

Despite being polar opposites, Makoto "Smile" Tsukimoto and Yutaka "Peco" Hoshino have been best friends since childhood. Although the overly confident Peco strives to be the best ping-pong player in the world, he often skips practice, earning the ire of his fellow teammates on the Katase High School ping-pong team. Meanwhile, Smile—in spite of his innate talent for the sport—cannot help but hold back his full strength when playing against others. Through their mutual love for ping-pong, the two have developed a bond that is seemingly unbreakable. When Peco hears that an ex-national team player from China is coming to Japan, he drags Smile over to rival Tsujido High School to observe them. The subsequent trip leads to a clash between Peco and Kong Wenge, who overwhelmingly defeats the former in one game. Stunned by such a comprehensive loss, Peco finds himself questioning why he plays to begin with. Seeing his potential as a player, Katase's coach begins to train Smile to overcome his hesitation, but he is reluctant to play if it is not for enjoyment. As the two struggle to find meaning in the sport, a plethora of stronger players—each with their own internal strifes—await them at the inter-high tournament, where only the very best can persevere. But when these young athletes let their unbridled ambition go unchecked, the hardships they face paint a somber reality as they pursue glory. ...
⭐8.63
🏆93
Genre : Award Winning, Drama, Sports
Seasons : spring
Type : TV
Eposide : 11
Status : Finished Airing
Studio : Tatsunoko Production
duration : 23 min per ep
Rating : PG-13 - Teens 13 or older
Popularity : 603
Member : 431108

Cook, Justin
Producer

Fujio, Tsutomu
Producer

Shintaku, Youhei
Producer

Yuasa, Masaaki
Director

Kimura, Eriko
Sound Director

Choi, Eun-Young
Episode Director

Heo, Pyeonggang
Episode Director

Itou, Ryouta
Episode Director

Itou, Hideki
Episode Director

Kubota, Takehiro
Episode Director

Ohira, Shinya
Episode Director

Ueno, Fumihiro
Episode Director

Utsunomiya, Masaki
Episode Director

Bakudan Johnny
Theme Song Performance

Merengue
Theme Song Performance

Anzai, Toshiyuki
Key Animation

Aoyagi, Shigemi
Key Animation

Asano, Naoyuki
Animation Director

Bahi JD
Key Animation

Bevins, Christopher
ADR Director

Enokido, Shun
Key Animation

Fujii, Toshirou
Key Animation

Fujisaki, Shingo
Key Animation

Futsuzawa, Tokiemon
2nd Key Animation

Go, Hakuyu
Key Animation

Hamasaki, Tooru
2nd Key Animation

Hashimoto, Shinji
Key Animation

Hattori, Kenji
Animation Director

Honda, Tatsuo
Key Animation

Iida, Tsuyoshi
Key Animation

Iizuka, Youko
Key Animation

Imaoka, Noriyuki
Key Animation

Ishimaru, Kenichi
Key Animation

Itou, Nobutake
Animation Director

Kaku, Tetsurou
Key Animation

Kawano, Etsuko
Key Animation

Kevin, Aymeric
Art Director

Kimura, Kashiko
Editing

Koike, Saori
Key Animation

Komuro, Yuuichirou
Key Animation

Kondou, Rui
Key Animation

Kouda, Tomoki
Key Animation

Lee, Ju-hyeon
2nd Key Animation

Maru, Kanako
Key Animation

Matsumoto, Katsuji
Key Animation

Matsumoto, Taiyou
Original Creator

Matsuyama, Masahiko
Key Animation

Miyazawa, Yasunori
Key Animation

Mukouda, Takashi
Key Animation

Murakami, Izumi
Key Animation

Nagakawa, Kaoru
Key Animation

Nakamura, Shunsuke
Director of Photography

Nakano, Yuuki
Key Animation

Nakano, Katsuhiro
Sound Effects

Niho, Tomoyuki
Key Animation

Nishigaki, Shouko
Animation Director

Ogasawara, Shin
Key Animation

Oikawa, Kanako
Animation Check

Okuda, Yoshiko
2nd Key Animation

Saitou, Mayu
Key Animation

Sakazume, Takahito
Key Animation

Sakiyama, Hokuto
Key Animation

Sasagawa, Mitsuyuki
2nd Key Animation

Satou, Hitomi
2nd Key Animation

Shimazaki, Nozomi
2nd Key Animation

Shimizu, Yukiko
2nd Key Animation

Shishido, Betsujin
Key Animation

Shouji, Shiori
Color Design

Sugimura, Nozomi
2nd Key Animation

Suzuki, Aya
Key Animation

Suzuki, Masahiko
Key Animation

Tanabe, Hiroshi
Key Animation

Toda, Sayaka
Key Animation

Tonomizu, Atsuko
Production Manager

Tsujita, Kunio
Color Setting

Tsukino, Mua
Key Animation

Uchihara, Shigeru
Key Animation

Uehara, Fumiyuki
Key Animation

Ushio, Kensuke
Music

Watanabe, Masaki
Background Art

Xu, Yi
In-Between Animation

Yamaguchi, Sai
Key Animation

Yamamoto, Kouji
Chief Producer

Yamanaka, Izumi
Key Animation

Yamashita, Shingo
Key Animation

Yokouchi, Kazuki
In-Between Animation

Yui, Tetsutarou
2nd Key Animation