Hoshiai no Sora picks up where Mix left off in terms of character-driven sports dramas. Between those two and Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru at the start of the year, we’ve had a strong representative for the genre at all points during 2019. Though it’s just two episodes old, Hoshiai has the potential to be the best of the lot, thanks to the steady pace of its character writing and the lack of shortcuts in its athletics animation. While this episode didn’t have a bombshell ending to match the final moments of the premiere, it pulled its weight by deepening the show’s cast, among several other improvements. This was one of my most anticipated series of the fall, and things are looking good so far, but to put it in tennis terms, it’s still early in the first set.