(Reaper): Hello, my name is Pandora C. Reaper but you may call me Reaper. Welcome to Project Nitsuj. Today, we’re looking at the master tackle the second season of Kuroko’s Basketball. Please sit back and enjoy.
*Plays the project*
(Nitsuj): Hello and welcome to Project Nitsuj. Today we take a look at the second of Kuroko’s Basketball. The season was a huge success. The popularity of the series skyrocketed big time and Shonen Jump was quick to capitalize on this success by funding a second season and Production I.G were more than happy to make it. Coming out in 2013 the second season continues the epic tale of Kuroko and the Seirin basketball team on their quest to be the best team in Japan as well as defeat the remaining members from the Generation of Miracles. Let’s start the second quarter strong, this is Kuroko’s Basketball season 2.
Opening and Ending Theme
The first opening for the second season is “The Other Self” by Granrodeo. Considered by many to be one of the best openings in the series this opening just gets you hyped right from the beginning. It starts off with a guitar rift and proceeds to be badass and get you hype. Dear God, just listening to this song makes me feel like I can dunk over everyone. I just want to get up from the seat, go inside, and play some basketball. That’s what this song does to you. If you’re hyped to see some basketball after this opening than something is seriously wrong with you. This opening also features some of the best animation out of the openings as well. The ending is “Walk” by Oldcodex which is hands down my favorite ending in the series. It’s the perfect to listen to after you just got done watching some great basketball. It calms you down but still has an air of hype and excitement that gets you excited for what’s to come next. While the animation may not have much going on, the still images of all the major characters we’ve seen so far are nice and tell a good story.
Episodes 1-3
The season starts with the team having a day off and the first years deciding they want to participate in a street ball tournament. Riko wants them to relax and rest but they beg her to let them go and she says yes (thanks mom). They go to the tournament where one of the first years gets sick so Kiyoshi steps in to play. While there they run into players from Seihou who are also participating in the tournament but they lose to some player from Yosen one of the big schools who will be participating in the Winter Cup along with Shutoku, Kaijo, Touhou, and Rakuzen who won the inter-high tournament (these guys beat Touhou? See one monster and a bigger one will appear). One of the members on the Yosen team is Tatsuya, Taiga’s old friend from America who essentially got him into basketball and help him make friends (scene here: https://youtu.be/rN0dswy9O6M). The two developed a brotherly bond with each other and would often play against each other in games all the time with them being evenly matched. At one game however Taiga threw the game against Tatsuya because he was injured (oh low move Taiga. Never show mercy to someone you respect) and Tatsuya took exception to this and said that they’re going to play again and if Taiga loses their brotherly bond would be over. Before they could play again however Taiga returned to Japan and Tatsuya followed soon. Now that the two have met up again Taiga is still hesitant to take him on but Kuroko gives him a pep talk and snaps him out of it where he decides to play Tatsuya at full force. They both make it to the finals where before they can play the game gets stopped by another player from Yosen as well as a player from the Generation of Miracles, Atsushi.
Episode 2 picks up where episode 1 left off. We get introduced to Atsushi the center from the Generation of Miracles voiced by Kenichi Suzumura. An opposing man yes but he’s a complete airhead. We find out from Kuroko that he’s a guy who’s very skilled at basketball without really trying (a natural athlete) so he doesn’t understand the concept of hard work and thinks that people who work hard at basketball because they don’t start off good like him are just wasting their time (this is why coaches hate dealing with natural athletes. They have all the potential to be great but yet they don’t understand the concept of hard work. It really pisses a man off). Anyway, he’s here to stop Tatsuya from playing saying it goes against the rules setup by their coach but Taiga provokes him into playing (scene here: https://youtu.be/9MXY2okLg9A, in order to beat a kid you send in another kid). So they play the game but before we can really get started the game gets call off because of rain however we do learn two things from this game. First, Atsushi’s play style is hinted to be more mental than physical (sort of like Dennis Rodman. Not the best player but he was strong and physical and knew how to get inside your mind. Basketball is 50% physical and 50% mental). Second, Tatsuya has created a shot that not even Taiga can block (it pretty much breaks the laws of physics). After the game the group receives a text from Riko asking them to come to the gym (you’ve got some explaining to do~). When they arrive at the gym we see Momoi is there and feeling sad. Apparently, she and Aomine had a fight. Aomine was hoping to play against Akashi (the leader and final member of the Generation of Miracles) in the inter-high tournament as he felt he was a person he could go all out against but Momoi convinced the coach to pull Aomine from the line-up because he injured himself in the game against Kaijo due to overexertion (makes sense. While his skills are amazing his body can’t keep up with what he wants to do. You cannot change the laws of physics!). So the two had a fight and Aomine went over the line and said some things he shouldn’t have said (scene here: https://youtu.be/OJGZiBgivjY). Sad and no one to turn to Momoi reached out to the one person she could trust and that was Kuroko who cheers her up and decides to walk her back saying that he’s sure Aomine is worried about her and feels bad about what he did. As he walks her back he decides to show her the new move he’s been working on (scene here: https://youtu.be/A8-JU1lec9M).
In episode 3 the preliminaries for the Winter Cup has begun and Seirin is going up against Josei and after one of their 1st years insults Riko she gives her boys the sign to slaughter them (there are somethings you don’t do in the world of anime. You don’t get into an eating contest with Goku, you don’t take Luffy’s nakama, and you don’t piss off the girl who controls a team of very good basketball players). In the game Taiga doesn’t get to do much because Josei is double-teaming him (they got wise) but this opens the door for Kiyoshi to show off where we see he’s a very talented center. He has an excellent hook shot, he can grab rebounds, and passes the ball like a point guard (something a lot of big men have trouble with). On top that he’s an unpredictable player. He’s able to make quick decisions based off of who he’s going up against on what to do and in the end it usually results in his team scoring. This isn’t because he’s completely unpredictable it’s just pointless to predict what he’ll do (it’s like a game of rock-paper-scissors, it’s pointless to predict what your opponent is going to do because you know they only have 3 choices and you have to go with the choice you think is the best). Taiga eventually gets a fast break and tries to dunk it where he jumps so high that he actually hits his head on the rim (you would think something like this would happen more often in basketball but really, it’s a rare occasion and it’s funny as hell). As the game winds down Seirin has the obvious win and Kuroko calms Taiga down and shows him that members of Touhou are in the audience and tells him to make a declaration of war to them. His declaration of war is doing a dunk so amazing that everyone in the Generation of Miracles senses it (scene here: https://youtu.be/M7pftl1jYCQ).
Episodes 5-8
At the start of episode 4 we see which teams advanced to the championship league where in this league all 4 teams will go up against each other and the two teams that have the most wins will go on to represent Tokyo in the Winter Cup. The four teams are Seirin, Shutoku, Senshinkan (what’s with all the Ss?), and Kirisaki Dai Ichi (a school known for their dirty and foul plays which involves injuring other players on purpose to get the win. Kind of sounds like the Steelers). Seirin plays against Senshinkan the King of the West first where they win convincingly (who cares if you’re a king. Go die). Shutoku also beats Kirisaki Dai Ichi but to be fair Kirisaki didn’t play their first string players and lost the game on purpose (in other words they slapped Shutoku in the face and didn’t take them seriously). We see that their team captain and coach is a guy named Makoto who just like Kiyoshi is an Uncrowned King. However, he’s the antithesis to the honest and good-hearted Kiyoshi. Makoto is deceitful and dishonest preferring to take his opponents down in harsh ways (these are the kind of players I hate the most). In the next game it’s one of the rematches we’ve been waiting for (or at least I have), Seirin vs Shutoku and Shutoku is out for revenge and survival (survival of the fittest). The game already starts off intense with Taiga blocking Midorima twice (Taiga is probably the worst player for a shooter like Midorima to face) but Midorima doesn’t let it get to him as he’s come up with a strategy to take Taiga down, endurance. Throughout the summer all Midorima has done is endurance training as in the past there was a limit to the number of long shots he could take. Midorima’s plan is to simply outlast Taiga in a battle of endurance (let’s see if the sword is stronger than the shield).
The game continues in episode 5 where Midorima starts to incorporate fakes into his shooting which starts to throw Taiga off so Seirin has no choice but to double team him with Kiyoshi making their inside weak. You would think this would slow down Shutoku but no they’ve prepared for this as Midorima does something outside of his character and passes to his teammates giving them a chance to score (oh shit he’s become a team player. We’re screwed). Actually, all kidding aside this episode does a good job showing us that Midorima has changed as a player. Instead of trying to do everything himself he’s actually relying on his teammates and trusting them to score when he can’t (it’s good character development on his part without the whole stopping to show it stuff that we see a lot of animes do). Since this is happening they decide to sub Kuroko out and go with a run and gun tactic (basically, score quick and try to outscore your opponent). While Seirin doesn’t pull away they’re able to keep up with Shutoku in scoring but after halftime Midorima starts scoring and Taiga is starting to get weak in the legs (there’s a crack in the shield). Shutoku begins pulling away but Kuroko comes in and he’s ready to unleash his new drive (you may have cracked the shield, but the hidden blade will be your downfall).
