a follow up with more of the dudes 😈

Kiyota

• You cannot tell me this boy doesn’t care about his appearance.
• Honestly I feel like Kiyota would never want to dress lazy or not put effort. He has a fat ego so he’d want to make himself look as presentable as possible.
• His hair is really long and it looks like it takes some maintenance. Bro would definitely take his time combing it in the morning.
• Kiyota’s appearance is definitely over the top too, I think that he wears his headband to look more flashy (and partially because it keeps his bangs out of his face)
• He looks like he puts alot of effort into his street style, though maybe not as much as Ryota. When Kiyota was out with Maki and Hanamichi, dude was dripped out with layered clothes and a hat. His fit looks like it took some coordination and I definitely think he cares.

Sendoh

• This boy definitely puts time into caring for his appearance.
• His pineapple hair is literally shown to be the result of lots of gel. I can just imagine he wakes up hella early each morning just to make it spike up like that 💀
• Sendoh isn’t a flashy person in the way that someone like Kiyota or Miyagi is with appearances, but I think he puts around their effort into looking good. It just looks more effortless.
• Bro doesn’t accessorize a lot but in his last appearance in the series he’s literally sporting a gold watch. His clothes aren’t anything too noticeable, since he’s just shown wearing a baggy shirt and jeans.

Maki

• Maki cares about his appearance to a good extent as well.
• Bro is literally insecure about how he’s perceived to look older 💀
• Maki does look good though. His hair also looks gelled so I can imagine he spends time on it. He looks neat and presentable in his school uniform, and his body is well maintained.
• His casual clothes aren’t anything really flashy, and he has a similar style to Sendoh (with both of them wearing baggy clothes). However they’re well fitted and look good on him.

hi i got this idea after discussing with my friend and i think its cute to imagine the boys walking their boo home after a date

slam dunk boys walking their s/o home

Kiyota

• Deadass, this boy’s hands would be so sweaty. He’d get hella nervous while holding your hand and he’d hope that you wouldn’t notice.
• Kiyota wants to kiss you before dropping you off, and he’s thinking of how to initiate it the whole walk home.
• He would try impressing you by doing goofy things, he would be saying practically every joke he can think of. Kiyota would really wanna see you laugh and smile
• Kiyota seems like the type of dude who’d tell funny stories from his childhood and he’d really want to share more about his life and watch you listen. I think he’d be randomly spouting stuff he remembers
• If he notices that you seem cold or something, he’d definitely give you his hoodie. Dude wouldn’t even want you to give it back, and I think he’d say something like “What kind of guy would i be if i didnt do that for my girl?” TO TRY AND MAKE YOU SWOON (and it’d work <3)
• When the two of you get closer and closer to your home, he gets really fidgety and nervous since he still didn’t kiss you. But before he drops you off at home, he finally leans in and gives you a quick kiss. Kiyota would be really impressed with himself and he’d think about it on his walk home.

Miyagi

• Ong this boy is PLOTTING to have you wooing by the time he drops you off at home
• He has one hand around your waist, and the other one holding your hand. Ryota would be saying HELLA compliments to rizz you up and make you feel flustered
• I feel like he’d wanna walk slowly, so he can spend as much time with you as possible. He would notice the sun setting and stop for a little bit to gaze at it with you
• He would definitely stop at any cool looking places if it meant going in and spending time with you. But, he’d end up dropping you off late 💀
• Ryota gives you a smooch before leaving, he’d try avoiding getting yelled at by your parents for dropping you off at such a late time 💀

Sawakita

• I just KNOW this boy was out here asking his homies for advice on everything that goes on during a date, but he’d be stumped since they didn’t really tell him how to act by the end of it
• Sawakita acts natural and he would just figure that taking you home can’t be too bad, but he’s lowkey nervous
• Boy would be dead quiet for a while, he doesn’t have much experience with girls, so he isn’t sure what to say. After some thinking, he’d say something like “hey, wanna watch practice tomorrow?” 💀💀💀 zero rizz activities
• I feel like the conversation on the way back home would be about either basketball or his parents since that’s what he’s most comfortable talking about. At the same time though, he’d realize he was talking mostly about himself and try to ask you a few questions too
• When Sawakita drops you off at home, he walks you to the doorstep and waves goodbye. Part of him wanted to hug or kiss you, but he was too hesitant. He would end up walking home feeling a bit disappointed in himself.
• He’ll be telling his dad ALL the details

