What did Internet users think of the first episode of “Ao Ashi”, a new football anime that succeeds “Olive and Tom”, the first episode of which aired this weekend on Crunchyroll?
After the Olive and Tom generation, will a new wave of football anime fans emerge? This is the question that many specialists are asking, when the first episode of Ao Ashi was broadcast this weekend on Crunchyroll, adapted from the eponymous manga by Yûgo Kobayashi (eight volumes available from Mangetsu editions).
This series follows the adventures of Ashito Aoi, star striker of a provincial college team; Invited by the prestigious coach Tatsuya Fukuda to join the prestigious Tokyo Esperion FC youth team, the young boy will have to rub shoulders with the talent of other Japanese football hopefuls to hope to realize his dream of one day becoming the greatest striker in the world. world.
Even before its release, the comparison with Olive and Tom seemed inevitable. However Ao Ashi managed to stand out from the famous series of the 80s by following the adventures of a young footballer whose genius has not yet been revealed in broad daylight (unlike Olivier Atton – Tsubusa Ohzora, in the original version – football prodigy from the first episode of the series).
Ao Ashi, the anti-Olive and Tom?
GI production
The other difference between the two works lies in the ultra-realistic aspect ofAo Ashi. On the contrary ofOlive and Tomimagined by the author Yoichi Takahashi whose football is not really the passion – the encyclopedic knowledge of the world of football by the mangaka Yûgo Kobayashi shines through every moment of this new series.
In Ao Ashi, it is thus much more a question of tactics, of learning basic technical gestures or of lessons instilled by defeats than of a field of disproportionate size or improbable game combinations. No high-powered strikes in the name of capillotractés here, but perfectly realistic sequences of football. Fact, Ao Ashi is aimed more at football fans thanOlive and Tomwith a much more mainstream tone and shonen spirit.
Will 2022 be Ashito Aoi’s year? If it is certain that the series will mark the spirits in the coming months, remember that another football anime will land very soon on our screens; except that Blue Lock will have the originality of staging football battle royales, against the perfectly realistic tone ofAo Ashi.
What did Internet users think of the first episode ofAo Ashi, airing this weekend on Crunchyroll? Here is a rundown of their reactions:
anime series episodes Ao Ashi are offered every Saturday as an exclusive simulcast on the Crunchyroll platform.