Reviews - Slam Dunk Volume 5

33 reviews for:

Slam Dunk Volume 5

Takehiko Inoue

4.28 AVERAGE

madtwister's review

5.0

Not a single lacking chapter in sight

9/10

no1ne's review against another edition

4.5

adventurous funny informative lighthearted tense fast-paced

jordanlabarr's review against another edition

5.0

funny lighthearted fast-paced

lilac_rose's review against another edition

4.25

fast-paced

georgesc's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

neon_gregory_evangelion's review

5.0

I began Slam Dunk because I had trouble getting engrossed in the author's other famous series, Vagabond. I thought taking a detour to one of his earlier books would give me a better perspective on Inoue's writing style and help me better appreciate the series I already sunk $60 into purchasing (despite being an accountant, I am not immune to the allure of impulsive late-night purchases).

I've never been too passionate towards sports. I played baseball and basketball as a child, mostly as a way to appease my parents and show that, like my softball-playing sister, I was capable of being sociable and hard-working. But they never really grabbed me. And watching sports is about the dullest past-time I can think of. You watch a very slow game for about five minutes, get interrupted by 20 minutes of State Farm commercials, and then watch another five minutes. I don't know how people do it. Not for me. Boooooring.

So I guess it's surprising then how quickly Inoue's Slam Dunk was able to grab me. Featuring a very dumb main character who knows nothing about basketball (a valuable audience surrogate if I've ever seen one), Slam Dunk is about the main character's journey to...get really good at basketball. Not because he actually cares that much about the sport, but just so he can impress a cute girl.

Yeah, it's a simple premise. And the main character is really shallow, to an occasional annoying degree. But the series remains intensely readable because of its charm and likeable supporting characters. Most of the series thus far consists of funny gags stemming from the main character's stupidity and lack of social skills. It can be monotonous, but the snappy humor helps Slam Dunk from feeling like just another generic sports story. The series spends lots of time building up the characters. By the time an actual basketball game starts at the end of volume four, the basketball game is elevated from being a simple scrimmage to a chance for the characters to prove their worth.

It's exciting as hell. And tense. I've felt more suspense reading this manga than I ever have watching a game. Maybe that makes me lame, that I'm only able to enjoy sports by reading a manga, but I don't care. At least there's no commercials.

This volume is my favorite so far. We see the characters under pressure in the midst of the game, trying to close the gap between their points and the other team's. I was racing through this volume at lightening speed. Inoue has such a talent of framing the game in exciting ways. There's a great sense of speed to the characters, and the detail on their expressions brings to life what they're feeling without slowing down the pace of the game.

Great stuff. I will continue reading.