• Something I often hear from others is that “Slam Dunk is underrated”. To an extent, this is true. The series isn’t very talked about among younger fans of manga, and newer sports series such as Haikyuu are mentioned more by younger fans. However, Slam Dunk is not underrated in the slightest. Its numbers of copies sold worldwide (170 million copies, making it the seventh best selling manga of all time) speaks for itself, but in this essay I want to break down both the numbers and impact that truly show Slam Dunk’s success.
• During the time of the series’ publishing in Shonen Jump, Japan had been going through an economic fall. The Japanese economy suffered a prolonged recession that followed the collapse of the economic success of the 80’s. Corporations had stopped hiring new employees in order to maintain their current ones. This meant that many people were out of work, and it led to high unemployment. While this doesn’t directly affect Inoue, it puts lots of pressure on his manga to do well. After all, if he couldn’t make something that sold, he was out of a job. He had also stated that his editors were against him making a basketball manga due to it being unknown in the country, yet he did it regardless — despite knowing that he could easily be out of a job and face the financial difficulties many others were facing throughout the 90’s.
• Throughout the 90’s, basketball wasn’t very known in Japan. The NBA was at its peak in popularity, but this popularity didn’t translate to Japan. Baseball and soccer were far more known sports in Japan, and so Inoue was faced with the task of introducing basketball to his readers. (He did a good job of this). Slam Dunk starts off more comedic and casual compared to an intense sports series, and this was done to appeal to a wider audience. In fact, some of the most popular chapters and episodes at the time had been the gym fight arc, which didn’t exactly have much to do with basketball. But as the series progressed, Inoue was faced with two choices; to continue with the writing structure that was selling, or to double down on the basketball aspect of the series and risk alienating and losing his audience.
• But instead of backing down, Inoue decided to take the risk. The story became more and more basketball focused, but he didn’t alienate his audience. In fact, the story was becoming more and more popular. At the time, it contended with Dragon Ball Z, and at times was even outselling.
• The apex of the series’ popularity had been towards the end of its serialization in 1995-1996, throughout the Shohoku vs Sannoh match. And then… it ended. Inoue’s editors wanted him to continue the series as it was one of the magazine’s best selling, but instead, he just left. A complete power move. The series had lots of material that could have been used to continue the series, such as what happened to Shohoku (particularly Sakuragi) after the Sannoh match, him getting the girl, him becoming an even better player. I think that Inoue knew the series could have been even bigger if he had continued, but I also believe that it ended where it needed to. If Slam Dunk had been dragged longer, it may have gotten stale, and it might not have been as beloved as it is right now. Additionally, Inoue’s other big titles such as Vagabond or REAL don’t have endings due to long hiatus, and it’s possible that Slam Dunk may have faced similar treatment.
• Aside from its overall sales, another interesting metric that encapsulates Slam Dunk’s success is its sales per volume estimate.

• Slam Dunk being second only to One Piece (the best selling manga of all time) highlights just how successful it is.
• Additionally, here is a sales chart of the best selling manga in September 2022. The fact Slam Dunk places here despite being a series that has been completed for over 25 years speaks for itself.

• The series is very impressive sales wise already, but another component on just how successful Slam Dunk is its cultural impact in Japan. I already stated Inoue was forced with the task of introducing basketball to Japan. And to say he introduced it to them would be an understatement; it can be said that Slam Dunk popularized the sport.
• Around the 90’s, while basketball was at its peak in popularity due to the NBA, Japan didn’t pick up on this. Baseball and football were still far more popular. As I said before, Inoue was tasked to introduce basketball to his readers.
• Introduced is an understatement, and Inoue’s story actually increased enrollment in basketball among Japanese youth. In fact, throughout 1990-1995, around one million Japanese high schoolers were playing basketball as an extracurricular. And when Slam Dunk ended its serialization, this number dropped again.
• Additionally, when the NBA came to Japan during the time the series was being published, the stadiums for their games were packed. This adds onto just how much more popular basketball was getting in Japan. And even now, it can be said basketball is a much popular sport in Japan.
• But he didn’t just introduce the game itself; he also showed the culture surrounded by basketball.
• Basketball culture is another prominent thing shown in Slam Dunk, from the boys hooping in Jordans, the baggy clothes they wear, to the sneakerhead culture. Inoue bridged 90’s American culture to Japan, and he made it a thing among Japanese youth.
• Something else I want to note is that Nike allowed for Inoue’s use of their products in the manga. On my initial read, this surprised me, since I figured that Nike would have copyrighted the series. However, the reason they allowed for Inoue’s display of their products was because it essentially advertised their products to the Japanese market. In fact, Jordan’s and Nike’s sneakers had a massive increase in Japanese sales throughout the series’ publication (particularly the shoes worn by Sakuragi and Rukawa). Additionally, Nike also had a collaboration with Inoue to make red Jordan’s with Slam Dunk’s panels.
• The series wasn’t known in just Japan, but throughout other Asian countries such as South Korea, China, and The Philippines. And as a result, basketball got popularized in these countries as well. If you were to ask anyone from there from around the 80’s-90’s, it’d be difficult to not find a Slam Dunk reader.
• Throughout all this, I firmly believe that Slam Dunk isn’t underrated. It is arguably one of the most influential mangas, and easily one of the most successful.

