Chihayafuru

[phio_chan]

Title: Chihayafuru
Episodes: 25
Status: Ongoing
Aired: Oct 5, 2011 to ??
Producers: Madhouse Studios
Genres: Drama, Sports
Based on a manga: Chihayafuru by Suetsugu Yuki

Summary:
After her sister becomes a top model, 6th-year grade-schooler Ayase Chihaya too dreams of becoming one. However, transfer student Wataya Arata admonishes her to seek her own dream. Thus, she takes up karuta, a Japanese card game, competitively. Together with Arata and Mashima Taichi, Chihaya's childhood friend, they have great fun playing each other, but separate after graduation.

4 years later, Chihaya returns to town. Although Arata no longer plays the game, she believes that they will eventually reunite as long as she continues karuta. Together with Taichi, she establishes the Zuisawa High-school Karuta Club.

Opening Theme: "YOUTHFUL" by 99RadioService
Ending Theme: "Soshite Ima" by Asami Seto

Asami Seto as Chihaya Ayase
Ai Kayano as Kanade Ōe
Mamoru Miyano as Taichi Mashima
Tooru Nara as Yūsei Nishida
Tsubasa Yonaga as Tsutomu Komano
Yoshimasa Hosoya as Arata Wataya

Aya Endo as Chitose Ayase
Ayahi Takagaki as Taichi Mashima (elementary school)
Chika Anzai as Female Elementary Schooler
Houko Kuwashima as Mari Sendani
Kei Murakami as Male Student
Kensuke Satou as Newspaper Man
Kiyono Yasuno as Female Elementary Schooler
Mariko Munakata as Homeroom Teacher
Megumi Han as Female Elementary Schooler
Miho Hino as Michiru Horikawa
Noriko Ueda as Female Student
Shuuji Inaba as Karuta Reader (voice)
Toshiko Fujita as Taeko Miyauchi
Tsubasa Sakurai as Male Student
Yuka Akanami as Female Elementary Schooler
Yuka Nishigaki as Male Elementary Schooler
Yuka Terasaki as Arata Wataya (elementary school)

[naruto-niichan]

Watched the first ep after I read some good receptions and I have to agree, I enjoyed the ep a lot

the characters are likeable, the storytelling was well executed and the animation looks gorgeous.
The story sounded very cliche to me so I was sceptic, yet it turned out the be pretty interesting. The karuta game looks like a cool and fun idea and Arata played it so passionate, really liked his expression there because his feelings got through to me.

and little Chihaya is sooo cute loved how she just spouts out what she thinks, especially when she said to her sis that the other girls must have a more beautiful body than her

the typical love triangle is included so this show kinda reminds me of Hanasaku Iroha, it really looks very promising

[phio_chan]

Watched it today too!

It is not bad for an opening episode. The background of the story was brought well, IMO. The idea behind Karuta card game is totally out of my imagination, though. I wouldn't think that they are going to play with poems! XD The graphic is great too. I love especially the eyes, as it is rather unique. Chihaya changed so much, though, between those years. I'd be interested to see a more competitive game of Karuta in future episodes!

I might check the manga as well. If you are interested in watching the anime, be sure to at least check the manga too!

[naruto-niichan]

Watched it today too!

It is not bad for an opening episode. The background of the story was brought well, IMO. The idea behind Karuta card game is totally out of my imagination, though. I wouldn't think that they are going to play with poems! XD The graphic is great too. I love especially the eyes, as it is rather unique. Chihaya changed so much, though, between those years. I'd be interested to see a more competitive game of Karuta in future episodes!

I might check the manga as well. If you are interested in watching the anime, be sure to at least check the manga too!

well I thought that Karuta sounds like a fun game, definitely not easy but still a refreshing idea. I was kinda excited about the little Karuta tournament and I really was annoyed by Taichi's actions <__< seriously, he seems like a nice guy but his jealousy made him do some pretty pathetic things. Still he's only a kid and he redeemed himself when he said the truth to Wataya the three look like a nice combo and I'm interested to see how they will interact in the future (or present) and as to why they went down different paths.
oh and I felt sorry for Chihaya when her parents only cared for her sis looks like that's a very probable fate when a sibling of you gets famous :/

I enjoyed the second episode pretty much so I might try the manga!

[phio_chan]

Haha, well, it's understandable. He acted all tough as one little kid who is jealous that someone he liked was close to some other random, strange boy... But at least those two had started to open up. Things might not go very well between them as rivals, but at least they might get to understand each other more. It was sad for Chihaya too, right.

