The following contains spoilers for Episode 19 of Blue Lock, "Dancing Boy," now streaming on Crunchyroll and Netflix.
Last week's episode of Blue Lock ended on a major cliffhanger, with Barou, Nagi, and Isagi's victory over the Red Team meaning they needed to choose another player to move forward with them. Only one player could move to the next round of play, and the other two on the losing team would have to play again on two vs. two, with the loser of that match being kicked out of the program. The stakes were very high.
There were good reasons to choose Reo, Kunigami, or Chigiri, and originally the members of the White Team all wanted someone different. However, they quickly differed to Isagi's leadership when he made the final call on who they needed to best awaken their skills and help them progress. In the end, they chose to take Chigiri with them - but was Chigiri really the best choice?
Chigiri's Pros and Cons
Since his own awakening near the start of the series, Chigiri has shown his incredible skill time and time again. He is one of the fastest players in the Blue Lock program, with a sprinting speed that cannot be matched over distances. While other players may be able to catch up to him at the start, he is able to outpace them over time, keeping the ball away and making a break for it.
Likely, this is the main reason why Isagi chose Chigiri over the others. Isagi, Nagi, and Barou do not have any skill like Chigiri's, and it is something new that Isagi may want to "devour" like he has done other player's secret weapons so far. Additionally, Isagi did have time to bond with Chigiri back in the First Selection when Chigiri admitted that his previous leg injury was holding him back from reaching his potential. Isagi was the one who convinced him to overcome his fear and try.
That leg injury, though, might come back to bite the White Team in the future. Chigiri even had a bit of foreshadowing for that very problem when he showed his old scar to Nagi, saying that his leg was both his best weapon and his biggest threat. If he does injure himself again, he will never be able to play soccer. But he is willing to push himself until that happens... but if it does, the White Team is going to be in serious trouble.
Another Dramatic Personality
The other issue that choosing Chigiri is that he adds another layer of drama to the White Team's already fragile alliance. We have seen in that past that Barou is a neat freak to the point of obsession, always wanting a tidy space that is to his exact standards. Meanwhile, Nagi is very lazy off the pitch, and just wants to watch videos on his phone and lounge around.
Chigiri is adding to that power struggle with his high-maintenance routines, like drying his hair for a long period of time. Already in "Dancing Boy" we saw Barou lose his patience with Nagi and Chigiri for making the room such a mess, and the other two were not bothered. In fact, they made it even more of a mess when Barou went to dinner.
Isagi is going to have his hands full trying to keep the peace between his other teammates. While a lot of Blue Lock is indeed about doing whatever you have to do succeed and not being caught up in teamwork, at the end of the day they will need to work together if they are going to challenge Rin's talented team in the next match. If the four of them are only fighting off the pitch, it will be hard for them to be a good unit on the pitch.
Who Was Left Behind?
When the White Team made the decision to take Chigiri to the next round, of course they had to leave two other players behind - Reo and Kunigami. They are both also amazing soccer players and would have been great additions to the team, each with their own strengths. Kunigami is great at direct shoots, and Reo is well-rounded for setting up plays for everyone else.
But they were not chosen, Chigiri was. Their reactions were also dramatically different. Kunigami and Chigiri had made a deal previously that they would get revenge on Isagi for not waiting for the two of them when he first teamed up with Nagi and Bachira, and he reminded Chigiri that they could still take their revenge later. Reo was devastated that his best friend Nagi did not choose him, and Nagi completely cut him off, saying he did not need Reo anymore.
There is no chance that this is the last we will see of Kunigami and Reo, and if they are able to win their next match they will be able to move forward with another person to replace Chigiri. Kunigami will be fighting hard to team up with Chigiri again so the two of them will be able to leave Isagi behind this time, if Chigiri still wants to do so after spending more time with Isagi. Reo is going to come back with a vengeance, and will be out for blood both against Nagi for leaving him and Isagi for taking Nagi away.
"Dancing Boy" set up some great antagonists in Kunigami and Reo for future episodes, because they both want to surpass Isagi and his team and have nothing but motivation to do so now. They may have been knocked down this episode, but they will be back later in Blue Lock. And whether Chigiri was really the best choice may boil down to the skills that they left behind in Reo and Kunigami - and the monsters that have been created by their rejection.