 https://myanimelist.net/anime/49596/ Plot Summary After reflecting on the current state of Japanese soccer, the Japanese Football Association decides to hire the enigmatic and eccentric coach Jinpachi Ego to achieve their dream of winning the World Cup. Believing that Japan has lacked an egoistic striker hungry for goals, Jinpachi initiates the Blue Lock—a prison-like facility where three hundred talented strikers from high schools all over Japan are isolated and pitted against each other. The sole survivor of Blue Lock will earn the right to become the national team's striker, and those who are defeated shall be banned from joining the team forever. Selected to join this risky project is Yoichi Isagi, a striker who failed to bring his high school soccer team to the national tournament. After choosing to pass to a teammate who missed instead of scoring on his own, he could not help but wonder if the results would have been different had he been more selfish. Using this golden opportunity given by the Blue Lock Project, Yoichi aims to clear his doubts and chase his ultimate desire—to become the greatest striker in the world and lead Japan to World Cup glory. Other Information Type: TV Episodes: 24 Status: Currently Airing Aired: Oct 9, 2022 to ? Premiered: Fall 2022 Broadcast: Sundays at 01:30 (JST) Producers: TV Asahi, Kodansha, Toy's Factory, Crunchyroll, Bandai Spirits, Bit grooove promotion, Bandai Namco Filmworks, Bandai Namco Music Live Licensors: None found, add some Studios: 8bit Source: Manga Genre: Sports Theme: Team Sports Demographic: Shounen Duration: 24 min. per ep. Rating: PG-13 - Teens 13 or older |
| CR Forum Thread https://www.crunchyroll.com/forumtopic-1076494/blue-lock-discussion This show has been quite an edgy way to do a sports anime, and I love it. While I have seen a handful of traditional sports anime like Aoashi, this one adds a big dramatic twist here. The concept of putting these guys through a boot camp in a prison-like environment in hopes of producing the country's first Cristiano Ronaldo, that is what makes this show so different and it's making this show so interesting. Anyway, I'm hooked three episodes into this sports show that's unlike any other. So after the first episode that saw Isagi eliminating Kira in order to emphasize the every man for himself concept at this establishment seeing, and getting to know the characters of Team Z in the second, they play their first match in the second trial at Blue Lock. Episode 3 Wow! I don't know what game those guys were trying to play, but it most definitely isn't soccer. There's a lot of fighting between teammates seeing that being the top two in the block or being the team's top scorer gets them to the next round. While both teams are in-fighting, it's far worse for Team Z as Barou rallied Team X to a 5-0 lead. Seeing that the match is a lost cause, Isagi just needed to do some damage control and avoid the shutout. And that he does by passing the ball to Raichi to score a goal, which is his answer to turning zero into one. But while they are on the right track, that's only part of the answer. Not to mention, Isagi will never win if he's nervous in front of the goal seeing that he could have easily taken the shot himself otherwise. So having dropped their first match, they can't afford to lose again, and they will need to figure out how to turn things around, and fast. Ego sure is ruthless with the way he's calling the shots. |
| Episode 4 It's do or dime time for Team Z as they can kiss Blue Lock goodbye with a loss to the team that got whooped even worse than Team Z did in their first match. Things didn't look good at the start when Team Z's shots were all getting blocked, all while a pop-up shot gave Team Y the first goal. So they regroup at halftime, and came out with urgency in the second half. Isagi's shot was deflected again, but Gagamaru was there to put the rebound in. Quite a great way to recompose themselves seeing that it has been tough sledding. Now, they need to build off the momentum to win this match to stay in. |
| Episode 5 After booting in the equalizer, the game has changed as Team Y's stall tactics go out the window. But then they were sitting back and waiting until the right moment to make their charge, and in the last minute they do exactly that by drawing Team Z and the mobilizing the entire team towards the net to score one just before the buzzer. That plan nearly worked and would have had Isagi not changed his mentality since the loss at the prefectural finals match. Niko made the same mistake Isagi did as he would have easily scored had he taken the shot himself, but instead he passed it to Ohkawa and that gave Isagi enough time to block it and Isagi took it the other way to score the game-winner. This moment does an excellent job in portraying Isagi's development as a striker as Niko's play reminded him of the player he used to be and fully understands that this kind of mentality would make a great midfielder, but not a striker. So with that, rankings are updated and Isagi is now the top player on the team. And in the standings, Team V is the top team while Team Z is in a four-way tie with the other teams. It certainly is a moment to celebrate with stake with everybody. Next up is a critical match against Team W as that's a must-win match seeing that after that it's Team V that has been dominating the competition. |