That reminds me that at the opening of the episode they all looked very different in the future compared to when they were still a child. Can't wait to see more of the present rather tan re-telling the past!

Yay! Feel free to check the manga. So far it follows the manga pretty closely.

[naruto-niichan]

Haha, well, it's understandable. He acted all tough as one little kid who is jealous that someone he liked was close to some other random, strange boy... But at least those two had started to open up. Things might not go very well between them as rivals, but at least they might get to understand each other more. It was sad for Chihaya too, right.

That reminds me that at the opening of the episode they all looked very different in the future compared to when they were still a child. Can't wait to see more of the present rather tan re-telling the past!

Yay! Feel free to check the manga. So far it follows the manga pretty closely.

well yeah, I agree. I think those two could even become good friends, it's very probable that Taichi is still interested in Karuta so I actually see them forming some kind of friendly trio (in the present).
I agree on the different look, only Wataya doesn't seem to have changed that much. And as much as I'm looking forward to the present, I definitely want to know what lead to them going different paths.

That's good to hear

[phio_chan]

I've just seen episode 3~

Aww, those three kids are so sweet. It's sad to see that this episode might be the last childhood episode we would see, but I'm also excited because maybe from now on we'll get to see the plot advancing. I miss the big Chihaya, Arata, and Taichi. :3 It is also sweet to see how Taichi and Arata managed to become good friends, even fought about who made Chihaya refused to come to the tournament. XD

Sweet episode. Look forward to see more. <3

[naruto-niichan]

I've just seen episode 3~

Aww, those three kids are so sweet. It's sad to see that this episode might be the last childhood episode we would see, but I'm also excited because maybe from now on we'll get to see the plot advancing. I miss the big Chihaya, Arata, and Taichi. :3 It is also sweet to see how Taichi and Arata managed to become good friends, even fought about who made Chihaya refused to come to the tournament. XD

Sweet episode. Look forward to see more. <3

I agree, it was such a cute episode loved their interactions and how they all became friends, looks like my prediction with Arata and Taichi actually becoming friends was spot on I thought all were so cute kids, I really felt sad for them that they had to split up :/ all have their own hardships (Taichi has to be the best whatever he does, Chihaya's parent's focus totally is on her sis, who is by the way very conceited and Arata probably rarely sees his father (at least that's what I guessed) + had to face serious teasing because they don't have much money) so their friendship really made things easier for them or changed their perspective, f.ex. Chihaya finally finding an own dream. As much as I want to see more of them as children, I'm really looking forward to see them in the present and if they will be able to become good friends again.

And I seriously will stick to this show now, seems like a very good watch

[phio_chan]

Seriously, more people need to watch this anime. <3 It's a great one!

I've just seen episode 4. I'm glad now we finally moved forward and returned to the big Chihaya, Taichi, and Arata. Such a fight Chihaya had for karuta. I laughed when Taichi ran around to find chocolates for Chihaya. That's so sweet. XD And it's obvious that even though Taichi said he had a girlfriend, he still had feelings for Chihaya. Poor Chihaya, though, to be denied by Arata that much. I wonder what happened.

[naruto-niichan]

Seriously, more people need to watch this anime. <3 It's a great one!

I've just seen episode 4. I'm glad now we finally moved forward and returned to the big Chihaya, Taichi, and Arata. Such a fight Chihaya had for karuta. I laughed when Taichi ran around to find chocolates for Chihaya. That's so sweet. XD And it's obvious that even though Taichi said he had a girlfriend, he still had feelings for Chihaya. Poor Chihaya, though, to be denied by Arata that much. I wonder what happened.

I definitely agree, the anime is definitely very enjoyable!

Yup and now we got certain proof, he definitely still loves Chihaya. I already see some kind of love triangle coming XD

Sad story with Arata's grandfather but I was so glad when he showed Taichi and Chihaya how me he still cares for them looks like the three of them will be together soon and I'm really looking forward to them working together.

Looks like there will be some new people introduced next ep, wonder who will join there club. And I noticed that the OP changed some scenes, liked it~

[phio_chan]

Episode 5 was so sweet. XD I watched it yesterday or two days ago, but I forgot to post here. :P

Taichi was so cute. I really liked the moments where he tried to gather courage simply to hold Chihaya's hands. I wonder if that girl she met at the train station before was truly his girlfriend. After all, his feelings hadn't changed. Arata too. Who was that girl? She didn't seem to be a family, right? A love triangle will definitely be there. I wonder who Chihaya will choose? XDDD I'm looking forward to know more about Arata. And the club as well! More Karuta battles, haha~

---------- Post added November 09, 2011 at 05:58 PM ---------- Previous post was November 04, 2011 at 08:45 PM ----------

Episode 6~!

