From an early age, Haruka Sakura was made an outcast due to his unconventional appearance and lack of social skills. However, the rough treatment turned him into a proficient fighter, which is now the only thing he prides himself on. Starting at Furin High School, where it is rumored that strength is valued over academics, Sakura has only one goal—taking the top spot.
Involved in a street brawl the day before his enrollment, Sakura happens to meet a group of his future schoolmates. Instead of the usual rejection, they fight alongside him, demonstrating that what the school actually cares about is protecting the town of Makochi from any harm—hence why the students call themselves "Bofurin." Surprised by the support and appreciation of the townspeople, Sakura has a hard time accepting their goodwill.
Though unfamiliar with kindness being shown to him, Sakura must learn to push past his discomfort when Bofurin is pitted against formidable enemies. After experiencing the feeling of acceptance, he finds himself fighting for the sake of others for the first time.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
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Comentários
Marinate1016
Ever wondered what Tokyo Revengers would be like if it were good? Well, look no further. Windbreaker is the best delinquent anime I’ve seen and one of the best of the season. Cloverworks’ latest project has amazing production values, badass fights and cool characters. A must watch for action fans. Windbreaker is a meathead’s paradise. First episode had one of the coolest fights of the season. Within the first 6 episodes we had our first battle arc, etc. This show has nonstop hands flying and it looks great! The story isn’t the strongest so far, but it’s got a lot of potential and it seems theywant to focus on developing the MC and establishing his relationships with the side characters first, which I actually think in the long run will be better. This creates a stronger emotional bond between the viewer and characters and even by the end of this first cour, I felt like Sakura was my little brother and just wanted him to succeed. While it’s obviously severely dramatised, I also found the whole concept of Bofurin to be cool. A school gang that just wants to act as a police force and help out the community. There’s no desire to grow into the biggest gang in Japan or dominate the underworld or anything like that. It’s a very wholesome premise and you just want to root for these guys.
Now, just like Tokyo Revengers it does require a little bit of suspension of disbelief to enjoy windbreaker. Police officers, teachers and adults seem to not exist in this world. I mean we’ve seen these kids in school for an entire cour now and I haven’t seen one teacher.. but you know, that aside, good show. It’s a very grounded story that at its course revolves around the MC learning to open up and be vulnerable with people. He’s got the traditional macho guy persona and thinks he can fight his way out of every situation and muscle his way to the top of Bofurin, but what he learns over time is that there’s so much more to being the strongest than just physical strength. It’s about those bonds we form with others that give us the motivation we need to push forward and be the best versions of ourselves. Thanks to the fights in this season, he begins to realise that and it was fun seeing him open his mind to the world.
I think windbreaker is definitely aimed at the ladies somewhat, lots of nice looking guys, MC is constantly flustered and looking cute because of how bashful he is, etc etc. So female shippers and meatheads alike can enjoy windbreaker. It actually almost feels like it was made for the tumblr crowd, similar to Dunmeshi. It’s got a little something for everyone though. Action, ships, just a cool ass vibe in this one that I haven’t really seen.
Cloverworks are known for their fluid action scenes and Windbreaker is no exception, this show looks amazing. The fights are of course good, but I mean even minor scenes like Sakura chasing a cat through an alley are full of Sakuga. I’d be lying if I said that weren’t a big part of the windbreaker experience. If it were done by another studio would it have the same type of reception? Probably not. But, hey, good animation has to count for something in this medium.
Windbreaker is a very fun watch for anyone who’s into yanki or delinquent style shows, wants cute guys doing cute stuff or just meathead action fans who want to see some amazing fight choreography. The story isn’t the most profound, but it was good enough for me to stay entertained and the characters are awesome.
Windbreaker gets 9 out of 10.
Valentine07
(Spanish review below). I didn't like it. I was prepared to like 'Wind Breaker', but it didn't. I started the anime thinking it was going to be about gangs and honor and fights and all that. But... I discovered an anime about winning fights with the power of friendship and knowing and accepting yourself. There's nothing wrong with that, but in this case it feels childish and incoherent. I have no problem with stereotypical characters, but in the case of 'Wind Breaker', they offer nothing more than the stereotype. I don't like any of the characters, I don't care about any of them. As the plot progressed, I startedto get confused. Is that what this season was going to be about? Is that all? Nothing happens in the season. There's a lot of "fights", but there's no real plot beyond, as I mentioned, the power and importance of friendship and all that.
I don't understand what the Furin is. Are there no teachers? No classes? What do a group of teenagers do without supervision and no plans for the future, at least to finish school? (I feel old thinking about this but I can't stop thinking about it.)
The idea is interesting, but the development is not. The beginning is not that bad, but as the anime progresses, it becomes boring and more boring.
...
No me gustó.
Estaba preparada para que me gustara 'Wind Breaker', pero no fue así. Empecé el anime pensando que iba a ser sobre pandillas y honor y peleas y todo eso. Pero... descubrí un anime sobre ganar peleas con el poder de la amistad y conocerse y aceptarse a uno mismo. No hay nada malo en eso, pero en este caso se siente infantil e incoherente.
No tengo problemas con los personajes estereotipados, pero en el caso de 'Wind Breaker', no ofrecen nada más que el estereotipo. No me gusta ninguno de los personajes, no me importa ninguno de ellos.
