History Manga / SlamDunk

[[caption-width-right:350: Team Shohoku; resemblance to the Chicago Bulls probably not accidental]]

On January 7, 2021, Takehiko Inoue announced on his Twitter account that the series would have a new movie, titled ''The First Slam Dunk'', to be produced by Creator/ToeiAnimation. It was released in and out of Japan on December 3rd, 2022.

* RatedMForManly: This is especially true during the beatdown between the basketball team and Mitsui's gang. Sakuragi and his gang gets to turn the sports manga into a delinquent fighting manga for several chapters.

On January 7, 2021, Takehiko Inoue announced on his Twitter account that the series will have a new movie, titled ''The First Slam Dunk'', to be produced by Creator/ToeiAnimation. It was released in and out of Japan on December 3rd, 2022.

On January 7, 2021, Takehiko Inoue announced on his Twitter account that the series will have a new movie, titled ''The First Slam Dunk'', to be produced by Creator/ToeiAnimation, with the release date of December 3rd, 2022.

On January 7, 2021, Takehiko Inoue announced on his Twitter account that the series will have a new movie, titled ''The First Slam Dunk'', to be produced by Creator/ToeiAnimation.

On January 7, 2021, Takehiko Inoue announced on his Twitter account that the series will have a new movie to be produced by Creator/ToeiAnimation.

* DarkSkinnedBlond: Maki has lighter hair than the average and a much darker skin as well.

->''"I'm a genius player!"''

->''"The left hand is for support only..."''

->''"I love it. And this time, it's for real."''

* LoudLastName: This happens a lot especially during basketball matches.

%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.

* PantyShot: Haruko in the very first episode. In a blink-and-you-may-miss-it-moment, there's a shot of her white undies from behind as she runs and attempts to make a basketball shot, but she trips on the court and falls with her rear in the air, and exposed briefly.

* {{Meganekko}}: Kogure is a male example.

%% * YouGottaHaveBlueHair: Or better said, ''blue eyes''. Lots of people with brown eyes in the manga have them blue in the anime.

->''"[[CharacterDevelopment I love it. And this time, it's for real.]]"''

Created by Creator/TakehikoInoue and first published from 1990 to 1996 in Shueisha's ''Magazine/ShonenJump'', ''Slam Dunk'' became an instant phenomenon throughout Japanese culture and set many standards in sports manga; becoming one of ''[[Magazine/ShonenJump JUMP]]'''s pillars alongside ''Manga/DragonBall'' and ''Manga/YuYuHakusho'', bringing sales up to their record all-time high of over six million copies nationwide. It subverted the then-usual trope of [[InstantExpert instant sport genius]] with a main character who, while having a lot of potential, is a real newbie and is treated as one even when he makes astounding progress. It was also written under the real supposition that very few people would know the sport, using the protagonist road to learn a new sport as a way to explain the rules and tactics, and even adding extra blurbs for good measure.

* RomanticTwoGirlFriendship: Haruko and Ayako have some traces of this at the beginning.

* ElevatorSchool: Kainan is an escalator school, as it's always introduced as Kainan University Affiliated High School.
* EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys: No actual monkeys in the show, but Sakuragi is described as a "redheaded monkey" and Akagi's nickname is literally "Gori" (short for Gorilla). In fact, any excessively big and manly guy is referred to as a gorilla. Whenever Shohoku is chibified, they're usually portrayed as monkeys being led by a gorilla (except Rukawa whose a fox). From different teams we have Kiyota, an equally HotBlooded rival, that is called "Wild Monkey" while Akagi's rival, Uozumi (who also has big stature), is nicknamed "Boss Monkey". Later in the match against Sannoh, Sakuragi calls opposing center Masashi Kawata "Gori-ball" because of his round head in addition to his build.
** As the manga progresses, even the author runs with it by making Akagi grunt "uho!" (the sound gorillas make in Japanese) when he pulls off his dunks.

Created by Creator/TakehikoInoue and first published from 1990 to 1996 in Shueisha's ''Magazine/ShonenJump'', ''Slam Dunk'' became an instant phenomenon throughout Japanese culture and set many standards in sports manga; becoming one of ''[[Magazine/ShonenJump JUMP]]'''s pillars alongside ''Manga/DragonBall'', bringing sales up to their record all-time high of over six million copies nationwide. It subverted the then-usual trope of [[InstantExpert instant sport genius]] with a main character who, while having a lot of potential, is a real newbie and is treated as one even when he makes astounding progress. It was also written under the real supposition that very few people would know the sport, using the protagonist road to learn a new sport as a way to explain the rules and tactics, and even adding extra blurbs for good measure.

