Baby Steps

Is this your firts spokon (sport anime)?
If it is I wouldn´t recomend you this anime, i enjoyed it, but i think there are many other better options (haikyuu!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
What do you want to see in a spokon?
In my case i like spokon cause they are relly motivating, you feel you can do what you want and music is really important in order to do it. And this anime don´t have the sountrack i expected isn´t bad but you won´t rebember any song in a few month.
Now now lets start MY review

Story: 7
Spokons don´t usually have a good story but this one have it, it isnt only ... get to the final tournament and win it (only). And the most important nd strange thing i have found on this anime is that characters aren´t absurdly overpowered, so it´s a good change.

Art: 7
This anime has an average animation but it isnt bad at all, specially when they are playing tennis. But after 25 episodes I still hating ei-chan´s hear.

Sound: 5
I´m really disappointed with this opint, I like the anime because of their musique, and this one don´t have a good music soundtrack so sometimes you can get bored of watching it

Character: 9
the main characters are really well explained, motivations and goal, thir past... but in my opinion there are other characters a little bit poor, like ei-chan class mate, they appear very ofter but don´´t have a story behind ei-chan. But all in all as many other spokons they know how to use characters to improve the anime

Enjoyment: 7
Asi said somtemis i got bored and advanced some minutes, but it´s an enjoyable serie. Nothing more to say

Overall: 6

If you've seen many sports anime, then you will definitely enjoy this as a refreshing take on the genre. If you're just starting to dip your toes into the genre, this won't be a bad one to start off with.

First, it's for the reason that many reviewers have said before me, it's definitely more realistic and grounded than its peers. The MC did not immediately have the innate talent for it, but he has built it through training and experiences shown throughout the series. Not to mention, no character was extremely exaggerated or shown to be exhibiting super-human skills. There were just people who were ... talented and then there were those who weren't.

Second, it's not a purely sports story. It's a romance, a slice of life, and a coming of age as well. It tackled different parts of the protagonist's life, like his school life and home life (albeit the latter comes only in passing and only became somewhat prominent by the end,) painting us a good picture of what kind of character he is. While it features an individual sport such as tennis, you will still see the camaraderie and relationship-building between the characters. Not everyone is antagonistic to each other all the time. Personally, I wondered if it was going to be a bit boring to be only following one character throughout the series (I was so used to team sports animes!) but I found it hard not to root for Ei-chan after seeing how much he has grown.

Third, what I found most refreshing in this series is that the storytelling and the pacing is tight. If you're a veteran in sports anime, you'll know the struggle of dragging out a match until the very (frustrating) end. With this series, sometimes I'm surprised that the fight is over and dealt with all in the same episode! Baby Steps' 25 episode run is very satisfying. Honestly, I did not expect that I would end up bingewatching this show from episode 9 to 25 in one day, but I did! It's easy to get into it yet the matches are timed so right that you can actually pace yourself while watching it, too.

For the most part, while Eiichiro is frankly a bit of a boring character to follow, it's hard not to watch him and root for him as he grows right before our very eyes. Baby Steps is just the right title for such a series where we see our lead comes into his own.

This anime was great overall; however, the repetitive animations and explanations regarding tennis were a bit too much. I found myself skipping every few seconds especially when the explanations have already been said previously. The plot had a nice direction however I feel that two seasons are not enough for the whole story of the main character’s journey as a fresh tennis player. Romance arc is fine and you can want to look for more romance-focused-episodes, but this anime revolves more on the main story than the romance for the two main characters.
A great watch to learn a bit more about tennis, ... but it will leave you wanting more by the end of the second season.
Note before watching this anime: This work is a bit of an old one, so do not expect to be sucked in by the visual animations and artworks. Instead, watch the series for the plot and character development and skills progress, it would be much more fulfilling that way.

So this is my third sports anime that I've watched (The others are Kuroko no Basket and Haikyuu) and I am starting to fall in love with Sports anime. Usually, the genre of anime I usually watch are action and romance, but then I always give other genres a chance, maybe to relate with a lot more anime fans.

It starts of with a boy named Eiichiro Maruo, a smart and diligent student who doesn't really enjoy life. I mean, yes, he is a happy person, but he doesn't really have a hobby. I don't think writing notes is considered his hobby. It's just from his ... personality. One day, he wanted to exercise and wanted to try out a sport. That sport was (Obviously) tennis.

