Ro-Kyu-Bu! SS

According to legend, once in every generation, warriors from around the globe will gather on the field of battle in order to compete in the sacred martial art... of loliball. Okay so maybe it's not quite that serious, but even mini-basketball can stand out quite a bit under the right circumstances. In the case of Ro-Kyu-Bu! SS it's not as much about winning as it is about playing for fun. Fortunately, it's not only the characters who are having fun, but also the viewers, because this series is in reality pretty damn entertaining. The story picks up where the first season (and OVA) left off, so ifyou haven't seen those you should go back and do so right now. Now given the premises, naturally the story itself is nothing special. We have a team of 11-12 year old girls playing basketball to their hearts' content while being coached by a guy in high school. It is basically more of the same as we saw in the first season where you follow the daily lives of the little basketball team as they keep practicing and playing matches against other schools. There is a certain element of unpredictability to it though, as the games themselves don't follow norms specifically, and victory is not always guaranteed. On the side of that though there is a decent amount of loli ecchi scenes as the kids all feel very attached to Subaru, which also causes a lot of jealousy from his infaturated classmate and childhood friend. It probably goes without saying, but the reason you'll be watching this in the first place is all for the sake of the characters. The protagonist Subaru is, like any male lead in any harem series ever, quite dense to say the least, but that asides he's a quite relatable person and you can really see just how much coaching the girls means to him. His hopelessly lovestruck and tsundere friend Aoi also got a bit more active role in this season which was nice to see. But it's all about the lolis in this case, and they're all extremely likable both in appearance and personality. Hinata especially is one of the most moe characters ever made, but Tomoka's blushing face will melt the heart of any man as well. In addition, this season introduced a whole bunch of new characters to the cast who, while not being quite as adorable as the main cast, also gave the story a nice change of pace and direction. You can clearly see just how much fun all the girls are having while playing, and even if you're not too hyped about basketball originally, you might find that their passion and love for the sport will get through to you anyway. The art style is in all honesty really good. It feels very fitting for the loli theme that the anime has, with some beautiful work on the eyes and hair especially. Naturally the series' main selling point is just how damn moe the basketball team members are, and you won't be let down by looking at them with a smile on your face as their cuteness is very well animated and presented. The more general art style of the anime is perhaps not quite on the same level, but definitely good enough to be pleasing to the eye. The soundtrack of Ro-Kyu-Bu! SS is not particularly memorable. At the time of writing this I can't even remember what the opening sounded like. The ending theme is a bit better and also has some pretty funny lyrics to it, but other than that the OST is nothing special. What is absolutely worth mentioning when it comes to the audio department however is the voice acting. Take a look at how few people there are that have actually watched this show, you'd think they wouldn't be able to get a very notable seiyuu cast for it, right? Well guess again, as one way or another, they somehow got their hands on what is basically an all-star seiyuu lineup. Kaji Yuki, Itou Kanae, Hanazawa Kana, Iguchi Yuka, Hikasa Yoko, Hidaka Rina and Ogura Yui together make up the main cast. I'm not quite sure how they managed to pull all of those together, but I'm glad they managed because as you might expect given all that, the voice acting all around is essentially top notch. (I'm especially a fan of Ogura Yui which in this case performs Hinata's dreamy voice, but the others' aren't exactly bad either.) All that being said, the most important aspect of any piece of media is the enjoyment factor, and Ro-Kyu-Bu! SS delivers fairly well in that aspect. It isn't much in the way of actual humour, so I sadly can't go ahead and say that it puts the lol in loli (was so proud of that pun t.t), but you'll probably be watching it consistently with a smile on your face. The reason for that is quite simple: you'll like what you see. Now I don't (necessarily) mean that in a creepy way, but rather that it is extremely cute while still having a lot of fighting spirit to drive the show onwards. It's not something you're going to end up putting in your favorites list most likely, but it's hard to really dislike it either despite its simplicity... unless you're part of the moe-hater train that is, but then you wouldn't be watching this show in the first place. Overall, just like the first season, Ro-Kyu-Bu! SS is far from a masterpiece of any sort, but in all honesty I don't think people will go in with the mindset that it will be when they decide to watch it. The point is: that doesn't really matter. It's a heartwarmingly cute and simple series that'll leave you with a fuzzy feeling once you're done with it. That's all there is to it really. Sometimes though, that's more than enough.

