Archive of Our Own ^beta

Notes:

I had known that I wanted to do something with "One Life" for the "One" theme since I had Dermot Kennedy's "One Life" running on repeat during the application phase!

I put a few teeny tiny Easter egg details into this artwork. Let me know if you find something that interests you! And if anything seems out of place because it wasn't like that in canon (I am winking at those who remember the actual scoreboard number order), there is a reason for it…

I applaud everyone who has figured out what my brain was going for during the conception of this artwork!!

https://x.com/amarylliaa/status/1918728810901451136 (the post on twitter!)

Most of the colour choices are deliberate as well (especially for background elements) and I put thought into almost everything, so really, feel free to zoom in!

And if you want to have me talk about the concept a bit more…(as well as reveal things)

Breaking down their "life" in those 90 minutes wasn't a particularly hard thing to do, I just had to add the U20 WC and the real WC. The harder part was making the numbers fit SOMEHOW?!

I am glad that Reo wore the nine in the 1st Selection because I would have otherwise died, trying to wrap my head around this one.

I used the same principle in the 2nd Selection, where I couldn't use a scoreboard again and had no idea what else to do. Turns out that Isagi wearing something other than the iconic 11 would come this much in clutch! And the gods must have answered my incense sticks and other prayers because I found a seven in Nagi (both Reo and Kunigami also had the zero that I would have needed to make 75:00 a reality). Also, the background is a reference to the "Judgement" opening where we have such cool pop art looking elements with sharp edges, the paint behind Barou and Chigiri is also a nod to that.

As for the iconic monitor room scene…I was sweating because there was nothing of value inside that scene. Except for the "01 Monitor Room" in the background! Also, have you noticed the that the tryout papers look VERY similar to the ones in the anime? Welp, I copied it, by hand, without any knowledge of Japanese. I used a website to basically draw the text by hand, have it translated into something usable, and then compare it to each font that looks similar enough to the original. All my friends were doubting me and I kind of understood (I am still mad about that LOL) but I think I did a FINE job!!!

You have probably noticed by now, but the scoreboard at the end of the Blue Lock XI vs. U20 Japan match was actually 3:4. I took creative liberty with that one since…the scene itself wouldn't make sense, as the scoreboards were so high up in the air that you would never be able to get such a beautiful shot anyway. The same goes for the other two scoreboard scenes that I used to frame their life together as finished. Also, I hope the confetti helps make the three look like a five. I agonized about this one a long time…Have you found the circled teams on the tryout papers? hehe

Now, to the last scene of their (as of now) canon journey, the NEL team choosing timer is just so perfect for this one, right? Not a lot will remember this, but the colours used in this crazy looking background are from that one NEL teams video, the one a lot of people use for edits! Also, I took the time to make both of their metavisions as accurate as I can, so yes, I drew shoddy puzzle pieces into Isagi's eye…

I took so long wrapping my head around the concept of home and away kits, just to make sure what they are wearing in these last two scenes. I have now forgotten why I selected which, but I remember both of these designs being hard to draw! If you zoom closely, you can see the details I put into the lines and triangles design for both (I have heard that the triangles one was a nod to Japanese origami!). Let's say that if my country were to find out about my nonexistent knowledge over our nation's favourite sport, the crazy football Germans would stone me. Also, I now understand why one of our colours was that cool pink in 2024.

The ribbons were actually supposed to be Tanabata stripes, but they were a bit too short to help me make the 11 into a 15. But as a nod to my other ideas, I wrote Reo's wish on the ribbons (though there is a word cut off, huh) :3

Now, onto the end. Have you noticed that with the win of the Blue Lock XI, I gradually changed the colours from BLLK's Blue to this very warm orange/yellow, only to turn it all dark and blue again? I wanted the match to be the changing event in this artwork (with the monitor scene being the last blue scene before the end). If you look closely at the scoreboards, you will find that I have coloured the numbers purple and blue respectively for their positions!

Lastly, can you guess how Isagi died? The scene looks a bit hot and warm and red, doesn't it? :)