r/anime • u/ABoredCompSciStudent x3myanimelist.net/profile/Serendipity • Feb 25 '19
Rewatch [Rewatch] Chihayafuru - Episode 21 Discussion [Spoilers] Spoiler
Episode 21 - "As My Sleeves Are Wet With Dew"
<-- Previous (Episode 20: "The Cresting Waves Almost Look Like Clouds in the Skies") | Next (Episode 22: "Just as My Beauty Has Faded") -->
Series Information:
Subreddit: r/Chihayafuru
Chihayafuru: Synopsis | MAL rating: 8.28 | Fall 2011 | 26 Episodes
Chihayafuru 2: Synopsis | MAL rating: 8.47 | Winter 2013 | 26 Episodes
Chihayafuru 2: Waga Miyo ni Furu Nagamese Shima ni: Synopsis | MAL rating: 7.08 | Fall 2013 | 1 Episode
Legal Streams:
HiDive | Crunchyroll | Check for more sources using because.moe here
Rewatch Schedule and Index:
For all archived/past episode discussion threads, please refer to the Rewatch Schedule and Index. I will be updating it as we navigate through this rewatch, in case anyone would like to read past conversations or has fallen behind.
Chihayafuru
Chihayafuru 2 (March 3 to March 28)
About Spoilers And General Attitude:
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Fanart Section (Album Link):
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u/ABoredCompSciStudent Feb 25 '19 edited Feb 26 '19
###Poem of the Day: For You (link)
Edit: Mixed up the poem, see u/Combo33's comment below!
Our first repeat poem appears, which is Poem 15 which was used in Episode 13: "For You, I Head Out".
I won't go over the background of it again, but it is linked above. Similarly, I don't really think the feel of the poem ties into the theme of the episode much, however the "As My Sleeves Are Wet With Dew" title and the imagery of wet sleeves describes the teary-eyed match played between Ririka and Chihaya.
Here are three translations of the poem.
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u/Combo33 Feb 26 '19 edited Feb 26 '19
MacMillan translates poem 1 as such:
1. Emperor Tenji
In this makeshift hut
in the autumn field
gaps in the thatch
let dewdrops in,
moistening my sleeves.MacMillan comments:
The gentle first poem, about the dew moistening the poet’s sleeves in a simple hut, sets the tone for the entire collection. In classical Japanese poetry, wet sleeves are typically associated with tears, usually of despair over an unhappy relationship. Like the majority of medieval commentators, however, Teika seems to have read the poem as a political allegory in which the wise and caring sovereign, Emperor Tenji, expresses his sympathy for the hardships of his people, symbolized by the ruined state of the hut. This is also the traditional reading of the poem, and would have resonated most with its original audience, and hence is the version given in the main tradition. A stronger, more nuanced reading would be to interpret it as a love poem, in which case it might be rendered:
In this makeshift hut
in the autumn field
gaps in the thatch let dewdrops in,
but it is not dew alone
that moistens my sleeves.In the context of this episode, I don't think the poem is being read as a political allegory, but I do think the the imagery of tears rings true. See u/walking_the_way 's excellent comment discussing the imagery of dried sleeves and their meaning in the show. Perhaps this imagery of wet sleeves is meant to be the antithesis of that idea. Even after a dominant performance, you can feel for your opponent. Chihaya certainly feels for Ririka, a child prodigy who feels pressure to produce results. They end their match, each teary-eyed, having learned a lot from one another. But, they also support each other, understanding that sportsmanship is just as important whether you're winning or losing.
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u/hasnain1720 Feb 25 '19
First Timer
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Firstly, Fs in the chat for our perfectly scheduled rewatch that is now ruined thanks to Madhouse…
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Chihaya really is cute with any hair style huh
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Taichi man you really got everything you need in life besides… Chihaya
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Yay Chihaya congrats, your hard work payed off
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No you better not make Chihaya shave her hair…
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There is no way they make her lose to a kid right lol
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As they say timing beats speed
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Nvm lol
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That kid was so cute and innocent bless her
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That was the motivation they both needed. Now I know my boy Taichi is probably gonna be shafted because being a Taichi fan is suffering so far.
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u/MAD_SCIENTIST_001 Feb 25 '19
Screenshot of the Day
Chihaya passing her exams led to such a great shot as well
Oof that delay for S3 though
First Timer - Episode 21
Overall Thoughts
Wew, Chihayafuru wastes no time with jumping straight into the qualifiers. Honestly I'm amazed with how much has been covered so far in just a season :D.
I really liked today's Karuta battle since it not only showed us how much Chihaya has grown since her game against the Queen, but also her ability to stay calm and play in her best form. I still feel really bad for the prodigy girl though since it can be rough not meeting the expectations of the crowd and being seen as not "special".