| Worth mentioning that this isn't a standard soccer anime. It's so brutal and cutthroat. Never seen anything like it in this genre. |
| Episode 6 The players were warned that there will be times they play together and there will be times they will betray each other. The latter is happening in Team Z's next match as Kuon made a deal with Team W so that Team W gets the win, while Kuon advances as Team Z's leading scorer. Kuon scored his hat trick early on, and then in the second half Kuon sabotaged Team Z's chances by passing the ball to the twins on Team W on purpose to allow them to quickly catch up, and seeing that Team W somehow knew what Team Z was planning that it became perfectly clear that Kuon was betraying the team. And now, Team Z trails 4-3 with the need to win playing 10-on-12 seeing that losing this match means it's over for Team Z. The drama just keeps on building as just when it looked like Team Z had a clear path to making the cut, this happens. |
| Episode 7 Now that Kuon has leaked Team Z's strategy, the only strategy left is to utilize Chigiri and hope his surgically reconstructed knee holds up, something that only Isagi and Kuon know about. And while they are out to win it, Team Z will gladly settle for a tie, and it took stoppage time to get that equalizer as Chigiri really put on the jets that made him known as the genius. It turns out that he went to the same high school as the Wanima twins. And Chigiri's goal sure was genius. With that, it's onto the final match against Team V needing to win, and while those guys are talented, they are not really playing soccer for all the right reasons. Good thing that Kuon can't negotiate his way this time around as Reo and company are not interested at all in making a similar deal that he made with Team W. |
| Anyone in the waiting room for Kuon's legs getting broken? Just me? |
| Blue Lock irl – mangaka designed Japan's 2022 FIFA jersey, then the team won against Germany. Blue Lock fans must be ecstatic. |
⭑･ﾟﾟ･*:༅｡.｡༅:*ﾟ:*:✼✿ Umehara is my daily dopamine ✿✼:*ﾟ:༅｡.｡༅:*･ﾟﾟ･⭑ |
| Episode 8 And now, Isagi needs to figure out how to reproduce goals as all the ones the team has scored so far are only possible under perfect conditions, which will not be seen in most situations. So to get that, Isagi turns to Barou and a few looks at his footwork and mechanics gives him a huge hit. And it turns out that Reo is going against his father's wishes to become a footballer as his family runs a company and his father only wants Reo to become his successor. But everything changed when he met Nagi. And thus, it all leads to a win or go home match against the team that has dominated this block. Not off to a good start as while they put together a solid strategy, Team V has already figured it out and with a long pass that's very tricky to attempt, a wide open Nagi puts Team V up 1-0. It looks like Team Z will need Kuon to play as a teammate if Team Z has any chance of winning. |
| This just in, and a big congratulations to the Japan men's national football team for beating Spain, which is one of the World Cup favorites, and not only advance out of the Group of Death, but win it. They beat another juggernaut in Germany, and I would have to think how great they would be if they had the ultimate survivor from Blue Lock on this team. And for those who don't know already, the Japanese team is nicknamed the Blue Samurai, and hence the color blue for the facility. |
| Episode 9 This episode is all about getting out of the comfort zone and finding a new trick as the conventional tactics Team Z is deploying just doesn't stand a chance against Team V's insane abilities. Bachira got the ball rolling, and then Gagamaru followed through with some creative dribbling to fake Tsurugi out. And then Chigiri does an unconventional pass by doing it to himself for the equalizer. This goes to show that there's room to grow and that it happens when being backed into a corner. This episode pretty much shows what Team USA needs to do in order to go toe-to-toe with the world's best after getting destroyed by the Dutch in the World Cup. The match is now tied, but Team Z needs to win in order to advance, and I have a good idea who shoots the match-winning goal. |
