“Ao Ashi”, a new football manga published in France by Mangestu – Ao Ashi © Yugo KOBAYASHI, Naohiko UENO / First Published in Japan in 2015 by SHOGAKUKAN
A gifted young football player, spotted by a coach unlike any other, and their rise to the top of Japanese football… If the plot of the new mangaAo Ashi reminds you of something, this is normal, it is the same as that of the cult Captain tsubaba, a.k.a Olive and Tom. But the comparison stops there.
The two titles share the same codes of shônen, the same sports fever, and yet, very quickly, the manga of Yugo Kobayashi and Naohiko Ueno finds its own identity, thanks to its hero Ashito Aoi, a crazy young dog far from the very (too) wise Tsubasa, endearing secondary characters and especially a trait that is both rich and powerful.
An animated adaptation for 2022
There are already other football manga, and some very good ones (Angel Voice at Kana, Whistle at Panini), and if Ao Ashi is part of their path, it brings what is needed novelty, such as a change of arena, abandoning the school framework for the world of sport. Ashito must thus pass detection tests of the big club Tokyo City Esperion, and this is only the beginning of an adventure which runs on more than 20 volumes and is still being published in Japan.
The very recent announcement of an animated adaptation for 2022 should also ensure it new supporters, and a boost on sales as for the manga Jujustu Kaisen or Tokyo Revengers before him. If the output ofAo Ashi Ideally matches Euro football, it also marks the arrival of a new editor,
Mangetsu, in a manga market that is more dynamic than ever.