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Kuroko no Basket returns, much to the excitement of fans!  We open the second season with some much-needed backstory on Taiga Kagame.

(I’d like to preface the rest of this review by saying that I haven’t read the Kuroko no Basket (KnB) manga and, due to time constraints, probably will not do so in the foreseeable future.  That said, anything happening in the anime is new to me.  All right, moving on.)

One thing I was really missing in the first season was some detailed background on Taiga Kagame, and now we finally have that in this first episode of the second season.  While the focus of the first season was on the Generation of Miracles (rightly so), Taiga’s biggest characterization was as the new guy who had the potential to shut those prodigy players down.  And, while that characterization was a valid one, I hope I’m not the only one who felt like something was missing—his backstory.  Learning what he did in America, how he learned to play basketball the way he does, and what kinds of friends he made during that time definitely rounds him out as a character as each of the Generation of Miracles we met in the first season were.

On top of Taiga’s continuing character development, this episode introduces a couple of new characters, and promises the introduction of a few more.  We meet Taiga’s “brother” Tatsuya Himuro (who is apparently on the same level as the Generation of Miracles) and get a brief glimpse of Atsushi Murasakibara, the center from the Generation of Miracles.  Both of these characters will clearly play an important part in the next episode or two as the street-ball tournament keeps going.

Who I’m most looking forward to seeing in this season, though, is Seijuro Akashi.  He is the most mysterious out of the members of the Generation of Miracles.  It’s pretty obvious that Atsushi’s special talent is his incredible height and physical strength, and we know the talents of Ryouta Kise, Shintarou Midorima, and Daiki Aomine from last season.  But what is Seijuro’s special talent?  He’s the Generation of Miracle’s least-characterized member thus far.  He really wasn’t even talked about much in the first season.  I’m really looking forward to seeing him show up during the Winter Cup.

Kuroko no Basket OP 3

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Kuroko no Basket ED 3

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Kuroko no Basket Episode 27 Preview

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