A medida que avanzaba la trama, empecé a confundirme. ¿De eso se trataría esta temporada? ¿Eso es todo? No pasa nada en la temporada. Hay muchas "peleas", pero no hay una trama real más allá de, como mencioné, el poder y la importancia de la amistad y todo eso.
No entiendo qué es el Furin. ¿No hay profesores? ¿Ni clases? ¿Qué hacen un grupo de adolescentes sin supervisión y sin planes de futuro, al menos para terminar la escuela? (Me siento vieja pensando en esto pero no puedo deja de pensar en ello).
La idea es interesante, pero el desarrollo no lo es. El comienzo no es tan malo, pero a medida que avanza el anime, se vuelve aburrido y más aburrido.
ZeroMajor12
TL;DR Wind Breaker's only good merit is the action thanks to Cloverworks' production, unless you delve deeper into what the anime is about. If you know me, most of you would be familiar with me pointing out flaws in character detail since they're mostly the bulk of what makes an anime good. Besides that, I'm just an avid fan of action anime, it's just blatantly obvious that I regularly watch them every year. It's one that I felt most comfortable with, one where many greats were born from it, ones that have made me laugh, ones that have made me cry, but it's also one whereI have a high standard of, and it's also easy for others to fumble with the action genre, most commonly with animation issues, just being still drawings being dragged in and out of the screen that is supposed to be "action" for the audience. And having Wind Breaker on the radar, I had to personally check it out for myself.
I have a mixed view of Cloverworks in general. They have proven that they can produce good new anime series which are pretty popular mangas at that given time, especially since one of my favorite anime was My Dress-Up Darling from Cloverworks, but whenever they decided to make sequels, they would always discombobulate it to ashes just so they would never have to associate with it ever again. At least that's how I felt when they animated TPN S2 and WEP sequels (well to be clear, they were released a while ago, but ever since then I couldn't trust Cloverworks anymore when it came to hyped sequels.) So when Wind Breaker was announced to be animated by Cloverworks, I went on to assume the former, whereas they will be able to bring good production to this anime and likewise, the anime on the surface looks really good. The choreography looks sick, the visuals are bright and vibrant, along with a good 1st impression in general thanks to the OP being quite fitting with what the anime wanted to portray. But even so, Wind Breaker has a long way to go to reach the gold standard of what a good shonen anime should achieve.
First of all, what is Wind Breaker all about? Well, you could see a whole group of delinquents ganging up together to be acknowledged by everyone, foes and friends alike. Sakura Haruka is the MC who yearns for acknowledgment and it's prevalent to see that in him. I hate to use comparisons but you can deliberately see that his ideals are like Naruto's, only with a more juvenile personality. The only thing he knows is fistfighting, punching the living soul out of anyone who dares to stand in his path, a lone wolf who has been ostracized by his peers and community alike, and you guess it, he wants to attain the crown at the top for himself just so he can be acknowledged by everyone. From there, the MC's development begins from a juvenile lonely Go-haired boy to someone who starts to learn what it means to strive for the top seat.
On the other hand, let's not act like this is an uncommon thing. Teenagers being insecure with their own identity is just common to see in any anime whose majority of the cast are teenagers, but it's difficult to find anime that knows how to portray it without relying on too much melodrama or making up plot conveniences. For instance, show flashbacks for 3 minutes to supposedly bring context to characters' backstory or make the main characters say the right thing at the right time which somehow dealt damage to the adversary's psyche. Not to mention being an anime revolving around high school students, you can tell from a glimpse of it, it was going to be about gaining the respect of the community and beating the shit out of others for treating people ill-willed. The anime is another one of those "make your MC scream their own righteous goal in your face and have their adversary be bamboozled by their screaming" kind of schtick. I may sound like I'm criticizing it for an abundance of cliches, but that's not my point. It's not the idea that any anime should try to always be original or do things out of the ordinary in every aspect, some of my favorites have done these things that I am speaking of, but the anime does nothing but feel like it over-relied on the stereotypes for too long that any form of freshness the anime could produce is just non-existent compared to what the anime commonly shoves in your face.
Besides, it's filled with so many character archetypes and cliches that it further cements the point that the anime lacks its own identity and originality. Even Umemiya's character is basically a knock-off version of Gojo Satoru with the same VA. And it's not just him, it's the whole cast themselves for being so one-dimensional and archetypal. Typically, Sakura has the most depth out of all the different characters, given the fact that he's the main character, and I'm willing to say that even the new adversaries that showed up also have some depth to them. Albeit what he has managed to achieve is just a minuscule scale of what a good character should be. It felt like he had barely touched the surface of many possibilities his character could be. And the cast has done nothing to complement each other but rather more like cheap gimmicks just to arouse your attention.
Nirei is a comic relief that also serves as the show's exposition, but oh no, since the writing is so blatant, you'll see Nirei acting like a narrator who doesn't know how to shut up. Suo acts how "normal" Mahito would do without his psychopathic tendencies. Don't even get me started with the show's humor. When you have characters this bland, you'd have a better chance of laughing at a reflection of yourself than this one, it is cluttered with these archetypes playing random quips just to cue for a laugh, but to no avail. Their connections and dialogues are superficial, none of them has any meaning other than to drive the plot to where it needs to be. To add further, I'm not trying to say a show shouldn't put stereotypes, it can be used if done with care and some creativity behind it. The stereotypes that many found annoying need to receive growth or any form of subversion to serve as a breath of fresh air, but because the show rarely tries to do so for the main cast excluding Sakura, you won't be able to see any ideal growth from them either.
