Slam Dunk – Episode 9

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Aota is still trying his best to get Sakuragi to join the Judo team. But the freshman has absolutely no interest in anything to do with Judo aside from the pictures the captain is holding over his head

Actually, I have to admit that I’m impressed with Sakuragi in this episode. I really thought he was going to join the Judo team and be difficult for a while, but I’m pleasantly surprised that the thought didn’t even cross his mind. Even with what was being offered to him, there was no thought in his mind to actually join. Rather, the only consideration is to just leave the conversation with the photographs and still a member of the basketball team. Do I still find the whole photo situation weird and uncomfortable? Yeah. But it wasn’t as bad as it was in the last episode. So I was willing to give it a pass. It’s just unfortunate that pretty much the whole episode was just a back in forth between Sakuragi and Aota:

Do you want the pictures?

Of course!

Then you will join the Judo club?

No!

Do you want the pictures??

Of course!

And that gag was pretty funny in the beginning! I just felt like we didn’t go anywhere for a long time. The only thing that broke it up was Kogure, Akagi, and Ayako watching from the sidelines. So I have to give credit to those three, especially since they all gave different perspectives on the situation. Kogure was clearly very nervous about everything that was playing out, but still got to have snide little comments as Aota was commenting on his childhood relationship with Akagi. Ayako got to sneak into the observation near the end and play off of Kogure. Akagi on the other hand, was much more quiet and focused on how the scene in front of him was playing out. This shows that he’s invested in finding out how everything plays out despite all his frustrations with Sakuragi. He’s not marching right in to pull him back to practice. Instead he is letting the delinquent red-head make a decision for himself. And to me, that makes Sakuragi’s declaration of being a Basketball man more impactful!! Good for you Sakuragi! You’re really showing guts and your dedication to the basketball team.

That also means, we probably won’t have a “Hanamichi Sakuragi is leaving the basketball team” focused episode for a little bit. I’m actually getting excited for what’s coming next! I want to see Hanamichi actually learn the rules to the game he’s playing. I want to see conflict between team members that ultimately allow them to grow and make it to inter-high. I want to see the characters I saw in the movie make their debut! I know it might be some time before all of that, but I really am just looking forward to basketball in the upcoming episodes.

On that note, I’m considering switching to covering two episodes per entry. I’ve been finding it a little difficult to speak on the episodes because things appear pretty straightforward. Straightforwardness is not a bad thing! I just find myself unsure of what to write about. We’ll see how things develop ‘ v’