Character Analysis: El Tigre

Character Analysis: El Tigre

Background

  • Name: Manuel "Manny" Pablo Gutierrez O'Brian Equihua Rivera
  • Age: 13
  • Height: 3' 6"
  • First Appearance: El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera - Sole of a Hero (2007)
  • Likes: Video Games, His Family, Churros, Honor
  • Dislikes: Being called a Coward

Miracle City… A Spicy cesspool of crime of villainy. This is the story of Manny Rivera… better known as

El Tigre!

Son of the legendary hero, White Pantera! Grandson of the evil super villain, Puma Loco! 

Manny comes from a long generation of superheroes and supervillains, seemingly alternating in their alignment in each generation. Soon would come Manny’s time to choose to become a hero or a villain. It’s no shock that growing up in a family of alternating alignments would give Manny some form of an identity crisis, his dad wanted him to be a hero, and his grandfather wanted him to be a villain. He simply could not decide, especially with his environment giving him mixed signals as well. While he would help out by taking down villains, Frida’s mischievous influence would play a part in him acting more like a villain, and especially the time where Manny fell for Black Cuervo, a villain who would trick Manny into performing villainous acts just to impress her. It was becoming abundantly clear, Manny could not decide.

However he was not the only one, Enter the Original El Tigre, the first known “Super” of the Riveras, however just like Manny, he could not decide to become a hero or a villain. This drove him insane, he formed 2 split personalities, a Super Hero persona, and a Super Villain one. While he would have a son, who would go on to become the first supervillain, he himself remained undecided up to his death, where in the Land Of The Dead, he would recluse himself and remain undecided, continuing his madness.

It was during a fateful battle, where Manny would die in battle, and end up in the Land Of The Dead, where he would meet the Original El Tigre, here they would bond over their mutual undecidedness as well as their shared powerset. Here Manny would gain the trust of the original El Tigre, by reminding him that, good or bad, his family will always honor his memory. This got him out of his funk, allowing him to channel The Ancient Tiger Spirit, bringing Manny, among the other Riveras, back to life. Here Manny would unite his bloodline, and have them all work together to try and defeat Sartana, ultimately channeling the power himself, defeating Sartana himself.

Once the sun rose, it was time for his ancestors to return to the Land Of The Dead, of course Manny wasn’t ready and had so many questions for El Tigre I. He wanted to know if he would ever choose between good or evil, but was told that is something Manny will one day learn for himself. You may think Manny would ultimately decide by the end, but he hasn't committed to an alignment yet. However, throughout all the hero work of catching and defeating bad buys, or letting his wild troubleside loose, there’s one thing that was certain, one thing that would never change. He was a Rivera.

Before We Begin…

This is fairly straightforward, we will be looking at the Show “El Tigre: The Adventures of Manny Rivera” as well as all supplementary material such as the Video Games. We will not be including crossover games such as Nicktoons: Attack of the Toybots and Nickelodeon All Star Brawl, these are too disconnected and not canon to the main series, and will be excluded as a result. Alright, that’s pretty much it, let’s get started

Equipment

El Tigre Belt

The famed El Tigre Belt, it allows Manny to turn into El Tigre. He always has it on him, it also acts as his literal belt for his pants.

The belt also doesn’t need to actually be on his body for it to work, as long as he holds and twists the buckle, he can turn into El Tigre, which will also return it back onto his pants.

It’s important to note that he, of course, can’t become El Tigre without it, and it has been stolen before. It’s even possible to stop the transformation halfway, leaving Manny in half a suit.

Retractable Claws

Like He’s Wolverine, El Tigre has retractable claws, made of some metallic material. They are tough enough to slice almost anything in his path, from robots, to skeletons.

Grappling Hook Hand

Manny can shoot out his hand like a Grappling Hook, it can reach fairly fair and is fast enough to tag the likes of Black Cuervo midflight. It can also be used to attack at a distance. Manny can also combine this with his claws as a sort of sawblade. If he were ever to lose his hand, he has a spare at home.

