the view from the top

"Before my eyes it blocks my path, a tall, tall wall. What sort of scene is on the other side? A scenery that I'll never get to see on my own. But, if I'm not alone, then..."

Let me tell you a thing: I have not read a sports manga I've hated.
There's just something about boys and girls working hard and striving to achieve their dreams together. The excitement of competition, the passion of teamwork, the energy of youth, the joy of victory or the bitterness of defeat, there's something about sports manga that put them together in a golden formula that hasn't let me down yet.
Then again, with the way I've been gushing over Kuroba and Slam Dunk, it should come as no surprise when I say that, yup, I fell in love with yet another high school sports team.

Fuck you Nameless Extra #34

There is nothing I don't love about every single one of these volleyball dorks. I fell in love with the Karasuno team and I fell hard. They've got me sitting up in the middle of night nearly flipping my laptop whenever they do something cool.

TAKE THAT NAMELESS EXTRA #34 

I love the art in this one. It's nice and clean but there's still a great level of detail, especially in the character expressions. It can range from some adorable chibi looks to impressive looks of emotion. And if that wasn't enough to endear me to the characters, every single team shown has unique designs. Even the background events and characters have great detailing. Aside from the characters, the style has a great way of conveying motion and force.
I feel like Haikyuu!! would fall into the middle ground between Kuroba and Slam Dunk. The characters are total cute dorks, like Kuroba. But they generally stick to real volleyball moves and non-kamehameha skills like Slam Dunk. 'Generally' though, as they do have a more mainstream shounen feel, and definite dramatic flair. I gotta say, I have learned a lot more about volleyball though. I've always liked watching volleyball before, but this really gave me a deeper appreciation for the sport.
Thanks to the art and story and setup, I am completely too invested in this one fictional team of volleyball dorks. What else is new?

You have my favourite, my sunshine boy, and the protagonist: Hinata! I just love his absolute sincerity when it comes to everything, especially his love of volleyball. When everyone looks down on him because of his height and he jumps - that's the coolest. I feel like a proud parent (I WOULD ABSOLUTELY HAVE HINATA AS A LITTLE BROTHER) whenever his jump dazzles yet another stranger. Then he's got the kind of communication skills on top of that earnest passion and everyone gets pulled into orbit around him. He's the go-to motivational speaker and it's so great. I just want to see him at the top, surpassing his idol and becoming a legend.

"Whatever it is, he always starts from 'I'll give it a try'"

Then there's my eternal love, the midget senpai of my heart: Nishinoya! He's so cool. He's the coolest. Nishinoya for honorary captain. Nishinoya for president. He's the ultimate libero. When I watched an actual volleyball match, it just made Nishinoya a hundred times more impressive because goddamn those liberos are cool. He has the same straightforward earnestness as Hinata. I really love it whenever the two of them interact because I love them both so much. He really feels like someone who would always have your back, on the court and off.

"With that small body, his presence is amazingly larger-than-life."

My third, fourth and fifth ranks are constantly on the shift depending on which arc I'm reading. For now let's go with Sugawara first. The mother-hen of the flock, no questions about it. He's such a kind-hearted senpai. He really gives it his all for his friends and teammates and himself and that's just so great. The interhigh arc, mostly the Seijou vs Karasuno battle, made me tear up for this precious child.

"Suga, who has always done simulations of his time on the court, is Karasuno's other setter"

Next up is Tsukishima! He's usually uninspired and lackluster and he can actually be pretty mean, but what I live for are the moments when he shines. There's nothing better than seeing him emotional and caught off guard. His deadpan snarks are one thing, but when he genuinely gets into something it makes you happy because you realize he's just a silly boy like the rest of them. He went through some major character development in the Tokyo training camp arc and it got me so pumped for what's to come. 'That moment...will really get you hooked on volleyball'.

"Tsukishima would never do anything uncool...if you compare being good at volleyball to being bad at it, it's obvious which one's cooler!!"