Baby Steps is one of those sports anime series done right... In terms of build up from a weak character gradually developing into one of the best tennis players in the world. From other sports anime I've watched, they mostly start of with a character that already has a skill that he is good at, but the problem is the usage of that skill so he has to improve. This anime is different and much more realistic.

What I truly like from this anime is how simple it is. It doesn't try to complicate itself. Sports anime like this are easily enjoyable. Not just that, this is probably one of the most well-paced sports anime I've ever seen. So there's not a moment where you'll feel bored (When it's slow-paced) and even if they skipped some parts in a tennis battle or skipping some tennis practice, I feel like they did the right decision to do so. They only show some parts where the thrill is at and/or where it's enjoyable to watch which I really like.

I know that MAL also classify this show as "Romance," but it's not heavily on romance. This show focuses heavily on sports, but there are indeed some romantic parts. Just don't expect a lot of its romance.

8/10 for the story is a very good score, so if that isn't "very good" to you, translate it to a score that you consider it as "very good." I didn't increase the score to 9 or 10 because it didn't conclude the series and this isn't really new. I just appreciate how well-paced this anime is.

The animation is good. Not bad. This anime doesn't really show smooth moments unlike other sports anime I've seen. It's usually rough. This anime also suffer from still frames, but they use this to visualize where the ball went, so it doesn't really bother me.

What bothers me the most has to be it's art style. Eiichiro Maruo is good looking, but his rooster-hair bothers me the most... at first. I got used to it after watching more episodes of this anime. Most of it's female characters are really drawn well, but for the male characters especially the ones who are just supporting, the art style is weird. It has to be on how the nose is drawn. Most of their noses look like Squidward from Spongebob Squarepants and there are some noses where it's wide.

For the soundtrack, most of it's OST just makes you get pumped up, but I don't think it's as thrilling as some OST I hear from other sports anime. It's hard to explain (I do admit that I suck at explaining OSTs). It's just that I feel like it's "lacking." For the opening theme and ending theme, I love it. They're catchy and it really makes you pump up for this show.

For the characters, they're enjoyable. The character development is really done right. You will see Maruo on how he develops with his friends and family and almost all of them aren't useless to him. I do admit that the characterization isn't perfect. Some of them end up being cliche like Takuma being one of your typical badass. Still, what really matters is how they change the story of Maruo and that's what made this show good.

Overall, if you hate sports anime that rigs matches (In terms of pacing and how long the match is) or hate sports anime that are unrealistic, stop right there and try watching this anime. This sports anime doesn't really bring nothing new to the table for some, but this is new to me because this is only my third sports anime. If you love tennis (Or played some tennis before), I HIGHLY recommend this show.

Score: 8/10

- This is a joint review of seasons 1 & 2 of Baby Steps. There will be mild spoilers. -

Of all the sports anime I’ve seen so far (which is not actually a whole lot), Baby Steps is my first foray into tennis. Overall, I am pleasantly surprised at how good it is. Perhaps it’s because I’ve been watching team sports all this time and tennis is a single player sport, but it does feel like it did something different.

First, let me just say that the main character Eiichiro (or Ei-chan) is not your typical sports protagonist. I mean sure, he’s another "complete newbie"-type who ... gets into a sport for the first time in high school, but unlike many other sports protagonists, he’s also an excellent student. Almost always, a sports protagonist is book dumb or at best average at school. On top of that, he is a meticulous note taker who is incredibly organized. These traits help him when it comes to playing tennis, and in a rather clever way, make it possible for the audience to get educated on the intricacies of tennis game play in a way that feels relatively natural. Watching him analyze his opponents and himself play tennis is easy to follow because of that. Oh, and his notes and handwriting are absolutely beautiful; a real joy to look at (if you care at all about typography and aesthetics like I do). It's really interesting seeing Eiichiro's methodical play style against opponents with wildly different styles and strengths, and in one case, someone who's very similar to him that proves to be his biggest challenge.

