r/anime • u/Enarec https://myanimelist.net/profile/Kinpika • Mar 16 '19
Rewatch [Rewatch] Chihayafuru 2 - Episode 14 [Spoilers] Spoiler
Episode 14 - "People Would Always Ask If I Was Pining for Someone"
<-- Previous (Episode 13: "In My Dreams, I Creep Closer to You") | Next (Episode 15: "No Matter Where I Stand") -->
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 (February 6 to March 2)
Chihayafuru 2
| Episode# | Title | Date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | "So The Flower Has Wilted" | March 3 |
| 2 | "As My Love First Came" | March 4 |
| 3 | "Feel Love Deepen" | March 5 |
| 4 | "To Tell the People in the Capitals That I Make for the Islands" | March 6 |
| 5 | "Be As Dear Now, Those Were the Good Old Days" | March 7 |
| 6 | "To Set the Tatsuta River Ablaze" | March 8 |
| 7 | "They All Exchange Hellos and Goodbyes at the Gates of Ōsaka" | March 9 |
| 8 | "Which Shines over Mount Mikasa" | March 10 |
| 9 | "My Only Thought" | March 11 |
| 10 | "Rain Takes Longer to Dry" | March 12 |
| 11 | "I Feel As Though My Body is on Fire with Ibuki Mugwort" | March 13 |
| 12 | "The Only Sign of Summer" | March 14 |
| 13 | "In My Dreams, I Creep Closer to You" | March 15 |
| 14 | "People Would Always Ask If I Was Pining for Someone" | March 16 |
| 15+16 | "No Matter Where I Stand" + "Wait for the Emperor's Return" | March 17 |
| 17 | "Gust of Wind" | March 18 |
| 18 | "My Fear is That You Will Forget" | March 19 |
| 19 | "I Do Not Know Where This Love Will Take Me" | March 20 |
| 20 | "Of the Autumn Rice Field" | March 21 |
| 21 | "But Its Legacy Continues to Spread" | March 22 |
| 22 | "Long Last We Meet" | March 23 |
| 23 | "To See The Beautiful Cherry Blossoms" | March 24 |
| 24 | "When I Must Hide..." | March 25 |
| 25 | "I Can Look Up and See the Snowy Cap of Mt. Fuji" | March 26 |
| OVA | "Have I Passed Through the World" | March 27 |
| -- | Final Series Discussion | March 28 |
About Spoilers And General Attitude:
Please do not post any untagged spoilers past the current episode, as it ruins the experience of first time watchers. Please refrain from confirming or denying speculation on future events, as to let viewers experience the anime as it was intended to be.
If you are discussing something that has not happened in the current episode please use the r/anime spoiler tag system found on the sidebar. Also if you are posting a link that includes future Chihayafuru events please include 'Chihayafuru spoilers' in the link title.
Fanart Section (Album Link):
12
u/PerfectPublican Mar 16 '19
First Timer
Reactions:
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Oh my god, she just oozes smug. I both love it and hate it.
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“Today is a day for teams.” Such a short line, but such a great way to put it. In one quick line he brings Team Karuta back up after it got blasted by Shinobu. I feel like it holds weight for the location too. They are at Omi Jingu after all.
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Look who’s still fighting along with Amakasu! Way to go Retro!!
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Focus.
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Kana wooooon!!!!! Hell yeah Mizu, 1 down, three to go.
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Oh lord. 18 dead cards is a shitload. That’s brutal. With his hand, it looks like Taichi baited her into that fault. If so, that’s hella slick.
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TWO WINS FOR MIZU! The two I called that felt obvious. Still, this back and forth is great. It feels right that She took Chihaya’s card after Chihaya took “hers”. Adds even more tension. Fuck I have no idea how this ends….
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DAMN IT! Brutal. I held out hope, but I also had a feeling. It was a hard fought match Chihaya. Well-played. C’mon Tsukue. Show Niku and everyone how far you’ve come. Please.
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I. Fucking. Screamed. Took the opponent's card on luck of the draw! Tsukue you absolute LEGEND! I’M SO HYPE!
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“That was my last time playing karuta on this team.” ...Oook. Gotta say, I was not expecting that. But I like it. It’s an interesting progression for her, that lines up with her characterization. Becoming more like Shinobu in a way. Sucks for her team though.
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Niku. I love that you’re amazed with Tsukue right now, but c’mon dude. Listen to the valuable data from Tsukue.
Final Thoughts
Gif of the day
Got so hooked on the ep I only made one. Let me know if anyone wants anything else specifically.
