Baby Steps (manga)

Baby Steps (ベイビーステップ) is a Japanese manga series by Hikaru Katsuki. It was serialized in Kodansha's manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Magazine from October 2007 to November 2017, with its chapters collected in 47 volumes. The story is centered on Eiichirō 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.

The manga was adapted into a 25-episode anime television series by studio Pierrot, which was broadcast on NHK-E from April to September 2014. A 25-episode second season was broadcast from April to September 2015.

In 2014, Baby Steps won the 38th Kodansha Manga Award in the category.

Story

Eiichirō Maruo, a first year honor student, one day decides he is unhappy with the way things are and lacks exercise. He finds a flyer 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 strong 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

Eiichirō Maruo (丸尾栄一郎)

Eiichirō Maruo, also called Ei-chan (エーちゃん) by his friends, is an honor student who quickly became famous for his meticulous note-taking in class. During his first year of high school, however, he got into a rut studying all of the time and wanted to find a way to exercise. When he meets Natsu, a girl in the same year as him, her passion for tennis convinces him to try playing it. Like Natsu and their senpai Takuma, Ei-chan becomes a member of a prominent youth tennis program at Southern Tennis Club (STC). His years of experience in studying and taking notes help him in his path to become a tennis player. His aim is to become a professional tennis player. Ei-chan and Natsu's growing relationship is also a major part of the series.

Natsu Takasaki (鷹崎奈津)

Natsu Takasaki, also known as Nat-chan (なっちゃん), is a member of Southern Tennis Club and has played tennis since she was very young. She studies at the same high school and in the same year as Maruo. She is aiming to become a professional player. Natsu is the exact opposite of Maruo tennis-wise. She is always very optimistic and encouraging toward Maruo, and the two become very close as the series progresses.

Takuma Egawa (江川逞)

Takuma is one year older than Ei-chan and Nat-chan and attends the same high school, where he is known as a delinquent. He and Natsu have known each other for a long time through tennis practice at STC. He showed a talent for tennis at a young age. He is one of the best junior players in Japan, and he aims to go pro. He is often antagonistic toward others, but he is also protective of Natsu.

Yukichi Fukazawa (深沢諭吉)

Another high school player who practices at STC. Ei-chan impresses him so much after a certain event that he calls Ei-chan "aniki" ("big bro"). He often offers scouting info on other players to Ei-chan and supports him during his matches.

Yūsaku Miura (三浦優作)

One of the boys' coaches at STC. He becomes very interested in helping Maruo after seeing his work ethic and how quickly he is able to improve.

Yūki Tajima (田島勇樹)

An elementary school student who practices at STC. He teases Maruo a lot at first (despite Maruo being eight years older than him), but gradually becomes a friend.

type	tv series
director	Masahiko Murata
producer	Kenji Saito
writer	Katsuhiko Chiba
music	Yoichiro Yoshikawa Kōhei Yamada (S2)
studio	Pierrot
network	NHK-E
first	April 6, 2014
last	September 20, 2015
episodes	50
episode list	List of Baby Steps episodes

Story

Characters

Southern Tennis Club

Ōsugi High School

Kanagawa Prefecture Junior Players

Kanto Regional Junior Players

All-Japan National Junior Players

Florida Tennis Academy

Media

Manga

Volumes

Volumes

Anime

Reception

External links

References