Review of Ping Pong the Animation

The art, as you can imagine distinguishes this anime from the get-go, putting it closer to "Aku no Hana" and further from most sports anime. Accordingly, the story is leaning a lot on the characters& their struggles through the lens of the sport, not that much on the sport itself. Plot-wise, expect a classic sports anime set up that doesn’t stray too much from that, complete with a tournament arc. It does have a full ending though which is always a big plus. A top player who tries as hard as he possibly can, does everything mechanically, just to win. Winning is expected, not fun. A skillful playerwho is afraid to win, so he prefers to run and hide from his bullies and personal demons.
An arrogant player who talks big but now can't land a single point against a strong opponent. He promised to be a hero, but the hero never came.
Old players, trying to keep the new ones from repeating their mistakes.

The way the characters interact with each other and is great, learning and overcoming their problems& growing stronger accordingly. All of them have very different issues, so it’s not repetitive.

The animation is a big selling point, as it can warp and bend in accordance with the directors ideas, without hesitating to go past what’s pretty. This is a critical point that quite a few watchers might not be able to go past. It really fits the plot though, adding a gritty quirkiness and is a big part of the anime. Without it, I think the anime would lose a lot of its appeal.

Personally, even though I appreciated all of the above this anime didn't quite hit the mark to go above a "good". As I mentioned, the characters and their development was good, but plot wise it didn’t hold many surprises and was pretty weak. Most side characters were neutral to indifferent and aside from very few points I couldn’t bring myself to cheer for the main 3 characters. Art was fitting, not exceptional, but it carried the show nonetheless.

Overall: Worth checking if you have the time and feel free to decide on your own!