The LA Chargers taunt their opponents with an animated schedule video that’s filled with references to One Piece, Attack on Titan and more.
The Los Angeles Chargers released a new anime-inspired video to troll their NFL rivals.
As reported by Anime News Network, the LA-based team apparently decided to try something different and have created an animated video, done in the style of an anime opening credits sequence, to detail their upcoming schedule. All 17 teams that the Chargers will go uip against have all been redrawn in the style of a different popular anime series, which includes the Las Vegas Raiders being depicted as a crew of One Piece-style pirates, and the San Francisco 49ers being reimagined as a squad of Naruto-like ninjas. In addition to the constant anime references, the video is filled with some playful jabs at some of the scandals and bad luck that their opponents have faced in recent years, including references to the Jacksonville Jaguars’ former head coach, Urban Meyer, who was fired amid several controversies, and the Indianapolis Colts’ run of short-lived quarterbacks.
The video also features references to memes that are popular within the anime fandom, such as its jab against Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray, who infamously deleted his social media posts related to the team earlier this year as he attempted to negotiate a better contract during the off season. The quarterback was drawn in the style of an infamous reaction image that shows Tanjiro Kamado, the hero of Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba, looking at a smartphone and cringing.
While the decision to do their schedule release up as an anime video sounds bizarre, the video has already become a viral hit, with more than 185,000 likes and over 50,000 retweets on Twitter. Sports fans, even those who admitted a distaste for the Chargers, applauded the video for its creativity, while anime otaku praised the constant stream of references to not just popular shonen anime, but also lesser-known series such as 2021’s critically acclaimed sleeper hit ODDTAXI.
The video is just one of a number of recent examples that show how integrated Japanese anime and manga have become with American pop culture. NBA power forward Zion Williamson recently launched a new line of Nike Jordans that are inspired by his favorite anime series, Naruto, and during last year’s Olympic games in Tokyo, multiple athletes from around the world made references to Eiichiro Oda’s One Piece as they competed. Outside of sports, pop star Dua Lipa referenced Sailor Moon in one of her music videos, and DJ Steve Aoki recently announced that he will do a One Piece-inspired performance at this year’s Anime Expo.
Source: Anime News Network
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