i saw this illustration by inoue and i got ideas that im running with

• In Japan, it’s incredibly uncommon to drive. Many opt for public transport and walking due to the city planning of Japanese cities, and the well functioning metro system. Because of this, it’s uncommon for families, let alone teens, to be owning cars.
• Gas is also expensive so I think this speaks to Maki’s wealth.
• Imagine him pulling up to school and parking his car 💀, it would definitely get him alot of attention.
• Kiyota would see that and he would cause a FUSS, boy would be asking questions to the point where Maki whops him for being annoying.
• Kiyota would bring it up again in practice (saying things along the line of “Have you guys seen Maki’s car??”) and it’d lead to the team talking about it.
• The guys would end up wanting to go on a ride with Maki (mostly Kiyota’s suggestion LMAO), and they’d try talking Maki into it
• After much hesitation, he’d eventually oblige and the team would go for short drives every now and then.
• Maki and Jin would definitely be in the passenger’s seat, while everyone else is shoved in the back. They’d all be squashed in there and Kiyota would COMPLAIN
• They’d leave a mess in this car (mostly Kiyota LOL) and it’d be up to Maki to get it cleaned up. He would never let Kiyota in his car ever again.
• Maki is a responsible driver, and he follows all the protocol and regulations of driving. He’d never speed or cause any inconvenience for other drivers.
• Omg but imagine him picking up a girl in his car

Miyagi

• Tbh I think Ryota is REALLY clean. That boy does not want to smell bad in front of his girl Ayako.
• He definitely takes like 1-2 showers each day. Bro would have EXPENSIVE shampoos and conditioners to make sure his hair was looking good. Also LOTSSSS of curl cream, he’d have some in his backpack and everything in case his hair got frizzy during school.
• I feel like he’d be the type to have a perfume collection. I doubt hes rich or anything but BEST BELIEVE that boy is going to have Dior Sauvage, Tom Ford, and Chanel perfume.
• He’d def be the type to do alot of nail care, like filing them and making sure his nailbeds are clean.
• HIM AND AYAKO WOULD DEFFFF GO TO BEAUTY SALONS TOGETHER

Sendoh

• Whenever I think of the term business casual, THIS MF COMES TO MIND.

• Unlike Ryota, Sendoh isn’t necessarily obsessed with looking good, but I think he puts effort into being clean and presentable. I mean, who else is wearing a mf button up shirt while fishing?!?!

• If there is a type of self-care he’s into though, it’s DEFINITELY haircare. He wouldn’t have expensive asl haircare products like Ryota, but he got CANS AND CANS of hairgel, and he’d wake up early to perfect his hair.

• He’d probably have a fresh smell?? Like he wouldn’t smell musty or sweaty but he also wouldn’t be spraying perfume or cologne all over himself. After games he’d be QUICK to shower, from both wanting to not feel sweaty, and not wanting to smell bad.

• I feel like his hands probably get really dirty and grimy from fishing, but at the end of a fishing session, he gives his hands a DEEP cleanse. I just know his nails are clean asl!

Ayako

• We all know this girl KNOWS how to take care of her. She probably has even more hair products than Ryota, and she keeps them on HAND. Definitely gets routine haircuts too, I HC that her and Ryota go to the same stylist 😜

• I think that, although Ayako is very pretty, she isn’t necessarily worried about her appearance, and her hygiene is good but it’s to make herself feel good. Like she doesn’t want to smell good because she’s worried about attracting others, but because she wants to feel comfortable yk?

