Hajime no Ippo - Vol. 130 Ch. 1308 - A Graceful Defeat

[AztechDan]

@darekpawlo I'm more disappointed that Ricardo has been built to be this god among boxers. Literally no one has been able to touch him. Alfredo was supposed to be 2nd best yet Sendo is the only one with a down against him and it might had just been a fluke in a spar. In a fantasy situation where Ippo came back, he'd have to handle Sendo with no problems to look like a match for Ricardo, the way Ricardo has been shown to this point.

 

[Chrollo-Chan]

I believe Ippo will go back to boxing only if Sendo gets massacred by Ricardo.

 

[kbalintz]

So... No real negative consequence?
No "one of them needs to leave boxing" or real damage or anything?
If none of them broke then what will fuel Ippo to come back?
Or Sendo's hand will be a bigger mess than what they think now?
I feel disappointed. At the end of the last chapter I thought maybe Alf will stay down. When they showed how they ask him if he is awake, I thought now the tragedy will occur. But nothing. Ippo will stay away from the ring even more... Maybe never comes back.

 

[sniff_]

SENDOCHADS WE FINALLY WON
IVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS DAY SINCE HE WAS ROBBED IN HIS FIRST FIGHT AGAINST IPPO
ITS OUR TIME
RISE UP

 

[Sadaharu105]

Damn they actually gave Sendo the W

 

[cache_bag]

@Amariithynar

Yeah but the fights almost always involve him being beat up to near brain damage levels before pulling off a win. You pretty much know how it's gonna go, except for maybe a handful of matches.

 

[felixng2019]

Lol what a horrible fight.

 

[fanged_loathe]

Since they are in Mexico already, you know the only way their trip home does not include a detour to the United States to see Volg is if Volg comes to Mexico to see them first.

Now that Alf has joined Date in the "I beat a strong Ippo, got defeated by another fighter, and retired" club (which is not at all inspired by the "Curse of Yabuki" club), a reunion with Volg is about the only thing left to do before Ippo even considers reviewing his fight with Guevara and realizing Martinez destroyed his style 979 chapters ago. Once that happens, we can finally see Ippo get back in the ring.

 

[Koal]

Damn, I didn't expect Alf to retire like that. Morikawa could've done so much with him. This was such a disappointing fight.

 

[Doomroar]

Pressure he disbanded Team Alf kids...

 

[Davy0]

@kbalintz

He stated his fist is swelling like a balloon in his glove and is in excruciating pain. They haven't exited the ring. I don't know how you think their won't be potential consequences. Look at what happens when you break your hand some time, that shit is hard to recover.

 

[kbalintz]

@Davy0
I know how hard it is for the hand to recover. From firsthand (no pun intended).
A simple broke (hand-bone), after the surgery (if needed) is in plaster for 6-8 week, then around the same time for "normal usage" rehab. After that, since you didn't used it in any pressuring activity you had to slowly work it up, what can take somewhere around another 3-6 month to get it back to around normal. 4,5-10 month. For an active athlete that IS a big pause, but not like they can't return after it. Or that (in this case) they has to completly shut down their work-out.
Of course, if its completly shattered thats a different story, then its possibile that you never regain 100% and the whol process can (and probably will) take more time, but for a boxer like Sendo, who mostly swings around his hands with 120% power, it still not that bad as it would been for others.
And after these, I still thought a forced retirement is possible. But then that "fistbump" happened, and thats why I'm saying it will be nothing career-breaking.
Morikawa wouldn't wrote that in, if, within 1 or 2 chapter Sendo has to retire due to hand injury. That would be bullshit, "getting the final blow while showing respect in a strange way..."
The thing is different if Sendo's hand "rebrokes" during a different fight but then again that could only happen after a new set-up, the recovery, and some chapters with others... Not in a short term.
And if anything, after why Ippo left boxing, it seems dumb for him to return to the ring cause one of his friend get not-too-seriously injured.
So my 2,5 prediction how Ippo could return right now is:
1. Sendo "rebreaks" his hand during a title match so he has to retire and Ippo wants to carry his will.
1,5 . The same but not a hand injury but a total complete life-threathening event, when Ippo makes an oath to revenge him.
3. Sendo wins vs Ricardo and Ippo want to fight with him again (I think its the least plausable, cause the scene, where Miyata says that Sendo already had his 3 fight with Ippo)

