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Who am I kidding, there probably won't be any doubles. Based on the manga of the same name, Baby Steps is about Eiichirou Maruo, a note-taking-obsessive honors student that picks up tennis as a means of exercise, but discovers that his knack for note-taking turns him into a sort of tennis savant and quickly becomes a formidable talent. The first season is a fun watch and does a good job presenting the minutia of the game. It also has a non-lovely sports anime romance plot that hasn't been tied off just yet.  Eiichiro Maruo Show's protagonist and tennis savant whose note-taking skills have made him a formidable talent in the prefecture.  Natsu Takasaki The not-lovely, sort-of love interest of Maruo. I say sort of because he doesn't quite know it yet, but he'll get there eventually. She is also a well ranked player hoping to become a pro player one day, and is the one who initially introduces Maruo to Southern Tennis Club, where she practices.  Takuma Egawa The top ranking player in the prefecture, and good friend of Natsu. He is also a member of STC. Though a very good player, he's been in a bit of a slump lately.  Yukichi Fukazawa Another member of STC who quickly becomes friends with Maruo. He mainly exists to tell us about the other players Maruo goes up against. Calls Maruo big bro for some reason.   Miura A coach at STC who has taken Maruo under his wing. The entire first season is up on Crunchyroll, and they've also picked up the second season as well. As a long time tennis player myself, I'll be doing info posts about every episode unless I forget or there's literally nothing worth saying. I've done most of the first season, but I stopped watching before episode 16, so I'll be doing info posts on those as I catch up as well.
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Mar 31, 2015 22:09
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Episode 16 Ei's strategy here is pretty legit. As a short, scrawny, weakling like him, the best way to counter a power-player is to hit the most awkward shots possible. It's really hard to hit a low slice with a lot of power because not only is the ball well below the net, it's also spinning backward which means that, unlike with top spin, the ball won't inherently bounce at an upward angle off the racket. That forces you to have to "pick up" the ball, which is not something that a power player would be comfortable with.  e: For some reason this image is tiny. That volley is no joke. Even if you guess the direction, it's still a hell of a stretch to get it when it's that wide even with explosive movement.  Not really... well, it depends on the player. Araya is characterized as being fiery and impatient, so there's a good chance this strategy will work against him. But if Araya could control his patience and stay focused, he would have no trouble punishing Ei for those lobs. Also, you might tire yourself out with that frantic defense faster than Araya's hard hitting will tire him out.  Seriously, Ei is superhuman if he can keep track of stuff like this while fighting that hard for each point.
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Mar 31, 2015 22:13
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Episode 17 Egawa VS Araya: A 200kph (~120 mph) serve is no joke. That's what most pros average. I think I have a pretty good serve, but I could maybe get that if I threw everything I had into it and didn't worry about aim. On a different note, a lot of the animation in this match is actually really good and feels pretty true to life. I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of those were drawn directly from reference. On yet another note, how old is Maruo again? Either way, going pro as a teenager is really special, and it's also when many of the top players started playing professionally. One of the notable few who didn't is John Isner (USA) who did a full 4 years of college before turning pro.
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Mar 31, 2015 22:42
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I heart Baby Steps. It's kind of the anti-sports-manga in a lot of ways character-wise. It kinda manages to twist or sidestep all the normal character beats. The only real common thing is people being inexplicably excited about high school tennis but that's kind of a given.
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Mar 31, 2015 23:21
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Not much to say about episodes 18, 19, or 20 that the show didn't present in all it's brutal glory. I'm technically a casual player so I've never gone through that level of training before. Watching that kinda makes me want to... but on the other hand I'm a lazy bum and probably couldn't last more than 10 minutes.Yinlock posted:I heart Baby Steps. It's kind of the anti-sports-manga in a lot of ways character-wise. It kinda manages to twist or sidestep all the normal character beats. The only real common thing is people being inexplicably excited about high school tennis but that's kind of a given. Yeah the tournament is definitely a lot more legit than any local tournament I've ever seen. Maybe it's different in japan or in other places, but I've never seen a local tournament where each match gets its own ref.
