News culture Blue Lock Episode Nagi: I saw the movie and experienced all the emotions! This is a clever episode before season 2, but I must warn you…
At the moment we are in the middle of the European Football Championship and we have swapped the matches of the national teams qualified for the competition to dive back into the adaptation of the manga Blue Lock. To keep anime fans waiting, the animation studio 8-Bit has put together a film focused on the character of Nagi a few months before the second season. I saw it in preview a few days ago and I’m telling you about it!
In October 2022, the Crunchyroll platform launched the first season of the anime Blue Castle. In the 24 episodes of the first season, we followed the journey of Yoichi Isagi, one of the promising football players who received his ticket to the “Blue Lock” project. His journey, full of pitfalls, enabled him to meet Seishirō Nagianother player who quickly found favor in the eyes of manga and anime fans and who plays a central role in this new film. Today we are a few weeks before the broadcast of the second seasonwhich is scheduled to begin on October 5th and will last for… 14 episodes! To warm up, fans are getting ready to rediscover the story and journey of number 11, Seishirō Nagi, starting July 3rd. Is this just a summary? A film full of new scenes? Should we put on our crampons and sprint to the cinema as fast as Chigiri to see it? Below I share my impressions with you!
©Muneyuki Kaneshiro, Kota Sannomiya, Yusuke Nomura, KODANSHA/BLUE LOCK MOVIE Production Committee
Blue Lock Episode Nagi, a film full of emotions that allows us to better understand the character
As I said, I had the opportunity to watch the film in advance Blue Castle: Episode Nagi which, as the name suggests, allows us to rediscover the events of the first season from a completely different perspective, that of Seishirō Nagi. On paper, it’s a good idea, especially because the character Nagi was one of the most mysterious and enigmatic and I wanted to know what was hidden behind the exterior of this football genius. To be honest, I was not disappointed in this regard, although I would like to make a few comments on this topic.. In the style of a film of about 80 minutes, which is like a collection of episodes in four storylines (the past of Nagi and Mikage Reo, the arrival and the first phases of the Blue Lock, the group phases and the match against Isagi’s Z team) and finally the second phase of selection with the teams that are expanded by one player for each match won. Blue Castle: Episode Nagi brings to life and relives both new and iconic moments from the first season.
In reality, we understand quite quickly that we are actually facing a recapitulation episode and I wish we had taken more time to explore Reo and Nagi’s past together in high school to experience more of their first games together before they were selected for the Blue Lock program. If I have anything to say about that, I found what I was looking for, for the most part, thanks to the portrait of Nagi that the film draws for us in its 80 minutes. Even though we discover it in the middle of the first season of Blue CastleWe understand that Nagi is a lazy person. In fact, he has neither a special dream nor a burning passion for football, but for some reason he likes spending time with Reo. Through this episode, It is their entire relationship that we believe is evolving and we also imagine how, deep down, Nagi gradually gives up his lazy hat to change his state of mind through contact with Reo, the competition and, above all, the other Blue Lock players, especially Isagi.
©Muneyuki Kaneshiro, Kota Sannomiya, Yusuke Nomura, KODANSHA/BLUE LOCK MOVIE Production Committee
We therefore see how he gradually puts aside his childish side – sometimes you have to motivate him by giving him a carrot, like getting his phone back – and asks himself what he is experiencing and feeling. And I think it’s a good idea to give the film more depth in all this excess energy and tension associated with the issues Blue Castle. Casually, this Nagi episode made me experience all emotions Because if the values of the Blue Lock advocate egoism and tend to forge the only best goalscorer in the world, it is also the place of the greatest friendship stories of Bromances which (often) drive us into the bowels! I have witnessed the ups and downs of the Nagi/Reo duo and do not despair of seeing them united like they were in the beginningespecially as their relationship becomes increasingly consistent with that of Isagi and Bachira. It is also thanks to this that the film is so euphoric and heartbreaking at the same time, giving us a pleasant time.
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A summary that is wiser than it seems, even if it will make you shudder…
Well, on the other hand, we’ll be honest and play devil’s advocate, but we understood that the studio’s strategy behind the anime was to sell us a recap of the first season a few weeks before the second season started. Surely, Blue Lock: Nagi Episode is a film in recap format that is smarter than it seems, but it risks upsetting fans who may have expected a different twist or a new plot to better deepen Nagi’s character. At this rate, the studio can sell us many different iterations – perhaps a version about Itoshi Rin? – to keep us waiting between each season… Anyway, refreshing my memory with this kind of episode only increased my desire to be back Blue Castleespecially to discover the next episodes. In this respect, the film ends with a nice little surprise, namely two post-credits scenes that, in my opinion, will leave you dying of impatience until October 5th.
©Muneyuki Kaneshiro, Kota Sannomiya, Yusuke Nomura, KODANSHA/BLUE LOCK MOVIE Production Committee
As I have already explained, you will not only learn a little more about Nagi’s personality, but In his presence, we also relive the crucial moments of the first season : the dodgeball test at the beginning, but above all the epic match between Team V and Team Z, where we can see Isagi and his teammates shine thanks to their respective talents, as well as Nagi, who increases his potential tenfold against his new rival/ friend and reacts to the outcome of this match by learning more about him and his personality. At a fairly fast pace, the film takes us through the crucial phases of Blue Castle and Simply going through certain plot twists or witnessing the crazy actions that characterized the first season electrified meand the soundtrack that accompanied these moments made it even more unforgettable.
©Muneyuki Kaneshiro, Kota Sannomiya, Yusuke Nomura, KODANSHA/BLUE LOCK MOVIE Production Committee
It is true that some prefer Ao Ashi has Blue Castlebut it must be acknowledged that the adaptation of the manga by Kaneshiro Muneyuki and Nomura Yusuke manages to bring an epic wind to sports anime and football, so much so that I feel its place among the most popular sports manga adaptations is not overused. Ultimately, if you want to dive back in Blue Castle before season 2 and learn a little more about Nagi, it’s a very nice yes, but for those who expect something different, it risks getting stuck because watching it is not essential even if we have a good time.
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