Chihaya Furu 16

This one just looks pretty and I'm that fickle.

My first post which will appear "picture heavy" because of the lack of original content in this episode. 16 was a recap of the content so far. Needless to say, this increases my skepticism on the quality of the season's ending. Given where the story is, I do not feel they have the time to spare on a recap episode a mere 15 episodes into the series. I like to think most of us remember the plot and characters so far. If we were 50 episodes deep and there was a recap, I could understand; but here we have only lived a year (vicariously of course) so this waste makes me apprehensive. I don't see Chihaya Furu on the spring list and no hearsay of a second season. This gives me an ominous feeling in the pit of my stomach as I expect a disappointing season end. After all, we covered a year in 12 episodes (The first three were in a previous timeline.) at a good pace. Is it possible to properly conclude the storyline in just nine more? We'll see....

Well, enough emo-ranting and onto the pictures.

Arata: closet perv. Why does it look as though he is being molested for the better by that magazine?

As I mentioned, this was a recap episode. It began with three comical shorts themed around New Years. It  split the episode into three sections and recapped one arc in each. Between sections there would be a comedy short. That's all there was to it. In all honesty, I just skipped through the episode.

Haha - everyone takes digs at him.

/envy

Chihaya Furu 15 - the conclusion of Omi Jingu

Due to my genetic composition and inherent ADD, I can't seem to maintain a schedule. Unfortunately due to high levels of Aaro exposure, I have developed a partial need for consistency. Therein, I feel the need to finish this series, since I do like it a lot and still watch it, just not on a weekly basis.

I will try my best to succumb to brevity.

Look at the geometry!

The reasons I like Chihaya Furu is because it reminds me of other series I enjoyed and still cherish. The two main ones are HikaGo and Nodame. The soundtrack in this episode was really reminiscent of Nodame with upbeat, mischievous tones and well-placed symphonic grandeur. So far the directors and producers have made sensible choices in this production. Although, in some parts of this episode I felt the melodrama was a bit dense. Luckily these moments were concise in their dramatic flair.

This episode could be split into three "arcs" if I may. The first concluded the Shinobu-Chihaya match with Chihaya's crushing defeat. It was nice to see that she has not lost her enthusiasm in the wake of her defeat. It's been a while since I've seen anime churn our a female protagonist that can look happy while crying where my immediate reaction is not scoffing at her foolish naivety. That may also be because the romance in this series is kept subtle and minimal without being completely lost in the backdrop.

I wonder if Naruto paid for that product placement...

The second arc followed Taichi, who has probably undergone the most on screen character development. Since the understanding of Karuta is developed via Chihaya who has a relatively simple, optimistic personality, Taichi fills the necessity for the deep, somewhat dark character thus far. His personality goes through the final stages of a turning point in this episode, which should indicate a more positive Taichi herein. Of course, with the reintroduction of Arata, I surmise the love triangle with fill the drama void of the pessimistic brooding Taichi of yesterepisodes.

The final arc is transitional; it sets the stage for the third (or fourth, depending on how you count them) arc of the series. There is nothing worth summarizing but for reiterating that Arata is back in the game and therefore the series. Considering this is already episode 15, I look forward to seeing how they bring this series to fruition without a rushed ending.


/envy

Chihaya Furu Ep 14

I loved this episode so~! I don't know why but I feel like it's been ages since I've seen Chihaya. This anime is slowly growing into one that I will likely watch over and maybe over again, when I'm restless and in the mood to watch something good and nostalgic.

I was surprised to see them warming up, but it does make sense. The attention to small details is one of the better traits of this series.

In the spirit of my normal reviews, I'm trying to recall how the episode started. I just finished watching it and I'm having a difficult time remembering the beginning because of the build-up towards the end of the episode. The character development and storytelling are definitely the gems of this series and they sometimes need to be fished out from the beautiful animation and eye candy. The subtlety is a nice touch and a refreshing tactic which targets the typical shojo viewership, whose main interest is superficial plot lines and shiny packaging, but also satisfies the viewership that looks for consistency and plausibility in the characters and plots. As I mentioned earlier in the series, what I like about this show is how clean it is. It is free of melodrama and is minimally pretentious. What you take out of the series is what you look for. In my initial perusing, I've found some criticism of whether or not Chihaya Furu falls into the shojo genre, and the lack of realism in the characters or plot. However, I stand to argue that Anime does not always strive to be realistic but it should always strive to be entertaining. Chihaya Furu might not be realistic, but it is believable and therein it is entertaining. Rare are the moments where I question "Do people actually behave like this in such situations?" or "Does stuff like this happen in real life?" and these frustrated questions are typical and frequent is typical shojo. In my opinion, it is refreshing to see an Anime in the shojo genre that does not stick tooth and nail to its formulas.