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Mar 31, 2015 23:43
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 I didn't realize Season 2 was happening. I am so ready for Ultimate Wingman Kageyama - Season 2.
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Apr 1, 2015 00:13
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I was surprised when I saw this coming but I'm almost certain they announced it at the end of the season last year so I guess I'm dumb and don't pay attention. More Haikyu!! this fall too. I have no idea what it is about sports anime but I love them.
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Apr 1, 2015 06:34
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So happy this is back up for another season. As someone who barely played tennis in gym class in high school one or two times the series (show and manga) have been pretty informative, and have raised my interest in the sport a lot. I keep trying to get myself to actually catch some real matches, so hopefully season 2 will reignite that.
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Apr 2, 2015 03:36
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Mo_Steel posted:So happy this is back up for another season. As someone who barely played tennis in gym class in high school one or two times the series (show and manga) have been pretty informative, and have raised my interest in the sport a lot. I keep trying to get myself to actually catch some real matches, so hopefully season 2 will reignite that. There's a lot of new rising stars poppin' up all over the place all of a sudden, so now would be a pretty good time to start watching (things have been pretty stagnant for a few years now). Also, if you happen to be japanese, Nishikori had solidly parked himself in the top 10 since the end of last year (5th as of right now) so japan finally has someone to cheer for. I wouldn't be surprised if he's the most sponsored player on the tour right now with all of the sponsorship deals japanese companies are throwing at him.
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Apr 2, 2015 04:58
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ViggyNash posted:Not much to say about episodes 18, 19, or 20 that the show didn't present in all it's brutal glory. I'm technically a casual player so I've never gone through that level of training before. Watching that kinda makes me want to... but on the other hand I'm a lazy bum and probably couldn't last more than 10 minutes. Is the number grid a real thing, or is it just a metaphorical representation for the viewer to show what he is trying to do?
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Apr 2, 2015 18:15
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LorneReams posted:Is the number grid a real thing, or is it just a metaphorical representation for the viewer to show what he is trying to do? Personally I've never seen a coach do that, but it doesn't seem too far fetched for a small sized grid like the 9-square one. The 100-square grid that Maruo is imagining seems absurd though, cuz that's a lot of time and effort to make. Instead, a coach would basically have you do target practice by trying to hit an object placed at a couple corners or something.
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Apr 2, 2015 22:26
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Maruo VS Nabae (21/22/23) Oh boy. I'm feeling vicariously frustrated for Maruo. Nabae is like an amorphous blob that you're trying to kill with bullets. It doesn't matter what kind of gun you used, it's just gonna absorb it all and spit it back out. The only way to beat that is... well, bigger guns. In Maruo's case, that means playing so drat well that counter-strategy becomes meaningless. That could mean hitting absurdly hard, using absurd amounts of spin, or trying for absurd levels of control to place absurdly high-risk shots. Back when Roger Federer showed up, what made him so unbeatable was that he was able to create impossible openings. It didn't matter how well you played a point against him if he could hit a winner with a casual flick of his wrist. That's basically what Maruo tried to accomplish. But one thing I distinctly noticed is that Maruo was only ever going for the corners. As far as showcasing control that's all well and good, but what he should be aiming for is the doubles line, especially at a point farther in from the base line. That's an even sharper angle and it puts the opponent in an awkward position. ViggyNash fucked around with this message at 04:05 on Apr 3, 2015 |
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Apr 3, 2015 03:58
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Season 2, Episode 1: Yes, this is a real thing:   I really like the op this time around. They definitely put some effort into getting the form for all the players right. Maruo vs Alex So a note about American tennis in general. America's last real heavyweight was Andy Roddick, who was quite big in the early 2000's, especially after Pete Sampras's retirement. Andre Agassi, who ended up being mostly second to Sampras, also kept playing through the first decade, but he never really regained his former glory and retired tearfully at the US Open in 2006. So, it was Roddick who defined the next generation of tennis and, well... it wasn't good. Roddick's entire game revolved around playing faster and harder than anyone on the tour could handle. With his unique serve, he was able to put up several Guinness world records for the world's fastest serve, and was able to reach the #1 position. However, as soon as everyone figured out how to counter his speed and power, he was screwed. It took him years to increase his game's flexibility, but he was never able to make it back to the top. Many of the other American pros had the same problem since their games also revolved around speed and power, and so America had a sort of dark age of tennis while newcomers tried to break away from Roddick's legacy. John Isner, the current top American, is definitely rooted in that style, but he also makes very good use of his fantastic serve to set up easy finishers, not by overpowering the opponent (though he does hit some pretty fast serves) but by hitting them at extremely difficult angles. He's also like 7 feet tall so that helps. Alex's game sort of reflects that. He plays a heavy, aggressive game to keep his opponent off balance until he can go for the winner, but he's also willing to go to the net if given the chance.  Not every ball is manufactured by the same company, obviously, and while there are standard specifications for a tennis ball, there's enough leeway that different balls can feel very different. Things like the weight and the felt can really change how a ball reacts.
