Title: Slam Dunk
Author;
Takehito Inoue
Rating: 5/5
Literary
Level: Beginner
Written and illustrated by Takehito
Inoue in October 1990 and published in Shuesha’s Weekly Shōnen Jump, Slam
Dunk turned into one if not the most revered sports manga in the century. It
tells the normal life of a first-year high-school delinquent named Hanemichi
Sakuragi who has no set goals in life but to have fun. His one goal, however,
is to get a girlfriend, and it so happens that he falls madly in love with
someone from his year. The girl, Haruko Akagi, is the sister of the school’s
basketball captain. Hanemichi, although tall, is not adept at any sports but
has an innate talent to thrive as a basketball player—enough to have Haruko
like him that is. He, the captain, and the all-star player butt heads
throughout the story and find a new rivalry between each other resulting in a
strong friendship. Hanemichi later comes to understand the resolve that some
players have to win, and it results in him loving the sport incidentally.
It is a beautiful and comedic story
of resolve and hard work. Through comedy, the author brings how a lousy person
turns into a respectable one that has a goal to strive for, even after failure.
Spoilers ahead. Unfortunately, Hanemichi loses his only chance to send
his team to the finals due to a severe back injury suffered while playing,
ending the manga on a somber, yet real, note. It is not often that a mangaka
ends his work in a sad way with the main character not achieving his true
potential, but that’s what makes it one of the best. It separates itself from
other sports manga that emphasizes victory and overcoming obstacles, while Slam
Dunk focuses on reinforcing goals and the will to move forward, even after
defeat and unwarranted ridicule. His perception that he failed his team is what
pushes him to train after he recovers, to better himself and his skills as a
basketball player.