2 Manga volumes 3 Airing outside Japan 4 References 5 External links

• Baki Hanma (範馬刃牙 Hanma Baki): The main character, and son of Yujiro Hanma. He has been training in martial arts since the age of three, and has trained under various teachers and coaches throughout his life. At the age of thirteen, he decided to take his training into his own hands and left the coaches to perform more intense training "in his father's footsteps." He later meets with his father and becomes disillusioned as to his father's true character, and afterwards, aims to defeat and kill him. His fighting style is called "total fighting," and includes techniques from many different martial arts. He fights Arudi Regan in round 1, Zool in round 2, Igari Kanji in round 3, Retsu Kaioh in round 4 before facing his brother in round 5 and the finals of the tournament. He eventually develops the ogre face on his back when fighting his brother, but manages to suppress it. Unlike Yujiro, he chooses to control his killing intent and fight his battles fair & honorably no matter what the outcome. Baki has encounters with all the escaped convicts in the Search for our Strongest Hero series and has just defeated Bicuit Oliva and is now faced with a new challenge against the Prehistoric man Pickle.

• Yujiro Hanma (範馬勇次郎 Hanma Yūjirō): The father of Baki and Jack Hammer/Hanma. He is the strongest creature in the world, and is known to have mastered all styles of unarmed combat. His repertoire apparently includes all of the well-known fighting styles (such as boxing, tae kwon do, judo, jujutsu, wrestling, street-fighting, and so on) as well as some more esoteric ones (such as the udonde or uzunde style, an actual system used in the Motobu style of karate). He has been fighting on the battlefields, using only his bare hands, since the age of sixteen, when he fought against both American and Vietcong in the Vietnam War. Since then, it appears that he has obtained respect from the American forces, and has begun fighting as a kind of mercenary for them. It is said that when he stopped fighting for survival but for pleasure during the wars the image of the demon's face appeared on his back.

Below is a list (no order) of styles Yujiro has fought and won against:

• • Brazilian Jiu-jitsu
  • Kickboxing
  • Judo
  • Sumo Wrestling
  • Greco-Roman Wrestling
  • Various forms of Karate including Doppo's Shinshinkai
  • Aikido
  • Street fighting and Baki
  • Jujutsu
  • Boxing
  • Military fighting tactics of Green Berets, Navy Seals, and Army Airborne Rangers
  • Muay Thai
  • Yoga
  • Tae-kwon-do
  • Tonfa
  • Chinese Kung Fu
  • Israeli Krav Maga
  • The Forces of Nature itself

• Doppo Orochi (愚地独歩 Orochi Doppo): A karate master and head of the shinshinkai-kan (a karate style which seems to be inspired by the real-life style of kyokushin karate). One of the only people in the world able to stand toe-to-toe with Yujiro. He whips his students into shape by fighting them regularly, and practices all of his karate techniques at least one thousand times daily. A very devoted karate practitioner, and a mentor of Baki's. Also the instructor of Katou and father of Katsumi. He eventually fights the escaped American convict Dorian in the 'Search of our Strongest Hero' manga series. Dorian manages to cut off Doppo's hand with a strange wire-cutting technique in which he uses a wire blade projected from a lighter. Doppo later avenges this loss when he, Katsumi, and Retsu track Dorian down. Shortly after this however, Dorian escapes from the hospital and uses an explosive that is implanted into his hand to blow off part of Doppo's face. Doppo later returns to have a battle with Mohammad Ali Jr. In the Maximum Tournament, he fights Richard Phyllis in round 1, Amanai Ryu in Round 2 before facing another master Gouki Shibukawa in round 3 which he loses after a brutal match.