Hopefully, you readers would have already seen the original series, and so, despite how the set up of the show is self limiting in terms of plot - those who enjoyed season 1 should enjoy SS greatly aswell! :) During this season, i was quite pleased to see an increased focus on the technical, sporty-side of things, be on the lookout for the unexpected because there are a lot more epic game scenes, and hoops to keep you amused too! Fortunately, i found the show becoming more action-oriented, raising a more competitive atmosphere, as the girls team does battle with a variety of opponents. These edge ofthe seat matches always boiling down to their final moments, i feel worked really well in inducing that sense of "what's gonna happen". - in the short term of course, as the actual structure of the matches was a tad repetitive. In many ways, the show has remained its cheesy self, there's still some ecchi elements too, but i'm personally quite pleased to see they subsided A BIT - not as "in your face" as the first few episodes of season 1 that's for sure. The more i watched through SS, the more i came to appreciate the shounen feel of the presentation, it's a classic form, and for sport it was a good choice. Last but not least, there's still a great sense of intimacy shining through, as the show still develops the characters rather beautifully. Their friendship and cooperation is tested, and so that even throws some drama into the mix! All in all, is it a worthwhile sequel? Yes, definitely - if you enjoyed season 1. So prepare once again for this unique, "kawaii" take on basketball!

If the first season impressed me, it's more than predicted that this sequel would blow my expectations. Filled with moe and adrenaline, Ro-Kyu-Bu! SS is THE sports anime! Unique on most aspects and being an actual fun anime to watch, since it doesn't focus entirely on basketball, this anime is one of those you can't just judge by opinions... You must see it, feel it, live it... {STORY - 10/10} There's been one year since the girls' basket ball club was founded. Through all that time, their friendship got amazingly strenghtened and their overall skills became something to be praised. Team work is shown as never beforeand a perfect team, formed by 5 young girls, is growing full of expectations. Time is passing up fast and, in order to go official, our team needs 5 other girls. At first, rivalry, but then, an alliance borns, along with trust and consideration. Basketball created an unbreakable bound between the first members, that now expands itself to reach other. An ultimate team is about to rise... {ART - 10/10} It was expected that overall graphics would become smoother, but animation got way more active than on first season. Quick moves and powerful techniques give us a gorgeous show, as matches get more intense and impressive! Also, we get the chance to see the girls chatting more oftenly, with newly made and beautiful background themes. Obviously that the same style that make all of them constantly look so adorable didn't suffer any change... {SOUND - 10/10} Is almost like a "feedback" sensation, as if you're right there, sitting on the stalls and watching the match live! Efforts weren't measured at all and every possible effect was added to make this anime feel as closest as possible from reality. Background musics are always making presence and improving our experience, mainly during matches and the new OP and ED songs maintained the same genre from their respective predecessors, even better this time! {CHARACTERS - 10/10} A real cast "explosion" added a whole bunch of new characters, giving Ro-Kyu-Bu! SS a lot of fresh personalities to meet on just 12 episodes! Kenshii's junior female basketball team gets the brief addition of 5 new members, allowing them to enter a real tournament for the first time. Mimi, an young girl Subaru's father met on his last travel, got interested on basketball on decided to be her apprentice. A true prodigy, she combines speed with elegance, being able to outrun anyone who tries to mess with her. Kagetsu, previously introduced, now focus on getting even more closer to Hinata, learning how to play basketball. Also, a long-date friend and now rival to Saki, Masami, gets into the game and tries to beat her at all costs. Natsuhi's twin sisters, Hiiragi and Tsubaki, are now added as a perfect example of mutual cooperation. {ENJOYMENT - 10/10} How could this be better? Future holds an awesome sequel to this story and all I can do is wait. For now, let's just enjoy the true essence of this completely flawless work, overflowing with inspiration, the boost to follow your dreams and do that little thing you love most, both at the same time. {OVERALL - 10/10} The girls are growing up and looking further to something real big. Training never ends and the real leagues play really hard... A long way is paved and must be followed with determination... Wrong steps are predictable, but those can only make us stronger... Aiming on the podium, but also playing for fun is their motto and nothing can hold these girls back!

I said in my review of season one that I was hoping for some, even a single dunk out of SS, and I'm sorry of this counts as a spoiler but in this I was very disappointed. No dunks at all, not even from Subaru in his showdown with his aggressively blonde rival. I was, however, greeted with a variety of no-look passes, floaters, jab steps, and all sorts of other advanced techniques. The team really stepped up their game in this one, and so too did the show creators, riding on the success of season 1 to create a show with just as much heartand much tighter animation and writing to boot. If you liked season one, SS delivers. It's a different beast, for sure, focusing more on plot and introducing a hoard of new characters on top of our established cast. I liked most of the new characters a lot, but with the growing cast some of the older characters are sidelined into supporting roles that make them feel even flatter than before. Not that there's necessarily a problem with that, but it's a matter of flavor - S1 was distinctly a harem show, S2 is more of a drama with some of the more goofy ecchi aspects of the first season ironed out or collected into a few episodes rather than throughout. I liked this better, in a way, although the stress upon adding more characters for more conflicts instead of exploring the existing cast felt a little thin. The animation's also been stepped up, I assume through the success of the first season. There are still some rough points, of course, but overall it's a much better-looking show. If you enjoy the subject matter, r-k-b! is a simple but satisfying show that's pretty good at what it does. I came to it with very low expectations and was pleasantly surprised to find a show that was both cute and endearing. I'd be surprised to find another show with such an odd mix of elements that works as well as this one, and I'm happy I followed through with the second season.