With major manga series coming to their respective conclusions from the likes of Demon Slayer, Haikyuu!!, and The Promised Neverland, some other series will need to fill in those spaces in the anime/manga medium’s fan base. Chainsaw Man and Jujutsu Kaisen are gaining popularity, the latter now with an anime. Sports manga/anime series are becoming more popular within the community, with Haikyuu!! being beloved from all corners of these mediums’ fan base. One that’s been publishing consistently for two years now–and not on WSJ–could be the next big thing in that subgenre.

Blue Lock Review

now blue luck has been fairly talked about ever since the enemy got announced for next month people across the anime community have been wondering if they should even read it or consume.

Blue Lock Why Do You Start ?

its content should you wait for its anime no you shouldn’t you should read the manga right now in this blog. i’m going to be breaking down the reason you should be reading blue lock right now for any context there’s going to be zero spoilers i mean i’m only going to be covering the basis of blue lock. Also, i’m not going to be going into any of the plot, i’m only going to be talking about the basis of the story now what to start with what is there to start with what even is blue lock now without any major spoilers.

Blue lock is a football sports manga basing off the idea that you are the best striker an egoist game that takes place within your mind the japan national team cannot win a world cup like ever the managers of the team even laugh at the assumption they can win.

So in solution one of the managers creates this program called blue lock blue lock’s main purpose is to well create the best striker in the world and with the help of japa ego a professional egoist this dream can come true now this all sounds cool now.

But this is just the start on the verge of going to high school nationals he failed and he loses due to one goal a goal that cost him the game he later comes to realization.

If only i didn’t pass the ball now this is super important for the plot and future chapters that’s just for the future so keep that in mind asagi then self reflects thinking about how weak he is and how sad he is for passing the ball later on when he gets home after this traumatic scene that is so beautiful and i can’t wait to see it.

After, he gets a letter in the mail confused he reads it and it’s an invitation of blue lock now this is basically the entire premise he wants to get stronger he goes to blue lock and that’s the story now i didn’t really express how blue lock works and that’s what i’m about to do think of blue lock as well a facility to train people.

Because that’s what it is japan ego is the one running blue lock think of him as the mastermind while controlling blue lock he’s basically the leader blue lock’s main goal is to create the best striker using 300 high school players and a dream.

they can do it or hopefully they can do it and one of these players is asagi asagi’s more of an outcast everyone out there is on his level or just plain out of his level going doing crazy goals that are just out of his own sight at the time now that’s the simple breakdown of it it’s basically it it’s basically 300 high schoolers all competing to become the best striker and it’s a big free-for-all and they go through various tests and it’s all to create a national level spiker to help japan win the world cup this is all common knowledge hopefully.

But, i want to give people a more deeper understanding of it because some people don’t really understand it and if you’re coming from the anime you might not understand it as well everything gets deeper than this and that’s why you have to read it now you understand what bluelock is you understand what it’s about so my next words can be more impactful the thing that i love about bluelock is.

it’s different it’s unique it’s different from the rest it’s not your generic sports manga and you know it’s it’s great you know and nothing soft or played down and in later chapters things get really edgy and cool to the point where you just want to jump out of your seat and if that’s not enough the arch just downright gorgeous with the amazing display of teamwork friendships and most of all footballing and if you’re looking to binge an amazing series with almost 160 ongoing chapters bluelock is for you.

now of course if you’re coming from the anime because your season ended which might be soon and people are going to probably transition over all i can tell you is to read it it’s honestly worth it.

if you’re not much of a manga fan this series will really move you into it and it it’s going to move you in ways i cannot describe with words now lastly i want you to take everything you know about sports manga or anime and throw it out the window because this manga is just different it’s not like your generic sports manga where friendships rule and common sense is completely thrown out the window.

but it has more of a likable approach if i haven’t made things clear well you should read bluelock it’s a moving experience that will change you for years to come and i know it has to me it is weekly still and if you want to like a scan for it.