All of the rivals and opponents are great characters too in their own right for the amount of screen time they get. Instead of being exaggerated, over-the-top archetypes like they are in most other sports animanga, they feel very down-to-earth and likable. There are no massive jerks or characters who are made intentionally hateable because the author wanted an easy way to get people to root for the protagonist/main team. There are just young adults who are skilled at tennis (and possibly looking to become a professional athlete) but are otherwise pretty normal. Sure, even if some of them are a little aggressive, prickly, or rude, none of them are genuinely bad people. I think that’s a challenge in the sports because it’s not as easy to craft interesting, likable rivals as it is to make douchebags who happen to be skilled at a sport. When all the rivals are likable too, it makes for more compelling matches.

Moving on from the characters, the other good thing is that because tennis is not a team sport and Eiichiro is not part of his school’s team, it also allows for a bit of freedom. Usually, time-wise, a sports animanga moves incredibly slowly because the author (and their fanbase) don’t want their favorite third years to move on before winning. A few might take that chance, but most do not, and those that do (like Diamond no Ace) take a while to get there. That means first years are first years for a long time, and it never gets to a point where playing in college or playing professionally is even considered by them. That’s obviously not the case here and the anime skips through time a lot faster than I’m used to. The pacing of the matches is also spot on. I've seen sports anime where the matches often get way too long and drag the pace to screeching halt, but the matches here never exceed three episodes. That means important matches get as much time as they need without ever feeling too long.

So, the main character’s somewhat unique personality, his rivals, and the actual tennis are praiseworthy, but that doesn’t mean Baby Steps has no flaws. The most noticeable thing is that the character design is pretty mediocre. Either it’s totally generic (all the girls, some of the supporting male characters) or it’s totally gonk (some of the other supporting male characters), and I just wish there was a more consistent style because it’s kind of distracting. In this case, I would’ve prefer that everyone looked more generic because the gonk is just plain ugly. In a sports anime, character designs are fairly important because characters in general are very important, so seeing it fail in this aspect is definitely disappointing. Oh, and Eiichiro’s little dinosaur-like hair spike? Yeah, that looks dumb. He would’ve looked fine enough without it, if a tad plain. To be fair though, the gonk designs happen less and less over time and it becomes more generic looking, which is fine cause it's still an improvement.

The other rather huge criticism I have is Natsuki Takasaki, Eiichiro’s love interest. Perhaps it’s asking a lot for a male dominated sports anime to have good female characters, but since Baby Steps has a romance tag and does at least try to have a slow burn romance subplot, I would expect the main female character to be at least a little well written. Hm... nope. She’s such a generic ~cute girl~ that it’s eye-roll worthy, and OF COURSE she just happens to be most beautiful girl in the grade. It’s way too power fantasy like in a genre and an anime that’s about an underdog. What’s worse is that she literally has no personality outside being the perfect, cute waifu who’s unconditionally supportive of the main character. Sure, she’s a tennis player who plans on going pro, but let’s just say that her entire motivation revolves around a boy. There’s no time spent with her outside of her supporting Eiichiro, not even her tennis playing. You would think that because Natsuki was kind of the one who pulled Eiichiro into tennis in the first place, that would at least discuss tennis...? Well, that doesn’t really happen (again, aside from her providing unconditional support for him).

It is even said again and again that Natsuki’s an ace tennis player and is at the top of the girl’s division, but we barely get to see it aside from her occasionally winning at the tail end of her matches. Does “show, not tell” ring a bell? She’s not a rival, so its not like it’d be revealing too much too early and ruining the tension of future games. There’s really no excuse. Narratively, she’s treated almost like a trophy for the main character. It’s not that the other (non-rival) supporting characters are written a whole lot better, just that, y’know, as the LOVE INTEREST, Natsuki needed way more depth and complexity than she got. It’s not until well into season two that we get even get the slightest glimpse into Natsuki’s character, and even that is pretty bare bones.

This nicely leads to the biggest disappointment of all - the romance. When one half of the pairing is written so one dimensionally, and when the relationship in general is so halfheartedly developed, that will naturally result in a weak romance. The question really is, did Baby Steps even need a romance? The answer is obviously no. Frankly, Natsuki’s so shallowly written that if you remove her entirely, it would baaarely make a difference. You could cut her out, her teeny tiny subplot, the romance, and all of her and Eiichiro’s interactions and lose maybe three episodes worth of meaningful content across both seasons. Then that time could’ve been spent on the more interesting rival characters.

