by Victoria Potenza, Staff Writer

So, I know about 90% of the content I write is horror related. Which makes sense, horror is my bread and butter. However, this summer, thanks to my sister, my love of anime was reawaken after years of not watching anything. I am a part of the Toonami generation, and those few hours of Japanese imported animated television is a favorite childhood memory of mine. I have consumed a lot of more recent anime shows like Attack on Titan, Jujutsu Kaisen, and Demon Slayer. I then got into the territory of dark humor anime (ex. Life Lessons with Uramichi Oniisan), Boy Love anime (ex. Yuri!!! on Ice), and finally shows like Skate the Infinity made me realize I might enjoy dipping my toes into the world of sports anime.

While I have no interest in real life sports I did find a love and passion for volleyball thanks to my friends who recommended I watch the incredible show Haiykuu!!. So, while this might seem like a slightly different feature for me to pour my heart and soul into, I am very passionate about my adorable volleyboys. This is one of the purest serotonin boosts that manages to awaken my cold dead heart and make me wish I was as passionate about anything as these high schoolers are about playing volleyball with their teammates.

Haiykuu!! is an anime show based on the popular manga series of the same title. You are introduced to Shoyo Hinata who, despite his limited height, longs to be a wing spiker for a volleyball team, following in the footsteps of his idol “the small giant.” While competing in a middle school volleyball game he plays against Tobio Kageyama, “the king of the court,” a brilliant setter whose inability to be a team player isolates him from those he plays with. Kageyama crushes Hinata, and Hinata vows that he will play against him when he gets to high school.

A year later, both of the boys end up at Karasuno High School, once a powerhouse volleyball team that has not been able to rise above mediocrity for some years. The team is now nicknamed “the flightless crows.” However, the arrival of Kageyama and Hinata makes for an unlikely pair who blows their teammates away with their supernatural ability to play together. As the team begins to piece together their ragtag group of players they realize that Karasuno might finally be able to become an unstoppable force.

Now, anything I know about volleyball has come specifically from this show, but I am stunned by the amount of volleyball lingo and information I have picked up from watching it. As someone who has truly never cared about a sport in my life, I think I finally understand the thrills people get from watching the game. I have laughed and cheered alone in my living room watching Karasuno win, and cried when they lost. The show does such a phenomenal job hooking you in with great characters that you want to watch develop and give it their all that it is hard not to become completely invested in their journey. And one of my favorite things about the show is that you even care about the plight of the teams Karasuno plays against. Even their biggest team rivals end up having some of your favorite characters on them.

There are truly so many characters to love, whenever I find someone else that watches the show I need to know who their favorites are. I have two main favorites. One is Koshi Sugawara, the third year alternate setter for Karusano, who is an incredibly sweet mentor, and somehow also a chaotic wild card. The other is Yu Nishinoya, the second year librero for Karusano, who is actually one of the most chaotic forces on the team, but also lacks any major ego even though he is one of the most talented players in high school volleyball. But at the end of the day it is almost impossible not to love every one of the passionate weirdos you watch whether they are on Karasuno or not, and that is something I truly adore about this show.

There are a couple great dramatic hooks for the show that really work as the teams practice and prepare for tournaments. One is that if they lose one game their team is done. They can no longer compete. The other big emotional hook of the show is the plight of the third year students, it is the last year they are able to play before going on to college. So, if they lose just one game, their high school volleyball days are over and they have to leave their team behind. Even though you want Karasuno to win it all, you know the other teams need to lose and they are usually just as talented, and have worked just as hard so every victory feels bitter sweet. There are also several players who are part of the team, but who are not regulars on the court. However, the show gives everyone their time to shine and goes out of its way to show how even those who are not on the court are an essential part to the team dynamic and culture.

Yes, this is just a show about boys volleyball, but there are so many good themes that really hit home. The way that Hinata and Kageyama play together, even though they hate each other at the beginning, requires them to have total faith and trust in each other. So, even if their relationship is contentious, they always try to trust in each other and their team. Even when someone’s faith waivers or they feel like they are unable to keep up, everyone else on their team has their back and is there to give them the validation and support they need. The boys go out of their way to improve themselves so that they can be the best they can be with their teammates. Sometimes this means they get worse before they get better, but those themes of metamorphosis and evolution are essential for both individual and team growth. They learn from each other and they also learn from other teams. Even though they want to beat the team in front of them, they still have a lot of respect and admiration for how good their enemies are.

Above all, there is the passion that these characters have. As an embittered 31 year old woman it is hard to have that fire and passion about something, and seeing it in these characters is an endearing reminder about how essential that youthful fire is. They see challenges as excitement, they take losses as a chance to improve themselves, and they are not afraid to show their emotions. Yes, teenage boys should cry more often! And maybe that is really what this is all about. These characters feel uninhibited when it comes to expressing the range of emotions they feel on, and off, the court. I think we could all use more things that are cute and that shake us out of our ruts and Haiykuu!! is a great way to do it. So, if you want to feel something, watch these adorable boys play volleyball with their friends and get out of your head for a bit.

There are currently four seasons of the show and fingers crossed for a season five coming soon - it is a perfect binge worthy show.