• A major theme that isn’t explicitly stated (yet very prevalent) in Slam Dunk is reputation and pressure, which is explored through the Shohoku team as a whole, but also through two of Shohoku’s starting five. I had already touched upon how the topic of image and reputation was explored through Sakuragi’s character and development, but I believe that it’s a very important theme for Mitsui’s character as well.
• Unlike Sakuragi (who had very little expectations or pressure from others), Mitsui is a boy whose reputation precedes him. He was nicknamed as ‘MVP’ by practically everyone (something that bugged him) after he had led his team to winning nationals in his third year of middle school. This nickname follows him around, even in his third year of highschool. I believe this shows how Mitsui was expected to always excel and do well in basketball, by practically everyone around him. He was a kid that had lots of potential even from a young age, but his talent in basketball also became something that screwed him over.
• In Slam Dunk, it’s shown Mitsui isn’t very academically gifted, initially failing many of the subjects in his exam. After Akagi and Kogure left the team to focus on school, Mitsui still sticks with the team despite having college entrance exams. I think that suggests that Mitsui only really excelled at basketball, and this might have led to more pressure (from himself, and also the people around him). After all, if he didn’t have basketball, then what would be left? This extra pressure to excel likely added to how strenuous his knee injury was for him mentally, and also part of why he was so impatient about waiting to recover. And when he couldn’t make it in time for the preliminaries and the basketball team couldn’t make it far, I think he was really disappointed (and also felt excluded).
• At this point, Mitsui’s reputation shifted. A change in appearance was used to depict this shift aesthetically, as he looked more intimidating and rough compared to his middle school years. He changed his mentality too, and his view of basketball became more of a hate towards it. He had also become more known as a thug than a basketball player. I think part of this was denial, but also because he was scared of going back; after all, he had an injury and I feel like he didn’t want to disappoint again. He had put a lot of pressure on himself to excel and carry Shohoku to victory, and I think he gave up on that goal.
• When Mitsui came back to the team and played in the preliminaries, he was recognized by others as the former MVP. Again, unlike Sakuragi, he was expected to excel and do well, and he wasn’t underestimated. But at the same time, some players had also written him off as a guy who had already hit his peak. And to an extent this is true; Mitsui’s accolades and accomplishments were at their best in his middle school years. Mitsui understood this too, and it led to him losing confidence in himself, especially as a player. As he played in more and more games and was matched up against players that were practically the opposite type of player as him (something I will touch upon in another essay LMAO), he was being referred to by both coaches and players as streaky, and against Ryonan, he had ran out of stamina and collapsed. He showed his regret for his time off, and he blames himself for wasting so much time.
• Mitsui’s current abilities were practically in the shadow of how dominant he had been before, but towards the end of the series he overcame his reputation.
• Against Sannoh, Mitsui wasn’t underestimated at all, as they had known his former accolades and abilities. But he was guarded tightly, and it led to Mitsui quickly losing stamina. In this match he acknowledged that he had already reached his limit, and he even said that all he had were threes. But instead of giving up, he persisted and sank his threes.
• I also want to mention how Mitsui referred to himself by saying “I’m Mitsui, someone who doesn’t know when to give up”. The point of Akagi being asked “What are you?” by Uozumi was so he’d stop comparing himself to someone else, but I think this question for Mitsui was needed to make him stop comparing himself to his past self. At this point, I believe Mitsui realized that he was a different person and player from around that time, and that he shouldn’t chase after his former accomplishments/abilities. In Mitsui’s statement, he doesn’t refer to how good he is or was or call himself an MVP, but simply Mitsui — a guy with a lot of persistence and determination for a sport that he loves. I think this moment signified how Mitsui rose above the shadow that was his past image and reputation and finally became “Mitsui” instead of “MVP Mitsui”.
• I also want to add that Sakuragi and Mitsui respectively carrying their team in morale and points (Mitsui scored 25 points in the game, the second highest scorer overall after Sawakita’s 26) against Sannoh was needed for their character development. Sakuragi had gone from someone who didn’t have much going for him much expected of him, to an integral part of Shohoku that was relied on to change the momentum of the game. And Mitsui had changed from someone that had been thought of as a “has been” that had already reached his peak, to a guy that persevered and fulfilled his promise of carrying his team to victory.