Now that I have that off my chest, I can move onto the happenings of the episode. I promise not to be long winded. This episode sees the beginning of the individual matches. Chihaya is in A class, while Taichi and Porky are in B class leaving Kaname and Desktomu in D class. We primarily watch Chihaya in her match against Shinobu, the current Queen.

Apparently it is weird that she brings her own tea cup to tournaments...!...?

Shinobu is a very interesting character. She has this saucy attitude which adds an interesting flavour to the show. She has the condescending arrogance that comes with the territory of being a prodigal youth but she also has this pure, competitive love for Karuta which drives her to excel. On top of this is a layer of pretentious politeness, which is characteristic of people who are exposed to a lot of PR. The match between Shinobu and Chihaya is fun to watch and keeps you on the edge of your seat. Shinobu dominates, as she is reputed to, and Chihaya's spirit almost breaks. When I was watching Nodame Cantabile sometime last year, I found it interesting that they explored the importance of luck in shaping a prodigy. This topic is lightly touched in this episode, where Chihaya's game hits a turning point because of some trivial distraction caused by a member of the audience. The match doesn't end before the episode does, so alas we have to wait for next week's episode. 

So. Not. Ready. to take on any prodigies.

I think it would be fitting for Chihaya to lose after a tough game. We have already seen some foreshadowing that sets Shinobu and Chihaya up as rivals that will meet again. I do not think Chihaya has had enough growth to tackle a well-practiced talent like Shinobu yet. I think Arata will be pivotal in training her for that match. While Chihaya could end up challenging Shinobu for the title of Queen in this upcoming finals, I think her game requires a lot more solid development before any such face off is believable. Chihaya has come a long way from Kansas, but she has a long rocky yellow brick road ahead of her before she reaches Oz. I would hate to see them rush this. After all, we just passed the half way point.

/envy

Chihaya Furu Ep 07 - the second king in the castle

This episode opens with a game of Karuta. In a way, I was glad they got the obligatory card flinging out of the way early. This means a majority of the episode to follow will focus on other things. Through Taichi we get some insight on how Karuta strategizing works, and it initially surprised me. I will admit, the first time I learnt about Karuta, I thought the game was too trivial to hold my interest if it got lots of onscreen time. In fact, as the series progresses, I enjoy the tidbits of Karuta gameplay that are revealed not because i feel that I know the game, but because the focus is taken off card flinging and placed more onto character growth. It's a nice tactic the director has employed to make the audience feel more included in the show.

I think he's dead.

Today's victim is a boy nicknamed Desktomu, which is a derogatory portmanteau of his name and the word "desk". The pseudonym comes from the boy's reluctance to leave his desk. Ever. In fact, when Chihaya drags Desktomu over to the Karuta clubroom, he clings to his desk and drag it along with him. He's the exact opposite of Taichi and always ranks second to him in academics, a fairly cliche character in many genres of Anime. Desktomu is envious of Taichi because he is the stellar student and beautiful jock all rolled into one. However, Desktomu is interesting because he challenges Chihaya's recruitment in a unique way - by challenging Chihaya and Taichi to play a game with the cards face down.

I bet he takes that desk home and sometimes even sleeps with it.

Until now, most of the focus has been on Chihaya and her growth, but this episode spends a lot of time developing Taichi. Taichi, who had lost all motivation to win over the years, finally regains his competitive drive. He wins a match against Chihaya for the first time in ages. It's interesting to watch Taichi go after Desktomu in this episode, instead of Chihaya. Taichi's growth solidifies his role as a leader in the club, and it should be interesting to watch how the leadership dynamic between Chihaya and Taichi plays out herein. Desktomu's joining of the club is subtle and missable, which is nice because it is both in line with his character and contrasting to Kaname's requirement.

