As a fan since the 90's i knew from the start i was gonna watch it no matter what and since it took almost a year to arrive to my country and the internet isn't subtle i already knew of all the changes before watching so i knew i was gonna be half disappointed but still happy just to see in motion what i waited for 20+ years to see and i was, i even cried when they walked into the court lol.
Now taking the mega fan glasses off there's so much to critique narratively, i don't oppose the idea of making a backstory for other characters but the sannoh game was not the place to tell ryota's. He's a second year student and a canonically amazing player, to him this was an important game yes but was not on the level of importance it held for either hanamichi, who finally for the first time in his life finds a purpose, something so transcendental that he was willing to risk his whole future and even his life, or takenori who had this dream for his whole life and this is his absolute last chance to achieve it, not to mention his scholarship depended on this and he ultimately lost it.
We're not told how during this game the 5 shohoku starters gave up on their selfish idea of going one on one to prove they're the best in the country in their respective positions but end up accepting that as a team they are amazing and they can make it if they work together, we're not even told why is such a big deal that kaede passed the ball to hanamichi and while fans know non fans see it as something irrelevant, heck non fans wouldn't even know why is that random redhead breaking his spine just for a random highschool game.
We're not even told who this opponent is and why this game is such a huge deal, we don't see how afraid our protagonists were and how coach anzai dealed with their fear, we don get to know these sannoh players who are very dear to fans because unlike the previous rivals they're really nice kids and have amazing sportsmanship. Even though ryota's family drama is fine as a stand alone piece, to him this is just another game so why use a moment that the fans dreamed of for decades and make it look like just another game?
I know inoue wanted to present his story to a new audience but at several points of the game i found myself having to explain strangers around me what was going on so was being a manga reader really not a requirement? Would've mattered to non manga reader audiences if ryota's backstory took place at the sannoh game or the toyotama game like it mattered to big fans?
I enjoyed the story and enjoyed the CGI animation but i can't help but feel that the most important arc of the manga was wasted on this.
Now taking the mega fan glasses off there's so much to critique narratively, i don't oppose the idea of making a backstory for other characters but the sannoh game was not the place to tell ryota's. He's a second year student and a canonically amazing player, to him this was an important game yes but was not on the level of importance it held for either hanamichi, who finally for the first time in his life finds a purpose, something so transcendental that he was willing to risk his whole future and even his life, or takenori who had this dream for his whole life and this is his absolute last chance to achieve it, not to mention his scholarship depended on this and he ultimately lost it.
We're not told how during this game the 5 shohoku starters gave up on their selfish idea of going one on one to prove they're the best in the country in their respective positions but end up accepting that as a team they are amazing and they can make it if they work together, we're not even told why is such a big deal that kaede passed the ball to hanamichi and while fans know non fans see it as something irrelevant, heck non fans wouldn't even know why is that random redhead breaking his spine just for a random highschool game.
We're not even told who this opponent is and why this game is such a huge deal, we don't see how afraid our protagonists were and how coach anzai dealed with their fear, we don get to know these sannoh players who are very dear to fans because unlike the previous rivals they're really nice kids and have amazing sportsmanship. Even though ryota's family drama is fine as a stand alone piece, to him this is just another game so why use a moment that the fans dreamed of for decades and make it look like just another game?
I know inoue wanted to present his story to a new audience but at several points of the game i found myself having to explain strangers around me what was going on so was being a manga reader really not a requirement? Would've mattered to non manga reader audiences if ryota's backstory took place at the sannoh game or the toyotama game like it mattered to big fans?
I enjoyed the story and enjoyed the CGI animation but i can't help but feel that the most important arc of the manga was wasted on this.