Giant Killing Chapters 70-72, 115
(I didn't have a huge amount to say about 70 or 71 at the time they were released, but I may as well pop a few highlights and some thoughts into this post as well!)
70:
UHH NOT SURE WHETHER I LIKE THIS ANGLE.
Looking through Tatsumi's legs...at Natsuki?
In this match (so far) it's been obvious in the body language and facial expressions of the ETU players that they don't believe they can win this one. No doubt they believe that they're playing as hard as they can, but that kind of attitude is limiting and Tatsumi knows it. He needs to get them to engage a bit more, and he knows that if he can get them to the right point mentally then the game will begin to turn in their favour. But more than that, he knows it's something that can't be forced, he can't just TELL them what needs to be done. He needs them to make the cognitive leap themselves, needs it to happen organically.
No wonder they look frustrated.
(I think the emphasis on whether the players are having fun or not can seem reductive at times, but in part that's the wording, because it goes a lot deeper than that. Of course, you can't win a game on enjoyment alone, but I can buy that people tend to enjoy what they're good at and the reverse is also true, that players tend to engage with the game better if they are getting the reward of enjoyment or satisfaction out of it. It's interesting, because I'm reading the scanlations for the second time they face Tokyo Victory as well, and this is the same kind of issue that Victory are facing, and again, the players have to come together under their own effort in order to win.)
And one way of getting players to question their own attitude is to tell them you believe in them (and mean it)!
71:
LMAO HAUER CLEARLY HAD HIS HALF-TIME PRIORITIES SORTED
OKAY SO I LOVE KANSAI-BEN BUT THIS JUST MADE ME LOL
72:
HIS COOLNESS IS LIKE 50% NATURAL AND 50% CAREFULLY CALCULATED
I LOVE IT
(also why does he always look like he should be in a hair advert)
NATSUKI ARE YOU EVER GOING TO STOP FUCKING UP.
I laughed a lot. He totally deserved to get cut down with that look from Gino. GUESS WHO'S NOT GETTING SENT ANY MORE PASSES NOW.
(ALSO EEEEE LOOK AT TSUBAKI TRYING HIS HEART OUT IN THE BACKGROUND)
So glad that I read the Osaka chapter first before 115, because I needed to see something other than Natsuki being a blundering idiot/
115:
(I'm not posting it, but the first page of this chapter was executed really well, I thought. It's hard to show the motion of a fast-paced game like football, but the placement of the panels on that page managed to perfectly communicate the flow of the game.)
Kuro, being complacent or assuming you're safe because you have the lead is DANGEROUS.
Also, I love how steady and observant Dori is. I guess the goalkeeper gets a good perspective of the game, and it's good to see him put his experience to good use and identify where the problems are and even how to fix them (I'll be honest, until I started reading GK and asking a few questions about football to people who know more about it, I never had much of an idea about the goalkeeper's role aside from stopping the ball from going in LOL. Of course, they actually do a lot more than that, especially when it comes to instructing and coordinating the defense).
Anyway, Gino's getting called by Tatsumi from the sideline.
What could he want?
TATSUMI SHIPS IT.
OKAY I HAVE TO ADMIT I AM AMUSED BY THE GINO/MIKUMO SHIP.
Mikumo is probably thoroughly fed up of Gino by now, though. And starting to get wise to him after being duped before.
Tsubaki trying his best and NOT BEING OVERWHELMED BY ANXIETY.
BUT MOCHIDA IS ABOUT TO HIT THE PITCH, UH OH.
Okay, really looking forward to more of this. I always knew that ETU would be facing Tokyo Victory again, but I didn't think it would be as fascinating on so many levels as this. The danger signs are all here at the moment, ETU might be ahead but they are by no means safe, and right now Victory seem more in control of the game, shutting ETU's attacks down and showing much more cohesion as a team. It is an interesting look at the pressure (internal and external) on fading champions and how much rests on the mental state of the players. And now that Mochida is going to get involved, it's going to be a tense finish.
BRING IT ON.
OH ALSO (and I should use a proper spoiler cut for this one) I just realised that volume 23 is going to contain the chapter that features a moment that made me LAUGH OUT LOUD. [+]
...that's going into the net for sure.
BUT THIS IS THE PART THAT MADE ME LAUGH.
SERA DID YOU REALLY JUST LEAP ON THE PRINCE'S BACK.
I would LOVE to see Gino's face at that moment.
(Something else to add, when I first got into GK it was like the signature feature of the art style was the players' knees but I actually think it's more the way the hands and fingers are drawn. You can see it really obviously with Gino because he's fine-boned and tends to splay his hands, but it's also super-obvious and distinctive at other moments, like where Tatsumi is signaling to Gino in chapter 115.)