THE QUESTIONS

1. What does the title mean?
2. Is there a real Hatanaka?
3. Is the series over?
4. Are there many Catholics in Japan?
5. Is Takahashi a boxing fan?
6. Why was One-Pound Gospel published in Young Sunday?
7. The series is only four volumes but took 19 years to complete?

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THE ANSWERS

1 - What does the title mean?

Admittedly the title is a bit cryptic, but is a literal translation of the Japanese 1ポンドの福音 (Ichi pondo no fukuin). It is likely a reference to Kosaku's weight issues and Angela's Catholicism. In Japanese there is also the possessive "no" used, so it can be interpreted also as "The Gospel of One Pound".

2 - Is there a real Hatanaka?

Kiyoshi Hatanaka was the undisputed (WBC/WBA/IBF) Super Flyweight world champion. He debuted in 1984 when he was still of high school age and won his first title in 1986. After winning his first Super Flyweight title he decided to become the undisputed champion by capturing the final belt that eluded him- the unified WBA/IBF title held by Argentinian Pedro Ruben Decima. In order to prepare for this fight he was trained by Matsuda Boxing Gym's Toshihide Tsutsumi.

Were these story elements incorporated into One-Pound Gospel? Is Kiyoshi Hatanaka the namesake for Kosaku Hatanaka? Is the real life fight against Decima replicated in Kosaku's fight against Mexican fighter Tacos Hachiro? Anything is possible. However Takahashi did conduct an interview with Kiyoshi Hatanaka in Young Sunday in 1988.

3 - Is the series over?

Most certainly. The reason for this question is because of the publication infrequency of One-Pound Gospel during its original serialization it was sometimes difficult to tell if Takahashi was going to return to the series or would leave it open ended. Often there would be years between chapters (Takahashi did this as a side project while focusing on her weekly series Ranma ½ and Inuyasha both of which ran during Gospel's run). Ultimately the series was definitively concluded. Often One-Pound Gospel is thought of in the same context as Takahashi's Mermaid Saga which has had a similar publication schedule however that series is currently incomplete and has not been revisited.

4 - Are there many Catholics in Japan?

According to Wikipedia there are approximately 440,000 Japanese Catholics making up roughly 0.5% of the population. So, no, it is a relatively small religion in Japan. However there are 16 dioceses and 3 archdioceses in the country and the city of Nagasaki was founded by Jesuit priests during their trade missions to Japan in the mid-1500s.

5 - Is Takahashi a boxing fan?

In various interviews throughout the years Takahashi has emphatically stated that she is a fan of women's professional wrestling, sumo and most importantly the Hanshin Tigers baseball team. She has not made any comment on a particular love of boxing.

6 - Why was One-Pound Gospel published in Young Sunday?

Young Sunday was a new magazine at the beginning of One-Pound Gospel's serialization. Because it was a monthly it allowed for a slower pace when Takahashi did decided to produce a story. However she was also publishing (infrequently) in the monthly Shonen Sunday Zokan at the same time with her Mermaid Saga series. The most obvious answer is that Takahashi published in Young Sunday to help bolster their readership in the early days marking the decision as corporate synergy. Oddly enough Young Sunday would morph into something of a cheesecake magazine with covers featuring pin-up models and manga series that tended to be more risque.

7 - The series is only four volumes but took 19 years to complete?

Yes, One-Pound Gospel began in 1987 and ended in 2006. As mentioned before, the series was published infrequently and typically in two-chapter storylines. Early on there new chapters were typically published each year, however there was a five year break between 1991 and 1996 and again from 2001 to 2006 when the series was concluded.