If I were to describe my feelings towards this "movie" in one word, it would definitely be disappointing. This movie is akin to a hissatsu technique montage. The runtime says 49 minutes, but the match starts over 30 minutes into the movie. And honestly, a 20 minute match between 24 of our favorite players is just not enough time to churn out anything satisfying.
I would first like to point out that this movie IS essentially fanservice (and imo is advertised as such), so don't go into it expecting a story or anything. The crossover is never explained, and I don't think it needs to be--this movie centers around the players and not an overarching conflict. It is meant to be a match between fan voted characters and nothing else (read: fanservice); HOWEVER, the execution did not meet my expectations at all. I went into it hoping for an enjoyable match between my favs, hoping for some interactions between characters from different timelines/generations ~~to feed headcanons and other delusions,~~ lots of combination hissatsu, interesting plays, and just an overall good time. So imagine my disappointment when I'm 20 minutes in and the openings from all the previous series are still playing.
Because the match runtime is so short, not only is each players' screentime cut extremely short, it doesn't even feel like there is any character writing in the first place. Fudou is a victim of character assassination; his nuanced character is reduced to just his extremely bratty tendencies (think True Teikoku era). There is little to no strategy involved so Kidou is basically a non-character. Tenma and Endou are still socca baka and the two had a cute moment before the match, but that is the extent of it. As for many of the other characters, their presences were paper thin; they'd have like 5 seconds where they had the ball and then they never showed up again.
As for what I was looking forward to the most, character interactions were basically nonexistent. The only notable character interactions were basically done through combination hissatsu--which we love to see don't get me wrong--but we also want more than Tsurugi and Gouenji's only interaction being Fire Tornado Double Drive. Endou and Rococo's rivalry isn't touched on at all except at the beginning when Rococo declares a challenge. The dialogue also felt shallow and lame. Even Fei and Tenma only exchanged a few cheesy lines about being happy and that was all. The dialogue was literally, "I think soccer is happy now!" It's just such a shame to see since the characters are clearly the main appeal of Inazuma Eleven in general and they all have fantastic chemistry. I was really looking forward to see what they could do with characters that would never normally cross paths.
The match itself is pretty lackluster too. It feels like the creators were just trying to push out as many hissatsu techniques as possible in their limited time frame, so the plays aren't particularly engaging or interesting. It's not that the hissastu techniques were bad in any way--I still got that adrenaline rush when they pull out a sick move like when Hiroto did Ryuusei Blade--its just that hissatsu techniques were ALL the match was. No strategizing, no nuanced emotions, no internal monologues, no Endou pulling out everyone's hidden strength in a dire situation. It's pretty evident throughout the series that the characters are able to confront themselves and each other on the field through their plays (even in casual/friendly matches like this one), but this movie just had none of that, ultimately completely removing any emotional interest I had in the match.
On a more positive note, at least the music doesn't miss. The OST is what you'd expect from a piece of Inazuma Eleven media. The theme songs are recycled which is excusable because they are certified bangers, and ending theme is Seishun Oden (from the original series) sung by the Inazuma Eleven Go girls which is cute.
Overall, I think it is the rushing that really kills the entire movie. It killed the character writing and interactions. It killed the flow of the match so much so that Teikoku scoring 20 goals against Raimon felt better choreographed. It killed any real emotional investment that could've been there (i.e. playing against your friends, strategizing against their specific abilities, etc). It killed my dreams about seeing a friendly between these beloved characters. It just doesn't feel like a classic Inazuma Eleven match.
I really do think that there is so much potential with this concept, from unique combination hissatsu techniques to different character interactions, so this movie is just a huge waste of potential, and honestly that makes it feel even worse. I wasn't expecting it to be a revolutionary piece of Inazuma Eleven media, but it didn't even meet the bare minimum requirements; it quite literally failed at being fanservice. Give it a go if you are desperate for more content of these characters, but I genuinely think if you watched a compilation on Youtube of all the hissatsu techniques in the match it would essentially have the same effect.
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