Ashito Aoi is a young, aspiring soccer player from a backwater town in Japan. His hopes of getting
into a high school with a good soccer club are dashed when he causes an incident during a critical
match for his team, which results in their loss and elimination from the tournament. Nevertheless, he
catches the eye of someone important who happened to be visiting from Tokyo. How will things turn out
for Ashito?
(Source: Shogakukan Asia)
I like Ao Ashi. What I like about Ao Ashi is the emphasis that in the world of football, not everyone is instantly a top star football player who only plays in the frontline like Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo. In the world of football, a team consisting of multiple talented players in different positions is what makes different players stand out and valuable in the eyes of many football enthusiasts. When a show like Ao Ashi breaks this false perception in the established norm media, it’s a welcoming thing to see because that means a show like Ao Ashi can explore other aspects of football other than the conventional route. Ao Ashi begins like any other sports series: A high schooler who’s passionate about the sport he plays and strives to be the best at the sport in the hopes of going professional. Aoi Ashito is, by all means, presented to be the usual run-of-the-mill shounen sports series’ protagonist. A character who embodies all of the positive traits there can be. Thankfully, however, the series does break him down and allows him to go through transition phases and progression while maintaining the said traits. What differentiates Ao Ashi from other sports anime alike is the approach in which this is done. The show is very much grounded in reality. It doesn’t have the over-the-top edginess shenanigans to it like many other shounen sports series out there. This then in turn allows Aoi Ashito’s eventual growth as a player and as a person to feel authentic to the viewers. In earlier episodes, besides the struggle in understanding his own capabilities as a football player, Ashito’s also weighed in by the burden he has on his mother and brother. The series emphasizes the importance of his family and how much they have sacrificed for his dreams. Ashito as a player and person is very much molded by his family’s influences. This is why he feels that if he doesn’t succeed in his dreams, it would be a waste of his family’s hard-earned money, time, and devotion to him. This level of investment that the series has for a part of Ashito’s motivation as a character is humbling to me. Because of the series' strong emphasis on this part of him, we can see why he acts the way he does and the drive he has for his passion. It’s this understanding that makes him much more nuanced than what it may appear on the surface. And the series isn’t afraid of reminding Ashito and the viewers about his upbringing from time to time, which is crucial to the journey that Ashito continues to undergo as a football player. This anime develops Ashito and then immediately breaks him down. Similar to Ace of Diamond, Ashito in this series goes through transition phases and that’s how the development of his character comes into play. Throughout the first half of Ao Ashi, we see how Ashito grows comfortable in his position and play style. He’s very forward-minded. All he ever wants to do on the field is to play the striker positions and score goals—a very typical depiction of main leads in football-related media. He wants to become the best of the best solely in that position and when he’s stripped of that position, he’s left distraught and breaks down. Ashito felt as if his soul was ripped from him because scoring goals and playing the forward position was all he ever conditioned himself to do. This further exacerbated his mentality when his friends and family in the past also encouraged him in his so-desired playing style. But changing his desired position also paved a way for a new perspective. Football is a team sport, which is why it was important for Ashito to finally grasp this concept. It’s part of his character development in the series. This also initiated a much-needed contemplation on his part. Upon reflecting on his past, Ashito realized he was selfish and naive before he entered the academy, and after he entered the academy. He realized he never understood what football was despite being his passion. He felt guilty for blindingly indulging in his friends and family’s trust and praises in him for all those years that he preached about becoming a renowned footballer. By playing in a fullback defender position, Aoi Ashito not only learned the lessons that were needed but also about himself—what defines him as a footballer and his abilities. Ao Ashi as a sports anime presents things on a more microscopic level for viewers to understand. Ao Ashi’s majority of the episodes consist of demonstrating the sport on the side of tactical and strategic plays. But it’s largely presented through the eyes of Ashito as he’s the playmaker on the field. This also inevitably leads him to be a “protagonist” who lacks the fundamental knowledge of football even though he was recruited to a supposed prestigious football academy in Japan. Thus when watching the earlier episodes of the series, the pacing can feel really slow even though it’s decently paced given the amount of content from the original source material that was cut in the sacrifice of time. One can argue the quality of the series in this sense. Ao Ashi is very much on the side of presenting strategies, tactics, and how a game of football is played in different scenarios depending on each team’s approaches and the subtle tactical maneuverings on the field. In doing so, not only the pacing is slow, but it’s also at the risk of losing viewers’ attention if the emphasis on the tactical plays doesn’t interest them. For that, it’s up to each individual’s perception. But to me, this aspect of the series adds a great level of depth and it’s meant to be appreciated as there’s a level of enjoyment it holds. The second major setback to Ao Ashi during the earlier episodes is that of animation–or lack thereof. What consists of the fluid animation is not of football matches or character movements, but of slide-show. The directing was subpar to the like of other Production I.G’s sports series. This inevitably adds to the detriment of some viewers' enjoyment. However, evidently, much of that is gone by the second half of the series. The newfound directing and animation reinvigorated Ao Ashi in my eyes. This is also compelled by the fact that the plot was solely focused on moving forward from its trial arc. Much of Ao Ashi lies in the foundations of football. The ways in which some parts are presented aren’t something to be awed over as it does subsume to the wider anime tropes in some aspects. The characters are much of that case. And I can’t say that I’m fond of it. But it does its job given the writing of these characters is true and down to earth—one other thing that keeps the series from indulging into the edgy territory. In the end, the strong suits in Ao Ashi also compensate for it, which makes it more appealing in my eyes. All in all, I really do recommend Ao Ashi. It is something of its own and it does hold its own integrity to the likes of Haikyu and Ace of Diamond.
img(https://animespoil.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/is-sports-anime-ao-ashi-season-1-coming-to-netflix-1.jpg) Sports anime might be fundamentally similar to each other, but the writing and deliverance can differ a lot. Ao Ashi creates a world full of lessons and hardships, in both football and life. And like most sports anime, it doesn’t matter if you’re a fan of football to appreciate it. The characters are there, the build-up is there, and the emotions are there too, like in any other good anime. The main purpose of this review is to express how well Ao Ashi excels in certain things compared to other sports anime, what it lacks compared to them, and how good it really is overall. The protagonist lives in Ehime, a prefecture of Japan that is located on an island and is not famous for its football players. Ashito, who is at a young age, is the best player in his school and is very passionate about football. He decides to try his luck and moves alone to Tokyo, to enter the football powerhouse called Esperion. What I love about Ao Ashi here is how well it portrays the hardships the athlete, their family and friends must struggle with, and how the athlete has to sacrifice everything and leave it all behind, focusing on a single thing – which is football, in our case. There is bittersweet drama and decent character writing. Other than that, there is the test Ashito must face as an outsider, the bullying, the rivalries, and the unsportsmanlike conduct of other players. While on the same time, he works hard, he progresses, and he makes friends and acquaintances. img(https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2022/09/f21cb-16626050507200-1920.jpg) Another point to be made about why Ao Ashi is such a good sports anime is the on-point portrayal of different behaviours inside the football world (coaches, players, managers, nutritionists, etc.) and how everyone plays their own role in the greater image. How Ashito, who wants to improve, will have to face other people who care solely for their own benefit. This is sometimes shown in a harsh way, but at the same time, there are beautiful moments of team spirit and emotions. After all, we are not alone, and we need the strength and faith of people who care about us; this is something else Ao Ashi does well. But the most praiseworthy thing Ao Ashi succeeds in delivering is the difficulty of the sport. Most sports anime take their sports lightly and do not emphasize techniques and serious ways to improve, aside from team spirit and hard work. In Ao Ashi, we know how it is physically exhausting, mentally tiring, and may ruin both your body and psychology. How many techniques have to be taught, how much the athlete must do inside and outside the court, how he has to take care of himself and what huge an emotional capacity is needed. And at the same time, how the trainers can use you for their own benefit without caring about your opinions, and how your teammates can sabotage you or not care about you. As far as character writing is concerned, the most common problem Ao Ashi watchers face is Ashito’s personality. I agree that his behaviour might be annoying at times, but let’s not forget that he’s an immature, ambitious 15-year-old. He is realistic and I hope to see development in his personality in the next seasons; I think it is hinted that there will be. The protagonist matures little by little and views differently his friends, his love interests and even football as a sport. What about the side characters, though? Like I said before, we get to know all different perspectives and behaviours. The main and side casts are detailed, and everyone has a story to support and a dream to pursue. So, whether it is about the matches or the characters, it is not easy to get bored watching Ao Ashi. There is always something interesting going on, and development is always there. img(https://www.moviesrulz.info/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Hana-holds-phone-for-Ashito.jpg) Now, it is worth mentioning that Ao Ashi’s animation is plain and simple, and people who care about flashy animation and non-stop motion often complain about it. To me, the colourful art and the good character designs are enough to make Ao Ashi good visually and aesthetically, so I think there is absolutely no problem with the animation not being fabulous. In addition, the soundtrack is great and creates the perfect atmosphere. OST aside, the opening and ending songs are usually great. The opening sung by Alexandros in the first half is one of the best sports anime openings I have ever heard, since it fits the show’s vibes and radiates a feeling of “hype”. Sadly, the second opening song is not as good, but some people like it due to its good animation… while both ending songs are perfect for closing the episodes. img(https://lostinanime.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Ao-Ashi-13-01.jpg) Finally, I would like to mention the original voice-acting cast. It does not feature the most famous names in the industry, but it gives chances to younger voice actors. I do not think the choices were not well-thought though, because the result is positive and I consider the cast great as a whole. Katou Wataru, Yashiro Taku, Oosozu Kouki are all names that could be frequently included in the most-awaited anime in the future. So, what is it that Ao Ashi lacks? As you can understand, since it focuses on a technical and psychological viewpoint this much, some other things are expected to be missing. The first comparison that comes to my mind is with Haikyuu: in the latter, the character dynamics and development during the matches feel stronger, in both main and opponent teams. This is because of the focus on teamwork and the classic “nakama power” that shounen anime tend to show. On the other hand, there are also some scenes where a certain event has occurred before, or a certain technique has been explained to Ashito, and suddenly everyone starts talking about it in the matches – a kind of plot convenience to help the watcher learn more about the sport and see progress. img(https://geekyanime.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/AO-ashi-featured-image.jpg) To sum up, to me, Ao Ashi’s pros outnumber its cons and are very interesting, so I consider Ao Ashi a “top tier” sports anime in its own way. It is very different from other sports anime in aspects I have mentioned above, but that’s what makes it worth watching. In the end, it is all a matter of taste and aesthetics, so it is up to the watcher to decide if Ao Ashi is interesting or not – but what it does in terms of writing, it does more than well.