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Apr 5, 2015 15:53
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ViggyNash posted:
I think this is a translation thing; usually when I see "heavy" being used in this context, it's in the sense of a powerful shot. Like, it's "heavy" because the opponent hit it so hard, not because the ball is physically heavy. Like a "heavy hit". Cool info regardless, tho. Your posts are awesome and make the show way more enjoyable.
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Apr 5, 2015 17:30
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Hopefully now that the anime is back, the manga translations will start flowing again. Really picked a bad time to stop updating, right in the middle of a long match.
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Apr 5, 2015 18:24
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XboxPants posted:I think this is a translation thing; usually when I see "heavy" being used in this context, it's in the sense of a powerful shot. Like, it's "heavy" because the opponent hit it so hard, not because the ball is physically heavy. Like a "heavy hit". Cool info regardless, tho. Your posts are awesome and make the show way more enjoyable. Maybe, and it fits in with my noting that american tennis was about playing hard and fast. My first thought was that it was a different ball so I stuck with that. Different places would probably have different preferences for the balls they buy or the balls that are available to buy so it makes sense that the tennis academy would have different balls than the ones Maruo is used to in his prefecture.
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Apr 5, 2015 19:40
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The new opening video is very good. Great rhythm in the cutting. The USA setting seems like it'll be interesting, I just hope they don't draw it out too long, I'm not sure how much I like the new characters.
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Apr 5, 2015 19:56
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I like that they kept the same OP song. It is a great fit for the show. It must be a NHK-E thing since Log Horizon did the same. I cannot imagine the America part lasting too long. He is supposed to be there two weeks, while the first season covered two years.
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Apr 5, 2015 20:34
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I liked the first episode. It looked like they got a bigger budget this time. I can't wait to see what ends up happening over the season, and I'm glad to see Natsu trying to help him out from the other side of the world.
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Apr 7, 2015 05:26
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He never wins, yet it never feels discouraging. That's quite a feat for a sports anime.
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Apr 10, 2015 19:01
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S2 Episode 2: "Look at the opponent and the whole court..." This is something that players are told or learn early. The problem is that it's hard. It's the reason why practice tends to be about repeating your strokes ad infinitum, so when it comes to a match you don't have to think to hard about hitting the ball and instead focus on keeping track of the court and your opponent. "What exactly do I do to get my instincts confident again?" Tis a question that all pros face on a regular basis. Each have their ways of dealing with it, or not dealing with it, but Djokovic, the world #1 for the last couple years, deals with it in a way similar to Nabae... but far more extreme. At this year's Australian Open, which was held in January, the finals featured Djokovic and Britain's Andy Murray. In the second set, Murray started to pull ahead early on and had a lot of confidence. But then Djokovic starts displaying signs that there was something wrong with his leg. He all but gave away the next couple games. Then he steals a game from Murray. Then another. And another. My this point, Murray is a mental mess, and even though he was still in the lead at that point, he quickly lost the set. Basically, it was all an act meant to confuse his opponents, but he was willing to give up several games in the process in hopes of the long term victory. For the average person, it's all about the little victories, as Maruo soon discovers.
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Apr 12, 2015 15:28
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Nice episode, they're pacing it well.
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Apr 12, 2015 17:18
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Pretty enjoyable first two episodes, and learning how you can try to overcome being in a rut competitively is a big deal.
