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テニスの王子様 [Tennis no Ōjisama] #21
The Prince of Tennis, Volume 21: Kikamaru's New Step
Rokkaku's not going down without a fight. And Rikkai is better than expected. It's up to Eiji--and Ryoma--to pull out all the stops for Seishun! Can their new moves turn the tables?
192 pages, Paperback
First published December 4, 2003
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
September 20, 2015
The Eiji and Fuji match heats up, and then the floor is open for Kaido to take on Rokkaku's seventh grade pressure-player Kintaro. The tennis is exciting; it's developed and fun but not drawn out enough to make readers groan and skip pages.
This volume brings us back to the magical tennis, at some points featuring three Eijis on the court at once. I wish I could run that fast! By developing this new step, Eiji reminds the team that he too can evolve, and that playing with partners other than Oishi has changed his game for the better. That said, the focus on strategy in Volume 20 made for a stronger story than this volume: the magical tennis - and everyone's ability to develop these shots - takes away from the depth and struggle of the story; everyone solves their problems with super-secret training that results in magic, and their characters lose opportunities to develop instead.
I also wish Sakuno and Tomo got more page-time: they're featured in one frame and that's it. Sakuno was set up to be an important character in the first volumes; why has she disappeared now? Personally, I believe that fewer characters allow for development of the more important ones. Perhaps Sakuno and Tomo should have been omitted if they weren't going to be central to the story (it's tough to remember all the side characters' names).
One final note - not necessarily a bad thing, but does anyone really think the cover art depicts a seventh grader? That drawing of Ryoma makes him look like a college student.
This volume brings us back to the magical tennis, at some points featuring three Eijis on the court at once. I wish I could run that fast! By developing this new step, Eiji reminds the team that he too can evolve, and that playing with partners other than Oishi has changed his game for the better. That said, the focus on strategy in Volume 20 made for a stronger story than this volume: the magical tennis - and everyone's ability to develop these shots - takes away from the depth and struggle of the story; everyone solves their problems with super-secret training that results in magic, and their characters lose opportunities to develop instead.
I also wish Sakuno and Tomo got more page-time: they're featured in one frame and that's it. Sakuno was set up to be an important character in the first volumes; why has she disappeared now? Personally, I believe that fewer characters allow for development of the more important ones. Perhaps Sakuno and Tomo should have been omitted if they weren't going to be central to the story (it's tough to remember all the side characters' names).
One final note - not necessarily a bad thing, but does anyone really think the cover art depicts a seventh grader? That drawing of Ryoma makes him look like a college student.
January 18, 2020
The Prince of Tennis, Vol. 21 continues where the previous tankōbon left off and contains the next nine chapters (177–185) of the on-going manga series.
The tankōbon completes the Semifinals Match of the Kantō Prefecture Tournament having Seishun Academy playing against Rokkaku Middle School. It finishes the second Doubles Match with Shūsuke Fuji and Eiji Kikumaru. Despite being matched evenly, Kikumaru reveals a technique that he has been working on, which he hoped to reveal during the Nationals, but was forced to do it in this match in the Prefectural. With great speed, Kikumaru seems to be in many places at the same time. With this technique Seishun Academy wins its second match with a score of 6–3.
The first singles match was surprisingly taken by Kaoru Kaidō and he's playing against Kentarō Aōi. Kaidō started out strongly, as Aōi lost the first four sets on purpose. Aōi quickly catches up in no time when playing seriously, but Kaidō won't give up so easily – even when he's bleeding, which he gives Seishun Academy its third win with a score of 7–5. Seishun Academy defeats Rokkaku Middle School and proceeds to finals to play against Rikkaidai Junior High School.
Afterwards, Seishun Academy learns that Rikkaidai Junior High School not only defeated Fudōmine Middle School, but dominated them completely and won their semifinals match in three straight sets: 6–0, 6–0, and 6–1. Seishun Academy has to get through a great foe to win the Kantō Prefecture Tournament.
This tankōbon is written and illustrated by Takeshi Konomi. The Semifinals of the Kantō Regional Tournament has concluded with Seishun Academy beating Rokkaku Middle School in three hard won straight sets: 7–6, 6–3, and 7–5. Rikkaidai Junior High School was introduced as a school with an extremely strong tennis team as they won the last two Nationals titles – an even formable team that Seishun Academy has to get through.
All in all, The Prince of Tennis, Vol. 21 is a wonderful continuation to a series that seems intriguing and I cannot wait to read more.
The tankōbon completes the Semifinals Match of the Kantō Prefecture Tournament having Seishun Academy playing against Rokkaku Middle School. It finishes the second Doubles Match with Shūsuke Fuji and Eiji Kikumaru. Despite being matched evenly, Kikumaru reveals a technique that he has been working on, which he hoped to reveal during the Nationals, but was forced to do it in this match in the Prefectural. With great speed, Kikumaru seems to be in many places at the same time. With this technique Seishun Academy wins its second match with a score of 6–3.