The intensity just keeps going up in episode 6. Kuroko finally unleashes his vanishing drive which has thrown off everyone on Shutoku that they can’t even stop him (scene here: https://youtu.be/p6-ghN2N_9Q, now if he could just learn how to shoot he be unstoppable). With Kuroko’s drive Seirin is back in the game and from there the game just keeps going back and forth as both teams are having the time of their life. It’s a great game, there’s no other way to describe it. Both teams are putting it all on the line. These teams may not like each other but they respect each other’s skills and you can’t help but cheer for both teams just giving it their all in this game. In the final seconds of the game Seirin is down one point and Kiyoshi gets fouled while shooting (foul shots!? I’m sorry that’s just a rare occurrence in this series). He makes the first shot but we see signs that he still hasn’t fully recovered from his injuries and he misses the second shot. However, Taiga gets the rebound and the episode ends as he’s going up for one final dunk with Midorima guarding him.
At the start of episode 7 Midorima manages to block Taiga ending regular time at a tie. Since the tournament regulations prohibit overtime the game ends in a draw (https://youtu.be/07So_lJQyqw, I will not accept this. Give me three-minutes of overtime play now). So both sides accept this but they vow to play again in the Winter Cup. As Midorima is leaving he runs into Kise and Momoi as well as Number 2 (scene here: https://youtu.be/TQiVuP-x4rM). As this is going on we see Taiga overhear a conversation between Hyuga and Kiyoshi where Hyuga wants Kiyoshi to sit out in the game against Kirisaki but he refuses saying this is his last chance to play against them. Taiga wanting answers asks Hyuga what that was about and he tells him and Kuroko the story of how he met Kiyoshi and formed the Seirin basketball club. We get a flashback to Hyuga’s first year of high school where after losing every game in middle school he decided to quit basketball and change his image. He had bleach hair and everything (and it was hilarious. Scene here: https://youtu.be/q_lnO-hW8QY, *laughing* this reminds me of the time Seras bleached her hair blonde in the hopes of intimidating people. It had the opposite effect). He bumped into Kiyoshi who after finding out that there was no official basketball team decided to form a club and tries to get Hyuga to join but he refuses. He also tries to get Riko to be their manager but she hates basketball (because it hurt the person you love. Be part of the conversation at #HyugaxRiko. (Isis): Already trending). Kiyoshi does manage to find guys willing to play but without Hyuga they’re one man short so Kiyoshi approaches Hyuga once again and challenges him to a game of basketball where if Hyuga scores one point he’ll leave him alone (I’m starting to see that Kiyoshi and Hyuga were the original Taiga and Kuroko. In another timeline these two could have easily been the main characters of the series). Hyuga can’t manage to score and Kiyoshi tells him to stop running from his love of basketball saying that he’s just like him. He too thought about giving up basketball after taking on the Generation of Miracles but just couldn’t give up something he loved so much.
The flashback continues in episode 8 where Kiyoshi has everyone go on the school roof during assembly and announce they’ll become the best team in Japan. Hyuga also joins where he adds if they fail he’ll confess his feelings butt naked to the girl he likes (okay, Hyuga was a straight up G. He’s a little crazy but he’s a G). Impressed with their resolve Riko agrees to become their manager/coach. Kiyoshi and Hyuga quickly became a duo to be reckon with on the court and eventually ranked up victories that found them in the inter-high tournament where they played against Kirisaki. It was obvious that Seirin was going to win but not wanting them to get a free pass, Makoto maneuvers his team to injure Kiyoshi’s knee making it look like an accident (https://youtu.be/EYWbatgKN4g. This pisses me off big time because there are legit players who do this in real life. I remember back in school guys used to jump on my back all the time. I almost had to get a massage on my lower back after every game). Seirin wins and go to visit Kiyoshi in the hospital where he lies to them and tells them it’s just a sprain but Hyuga sees through his lie and wants to know what really happened. Kiyoshi comes clean and tells Hyuga that it’s bad. He’ll be out for a year and have to go through rehabilitation and surgery which will heal his knee by the time he graduates from high school however even if he skips the surgery he’ll still be out for a year and as long as he plays basketball his knee will keep accumulating damage and at most will only be able to play for another year. Without Kiyoshi, Seirin got crushed by the three kings in the championship league and lost their chance to go to the Winter Cup. About a year passed later and Taiga and Kuroko (along with a few other first years) joined the team and that’s where the story picks up.