Despite the excessive criticism I'm giving to this anime, there is some merit to what Wind Breaker has managed to offer despite its many blunders. As much as it is an action anime, for the most part, it isn't really bad, in fact, I'd say it's pretty good. It follows all of the ideal ingredients that make a good action anime, and as a result, most of its fights are spectacularly good, well for a couple of exceptions, (of course, I'm looking at you, Umemiya). It's nice how Cloverworks still continues to bring lively visuals and slick animation for their new projects and it definitely shows here. Even when you have simplistic characters or some of the most embarrassing dialogues known to mankind, action isn't particularly affected by it that much, so the action shines like a glimmering light on all of its weaker aspects. The pacing is also nice and it didn't suffer from too much downtime, it's straight to the point, and boom, you get a good action anime. Just not that great on the others.
In the end, Wind Breaker, without a doubt, delivers the action sequences, much of what you should expect from an action show. However, it's difficult to recommend this when you have the weakest cast to support a somewhat decent main character. If you can tolerate archetypes or abysmal characters, you should be able to watch this with particular ease. Otherwise, it will be a painstaking gauntlet to get to the good part, since it spends a lot of time on the cast, and it's just a norm for shonen to have an ensemble cast to appear for most of the show, but when the cast is really bad, it can be quite a downer.
Thank you for reading.
Kamushii
Wind Breaker is one of the big names in the 2024 spring season and is praised by many. However, It seems to be overhyped by the incredible animation and action sequences so much so that it distracts people from the bad writing. The show started off really fun, but once it gives the story some attention you start realizing that there isn't much besides those amazing action sequences. Story/Writing: [4/10] The synopsis on MAL explains the story enough that I feel I don't have to go over it. It's not exactly winning any awards, but there is nothing wrong with it. But as you may haveseen I gave this category a low score, and that is all thanks to the god-awful writing. All the tension that was built up between the characters goes out the door after each fight. The antagonists were meant to be ruthless to their own school, beating them if they lose a fight. They even paint the main antagonist to be so mentally unwell it appears he's going insane. Things needed more time to develop but they solved all of the conflict within 3 episodes which was filled with flashbacks to force you to understand and like the characters, and even decided to make them friends right after like nothing had happened. The writing throughout the show wasn't as bad as this, but the arc I am talking about is the center of the entirety of this first season. The show rushed something so incredibly vital and that is bad writing in my book.
Premise/Plot: [6/10]
The premise makes no sense if you talk about it like it's real, but at the end of the day it's just fiction. Why are kids running gangs in schools? Where are there teachers and parents? Who really knows, but honestly I don't think it's all that important either.
Characters: [6/10]
Wind Breaker's characters are the one thing that is somewhat enjoyable about the show besides the action sequences. I love seeing the way the characters bounce off of each other, but I do have two big complaints. The first complaint is Sakura. I understand that he is scared of getting close to people and is very shy, but they keep making it a running joke, one of which gets extremely old very fast. They seriously need to tone that down, because after awhile it just upsets you. The second, I feel like they introduced a lot of characters and couldn't flesh them out properly by doing so. I hope in season 2, they don't introduce an absurd amount of characters and instead give more depth to the existing ones.
Art/Animation: [8/10]
Let's not kid ourselves, the animation is the only reason a lot of you are even reading this review. The fights were choreographed amazingly and the sakuga was great. The show kept the production steady throughout the entirety of this first season. It absolutely carries the show, and is one of it's only redeeming qualities.
Audio: [7/10]
The OST is fine, the opening and ending were both great. Not much else to say.
Conclusion:
If you go into this show wanting strictly action, I think you will come out from this show very satisfied. However, for those who need more substance in terms of writing, story, and deep characters in their anime, you will leave with a bad taste in your mouth. All in all a fine show to turn your brain off to. I personally hope season 2 comes back and swings harder, because as unsatisfied as I was I did catch myself enjoying this show.
Critical Rating: High-Medium 5/10
(If you're curious to see how I rate, check "My Rating Criteria" on my MAL.)
Enjoyment points: 1
(An enjoyment point means it doesn't fully deserve it's critical rating. To know more about enjoyment points, check my MAL.)
Smilomaniac
4/10 - Looks good, but has nothing else going for it. There's nothing to spoil, because nothing happens in it. It's a fighting anime with people having different motivations and ways of thinking (obviously, but it's central to the writing), but essentially it maintains a sort of status quo where there is and always will be violence happening in the streets, of which the school the main character goes to, essentially several rival schools of delinquents, are protecting everyone by beating up hoodlums, punks and harassers. The fighting itself, is excellent. The animation is great, the angles and shots are great, the attention to detailis great... but throughout it all everyone who fights is largely miserable and everyone who enjoys it, does so for the wrong reasons and boy does the show love to waste your time with exposition telling you all about how and why, in indirect meandering ways.
Wind Breaker commits the worst sin of all, which is to be boring and it uses its flashy violence to excuse it, because they understand that this is what you want, while feeding you the excruciatingly slow and uninteresting exposition.
If you read the positive reviews about this show, you'll come across a couple of repeating points (besides the Tokyo Revengers comparison, a show I have not seen):
1. It's not stereotypically macho (which flies against the theme of the show)
2. People praise the show in a meta sense of why they think it's good, but then also admit how the story kind of isn't - That doesn't mean it's actually an entertaining show.