The first singles match was surprisingly taken by Kaoru Kaidō and he's playing against Kentarō Aōi. Kaidō started out strongly, as Aōi lost the first four sets on purpose. Aōi quickly catches up in no time when playing seriously, but Kaidō won't give up so easily – even when he's bleeding, which he gives Seishun Academy its third win with a score of 7–5. Seishun Academy defeats Rokkaku Middle School and proceeds to finals to play against Rikkaidai Junior High School.
Afterwards, Seishun Academy learns that Rikkaidai Junior High School not only defeated Fudōmine Middle School, but dominated them completely and won their semifinals match in three straight sets: 6–0, 6–0, and 6–1. Seishun Academy has to get through a great foe to win the Kantō Prefecture Tournament.
This tankōbon is written and illustrated by Takeshi Konomi. The Semifinals of the Kantō Regional Tournament has concluded with Seishun Academy beating Rokkaku Middle School in three hard won straight sets: 7–6, 6–3, and 7–5. Rikkaidai Junior High School was introduced as a school with an extremely strong tennis team as they won the last two Nationals titles – an even formable team that Seishun Academy has to get through.
All in all, The Prince of Tennis, Vol. 21 is a wonderful continuation to a series that seems intriguing and I cannot wait to read more.
May 27, 2025
5/5 (Review is for the series as a whole and does not contain spoilers)
This series follows 7th grader Ryoma Echizen as he strives to become the number one tennis player at his junior high school. Throughout the series, Ryoma faces off against numerous opponents, each one stronger than the last, in an effort to help lead his tennis team to becoming the champions of the National Tennis Tournament.
This series is a cute, action packed story about some junior high school students playing tennis. No prior knowledge of tennis is necessary, as the author takes the time to explain how certain shots are executed and briefly mentions which professional tennis players may use those shots. As the story progresses, some of the tennis shots get a bit more unrealistic and overly dramatic, but it adds to the excitement and builds tension. (So note that if you are an avid tennis player, it might seem a bit out there in terms of realism.) This is a great series for people who enjoy sports manga, and who enjoy competition, as the boys in this manga continue to push each other to new heights in their skills. There are also some good lessons in the story that teach the readers about having fun and continuing to persevere even when things get tough. It also teaches readers that sometimes we lose, and that’s okay too. In terms of age ratings, I would say that this series is a safe one for those in middle school, or perhaps even a bit younger. Overall, I really enjoyed this manga for its low stakes, fun action, and enjoyable cast of characters.
This series follows 7th grader Ryoma Echizen as he strives to become the number one tennis player at his junior high school. Throughout the series, Ryoma faces off against numerous opponents, each one stronger than the last, in an effort to help lead his tennis team to becoming the champions of the National Tennis Tournament.
This series is a cute, action packed story about some junior high school students playing tennis. No prior knowledge of tennis is necessary, as the author takes the time to explain how certain shots are executed and briefly mentions which professional tennis players may use those shots. As the story progresses, some of the tennis shots get a bit more unrealistic and overly dramatic, but it adds to the excitement and builds tension. (So note that if you are an avid tennis player, it might seem a bit out there in terms of realism.) This is a great series for people who enjoy sports manga, and who enjoy competition, as the boys in this manga continue to push each other to new heights in their skills. There are also some good lessons in the story that teach the readers about having fun and continuing to persevere even when things get tough. It also teaches readers that sometimes we lose, and that’s okay too. In terms of age ratings, I would say that this series is a safe one for those in middle school, or perhaps even a bit younger. Overall, I really enjoyed this manga for its low stakes, fun action, and enjoyable cast of characters.
December 31, 2021
Shusuke and Taka win their hard fought match against Marehiko and Kojiro. Kaido wins his match against the 7th grade phenom Kentaro. That puts Sheisun academy in the final round of the Kanto tournament.
Fudomine is dominated by last year's National Winner's Rikkai who also move on to the final round.
Fudomine is dominated by last year's National Winner's Rikkai who also move on to the final round.
October 3, 2023
There's some good stuff in this volume but it gets one star for that kage bunshin no jutsu stuff. There's a suspension if disbelief in shonen manga and I can put up with characters jumping massive heights, with perfect ball control, and all this other stuff... but moving so fast you make clones of yourself? Nah. Not about it.
January 3, 2010
One question: why don't the Seishun players ever take off their jackets when they play these epic matches?
June 25, 2015
#Program BUBU
Pertama kali dibeli dan dibaca pada bulan April 2007.
Pertama kali dibeli dan dibaca pada bulan April 2007.
July 28, 2015
Short review for the whole manga in tankobon #1.
September 13, 2015
Anime/Manga differences:
Interesting... It was Kaidoh that played againts Kentarou and then something's a-brewing in the meet-up between Kirihara and Ryoma!
Interesting... It was Kaidoh that played againts Kentarou and then something's a-brewing in the meet-up between Kirihara and Ryoma!
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews