Yawara! 1989
What is Yawara!?
Yawara! A Fashionable Judo Girl!
- Type
- TV series
- Year
- 1989
- Status
- Ended
- Episodes
- 124
- Runtime
- 25 minutes
- First aired
- Oct 16, 1989
- Last aired
- Sep 21, 1992
- Original language
- JA
- Origin
- JP
- Networks
- Nippon TV
- Genres
- Animation, Comedy, Drama
- Updated
Where to watch
Stream
Hulu
Anime Times Amazon Channel
Toei Animation Channel Amazon ChannelStreaming availability data provided by JustWatch via TMDB. Availability changes by country and date; verify on the provider before subscribing or purchasing.
How long to binge?
Estimate the schedule using 124 episodes and an average 25-minute runtime.
Trailer
No official trailer is available for this title yet.
Find the trailer on YouTube ↗Overview
Yawara! A Fashionable Judo Girl! is an animated television series that follows the life of a high school student named Yawara Inokuma. While she aspires to lead a normal, ordinary life as a delicate young lady, she is being trained by her grandfather, a seventh dan Judo master named Jigorou Inokuma. Her grandfather intends for her to become Japan's great hope for the women's Judo competition at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. Produced by Kitty Films, the series is based on the manga written and illustrated by Naoki Urasawa. The television adaptation was broadcast on Yomiuri TV from October 16, 1989, until September 21, 1992. Spanning a total of 124 episodes, the program incorporates elements of comedy and drama to depict Yawara's experiences over a four-year period as she prepares for Olympic competition. The story explores the conflict between her grandfather's expectations and her own desire for an average lifestyle. The series was also accompanied by an animated film titled Yawara! Soreyuke Koshinuke Kizzu!!.
Should you watch it?
“A judo prodigy struggles to balance Olympic dreams with teenage life.”
- Engaging mix of sports and school life
- Strong character development
- Humor balanced with emotional depth
- Episodic pacing may feel slow
- Some tropes are predictable
You enjoy sports anime with heartfelt storytelling.
Suitable for teens and up; focuses on personal growth and competition.
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Your verdict
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Cast
Episode guide
Season 1 · 124 episodes
Open the complete Season 1 guide →- E1 Aim for Barcelona! The Girl Who Should Win the People's Honor Award!! Oct 16, 1989
- E2 I've Found Yawara's Rival! She's the Ultimate Young Lady!! Oct 23, 1989
- E3 Enter Kazamatsuri! What a Shame That She Is Infatuated With Love Oct 30, 1989
- E4 This Is My Strategy to Make Yawara Take Part in a Real Match! Nov 6, 1989
- E5 Finally the Real Fight! Judo Is Not Built in a Day! Nov 13, 1989
- E6 Finally Pictured! The Big Scoop of the Century That Will Bring on a Storm!! Nov 20, 1989
- E7 Hohohoh! The Yawara Boom That Shakes Japan! Nov 27, 1989
- E8 Enough of Judo! I'm Going to Be in a Match Dec 4, 1989
- E9 Yawara's Debut Match! An Ippon Victory Before You Even Know It Happened! Dec 11, 1989
- E10 An Ippon-Zeoi With My Mom! The 90's Is Yawara's Era! Dec 18, 1989
- E11 A Big Uproar at High School With the Yawara Fame! Jan 8, 1990
- E12 Coach Yawara's Extracurricular Lesson! Jan 15, 1990
- E13 Yawara's Heart Shook in Hayama! Jan 22, 1990
- E14 Yawara's Date Has So Much Surveillance! Jan 29, 1990
- E15 A Challenge to Yawara Over Love! Feb 5, 1990
- E16 Yawara's National Martial Arts Hall Debut! Feb 12, 1990
- E17 Yawara's Love Message Feb 19, 1990
- E18 The Decisive Battle! Yawara vs. Sayaka Feb 26, 1990
- E19 Jigoro, His Love, And Youth's Raging Storms Mar 5, 1990
- E20 The Big Guest for Yawara Mar 12, 1990
- E21 Yawara and the Blue-Eyed House Guest Mar 19, 1990
- E22 Let's Fight, Yawara! Apr 16, 1990
- E23 See You Again, Yawara Apr 23, 1990
- E24 Yawara's Personal Tutor Is a Love Expert Apr 30, 1990
- E25 Love, Exam Studies, And Yawara's Feelings May 7, 1990
- E26 A Shocking Invitation for Yawara! May 14, 1990
- E27 Yawara and the Love Square May 21, 1990
- E28 The Madonna of My Youth, Yawara May 28, 1990
- E29 The Other One-Sided Love Jun 4, 1990
- E30 The Lonely Ippon Zeoi Jun 11, 1990
- E31 The Present on Entrance Exam Day Jun 18, 1990
- E32 A Stormy Time at the Exam Results Jun 25, 1990
- E33 Aim for the All-Japan Tournament Jul 2, 1990
- E34 The Stage Contest of the Rivals Jul 9, 1990
- E35 The Miss' Tenacity Jul 16, 1990
- E36 Ah, Hanazono! The Tearful Graduation Jul 23, 1990
- E37 Jigoro's Love, A Tumultuous Pure Love Story Jul 30, 1990