| Episode 10 Team Z is not the only ones who evolved as having their backs against the wall, Team V evolves as well. That was some insane shot by Nagi there as his back was turned to the goal, yet he directed that ball into the net somehow. And Isagi's goal sensory works wonders yet again as he was in the right place to stop Nagi from stealing the ball from Chigiri, and after missed shots by Chigiri and Gagamaru, Kunigami gets the equalizer. But then the game seemingly was going to get away with Nagi breaking loose to boot in the game winner, but Kuon decided to take one for the team by doing something similar to what Luis Suarez did when he handballed a shot that was going in as he tackled Nagi when there was nothing but grass between him and the goal. On the free kick, his shot was blocked at the last second by Gagamaru, and now Isagi is leading the charge the other way. Quite a drama-filled episode that was, and while Kuon would have advanced as long as Kunigami didn't score another goal, he was thinking about his team seeing that he's overly serious about the sport and that rubbed his teammates the wrong way. Team Z has done well with 10 men, so this doesn't change anything. There's only one more chance to score the game-winner, and I can't wait to see Isagi do it. |
| Episode 11 That was quite an impressive shot there from Isagi as he used his foresight really nicely. They nearly lost the match twice, especially when Nagi appeared from his blind spot, but he acted on instinct there as he took Barou's advice to heart, and that a goal that was. So with that, Team Z is onto the second selection where it is revealed that Building 5 is the only one at Blue Lock, and that the other buildings were just a way to a chip on everybody's shoulders so that they can motivate everybody to do something they would never be able to do normally. The first selection was all about understanding what being a striker is all about, and now, this test will weed out those who have been riding on their teammate's coattails. The first selection was nicely done here, and I can't wait to see what's in store for the second selection as now it's every striker for himself with those who survive getting a spot on the national team. |
| This show is always interesting. That "training" did actually look fun. |
| Episode 12 Onto the next trial, and Ego wasn't kidding when he said that this trial will weed out those who have been riding the coattails of their teammates. It's to score 100 penalty kicks in 90 minutes, and with difficulty increasing with holographic defenders added. Then it's a 3-on-3 game as teams of 3 are formed. While Isagi refuses to join Nagi and Reo to form a team as he won't be playing for a team without Bachira, Nagi decides to join his team despite everybody objecting as Isagi and Bachira wanted a Team Z guy to be the third teammate and had agreed to make Kunigami or Chigiri it, but seeing that Nagi doesn't find soccer boring when playing on the same pitch as Isagi that he just had to make him his teammate. It will be interesting to see where things go as this is going to be quite an intense stage of the selection process. |
| The second half begins with a new ending, but the same opening is used. I definitely like the new ending better than the first. Episode 13 It's a 3-on-3 match against the team consisting of the top three ranked strikers at Blue Lock who played on Team V, and those guys are as good as their rankings suggest. Scoring a goal on the kickoff and directly from a corner kick, there's no question that Rin is the top player there seeing that they are making what should be impossible shots. Already things are off to a bad start for Isagi, and to add insult to injury Team Red chooses to take Bachiro that leaves them down to just Isagi and Nagi. I had a feeling that things weren't going to go well here, and now Isagi and Nagi need to pull together in their next match or else Isagi is toast. |
| Episode 14 Now down to just Isagi and Nagi, it's do-or-die time for Isagi, and his next match is against is former Team Z teammate Naruhaya and Barou as either Isagi or Naruhaya will be sent packing. As it turns out, Naruhaya specifically sought out Isagi as while he is great at coordination, he's not somebody who can score goals on his own. As for Barou, his range has increased as he's able to make goals from further back. Seeing that Naruhaya knows all of Isagi's strengths and weaknesses that he will need to evolve his game in order to stay alive at Blue Lock. |
| Those puzzle pieces animating had no business being that good. |
