Now that I got that out of the way, I will proceed with my review.
I was very exceptical of KnB from the start; "This is just a childish sports anime" I said, but after getting my hands on it, I gave it a chance, because there must be a reason for it's popularity, right?
Suffice to say, I was blown away.
Where do I start?
Let's start with the story: Kuroko is the Phantom Sixth Man of the Generation of Miracles, a bunch of basketball prodigies. He graduates and enters to Seirin High, where he meets Kagami, a tall american guy who is very talented at Basketball, and they bow to be the best players in Japan.
On the surface, this may seem boring to most people who aren't interested in sports. But as we learn the backstories and motivations, you will start to enjoy it.
The most "shonen" element of the series are the skills used in the matches, such as a team using martial arts movements, Kuroko's ninja passes, a coach that can accurately predict all the movements of the opposing team, and even a guy that can do full court shots. And while some may dislike this, I think it makes the anime more interesting and more accessible to people that aren't basketball fans, such as myself.
By the end, I was clapping and cheering as if I was watching a real match. I've never been a sports fan, but I grew highly attached to the characters.
Ah, the characters. They are, in my opinion, what make the series so enjoyable. They're all likeable, even (or should I say, especially) the foes. They all have their own motivations, unique personalities and development. The focus on the series are Kagami and the Generation of Miracles (at least 4/6 of them, the other 2 appear in the next season and the 22.5 Tip Off OVA).
On the sound, I can give this a 10 with confidence. I never skipped any of the Openings or endings, and the music for the matches was great.
The art was fluid. Just by looking at Aomine's matches, you can see they went into great detail with the Animation. I didn't give this a 10 because it was lacking, but because it wasn't KyoAni's level.
I enjoyed this series through and through, and was pleasantly surprised with how good it was. I cannot recommend it enough.
P.S. If you're looking for slash shipping, there's plenty of material here too.
