Ping Pong the Animation (2014)

Animation · Drama · Sport

Makoto 'Smile' Tsukimoto and his friend Yutaka 'Peco' Hoshino have been playing table tennis together since they were kids, but as they enter high school, they find that the game, and how they see it, has changed. Peco, brimming with confidence and energy, wants to be the best in the world, but the reserved Smile has little fighting spirit and doesn't want to sacrifice others' happiness just to win, despite his innate talent. As the two grow, and experience the ups and downs of the sport – and life – they try to figure out exactly who they really are and what drives them to play.

IMDb rating: 8.6 (6,516 votes)
Episode average: 8.4 -0.2 vs IMDb
Seasons: 1
Streaming (US): Crunchyroll
Language: JA
Type: Mini-series

Rating trend: this show's seasons do not settle into one shape. Rising Shows ranks whole shows by the shape of their rating trend rather than one average score, which is how you find a show that got better rather than a show that started well.

Browse shows by rating shape → Open in Rising Shows app → View on IMDb

Ratings refreshed Oct 3, 2026 · 1 season indexed

Cast

Seasons

Season 1 (2014)

8.40 avg 11 episodes 7.9 → 9.2 23 min avg

Season 1 episodes - IMDb ratings
#	Title	Rating	Votes
1	The Wind Makes It Too Hard to Hear	7.9	405
2	Smile's a Robot	8.3	368
3	Devoting Your Life to Table Tennis is Creepy	8.3	351
4	The Only Way to Be Sure You Won't Lose is to Not Fight	8.1	337
5	Where Did I Go Wrong?	7.9	336
6	You Love Table Tennis More Than Anyone Else!	8.4	356
7	Yes, My Coach	7.8	324
8	The Hero Appears	8.6	362
9	I'm Gonna Go Cry a Bit	8.7	361
10	You're the Hero, Aren't You?	9.2	494
11	My Blood Tastes Like Iron	9.2	470