Episodes 9-11
Episodes 9-11 is the game between Seirin and Kirisaki. After hearing Hyuga’s story Kuroko, Taiga, and the first years are determined to win this game for Kiyoshi (man the first years love and respect their seniors). It turns out that a lot of promising teams have come out for the game including Kaijo with Kise (the president of Kuroko’s fan club) and Touhou with Aomine (by force of course. Scene here: https://youtu.be/3klMtNxfhdA). Right off the bat Kirisaki plays dirty by throwing elbows while trying to get rebounds, stepping on player’s shoes to prevent them from jumping, setting up rough screens, and even trying to take out players by “accidently” falling on them (I want to punch every single one of them. And people say Matt Dellavedova is a dirty player. Compared to these guys, Matt looks about as dirty as a stack of freshly washed white t-shirts). While I hate this style of play I do have them credit in being smart with their tactics as they keep attacking in the ref’s blind spot or blocking his vision from their actions (it’s dirty but brilliant). The dirty plays get so bad that Taiga has enough and almost punches one of the players until Kuroko stops him (I would have done it. I’m usually a very passive guy and I know basketball is a physical game but I would not hesitate to punch these fuckers and get thrown out). Not wanting to see his teammates get hurt, Kiyoshi tells the team from now on he’ll handle the inside both on offense and defense (are you crazy man! You’re sending yourself to the warzone and with your bad knee you’re practically giving them a bull’s eye to hit). As you would imagine Kiyoshi keeps getting battered inside with the ref totally oblivious to what’s going on. Hyuga tries to take some of the stress off of him by making shots but he keeps missing (he’s colder than Klay Thompson at the Olympics). At half time it’s 45-40 Seirin where Makoto starts to get a little agitated that he hasn’t broken Kiyoshi yet and as he walks off the court he runs into Kuroko who asks him why he plays like this to which he says he enjoys watching people like Seirin who work hard suffer (okay this is the mindset of a sociopath) and this does not sit well with Kuroko (scene here: https://youtu.be/kNahA01COzY, congratulations Makoto, you just pissed off the one guy in this anime that shouldn’t be pissed off. Get ready to lose). As the game goes on Kirisaki subs in a new player who helps Makoto read the passes of Izuki allowing Makoto to steal the ball every time (yep, Makato has done a good job creating a web to trap Seirin in. He spent the first half getting them mad and analyzing their plays and now in the second half he’s using what he’s learned to crush them). With this web Kirisaki takes the lead 58-47 at the end of the third quarter. Kuroko comes back in the game and disrupts Makoto’s stealing by passing the ball at random. It’s hard to explain but basically Kuroko is passing the ball without a destination trusting that his teammates will catch it. It’s a gamble but for Seirin not so much. Why, because of trust (unbelievable trust). Kuroko trusts that his teammates will catch his passes and his teammates trust him to make those passes (this level of trust is something that most NBA teams have only dreamt of having). So with Kuroko’s passing they close the gap and Riko decides to pull Kiyoshi out because she’s tired of seeing him battered on the inside and he leaves the rest to the others (scene here: https://youtu.be/Lb7iVjqL8dM). As we enter the home stretch of the 4th quarter Hyuga finally calms down and starts hitting his threes (the sniper has returned) and Izuki also starts scoring as well. Makoto tries to take a cheap shot at Kuroko but he dodges (you know, I kind of wish he didn’t because I wanted to see either Taiga, Aomine, or Kise just lose it and attack him). In the end Seirin makes a comeback and wins the game 76-70 (ha! Suck it fucker). Shutoku also wins their game so it gets verified that everyone in the Generation of Miracles is going to the Winter Cup (oh it is going to be a battlefield).
*Reaper stops the project*
(Repaer): Well guys I think this is a good place to stop for today. Let’s take a little time out and continue the second half another time. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you next time on Project Nitsuj.
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