Baby Steps

• Name — Baby Steps • Ja Kanji — ベイビーステップ • Ja Romaji — Beibī Suteppu • Genre — Sports

• Type — manga • Author — Hikaru Katsuki • Publisher — Kodansha • Magazine — Weekly Shōnen Magazine • First — October 17, 2007 • Last — November 1, 2017 • Volumes — 47

• Type — tv series • Director — Masahiko Murata • Producer — Kenji Saito • Writer — Katsuhiko Chiba • Music — * Yoichiro Yoshikawa • Kōhei Yamada (S2 Season 2) • Studio — Pierrot • Network — NHK-E • First — April 6, 2014 • Last — September 20, 2015 • Episodes — 50 • Episode List — List of Baby Steps episodes

• Portal — yes Baby Steps 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 tankōbon 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.

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.

• Eiichirō Maruo • Taishi Murata • Eiichirō Maruo, also called Ei-chan 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 • Minako Kotobuki • Natsu Takasaki, also known as Nat-chan, 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 • Daisuke Namikawa • 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 • Hiro Shimono • 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 • Taiten Kusunoki • 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: • 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.

• Hiroshi Araya • Wataru Hatano • The top player in Kanagawa Prefecture after Egawa (and as a result, Egawa's rival). He trains at GITC and is the same age as Maruo. He is left-handed baseline player with explosive power. He often yells loudly after winning points in his matches. • Takuya Miyagawa • Tetsuya Kakihara • One of the top players in Kanagawa Prefecture. He trains at Miyagawa Tennis Academy. He is a year younger than Maruo but very tall like Egawa. Like Maruo, he has a strange quirk during matches: he drinks hot kobucha (kelp tea) and eats umeboshi (pickled plums). • Ryō Ōbayashi • Tomoaki Maeno • The first seeded player Maruo ever plays against in a tournament. He is a year older than Maruo and is a serve-and-volley player. He becomes Miyagawa's senpai when the younger player enters the same high school. • Hiromi Iwasa • Shintarō Asanuma • He is a player with a unique and unpredictable style of play that focuses on shot placement.

• Takayuki Okada • Kentarō Itō • He lives in Chiba Prefecture. He admires Miki Yazawa, and also plays like her. • Yoshiaki Ide • KENN • He lives in Saitama Prefecture. He plays rather sensuously sensitive, but skillful tennis. • Sakuya Takagi • Masakazu Morita • He lives in Tokyo. He and Nabae attend the same high school and have trained at the same tennis academy since they were kids.

• Yū Nabae • Takahiro Sakurai • Nationally famous junior player who lives in Tokyo. Like Maruo, he has a habit of taking notes, but he does it on a laptop.

Written and illustrated by Hikaru Katsuki, Baby Steps was serialized for ten years in Kodansha's manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Magazine from October 17, 2007, to November 1, 2017. Kodansha collected its chapters in 47 tankōbon volumes, released from February 15, 2008, to December 15, 2017. Kodansha published the series in English on their K Manga service.

An anime television series adaptation was announced in November 2013. Animated by studio Pierrot, the series was broadcast for 25 episodes on NHK Educational TV from April 6 to September 21, 2014. Mao Abe performed the opening theme "Believe in yourself" and Babyraids performed the ending theme Beibī Suteppu. A 25-episode second season was broadcast from April 5 to September 20, 2015. Mao Abe's "Believe in yourself" was used again as the opening theme for the second season, while Ganbare! Victory performed the ending theme "Dream Continuation".