Kuroko's Basketball, aka The Basketball Which Kuroko Plays (2012)

[PictureGuy]

Japan’s middle school basketball was dominated by a team known as the Generation of Miracles. Five unbelievably talented young men excelled at unbelievable levels. But Kuroko’s Basketball does not focus on any one of them. It focuses on the sixth man, Kuroko, a quiet boy easily overlooked by others. Kuroko turns that into his advantage by moving almost unseen to get to the ball and quickly passing to whoever can score.

But the series opens with Kuroko’s first year of high school. He joins the team of his new school. Also joining is another freshman with a high opinion of himself. He is Kagami, and his first lesson is team work. The lesson does not take long as the series as other concerns.

Then there is that cute classmate Adia Reko, the team’s manager. What?? She’s not the manager? She’s the coach? This should prove interesting.

A while back, I wrote about another anime series called Haikuyu. It dealt with a high school volleyball team. Kuroko’s Basketball is very similar. Both have the theme of the underdog taking on a supposedly insurmountable challenge. Both teach the importance of teamwork. Both portray some pretty exciting games pulling victory out of the jaws of defeat – sometimes.

But watching Haikuyu did not diminish my enjoyment of Kuroko’s Basketball. Kuroko’s former teammates, the former Generation of Miracles, are pretty much a bunch of jerks. So you do really pull for Kuroko and his team as they challenge his former teammates one by one.

So is team work stronger than the individual? I have to wait at least until season 2 becomes available to answer that one.

The artwork and animation are both up to the task. The characterizations are well developed. There is some occasional profanity, but no nudity, outside of shirtless guys, and no sexual situations. So this one would be for 14 and up, including adults.