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The soccer manga “Blue Lock” that has been serialized in “Weekly Shonen Magazine” will be adapted into a TV anime in 2022. At the same time, a teaser visual and a teaser PV have been released, and the first announcement of the cast members was also made including Ura Kazuki, Kaito Tasuku, Ono Yuki, and Saito Soma.

“Blue Lock” is an “egotistical FW soccer manga” that has been serialized in “Weekly Shonen Magazine” by Kaneshiro Muneyuki and Nomura Yusuke. Set in the “Blue Lock (Blue Prison)” project to nurture strikers who can lead Japan to a World Cup victory, it depicts 300 high school students, all FW (forwards), and the challenge of sorting out the chaff in an attempt to become “egoistic strikers”.

The teaser visual released this time shows the members of Team Z gathered around the main character, Isagi Yoichi. A teaser PV has also been unveiled, and is full of dynamic soccer scenes and character voices.

It was also announced that Ura Kazuki, Kaito Tasuku, Ono Yuki, and Saito Soma will be the first cast members. Here is what they will voice over; Ura as the main character, Isagi Yoichi, an unnamed high school FW, Kaito as Bachira Meguru, who has a unique sensibility and does things at his own pace, Ono as Kunigami Rensuke, a good-looking young man full of sportsmanship and manliness, and Saito as Chigiri Hyoma, a beautiful boy with an androgynous face. Comments from each cast member have also arrived.

The TV anime “Blue Lock” is scheduled to air in 2022. We have high hopes for the opening of the most passionate and craziest soccer anime ever.

＜The full text of the comments is as follows＞

[Ura Kazuki as Isagi Yoichi]

Q1: What is your impression of this work?
I’ve been reading the original manga since it was first serialized. I remember that it was so passionate and interesting that I couldn’t stop myself turning the pages!!
300 high school FWs were gathered to generate the best striker in the world.
I’m sure that many of you will be hooked on the way they are always moving forward tenaciously with all their might.
I love this work because I feel that the passion and obsession for winning and scoring points that comes through in this work is something that I can relate to as an actor.

Q2: What is your impression of the character you are going to voice over and how enthusiastic are you about the role?
My first impression of the character I’m going to play, Isagi, is that he has a passionate side, but he’s also too objective and has a more calm side.
However, as he grows up and is influenced by the egos of those around him in “Blue Lock,” he reveals his own ego more and more, which gives me a completely opposite impression and that is his charm.
I’m still a young rookie, but I’d like to grow with him as he grows as an egoist and a striker through this work!

[Kaito Tasuku as Bachira Meguru]

Q1: What is your impression of this work?
Once I started reading the original manga, I couldn’t stop and was quickly drawn in. In particular, I think the emphasis on individual abilities and play is innovative, and there are many unique characters who appear one after another, so I think this is a work that I can’t take my eyes off of as their possibilities expand and grow.

Q2: What is your impression of the character you are going to voice over and how enthusiastic are you about the role?
My impression was that he was a cheerful character who does things at his own pace, but his dribbling is very skillful and his play is selfish, so he has a lot of gaps. I also think that he is a very attractive character who has his own world, so I will do my best to express such an inner world of his as well.

[Ono Yuki as Kunigami Rensuke]

Q1: What is your impression of this work?
As a former soccer boy, I’ve read a certain amount of soccer manga, but I was shocked when I first read “Blue Lock”.
It’s definitely a soccer version of a death game. It was the kind of excitement that can only be experienced by “Blue Lock”.

Q2: What is your impression of the character you are going to voice over and how enthusiastic are you about the role?
I voiced several characters in the “Blue Lock” commercial before, but I didn’t do it for Kunigami at that time. Actually, the character that I personally felt the most empathy for and wanted to try was Kunigami. So when I got the audition for the role of Kunigami, I was extremely happy.
Kunigami is the kind of person who waits for the right moment, training himself to be fair and square. I would like to voice Kunigami to the best of my ability.

[Saito Soma as Chigiri Hyoma]

Q1: What is your impression of this work?
When I started reading the manga for the audition, I was so anxious to see what would happen next that I kept reading it.
Of course, the drama and passion of each character is very appealing, but I was also impressed by their attitude of not only being desperate but also trying to get to the answer in the right way.
We haven’t started recording yet, but I’m sure the anime will be an unconventional work since the characters are all so unique.

Q2: What is your impression of the character you are going to voice over and how enthusiastic are you about the role?
Chigiri-kun looks beautiful and fragile, but I think he’s a pleasant person with a lot of passion in his heart.
At the audition, I had a line about an episode that would be a turning point for him in the story, so I’m looking forward to getting to that point.
I hope you will be able to feel the gap between the scenes of daily life and the scenes of the game, as he usually does things at his own pace.

TV animation “Blue Lock”
Broadcast in 2022

Original Story: Kaneshiro Muneyuki Manga: Nomura Yusuke (serialized in Kodansha’s “Weekly Shonen Magazine”)
Director: Watanabe Tetsuaki
Assistant Director: Ishikawa Shunsuke
Series Composer/Screenwriter: Kishimoto Taku
Story Supervisor: Kaneshiro Muneyuki
Concept Advisor: Uemura Yutaka
Main Character Design and Chief Animation Director: Shindo Yu
Character Design and Chief Animation Director: Tanabe Kenji, Toya Kento
Chief Action Director: Tojima Hisashi
Action Director: Sakamoto Hiromi
Prop Design: Tojima Hisashi, Nakajima Yuri, Okitsu Kaori
Special Effects: Akane
Color Design: Komatsu Sakura
Art Designer : Sugiyama Shinji
Art Director: Takagi Sawako
Background: Studio Y.S.
Director of Photography : Asagi Yasuhiro
Photography: Chiptune
3DCG Director: Hirosawa Norimitsu
3DCG: Aura Studio
Visual Concept: Yamashita Toshiyuki (Hyperbole)
Special Effect Processing: Yamashita Toshiyuki, Mitsuzumi Rina
2DCG Monitor Graphics: Asano Keiichi (emitai)
Editing: Hasegawa Mai (editz)
Sound Director: Goh Fumiyuki
Sound Production: Bit Groove Promotion
Music: Murayama Jun
Animation Producer: Hirano Tsuyoshi
Animation Production: 8bit

＜Cast＞
Isagi Yoichi: Ura Kazuki
Bachira Meguru: Kaito Tasuku
Kunigami Rensuke: Ono Yuki
Chigiri Hyoma: Saito Soma

(C) Kaneshiro Muneyuki, Nomura Yusuke, Kodansha/”Blue Lock” Production Committee