Even the German judge would give the premiere episode of Bakuten!! a 10 out of 10!
In the first episode, we meet a young man who is about to graduate from junior high after spending three years with the baseball team warming the bench. Before that he tried soccer and before that he tried swimming. He's definitely an athlete, he just hasn't found a place where he belongs yet.
One day after his final baseball tournament, he stumbles across a men's rhythmic gymnastics event and is absolutely blown away by what he sees. So much so that he decides to join the high school that features the team that impressed him the most and joins their ranks.
Featuring an original anime story animated by studio Zexcs, Toshimasa Kuroyanagi directed the series working off scripts written by Toshizo Nemoto. Airing in the noitaminA block of Japanese programming, the first episode aired on April 9th.
Bakuten!! Episode 2 Release Date for Backflip!!
The second episode of Bakuten!! will air in Japan on Friday, April 16th, which means it will stream outside of Japan on Thursday, April 15th.
Bakuten!! Episode 2 Release Time for Backflip!!
The series airs in Japan at 12:55 am Japan Standard Time and then is delayed a bit further by Crunchyroll, who streams the series on Thursdays at the following times around the world:
Pacific Time: 11:15 am
Central Time: 1:15 pm
Eastern Time: 2:15 pm
British Time: 7:15 pm
Bakuten!! Episode 2 Where to Watch English Subs for Backflip!!
As of April 13th, 2021, the only place to legally watch this series is Crunchyroll. No other streaming services have announced plans to simulcast this series.
I loved this first episode. I loved that the staff took the time to choreograph and animate a full routine in the first half before the opening animation even played, and I loved meeting the characters who performed that routine in the second half. This was a very good premiere episode.
There were lots of little moments sprinkled throughout the episode that made me smile. The floor routine is first, naturally, but just meeting these extroverted characters made me chuckle. There's even one moment when the main character Shotaro is caught peeking in at the team and when they come out to investigate, one of the team members does a full forward roll when exiting the room instead of just walking. It was little things like that that make this series an early pick to be a solid gem.
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