I have found myself becoming an Azuma fan as well! At first I thought he was going to be an egotistical jerk, but he's actually kind of charming. He respects people with talent. And I love his reason for working so hard at baseball. Any guy who loves his brother that much is OK in my book. I've also been enjoying how he's trying to train Ko to be a better player; he's not exactly eloquent, but I think Ko realizes what he's trying to do. One of my favorite scenes is the part in vol 3 where he purposefully injures his hand. The look on Coach Daimon's face is priceless, and Azuma's just got this little smirk. It's interesting to watch his respect for Daimon fade more and more as he realizes how blind and arrogant the coach is. Of course, I also really love the scene where he's talking to Ko on base, and Ko confesses he didn't expect Azuma to hit his balls. And next thing, Azuma throws a smooth double play (or something), as if to say, "don't get cocky, kid."

posted by: Kris on 2011-05-28 15:44:52