As expected, the second season acted as a continuation from the first, cutting straight to the Winter Cup and previewing of most of the main participating teams. If I were to describe the plot in one sentence, it would simply be 'Seirin High fights to win the Winter Cup.'
And that's all the second season needed to be as incredibly epic it was.
Was this story unique? In a way, it was. In a way, it wasn't. Kuroko no Basuke is categorized as a shounen anime; therefore, do not watch this series (this goes for the first season as well, obviously) not expecting certain shounen elements. Don't watch this series if you utterly DESPISE shounen, because more than likely, you will be disappointed. Like any other shounen, Kuroko no Basuke has friendship elements- players power up for the sake of friendship.
However, the uniqueness of this anime all boils down to one thing: the characters. If crazy as fuck abilities are what made this anime a shounen, then it's these characters that pull the show back to reality. I've seen many a shounen, and while the characters are awesome, the excitement is often short-lived. Shounen protagonists may not always be completely flat. I have seen promising characters with engaging and emotional pasts and come to love them. But what TRULY makes a series, which happens over a span of time, is character DEVELOPMENT. There is nothing more disappointing than jumping in with the characters and following along on their journey, only to realize they never grow.
Because of these incredibly dynamic characters (and despite being a relatively short series, the number of characters who got development is impressive) a complex plot lies underneath that one simple sentence. Humans are complex, and the way these characters are portrayed is almost astonishing. This plot is nothing to awe at; just hearing it alone won't prepare you in the slightest for what this series will bring you... but it suits it incredibly well. This is about high school boys doing what they love- playing basketball. A plot more complicated than this simply will not do.
This plot, however, will have its downsides for certain people. For one: it is incredibly exaggerated. Characters will have five minute dialogues in the middle of the court, thought speeches in the middle of a dunk or a shot, and impossibly agile movements that are enough to make your eyes spin. A major complaint for this show is that it’s very unrealistic compared to actual basketball. And the truth could not have been said better. Face it folks, never in your life will you see someone legitimately shoot a basketball on the opposite end of the court, have an arc high enough to nearly reach the ceiling, and make it in without so much as touching the rim. If you are looking specifically for honest, realistic basketball, then save yourself some time because that is not what you will find here. (I would suggest Slam Dunk.)
However, this exaggerated plot is also what makes this anime unique, because it takes basketball on a completely different level- and does it well. While this show may be ridiculous, this provides all the more opportunities to break out huge levels of excitement and pure thrill from the watchers. It made this as interesting, epic and thrilling as it was. Never once was I bored watching them play a game. And as mentioned before, this is a shounen; characters will have ridiculous abilities… but these abilities are also very cool. :D
Two: on a basic level, the show can be predictable. From watching, you could probably guess who wins or loses. This is that kind of anime that makes you think, ‘The main guys will probably win.’ In that sense, and in that sense only, this show is predictable.
But the method by which they win is not predictable. A game will take unexpected twists and turns, and while you probably know that they’ll come out on top in the end, you may wind up thinking at some point, ‘This looks really bad for Seirin.’ By the time the last buzzer sounds, having seen them struggle like hell, you would feel that they truly did deserve their victory, that they did not just pull a victory from their asses in the name of ‘friendship’ because the physical and mental struggles were so well depicted. While Kuroko no Basuke did throw logic out the window and made its own, there is a certain flow to their victories that follow logic to that extent. Forgive my poor explanation, but that’s all I can say on this particular matter.
Three: there’s… fanservice? Kuroko no Basuke is by no means chock full of it, but during those few instances, they don’t hold back, both on the male and female side. If you despise fanservice, then this anime may not be so great for you.
The plot has excellent pacing with endings that make you want to pull your hair out. Humor is a strong point with this one, and the show never tries too hard to be funny which is good. Their moments are well timed and contributed to my enjoyment quite a bit. In terms of plot, the show is definitely well off.
The art has certainly ramped up quite a bit from the first season, both in the drawing of its characters and the animation... oh, the animation. It's nothing to laugh at. In the first season, the animation, most particularly in the beginning, was on that fine line between average and just plain bad. While it did have its moments (one being Aomine's ridiculous play) for the most part it wasn't anything to brag about. It did its job, but, for lack of any other way to say it, it was average. The SECOND season, however, had little or nothing to complain about. If you've seen the first season, the second you see the second season's OP... you know this series will be one hell of a ride. Just those few short minutes will tell you how far the show has come in terms of animation and art. The characters appear slightly older (which isn't unexpected) and art also a bit cleaner and brighter, well worthy of 2013/14. If you are a person who watches anime for attractive characters, then you will not be disappointed. Of course, there is and always will be those moments where the video stops to buffer or you happen to pause at a particularly awkward moment and the character was drawn so terribly in that one frame that it's enough to make you want to face palm. Very rarely do I notice these awkward moments while the video is running, however, and when I do it's never for more than a few seconds and not nearly enough to take my enjoyment away from it or make me complain.
