number24

Natsuza Yuzuki has been playing rugby as a left-winger ever since he was a child. After enrolling in Doushisha University, he quickly becomes a rising star in the Kansai University League.

His dreams are shattered, however, when a nasty motorbike accident leaves him with a spinal hernia—making him unable to be able to play rugby ever again. With no role available other than the position of manager, he accepts his new post and hopes his squad can obtain a league title.

Yuzuki's team is an unlikely group, including his stoic best friend and full-back Seiichirou Jingyouji; hot-headed first-year Yasunari Tsuru, who harbors a strong dislike for Natsuza, filling his senior's old position as left wing; and Yuu Mashiro, who is struggling to hold his ground as a scrum half.

Despite Natsuza putting his all into training his team for a league title, their squad still feels incomplete. A year ago, Ibuki Ueka, the genius fly-half that was once Doushisha's ace, suddenly quit rugby—and now Natsuza is determined to get him back.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Yuzuki, Natsusa Main

Kawanishi, Kengo Japanese

Ueoka, Ibuki Main

Yanagita, Junichi Japanese

Shingyouji, Seiichirou Main

Suzuki, Ryouta Japanese

Mashiro, Yuu Main

Murase, Ayumu Japanese

Tsuru, Yasunari Supporting

Komatsu, Shouhei Japanese

Hongou, Madoka Supporting

Saitou, Souma Japanese

Yufu, Ikuto Supporting

Tachibana, Shinnosuke Japanese

Hidaka, Takumi Supporting

Yano, Shougo Japanese

Taylor, Ethan Supporting

Okitsu, Kazuyuki Japanese

Saitou, Fuuga Supporting

Kodama, Takuya Japanese

Cook, Justin Producer

Sakamoto, Yoshiki Producer

Herek, Samantha Assistant Producer

Kimiya, Shigeru Director

Reviews

Apr 15, 2020

KANLen09

Recommended

One of the few rugby shows I initially scoffed at, at trying to be another abysmal Try Knights, but what it does, it does one thing well: sold the premise on bonds and friendship over the sport through improvement.

Being someone who is harsh on all aspects, I was surprised to find out that veteran script/series composer Rika Nanase is on this, and despite the no-name 3rd-rate production staff team onboard of this show, she definitely stands out as the main source of enjoyment, considering the "cult following" success of this show (for the 3 of you who watched this). Bleach, Eyeshield 21, Higurashi, Junjou Romantica, ... you name it, she has done all and shown her prowess at taking a genre and subconsciously subverting it to make up for the enjoyment experience, and it has certainly done in good spots.

What number24 is all about is not rugby, but the bishie sportsboys of Doushisha themselves. What the team comprises are of dreams of former players that don't belong and/or have given up in rugby, only to find themselves in the sport that's mostly persistent through the bonds and friendship of the bishounens involved.

Take the main team's quintuple for example: Natsusa Yuzuki, Yuu Mashiro, Yasunari Tsuru, Seiichirou Jingyouji and Ibuki Ueoka. These 5 have weaved the same red thread of fate for themselves in the path to find their true stance towards one another:
Natsusa, being taken out of the team and imposed the Manager status (due to circumstances that rendered him unplayable on the field);
Ibuki, who has lost his heart towards playing rugby and has no desire to take up the sport once again (but only does because of Natsusa's persistent teasing);
Yasunari, in spite of being Natsusa's junior, has certain disagreements to how he'd function around the sport and leading his own private life;
Yuu, in spite of his small size and although being barely fit to play, made him the Zhuge Liang team strategist and following under Natsusa's imposed leadership;
Last but not least, Seiichirou, more than being the tropey childhood friend, is constantly being roped in by Natsusa due to his monotonous life and needing someone to lead his life.

Add in the seniors and juniors who only got less screentime and act as second fiddle alongside them, the characters overall are brutal for what they do, but it's also the same actions that teach them the meaning and spirit of camaraderie despite the different plays of all of them. Not to mention the light-hearted comedy that stems from Natsusa's improvised childishness to tease the characters so much it gives off a good chuckle. And that gets a very good sense of debunking the heart of this show, which starts off slow but gives a nice reward at the finish line.

Rightaway, the art/animation itself I really didn't have high hopes for and think much of since it's PRA (a studio mainly relying on outsource help), but to my genuine surprise that everything is clean and distilled, a better effort and not the far cry from Gonzo and Seven's efforts to produce Try Knights (like they have a very limited budget). Yes, everything is far from perfect (some PowerPoint-like recycled visuals), but it never really came off as something that's left to be desired. And for the longest time, breaking out of their shell to have a majority production stake is a good thing for the uninitiated. A fine job, really TBH, I'm impressed.