Shootable Claws

Manny can shoot out his claws from his hands as projectiles, upwards to four at a time. Manny can also go crazy mode and shoot them out like a machine gun.

Tail

Surprisingly, Manny doesn’t really use his tail all that much, but it can be used as an extra appendage, and it can support his own weight, allowing him to hang off of things.

Bronze Boots of Truth

White Pantera’s signature weapon, one day Manny will inherit these. Manny has used these boots on a few occasions, such as when he stole them and when he was lent them to help during a quest.

  • Mind Manipulation: Those who touch the boots are forced to tell the truth
  • Enhanced Speed: Wearing these boots gives the user a boost in speed

Golden Sombrero of Chaos

Puma Loco’s signature weapon. Just like the Boots, Manny has stolen the Golden Sombrero of Chaos a few times, and has even been lent them during a quest

  • Mech Suit: It’s not just a cool looking hat, but it can transform into a Mech Suit, piloted within. It comes with pretty much all the tools you would expect out of a suit like this, such as…
  • Flight: When piloted as a mech suit, it can fly at great speeds. It can even do this in its normal sombrero form, usually through propellers or popping out a blimp
  • Missiles: It wouldn’t be a Mech Suit without explosives, it can launch a barrage of missiles, even ones strong enough to cause a massive explosion over Miracle City
  • Boomerang: The Sombrero also works as a Boomerang, throwing it at enemies, and having it return.

Abilities/Skills

The Spinning Armadillo

Manny leaps into the air, spinning himself in the process, also striking poses, until he lands with a flaming kick that was strong enough to knock down Black Cuervo.

Fire Manipulation

Pretty much most of Manny’s attacks are enhanced by some sort of Green Flame, acting as a boost in power. It also looks sick as hell!

The Ancient Tiger Spirit

Easily Manny’s strongest and most important ability. Taught by the Original El Tigre, after actually dying and going to The Land Of The Dead. This ability provides extremely useful utility that could easily turn the tide of the battle. In fact, it was the only thing that was able to defeat Sartana’s Giant Undead Skeleton Monster.

  • Revives: The Original El Tigre was able to beam the entire Rivera Bloodline into the world of the living instantly, given that Manny knows how to use the ATS, he should be able to replicate this. What this essentially means for Manny is that it would require some sort of Soul Manipulation to keep him down for good.
  • Massive Explosion: The ATS was able to envelop the entirety of Sartana’s Skeleton Monster, which was so big that it was able to take a dip inside the Miracle City volcano and still have its upper body sticking out. It would then cause an explosion so big that it covered and destroyed the whole body.

Pounce Kick

(uh, ignore allan, he was just there to fill in the empty black space on the recording)

It’s time for the video game section! One of El Tigre’s special moves, he unleashes a powerful kick towards his enemies, knocking them down in an instant. Manny can use this move regardless of his alignment, which we will get into later down the line for some of his super moves.

Vicious Uppercut

Manny unleashes 3 uppercuts, easily defeating those unfortunate to be in the way. He can use this move regardless of his alignment.

Sensational Bowler

Manny basically turns himself into a bowling ball, knocking those down in his path like pins. This is officially where his alignment begins to matter, as he can only use this move when he is considered good in game, which is achieved by defeating and attacking villains.

Tijuana Tornado

Manny channels his inner Tasmanian Devil, demolishing everything in his path. For this move, Manny can only use this move when he is evil. In order for Manny to receive the evil alignment in game, Manny has to destroy random property.

The Amazing Chain Claw

Manny utilizes his chain claw and launches it forward in different directions. This move is “Good” Exclusive.

Super Swipe

Manny unleashes a devastating swipe that can effortlessly defeat those in his way, easily among his strongest super moves. This move is “Evil” exclusive

Savage Slash

Fun fact, this game consistently mixes up the name of this move and the Super Swipe, they call the Super Swipe the Savage Slash when he first learns it, and they call them the inverse in the moves list.