~~~Oooh Boooiiii... Just give me season 2 already pls..~~~ Well I may be a bit biased coz I'm just a sucker for sports anime... and now you feed me an actual good football anime (and yes its football your american game where you barely kick the ball isn't) .. I'm orgasming right now but even leaving that aside I highly recommend watching Ao Ashi. It takes the overused shounen and friendships formula and What a Surprise?!?! (sarcasm) It works yet again. But it still doesn't change that Ao Ashi is kinda unique in its own way as we take a step back from the usual high skill but no brains kind of main characters in such shows to kinda the opposite. Edit: Just a little fix thanks to my man @SplatteredCake for pointing out that the anime is actually targeted towards seinen demographic. Which does make sense how it tends to go more toward the psychological and mental side of the game and the life outside the pitch as well. But it still has many shounen tropes so i guess I'm not completely wrong in assuming it was that :P. Ashito (our main character) is an aspiring football lover from the kinda country side. At first he comes across as the standard main character who is a total idiot but his high skills make him shine. But our eyes are not as sharp as the random drunk looking guy who finds something unique. Turns out he is the head coach of a J League football team and luckily had scouted a diamond in the rough. Ofcourse small town boy Ashito had never thought of playing at world level but on attending the youth trials something lit inside him. He recognised how much he's yet to learn and here begins his journey to the top. Now you'd ask D4nk... whats so great about it? it sounds like every other shounen sports anime. Well what changes is after it. Usually you see that the characters are skillfully a par above but what they lack is the mental side of the game. Ashito is quite the opposite. He wants to be a star striker he wants to score all goals but that is not where his strength lies. Where he shines is thinking outside the box. Imagine what if you could look at the game from a spectators perspective. You could all the holes in the defence.... all the passing lanes... all you players who you could've passed to. Ashito is able to do that subconsciously. And after Fukuda (The J league Coach) recognises it he forces Ashito to play a deeper position (Left Wing Back). Well from a football perspective its hard to see Left Wing back to be the best position for him considering he's a nimble player with short height so I'd say he should play left midfielder kinda like Eden Hazard did for Chelsea or atleast a CAM or like Anri Suggest in the anime but I digress. The reason they give tho does kinda make sense(though not the most but its anime after all) that from way behind he has more vision of the field and hence his eagle eye(crow in the anime.. What with these Haikyuu easter eggs) power is levelled up. But ofcourse converting a striker to a defender has its own demerits and Ashito has to basically reinvent himself completely (against his will) to adapt. And even tho he didn't like it at first he soon realises is that what is loves isnt just scoring goals.. but to be the General on the pitch.. to control the game from the back .. with his pin point long balls and through passes... with his ability to read the game... and move the pawns on this giant chessboard. And that what really seperates or more likely i hope that will seperate Ao Ashi from the other great shounen anime like Haikyuu, Diamond no Ace, etc (I feel the later is more similar to Ao Ashi). It's that it kinda delves more into the thinking side of the game while still somehow maintaining the shounen aspects that makes this show a much more interesting watch for me atleast. The strategies and the terms used are very basic for now but i hope they delve more into the advanced workings on the game in the future. I cant wait to see how Ashito breaks apart different kinds of setups that other teams throw at him. ~! Edit #2: Another thing to point out is how in the episodes involving the final game we see Kuroda who plays midfield role decides to drop behind between the centre backs to help them out and the show just leaves it here.. but if you're a football fan you understand how it even lets Aoi function more as a playmaker from the left wing back role allowing him to have more freedom up the pitch since he has Kuroda behind to cover for him. Just a nice little detail I found which shows that the author has done his fair share of researching the game but also excites me to see what else will be able to see in the future. !~ But even apart from the technical side the anime does everything well. The shounen aspect of it is well executed. The characters are likable and seeing them grow is entertaining. We also have few sparks of a love triangle flying around. His and Hana's relationship is very cute to watch.. kinda reminds me of Goro and Kaoru from Major. The artsyle does suit the anime of this kind vey well and the Music i dont even know... I was so invested in every episode that I could barely notice anything. So i guess we can say that it was really good coz it never took me out of it. Though one criticism so far would be that we really haven't seen Ashito suffer that much so far. Though its kinda rude to ask them to show so much in just 24 episodes. I really wanna see the parts where he's stuck in a rut for several episodes and how he's able to come out of it. That was something i really enjoyed in something like Diamond no Ace where he literally goes like 10-12 episodes i think.. trying to come out of his mental trench and that makes the whole setting more believable. In the end I'd definately say that give Ao Ashi a try, even if you don't like football or sports anime it is something that I think most shounen fans will end up enjoying. I though will be biased and give it maybe a higher score than it deserves but fuck it. Reviewing doesn't need to be strict to the standards set by the industry but a run through of why you enjoyed the show and present them to fellow people who might think in a similar way. So if my word dump above interested you enough to watch the show... definitely go watch it. I love Football and I loved this anime. **GGMU I hope we also get someone like Ashito soon... Oh God please its been so long suffering let us be champs again soon.
_“To the ones who end up passing, we’ll be counting on you in the future. To the ones who end up failing, turn that failure into strength needed to become a big player, and best everyone around you. Win, and prove us wrong. We, who failed to see how strong you would become, and then return.”_ [FUKUDA, Tatsuya. Ao Ashi] In advance, I apologize to you, reader. This review is definitely huge, even by my wordy standards. However, I ask that you trust me and read until the end. There are some minor spoilers too. I believe you will not regret it. It was May 2021. There I was, innocently wandering the corners of MyAnimeList, when my eyes fell on a piece of news. Ao Ashi, a seinen football manga, had received an announcement of an anime adaptation for 2022. Until then unknown to me, the synopsis of the work and the combination of genres aroused a mix of feelings when I read it for the first time, and, whether for quality expectation or not, Ao Ashi became one of my most anticipated shows for the following year. I'm Brazilian. Of course, given my nationality, it's to be expected that I have cultural differences from the majority of the community on this site, mainly because there are a lot of people from North America. And one of these differences may be how football is present in our daily lives. Like countries like England and Germany, we Brazilians are victims of an immeasurable passion for football and this sport is ingrained in our culture, just as basketball is popular for Americans. But anyway, why am I writing this? For the same reason as the previous paragraph: justify my expectations. If you are a reader from another country, perhaps the beginning of this review is not so relatable. However, if you are my countryman, it is very likely that the Inazuma Eleven anime is very familiar to you. Ah, childhood... I remember coming home every day, exhausted from school, and turning on the television to watch the nostalgic football anime that was one of my first. Every day, I got emotional watching public television and frantically cheering for Endou Mamoru and his teammates. Several young people in my country did the same. Combining the dubbing with the perfect audience that would see a cultural resonance, Inazuma Eleven became extremely popular in my country. Time passed, those good memories remained, and Inazuma Eleven, even though it is a work very much aimed at children, full of plot armor and nakama power, still resides in my nostalgic memories. Ao Ashi was a hope. Years after watching (and re-watching) Inazuma Eleven, it was the first soccer anime that appeared before my eyes. When I heard about its adaptation, the first thing that came to my mind was hoping that Production I.G. was the studio in charge. A renowned studio, among the most capable in the entire industry and responsible for successful projects such as Haikyuu!!, Kuroko no Basket, Ballroom and Youkoso and Kaze wa Tsuyoku Fuiteru. If you've ever watched any of these works, you know what their team is capable of delivering in a sports anime. And enormous was my happiness to discover that, in fact, this was the studio responsible. Six months and twenty-four episodes later, the smile is shaky on my face. The joy had turned to disappointment, and the culprit, who I could least have imagined, was the studio itself. However, before diving into the reasons why I find Ao Ashi a disappointment, I'd like to first address what made me smile while watching the work. That is to say, before dumping my criticisms against the team, I need to address the other side of the double-edged sword. Ao Ashi is the story of a career. More precisely, building a career. Like many of the industry's sports works, Ao Ashi's structure doesn't stray too far from the more orthodox formula of a dreamy protagonist in his innocent sporting ambitions, a particular talent that's unique to him within the cast, and a narrative which is scaled from there. However, the first great merit of this work, I must say, is not in the palette that the author uses, but in the extremely competent portrait that he paints using these colors. Aoi Ashito, our protagonist, is the center of the portrait. Owner of the career in question, he is definitely, by far, the best character in the entire work, and it's all due to the development and maturation that is imprinted on Aoi, both as a player and as a person. At the beginning of the work, Aoi is truly annoying to the audience. An immature young man, a symbol of individualism and a key archetype of what we see in many beginner soccer players, egocentric and fanatical about dribbling, scoring goals and making plastic plays. A cocky teenager who nurtures unshakable self-confidence, but whose talent is barely effective in the face of his ability to lose his temper and put the concept of reading a game into practice. A purely instinctive player, truly promising, but equally lacking in individual and collective tactical vision, relationship skills and judgment. The list of how we can describe Aoi's shortcomings at the beginning of the story is endless, even if we recognize his potential as a player. And Ao Ashi's portrayal is frightening at first hand for how different Ashito looks at the end of the 24 episodes. He doesn't fully mature, obviously. It would be implausible if this happened in just a few months. However, each grouping of episodes forces him into a different environment, where he is forced to find solutions on his own and add new values to his tactics and relationship. Aoi learns to bond with his teammates and accept them as teammates or even teachers. Aoi swallows his arrogance and starts to observe the tactics of other players in order to improve his own. Aoi faces the challenge of following and interpreting a coach's directions. Aoi understands the value of people who have always supported him in pursuing his career, whether it's his family or Hana, who is now by his side. Most of all, Aoi deals with the drama of not being the center of the spotlight, given his change of position and the catharsis that comes with being moved to a region of the soccer field where he doesn't want to play. When I watched the end of episode 13, I was truly surprised. Just like Shoyou Hinata had to abdicate Spiker's position in Haikyuu!! in order to be productive for the Karasuno team, Aoi gets a huge shock when he is pulled out of the forward position. While the story partially squanders that decision by returning the lead role and “shirt 10” to Aoi a few episodes later, the challenge the character is put into has a lot to tell us about what happens to many of the players around the world. Sergio Ramos, one of the greatest defenders in football history, played full-back early in his career. Joshua Kimmich, now one of Bayern Munchen's greats names, has recently migrated from right-back to midfield. And, of course, there are players who work in different tactical positions on the field, as is the case of Kevin de Bruyne, David Alaba, Lionel Messi himself and many others. This experimentation by coaches is something extremely common and routine in football, and linked to it is the observation that a good part of professional players has already faced at least one change in career position. Togashi himself, the protagonist's roommate, underwent the same radical change of position. Few of them were as drastic as what happens to Aoi, it's true, but at the core I ask you: how does the athlete deal with it? Not all aspirants are able to accept without hindrance that someone else shapes the vision they fantasized about. Ego fights and ascendancy are common in this regard, and instabilities like Aoi's are even more so. Catharsis humanizes the character, who is forced to mature and relearn football from the beginning. A heavy blow, before which Hana's concern and the presence of Aoi's mother were necessary for the protagonist to get back on track. Speaking of support, this is another factor represented in a very realistic and competent way in the work. If you, the reader, are familiar with life stories and accounts of football players, I'm sure you've already realized how important the support network is in the career of most professional players. Many of the most renowned in my country gave interviews like this. The first point they always touch on is family or someone close to them who was able to provide support when needed. Marcelo, a Real Madrid idol, quoted his grandfather several times when he told the world about the rise in his career and his aspirations. Gabriel Jesus' mother played a key role in her son's support and his success until he reached stardom, today in the Premier League. For that reason, his celebrations are always simulating the act of calling her. This is exactly why the family drama in Ao Ashi moves us. Becoming a football player is not something easy as many project and banally mock in the streets under reproduced lines of “make millions in money to chase a ball”. Pursuing this career, like all others, means giving up many things. A large portion of football players do not have complete student education, given the need to embrace the scarce opportunities that appear to them. Living football means being away from the family and letting go of the life he built previously in favor of a regulated diet, regular training and a responsibility towards the institution and his body as an athlete. At the same time, supporting your children in this career means conflicting with the desire to be close to them. That's how Aoi's mother behaves, and that's probably how the relatives of several players feel. Ashito hails from Ehime and is one of the few on the team who can't visit his family on holidays. It's a tough distance away, certainly. However, giving Aoi the necessary push to pursue her career is also a blind shot. As I mentioned earlier, turning pro in football is all about opportunities. Have you ever heard of the maxim that “in the streets, there are many more talented players than Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo”? Well, that statement makes perfect sense. If we talk about raw, uncut talent, there are probably a multitude of extremely capable people just waiting to be discovered. However, the selection of these players and the opportunity they have is not always fair. Your career only takes off if you take advantage of these opportunities, and sometimes even that doesn't happen. Football is extremely dependent. It depends on the coach who chooses to count on you, when the selection will take place and, above all, on your psychological state. Transplanting this reality to the screens, what guarantee that Aoi will succeed if his family supports him? It is certainly not a certain event. Support from your family is an investment, not a debt. Young people who risk everything in pursuit of professionalism and pursue a career sooner or later become aware of this, and this is also the genesis of the junior behavior that Togashi observes in EP20. After all, what's more worth it? Results or sports performance? Is it better to focus on winning matches or on acquiring professional prominence? The chance that players have can slip away at any moment, so it must be taken advantage of. If they get promoted, a team's difficulty will no longer be their problem. However, no successful career is built by ignoring the team's unity. The very individualism of wanting professional advancement is an obstacle to teamwork and the acceptance of a collective project. Pausing to reflect on this situation, in the same line of reasoning, I want to draw attention to Kaneda's illustration. One of the players present in Tokyo Esperion's starting lineup, Kaneda was rejected by Tatsuya Fukuda. Subsequently, he scored several goals in the metropolitan league and increased his physical potential. In this case, it cannot be said that neither Fukuda nor Kaneda were wrong, nor can it crucify either of them. Kaneda just didn't fit into Fukuda's proposed game plans and ideal. However, that doesn't mean that the youngster doesn't have potential or that he's a bad player, just that the phenomenon of managing and building the squad is something more... complex than we imagine. Fukuda is aware that he may have been wrong in his choices, so much so that he himself motivates the rejects to improve according to the quote at the beginning of this review. To cite examples, Jair Ventura, a Brazilian football coach, had already rejected the Colombian Luís Diaz while coaching Santos F.C, at the time when Diaz was still a promising youngster. Today, Luís Diaz is one of the main players on a world scale and is a regular for Liverpool, while Jair Ventura is not in the best phase of his career. Facts like this don't happen because one side is wrong, just because we're talking about humans. We are adaptable, emotionally manipulable and we fluctuate a lot, even more so when it comes to sports performance and there is the collective variable at play. The essence of the sport and the essence of Ao Ashi is the moral that there are more factors than just individual capacity and the “good vs. bad” when it comes to performance. This is also the driving force behind Kaneda's attitudes later on. People tend to irrationally transfer the blame for their attitudes to those around them, and this constitutes, for psychology, a way of accessing self-deception as an adaptive mechanism. Diluting the blame among those around them allows the person to move on and let go of the stress of having to deal with their mistakes and traumas. Kaneda applies this all the time, and his later success coupled with such a mechanism makes him an arrogant guy with his new teammates. Not that Kaneda is an incredibly deep character or whose work is dense and present. He is not. However, there is a humanized personality trait in this case and, in my opinion, this should be valued. The last thing I would like to praise here is Ao Ashi's technical depth in the sport. Like any sports work that is worthy of a more realistic and informative atmosphere, a high content of the anime's scenes borrows and applies various tactical concepts, mixing it with the development of the protagonist and the entire Esperion team as a group. I've already mentioned this in some passages previously, but one of the most interesting things about the work is the fact that Aoi, who enters the team's concentration for the first time, is a complete mirror for those who underestimate the presence of tactics in football, given his impulsive temperament. Self-proclaimed genius for his instinctive plays, he reigned in his small world of amateur football, until he discovered that the sport constitutes a much bigger horizon than that. Aoi discovers that he has no individual tactical notion, nor any collective notion. His basic fundamentals are completely backward, and one of the differentiators of this story is the fact that it never treats individual talent as an automatic passport to victory, although it does make a difference in execution. Most of the time, it's simple notions of tactics and positioning that define the outcome of the games, but still the work is realistic enough that even understanding and practicing these basic tactics is difficult. It takes Aoi several days to figure out how to triangulate, then effectively use it with Asari and Kuroda, and just that change completely changes the flow of a game. With every match or practice, there are concepts being taught and shown to us on the field. Anime migrates from triangulation and begins to teach us the meaning of coverage, filling in spaces, overcoming individual limitations according to the lineup arrangement, verbal and non-verbal communication between players... Even the change of formation according to the answer tactics and the offside line. These are all simple collective tactics, but they make a big difference. At the same time, game reading, decision making, distraction from marking to open spaces, individual marking... All are individual tactics, equally simple, but that value a player. After all, being decisive is far from just scoring goals and providing assists. And, above all, the way Aoi and the other players progress by learning these factors is very competent. See that coaches, as much as they want the evolution of their players, never give the answers for free. Fukuda Tatsuya's philosophy makes perfect sense, as it encourages characters to always keep a critical eye and question their play styles. Thinking for yourself is a fundamental key to getting better every day, as psychology tells us through the concept of “inner critic”. By leaps and bounds, Aoi becomes a much more focused young man, even though he has to deal with the psychological barriers that surround him as the games go on. Insecurity about ownership, self-criticism and pressure that are established when playing in a position to which they are not used to, frustrated expectations when looking at the team on the table, impulsiveness in the face of provocation... The mind of any professional or aspiring player is never peaceful during a match. It's a bubbling cauldron of emotions, ready to spill over into constant mistakes and affect the performance of an entire team. In this light, the locker room is the point where eleven boiling cauldrons meet after the field. Football is a group sport, of course, and as such a team's performance is subject to this relationship between players. Hard-to-approach people like Akutsu and players with inflated ego and blind to communication like Aoi is at the beginning of the story tend to affect the balance. Internal conflicts like Togashi's with Kuroda and Takeshima and the bad relationship between Asari and Aoi tend to affect the balance. Individualistic players like Kaneda, who are out of touch with the reality of the group, tend to affect the balance. This is another department where Ao Ashi gets it right, and if you, the reader, are familiar with football, I have a new example to offer you. The current Paris Saint-German squad is filled with sports stars and players who have made a name for themselves. The attacking trio, with Kylian Mbappé, Lionel Messi and Neymar Jr. gives the media a buzz, as well as other world-renowned players hired by a truckload of money. The press loves this pompous and hype-generating environment for people around the world. However, the reality of the team's relationship since the arrival of Neymar and Mbappé has never been a sight to behold. During the first years of PSG's hiring policy, the team was already suffering from constant fights in the locker room and speculation of difficulties in the team's relationship. Today, equipped with athletes with even greater importance, the team has not ceased to be the target of heavy criticism, largely because of the questioning whether it would really be worth investing in stars who so much want to play a leading role in a team and can be harmful to the environment, to the detriment of of more willing players, bets and revelations that would sweat and dedicate themselves to the project on the field. Well, after spending hourglass cycles writing about what I consider successes and positives, you might be wondering why I have mixed feelings when it comes to Ao Ashi. This means that, in order to fully elucidate my opinion, this is the moment in which I turn to the other side of the blade. If anime is a double-edged sword, we need to talk about why it was such a disappointment to me. In other words, we need to return to the beginning of this review and talk about Production I.G. Let's trigger Revival and go back a little further. We are now in 2014, when the first season of Haikyuu!! it was one of the most popular works of the year and was about to receive the crown of many people as the king of sports works. In 2015 and 2016, the impression was no different, and your volleyball anime has consolidated itself as one of the main names of a studio that was among the “titans” (pardon the pun) of the industry. At the time, I'm not (yet) here to hail Haikyuu!! for its writing qualities or characters, but to analyze why its success is essentially linked to the studio. Why for me, and probably for many of you, it's so good to watch Haikyuu!! from the perspective of production? The answer in this case is simple and straightforward: through your direction. The identity of volleyball, unlike many other sports, is its frenzy and incessant movement. As long as the ball doesn't fall to the ground, players are always preparing for a new charge or reception. It's all very dynamic. At the same time, Haikyuu!! bears the characteristics of a sports work that aims at verisimilitude, so the animations that move on the screen need to be not only flashy, but also realistic with the movement of the characters, fluid and contribute to the transmission of the tactical notions that Haikyuu!! teaches. And, if not to the general surprise of fans, it delivers exactly what it needs. One of the most exalted qualities when talking about anime is the exorbitant amount of fluid, moving, dynamic scenes, alternating with monologues that invade the characters' minds between passes and decision-making. Why the direction of Haikyuu!! in its first three seasons is it as good? Because, in climactic scenes, we see very solid choices from Susumu Mitsunaka, and because he has a top-notch team to support him. Who doesn't remember Kyouken stealing Kindaichi's ball for the first time, in an ultra-highlight Sakuga scene that exalts the character's thick contours and puts the spotlight of estrangement on his first appearance? Who could forget, in the same match, the lifting of Oikawa in which he himself, when he got up in despair and ran back to the court, slips on one of the cloths on the edge of the court? I mean, the director even thought about adding this scene, to give more realism to the athletes' movements! Cuts in which the point of view is directly from the ground, showing Kageyama's positioning as a setter, are essential to transplant the organicity of volleyball's movements to anime. Applications of visual metaphors, plentiful in the manga, are put to even greater life in the adaptation, being combined with wonderful soundtrack choices and atmospheric animations, as is when Ushiwaka puts Hinata and Tsukishima under enormous psychological pressure and their veterans break through, one by one, for them to bear it. Metaphors such as the prevalence of crows meeting the great imperial eagle, and the phenomenal use of slow motion to represent fractions of a second before definition, in which multiple thoughts invade the mind... Haikyuu!! is an example of the incredible direction and production that the team at Production I.G. can be proud to deliver in sports anime. Contrary to the example, Ao Ashi does not have a direction or production equivalent to the power of the studio. On the contrary, I'd say it's their worst visual adaptation of a sports work out of the ones I've watched at the time of writing. The show could have movement and physical explosion scenes. Could apply quick feints in order to add to the visual elucidation of skill and bluffing ability for some of the players. It could even animate shots and passes where there would be a creative point in the camera following the ball rather than the player. In Episode 21, we see a scene where Kuroda performs an organic move in a one-on-one, then steals the ball from Kaneda. The scene itself contributes to the characterization of what it means to individually follow another player and to convey a sense of positioning. It's this kind of scene that I ask for so much in Ao Ashi. However, elaborate sakugas are rare in this anime and, although it is not crooked or ugly most of the time, it leaves something to be desired in many ways when it comes to production. Jumps to headers are not fully animated, so we have the classic still scenes with camera movement along a single drawing and lines in the scenery to convey the idea of movement. Kaneda and Togashi both score goals like that, and neither of them are truly exciting as they could be. There are cuts in which Aoi retains the ball in defense for a long time, but the movements to protect possession of the ball and those of the opponents are so little diversified that there is no feeling that someone is going to take it from him, only that the scene was excited to stall while Aoi makes the decision to take a long-distance pass. In many of the episodes, in fact, the opponents are static while the Esperion team communicates and adjusts its position. There are scenes where players run in possession of the ball and opponents aren't even drawn moving forward, as well as there are revolting scenes where not even players running in possession are animated by effectively running. If you want a taste, just rewatch the triangulation episode and focus on the scene where Esperion F.C. advance together for the final goal. In the classic split-screen and synchronized set display scene, none of the players run, we just have static images and lines to convey the idea of movement. When we compare it to Karasuno's synchronized attack in Haikyuu!!, this is absurd. The few scenes that the director and animation team get right in this show are, mostly and ironically, the slow motion scenes and visual metaphors. As the holder of a specific talent - like most protagonists of sports works - Aoi stars in several moments of analysis and game vision in which he incorporates his "crow's vision" and surveys the field like a bird in the sky. In most analysis scenes, there is a double silhouette to convey the idea of movement prediction, lighting to highlight open spaces and a panoramic view that resembles the tactical analysis boards common in football. As much as the production of these scenes is equally weak and nothing much in terms of fluidity, I cannot take away the merit that they were treated with the resources that should, in fact, be applied. After all, the slow motion and the black background very well encapsulate Aoi's decision making in the small fractions of a second and the abstraction of the environment, focusing only on the players' position. It's like in Shingeki no Kyojin: The Final Season Part 2 EP3 from earlier this year: a semi-static or static panning camera work around the chaotic environment in order to elucidate the chronology of seconds between one event and another. Still, I must say that the director abuses the scenes where he applies slow motion. Outside of Aoi's analysis scenes, there is still a ton of events that unfold over slow motion animations, from the protagonist's movements to communication scenes and kicks. Matches use this feature all the time, when football actually happens very quickly. Even climactic scenes slow down all the time, and this makes it seem more like a valve that the director chose to have the ability to fully animate the work than properly a prudent use of style. Peak scenes totally lack the excitement, and I truly, while appreciating the qualities the anime had to offer, found myself completely uninterested in every goal moment. It may seem like an exaggeration, but I never got carried away. When I talk about climactic excitement, there are a number of factors. I want to point this out here so you don't get me wrong: An anime can be very well directed and truly thrill at its peaks even if it has few fluid shots. The biggest example I can perhaps bring, in this case, is Ballroom and Youkoso. One of my favorite sports works, Ballroom shares the same studio as Ao Ashi, and as much as there are some viewers who criticize the lack of fluidity in its adaptation, I think it's hard to find people to condemn the work done by the studio and the staff. Ballroom and Youkoso, like Ao Ashi, have a higher density of static scenes. The fundamental difference between the two is how Ballroom handles it and is able to craft wonderfully emotionally impactful scenes. With each episode I watched of Ballroom, I was more impressed with the art direction, which unfolded to compensate for the enormous difficulty of animating fluid scenes due to the demand for elaborate, stylized character design and, mainly, the extremely detailed dresses, that made it impossible to produce a 24-episode show with the same fluidity as Haikyuu!!. Scenes like when Tatara pairs up with Mako or episodes of visual metaphors like the “Four-legged Illusion” were extremely productive. What was lacking in movement in the anime never made me dissatisfied, given the beauty of the scenes that, even though they were stable, managed to capture all the visual details of each dance with angles that favored the grip, the characters' body posture, the facial expressions and the dazzling glow of clothes. The show, to borrow Tatara's words, was twenty-four minute breaks saying "look at me!". And I was always looking. The art itself contributed to the show's purpose, as exaggerated body extremities are part of the sensation when dancing. The anime was awash with synesthesia in the monologues, the static scenes were precise and framed key moments from the positions, the atmosphere was always present and the fluid moments, although infrequent, were reserved for the most important events. And, behind the atmospheric scenes and the performance in competitions, an efficient use of the soundtrack that crowned the good work of the direction. When I turn to Ao Ashi, I see that the work has none of that. The goals take place over an uninspired soundtrack that is equally not positioned in such an impactful way. The static scenes are in central events when there should be fluidity in them. The color palette is nothing different. The art not only contributes little to the proposal of the work, but also harms it at times, in the sense that there are completely cartoonish comedy scenes that give a change of brusque and silly tone to a seinen when he should be entirely serious in his departures. Seriously, the first half of the anime is annoying to watch in certain portions, because any event of the match is interrupted by a distorted drawing of Aoi, like when he is teased by Asari and, instead of the work treating the teasing as "trash talk ” and something psychologically important, she puts a completely out of tune drawing for an Aoi who was coming off badly in the match. The impact of this scene was drained, because the director chose to keep it rather than make it more serious. In Ballroom, for example, the comedy scenes exist, but keep the original art instead of changing it to something simplified. In Haikyuu!!, they are not applied in the middle of a play definition or important space, only in events between matches, in communication between players after points or in celebrations. Dance Dance Danseur, a MAPPA anime of the same season, focused on ballet, has a much more competent direction than Ao Ashi. Watch the EP5 or EP11 of this anime and you'll know why. It's the quick camera changes. The enormous stage presence that urges on the metaphor of Luou playing the role of Rothbarth, menacing, intimidating, imposing and victorious, as an entity that Junpei cannot defeat. Junpei's frantic and elusive depictions, which irritate the rival, are shown with dynamic framing alternating between movements and facial expressions. The vocal acting and the intense soundtrack that blend together. The lighting play on the characters, making the experience sparkle over the princess and graceful ballet movements, but at the same time giving spotlight to the personalities depicted and the added physical exertion in the performance. All this is direction. And all this is what Ao Ashi lacks, to the misfortune of my expectations. However, if I have so much to criticize the direction of this show, my sadness is even greater when I expose here that, contrary to what it seems, the director is effectively capable of delivering us a superior production. Ao Ashi is an unintentional metalanguage of the direction itself, and this metalanguage can be seen by comparing the storyboard of its two openings. I mean, when I watched the second opening, I was stunned. The storyboard of this is so inspired, so full of movement and populated with symbolic visual metaphors from the show that I could hardly believe it was the same anime. Yes, it's normal for openings to be better animated than the show itself, not least because they apparently pay animators more per take. However, while the first opening is not so bad in my opinion, if we compare it to its successor, the