• Gouki Shibukawa: Master of the ancient jujutsu arts used by the samurai soldier-warriors of feudal Japan. Is sixty years of age, and has trained since prior to World War II, in the "old days" of the martial arts. His art makes use of the martial arts principle of aiki, which uses the opponents' attacks against him. Manages to make it all the way through to semi-finals in the Maximum Tournament series and battles against Jack Hammer. He later teams up with Baki to face the Japanese convict Yanagi Ryukou in the 'Search of our Strongest Hero' series. He also has a friendly sparring match with Biscuit Oliva and another match with Mohammad Ali Jr. In the Maximum tournament, he faces Roger Harlon in round 1, Shinogi Koushou in round 2 before facing Doppo in round 3 and losing to Jack Hammer in round 4. When not fighting, he's quite eccentric (as well as a bit senile) as he lives the day and fears nothing.

• Kaoru Hanayama: Fifteen-year-old yakuza leader and strongman. When his father died, he was adopted by his uncle who saw great potential in him. His grip is so strong that if he grabs an opponent's arm, he can usually cause it to explode from restricting the blood flow. He is also a street fighter and it is unknown if he has trained in martial art styles. He broke Yuri Chakosky's arm, thus ending his boxing career, but when then cross paths again they hold no grudge against each other understanding each other's warrior spirit. He has memorable battles with Baki Hanma, Katsumi Orochi, and the infamous showdown with the convict Speck. Speck manages to place a handful of bullets into Hanayama's mouth and slam it shut, causes them to explode and creating two large holes in Hanayama's mouth. Although Hanayama won the battle, he wears a facemask for most of the series. Later on, he is shown surgically treated. His code of honor is great as he chooses not to fall in battle even if it means his death; a family vow which has been held in a long tradition passed from generations. Even after 3 direct strikes from Katsumi, he still chose not to fall and chose to risk death. Katsumi even admitted that he lost his battle to him despite winning the match. He faces Bunnoshin Inagi in round 1, before losing to Orochi Katsumi in round 2. He is looked upon as an older brother figure to Baki.

• Yuu Amanai: Yujiro's apprentice. Yujiro meets him in America, where he is serving as a bodyguard to the President. It is unknown whether he is Japanese or American, but it is most likely that he is American but of Japanese descent. His style is based on "love," in contrast to Yujiro's style, which is more aggressive and based on rage. He fights Yamamoto Minuru in round 1 before battling Orochi Doppo in the Maximum Tournament.
• Retsu Kaiou: Chinese Kung Fu (referred to as "Kenpo" in Japanese) practitioner. Trained in China and became the heir to his Kung Fu style in his temple. He fights Sergei Tactorof in round 1, Mount Toba in round 2, and destroys Orochi Katsumi in round 3 he then makes it to the semi-finals of the Maximum tournament and is pitted against Baki Hanma where he loses. Despite his great knowledge in his style, there is one flaw in his system that Baki seems to possess. In the 'Search of our Strongest Hero' saga, he has encounters with the British convict Hector Doyle and American convict Dorian. Brings Baki to China to cure his poisoned body and have him fight in a Chinese Tournament.

• Jack Hammer (or Jack Hanma): Baki's half brother, like Baki, must follow the Hanma path. He's Pitfighter from Canada. He is the son of Yujiro and a Canadian soldier woman who Yujiro met in Vietnam, during the Vietnam War. Like Baki, he has since childhood wished to surpass his father Yujiro in strength and martial ability. His obsession to defeat his father led to extreme over training and overworking of his body which led to the deterioration of his body, claiming he will never be able to defeat his father with normal training. After his encounter with the Yujiro inspired scientist, he received from him steroids to match his overtraining and has gained his immense power. One of his main techniques is biting, and he can bite hard enough to easily crush wood with his teeth. He fights Shenusiba in round 1, Misaki Kengo in round 2 before beating the unbeaten Andre Ancof Gerrard in round 3.In round 4 he fights Gouki Shibukawa and fights Baki Hanma in the finals of the Maximum Tournament where he congratulates his brother for a well fought victory. Afterwards, he takes on his father and his soundly defeated. Makes an appearance in the "Search of our Strongest Hero' series and battles against the Russian convict Sikorsky and Mohammed Ali Jr. Is treated by Kureha Kosho by having his limbs extended, making Jack Hammer even bigger than when he fought in the maximum tournament.

