My Favourite Anime <(^-^)>
Slam dunk
Hanamichi Sakuragi, an entering Shohoku high school freshman, holds a record for being rejected by 50 girls during middle school. His nearly 2 meters height and bright red hair causes most students to write him off as a delinquent.
One day, a girl named Haruko Akagi approaches Hanamichi without any fear. When she asks Hanamichi "do you like basketball?" Hanamichi falls head over heels for the girl of his dreams. Without missing a beat, Hanamichi tells her he loves basketball, and the two head to the gymnasium where Hanamichi learns about the slam dunk. He also learns of Rukawa, one of the country's top basketball prospects, also a freshman at Shohoku.
This anime has almost everything. Action,
comedy, tragedy, romantic tensions, manly moments, etc. The cast is
pretty huge and when possible, each character or group gets their chance
to shine. A great percentage of the characters each contribute
something to the advancement of the story and/or get their moment in the
sun so. It doesn’t have to be Sakuragi, or the rest of the Shohoku
team. Even Sakuragi’s gang gets their chance to do something every now
and then.
But what really touches me about this story is how strong the relationships develop. Especially the loyalty of Sakuragi’s gang and how far they go in their support that he gets to be part of the basketball team. Even though Sakuragi and his friends may not have the best brains, they make up for it with their hearts and this anime has a big amount of it. I know a lot of people are put off by the concept of sports anime, but I think people need to give this one a chance. The story moves at a very moderate pace and I found the characters to be very relatable and realistically portrays the culture of high school sports in Japan.
Even though Sakuragi starts basketball to impress a girl, it is fun to see how he progresses and you really start to cheer for him like he was your friend that started something. Even though he was gifted with the perfect genetics for the sport, he still has to learn from the beginning and some of his struggles are just juvenile to those that at least know the basics of basketball, but you really feel his passion at the right moments and hope that he lives up to his fullest potential.
Then you get to see the other characters not just on Shokou, but on the other team as well and how they also have their dreams and work just as hard to make them come true. There are no bad guys and everybody is relatable in their own way and each have something to prove.
Earlier I mentioned the realistic aspects of Japanese school sports culture. In Japan, many high schools are known for their sports team and some kids are recruited to a school based on their athletic ability. This is most especially true in baseball where the Koushien, the high school world series, is a very big deal in Japan. I liked how they touched this from the coach of Ryonan High School. It is true that some students join a school to join a team that is coached by this particular person and I really like how they touch that.
I really like the character design in this. Though it is a little difficult to transition from how Inoue-sensei did it in the manga, the anime works in its own that it just has this artistic distinction that still carries on today. I found the design to be very diverse and expresses many atmospheres within the story and between the characters. It can be very realistic looking, or very cartoony. Some characters have the generic anime design like Haruko, or look more realistic like her brother, nick named Gori, Gorilla for short.
I really like how the anatomy of the players accurately reflect what a basketball player looks like. A slim-muscular like build meant for speed and high cardio. Of course naturally bigger players play center and very early, it shows that a certain percentage of centers and taller players like Shaq, Dwight Howard, and Wilt Chamberlain aren’t the best at free throws.
Rukawa feels like Michael Jordan to me while Sakuragi is a lot like Rodman and Miyagi is like Mogsuy Bouggues.
The resolution and contrast will look a little grainy and rough, but I don’t mind it. I think it suits the delinquent and manliness of this series very well as opposed to looking it as outdated.
The first opening theme alone, Kimi Ga Suki Da To Sakebitai just qualifies for a 10/10 in the sound department. It just brings this energy and intensity that accurately reflects the nature of the series about wanting to impress a girl and also doing your best. You can feel you’re one with the flow with the drum beats and the guitar licks. It’s a song we can all relate and just so wonderful to listen to.
But what really touches me about this story is how strong the relationships develop. Especially the loyalty of Sakuragi’s gang and how far they go in their support that he gets to be part of the basketball team. Even though Sakuragi and his friends may not have the best brains, they make up for it with their hearts and this anime has a big amount of it. I know a lot of people are put off by the concept of sports anime, but I think people need to give this one a chance. The story moves at a very moderate pace and I found the characters to be very relatable and realistically portrays the culture of high school sports in Japan.
Even though Sakuragi starts basketball to impress a girl, it is fun to see how he progresses and you really start to cheer for him like he was your friend that started something. Even though he was gifted with the perfect genetics for the sport, he still has to learn from the beginning and some of his struggles are just juvenile to those that at least know the basics of basketball, but you really feel his passion at the right moments and hope that he lives up to his fullest potential.