This is how Desktomu flails. So cute! (The context: Taichi threw his desk to emphasize a point.)

With four members in the club, I can only predict that the next episode will see the official completion of their Karuta club. I like the diversity in characters they've gathered in their club and I'm looking forward to meeting the final member. This episode also had spectacular lighting and animation. While the overall series has the pretty shojo style animation, there were many places in this particular episode where I found myself noticing how beautiful the artwork was.

/envy

Chihaya Furu Ep 06

This episode begins the solid development of the arc introduced at the closing of the previous episode. The last episode made it clear that Arata would be out of the game for a while and with Taichi's promise to help Chihaya start a high school Karuta club, the natural progression would be towards the recruitment of new members.

This is what Kaname thought the Karuta club was.

The first target is a freshman named Oe Kanada. Her parents own a traditional clothing store and she is smitten by Japanese history and classical literature. She wants to join a club that would allow her to wear hakama and kimono. Currently, she is  in the archery club, which I am assuming is the only one that trains in hakama, and she dislikes doing ungraceful tasks like running in such romantic traditional clothing. As she wanders the halls after being reprimanded by the archery club staff, she fatefully comes across the Karuta club recruitment poster with a female cartoon donning an elaborate hakama for a mascot. Her curiosity is piqued.

This is what the Karuta club ended up being.

What she finds scares her. Awe and fright seem to be the typical reaction to Chihaya's passion. Unfortunately for Kaname, Chihaya sees her as she's trying to leave and pursues her. The rest of the episode is spent watching Chihaya trying to convince Kaname to join the Karuta club.

This is how Chihaya feels when she chases Kaname.

What I like about Kaname is that she is not interested in competitive Karuta but is well versed in the poems because of her love for classical literature. A few episodes ago, when were were still immersed in the middle school arc, Chihaya's teacher Harada-sensei had told her to become friends with all the cards the way she was friends with the Chihayafuru card. In essence, Kaname is already very good friends with all the poems. She knows them and understands the meaning  of each. Initially, Kaname puts up a lot of resistance to joining because she likes Karuta recreationally as opposed to competitively. Also, because the Karuta club members do not wear traditional clothing, she has little inclination to join.

This is blatant audience tampering fanservice.

The importance of Kaname to Chihaya's growth becomes evident when she explains an alternate interpretation of the Chihayafuru poem. To Kaname, Chihayafuru is a poem about the deep, secretive love between the poet and his lover. Connecting historic significance to the meaning of the cards shows Chihaya that there are many ways to enjoy Karuta outside of competition, and this furthers her love for competitive Karuta. She has begun to recognize cards by their meaning and this helps her react faster, improving her game.

This is Kaname's first order of business.

I like the imperial respect that Kaname's presence reinstates to the club's practices. Kaname is a quiet, small girl but she is resolute in her principles. I look forward to seeing how she contributes to the series. Having seen more than just the main characters, I like the fact that Chihaya Furu's characters have largely drama free pasts. Aside from the love triangle, the characters are clean albeit slightly stereotypical. I have not lost my hope that this series will not be corroded by the typical shojo drama that has tarnished many good beginnings such as this. 

/envy

Chihaya Furu Ep 05 - the metamorphosis into shojo

The prerequisite for true love!

This episode is beginning of turning Chihaya Furu into a shojo anime. It was well executed, not just for the shojo genre, but in general. While the episode was largely predictable, I still found myself wrapped up in it, rooting for various characters, hoping for certain outcomes… I am not willing to raise my expectations of this series yet. Many a time has shojo burned me by appealing to the squeal-happy fangirls at the cost of realism. One could argue that shojo is a genre that caters to the fantasies of young maidens and is justified in its proliferous happy endings. That may be true; but I don't like so much sugar in my fairytales. (This probably explains my adoration of slice of life.) However, Chihaya Furu is definitely populating the top half of my Autumn anime list.

No, they love each other through their eyes and subtle commentary.