- E38 The Heartful Excitement of Women's College Life Aug 6, 1990
- E39 Blue Night Yokohama Aug 13, 1990
- E40 Fujiko-san's Secret! Aug 20, 1990
- E41 The Part-Time Job for a Day Aug 27, 1990
- E42 Ippon Zeoi at the Disco! Sep 3, 1990
- E43 Free Weight Class Is the Only Way for Yawara! Sep 17, 1990
- E44 Selected Athletes Announced Tonight! Oct 15, 1990
- E45 After the World Cup Ends Oct 22, 1990
- E46 Raising the Curtain! World Cup Oct 29, 1990
- E47 Uncertain! Japan's Female Judo!! Nov 5, 1990
- E48 The Open-Weight Campions Nov 19, 1990
- E49 Yawara vs. Queen Belkens Nov 26, 1990
- E50 To Fight With Yawara Dec 3, 1990
- E51 The Letter From Kojiro Dec 10, 1990
- E52 The Tereshkova Match Heats Up! Dec 17, 1990
- E53 Matsuda's Exclusive Interview Jan 7, 1991
- E54 Everything Started at That Moment! Jan 14, 1991
- E55 The World's Top Judo Girl Came, Saw, And Conquered! Jan 21, 1991
- E56 I'm Going to Quit Judo! Jan 28, 1991
- E57 Fujiko-san's Decision Feb 4, 1991
- E58 A Letter From Canada Feb 11, 1991
- E59 The Last Ippon Zeoi! Feb 18, 1991
- E60 The Weakest Japanese Judo Team Feb 25, 1991
- E61 The Extreme Training Program! Mar 4, 1991
- E62 A Dangerous Debut Match! Mar 11, 1991
- E63 Secret Technique! Swan Lake!! Mar 18, 1991
- E64 I Think I'll Try Apr 15, 1991
- E65 Fujiko, Love, And Judo Apr 22, 1991
- E66 Everybody Wants to Beat Yawara! Apr 29, 1991
- E67 The Huge Obstacle May 6, 1991
- E68 Swan vs. Tanks May 13, 1991
- E69 You Can Do It, Kyonkyon! May 27, 1991
- E70 Get Out of My Way! Jun 3, 1991
- E71 The Lightning-Fast Ippon Zeoi Jun 10, 1991
- E72 Will It Happen! Five Straight Miraculous Wins Jun 17, 1991
- E73 Inokuma Kojiro on the Move! Jun 24, 1991
- E74 All's Not Quiet on Yawara's Job-Hunting Front! Jul 1, 1991
- E75 The Selected Judo Championship of Love Jul 8, 1991
- E76 I'm So Mad!! Jul 15, 1991
- E77 New Deadly Technique! The Nutcracker! Jul 22, 1991
- E78 A Smiling Ippon Zeoi! Jul 29, 1991
- E79 You Can Do It, Fujiko! First Place Is Right in Front of You!! Aug 5, 1991
- E80 You're Going to the World Championships! Aug 12, 1991
- E81 Fujiko's First Training Camp! Sep 9, 1991
- E82 The Opening Act of the Yugoslavia World Championships! Oct 14, 1991
- E83 Jam-Packed With International Contenders! Oct 21, 1991
- E84 First Time Under Pressure Oct 28, 1991
- E85 Swan Lake on the World Stage Nov 4, 1991
- E86 The Top and Bottom of Their Games! Nov 11, 1991
- E87 Burn Rubber, Papara Man Nov 18, 1991
- E88 Giant Clash!-Swan Lake vs the Ura Nage!! Nov 25, 1991
- E89 Myth of Invincibility! Dec 2, 1991
- E90 Jigoro's Love, A Tearful-Story of Friendship Dec 9, 1991
- E91 Next Up, The Graduation Match! Dec 16, 1991
- E92 Revealed! The Ultimate Conspiracy Jan 6, 1992
- E93 Kyonkyon Risks Her Life! Jan 13, 1992
- E94 Thank God I'm Fat! Jan 20, 1992
- E95 Get That Ippon and Win! Jan 27, 1992
- E96 The Return of the Heiress Feb 3, 1992
- E97 Once We Graduate... Feb 10, 1992
- E98 First Kiss! Feb 17, 1992
- E99 A New Employee's First Assignment Feb 24, 1992
- E100 Hokkaido and the Budokan Mar 2, 1992
- E101 You're Not Losing by Default! Mar 9, 1992
- E102 Run! To the All-Japan-Championships!! Mar 16, 1992
- E103 Sayaka Surges Ahead Apr 13, 1992
- E104 The Fateful Showdown! Apr 20, 1992
- E105 The Heiress' Secret Weapon Apr 27, 1992
- E106 The Dream Fight Between Friends! May 4, 1992
- E107 Maybe I'll Stay the Night May 11, 1992
- E108 Resolve Among Men! May 18, 1992
- E109 Hanazono's Burning "I Love You"! May 25, 1992
- E110 My Champion Jun 1, 1992
- E111 Fujiko's Shocking Retirement- Announcement! Jun 8, 1992
- E112 The Rear View of My Dad Jun 15, 1992
- E113 No Longer Invincible Jun 22, 1992
- E114 The World's Greatest Heiress Jun 29, 1992
- E115 Mama Fujiko's Challenge! Jul 6, 1992
- E116 Don't Be Stupid! Jul 20, 1992
- E117 The Greatest Present Ever Jul 27, 1992
- E118 Sayaka's Top Secret Training Aug 3, 1992
- E119 The Explosive Remark! Aug 17, 1992
- E120 The Comeback Ippon Zeoi! Aug 24, 1992
- E121 You're Going to Barcelona Aug 31, 1992
- E122 First Place for the First Time Sep 7, 1992
- E123 Death Match Sep 14, 1992
- E124 Ever Since I Met You Sep 21, 1992
Frequently asked questions
Is Yawara! based on a manga?
Yes, it is adapted from a manga series of the same name.
How many episodes are there?
The series has over 100 episodes, making it a long-form commitment.
Does it feature Olympic competition?
Yes, the storyline builds toward a major international sports event.
Is it comedic or dramatic?
It blends both comedy and drama evenly throughout the series.
Who might enjoy this show?
Fans of sports anime or slice-of-life stories will likely enjoy it.