Blue Lock - Vol. 23 Ch. 202 - Heart of Sword
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Dex-chan lover
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HOLY SHIT. THE CONCLUSION COMPLETELY SURPASSED MY EXPECTATIONS. I had predicted that Isagi would outplay Kaiser at the last second since he set his goal to be destroying Kaiser. And he did by using a back heel pass similar to what he did with Rin!! But I DID NOT expect Isagi passing to Yukimiya!!! In the panel where Isagi says "That means the guy I just plunged into despair...", I totally thought he was gonna end with "...is you, Kaiser!"
BUT THEN HE PASSED IT TO YUKIMIYA. HOLY SHIT. AND YOU CAN SEE YUKIMIYA TEARING HE'S SO FRUSTRATED THAT ISAGI IS THE ONE TO GIVE HIM A CHANCE TO SCORE. BUT HE TAKES THE SHOT ANYWAY AND HIS MINDSET EVOLVES FROM "God never gives us more than we can handle", to "THIS EGO OF MINE, NOT EVEN GOD CAN TAKE IT FROM ME". YUKIMIYA'S EGO EVOLVED FROM ONLY WANTING TO SCORE HIS WAY AND NOT ACCEPTING ISAGI'S HELP, TO ACKNOWLEDGING HIS OWN WEAKNESS AND CHOOSING TO COOPERATE WITH ISAGI NO MATTER HOW MUCH IT KILLS HIM TO DO SO. RATHER THAN CLING TO HIS OLD SELF AND SEE HIS DREAM DISAPPEAR, HE WOULD RATHER SWALLOW HIS PRIDE AND ACCEPT THAT HE'S NOT STRONG ENOUGH NOW, AND ACCEPT ISAGI'S HELP SO THAT HE CAN SURVIVE AND OVERCOME HIS WEAKNESS IN THE FUTURE.
And Yukimiya even demonstrates growth in the form of his new shooting technique which prevented Reo from saving the ball!! Even Isagi didn't predict that!!!
The thing I love about Isagi is that even though he's a striker, he doesn't look down on others. He may not be the strongest player, especially at the start where he's actually quite weak, but he has one of the strongest egos in the manga. He is willing to face his flaws without conceit, while also aiming for his ideals and changing himself for the sake of growing stronger. Rather than perceiving himself as 'strong' or 'weak', he lives in the gray area between, chasing a stronger and stronger version of himself. Throughout the manga, we see him racking his brain trying to find ways to win. We see him setting strong players like Rin or Kaiser as his goals and learning from them, even challenging them like when Isagi's team went up against Rin's team. Out of any character, he is the one that experiences the most dramatic growth, and the one who lights a fire under others like Niko, or Nagi, or Barou...or Yukimiya. Which makes sense, given how he's the protagonist amongst protagonists. Events revolve around him.
And again, all this is possible thanks to his strong drive, his ego. But at the end of the day, ideals are just ideals. You can never really achieve them perfectly. BUT. Even if you don't achieve it 100%, you'll still have improved in pursuing it.
So while Isagi embodies strong ideals and strong egos, he is also realistic. Willing to accept his current weakness and to focus on what he can now, even if its a pass, for the sake of becoming stronger in the future. And that awareness is also what enables him to honestly respect other players. It's why he's willing to learn from others. It's why friendly to people. It's why he was so upset at Barou and Yukimiya for resisting change and wasting their talent. The way Isagi treats people and the positive impact he has on them humanises him, and is one of the things I absolutely love about his character.
And this ties in well with his playstyle of spatial, but also player awareness, where he analyses people's weapons and behaviours (friend or foe) in order to predict them.
There is the argument Isagi may use people as bait or steal passes sometimes, but that's the standard for the world of Blue Lock. Everyone devours everyone else for their own sake. There's no maliciousness in it. People use each other as bait or take advantage of their teammate's plays all the time. And Isagi never thinks badly of the people he beats once the match is done. The only one that really pisses him off so far is Kaiser, who actively picked a fight with Isagi. When Kaiser blocked Isagi's shot, he didn't intend to shoot himself. It was purely to fuck with him. Joke's on him though, cos that gave Isagi the chance to grow even stronger lmao. Eat shit Kaiser.
