[This review is about the whole anime, seasons 1-3]
KUROKO NO BASKET is an epic sports anime I’d definitely recommend to everybody who is into the genre (sports and shonen surely isn’t for everybody) and is looking for a well-realized, fully rounded and visually appealing anime. Next to enthralling matches there is plenty of comedy to light up the mood; the anime had me laughing a lot, especially the later seasons.
I found myself to be quite a fan of sports anime, especially after I watched this one. I discovered it through recommendations of friends, and when looking what to watch next after Free!.
SUMMARY
Kuroko Tetsuya, 16, is
...
quite a success story when it comes down to playing basketball - in middle school he used to be the famous Generation of Miracles’ mysterious phantom 6th man. Now, attending Seirin High School, he joins a new basketball club and soon becomes a valuable member, together with Kagami Taiga, 16, whose style of playing basketball couldn’t be any more different from Kuroko’s. One at a time, team Seirin proves itself in matches against Japan’s strongest basketball players, while hoping to reach their goal of winning the elite Winter Cup.
STORY - 8
I will not lie - the story of Kuroko and his teammates is definitely not the most original. Without spoiling too much, it is easily forseeable who will be the winning team by the end of the 3rd Season, as is mostly the case with sports anime. While I myself did enjoy the story, I also understand the criticism concerning it and do agree that it is not everyone’s cup of tea. But when watching KnB, the fun is more in the ‘how’ when it comes down to winning matches, and the suspense does not fall short during the games.
The main focus is definitely on the players’ unique and well tought out abilities and distinct styles of playing basketball. While some abilities might seem cliché at first (e.g. Copy Cat, predicting the future, etc.), they turn out to prove themselves highly interesting when applied to basketball, are nicely explained, and to me seem logical while being supernatural at the same time. My favorite ones turned out to be Reo Mibuchi’s and Daiki Aomine’s (of course) as they simply impressed me the most, but I also liked Kuroko’s style because I have never heard of anything comparable before.
IN GENERAL - do not expect to be provided with a super original story, but instead focus on the anime’s plenty of other qualities.
CHARACTERS - 10
This is the place where, to me, KnB’s greatest strength lies. The main characters, Kuroko and Kagami, have interesting backstories and are relatable even though one might not be a 16-year-old basketball player (as I myself am not, either). I quickly got into their weird friendship which is developing nicely as the story progresses, and definitely found myself rooting for their self-made teamplay strategies to work out.
The supporting characters do not fall short in this anime, either. In almost every anime I watch, find myself liking the secondary characters more than the actual heroes, and with KnB it is no different - the entire Seirin team won me over within the first season and did not disappoint me once the entire anime. I like their dynamic, friendship and humor.
The other teams’ stories and abilities are equally, if not even more, captivating - every team has their ace (mostly a player from the Generation of Miracles or the Uncrowned Kings) who receives the most attention, but also the supporters get the right amount of spotlight. Many secondary characters have a fully realized backstory which is being introduced and resolved during the progression of the anime; as is often the case in Shonen anime, they all deal in some way with friendship issues. Most touching to me were Kiyoshi Teppei’s and Seijuuro Akashi’s storylines.
As for the character design, I couldn’t have been any more pleased. I’m guilty of adoring Shonen/Seinen anime with as many handsome male and female characters as possible, I just can’t help it. What I found very helpful was the fact that each and every one of the players displayed a distinct feature that made it easy to distinguish them even in the height of the games (e.g. bushy eyebrows, high stockings, etc.). Furthermore, I enjoyed their themes (colors with the GoM, plants for the Uncrowned Kings, etc.) and, of course, their matching hair colors, which might not appeal to everybody as it may come across as predictable (à la spot-the-main-character).
My only criticism is that the illustrator is always very heavy on the shadows (e.g. below the chin), but this is just a minor point on my quite positive list.
IN GENERAL - If you appreciate well-rounded main and secondary characters, interesting backstories and handsome young high school students, this anime is worth giving a try.