Anyways… Manny slashes forward, dealing a lot of damage to those in its range. In addition, it shoots a green projectile on the ground, also dealing a good amount of damage to those caught in it. (“Good” Move)

Mega Quake

Manny slams the ground with great force that causes a mini Earthquake, strong enough to one shot Sartana’s skeletons and to knock up enemies. (“Evil” Move)

Radical Ricochet

Manny launches himself in various directions with an empowered punch, easily mowing them down. (“Good” Move)

Atomic Slam

Manny jumps high into the air and power slams his opponents with great force. (“Evil” Move)

Support

Raul

Manny’s sentient mustache, which he named Raul. While it was originally created by Dr. Chipotle Jr in order to trick Manny and get his belt, it quickly became Manny’s friend and has even helped him out on different occasions

  • Sentience: Raul is sentient and therefore has a mind of its own, this proves to be useful as Raul can be used to keep Manny in check and focused on their goal.
  • Hair Manipulation and Shapeshifting: Kinda like… a hairy green lantern ring, Raul can shift around his body and make several hair constructs, such as weapons, a unicycle, pair of hands, pretty much whatever Manny needs.

Resistances

Feats

Overall

Power

Durability

Speed

Scaling

The Rivera's (and Frida)

Manny has fought alongside his fellow family members and has fought on even footing with all of them. He alone was able to defeat Sartana of the Dead, who was able to cause great damage to the Riveras, allowing him to scale.

Villains

Manny has pretty much threw hands with every villain in Miracle City, effectively beating them all without much issue for the most part, allowing for easy scaling

  • The laser itself reached the sun in 0.125 seconds (3,992 c) (See QnA)

Sartana of the Dead

Sartana is the biggest bad in Miracle City, being one of, if not the strongest villain in the verse. She is consistently treated as a top tier, however Manny at his peak is not only able to contend with her, but he alone was the one who was able to defeat her in the episode “The Grave Escape.”

Weaknesses

El Tigre isn’t without faults, especially given his age. He’s cocky, lazy, and sometimes he’d rather cause trouble with either Frida or Grandpapi instead of focusing on becoming a hero. Of course in a way, his villainous side could provide a new perspective on the battlefield.

Though ultimately Manny has one major and pretty obvious weak point, his El Tigre Belt. Without it, he obviously can’t become El Tigre, and to be blunt, he’s not shy about the source of his powers. He doesn’t even bother hiding his identity, and it’s even been on the news that Manny is El Tigre. As a result, the belt’s been exploited before. Manny has had his belt stolen before, and he didn’t even notice that it’s been swapped out for a fake. You could even stop his transformation halfway, leaving him in an unfinished transformation. As a result, anyone who knows the source of his powers, which isn’t hard because he doesn’t hide it and uses it to transform in front of everyone, could potentially steal it, leaving him powerless.

QnA

Cosmic Gag Feats

As strange as it may be, El Tigre has a consistent amount of Gag Feats involving celestial bodies. These all are gags, but is that enough to discredit them? This is honestly a case by case basis and is entirely based on how you personally view such feats, but I’ll add my own two cents on this case, El Tigre, while a show about superheroes and villains, is still a slapstick show, cartoony shows like Ed, Edd N Eddy usually can get away with such feats because they’re whole show is a gag, and in a way El Tigre isn’t that far off from being considered as such. It does have its moments of being serious and grounded, but a quick view of the show, and you’re constantly going to be getting a lot of slapstick, comedic humor and gags, so personally, along with the fact that they are weirdly consistent, I am okay with these feats. That being said, some feats, gags or not still need to be addressed, so let’s talk about those.

El Tarantula’s Moon Steal

The argument against this feat is simple, these seniors are villains, and basically lied to Manny and Frida about their heists. In the episode “Old Money” El Tarantula and the other senior villains claimed to have stolen a bunch of stuff, and in El Tarantula’s case, he claims to have stolen the entire moon for a ransom. This leads to Manny questioning why these folks were living in a retirement home if they were supposedly wealthy. They claim that Sartana stole all of their Manny, which leads to him and Frida attempting to steal Sartana’s loot. However when this fails, they say that they lied to simply have Manny steal money for them. However… When pressed on it, they say that Sartana never took their money… but instead blew all their money on dog races and rings. This means, their money did exist, and their heists, including the moon steal, did happen.