There is depth and thought put into this show, such as there being no responsible adults to handle all of the delinquents, I think that's entirely on purpose and the young men (there are no young girls, because they're not relevant to the psyche of the students) and how they deal with their inadequacies and issues is what the show wants to talk about. The problem is that it's written for testosterone deficient boys and girls who've never raised a hand to anyone in their life, not for anyone who has legitimate anger issues.
This is not therapy, it's pathetic indulgence in the analysis of the thing, rather than being the thing!
Every analysis of the characters is an idea of the analysis. "You don't fight for anything, that's why your punches have no weight" is meaningful, but the way the show tells the story is drawn out and boring, trying desperately to add weight to its own story instead of relying on the very simple message. You understand the quote I wrote in its entirety, I don't have to repeat to you that it's about missing motivation and a lack of appreciation of the things and people around you, that you're doing something just to do it and therefore are doing a half-assed job, no matter how talented and/or skilled you are. You intrinsically, even if it's subconscious, understand all of that!
It is absolutely fine to explore feelings and ideas, but you have to nail it and make sure every minute of the show is focused on that, because if you fail, you just look pretentious.
Chuy_diazz
Wind Breaker, a letter of apology for all the harm that CloverWorks has done to us. First of all, it has to be put on the table that the comparisons that this anime had with Tokyo Revenger are totally unfair to both works. The only thing they have in common is that they are kids in gangs hitting each other. Outside of that, each one has its own approach to the main story. That being said, let's talk about the gangster anime that I did watch. Wind breaker is great from start to finish. There's really nothing I can complain about because everything seemed pretty good tome. Especially because I had a very critical eye looking for any little detail to judge considering that CloverWorks did this. To my surprise, they kept my mouth shut and gave me a job that made me forgive them for all the harm they have done to me. The animation was impeccable, with quite fluid movements, with power and strength. Camera movements that allowed you to see almost all possible angles of the action scenes. Without a doubt, the direction of this anime was successful in each of the chapters.
As for the story, Sakura earns your trust and affection from chapter one because he is someone who is quite human. Although they make us understand that he is strong in combat, they also show us that he has difficulties such as relating to others. Sakura is a character with quite a bit of charisma, whether you admire her strength and skill in both combat and parkour. Or on the other hand, that you empathize with him when he doesn't know how to make friends, relate to his class, or how to express herself sincerely. The trait of him blushing makes it great, it's a running gag that never gets old, since this shyness also makes him grow in small steps.
The secondary cast is not far behind, they all have a very well defined personality. Which makes it easy to recognize them and record their name with very few chapters. They are not characters that are there just because the protagonist needs friends, but rather they are complements for Sakura. The anime has a speech about how you won't be able to reach the top alone or there will be some point where you will stagnate because without help you won't be able to continue moving forward. So, the fact that the friends are there to complement Sakura in her deficient areas makes the speech well established and the viewer can understand it much better.
Without a doubt, Wind Breaker was the best I've watched this season. It is an anime with quality and a guarantee seal. If you want to experience an anime of personal growth, Wind Breaker will not disappoint you. You may even take a couple of tips for your personal life. At the end of the day, Furin, more than a gang, is a family.
ST63LTH
Sakura leaves urban life for a quieter town known for its school of the strongest delinquents. Convinced he has what it takes to climb to the top, Sakura is ready to spend his high school days fighting for supremacy. Story & Character: 3/10 & 4/10 Delinquent series typically incorporate elements of conflict over territory, finances, and hierarchy. While Wind Breaker includes turf wars, it lacks intensity, with fights ending in trivial ways. The series feels more like a civilized drama than a battle shounen, focusing on character dynamics and situational comedy rather than rivalry. Sakura's goal of rising to the top is challenged by the reality thatFurin's hierarchy is determined by democracy, not meritocracy, making the story risk-averse.
Wind Breaker attempts to develop characters through conflict of identity, addressing their feelings instead of fostering rivalry. This results in characters with cringe-worthy personas and dialogues, particularly seen in Sakura and his enemies. The delinquents of Bofurin all seem one-dimensional, friendly types, with unique traits limited to unexpected hobbies or quirky habits. The series tries to develop character bonds with witty humor or forced camaraderie through minor events and flashbacks, leading to shallow connections. Ume and Chouji have split personalities that become delusional and awkward when they 'break,' making it difficult to endure.
Art & Sound: 7/10 & 6/10
The art and animation are Wind Breaker's saving grace. The character designs remain consistent, and the fight animations have superior visual impact and fluidity, making them breathtaking to watch. However, beyond this, the average frame is filled with minimal movement and typical comedic art tropes like super-deformed characters or expressive typography. The quality disparity between action and dialogue scenes is jarring but necessary to focus on the more important aspects.
The sound design in Wind Breaker is not too ambitious. There are thematic soundtracks, especially in conflict and comedy scenes. The voice acting suits the characters but lacks expression beyond their personas. Despite being the stereotypical weakling of Bofurin, I enjoyed Akihiko's unhinged dialogues of panic throughout the series.