• Strydum: An American soldier and Yujiro's companion and comrade-at-arms. Originally met Yujiro as an enemy in the Vietnam War. Developed an admiration for Yujiro, and now he travels, fighting with him on the battlefields of the world. He somewhat understands Yujiro's mentality and mentions that he is the only person to bring the United States to its knees. He is also a friend and mentor of Baki's, who keeps him up to date about Yujiro's whereabouts.

• Artemis Regan: A man of immense size, he is over 8 feet tall and weighs over 600 pounds, easily the biggest man in the tournament he makes Mount Toba look small. He fights using professional wrestling and loses to Baki in round 1. According to Toba, just one small strike from Regan can knock a person out and because of it many Wrestling Promoters got angry at him for ending matches quickly. Baki convinces him to use all of his might which surprises him because no one has ever asked him to use all his power.

• Zool: More of a beast than a man, he is a large fighter from Africa that uses Vale Tudo. He beats Danny Shubaka in the first round before losing to Baki in the second.

• Danny Shubaka: A kickboxer that got destroyed by Zool in the first round of block A. He is one of many fighters that continue to get their faces punched in after the fight is over.

• Rob Robinson: The kickboxing champ, he fights Igari Kanji in the first round. Thinking he will have an easy win over Igari because Igari is old he proceeds to beaten senseless by Igari. He later gets his leg broken by Yujiro.

• Igari Kanji: An old Pro Wrestler known all over the world, he fights and defeats Rob Robinson in the first round and Kin Ryuzan in the second round before losing to Baki in the third. He is well known for fighting dirty going as far to kick Baki in the balls, as well as pretend to give up so he could sneak attack Baki. He is based on real life pro wrestler Antonio Inoki.

• Izo Motobe: An old Japanese jujutsu master, he is beaten in the first round by Kin Ryuzan, but continues to offer commentary for future jujutsu matches. He later appears again in the 'Search of our strongest hero' manga, this time fighting against the convict Ryuuko Yanagi. He develops new techniques in order to fight Yujiro, but usually fails.

• Kin Ryuzan: The current yokozuna, he beats Motobe Izo in round 1 before having his arm and shoulder broken by Igari Kanji in round 2 and having his trainer throw in the towel. Afterwards he rips off his top knot as a sign of disgrace only to be congratulated by Igari for a good fight and convinces him to never stop fighting. Later almost has his back broken by Yujiro.

• Sergei Tactarof: A sambo fighter from Russia, he breaks Regan's arm before his match with Retsu Kaioh as a show of strength. Though he is almost killed by Retsu in round 1, he is again brutally beaten by Andre Ancof Gerrard. He is based on the Russian fighter Oleg Taktarov.

• Katou Kyosume: A top student of Doppo orochi, who left the dojo after having enough of Doppo's "weak" training regime and trained around the world. He returns to Japan after finding out the Underground tournaments. Katou's attitude is best described as arrogant, but usually being the butt of a joke; especially around Doppo, Katsumi, Tokugawa, and Baki. He originally is supposed to fight Mike Gerald, but both of them are beaten senseless by a Giant Red Gorilla called Ghost Monkey. their match is declared a no contest. Katou shows up in the 'Search of our strongest hero' and fights against the convict Dorian in his secret underground hiding place. Katou has his face scarred horribly from a broken glass bottle and is announced "dead" upon his body being found by Retsu Kaiou in the Shinseikai building. It is later revealed that Katou is alive.

• Yasha Zaru Jr. (The Ghost Ape): A giant red ape that fights Katou in the first round though he beats Katou, Orochi Katsumi proceeds to almost kill the ape before the intervention of Baki. He is the son of Yasha (The Beast of Yasha Crag), although he is not as big as his father. He crashed the tournament to avenge his father by hunting for Yujiro. Baki promised him that he would avenge him and his father by winning the tournament.

