Area no Kishi refers to the striker. Football has been gaining popularity in Japan over the years and even though Japan has done pretty well in the recent Olympics and the World Cup last year, Japan football is more well known for its defense than its offense. Japan has good defenders and midfielders but the strikers lack finishing touch. I guess the purpose of this anime is to motivate japanese strikers to shoot more and score more goals. Anyway, I'm very surprised that Area no Kishi ended at episode 37. Why end at episode 37 - the middle of the winter tournament arc? They should either have ended right after the inter high arc or finish the winter tournament arc. Story: (8/10) – Good Area no Kishi tells the stories of middle and high school students as they grow up through their soccer clubs, compete in national tournaments, and strive for world titles. Main character Kakeru, his respected elder brother Suguru, and childhood friend Nana, along with all the teammates, rivals from other schools, and world class soccer players around him radiate their own brilliant light as they face adolescence with all their strength. Area no Kishi reminds me a little of Major. Like Major, Area no Kishi started off with the death of a character and that helped to push the main character forward. Character: (8/10) – Good The main character, Kakeru, is a striker who is not exactly proficient in dribbling but does his job (scoring goals) well. At the beginning, he's really wimpy and negative and he only got better after his brother's death (v.v) Even though he's more confident and positive now, I still don't quite like him. He only looks cool when his brother "possessed" him. I have no issue with the heroine, Nana, but I don't quite like the idea of introducing Nadeshiko Japan (Japan's women football team) into the story. It's boring and the character called Mai (supposedly one of the idols of Nadeshiko Japan) is freaking irritating. I also find the commentators from the different schools, in particular Enoshima High School, really noisy and their commentaries are not interesting. There are many schools introduced in the series and other than Enoshima High School, I really like Touei High School and it's captain! My favorite characters: Asuka from Yoin - He looks really cool and cute! He has great leadership skills too! Onimaru from Yoin- He's cute too and he forms a great combination with Asuka. Oda from Enoshima - I love his serious nature! I enjoy watching his quarrels with Araki too. Araki from Enoshima - It's amazing how he can lose and gain weight within short periods of time (almost unreal). Araki, please don't get fat again! Suguro - As much as I understand how important it is for him to die in the story, it's still sad to see him die. Art/Animation: (7/10) – Fairly Good The art is quite nice and fits the story but I can't say the same for the animation. The animation for the football moves looks quite awkward at times. Music: (8/10) – Good There's only one theme throughout the entire series and it's quite a nice song for a sports anime. Enjoyment (8/10) – Good The football matches are interesting enough for me to disregard the awful commentary. I also enjoy the interactions between the different characters. Overall: (8/10) – Good Overall, I quite enjoy watching Area no Kishi. Though I'm not very impressed with the supernatural theme (Suguro possessing Kakeru (?)), I like the football action and love the characters, in particular the side characters.
Read the rest of this entry Entry meta