BLUE LOCK

Blue Lock is an insane sports fiction about the best high school football prospects in Japan battling it out in a squid game-inspired tournament to become Japan's number 1 striker. We are introduced to our main character Isagi who despite lacking the physical athletic talents more than makes up for it with his genius football IQ. A nuanced story ensues tackling many questions about what it takes to become the perfect striker or what that even means.

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In this review, I want to focus on the more philosophical aspects of this anime other than its surface-level sports action flare. Yes, the sports action in this anime is wildly entertaining. Each character has their own unique flare and style that makes each battle seem way more intense than realistically possible in real life. This is totally a great example of an anime using its medium to its fullest extent unbound from the shackles of realism and believability. Metaphorical depictions of each character's abilities are beautifully animated and accompanied by creative and effective cinematography. And the writing of its characters and their motivations I believe is adequate for me as a viewer to get engaged into its story.

But what I believe is most compelling for Blue Lock is how it questions what it means to be the perfect striker. Jinpachi Ego the defacto narrator of the Anime proposes that the greatest quality of a perfect striker is his ego and individuality. He backs up his argument stating that Japan is a country with a culture of conformity and order where its people are used to a set of rules and roles to follow. This is why in baseball where each role is meticulously defined Japan is able to perform well whereas in a sport like football where roles are more nuanced and flexible they suffer. It is Jinpachi Ego's belief that in a sport like football, the striker bears the greatest responsibility to decide the match and they need to have the ego, or in other words, the confidence to be able to deliver their responsibility: to score the goal.

The series then proceeds to explore what this means and initially, it presents itself as a completely failed ideology and understanding of the game as Isagi's team Z all presents themselves with the selfish ego to score the goal resulting in a chaotic mess void of teamwork which is capitalized on by the opposing Team X. From that early episode alone it seems that Jinpachi's philosophy of the selfish egotistical player has failed in the light of a mediocre team employing minimal teamwork destroying a team that has none. Or has he? remember his philosophy for a player having an egotistical mindset only applies to the striker whom Team X represents; Barou the only true striker on his team being fed the ball by everyone completely 'proving' Jinpachi's philosophy.

So it's settled then, Jinpachi's philosophy about the egotistical striker is proven; all a team needs is a selfish egotistical striker with backup and they can win everything. Not necessarily as there is definitely more nuance than that as the series progresses. Barou the initial shining beacon of the examplar striker according to Jinpachi's philosophy despite an early depiction of superiority fell short in the latter part of the series solely relying on this so-called 'ego'. Even in the first match where he crushed Isagi's team Z, he was not the one that scored every goal; when the entire team focused on him and did not give him any chance to score, even he knew his limits and actually passed the ball to his teammates to score. And here I believe truly shows the actual argument about Jinpachi's philosophy of the perfect striker regarding ego.

I think what many people associate with the word 'ego' is in a negative light; the idea of being egotistical is one of an arrogant person who always insists on being in the right and looking down on others. But in actuality, the strict definition of ego is just a person's belief in one's self-importance. A person who believes he is a failure has the same ego as a person who believes he is a success. Ego is just a measurement of one person's confidence in their abilities. And ego is not necessarily always a negative trait. A doctor without an ego will hesitate to save a life, a soldier without an ego will hesitate to go on the battlefield, and even a baker without an ego will hesitate to make bread. You get the idea. And here our protagonist is the exemplar character that shows us the difference between ego and arrogance.

Isagi Yoichi is one of the strikers who is enlisted in the Blue Lock program to battle for the spot to be the best striker. His rating was one of the weakest in the entire roster of participants. We are introduced to him as a striker who hesitated for a moment in an important match which cost him the game. And initially, Isagi does not come across as a person you would describe as egotistical. He knows his limits, he does not really stand out and he tries to read the entire game and his opponents rather than relying on his own individual abilities. But remember, there is a difference between ego and arrogance, and just because a person recognizes their flaws does not mean that person is not an egotistical person as the ego is strictly a measurement of a person's self-importance positive or not. This makes Isagi in some sense ironically the purest egoist as he has an accurate and pure measurement of his self-importance. He knows his weakness, he knows his strengths, and most terrifying of all he knows his opponents as well. This is why later in the series he becomes a more terrifying contender in the Blue Lock program. His grasp on his ego making him aware of his full potential is impressive on its own but it also extends towards understanding his opponents and the field itself. In essence, he is a striker with the vision and football IQ of a midfielder which I believe is no coincidence that his Jersey is 11 most likely a nod and reference to one of the greatest midfielders of all time Mesut Ozil.

But of course, Isagi is not the only one who tapped into the purest grasp on his ego and reached his full potential. Many other characters throughout the series also learned to separate arrogance from ego and greatly improved their game as well. Some fully realized the potential of their dribbling and for some their physicality, passing, shot-making, etc. Which highlights the true meaning of Jinpachi's philosophy of the egotistical striker. A striker who knows without hubris how to get the job done without hesitation. A striker's job in football is to score goals, and it takes a true egoist to realize that role without hesitation. And of course, an egotistical realist and not an arrogant delusionist. An important quality to have in a sport like football where roles are vague; if everyone lacks the resolve to score and keeps passing the ball around, who is going to score? How is the team going to score points?

And thus ends my ramblings about the philosophy in some whacky squid game-style football competition. It is important to note that by no means this anime is a testament to the true nature of football or being a striker and I am in any way trying to justify this Anime being a conduit of truth toward what true football is. I myself believe the most important position in football is the goalkeeper. This is just a fun analysis on what the author could be trying to express about the game of football through this incredible anime. And through all the bombastic Shonen style sports action this anime provided, I personally think it gave some thought provoking ideas as well. An overall fun anime that seems to say a lot as well.