RELATED: The Best Sports Anime to Watch
Here’s What Happened Before Blue Lock Episode 13
Blue Lock Episode 12, titled The Second Selection, officially begins the first stage of the second selection in the Blue Lock program. Yoichi finds himself inside a square room after entering the gates, where he meets Blue Lock Man, a computer-generated soccer player. He must score 100 goals against the Blue Lock Man in 90 minutes to advance past the first stage. The first stage is a penalty area training simulation in which Yoichi must assess the situation quickly, run into a space that is shrinking by the second, outwit the goalkeeper, and score a goal. Yoichi remarks that he needs to use his special weapon to feel the ball’s speed and trajectory, efficiently move toward the space where it will fall, gauge the distance to the goalie, and hit it directly. As a result, Yoichi successfully scores his first goal of the second stage. However, after achieving 30 goals, Yoichi notices that the level of the first stage of the second selection has been changed to 2. In level 2, more defenders have been added, and the difficulty level has risen. As a result, Yoichi realizes that he will not be able to complete the stage unless he evolves once more. Anri reveals behind the monitors that the penalty area training room is used by Germany’s top clubs to hone explosive power and also create situations based on each player’s individual qualities. The Blue Lock Man system, an AI hologram goalie programmed using data from world-class goalies, is crucial in the training room. Physical interactions with a hologram are enabled by a microchip sensor embedded in the ball. Despite this cutting-edge holographic technology, Anri is concerned about their budget, which Jinpachi ultimately disregards, much to Anri’s chagrin. Yoichi scored 48 goals in 40 minutes back in the penalty area training room. After scoring a total of 60 goals, the difficulty level was abruptly increased to the max. The defenders started moving left and right this time, and the ball that came to Yoichi suddenly became faster and started spinning like crazy. Jinpachi observes that in level max, physical strength, mind, and technique are the three requirements for clearing the training, and as a result, a pretender will discover just how powerless he is. Yoichi realizes in this difficult situation that Kunigami, Bachira, and Chigiri have always been there to support him with their soccer skills, which is why he was able to score goals. As he was not playing alone in the first round, Yoichi is now dissatisfied because he wishes to have the kind of strength that allows him to fight alone. Yoichi believes that in order to score more goals, he must make good contact with the ball without thinking about Bachira’s previous passes, as all of the balls that come to him are erratic and difficult to make contact with. Aside from that, blindly blasting the ball will not work as well. By using 70% of his shooting power and directing all of his attention to the point of impact on the ball, Yoichi finally scores another goal. Eventually, Yoichi clears the first stage of the second selection, feeling ecstatic about what has happened before him in the training area. In the second stage of the second selection, the rules say that every player needs to form a group of three to proceed. Yoichi notices Nagi and Reo, who are already waiting for Zantetsu while Bachira also arrives just a bit later than Yoichi. As Yoichi and Bachira plan to form a team, Nagi unexpectedly approaches Yoichi and invites him to join his team instead. Yoichi declines Nagi’s offer, as expected, but Nagi insists on joining Yoichi and Bachira’s team rather than staying with Reo. To Reo’s chagrin, Nagi explains that he needs to understand his feelings after losing to Yoichi, which is why he wants to play soccer with him. Yoichi, Bachira, and Nagi move on to the next stage, leaving a disappointed Reo behind. Yoichi’s team meets Itoshi Rin’s team in the third stage, and Jinpachi appears on screen to announce that the third stage will be a situational battle of three-man teams in a minigame format. Furthermore, Jinpachi informs them that the Blue Lock Man will be the goalie for both teams, and the team with the most goals will win. The winning team will also be able to steal a player from the losing team to form a four-man team, and if they can form a five-man team and advance to the fifth stage, that team will clear the second selection. On the other hand, the losing team will return with their remaining members, and if they do not win the two-on-two match and are not chosen by the winning team, one of them will be disqualified. In other words, the second stage will be a rivalry battle in which they will steal from their opponents in order to survive. While Yoichi’s team deliberates on whether to fight Rin’s team, Yoichi notices that there is no cooperation in Rin’s team due to the three of them having different personalities. Rin reveals that he is only in Blue Lock to join the U-20 national team in order to humiliate his brilliant midfielder brother, Itoshi Sae, in soccer. He also insists that the other players in the Blue Lock program are merely stepping stones for him and that he could care less about them. Yoichi apologizes to Bachira and Nagi before the episode ends for challenging Rin’s team in the first three-man soccer team battle in the third stage of the second selection. YOU MIGHT LIKE: Is Blue Lock a BL or Romance Anime?
Here’s the Release Date of Blue Lock Episode 13
Blue Lock Episode 13 is set to be released on January 7, 2023, in regions such as the US, the UK, and Europe. In Japan, Blue Lock Episode 13 will air on January 8, 2023. A visual, along with a broadcast schedule (in Japanese), has been posted on Blue Lock’s official Twitter account: READ MORE: Blue Lock Anime Reveals Episode Count With 2-Cour Release
Here’s the Release Time of Blue Lock Episode 13
In Japan, Blue Lock Episode 13 is set to be released on January 8, 2023, at 1:30 AM JST. If this information remains correct, the following release times will apply to your location:
Pacific Time: 9:30 AM (January 7, 2023)Central Time: 11:30 AM (January 7, 2023)Eastern Time: 12:30 PM (January 7, 2023)British Time: 5:30 PM (January 7, 2023)
ALSO READ: Who Are Blue Lock’s Voice Actors?
Blue Lock Episode 13 COUNTDOWN
Note that the countdown above is based on Blue Lock’s release date and time in Japan.
Here’s Where You Can Watch Blue Lock Episode 13
Blue Lock Episode 13 will be available to stream with English subtitles on Crunchyroll. The streaming service has also confirmed that Blue Lock episodes will be available in English, German, French, Brazilian Portuguese, and Latin American Spanish dubs at a later date. Blue Lock Episode 13 will air on TV Asahi’s NUMAnimation block, BS Asahi, and AT-X in Japan. The upcoming episode will also be available with English subtitles on Bilibili, Animax Asia, and Ani-One Asia. Discover more anime news and info by following us on Twitter @epicstreamanime. READ NEXT: Who Wins in Blue Lock?