Also Read:Boku Wa Tomodachi Ga Sukunai Ending Explained

Why Blue Lock is revolutionary ?

sports anime and manga have existed for a very long time dating back to 1928 with animal olympic games up to now the genre has evolved over time with defining titles cropping up every few years such as hajimenu ipo slam dunk and haikyuu.

all of these series share common traits there’s always an emphasis on the importance of teamwork selflessness and good sportsmanship despite members of a team being made up of individuals it’s constantly conveyed that you need to homogenize with your teammates or those around you in order to succeed sports theories such as kuroko no baskets.

slightly deviate from this trope the members of the generation of miracles are shown to be extremely self-absorbed and they believe that they and they alone are all that is necessary in order to succeed as the series goes on the miracles learn you play with their teams and for the most part lose their sense of selfishness for the sake of winning games.

Compared to the titles i mentioned earlier which are genre defining blue lock is a series that is utterly genre bending it foregoes the ideas of teamwork sportsmanship and camaraderie in order to put a large focus on the concept of ego as well as a heavy focus on individuality.

the story of blue lock is seen through the lens of the main character isagio richie and it takes place after japan’s elimination in the 2018 world cup frustrated with their constant losses a project named blueblock is created with the sole purpose of producing the world’s greatest striker and destroying and remaking japanese football as a whole in the first chapter during a qualifier under 18 game.

we see isagi bent on scoring a goal but is reigned back into reality by his teammates and creatures coercing him to pass the ball instead of taking the shot for himself he reminds himself that football is a sport played by 11 people seemingly feeding into the sports trope of relying on your teammates and by passing the ball the game is lost.

later on we see sagi questioning his decision as well as the belief that football is an exclusively team-oriented sport we see him dealing with the crushing reality of his defeat while not all hope is lost due to him being invited to the blue lock project it is made extremely clear through the character of ego that the concept of teamwork is valued too much and that players should rather rely on themselves the notion of ego is usually negative things like over-ambition arrogance and self-centeredness are looked down upon in general.

but the mindset of being the best is necessary to have in order to be an exceptional player you’ll see this belief occur a lot in sports or anything with competitive nature players like pele cantona and noah will have an air of arrogance about them.

coincidentally they are some of the greatest football players to ever live another example is kobe bryant an extremely arrogant and self-centered player on the court these attributes gave him the confidence to believe that he was one of the greatest players in basketball and his talents lived up to that ego states that what japanese football lacks is ego japan is a country renowned for its heavy focus on the concept of humility and teamwork and this is apparent through its working culture.

it’s suggested that in order to become the greatest striker you have to forgo the cultural norms you’ve grown up with and adopt an ego and the mindset of being the best player made clear through its training programmes bluelock’s main motif is evolution and change and the main character isagi uichi perfectly encapsulates this through rigorous training players begin to evolve rapidly as they develop an ego these take the form of quote-unquote weapons which offer the sole purpose of increasing their goal scoring capabilities these range from things like nagi’s ability to trap the ball killing its momentum and making pinpoint shorts or battery’s ability to dribble and get past any defender.

the power system in blue lock has done exceptionally well is creative and balanced while drawing inspiration from real-life players in the case of the sagi his weapon is the ability to constantly perceive the pitch as a puzzle puzzles are designed to test ingenuity or knowledge and upon completion improved cognition and visual spatial reasoning this ties in perfectly with his abilities by being in the middle of a constantly evolving puzzle he’s forced to adapt and learn while imposing his significance as a player onto the board with his ego his ability to assess as well as inside change.

which i mentioned earlier is a large theme promoted in blue look sets the sagi up perfectly to have a deuteragonistic relationship with hard-headed extremely self-absorbed characters for example barrow we first see him taking initiative during a squabble and blasting through the chaos with seemingly no thought followed up by telling asagi to move or he will die in contrast you have a psyche who’s been doing nothing.

but observe the hunger and ego of his team that are trying to steal the ball from each other barrow goes as far to call himself the king of the field after scoring a goal this is the first real example we see of having an ego resulting in someone progressing to achieve their goal he was able to do what he did due to his confidence in himself to score that goal.