On the sound side, it's all fair, no complaints here. OP is good, and the numerous EDs are worth the ear-listening treatment from the bishie boys. A good job to the all-male VA team.

I'd think that for future sports shows like this going forward, constructing good character-driven stories is what keeps this genre flourishing, and also getting the right people to handle their job scopes (a.k.a Rika Nanase) is the first sign of relief that this isn't the low-tier that we've come to expect from shitty shows (a.k.a Try Knights, Cinderella Nine etc.). If only the anime industry have learned their lessons well...

Nevertheless, for sports fans, a good enticement of drama and play is essentialal, and I kid you not, this show delivers. Even as a guy who generally doesn't have a taste for bishie boys, this was a good treat to rest to, following the characters and living out their desired dreams and working together to achieve their goals. This is the fine gem amongst the rare in the rugby sports genre, in a fairly good way.

Reviewer’s Rating: 7

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Apr 20, 2020

LRTmaknaE

Mixed Feelings

hello, I am a rugby player myself and I am writing this review because I feel that other reviews overrated this anime. I will try to keep this short and sweet so you can read it quickly to decide if you are going to watch this anime.

story: (no spoilers) the main character (Natsuya) got into a car accident and became not able to play rugby. He decided to join as the manager in a collage rugby club. And the anime talks about a senior of Natsuya, a junior of Natsuya, the kicker of the team and a the rest of the team. I really love ... rugby so I decided to watch this show. At first, the show was funny and cool but then, the events got random and messy. However, it was cool to see that Natsuya was a manager instead of a player so we can see the players play in a way the manager sees it. I also feel that the matches were way too short. Rugby matches are 80 minutes long, and there is no way they could cover the match in half an episode (10 minutes). The matches seemed like match high-lights, and not an actual rugby match. So 4/10 for the story, disappointing.

Art: Not much to say about it, I don't really love it but it is not bad. But my problem with the art are 1. the hair styles are way too weird. (Even for anime) 2. The colour scheme is way too pastel and bright, it bothered me a little. The animation has no problem, I am OK with it. 6/10, OK

Sound: Openings and Endings are pretty awesome, soundeffects and BGMs fit to the parts. 7/10, Nice

Characters: Except Natsuya who had an unique and fun personality and Ibuki who is the relatable dude, other characters had minimal to no real personality and character development. I feel that almost all the characters are way to "childish" for being collage student. I don't think Collage students are this easy to get that triggered and angry. For the designs, some characters looked way too young. Yuu looked like he could pass for a Grade 6 or 7 when he is in collage, I really though so at first. 5/10, so so.

Enjoyment: I really enjoyed the first episodes, they are funny and somewhat interesting. I would be looking forward to Wednesdays when new episodes come out. But for the last few episodes, I
don't think I really enjoyed it or not, I only watched the last few episodes because I would like to
know how the story ends or does the ending improve. I won't spoil for you. 6/10, fair.

Overall: 5, it is average

Reviewer’s Rating: 5

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May 7, 2024

ST63LTH

Not Recommended

Story & Characters: 2/10
Number24 does well to introduce a lifestyle characteristic among the gung-ho sport of university level rugby. The story is more on the idyllic side with its laid back tonality between characters and rugby matches; This leads me to say that it doesn't suit the typical mens sport theme well in my opinion. This series centers around a very exuberant main character Natsu whose purpose is to appear vulnerable among the other players in the team; He tends to involve himself in situations that don't require his input and becomes quixotic as the story progresses. However, that aside I found the genuine comradery ... between opponents and the Doushisha University team surprising for a change; There were subtle scuffles between opponents but in the end many of the characters seemed to be written with the least pernicious way. My rating reflects on the more subtle yet obvious femininity among the male characters and blatant fan service field trip scenes; It personally wasn't to my liking but I understand that this portrayal is mellifluous to the target demographic. Finally, it would have been better to have some form of rugby narration regarding the plays being made during the matches; There were minimal efforts regarding the rules and overall character narration but right up till the end there was no effort to mention some form of rules or play making narration.

Art & Sound: 5/10
The art and animation are more on the vibrant side with character design taking on the approach of a more colorful set of characters. Animation did well to express the action scenes and scene design was organized in a pleasant way especially the field outing scenes like the Onsen, Sauna, hotel, transport. Sound is as expected for any modern anime with a shred of budget, I personally don't welcome the feminine vocals of Yuu as it felt beyond the age of puberty but I understand that it could be more of a artistic intention.

Overall & Enjoyment: 2/10
Had this series involved more game narration and focus on the sport theme with minimal focus on the subtle fan service, it would have been a more enjoyable and pleasing experience.

Reviewer’s Rating: 3

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