Characters in fiction have many attributes and traits that make them unique. Most characters hold backstories, goals, and futures that make them the way they are. Just like people, they experience failure, success and so much more. A Japanese manga named “Blue Lock” features two brother characters, the eldest named Sae, and the youngest named Rin. Sae works to be the best striker in the world, and Rin chooses to be the second best after him. Sae receives an offer from a soccer team and gets scouted; he flies to Spain. While Sae is gone, Rin focuses on soccer and perseveres throughout his dream to be the second best after his elder brother Sae. When Sae comes back he leaves Rin, abandoning their dream together. Because of this backstory, Rin holds resentment towards Sae. 

Rin carries realistic traits and represents how his resentment and selfishness keep him from reaching to be better than Sae. The backstory with Rin shows relatable and realistic features. Rin’s reason to keep moving is to be better than his elder brother. Because of how well written his character is, more people are tending to relate to a more realistic character. Rin represents resentment and imperfection, making people not like him as much as they would Sae. Sae is an unrealistic character because the reader doesn’t know what happens in Spain, although we do know that after Spain he leaves Rin in a harsh and unrealistic way. Rin is imperfect and selfish, while Sae is unrealistic and defined in the manga as ‘Perfection’, making him appeal to the reader more. 

In the manga, it is shown that Rin’s playstyle called “destroyer” polarizes his brother’s which is “perfect destruction.” Rin’s playstyle brings out the opponent’s best attribute and uses it against them completely. While this only mirrors when Rin did his best when he was up against Sae, his playstyle also represents his past and brings out the pain he has felt just like the other players. For example, Bachira, a character in the manga, was bullied and had to play soccer alone, now has a “monster” that only he would understand within him. Because of his backstory, he is able to reflect upon his way of playing soccer. Just like how Sae was represented with his perfection, Rin is mirroring Sae, because of how this backstory affected him. 

Many people mischaracterize Rin as a selfish character, although in the manga it is shown before Sae leaves Rin, he is softhearted and vulnerable at the time, and when he is older, after Sae leaves him, his personality becomes cold and distant towards everyone. Rin is a well developed character with a realistic backstory making people relate to him. Sae is not fully developed and his backstory isn’t fully known therefore making Rin a better character from the way he is written, than Sae.