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The Seirin versus Shutoku game wraps up in this episode of Kuroko no Basket, moving into some background on the creation of Seirin’s basketball club.

It’s interesting that there are no overtime rules in this tournament, so thus this game ends in a tie.  I guess I should have expected something like that, because it’s obvious that Seirin will have to play against Hanamiya’s team, Kirisaki Dai Ichi, and the only way that can happen is if they either lose or tie against Shutoku.  Not to mention the fact that sports anime are all about facing challenges and often losing against them, leading to more training in order to attempt to win.  Let’s not forget that Kagami’s presence caused even Midorima, a member of the Generation of Miracles who has rarely seen a need to improve upon himself, to do some training of his own.

Both in the present and in the flashback, we get a really good look at Kiyoshi’s persistence.  In the present, he’s determined to push himself, “even if it destroys his knees,” to keep playing and help Seirin to victory.  It was him, the Iron Heart, who first suggested they create a basketball club at Seirin High.  And he continued to push Hyuuga and Riko to join, no matter what.  His personality is definitely that of the “Iron Heart,” often laid back but definitely firm and determined when he needs to be.

It’s really nice to see how Seirin’s basketball team originally got together.  This is a bit of context that wasn’t necessarily missing from the story before, but definitely rounds out the plot and gives us even more reason to care about this team.  It’s also nice to hear from the other second-years aside from Kiyoshi and Hyuuga.  Not that they aren’t important, but it’s nice to see how eager Izuki, Koganei, and Mitobe all were to create a basketball club at Seirin, too.  This is the kind of filler episode that is definitely worthwhile, because it contextualizes the characters we’ve come to love.  It explains their feelings and thus shows us why they’re so determined to win.

Kuroko no Basket Episode 33 Preview

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