Completed
“Karate master Doppo Orochi discovers prodigy Baki Hanma and follows him to an underground death-match against Cord-Cutting Shinogi.”
Grappler Baki
グラップラー刃牙
6.82
5,654 rank · 24,971 viewers · 52 favorites
Sports
Combat Sports
Gore
Shounen
Would You Love or Hate This?
AI-powered analysis tailored to your taste
Based on your preference for character-driven stories with layered emotional arcs, this title's exploration of identity and belonging would deeply resonate. The pacing mirrors series you've rated highly, and its thematic depth aligns with your appreciation for nuanced storytelling...
However, the slow initial episodes might test your patience given your history of dropping shows that don't hook you early. The art style shift in the middle arc could also be a concern...
Personalized to you
Honest pros & cons
Based on your library
Synopsis
Karate master Doppo Orochi discovers prodigy Baki Hanma and follows him to an underground death-match against Cord-Cutting Shinogi.
Doppo Orochi sits down to watch the final match of his karate school's youth tournament. Atsushi Suedou, one of his disciples, faces off against Baki Hanma, a fresh teenage boy breezing through the matches. Intrigued by the boy's strength, Doppo, alongside another of his disciples—Kiyosumi Katou— visits the notorious Tokugawa underground ring—a hidden freestyle fighting arena that prohibits only weaponry in its matches. Upon arriving, they learn that Baki is set to face none other than Koushou Shinogi: an infamous karate master and user of the lethal Cord-Cutting technique.
What people say
Community consensus
Derived from 9 sampled reviews
5.9
/10
What 9 viewers settled on.
60%
recommend
Score distribution
median 6
mode 6
σ 2.23
Agreement
Polarized
σ 2.23 · split reception
The polarity gap
5.3 pts
Recommenders 8.3 · others 3.0
Yes
No
Score over time
↓ 0.11
Running avg · Jun 2008 → Jan 2024
Snap verdicts
· shortest highly-rated reviews
- 7 “Some of the technics will make you cringe. Good OVA to the series. This was out long before the tv series so animation is a little older looking. Basically, it's a longer episode of the series. The...”
- 8 “And yes ppl i like short fighting ova´s, like this one, compared to the serie´s made about a decade later thats more on a darker and more serious note, this ova was more , well made on a more...”
- 10 “Oh boy, another seriously underrated OVA. Truly a shame how so many great OVA from the 90s don't get the praise they deserve on this site. So after watching the first season of Baki I decided to...”
Verbosity
Short · 56%
Medium · 0%
Long · 44%
Watch Order & Related
Explore the Grappler Baki universe
Cast
See all →Trailers & videos
See all →Gallery
See all →If you stay for this, you'll stay for these
See all →The community pairs this with
See all →Made by
See all credits →Production slate
A Ova Production
Knack Productions.- Format 1 × 45′ eps × min
- Total runtime 0h 45m all episodes
- Aired Aug 1994 – ongoing
- Source Ova media type
- Rated R 17+ (violence & profanity)
- Ref. BS-1696 catalog
Licensed by
- Central Park Media Licensor