Season Review: Invincible Fight Girl Season One

Our Take

Adult Swim likes to run around town saying that they are the “leaders of adult animation” but over the last couple of years the network’s parent company WB Discovery has received nothing but the nastiest of reputations of being the place where animation goes to die. From sinking a potential billion dollar franchise like Rick and Morty for what really was for no reason to just this year canceling masterpiece series in MAX’s Scavengers Reign and Ten Year Old Tom, WB Discovery has become the dictionary’s definition of an unfriendly destination for animation producers.

Toonami hasn’t fared much better. The once vaunted destination for action toons is a shell of its former self largely due to the mishandling of the lineup as a result of Jason DeMarco. From Lord of the Rings to Blade Runner and others, Jason has had a ball with all of his fanfic opportunities only to see them either bomb or canceled. Together with the unparalleled fuck up that was Uzumaki’s first season, 2024 has clearly shown that WB Discovery probably needs to clean house sooner, rather than later.

What does this have to do with Invincible Fight Girl? Well, here’s a black-produced adult animated action comedy series that dodged pre-airing cancelation like Neo in The Matrix. Is it the best action adult animated comedy we’ve ever seen? No, it’s definitely an American-made cover song of most Japanese anime but that’s not a bad thing because the show works and we’re rooting for it to get a second season. Why? Because the story and characters are compelling enough that makes me want to see where it goes.

What’s not to like? Invincible Fight Girl features lead character Andy in her quest to be the best professional wrestler in a setting that treats pro-wrestling like Metalocalypse heavy metal music. In both cases it’s a clear love letter from the authors to their respective passions and it shows. In the case of Invincible Fight Girl, not just in the pro-wrestling schtick, but also in the show’s clear aesthetic and script influences that comes from producers who have probably watched series like My Hero Academia their entire lives. A positive cultural shift in the future of adult animation for sure, even if the obvious flaws that showed up in the show’s first season comes from the lack of experience across the board, these are skill sets that networks used to allow a certain amount of time for newcomers in the industry to learn and the exciting ideas that are seemingly on tap for future seasons seems like a perfect opportunity and bedrock for the show to build on for future success. Will Adult Swim learn from WB Discovery’s mistakes and make right or will 2025 kick off on a sad note?

I’m rooting for the former…