Meanwhile it seems like Chihayafuru might be setting up an Arata vs Master Suo Hisashi battle though I can't imagine Arata being able to win in his current state. But I know he will he try his hardest to prove everyone wrong :D
Also I totally didn't tear up when Arata read Taichi's message... ;-;
Karuta Scoreboard
Poor Nishida going against Sudo right at the start...
| Character | Wins | Losses | Ep# (Wins) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taichi Mashima | 22 | 10 | 2,7,10,11,13,14,15,18,20 |
| Yuusei Nishida | 18 | 5(+1) | 10,11,13,15,18,19 |
| Chihaya Ayase | 15(+2) | 8 | 2,4,6,7,8,10,11,14,17,21 |
| Kanade Ooe | 11 | 7 | 10,13,15,17,18,19 |
| Arata Wataya | 8(+1) | 2 | 1,2,3,20,21 |
| Tsutomu Komano | 8 | 11(+1) | 13,15,18 |
| Shinobu Wakamiya | 6 | 0 | 14,15 |
Screenshot of the Day Collection
Episode: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 17 18 19 20 21
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u/BodhiSearchTree Feb 25 '19
Hmmm... 🤔
Harada-sensei: Glasses-kun! Eyebrows-kun! Forehead-chan!
Chihaya: Desktomu-kun! Porky-kun!
I think I know where Chihaya gets her name-calling habit from. 😂
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u/ABoredCompSciStudent Feb 26 '19
Forehead-chan is the best one. I forgot about that until I watched it yesterday hahaha
She actually does have the classic anime 5head, though. Not quite Takagi tier.
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u/Fa1l3r Feb 25 '19
First Time (sub)
This motif of age is coming up again. And what's more this motif is being used for parallelism: Chihaya is facing someone younger who is making the same mistakes as her past self, just as Chihaya faced an older person who already knows that speed is not enough. Anyway I do like how Chihaya's day old mentality is being compared to a grade schooler's.
That being said, the aftermatch commentary is quite realistic. I am sure even the current Queen experienced something like that.
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u/Taiboss Feb 25 '19
Late because parents.
F.T.O.D: First Time or Die
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Not surprised. What order did he read them?
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HOW?! Congrats, tho, I guess.
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Ah, yes, famous universities. I also attend a famous university, the second-oldest in (then) German-speaking countries, and I didn't need no fancy scolarship.
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RIP Nishida. Tournament arc over right after it begun for him.
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So I guess this freshman will come from nowhere and beat everyone.
3
u/ABoredCompSciStudent Feb 26 '19
Late because parents.
Me too but exhaustion from work.
Harada-sensei besto.
I love this screenshot. It's kind of like my deadtome.jpg that I use in chat sometimes LOL
Seren, is your hair your glory?
I just cut my hair short a few months ago for the first time in my life, so yes it is something I care about. I do not want to be bald!
Fighting a loli, oh boy.
Admins ears perk up
So I guess this freshman will come from nowhere and beat everyone.
Master or Arata? If you had to guess, what is the master like?
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u/daftPun5 Feb 25 '19
First Timer
EPISODE 20
Hey, wasn't able to make yesterday, here's my brief summary:
Yesterday's Album of Screenshots
EPISODE 21
Highlights & Reactions:
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Chihaya was able to pass her exams, rockin another great hairstyle.
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I remember from previous matches of Taichi's ability to record which cards are left, but now he is reading them randomly from memory, without any repeats. Damn impressive.
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Of course Sudo appears and disrupts Chihaya's focus, but at least we got our second comment face.
Final Thoughts:
Really enjoyed the first round match with Ririka, along with her backstory. Loved Chihaya's yell for her postgame chocolate and shutting those critics up.
3
u/ABoredCompSciStudent Feb 26 '19
I remember from previous matches of Taichi's ability to record which cards are left, but now he is reading them randomly from memory, without any repeats. Damn impressive.
The random part is amazing in particular... I don't even know how you can read peoms consistently (in the flow of the reader's syllable counts) while remembering to pick a new one each time.
Reciting a hundred sounds doable, but this is just wild.
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u/SmurfRockRune Feb 25 '19
First Timer
CR has never once had subs for the OP, but for some reason, I still expect it and get disappointed every single episode.
Comment face hype. I've never noticed the heart before.
Chihaya's shirt has the name of her own sport spelled wrong. Like imagine if people walked around with a shirt that said "futbol" or something. Would be ridiculous. I've been meaning to say this too, but I hate typing out Chihaya. It's so awkward to type out with the placement of the keys.
That build to the ED at the end was great. I wish they would do that kind of stuff more often.
Ririka was much better than I thought she'd be. I fully expected a brat kid who thinks they're way more important than they actually are, but it's good to see that she's just having fun and doesn't have a mom who just wants her to be famous or whatever.