This episode has a few important plot points separated by minor story building. I still find that Chihaya Furu actually wastes very little screen time and most scenes are important in the building of either the characters or the plot. Chihaya and Taichi decide to visit Arata in Fukui. I really, really want to journey on a bullet train someday. The thought of being able to go across the country to visit a long lost friend and return home within the same day seems like a happy convenience. It would take me two days on a train one way to vista Aaro and there is only a fifth of the country separating us. Slow trains and big countries are so inconvenient.

The (so, so worried) bishonen

The shojo is rolled out in two parts. Part one happens on the train where Taichi has a conversation with Chihaya about love. Well, he tries… Chihaya is dense and jokes around a lot, whereas Taichi bears his heart to her, albeit she's none the wiser for it. Taichi's outlook on love is justified but so very morbid. If I remember correctly, he defines love as, "Hanging out with this person is no fun, but even though it can be so painful you want nothing more than to be with them." This not only tells us that Taichi has never looked at anyone but Chihaya, but that Chihaya hasn't grown out of her denseness over the years.

The (so, so clueless) bishojo

Part two happens when Chihaya and Taichi are looking for Arata, who isn't at home. They are walking back to the train station to find Arata at his part time job. Chihaya has a battle with herself on whether she actually wants to see an Arata who does not play Karuta, to which Taichi responds that he's okay with returning to Tokyo without seeing Arata. I guess Taichi's underlying fear is that Chihaya subconsciously loves Arata as much as she loves Karuta. To me it appears as though Chihaya likes both boys equally and wants to continue playing because it's what brought the three of them together to begin with. However, from Taichi's perspective I can see how easy it is to mistake Chihaya's admiration for Arata's skill for romantic adoration. There is a really, really cute scene (quite well directed!) where Taichi slowly works up the courage to try and hold Chihaya's hand as they walk down this rural path lined with cherry blossom trees. As, he subtly reaches for her hand, Arata whizzes by on a bicycle, stopping Chihaya in her tracks and interrupting Taichi's smooth moves. It is mildly amusing to watch a ladies man like Taichi struggle with his true love; but despite the sadistic amusement, Taichi's behaviour in this episode made me recognize him for his important role in the series. Chihaya and Arata may be the female and male protagonists, but Taichi is pivotal in propelling the plot. Without him, Chihaya Furu would be a river running so slow that it can be mistaken for still waters.

How does such a tiny person pull someone off a moving bicycle so easily!?

What makes the second scene so shojo is Arata's surprise at being pulled off his bike by a swift Chihaya. The two of them tumble down a small hill and land in a perfect position with Arata poised above Chihaya. Taichi looks like he's boiling over in his corner at the sight. Chihaya completes the scene with happy-sad sobs about how she missed Arata. It's formulaic shojo but still so cute because of how Chihaya is so earnest. 

This was the turning point of the arc.

Ah~ Arata is still the same but grown up. Initially I did not like his big boy personality, but after simmering and procrastinating for three days, I find myself liking him all the more. I shamelessly play favourites, so what? He's the same quiet, blunt introvert who is still not afraid to go toe to toe with Taichi. Also, he's a centimetre taller than Taichi, which sparks another irrelevant subtextual rivalry. Surprisingly, I don't find it all that unrealistic that Arata's and Taichi's competition for Chihaya has not wilted over the past four (? maybe three~) years. It just confirms how withdrawn Arata became after the death of his grandfather. (I called it! I called it! But it still made me sad and angry that Arata would betray Chihaya by betraying Karuta, even though it is the human reaction to his situation.) It seemed even the neighbour, a girl named Yuu, was concerned with his behaviour. Though her time on screen was short, I liked her very much. She was genuine and I was able to relate to her dilemma, wherein she was concerned and wanted to help Arata but did not know how to from an inability to truly understand his tragedy.

These two have great chemistry in this show.

The purpose of this episode was to introduce and largely conquer Chihaya's sadness at the loss of Arata. While she isn't the type of person to give up on Karuta because of this major setback, Taichi helps her a lot by finally agreeing to help her start a Karuta club at their high school. With the same words, he reaffirms his liking for Arata which he spends most of his time suppressing or hiding. Lastly, we catch a glimpse of the first potential member.

/envy

Chihaya Furu Ep 04

They're fighting for Arata's attention! ><; When will they fight for Taichi's?

