BLUELOCK: Season 1 Part 2 Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		3.0

BLUELOCK: Season 1 Part 2 Blu-ray Movie Review

Bluelock: Season 1, Part 2 is an action-thriller sports series. Created by Muneyuki Kaneshiro and Yūsuke Nomura ("Blue Lock Additional Time"), Bluelock: Season 1, Part 2 is a sports anime for fans of soccer to enjoy. Executive produced by Emiko Iijima (After-School Hanako-kun, Utawarerumono: Mask of Truth), Hideo Hirata (Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond, Run with the Wind), Junichi Kimura, Yōhei Takami (That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime: Scarlet Bond, Tokyo Mew Mew New), Junko Sano, and Yōichi Sekine (Arifureta - From Commonplace to World's Strongest, Cat Planet Cuties).

The series features animation produced by 8 bit (That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, Macross Frontier: The False Songstress) and Point Pictures (Tomodachi Game, Princess Principal). Produced by Ryōya Arisawa (The Magnificent KOTOBUKI, Princess Principal), Shin Furukawa (Attack on Titan, How NOT to Summon a Demon Lord), and Yūki Mori (Sing "Yesterday" for Me, A Couple of Cuckoos), Bluelock: Season 1, Part 2 offers more action and thrills for series fans who are looking to continue the season journey. Bluelock: Season 1, Part 2 features voice-performances by Kazuki Ura, Sōma Saitō, Tasuku Kaito, and Yūki Ono.

The games continue. The game of soccer is no easy game and the competition is always fierce. Talent will only get one so far and one needs the strength to play the game and be the best of the crop.

The stage is set for more fierce competition and the players have a lot on the table: the game is now on the third stage within the second selection round. The teams include three players each and the goal is to see who gets to five goals first. The prize? Whoever wins can select a player on the losing team – so the best of the losers side can still have a chance to rise to the top.

As the soccer games continue, at last the competition leads to a showdown between Isagi and Rin. Who will win? Can Isagi survive and make it to the top? The field is green – can it stay that way or be stained with blood?

For a soccer anime predominately focused on the sport and the thriller elements of the plotline, the characters are well-done for a sports series. Isagi and Rin are reasonably engaging characters for the series and the enthusiasm for the game of soccer is apparent. The characters have a drive to do well playing the sport. The passion for the sport carries through with the characterizations on the anime.

The character designs are by Kenji Tanabe (The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic, Good Luck Girl!) and Kento Toya (Sword Art Online: Alicization - War of Underworld, The Seven Deadly Sins: Revival of The Commandments) and are solid. The designs add to the series aesthetics. The characters and their “costumes” (soccer game attire) feel well-done and solid for the sports anime.

The animation is solid enough with a good sense of style for a sports series. The animation features art direction by Kana Arai, Sawako Takagi (Hikaru no Go, Silver Spoon), and Toshihiko Kojima (Shikizakura, TenPuru). The animation does a good job of highlighting the soccer games and the competition of the players. The animators have fun emphasizing these elements of the game and the fierce battle on the green-grass of the soccer field.

The cinematography by Yasuhiro Asagi (Pandora in the Crimson Shell: Ghost Urn, Ms. Koizumi loves ramen noodles) is one of the highlights of the series. The cinematography looks nice on the series. Visuals have plenty of spunk for a sports series. The cinematography balances the colors and the aesthetic sensibilities of the soccer games.

The score composed by Jun Murayama (BLUELOCK THE MOVIE -EPISODE NAGI-) is decent even if it is not quite a showstopper. The music works as solid background music for the anime. The score doesn’t stand out as much here as some of the best anime scores but it is decent and helps to highlight the soccer action.

Written by Taku Kishimoto (Fruits Basket, Ranking of Kings), Bluelock: Season 1, Part 2 is a solid soccer anime series. Fans of soccer anime and sports dramas will find something to enjoy here. The anime certainly has an interesting thriller energy and the competitive nature of the game is well reflected through the script.

Directed by Tetsuaki Watanabe (Magical Circle Guru-Guru, Maria the Virgin Witch), Bluelock: Season 1, Part 2 is a sports series with plenty of soccer action to keep soccer anime fans entertained. Director Watanabe has fun with the concept and the players of the game. The result is some tense soccer matches – bringing out the heat in the game.  

BLUELOCK: Season 1 Part 2 Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Released on Blu-ray by Crunchyroll, Bluelock: Season 1, Part 2 is presented in 1080p MPEG-4 AVC encoded high-definition in the original television broadcast aspect ratio of 1.78:1 widescreen. The presentation is crisp and colorful looking on the release. The high-definition video is beautiful and certainly robust looking on the release. The animation is certainly splendid and shines nicely with the encode by Crunchyroll.

A strength of the Blu-ray format is the superior video quality. Streaming video services tend to provide video quality with lower bit-rates and a more compressed image. For home theater enthusiasts, the physical medium format offers a distinct advantage – higher bit-rates and more well-rounded video encoding. The result is superior picture-quality for videophiles.

BLUELOCK: Season 1 Part 2 Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The release includes a selection of lossless audio options: English Dolby TrueHD 5.1 surround sound and Japanese Dolby TrueHD 2.0 (with English subtitles). The release capably preserves the sound direction by Fumiyuki Go (Death March to The Parallel World Rhapsody, The Rising of The Shield Hero). The lossless audio encoding handles the soundtrack and sound design nicely. Dialogue is crisp and clear sounding on the release. The English dub does benefit by having a slightly more enveloping 5.1 surround sound track (adding extra emphasis on the score).

Regardless, purists who want the most authentic and true experience will want to opt for the original Japanese language version – which comes with lossless 2.0 stereo encoding that is no slouch, either. The soundstaging is excellent on the release. The English subtitles are well-done and are free from egregious spelling or grammatical errors.

BLUELOCK: Season 1 Part 2 Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

The first print run of the release comes with a nicely designed o-card slipcover featuring unique key art. The slipcover artwork is distinct and different from the key artwork featured underneath the slipcover. The sleeve art highlighted under the slipcover is also impressive and stands as separate art from the slipcover art – adding some extra collectability to the release. Fans and collectors alike appreciate a more well- designed package and it helps make the set feel more special in hand.

On disc supplements include:

Bluelock Additional Time! Mini Anime (HD, 14:16)

Textless Opening Song (HD, 1:32)

Textless Closing Song (HD, 1:32)

The release could have benefited by having a more robust supplemental package. Unfortunately, the only extra of noteworthy interest is the inclusion of the mini anime. Outside of this bonus feature, a number of other extras could have expanded the supplemental package and would have added extra value for collectors – such as audio commentaries, behind-the-scenes featurettes, cast/crew interviews, and more. A lot of collectors value the supplements highly and expanding the on-disc bonus features is something that pleases fans looking for more information about the production. Crunchyroll should certainly consider providing more bonus features in the future.

BLUELOCK: Season 1 Part 2 Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Bluelock: Season 1, Part 2 continues the action-packed soccer thriller with the second half of season one. Fans of sports anime will find something to appreciate about the series and its intense soccer matches. The Blu-ray release provides a solid high-definition presentation and lossless audio encoding. The release also includes the Bluelock Additional Time! Mini Anime as a supplement. The first print run also has an attractive o-card slipcover. Recommended.