"Blue Lock": Nobunaga Shimazaki & Kazuki Ura Discuss—'Isn't There Poor Supervision?'
The combined issue 21 and 22 of "Weekly Shonen Magazine" released on April 24 featured a discussion between Nobunaga Shimazaki, who plays the protagonist Seishiro Nagi in the movie "Blue Lock -EPISODE Nagi-", and Kazuki Ura, who portrays Yoichi Isagi.
This work is a different official story of "Blue Lock -EPISODE Nagi-", based on the original manga, depicting the battle in the "Blue Prison" from the perspective of another protagonist, Seishiro Nagi. The actors shared their insights on the allure of this film.
Shimazaki: Right, in the TV series, everyone views the world of "Blue Lock" through Isagi's perspective. A good example is the scene during the first selection where Kuon Sho, from Team Z, approaches Nagi and Reo Mikage with a match-fixing proposal.
Ura: Oh, I thought the same.
Shimazaki: In the TV series, everyone watches thinking, 'Kuon, you...!' without much criticism towards Isagi and the others. But now, from Nagi's perspective, it's like, 'Hey, before you guys just boldly say "We're going to beat you!", you should apologize first!' (laughs).
Ura: And it's not like Nagi and Mikage actually agree to the match-fixing either (laughs).
Shimazaki: I found myself thinking, 'Come on, Isagi, isn't there poor supervision here?' (laughs).
Ura: It was a scene that really made me realize how changing the perspective can alter the way dialogue is perceived. "Blue Lock," a soccer manga serialized in "Weekly Shonen Magazine," aims to create an "overwhelmingly egotistic forward" for the Japanese national team, which suffered a defeat in the Soccer World Cup. It begins a national project to nurture high school players.
The story is about the birth of a revolutionary striker, risking the soccer careers of 299 out of 300 forwards gathered. The comics have surpassed 30 million copies in circulation.
Since October 2022, the TV anime has been broadcast, with a second season confirmed. The film version is based on "Blue Lock -EPISODE Nagi-", serialized in Bessatsu Shonen Magazine, reconfiguring the battle in the "Blue Lock (Blue Prison)" from the genius Seishiro Nagi's perspective and creating a new story.