明日之丈2

While a sequel to the previous work, this series is positioned as a continuation of the re-edited theatrical version below, so the story begins after the fight with Rikiishi, and it essentially serves as a remake up to the Carlos fight. However, the storyline from the original manga and the first anime series, where Yabuki Joe becomes a down-and-out boxer and claws his way back up, is omitted. Furthermore, the series incorporates a wealth of original storylines not found in the source material and introduces many original characters (such as Kiyoshi Suga). Since it was produced years after the original manga concluded, allowing for thorough organization, inconsistencies are cleared up, and the psychological expressions of the characters are depicted meticulously. Particularly, the matchmaking with the world's bantamweight number one, Leon Smiley, by TV Kantō in the latter part, and the storyline about the WBA champion Carlos Gomez and the WBC champion Jose's unification bout are additions intended to portray the world of professional boxing more realistically. From these original portions, one can primarily discern how the director, Osamu Dezaki, interprets the world of "Ashita no Joe." Saki Makura, who handled the storyboards for most episodes, is another pseudonym for Osamu Dezaki. Note that ellipses ("…") are inserted into all subtitles except for episodes 4 and 33.