I May Have Judged "Kuroko's Basketball" Too Quickly

A few posts ago, I wrote about how not all sports anime are created equal. I stand by that, of course. But in that post, I specifically critiqued the show Kuroko's Basketball (Kuroko No Basket or The Basketball Which Kuroko Plays) and compared it to Haikyuu!!, which I consider to be the superior show. I still think Haikyuu!! is better, but I've made it through the second season of Kuroko's Basketball now and my opinion of the show has greatly improved.

First of all, the animation quality shot up significantly for the second season. The first season relied heavily on freeze frames and action/motion lines to convey movement. The second season had much more fluid animation, with really impressive sequences, especially in the moments when Kagami and Aomine (two highly skilled players) are "in the zone" going at each other one-on-one. Even the opening animation was remarkable. I was really impressed and by the end of the second season; I no longer felt as though the animation was really lacking in any way. Of course, they still take short cuts, but every anime seems to.

Secondly, as we get to know the characters a little more, they become less boring. One of my initial complaints was that their rivals and adversaries are often portrayed a bit too villainously. However, as each adversary is defeated, they are humanized and shown to have more complexity than just being monster basketball jerks. We get more flashbacks and character development for the meek Kuroko, the titular character of the show, who for a long time seemed more bland than timid. Now we see his drive, passion, and frustration at his own lack of ability. And the relationships he has between his former teammates from middle school as well as his current partner Kagami are also surprisingly compelling. There are a few other interesting relationships on the team, like the one between captain Hyuga and center Kiyoshi. These don't get properly fleshed out right away and the pay off when they do is rewarding for the viewer.

That's still really all I have to say about the positives at this point. There are some major issues. The main one being that we hardly get to see the team practice and develop the skills they pull off in games. The show is mostly just comprised of the tournament itself. If we do get to see them honing a skill or learning a new technique, it's in an all too brief flashback, which feels like it's just thrown in to justify the character's sudden improvement. A lot of the training also occurs over a brief span. For example, and this is kind of a spoiler, so watch out, Kuroko learns to shoot with about 70% accuracy inside the paint within a day or two. Most of the time, though, there is no practice or development of skill. If the team is down, they just dig deep to find more motivation. Or they have like a moment of mental clarity. Or, in the case of Kagami, there's a literal super power introduced and employed. Like seriously, some of the stuff they pull off borders on supernatural. It's not realistic or grounded in any way whatsoever. A lot of it feels really hollow and undeserved.

One final thing to point out is that the dialogue is pretty dang cheesy, with most characters still being nothing more than typical sports show stereotypes and speaking as such. And they all give way too much exposition, with even spectator characters breaking down and explaining each play in great detail, including special moves that the opposing team is still trying to figure out. Why do some of the characters seem omniscient? A lot of times, characters will actually verbally respond to something that it seems another character is just thinking about. Why can't any comment go unanswered? And why do they say so many of their inner thoughts... out loud? Haikyuu!! is over dramatic, but in a sometimes funny, but always earnest way. Kuroko's Basketball is just over dramatic.

That said, I'm going to finish the anime series. Seasons 1 and 2 are available with dub through Netflix. The dub is alright. But now I'm watching Season 3 on Crunchy Roll (available free with advertisements) with subtitles. I think a lot of the cheesiness will be alleviated with the subtitles. Netflix has the rights to distribute the dub, so the third season may be coming to Netflix sooner rather than later. Overall, I've come to enjoy this show more than I thought I would. I enjoy it enough to write my review of it anyway. I wouldn't recommend the show to anyone, like I might recommend Haikyuu!!, but if you like sports anime, I think it may be worth your time.