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Ping Pong(Japanese: ピンポン,Hepburn: Pin Pon) is a manga series by Taiyō Matsumoto about table tennis. It was serialized in Shogakukan's seinen manga magazine Big Comic Spirits from 1996 to 1997 and collected in five tankōbon volumes. It was adapted into a 2002 live-action film. An anime television series adaptation produced by Tatsunoko Production and directed by Masaaki Yuasa was aired between April 11, 2014 and June 20, 2014 on Fuji TV's noitamina block. The North American anime licensor Funimation streamed the series on their website.
Despite having drastically different personalities, high school boys Peco and Smile have been friends since childhood. Now, they’re both talented members of table tennis club of Katase High School. Peco gets decisively defeated by a Chinese student and thus becomes so devastated that he quits practicing. Meanwhile, Smile's personality always prevents him from winning against Peco. Coach Jō, however, discovers Smile's potential and tries to motivate him to overcome his psychological obstacle.
Characters
Yutaka Hoshino/Peco (星野 裕/ペコ,Hoshino Yutaka/Peko)
Voiced by: Fukujūro Katayama, Mitsutaka Nishida (child) (Japanese); Aaron Dismuke (English)One of the protagonists and Smile's childhood friend. Peco is loud, cocky, and carefree. He is initially considered one of the best players on the Katase team, but begins questioning himself after a couple of surprising losses. Peco is frequently seen snacking on various junk food items.
Voiced by: Kōki Uchiyama, Hiroshi Satomura (child) (Japanese); Micah Solusod (English)The second protagonist, Smile, is quiet and reserved. He is ironically nicknamed Smile because he seemingly never does. Smile is an exceptionally skilled player, but often lacks the drive and ruthlessness to win. Nevertheless, his talent is recognized by many, including Koizumi, Kong, and Kazama.
Jō Koizumi/Butterfly Joe (小泉 丈/バタフライジョー,Koizumi Jō/Batafurai Jō)
Voiced by: Yusaku Yara (Japanese); Mark Stoddard (English)The elderly coach of the Katase team. Though his behavior is sometimes silly, he has a deep sense of commitment to the sport and can be demanding of his players. Koizumi takes great interest in Smile and decides he will force the young player to realize his potential through any means necessary.
Voiced by: Shunsuke Sakuya, Waku Sakaguchi (child) (Japanese); Marcus D. Stimac (English)Kaio's team captain and star player. Kazama is a pragmatic individual who values winning above all else. His skill and power tend to overwhelm even high level opponents. Kazama attempts to recruit Smile to the Kaio team upon noticing his potential.
Voiced by: Subaru Kimura (Japanese); Anthony Bowling (English)A childhood rival of Peco's and a member of the Kaio team. Sakuma lacks natural talent but tries to compensate with hard work. He has an aggressive nature and is fixated on beating Peco as well as proving himself.
Kong Wenge/China (孔 文革/チャイナ)
Voiced by: Wen Yexing (Japanese); Alan Chow (English)A transfer student from China who was kicked off the national team. His original goal was to return to his home country after redeeming himself abroad. Kong exudes an air of confidence that belies his feelings of shame and resentment.
Obaba (オババ)
Voiced by: Masako Nozawa (Japanese); Pam Dougherty (English)The elderly chain-smoking owner of the table tennis dojo where Smile and Peco learned the sport as children. She cares for the two young players, despite her outwardly tough, jaded persona.
Ping Pong was written by Taiyō Matsumoto and published by Shogakukan. The manga ran on Big Comic Spirits weekly magazine from 1996 to 1997. The chapters were collected and released into six bound volumes from July 1996 to August 1997. The manga was re-released and reformatted into three volumes between July 14, 2012 and August 10, 2012. Shogakukan re-released the manga again in two volumes on April 1, 2014 under the new title, Ping Pong: Full Game No(ピンポン フルゲームの,Pin Pon furu gēmu no).
Original release
Re-release
Anime
An anime television series adaptation produced by Tatsunoko Production and directed by Masaaki Yuasa premiered on April 10, 2014 on Fuji TV's noitamina block. The opening theme is "Tada Hitori" (唯一人) by Bakudan Johnny and ending theme is "Bokura ni Tsuite" (僕らについて) by Merengue. The series can be streamed for free in the West through the Funimation website.
