I feel like I was introduced to a sports shounen but then you can't help but cheer on as Isagi tries his best to be the top striker with or without teams. I feel like the manga-ka did a great job of making it creative based on the football x death game setting and the characters... are fine.
I've read up to vol. 4 and everyone is just really into football which is great since there's no sudden romantic subplot that can ruin a series. Also, the power of friendship and forming close bonds with male friends is a theme here.
FWIW: I have no knowledge of sports but I'm just reading it as I'd read any kind of superpower shounen manga and it's still entertaining.
One of the downsides I feel like everyone in the cast gets random power-ups during the games and I'm like well, I think it's clear this makes a lot of the action scenes awkward since it kills some of the tension.
Also, everyone is creeping toward Anri Teieri who only exists to bring meals and clean after men for no reason, and for focusing on her chest for every single panel. Also, there a no other relevant women in the entire series beyond the player's mothers and sisters. I'm like damn, this is weird even for shonen.
Also the scanlation it's pretty rough with excessive profanity and slurs. I'm honestly not sure what happened with the groups. Also, I feel like a lot of the dialogue is cringe and just bizarre to read esp Ego Jinpachi where it feels like he's just sprouting word salads each time. There were several moments I had to think...did teens talk like this? Does anyone talk like this on Earth?
The art is very expressive and dynamic which is good since it can look strange since it's an active sport. I admit character design is OK with each guy with a different hair/body but it does feel a bit bland since everyone has one main trait like long hair or eyelashes.
Edit: I read up to ch 168 and my thought is ehhh, it does fall off a bit after the 2nd selection and we just get more of the same but just bigger rivals with stranger names. I feel like the same problem it lost a lot of impacts since you know Isagi will win or show up everyone in the last min for like every obstacle then it started to be dragged down. I feel like this is just going to be endless tourney mode and I want to be free. I feel like it would be better to have a shorter running time than just fade out b/c it's just too many of the same scenes.
5/7/24 As of now I dropped it after Ch 260 and I it was getting pretty tiring for the last few months.
I feel like I can't count the number of kids who had abusive families/pasts in this manga and somehow it brought them all into soccer. I'm like is there no one well-adjusted in this world who actually likes sports? I feel like the implication that trauma adds character when in reality it will slowly erode the person over time if it's unresolved was the last straw for me.
(-15)
(+12)
