The Boxer Who Burned His Tomorrow

In 1970, hundreds of people in Tokyo held a real Buddhist funeral for a boxer who never existed. A week later, hijackers quoted him in their final statement. This is the story of Tomorrow's Joe (Ashita no Joe), the 1968 boxing manga and anime that Japan treated like real life. It's also about why a whole country, working overtime for its future, fell in love with a kid who burned his away. Timecodes: 00:00 Intro 00:43 Tokyo, 1968 03:42 Toru Rikiishi 06:56 A real funeral 08:56 Carlos Rivera 12:33 "Pure white ash" 17:36 Joe vs Mendoza 19:57 Who Joe fought for In 1970, hundreds of people in Tokyo held a real Buddhist funeral for a boxer who never existed. A week later, hijackers quoted him in their final statement. This is the story of Tomorrow's Joe (Ashita no Joe), the 1968 boxing manga and anime that Japan treated like real life. It's also about why a whole country, working overtime for its future, fell in love with a kid who burned his away.