Wind Breaker – Episode 7 “Fight to Win” Recap & Review

Fight to Win

In episode 7 of Wind Breaker, the moment we have all been waiting for, finally materialises. It’s Togame and Sakura’s showdown!

The episode opens with Togame lost in thought about a past battle when Choji shakes him off and informs that it’s his turn. Sakura is happy to oblige.

The two take their positions on the stage and within few minutes, it’s clear that Togame is not only fast but he’s on a different level from all the past Shishitoren fighters. Needless to say, Togame lands some hard hitting hits on Sakura.

Amidst roaring cheers, Togame batters Sakura’s face and accuses him to be one of those all bark no bite fighters, who claim their power via a powerful pack.

This accusation instils a renewed energy into Sakura, who is able to manoeuvre a surprising counterattack in front of the bewildered audience. He remembers those who bullied him, asserting their authority through numbers and spits that he’d never lose to someone like Togame.

As they fight, their tussle becomes more philosophical and ideological than mere punches and kicks. Togame has Sakura pinned to the floor underneath his foot when Sakura accuses Shishitoren to be ruthless bullies, who should rename themselves as “the bully club”. He goes on to say that Shishitoren’s “devotion to power” is nothing but a means to crush those below them or chase and beat middle schoolers.

This is when Togame understands why Bofurin was inside Shishitoren’s turf, goes over to the lost fighters who were responsible for chasing the middle schooler, and brutally beats them unconscious. He returns, apologises for the wait and asks to continue their fight.

Here the episode takes a turn to elaborate upon Togame’s history with Choji and Shishitoren. He’s been a powerful fighter and was discovered by Choji, who encouraged him to join Shishitoren. The earlier days of Shishitoren were starkly different from the current where they resembled a big team, a family.

Togame enjoyed Choji’s company and friendship. He was inspired by Choji’s take on “devotees of power” where power is synonymous to freedom, not oppression.

Eventually, though, Choji become the leader and everything changed. Since he became the strongest and the most free, he wanted to make Shishitoren as strong as himself, he told Togame one day. Just a few moments later, two of their members come with an injured one, who had been assaulted by a rival gang.

However, instead of fighting the gang as revenge, Choji kicks the injured member, declares he’s not fit to be part of Shishitoren and takes a sharp U-turn from his earlier philosophy, which is soon drenched in murky waters.

Togame is shocked to see this side of Choji. When Choji exerts his authority, Togame decides to become the bad guy in exchange for Choji’s original cheerfulness.

Back to the present, the episode ends with Togame seeming to have lost his will to fight amidst Sakura’s questioning, “what are you trying to do?.” And Togame questions the same, seeming defeated, “What am I trying to do?”

The Episode Review

From the first few scenes, it’s evident that this episode follows Togame. His story clearly reflects back on the haydays of Shishitoren, where they were more than mere bullies, something that the Bofurin had already teased about in the previous episodes.

From what we can interpret, Choji’s association of power as freedom quickly took a dark turn with him becoming the leader. This evokes a long-standing discourse between power as freedom and power as a foe.

On the one hand, power can be liberating when distributed equally, such as through skills and education, but on the other hand, sole concentration of power results into autocratic tyranny which is what happens in Choji’s case.

Although we do not have constructive reasons behind Choji’s sudden behavioural change yet, but we can assume this idea since Choji asserts his authority over his cherished friend Togame when he says, “I’m the leader, right? I’m the strongest, I’m free. I won’t yield to anyone. I am going to decide. If you don’t understand me, then get out”.

As for Togame, he shows signs of aimlessness in this episode. From the flashback, it’s clear that Togame was against Choji’s sudden tyrannic transformation but decide to sacrifice himself for Choji’s friendship.

Now that Sakura has spit facts before him, he seems unsure about his association with Shishitoren. Since the episode does not delves into the details of how Togame feels, we can only wait for the next episode to discover!

In the meantime, do let us know your theories about this episode!