As the love interest, something that would’ve really helped give Natsuki more depth is if she provided some insightful commentary on Eiichiro’s while he's in matches, being a tennis player since childhood, but all she does is say “do your best!” and other vaguely supportive things. If she was NOT a love interest in the first place and was just another supporting character like Eiichiro’s best friend and the megane girl who has a crush on him, then that would've been acceptable. Speaking of those two, they provide better commentary than Natsuki ever does, despite not knowing anything about tennis at all. Hell, even their subtle romance is better developed than Eiichiro and Natsuki's. It's kind of sad when the "pair the spares" ship gets more attention than the main romance. To be fair though, it does get a little better in season two when Eiichiro and Natsuki finally start going out. I can only hope that in future seasons, it gets more proper development. Coming from someone who hates romance in general, it is always weird when I say I want more focus on the romance, but that just means that I hate bad romances even more. Either have it or don't have it - just don't half ass it. The lost potential is a little upsetting... we could've seen Eiichiro and Natsuki advance as a badass young couple getting into professional sports together, but it is exceedingly one-sided. Considering that tennis is a single player sports and there's no need to develop a whole team of 6-8+ guys, I don't see why Natsuki couldn't have gotten more screen time and better writing.

One final rather nitpicky complaint I have is that the anime relies on flashbacks too much. Thankfully, this is tone downed a lot by season two, but still, it's really irritating getting flashbacks to something that happened literally two minutes ago. Also, the first twenty seconds to three minutes of an episode get lost to recapping the very end of the previous episode. It would be a much more efficient use of time to scrap that in future seasons and either skip having a pre-opening scene at all or have a new scene before the OP.

Other than that, I have to say there’s nothing in particular that stands out either way. The voice acting is fine, the music is adequate although it sounds very much like every other sports anime I've seen, and the animation is nothing bad (aside from the creepy CGI puppets of random audience members) but nothing spectacular either. Overall, the production values are about as good as they need to be but do not stand out in any meaningful way, but like a few other things, they do get a little nicer in season two. It’s kind of a shame because aside from great characters/gameplay, the only place a sports anime can really shine is in its production values.

Finally, Baby Steps' highly realistic depiction of tennis is refreshing. There are no flashy superpowers or dumb gimmicks, and the progression of Eiichiro’s skill feels natural and goes at the right pace. The groundedness of the tennis, in my opinion, gives it an edge over a lot of other sports anime. Even if there are unrealistic aspects, it’s disguised well and is not noticeable to people who are not very familiar with sports. Not that it isn’t fun to have super powers or gimmicks, but the realism combined with the superb exposition of the ins-and-outs of tennis adds an extra layer. It makes it easier to compare to and appreciate real life athletes (more for people who don't care for sports irl).

Season two ended on a hook for a very important tournament, and I am really looking forward to the season three. Overall, Baby Steps is a solid 8/10.

Baby Steps

Baby Steps is a memorable sports anime with informative analysis of tennis, likable characters, and thrilling gameplay.

CHARACTERS: 20/25
The protagonist of this series is Eiichiro Maruo. Supporting characters are Natsu Takasaki, Takuma Egawa, Kojirou Kageyama, Yukichi Fukuzawa, and Himeko Sasaki. Eiichiro plays against and continually interacts with other tennis players such as Takuya Miyagawa, Ryou Oobayashi, Hitoshi Araya, Hiromi Iwasa, Souji Ike, and Yuu Nabae. Other supporting cast include Eiichiro’s parents and his coaches, Coach Miura and Coach Ryuuhei Aoi. Eiichiro is a very likable and hard-working student who decides to try his hand at tennis and ends up loving it. Throughout the series the ... viewer grows to admire and root for Eiichiro’s unique approach to mastering tennis and is charmed by Eiichiro’s growing love interest, Natsu. Kageyama and Sasaki play supportive, comedic, and unobtrusive roles. Eiichiro’s parents both support and challenge Eiichiro’s pursuit to go pro. The coaches and Eiichiro himself provide a majority of the analyses about training and gameplay. What is greatly impressive is the number and variety of other tennis players that Eiichiro faces, providing new and unique spins to each series of episodes in which Eiichiro is playing against one of them. The viewer grows to admire the uniqueness of each person’s game and how Eiichiro learns something different when/after facing each player. Something that might be lacking is character development and screen time for some of the other characters, like Natsu, as she is basically just a strong tennis player who is supportive of Eiichiro and is the cutest girl in class. Kageyama ends up just being someone who goes to Eiichiro’s matches and is talked to by the coaches. In addition, Eiichiro may be almost too analytical and focused on tennis, as other aspects of his life, such as his love life, are really very superficial and don’t get the depth of character development that the viewer may want to see.

