Slam, motherfuckin, Dunk. You say those 3 words & they just begin to resonate throughout the room. That’s the power this manga has. Slam Dunk is a series that, I hate to use this phrase because I think it’s stupid. “Transcends manga”. I don’t necessarily use that because I think it’s the most well written, most clever, or best manga ever. Slam Dunk doesn’t even crack my top 10 of all time (but it comes pretty damn close). So why do I use that phrase? Because I honestly think Slam Dunk is a manga that appeals to everybody.

Basketball is a universally understood concept. It’s popularity may vary across regions/countries (especially given that before Slam Dunk Basketball in Japan was not a popular sport) but it’s nevertheless something everybody understands. However if Slam Dunk being about Basketball was all it had going for it then it wouldn’t be as fondly remembered as it is & most certainly wouldn’t be the 7th & 9th highest rated manga on Anilist & MyAnimeList respectively. Want proof? Just look at Takehiko Inoue’s Buzzer Beater manga, while not outright awful it’s essentially a glorified advertisement for some ESPN website in Japan at the time & it’s not even remotely remembered as well as Slam Dunk is because being about Basketball is the only thing Buzzer Beater has going for it.

So what does make Slam Dunk as good as it is. Well it’s quite simple really, Inoue himself does. Takehiko Inoue may just possibly be the most passionate Japanese Basketball fan of all time. So what does he do? He takes a concept as universally understood as Basketball, gives it some fantastic characters with a lot of charisma, charm, & identifiable traits. Then takes both & writes a straight-forward narrative with hype moments throughout, characters that we get to see grow throughout the narrative, at first bad art but it quickly becomes good, & then near the end of the series phenomenal, & packages it tight so that it keeps a fast pace that makes the series incredibly addicting to read. But that’s just a generalization of these concepts.

As stated earlier, Slam Dunk’s plot is simplistic. It’s got the exact structure & story beats that you would expect out of a sports narrative. Because of its cast though, the story is excelled to greater heights that it would’ve obtained otherwise. We’ve got Sakuragi, the meatheaded shounen protagonist that gets heated easily but pulls his weight when it counts, has a strong sense of teamwork & loyalty under his rough exterior, & is passionate about Basketball. Then we’ve got Rukawa, the reserved member, the star player, the one who goes through giving into authenticity & opening up to his team mates. We’ve got Akagi, the captain, the really passionate Basketball player, & the guiding figure on & off the court. Even some of the characters that aren’t super important to the narrative like Sakuragi’s 3 friends offer some great comedy to the series & they play off of each other really well. I can go on all day but I think you get that Slam Dunk has some awesome characters that are one reason that really makes Slam Dunk as good of a series as it is.

As mentioned earlier, Inoue is a passionate Basketball fan & with Slam Dunk his passion oozes throughout the pages but it never comes off as cheesy. Throughout the manga you really get to feel Inoue’s passion rather it be through his detailed art, his ‘Dr T’s basketball lessons” (remember Basketball was essentially not a thing in Japan before Slam Dunk). The already mentioned characters that have just as much of a passion for the sport as the author does. It’s just a huge love letter at the end of the day. What I think encapsulates the love Inoue has for Basketball is how he goes about representing games & getting to see the characters grow. The games in Slam Dunk ar always hype, never dull, paced perfectly, & house some of the most powerful moments of the manga. But through the games we always get to see these characters grow meaning there is always some form of progression that keeps the pace going. There’s moments in Slam Dunk like Sakuragi denying the Judo club because he really has grown to love the sport of Basketball by that point. A last second unexpected loss that destroys the team’s spirts, & getting to learn bits about Rukawa’s past that help make this manga for me.

If you love seeing artist evolve overtime, then Slam Dunk is for you because you get to see it in just one manga that ran for 6 years, you don’t even need to read Vagabond or Real (though I’d recommend you do that but those are for different reviews). Slam Dunk’s art at first can honestly look quite bad. There’s hardly any shading, the compositional works can be weak, the characters look ultra simplistic, & the art in generally for the first volume can look derpy if I had to put it in one word. However the art quickly improves, Inoue’s compositional pieces become significantly better, his characters more detailed, his paneling better, I think you get the point. Then, it happens. Inoue’s art becomes phenomenal by the final 6 or so volumes. Not on every page mind you, but when it’s spreads, detailed character panels, & panels of that like. Inoue’s art gets to a point that I honestly think can rival early Vagabond. In conclusion, you get to see the artistic evolution of an artist in one work & that’s awesome, easily some of the best art that I’ve seen out of weekly shounen jump.

Well there you have it. My thoughts on Slam Dunk. I love this manga if you couldn’t tell, I think it’s absolutely legendary & a series that everybody no matter who they are should give this manga a chance. There’s very little to outright hate about this manga it’s so likeable thanks to Inoue’s passion for the sport being used to craft a simple yet compelling narrative throughout 31 volumes, 276 chapters, & xxxx pages worth of material (if somebody wants to tell me how many Slam Dunk actually is feel free). This manga, while not necessarily being my favorite or a manga that I think is the best. This manga gets my highest recommendation above all other manga due solely to its mass appeal & likeability. If you have not read this legendary series, get on it.