I LOVE MEN

Thank fuck he's getting humbled. People who can't understand how important it is for Nagi to get disqualified really didn't understand the point of Isagi's whole genius vs. talented learner spiel. It's almost imperative and, narratively, it makes the most sense for Nagi to be disqualified because he is only a prodigy, not a genius, and definitely not a talented learner.

Nagi is a prime example of people who can get far with raw talent alone, but they cannot compete on a world stage if they lack the summative elements of having the enthusiasm/drive to work on said talent + the wit to put it to good use strategically. Chapter 298 shows exactly how Nagi lacked both of those elements I listed. He found his drive way too late and even then it's a pretty shitty reason for becoming the world's best, as intrinsic motivation is a much more robust driver for "becoming the best." This is why Isagi, Rin, and Barou are at the top and Nagi can't make the cutoff; these three all have intrinsic motivators for improving themselves. Wanting to get good at soccer because you want to play with a friend is an extrinsic motivation, and it's the same pitfall we saw Bachira go through prior to U-20. Then, Nagi fucking chokes in front of the goal because he lacks the wit and strategic planning to use his skills advantageously in the moment. If he had worked on this earlier because he had a stronger intrinsic motivator, I don't think he would've choked as hard. By the way, this is the same logic behind why Isagi was able to pull off the two-gun volley when Kaiser and Rin were riding his dick at the penalty box.

Does this mean Nagi is out of the story? Possibly. Nagi is known to be Kaneshiro's favorite character, and you know what they say amongst authors: kill your darlings.

However, does it mean it will really happen? Only Isagi knows at this point. I personally don't foresee Nagi coming back as a U-20 player, but he might be able to secure a contract with another country IF we get to club arcs. (Pls kaneshiro I hope we do)

Hate to be hyper critical, but from chapter 100+, things took a turn for the worse. Development is lacking, lot of plot holes, too many local time skips, and romantic interactions between Erez and Keira are sparse and forced, especially if he's endgame. There was no time or attention given to develop their romance. Oddly enough, the first 80 chapters did a better job at depicting slight hints of romance between either ML candidates than the finale. This is coming from an Erez stan. The resolution for Joseph was abysmal LOL. Like you've gotta be on the same level as a dog eating scraps off the dinner table if you think that was "closure" for Joseph. Fucking wild. I don't even care that they spun the original story to introduce a romantic canon partner for Keira. I just hate how they did it.

Ayaji is supposed to be this grand daddy demon lord, but he somehow just felt like a npc. No character or depth, even though he clearly had a backstory. Speaking of backstory, who the fuck is Erez and why does he have long hair and why is he weaker? Oh right, there's no explanation for any of that. Figures. And don't even get me started on that Ragebait-Ragifuck-Baghdad-Rad-Chick-from-Mars' nonexistent punishment. Like whatever the fuck happened to her and her gooner posse--the world will never actually know. Just tell us that nothing happened after she went back to the demon world, you cucks. You can't just say something will happen and not show me that it happened. It's not like she was the villain for this entire story and the purpose of 150 chapters was building up to her defeat. Yeah, it's totally not like we should see the culmination of her treachery and her demise come into fruition in realtime. W writing and spacing btw.

The only scene that can be considered remotely acceptable or adequate would be Keira's final goodbye to Cosette at her gravestone. Other than that, we are cooked. It's you, me, and the editors playing Russian Roulette to see who will get pegged tonight. Looks like you and I are bending over on all fours, buddies. Just goes to show how we're probably all better off reading the novels first, so we don't get trolled by impatient studios.

With all that said, I hope the artists and editors are feeling relieved that it's all over and are enjoying their break. I mean, after feeding us sloppy seconds, they better be enjoying that cool fresh Hawaiian breeze. Womp womp. Next!!