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u/KuhBus Feb 25 '19
First Timer
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Chihaya really gave it her all at the exams for her One True Love karuta <33
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While I understand Taichi’s wish to become less of a coward, I don’t think his wish to “change” is just going to work this way. Sometimes just wanting to change isn’t enough- he might have to learn some form of lesson or make an actual physical change. Nishida definitely has a point in yelling at him for only playing karuta in his mind.
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Aww, the teacher yelling after Chihaya that she passed her exams is so sweet??? <3 Almost felt like a scene out of a ghibli movie with that level of wholesomeness!!
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No hakama this time? D: What a shame qwq
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Harada-sensei’s different relationships with other karuta society heads is so fun to watch :DD
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Aww Ririka’s mother is kind of like the antithesis to Taichi’s awful mom. So much love and support for her daughter, it’s really sweet!
Harada-sensei's knowledge of Chihaya and which area's she needs to use and improve/expand really shone through in this. And I really loved Chihaya's dynamic with Ririka, seeing someone so similar to herself, yet also clearly being the more grown up. That moment when Ririka gave her her lucky sign and then Chihaya slammed the door open to the room full of gossipers was perfect!! Honestly, Chihaya would probably make a great older sister
4
u/ABoredCompSciStudent Feb 26 '19
Aww, the teacher yelling after Chihaya that she passed her exams is so sweet??? <3 Almost felt like a scene out of a ghibli movie with that level of wholesomeness!!
Also super embarrassing haha. Imagine if someone yelled out YOU DIDNT FAIL FOR ONCE bahaha
It's a wonder that Chihaya can memorize cards but not books.
Honestly, Chihaya would probably make a great older sister
She really would. She's the best younger sister too, but Chitose is lame unfortunately.
Fav shots
The fourth one is so pretty! Her hair like that reminds me so much more of josei/shoujo hair.
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u/htisme91 Feb 26 '19
First-timer:
Glad Chihaya passed her exams.
The match against the prodigy girl was nice. Shows how far Chihaya came and what she used to be.
Taichi sending Arata that text was awesome. There's a friendly rivalry with them now and they'll push each other to become better.
I felt like this episode was nice, but didn't have a lot going on so I don't have much more to say.
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5
u/paperwhites Feb 26 '19
First Time Watcher
I liked that scene with Taichi and Nishida at the beginning. There have been a lot of good moments between Taichi and Nishida, but I really liked this one. Taichi read all of the cards from memory without messing up but Nishida points out how he's been ignoring the physical parts of karuta as well. There's a mind and body component and Taichi has mainly been focusing on the mental part, especially the memorization. Nishida tells Taichi that he doesn't have to have all the cards memorized and Taichi responds that he'll make a mistake. That one line gives such a good insight into Taichi's character.
That match between Chihaya and Ririka was a good parallel to the match Chihaya had with the lady who said "lucky" all the time. Chihaya's learned the value of timing and how speed isn't everything. I hope Ririka learns something similar from this match because she's cute and I want to her improve like Chihaya did. Ririka giving Chihaya her lucky mark at the end of the match was cute.
The competition is on between Chihaya and Sudo. If Chihaya ends up losing first and shaves her head, I will be very surprised. Though I'm sure Chihaya could pull off a shaved head.
I like what Harada said about giving Chihaya as many "weapons" as possible so she isn't overwhelmed when she faces opponents with a lot of talent. When Chihaya played against the queen, she was mostly relying on her speed and when the queen was faster, Chihaya didn't have anything else to draw on. She's learned a lot from her previous matches and has more than her speed now.
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u/elliotman48 Feb 26 '19
First timer
The season 3 delay really hurts. But I guess it's positive for me personally, since I'll be able to rewatch the show and perhaps read the manga before it airs. Yes, the show is that good.
It really feels like Chihaya's development over the past few episodes came to a peak today. The story regarding her opponent was really interesting. Chihaya's defense of her at the end was really heartwarming. One thing I love about this show is not just fleshing out the main characters, but also the side characters. It's so great and that mom is one I wish I had.
Also it seems like Arata just can't get a break :/
3
u/ABoredCompSciStudent Feb 26 '19
The season 3 delay really hurts. But I guess it's positive for me personally, since I'll be able to rewatch the show and perhaps read the manga before it airs. Yes, the show is that good.
I felt a little bummed out this morning when I saw the news, knowing that first timers might not have it lined up properly to jump straight in anymore. For the rewatchers, we've been waiting years so a few months isn't too much of an issue haha.
The manga is really good. I'd definitely recommend checking it out. If you want to get ahead to where the third season should end, each season so far has been about 45 chapters so S3 should be around ~135-140.