Yay for new member! I like how hard Chihaya tried to make Kanade join the club. At some points it felt too pushy and she did it only to get 5 members to start a club, but to see that she truly liked it and that she found something new in playing it, makes me happy as well. Can't wait to see Arata back in action! Putting him in last scene like that is soo full of meaning. XDD

I began to like the soundtrack, especially the opening. <3

[Rowel]

I didn't like Episode 7 quite as much as Episode 6, but it was still a very enjoyable episode overall that was quite consistent with what came before it. Chihayafuru continues to be very tight and solid, and that's rewarding to see this far into it, as anime shows can sometimes sputter a bit after having a strong start by falling into a few weak middle episodes. Chihayafuru, however, is admirably avoiding that so far.

I do think this was a particularly good episode for Taichi. A good character development episode for him, that did a nice job of displaying how he himself is gradually becoming more emotionally invested in Chihaya's karuta club, and is starting to take some personal ownership of it.

Tsutomu is Ok and had a decent-enough introduction, but it was weaker than Kanade's I felt, and that was the main reason I preferred last week's episode a little bit.


I do find it interesting how this anime now has a second protagonist in the "bullied/ostracized kid" category (third if you count Kanade, although that's perhaps too mild to count for bullying). To use this sort of plot device once is no big deal, but to use it twice suggests to me that there's something more at play here than simply trying to give characters distinctive backgrounds.

A couple ideas:

1. The mangaka, Yuki Suetsugu, was herself a victim of bullying, or at least saw a lot of it during her days in school. If so, then this is at least a case of a mangaka following the good old adage of "writing what you know".

2. Suetsugu is trying to convey some sort of practical thematic point by coming back to the "bullied kid" characterization. Thundrakkon put forward some good ideas here, I think.

With this episode, I'm starting to wonder if bullying is more common in Japanese high schools than what I had previously suspected (mainly since I don't recall seeing it as commonly in high school-based anime as I see in high school-based North American tv shows). If anybody is "in the know" here, please feel free to share your knowledge on this topic.


Going back to Taichi for a second, I think his decision to move the card was not mean-spirited, but I do think he was aiming for a dominating victory and was aware that this would help his cause there. I didn't see that as particularly unkind, though. Taichi wants to be the toughest opponent that he can be for Chihaya so that he doesn't feel like he's inferior to Arata as a potential training partner for her (the anime briefly delved into Taichi's understandable insecurities here earlier on in the episode). Plus, the guy is human, and so I can't fault him for desiring the sweet, sweet taste of decisive victory.

Particularly against someone who, frankly, has been pwning his ass pretty badly. I think most hot-blooded males in his shoes would want to not only win, but win huge, against somebody that had been beating him as badly as what Chihaya had been beating Taichi. At a certain level, maybe it's good for Chihaya to be made to feel the way Taichi has been feeling, as she certainly hasn't been taking it easy on him, lol.


Anyway, 8/10 for Episode 7. I'm looking forward to seeing this karuta club finally round out into shape soon.

[phio_chan]

I do think this was a particularly good episode for Taichi. A good character development episode for him, that did a nice job of displaying how he himself is gradually becoming more emotionally invested in Chihaya's karuta club, and is starting to take some personal ownership of it.

Tsutomu is Ok and had a decent-enough introduction, but it was weaker than Kanade's I felt, and that was the main reason I preferred last week's episode a little bit.

Totally agree. It's so sweet to see how Taichi started to view karuta more as part of himself and his dreams, realizing his own wishes and talents compared to Chihaya. I'm looking forward for their future battles and see how Chihaya responds to this weakness she has. ^^

I can understand what you mean; for me I think it's because Kana-chan has something more related to karuta instead of Tsutomu-kun. Maybe we don't know about it yet, but so far it doesn't seem that Tsutomu is interested in karuta as a game in anyway before; that's why it's less special.

