Review: Sekai de Ichiban Tsuyoku Naritai!

I was a big fan of wrestling many years ago growing up in what was arguably the golden age (Monday Night Wars and ECW) but fell out of love about 10 years ago for a number of reasons. Upon seeing that a womens wrestling series was announced a few years back I was sceptical, given my preferences now I decided to check it out. I have now gotten back into wrestling and this series was a big reason why.

Sakura Hagiwara is a singer in idol unit Sweet Diva. One day they are selected to participate with a wrestling organisation / stable Berserk. The wrestlers not being keen on this put them through their paces and effectively embarrass them with one wrestler Rio Kazama putting fellow Sweet Diva member Elena in her place through a rough ordeal and mocking them because they are idols. Sakura is not taken with this decides to fight back for the pride of her fellow idols and starts the rocky road to becoming a professional wrestler.

We complain about series lacking originality these days but this right here has spades of it. Idols are popular in anime sure but turning one into a wrestler seems like a bizarre choice. It is something you do not expect and the twists along the way only help push the story to greater heights. That a character would in effect jeopardise their own career because someone belittled them does seem a bit farfetched but this is anime, if you can’t suspend your disbelief you’re in the wrong medium. That it sticks and draws you in more and more is credit to the writers.

The main character we follow is Sakura, we follow her from hard working lead idol singer to wrestler and you cannot help but will her on. She is just so nice, she cares for her friends to the point where she won’t back down when someone belittles them, she has the will and determination that only a select group have. Through her trials and tribulations (of which there will be many) you root for her and when she does win you just want to smile and be happy for her especially so when she comes to the realisation of what she really wants.

Along the way we meet many wrestlers, many of whom do not think well of this girl coming into their profession. We have the wrestlers from Berserk with the aforementioned Rio Kazama and Misaki Toyada being the main two we see. We also see others along the way including reporter Kanae, Jackal the world champion and the mysterious Blue Panther. All characters get their chance to shine and never outstay their welcome, they bring a level of intrigue and potential as well such as in the case with Jackal and Blue Panther.

Back in the day I liked Chyna, Lita and Sable but I never really got into womens wrestling the same as the mens, it just felt weaker, less physical and I preferred watching the women in Bra and Panties matches (I miss those…) instead of actually wrestling. This series though went some way to changing that, I came out of it appreciating womens wrestling much, much more and for that I am extremely grateful. Why? Well let me tell you.

It shows badass womens wrestlers, those who are incredibly athletic, powerful, have strong personalities, incredible mental strength, endurance and cut an intimidating figure as well as being entertaining. It also goes into the nitty gritty with so, so many scenes showing the training, how to put on holds, how to escape, what muscle / stamina training needs to be done, how to combat the fatigues and lower lights of wrestling. These women here all put in effort above and beyond the pale. This is something that as a kid watching I did not see so did not appreciate as much, this opened my eyes to it.

The passion for wrestling is also thoroughly shown here, many professional moves are used, given their correct names and used in the right moments. There is great ring psychology shown from the professionals (as expected) and even from Sakura further down the line as she develops into a star. Even the mini arc as Sakura learns to finish off her opponent she needs her own finisher showed just how much the writers understand about wreslting.

Something I must discuss though and is bound to put some, or even many, people off is the so called exploitative nature of the series. The women are very often put into holds which displays them in an unbecoming manor, the camera lingers on them and pans slowly across their body making it more sensual. The women scream, a lot, throughout these holds and these elements together make it seem seedy and exploitative.

Knowing that wrestling in general can be exploitative with so many moves, like those in the series that put the wrestlers in positions where they show vulnerability and are at the mercy of their opponent. It is the choice to linger and use this to titillate which is the issue of contention. I can certainly see that and have no grievances with people who raise this but for me personally, having a perverted mind and all, loved it and felt it stronger because of it. This show is catering to a certain demographic, one that I am slap bang in the middle of which caters to those who like ecchi.

Speaking of ecchi there are a few shorts in the Blu Ray set, 6 to be precise and whilst the latter few do show another wrestling match with less featured characters the first few go full fan service route with mud wrestling, body oil being used and showers. They’re there as an extra treat and for what they are they work well.

One of my complaints which I am really, really torn on is what happens to Sakura almost immediately in her foray into the wrestling profession. She goes on a losing streak, and by streak I mean almighty streak. She accrues an incredible 65 losses to women of all levels before finally breaking free and winning something.

The problem I have here is that it seems excessive, that Sakura never learns her lesson, she always goes down to the same move and scenario and it is painful to see it happen time and again as she hits rock bottom. It is repetitive and it can be bit draining seeing her suffer time and again. On the other hand it makes so much sense. She is a green wrestler straight from being an idol. She is facing off against wrestlers who have trained their whole lives for this. Realistically it is going to take a hell of a long time to begin to turn that around so 50 losses then appears reasonable. See? Torn. I love the realism aspect and the respect for the wrestling profession but if felt too long and doesn’t translate well into anime form.

The animation is lacklustre on occasions which does drag it down slightly. Plenty of still shots are used and scenes are recycled. It is clear they did not have the greatest of budgets but this should not be enough to put you off. It is nowhere near as bad as those long running series so many of us love. The art is great though, all the wrestlers and their attire are distinct which is crucial in wrestling. The music is a strong point here, memorable and rises to the occasion when the wrestlers do the same. Special mention to the OP and ED. The OP Beautiful Dreamer sang by Kyouko Narumi is really uplifting and gets you ready whilst the ED Fan Fanfare!!! is sung by the in-series idol unit Sweet Diva and it stands out, too often idol songs are by the numbers and get lost in the mire but not here.

It is hard to recommend this series to wrestling fans because it would depend on your tolerance for fan service and the nature of it; I can recommend this series for fans of ecchi though without doubt. It showed me a side of wrestling I did not see as a youngster watching TV. It made me appreciate womens wrestling from an entirely different view point and most of all it rekindled my passion for wrestling. For that alone I am eternally grateful.

Studio: Arms Corporation

Aired: Autumn 2013

Episodes: 12 + 6 Specials

Available: Funimation Blu Ray Boxset (US)

8.5/10