Ah, they stopped my heart with the first minute of this episode. I was torn between whether they were staying in the middle school timeline because they were going to follow Chihaya's initial growth step by step or because Arata had decided to stay by securing some kind of enslaved residence at the home of a distant uncle. The former option would have made me sad, probably, unless some very interesting characters were introduced at the Karuta school. The latter would have made me so excited because of my shameless love for these kids.

The time traveller's aide

Fortunately (or unfortunately so) a Sakura petal carries us into the now. This episode has two focuses: one develops the heroine and the other sets the stage for the first major arc of the story. The writers took the relationship between Chihaya and Taichi and made it less emo than the very first episode did and I appreciated this direction. From what I understand, this episode continues exactly where the first episode cuts to the middle school timeline. Chihaya and Taich are riding the train to meet Taichi's girlfriend. (Why is Chihaya going along? I think this is unnecessary and weird. But then, Chihaya's character is strange enough that such actions do not contradict her personality just to stir the drama pot.) The girlfriend calls Taichi "Ta-kun" which gets Chihaya very excited and she wants to share this news with someone, specifically, Arata. It seems neither Chihaya nor Taichi has kept in touch with Arata. I wonder why? Chihaya at the very least seems like the types to make random calls and chat on and on for hours while Arata listened patiently. It is not difficult to believe that Taichi and Arata never kept in touch.

And I'm flirty. Look at the sparkles! Clearly there is a lesson for all girls to be learnt here.

Obviously, seeing Chihaya with Taichi makes his girlfriend jealous. I think, this was the only reason to send Chihaya all the way to the random train station that Taichi was going to. She adamantly insists that if she gets into the A Class of the Karuta school, that Taichi should help her form a Karuta club at their high school. Of course, Taichi refuses with equal vigour and then puts on a toque and sneaks into the Karuta club to watch her play.

The next line it "I bet they're still not as bushy as your eyebrows!" XD Sensei, da~isuki.

The sensei is as eccentric as ever. I really wish I had a teacher like him growing up. I think I can equate him to my current workplace mentor. He spews a lot of balderdash, but he is a good, sound teacher with a lot of wisdom to share and support to offer. Through his narration of Chihaya's gameplay and personality, we learn that she hasn't matured much in the year's she's spent under his care. Chihaya has grown leaps and bounds as a Karuta player but has not taken too many steps forward in terms of personal growth. I have a feeling so far she's been unknowingly riding on the coattails of her talent; but from now we should see her personal growth make her a better Karuta player.

The animation was all over the place in this episode, but scenes like this were still pretty.

The one thing this episode solidifies is Chihaya's need to move on from that moment in her past in which she's frozen. She still lives believing that Arata, Taichi and she are bound by Karuta and she needs to break free from this naive thinking to truly harness her capability in this game. After the tournament, which Chihaya wins, if not dominates, she calls Arata to fill him in on the news. It's difficult to tell how long it's been since the last time they spoke, but Arata is quiet and hunched over. I predicted correctly.

Called it. Well, part one. We'll eventually find out why.

Chihaya tells him everything she wants to tell him: She's in A Class, Taichi is in her high school, Taichi's girlfriend calls him Ta-kun, oh by the way how strong are you Arata? Chihaya is so cute and excited, and this enhances Arata's frigidity when he tells her he's out of the game. To turn the knife in your back, they flash all the cutest imagery of Arata from the previous episodes. Chihaya is shocked, truly, truly shocked. And then she realizes how her life has been frozen in time for so long.

Losing three kg by playing non-active sports seems to be the theme of the Autumn line-up. I swear Phi Brain Ep 02 has a similar screen shot.

I wonder where Chihaya will spring to from here. 

Chihaya Furu Ep 03 - the collapse of their house of cards

This show is already breaking my heart. How is that possible? I was supposed to have long happy arcs to build up my love for all the characters so that it could then break my heart. Isn't that what Hikaru no Go did? They took two thirds of the show before breaking up the golden triangle. Chihaya Furu is already at that point and I'm surprisingly sad. This means I've become very attached to the three primary characters in such a short time. I knew I liked the characters in this series but my closeness to the trio snuck up on me. After all, it's been - what? - half an episode?

