五つの単語批評❕ Wonderful characters, boring love-triangle. Footnote: I'm surprised to see so many negative reviews of an anime I enjoyed quite a bit. Princess Nine is certainly no masterwork, but it features some really great character drama, intense action scenes, and a cast you really want to see succeed. Two gripes: (1) The boy drama is pretty bad, and the climax in the final episode is very nearly derailed by insisting said boy drama take the spotlight instead of the MUCH more interesting rivalry. (2) It's too short. Much of the run-time is spent gathering and training the team, so, by the time we get to actual baseball, there aren'tenough episodes left, and we're left rushing through what seems like a season's worth of material in a few episodes.

Beyond that, Nine is just plain fantastic. The art gleefully bends and warps a baseball in all kinds of unnatural ways to communicate the intensity each moment I've never been so entertained by a little white sphere! Every major character visibly grows throughout the series, and they also contribute to the team both as players and as personalities. It's an ensemble cast in the very best sense of the word: These characters need one another, and - when they pull together - amazing things can happen.

Also, screw the boy drama, Ryo and Izumi just need to kiss already!