This manga is a surprising blend of dystopian horror and sports, focusing on training teenage soccer talents to be ruthless and ego-driven. It raises questions about sacrificing humanity for greatness, which is intriguing, especially in today's evolving soccer tactics. The art is impressive, with a coach character who's both cartoonishly horrifying and captivating. It's a promising start to a series that makes you think about the darker side of sports training.

A big thank you goes to NetGalley and Kodansha for the opportunity to review this title.

I have seen clips of its anime adaptation, but I haven’t had an opportunity to read the manga series it was based on until recently. Muneyuki Kaneshiro and Yusuke Nomira’s Blue Lock was a title that flew under my radar but after giving it a read thanks to both companies (and catching up on Kodansha’s KManga app), I can see why Blue Lock is getting so much praise in both in sports and in the nerd community.

The story begins with Japan’s National Team finishing in 16th place in the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The Japan Football League hires the football enigma, Ego Jinpachi, who has a master plan to lead Japan to stardom with a new program called Blue Lock. Blue Lock consists of a strict training regimen to create the world’s greatest egoist striker, those who fail in the program will never represent Japan. A high school student named Yoichi Isagi is conflicted about the way he plays the sport, Isagi decides to take part in Blue Lock to become the best striker in the world.

It’s an interesting premise, a football program consisting of 300 players in one of the most grueling sports programs to create an egoist striker sounds so Dystopian, I could say it is similar to the Hunger Games, but there have been many that have said the same thing, so I’ll pass on that description. While most manga titles focus on the three pillars of Shonen: Friendship, Trying your best, and Being Selfless, Blue Lock throws that out the window and gives us a different approach to what others have seen when training in other countries, sacrificing friendships and personal lives for the sake of the game. Not really the best thing to teach the younger generation, but that’s why it is fiction. Aside from all of that, the story pulls you in for an all-out brawl (on the field) packed with thrills and suspense, proving to be one of Kodansha’s strongest sports titles of the modern era.

Let’s discuss the artwork that was featured, Yusuke Nomura is one of the best artists in the Manga Industry, you may call me crazy on it, but hear me out. When you’re drawing either a sports, shonen or a certain genre of manga that requires action or drama, then you need to get the tone of the moment and the dynamic movement involved for it. Nomura clinched this notion with ease. Either with exaggerated facial expressions whenever it is from Ego Jinpachi, Yoichi, or the other Blue Lock players when they reach their highest point of Egotism, or perhaps how it looks more like a battle manga than a Soccer-themed title. Hell, even when Team Z was in the most intense game of Tag in the beginning, it was drawn out to be a battle royale, and that emotional aura it gave in each panel was something that worked well for this first volume.

I enjoyed the story. It was silly, but that isn't necessarily a bad thing. A group of strikers are locked together to find the best. It is like a weird Highlander "there can be only one" feel. I enjoyed it, It is a fun twist on a sports manga.

4 stars

A most heartfelt thank you to Kodansha Comics and Netgalley for giving me the oppurtunity to read Blue Lock vol.1 .

Reading the first volume in any manga, really gives the reader a first look into what the story is about and usually is what "hooks" a reader into continuing the story and purchasing the manga or even watching the anime adaptation when available.
Sometimes, even the opposite happens, meaning watching the anime makes someone love the storyline so much, they just have to read the manga.
This is exactly what happened in the case of Blue Lock for me. And I have to say reading the first volume, gave me the chills and even gave back to the anime adaptation (which I then had to rewatch because the manga made me wanna relive the entire thing from the beginning) and showed how much greater gravitas is given to each panel.
The idea alone to highlight a player's ego in a sport that is build up in the essence of team-building was so fresh and interesting to explore, that had me wanting more and more from not only Isagi but from all major characters.

I'm now in love with Blue Lock's storyline and it's established its place in my top three sports manga, right along the infamous Kuroko no Basuke and Haikyu!!
I will forever and always recommend it

4/5

I’m going to start off with I don’t even like soccer but I’m a sucker for sports manga. This surprised me I really think it might make me like soccer.

The beginning is explaining how Japan wants to make the best soccer team in the world due to losing so much. They basically hunger games style these kids (not killing but killing their dreams so close enough?) In true manga/anime fashion they main character starts out in the lowest group. In the first round they play a simple game of what I would say it hot potato with the ball and if you get caught at the end last person to touch the ball you are out.

I really like the premise of this where they will have to continue to get better and better throughout their time there to move up and make it to become the championship team. I really want to know what happens next so hopefully the next book is also on netgalley.

You also meet other characters and its very much of oh I’m the best on my team but there is always someone better then you and a lot of the ones you meet in the lower teams are shocked they are on the bottom rung. I think that is going to create an interesting dynamic as well.

If you are a fan of soccer or like me, a sucker for sports manga this is for you for sure.

Arc given by Netgalley.

This was a fun read, even as someone who doesn't even like football haha! I am a sucker for a sports manga, and thought I would give this a try. While I thought the story was interesting enough, I didn't like the almost chaotic art style and found it hard to recognise who was who, especially during scenes where there was a lot of action (which being a sport manga, was a lot). So while I did enjoy the premise, I wasn;t so sold on the execution. I will give the anime a try as I feel I may prefer it in this format.

falou de esporte eu ja to lendo adorei o manga, simplesmente perfeito, tanto a arte como a historia, irei começar a ver o anime em breve. me lembra um pouco haikuu.

Cool, fun sport manga! I definitely like it and look forward to read next volumes. At this point football looks even more interesting as it in the real life.

Bluelock is a manga series about a new experiment being undertaken by the Japanese Football Association to find the country's best striker in an attempt to rebuild the National Football Team and win the next World Cup.

It felt to be like a football version of The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. 300 of the nations best teenage strikers are together in "Bluelock" a facility built just for this experiment. They are separated into groups where they need to learn to work as a team to win matches against the other groups to avoid elimination.

I really enjoyed this introductory volume. The story is very engaging and I love the art style; it showcases the fast past action of a match really well.

This is a series I will definitely be continuing; I'm intrigued on how the rest of the series will develop.

Blue Lock is a sports manga that takes a different take on teamwork. Instead of working as a team they have to rely on themselves. We follow the protagonist Isagi as he is invited to program that is looking for the best football players.

I liked the manga because of how different it is to other sports manga. I was able to feel the intense atmosphere that was surrounding the characters. I can't wait to read the next volume.

Thank you NetGalley and Kodansha Comics, for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review! All thoughts are my own and left voluntarily.

Actual rating 3.5 stars.

Even though I have seen all available Blue Lock episodes on Crunchyroll - I also wanted to start manga at some point. In my opinion, Blue Lock is somewhat psychological sports story, where instead of strengthening overall teamwork, the main focus is on individual character development. Be selfish, be hungry! This manga serves as a great introduction for those unfamiliar with Japanese manga or the sport it portrays, as author explains the concept in a straightforward manner, ensuring readers don’t feel overwhelmed or confused. Some cringy dialogues aside, even if you are not a hardcore sports fan - I think everyone will enjoy this quite unrealistic but eye catching manga series. Also, Isagi is so relatable in regards of overthinking and semi-spacing out haha

Knowing that it is one of the mangas that made the Japanese more enthusiastic about soccer... I had to read it.

Clearly this is just the beginning of a great story and I was able to enjoy it. I don't know how many volumes there are but there must be many.

Clearly sports mangas and animes are works of art from another planet. I think there is no one better than the Japanese to tell us sports stories.

Definitely a super particular manga.
The story is not the usual narration of sports manga, here everyone is a little crazy and obsessed with the victory of Japan who hasn't won the soccers' national for many years.
So this selection is created which involves absurd training sessions in which only one will become the strongest player.

It's a nice story, it intrigues you and above all thanks to the anime, it had an incredible success.

Great start to the series that was incredibly engaging. I can’t wait to see how this story progresses, definitely picking up the rest of the volumes.

I have been interested in this book for a while and I will be honest I would not be continuing the series. It’s a subject that I am not interested in. #BlueLock1 #NetGalley

Okay, honestly i'm always way too excited about sports manga, especially when i was younger i devoured everything!
Haven't read a soccer one in a while so of course i needed to dive into Blue Lock and i wasn't disappointed! I have all the clichees i want, from the goal driven main character Yoichi Isagi who is probably destined to be my fave to very weird characters like Bachira who i also immediately fell in love with. These kind of manga live off of very weird coded character and it looks like Blue Lock has it al!

Fast summary is: that after Japan's failed in the FIFA cup some people came up with the idea to start scouting high school players for the ultimate team for the next world cup! Because Japan didn't usually suceed in soccer they wanna kinda scout the best players that ever were to show everyone Japan's soccer team can acutally win this. The program is called Blue Lock so we have a very early title drop here.

It's obviously not the most unique concept in the world but honestly it absolutely does it for sports manga because in the end you're supposed to be excited for all their progress, if they are gonna make it, if they are gonna bond, how many rivalies there will be and we already got a taste of it, some enemies are already in the making and some deep bonds are gonna happen and i absolutely can't wait to see all these cuties bonding and not hating each other anymore, the whole program is like: oh you need to care less about your teammates to succeed but guess what the main character ain't gonna have that because he already feels like the softest team player ever and i'm sure he can woo a lot of his team mates over and be the very best like no one ever was.

Honestly i wanna dive right into the next volume, first volume was absolutely promising, we saw how the trainee camp is supposed to be working and booyyyy this is gonna be hard and rough, can't wait who will make it to the actual team in the end.
Love the drawings, they are so so dynamic, absolutely fitting for a manga like this one.

So let's go team!

I'm not a sports fan in general but this was entertaining enough to hold my attention.
Japan is taking 300 of their most promising center forward soccer players to mold the top one into the worlds best striker to win Japan the world cup. It was extremely intense and ridiculous but super entertaining.
3.75

4.25/5
Thank you, NetGalley and Kodansha Comics for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.
The premise of this series is about the main character Isagi, whose main goal is to make it to the national championships. after he loses his chance to compete, he receives a letter from the Japan Football Union inviting him to this elite soccer training camp 'BLUE LOCK' that aims to produce the number #1 best striker out of the 300 chosen elites. the training camp provides intensive training and ranks them based on their talent, and the one to lose every elimination round loses the chance to play soccer professionally. the training camp focuses on building up their 'Ego' and their 'Selfishness' because they believe every top soccer player out there thinks about themselves first rather than their teammates.
I love sports Japanese mangas and animes because of their depiction of cutthroat competition and high stakes, which makes it all the more interesting and keeps the reader/watcher engaged. Having played soccer (if only at the state level), makes me feel nostalgic and makes me happy to be back in the world.
This also works as a good introductory manga for someone who has no experience with Japanese manga or the sport in itself because they explain the concepts in such an easy manner without making you feel stupid.

I’ve never read any sports manga before and so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. My husband has recommended it for some time, and I knew it was about soccer but knew ZERO about the plot. This was a fantastic manga. The art is incredible and I found myself reading slower just to pay attention to the details of the illustrations. The story is such a neat concept, and the first volume was packed with action. I am hooked and cannot wait to jump into volume 2 right away!

Thanks for NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Background characters' commentary made me laugh. Jinpachi's ruthless experiment did not disappoint. Bachira's monster is an interesting concept that I hope is divulged further. Clippy dialogue that lacks momentum. Fast-paced plot lacks substantial connection to the characters. Entertaining premise that has potential. Fiercely unapologetic. Overall, an average read.