Featured Anime Discussion - Chihayafuru

Offline

May 2013

904

~ Chihayafuru ~

Synopsis

"Chihaya Ayase is a frank and ebullient girl who becomes fascinated by the obscure world of competitive karuta, a card game based on Japanese poetry. Introduced to the aggressive style of the game by a quiet and thoughtful elementary school classmate named Arata Wataya, the two quickly become close friends. They start playing as a group with Taichi Mashima, Chihaya's smart and athletic childhood friend, until they have to part ways during their middle school years due to several circumstances. As their high school life begins, they meet once again."

______________________________________________________________________________

Warning

This thread might contain spoilers from the the most recent aired episode. If you have not seen this anime and don't want it spoilers be careful.

______________________________________________________________________________

Check more Discussions on the Index

HarusJan 28, 2016 6:28 AM

Dec 28, 2015 12:46 PM

Offline

Jul 2015

2641

I'll just paste what I had last time :P

I gotta give major props to Chihayafuru. This is the first sports series I've watched and really enjoyed. Amazing how tense it can make scenes kneely and slapping your hands against the ground seem! Not trying to be reductive of the sport, but I never really gave Karuta much thought or interest until watching this, and since completing it I've actually gone and watched a couple full real life Karuta matches.

Really great characters too, especially many of the supporting ones. They make the team balance so fun to watch. I particularly loved Oe. Gosh such a sweetheart! <3

Dec 28, 2015 12:52 PM

Demonarion

Offline

Apr 2014

5964

I liked it.

What I didn't like and what caused me to give it a 7 instead of an 8 is how Chihaya would become a mental or emotional wreckage everytime something happened thus causing her to lose.
It irritated me the most in her battle against the previous Queen(forgot her name).
She did a sort of non-emotional forced smile and when Chihaya saw it she started contemplating her entire life and then something minor happened and she went into full gloom mode and lost the match that she was doing so well in.

I don't feel like watching S2.
7/10

Dec 28, 2015 12:52 PM

Tarotist

Offline

May 2015

10936

SEASON 2! SEASON 2! SEASON 2! SEASON 2!

Dec 28, 2015 1:09 PM

Offline

May 2013

904

I really like Chihayafuru, it's a refreshing, light-hearted sports anime that is still capable to create some dramatic tension, and with likeable characters (Taichi~~~)
Also, it's pretty.

This track is love

Dec 28, 2015 1:29 PM

Offline

Jul 2018

561872

When I first heard about this anime, I thought how an anime about Karuta can be ranked 172th, and has an average rating of 8.36. Madhouse proved me wrong.

Story:

The story was pretty well written I think. They made karuta interesting to watch. This anime would be sitting in the dumps if they haven't achieved that.

Most sports anime are limited in terms of telling the story. Like @Mystifire said, there's only two outcomes. A win or a loss. But each match was fun to watch. It was fast. It was tense. I really felt the fun of karuta from each of the matches.

Sound:

I like the opening and the ending song a lot. The OST fit with the anime. Nothing much to say except it was done well.

Art:

Each scene was colorful and done to a high level. If only DEEN and Toei can learn from this XD.

Characters:

The best thing about this show! I found all of the characters to be likable. They were all unique and interesting to watch. Not only that, but each one was developed as the story progresses. I don't think a single character was written off.

I kind of agree with what @Demonarion says in terms of Chihaya, and I definitely got annoyed at her during the match against the previous Queen, but I think it also just shows how much she loves karuta. She made her friends because of it, and also remember that her family acknowledged her achievements in karuta, when it was thought that they only really payed attention to her sister. So losing a match for her meant a lot.

I'll be definitely watching S2 when I have the time. Overall I rated it a 8.

Dec 28, 2015 1:40 PM

Offline

Jul 2015

2641

Viyrew said:
I don't think a single character was written off.

I would almost argue in a way Arata was. Like he was constantly referenced and made appearances now and then, but I would've loved to see more of him.
*mumbles* Especially since I am 100% Team Arata *mumbles*

Dec 28, 2015 1:44 PM

Achillea

Offline

Jun 2015

372

I really enjoyed Chihayafuru, even though I thought I probably wouldn't be that interested in a sports anime. Of course, karuta isn't a very typical sport, so maybe that helped. ^^

It made me become kind of interested in the game as well, though I think I'd never be able to read the cards fast enough to be able to play, even in a casual way. XD I can decipher some Hiragana, but at a snail's pace...

