No matter what, this list of the Top 5 Megalo Box Characters wouldn’t be correct without starting off with our main man himself, Joe aka Junk Dog. Originally an underground boxer, Junk Dog rose up from the dregs of being just a guy who took loses for money and turned into a legit boxer, even though he gained his way into the ring illegally. Joe earns the title Gearless Joe when he decided to fight other boxers without Gear risking his body but in return gaining a fandom. Gearless Joe is easily the coolest Megalo Box character and stands for the concept of never giving up and never admitting defeat even when the odds are stacked considerably against you.

From Team Shirato comes Yuri the man with Gear integrated into his very body! Yuri might seem like nothing more than a puppet to his owner—Yukiko Shirato—but in Megalo Box, you quickly learn that he has a reason for wanting to fight and show off his skills. When Yuri runs into Joe on that destined rainy night, it was quite clear these two were bound to eventually go into the ring and face off against one another. We won’t spoil the battle between Joe and Yuri that wraps up Megalo Box, but we will say that it was filled with raw emotion leading up to it that made for a truly anticipated climax to the series.

On his way to the top, Joe had to face numerous opponents and many of them had very interesting backstories and tragic pasts. However, none of these fighters could top Tatsumi Leonard Aragaki who took our hearts as a character when you learned of his tragic tale. Originally, Tatsumi was also a fighter who was under the tutelage of Gansaku Nanbu—Joe’s coach and the one who kept forcing him to throw fights originally—but when he was shipped off to war, his life changed dramatically. Losing not one but both of his legs, Tatsumi was forced to undergo painful rehab that caused him to worry that he would never re enter the ring. Fueled by conviction and desire, Tatsumi overcame his rehab and eventually went to do battle against Joe for one of the most epic battles of Megalo Box’s 13-episode run.

If there was a villain in Megalo Box, we would have easily pegged Mikio to be that villain as this guy rubbed us the wrong way when he first appeared on the show. Our thoughts changed though when we saw that behind his shady actions and desire to prove he was the better choice for leadership for the Shirato organization there laid a man who has a heart. Mikio was an awesome fighter in Megalo Box relying on his AI Gear and though he lost to Joe—which is a spoiler but you knew it was coming—that defeat changed Mikio for the better. Mikio would eventually come to understand that fighting isn’t all about science and technology but is about something deeper and unidentifiable. Mikio would also come to help Yuri—despite hating his sister—which would lead to even more proof that he was one of the characters with the most development in Megalo Box and for the better.

Our last entry on our Top 5 Megalo Box Characters was a hard tie almost. We were first thinking of having Gansaku Nobu on here, but we then realized there was one character in Megalo Box that despite his short nature, had a true heart of gold and was an asset to Joe’s team known as Team Nowhere. Sachio might be just an orphaned boy who lost his parents to dark events within the Shirato organization but when push came to shove, Sachio joined Team Nowhere and helped Joe overcome possible losses with his loud voice and his strong determination. Sachio earns a spot on our list and we think many of you will agree he deserves it.