Then you get to see the other characters not just on Shokou, but on the other team as well and how they also have their dreams and work just as hard to make them come true. There are no bad guys and everybody is relatable in their own way and each have something to prove.
Earlier I mentioned the realistic aspects of Japanese school sports culture. In Japan, many high schools are known for their sports team and some kids are recruited to a school based on their athletic ability. This is most especially true in baseball where the Koushien, the high school world series, is a very big deal in Japan. I liked how they touched this from the coach of Ryonan High School. It is true that some students join a school to join a team that is coached by this particular person and I really like how they touch that.
I really like the character design in this. Though it is a little difficult to transition from how Inoue-sensei did it in the manga, the anime works in its own that it just has this artistic distinction that still carries on today. I found the design to be very diverse and expresses many atmospheres within the story and between the characters. It can be very realistic looking, or very cartoony. Some characters have the generic anime design like Haruko, or look more realistic like her brother, nick named Gori, Gorilla for short.
Sendo
I really like how the anatomy of the players accurately reflect what a basketball player looks like. A slim-muscular like build meant for speed and high cardio. Of course naturally bigger players play center and very early, it shows that a certain percentage of centers and taller players like Shaq, Dwight Howard, and Wilt Chamberlain aren’t the best at free throws.
Rukawa feels like Michael Jordan to me while Sakuragi is a lot like Rodman and Miyagi is like Mogsuy Bouggues.
The resolution and contrast will look a little grainy and rough, but I don’t mind it. I think it suits the delinquent and manliness of this series very well as opposed to looking it as outdated.
The first opening theme alone, Kimi Ga Suki Da To Sakebitai just qualifies for a 10/10 in the sound department. It just brings this energy and intensity that accurately reflects the nature of the series about wanting to impress a girl and also doing your best. You can feel you’re one with the flow with the drum beats and the guitar licks. It’s a song we can all relate and just so wonderful to listen to.
Well, I know a good number of people on the internet are not fond of
sports anime, but there is a reason why it has appeal, at least in
Japan.
Japanese schools, especially at the jr high level, encourage it more
often because they feel it prepares people for society in some ways such
as learning about team work, understanding senpai/kouhai relations,
having a goal and working for it, having fun and hard work. To Japanese
people, seeing that, they can relate to their own youth or what is going
on in their lives if they are still students.
But when watching, you will see Sakuragi grow. At times you will laugh at his stupidity and at times you will feel sorry for him. The series shows every aspect of what he goes through and you will see him grow. You will also see how his relationships with his teammates grow. He may be full of himself, but when the going gets tough, he will work hard and pull through. It’s an anime that shows that everybody has the potential at something. Some may be natural, some may need to work harder than others, but when you put your mind to it, all things are possible.
Anyway, my big issue was that it ends where it only had 2 games left from the manga. The anime already introduced characters and yet it ends without solving those issues. It is as big as a travesty as the jinchu arc from Rurouni Kenshin not being animated. But the anime ending works in a way where you see Sakuragi grow individually but the manga shows how Sakuragi develops to the point on why the team needs him. I say after watching the anime, read the remaining manga.
But when watching, you will see Sakuragi grow. At times you will laugh at his stupidity and at times you will feel sorry for him. The series shows every aspect of what he goes through and you will see him grow. You will also see how his relationships with his teammates grow. He may be full of himself, but when the going gets tough, he will work hard and pull through. It’s an anime that shows that everybody has the potential at something. Some may be natural, some may need to work harder than others, but when you put your mind to it, all things are possible.
Anyway, my big issue was that it ends where it only had 2 games left from the manga. The anime already introduced characters and yet it ends without solving those issues. It is as big as a travesty as the jinchu arc from Rurouni Kenshin not being animated. But the anime ending works in a way where you see Sakuragi grow individually but the manga shows how Sakuragi develops to the point on why the team needs him. I say after watching the anime, read the remaining manga.
If you really liked this anime, I can highly recommend Kuroko no Basket which i will talk about more on the next post. :)
You'll notice in an eye beat that both series are very similar:
- both are sports genre, specifically both are about basketball
- both have great art style
- both show a quite unique developing of the characters
- both Kuroko no Basket and Slam Dunk have awesome characters with special abilities and strong personalities
- both also have funny comical scenes alternated sometimes to the normal pace of the story
- they both have great musics and osts
- both are sports genre, specifically both are about basketball
- both have great art style
- both show a quite unique developing of the characters
- both Kuroko no Basket and Slam Dunk have awesome characters with special abilities and strong personalities
- both also have funny comical scenes alternated sometimes to the normal pace of the story
- they both have great musics and osts
Rating: 10 /10
-Kaito
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