Summary
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The second half of themost anticipated matchinBlue Lockhistory begins. The moment many fans have been waiting for is finally here, and Shidou joins the U-20 team to continue the game and show his devilish dominance on the field.
Blue Lockwas not able to fully unleash or tame the devil, but with the born genius Itoshi Sae on his side and ready to let him set loose on the field, can he turn the tide in U-20’s favor, or are they destined to lose? We have yet to truly witness the chaos he is about to unleash on the field.
The Devil Going Berserk
One on 21 Match
With the second half starting, Shidou immediately mocksRin, saying this match will determine who the better player is, to which Rin responds just as sarcastically and rudely. Both players stay true to their character. With the tension between these two top players and Shidou as a forward pairing with Sae, there is no better stage for him to prove himself.
As the match continues, he takes off and disrupts the entire field. His movements are so fast and unpredictable that even his own team is put off by them. His going insane on the field was the moment many fans were eager to see the devil let loose onto the field.
Visualize The Ultimate Goal
The Best Chemical Reaction
Going on the extreme offense, Shidoumoves forward using Sendou as bait, with him being okay with it as long as they win; Shidou shows his skills and moves forward as an aggressive beast, only to be barely stopped by Niko at the cost of injuring himself and getting a yellow card as well. This shows us that Shidou can easily dominate any player on the field if left unchecked.
Getting high on brain juice - Shidou Ryusei after scoring
Getting a free kick, Sae decides to let Shidou take the free kick and tells him to envision a goal that is both possible but exceeds expectations and that he just needs to make the play, and Sae will follow his lead. Faking a direct shoot,Shidou passes it to Sae, who then shoots an insane pass to Shidou, which even Chigiri at max speed could not intercept, and Shidou scores, which might arguably be the most insane goal we have seen in the series so far, tying the score to 2-2.
Time For A Change
Defenders Substitution
Due to running at max speed multiple times during the match, Chigiri exhausted himself and injured himself as well. With Niko also injured, Ego realizes it is time to change their formation and switches them with Reo and Hiori. Ego tells Reo that his whole purpose in the match is to focus on Shidou and use his copying skills to copy their best defensive skills and stop him from scoring.
Seeing Nagi and Reo interact on the field again, standing next to each other, neck by neck, was a heartwarming moment. Their friendship/rivalry has been the most intriguing one throughout the series. Nagi also tells Reo that he isn’t surprised because he knew Reo would eventually join the team.
Animation Quality Slightly Improved
Or Do We Have Our Expectations Lowered
The match continues, with Isagi pointing out that, so far, their entire goal has been to continue moving forward. However, with Hiori joining the fray, their game plan changes to creating space where it was not possible before. Hiori showcasing his weapon might be one of the coolest moments ever, quite literally and figuratively. His hairpin weapon animation reminds us of another beloved character fromDemon Slayer, Akaza, and his Blood Demon Art, which is probably why it looked so amazing.
Hiori creates an amazing space and makes a pass that might not have been possible for anyone else. With that, Blue Lock XI goes on the offensive, and ultimately, it comes down to Isagi to score, but he is stopped by Aiku once again. We are seeing a pattern at this point, butIsagi is the MC, so it’s only a matter of time before he breaks this cycle.
Hey lil burglar. I’m here to put a collar on you - Oliver Aiku
The Chameleon Emerges
Chameleon Defense, Stopping Shidou
Clearing the ball, U-20 counterattacks, and Sae gets the ball and passes it to Shidou. That is where Reo comes into play, and we see yet another exceptionally incredible moment whenReo copies Aiku’s defensive weapon, tackles the ball, and clears it out. Reo is perhaps one of the most underrated characters; the ability to copy any skill with 99% precision? That is just broken, and it would be great to see him play a more significant role in the remaining match.
Although the talk about production and animation quality regarding season 2 will never stop, and putting that aside, they did do justice to many scenes in this episode; both the defensive animations and Shidou’s scoring had good drawing, and there were some good animation scenes in the episode, such as Chigiri’s max speed sequence and Shidou faking out a pass and running towards his ideal position to score, which were done exceptionally well. Still, there’s always more to be desired,with the last two episodes coming out together; let’s hope that’s where they truly shine and leave us speechless.
Blue Lock
Cast
Based on Muneyuki Kaneshiro’s soccer manga, Blue Lock revolves around a program to develop a world-class Japanese striker. Just about qualifying, Isagi has to face off against the nation’s best young talents and survive selections, while constantly growing as a player.
