Aug 18, 2025
Fighting Girls, in a nutshell, is a story that - much like other manga like Look Back by Tatsuki Fujimoto - explores the themes of determination, persistence, and rivalry and it creates a narrative meant to inspire readers and relate to them mostly in times of struggle (especially in the pursuit of excellence).
The strong choice to use martial arts as a central focus lets the reader easily understand the struggle that comes with and the nature of fighting in the literal sense both in the short and long-term - from the financial viability (or lack thereof) of making a living off of martial arts
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and the toll training and competing takes on a fighter's body (which tends not to be sustainable) to the ability to focus and motivate oneself to train everyday despite not knowing whether the next fight will be a win and everyone else doubting that they can make it.
What makes this manga special and unique, however, is it's visual storytelling as well as shift in perspective towards the deuteragonist, Tiara Kimura, in the latter half of the story.
The manga creator's idea to show the journey of a character's struggle through life through several pages of art without dialogue is a smart one.
The art speaks for itself and by NOT using dialogue, the emotion and tension builds into a crescendo being the ending.
Speaking of art, the style is very simplified in terms of facial expressions. This is not to say that the art looks rushed or amateurish, in fact, quite the opposite.
The artist and creator clearly has a strong grasp on art fundamentals and it can be seen in their background, overall anatomy and clothing.
Their art forms a raw sense of emotion in each panel without using a lot of detail, matching the fairly straightforward story with more complex human emotions and experiences beyond the surface.
To conclude, readers who like inspiring manga like Look Back as mentioned previously, will most likely enjoy the unique take the creator put on the "journey of a determined fighter" and they may find a message and lesson that they can resonate with by the end of this story.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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