Makoto 'Smile' Tsukimoto and his friend Yutaka 'Peco' Hoshino have been playing table tennis together since they were kids, but as they enter high school, they find that the game, and how they see it, has changed. Peco, brimming with confidence and energy, wants to be the best in the world, but the reserved Smile has little fighting spirit and doesn't want to sacrifice others' happiness just to win, despite his innate talent. As the two grow, and experience the ups and downs of the sport – and life – they try to figure out exactly who they really are and what drives them to play.
Cast: Koki Uchiyama, Fukujuro Katayama, Yousei Bun
Season 1
11 episodes
1. The Wind Makes It Too Hard to HearTwo old friends go to spy on a new table tennis champ at a rival high school, but meanwhile their own team is falling apart.TV-14CC23minApr 11, 2014
2. Smile Is a RobotCoach Koizumi has started working Smile hard, and he definitely doesn't appreciate the extra attention.TV-14CC23minApr 18, 2014
3. Staking Your Life on Table Tennis Is RevoltingAll the teams gather at the prefectural qualifiers, and China gets to play Smile at last.TV-14CC23minApr 25, 2014
4. The Only Way to Be Sure You Won't Lose Is to Not FightPeco learns a hard lesson from someone he never took seriously enough, and then we finally see how Dragon earned his name.TV-14CC23minMay 2, 2014
5. Where Did I Go Wrong?Dragon's obsession with Smile prompts Akuma to do something rash.TV-14CC23minMay 9, 2014
6. You Love This Sport More Than Anyone!!Five athletes have five very different Christmas Eves, and Peco gets a wake-up call.TV-14CC23minMay 16, 2014
7. Yes, My CoachPlayers, coaches, captains, and their families.TV-14CC23minMay 23, 2014
8. The Hero AppearsSmile, Peco, Dragon, and China begin another prefectural qualifier. Will the results be different this year?TV-14CC23minMay 30, 2014
9. Gonna Cry a BitIn the third round, Dragon has an unexpected visitor, Sanada questions himself, and Peco scares lots of people in lots of ways.TV-14CC23minJun 6, 2014
10. I Thought You Were the Hero!!Peco and Dragon tackle the question of whether only birds can fly.TV-14CC23minJun 13, 2014
11. Blood Tastes Like IronThe final match is on.TV-14CC23minJun 20, 2014
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Makoto 'Smile' Tsukimoto and his friend Yutaka 'Peco' Hoshino have been playing table tennis together since they were kids, but as they enter high school, they find that the game, and how they see it, has changed. Peco, brimming with confidence and energy, wants to be the best in the world, but the reserved Smile has little fighting spirit and doesn't want to sacrifice others' happiness just to win, despite his innate talent. As the two grow, and experience the ups and downs of the sport – and life – they try to figure out exactly who they really are and what drives them to play.
Creators and cast
- Created by
- Yohei Shintaku, Yuka Okayasu, Koji Yamamoto, Masuo Ueda