Not least of all, Kageyama! Sorry you're not higher on this list even though you're actually the deuteragonist. But I still really appreciate this boy, which is why he kind of hovers around third with the other two up there. What I love the most is that he seems to be the typical deuteragonist of any shounen show - black hair, cool personality, genius skills, looks down at the protagonist. But right away we see him getting all worked up and flustered. He trips up spectacularly, gets into petty fights with Hinata and does embarrassing things. But because of that, his maturity and growth are even more prominent. And the most important part is seeing how much he loves volleyball, just as much as any of them. He's just a high school boy who's in the process of growing up, but he very genuinely tries. I'd like to see his hard work and passion pay off, I'd like to see him standing along Hinata and his team at the top.

"The main factors contributing to Kageyama-kun's strength and skill are his strong sense of pride, and even surpassing that, his intense desire to advance forward"

After my top five (really with a tie for third place) is Daiichi! The ever reliable captain of this unruly flock of crows. He's got this really authoritative and caring air about him. If anyone can lead Karasuno to that grand stage, it's him. He and Sugawara really hold the team together. Although he's not as flashy as the others or gets as much screentime, he's absolutely indispensable. The cool and awesome papa bird of Karasuno.

Narrowly coming in after the captain is Yamaguchi! Man there are no words to say how proud I am of this boy. He's always trailing after Tsukishima, and as the only first-year who's not a starter, he's always in the shadows. Even when he gets to be in the spotlight, he has yet to succeed or look cool or be awesome. Anyone else would've just given up. But not Yamaguchi, no he's cooler than that! He doesn't have to look cool to be cool and that's why I'm so proud of him. Never giving up, always working hard to stand next to his teammates, getting up after every single fall - I can't wait for the day when you shine.

Another precious boy hidden by the shadows of the bench, Ennoshita! I think the team will be in good hands after the third years graduate. His character arc in the Wakunan vs Karasuno battle was of course his defining moment, but even before that there was the Golden Week training camp arc. When he and the other second years told Hinata and Kageyama about how they quit once, I had a new appreciation for him. He lost his way because he was weak, but he came back because he had strength. Most of all, he sat properly and told his kouhais without looking away. Yup, the team will be okay in the future too.

I almost feel bad for putting him this low, but here's Asahi! He seems like the type to be worried about rankings and stuff. Honestly, he's just a giant teddy bear. And it's certainly a testament to how much he grows on you when I feel bad about being harsh on him but...here's where he loses to Ennoshita. He didn't come back on his own strength. But that's okay too, being supported by the strength of his teammates. On the court, he pays them back in full and then some. 'Ace' seems to be a position that stands out, but Asahi embodies the feeling of 'teamwork' more than anyone.

It's not you Tanaka, it's me. I'm not a big fan of super hot-blooded types. He's not as cool as Nishinoya and not as cute as Hinata. Naturally, he has his moments but in the end it's just my personal preferences (and possibly a lack of a character arc). He's not as steady as the captain, and in a pinch, it's the ace who steps up, not him. Still, he's part of the team spirit. Whenever the other kids get down, he really does his best to raise the energy.

Mix all of these awesome cuties together, add in emotional bonding and level ups in badass and you have me sold. The friendships and relationship dynamics for everyone is so adorable and lovely to see. You have the obvious duos of course, but everyone gets along so well it's great. (Like how Hinata's the baby chick of the crow family, despite being the oldest of the first years).
Plus, you have rival teams from other schools with fabulous characters too. They're the kind of rivals who would hang out on the weekends and do BBQs together and I love that a lot. I think my favourite arc would be the Tokyo Training Camp Arc, when you have three awesome teams interacting with each other and character development abounds and everyone's going through this kickass training montage. Best of all the worlds~

Training camps, new moves, growing up, tournaments - sports manga really capture the spirit of youth and Haikyuu!! is no different. Come and see these baby chicks take to the skies, come see them spread their wings and fly.