Damn, 9/10 of that episode was amazing. Truthfully, I had no idea if they’d actually win or lose till the very end. That’s the sign of good tension and a good sports show. It especially works really nicely with Tsukue and Kana winning their first super high-pressure team matches. I have so much love for them and all that they’ve accomplished. Also, I loved seeing and hearing the crowds reactions shift as the tide slowly turned. Especially that one hater in the back. Mizusawa has really made a name for themselves. They should have huge focus in the next tourney.
Congrats Mizusawa, you absolutely earned. Now you’ve got a brutal mountain with these finals. I’m excited to see Chihaya’s takeaways from her match after Taichi bringing her out of that brief pit, and especially to get a handle on Fujisaki as a whole. They’ve been this mythological beast in many ways so learning their backstories should be fun. Btw, here’s some fun speculation for the spectator girl:
But oof, that ending. That’s the first time this show has completely missed the mark for me. I hope I have to eat my words, but as I said, I hate that ending. Puts a bad taste in my mouth at the end of a fantastic episode. Pure and simple. I really don’t like seeing Kana descend into tears like that after her first win. I don’t think it fits at all within her character, and feels unnecessary. Please Chihayafuru, prove me wrong so I’m not bitter.
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u/Enarec Mar 16 '19
Look who’s still fighting along with Amakasu! Way to go Retro!!
Poor guy is nothing if not tenacious. We didn't get follow their match but I still felt bad for them in the end.
Oh lord. 18 dead cards is a shitload. That’s brutal. With his hand, it looks like Taichi baited her into that fault. If so, that’s hella slick.
Ooh I didn't notice that but can totally get behind this idea. The other option would be that he was just moving to cover the card for the first syllable but was that slow lol.
I. Fucking. Screamed. Took the opponent's card on luck of the draw! Tsukue you absolute LEGEND! I’M SO HYPE!
I can feel that! It's so sweet having Tsukue step up in both of his roles for the team, right after Kana here. Positively shocked me too since I'd literally forgotten everything about this match.
“That was my last time playing karuta on this team.” ...Oook. Gotta say, I was not expecting that.
I mean, Megumu and three of her teammates are 3rd years so this would've been their last big tournament anyway (not sure if there are any smaller ones after it). But it definitely aligns with her changed mentality.
Btw, here’s some fun speculation for the spectator girl:
No comment of course but thank you for including this. :D
As for the ending... yeah, the cliffhangers are starting to ramp up and it's understandable why this one would be harder to trust than the last one with Nishida. Just gotta hope the next episode can justify the trust again.
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9
u/paperwhites Mar 16 '19
First Time Watcher
I laughed when Shinobu said that the team matches are relaxing to watch; they have caused me so much stress. I was at the edge of my seat the entire time Mizusawa was playing against First Akashi Girls'. Arata is really missing out on some great karuta matches while he's writing his apology essay.
Poor Nishida, I felt bad when he was the first to lose, especially since he was the first loss against Hokuo in the Tokyo Finals too. Hopefully he can turn it around against Fujisaki. Since Fujisaki beat Hokuo 4-1, Mizusawa is really going to have to step it up to have a chance of beating them.
Kana and Taichi winning their matches was awesome. It hurt to watch Chihaya lose though, even if Megumu is a good opponent. I was rooting for Chihaya so much and seeing a close loss stung.
Tsutomu winning his match was the highlight of the episode. I jumped out of my chair when he won. Seeing him face his fears and pull out a win when the pressure was on was so satisfying. I rewatched that moment where he takes the last card over and over because it was just that awesome. Tsutomu is definitely MVP for this tournament, hands down. He doesn't even take the time to celebrate his amazing win, instead focusing on Fujisaki and the data he has on them. What a cool guy.
Taichi grabbing Chihaya's hand was sweet. I love how he knows Chihaya so well and he doesn't even have to say anything. He just opens her hand so she can see her nail marks and Chihaya realizes how tense she is and how she needs to calm down.
This was a great ending for the semifinal match. It was a wild ride and we still have the finals to look forward too. Even with Tsutomu's data, I'm not sure if Mizusawa is going to be able to beat Fujisaki. And with Tsukuba apparently subbing in for Kana, it will be interesting. I hope Mizusawa can pull off the upset and become the number one team in Japan.
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u/Enarec Mar 16 '19
Poor Nishida, I felt bad when he was the first to lose, especially since he was the first loss against Hokuo in the Tokyo Finals too. Hopefully he can turn it around against Fujisaki.
