Kinnikuman Perfect Origin Arc Episode 2 moved up two spots as it took 6th place in the Top 10 with an average household rating of 2.2 in the Japan TV ratings for July 15-21, 2024. More great news as this new Kinnikuman anime has seemed to find a good audience. I have high expectations for Kinnikuman Perfect Origin Arc Episode 3 as the battle between Terryman and Max Radial rages on! Let’s hit this full-spoiler review for Episode 3.
Kinnikuman Perfect Origin Arc Episode 3 begins with everything looking hopeless for Terryman. However, Terryman manages to rally and actually lift Max Radial high in the air and throw him. Unfortunately, Max Radail’s car suspension legs let him rebound off the ring post and back into Terryman. Max Radial grabs Terryman and continues to shred away his skin with one of his monster tires. Blood sprayes everywhere and Terryman is thrown to the mat in a pool of blood.
Meat begins to wonder if Terryman is too rusty from his long layoff since his last match. However, Terryman gets back up and reminds Meat that he has always been the underdog in all of his matches and he always proves his critics wrong by winning.
I loved this moment in the match. Terryman wagging his finger at Meat and dismissing Meat’s comments was perfect. Even when taking a beating, Terryman comes across as a badass with the heart of a lion. It gets the viewer pumped up to see Terryman refusing to stay down.
Max Radial tries his Drift Tackle again but Terryman is able to use his super strength to stop the tires from moving. Terryman then notices all the bits of rubber from Max Radial’s tires on the mat. Max Radial uses his suspension legs to kick Terryman in the face from the other side of the ring.
I love this move! We have already seen how Max Radial’s car suspension legs have made him impervious to submission holds and also allow him to pull off acrobatic maneuvers. But, this ability to extend the suspension springs to pull off long-range attacks from across the ring was creative and cool.
Back to the match, we see that, once again, Terryman refuses to give up and stands back up. Terryman says that a Justice Chojin’s pride will never allow him to admit defeat. Terryman then notices the bits of rubber on the mat from Max Radial’s monster tires.
Terryman begins bashing away at Max Radial’s right tire with his left elbow. Terryman’s left elbow gets the skin shredded off it, but he keeps bashing into Max Radial’s right tire with ever-increasing power. Suddenly, Max Radial’s right monster tire explodes into tiny pieces. This allows Terryman to hit his Calf Branding move on Max Radial since he does not have both tires to block his head from hitting the mat.
Oh crap! This part of the match was phenomenal! Terryman sacrificing his left elbow to destroy Max Radial’s right tire was brutal and bad-ass! This got Terryman over as a gritty and unrelenting fighter willing to do anything to win. I loved it.
Then we got some excellent fight psychology. Earlier in the match, it had been established that Max Radial’s tires effectively blocked Terryman’s vaunted Calf Branding move. As a result, Terryman wisely destroys one of Max Radial’s tires so he can then successfully pull off the Calf Branding move. With just one tire, Max Radial was unable to stop the Terryman’s feared finisher and got crushed. This is brilliant storytelling in this fight.
Back to the match, we see Max Radial get back up. However, Terryman then nails Max Radial with his Condor Kick. Terryman then picks Max Radial into the air and performs a brainbuster on Max Radial. Terryman stands up while Max Radial is knocked out unconscious on the mat. Terryman is the winner.
This was a kick-ass finish to the match. Watching Terryman break out two of his biggest moves in a row in the Calf Branding and the Condor Kick was incredible. Polishing off Max Radial with a dramatic brainbuster? Perfect. After taking a massive beating, Terryman gets a decisive and convincing win over Max Radial. This was a well-choreographed fight.
Terryman trash talks Strong the Budo. However, Terryman suddenly coughs up blood and falls out of the ring. However, Kinnikuman is there to catch his long-time friend. The crowd, Meat, the other Justice Chojin, and the Perfect Large Number faction all react in surprise to Kinnikuman’s sudden appearance.
Kinnikuman says that whenever a Justice Chojin needs help he will be there. Kinnikuman says that his dad can run Muscle Planet in his absence and his wife will understand that he had to come to Earth to help the Justice Chojin. Kinnikuman says he will step in for Terryman and take on the Perfect Large Numbers.
Kinnikuman says he is not scared at all even though we see his legs trembling. Meat exclaims that even though Kinnikuman is the King he is still the same goof.
This was a perfect introduction of our titular hero to the tournament. We see both sides of Kinnikuman’s character that make him so beloved. The one side is the heroic Justice Chojin who will always be there to support his friends. The other side is the naturally goofy hero who can’t help but be a bit silly at the most inappropriate times.
Terryman then gets up and says that he is not done fighting. Terryman says he will take on any other member of the Perfect Large Numbers.
At this point, Max Radial regains consciousness and stands up in total disbelief that he lost to an inferior Chojin like Terryman. Max Radial says that Perfect Chojin must be perfect or they have no reason to exist. Strong the Budo’s kendo stick lights up with energy and floats into the ring next to Max Radial. Max Radial thanks Strong the Budo. Max Radial then jumps into the air and impales himself on the kendo stick. Blood spurts out like a massive fountain and showers all over Terryman and Kinnikuman.
Oh crap! This was such an awesome ending for Max Radial. This result is not surprising as we know that a Perfect Chojin is not allowed to live if they are shown to be imperfect. Once a Perfect Chojin loses a match we know what is going to happen next. This moment reinforces the strong code of the Perfect Chojin and that they are zealous in honoring their code.