| Episode 15 This match is all about identifying blind spots as that's one glaring weakness that Naruhaya knows how to expose. It turns out that Naruhaya's strengths and weaknesses are the opposite of Isagi's as he's great at positioning but terrible at shooting, and with the perfect teammate to cover up for that weakness, all he needs to do is get Barou in position to score. But Isagi evolves his game just like a typical MC does in a sports show, and pays close attention to his blind spot, and uses that awareness to kick the match-winner. So with that, Isagi now has Nagi and Barou on their team, while Naruhaya is sent packing to return to his family that had been struggling ever since their parents died. That was some great drama there going to show that in sports, there's always going to be a weakness waiting to be exposed. |
| Episode 16 And thus, the team of Isagi, Nagi, and Barou is formed, and while that's quite a lot of talent, they are not exactly playing well as a team. While Barou could easily be the top striker at Blue Lock with his insane skills, his teamwork is totally lacking. This kind of disconnect was hinted at with the scene at the JFU as while some wanted the best player period, Teieri had something else in mind when it came to finding the best. So it's off to the baths where those three are challenged by the team consisting of Kunigami, Chigiri, and Reo for their next match, and this time it's quite personal. Barou not being a team player really reared its ugly head with the first goal conceded, and in order to have any chance these three will need teamwork, and fast. |
| That was so exciting. Loved Barou being put in his place lmao. |
| Episode 17 That was some great strategy there by Isagi and Nagi, using his me-first attitude against the opponent. Nevertheless, while Isagi and Nagi have upped their games, so has Chigiri as Isagi's team is now on the brink of defeat once again. Lots of tension in this match seeing that there were plenty of hard feelings with the team selection. |
| Episode 18 That was some finish to that match. First, Isagi uses Barou's me-first attitude to his advantage to score the equalizer. And then for the match-winning goal Barou evolves his game as all he wants to be is the lead actor rather than the sidekick. And those chops to fake out the red team so that he can put himself into position to score that goal, that was insane. Quite the finish that was, and now the next order of business is to select one of those three guys seeing that their match against the juggernauts plus Bachira is coming next. |
| I wasn't expecting it to end that fast, figured they'd pick their teammate before it ended. With that said, there's no way they don't pick Missy, right... |
| Episode 19 So after a careful thought process, Chigiri is chosen as while Reo is the better overall player, Chigiri is the player who will provide the best teamwork given the other strikers. And then it spends quite a lot of time explaining Bachira's background as he was playing soccer against himself, or more specifically a monster that Bachira made up. No wonder there's that mysterious vibe about him. So with that, it's onto the next match against the Bachira and the monsters, and it's going to be Isagi's toughest match yet. |
| That was metal af. Really impressed they managed to stay toe to toe with such a team. The concept of devouring each others skills is interesting too. |
| Episode 20 And now, the toughest match ahead begins. Last time Isagi went up against these juggernauts they got their butts handed to them. This time, they are keeping pace with the new team they assembled. Nevertheless, the superhuman plays continue to be on display here as Bachira's teammates show why they are the top-ranked players at Blue Lock once again. |
| Episode 21 Just so many twists and turns in this match. Rin thought he had everything figured out and left Isagi scrambling for answers, but the unpredictability that is Barou keeps them in the game as he stole the ball from his teammate. As Rin didn't anticipate this that his plan of attack went up in smoke. But even so, Rin adapts and is capable of doing great things when plans don't work out well, all while there's Tokimitsu who is deceptively buffed. And while everybody else is running on empty, Tokimitsu is fresh and now Isagi's team is backed into a corner. While Bachira hasn't done much, his presence has definitely changed the complexion of the match. Seeing that there are three more episodes left and quite a lot of drama left that this match figures to last two more episodes, then it ends with the preparation for the third and final selection, which takes place in the second season. Anyway, with this match there are two possible outcomes in that either Isagi's team wins and they choose Bachira to join them, or Isagi's team loses and Isagi is chosen to move onto the third selection. |
| Not sure if this match will wrap up next episode and then we'll get a final match after, or perhaps they'll drag this match out for 2 more episodes? |