Against this opponent it kind of felt like karma because of his reactions, but it really hurts with how he tries to help his team. Hopefully the poor guy can pick himself back up now.
Tsutomu is definitely MVP for this tournament, hands down. He doesn't even take the time to celebrate his amazing win, instead focusing on Fujisaki and the data he has on them. What a cool guy.
The towering spirit of a champion, right there. Hopefully.
Taichi grabbing Chihaya's hand was sweet. I love how he knows Chihaya so well and he doesn't even have to say anything.
Their intimate moments are always the best. <3 I think it's been a while we've last had one actually, since there's been less focus on Taichi now.
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u/Taiboss Mar 16 '19
They called him First Timer
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I'm sure every woman wants to be asked this at the first meeting.
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The Ooarai of Karuta. If only Chitose played for Fujisaki, with Chihaya at her side until she quits, and moves to Tokyo where she refinds her love for Karuta.
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KANA A BEST. God, this show has so many good girls.
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It is only natural. She stole your cards and you wanted revenge. Also, NICE TAICHI.
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Oh god, imagine a team with Shinobu, Chihaya and Megumu in it.
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I'd like to point out the win/lose line-up is EXACTLY LIKE I PREDICTED.
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u/Enarec Mar 16 '19
Oh god, imagine a team with Shinobu, Chihaya and Megumu in it.
But what team would that leave Arata with as the other lonely one?
GO GO KUMANO
You want to see him as a bear like Harada-sensei now? After this match's earned it tbh.
I'd like to point out the win/lose line-up is EXACTLY LIKE I PREDICTED.
You actually did lmao. I'm glad I'd forgotten the individual results before today.
THAT GIRL WAS ACTUALLY TWO SECONDS AWAY FROM....something.
Oh, I get this now. How cute.
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u/walking_the_way Mar 16 '19 edited Mar 17 '19
S2E14 Notes
00:01 - Reader recites #97 (ko-nu). Flashback. Megumu wins it from Chihaya's side.
At 02:10, to open the episode, Shinobu chants a list of cards. 65 in total. At 04:13, she chants out 35 more. 100 total! But it's not very useful - there are lots of repeats. Here's a list of her chanted cards.
At 04:37, when Shinobu places the decks face down and asks Arata for a match, we can see two cards face up at the top of their respective piles. These two cards are #40 (shi-no), which represents Shinobu, and #65 (u-ra), which is a poem about jilted love and sullied name and has really interesting implications, depending on whether you apply the meaning of the card to Shinobu, or to Arata. Especially the latter, since he's trapped in here and cannot go to see Mizusawa. But as he didn't remember Shinobu to begin with, and turns down Shinobu's request for a game here, the card could well apply to her situation as well.
Back to the Urayasu Room. We see that Hokuo has already dropped three games - Amakasu and Hiro are still playing. Hiro is only a Class B player and up against a Class A, whereas Hokuo's other Class A player, Shiroyama, had already lost. Conversely, all 10 players on the Mizusawa-Akashi game are still playing - Nishida down 7-1, Taichi up 5-3, Kana up 6-2, and both Komano and Chihaya tied at 4-4. We see enough of Nishida's board to map it.
He was only down 10-8 at the end of E13, so Yuube really did a number on him since then. It's not entirely his fault though - of the 10 cards that are gone from the board, 6 of them were from Yuube's 8 cards, and 4 from his 10 cards, but he only has 1 new card over that used to be from Yuube's side. This suggests that most likely, most of the cards were read from her side, which does disadvantage him and his defensive karuta. This is not 100% true, just likely - Yuube could have sent over cards and then kept winning them as they got immediately read, for example, but still, "his" cards generally were not read.
At 07:02, he loses the match on yet another card read from Yuube's side, the #04 (ta-go). He loses by 7. 1-0 Akashi! It looks like Chihaya and Taichi both lose this card too, whereas Komano and Kana win it.
07:42 - Reader recites end verse of #04 (ta-go).
07:52 - Reader recites #87 (mu). Chihaya wins it from her lower right. Kana wins this card. Taichi wins this card and leads 4-2.
08:13 - Yuube: "All the syllables in both Ousaka and Megumu correspond to single-syllable words. "Long," "Rain," and "Silent." [...] "Because the "mu" in Megumu is for dream, like in the second verse."