I also liked that they gave all of the characters enough room to develop. I think it's also nice that we get to know a little more about the Queen and previous Queen. It's a nice touch to get an insight in their backstories.
The development of their teacher/club advisor was also rather nice. I liked how she gradually warmed up to the club and started to appreciate it.

The music was great, in my opinion. There was a good number of different themes, and they used them very well. I even started to recognize some of the tracks by their first notes as the show went on. It's definitely a soundtrack I'd listen to again.

Demonarion said:
What I didn't like and what caused me to give it a 7 instead of an 8 is how Chihaya would become a mental or emotional wreckage everytime something happened thus causing her to lose.

I agree, after some episodes I was almost as upset as the characters. XD It's so frustrating to see Chihaya break down during most of her matches, but I guess that's the way she is... -.- Maybe it irritated me especially because I tend to lose my cool in tense situations, too, though. (I'm not trying to say that that might be the case for you too or anything!!)

Still, I'll definitely put season 2 on my Plan to Watch. I'm really interested how the story goes on. :)

Dec 28, 2015 1:50 PM

Offline

May 2013

904

Mystifire said:

*mumbles* Especially since I am 100% Team Arata *mumbles*

Grrrr >__>

Dec 28, 2015 1:53 PM

#10

Offline

Jul 2018

561872

Go go team Taichi!

removed-userDec 28, 2015 1:53 PM

Dec 28, 2015 1:56 PM

#11

Offline

Jul 2015

2641

Tsubameko said:

I also liked that they gave all of the characters enough room to develop. I think it's also nice that we get to know a little more about the Queen and previous Queen. It's a nice touch to get an insight in their backstories.

Yeah I was really worried that after the introduction of the Queen she was going to feel like a really forced, tacked on character, but they handled her very well too. She's definitely one of my favorite rival/villain characters I've ever seen from an anime now!

Dec 28, 2015 1:59 PM

#12

Tarotist

Offline

May 2015

10936

Mystifire said:

And she only gets better in season 2...

Dec 28, 2015 2:03 PM

#13

Achillea

Offline

Jun 2015

372

Tarotist said:

Mystifire said:

And she only gets better in season 2...

Well, that sounds good! :) I'm looking forward to it already!

Dec 28, 2015 2:05 PM

#14

Offline

Jul 2015

2641

Tarotist said:

Mystifire said:

And she only gets better in season 2...

Very true!

(Season 2 spoilers below)

Dec 28, 2015 2:11 PM

#15

Offline

Jul 2018

561872

We can expect for season 3 when hxh goes off hiatus and One piece finishes. So like....never ;_;.

Dec 28, 2015 2:16 PM

#16

Offline

Jul 2015

2641

Viyrew said:
We can expect for season 3 when hxh goes off hiatus and One piece finishes. So like....never ;_;.

But! But!!

Dec 28, 2015 2:27 PM

#17

Tweststrate

Offline

Sep 2014

260

hahaha i know the feeling xd although not for this series necessarily

Dec 28, 2015 2:34 PM

#18

Offline

Jul 2018

561872

Tweststrate said:
hahaha i know the feeling xd although not for this series necessarily

Yes yes, no sequels matter as long as we get a raildex s3 :P.

Dec 28, 2015 2:40 PM

#19

Tweststrate

Offline

Sep 2014

260

Viyrew said:

Tweststrate said:
hahaha i know the feeling xd although not for this series necessarily

Yes yes, no sequels matter as long as we get a raildex s3 :P.

no game no life sequel for me please xd

TweststrateDec 28, 2015 2:40 PM

Dec 29, 2015 5:14 AM

#20

Speakss

Offline

Dec 2012

1283

Mystifire said:

Viyrew said:
We can expect for season 3 when hxh goes off hiatus and One piece finishes. So like....never ;_;.

But! But!!

They made season 2 a few months after there was enough material for them to make another full season out of manga material. We can only hope, that once the manga gets another 40chapters longer, they'll decide to make a third 2-cour season to boost the sells of the final chapters of the manga.

Dec 29, 2015 6:12 PM

#21

Harus

Offline

Mar 2013

12814

Well I have to start by saying it was a great surprise.
I honestly wasn't expecting the anime to be this good, the story is good and they manage to create a really good anime with a pretty unknown sport. I had heard about the 100 poems before but never about the Karuta.