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Apr 12, 2015 19:58
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Season 2, Episode 3 There is no such thing as flat spin. That's an oxymoron. The definition of "flat" is hitting a ball in a neutral way such that spin is minimized. I really didn't expect them to make that obvious a mistake, ever. What they meant to say, I think, is that Alex's down-the-center serve has reverse spin, or lefty spin. Aside from that... uh, hiccup, Maruo has some really good strategic planning this episode to counter Alex. Like top tier mind games level planning. If anything is going to become Maruo's real weapon, it'll probably be that level of planning. On the other hand, it seems like Alex sacrificed that first set in favor of drastically changing his play style. That is not an easy thing to do. There are plenty of pros who couldn't change within a match even if they tried because they're so used to their own strategy and style. On the other hand, top tier guys like Djokovic, Federer, and Nadal do it pretty much on the fly whenever they feel like because they're just that good.
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Apr 22, 2015 00:04
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I think he was saying "Flat" was the type of spin (as in no spin). I chalk it up as a translation issue.
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Apr 22, 2015 00:29
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I took 'flat' as the trajectory; not arcing up much. Good episode though.
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Apr 22, 2015 00:37
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LorneReams posted:I think he was saying "Flat" was the type of spin (as in no spin). I chalk it up as a translation issue. Could be. Does anyone know what the kanji says literally, where they translated it to "flat spin"?
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Apr 22, 2015 00:37
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ViggyNash posted:Could be. Does anyone know what the kanji says literally, where they translated it to "flat spin"? It's not kanji. It very literally says "Center - 30% (Flat Spin)" Going over the scans from Volume 10 (which this episode is framed around) doesn't show the phrase "flat spin" anywhere like it's used there either, so it looks like a possible production error. In fact, there's pretty much every variation here of "<Wide/Body/Center> <Slice/Spin>" but the only time "Flat" pops up in the original text is "Wide Flat"
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Apr 22, 2015 01:23
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Emalde posted:It's not kanji. It very literally says "Center - 30% (Flat Spin)" So a production error I guess. But, side note, a slice is just a type of shot that produces a lot of spin so the <slice/spin> part would be redundant.
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Apr 22, 2015 01:48
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Episode 4 was pretty good. Nice payoff, and maybe some foreshadowing.
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Apr 28, 2015 05:17
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Yeah, I really liked this one. I'm glad that they didn't have this trip to Florida overstay its welcome, I'm really looking forward to what is coming next!
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Apr 28, 2015 05:19
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Just watched the new episode on TV. It's a good mix of character interactions and tennis, leading into the next focus for improving Maruo's game in a logical way. As always, looking forward to the next episode and the next time I can play tennis.
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May 3, 2015 10:03
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Yeah, this has become my favorite show at the moment. They are not loving around with the relationship stuff which usually is determintal anywhere else.
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May 4, 2015 14:04
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I gotta get on board this Tennis train. I've read the latest manga chapters, but I didn't read any of the early stuff, so both S1 and S2 should be good times.
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May 4, 2015 22:43
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So I missed the last few episodes due to things happening and being to lazy too make an effort post. But I've got plenty of time now. Maruo vs. Alex Alex gave up on improving his backhand and instead started running around the ball to hit a forehand. That's me just about every time I play because I forget how to hit my backhand every two weeks. Also, inside-out forehands are so freaking satisfying. I don't know why, but I love them. And then Maruo does my next favorite thing: hitting a ball hard and deep, then moving up behind it. And then Maruo figures out something that tends to trap a lot of players: over-thinking your shots can cost you a lot. Hell, I still fall into that pretty much every time I play because I never have the confidence to let go, and I suffer a lot for it. Maruo vs. Takuma Holy poo poo, Takuma's 500 in the world? He might not be going to any grand slams any time soon, but he could probably get himself into an ATP 250 or 500 level tournament, which is still a big deal. As for the actual game, Maruo is totally right about how to improve his serve. I've always had a good serve, but it came and went with my mental and physical state. It wasn't until I managed to ingrain the general motion and rhythm of my serve that it got consistently good. Now, even if I'm in a bad spot mentally or physically, I can still rely on getting in at least a half-decent serve. This also ties into why Coach Aoi stopped the match. I've been there, it sucks. This is more of a side note, but if a ball you hit tips the net and may or may not go over and get you a point, it's pretty bad etiquette to yell out "Go over!" Pros generally give some sort of quick apology to the other player. And when did Kageyama become such a bro? Is Suna somehow affecting shows he's not even in? 