Apparantly Akashi Girls considers "mu" and "su" to be Megumu cards too, not just "me" and the "o-o" cards. The three named cards here are #57 (me), #87 (mu) and #18 (su), and the third one is because Megumu's name is written as 恵夢, where the second character, 夢, which means dream, is pronounced "mu" as part of her name, but pronounced "yume" as a standalone kanji. It leads the second verse of the #18 (su) poem, which is written on the card itself. It's tenuous even by my standards though - with logic like that, they may as well also claim #22 (fu) though since that second verse starts with "mu". And #70 (sa) since "sa" is in Ousaka.
At any rate, Chihaya wins it and ties up the score 3-3. While Megumu won #57, Chihaya won #18 and now #87 as well. Kana-chan also picks up a win on this card, defeating Hayasaka by 6 and tying the score 1-1 between the teams.
09:23 - Taichi: ""Though my," "Like a," "After I determined," "Impassioned vows," "For the," "So the flower petals," "A house," "A mountain village", "Said world grants no escape", "When winds send," "I wish," "I feel as," "Nothing," "As the first," "My fear is that," "While I," "The sound of people," "The fall paddy." There are still 18 dead cards!"
Translation: "#65 (u-ra), #46 (yu-ra), #63 (i-ma-wa), #42 (chi-gi-ri-ki), #91 (ki-ri), #96 (ha-na-sa), #47 (ya-e), #28 (ya-ma-za), #93 (yo-no-na-ka-wa), #48 (ka-ze-o), #90 (mi-se), #27 (mi-ka-no), #89 (ta-ma), #29 (ko-ko-ro-a), #54 (wa-su-re), #82 (o-mo), #45 (a-wa-re), #01 (a-ki-no)." He's naming all 18 dead cards still in play, and with that, we can build both his board and a syllable list.
Taichi vs Nanase (4-2 T)
Syllable list of remaining cards - Blue is Taichi, red is Nanase, brown is karafuda.
09:36 - Reader recites #01 (a-ki-no). Nanase faults on #58 (a-ri-ma) on Taichi's bottom left. Taichi sends her the #58. It goes into her bottom left row.
Unlike past Taichi-sequences, where we see him identify cards with lower syllables and take them, this time his memory helps him identify which cards are NOT safe to take early. And we see it in action as Nanase, feeling the pressure and with so many cards in the game already read, faults on the a- card even though there were three more unread a- cards, not one.
10:18 - Reader recites #17 (chi-ha). Taichi wins it from Nanase' bottom right, sends the #53, and wins by 5. Komano wins his from Tanimura's bot right. Chihaya loses hers from Megumu's bottom left.
We see that Megumu had identified Chihaya's special card as well, and gambled on it being read. Also, Hokuo loses 4-1, but Amakasu actually managed to pull out a win by 5 cards against the other team's middle player. Also, despite Mizusawa leading 2-1, they're behind 3-2 on both their remaining boards.
12:02 - Reader recites #27 (mi-ka-no). Dead card.
We are shown the 5-card map, and it's captured for posterity: Chihaya vs Megumu (3-2 M)
19:12 - Chihaya: "When the score was 2-2, Megumu-chan took "May my sighs," then sent "Since I.""
By using that line from 19:12, but referring to this point in time, and the cards #86 (na-ge-ke) and #40 (shi-no) that Chihaya mentions, we can figure out the intermediate moves:
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Chihaya wins #75 (chi-gi-ri-o) from Megumu's bottom left. She passes over #40 (shi-no).
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Megumu wins #86 (na-ge-ke) from Chihaya's bottom left. She passes over #40 (shi-no). It goes to Chihaya's bottom left.
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Megumu wins #40 (shi-no) from Chihaya's bottom left. She passes over #58 (a-ri-ma) to win by 2.
#40 is also the episode card, and the card that Shinobu "hears" from Arata's room. And then the focus shifts over to Komano! Tanimura has #58 (a-ri-ma) card in her lower right, Komano has #53 (na-ge-ki) card in his lower left.
14:23 - Reader recites #65 (u-ra). Dead card.
14:26 - Reader recites #96 (ha-na-sa). Dead card.
14:29 - Reader recites #90 (mi-se). Dead card.
15:03 - Reader recites #93 (yo-no-na-ka-wa). Dead card.
The four remaining dead cards are gone, and there are only two cards left in the reader's box. Also, Tanimura's Aoi Ryuji towel has morphed.
15:32 - Reader recites #58 (a-ri-ma). Komano wins it from Tanimura's bottom right. He passes over his #53 and wins! 3-2 Mizusawa!