It follows the somewhat normal course of an sports anime, starting , creating a club, getting members, and winning and losing matches.
All the 5 club members were good characters, which is somewhat rare.
The side couple is also really nice.

I think the Anime is somewhere around an 8~9.
Still I'll give it a 9!
Because I actually went after some poems and they are really interesting and some other reasons hehe.

Also go team Taichi! ~ (aka Suna jr)

Dec 29, 2015 6:23 PM

#22

Zaheezy

Offline

Feb 2015

17648

I guess I'll copy/paste my mini-review from the other topic

-Cheez- said:
I went into this anime thinking it would be kind of silly. I mean, an anime about a regular card game that doesn't involve sending your opponents to the Shadow Realm doesn't really sound very interesting. After having watched it, I found myself very much so mistaken.

Art: 9/10
I really liked the art style for some reason. The characters and backgrounds all look really good.

Sound: 8/10
The voice acting was solid and the music fit.

Story: 7.5/10
Nothing too special here. I felt as though I'd seen many of the same things before. For example, the MC getting beat by the big boss early on but instead of feeling dejected, their drive increases. Another example would be Arata having given up on karuta due to family stuff and Chihaya wanting him to get back into it. It wasn't too amazing, but it worked.

Characters: 9/10
This is where the show really shines. Each of the characters felt very genuine and interesting. I quite enjoyed the mini-arcs that each of them had when Chihaya was recruiting them for the club. Taichi was especially interesting to watch. Many of the things he did didn't exactly paint him to be the most likable character, such as stealing Arata's glasses during the childhood arc. However, it was these moments that made him to be very realistic and relatable. He had to struggle with his feelings for Chihaya and friendship with Arata while also improving his karuta skills. I also liked Chihaya, but then again, I tend to like most characters that are kind of "out there" like her. I felt that Arata didn't have enough screen time, which I hope gets resolved in the second season. The side characters were also pretty nice. They had their backstory and reasons for getting into karuta and stuck with them.

Overall: 8-8.5/10
A very enjoyable show, even though it did get a bit overdramatic at times when it comes to the actual games. Totally going to check out the second season soon.

Dec 29, 2015 6:33 PM

#23

Tarotist

Offline

May 2015

10936

Huh..I forgot to give my little review on Chihayafuru...well I'll keep it brief.

Back in the day, I used to watch competitive StarCraft tournaments. Watching Chihayafuru reminded me of those games. Some of the lingo that you hear in this anime can directly relate to what happens in StarCraft.

Timing.
Positioning.
Starting Build.
Team Match-ups.
Playstyle
And (Minor Spoiler in Season 2)- Win/Loss percentages.

Not only that, the characters themselves have to train hard, just like professional StarCraft players. Remember at the training camp when Chihaya said "15 games a day?" Yep, StarCraft players do the same thing. And they play a different person every match to get a feel for different play styles.

Also, just like Arata in the beginning of the season, players do fall into slumps. I do admit that Chihaya's losses are a bit overdramatic. The irony is that crying after a loss is also pretty common in StarCraft as well (at least in South Korea). But hey, just like StarCraft, karuta is not an easy game. Memorize and forget, memorize and forget. That puts so much stress on the mind.

Anyway, this is one of my favorite anime because of how much it can relate to one of my favorite games. I love the characters, I love the voices, I love the tension, and I love the ending theme. But still...

SEASON 2! SEASON 2! SEASON 2! SEASON 2!

Dec 31, 2015 6:48 AM

#24

Harus

Offline

Mar 2013

12814

Season 2 hype indeed ~

Anyone else had the curiosity to go after the cards?

Here : http://jti.lib.virginia.edu/japanese/hyakunin/frames/hyakuframes.html

Dec 31, 2015 2:13 PM

#25

Offline

Jul 2018

561872

I think I remember one from when I played Karuta. (Different to the competitive Karuta shows in Chiha. You basically dump all 100 cards into a pile, and whoever gets the card thats being read out wins the card.) It was like me vs 12 other players. I think I got 1 card the last time I played it XD.

Dec 31, 2015 2:15 PM

#26

Offline

May 2013

904

That's your card, Viryew, the one that will open the path to you becoming the King.

Dec 31, 2015 2:27 PM

#27