ART - 10
I’m sure not everybody will agree with me on the artstyle and animation of this anime. Judging from what I’ve heard of friends that have watched it, the opinions greatly differ. I personally had close to no complaints at all, especially with regard to the 3rd season that aired in 2015 and is technically more advanced than the others. The animation is fluid, generally well done and manages to keep up with the pace of the matches. The artstyle itself I find to be beautiful and totally cute at times. It supports very well the humor and overall mood of the anime. I would describe it as bright, colorful and electronic.
MUSIC - 9
The music of KnB is, like the artstyle and animation as well, absolutely suitable for the anime. It is fast-paced, exciting and quite epic at times; I always like it when the main characters have their own distinct music theme, which was the case in KnB (I especially was drawn to Aomine’s). The genre most frequently used for the soundtracks is techno/electronic, which I think is appropriate, refreshing, and it also works well with the animation and images; however, it might not meet everyone’s taste.
About the openings - I appreciated pretty much all of them, even though I don’t think they’re worth raving about as musical pieces in themselves. I’d rate them average regarding the large discourse of anime openings. I considered the fact that mostly songs of the same band (GRANRODEO) were used as openings successful, as the band’s style is mood-setting and highly suitable for the anime.
However, the song I adore most is Lantana by OLDCODEX, which is the overall 7th ending theme of KnB (or the 3rd of Season 3). I’d recommend listening to it in case you’re into some lovely, melancholy J-Pop.
OVERALL ENJOYMENT - 9
As you can probably guess by now, Kuroko no Basket (and especially the 3rd Season) is one of my favorite anime. There is hardly a thing that I didn’t like about it, but I am certainly not oblivious to the fact that sports anime to begin with, and KnB itself, are not made for everybody. So far I’ve only heard strong opinions about it - people either love it to bits or absolutely hate it, which might be due to the fact that its style, art and music are rather distinct. I for one have watched Kuroko no Basket three times by now as well as all OVA’s and movies, read the anime, and am not tired of it yet. To the contrary. I’m absolutely excited for the KnB Movie Extra Game which is to air in 2017.
Overall, this anime has really paved my way into the realm of sports anime (even though I’ve seen some before) and also got me re-interested in basketball as a form of sport. I learned quite a lot about the technique and rules, which I found rather interesting. I recommend it to everyone who hasn’t seen it yet - no matter if you’re into sports or not - it’s definitely worth checking it out.
SHORT SUMMARY
PROS: CONS:
+ Engaging characters - Predictable story
+ Humor / comic relief
+ Interesting character abilities
+ Suspense
+ Artstyle / Animation
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Jun 3, 2016
Kuroko no Basket
(Anime)
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[This review is about the whole anime, seasons 1-3]
KUROKO NO BASKET is an epic sports anime I’d definitely recommend to everybody who is into the genre (sports and shonen surely isn’t for everybody) and is looking for a well-realized, fully rounded and visually appealing anime. Next to enthralling matches there is plenty of comedy to light up the mood; the anime had me laughing a lot, especially the later seasons. I found myself to be quite a fan of sports anime, especially after I watched this one. I discovered it through recommendations of friends, and when looking what to watch next after Free!. SUMMARY Kuroko Tetsuya, 16, is ... 
Apr 5, 2016
Inu x Boku SS
(Anime)
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Inu x Boku SS is an enjoyable and simple romance comedy I would suggest to watch in between some more demanding anime. If you enjoy a love story that is lightweight, well-rounded and sweet while balanced with some entertaining comic relief (plus plenty handsome bishonen and cute loli girls), this anime will suit you well.
Art - 8 I liked the artstyle of this anime quite a bit. Fitting with the story, the art is very light and smooth; all characters are uniquely designed and memorable. The anime also picks up some art-clichés, though mainly in a humorous way (e.g. the male main character sparkling) and during ... |
