Viz Media

-From Rage Quitter 87's Fist of the North Star site

Viz Media is the name of an entertainment company who specialize in releasing English adaptions/dubs of Japanese manga and anime. Naruto and Bleach -two of the most popular anime/manga series -were released in America thanks to Viz. They also occasionally dabble with video game related products, including releasing DVDs for all three of the Fatal Fury animes and releasing soundtracks for some of Capcom's games, including Resident Evil 2.

However back in the early years of the company, Viz released chapters 1-16 of the Fist of the North Star manga in an 8 issue series that was released in 1989. 6 years later, these 8 issues were collected into a single volume simply entitled Fist of the North Star. At this point, Viz started releasing monthly issues of the manga again, covering chapters 17-44. These issues were later collected into three separate collected editions which were released between 1997 and 1998.

In 2020, Viz announced that they would be publishing volumes of Fist of the North Star, starting again from the beginning. These new editions are hardback books, feature a new English translation, and also have color pages for certain parts. Will Viz be able to get the entire manga out in English? Here's hoping so!

List of Viz's Fist of the North Star collected editions:

	Fist of the North Star Released: 1995 RRP: $19.95 Contains chapters 1-16 of the manga. Basically goes from Kenshiro appearing for the first time to the end of the Kenshiro vs. Colonel fight.
	Fist of the North Star: Night of the Jackal Released: 1997 RRP: $16.95 Contains chapters 17-27. It starts with Kenshiro saving Taki and ends with Rei telling Kenshiro he must live on as he must kill the man with seven scars.
	Fist of the North Star: Southern Cross Released: 1997 RRP: $15.95 Contains chapters 28-35. Starts with the Fang clan revealing they have captured Ko to Rei realizing that Kenshiro has gone into "that stance" when they are being forced to fight each other.
	Fist of the North Star: Blood Brothers Released: 1998 RRP: $15.95 Contains chapters 36-44. It starts with the conclusion to the Kenshiro Vs. Rei fight and ends with Kenshiro defeating Jagi. The last page states "THE END, FOR NOW...", however this was the last volume ever released by Viz... for 23 years.

List of Viz's Fist of the North Star volumes:

	Fist of the North Star Volume 1 Released: 07/15/2021 RRP: $19.99 (USA) , £15.99 (UK) Contains chapters 1 to 13 of the manga. Goes from Kenshiro appearing for the first time to the start of the Kenshiro versus Mad fight. It also has some commentary at the back from series editor Nobuhiko Horie, who briefly talks about how the series was created. This version of the manga keeps the traditional Japanese right to left format.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 2 Released: 09/21/2021 RRP: $19.99 (USA) , £15.99 (UK) Contains chapters 14 to 27 of the manga. Goes from Kenshiro defeating Mad and his men to Rei telling Kenshiro he can't die until he kills the man with seven scars. The front cover features Shin, who does not appear in this volume.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 3 Released: 12/21/2021 RRP: $19.99 (USA) , £15.99 (UK) Contains chapters 28 to 40 of the manga. Goes from Ko being killed to Kenshiro saving Aki in the desert.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 4 Released: 03/15/2022 RRP: $19.99 (USA) , £15.99 (UK) Contains chapters 41 to 54 of the manga. Goes from Kenshiro finding Mako to Raiga and Fuuga opening the gates of Cassandra.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 5 Released: 06/28/2022 RRP: $19.99 (USA) , £15.99 (UK) Contains chapters 55 to 67 of the manga. Goes from Uighur confronting Kenshiro to Kenshiro realizing Raoh hit him without him even noticing it. The front cover features Shu, who does not appear in this volume.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 6 Released: 09/27/2022 RRP: $19.99 (USA) , £15.99 (UK) Contains chapters 68 to 80 of the manga. Goes from Toki fighting the guy with the clubs to the start of Rei's fight with Yuda. The front cover features Souther, who does not appear in this volume.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 7 Released: 12/27/2022 RRP: $19.99 (USA) , £15.99 (UK) Contains chapters 81 to 94 of the manga. Goes from Rei fighting Yuda to Souther's flasback about Ogai.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 8 Released: 03/28/2023 RRP: $19.99 (USA) , £15.99 (UK) Contains chapters 95 to 108 of the manga. Goes from Kenshiro fighting Souther on the pyramid to Ryuga confronting Toki. The front cover features Juza, who does not appear in this volume.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 9 Released: 07/27/2023 RRP: $19.99 (USA) , £15.99 (UK) Contains chapters 109 to 122 of the manga. Goes from Ryuga striking down Toki to Tou killing herself.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 10 Released: 09/26/2023 RRP: $19.99 (USA) , £15.99 (UK) Contains chapters 123 to 136 of the manga. Goes from Raoh confronting Rihaku to Kenshiro leaving with Yuria.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 11 Released: 12/23/2023 RRP: $19.99 (USA) , £15.99 (UK) This volume starts with the special episode, "He Who Rides Me". This is a new chapter featuring a story which wasn't published during the manga's original run. It's set just before the events of Fist of the North Star 2. The story shows Kenshiro being wracked with grief after Yuria's death, to the point where he believes he isn't worthy of riding the Black King. When a village is attacked by Daruja and his forces, Shoza, the son of Juza, has to take action. After this story, the rest of the volume contains chapters 137 to 146 -going from the start of Fist of the North Star 2 to Falco working out that Lin is the real leader of the North Star army. This volume also contains some commentary from series writer Buronson, talking about the creation of the series.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 12 Released: 03/26/2024 RRP: $25.99 (USA) , £20.00 (UK) Contains chapters 147 to 160 of the manga. Goes from Kenshiro encountering Solia to Ein's funeral. From this volume and onwards, the RRP has increased.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 13 Released: 06/25/2024 RRP: $25.99 (USA) , £20.00 (UK) Contains chapters 161 to 174 of the manga. Goes from Falco and Myu looking at the Sea of Death to Lin tells Shachi that Kenshiro is the one who defeated Raoh. This is the first volume to feature more than one character on the front cover.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 14 Released: 09/24/2024 RRP: $25.99 (USA) , £20.00 (UK) Contains chapters 175 to 188 of the manga. Continues with Kenshiro and Han's battle to Hyo having a vision of his younger self holding Kenshiro.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 15 Released: 12/24/2024 RRP: $25.99 (USA) , £20.00 (UK) Contains chapters 189 to 202 of the manga. Goes from Kaioh explaining to Lin that his era can't begin until the North Star clan is wiped out to him and Kenshiro about to resume their battle after he tells the story of his mother's death.
	Fist of the North Star Volume 16 Released: 03/25/2025 RRP: $25.99 (USA) , £20.00 (UK) Contains chapters 203 to 216 of the manga. Goes from Zebra confronting Hyo to Kouketsu preparing to kill Ryu.