Overall & Enjoyment: 4/10
The series would have been more enjoyable with a greater variety of characters. I expected turf wars, brawls, crime, and other delinquent activities, but ended up watching a class of truant students on neighborhood watch, rescuing missing cats. A grittier premise and more masculine characters could have enhanced the series, especially with its visually appealing fight choreography.
whiteflame55
Wind Breaker is one of those shows that often feels like more style than substance, though that’s not a bad thing. It puts on a very strong showing in its fights with some of the best hand-to-hand choreography on display, though that’s the low-hanging fruit. The characters are really what elevate the series far more than its narrative, as we get a wide variety of quirky guys that all have their own reasons for joining the fight, and we get to explore and understand a good number of them over the course of the series. It’s no small feat to be able to split attentionthis way and still be compelling, whether we’re talking about the central school of Bofurin or its local rivals Shishitoren. Whether we’re talking about characters who get full histories and fleshed out mindsets or those who only suggest something going on below the surface, the series does plenty to invest you in their stories.
However, there are two places Wind Breaker stalls.
First, its main character. It’s not so much that Sakura is a weak character – if anything, the show establishes significant potential for him, building him up as someone with the most room to change and improve over the course of the series, as any good protagonist should. The problem is that we see very little of that in this season. This is mainly an introduction to Bofurin for him, getting an opportunity to see the classmates and upperclassmen at his school, seeing different perspectives on strength and the goals that those seeking power are actually after, finding connection through his fights and community in this new setting. It’s all invigorating and the seeds for some huge character development… in S2. I like seeing how this series plants seeds, but considering he’s the focal point of the season, it’s a bit disheartening to see that he’s only come as far as understanding what directions he can develop rather than seeing actual development.
So, where did that attention go instead?
Second, the fights between Bofurin and Shishitoren. Again, the fights look great, and we get a lot of insights into many characters in this setting, though some are jobbers, get defeated with relative ease, and are quickly thrown to the curb. We get to see a lot of how Shishitoren became the way it is, how its leaders are thinking, and how that affects the organization as a whole. The way Umemiya in particular challenges them is really well done, and seeing how both their leaders react to those challenges is probably the best part of the whole season. But… this little tournament really eats into the series runtime. It takes roughly 6 episodes, so half of the runtime of the season, before we can fully hash this out, and while some of the other fights are interesting, only the final two have real emotional heft to them, so the rest are just there to give us opportunities to see these fighters in action. It’s not a bad choice per say, since we get to see how both organizations react to their wins and losses, but it also means that only two characters at a time have significant attention. It’s an ensemble cast, but most of them are relegated to color commentary most of the time, and in a setting where battle royales appear commonplace, it’s disappointing that this is the tack they took.
And I think this issue is at its most apparent in the finale, as the season ends at a pretty awkward point just after the beginning of a new arc that offers substantive opportunities to address both of the above. It's very much a "tune into S2" moment that gives some solid indications of Sakura's growth, but gives us very little opportunity to see how that growth plays out when push comes to shove.
Overall, while this is a great anime stylistically, it hamstrings itself in the substance department. Maybe it’s just that it doesn’t match my expectations, but I was hoping for more from this season. It’s still very enjoyable, though as set-up for later seasons, it doesn't do as much as I'd like to carry its own narrative weight.
NillyPC
Wind Breaker is honestly a nice and chill show. Following Sakura, a kid looking to beat people up and to secure the top spot in the fighting world as he moves to a new town and to a new school. The animation is very consistent with the fight scenes being for the most part smooth. The soundtrack is banger after banger. Some I hopefully can find for my gym playlist. Characters were introduced nice. Sakura may be a little cringy as of this season, but I see hope in him. Another season is nice also to get to know these characters as well as otherschool/team factions.
I'm looking forward towards the next season!
KANLen09
Wind Breaker - It's Tokyo Revengers, but good, and even better? Some, and many others, will debate about that. Ever since the adaptation of famed mangaka Ken Wakui's Tokyo Revengers dropped onto the anime scene back in Spring 2021, we're still memeing the hell out of that series even after a good 3 years, when it comes to delinquent-centric shows. It's especially the case for what could be a great series, that slowly and eventually crawled to such oblivion that it left a bad taste in the majority of the audience's mouths. So then, we're left questioning: What IS the next wave of delinquent-type shows thatcan outdo and/or outgun the still-ongoing anime craze of Tokyo Revengers. And boy, do I have the perfect show for you: mangaka Satoru Nii's Wind Breaker (not the Webtoon series of the same name), which sounds cliché on the surface, but boy, is it a very good Yanki a.k.a delinquent show.
A tale of the high road from hell to redemption, and this sums up Wind Breaker's rather antagonistic protagonist, MC of Haruka Sakura (that's a tongue twister) in a nutshell. The young man who knows nothing but violence in his growing up years was a repertoire on and off, he was labeled as an outcast for his unconventional appearance and lack of social skills, but his punches and kicks made him a skilled fighter, which is the only thing in life that he wants to do: to stand aloft at the top of the fighting scene wherever he goes. And like his unconventional status, coming into what seems to be the typical street brawls within a town where groups of gangsters go head-to-head against each other, this town of Makochi is rather different: its centered school, Furin High School, where strength is valued over academics, everyone wants to be strong to become the best. But there's a catch: you grow to become a gangster...to become righteous heroes to be the authority of justice in the town — hence why the students at Furin High call themselves "Bofurin", with a sign and a pledge to protect the peace and harmony within. And Haruka Sakura has to learn the literate quote of "the grass is greener on the other side," where things like kindness and reciprocating are very foreign to him, its this state that he grows to fight not just to become the best, but to fight for the sake of others and learn what he is truly fighting for.
