Invincible Fight Girl Eps. 1-3 Review
Wrestling is one of the oldest sports in the world. Since dawn, men and women have grappled, pinned, and sparred in the arena for fame, glory, and bragging rights. In the modern day, professional wrestling is more theater than actual wrestling, but no one seems to care. Not when we see people in colorful costumes and cool names fighting each other! I’ve never been that tuned into the world of wrestling, but I am tuned into the world of animation, especially when it takes cues from anime. And that’s what led me to the newest show out of Cartoon Network on Toonami, Invincible Fight Girl.
The show’s only three episodes in, but it’s already got a good feel to it. Rendy Jones from the Den of Geek describes it as My Hero Academia meets the WWE. Other people have pointed out that it follows the traditional formula to many hit Shonen series. And the animation has been compared to Kill La Kill, which is a massive compliment! After seeing the first three episodes, I can confirm all these are true. Invincible Fight Girl is a western-made Shonen series, and after I’m done talking about it, you might think so, too.
In a World of Wrestlers…
In Fight Girl, there are two kinds of people: wrestlers and accountants. The masses worship the wrestlers as celebrities and demigods, with the greatest known worldwide! And ever since her parents took her to see a wrestling match, Andy Smith has wanted to become a wrestler. There’s just one problem: she’s from a family of accountants. Who live on an island of accountants.
Fight Girl is wearing its Shonen inspiration on its sleeve from the start. Like Luffy, Naruto, Deku and Asta, she wants to become something great and is willing to work hard to achieve it. Unfortunately, circumstances leave her in a position that makes it hard at best, and gets her laughed at at worst. She’s essentially a female version of Deku. It’s not like she can fall back on being an accountant, though, as she proves to have no talent for it. The way she types is so slow, it reminds me of how I was before I took a keyboarding class in high school.
The conflict on the first episode has her screwing up the taxes of a group of angry wrestlers when they show up for tax day. As a result, the gang proceeds to terrorize her hometown until she steps up and challenges them to a match to get them to back off. In keep with the comparisons to Deku, she is outmatched and out of her depth despite her determination. But just when she’s on the ropes, she shows the fruits of her secret training and pins the man to the floor. It’s a moment that would make Naruto proud.
Too bad for her, her parents saw the whole thing, ending the first episode on an awkward note!
…One Girl Seeks to Become the Very Best
Picking up right where the pilot ended, Andy has to deal with a new problem: her rightfully concerned parents. Her opponent tries to continue the fight despite losing, but this old woman who gave Andy advice unleashes Conquerer’s Haki that makes him back down/pass out.
Afterwards, Andy decides to come clean to her parents about everything, and the episode does a great job of handling this moment. Being a teenager, Andy is understandably frightened to tell her folks that she doesn’t want to be like them. And her parents initially think she’s confused because they don’t realize she’s lied to them about liking accounting for years. It’s not until she shows them her secret, homemade gym that they realize how serious she is about this. At this point, the show could have them try to stomp down on her dreams, but since they’re good parents, they understand how important this is to her and fully support her choices. So, with their blessing and the support of the entire island, Andy boards a ship to the mainland to follow her dreams!
Easier said than done, though. Once Andy arrives in the big city, she’s conned out of her phone by a guy named Craig and loses all her money and belongings. It’s only thanks to a group of nice wrestling washouts who run a dive bar that she finds a place to stay for the night. Considering the alternatives that could happen to a teen on her own in the big city, she’s very lucky!
Take a Shot for Every Shonen Jump Trope
So far this is the best scene in Invincible Fight Girl but I honestly don't see this happening to Andy. Even though Hajime No Ippo serves as an influence, which can go dreary, I just don't see that occurring as a season finale for this 10 ep show. I wouldn't mind being wrong. pic.twitter.com/L4gepThpPB
— THE AnimeHERO (@THEAnimeHERO) November 5, 2024
This is another moment where Fight Girl shows off its Shonen influences. Series like Naruto, One Piece, My Hero Academia and more often have moments where the protagonist is given a seemingly insurmountable obstacle they have to face. It’s the story’s way of testing them to see if they have the resolve to keep going, no matter how hard things may get. And while Andy does consider throwing in the towel, her determination wins out. And as fate would have it, the wrestlers at Buster’s (the name of the place) know where to find Quesa Poblana, the famed former wrestler that is Andy’s idol. With stars in her eyes, Andy becomes convinced this is destiny at work and jumps at the chance to meet and train under her hero.
Two things happen. Firstly, she discovers that Quesa Poblana is the old woman who advised about not letting anyone decide her future for her. Secondly, she refuses to train Andy.
Dark Underbelly of Wrestling
The third episode starts with Andy trying, and failing, to get Quesa P to train her. She doesn’t directly explain why she refuses to train Andy, but it’s what she doesn’t say that should be concerning.
Andy’s already seen firsthand that not everyone who’s a wrestler is going to be good people. And judging by the bitter look on Quesa P’s face, something happened that forced her to retire. Andy may not realize it yet, but the world she idolizes is likely one rife with corruption and cutthroat practices. That is further corroborated by what Craig, revealed to be Quesa P’s nephew, says about wrestlers. Most people are doing it for the money and fame, and he considers anyone who isn’t to be a sucker. In other words, Andy is going to be in for an uphill battle.
The Buffest 8-Year-Old Ever
While Andy may not have gotten a mentor in Quesa P, she does manage to find another way to train. After befriending Mikey, an eight year-old whose already built like a full-grown adult, Andy discovers how wrestlers use tenderizing as a training method. Here, we really get to see Andy show what she’s capable of, and she proves to have some latent potential in her. More importantly, she bonds with Mikey over their shared desire to buck their elders expectations of them. In Mikey’s case, despite being built like a tank, he wants to become a wrestling journalist. As a writer myself, I give props to him!
Unlike Andy’s supportive parents, though, Mikey’s dad is determined to make all his boys become wrestlers and regularly demeans Mikey for being soft. Outraged, Andy challenges his family to a match to get them back off, forcing her to face the oldest and strongest of Mikey’s brothers, Mbrandon.
No, really. That’s his name. The dad wanted all his kids names to start with “M” and ran out of ideas.
And that’s where the third episode ends.
Invincible Fight Girl is Worth a Watch
So, what’s the verdict? Is Invincible Fight Girl going to me worth my time? Let’s review:
It’s animation style evokes that of surreal anime like Kill La Kill, Gurren Lagann, and anything made by Studio Trigger.
The plot, characters, and world all seem to run on the rules of Shonen series.
The show seems to draw from all aspects of wrestling, from its humble roots as an actual sport to the majestic nature of the professional wrestling ring. That includes both the good and the bad aspects of the latter.
It may follow the typical Shonen formula a little too closely for some people, but as far as I’m concerned, if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. If anything, the series feels like a love letter to the genre of anime that inspired a generation. I don’t know how long this series can last since it’s under Warner Bros control, and Zaslav dislikes cartoons. However, I’m willing to enjoy the ride for as long as I can. With its animation style and Shonen leanings, Invincible Fight Girl looks to be a fun new series. I look forward to reviewing it on here.