How big is this man?

This episode begins with the trio visiting the local Karuta society. This series emulates Hikaru no Go so much. The Karuta society reminds me a lot about the Insei academy because of the chemistry between the students. After being smothered with love by the head teacher of the society, Arata and Chihaya challenge a team of three to a group match. Taichi has no choice in this matter because their collective passion outweighs his rational thinking. I can understand Taichi's annoyance at this scene; Arata and Chihaya are excited about the same thing, making them closer, and he is being swept away in the undercurrent of their enthusiasm. Taichi likes control and I largely believe he crushes on Chihaya so much because she is a free spirit he can't influence.

Arata is a natural manipulator. Let's hope he never realizes it and becomes scheming.

Arata strategizes for the three-on-three match by giving Chihaya and Taichi cards. He gives Chihaya the very simple cards and Taichi the longer cards which require more listening time. Taichi questions the need for a three-on-three game when Arata can wipe the floor with most of the students who practise at this society. Arata confesses that a team game would be more fun. This would have been the cutest scene of the episode, but it gets trumped later on. Jealousy is always cuter than shyness.

You're on the same team guys!

During the match, Arata basically carries the team. He steals cards that are assigned to Chihaya and Taichi just to keep the score as high as possible. For a moment I thought he was being obnoxious and trying to prove to the room that he could beat them in a three-on-three match with two handicaps. But it soon becomes blatant that Arata even regards his teammates as opponents if victory is at stake. The match soon degenerates into a competition between Chihaya and Arata. Chihaya is irritated that Arata is faster than her and tries her best to steal her card. We see another glimpse of her raw Karuta talent (more commonly known as super-keen hearing) which in turn fires Arata up.

Yes there is Taichi! Chihaya won't notice you until you do! Gambatte!

During this competition between Chihaya and Arata, Taichi wonders why she is trying so hard when Arata basically has no expectations of them. This is where Taichi realizes the happiness of doing something for himself instead of pleasing others all the time. This is an important lesson taught to Taichi indirectly via Arata. Self motivation is essential to personal success. This takes us to the end of the match, won by the Arata-Chihaya-Taichi team. The three of them sign up for the Karuta society and begin preparation for a team tournament around graduation time.

It's okay Chihaya, I would want both of them too. Well, if they were at least a decade older.

This is where the story takes it's turn. Chihaya is further propelled towards Karuta. She tells her sister that it's her dream to get better at Karuta. Simultaneously, Arata welcomes his news-bearing father home. The three meet at a park and have a snow fight. Arata finally tells Chihaya to call him by his given name when they both fall into the snow. Taichi adorably ruins their mood by butting in and informing Arata that the same rule applies for him. Although Arata sees Taichi as a rival on matters regarding Chihaya, he is happy to have such a close boy friend. They bond more than expected over their mutual unrequited crushes.

Sigh, even Arata's social dysfunction is cute in the realm of Karuta. He was raised to be such a Karutabot.

And then the waterworks begin. Taichi gets accepted into Kaimeisei Middle School. (I guess so far they've been in the elementary school timeline.) The school is an hour and a half commute which will leave no time for Taichi to play Karuta in middle school. And when it rains, it pours. Arata tells Chihaya he is returning to Fukui after graduation because his grandfather is in the hospital. Chihaya becomes upset with the both of them and stops playing Karuta. She stops attending the tournament practise sessions.

Boys... Aaro, were you this cute growing up?

For me the cutest scene was the boys fighting over who hurt Chihaya the most. Each wants to be the reason why Chihaya stopped playing Karuta. It's such a childish sentiment and it is very well captured in the well executed scene. On the day of the tournament, Chihaya decides to play after receiving a team shirt from Arata and Taichi. Their team name is Chihaya Furu (sooriginal). They do not win the tournament. I really want to say "they do not win the tounament this time" instead, but I have an inkling we're not going to see Arata play Karuta for a while. The episode ends with tearful goodbyes.

So is chess!

I have a lot of questions about the direction of this series. In Hikaru no Go the "goal" was always the Hand of God and while it was not achieved over the series, significant progress towards it was made. What is the goal for Chihaya Furu? It could be many things right now. Chihaya could aim for the title of Queen. I think this is too single minded while the series so far has been very team oriented. It could be something like the Hand of God, but I imagine perfect games are not foreign concept given the rules. Maybe the end is to come full circle and finish what they started - win a three team tournament as Team Chihaya Furu. I'd really like to know.

