Despite the manga’s success Blue Lock is on the verge of ruin. This holds especially true with the second season’s horrid animation. Compared to the first season, the second installment of the franchise is disappointing. With fans calling it PowerPoint animation, the series is taking a turn for the worse.
In a recent Reddit thread though fans speculate their reasons for this. From budget to overworked animators, the reasons seem plausible. Considering the massive shift and nosedive in animation quality, one cannot help but feel disappointed. This holds especially true for fans, animators, and most of all, the mangaka.
1. Corporate Greed
Corruption and powerplay aren’t uncommon and unsurprising considering the anime industry. Several anime producers have been at the epicenter of controversy. This also includes Blue Lock however the case is pretty different here.
Several Reddit fans speculated corporate greed behind the lackluster animation and visuals in the series. The greed also affects the production quality of the series.
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Moreover, several fans also noted the change in animation directors as the cause. This ties well with the overworking animators as most viewers speculated.
2. Overworked Animators
From underworked to overworked, the animators have received unnecessary flak. Despite the irregular quality, most fans are unaware of the animators’ plight. It was only when Vincent Chansard opened up about his stint at MAPPA.
As one of the key animators for Jujutsu Kaisen, Chansard witnessed gruesome conditions. Despite its remarkable feats with the series, MAPPA is criticized for its unethical working conditions. Even fans speculate this possible reason to be behind the low-tier and subpar visuals.
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From PowerPoint visuals to slides, the nosedive in the animation quality is tied to multiple projects as well.
This makes sense especially with the studio taking up multiple projects. Most users speculated Episode Nagi as a reason to milk the franchise dry.
3. Milking the franchise dry
This ain’t the first time a studio is milking the whole franchise dry. From Pierrot to Adult Swim, most studios are heavily criticized. With Studio Pierrot, Naruto and Bleach were on the receiving end. Adult Swim, on the other hand, botched Junji Ito’s magnum opus.
In a similar vein, Bandai Namco is preparing for 8Bit’s ruin through their move as a Reddit user pointed out.
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With most bestselling manga getting their animated adaptations, there’s an ever-looming concern. This is especially true with the need to work on a budget.
4. Saving the budget
From Uzumaki to Tower of God, most beloved adaptations have taken a turn for the worse. This extends to Blue Lock as well. Most fans wished for the anime to get a proper budget. However, there’s a catch.
Despite their bestselling status, most manga do not get an anime adaptation. Time and time again people have pointed out the issue of budget. With the drop in animation quality, Reddit users couldn’t help but point it again.
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Budget cuts are interlinked with the production quality. While this could be the possible reason behind the lackluster visuals, we aren’t certain. It is, for sure, quite disappointing for several fans. Especially when it comes to their emotional investment.
To sum it up, all the reasons seem equally plausible considering the reality of the anime industry. However, we are not truly certain regarding the plight of the animators. For now, fans can only hope for better production quality of the series.
Blue Lock is available for streaming on Crunchyroll. The manga is available for reading on Viz Media.