• Inagi Bunnoshin: Inagi fights Hanayama Kaoru in the first round using a style called Nippon Kenpo a form of full contact fighting in Japan that uses many elements from different styles. He breaks his own back trying to break Kaoru's Arm and his trainer attempts to fight Kaoru after their fight though Kaoru talks him out of it.

• Katsumi Orochi: Doppo's son and current prodigy of Shinshinkai karate. He fights Ronan Tekustar in round 1 defeating him easily before fighting Hanayama Kaoru and fighting a more even round 2 using his sonic fists technique. In round 3 he loses miserably to Retsu Kaioh getting knocked out in 1 punch. Retsu was impressed that Katsumi could take one of his punches. A rematch in the Saarch for our Strongest Hero series is interrupted when the convict Dorian comes into the Shinseikai building and attacks Katsumi. Katsumi also later trains the convict Doyle in Shinseikai Karate.

• Roland Tekustar: A catch wrestler user who is beaten by Orochi Katsumi in round 1, he is fairly well known as Doppo knew quite a bit about him. He is (fictionally) trained by Billy Riley. He later fights and is choked out by Yujiro. He was given the nickname "Lion Slayer" for fighting lions while training in Africa.

• Mount Toba: A large Pro wrestler known all over the world he fights as a replacement for the Katou/Monkey fight and goes up against Retsu Kaioh in round 2 losing by submission to kneebar. Like Igari he also fights dirty going as far as to kick sand into Retsu's eyes as well as throw his cape over Retsu to bind him like a net. He later provides commentary for Igari's matches in the tournament. He is based on real life Pro wrestler Giant Baba.

• Lee Monhu: The only Taekwondo user in the tournament he is knocked out in round 1 by Ian McGregor. He later fights and is knocked out in one axe kick by yujiro.

• Ian McGregor: The heavyweight boxing champ, he knocks out Lee monhu in the first round and fights Shiba Chiharu in the second where he loses when his trainer throws in the towel after both his hands are broken. He is later knocked out by Yujiro with an uppercut.

• Chiharu Shiba: Leader of the yokohama racing gangs, he is a street fighter that doesn't seem to feel pain. He fights Hatataka Kouhei in round 1 where he severely breaks his own arm before viciously beating Kouhei. In round 2 he fights Ian McGregor and wins by breaking both of McGregors hands with his rock hard skull. Though he wins he is unable to continue due to injury. He is replaced By Andre who also proceeds to throw him through the ceiling.

• Kouhei Hatataka: A judo practitioner he breaks Chiharu's left arm before being beaten senseless by Chiharu. He later fights Yujiro who destroys him again by throwing him neck first into the ground.

• Mike Crintai: An American Pro Wrestler he loses by submission to Misaki Kengo.

• Kengo Misaki: A shaolin fist user he beats Mike Crintai in round 1, before having his wrist broken by Jack Hammer and getting knocked out in round 2.

• Shen Silva: The only Brazilian jujutsu user in the tournament he is brutally knocked out by Jack Hammer in round 1.

• Andre Ancof Gerrard: A giant Greco Roman wrestler he has over 600 wins and no losses and he replaces the injured Chiharu and is beaten by Jack Hammer who almost bites off his hand leaving it dangling by a piece of skin. Is later nearly killed by the Russian convict Sikorsky. This character is based on the real life Russian wrestler Alexander Karelin.

• Minuru Yamamoto: A shoot wrestler who loses to Amanai Ryu in round 1 before even laying down an offense in the fight.

• Richard Phyllis: Though his style would be described as boxing, he more less just stands there and takes punishment. Though this works with 3 men armed with baseball bats this does not work with Doppo. He wears a tuxedo to the ring and Doppo complied wearing a nice suit of his own, he later fights and loses to Yujiro after breaking his hand punching yujiro in the head and a groin kick that makes him fly away.

