Ao Ashi

In a quiet rural town, the spotlight of a local junior high school football team rests on one player: Ashito Aoi. Known for his unpredictable moves and self-centered playing style, Ashito is the sole powerhouse pushing his team through an important high school preliminary tournament. However, their win streak is short-lived—an opponent causes Ashito to lose his temper and act violently, resulting in his removal from the rest of the game.

Without their star player, the team is quickly eliminated from the tournament. Just as he believes all hope is lost, Ashito is approached by a youth team coach named Tatsuya Fukuda who senses potential in him, and Fukuda invites him for tryouts in Tokyo. In an unfamiliar setting surrounded by talent, Ashito must bring out the best of his ability to prove himself and secure what could be a life-changing career.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Aoi, Ashito Main

Oosuzu, Kouki Japanese

Ichijou, Hana Main

Kawase, Maki Japanese

Fukuda, Tatsuya Main

Kobayashi, Chikahiro Japanese

Akutsu, Nagisa Supporting

Takeuchi, Shunsuke Japanese

Ootomo, Eisaku Supporting

Tachibana, Tatsumaru Japanese

Asari, Marchis Jun Supporting

Katou, Wataru Japanese

Togashi, Keiji Supporting

Yashiro, Taku Japanese

Kuribayashi, Haruhisa Supporting

Umehara, Yuuichirou Japanese

Kaidou, Anri Supporting

Ueda, Reina Japanese

Aoi, Noriko Supporting

Sonozaki, Mie Japanese

Cook, Justin Producer

Morihiro, Fumi Producer

Kuroki, Rui Producer

Iwasaki, Sayaka Producer

Reviews

Sep 24, 2022

Fotsuan

Recommended

Sports anime might be fundamentally similar to each other, but the writing and deliverance can differ a lot. Ao Ashi creates a world full of lessons and hardships, in both football and life. And like most sports anime, it doesn’t matter if you’re a fan of football to appreciate it. The characters are there, the build-up is there, and the emotions are there too, like in any other good anime. The main purpose of this review is to express how well Ao Ashi excels in certain things compared to other sports anime, what it lacks compared to them, and how good it really is overall.


The ... protagonist lives in Ehime, a prefecture of Japan that is located on an island and is not famous for its football players. Ashito, who is at a young age, is the best player in his school and is very passionate about football. He decides to try his luck and moves alone to Tokyo, to enter the football powerhouse called Esperion. What I love about Ao Ashi here is how well it portrays the hardships the athlete, their family and friends must struggle with, and how the athlete has to sacrifice everything and leave it all behind, focusing on a single thing – which is football, in our case. There is bittersweet drama and decent character writing. Other than that, there is the test Ashito must face as an outsider, the bullying, the rivalries, and the unsportsmanlike conduct of other players. While on the same time, he works hard, he progresses, and he makes friends and acquaintances.


Another point to be made about why Ao Ashi is such a good sports anime is the on-point portrayal of different behaviours inside the football world (coaches, players, managers, nutritionists, etc.) and how everyone plays their own role in the greater image. How Ashito, who wants to improve, will have to face other people who care solely for their own benefit. This is sometimes shown in a harsh way, but at the same time, there are beautiful moments of team spirit and emotions. After all, we are not alone, and we need the strength and faith of people who care about us; this is something else Ao Ashi does well.


But the most praiseworthy thing Ao Ashi succeeds in delivering is the difficulty of the sport. Most sports anime take their sports lightly and do not emphasize techniques and serious ways to improve, aside from team spirit and hard work. In Ao Ashi, we know how it is physically exhausting, mentally tiring, and may ruin both your body and psychology. How many techniques have to be taught, how much the athlete must do inside and outside the court, how he has to take care of himself and what huge an emotional capacity is needed. And at the same time, how the trainers can use you for their own benefit without caring about your opinions, and how your teammates can sabotage you or not care about you.


As far as character writing is concerned, the most common problem Ao Ashi watchers face is Ashito’s personality. I agree that his behaviour might be annoying at times, but let’s not forget that he’s an immature, ambitious 15-year-old. He is realistic and I hope to see development in his personality in the next seasons; I think it is hinted that there will be. The protagonist matures little by little and views differently his friends, his love interests and even football as a sport.
What about the side characters, though? Like I said before, we get to know all different perspectives and behaviours. The main and side casts are detailed, and everyone has a story to support and a dream to pursue. So, whether it is about the matches or the characters, it is not easy to get bored watching Ao Ashi. There is always something interesting going on, and the development is always there.


Now, it is worth mentioning that Ao Ashi’s animation is plain and simple, and people who care about flashy animation and non-stop motion often complain about it. To me, the colourful art and the good character designs are enough to make Ao Ashi good visually and aesthetically, so I think there is absolutely no problem with the animation not being fabulous.
In addition, the soundtrack is great and creates the perfect atmosphere. OST aside, the opening and ending songs are usually great. The opening sung by Alexandros in the first half is one of the best sports anime openings I have ever heard, since it fits the show’s vibes and radiates a feeling of “hype”. Sadly, the second opening song is not as good, but some people like it due to its good animation… while both ending songs are perfect for closing the episodes.


