Eyeshield 21 - Reviews

Story: 9/10

You might be thinking "what the hell, gridiron and anime!?", Well, you're in for a suprise. I started watching this anime thinking, "hehe this can't be any good" and when the anime fnished, "OH GOD THE HORROR!"

SO! Is you don't know the concept of the story, it's about this wimp named sena who is found by people of the same school, Hiruma and Kurita, while running away from bullies, and these guys find that he has amazing speed and if he trains enough he can turn into this legendary gridiron player. SO! Sena trains and trains like your basic shonen anime gaining new powers every now and then and the way they present is frikkin' epic

Animation: 9/10

The weirdest thing you notice when you start watching Eyeshield 21 is that Hiruma has really pointy ears and Kurita has a head shaped like a slime out of Dragon Quest. DON'T WORRY! You'll most likely get used to it.

Most of the characters are your averagely animated people BUT I rated the animation 9 for the presentation of Sena's (and his rivals/friends) special moves such as the Devil Bat Ghost. It's really epic...really epic.

One other weird thing which I noticed is that EVERY TIME they get a touchdown, get tackled or catch the ball, the helmet always falls off, but I guess you can get used to that as well...

Sound: 10/10

ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS! The character voices are all executed very nicely, but my favourite was Hiruma and his sly voice and his laugh and his "YA-HA!"

I liked the opening and endings but the ones I liked the most were all the ones near the end of the series.

The OST was AWESOME, I loved the music when sena does some tricky awesome thing but then again I guess that happens in most animes.

Characters: 9/10

The characters were pretty much your basic shonen anime characters, which is a good thing. Sena the guy that starts out pretty weak but gains powers constantly, Hiruma the guy that is 100% sure that he'll never lose and always has a plan, then there are your comedy relief characters and more. (I don't know how to do a character section review)

Overall: 9/10

DON'T THINK IT'LL BE BAD JUST 'CAUSE IT'S ABOUT GRIDIRON/AMERICAN FOOTBALL!!! This is a great anime and I loved it, (except for the episodes which I presume are fillers here and there)

(sorry for the long review, first time reviewing, feedback please!!! Oh, yeah, and the series doesn't end where the manga does so I have to buy around the last 7 volumes of the manga, THANKS!!!)

The only reason it didnt get the full points is because the end is a bit cut off. (There was still one match to play). The characters and the story are awesome except for the last match as in my opinion took to long. (20 episodes).

Greetz janniemoney

The best action sport comedy anime ever with great story line and cool animation. Really enjoy it. The story lay to their main character Sena that had brought us to american football world more detailed. This anime more life with another main evilcool character like Youchi. Without doubt this anime really fulled our nerves with their cruel match and i'm really atonished with their animation story plot and knowledges about american football.

This is probably a anime that define sports anime in the new millennium in my opinion and in recent years due to the many aspects that define not only the sport in question but the aspects that define every sports be it indiviual or team-oriented. The opening is always crucial in any type of show especially in a sports where it always begins with the introduction of the characters and the sport in question that have to appeal to the audience which eyshield 21 does a touch of difference from sports anime because of the brand of comedy and a mix of drama that is brought to the table making it a duo that most sport have but this show does it differently that makes it a class above the rest or the same level as Slam Dunk and Giant Killing. Futhermore, the brand of humor is a mix of japanese comedy and american comedy that makes fun of not only the characters but also the teams both on the field and off it. The comedy is on par with gintama and just like gintama it offers witty humor and slapstick comedy that will have you laughing in tears. The drama factor on the sport itself is what one may see in most american story that affiliates in the sport itself due to the sport's probability of happening a huge upset and motto of the sport itself which is  on any giving day a weak team can be a strong team like in football it is called giant killing. The way the game is play in the anime in a great trinity of comedy, drama and tactics that slowly reveals more about the sport but it is the way of the explanation that is the same as the way the game is play in the anime which makes it both an interesting way for the people that do not know how to play the sport in question and those who do. It also provides a better commmercial ad than most anime shows and helps the people that do know or find it hard to understand the sport better that causes to instill the spirit of american football. Eyeshield 21 differs from most anime sports because of its hidden and not so  hidden messages through the series that makes it probably the greatest sport anime of all time in my opinion. The animation is interesting due to how they introduce the sport team and how the characters incorporate the image of the team and how they fight one another in a confrontation because you do not see that in any other sport anime. The sound may not be one of its strong points but some of its music can get you off of your crouch and cheering them on. The character's personality and appeal are easy to distinguish from the main characters and side characters that makes the cast one of the most memorable cast in a sports anime in recent decade that i can remember. The fundamental component is the emphasis on the detail of the constitution of how sport builds characters that helps themselves in facing life itself which you do not in any other sports anime.

Ah, Eyeshield 21, the first sports manga I ever got into when I was a young teen. But how well does the anime hold up to the manga? Its okayish, however, its not without its fair share of issues.

Story- The entirety of the Eyeshield 21 storyline focuses on the Deimon Devil Bats dream of making it to the Christmas Bowl, the championship match between the best high school football teams. The anime does a pretty good job of following the story of the manga. But there are a few changed details here and there, like how Monta is recruited for the Deimon Devil Bats.

However, there is a lot of noticeable filler right before the rematch with the Ojo White Knights. This is usually a pretty sad telltale sign that the anime was catching up to the manga. This leaves around 10 volumes of content that never got animated. Its depressing, considering all the awesome stuff Sena and the other characters were doing beyond the anime. They showed how much of a threat the Dinosaur team was and that match wasn't even shown. But enough about that I suppose.

Animation- The animation, more or less, is decent. The studio Gallop does have some experience doing sport anime, but at the same time I can't help thinking that Eyeshield 21 could have gotten better animation if it was in a better studio. If you're new to anime and haven't seen that many sport anime, you could probably still enjoy it. But sport anime need to have fluid animation to feel impactful in my opinion, cause otherwise what's the point?

Sound- The sound for the anime was done pretty well, from the tackles, passes and running. A lot of the openings and endings are pretty good too, considering the hype for the series too.

Characters- The characters are a huge part of the reason why the series is loved so much. For example, Sena at the beginning of the series wasn't that outgoing and was a gopher for others his age. But as he plays the game, all thanks to Hiruma, he slowly changes from a character who is forced to play the game to someone who doesn't want to runaway and wants to become better at it. That's only the tip of the ice berg when it comes to the character development.

Overall- Eyeshield 21 is a good but also incomplete anime adaption. Personally I think its a good way to get more people interested in the series and quite possibly even get them to read the manga. There are quite a few episodes but for someone looking for good character development, this is a good investment.