Going back to Taichi for a second, I think his decision to move the card was not mean-spirited, but I do think he was aiming for a dominating victory and was aware that this would help his cause there. I didn't see that as particularly unkind, though. Taichi wants to be the toughest opponent that he can be for Chihaya so that he doesn't feel like he's inferior to Arata as a potential training partner for her (the anime briefly delved into Taichi's understandable insecurities here earlier on in the episode). Plus, the guy is human, and so I can't fault him for desiring the sweet, sweet taste of decisive victory.

Particularly against someone who, frankly, has been pwning his ass pretty badly. I think most hot-blooded males in his shoes would want to not only win, but win huge, against somebody that had been beating him as badly as what Chihaya had been beating Taichi. At a certain level, maybe it's good for Chihaya to be made to feel the way Taichi has been feeling, as she certainly hasn't been taking it easy on him, lol.

Bingo. That is exactly the reason behind his act; he wanted to prove it to himself that he could actually do this. I think in previous episode we saw once how Taichi felt that there is no way he could be better, especially better than Chihaya and Arata, even though he keeps on practicing. Now he knows what he can do and Chihaya can't, so I think this would be a good fuel for him to keep supporting Chihaya and karuta club in general.

Great shock theraphy, indeed.

---------- Post added December 07, 2011 at 07:31 PM ---------- Previous post was November 18, 2011 at 09:20 PM ----------

I summon you, Hamy, to this thread... Let us go on a fan-girl round about Arata and Taichi!

Taichi is sooooooo sweet in this last episode, episode 10~ The way he got jealous but still say "Because Chihaya... belongs to both of us.", the way he patted everyone's head and supported them along the competitions, the way he acted as the captain of the team~ I mean, hey, my favorite is Arata as well, but since he has to end up with Chihaya I'll gladly take Taichi.

Interesting turn of events. Desktomu-kun so far is indeed the one with the least motivation to play karuta, but it is a great way to improve his own feelings toward this game. I really want to see how Chihaya would fight with the sadist Sudo(?); he is kinda cute though deadly there. XD

C'mon, more people gotta watch thiiiiiiis~

[naruto-niichan]

I summon you, Hamy, to this thread... Let us go on a fan-girl round about Arata and Taichi!

Taichi is sooooooo sweet in this last episode, episode 10~ The way he got jealous but still say "Because Chihaya... belongs to both of us.", the way he patted everyone's head and supported them along the competitions, the way he acted as the captain of the team~ I mean, hey, my favorite is Arata as well, but since he has to end up with Chihaya I'll gladly take Taichi.

Interesting turn of events. Desktomu-kun so far is indeed the one with the least motivation to play karuta, but it is a great way to improve his own feelings toward this game. I really want to see how Chihaya would fight with the sadist Sudo(?); he is kinda cute though deadly there. XD

C'mon, more people gotta watch thiiiiiiis~

So far I definitely prefer Taichi over Arata, his personality has improved a lot since he was a kid. Loved how he patted everyone, he really is kind and in no way arrogant even though he easily could be after all the awards he won. I like Arata too but for now I would like to see Chihaya end up with Taichi, let's see how things will be when Arata gets into the spotlight. I'm already looking forward to an interesting love triangle XD

And I suppose Sado (dunno if it's his real name though) will be Chihaya's first big enemy. Their opponent team seems to be quite strong and I guess in the end it will come down to a decididing match between the two.

There should definitely be more people watching this, it's jusr gorgeous I'm sure yuki would like it a lot, just because of the bishies XD

[phio_chan]

Ah, I see~ Well, to me Arata is very special since even from that far away place he is at now, his simple words towards Chihaya through Taichi is so adorable. Just... so sweet. *___* Taichi got on me more lately, like you said, ever since he started to try to think of things from different point of view, giving his all in it and actually tried to make the efforts worth it. Not just himself only, but also the whole team. I like that from him. I would love to see Arata did similar thing. That would be an interesting match. ^^

And I suppose Sado (dunno if it's his real name though) will be Chihaya's first big enemy. Their opponent team seems to be quite strong and I guess in the end it will come down to a decididing match between the two.

It sounds like a nickname for "Sadist", don't you think?
Yeah, I also agree that this person would be a formidable enemy for Chihaya. Do you think Chihaya and the team would win this? Somehow I think it would be best for them to lose. If they win all the way, it won't be interesting since it would be too easy for a new team like them... But then again, going up means bigger chance to meet Arata so... Hard to choose. XD

There should definitely be more people watching this, it's jusr gorgeous I'm sure yuki would like it a lot, just because of the bishies XD

There are only Arata and Taichi worth being looked on, I don't think she''ll love it much.