I may just put my coverage of Days on hold for a while, pending events on-screen. Weekends are (as so often the case) the busy part of the calendar this anime season, and we’re kind of in a holding pattern in terms of what’s happening in the story.
- Tsukishi is still running non-stop, on and off the field
- Tsukishi is still pretty much clueless on the ball
- Ubukuata is still pretty insufferable (seriously – no one in the club has any problem with the manager making one of the active players do her job?)
The more consequential events this week involved the referee for whatever reason deciding not to issue any yellow cards despite a pretty much non-stop parade of chippy fouls – mostly against Kazama – by the opponent, Ariake. We see this a lot in soccer – an outgunned team trying to play a war of attrition against a stronger opponent and hold out for penalty kicks. And it certainly makes sense for them to target Kazama, a hotshot first-year with a skinny build and a history of flakiness. We also got the introduction of a new character, Narukami Shuuji (Hanae Natsuki), who’s almost as tiny as Tsukishi but also happens to be Sakuragi’s #10 and leading scorer. I suspect his role is going to be showing Tsukishi that great size and strength isn’t needed to be an impact player in soccer.
As for the game itself, most notable probably is that Mizuki finally got onto the field – though it came only after Tsukishi (himself a sub) was kicked in the head going for a flying header against Ariake (which should have been a PK, but you know, absentee ref). He ends up showing that great size and strength can actually be pretty useful, scoring on a header despite Ariake’s determination to triple-mark him (which, of course, frees up so much space for Mizuki’s teammates that no special heroism on his part should probably have been necessary). That gets Seiseki into the final – where to say it would be a shock if Saku weren’t the opponent would be a massive understatement.
It may make some sense to do an “in-series” digest post with this show, funnily enough – let developments pile up for two or three episodes and then turn them into a post. I am still enjoying Days, but it’s creeping along rather slowly for the nonce. Let’s play it be ear for now.
Faceless Man
August 14, 2016 at 9:19 pmI always thought it would serve better to be cover Days in a series review.
Earthling Zing
August 15, 2016 at 12:14 amIf the preview doesn’t lie it would be very interesting to see Tsukishi’s mom next episode.
Guardian Enzo
August 15, 2016 at 7:43 amAgreed – I’ve been waiting for that.
Gintokichimaru
August 15, 2016 at 12:56 amHonestly this series is pretty unoriginal. Anyone who’s watched or read at least a few sports anime/manga will recognize all of the major plot points and the characters. Of the manga I’ve read Days reminds me the most of Whistle! from the late 90s. Not that that’s a bad thing, as they say; “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” I’m still waiting for something to set Days apart though. Hopefully the mom will provide that element to improve on the entertaining predictability we’ve had the last 2 months.
Kurik
August 15, 2016 at 3:47 amThis series is ok but as most commenters say…its not a much watch….couple episodes have some spark but overall its just….ok….I much prefer Giant Killing. Wish that got a second season.
Yukie
August 15, 2016 at 4:17 amI wish the soccer segments were longer…this must be the first sports series that I’ve watched with matches entirely abridged and rushed. Even Baby Steps with its limited budget had more sports than this sports anime. So far Days is composed of 50% Tsukushi running , 25%side character development, 15% humor, and 10% soccer. Hopefully we’ll actually see a proper match for the finals against Saku High.
Dein
August 15, 2016 at 10:19 amI’ve gotten a few sports shows under my belt since the first episode of Days aired, and out of the ones I’ve seen, this one dedicates the smallest amount of time to the sport itself. On one hand it’s cool to see the characters, get a feel for their personalities and relationships, but it would also be nice to get a bit more love for the game itself. Daus is really taking it’s time to set the stage.
Flaiboy
August 15, 2016 at 7:26 pmI was patient but now I’m tired of the hard-working-clueless-loud-MC trope. Couple that with a story that feels thin and shallow compared to Yowamushi Pedal and Haikyuu!! and I’m throwing in the towel. I’m new to this genre but I just need something more substantial than what this show is giving me to stay interested.
Gintokichimaru
August 16, 2016 at 12:43 pmIf you’re new to the sports genre I’d say try Eyeshield 21. Its got another diminutive, hard-working main character but the comedy and the supporting characters are more interesting than Days.
Flaiboy
August 16, 2016 at 8:43 pmI’ve watched Ginga e Kickoff!! and loved it, and I’m also current with Battery which surprises me cuz I’m not interested in baseball at all but the show has my attention. Also, I was with the proud and few who cried when Baby Steps finished; I could watch that show for as long as it could be animated so long as it got similar treatment of the source material.
Thanks for recommending Eyeshield 21 – I’ll give it a look.