Barou: The real egoist
If you are a fan of Blue Lock, the manga series is about a project to create the best striker for Japan's national soccer team, that will ultimately win them the world cup. Barou Shoei, who i like to call the Japanese Cristiano Ronaldo, and the villain of football. Is by far the real egoist. The one that I believe would be able to carry Japan to victory.
Barou has a physique of pure muscle and he is a natural-born scorer. He has no interest in teamwork or passing, he only cares about scoring goals and proving himself as the best striker in the world. He is very arrogant and self-centred, but he has the skills to back it up.
I fell in love with Barou's character when he first stepped onto the scene in Blue Lock. He was confident in his abilities, and only believed in himself. He was not afraid to challenge anyone or anything that stood in his way. Behind all that masculinity, we get to also see the softer side of Barou. He is a very neat person, who prioritises cleanliness.
The clash between Barou and Isagi reached its climax when they faced each other for the sole purpose of devouring one another. Barou lost to Isagi, after Isagi scored an incredible goal that surprised everyone. Barou was shocked by his defeat and realised that he had underestimated Isagi's potential.
During the Japan U20 match, Barou was benched as he was in Jinpachi Ego words “Joker”. Barou was Jinpachi's joker card, a player so bizarre that not even he could predict the outcome. Barou was eager to show his growth and prove himself as the king of strikers once again. He played with his trademark instinct and aggression, scoring an absolute screamer tying the game.
Barou matured as a character and became more determined than ever to surpass Isagi. He joined the Neo Egoist League, a league for the next gen players. He quickly became one of the top scorers in the league and earned himself a contract worth 100 million yen.
Barou is still far from being a perfect character or player, but he is definitely one of the most interesting ones in Blue Lock. His ego, his instinct, his passion, his charisma, his rivalry with Isagi are all elements that make him stand out from the rest.
What are the id and ego, and how they relate to Barou Shoei
If you've ever taken an interest in psychology, you may have heard of the terms id and ego. These are parts of the personality that Sigmund Freud proposed in his theory of psychoanalysis. Here I'll be relating his theory with Barou.
The id is the most instinctive part of the personality. It operates on the pleasure principle, which means it seeks immediate gratification of its own needs and desires without considering the consequences. It is our subconscious mind. The id is driven by aggressive impulses that are inherited from our ancestors. The id is also illogical, irrational and selfish. The id unlike the superego only cares for one thing, and that is satisfying its urges.
We see that this is what Barou, mainly taps into alongside all the other egoists. Barou is almost the embodiment of id, he only acts on his impulses on the field seeking nothing more than to achieve the gratification of crushing his opponents. I believe that when the manga refers to the “flow state”, it's referring to when a player lets go of all types of cognitive thinking, letting their body take over and do what it believes is right.
Now to the main theme of blue lock, the ego. Ego is the part of the personality that we identify with, it is our conscious mind. The ego is between the id and superego. Its purpose is to purely satisfy the demands of both. Unlike the id, the ego is rational, logical and realistic. Having a weak ego means you are unable to see much value in yourself, unable to act on your own and have your own sense of self worth.
The reason I claim Barou Shoei as the real egoist above everyone else is due to his ability to support the demands of the id and superego. Barou is a true narcissist, he carries himself to not only a higher standard but also believes that he is the best because of it. Compared to everyone in blue lock like the likes of Isagi, Rin, Kunigami, Shido, Nagi etc, they have all accepted defeat. It is true that for a moment Barou also acknowledged it for a small moment. Unlike the rest and this is where his ego shines, he refused to stay down for any longer, he envisioned his life if he stayed down and came back as an even stronger monster.
I hope you enjoyed this blog post about Barou Shoei aka The King aka The Japanese Cristiano Ronaldo aka The Villain of Football! If you did, please leave me a comment below and let me know what you think about him! And if you haven't read Blue Lock yet, give it a read now!