Baby Steps

Baby Steps

ENDED2 Seasons50 Episodes7.5
NetworkNHK Educational TV
First AiredApr 6, 2014
Last AiredSep 20, 2015
Runtime25 min

Eiichirō Maruo (nicknamed "Ei-chan" for his grades being straight "A") is an honor student, bookworm, and is not interested in anything other than studying. In order to solve his problem of lacking physical strength, he enrolled a tennis school and soon found the fascinating side of tennis. Being a tennis newbie lacking physical strength, he supplement his shortcomings with his excellent observing and analyzing skills.

Cast

Taishi Murata
Taishi Murata
Eiichiro Maruo (voice)
Minako Kotobuki
Minako Kotobuki
Natsu Takasaki (voice)
Daisuke Namikawa
Daisuke Namikawa
Takuma Egawa (voice)
Asami Seto
Asami Seto
Himeko Sasami (voice)
Hiro Shimono
Hiro Shimono
Yukichi Fukasawa (voice)
Taiten Kusunoki
Taiten Kusunoki
Coach Yusaku Miura (voice)
Takuma Terashima
Takuma Terashima
Kojirou Kageyama (voice)
Tetsuya Kakihara
Tetsuya Kakihara
Takuya Miyagawa (voice)
Chisa Yuuki
Chisa Yuuki
Yuuki Tajima (voice)
Kohsuke Toriumi
Kohsuke Toriumi
Coach Ryuuhei Aoi (voice)
KENN
KENN
Yoshiaki Ide (voice)
Yoshimasa Hosoya
Yoshimasa Hosoya
Souji Ike (voice)