* RealityEnsues: The series uses this trope a lot, making its events very grounded overall.
** Despite his potential and confidence, Sakuragi's lack of experience manifests itself often during games. A notable example is when he attempts to display his shooting ability during the Toyotama game after a week of hard practice, only for the ball to go over the entire backboard and land in the stands. He later attempts it again, ignoring that the Toyotama players are surrounding him and are in easy position to block it.
*** During the Shoyo game, he performs a massive dunk that invigorates the crowd, but still incurs a foul (his fifth, which causes him to foul out) since he had knocked down a Shoyo player in the process.
*** He challenges Rukawa to a one-on-one during a practice for nationals, and it's clear that he gets decisively beaten by the much more experienced freshman even though it was offscreen. However, Rukawa alleviates this slightly by stating that Sakuragi made him go all out.
** The end of the manga is essentially this, as [[spoiler:even though Shohoku took down the reigning champs, the amount of effort they expended to do so and the loss of Sakuragi causes them to be beaten badly in the next round.]]
*** No one is more affected by this than [[spoiler:Akagi, who loses his offer to play for Japan's top college team. However, he does have the book smarts to transition into college normally.]]
** Much like in real life, while athletes can and do persevere through injuries and exhaustion while playing, the injuries do take noticeable tolls.
*** When Rukawa receives a swollen left eye in the Toyotama game, his lack of sight in that eye limits his depth perception and makes it difficult to catch passes and shoot. Alleviated somewhat due to having advanced muscle memory when it comes to shooting (as he had taken millions of shots in the past), but it doesn't always work.
*** While Sakuragi plays in the remainder of the Sannoh game despite receiving a crippling back injury late into it, [[spoiler:he's no longer able to play in future games during the tournament, and has to go through months of rehabilitation before he can get back on the court.]]
*** Mitsui's lack of stamina due to not playing for two years almost always becomes a factor in Shohoku's close games.
*** Rukawa's scoring tear in the final minutes of the first half in the Kainan game allows Shohoku to catch back up to Kainan, but also leaves him too exhausted to finish the game in the second half, causing him to blame himself for Kainan winning the game.
** Size doesn't always matter on the court, but often ultimately does when push comes to shove. Although Miyagi's lack of size gives him certain advantages, he usually has a difficult time when matched up against much taller point guards.
** This happened to Anzai's former protege Yazawa when he went to America. He found himself not only struggling in basketball, but struggling with his life overall because of his lack of English skills. Sawakita must now grapple with learning English as well.

* IdiotHero: Sakuragi and Kiyota. Rukawa [[NotSoDifferent also has some traits]], he just hides them better.

* CuteSportsClubManager: Ayako. But she's of the {{Tomboy}} and assertive variety.

* {{Determinator}} : Lots of players are SO determined to win against all costs that they endure injuries, extreme fatigue and practically Every Single Crap thrown at them because of their sheer willpower. Special mention goes to Sakuragi in the manga, [[spoiler: playing whole-heartily in the semifinals despite having a ''crippling injury'']], Akagi [[spoiler: playing against Kainan with a ''seriously'' sprained ankle]] and Rukawa [[spoiler: playing ''half blind'' against Toyotama (he still had one functioning eye, but still)]].

* EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys: No actual monkeys in the show, but Sakuragi is described as a "redheaded monkey" and Akagi's nickname is literally "Gori" (short for Gorilla). In fact, any excessively big and manly guy is referred to as a gorilla. Whenever Shohoku is chibified, they're usually portrayed as monkeys being led by a gorilla (except Rukawa whose a fox). From different teams we have Kiyota, an equally HotBlooded rival, that is called "Wild Monkey" while Akagi's rival, Uozumi (who also has big stature), is nicknamed "Boss Monkey".

* EyeCatch: Several of them, usually featuring Sakuragi, Rukawa and Haruko, or Sakuragi being disciplined by Akagi.

* HateAtFirstSight: Sakuragi and Rukawa. Sakuragi initially hates him because Haruko has had a crush on him for quite a while and he takes Rukawa's indifference as him leading her on (his first reaction to him is an [[UseYourHead headbutt]]), but mostly because he can't accept that Rukawa is, definitely, the star of the team (with his amazing skills). Rukawa, instead, regards Sakuragi as an idiot with zero experience (despite the fact that he seems to realize that Sakuragi has some hidden talents).

* HeroAntagonist: Worth noting since unlike some other sports-themed stories the opponents are not the least bit {{Jerkass}}es. And some of them are better sports than the hotheaded delinquents that consist most of the main cast. (And yet you can't help but love and root for Sakuragi and the rest for it.) Of particular note is Sendoh, with his easygoing and inspiring attitude; he may be the closest thing to the ideal sportsman in the series, and ALSO brings up the biggest OhCrap moments every time he gets to hold the ball!

* LookingForLoveInAllTheWrongPlaces: Basically, the life story of Hanamichi Sakuragi and Ryota Miyagi. [[spoiler:The descent on criminality of Mitsui and his posterior come back can be see as a [[DesperatelyLookingForAPurposeInLife non-romantic version]] of the trope]]

* RageQuit: [[spoiler: Sakuragi quits the team in the earlier chapters/episodes because he is only being given basic training]]

** The end of the manga is essentially this, as [[spoiler:Even though Shohoku took down the reigning champs, the amount of effort they expended to do so and the loss of Sakuragi causes them to be beaten badly in the next round.]]

* ShesAllGrownUp: One possible explanation for Miyagi's deep infatuation with Ayako. It's revealed in the prequel he first met her when he was 11, but at the time thought she was weird. Yet when he meets her again in high school, he's head over heels.

* EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys: No actual monkeys in the show, but Sakuragi is described as a "redheaded monkey" and Akagi's nickname is literally "Gori" (short for Gorilla). In fact, any excessively big and manly guy is referred to as a gorilla. Whenever Shohoku is chibified, they're usually portrayed as monkeys being led by a gorilla (except Rukawa whose a fox). From different teams we have Kiyota, an equally HotBlooded rival, that is called "Wild Monkey" while Akagi's rival, Uozomi (who also has big stature), is nicknamed "Boss Monkey".

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:Shohoku spent everything they got to win against Sannoh that they eventually lose their chance to the overall championship. However, the match finally made the whole Basketball community to realize that Shohoku has evolved from a 'loser team' into a 'very tough team'. Afterwards, everyone still have a good future ahead of them: Akagi and Kogure graduated, Mitsui did as well (but he still hung around to the school before he can get to the university he wanted), Miyagi succeeded Akagi as the Captain, Haruko became Ayako's co-manager, Rukawa is scouted by the international Japanese Basketball team, while Sakuragi willingly underwent his rehabilitation and it'll be just a matter of time until he can return to the sport he's grown to like for real.]]