Also, the bloodiness of this scene was fantastic. The massive fountain of blood erupting out of Max Radial and then showing all over Kinnikuman and Terryman like red rain is the type of violence we expect from the Kinnikuman franchise!
All right, let’s go back to the story. Terryman is horrified that Max Radial killed himself. Terryman says that Chojins fighting each other is about growing to understand each other not killing each other. Dalmatiman disagrees and says that for Perfect Chojin fighting is about determining who is strong and who is weak and the weak must die.
Terryman says that he will fight evil in the name of justice, but he will not fight the Perfect Large Numbers if it means killing someone who could become a friend.
Strong the Budo says that the Perfect Large Numbers want to fight all of the Idol Chojin and not just Terryman. Therefore, they now need a bigger stage for this tournament. An item from each Perfect Chojin glows and then flies into the air and they combine to form a giant machine gun in the air. The Perfect Large Number members then glow with energy, fly into the air, and enter the cartridge belt of the monstrous machine gun.
Strong the Budo tells the Idol Chojin to come to the Duel Pit made by the Perfect Large Numbers. We see a mountain sprout out of the ground and the machine gun fires the Perfect Large Numbers members into the mountain creating six holes. The giant machine gun then transforms back into the six items from the Perfect Large Numbers members and flies into the respective holes of each member.
Oh yeah! This is what I am talking about! It is crazy and over-the-top stuff like this that makes the Kinnikuman franchise so incredible! Is any of this necessary to announce the new locations and rules for the tournament? Nope. But, is it crazy and fun? Absolutely! It is this outrageous flair for the theatrical that makes me love the Kinnikuman franchise. You never know what is going to happen next!
Strong the Budo’s voice says that once the Idol Chojin get out of their medical suspension states then they should come through these six duel pits. We see on a giant screen the images of the six hometowns of the Idol Chojins.
We see Dalmatiman appearing in a wrestling ring that bursts onto the top of the Great Wall of China, Turboman appears in a wrestling ring that bursts from the ground in the Red Square in Russia. Marlinman appears in a wrestling ring that bursts out of the water next to the Tower Bridge in England. Crushman appears in a wrestling ring that busts out of the ground in Berlin, Germany, Peek-aBoo appears in a wrestling ring that busts out of the ground in Ryoguko Hall, and Strong the Budge appears in a wrestling ring that materializes inside the Grand Canyon suspended by four massive chains.
Hell yeah! This is something else the Kinnikuman franchise is well known for: Outrageous locations for wrestling matches. All of these rings appear dramatically and have cool locations. The wild settings for the wrestling rings, either surrounded by water or suspended by chains in the air, always make the matches that much more exciting.
Back to the story. Strong the Budo says that defeating the Idol Chojin on their home turf will be an ever greater sign of the Perfect Chojins’ powers. Strong the Budo says that if the Idol Chojin do not show up to fight then it will be counted as a forfeit and the Perfect Large Numbers will be handed control of the Chojin World.
Terryman reiterates that he does not want to participate in a tournament where the only choice is life or death. Kinnikuman tells Terrtyman that he has done enough and should rest. Kinnikuman says that they all had their differences before they fought. But, if he used that as an excuse not to fight then the Justice Chojin would not exist today.
Kinnikuman jumps into the hole leading to Peek-a-Boo and Meat follows him. Terryman says he is going to fight, too, and goes to jump in the hole to go to the Grand Canyon. However, five hooded figures appear and block Terryman’s path. These hooded figures say that Terryman should stay and rest.
This was an excellent hook ending to Kinnikuman Perfect Origin Arc Episode 3. We get Kinnikuman delivering the core mission statement of the Kinnikuman franchise. The belief that anyone, no matter how much they may seem evil, has the potential to become good and embrace justice. Kinnikuman never waivers in the power of friendship.
We also see Kinnikuman being a true hero and fearlessly engaging the Perfect Large Numbers in a battle to the death. We see Meat following his King to act as his corner man in the tournament. Kinnikuman and Meat are like peanut butter and jelly. All is right with the world when the two of them are together.
We also see Terryman being blocked by five mysterious hooded figures. It should be pointed out that these are not the hooded members of the Perfect Large Numbers. These figures have different hood designs. We see a skull and crossbones broch on their hoods. The viewer is left wondering who these mysterious hooded figures are who have arrived to join the tournament. Could these be Devil Chojins?
Lastly, we know that our Idol Chojin are still in medical stasis pods and at risk of losing their matches by forfeit. The viewer is left wondering who will appear for the Justice Chojin so that they do not forfeit the matches to the Perfect Large Numbers and cause the Justice Chojin to cede control of the Chojin World to the Perfect Chojin.
Final Thoughts
Kinnikuman Perfect Origin Arc Episode 3 as the story is now firing on all cylinders. Episode 3 showcases all the elements that I love about the Kinnikuman franchise: Bloody violence, silly humor, over-the-top story elements, and the power of friendship. There is a ton going on with Kinnikuman Perfect Origin Arc Episode 3’s hook ending as we branch out from just one match to seven different matches. We have Kinnikuman and Meat charging into battle. We have an injured Terryman at the mercy of the hooded members of the Perfect Large Numbers. We also have our Idol Chojins still locked in their medical stasis pods. All of this combines to make the viewer eager to come back for more.