Ah~ puppy love. How I'll miss thee.

I'm also slightly apprehensive about the potential for emo-turning here. Everyone's separated and I don't want excessive moping over the fact. It will take away from the sadness I already feel by hammering it in too forcefully. I also have an inkling that something like the death of Arata's grandfather and its subsequent grief will push him away from Karuta. I really do hope such cliches are avoided all together or at the very least minimized on screen.

I have a sinking feeling I'm already rooting for Arata in this love battle.

I suspect the next episode will return to the high school timeline. This little three episode arc took it's time in developing Chihaya's love for Karuta. I really liked that they did not cram it all into one 5 minute revelation. It was well paced and enjoyable to watch. While I wish we could have stayed in this timeline longer, without Arata the episodes will be unbalanced. I really wish there were previews to confirm my suspicions. I'm still doing well at resisting the manga to find where this series is going and whether the shojo component of it will eventually ruin it. So far, the shojo is very nicely executed and I'm hoping that this standard survives the series.

/Envy

Chihaya Furu Ep 02

The middle school timeline is a lot more comical in comparison to the high school timeline. This episode builds on Chihaya, Taichi and Arata's characters, and sets the playing field for their dynamic to develop (and then crash and burn, by my predictions).

See! It is two letters.

The opening is a catchy rock-pop song which I listened to on repeat for a few mornings. I think it is well suited to the series. I don't remember catching glimpses of high school Arata or Taichi, which indicates that we're going to stay in the middle school timeline for the first few arc at the very least. I'm pleased with this because this timeline matters a lot to the overall story in that it builds the basis for how the characters act "in present day" which is what I take the high school timeline to be. Shojo rarely ever pays such attention to making reasonable and believable characters and plots. This is definitely a step in the right direction,

I really like the balance of timid and bold in Arata,

The episode is focused on the final Karuta tournament held annually at their school. We learned a little bit about Arata's circumstances in the previous episode. He's poor and from a village on the western coast. He spent his days playing Karuta and has developed a seriousness for it. His roots justify the juxtaposition of social shyness and competitive confidence he displays. This episode build a little on Taichi and Chihaya's backgrounds via the Karuta tournament.

If only she would cheer for him, his little heart wouldn't break so.

Taichi comes from a strict, reputed background. Despite his young age, he is expected to excel at everything he does and not do anything that he does not excel at. Therefore, to Taichi winning this tournament is of great importance to please his mother. As always, he also strives to impress Chihaya. Unfortunately, Arata seems to have her smitten with his passion for Karuta. This makes Taichi very jealous. Taichi's childishness in dealing with this jealousy is refreshingly realistic.

Curb your enthusiasm boy!

Arata quickly nullifies Taichi's strong lead in the tournament. He's still treating cards like shuriken. The final round is a face-off between a confident Arata and a nervous Taichi. During the break, Taichi tries to rattle Arata with futile tactics like taunting and rigged peace offerings. All of his plans back fire because every mean thing he does to Arata increases his closeness to Chihaya. A frustrated and scared Taichi steals Arata's glasses to put him at a major disadvantage for the final round.

Arata really can't see without his glasses. He's confessing to Chihaya, or so he thinks.

Arata knows that Taichi has stolen his glasses because he recognized the blurry figure running away from the washroomwhere it was stolen from. He tries to tell Chihaya (and fails due to his blindness), who defends Taichi's honour. Although Taichi is the playground bully, she insists that he is not sleazy enough to cheat. Her unwavering faith in him hits Taichi in the gut hard. Chihaya exits to search for Arata's glasses as the two boys set up for the final match.

He's made of awesomecakes!

Arata spends the beginning of the match peering closely at the placement of the cards. Taichi does not understand why he's trying so hard to win. Of course, Arata's Karuta pride is only half the push; the other half comes from his shonen desire to make Chihaya's word true. After all, Chihaya defended his "worth as a person" by insisting that Arata could defeat anyone at their school at Karuta. Her support for him has even gotten her excommunicated by the class. In Arata's eyes (however blind they may be) the noble thing to do is to prove that Chihaya was right in her claims.

