Ping Pong, Vol. 2

Description

Ace high school table tennis players push their passion to the limit in this story of self-discovery, told by Eisner Award winner Taiyo Matsumoto. Makoto "Smile" Tsukimoto doesn't smile even though he's got a natural talent for playing ping pong. As one of the best players in school, all hopes are on him to win the regional high school tournament, but winning is not what Smile really wants to do. Will the fierce competition to be number one bring out his best or drive him away from the game? Ping Pong is Taiyo Matsumoto's masterwork reflection on friendship and self-discovery, presented here in two volumes, featuring color art, the bonus story "Tamura" and an afterword by the original Japanese series editor. Translated by Michael Arias, director of Tekkonkinkreet. Things have changed since the last inter-high tournament. Peco has quit the game, and "Smile" Tsukimoto's desire to play is gone. Even "Demon" Sakuma has been kicked off the Kaio team. But Coach Koizumi isn't going to let all that talent go to waste and launches a plan to get Tsukimoto back on the team and into top condition. Every great athlete needs a great rival to push them past their limits, and Peco and Smile-friends since they were children-must now challenge each other to become the heroes they always dreamed they could be.

Taiyo Matsumoto is best known to English-reading audiences as the creator of Tekkonkinkreet, which in 2006 was made into an animated feature film of the same name, directed by Michael Arias. In 2007, Matsumoto was awarded the Japan Media Arts Festival Excellence Award, and in 2008 he won an Eisner Award for the English publication of Tekkonkinkreet.