second one is so superior that it makes it seem as if the first one doesn't even exist. Let's make a brief comparison. In the first, we have a cliché presentation of characters, with quick close-ups of their faces and expressions. We have racing scenes in between the match and training, which add very little in symbology. We have kicking and closing scenes that are static. We have visual metaphors, such as representing the similarity between Aoi and Hana's favorite player. We have other symbology, like Aoi's particular skill, a glimpse of his intuitive family drama through the frame sequence, and an illustration of the heavy atmosphere that descends on him in the match. And we have FOUR different shots with the close-up on Hana, all of them depicting the exact same thing: her cheering and being impressed by Aoi's accomplishments. Note how repetitive and recycled from sports shonens this opening is, even though Ao Ashi is a seinen. In contrast, Ao Ashi's second opening is exactly how the adaptation should be. The exhausting fatigue of games and training, mixed with more fluid drama scenes that capture well the protagonist's catharsis in the face of his difficulties in starting his own career. Favorable interactions with team members, representing Ashito's learning and the group dynamics in team B, combined with the organic scene transition to, in step with the increase in music, represent the other side of the coin with discussions between the same players. Camera angles and lighting that favor the demonstration of the characters' anguish in dealing with difficult situations associated with football. Aoi, Hana and the look on their faces when Aoi is considering giving up everything. Movement in celebratory actions and the change of music to a more positive tone, while scenes of performances going well appear. Several falls, representing the thorny trajectory of the protagonist in finding himself as an athlete. The return of the opening scene, of the bird soaring over the sea, and the perspective of Aoi's mother looking across the ocean, symbolizing us that the bird represents Aoi and the flight represents the taking off of her career. The long-awaited entry onto the pitch in a stadium. Aoi, through his night training and effort results, changing his expression and accelerating more and more as he crosses paths with other players. And, watching the whole show, me, gaping in my chair, wondering why the second opening evokes more emotions in me than the entire show. After watching so many episodes and venting in this huge text, I finally found the answer. The director did that one and a half minute with the necessary passion that he should have done all the rest of the work. He and the team are truly capable of delivering more than this final product, and I'm sad that this is a realization that didn't materialize on the show. In addition to the layers of production and staff, there are also a few specific issues I'd like to draw attention to in Ao Ashi's writing. The first of them has a first and last name: Nagisa Akutsu. Honestly, I can't understand why, at the time of writing, he is the most favorite supporting character in the work. All he did in pretty much all of his appearances during the first season was threaten Aoi, bully him, be toxic to team B players, and display a delinquent countenance that reminds me of the cartoonish grin of Tokyo Revengers villains Kisaki Tetta and Shuuji Hanma. I do not disbelieve in the possibility that the author of Ao Ashi has created some backstory or arc reserved for the character that will appear in future seasons. His number of favorites being higher than the other characters may have to do with some character work in the manga. However, taking as a reference only the anime portion at the time of writing this review, Akutsu is one of the shallowest characters in the entire work. Not only that, but he's worse than shallow. He's just a script lever to grab the viewer's attention and make us angry at Aoi's miserable situation, so much so that he always conveniently appears when Aoi deals with his career crisis and the threat of not becoming a player. The author gives free rein to him to intimidate Aoi not only verbally (as is common in the vast majority of sports environments and, if only that, it would be understandable) but also physically, more than once. There should be more Esperion intervention in physical aggression between teammates, but there isn't. All I remember are vague comments from Fukuda during the selection. Which team allows its players to fight and injure each other without any punishment? At this point, Akutsu is more of a character detrimental to the more mature character of football that Ao Ashi wants to pass on than someone who contributes. And while the character may have future work and the author can redeem himself on that, the arc created will likely need to be very well written to make me accept the change in perspective and humanization of the character. The impression he leaves is negative and pessimistic. The second point I want to address is even more direct: the lack of a portrait of goalkeepers. Unlike Inazuma Eleven, who often turns the match into a duel between goal and shot, Ao Ashi takes the opposite route. It's been 24 episodes and I hardly saw any important goalkeeper saves or any goalkeeper being part of the team as a voice and relevant character. There are very few scenes and we don't even know the archer of Esperion F.C. I miss a player in that position who is important, even because the goalkeeper, symbolically, is the team's security and there is a lot of space to work with a character like that in a football work. For example, goalkeeper is an extremely ungrateful position, as any mistake you make is directly responsible for a goal and can easily cost you a title and your career reputation. René Higuita, the folkloric Colombian goalkeeper, is still remembered today not only for his ability to take free-kicks and the “scorpion blow”, but for his failure in the 1990 World Cup when he lost the ball to Cameroonian Roger Milla. Liverpool's Karius has become highly scarred by his failures in the 2017/18 Champions League final, which cost the English side the title. The goalkeeper is the backbone of the team, but it is also an easy position to be crucified or injured. There are many ways to work one, but Ao Ashi doesn't seem to have reserved a role for such a character, which is a waste. I hope that, in the future, the author decides to address this position more. Last but not least, the (lack of) importance given to opponents. In Haikyuu!!, for example, as much as the characters of some of the teams faced by Karasuno high school are secondary and obviously not all matches have great planning behind the field preparation, one thing in which the work never fails is to present other volleyball players with their own characteristics, potential and style of play. Haikyuu!! is an anime that, like any story of competitive sports, has its worldbuilding dependent on the number of potential opponents. In this sense, even in matches that are not as important as those against the two-meter high school or against the Wakunan high school, in addition to the main characters, there are secondary characters that are minimally explored and moments in which the spotlight is drawn on strategies and merit of the opponent. Of course, there are matches against bigger opponents, for which there is much greater preparation and the rivals are more richly developed, as is the case with the match against Aoba Johsai. In Ballroom and Youkoso, many of Tatara's adversaries have important backstories and rich metaphors that permeate artistic performances, or else a relationship work with the partner. The spotlight is never solely on Tatara, as his opponents also have great merits and there is a conflict of points of view. The best example here is the entire Masami Kugimiya arc. The contrast between the veteran's manly, imposing and sometimes exquisite leadership, with his unique but more old-fashioned and conservative dance style, and Tatara's young, inexperienced and passive, conflicted yet playful and evolving leadership. Even on Yuri!!! on Ice, even though most characters are reduced to archetypes with personalities or gags, there is a characterization of the other competitors. Opponents matter, precisely because it is necessary to enhance the performance of each one and add a pinch of psychological influence. Characters boast "sex appeal", while others are obsessed with their sister. There are some who are full of confidence and ego and there are those who are more timid. It's a competition, and somehow we also need to see the humans on the other side, since it's not a Manichean dichotomy, but a performance sports confrontation. In Ao Ashi, this rarely happens. The only match in which there is a greater build-up of opponents is the match against team Musashino, the last match of the season. If you notice, in the other matches, it's all about Tokyo Esperion F.C. I don't even remember the names of the other teams and their players, and I can count on my fingers the number of faces I would recognize. This isn't because my memory is bad, it's because they don't really matter. Aoi's matches do indeed function as a vehicle for the rise of the team and the characters, but at some point the author seems to have forgotten to reconcile this with the other side's point of view, so that the opponents are just random people and have nothing to offer but responsiveness to tactics. In summary, Ao Ashi was a very mixed and conflicting experience before my eyes. In one of the fields of vision, I see a skeleton of sports seinen with great portrayals of football and pertinent discussions, as well as a protagonist whose character work and development will drag any fan into the whirlpool of history. On the other hand, I see a production and filling of the molds in an insufficient way. A soulless adaptation of an uninspired direction that could have given me more. There are many things to talk about, and it is not my biggest challenge to understand or organize them, but to limit myself so that this text doesn't get even bigger than it already is. When I close both eyes and then open them, now simultaneously, I see the images blended together. I glimpse Ao Ashi, the anime for which I had high hopes, but which, despite being solid, ended up without fulfilling the main element that so many look for in a sports anime: to excite and attract the spectator's support, in this case me. About recommendations, I'm not sure. Perhaps, for those interested in a soccer-centric story, I would recommend reading the manga rather than watching the anime. After all, after all this outburst and getting off the roller coaster of feelings, I'm considering doing it myself.