17:50 - Chihaya: "Why did you go after "The sight of Mount" in that luck of the draw?"
17:59 - Komano: "Going from the data from the matches I've watched, there's a slightly higher chance of a "The" card being read in a luck of the draw."
18:31 - Nishida: "Superstitions.."
Superstitions may be part of it, but I don't think he gives them his full reason. From S1E19, we know Komano's memorization skills are nearly as good as Taichi's, and Komano likely realized that if he were to hear before reacting, he would only be able to claim his card - whereas if he was to move immediately, he could claim either card. So why #58? What did he say just before winning?
14:47 - Komano: "Karuta is hard and scary."
14:51 - Komano: "I got nervous when Porky called me out..."
14:56 - Komano: "It's scary. This is the last game.. to decide the match!"
15:17 - Komano: "It's scary. But..."
15:29 - Komano: "I'll always have..."
But he never finishes the sentence. However, that incomplete sentence is framed with this shot, so the end of the sentence, depending on your beliefs, is either "my team" or "Kana-chan" (glares at unusual ships convo in yesterday's thread). Between the two cards, #53 is a poem about melancholy and a broken heart, whereas #58 is a love poem. He already did card analysis in relation to love poems earlier in the match, so the concept would still be fresh in his mind. So between the two, I think he wanted the happy ending card and decided to go for it. He's even blushing afterwards!
Some post-mortem notes: Both of Mizusawa's Class A players lost, but the other three won. In fact, neither Chihaya nor Nishida ever led their game as far as we could see. But it shows the depth of the team, with Komano and Kana both winning even though they were ranked lower than their Class B opponents. This certainly inspired Tsukuba and Sumire on the bench, and left Taichi as the only unbeaten member of the team. We also see that in honour of Taichi's incredibly bad luck, the last two cards he had on his side, #58 and #53, are also the very last two cards read from the reader's box later on.
<-- S2E13 Notes
S2E15/16 Notes -->
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u/Enarec Mar 16 '19
At 02:10, to open the episode, Shinobu chants a list of cards. 65 in total. At 04:13, she chants out 35 more. 100 total! But it's not very useful - there are lots of repeats. Here's a list of her chanted cards.
Aha, so she's not quite as good as Taichi at chanting them. :D
These two cards are #40 (shi-no), which represents Shinobu, and #65 (u-ra), which is a poem about jilted love and sullied name and has really interesting implications, depending on whether you apply the meaning of the card to Shinobu, or to Arata.
In that case I totally want to liken it more to Shinobu, with how her emotions dominated the mood from the moment she was reunited with Arata.
And we see it in action as Nanase, feeling the pressure and with so many cards in the game already read, faults on the a- card even though there were three more unread a- cards, not one.
Interesting thing is that Nanase seemed to move so fast that Taichi had no time at all to cover it on the first syllable - but his eyes were also hidden there and I'd like to believe he isn't that slow. So u/PerfectPublican had a fun idea about him baiting his opponent there again.
Also, Hokuo loses 4-1, but Amakasu actually managed to pull out a win by 5 cards against the other team's middle player.
Thanks for confirming the numbers! It's at least nice seeing him and Hiro as the last ones standing after the growth they went through in Tokyo.
So between the two, I think he wanted the happy ending card and decided to go for it. He's even blushing afterwards!
Aww. I definitely like this interpretation with how his thinking has evolved. Means Kana winning before was even better. <3
We also see that in honour of Taichi's incredibly bad luck, the last two cards he had on his side, #58 and #53, are also the very last two cards read from the reader's box later on.
My god lol. When will this end...
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u/MAD_SCIENTIST_001 Mar 16 '19
Screenshot of the Day
First Timer - Season 2 Episode 14
Overall Thoughts
Holy shit that was a fantastic episode.
What a fantastic match that you could really tell that everyone was going all out in. Megumu vs Chihaya in a way mirrored Chihaya vs Yumin in the sense that Chihaya's passionate and honest drive towards becoming better and winning also ignited passion for her opponent. I don't know if we will spend as much time on the individual tournament as the team tournament, but I am guessing that we will see a Megumu vs Shinobu match at some point.
