Let me start with the positive: Chihayfuru is BEAUTIFUL. It's visually stunning, and obviously done digitally, though there's no "out of place CG," just a lot of cherry blossoms on everything. There is no significant drop in aesthetic quality throughout the 25 episodes. If you are looking for a "Sports Anime" akin to Hikaru No Go, another series dealing with Japanese competitive games that are not 'mainstream popular' among young people in Japan, this is perfect. There's very little 'training' (though there is some) and more strategic studies of multiple kinds. It takes place in a realistic setting (no supernatural, no ghosts, lol) and it's all very believable and realistic in setting, other people perceiving the main characters at school, and so on and so forth.
The main characters are really one dimensional and stagnant though, and they don't inspire any real concern from me. I would call it a lack of character. The main 3 characters I'd mark as downright bad (3) but the entire cast rounded it up to a higher score, since the truly love the iside characters, though they are largely ignored.
Chihaya is horribly boring and has no character, she's just OMG SO PRETTY WHAT A WASTE, they only made her 'pretty' so the entire show could be pretty. If you've seen the opening episodes you see that Chihaya's early life is defined by a lack of thereof: She has no interests, no talents, and no concerns, and her entire family is obsessed with her older sister, who she also supports. (Spoilers: this NEVER REALLY CHANGES except a single episode in which Chihaya's Dad shows that she has a single album of news clippings about Chihaya's Karuta games, in comparison to bookshelves full of ones about her sister and the fact that her parents never show any support to her before OR after this single moment). High School Chihaya's only characteristics are that she is really really pretty but also really obsessed with Karuta and doesn't have any friends (I say High School Chihaya because pre-Karuta Chihaya has no characteristics at all other than being highly impressionable). Over and over it is stressed how 'beautiful' she is (LOL GET IT HER SISTER IS A MODEL) but this has absolutely ZERO impact on the series, which otherwise would be a normal 'sport club tournament' show along the lines of Hikaru No Go, only now the main character looks really good in a kimono and doesn't have to overcome any prejudices based on her appearance unlike the other, better Karuta players (who are all inevitably depicted as plain or sloppy or fat, for the girls). In fact, by making her beautiful they really take a cop out approach to her character: the same personality applied to an 'average' looking person would not have been as instantly likable by viewers, and would have resulted in bullying and people being outright mean or demeaning in her school life. Chihaya has none of these obstacles other than some guys she doesn't know saying her beauty is wasted on her. In fact, it's almost humorous that Chihaya's looks make much better players feel unsure of themselves despite their being much more competent.
She does have a slight complex because of her sister at first but all mentions of this inferiority complex are dropped by episode 12 and never mentioned again.
Chihaya never learns, her only 'growth' is "I Want to be stronger!" like every other sports/competition show. Unlike other shows though, she never uses any of this to grow as a person, to fix her relationships with others, or her family, or her estranged friends who she's so maddeningly incapable at communicating with that it makes her somewhat annoying and unlikable.
The story is not without likable characters though. Side characters who aren't pretty, like Kanade and Nishida seem to actually have PERSONALITIES (other than being boring and easily impressionable like Chihaya, who has no qualities at all until she starts copying a boy she met once in elementary school) but they NEVER RECEIVE ANY CHARACTER EPISODES other than their brief introduction episodes. Even Tsutumu seems to have more personality than Chihaya, it's simply never explored. These characters have had OBSTACLES placed before them, and I don't just mean tournaments and shit, but actually obstacles in their daily life, and it reflects on them because they are more interesting and developed.Too bad the side characters are little more than furniture to fill out the club, and are treated as such for a while by Chihaya, until they start ranking in matches when she suddenly realizes everyone has potential (at least as someone for her to practice against). The series nears a lull around the midway point, but picks up nearer to the end, the last 10 episodes or so discounting the recap. The glimpses you see of the SIDE CHARACTERS evolving (the mains, Chihaya and Taichi NEVER evolve except the "I must become stronger!" mindset which is really one dimensional, they never improve their communication between each other really either) and other aspects of their personality and past (Nishida's in particular as he's the only one with a relevant background) it actually becomes interesting, and you think there might finally be some conflict and growth, but it's generally all curtailed by the ending of the Master and Queen matches.
The Ending is pretty average for a 'sports' type story whose original story doesn't have time to be finished within the 25 episode time span (or a 'non-ending' as I would call it since the story is not wrapped up). Not terrible, hopeful for the future, possibly set up for a sequel (which I sort of doubt), though really what I want to see more of are Kanade, Nishida, Tsutomu, or maybe even Arata (who has a really bafflingly unimportant role in reality versus his role in Chihaya's stupid obsessed little head). The final episode does give a little bit of a glimpse of Kanade growing, but it's sort of curtailed by Chihaya immediately disappointing her with the truth. We also see Chihaya studying the actual poems but, well, shouldn't she have done that earlier? I found Kanadae's love of the Japanese language and literature far more compelling and pure hearted than Chihaya's LOL GOTTA WIN GOTTA BE THE QUEEN WAITWHATISTHISGAMEIDONTEVENKNOW.
Chihayafuru is by no extent "Bad" but it did baffle me to an extent, as I liked some elements but also got bogged down in how little the characters were changing during the otherwise rather boring action of watching them plays (parts of) games you can't truly understand or even see. Generally you watch things like this not because of the game they play (as you never see a game in full, anywhere, that'd be long and boring!) but to see the characters progression and growth. Hikaru No Go is a good example of that, the main character, and even some side characters, grow and change their understanding of the game, and while Hikaru does desire to "become stronger" it's a much more complex growth, which changes his personality and how he acts, and meets or surpasses his mentor in new or different ways. The very last scene of Chihayafuru recalls the opening scenes in her high school, cementing the fact that Chihaya's attitude and actions are largely unchanged in her life, she's only become more focused and concentrated while playing games or studying for games, it hasn't seemed to take any effect outside of that, and there is no resolution to her family and inferiority complexes, just as there are no real resolutions to Taichi's issues of inferiority or unrequited feelings that may or may not even exist (but we need some romansu doramu so ppl will watch it, right?!?!!? so they had to imply there were some in the beginning). I guess that makes it more realistic, in a way! Since people are not so quick to change in real life. It just didn't feel like it delivered any resolutions at all, or any growth from the 'main' characters.