• Roger Harlon: A Greco Roman wrestler he loses to Gouki Shibukawa in round 1. He is also one of the many people Yujiro beats on his rampage by giving him a powerful belly to belly suplex.

• Koushou Shinogi: The younger brother of Shingi Kureha, he fights using a technique called cord cutting which involves cutting your opponents nerves so they can't move. He does this because he was over shadowed by his older brother, Kureha, who always came to his rescue as children. He fights his brother in round 1 who gives up after seeing Koushou's resilience. In round 2, he fights Gouki Shibukawa and though he breaks Gouki's fake eye he still loses. Returns in the Search for our Strongest Hero series and fights against the convict Doyle. Doyle uses an explosive device in his chest to defeat Kosho, and it is later shown that his older brother Kureha has been taking care of his burn wounds following the battle.

• Kureha Shinogi: The older brother of Shinogi Koushou, he is very narcissistic and trains to develop the perfect body. He is also a surgical genius able to do surgeries that normally take a several hours in only 30 minutes, though he does not have a license. He fights Baki Hanma and is destroyed by him after Baki meets the people that got screwed over by him. Ironically, he is saved by one of his victims when he needed a blood transfusion after his match with Baki. In the tournament, he fights his younger brother Koushou and though he destroys Koushou he decides to give up to let his younger brother continue in the tournament. During that match, despite losing his eyesight when Koshou severed two of his cords, he surgically fixed his nerves during his fight. He serves as tournament medic as the matches go on and tried to stop Jack Hammer from using any steroids only to be beaten by him. Later, he helps Jack Hammer develop new ways of getting stronger without the use of Steroids.

• Kurigawa - Emi Akizawa's personal assistant. His job to keep an eye on Baki as well as set up "fights" for him. Despite his age, he is a capable fighter. He serves as a father figure to Baki.

• Detective Kido - A neighborhood detective who sees potential in Baki. He is off struck by Baki's nature and usually hangs out by Baki's house smoking a cigarette. He eventually finds out why Baki is the way he is and is shocked by this revelation. Like Kurigawa, he serves as a father figure to Baki.

• Kitazawa - A street thug from Baki's school. He hates Baki because of his fighting skills. He gathers members from his gang and fight Baki; unfortunately, he and his gang are no match for him. He comes to realize how powerful Baki really is and admits defeat.

• Kurakawa - A master swordsman who Baki tests his speed on by attempting to dodge his blade.

• Keechi Ando - Once a friend of Yujiro's. Keechi Ando is a mountain of a man, comparable in size to the yasha ape. he lives as a hermit secluding himself deep in the woods on a treacherous mountain. Few could even survive the journey to his home, much less eke out a life there. But because of Ando's physical and mental strength, he thrives. His trains by eating a lot and chopping logs with his heavy ax.

• Yasha (The Yasha Ape, The Beast of Yasha Crag) - While training in the mountains, Baki encountered this legendary monster. It is said that it stands 9 ft. tall. Warriors who went to face the beast were never seen again. He was able to fight Ando and injuring him despite being struck by Ando's ax. In his rematch with Baki, its eye was gouged out only to be eaten by him afterwards. In the end, Baki won his fight with him showing Baki a sign of respect. It was revealed that Yujiro killed his wife. In return, Baki returned the skull of his wife as a sign of respect. Likewise, he gave Baki one of his fangs as a gift. It's shown that it is a docile creature and only fights to survive. As Baki departs, it reveals that he was raising three children on his own. Later, it is revealed that he is murdered by Yujiro, who then showed his head to Baki.

• Yuri Chakovsky - The first opponent to ever soundly defeat Baki. He was a Welterweight Boxing Champion moving up to Heavyweight. He was injured by Hanayama, due to his impatience to fight Baki. As a result, his arm was broken and could not compete in boxing again. However, his will enables him to fight anyway. He holds no grudge against Hanayama for what he has done and understands why Hanayama did what he did. He is cheered on by his little sister, Nina.

