What does soccer mean to you? This is a major theme that gets explored in Ao Ashi and which is the main theme of the series. While the story is about Ao Ashi as he aims to go pro. There are clear challenges for him. He starts as a hotheaded forward; he cares about nothing but scoring.
Ao Ashi is the first character we obviously see this. As for him scoring was everything. Eventually his coach Tatsuya Fukuda wants to push him to be a defender. As he gets moved to the fullback position. In which Ashito’s world goes upside down. For so many people we aim to be the star who scores all the goals. It can be easy to see why Ashito would feel like this.
Over time Ashito comes to be more motivated to play defense. Towards the 2nd half of the series he comes to love defense. With his innate eagle eye with his improving skills on offense and defense it is really nice ot see Ashito’s transformation. Ashito coming to love his role as a fullback shows that many times we can have tunnel vision. Where it isn’t just playing the sport, but also in a specific way. Also how important it can be to look at different avenues.
Along with the theme of what does soccer mean to you. Is it something you need in your lives or is it just a sport? Ashito, Akutsu and Demian each have this question asked about them. For both Akutsu and Demian soccer was an escape for them from the hell of their lives growing up. It’s easy to understand why soccer and being great at it were necessities. They didn’t want to go back to that hell. But along the way there are others that make an impact on them that make them realize there is more to it than just a job. Akutsu gets a full character arc showing this and Demian leaves the manga with a smile after Barcelona loses to Esperion.
Hana and Fukuda also highlight this theme. For Fukuda he just had fun with soccer in the pureness form, which in part has to do with his talent. For Hana she just loved watching her brother play as his biggest fan. Still, Fukuda’s injury is a depressing moment for both of them. For Fukuda even when he was playing was great at teaching, which leads him to find passion in youth development. While Hana, after feeling so useless after her brother’s injury aims to be a doctor. Through soccer she found her calling. As Ashito and her relationship from start to finish is very well done. There is more about this manga I could elaborate on, but that is the core theme of Aoi Ashi.
If you are looking for a sports manga that gets into tactics within the game this manga is great for it. It focuses on aspects from junior youth, youth, and pro. The tactics are very well done and it is shown in a very digestible manner. Also as various characters move to different levels it can really showcase why the challenge is as difficult as it is for Ashito and his teammates. It really puts you in the character’s position is the happy moments but even in the tense moments.
Art is pretty solid, but the best thing about it is how dynamic it can be during the match. You can truly visualize how the ball gets moved around from panel to panel. The matches that really get focus almost feel like you are watching a match and can be quite intense.
There is not too many manga that I would call a masterpiece, but Aoi Ashi is one of those manga. It does everything at a top level and if you enjoy reading manga this one is a must read from start to finish.