Seasons & Episodes2 seasons · 50 episodes

0% complete
The stage of the second series is the Florida Tennis Academy. There, rivals aiming for the top of the world competed every day to raise the world rank even one. How will Eiichiro overcome the world barrier by studying abroad for the first time in his life ... A hot and realistic story of the boys, depicting the behind-the-scenes behind-the-scenes tennis scene in an easy-to-understand manner.
The World and the Wall
E1The World and the Wall
Apr 5, 201525m
Eiichirō arrives in Florida, and Coach Mike introduces him to Marcia, an upcoming junior whose older brother just made the Pro's. Marcia and Eiichirō play a match, and Marcia decides Eiichirō must be training for the French Open because of his slow play style.
A Vicious Circle is Lucky
E2A Vicious Circle is Lucky
Apr 12, 201525m
Eiichirō begins closing the gap on the others at the Florida Academy, but during everyone of his matches he has one moment where he presses too hard, costing him a set and eventually costing him the match.
Data for the Future
E3Data for the Future
Apr 19, 201525m
After winning his first match in America, Eiichirō finally gets to play Ike in a one set match. Ike gets it approved at the New Years party where many of Eiichirō's new friends first learn of Natsu.
Awakening to Simplicity
E4Awakening to Simplicity
Apr 26, 201525m
In his final day in Florida Alex agrees to play a best-of-3 match with Eiichirō. Alex realizes that Eiichirō's notes contain all of his weaknesses and that he will have to adjust his play style to win the match.
Takuma's Decision
E5Takuma's Decision
May 3, 201525m
Eiichirō returns from Florida and is given a day off to adjust his body to the time difference. After the day off Eiichirō begins a new strict training regime to help him get ready for the Kanagawa Prefectural.
First Encounter by Scouting
E6First Encounter by Scouting
May 10, 201525m
Coach Aoi explains to Eiichirō that he stopped the match against Takuma because his body wasn't developed to serve like Takuma yet. If he had continued to serve that way, he would have injured himself and forced himself to give up his tennis career.
Revenge at the Critical Moment
E7Revenge at the Critical Moment
May 17, 201525m
The Kanagawa Prefectural begins as Eiichirō faces off against Araya's new underclassman Nishimura. Araya has told Nishimura all of Eiichirō's weaknesses from the year before, making Nishimura very confident in his chances of winning.
The Speed of Evolution
E8The Speed of Evolution
May 24, 201525m
Eiichirō and Miyagawa face off in the second round of the tournament for their second match. If Eiichirō loses he knows he'll lose all chance of going pro. If Miyagawa loses he knows his path to become a pro will take longer and might force him to go to college first.
Baffled by Intuition
E9Baffled by Intuition
May 31, 201525m
Coach Ryuhei Aoi decides to teach Eiichirō the importance of relying on instincts during a match instead of relying solely on data. In order to teach him how to play against a player who relies solely on instinct Eiichirō is forced to face off with Natsu.
Start With a Roar
E10Start With a Roar
Jun 7, 201525m
Araya and Eiichirō begin their match in the Kanagawa Prefectural Final. At first both are holding serve and the score is at 3-3. However Coach Aoi realizes Eiichirō doesn't have the knowledge on how to deal with left handers since he's only played Araya once.
Choices and Explosive Power
E11Choices and Explosive Power
Jun 14, 201525m
Eiichirō throws out a couple of unexpected dropshots in set 2 and begins to alter the speed of his game. After trailing 30-love to begin match 2 of set 2 Eiichirō is able to rally with this new strategy and pull off a break.
Full Force Toward Adversity
E12Full Force Toward Adversity
Jun 21, 201525m
Araya and Eiichirō prove to be even and are both unable to break each others serve. Making things worse is there will be no tiebreaker., Instead an individual must win by 2 games.
Gathering of Rivals
E13Gathering of Rivals
Jun 28, 201525m
The gang begins their third and final year of high school in different classes. Eiichirō and Natsu both realize their classes seem to be moving on without them as they are getting ready for cram schools and entrance tests.
Moonlight and the Sound of Waves
E14Moonlight and the Sound of Waves
Jul 5, 201525m
The final door on the way to the All-Japan Junior, the Kanto Junior Tournament, is just around the corner. Eiichiro psyches himself up as he confirms his promise to his parents that he'll give up if he doesn't win the All-Japan Junior, and then he sets off with the other STC members for Chiba, where the Kanto Junior will be held.
A Hero and Loud Cheers
E15A Hero and Loud Cheers
Jul 12, 201525m
The Kanto Junior Tennis Tournament begins at last, and Eiichiro is facing Yakabe Tadanori in his first match. Although he had watched videos of Yakabe's matches from a year ago, Eiichiro is bewildered by his opponent's much taller stature and completely different play style, and all the unexpected factors lead him to consider blanking all his mental data and starting from scratch.
Whish, Then Fwoom
E16Whish, Then Fwoom
Jul 19, 201525m
Eiichiro is stunned by all the cheering Ide receives as their match begins. He struggles with the unpredictable plays of the intuitive Ide, but he recalls what he learned in his match with Natsu and concentrates on watching his opponent. Meanwhile, Ide also struggles to keep up with Eiichiro's constant changes in tempo and starts to tune out the world as he tries to focus.
Dramatic by Nature
E17Dramatic by Nature
Jul 26, 201525m
Ide's remarkable ability to adapt instantly to everything has Eiichiro struggling, and reads his notes again to regain his focus. This improves his movements and leads to more impressive rallies, making the match even more exciting. Neither is willing to yield as the match comes down to which player can manage to hold serve...
Visualize the Pressure
E18Visualize the Pressure
Aug 2, 201525m
Eiichiro thought he was successfully ignoring the crowd's roaring cheers for Ide, but his body was reacting to it more than he realized. The pressure of playing in front of a dramatic, Ide-centric crowd is troubling Eiichiro.
A Rude First Meeting
E19A Rude First Meeting
Aug 9, 201525m
Eitaro, upon winning spectacularly in his fight against Ide, decides to go to the National Junior's. Coach Aoi explains that towards the end of the match, Eitaro was completely in the zone.
Psychological Warfare and Self-Control
E20Psychological Warfare and Self-Control
Aug 16, 201525m
The match against Takagi begins. Just as Yukichi warned, Takagi's style is unique.
Good, Evil, and Rules
E21Good, Evil, and Rules
Aug 23, 201525m
Even if it seems to lack etiquette, Takagi's play style continues to work in his favor by disupting his opponent's pace. Eiichiro struggles to deal with Takagi's tactics.
Existence is the Driving Force
E22Existence is the Driving Force
Aug 30, 201525m
After beating Takagi, Eiichiro moves onto the semi-finals as does Natsu in the women's division. Eiichiro becomes aware of new feelings towards Natsu while watching her match.
Aggressive is Ideal
E23Aggressive is Ideal
Sep 6, 201525m
The match has just begun and Eiichiro is already close to being in the zone. His excellent condition is reminiscent of his match against Ide; Eiichiro doesn't give Nabae a chance to fight back and soon takes the lead.
Recklessness and Surprise
E24Recklessness and Surprise
Sep 13, 201525m
The match between Eiichirou and Nabae finally reaches its thrilling climax, and the former risks losing to envision his victory.
Final Set
E25Final Set
Sep 20, 201525m
The game finally reaches its final stage. Eiichiro who desperately envisions a vision to win Nambae and is ready for a new strategy with the intention of losing.

About Baby Steps

Baby Steps is a animation, comedy series on NHK Educational TV. The show first aired on Apr 6, 2014 and currently has 2 seasons and 50 episodes. Baby Steps has ended after 2 seasons. It has a rating of 7.5/10 based on 22 votes. The cast includes Taishi Murata, Minako Kotobuki, Daisuke Namikawa, Asami Seto, Hiro Shimono.

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