It's actually interesting how a newbie mangaka like Satoru Nii conceived the idea for his series, though it's not as typical as it sounds. Being inspired to draw manga while reading Shonen Jump during his childhood, his first work was the Kodansha-published serialization of the 5-volume long gender-bender sports manga Danshi Badminton-bu ni Joshi ga Magireteru: Secret Badminton Club back in 2016 and 2017. But when developments around that stalled, with the advice of a fellow editor, he gravitated towards stories about male characters being "cool," which served as the basis for Wind Breaker, with inspirations coming from similar works, and also iconic manga from the likes of Hiro Mashima's Rave Master and Akimine Kamijyo's Samurai Deeper Kyo. In fact, Haruka Sakura was close to not being the MC at all (that would be Furin High's representative Hajime Umemiya), but it was only because of Satoru Nii's expression to embody the "cool" character factor that he was chosen to be the lead who can lend to the story and its plot from an outsider's perspective.
From the outset, if you think that Haruka Sakura was designed to be this kid where he only has two expressions: get all heated when fights come his way, and being a branded Tsundere when he gets angry or flustered that the trope becomes old very quick, you'd be right...but it's intentional. Being the face of the series, Satoru Nii wants Haruka's story to be "cool", and being the favourite character of all, he purposely designed said MC to be as striking as possible: from the heterochromatic eyes and hair to add visual complexity to make him distinguishable that's likened him to a stray cat in his design, stating his light movements and lack of body thickness were unlike those of normal humans. And because Haruka doesn't have much going for him as a personalized MC in the first place, the Tsundere trait is pretty much embossed on him when he receives goodwill. You can't really miss it. Still, as cliché as Haruka sounds and looks, this is his story of character development and change, not just as a delinquent, but as an able-bodied and growing young man to see that violence is not the answer to everything (though that is assessed on a case-by-case basis).
Helping Haruka out are the fellow students of Bofurin, represented by their team colour of green, which represents plants. The quote "When the going gets tough, the tough gets going" is apt for Bofurin, as the people that Haruka will meet along the way, all have their various backstories that fill them with conviction, leading them to the reason why they're using their feet and their fists to do the talking for them. It's also a tale of friendships, regardless of rivals and the like, in that Haruka is progressively shaped from the inside out by fellow rivals-turned-comrades who're just as eccentric as him. Needless to say, for being only his 2nd work, Satoru Nii got that formula just right with great characters that you just want to root for (both frenemies alike), even if it does feel tropey to the degree that you can't unsee it.
Being a martial arts-centric show, the action is just as important, and this is where the anime upstages the manga by delivering on par against what is already very elaborate panels of drawing. Under the direction of director Toshifumi Akai, CloverWorks may only have the recent memories of the Spy x Family franchise to go for in the action department (the other one being Fall 2019's Fate/Grand Order: Zettai Majuu Sensen Babylonia a.k.a Fate/Grand Order: Absolute Demonic Front - Babylonia), but boy is this a Sakuga-fest of non-stop action. With the help of acclaimed sound director Jin Aketagawa, every punch and kick has weight to it, not to mention the stakes involved in the brawls, which, when you add that to the complexity of the characters as a whole, is a fit-and-finish of the immaculate kind. If that doesn't sound like conviction, then there's no way to convince someone.
The only miss that I would have to say is in terms of the music. The OST is great, don't get me wrong, it's just the OP/ED theme songs from Natori and Young Kee that were a bit of a miss, though they fit the thematics of the series to a T.
Wind Breaker is a series of clichés done right, even when they're flawed at best. At the end of the day, I'll admit that it'll take time to get used to how Haruka's personalities play out since we always see things from his POV, but don't be mistaken that as much as it's a hilarity to see blushes coming out from an insecure and under-developed panda-haired Tsundere of an MC, this is ultimately his story of growing up and learning what it truly means to be a man, alongside the Power of Friendship of friends and neighbours alike that is willing to accept him for who he is, without any prejudice, and fight with strength like brothers in a team.
What can I already say? Wind Breaker is Tokyo Revengers done right, without any of the goofiness of the latter. And this fight isn't all over just yet, for Season 2 is coming next year to deliver more of the delinquent awesomeness.
saitoyuu
People often said Wind Breaker is Tokyo Revengers but better. The only thing that is the same is they're both delinquent anime. That's literally it, the concept of the story is different. People saying one is better than another is tripping lol. Even though I don't like TR, I can't say WB is better than TR. Now about WB, this anime is just okay. The story is not particularly light or heavy. The characters and their situations though, it's kinda lack of depth. Pretty sure they're written better in the comic, but in anime, they're making me say "That's it?". I understand because the selling pointis the interesting fighting scenes, which CloverWorks definitely serves with that, but giving more background to the story won't hurt anyone.
Sometimes this anime feels childish and a bit embarrassing. Can't blame it because it's just an anime about teenagers embracing themselves and winning fights using the power of friendship.
Overall it's still a decent anime, don't regret watching it at all. If you wanna watch kids doing street fight with a little drama, this is for you.
Rojaum
When I started watching the anime, I thought it would be a brawling anime, where the main character would fight with everyone in the school until he reached the top, like a Mortal Kombat 2 where you climb the tower to the top. But unfortunately, the story isn't quite like that. To start, the guys go to a school where there are no classes and no teachers, lol, what kind of school is this? But in reality, the school is like a society of boys who want to fight, but don't. They want to protect and paint the city and hunt cats. You watch the anime thinkingthat there will be a lot of fights, great challenges, but none of the fights are funny because the main characters fight with very weak guys, the fights are just crying.