STORY: 38/45
The story of Baby Steps draws you in and leaves you wondering what happens next, especially when Eiichiro is playing in a match. While one might think that watching Eiichiro play in matches multiple times can get repetitive, every opponent is unique and possesses different skills, making every match feel fresh and thrilling. What’s great is also that while Eiichiro is a rising star in tennis who is improving at an alarming rate, he doesn’t win every match, keeping the story feeling a bit more realistic. The gameplay analysis narrated usually by Eiichiro himself or the coaches is very strong and informative. There is also, of course, the overarching story of Eiichiro growing as a tennis player and deciding that he wants to go pro. For this reason, the stakes are raised, causing viewers to root for Eiichiro even more as there are concrete goals he has to achieve. The overall development of his relationship to the sport and to his studies are done very well, as are his training and adjustments in his training. What may be lacking, as mentioned previously, is more about Eiichiro’s personality and life other than being an honors student and being very focused on tennis. For example, there’s not much regarding his friendship with Kageyama. In addition, while Natsu plays heroine to Eiichiro’s main character role, their interactions are quite minimal and Natsu doesn’t receive much character development other than being another tennis player trying to go pro who happens to be the cutest girl in class.

ART: 8/10
The art in Baby Steps is nothing special. Everything is well-drawn and most scenes are well-animated. What might be lacking is having more scenes with actual movement of players during matches instead of just using speed lines for the ball. The OP and ED are well-animated and set up the series well.

SOUND: 8/10
The sound in this series is great. The voice acting is done very well, including the action scenes. The sound effects are strong and matches sound like a real game is being played. I’m not sure how many variations of tennis balls being hit that they used, but it seems like a lot. Background music is used at appropriate times, but seems limited as we hear the same music used repeatedly, especially during matches.

ENJOYMENT: 9/10
Baby Steps is a very enjoyable anime. As stated before, Eiichiro’s is a very likable character and one can’t help but cheer for him to do well. Every match is unique, thrilling, and sometimes spans for several episodes, leaving viewers wanting to know what happens next. His growing relationship with Natsu is also a joy to watch.

OVERALL: 83/100
Would I recommend Baby Steps to a friend? Absolutely. It’s an informative, funny, entertaining, and thrilling anime about tennis. It makes me want to take up my racket again and get back on the court.

This is my first review! :P

Should you watch it? Yes, the story is very entertaining and the growth of the characters is excellent.

Ill rate the genres now (That are tagged). [Romance] 4/10. Sure there was some romance in the second season, but there wasn't much. Romance is barely there.
[School] 6/10. There not much school in it as well. There is some of it in the beginning of the season, but after that there isn't much school. [Shounen] ?. This is a type of anime that anybody can watch. Sure, its focusing mainly for men, but everyone can have the same entertainment with this anime. [Sports] ... 10/10. Sports is the main adjective of this anime, and does a fairly good job of showing it. It shows the struggles of playing tennis, and the strategies and skills needed in order to play tennis.

Ill rate the Story, Art, Sound, Character, Enjoyment, and Overall now.

Story [8/10] I thought the story was very good. The story explains a guy who is very good at school, but wanted to do something new, so he decides to "try" tennis which leads him down a road. It explains the struggles and advantages he gets across the anime.

Art [7/10] The art isn't fancy, but delivers an easy approach of what is happening on the field, when playing tennis.

Sound [8/10] I loved the intro/outro of this anime so much! Props to the Sound Producers.

Characters [9/10] This anime created character very well. It shows the main character fail at running a warm up, to fighting Japan's number one! It also shows how he and everyone else at the STC gotten even closer.

Enjoyment [9/10] Sure this anime can be boring at points, but it brings you right back up with cliff hangers and close matches.

Overall [8/10] This anime is a must watch for even for people who don't even watch sports anime (first sports anime I have watched). So if you have any free time, watch this entertaining anime.

~MattNyte

I often keep fast forwarding when I watch sports animes because they usually spend so much time showing off super-power-like techniques. But Baby Steps was different. I loved every second of the anime. The anime progressed at a very good pace and I was extremely impressed by the quality of story development. The main character does not gain super-power-like skills but focuses on the basics to outsmart opponents.

