I just read hajime no ippo agian (where i found the time, I don't know), and I have to say that Morikawa is not only an excellent artist he is extremely talented at portraying his character's thoughts and feelings through their facial expressions. I especially like it when he shows a quick clip of one character's face as it changes during his thought process. You can tell when they're being hesitant and really guess at what they're thinking. I also think this is a big reason why Ippo is so long. Morikawa just dedicates so much space to clearly defining his character's personalities through their expressions and body language, as well as their dialogue.

rly? honestly speaking i hate it when ippos always facing to the ground. i would want to speak to a person whos not even able to look me in the eye.