This is something I’ve thought about for a hot minute and i wanted to make an essay on it :))

socioeconomics in slam dunk

• Like many things in life, basketball is a money sport. While inherent talent and skill is incredibly important, without the resources and opportunities to succeed, you can only get so far.
• Throughout Slam Dunk, the importance of money and how it has a massive role in the world of basketball is not explicitly stated, but through the depictions of different teams in the series, it is prevalent.
• We are first introduced to Shohoku High, a public school in Kanagawa. Shohoku is not a “poor” or “ghetto” school, but it is by no means a prestigious school either. Shohoku is initially depicted to be an ordinary school, but we are also shown how it has delinquency and school fights — especially among its protagonist and his “gang”
• Shohoku’s normalcy is extended into its clubs, in particular, its basketball club. This club isn’t necessarily “run down” or “at risk of not existing anymore”, but aside from its coach (Coach Anzai, a man who used to coach the Japanese national team) and Akagi, their star center, Shohoku’s basketball team doesn’t have much going for it. Due to being a public school, Shohoku doesn’t have the money incentive to recruit star players (like some other schools I will mention soon), and most stars (besides Rukawa LOLLL) won’t go to an ordinary school “on a whim”
• Moreover, the financial disparities become even more personal through the experiences of the characters themselves.
• Sakuragi is hinted at to be poor, and the notion that basketball is “pay to play” is first explored through him in volume three, where Hikoichi (a player from Ryonan who “scouts” their competition) points out that it is strange Sakuragi doesn’t have basketball shoes, but he is quick to tell himself that it is likely because Sakuragi can’t afford them. Many basketball shoes, especially the Jordans that Sakuragi obtains throughout the series, are well over the $150-200 USD price range. While it is possible to play without basketball shoes, not having shoes that are designed for basketball automatically puts a player at a slight disadvantage.

• This brings into question how resources—or the lack thereof—can subtly but significantly influence the trajectory of a player’s journey and a team’s potential for success. Sakuragi was lucky to have gotten practically free basketball shoes due to the generosity of a store owner, but those costs were his own out-of-pocket expenses. Unfortunately, a public school without special stipends for their programs cannot provide financial assistance to provide some of the resources to nurture potentially talented players.
• While schools like Shohoku do not have funds to incentivize players or potential talent to come their way, they also do not have the funds to incentivize star coaches to coach at these schools. While Shohoku was able to have gotten Anzai (who wanted to retire by coaching highschool basketball), many public schools do not have that same luck.
• In fact, the reason that two of the starting players, Mitsui and Miyagi, even decided to attend Shohoku was due to its coach, Coach Anzai. I think this goes to show that if a school invests in incentives like star coaches or a star basketball program, then these talented players will want to attend.

• In terms of schools who provide ALL the incentives, and has thus led to star teams, I want to focus on Kainan, Shoyo, and (especially) Ryonan.
• All are labelled as prestigious, private schools with amazing basketball programs, with Kainan having a stellar track record at nationals. But why is that? How did they get so.. good?
• If I had to best answer this, money.
• Ryonan is known to have scouted its star players, with Coach Taoka even scouting Sendoh and Fukuda from a junior high in Tokyo. For reference, Kanagawa is about two hours away from Tokyo, so Coach Taoka has to provide incentives for these boys to move to a different prefecture rather than staying in a city that likely has many powerhouse schools. In his case, these incentives would likely be full rides to Ryonan, as well as extra stipends to cover these student’s additional costs (such as food, money to move away, etc). Since Ryonan has the funding to do this, Coach Taoka is able to travel around to different areas, find these hidden talents, and bring them over to Ryonan. Public schools like Shohoku, who do not have allocated funds for sports programs, do not have this opportunity… and thus, are at an automatic disadvantage.
• It is not explicitly stated how prestigious of a school Shoyo is, but having a program-related disadvantage affecting their players is prevalent. They do not have an official coach (for an unmentioned reason), and their star player Fujima has to coach his teammates as a result. Unfortunately, this additional responsibility prevented him from focusing on his own skills. I do believe Shoyo IS a school that has funding, but this highlights how a program being neglected directly impacts the strength of a team.

• Another team I wanted to point out is Toyotama, a team that faced some of the most immense pressure in the entire series.
• While Minami and Kishimoto, the team’s leaders, are characterized as “brute assholes”, it is shown that their irrational behavior stems from their pressure to perform well in order to potentially bring back their former coach, Coach Kitano.
• Although Toyotama is 8th in the country, for the investors in their school’s basketball program, this isn’t enough. And thus… Coach Kitano was fired in the hopes of getting a coach who could lead the team to a better performance.

