soooo i'm thinking about maybe reading/watching eyeshield 21. could you maybe lend some insight as to what could make it appeal to the reader/watcher? like, what would make me enjoy it? also, do you recommend the manga or the anime? i know this was a lot, sorry. but thanks!
oh god, don’t watch the anime LOL it doesn’t adapt the manga well at all.
read the manga. it’s drawn by the same guy who’s currently redrawing the One Punch Man series, Yusuke Murata. the art is fantastic.
as for the story, it’s sounds like a run of the mill series, but that’s where the normalcy ends. the Quarterback of the American Football Club (aka Hiruma Youichi) uses things like blackmail, kidnapping, and shooting people with one of his (many) guns in order to get people to join or do things for him, and that’s just the beginning.
Hiruma kidnapping Monta.
please note, Hiruma’s name means “Devil in Plain Sight.”
the series is crazy fun and it’s got a TON of energy, heart, and action. the characters are all unique and fantastic- as mentioned, the quarterback carries a mini artillery around with him at all times, and he has enough blackmail on people that he owns his own island. (it never comes up, but it’s canon).
HELL, AT ONE POINT, TWO OF THE CHARACTERS CHASE A MOTORCYCLE DOWN, AND WIN.
then there’s Sena, the main character, who’s incredibly cowardly at first and only good at running–which is GREAT for becoming the new running back of the team, which is why Hiruma wants him on the team. and then the catcher is Monta, a short guy who looks more like a monkey than a highschool student, and the only thing he’s good at is catching.
Each team they face has their own theme, some examples being the Deimon Devilbats (main characters), Oujo White Nights, Seibu Wild Gunman, Taiyo Sphinx, Kyoshin Poseidon, Bando Spiders, etc. and when a team has a theme, it goes ALL OUT. with attacks, outfits, and the school even designed to fit into it.
and each character is completely unique with their own weird quirks and talents and backstories. and all the main characters get their own moment to shine with their own development and growth, even a lot of the characters from opposing teams. in fact, sometimes you can’t help but root for the opposing teams.
trust me when I say that you don’t have to understand football at ALL in order to enjoy the series. It takes you through babysteps so you understand the basic rules and such, and then it goes completely off the rails.
i’ve never cared about football before reading this manga, and even after i can’t say i have much of an interest. but the series ALWAYS gets me pumped up about it whenever i read it. it’s a series that gets me invested in a sport i don’t even care about.
the series is just fantastic and crazy and full of a lot of fun and heart and emotion. the art is BEAUTIFUL and the characters are all so enjoyable to watch. it’s seriously a great series.
and also, Hiruma is hilariously, insanely chaotic.
(he’s actually super smart too, but he uses stuff like mind games and crazy plays in order to intimidate his opponents and to catch them off guard. and it’s beautiful.)
anyway,
please read Eyeshield 21. it’s fantastic. i promise you won’t regret it
Please for the love of god go read es21