Nobody else with this realization isagi is able to develop his ego and selfishness reaffirm himself that he’s a striker and score a goal and i’ll take this moment to touch on bluelock’s art style it’s absolutely phenomenal and there are so many amazing panels and spreads.

something i’ve noticed is that when a character is enveloped by their ego they’re depicted as monstrous and dehumanizes them rin being a perfect example it’s almost as if you can visibly see their hunger bachelor’s monster which i believe to be a visual manifestation of his ego looks extremely similar to these characters when they’re determined to score a goal which i think is a nice instance of symbolism while there is emphasis on the importance of ego and individuality it’s important to not be consumed by your own ego and as a result teamwork is necessary to an extent.

But handled extremely different compared to other series in a team sport players work together to score a goal while in blue look players work together to score their goals for instance in kuroko no basket kagami and curry could play off of each other to score a bucket for the team while in blue lock isagi chooses to devour unused teammates that are useful to him in that moment so that he can score a goal for example barrow’s confidence peaks to a point where he’s stealing the ball of his teammates and his pride refuses to allow him to play with them.

however the consequences of these actions leave him essentially powerless on the pitch as your reaching refused to give him the ball and he’s even used as bait in order for isagi to score a goal subconsciously he passes the ball to asagi and his pride is shattered.

he has an epiphany in the middle of the field and uses asagi as a stepping stone to score a goal by devouring him as asagi just did with him this is a good example of barrow technically using teamwork but he still retains his individualistic nature and the ego it’s showing that within the equilibrium of ego and humility exceptional players are born your ego shouldn’t be in control of you.

but rather the opposite an example of this is nagi abandoning ryo despite their great relationship instead of refusing to believe that he was out skilled he accepts the loss and joins asaki his ability to accept loss allows him to play with asagi and as a result he was able to evolve as a player rio was also motivated to find his own way of football and develop his own techniques.

isagi himself maintains this perfect balance throughout the course of these series his ability to break down the field into puzzle pieces allows him to pick the optimal players to use in order to help him achieve his goal of becoming the best striker and he’s able to seemingly flip a switch and become an egoist in order to do so on the other hand when he needs to be he’s shown to be a rather cohesive player on and off the field characters tend to gravitate towards him due to his personality and this develops into his teammates gravitating towards him on the field increasing his own and their own goal scoring capability.

blue lock is a truly exceptional series and has quickly become one of my favorites of all time the beauty of it lies within its extremely unconventional and experimental nature it breaks the mold and not only gives people a whole new perspective on the sport of football but the concept of ego and selfishness as a whole and if a series has given you a new perspective on something external then it’s doing something right thank you for watching and have a nice day

10 Reasons Why You Should Start Blue Lock

Blue Lockis a new, exciting soccer series that comes off the 2018 FIFA World Cup. It combines a variety shonen elements to make it a worthy read for anyone who is just starting out or has not yet caught up. It has been gaining steady, impressive momentum in Japan. The series is also selling well in the west. It is now being heavily lobbied for an anime adaptation.

10. Among the Most Successful New Sports Manga

Blue Lock is the best and most successful modern sports manga, or at least one of them, Haikyuu!. The series’ timing was perfect, given that it started in 2018, and its events heavily reflect the 2018 FIFA World Cup win by France.

At the time of writing, there are 104 chapters available, all consistent published in Japan, and 10 volumes out. A tenth volume is just around the corner. Blue Lock has already sold more than 1.9 million copies, with only the 10 Japanese volumes still in circulation. This indicates that anime adaptations and localization are possible in the near future. Although sales alone do not guarantee quality, the positive reception indicates that high quality is possible and well worth looking into.

9. No “Slice Of Life”

Haikyuu!! Haikyuu! Blue Lockcould be the next sports manga and one of the most popular sports anime. The popular volleyball series does a fantastic job of telling a compelling story with lovable characters and thrilling, intense sports action.

But Haikyuu!! Haikyuu! Blue Lock doesn’t follow that approach. It chooses wilder, more aggressive ways of showing sports action and character development–and they do these in the most effective ways.

8. ‘Battle Shonen’ + Sports

The Blue Lock genre’s approach is to combine the high-octane action and traditional ‘battleshounen’ in a sports setting. Like with shonen generally, for better and worse, there’s the typical shonen protagonist and supporting cast–high schoolers–determined to the best X in the world by doing Y because Z.