• For these prestigious schools, their end goal is making a return on their investments. After all, what is the point of pouring all that money and resources for a team that doesn’t even land them in the news?
• While this is sad, it is very realistic. And as a result… even though Toyotama has a prestigious program, they felt even more pressure to *make a return.“ and this pressure poured into the team and their behavior.
• However, the school that truly encapsulates the opportunities that money and resources provide for their players is Sannoh Technical High School.
• Sannoh is practically a world class basketball team, with "anyone in Japan who gives a damn about basketball knows them”, a team that had won nationals for years on end.
• But how can one team be so good, let alone having a lasting legacy of greatness?
• While their players are undoubtedly talented, Sannoh has invested aplenty into nurturing their players’ talents.
• Like Coach Taoka of Ryonan, Sannoh’s Coach Damoto scouts the best and brightest for their team. Eji Sawakita, although residing in a different prefecture, was discovered and scouted by Sannoh. While it isn’t explicitly said how many players they scouted, or what incentives they provided Sawakita (aside from opportunities and their prestige), it can be inferred that Sannoh likely looks for the best and brighest to be apart of their teams.
• In addition to the money and resources spent scouting, Sannoh provides their team with immense opportunities that most schools do not.
• It is stated that Sawakita had been sent on a trip abroad to play basketball in America, and that he even learned new techniques during his trip. To say the least, a trip like that is… expensive. To send students to a country across the world just to play basketball is a hefty price to pay, and yet Sannoh was willing to pay it.

• To prepare for Shohoku’s match, Coach Damoto arranged a practice match with Sannoh alum who have a similar playstyle to Shohoku. While it is possible that these alum were willing to volunteer their time doing this, Damoto going out of his way to bring them all together and schedule that practice match is something that likely cost a significant amount to make happen. And it is certainly an opportunity that many schools would not provide.
• Unfortunately, it is difficult to compete with money, and this sentiment is universal for any sector.
• But what makes Shohoku’s victory over all these powerhouse schools, especially Sannoh, so shocking is the fact it is an “ordinary, no name school.” Theoretically, Shohoku would never beat a team like Sannoh, especially given the fact that Shohoku didn’t even have half the money, resources, and opportunities that Sannoh does.
• Yet… Shohoku did it. And I think this part of why Slam Dunk is such a beautiful story: an ordinary team was, even for a moment, able to be extraordinary.

• While I consider Slam Dunk a perfect series, with amazing characterization, I believe that the weakest aspect of the story is the lack of backstories. While a backstory is not needed for every character, it would have added much more to the main characters and their development. The main team members of the series are already very well developed and they had plenty of development (especially throughout the Sannoh match). However, Ryota Miyagi, Shohoku’s point guard, seemed like a static character in comparison to his other teammates.
• While he isn’t a badly written character by any means, we didn’t see much of his story throughout the manga. His main thing was being the short boy who had a crush on Ayako.
• During his introduction arc, Miyagi was overshadowed by Mitsui, who had his whole backstory revealed in that arc. In comparison, all we knew about Miyagi was that he was a problem child who liked Ayako, and became friends with Sakuragi.
• Throughout the rest of the series, we don’t truly see much of Ryota’s struggles, aside from his height leaving him at a disadvantage. This issue is shown throughout the Sannoh match. The readers are shown how Ryota is concerned about if he can even match up to Fukatsu, but we aren’t shown much of Ryota’s inner thoughts compared to Akagi’s thoughts of comparison.
• More of Ryota’s story is revealed in a spin-off chapter that was released after Slam Dunk’s serialization, titled Piercing. We finally learn more details about Ryota’s life, such as how he had known Ayako since he was young and about his brother’s disappearance. This added some depth to Ryota and potentially explains why he’s a problem child, but it is still rather vague and left many questions unanswered.
• However, over 20 years later, Ryota’s story was finally revisited. In The First Slam Dunk, Ryota is the main character and we finally learn about his background and even his inner thoughts.
• What shocked me the most was learning just how passionate Ryota was about basketball. Aside from Sakuragi (who himself became serious about basketball towards the end of the series), I felt Ryota was the most casual about basketball. He had even explained to Sakuragi that he wasn’t sure he wanted to play basketball in highschool until he saw Ayako. However, it’s shown Ryota had played basketball since he was a child, and his older brother had taught him. And despite Ryota’s mother disliking basketball (due to it reminding her of her late son), Ryota continued to play it.
• His family life which is hinted at in Piercing is fully revealed in the movie. Ryota’s brother is confirmed to be dead, and we truly see how much it affected Miyagi. While in the manga he doesn’t seem depressed or anything, we learn how it deeply affected him and led him to become a delinquent. He was even bawling in his cave hideout that he used to visit as a kid. And the fact he wrote to his mother that he wished he was the one who died instead speaks volumes.
• Ryota had always come off as a very nonchalant person. While he did get pissed at times, he didn’t seem like he had serious issues. Ayako even states to him that he always looks like he’s fine. I think that this shows how strong Ryota was mentally, he always looked okay in front of his teammates and the average reader wouldn’t figure he had anything too serious going on,
• As stated in a lyric by Taylor Swift, “No one sees when you lose when you’re playing solitaire”. Ryota seems to keep his problems to himself, similarly to Sakuragi. It seems like nobody in the team has any idea what happened, aside from maybe Yasu and Ayako. And Miyagi doesn’t act depressed either. However, I believe that his background reveals that Ryota tries to keep his feelings and struggles under control.
• Something I think is notable is Ryota’s friendship with Sakuragi. It’s shown that they don’t get along, until they open up to each other one night regarding their bad luck in love. Their entire conversation that night wasn’t revealed (and I believe there is a possibility they could’ve talked about things outside of their love life), but it still shows that Sakuragi was the first one Ryota opened up to on the team. Additionally, Ryota was the first one on the team that Sakuragi confided in about any struggles he was facing. As a result, I believe that this was why they were able to become friends so easily.
• While Miyagi is already a stand out character in Shohoku, the additional information regarding his background makes him an even better written character.

