I’m not someone who watches mainland Chinese dramas but this one popped up on Netflix and I managed to binge-watch all 40 episodes and am watching from the start again! It’s that good. Based on a manga series by Takeshi Konomi, 奋斗吧，少年！is about how Lu Xia (played by Peng Yu Chang) returns from living abroad with his parents, and joins a high school tennis team. Lu Xia’s goal has always been about beating his father at tennis but the latter, a legendary tennis player, wins every single time. Lu Xia is unable to find joy in playing tennis and because he’s been replicating his father’s playing style, he becomes easy to beat by older players familiar with Lu Xiangqian’s style. However, when compared with his peers, Lu Xia does seem like a “prodigy”.
I’m not a fan of the sullen-faced Lu Xia, often shocked at his tardiness (he’s been late numerous times for competitions), his daydreaming in class, and I don’t find him particularly attractive. And standing at 1.68m tall, he’s not your usual tall and handsome lead.
And even though they are about the same height, Zhuo Zhi is very different. Also known for being a ‘genius’ at tennis, Zhuo Zhi is someone who doesn’t care much about winning or losing. He’s a really sweet older brother to Zhuo Yu and he’s also very observant and sensitive. If someone in the team is feeling troubled, you can trust Zhuo Zhi to be the first to notice. Also, he’s the only one who seems impervious to the effects of Yan Zhiming’s ‘Yan Juice’ – a dangerous concoction that boosts energy levels but can leave the drinker sprawled on the ground after as it’s incredibly bitter-tasting. 
In the picture above, you see Zhuo Zhi taking part in a competition. His opponent is a devilish young man (Yuan Chi, played by Shen Qi) whose eyes turn red when he’s in a sort of beast mode – he’s known for intentionally injuring other players. He’d hurt Lu Xia’s knee previously and in this competition, he hit a ball towards the back of Zhuo Zhi’s head and the latter experienced temporary visual impairment as a result. Since he couldn’t see well, Zhuo Zhi decided to fight on with his eyes closed, instead of forfeiting the match. Incredibly, he won the match 7 – 5. Watch episode 39 if you’d like to see this amazing competition.
And actually I shouldn’t have been surprised that Zhuo Zhi could compete with his eyes shut. Lu Xiangqian had worn a blindfold in episode 24 when playing tennis with Lu Xia. 
Thanks to the drama’s special effects, we get to enjoy watching Zhuo Zhi’s three ‘returns’: Swallows Return, Bear Growl, and White Whale. He’s certainly a formidable player and one to watch out for when you’re enjoying this drama series.
Also, the supporting cast certainly shine as well. For example, Huang Jing and his sidekick Xiu Wen, have made me laugh very often.
My #2 Favourite Character: Lu Xiangqian, played by Wu Qi Jiang
The older Lu is incredibly funny. Having retired from playing tennis professionally, he spends his days… well… enjoying life! He enjoys cooking but Lu Xia doesn’t always seem to appreciate what the older Lu whips up, such as durian fried rice, yabby pizza, and his ‘Ginger Soda with Braised Pork Belly Jelly’ which all seem so out-of-this-world. I love his optimistic outlook on life and his funny antics – from stalking his son who has gone out to meet a female classmate, donning a Spiderman face mask to watch one of his son’s tennis matches, and saying he got into a “car accident” when all that happened was the car door had slammed shut on his pinky finger.
My #3 Favourite Character: Tang Jiale, played by Xu Ke
Tang Jiale is a very lovable character. He’s good-looking (mega manga-type eyes with double eyelids!) and very funny, with a dazzling style of “acrobatics tennis” (what with the pink sparkles added during post-production). I think he looks Japanese, actually, which is perfect for this show.
You can stalk/follow him on Instagram @xukxuk
#4 Favourite Character: Qiao Chen, played by Dong Li
Qiao Chen can sometimes seem like a bit of a nimwit. He loves hamburgers and eating competitions. In real life, he used to be a member of the Chinese National Fencing Team and in ‘The Prince of Tennis’, it was mentioned that he was trained in fencing. His ‘Vertical Smash’ is pretty famous in this show. If not for his constant locking horns with Baiyang, which can get quite annoying, he’d rank a little higher.
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Like in a Jack Neo movie, you won’t miss the overt product placements. For instance, the Xiao Mi Hu 小迷糊 face masks appear every so often. (@_@) That said, I did end up getting cravings for roast goose as the ones in this show look SO good. One of the members of the tennis team (Xinglong) often invites the team over to his father’s roast goose restaurant hence you may start wondering where you can get your hands on a platter of roast goose. I have. Yum.
I guess one plot hole is how the team captain Mu Siyang is struggling to play tennis using his right hand (at the team retreat) because his left arm has an old injury. As a freshman, he beat his seniors on the tennis team while playing using his right hand. And it is precisely because one of them found out Siyang is actually left-handed, got incensed after losing (and supposedly being slighted), that the older guy hit Siyang’s left arm with his racket and caused the injury. I’m not sure why two years after that, he cannot play well with his right hand. Hmm. Still, his ‘Zero Chip’ and ‘Absolute Area’ moves make his competitions so worth watching.
Season 1 aired in 2019… and ends with the players qualifying for the National Championship. This year, Season 2 of ‘The Prince of Tennis’ will supposedly air on October 13th. Hopefully we’ll see it on Netflix too. I can’t wait.