Aoashi is simply one of the best sports anime to come out in the last 5 years. (This review may contain spoilers for first 2 or 3 episodes) I am gonna be calling the sport football in this review. This is a soccer anime. Clearing this up at the start. Football animes have been coming out around 1 a year and most of them are usually quite good, so how does Aoashi stand out from shows like Farewell, my dear Cramer, DAYS, and Aoyama Kun? It just does more with its characters and story. Both of these will be explored in detail in their respective sections, but I can't understate how important it is in sports anime to have good interactions and character moments away from the sport itself. The 3 I mentioned are all good, but you can tell they are all trying to tell one narrative. This might not make sense in writing but you can tell if you have seen enough shows. ~~~img220(https://mattdemers.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/aoashi_blog_banner.png)~~~ ~~~__Characters__~~~ As for most sports anime, Aoashi has quite the large cast of characters, but let's start with Aoi, our MC, first. Sports anime like so many other anime tend to avoid home life and finances in order to not take away focus from the main topic. Even the best sports manga and anime will do this, although to what degree does vary a lot. Aoashi chose to instead focus on this aspect. Making Aoi a poor kid with a single mom struggling to make ends meat makes everything else feel more important and relatable. It's not his entire character, far from it, but it's such a great underlying motivation. The side cast is also quite good. Sports anime especially can fall into the trap of 1 note characters. The side cast for this show is diverse enough in terms of motivations and attitudes and the story taking place at a very nice academy and an expensive program makes Aoi contrast heavily with many of his teammates. While I wouldn't say there are any truly great characters, there are no bad characters and the main 2 characters are very good. ~~~img220(https://i0.wp.com/www.animegeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/Ao-Ashi-Season-2-release-date-Aoashi-Season-2-Anime.jpg?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1)~~~ ~~~__Story__~~~ It is a sports anime, it's about high school kids playing football. So what is the hook then? Well, it's Aoi and the situation he gets into. Everyone he plays with or against has the ultimate goal of going pro. Aoi plays and sees the game differently than almost anyone else and lacks any true stand out skills. But he does have the edge in something and this becomes the driving force for events related to football. It is not the sole force though, if it was this show wouldn't be rated as I have it. As mentioned in the character section, Aoi coming from a poor family out in the sticks is a massive part of his character. Almost all of his big decisions stem from this. His relationship with his mom and brother, his teammates, the coaches and others are equally important. There is a major development near the middle of the season which completely subverts how you expect the show to go. It was a very refreshing twist and feels like a gut punch without being too forced. There isn't any insane event that happens out of nowhere and those who really know the sport of football could probably pick up what's gonna happen. At the end of the day, it is a sports anime, the main narrative is football. Practicing, discussing it, playing it, watching it, etc make up a large portion of the show. Like other great sports anime, it does find that balance of not only showing the sport and letting its characters exist outside of that small world. __~~~img220(https://assets.pikiran-rakyat.com/crop/0x0:0x0/x/photo/2022/08/14/683180871.jpg)~~~__ ~~~__Audio and Visuals__~~~ The 2 OPs are both wonderfully animated and sound really good. It's nothing too revolutionary, but I could see either being on someone's playlist. Similar tale with the endings. The Voice Acting is good. There are a couple standouts like Aoi, but some are just meh. Almost everyone sounds natural and I was never taken out of the episode because of the VA work. The sound design for the show was wonderful. Every kicked ball felt crisp, the sound of running on grass or the rain just felt right. It was nothing over the top, but that works a lot in a grounded sports anime. Just enough to make the big moments feel important and the low moments really hit hard. The overall visual design was very good. Art style is subjective, but I prefer the anime version of these characters. The manga definitely has a lot of style and personality to it, but it also feels quite rough and the anime essentially cleans everything up. The football scenes are mostly animated in 2D which I give major props to the studio for. Unproven sports manga being adapted usually get a bunch of 3D visuals for all the scenes involving the actual sport. I get why, characters moving in fast and complex ways while interacting isn't easy to animate and takes a lot of time and effort. They do resort to images with movement lines, sometimes having the music carry the moment, but it's never to a point of being distracting. ~~~img220(https://i0.wp.com/anitrendz.net/news/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/aoashi-second-cour-anime-key-visual-e1656173595231.jpg)~~~ ~~~__Enjoyment__~~~ This is where a lot of the score for this review comes from. I am a sucker for sports anime. I grew up playing sports, I enjoy the tropes, and the narratives are simple and easy to get behind. I usually rate sports anime higher than most and I fully admit this. Personal enjoyment is the most important part of any show or piece of media. I am not blind to the flaws and shortcomings of this show however... Its not perfect. I also have a massive soft spot for messy home lives and poor MCs. Hits close to home and I cared more than I think most people would have. ~~~__Conclusion__~~~ Aoashi is a wonderful anime. Probably my favorite sports anime of the decade so far. A very easy watch and at 24 episodes is long enough to get yourself fully invested.
~~~__This review will try to be spoiler free.__~~~ I know that my score may be a bit high for some people, but I want anyone reading this review to really hear me out. I have watched a __lot__ of sports anime. It might be my favorite genre of manga and anime. The inspirational stories that have been created through the medium of sports have been genuinely motivating and awe-inspiring to me throughout the years. Sports in real life are something that most people don't care about because it's hard to understand the intricacies of sports. Sports anime allow you to understand those minor intricate details to the sport, and dramatizes them to become entertainment. Sports stories normally don't work without 1 key element, the characters. Aoi Ashito is our main character. And the people that surround him throughout the series are ones with minor flaws and specific details that need to be worked through. An example of this is the one thing that I already noticed about Ashito upon watching the first 3 episodes, is how the show handles minor character details. The main character is a poor kid. In most sports stories, the main character being poor is normally used as a small way to make that character more relatable. In Aoashi, Ashito being poor is actually meaningful, and it completely affects the beginning of the show and the character's actions. It is a real thing that affects the story in real-time. The main plot is also very basic, but the way the show explains the fundamentals of soccer is very easy follow, especially for someone who doesn't know anything about it. The story focuses on all the characters on the team, and Ashito has to grow in meaningful ways as the story progresses. Nothing in the show is unearned, and Ashito has to start from a place of lower skill than everyone else. What really makes this show shine to me is in those moments were everything comes together. Characters who weren't getting along affect the how a match is played. When people on the team hate each other, the entire team is affected by it just like in real life, so watching the culmination of every character coming together and working like a real team is extremely satisfying. The characters never end up liking each other through magic either, sometimes the characters accept that they will never like each other. But the characters recognize how to understand one another, even if they don't like them. This is a realistic thing that is done on actual sports teams, and to me what sets Aoashi apart from all the other sports anime, is its dedication to making you feel like you are part of a living and breathing team filled with players who actually exist. The moments aren't as well animated as something as Haikyuu, but keep up due to the realistic struggles taken to get to the moment. The moments mean more than better animated sports anime moments, because the struggles to get there are real, and come from a place of realism. A character doubting themselves throughout the first part of the story, struggling to accept that they aren't useless, finally gets a goal and realizes that everyone deals with doubt. A character who wants to work with his teammates but can't because he's forced to accept his position on the team, and once he finally does, all of the sour moments beforehand culminate into a deeply satisfying moment of triumph for everyone. There is even a plot point in this story that I've never seen been used in any other sports anime, and it is genuinely one of the most unique sports anime plot points I've ever seen, but I absolutely will not say anything about it. These are the things that made me love Aoashi more than any other sports anime I've seen. The mature concepts, and the way those mature concepts are executed. Aoashi is genuinely something special, and I can't wait to read the manga, or wait for a season 2, and I really think you should give it a try. ~~~img220(https://ashimanga.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Screenshot_5.jpg)~~~ (Also if you want a better idea of why I made my score so high for this show, I recommend watching the youtube video I made on Aoashi that goes more into depth on why I like the show.) ~~~youtube(https://youtu.be/7CKrswoAg50)~~~
Realistic football anime, attaching characters, lots of insight on strategy and life as a pro player, but... sadly suffers from the subpar animation of the anime and all the comparaisons with other anime like blue lock or haikyuu. I definitely recommend checking the manga as even for me who isn't a football fan, I really liked it. Got me hooked up whether it was Aoi's good or bad moments, which I really like. You see how hard the life of a sports player is sometimes, like mental health, losing a match, not being good enough, or even issues with life in general with Akutsu's story in the manga. For example, Tachibana and Kaneda/Kuroda, forgot his name, really like the development of this two, where they learn to trust their team and trust their skills as strikers. Or the issues with communication in a team and how to overcome them, etc +1 point for the romance between Hana and Aoi, not a romance guy but I find it really sweet, hopefully these two end together. Hana supports Aoi and Aoi isn't really aware of why he likes her encouragements, wonder how it is going to evolve in the manga. Apparently, the rewiew must be more than 2200 characters and I do not have the skills or the time to write that much, but I'll try to fill it with somewhat useful things, I guess. I think one of the bad things about the anime is obviously the animation who doesn't feel as impactful as say Haikyuu or to an extent Blue Lock, only sports manga I've read so far. I could add that the pace of the anime is quite slow, but personally I like it, you get to learn more about the characters and how the life at Esperion's thing works. Aoi is a simple character and quite easy to relate to, he wants to be a pro football player for his mother, and give her money. The scene with the letter is really touching, it's for the little things like that, even if it's quite cliché, as the "guy who plays football for his family/friends" thing has been done a lot probably, but it works. I really like the change of position to striker from fullback and Aoi's reaction too, and how he adapts and just becomes amazing on the field, you even see him learn to defend with Akutsu in the manga. I'd like to add more but sadly I know nothing about football, so please you can just stop reading cause I just want my two thousand and two hundred characters. The sort of health aspect with eating and all too I thought was a nice touch, you don't really see these details on other anime, I think, and the relationship with Hana is just too cute. Really like I'm trying to add these characters. I've said anything I want to say at this point, animation/artistic direction, characters, plot sort of? I guess the openings and music are average at best. Would rate higher if not for the overall animation and vibe of the anime.