Baby Steps also reminded me that sports is something you should enjoy, more than focusing on beating everyone.

Just as a side note, I wanted to say that this anime cannot be compared with Prince of Tennis. They ... are completely different. Personally I do like over-power main characters like Echizen (Prince of Tennis) though so I cannot compare the animes overall, because to me, they're different genres. But if we're just looking at the plot, Baby Steps was better.

I hope this helps!

"Baby Steps" is an anime about tennis, but it also a great coming-of-age story that emphasizes celebrating small successes, finding passion, and making meaningful connections.

This show belongs to a place near and dear to my heart. The main cast is full of very likable characters, and the protagonist's story arc and development was very realistic and believable, which is a quality that lacks in its contemporaries. I don't typically watch anime in the "sports" genre, but I thoroughly enjoyed this one.

The main character, Ei-chan, is extremely relatable and kind-hearted. The show has a good way of making a person root for him, through his hardships ... and growth. The supporting characters, as well as the 'antagonists' are mostly unique and complex characters that embody true human struggles and emotions. Their methods and attitudes are reflected in the way they play tennis, which was a very good touch.

"Baby Steps" has created a positive impact on my life, and inspired me to work harder, try my best, take risks, and find passion.

Where sports anime is concerned, Baby Steps is definitely underrated. This anime has all your typical parts to a sports anime but with a way better story and main character.

Typical Plot:
- The MC is a novice at the sport.
- The MC works hard towards a goal

Not so typical plot:
- The MC isn't a pansy.
- The MC is incredibly likable
- The improvement in the MC's skills are realistic.
... - The end of every episode leaves your heart racing and motivated to conquer the day. (Seriously how I felt after haha)

Art: The art is nothing fancy. It is good enough to tell the story.

Overall, this is a must watch.

Baby Steps does a number of unique things in the way it tells its story. Nothing is predictable, and the pacing is actually very good given that the story spans several years. I didn't go in with any expectations except a general idea that an anime rated 8 should be good enough to watch to completion. I was pleasantly surprised every step of the way.

The animation in filler scenes and backgrounds is lackluster, especially in the first season, but during crucial scenes it gives you the information you need to engross yourself in the story, and that's where the anime really shines. The characters are ... all quite likable and relatable, and the story is above all, compelling. If you listen closely you'll hear some interesting foley work with the sound that I wasn't expecting given the relatively unimpressive animation.

Baby Steps probably won't be on anyone's list as all time favorite anime, but it deserves credit for telling a compelling and unique story quite well. The second season is just as good as the first, with the added benefit of more and better animators leading to consistent scene quality in terms of the animation.

Written January 24th, 2019:

This is just brief thought and ratings for the first season of Baby Steps. My full review on the series, seasons 1 and 2 are on the page for the second season.


Story: 9 - Well written, occasional pacing issues, ie. dragging out the tennis matches forever.
Art: 6 - Lots of reuse of the same footage over and over. It was not terrible, just noticeable.
Sound: 8 - Sold voice acting. The opening/closing music is great, the FX? Okay. Sounds like tennis.
Character: 8 - Very good, some of the secondary characters are weak, the main ones shine.
Enjoyment: 9 - If it were not for ... the reuse of the art assets and pacing issues, would be a 10.
Overall: 8 - I love this show, I hope there is a season 3, but it would need to be announced in 2019, or it is unlikely.

(SPOILER FREE REVIEW)

Story (9): As someone who's seen quite a few shonen, and sports shonen in particular, Baby Steps stands out from the pack in ways that I feel make it a worthwhile series for almost any viewer. The story, unlike most sports anime that follow prodigies building their legends, follows a complete novice who takes up the sport as a hobby and slowly becomes dedicated to it, eventually deciding to pursue it as a life passion. The story follows him building up simple skills through hard work and by utilizing his few natural strong suits, making his gameplay entirely unique, leading to all the ... matches throughout the series having variety and strategy as their main appeals over very hyped up, loud action sequences. The focus on self improvement and character growth through effort (as stated at the beginning of every episode even with the phrase "Believe in yourself!") is appealing, cute, and very well done here, despite a somewhat slow start in the first couple episodes.

