Baki: Is Biscuit Oliva Based on a Real Person?
We know that the entire storyline of Baki has a lot of different people that tend to be larger than life and exaggerated in terms of their abilities. One such character is Biscuit Oliva, one of the few people who fought Yuujirou Hanma well enough to survive the encounter. We also know that many different characters in Baki are based on real-life persons. So, does that mean that Biscuit Oliva is also based on a real person?
Biscuit Oliva may be based on a real person named Sergio Oliva, who was known as one of the greatest bodybuilders of all time. Sergio Oliva was a three-time winner of Mr. Olympia. Because Biscuit Oliva is the most muscular character in Baki, it is possible that he was based on Sergio Oliva.
We know that manga and anime titles that are a bit grounded in reality tend to draw inspiration from real life, and the same is true for the Baki manga and anime. In that regard, there’s a good chance that the author based Biscuit on Sergio, as they are similar in appearance and reputation as some of the most muscular men of their respective universes.
Who Is Biscuit Oliva?
The entire storyline of Baki is full of fighters strong enough to take on entire battalions of soldiers. Of course, while Baki tries its best to ground itself on reality, the storyline can be somewhat exaggerated regarding the strength and fighting prowess of the different characters in the storyline. One such character is Biscuit Oliva.
Biscuit Oliva is an American convict treated as a VIP in the Arizona State Prison due to his value to the US government. While he may be a convict, he lives like a king in prison due to his immense strength. He is so strong that the US government allows him to do whatever he wants as long as he also does whatever the US government wants him to do. In that regard, Biscuit is an assassin who works for America, as the Americans often use his services in tough assignments that require his expertise.
In the past, Biscuit was hired to try to kill Yuujirou Hanma, who was giving America trouble in Vietnam. The fight ended in a stalemate only because Yuujirou wanted to fight Biscuit again in the future. As such, the fact that Oliva impressed the strongest man in the world was enough for anyone to realize just how strong he was.
While most of the fighters in Baki train in different forms of martial arts to become the strongest in their respective fields, Biscuit is slightly different in his approach. Instead, Oliva only trains his muscles and ensures he can maintain his incredible muscle mass. It was the fact that he maximized his musculature that he became one of the toughest fighters in the entire Baki series.
Biscuit Oliva is often described as having an iron body due to his immense muscle mass. He even looks overweight when wearing a suit, as his muscles are so huge. However, the truth is that he is simply so strong and muscular that he is almost pure muscle. Biscuit has to eat 100,000 calories daily to maintain his muscles, and he claims that he doesn’t train as a fighter but only ensures that his muscles are always in top shape.
Biscuit Oliva is so strong that he can stop shotgun shells with his muscles. He usually tightens his muscles to stop the penetrating force of powerful weapons. His muscles can even repel a thrust from a katana without tightening his muscles. As such, his muscles are incredibly dense and are so strong that he doesn’t need to train well as a fighter to match the prowess of some of the strongest fighters in the world.
Who Is Biscuit Oliva Modeled After?
As exaggerated as the Baki universe may be, it is clear that the series tries its best to stay grounded in reality, as there are hardly any supernatural elements in the storyline. While there are still supernatural things in Baki, the action scenes and the fights are often based on reality. In that regard, some characters in the Baki storyline are based on real-life people.
For example, Mohammad Alai is based on the real-life heavyweight legend Muhammad Ali. Alai’s fighting style in Baki resembles the heavyweight legend used during his prime. In that regard, there’s no doubt that some characters in Baki are based on real life. The same case can be made when it comes to Biscuit Oliva.
Even though the first names are different, Keisuke Itagaki, who wrote the Baki manga, once called Sergio Oliva and his manager to tell them that he used the man’s likeness in his manga. In that regard, it was clear that Biscuit was based on Sergio “The Myth” Oliva.
For those who may be a bit too young to know, Sergio Oliva was regarded as the greatest bodybuilder of his generation and was, at one point, better than Arnold Schwarzenegger. He was born in Cuba before leaving the country to go to the US, where he made a name as one of the greatest bodybuilders ever. Sergio became the first three-time winner of the Mr. Olympia bodybuilding title, having won the title three straight times. He even defeated Schwarzenegger in one of the competitions, as Arnold himself once wrote in his book:
“Then for the first time, I saw Sergio Oliva in person. I understood why they called him the Myth. It was as jarring as if I’d walked into a wall. He destroyed me. He was so huge, he was so fantastic, there was no way I could even think of beating him. I admitted my defeat and felt some of my pumps go away. I tried. But I’d been so taken back by my first sight of Sergio Oliva that I think I settled for 2nd place before we walked out on the stage I never like to admit defeat, but I thought Sergio was better. There were no two ways about it.”
In that sense, Sergio Oliva and Biscuit Oliva are very similar. During his prime, Sergio was one of the most muscular men of his generation and was often regarded as the only man that could give Arnold Schwarzenegger a run for his money. In the same way, Biscuit is said to be the most muscular man in the Baki world. Biscuit even admitted that his muscles have always been more than enough for him to win fights against some of the strongest fighters in Baki.
