Kuroko no Basket: Baka ja Katenai no yo!

This is not even about the basketball. Of course here are your typical shonen overcoming for the sake of being stronger (or smarter) than before. But overall it's a poor comedy that intends to set you laughing but instead you may find yourself glancing at the clock, or at the gun on the wall. Or what you usually look at in the moments like this. Yes, you need to laugh now, at the very least, it's the only chance to laugh due to this product.

I don't usually make reviews, in fact, this is my first one ever. I decided to review this OVA in particular because of one reason, it was a very simple yet enjoyable episode.

Inter-Highs aren't far away, and in order to participate on the starting lineup a certain halfwit , Kagami, has to face tough study session with Riko and the rest of the gang in order to pass the upcoming profiency test. In a matter of days, everyone tries their best to drill as much knowledge into Kagami's head.

Kagami has to overcome this "difficult" challenge in order to have a chance of defeating the ... Generation Of Miracles and winning the Inter-High. Kagami's not only striving towards his goals but also feeling unable to let down his teammates as well. He ungracefully accepts the challenge. Meanwhile, Kise is in the same position as Kagami but unfortunately has no one by his side to help him out.

The story was very simplistic, sometimes unpredictable, yet enjoyable. There were alot of gags and the art & sound was almost identical to the TV version. It had a really good pacing and certain parts of the episode had me chuckling. It was an episode full of gags and excitement with the purpose of letting you get to know the main characters better.

Click overall for the ratings!

So, this OVA is situated in between Seirin's games with Shutoku and Touou. It takes place just before the championship league during Inter-High, and it deals with Kagami cramming for a test so he'll be eligible to play in the championships. You'll also see a bit of Midorima and Kise talking about these tests as well.

I don't really recommend you watch this episode before Seirin plays Touou in the championships simply because they do show Murasakibara and Akashi in this episode, and I feel like it takes value away from their reveals in the second season.

This was funny little episode as you get to ... see the members of Seirin spend a lot of time with Kagami in an attempt to raise his scores. It wasn't anything too special, and obviously, it didn't really advance the plot, but it wasn't really out of place either. It didn't seem like an extra episode, in other words. Kagami and the rest of the team were still stressing about the championships, so it wasn't as though this episode ignored the rest of the plot because it's an OVA.

I don't know, I rated this a 10 simply because I love these characters, so if you do, too, then watch this OVA.

https://noahsb1c7c15d6d.wordpress.com/

Man, why are there so many Kuroko's Basketball specials? Unlike the more popular DVD specials, Kuroko's Basketball: An Idiot Can't Win came with the 25th volume of the manga but adapts a story from the 5th volume. So we have a weird case where the special takes place way earlier in the chronology than where the actual anime series was.

The Seirin High basketball team is in trouble: ace player Kagami is so incredibly stupid that he's at risk for placing in the bottom 100 of the preliminary exam participants. But the preliminary exams don't actually affect grades. The problem? Students in the bottom 100 are ... forced to take a weekend study course that's conveniently scheduled during the inter-high basketball championships.

Thus begins the arduous task of getting a student who averages like 10% to be a top 200 student. The whole Seirin team volunteers to help tutor Kagami because they know they'll need him in the upcoming matches. Meanwhile, short scenes show Kise and Midorima's own problems with the practice exams.

So, as you can imagine this special doesn't elaborate on important relationships or past history like Tip Off or Can We Do That One More Time?. It's more of a comedy/slice of life thing, but the story premise is too shallow to be worthy of a full-sized episode. Primarily because the actual progression of the plot is obvious and redundant. Kagami's dumb and keeps failing at questions his teammates ask him, but we already know partially due to the time this was released and common sense that he overcomes it all in the end just in time. A lot of the same gags stretched out through the whole thing, character details we aren't interested in like which academic subject each one specializes in, and nothing relevant to the main storyline. Nothing likely to make you appreciate it more either. Seirin's team support helps Kagami pass but it's the main theme beaten down throughout the whole series in more substantial ways.