| Episode 22 This match just continues to have a bit of everything in it. Isagi response with an impressive goal using the back heel shot for the equalizer. And just when it looked like Isagi has a clear path to score the match-winner, out of nowhere Rin blocks it, and now Bachira is about to evolve his game in a big way as now he's in position to score the match-winner. There's just so much drama here. The match will be decided in the next episode, and while it remains to be seen who wins, one thing for certain is that both Isagi and Bachira are advancing as whoever loses will be chosen to join the winning team. |
| Episode 23 In the end, Isagi's team loses on what he attributes to luck as Rin just so happened to be at the right place at the right time to make the game-winning shot. And as expected, Isagi was chosen to move onto the Third Selection, though it was Rin who chose him and not Bachira. It was a bitter pill to swallow for Isagi seeing that he advances off a loss, but his talents have been recognized. And then Ego explains it that while luck is a factor, it's up to the player to take advantage of luck, which is a big reason why Rin is the top-rated player. With that, it's onto the final selection where it starts off with a warm-up match against five of the world's best strikers around the world who are about everybody's age at Blue Lock. So it ends with defeat, and while Nagi, Barou, and Chigiri are going backwards, they have another chance to make it, but nevertheless Isagi is through. One more episode left to go and it figures to end with the scrimmage match against the World Five to set the stage for the Third Selection that will take place in the second season if it does get announced. |
| Episode 24 (Season 1 Finale) While they scored the first goal, they simply didn't stand a chance against these world-class footballers who were trained by the best in the world. This was simply meant to be a measuring stick as there was just no way they had a chance of winning. After that, these boys take some English lessons seeing that they will need to understand that in order to play against opponents from overseas. The seiyuus did a nice job speaking in English, especially the one voicing the Brit as he even did the accent well. In the end, seven teams cleared the second selection meaning that 265 strikers have been eliminated. So in the end, among Team Z members Isagi, Bachira, Chigiri, Igarashi, Gagamaru, and Raichi all made it, but one notable omission is Kunigami. As for the third selection, it's going to be a match against the U-20 team as the JFU is none too pleased about the Blue Lock project and they want to shut it down after widespread complaints from parents. And thus, it sets the stage for season 2 that was announced after this show's broadcast as it will be a match between the Blue Lock strikers and the U-20 team, and seeing that everybody is a striker that the odds are definitely stacked against the Blue Lock team. And this time, a whole lot more than just a spot on the national team is at stake as losing means the end of the Blue Lock project. And thus, the first season ends here as not only is a second season coming, but also a movie in which Nagi is the MC. This has been one of the best sports show that I have ever watched, and a big reason why is that it's more about just the sport which is what traditional sports anime shows like Aoashi and Captain Tsubasa are all about. Final Thoughts This show hits the ground running with a strong first episode, and keeps up the intensity and drama throughout the series. The show has one of the most creative settings and the gimmicks are all well-utilized to produce a great show. It does all of the things that make sports show great, and then uses the setting to enhance them. And of course, the soccer action is nicely done and well-animated. But above all, the characters all evolve in some way, shape, or form, and it's clear that everybody is developing in the heat of competition. So in all, it's one of the best sports shows out there as it implements elements of traditional sports, and then enhances them with intense drama and great action. Grade: A+ (10/10) |
| I struggle to think of anything i didn't like with this show. GridironOtaku said: Final Thoughts This show hits the ground running with a strong first episode, and keeps up the intensity and drama throughout the series. The show has one of the most creative settings and the gimmicks are all well-utilized to produce a great show. It does all of the things that make sports show great, and then uses the setting to enhance them. And of course, the soccer action is nicely done and well-animated. But above all, the characters all evolve in some way, shape, or form, and it's clear that everybody is developing in the heat of competition. So in all, it's one of the best sports shows out there as it implements elements of traditional sports, and then enhances them with intense drama and great action. Grade: A+ (10/10) I have to agree with everything you said. |
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