In most fights it's like those episodes of Naruto, he kept remembering that he used to be alone, that people didn't want him around, practically in most fight the guys end up remembering those moments.
In the final fight you think it's going to be the most incredible fight, but it's not!
It's just many crying because one of the characters doesn't carry in his fists the strength of friendship and leadership and trust that they have between them lol.
After this anime I went to watch Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles and was many good! I even enjoyed watching it. In my head I thought how did I waste so much time with a bad anime like Wind Breaker, why didn't I drop before.
But in final it was good that it served as an experience, for to talk about the anime to you so you don't go through what I went through (Boredom and more boredom)
wittygenstein
Felt like they explained the characters inner turmoil too much. It was very much a "tell not show" game when it should be the other way around. Like, Kotoha and especially Umeme basically only made appearances to explicitly explain Sakura's inner feelings to us and to him. Like mansplaining to the audience. Too much explicit magic of friendship talk up in here. Anyways, I think it was a nice breath of fresh air to see "delinquents" portrayed in this way where no one actually hates them. And the fact that Sakura was liked right from the get-go. I still think he looks like aGacha life character OC but oh well he's a sweetie. Anyways, this anime is lowkey boring and cliche. But it's a good anime to watch while you're working out.
tigermaskshinobi
The first four episodes of "Wind Breaker" had me hooked. I loved the world and the premise, The MC was interesting, the animation was very good. It seemed like it was going to be a fun watch, but the whole 1v1 Bofurin vs Lion Head arc started and that entire thing was a chore to get through. This is something that can only be pulled off after establishing the characters and having a good story build up, not straight out the gate with 6 episodes into the start of the story. It felt like a lot of lazy info dump with the flashbacks, the emotionalscenes were not hitting, the redemption of Lion Heads leaders created moments of some of the most forced character development scenes I've ever seen and the execution of it was honestly even cringe at times. Personally felt it was a thematically shallow, poorly written and just an overall forgettable arc that dragged on for quite a few episodes. The show did have a strong finish, Not strong enough to cover the shit show of the 1v1 arc but enough for me to be interested in a second season. I think there is something genuinely interesting here that can be developed into something more fun in the future.
00xxyyzz
Plot is mid, main character has always been a lone dog and transferred schools where he aimed to be the number one fighter, but then discovers power of friendship. Especially the first 4 episodes are quite hard to watch, it really is a "trust the process thing". When more fighting scenes started, the author basically forcefully give everyone a 10 minute character arc with a bunch of cut scenes of their own past. There are also many unnecessary blood splat scene which doesn't contribute to anything, but the animators really gave their all, everything is so smooth and realistic. I have mixed feelings because the VAs and fightinganimations are really good and the characters are lovable. But beyond that, the plot really isn't that good for those who want to watch this for the plot.
edit: music is really good too
AakBan_Pochi29
When the first episode came out and I watched it, I felt this was going to be better than Tokyo Revengers but unfortunately my opinion changed midway into the show. The first episode, we're introduced to the main character Sakura. He's someone who is always on edge, is ready to throw a punch at anytime, loud, blushes at the most random things.....and that continues all throughout. The problem is, they started the show with a banger by showing us how anxiety and neglect has affected Sakura unfortunately, they don't make enough use of these two important points and Sakura becomes a character you won'teven miss if he wasn't there.
I think the problem starts when the side characters are introduced. The side characters have so much personality, screen presence and an actual charm to them that you forget the MC. Whether it'd Suo, Umemiya or Choji or Togame , you're instantly captivated by theri characters. They all have so much to offer.
From episode 5 to episode 10, literally i forgot Sakura exists.
He's also supposed to be good at fighting but you realise he's actually not. He simply throws kicks and punches whereas the other characters are skilled and you're actually interested in their fights.
Another thing, the aide characters have been much potential, that Sakura is lackluster in comparison buy what actually made this show average for me was the constant "Sakura is the main character so we're gonna keep him in the middle and give him all the attention even though he's simply a character with character B Personality "
The others constantly push Sakura forward and its like they try so hard to remind us that he's relevant.
The thing is, Sakura just isn't capable of anything. He's simply just someone who gets angry and all worked up. No character development, nothing. And all of a sudden, Suo has to say that Sakura will be the grade captain.
This was probably the most embarrassing point cause Suo, is q character that is so capable and well made that he is someone who should have been a leader, but poor guy is made to usher the utterly useless one to the top.
What's baffling is every character in the show has one job, push useless Sakura to the top..
I wouldn't recommend it honestly. I wasted my time and patience.
oponent
Another anime of the season, another dissapointment. With how popular the anime is, I think everyone knows what it is about, it has 0 story, so what you do is follow the MC (Main Character) picking up fights until he gets to the top. The problem with that is, you need to have an amazing MC to have an enjoyable show and Sakura is the opposite of that: -he's always frustrated for no reason, behaves like an annoying kid, always screams during normal conversations, isn't gratefull for all the kindness he's given, and although he's strong in combat, he's weak in mentality. When is comes to personality, everycharacter has none, all of them have that hive-mind 1 brain cell of wanting to fight everyone at any time. The only character who isn't like that is even more annoying, is always scared to contrast the rest of the cast, with screaming and over-reactions, just there to make exposition.