I really don't recommend this to anyone but the hardcore fans most desperate for any additional Kuroko's Basketball. It's not an embarrassingly humored watch or even that boring, just totally unnecessary. You'd need a very high attachment to the characters to appreciate it any more than that, and if you ask me the characters weren't a strong suit of the series. If you want to watch this, I recommend at least watching it when it takes place chronologically (after the match with Midorima), since that'll probably make it feel slightly more important to the overarching storyline. That'll make it an easier watch and some decent downtime between the next match.

Kuroko No Basket OVA - Baka Ja Katenai No Yo!

With the Winter Cup Tournament on the corner, all of the Team Seirin members cannot afford to make mistakes. By mistakes, it is the primary reason why they are in school. Studying! This OVA is an extra episode showing how the main members struggle to help their teammate pass the exam even if it is most likely impossible.

Kuroko No Basket Anime Review
By: Tadatoshi Fujimaki
April 15, 2019

Overall: 10/10

... Plot: 10

Sports Anime genre have only one path to take, tournaments. Participating individually or by teaming up, it is the most common plot that exist. While this is not a unique one, it will be the author's capability how he manage to capture the interest of the viewer and excite them. This series focuses on students who love playing basketball. At first, I am really not interested on watching this anime. It is kind of absurd to think of a basketball story with extraordinary skills. But after trying it out, it made me realize that the plot of the story is great. I love the simplicity of it. The main reason of why the series moves forward and how it affects every branches of the story. Unrealistic as it may seem, the lesson is still there. The creator successfully stress out the core value when playing basketball. What also made me hook on this series is the directness of every plays all of the basketball teams have. Each play only last for an average of 5 to 6 episodes. Flashbacks are there but its only on a really minimum basis. You can enjoy watching all of the plays without so much cliffhanging and annoying side stories of the characters.

Characters: 10

It is already a known that almost all of the characters on this series are super cool. It is the reason why most of the girl watched it, I think. Aside from that fact, the development of the characters can totally be seen along the story. The changes and realization they made make them more of a human. Though not skillfully speaking. Since there are so many characters, giving all of them the spotlight is hard. And that's whats amazing. The creator successfully introduce a past where most of the characters belong. That way, it won't be hard tackling each of the characters past and it gives the story more time in other scenarios that needs to be displayed. I love how the story never depend on the back story of the characters so much that it will take too much time to explain it.

Sound and Animation: 10

Perfect. My phone is full of Kises' picture. Yes, every character is so handsome but it is not only this. The animation of the story is really great. Parts where the characters show dribbling, passing, shooting or even guarding their opponents is really detailed. I love how they show the movements of the characters playing on the court, as well as their expression depending on the feeling they have. Should I also mention the voices? Yes, theirs are really cool and perfectly matches the looks of the characters.

Enjoyment: 10

I am not really a fan of basketball. I do not hate it, but I do not also like it. This is the first anime basketball which got me hooked. Due to so much enjoyment watching it, I've finished it in a more faster time than the other series I tried. Every episode will make you want more, more plays, more actions on the court, more characters to encounter with. It is really exciting, and fun to watch.

Ending: 10

This is the best route to take for an ending on this series. The main goal of Kuroko has been met after winning the nationals with his team. But no, the story did not really move forward just because they had to win. It is because he had to bring back his loss previously. He had to bring back all of the people precious to him and he did. Fixing things that is broken and making them realize the most important thing when doing the thing they love. I am content with the ending of this series. It is simple, yet it will made you realize something important.

You know you're into a show when you enjoy it when it covers up topics that have nothing to do with the main premise.
This is a self-centered OVA that follows the Seirin gang stressing over helping Kagami do better in his midterms because participating in an upcoming game requires not failing your subjects. Ît just had to relate to Basketball at the end of the day. Very comedy focused episode, a lot of gags and funny character interactions too.

I mean I agree that a two-days cramming session wouldn't make much of a difference but man did I not buy the Midorima charm deus ex-machina jolt ... down at the end.