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The Ping Pong Club
Japanese manga series From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Ping Pong Club (Japanese: 行け!稲中卓球部, Hepburn: Ike! Inachū Takkyū-bu; lit. 'Go! Inachū Middle School Ping-Pong Club') is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Minoru Furuya. It was serialized in Kodansha's seinen manga magazine Weekly Young Magazine from 1993 to 1996, with its chapters collected in 13 tankōbon volumes. It is about the dysfunctional members of a middle school ping-pong club.
The Ping Pong Club was adapted by Grouper Productions into a 26-episode anime television series. It was licensed in North America by Central Park Media.
The Ping Pong Club manga has had over 25 million copies in circulation. In 1996, the manga won the 20th Kodansha Manga Award for the general category.
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Plot
The series focuses on an unconventional ping-pong club whose members show greater interest in lewd humor than athletic competition. When Kyōko Iwashita becomes the club's manager, she attempts to redirect the team's focus toward actual ping-pong, despite constant distractions and the members' lack of discipline.
Characters
- Maeno (前野)
- Voiced by: Kōsuke Okano (Japanese); James Carter Cathcart (as Jimmy Zoppi) (English)
- Maeno is the de facto leader of the Ping Pong Club, known for his eccentric demeanor and pride in his physique, particularly his backside. Despite his peculiar and often perverse behavior, he unexpectedly attracts female attention, as well as the admiration of his close friend Izawa.
- Hiromi Izawa (井沢 ひろみ, Izawa Hiromi)
- Voiced by: Takumi Yamazaki (Japanese); Buddy Woodward (English)
- Izawa, a chivalrous but sometimes pervert boxing fan, models his shoulder-length hair after Ashita no Joe protagonist Joe Yabuki. He often plays female roles in games with Maeno, despite their close friendship. Izawa opposes Maeno's romantic pursuits, even impersonating a woman to interfere.
- Takeda (竹田)
- Voiced by: Tsutomu Takayama (Japanese); Crispin Freeman (as Mark Percy) (English)
- Takeda is one of the Ping Pong Club's most attractive members, recognized for his bowl-cut hairstyle with short bangs. Kyōko harbors a strong romantic interest in him, which culminates in an incident where he touches her breasts while Maeno, Izawa, and Tanaka hide naked in a locker.
- Yūsuke Kinoshita (木之下 ゆうすけ, Kinoshita Yūsuke)
- Voiced by: Susumu Kaseta (Japanese); Wayne Grayson (as Hans Brikfeice) (English)
- Kinoshita is one of the Ping Pong Club's most attractive members, sporting shoulder-length hair and widespread popularity among female students. His composed demeanor makes him a frequent object of admiration, though Maeno and Izawa once manipulate his appearance by dressing him as a woman, leading Tanaka to pursue him. In the English adaptation, he speaks with a relaxed, surfer-like accent.
- Tanaka (田中)
- Voiced by: Yasuhiro Takato (Japanese); Gil Goujons (English)
- Tanaka, a diminutive yet notorious figure in the Ping Pong Club, comes from a family historically associated with peculiar obsessions. He frequently becomes an unwitting participant in Maeno and Izawa's antics and habitually addresses female crushes as "Mommy".
- Gorō Mitchell Tanabe (田辺・ミッチェル・五郎, Tanabe Mitcheru Gorō)
- Voiced by: Masato Amada (Japanese); Dan Green (as Jack Bean) (English)
- Tanabe, a biracial Japanese-American, stands out with his blond hair and blue eyes. Kind-hearted and compassionate, he frequently assists others, particularly his close friend Tanaka. Despite his gentle nature, he struggles with severe body odor, which only pool disinfectant has proven effective against.
- Kyōko Iwashita (岩下 京子, Iwashita Kyōko)
- Voiced by: Sakura Uehara (Japanese); Sharon Becker (as Cookie D'Goodie) (English)
- Kyōko serves as the Ping Pong Club's strict manager, appointed by the principal to curb her rebellious tendencies. She endures the team's persistent advances with barely restrained patience. During a crucial tournament, she motivates the underperforming team by offering a provocative reward—a pass entitling the best player to unrestricted access to her body for a month—which drives them to reach the city finals.
- Chiyoko Kamiya (神谷 ちよこ, Kamiya Chiyoko)
- Voiced by: Nanami Kurosaki (Japanese); Kayzie Rogers (as Paula Brown) (English)
- A shy transfer student develops romantic feelings for Kinoshita and joins the Ping Pong Club to attract his attention. Seeking to improve her skills, she naively chooses Izawa as her instructor. Izawa, who fantasizes about dominating an obedient female student, quickly exploits his position of authority over her.
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Media
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Manga
Written and illustrated by Minoru Furuya, The Ping Pong Club was serialized in Kodansha's seinen manga magazine Weekly Young Magazine from 1993 to 1996.[2] Kodansha collected its chapters in thirteen tankōbon volumes, released from November 6, 1993,[3] to February 6, 1997.[4]
Volumes
Anime
A 26-episode (consisting of two segments each) anime television series adaptation, animated by Grouper Productions, was broadcast in Japan on TBS from April 6 to September 28, 1995.[16]
In North America, the series was licensed by Central Park Media and released under their Software Sculptors label. The series had first a sub only release on VHS starting in 1999.[17] It was later released with an English dub on five DVDs, starting from the fourth volume, released on October 9, 2001;[18] the fifth volume was released on December 11, 2001,[19] and the first to third DVDs were released from August 13 to December 3, 2002.[20][21][22] A DVD box collection was released on December 3, 2002.[23]
Episodes
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Reception
The manga has had over 25 million copies in circulation.[24] In 1996, the manga won the 20th Kodansha Manga Award for general manga.[25]
References
External links
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