There are battle mangas, and there are sports mangas. Hajime no Ippo falls in the latter category. Boxing isnt fighting, its a sport. Two sportsmen getting in a ring for a regulated professional athletic match. For that reason, with only one or two real exceptions, there are no antagonistic evil boxers. The story starts off following Makunochi Ippo, a young bullied boy who, after meeting a pro boxer, is inspired to become one himself. with a style reminiscent to Mike Tyson (without Ear Biting), we see Ippo climb the ranks of the featherweights. At a certain point, the story becomes less about Ippo (though he is the primary focus) and become an ensemble, as the mangaka George Morikawa said "Everyone in Hajime no Ippo is a main character." Additionally, it isnt solely about the sport. One of the biggest reasons why Hajime no Ippo has been as long running as it has is because of its humor and character development, both of which are to be praised. due to the fact that this is manga, the matches are obviously slower than what they really should be, considering a round lasts 3 minutes. This actually serves as an advantage for a number of reasons. The blows and patterns are shown in greater detail to be easier to understand, and we can see the thoughts of the boxers and their seconds as they strategize. These two things serve a very important purpose. The amount of strategy and mental planning show that boxing isnt simply two guys punching each other, but is a sport that requires a lot of strategy, instinct and intelligence. One of the most prominent things to mention is fighting spirit. Yes, one of the most common and overused tropes in shonen manga is in here too. And not only does it work, it fits absolutely perfectly and is a major symbolic theme in the series. Such masterful use of the fighting spirit trope is amazing and is on par with that of Gurren Lagann. Analysis of the series and a couple rereads would show that the series actually shows the cultural symbolism of fighting spirit and the origins of the trope. In fact, it is possible to interpret the series as being somewhat metaphorical of Japan's conflict between its traditional culture and the post-war westernization. I wont explain more, i dont want to spoil anything else, so I'll just conclude with this being a masterpiece.