The setup is something that an 8 year old would come up with:
-there is no parents, no teachers, no classes, the abandoned school serves as a hangout but "students" are still divided into classes (?), and all of them just get food for free at the restaurants because the fight agaisnt other thieves students (?), the whole plot is plain stupid.
The few attempt as jokes and just the the idiot characters screaming at each other, and being loud does not equal funny.
When it comes to likeable characters, there's only the white-haired captain and thats pretty much it.
Overall, having a show like this is fine, but having it average a score of 8 baffles me, the only saving grace is the battle coreography and thats pretty much it.
Having a MC start strong and capable of winning any fight he's in does not make him a good, compeling or interesting character, having this edgy angst teen is a pain to watch, the show could actually be decent and I would give it a score of 6 or 7 if Sakura was completely deleted, and have the white-hair captain as the MC instead.
As someone who has battle-shonens as their favorite genre, this ain't it.
Jwq
I’ve been regularly watching anime since 2016 and this is single-handedly the worst industry plant anime I’ve laid my eyes upon. First of all, this show is a disgrace to delinquent genre, there is NOT a single delinquent character in this show and I’m not even joking. Are you kidding me? How come I don’t see anyone mentioning this obvious mistake when criticizing this show? Anime fans really turn their brains off as soon as they see a show with good animation I guess Story [0/10]: In the first episode we are told that mc, Sakura Haruka (probably the worst mc name I’ve seen in years)has been bullied his whole life for having two toned hair and heterochromia. Honestly who gives a fuck if his hair is black and white? What a lame ass context but still I’d try to act like this is a decent way to get us sympathize with edgy lone wolf behavior of the mc if his bullies didn’t look like failed clone experiments. There are some cliche anime tropes I hate and this is definitely one of them. If the author wants us to take “got bullied for their looks” trope seriously then don’t make the character look like a gacha game twink at least! Mc literally looks better than every single individual in this anime but apparently the author is scared to lose fujoshi money so he didn’t even try to make mc’s appearance fit to the description we hear from his bullies in the first episode. Worse thing is almost every guy from his new high school has weirder hair than him. Does that mean he moved to a different town because his hometown didn’t have any pink or blue haired guys in it which caused him to be an outcast? Lol
Mc got bullied for being pretty and you’re telling me to act like this is the best delinquent anime made in the last decade…? Nah
Anyways about the rest of the story-
What story? There’s no story in this anime so I’ll just summarize you what happens for the rest of the season:
They fight in a flashy animation with the dumbest choreography known to mankind then the fight gets cut by corny and horribly written backstory of side characters we’ve only known for 20 minutes then that bad guy starts losing the fight and suddenly turns into a good guy because the beating he took made him remember his true ambitions… Congratulations they’re all friends now!
Characters [0/10]: I give all of the characters zero point because any random delinquent from a slice of life anime looks more menacing than manlet twinks of wind breaker.
Mc gets zero point from me because of his pathetic background writing alone and his bitchy tsundere behaviors ruin the every scene he’s in. So unless you’re a hardcore tsundere fan I don’t see a point in watching a show with the mc as annoying as mosquitos in summer nights. Even the most unbearable tsunderes tone down after a while but this guy just keeps making the same blushing face like a hentai character every time someone interacts with him throughout the whole season. He’s a painfully one dimensional character, you can tell he was made for fujoshi girls to glaze him on Tiktok edits and man child weebs to self insert themselves into this edgy high schooler as he gets treated like a Y/N by every other individual in the story. Also there is an actual plagiarism problem in this anime, which are the two characters that look 100% identical with Takemichi and Baji from Tokyo revengers. Pathetic
Not to mention the obvious haikyuu rip-off designs of the shishitoren members. Basically this show is full of stolen characters.
Consistency [0/10]: In the first episode mc gets jumped by bunch of thugs, one of them scratches his ankle and he gets immobilized because of that small ahh injury.
In episode 7, same character sakura gets his head slammed into the floor several times, bleeds the heck out and walks off the stage as if nothing happened after winning the fight. So— is this show tryna be realistic or not? Idc about logic or realistic stuff normally but this show looked like it was leaning towards realistic route in first 3 episodes then completely became sakuga shitshow without any logic afterwards. There are excessive tone gaps between similar situations in different episodes which are impossible for anyone with a functional brain to ignore.
Soundtracks [5/10]: Opening and ending songs are okay, not worth adding to my playlist though. Crazy part is they made a different insert song for every single fight to distract the viewers from terribly written dialogues during these fights.
Overall score: 0
I wouldn’t recommend this show to anyone above the age of 12
PurpleSPR
The first episode of Wind Breaker is probably the best one, which isn't a good sign. The best part of the whole show is it's action and fight scenes, which are very good. Thy are very pretty and are genuinely impressive. This is shown off well in the first episode with the group fight, which is one of my fav fights in recent memory. However, everything else falls short. Despite what the first ep shows, samurais character isn't that deep and nither are any of the other characters in the whole show. The plot is very bland and the characters are the definition of theirtrope with nothing more. The only reason I'm planning on watching the next season is because the last episode is actually pretty good and got me interested in the next arc.
Tldr, great action and production value, mid everything else. The first episode is the best and the last one seems intriguing. Has potential to be better next season