Sound for the second season was another plus in my book. As far as I know, all the characters of season one retained their VA's into season two, and I have no qualms with the new additions. Kagami's English is still laughably bad, but whether you consider that a pro or con, I'll leave to you. Soundtrack, while not as good as the first season's, does have its redeeming pieces and never worked against the story. However, they have gotten repetitive to the point where I've NOTICED that tracks were being used more than a few times, and as this was never a problem for me in the first season, this could be called a negative. The openings and endings, however... were excellent, There's no other way to put it. While the actual sound tracks weren't as good as in season one, the openings and endings I believe to have exceeded the first's overall quality. I've come to like each and every one of them, which is unusual because no matter how short a series there would always be a few I didn't have particular love for. But, all of them were excellent. Though the first OP and the second ED (sung by Kuroko, mind you) are my personal favorites, I've fallen for every single one of them.
As mentioned before, the characters are where the show excels. Ever changing and growing, if there's a single character you dislike, there will be at least ten you love. Ranging from a small, quiet and unnoticeable boy (gee I wonder who that is) to an eight feet tall lazy ass freshman of a colossal titan on the court, each and every one of the characters has their own memorable quirk that will make impossible to forget. These guys WILL use their pasts to jerk feels from you, whether you like it or not. They have their weaknesses, their strengths, and the way they interact with each other is pure gold. Truly, they are high school boys. They may fight, they may argue, and they may beat each other senseless, but they come through in the end. I have zero complaints as far as their appearance and designs (you could literally tell who's who just by looking at their hair) and their personalities complimented their skills on the court quite well. Unfortunately, I do have SOME complaints in terms of the characters, and while they weren't enough to keep me from loving this show, I do believe they're worth mentioning.
Most certainly, I was overjoyed that some characters who were in the last season had a chance to show who they really were. A good amount of characters were explored, an amazing amount of characters developed... but a lot of characters were also left neglected. The girls, though I hate to say it, were used for little more than fanservice. Sure, Momoi dragged Aomine's ass to see a game and Riko trained the boys, and though I wouldn't say they weren't portrayed as a significant part of the plot, they didn't get nearly as much development as they should have. Seirin's coach, despite training them to the level where they had advanced to the finals of the Interhigh with nothing but freshmen, and being a freshman and a GIRL herself, had her past explored very little. But, a tad more of her personality is revealed so the whole season wasn't just for naught. However, I can't say the same applied to Touo's manager, who also seems under appreciated. A few more females wander their way into the second season, and while logically they did have MAJOR roles in terms of impact on the characters, their situation in terms of screen time and development aren't any better than those of our previous women. Other under appreciated characters includes the other freshmen on the team, who literally got NOTHING during the second season, though they trained just as hard as the others. These characters should have definitely been given more attention, and it is upsetting that they didn't get more than they did. Regardless, it wasn't enough just yet to keep from watching the show, and I do believe the other characters were developed to the point where this isn't a large problem as for a 25 episode series, the sheer amount of development was already amazing.
My enjoyment? This may have already been obvious, but I enjoyed this series like no other. Sure, some series may have had me laughing a bit more, crying a bit more, and thoroughly ENGAGED a bit more, but what made Kuroko no Basuke special for me was the careful and vast amounts of all three. The anime is very balanced in every aspect and will not fail to get you hyped. Having already rewatched the first season as well as the majority of the specials, I wouldn't hesitate for a second to do the same for this season. Even on the last episode, I was grinning like an idiot yet incredibly sad when it ended. I love this series from the bottom of my heart and would love to get this out to as many people as possible. If someone I knew wished to give anime a try, I would gladly direct their attention to this wonderful series, because it had nearly every positive characteristic the world of anime has to offer.
But, as I've also hinted, Kuroko no Basuke is not a perfect series. It has its flaws, and while there are few in my opinion, these flaws will break the show for some people. Again, if you hate shounen, do not watch this. If you’re looking for “realistic” basketball, do not watch this. If women with F-cup breasts are enough to ruin a show for you, do not watch this. If people with ridiculously bright colored hair turn you off, then for the love of God, please do not watch this.
However, if you’re someone like me who’s willing to dive into any anime, regardless of how crazy it looks and how impossible it is, just for the thrill and enjoyment of it, then please, do watch this. Because from Kuroko no Basuke, thrill, enjoyment, and a HECKLOAD of feels… will come.
