The Blue Lock anime is so much more than just a squid soccer game

One of the best aspects of sports anime is that an interest in actual sports is never required. This is especially true with Blue Castle, An anime that puts such an offbeat twist on soccer that it makes the practically overpowered athletics of Kuroko’s basketball look grounded. An adaptation by Muneyuki Kaneshiro and Yusuke Nomuras Award-winning manga, Blue Castle dares to ask the question, “What if being an asshole is the real key to success?”

After Japan’s national team fails again at the World Cup, the soccer union hires the deranged Jinpachi Ego to do whatever it takes to ensure the team wins everything at the next tournament. Ego diagnoses Japan’s problem as too much teamwork; They lack the self-absorbed striker they need to make the self-serving and dangerous plays showcased by top players like Pele, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Ego’s solution? Recruit the best high school strikers in the country to take part in one Squid Game-similar training program called Blue Lock. The Cutthroat Contest sees 300 players compete in individual and team competitions. But they’re not fighting for their lives, they’re fighting for their careers: the top five players play as forwards for the U20 team at the World Cup, but anyone who loses at Blue Lock will be banned from ever playing for team Japan. For these young strikers, it might as well mean death, and they treat Blue Lock as seriously as if it were.

Image: Eight Bit/Crunchyroll

The show does an excellent job of fleshing out its ensemble of characters and spinning through spotlight episodes that reveal their past experiences and how they color their movement through the competition. But at the heart of the story is Yoichi Isagi, one of the lowest ranked players who is haunted by the decision to fold rather than shoot in his last game before joining the program. At Blue Lock, Isagi is determined to move beyond that version of himself and develop the ego it takes to become the best forward in the world.

Although the foundation of the Blue Lock program encourages selfishness, football is a team sport, forcing participants to find ways to work together while putting their personal desires first. These needs are in constant conflict with each other, and this friction only increases as the bonds between Isagi and the other players deepen. In fact, in Blue Lock, Isagi can only find his step thanks to the kindness of Bachira, an excellent dribbler assigned to the same team. Bachira isn’t like Isagi – confident where Isagi is insecure, crazy where Isagi is serious, and relaxed where Isagi is endlessly nervous. But Bachira sees something in Isagi and helps unlock his unique power.

All in Blue Castle has a “weapon” that they must sharpen if they want to reach the top. Once each player has discovered their weapon – be it dribbling, speed, or in Isagi’s case, spatial awareness – they must figure out their perfect scoring formula and create a “chemical reaction” with their teammates to take full advantage of their weapons. The show regularly interrupts the plot to explore this intricate problem-solving, often featuring jigsaw puzzle pieces fitting together to create a portrait of Isagi’s calculating mind. You know a player has found a formula for success when they awaken the monster within, a leveling exemplified by the character’s spiraling pupils and the power visibly emanating from their body – sometimes even taking the form of a looming beast.

Image: Eight Bit/Crunchyroll

This visualization of a character’s inner world is not only a vehicle for dynamic animation, but turns out to be the key to it Blue Castle‘s story. To win in Blue Lock, you don’t just defeat your opponents, you “devour” them – using their weapons to your advantage or even stealing them for yourself. But that’s not as simple as getting faster, stronger, or more accurate. A player can only reach the next level by gaining a deeper understanding of themselves.

Throughout the season, Isagi struggles with insecurities and a fear of putting his own needs first. But he understands that if he can’t see what’s holding him back – physically, mentally and emotionally, he’ll never survive Blue Lock. Through Isagi’s journey of self-realization, he begins to thrive – unleashing a ruthlessness he had previously repressed, but also reshaping his identity to fit ego’s mold.

There’s an irresistible tension in there Blue Castle between the belief that in order to be successful you have to surrender fully to your ego and whether success is worth it without indulgence. In classic sports anime like Kuroko’s basketball, the young hero isn’t the most talented player, but he defeats the acclaimed Generation of Miracles thanks to his prioritization of teamwork and love of the game. By the end of this series, even the callously individualistic Generation of Wonders realizes that Kuroko was right all along: Being the best means nothing without a love of basketball and the support of your team.

Image: Eight Bit/Crunchyroll

In this way, Blue Castle subverts expectations of sports anime, with the premise based on the belief that one should realize one’s potential at the expense of others. It’s a concept Isagi and others find difficult to come to terms with, as the self-serving urge to push one’s limits alongside the appreciation of friendships or teamwork becomes increasingly difficult. Even as Isagi, Bachira, and the others work hard in hopes of reaching the end together, they understand the inevitable: at some point, they must not only kill each other’s dreams, but also turn their friends into fuel to fuel their own ascent. The question of who each player will have become at the end of this journey – and the cost of this transformation – is where the true stakes of the show lie.

It’s these moral dilemmas and the characters’ bittersweet metamorphoses that drive an emotional investment in this world. But the show also rules. Every aspect of Blue Castle is cranked up to 11. The animation gets harsh; The kids go harder. This isn’t just about a bunch of young footballers chasing a career. About 300 high school students try to crush each other’s dreams while trapped in a pentagonal facility as part of an immoral experiment sponsored by the Japanese government! They play traditional football games, of course. But they must also defeat the hologram goalie, Blue lock manwho is able to deflect balls using advanced microchip technology and survives a high stakes tag game where your best friend could kick a ball in your face at full speed in hopes of fulfilling your only ambition in life kill.

There’s a reason Michael B. Jordan called Blue Castle “Fucking goofy.” And with the entire first season now streaming on Crunchyroll, there’s never been a better time to discover that truth for yourself.