God what a masterpiece. I love this manga to bits. The characterisation is so fuckinG GOOD. So many characters get a chance to be the protagonist and to GROW. don't even get me started on my boy Bachira. I LOST IT the first time I read his arc. I love the characters of Blue Lock so fucking much. UGH
BUT THEN HE PASSED IT TO YUKIMIYA. HOLY SHIT. AND YOU CAN SEE YUKIMIYA TEARING HE'S SO FRUSTRATED THAT ISAGI IS THE ONE TO GIVE HIM A CHANCE TO SCORE. BUT HE TAKES THE SHOT ANYWAY AND HIS MINDSET EVOLVES FROM "God never gives us more than we can handle", to "THIS EGO OF MINE, NOT EVEN GOD CAN TAKE IT FROM ME". YUKIMIYA'S EGO EVOLVED FROM ONLY WANTING TO SCORE HIS WAY AND NOT ACCEPTING ISAGI'S HELP, TO ACKNOWLEDGING HIS OWN WEAKNESS AND CHOOSING TO COOPERATE WITH ISAGI NO MATTER HOW MUCH IT KILLS HIM TO DO SO. RATHER THAN CLING TO HIS OLD SELF AND SEE HIS DREAM DISAPPEAR, HE WOULD RATHER SWALLOW HIS PRIDE AND ACCEPT THAT HE'S NOT STRONG ENOUGH NOW, AND ACCEPT ISAGI'S HELP SO THAT HE CAN SURVIVE AND OVERCOME HIS WEAKNESS IN THE FUTURE.
And Yukimiya even demonstrates growth in the form of his new shooting technique which prevented Reo from saving the ball!! Even Isagi didn't predict that!!!
The thing I love about Isagi is that even though he's a striker, he doesn't look down on others. He may not be the strongest player, especially at the start where he's actually quite weak, but he has one of the strongest egos in the manga. He is willing to face his flaws without conceit, while also aiming for his ideals and changing himself for the sake of growing stronger. Rather than perceiving himself as 'strong' or 'weak', he lives in the gray area between, chasing a stronger and stronger version of himself. Throughout the manga, we see him racking his brain trying to find ways to win. We see him setting strong players like Rin or Kaiser as his goals and learning from them, even challenging them like when Isagi's team went up against Rin's team. Out of any character, he is the one that experiences the most dramatic growth, and the one who lights a fire under others like Niko, or Nagi, or Barou...or Yukimiya. Which makes sense, given how he's the protagonist amongst protagonists. Events revolve around him.
And again, all this is possible thanks to his strong drive, his ego. But at the end of the day, ideals are just ideals. You can never really achieve them perfectly. BUT. Even if you don't achieve it 100%, you'll still have improved in pursuing it.
So while Isagi embodies strong ideals and strong egos, he is also realistic. Willing to accept his current weakness and to focus on what he can now, even if its a pass, for the sake of becoming stronger in the future. And that awareness is also what enables him to honestly respect other players. It's why he's willing to learn from others. It's why friendly to people. It's why he was so upset at Barou and Yukimiya for resisting change and wasting their talent. The way Isagi treats people and the positive impact he has on them humanises him, and is one of the things I absolutely love about his character.
And this ties in well with his playstyle of spatial, but also player awareness, where he analyses people's weapons and behaviours (friend or foe) in order to predict them.
There is the argument Isagi may use people as bait or steal passes sometimes, but that's the standard for the world of Blue Lock. Everyone devours everyone else for their own sake. There's no maliciousness in it. People use each other as bait or take advantage of their teammate's plays all the time. And Isagi never thinks badly of the people he beats once the match is done. The only one that really pisses him off so far is Kaiser, who actively picked a fight with Isagi. When Kaiser blocked Isagi's shot, he didn't intend to shoot himself. It was purely to fuck with him. Joke's on him though, cos that gave Isagi the chance to grow even stronger lmao. Eat shit Kaiser.
God what a masterpiece. I love this manga to bits. The characterisation is so fuckinG GOOD. So many characters get a chance to be the protagonist and to GROW. don't even get me started on my boy Bachira. I LOST IT the first time I read his arc. I love the characters of Blue Lock so fucking much. UGH
Thank you for the update!
I would still read Pair of 2+ version even though there is a faster upload from another group. I feel like Pair of 2+ version is easier to understand and cleaner for eyes.
Just wanna tell you guys that there’re still people who wait for your upload! (Like me)
I would still read Pair of 2+ version even though there is a faster upload from another group. I feel like Pair of 2+ version is easier to understand and cleaner for eyes.
Just wanna tell you guys that there’re still people who wait for your upload! (Like me)
Last edited:
Fed-Kun's army
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As someone who can read the raws, I say that Pair of 2+'s translation is not only more accurate, but is also more stylistically appropriate. The other team's translation is horrible in comparison. If you are a true fan, it is definitely in your best interest to wait for these higher quality scans.
Member
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Thanks for the update! It was worth waiting for. ^_^
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Thanks for the update!
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All that hyping up Isagi's last drive just for him to pass in the end and have someone else score. Literally nothing has changed since chapter 1 when he passed the ball to his teammate instead of scoring and lost the game. "He passed because he wasn't selfish enough" or "He passed so he could beat Kaiser". Who gives a fuck? He still passed and someone else scored for him. Assists is all this guy is good for after 200 chapters. What a shitty way to end this match. I expect we can see more of the same from the "World's #1 passer".
