Just like any other sports anime, it tells a story of hope and dreams but one thing that sets it apart from other sports anime is the realistic nature of it. Without any supernatural moves like in Kuroko no Basket, Haikyuu successfully make the characters' development as real as they can. Hinata's super fast reflexes, Tobio's monstrous tosses, and Nishinoya's great saves can be attain in real life with years of practice and dedication to the sport.
What amazed me more than the other sports animes I've watched, Haikyuu delivers the message that nothing is impossible with great work and dedication like Hinata's height disadvantage, but nonetheless excels in the sport he truly loved. And the beautiful photo of what a captain really is, Daichi-kun! To never break down, to never lose hope, and to hold the team until the end.
The other thing that makes Haikyuu unique is the perfect display of volleyball as not only a mere sport but a fight that can only win with a connected team. Tobio character brings this message into light as he slowly learns himself to play as a team, not an individual and to trust his teammates in the game. He even had the best rival and the best partner he can ever wishes for, Hinata!
Haikyuu has also this special thing about it; that sets them apart and form a big gap among the other sports animes. Its a rarity for a sport animes to concentrate on the extra characters or those characters who are created merely to make the protagonist/s shine even more brightly. They even have a long part of expressing their regrets and their thoughts about losing, which made me cried a lot because I knew that feeling too well.
Overall, Haikyuu is a emotional ride of tears, laughter, and frustration that you can feel from the characters, whether main character or extra-character. An anime where you can learn a lot and reflect a lot about your life.
"There must be thousands of guys in this country, whose last season gets cut short. Winning all the preliminaries and going on to the nationals. If all this were a work of fiction, those guys who go to the nationals would be the protagonists, and the rest of us would just be extras. But regardless, we got to play volleyball" - Hayato Ikejiri