• Gaia/Nomura - The leader of a mercenary group sent to take on Baki. Once a reckless mercenary who loved killing, but feared death when faced with a firing squad, thus losing his hair. As a result, Gaia manifested from Nomura because of Nomura's fear of death. It is said that Gaia is Yujiro's equal in combat. However, when it comes to jungle warfare, he is king. As Nomura, he best described as a weakling, who acts as a medic for the team. However, when the situation is right and adrenaline starts pumping, Gaia will come out to fight. He utterly despises Yujiro stating he's nothing but a thrill seeker that fights for pleasure. He fights Baki and honorably loses to him. When he crossed paths with Yujiro, Gaia told him that Baki is a better warrior than Yujiro can ever be before the two fight. Gaia makes an appearance in the 'Search of our strongest hero' manga by replacing Jack Hammer during his fight with the Russian convict Sikorsky. His three philosophies when fighting is one, take care of your body and give it rest; two, free your body from the control of your mind, and finally, use every part of your surroundings as a weapon.

• Copperhead - Baki's first opponent from Gaia's squad. His expertise is knife combat.

• Kuraishi - Baki's second opponent from Gaia's squad. His specialty is grappling. Baki learns from him how to fight "dirty".

• Chiba & Sanada - Twin brothers in Gaia's squad who fight as one. Usually, the two have to wear disguise so their allies won't be confused. But against the enemy, they can fight as one person shifting back and forth against an opponent. Chiba is a close combat and blade expert, while his brother, Sanada, is a wire and trap specialist.

• Biscuit "Oly" Oliva (AKA the Dark Arrow, unchained) - An assassin working for the US. He possesses an iron body and is almost invulnerable to about anything. He and Yujiro crossed paths while he was sent to assassinate a drug cartel leader. At the same time, he ran into Yujiro. He refers Yujiro as "Mr. Ogre" and tends to be polite and eccentric before fighting. Yujiro mentions to him that he should take time with his kills rather than being quick about it. Oly understands Yujiro's blood lust, but prefers to do his job than play around. His trademark is his punch which can go through his opponent's heart. Is brought in by the US government to track down and capture the escaped convicts in the 'Search for our strongest hero' manga series. He has just defeated "Che Guevara" in the Arizona Prison and was recently defeated by Baki Hanma.

• Dorian- The American convict that escaped from Argathos prison while being hanged. He is a practicioner of chinese kempo and learnt from the same school and reached the same rank of kaoih as Retsu. Besides from Chinese kempo he also knows a form of hypnosis to cloud his opponents senses and allows Dorian to defeat them. He has memorable battles with Doppo Orochi and Katou where he nearly killed him. After being beaten by Doppo he is hospitalised where he escaped and goes to Doppo's house where he attacks him and blows part of Doppo's face off using a bomb located in his wrist. He is later defeated by Retsu and is mentally incapacitated making him harmless. He is later seen at the Chinese Tournament where he loses in the first match.

• Hector Doyle- English convict who escaped from the electric chair. He kills Rob Robinson and later scares baki at school although they don't actually fight. He has fights with Biscuit Oliva, Shinogi, Orochi Katsumi, Retsu Kaioh and later Doppo after Doyle used explosives to detonate a floor of the shinshinkai main dojo. After being stabbed in the eye by Retsu he later befriends Katsumi and plans on escaping the country on a ship. Yanagi comes and nearly kills Doyle and blinds him before Doyle escapes. Doyle is later seen in a cave where Oliva finds him and kills him. He fights using metal blades implanted into his joints and controlled by his nervous system, and he also has a generator where his heart is.