It shows soccer-based action in a unique way. The best parts and the absurdities of each genre/subgenre are combined to make each match an exciting spectacle. Every skill-move and tackle, shoulder to shoulder challenge, shot and goal is similar in weight to combat-based shonen such as Tanjiro’s fights for Demon Slayer or the tactical/strategic sports-based plays of Haikyuu! !.

7. Battle Royale + Manga/Anime + Soccer

Blue Lockdraws inspiration from other fiction works to create this wildly-creative world and plot. It combines the absurdities of Battle Royale and The Hunger Games with manga storytelling, art, and sports.

Shortly after Japan was eliminated from the 2018 World Cup, Jinpachi Ego is hired to create/coach a prison-like facility for 300 invited athletes–all of whom only know how to play forward/striker–to create the ultimate “egotist” striker by subjecting them to grueling, cutthroat training regimens/elimination-based competitions where only one will be allowed into the Japanese National Team for World Cup 2022.

6. Bleach Inspired Art

Blue Lock islike all manga and animes, is a big draw because of how well-executed its art style. You can see the Tite Kubo’s artwork. His Bleach work during the era WJS was a big hit. Despite its ending prematurely and a story that was less interesting, the series was still a huge success. The art style was also a reason.

The Ichigo inspiration is obvious with characters such as Rensuke Kunigami. However, these characters are infused with new, interesting character designs that work well with other characters. Bachira is essentially Suzuya, a soccer-player from Tokyo Ghoul and Tokyo Ghoul but, if anything that’s a pro.

5. Grand Scope

Blue Lock and Haikyuu have a different plot! The scope is a key difference between Blue Lock and Haikyuu in the way they tell stories about sports. In the manga, we see the core cast of the main cast performing professionally in Japan. This is a good way to move the plot along in a neat manner. However, it was more of an epilogue since most of their high school careers are over.

This is not a bad thing, but Blue Locktakes a completely different approach to its story’s scope. The series’ start was set up for professional audiences. The goal of this series is not to win high school tournaments at the national or regional level. It’s about winning the most coveted prize in all of the sport. The plot is more similar to Hajime No Ippo.

4. Will Surely Translate Well into Anime

You should now be able to see that it can easily be translated into anime. This is due to the fact that the art, other than character designs, conveys the intensity of matches and the physical impact.

The art isn’t complicated enough to be animated well. Ufotable demonstrated this with Demon Slayer , but other studios such as MAPPA and Production I.G, Madhouse and David Production are great and can adapt Blue Lock‘s action .

3. An addictive read for soccer/football fans

This manga should prove to be a highly addictive read for both manga/anime lovers and the sport itself, given the high quality of its portrayal. It’s heavily-fictionalized and isn’t grounded in reality like the revered Haikyuu!! Hajime no Ippo or Hajime no Ippo. However, the actual strategic depictions of the manga’s premise are impressively well-done.

It is mainly due Isagi, the protagonist. His biggest and most growing talents include his spatial awareness, off the-ball runs, ability to read the game to predict each team’s plays and adapting to new teammates and opponents. All of these are real, real-world skills. There are some flashy and real skill-moves like scissor-stepovers, rainbow-flicks and rabonas.

2. Makes Overused Tropes Exciting

Blue Lockcertainly uses beat-to-death shonen clichés. It takes the tropes that have been proven effective in other series and makes them compelling in this context.

Yes, high school students are competing for the top spot for their own reasons. But it does so in an exciting way and takes advantage of the absurdity of the setting’s hyper-competitive, brutal and cutthroat nature. It makes sense for teenagers, as a lot of the top footballers in real life start their careers as young adults.

1. Potential long-term run

The incredibly-high-profile, long-term manga or anime series ongoing are One Piece and Hajime no Ippo with almost, or more than, 1,000 chapters and counting. This is not the case for series that are going forward. However, even the lengths Naruto and Bleach, and Dragon Ball Z are alien now. Haikyuu!! The modern, long-term series has over 400 chapters.

Maybe that’s the best. Given the story in Blue Lockit might be able tell a satisfying, complete story in just over 300 pages. This is similar to where My Hero Academiacould end–should Muneyuki choose. This could be the next “long term” fix.

Score : 9.5/10