As tensions rise, all eyes are on the strikers as they prepare for their crucial showdown: Blue Lockers versus Japan U-20. The result of this pivotal match could significantly influence their careers in both Blue Lock and the broader football scene. With Isagi currently not in the leading ranks, the weight of expectations is heavy on him. He faces a critical decision that could alter his destiny within Blue Lock.
Here’s the latest information.
1. Release Date for Episode 2
Mark your calendars: Episode 2 of ‘Blue Lock’ is set to premiere on Saturday, October 12, 2024. The series follows a weekly schedule, with new episodes airing each Saturday. You can catch ‘Blue Lock’ on Crunchyroll.
I. Is There a Break for Blue Lock This Week?
No, ‘Blue Lock’ will not take a break this week. Episode 2 is confirmed to be released as planned.
2. Speculations for Episode 2:
The next episode will delve into the exhilarating Third Selection arc, where competition is at its peak. With only 35 players remaining in Jinpachi Ego’s intense programme focused on football, each one fights hard for a prestigious place on the final Blue Lock team.
As the challenge escalates, the stakes rise beyond individual ambitions and venture into survival territory. The elite 11 players will gain the chance to face Japan’s U20 national team, putting the future of Blue Lock in jeopardy.
Prepare for unexpected developments and fierce rivalries as players fight to demonstrate their worth as elite strikers. The heat of competition is sure to forge intense moments ahead.
3. Episode 1 Recap
The premiere of Blue Lock season 2, titled “Tryouts,” opens with a flashback to Itoshi Rin playing football with his older brother, Sae, in their youth. Sae triumphantly defeats Rin in a one-on-one match, taunting him about his lack of progress over the past four years. Rin’s face reflects his fear and inferiority in comparison to his brother.
In the present, the Japan Football Union is optimistic that the financial proceeds from the Blue Lock versus Japan U-20 match will help recover losses faced by Ego, who remains steadfast in his belief that his team can emerge victorious against the U-20 squad, preserving the legacy of Blue Lock.
Ego warns the 35 remaining strikers that failure would mean the end of Blue Lock and their aspirations of a football career, while triumph would enable them to replace the Japan U-20 team. He then introduces the next segment of the competition: the Third Selection.
The leading six players will be divided into three teams based on their rankings. The remaining 29 players will need to select their partners to form teams, with each group consisting of five players joining together for the trial matches against one another.
Isagi contemplates his journey as Ego announces the names of the six players comprising the core team. The elite players are Itoshi Rin, Shidou Ryusei, Karasu Tabito, Otoya Eita, Yukimiya Kenyu, and Nagi Seishiro, leaving Isagi disheartened for not being among the chosen.
The team matches will consist of five players per side, with the outcomes determining who earns a spot on the Blue Lock team for the upcoming challenge against Japan’s U20 team. Given the player shortage, Meguru Bachira, the second-place player, will feature in two trial games.
With a sense of self-doubt, Isagi grapples with the realization that he is now surrounded by players like Nagi, Bachira, and Rin, all of whom have outperformed him. Ego communicates a crucial message to the remaining strikers: the key to victory lies in combining personal assertiveness with collaboration. As the remaining Team Z gathers in the cafeteria, they reflect on absent teammates, particularly Rensuke Kunigami, who they believed had the potential to succeed.
Meanwhile, the top six players begin their interactions. A conflict brews between Shidou and Rin, which Ego intervenes to mediate, outlining his high expectations that they should support others in enhancing their skills, all while maintaining their superior positions as prime strikers.
As Isagi brushes his teeth, he contemplates Ego’s ambiguous directive while Shoei Barou ridicules him for his wavering self-confidence. Barou, confident in his distinctiveness, dismisses the notion of joining Nagi after their previous match and declares his intent to excel irrespective of his team. He questions why Isagi isn’t in the top tier, asserting he deserves a higher rank.
Concerned about playing alongside Rin, Isagi considers switching to Nagi’s team but ultimately ends up in Team A, playing alongside Rin. Bachira decides on Team A too, while Barou, Raichi, Niko, and Chigiri opt for Team B. Zantetsu, Gagamaru, and Reo commit to Team C. Reflecting on Ego’s advice, Isagi ponders how to position himself strategically among the top two players.
Additionally, Buratsuta, the special advisor from the Japan Football Union, expresses his disdain for the notion of a group of unheard-of players overtaking Japanese football. Nevertheless, he welcomes the considerable buzz surrounding the upcoming Blue Lock versus Japan U-20 match, with fans eager to secure their tickets early.
He insists that the U-20 team must not underperform against the Blue Lock participants. The episode closes with the U-20 captain prepared for the intense clash ahead.
About Blue Lock
Serialized in Kodansha’s Weekly Shōnen Magazine since August 2018, Blue Lock secured the 45th Kodansha Manga Award in the shōnen category in 2021.
The narrative kicks off after Japan’s exit from the 2018 FIFA World Cup, which leads the Japanese Football Union to initiate a program targeting high school players for training in anticipation of the 2022 Cup.
Forward Isagi Youichi receives an invitation for this program right after his team loses their chance to compete in the Nationals, having opted to pass to a less-talented teammate.
Guided by Ego Jinpachi, who aims to revolutionize Japanese football through a radical training scheme, 300 young strikers are sequestered within a confining institution dubbed “Blue Lock.”
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