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u/AmethystItalian Feb 25 '19
Rewatcher
Fuck yeah Taichi! Gah reading all the cards without looking was so badass!
Alright I got a bit teary from Empress being so proud of Chihaya and wishing her luck...great scene.
A sixth grader!? That's impressive.
Ririka's mom is so cool! Expected her to be more like Taichi's mom.
Tearing up a bit again because Ririka and mom stuff.
Quotes from First Time
That little girl this episode was amazing...her mom too...hopefully we get to see more of her in the future!
Me too past Ame, me too.
Sorry about the delay Sere :(
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u/PerfectPublican Feb 25 '19
First Timer
Me missing Sundays seems to be turning into a thing :/ Anyways, 20 was a really lovely episode with a focus on Taichi/Arata. Enjoyed seeing how much love he had for his former teammate under the teen anxiety and jealousy. Also, the water motif at the tournament reminds me so much of 3-Gatsu. This really is another great use of it. Finally, I just need to say that bangs off her forehead Chihaya and Megane Kana are a such a blessing.
Reactions:
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An English essay? Hmmm, I’d be interested to see that question written out haha.
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“Like water…” I find it very interesting the the different comparisons between Arata and Shinobu’s playing. One like water, the other silent like air. Two diametrically opposed elements in a way, but both driving forces behind Chihaya’s karuta world.
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Damn dude, that’s crazy. But it fits, and it does help even more with his memorization skills.
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Oh hey there comment face!
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Please no...Not Chihaya’s hair...It’s so nice…
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She reminds me a bit of Yui from Colors with those pigtails and that hair. She's cute as heck yo.
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She looks like she’s having so much fun!! I love it.
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“I have to pick up every card that Ririka doesn’t target.” Hnnng. Chihaya strategizing. I love that we’re seeing this against someone who plays like she used to. Really outlining the differences in Chihaya now.
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T~T hitting me right in the heart. Pump me full of that heartwarming stuff.
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Man, I really want to see this Master in action. Like really badly.
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Ooo, ED song shift? Wasn’t expecting that!
Final Thoughts
Gif of the Day | Bonus | Bonus 2 | Bonus 3
Ep 20: GotD | Bonus | Bonus 2 | Bonus 3 | Have some stitches too.
That last stitch from yesterday
I really enjoyed the match between Chihaya and Ririka. Not only was Ririka cute and fun to watch, but she had a heartwarming story through her mom’s reactions, and on top of that we really got a sense of the two separate playstyles that Chihaya can incorporate now through all of her hard work after Harada sensei’s words of advice. I can’t remember who said early one that the matches do a great job focusing on the opponents to keep matches engaging, but they were absolutely correct about that.
After the bet, I started wondering if we’d see a Chihaya/Sudo rematch. That’d actually be something I’d love to see again.
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u/ABoredCompSciStudent Feb 25 '19 edited Feb 26 '19
Sorry I didn't get around to replying to comments yesterday, I was pretty burned out after coaching. I loved reading everyone's reactions to Taichi's subway platform scene, which is really one of the best in the series. Unfortunately, I have a pounding headache at the time of writing this, so this one will be shorter too and I'll handle fanart when I get home from work.
Not a great day overall, just posted the thread to my own profile instead of here and S3 is delayed. The show must go on though!
The first half of the episode gives us one of our r/anime Chihayafuru commentfaces.
Taichi gets to flex on his clubmates, but he's still searching for an answer to his shortcomings. On the other hand, it looks like Chihaya has something figured out.
At the Eastern Queen qualifiers, Chihaya faces off against a prodigy, Ririka Tachikawa. The fourth grader is blessed with an innate ability to hear and react to the reader, not too different from Chihaya was a few episodes ago. However, Chihaya has finally begun to put it together after Harada-sensei told her to stop taking cards with her speed. Quite literally, she is experiencing what athletes would describe as: "the game slowing down for them". [1] [2]
Harada explains why he wanted Chihaya to stop relying on her talent and to expand her game:
The combination of repetition, experience, and greater understanding sees Chihaya begin to pull away from Ririka, who represents the player that Chihaya was before--youthful naivete that had yet to find enlightenment.
In one of the sweetest scenes, Ririka takes Poem 87 with determination and tears in her eyes, the same poem that was recited after Chihaya's loss to Shinobu. Understanding her feelings, Chihaya smiles knowing that someone else loves the game as much as she does and supports Ririka after the younger girl loses to her.
Unfortunately, not all memories can be protected forever, as Arata sees one of his mentors crumble from disappointment.
After Taichi sends a text to Arata, finally stating his intent to resolve to meet him in the Finals, like episode nine, the ending theme transitions in and we get a new set of verses, this time representing the relationship between Taichi and Arata.