Animation and Style (7): I feel this will be the main deterrent for most viewers in watching Baby Steps, given the streak of most sports anime focusing on high budget action sequences that carry the energy of the show. The visuals of this show are effective and somewhat mundane, with simple life-like palettes and a look that screams more 'slice of life' than 'epic sport shonen' -- but the simple visuals here are effective and homely, very nicely explaining the somewhat heavy complexity of ball bounces, strokes, and other intricacies of the sport's mechanics.

Music/Sound (8): The show's music is quiet and doesn't overstate its welcome, only popping in when needed, which is something I can admire especially in a sports anime. Mirroring the concentration of the protagonist's concentration during matches, the less is more approach lets the character narratives and strategy shine. Not to mention solid voice acting from the entire cast and a great OP and ED to boot, the sound design is very solid, if at times a tad lackluster.

Characters (7): The characters here are a bit generic and generally underdeveloped with exception to the protagonist, Maruo. Despite this, I rather enjoyed the whole cast, they're simple and less defined than I'd prefer, falling into tropes rather easily, but I found they each had their own charm and performed their plot function well. Maruo and his love interest/rival in particular ring to me as a great pair of characters, with her story and character being much more grounded than 95% of female shonen characters, which is always an appreciated and pleasant surprise.

Enjoyment (10): I really loved this show. I can say with certainty if you asked me which shows move me emotionally the most, Baby Steps would be near the top of that list. The show's endearing main theme being to believe in yourself even when you stumble is something so many similar shows lack, and it's so earnest in its cast and characters that I genuinely wanted them to succeed every step of the way. Every game feels like an achievement whether our main cast wins or loses, and I have gone on to pursue the story of the manga beyond the anime's abrupt stop after season 2.

Overall (8): Baby Steps isn't for everyone, its a simple, cute, and effective story focuses on believing in yourself and character growth more so than even other very similar sports anime, such as Haikyuu!! and comes across for more similar to typical slice of life and character driven narratives. While not filled with the groundbreaking visuals that fuel other titles of the sports shonen genre, it has a special appeal and very rewarding payoff if you enjoy the characters. I would recommend it to shonen and slice of life fans alike.

This anime is outstanding in the following points:

The character developement is set up very well. Reminded me of Hajime no Ippo, with the difference of more realism in Baby Steps.

The story is kept quite close to reality, almost no exaggerations. This actually a very important point. The main character is very good, but he doesn't allways win, he is not overpowered and the drama is not created despite you knowing he would win anyway. The anime introduces you very well to what it means to be a pro (-fessional) in your discipline. You can also convey this to other disciplines and learn a lot. Also ... I learned a lot about tennis. I had zero clew before and know I can (and I do) watch a tennis match, fully understanding the terminus of commentators. From that perspective, I truly don't know any other anime, better than this.
I guess the creator of this anime was very humble himself.

This was a truly motivational anime.

Baby stebs, follow a boy how play Tennis because a nice Girl told to him. Its a sport, romance show!
Im happy, that i saw this Anime because its actually really good, the best Tennis anime How I watched jet. So if you are a fan of Sport ore romance, than its good fore you.
So yea, the Opening is REALLY good!!!!!
So motivating.
It alos has a second season, but I dont now there is a third season ore will came. There also a Manga from this Anime.
One thing is the hearcut from the protagonist, the Hearcut. It looks like a chicken. I dont like ... it.

Review in Bullet Points:
- A more realistic than usual sports anime no one seemed to need super powers to play
- Main character is likable and fun but the rest are fairly forgettable (sometimes all you need is a good main character)
- The plot really drove this one for me it felt organic and well paced

Main Review --
Story: Baby Steps is close to exactly what you would expect of a "Sports Anime" Including main character growth, relationship development, and some heated matches that last a couple episodes. The story is well paced and doesn't spend too long on any one story point.

Art: I'm not any sort ... of artist so I feel weird commenting on it. Its good nothing stood out. If you are watching this anime in 2020 its definitely starting to get a little dated but nothing that would stop me from suggesting this anime.

Sound: Not memorable. I can't even picture the music. On the plus side it didn't disrupt the anime either.

Characters: The characters in this show feel both well developed and a little underdeveloped at the same time. While we get to see the main character grow as a tennis player there isn't much too it. The other characters are interesting enough but the highlight is definitely the heads down hard worker main character Eiichiro.