I'm not saying that it's impossible for him to get forced into a retirement. It's fiction, perhaps an alien comes down and grapes Sendo till Ippo begs to return to the ring... Just that based on real life (since the story is close to earth) and how the caracters were treated till now it's just seems very-very-very unlikely for me that Sendo's hand would be that bad.

 

[Davy0]

@kbalintz

But that's still a consequence... You're asking for careers to end, what the fuck?

 

[kbalintz]

@Davy0
We have a misundertanding as what I called a consequence vs what you thought.
It's a fiction... And while I personally don't want any of them to end their career, if you go back 15-20 chapters, you will see a lot of people speculating about how Ippo will return. And most of them/us agreed that he needs a big shock for it, cause otherway he will force himself to not do it (not in that what the shock may be).
So while a broken hand IS a consequence for Sendo's character, its not big enough as a shock factor to fulfull that role.
I hope with this its clearer what I wanted to say.

 

[Davy0]

@kbalintz

Why does Ippo need to return though? Ultimately, what if he doesn't return, what then?

Will you quit reading because of it?

 

[kbalintz]

@Davy0
No I will not. It's an enjoyable ride anyway. It's not about what will happen, all of the above just theories and guesses.
But seemingly Ippo is better than ever. He now knows his own faults, thinking about how he would do things and not just rush in to dempsey-roll. That mitt-hitting showed that he possibly even stronger physically than before.
When the author first got sick, it was around the time when ippo had to do that line-check years ago, a lot of the readers thought this is how the serie will end. He wants to go on, but he can't. A mighty goodbye both for the author and his loved character. Then he got better and Ippo decided to go as a trainer. It's a respectable decision, he wanted to help at home and cares about Kumi. But it was shown that he is ok and with every day he struggles to not to go back. That training others, while he gets better and better couldn't fulfill his desire. His doings are also based on what he would want in that situation, further thinking about his own development, if unconscius. Also, its hinted multiple times that Kamogama still waits for his return.
It's sad to see someone, be real or fiction struggle, when it's so clear what he wants to do and all he should do is say 1 word, yet he couldn't cause of thing he (mostly) made up for himself. And even with those real or made up problems he seems like still just barely on the edge. (And that small push could have been that shock).

Also if not Ippo in the ring then what? There is no clear new MC while Ippo as a trainer couldn't shine enough. Both the preparing boxers own thoughts and the fact that he is not the only one training them (/he didn't have a "successor" that could show more of him) are overshadowing him. And while the boxing world's building as a whole is working now, from now on we will get individual matches between known characters until everyone fights with everyone? And Ippo's character becomes the one who knows everyone and thats all.
It was always a serie which showed everyone's struggle, but there was a clear following of 1 single character. Without that it could reduce to an anthology of fights. Which, even if its the same quality and can provide the same enjoyment would hurt a lot.

 

[Davy0]

@kbalintz

Then I'd suggest just enjoying the ride. Obviously something in Ippo started to rekindle.

 

[NIB]

The madlad did it, this is why is one of the best characters in this manga.

 

[Giblow20]

Tbh i was mostly disappointed at how easy Alfredo's "ultimate style" made the fight for Sendo. He took way too many hits, his counters seemed off and his punches to me seemed weaker than in the Ippo fight. Couldn't he have done better leading Sendo around for a couple more rounds then going more aggressive when he knew he had the advantage?

 

[pjbarnal]

Hajime no sendo. Disappointed