Aim for the Ace!

Aim for the Ace!

Cover of manga volume 1.
エースをねらえ!
(Ēsu o Nerae!)
Genre Sports, Romance
Manga
Written by Sumika Yamamoto
Published by Shueisha
Demographic Shōjo
Magazine Margaret
Original run 1973 – 1980
Volumes 18
TV anime
Directed by Osamu Dezaki
Studio Tokyo Movie Shinsha, Studio Madhouse
Network MBS
Original run October 5, 1973 – March 29, 1974
Episodes 26
TV anime
The New Aim for the Ace!
Directed by Minoru Okazaki
Studio Tokyo Movie Shinsha
Network NTV
Original run October 14, 1978 – March 31, 1979
Episodes 25
Anime film
Directed by Osamu Dezaki
Produced by Yutaka Fujioka
Written by Keisuke Fujikawa
Music by Kōji Makaino
Released September 8, 1979
Original video animation
Aim for the Ace! 2
Directed by Noboru Furuse
Written by Makiko Mikami
Rika Kaidō
Released 25 July 1988 – 25 October 1988
Episodes 13
Original video animation
Aim for the Ace! Final Stage
Directed by Osamu Dezaki
Written by Masami Mori
Rika Kaidō
Released 25 October 1989 – 25 April 1990
Episodes 12
TV drama
Directed by Hidetomo Matsuda (Kyodo) Junji Muguruma (TV Asahi)
Written by Akiyo Takigawa
Network TV Asahi
Kyodo
Original run January 15, 2004 – March 11, 2004
Episodes 7 + 2 special episodes
Anime and Manga Portal

Aim for the Ace! (エースをねらえ! Ēsu o Nerae!?) is a sports shōjo manga by Sumika Yamamoto begun in 1972 and serialized in Margaret. Hugely successful, it was adapted into a TV anime series in 1973 by Tokyo Movie Shinsha with the Madhouse animation studio (its first major production), and was originally aired on MBS.

Another TV anime, a movie retelling of the first series, and two OAVs followed in the 1970s and 1980s. More recently, a live-action drama series aired in 2004. The original TV anime has been distributed in Europe, with the titles Jenny la tennista or "Jenny, the Tennis Player" (Italian), Jeu, Set et Match, or "Game, Set and Match" (French), and Raqueta de oro or "Golden Racket" (Spanish).

Contents

Synopsis

The story is about Hiromi Oka, a high school girl who struggles to become good at tennis. Hiromi starts playing tennis in her high school, Nishiko, because she is fascinated by an older girl, Reika Ryūzaki, who is the best player in the team and is nicknamed "Madame Butterfly" (お蝶夫人 "Ochōfujin"?) because of her grace on the tennis court. The team gets a new coach, Jin Munakata, who sees potential in her and trains her to become a great tennis player. Hiromi struggles to overcome her mental weakness. Nishiko is modeled after Urawanishi High School, from which the author graduated.

Later on, she falls in love with another tennis player, Takayuki Tōdō, but Coach Munakata tells her not to get too involved, and that it is better to forget him in order to become a better player. Hiromi suffers over this, and many times she loses her confidence in her playing abilities, but with the support of her coach and her many friends she overcomes her anxiety. By training herself to become a better player, Hiromi grows into a mentally stronger person. Hiromi's enthusiasm and love for tennis, and the support from people around her, helps her to become one of the best players in the world.

Characters

Sequels to the anime

Drama version

Ēsu o Nerae! was adapted into a 2004 Japanese drama series by TV Asahi. The theme song of the show was "Ai no Tame ni" by Aya Ueto who also starred in the leading role. It was broadcast weekly at 21:00 on Thursdays.

TV series staff

Video game

Aim for the Ace! (エーズをねらえ！ Ēsu o Nerae?) is a story-driven tennis Super Famicom video game[1] for girls, based on the manga of the same name. It was developed by Nippon Telenet and released on December 22, 1993. The main character has to win the love of an older student by winning in a tennis tournament. The object in the game is to beat the opponents while trying not to get distracted by the early 3D rotational graphics (aka Mode 7). There is even a practice mode for younger girls who wish to brush up on their tennis skills before taking on the real competition.

See also

External links

References

  1. ^ "Ace o Nerae! (SFC)". at GameFAQs. http://www.gamefaqs.com/snes/571014-ace-o-nerae/data. 
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Television series
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Video games