_A review of Aoashi with the perspective of a semi-pro player (including my own soccer story)._ It is SHOCKINGLY ACCRETE. I believe that I could notice all of the minor details that made the show sooo pinpoint accurate, as a former pro junior player who happened to advance/move into the same position as the protagonist (Aoi Ashito). Everything is coherent and it really dives into the psychological aspects of players as well as the game as a whole. It really started for me when Aoi was forced to change position to learn the fundamentals, view different perspectives and understand the basics of possession play. It was from that point and forward that he started to evolve by learning and mastering everything: eye contact - body language - triangel play - pass, play, cover/support (tiki taka) - playing with your lines - formation changes - lifting the play - counters - the hidden language of passes - causing confusion - stagnating. The mastermind coach Fukuda was able to put Aoi on the path to become a masterclass playmaker with all of these skills including Aoi’s spatial awareness & future sight (_Eagle eyes_). The anime is much more than the evolution of a single player, it's about the whole team. The sweet sweet feeling of victory, sadness of a loss, feeling of euphoria after a goal and facing old teammates. _My soccer journey_ I might be biased because of my similarities to Aoi. I started playing very young in an unranked team. Our coaches (some soccer enthusiastic dads) were amazing. They taught us everything and made us play like the pros. At the time many of us (including myself) didn't know why we played, moved or did certain things, but it was because they had engraved it into us. They managed to teach us soccer without us even knowing it and sooner or later, everything started to come naturally because of the training, with promising results. We won the first league/season, and moved up in the divisions, even skipping multiple divisions at times and before I knew it, we were in Div 3. We started to draw more games and even lost more than normally. Our coaches thought that we needed some changes and so did I. I was tired of being a defender so I started to train my shooting and dribbling ability in order to play as a striker. During one summer I gained a lot of muscles on my legs and came to practice with stronger passes and even stronger shots, most of them at the sweet spot (top corners). We had to say goodbye to old teammates and welcome new (there was no test or anything because we weren't an academic team). I started the new season as a defender once again and I started to befriend a new goalkeeper. He knew that our team was good and we wanted to improve at penalties, so he asked me to take some penalties on him. We practiced on a smaller goal (5-man goal) because the bigger goals were occupied. He thought that it would be easy since I was a defender, but after I shot the first one he didn't have the time to react. He said that he knew our team was good, but not that good if that was the shooting power of a defender. I smashed 12/15 goals in the top corners with 2 saves and 1 on the crossbar where I hit it so hard that the goal lifted off the ground slightly. The coaches noticed and changed my position to right wing since I was previously right back (right defender), and was used to playing along with attacks and taking throw-ins as well as “chance balls” (header passes). The next summer I went on a vacation to Spain and asked some local kids playing with one of their dads if I could play soccer with them. They said sure and we played and I noticed that they definitely played on a team since they weren’t bad. After playing for about half an hour I went to a nearby restaurant with my family. It turned out that the dad had followed after and told me that he was the head coach of the Milan FC academic team and that the kids I played with were a year older than me and part of that team. He paid for my lunch and gave me his business card and asked for me to move there and play for them. I politely told him that it was a big choice and a huge opportunity and that I had to consider it. However, I couldn’t do it because of my parents work along with other reasons. After playing in Sweden again with my team, I started to question some plays when I was subbed and during practice games (scrims). The coaches agreed with my plays and eventually made me a centermid playmaker (same as the Aoi) barking instructions at others. My first official game as a playmaker was in Div 2 and it was phenomenal, 8-0, 6 assists and 1 goal. We continued facing tough opponents after moving up to div 1. After a series of games we ended up winning and while trying to become the back-to-back champions I got a knee injury which made me quit. __Back to the anime__. The show is filled with sports and emotion with a realistic pace that adds to the realism. It has a nice contrast between serious soccer, drama and an underlining romance alongside moments of comedic reliefs of artistic liberty (funny faces). This is because of the amazing side characters that greatly contribute towards the story. Hana helping and guiding Aoi overall, Yoshitsune giving subtle hints towards Aoi, Anri helping Aoi become better with minor tweaks on exercises, Togashi's beef with Takeshima. Even the lack of presence from Tachibana was greatly used to show that he was feeling out of it, missing easy shots and being off-side because he felt that he was inadequate and didn’t deserve to be on the team. It's only later when he has to face his old teammates that he realizes that he deserves to be on the team and unleashes his true power. In conclusion: The story is filled with minor details that makes it more believable. I might be biased as a previous semi-pro soccer player, but it is a masterpiece when it comes to depicting the sport and I definitely recommend it.
~~~img220(https://s4.anilist.co/file/anilistcdn/media/anime/cover/large/bx134732-KAXPnuRsqGCb.jpg)~~~ # ~~~__Synopsis__~~~ Ashito Aoi is a football prodigy who lives in a small town in Japan. After getting into trouble during an important game, he receives a chance from coach Tatsuya Fukuda to try out for a team in Tokyo. There, he will have to face challenges and rivals to fulfill his dream of becoming a professional player. # ~~~__Story__~~~ The anime follows Ashito Aoi's journey from leaving his hometown to joining the Tokyo City Esperion FC's base team, one of the largest clubs in the J-League. # ~~~__Direction__~~~ The direction excels in scenes of drama and emotion, showing the characters' feelings and the tension of the matches. The animation is incredible and dynamic, showing the players' movements and plays with detail and realism. The direction also knows how to balance moments of humor and seriousness, giving lightness and depth to the story. The soundtrack is engaging and matches the anime's atmosphere. img220(https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0410/1053/files/aoashi-ashito_600x600.jpg?v=1657368668) img220(https://64.media.tumblr.com/ed09c09c235e44e971c9464384e449f5/54f8aae8533131de-31/s540x810/9bb8cf62364d9136c4f111f7c143d2a585c2644c.gifv) # ~~~ __Protagonist__~~~ Ashito Aoi is the anime's protagonist. He is a 15-year-old boy who has played football since he was a child but does not have much knowledge of the sport's rules and tactics. He stands out for his individual skills and creativity in plays, but he is also impulsive and selfish on the field. He dreams of becoming a professional player and accepts Fukuda's invitation to go to Tokyo. He faces many challenges and difficulties adapting to the new environment and level of demand. He also makes new friends and rivalries, which help him grow as a player and as a person. ~~~img220(https://cdn.epicstream.com/images/ncavvykf/epicstream/246012c8b2a7e57f3a1252fa99c65d0d4fb8e30b-2048x1151.jpg?rect=1,0,2046,1151&w=686&h=386&auto=format)~~~ # ~~~__Evolution__~~~ Throughout the anime, Ashito undergoes a process of evolution as a player and as a person. He learns more about football, teamwork, and the importance of respecting opponents and teammates. He also faces difficulties and obstacles such as missing his family, adapting to the new city, and competing with other talented players. He matures and becomes more confident and determined in pursuit of his goal. He develops his technical, tactical, and mental skills, showing his potential and passion for football. # ~~~__Overall__~~~ The anime is a good adaptation of the manga, with direction that values the drama scenes and football matches. The story is interesting and engaging, showing the growth of the protagonist and the other characters. The only negative point is that the protagonist is very naive and ignorant at the beginning, which may annoy some viewers. However, this is compensated for by his evolution throughout the series, which shows his potential and passion for football. Overall, the anime is a good option for fans of the sports genre, who can look forward to the second season. # ~~~img220(https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD9Cg2IOn9Ke7iECvwKdBDbC-62UQBjV4a_dCpZvpZn8gAFmK6m6XfiL6snpsUTDMx17CxjbsYpVKKVC81cBOWtlCvkwEVifwRsJsoo8q_f7XSkrBl7Z5RJCVCx62KVrMLsrj7qpHT10ivE99txV_k9R6WgT1-P671Kl8WyU54G1Yh0kJCP8tL3bFU2Q/s1000/aoashi.gif)~~~
~~~webm(https://v.animethemes.moe/AoAshi-OP1.webm) ~~~ **I hate it.** *I hate it. I hate it. I hate it.* I hate how when the ball is kicked, it doesn't go in. It either hits the post, is off target, or the keeper blocks it from being a goal. I hate how not being able to score means the team is losing. I hate having a competitive side because it means I need the win. I can't lose. I hate losing. I hate soccer. I hate it so much I am going on the offensive. I *hate* Aoashi. ~~~img450(https://i.imgur.com/hUC6hgn.jpeg)~~~