• Sikorsky- Russian Convict, escaped from Evanse prison in Russia. To do this he had to climb up smooth missile silo. After escaping he nearly killed Andre Ancof Gerrard. He fights with Baki, Oliver, Jack Hammer and even teams up with Yanagi to try and defeat Baki. He is defeated by Gaia in the Maximum Tournament arena. Gaia uses environmental battle method to defeat Sikorsky and make him give up. Though it does not say if Sikorsky has a particular martial art it seems he uses just strength and is accredited with extremely powerful fingers.

• Speck- American Convict, escaped from Florida state prison, located 200 feet under water. Speck after killing the councillor who came to see him in prison, escapes and kills five more people on the shore. After wanting to fight baki he is arrested and instead of yeilding to the law decides to make the Japanese detention centre his second home. Has one of the bloodiest battles with Hanayama Kaoru where they both inflict severe injuries on each other. Throws bullets into Hanayama's mouth which cause ghastly wounds. Speck has his throat ripped out ultimately killing him. He knows a technique called Wu-Hu-Xi-Lian-Da where he throws rapid punches that destroy an opponent by melting their bones. Uses this technique to almost destroy the statue of liberty. After death it is found out he is actually 97 years old.

• Yanagi Ryuukou- Japanese convict escapes from being enclosed in rocket proof special glass. The smallest of the convicts physically he is later being shown as the most deadly. He uses a special martial art called way of the void. In this style he practices Vacuum palm, Whip of Mercury, Poison hand and many others. He is seen to be an old aquaintance of Shibukawa Gouki. He has fights with Shibukawa, Baki, Doyle and Izo Motobe. He is responcible for poisoning Baki with his poison hand and also for nearly killing Doyle and for destroying Shibukawa's eye preceding the storyline. He fights with Izo who uses kenjutsu to stab his leg and cut off his poison hand. Yujiro then comes and declared Yanagi the loser which Yanagi did not accept. As Yujiro was ready to go he quickly spins and breaks Yanagi's neck with a back hand. Yanagi's death ended the escaped convicts saga.

Togugawa- The tournement runner and owner of the underground arena

Baki manga so far (chronologically):

• Grappler Baki (Real fighting action) - (1rst series Volume 1 to 42, complete) (The champion saga, the kid saga, and the maximum tournament saga).

• Grappler baki Gaiden :Igari vs mount toba - (Complete) (immediately after the maximum tournament).

• Baki: The search of our strongest hero (The strongest is the beautiful) - (2nd series Volume 1 to 31, Complete) (The prisoners saga, the Chinese challenge saga, the Ali jr saga). These volumes are also being translated into English via the Wild Fang Project.

• Baki saga - (The romantic contact chapter) (Complete) (Side story that develops at the same time as volume 15).

• Grappler Baki: Scarface, the legend of the invincible fist - (Volume 1 to 5, ongoing) (Hanayama Kaoru's yakuza adventures outside the world of Grappler Baki).

• Grappler Baki: red Dragon side, Grappler side - (Complete) (compendium of the characters and events of the world of Grappler baki/Baki , covers until volume 23 of the 2nd saga).

• Grappler baki: blue tiger side, fighting side - (Complete) (Compendium of every battle fought and its results on the world of Grappler baki/Baki, also covers until volume 23 of the 2nd saga).

• Hanma Baki : Son of ogre, The boy fascinating the fighting god (3rd series finale Volume 1 to 8, ongoing) (Training with the strongest saga, Oliva's fortress saga 9-10 , The Prehistoric menace chapter Ongoing (Tied to the manga Pickle:the man from 65.000.000 years ago).

Hawaii-based TV station KIKU aired the FUNimation Productions licensed version of the series during the August and October 2006 period. Dubbed in English, the episodes were edited for time but does not appear to be edited for content. The Opening Theme for the anime is a song titled Child prey by popular Japanese rock band Dir en grey. FUNimation is airing their dub on the COLOURS channel on weekends at 10pm.

• Official japanese website
• Site from FUNimation Productions
• Site about Baki the manga