Kuroko no Basuke Season 1

Seirin High's basketball team has had little success so far and as a new school year starts, the members saw an opportunity to recruit some of the freshmen and hopefully acquire some talented players. At the outset Kagami Taiga made a good impression with his physique and competitive nature when he handed in his application. The upperclassmen think they have a good find but the others seem average. Among these newbies is Kuroko Tetsuya. Dismissed as physically average by the team coach Aida Riko, Kuroko possesses an ability that's unheard of. Small, unnoticeable, and with almost no skill in basketball, everyone was surprised to learn that Kuroko was the sixth man of Teiko Middle School.

Seirin High's starting five. (from left) Kagami, Hyuga, Mitobe, Kuroko, and Izuki

Teiko Middle School's basketball team created a sensation when they destroyed most of their opponents during their stint. The starting five were such fierce competitors with no equal that they were dubbed the Generation of Miracles. Their success, Seirin later learned when they witnessed what Kuroko can do, was pieced together by Kuroko's talent and role as the Phantom Sixth Man. 

Kise (Facing Kuroko)

(Middle) Midorima

Kuroko uses his technique of misdirection to steal and create passes that cannot be anticipated by both teammates and opponents. He does this without being noticed by the other players while he moves around the court. This ability comes with a price however not only because the passes are unpredictable but Kuroko is prone to injury and fatigue as well. 

Overcoming these is what Kuroko has to do to contribute further to the team. Now that they have a prodigy of a player in Kagami, experienced upperclassmen and a good coach, Seirin looks poised to rise to the top in the inter-high school tournament. But will these be enough to beat the other schools that also have new players, some of which are from the Generation of Miracles?  Kise Ryouta, Midorima Shintarou, and Aomine Daiki have successfully raised their teams' competitive level and all of them are now rivals.

Aomine

Most sports anime usually have for a lead character either a prodigy or an average but promising athlete. Kuroko is a new specimen because he is a mediocre but overspecialized athlete with little promise of further improvement. Physically he isn't gifted and he doesn't even know how to shoot. In a physically demanding sports like basketball, a guy like this is unusual if not completely useless on court. Like most series of the genre, Kuroko no Basuke follows the story template of a rising team with new talent on its way to a national tournament. To get there Kuroko and the rest of Seirin have to face the former's talented ex-teammates.

Tetsuya #2

As for the other characters, Kuroko's teammates save Kagami are easy to forget because there is few or no character development at all. The known players from the Generation of Miracles however are easily distinguishable. In fact, there seems to be more focus on the stories and characters of Kagami, Kise, Midorima, and Aomine than on Kuroko. I guess that is consistent with his near-invisible ability.

The animation is beautifully done especially the matches. Even the opening and ending themes are action-packed. The pace is fast and the matches aren't always stretched in several episodes. There are few commentaries or analyses from bystanders on court during matches but the players themselves explain and show enough of the special moves that viewers can appreciate. Exaggeration of characters' on-court abilities of course is to be expected. Overall, the series has lived up to its hype.

Kagami and Kuroko

Rating: 9 out of 10