White Pantera and Puma Loco’s Star Scream

How you feel about this feat is entirely dependent on how you feel on “gag” feats in general. I already gave my thoughts on the matter in the opening of this section, but I think that El Tigre is cartoony and slapstick enough for these feats being gags not enough to discredit them. As for the feat itself, it’s basically no different than a feat you would find in another show with a similar punchline, an example being in the show Fairly Odd Parents, where Timmy played the triangle so badly, it broke several stars. So, ultimately, YMMV.

Silver Wolf’s Sun Laser

Admittedly, this one is kinda a hard sell. Especially for the speed. There’s nothing to suggest anyone scaling to the laser, no one got hit by it, though Manny was zapped by Silver Wolf’s whip, so you could argue scaling via that, but given other feats get higher than this, this is kinda a moot point.

As for the speed, yeah the laser reaches the sun in a really short timeframe, but again, Manny never dodges or reacts to this laser, and there’s nothing suggesting that other people’s lasers should be as fast. Given that this is the best speed feat in El Tigre by a long shot, and no one actually reacts to the thing, I’m gonna have to discard this one.

Ancient Tiger Spirit’s Revives

There seems to be some misconceptions about the Ancient Tiger Spirit’s ability to revive its user that I plan to clear up. Firstly I want to tackle the following question:

Q: Isn’t the Ancient Tiger Spirit’s Revives tied to Dia De Los Muertos?

A: No.

Nothing really suggests that it’s tied to Dia De Los Muertos. I have an idea of how this might have been pushed around. There is a line that states: “You get to visit your family once a year! At least as long as they remembered you.” This is how spirits normally connect with their family, via Dia De Los Muertos, where they celebrate and remember their loved ones, connecting with their lost loved ones on a literal and spiritual level. This of course isn’t forever, as stated it’s once per year. However this doesn’t apply to the Ancient Tiger Spirit.

Another reason that this is thought to be the case is because the Riveras return to the Land Of The Dead as the sun rises. However as the scene plays out, they all simply jump into a portal to return, willingly. They are not forcibly sucked back in or anything that suggests that a time limit has been reached. (This is also ignoring that sunrise isn’t the actual start of the day, and Dia De Los Muertos would have technically ended hours ago…) As for them leaving, they left because… they’re dead! The Land Of The Dead is their home, which means the ending is just them going home. Manny stayed because he’s still technically alive and has a full life to live. In addition, the idea of returning to the Living World is based on remembrance, which is at its strongest during Dia De Los Muertos for obvious reasons, however if there’s one thing that unites the Riveras, its family. The episode literally ends with Manny saying that the Riveras will live forever because they will never forget them. With this in mind, even if you wanted to push the idea that it’s limited, Manny’s family could outright just provide the remembrance needed for Manny to return.

Q: So how does the Ancient Tiger Spirit Work?

A: It’s opens a gateway between the Land Of The Dead and the Living World

As it turns out, only one has the power to reach the Living World, being the Original El Tigre. When he agrees to help out his family, he summons the Ancient Tiger Spirit, beaming them into the Living World. This is inherently tied to the Ancient Tiger Spirit, and fundamentally different from returning via remembrance, as Justice Jaguar outright states that it’s a power. At the end of the episode, Manny learns how to channel the Ancient Tiger Spirit, just by watching the original El Tigre do it once. As it stands, Manny would know how to use the Ancient Tiger Spirit and use its ability to revive.

Q: Does Manny have a 24 Hour Time Limit upon death?

A: Not for the revive itself.