Finally, I would like to mention the original voice-acting cast. It does not feature the most famous names in the industry, but it gives chances to younger voice actors. I do not think the choices were not well-thought though, because the result is positive and I consider the cast great as a whole. Katou Wataru, Yashiro Taku, Oosozu Kouki are all names that could be frequently included in the most-awaited anime in the future.

So, what is it that Ao Ashi lacks?
As you can understand, since it focuses on a technical and psychological viewpoint this much, some other things are expected to be missing. The first comparison that comes to my mind is with Haikyuu: in the latter, the character dynamics and development during the matches feel stronger, in both main and opponent teams. This is because of the focus on teamwork and the classic “nakama power” that shounen anime tend to show.
On the other hand, there are also some scenes where a certain event has occurred before, or a certain technique has been explained to Ashito, and suddenly everyone starts talking about it in the matches – a kind of plot convenience to help the watcher learn more about the sport and see progress.


To sum up, to me, Ao Ashi’s pros outnumber its cons and are very interesting, so I consider Ao Ashi a “top tier” sports anime in its own way. It is very different from other sports anime in aspects I have mentioned above, but that’s what makes it worth watching. In the end, it is all a matter of taste and aesthetics, so it is up to the watcher to decide if Ao Ashi is interesting or not – but what it does in terms of writing, it does more than well.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Apr 2, 2023

Zagaimo

Mixed Feelings

I don't understand this anime. The whole anime and character development of the MC is based on the double talk, lies and reverse psychology of the people in his team. I mean not one person who contributes to MCs development through honest talk. People borderline abuse the MC emotionally to the point of insulting his mother, but somehow it is supposed to be some sort of motivational push INTENTIONALLY done by the said people. I know it's a fantasy story, but I doubt anyone will grow to be better with such treatment in real life. Anyone with a little self-respect would find another way to ... succeed than to bow down to people who insult his/her family. It started off really well, personally disappointed as the story progressed.

Reviewer’s Rating: 5

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Sep 24, 2022

Huskkay

Not Recommended

Funny

Ao Ashi dropped the ball on so many levels. From an outsider's perspective, it looked really promising but ended up being a letdown after diving into it.

It's not a horrible sports anime but it is ridden with so many annoyances it sucks out all the fun. Well, watching Ao Ashi never really was accompanied by a high level of fun. At least for me, there was no feeling of hype or energy in the show.

First of all, the characters. Aoi is almost a perfect cookie-cutter sports anime main character.
Pretty much an always upbeat, goody two-shoes that values friendship and camaraderie above all else. Don't ... insult his friends or family, unless you want him to get really mad. Well, good guy mad. Personally, I also can't get used to his voice and his constant screaming.
His gift, which, naturally, catapults him into a league of top-tier players, is highly stylized. Almost to a point, one could argue about it being supernatural. But I am just going to strike it off as an over-the-top visual representation for the viewer.
As for the side cast, I don't have much to say. They had no substance and depth. We get a few hints and pieces dropped throughout the show's runtime, but most of it felt lackluster and only got set up to be put in the storeroom for later use.
Both girls got a bit shafted as side characters. Once Hana's duty as an amateur therapist and nutritionist was done, she got put on the sidelines. It was time for Girl B, Anri, to move in. Thankfully she knew a few things about football, just in time to help Aoi out. Of course, just like Hana, Anri also developed some feelings for Aoi.
Why the romance aspect? And I use romance lightly because it just felt so tacked on. What was the point besides needlessly forcing drama on the screen? If executed well, it could add value to the story, but don't start another subplot if you are already struggling with others.

Speaking of drama, Ao Ashi really suffers from a constant flow of low-tier drama.
The anime likes to add those extra layers for dramatic effects, which are completely unneeded. It didn't feel natural and most of it was blown out of proportion.
Aoi could have thrown a canned coffee on the ground and they would show zoomed shots of everyone's faces with shocked looks on them, while melodramatic music was starting to play in the background.
To quickly talk about the "bad" guys, they are written so poorly. They bully and look down on people for the sake of doing it. While the good guys stand up for their friends and ooze love and respect. We got to include that black and white morality somehow.

I already mentioned the nonexisting hype, so let's focus on that one next. About 80 % of all the football scenes were boring screen time filler. They had no impact, no engaging hooks, and no remarkable scenes. The same goes for most of the strategy talks as well. Absolutely underwhelming. A handful of moments were pretty alright but they just get overshadowed by all the average filling around it. Every time they played football on screen, it was accompanied by a barrage of thoughts, never-ending dialogue and flashbacks. Establishing a good flow was never an option, it got dragged into a dark alley and shot.
The anime is plagued by scenes that drag on way too long for the points they try to get across. Aoi and friends could recite the whole bible before making a play.

To wrap it up on a positive note, I do want to mention some of the show's good aspects. The art is consistent and has some nice visuals from time to time. Both openings, as well as the endings, are good at setting the mood.
The biggest aspect is the potential. If we get a second season and they handle the narrative and characters with enough care, it could have solid potential. Most side characters just seem way more interesting than our bog-standard main character and with enough finesse, they might even improve the romance subplot.

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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