Enjoyment: I found myself wanting to see what happened next and if the hard work of the main character would pay off. At no point did this series drag for me. I liked the more realistic aspect to the way tennis is played in this. There was no plays or hits that were hard to watch because it was just so unrealistic. I thoroughly enjoyed this anime.

Overall: I'd say that this is in the top half of my favorite sports anime list. It focused on the sport and the development of the main character and didn't feel like any of the characters needed super powers. I enjoyed watching the analysis of the games through Eiichiros eyes

This is a great anime, and manga and definitely deserves to have more fans. Though, all the main characters are japanese the author does add POC when the character goes to America and in different tennis matches with made me happy but I also couldn’t help but laugh at the main characters hair in every scene. Maybe they could of changed that a littleee bit lol. Maybe it’s because I’m not a fan of love interests in sports mangas, and other action ml stories because the guys don’t ever know how to write a woman/girl without her being sexualize or annoying so I didn’t really ... like her at first, But she kinda grew on me. Probably because her character developed further into the anime/manga, The main character is a little bit of a prev towards her though.

Baby Steps is a rather typical sports anime, and what I specifically mean by that is that on the surface, it seems just like another "average guy trains hard to reach the top of his respective field," and honestly, that is essentially what this anime is, but that's not necessarily a bad thing, as long as it is executed properly. And I can confidently say that Baby Steps does indeed execute its premise very well.

Since you've presumably already read the synopsis given that you're currently reading this review (wait, why are you reading? Why am I writing this? Whatever), you should know that it ... revolves around an academically diligent honors student, Maruo, and how his sudden interest in tennis turns into one of great passion. At first, he took an interest in it for the exercise, but as he progressed further into the depths of tennis, and the fascinating aspects behind it, tennis now seems to find itself at every corner of Maruo's life. The manner in which they display his progressive passion for the sport is riveting, compelling, and motivating for the viewers, as even if you aren't a tennis fan, you can perhaps still resonate with his fervor in regards to the dedication he puts into tennis, his new-found interest.

Naturally, since this is a shonen sports anime, some of the matches are heavily exaggerated from an emotional stakes perspective, but I don't neccisarily think this hurts the anime, as the matches are the culmination of Maruo's training and effort, so seeing his efforts and intense training bear fruit is really satisfying. Hence why I don't think the rather exaggerated emotional stakes presented in the matches are unwelcome. One aspect of this show that's great in regards to the matches is the presence of Maruo's analysis. He is exceptional at analyzing the current situation of the match, as he can determine his own weaknesses as well the opponent's, calculate the probability of certain potential serves, and also at taking note of the tendencies of his opponent before and during the match. This aspect of the show is what made me really interested in the matches, as otherwise, they wouldn't have really captivated me.

I really like the fact that this anime satisfactorily touches on the effect tennis has on Maruo's personal life, as sometimes in anime, and not just strictly sports anime, the personal lives of the characters are neglected for the sake of plot progression, which sometimes isn't all that bad, but it's usually a detriment to any series. The series adequately gives an insight as to how his sudden passion for tennis affects the relationships of others around him, with an example being his mom. Maruo's mom, like most moms, wants her son to continue being on top of his academics, especially since Maruo is renowned for being a straight A student. Upon learning that Maruo desires to focus on tennis primarily instead of his studies, she's ambivalent about it, as on one hand, she's glad that Maruo is actually passionate about something, but on the other hand, if it interferes with his studies, is it really worth it? Then there's his relationship with Natsu, the star female tennis player who competes nationally, which though not the most complex, is still intriguing in its own right, as she in a way serves as Maruo's motivation.

Since I'm tired of writing this, I'm just going to briefly summarize my thoughts regarding the technical aspects of the show, since I don't take particular note of them when watching a show.

The music is nothing exceptional in general, but the OP is absolutely fantastic. It encapsulates the overall essence of the show brilliantly, ending with the epitomizing phrase, "believe in yourself." I've caught myself listening to that OP even when I'm not watching the show, which is very praise considering I only do that for OPs that I greatly enjoy.

The animation and art style are fine overall, nothing special about them in particular, but I did like the way they presented Maruo's analysis during the matches.

Overall, this anime is the embodiment of a very good show. I wouldn't regard it as a masterpiece by any means, but it had enough brilliant qualities that warrant regarding it as an 8/10.