So, the idea of the 24 hours comes from Manny needing to escape the Land Of The Dead before he actually becomes dead. Technically, 24 hours is never once stated, but given the episode takes place during one day, it makes sense. However, this is for him to still be considered alive, as Manny can still come back despite this. The entire Rivera bloodline was able to come to the Living World despite literal generations passing by, so it's clear that this timeframe doesn’t really matter. Plus, since Manny knows how to use the Ancient Tiger Spirit, he would pretty much instantly return.

So, basically Manny can use the Ancient Tiger Spirit to come back to life if he were to ever die.

El Mal Verde’s Size

Surprisingly, this is a bit of a headache, this man is sometimes as big as a mountain, and then he is suddenly small enough to fit inside Miracle City’s volcano. Given that one of the calcs requires us to know how big he is, how do we decide which to use?

To be blunt, I don’t really know, but I’ll tell you what I did. I used El Mal Verde’s size during the scene where he was circling the Earth, as that was what the feat was. This made him really massive, getting the results that it did in the calc. Was this the right call? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

There are calcs that use a smaller size, such as this one, which I based mine off of, so there exists a low end. Mine is the highest it could reach, but I don’t think there’s necessarily a wrong answer here.

Summary

  • Ancient Tiger Spirit makes him hard to put down for good
  • Has experience as both a Hero and a Villain
  • Skilled and Experienced fighter
  • Variety of Special Moves at his disposal
  • Above all else, he is a Rivera

Potential Opponents

Rikochet

(Thumbnail and Sprite Art by me)

I really like this matchup. I think it’s each other's best, like cmon, Masked Mexican protagonists from rivaling networks, constantly getting into trouble. It has the easiest set up in the world, have it start off as a wrestling match that goes a bit too far. I think Mucha Lucha is underresearched at the moment, but from what I do know, this is actually close, with Rikochet having advantages of his own. Although I have to root for my boy El Tigre here.

K.O

(Thumbnail by me)

Adding this here for my friend who really likes this matchup. Upon learning more about this matchup, I get it. Both are heroes in training who have both Super Hero and Super Villain relatives, each essentially acting as foil of each other in determining their alignment. I would be okay if this happened too. I would still root for my boy Manny in this one.

Closing Thoughts

Hi, it’s me Burrito! This is on the smaller end of the projects I’ve done based on just media count as it’s only 26 episodes and a few games. Even PaRappa had more as it had a 30 episode anime among other animated projects. Despite that, this was made during one of the more stressful parts of my life, so I wasn’t able to finish this quickly as this has been in the works for a hot minute, but once everything was smooth sailing, I was able to lock in and just blitz what I had left quickly.

Anyways, as for the show itself. This show is a banger! One of my childhood shows. I don’t think El Tigre was under researched per se before working on this, as I feel that his feats are fairly known at least by the powerscaling community, but I figured a deep dive couldn’t hurt, plus I wanted to watch the show anyways. There’s a few things that I did leave out, mainly random items from the flash games as I didn’t want to bloat the blog with generic power-ups or items that Manny wouldn’t likely use in a fight anyways, so I stuck with what he’s known for or things that I think would actually be used in an episode, hope that’s okay.

So, what’s next? Mmmm, I don’t actually have anything planned at the moment. Originally I was gonna look into Shadow Labyrinth, that Pac-Man game, and do a deep dive, but as it turns out, that just isn’t Pac-Man whatsoever, like it’s just not him at all. I won’t spoil it, but it’s revealed that Puck is something else entirely and isn’t even associated with Pac outside of the references we see. Also, I am not too interested in the gameplay from what I’ve seen, so maybe I’ll do this in the future if there’s a good longplay on the game, but as for now, that’s being shelved. I might continue on the cartoon train that I have going on (which is now me realizing I’ve done 3 cartoons in a row.) As for what I end up doing, I can guarantee this: The Pac-Man Blog will get another update post Pac-Man World 2 Re-Pac, I just need to play the game for myself, plus the DLC. Heck even just the trailers have given us new stuff. Anyways, take care, thanks for reading!

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