One-Pound Gospel (1ポンドの福音, Ichi-Pondo no Fukuin) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Rumiko Takahashi. The story is a fusion of the sports (specifically, boxing) and romantic comedy genres.
Plot[]
See Also: List of Characters
Kōsaku Hatanaka is a prodigious boxer and the first professional produced by Mukoda Gym, having passed his pro test at the age of 17 and won his debut match with a first round knock-out. However afterwards, his record has been dropping for boxing involves a required weight and he happens to be a glutton with an appetite so voracious that he has been constantly wrecking his training regime and changing his weight class, much to the frustration of his coach. As gluttony is considered a sin in Christianity, he would go to a convent to confess his sins to a young novice nun named Sister Angela, although he actually developed a crush on her and doesn’t hesitate in letting her know despite the fact that she swore to devote herself only to God and thus is unable to enter into a romantic relationship. Can her faith redeem the gluttonous habit of the tempted lamb astride the scale? Can this gutless boxer become a man worthy enough for her to give up her relationship with the lord?
Media[]
Manga[]
See Also: List of Chapters/List of Published Media
The manga was published sporadically in Weekly Young Sunday from 1987 to 2006. In total, there are 11 stories told in 37 chapters which were collected and published into four tankōbon volumes by Shogakukan from July 5, 1989 to March 5, 2007.
It was released in North America by Viz Media, adapted into English by Gerard Jones, with some chapters serialized in Animerica. It was published in both a monthly comic book format and as three volumes mirroring the Japanese tankōbon from 1996 to 1998. The volumes were re-published in 2008, to include the final fourth volume.
OVA & TV Series[]
See Also: List of Animated Media
A 50 minute OVA (original video animation) adaptation was produced by Studio Gallop, which mixed the first two stories “The Sinner and the Scale” and “The Lamb on the Chopping Block”. Directed by Osamu Dezaki, under the alias Makura Saki, this OVA was released on December 2, 1988 and was published in the United States by Viz Media on subtitled VHS in 1995.
Following the conclusion of the manga in 2007, a live-action television adaptation of the manga aired on Nippon TV from January 12 to March 8, 2008. Starring pop idol Kazuya Kamenashi from KAT-TUN as Kōsaku Hatanaka and Meisa Kuroki as Sister Angela, this series played fast and loose with the manga and a total of 9 episodes were made. The series was released in a DVD box set on September 3, 2008. A CD containing the music used in the drama was released on February 27, 2008.
Gallery[]
To be added