With the Blue Lock manga's ongoing popularity and skyrocketing sales, the manga is undoubtedly at its peak in 2023, selling over 8.04 million copies this year alone. Having said that, the Blue Lock manga, created by Yusuke Nomura with illustrations by Muneyuki Kaneshiro, has been serialized in Kodansha's Weekly Shonen Magazine since August 2018. As of May 2023, its chapters have been collected in 24 tankobon volumes.
However, a lot of people have been wondering if the Blue Lock manga has been put on hold as, after a recent run of weekly releases, fans were surprised to see it take a one-week break after the release of chapter 220. This might be considered a significant plot break for this week's manga publication, but fans are relieved that it won't last very long. The Blue Lock manga has even had a set period of hiatus, as opposed to the other titles' indefinite hiatus.
Blue Lock manga will be back on June 14, 2023
Before taking a short break, the Blue Lock manga released chapter 220, titled Seesaw Game, on May 31, 2023. The manga will return with chapter 221, titled Take Me, on June 14, 2023, at 12 am JST. As the manga announced a hiatus from May 31 to June 13, fans were taken aback. However, there are sporadic pauses because manga creators must take breaks for a variety of reasons, but most people are glad to see that these breaks aren't too frequent for sports manga.
Many people are also pleased because the manga creator needed a break from the constant pressure of the weekly chapter releases. Additionally, the latest chapter feature Michael Kaiser and his outrageous bicycle goal, which has made fans excited. Many believe that the upcoming chapter will be lengthy and feature the conclusion of the game.
Aside from that, the manga series is currently in its Neo Egoist League Arc, with chapter 220 having recently been released. The Blue Lock program will eventually transform into a massive entertainment one, which is undertaken with the sole objective of further preparing its players for the U-20 World Cup. This will happen in the current arc's Second Phase of Blue Lock.
Additionally, it was seen that the Blue Lock hosted U20-level teams from France and Germany, including England's Manshine City, Germany's Bastard Muchen, Italy's Ubers, France's Paris X Gen, etc. When the teams were introduced to the program, each Blue Lock player had to select a nation they want to train under before putting their abilities to the test in a highly exciting tournament.
A quick recap of Blue Lock manga chapter 220
When Blue Lock chapter 220 was released, it featured slightly less information than the previous chapter. However, it witnessed a fierce match between Bastard Muchen and Ubers. Furthermore, the chapter showed how Isagi gave the ball to Yukimiya in the final third because there were no other options available to him.
Michael Kaiser was also shown in the chapter intercepting Isagi's pass. In addition, Kaiser was able to avoid both Sendo and Aryu. The chapter's conclusion featured Kaiser using Kaiser Impact, which led to him scoring an absurd bicycle goal.
Final thoughts
Even though the Blue Lock manga is currently on hiatus, it will only last until next Wednesday. Moreover, because the manga industry is unforgiving to its creators and the workplace is unhealthy, it is essential for creators to take periodic breaks.
In addition, giving the creators a one-week break will relieve some of their pressure and allow them to continue producing amazing content.
Stay tuned for more Blue Lock manga and other anime and manga updates as 2023 progresses.