Tsk Tsk Taichi...

When they begin to play, Arata still pwns Taichi despite his severe handicap. Taichi retaliates by swapping the placement of the cards after he realizes that Arata had spent his pre-game time memorizing the placement of each card. Watching Arata play and win purely from memory forces Taichi to realize how truly scary Arata's skill is. His guilt snowballs.

She has the makings of a shojo heroine I may actually like.

Once Taichi starts swapping cards, not only does Arata not know where the correct cards lie, his confidence in his skills start to waver. Just when he seems to lose hopes for winning, Chihaya asks to take over his place. While her intentions are golden, Chihaya conducts herself brashly and abruptly which creates a lot pf potential to physically injure people. Yet, I think it's these same qualities that are at the focal point of her charisma. While Arata was not able to keep to his word of winning the tournament without allowing any other players to steal a card from him, Chihaya still wanted to try and beat Taichi on his behalf. She calls herself his student - how cute. I don't think any official lessons have been exchanged yet.

How overzealous. No wonder Taichi is inherently jealous. 

Chihaya plays very enthusiastically. She has about a third of the total poems memorized while Taichi knows them all. She's quick to pick out the cards which she's certain about. For the remainder of the cards, she watches Taichi closely as he analyzes the possibilities. As soon as he identifies a card, his face betrays his discovery. Chihaya moves quickly to disrupt all the cards in the general area where Taichi's eye falls. Karuta rules allow for a player to displace as many cards as they want as long as the correct card for the current poem is displaced in the pile. While this may seem like cheating, I like Chihaya's resourcefulness. She's so hellbent on winning for Arata and she does well to think outside the box.

Shiny Karuta bonding!

The score is tied and the last poem is being read out. This is the deciding round. Chihaya looks down at the remaining cards and does not recognize the first verses of any of them. She panics as she searches her memory frantically. The card in the top left corner catches her eye and she remembers something Arata once said to her. The first word of the first verse of the poem to which that card matches is Chihaya (innocence). So, Arata explains to her that by labelling that card the Chihaya (person) card he will never forget it. Chihaya listens closely for her name as she realizes the way a Karuta player seeing the world.

Being Shojo, of course Chihaya wins as she grabs the card which matches her name. Arata steps forwards and tells her that if he's the Meijin (best male player) of Karuta then she is the Queen (best female player). I'm left to wonder why the women's titles are always so corny. Excited, Chihaya calls home trying to break the good news to her mother and sister. However, a modelling scout is visiting with vested interest in Chihaya's sister. Chihaya is dismised by her mother and ridiculed by her sister before being left alone to celebrate. She sets out to find Arata to see if he's found his glasses. She rendezvous with Taichi along the way and they find Arata in the classroom playing Karuta without a reader or cards or his glasses. While I thought he looked ridiculous both Chihaya and Taichi accepted him as the coolest thing since sliced cheese. Chihaya then bounces off to look for Arata's glasses again.

All of life's emotions are dealt in Karuta cards.

The two boys are left alone in the classroom. Taichi confesses to Arata that he had stolen the glasses and returns them to their rightful owner. He begs Arata not to tell Chihaya about this. In this one scene Arata probably shot himself into a favourites position. He calmly cleans his glasses and slides them on his face casually saying "Taichi... You're a coward." When Taichi is stunned speechless, he adds, "But I can understand why you'd do it." Sigh. If only real people spoke in such mature ways.

The episode ends with the boys searching for Chihaya behind the school. Chihaya has climbed up some tall trees and if peering into birds nests. She's so loyal~ Seeing that Taichi calls  Chihaya by her given name, Arata shyly tries his hand at it. If there is a battle between Taichi and Arata over Chihaya, Arata will not be the weak-spined character that he tends to be in usual social situations. I do like the fact that Chihaya and Arata's liking for each other is mutual. My biggest fear in watching this series was a scorned girl blazing through an unfamiliar world to exact revenge from a boy who ill-treated her once. (Skip beat anyone?) However, the balances in personalities for this series is working out well.

I look forward to episode three.

/Envy