Hi, I will be back to posting soon!!!! The college application process took everything out of me for the past school year, but I miss slam dunk so badly. I hope you all are doing well

i set up links to all the posts ive written for the characters. if you want anything for a particular character you can find it in here :)

Mitsui

• mitsui in a relationship
• rich mfs in slam dunk
• views on appearance/fashion
• mitsui’s fav movies
• mitsui in love <3
• seeing his crush get cheated on
• the reputation of hisashi mitsui
• reacting to confession
• getting cheated on
• dental work + hygiene
• mitsui’s rizz

Rukawa

• rukawa in a relationship
• rukawa’s music taste
• views on appearance/fashion
• rukawa’s love for cats
• rukawa relationship hcs
• rukawa as a cat dad
• the dynamic of rukawa, sendoh, and sawakita
• the misunderstanding of kaede rukawa

Maki

• maki in a relationship
• rich mfs in slam dunk
• maki’s car
• views on appearance/fashion
• maki’s fav movies
• reacting to crush’s confession
• maki as a father
• getting rejected by his crush

Miyagi

• views on appearance/fashion
• miyagi in love
• walking s/o home
• reacting to confession
• miyagi in academics

Sawakita

• sawakita in a relationship
• rich mfs in slam dunk
• sawakita in america
• comforting crying s/o
• walking s/o home
• sawakita the best slam dunk boy (real)
• getting cheated on
• the dynamic of rukawa, sendoh, and sawakita

Sakuragi

• views on appearance/fashion
• reacting to crush’s confession
• hanamichi + his friends
• seeing his crush get cheated on
• getting complimented by a girl
• the image shift of hanamichi sakuragi

Sendoh

• sendoh in a relationship
• views on appearance/fashion
• reacting to crush’s confession
• sendoh as a father
• dating a tom boy
• getting rejected by his crush
• getting cheated on
• sendoh in academics
• dental work + hygiene
• the dynamic of rukawa, sendoh, and sawakita

Kiyota

• kiyota in a relationship
• views on appearance/fashion
• dating a tom boy
• seeing his crush get cheated on
• walking s/o home

Kogure

• kogure’s fav movies
• comforting crying s/o

Fukuda

• fukuda in a relationship
• comforting crying s/o
• dating a tom boy
• reacting to confession

SD ESSAYS

• the solitude of ryota miyagi
• the misunderstanding of kaede rukawa
• the dynamic between rukawa, sendoh, and sawakita
• sports manga’s greatest antagonists; sannoh high
• the success of slam dunk
• the reputation of hisashi mitsui
• ayako’s interactions with shohoku’s starting five
• the image shift of hanamichi sakuragi
• the characterization of eiji sawakita
• physical touch in slam dunk