Summary
- Baro prioritizes individualism over teamwork, resembling Jinpachi Ego’s philosophy at Blue Lock.
- Baro’s eccentric playing style confuses teammates and opponents, relying on unpredictability.
- Baro’s special middle shots and predatory eye make him a formidable striker at Blue Lock.
Shoei Baro is a unique character whose audacious and fearless playing style makes him a formidable force on the field. It’s no surprise that he draws a lot of attention whenever he plays and leaves a lasting impression on both his teammates and opponents alike.
What makes him truly exciting to watch is his inherent unpredictability which keeps everyone guessing his next move. Every time he is playing at his best, Baro steals the limelight. But what makes him so special? Shoei’s playing style is eccentric and unconventional and deserves more praise than it gets.
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Baro’s Philosophy of the Game Mirrors Ego’s, Prioritizing Individualism Over Teamwork
Jinpachi Ego, as a mentor, has always encouraged players at Blue Lock to play a hyper-focused, ego-driven brand of football in which the striker depends more on individual goal-scoring ability than teamwork. His ideal forward is someone with an indomitable spirit and the talent to create goal-scoring opportunities out of thin air. While the facility is home to some of the most talented footballers from all over Japan, very few are gifted with such talent, barring a few elite-level players. Among these handful of future footballing geniuses, Shoei Baro stands out as a prime example of Ego’s philosophy in action.
In your mediocre dreams. I’m the one who decides what I do. I live how I want to live, and I win how I want to win. This is my Imperial Philosophy.
Baro is known to play a brand of football that sometimes not only negates his teammates but also tries to devour them. In this bizarre playing style, he takes advantage of his teammates’ positioning and then recklessly steals the ball from them. Such an approach confuses his team and the opposition equally, making it impossible for anyone to predict his next moves. In fact, Baro’s playing style is so eccentric that people gifted with a conventional wisdom of the sport are the worst at figuring out his intentions.
Baro’s bizarre approach has multiple implications, so he has to shoulder the responsibility of attacking the rival defenses alone. When he has already created doubt and chaos, Shoei then uses chop feints, lightning scribbles, and sliding shots in quick and aggressive succession to attack the goalpost, often succeeding in going past the goalkeeper. Such a self-reliant and egotistical brand of football requires superhuman physical abilities and football skills, something very few footballers at Blue Lock can match.
Middle Shots That Are as Powerful as Roberto Carlos’ Free Kicks
Baro Loves to Score Goals From Long Distances
Regarded as one of the greatest full-backs of all time, Brazil’s Roberto Carlos is known for his long-range shots. His free kicks and strikes were so powerful that they appeared to bend the laws of physics and left spectators in awe. He was at the peak of his powers at the opening match of Le Tournoi in June 1997. With the 1998 FIFA World Cup just around the corner, the game between Brazil and France was a highly anticipated clash of footballing titans. That day, Roberto Carlos etched his name forever in the history books by scoring a goal from about 30 yards with his logic-defying free kick.
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It could have been deemed a lucky strike, but Carlos had a penchant for scoring long-range goals. Roberto’s incredible ability to net the ball from impossible distances is quite similar to Shoei Baro’s middle shots. During his early days at Blue Lock, he demonstrated superhuman accuracy in scoring goals from over 29 meters. Baro later improved his unbelievable striking ability in the Neo Egoist League by increasing his range and curving the ball better than before.
Baro also learns from his teammates at Ubers and realizes that the trajectory of his middle shots can become predictable if he shoots from open areas where the goalie can see him. So, he works more on his long-range strikes by adding a stealth factor to the equation. Shoei starts using crowded spaces to make it difficult to notice his movements, making it almost impossible for the goalie to stop his middle shots. Baro’s evolution as a striker has many underlying layers, which also show his willingness to learn and adapt. If he had failed to adjust his game, the Ubers striker would have risked becoming predictable.
Incredible Ability to Break Through Rival Defenses
Shoei Has Several Cunning Tricks Up His Sleeve
A striker is expected to be one step ahead of the opponent’s defense at all times, which requires serious talent and skill. When faced with rivals, Baro loves to use his impressive physique to intimidate and overpower defenders. His endurance also makes it incredibly difficult to contain him.
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When Baro’s intimidating physicality is not enough, he uses heel flicks to fool the rivals and charge towards the goalpost. He can also nutmeg with remarkable ease and has also shown the ability to do it twice in quick succession. Shoei uses these tricks to get past the defenders and create pressure on the goalkeeper before he takes his shot and scores a wonderful goal in his signature style.
Flow State and Predator Eye
The Ubers Striker Has Some Unique Talents
Before the highly anticipated game against Japan’s U20 team, Jinpachi Ego lectures his mentees about the importance of achieving the Flow state. He argues that greatness can only be achieved by players when they get totally immersed in the game with energized focus and a deep sense of enjoyment from the experience itself. Baro is one of the few players at Blue Lock who goes on to enter the locked-in state and benefit from its transformative effects. The trance state that it induces allows the Uber forward to push past his limits and evolve into a more formidable version of himself.
This guy used me for his own goal. He used me!! Who the hell are you calling a retard?! I’ll slaughter you. The king of the field is me.
At Blue Lock, several top footballers are gifted with metavision, an omnipotent view of the field that allows quick decision-making and helps overcome hurdles. Although Baro lacks metavision, he instead has an antithetical ability called the predator’s eye. It allows Shoei to hyper-focus on the goalkeeper, waiting for any signs of weakness, hesitation, or lapse of focus.
As soon as he notices any tactical oversights or gaps in the goalkeeper’s positioning, he attacks without hesitation, frequently scoring a stunning goal in the process. Baro is a dangerous striker, arguably the best at Blue Lock, whose middle shots, nutmegs, flicks, and egotistical philosophy of football gel together to make him a formidable force on the field. He is one of those rare talents who have what it takes to help Japan win the World Cup.
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- Release Date
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October 8, 2022
- Studio
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8bit
- Creator
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Muneyuki Kaneshiro