ViggyNash fucked around with this message at 19:19 on May 14, 2015 |
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May 14, 2015 19:17
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Why did the coach stop him? Was it really injury related? Also, thanks for the write-ups. I enjoy them almost as much as the show.
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May 14, 2015 21:40
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LorneReams posted:Why did the coach stop him? Was it really injury related? I thought it was really obvious? He was trying to change his serve and was risking straining his muscles and joints in doing so, a badly pulled muscle can be nearly unusable for weeks afterwards and that would completely gently caress up his training schedule and endanger his chances at the tournament. Even worse he could tear a ligament trying to stretch things too far and that would just kill his chances outright.
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May 14, 2015 21:49
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LorneReams posted:Why did the coach stop him? Was it really injury related? Thanks! AVeryLargeRadish posted:I thought it was really obvious? He was trying to change his serve and was risking straining his muscles and joints in doing so, a badly pulled muscle can be nearly unusable for weeks afterwards and that would completely gently caress up his training schedule and endanger his chances at the tournament. Even worse he could tear a ligament trying to stretch things too far and that would just kill his chances outright. P-much. Technically that goes for any kind of shot that you hit, but it's especially important with serves because it's generally the single most mechanically complicated shot in your repertoire. Like actual mechanical things, the more complicated it gets the more likely it is for a part of it to get hosed up by either pushing it beyond its capacity or just by getting worn down. In order to reduce the chance of that happening, you can either simplify and refine your service motion, or slowly but steadily build up your body so that it can perform the serve consistently without problem. A lot of the injuries that actual pros face are generally due to the nature of their strokes. Strokes that strain a particular joint or muscle will increase the risk of injuring that joint or muscle. Del Potro is one of those guys that came in looking really promising and got some amazing results, but he quickly succumbed to injury because of his super awkward forehand and backhand that put absurd amounts of stress on his arm joints. On the other hand, Federer has pretty much never had an injury because of how smooth and refined his form is. He had some back strain back in 2013 that dropped him out of the top 4 for the first time in... well, forever, and back in '08 he got a mild-ish case of mono that took him out for quite a while, but that's it over his more than decade-long record.
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May 15, 2015 00:34
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Ahh, OK, I thought they might of stopped it because they were afraid he might beat him leading to something like ruining confidence of their pro, who is in a slump.
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May 15, 2015 00:47
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First, a moment of silence for Nishimura. Poor guy. Maruo vs. Miyagawa Ah, so that's your shiny new weapon: hitting ground-strokes out of the air. That's a really high-level shot that a junior player is more likely to miss than make, and yet Miyagawa seems to have built his game around it. Story-wise that feels like a contrived skill to give a character, since it's really unrealistic that someone would be so utterly incompetent at volleying that they have to substitute for ground-strokes. Even at the top-tier, that kind of shot isn't used all that often. Certainly far more often than in lower levels, but generally sparingly. As for the match itself, it seems Maruo's shiny new serve lives up to the hype, and he easily takes the first game. But he soon realizes that just playing the ball deep when he doesn't have the advantage of serving isn't gonna cut it, especially against someone who's specialized in baseline play. Personally, I'd go with doing what Maruo does next: when Miyagawa moves up, hit low balls that bounce short. Or, as Maruo puts it, aim for the feet. Even if you're good at volleys, low balls that bounce very close to you can be very hard to deal with. Most higher level pros will try to convert that low ball into a drop shot since all it requires is a well-aimed block. But you need really good feel for the ball to pull that off. Miyagawa, on the other hand, is gonna have a bad time trying to hit a groundstroke that doesn't give Maruo an advantage. Lastly, a moment of silence to Miyagawa. Poor guy.
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May 24, 2015 19:46
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