Baby Steps (ベイãƒ"ーステップ, BeibÄ« Suteppu) is a Japanese manga series by Hikaru Katsuki. It has been serialized in Kodansha's Weekly ShÅnen Magazine since October 2007. The story is centered on EiichirÅ Maruo, a first year honor student who one day decides that he is lacking exercise. He then joins the Southern Tennis Club (STC) where he begins his tennis journey. An anime television series adaptation of the series began airing in Japan in April 2014 with a second season scheduled to air in April 2015. It also won the 38th Kodansha Manga Award in the Best ShÅnen Manga category.
Story
EiichirÅ Maruo, a first year honor student, one day decides he is unhappy with the way things are and lacks exercise. He finds a flier for the Tennis Club and decides to check it out. He is instantly captivated by it. With no prior experience and poor physical conditioning, he embarks on a tennis journey using his smarts, dedication and work ethic. He uses his inherent studious nature to develop an extremely strategic approach to tennis, taking notes on the habits and tendencies of his opponents thus allowing him to predict their shots before they make them.
Characters
Southern Tennis Club
- EiichirÅ Maruo (丸尾 æ „ä¸€éƒŽ, Maruo EiichirÅ)
- Voiced by: Taishi Murata
- EiichirÅ Maruo, also called Ei-chan (エーã¡ã‚ƒã‚") by his friends is the main protagonist of the manga, Baby Steps. He later becomes a member of Southern Tennis Club, STC on his mother's suggestion to fulfill his lack of exercise. His aim is to become a professional tennis player.
- Natsu Takasaki (鷹崎 奈津, Takasaki Natsu)
- Voiced by: Minako Kotobuki
- Natsu Takasaki, also known as Natchan, is the main female protagonist. She is a member of Southern Tennis Club, and studies in the same year and high school as Maruo. She is aiming to become a professional player. Natsu is the exact opposite of Maruo tennis-wise.
- Takuma Egawa (æ±Ÿå· é€ž, Egawa Takuma)
- Voiced by: Daisuke Namikawa
- Maruo's first real rival, his aim is to be a professional. He seemed to have a crush on Natsu but that ended when she was getting very close to Maruo.
- Yukichi Fukazawa (深沢 è«å‰, Fukazawa Yukichi)
- Voiced by: Hiro Shimono
- YÅ«ki Tajima (ç"°å³¶ 勇樹, Tajima YÅ«ki)
- Voiced by: YÅ«ki
ÅŒsugi High School
- KojirÅ Kageyama (影山 å°æ¬¡éƒŽ, Kageyama KojirÅ)
- Voiced by: Takuma Terashima
National tennis players
- Takuya Miyagawa (å®®å· å"也, Miyagawa Takuya)
- Voiced by: Tetsuya Kakihara
Media
Manga
Volume list
As of November 17, 2014, 33 volumes have been released.
Anime
An anime television series adaptation began airing on April 6, 2014. It is being simulcast with English, Spanish, and Portuguese subtitles by Crunchyroll through NHK Enterprise. The series lasted a total of 25 episodes from April 6, 2014, to September 21, 2014. A second season has also been announced for Spring 2015.
Opening themes
- "Believe in Yourself" by Mao Abe (eps. 1â€"present)
Ending themes
- "Baby Steps" by Baby Raids (eps. 1â€"present)
Episode list
Reception
In 2014, Baby Steps won the 38th Kodansha Manga Award in the Best ShÅnen Manga category.
References
External links
- Official anime website (Japanese)
- Baby Steps (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
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