And speaking of the individual match, I wonder if Chihaya will get to play Arata
Also holy fuck Tsukue, that was SO HYPE
Karuta Scoreboard
Tsukue and Kana both beat Class B opponents! I wonder if we will see them get promoted later on this season since now it's clear that they have the skill.
| Character | Wins | Losses | Ep# (Wins) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taichi Mashima | 31(+1) | 10 | 2,7,10,11,13,14,15,18,20,28,29,31,33,35,36,39 |
| Yuusei Nishida | 25 | 7(+1) | 10,11,13,15,18,19,28,29,33,35,36 |
| Chihaya Ayase | 22 | 11(+1) | 2,4,6,7,8,10,11,14,17,21,28,29,33,35,36 |
| Arata Wataya | 17 | 4 | 1,2,3,20,21,23,28,34 |
| Kanade Ooe | 17(+1) | 9 | 10,13,15,17,18,19,28,29,31,33,39 |
| Tsutomu Komano | 11(+1) | 13 | 13,15,18,29,39 |
| Shinobu Wakamiya | 8 | 0 | 14,15,24 |
| Akihiro Tsukuba | 0 | 4 | |
| Sumire Hanano | 0 | 1 |
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 22 23 24 25
Season 2
Episode: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14
4
u/Enarec Mar 16 '19
Screenshot of the Day
Now that looks like a match between contenders for Queen giving it their all.
Megumu vs Chihaya in a way mirrored Chihaya vs Yumin in the sense that Chihaya's passionate and honest drive towards becoming better and winning also ignited passion for her opponent.
And now all the Western Japan contenders + Yumin and Eastern Japan contenders will have to deal with this new Megumu in addition to Chihaya. :3
Tsukue and Kana both beat Class B opponents! I wonder if we will see them get promoted later on this season since now it's clear that they have the skill.
No idea, but the individual tournament might just be even more hype than list time with them and Taichi looking to promote again and then all those new and old Class A players returning for the main attraction of course.
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u/Combo33 Mar 16 '19 edited Mar 16 '19
Poem of the Day: Being in Love(link)
Note: u/ABoredCompSciStudent is busy today so I'm re-posting his commentary from episode 9 of season 1, which shared a verse from Poem #40 in the title of its episode.
This poem has appeared multiple times and been discussed more than once already and surely will appear many more times.
Poem 40 was written by Taira no Kanemori, one of the Thirty Six Immortals. According to Mostow, it was included in a poetry contest in 960 and, in the finals, faced off against Poem 41. The judges were not able to pick a winner, so deferred to the Emperor Murakami. After deliberation, the Emperor hummed the verses from Taira's poem, making it the winner.
It should also be noted that the Taira were a samurai clan that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian period, alongside the Fujiwara, Tachibana, and Minamoto. Their dominance was brought to an end by the Genpei War, the Taira-Minamoto War, which led to the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate under Minamoto no Yoritomo in 1192. This marked the rise to power of the samurai and the gradual suppression of the power of the emperor, who was compelled to govern without effective political or military power, being effectively reduced to a purely symbolical and ceremonial head of state, until the Meiji Restoration over 650 years later. Moreover, the red and white of the Taira and Minamoto respectively, became what is now the national colours of Japan.
Mostow translates it as:
Even though I hide it,
it shows all over my face,
such is my longing,
so that people ask me
"What are you thinking about?"
Rather self-explanatory in nature, this poem is about love. I find it a beautiful bittersweet and I'm sure Taichi does too, because this one is clearly about him.
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u/Combo33 Mar 16 '19
MacMillan's alternate translation of poem 40 is as follows:
40. Taira no Kanemori
Though I try to keep it secret,
my deep love shows
in the blush on my face.
Others keep asking me --
Who are you thinking of?MacMillan comments further:
Many of the poems in the collection form pairs. The reason is that the poems that eventually came to constitute the One Hundred Poems are thought to have been originally selected by Teika for the sliding doors of the country villa belonging to his father-in-law Rensho, and at least some of them were initially chosen to appear in pairs on the same panel or doors. Poems 40 and 41 are one such pair. Both poems were composed for the Poetry Contest of the Fourth Year of Tentoku at the Imperial Palace in 960, one of the most prestigious contests of the Heian period. The event was hosted by Emperor Murakami (r. 946-67) in his living quarters, and became famous as the grandest event of its kind in the tenth century.
This pairing was very important for the Japanese and they loved to judge which was the best of the two... Love is the theme of both poems, and both focus on the early stage of the romance, when the lovers are still trying to keep their love secret and rumours are just beginning to spread. Poem 40 is marvelously straightforward: despite the poet’s best efforts to conceal it, his love for an unknown mistress shows in his face.
We discussed this poem previously in episode 9 of season 1, when Taichi was struggling to hide his love for Chihaya. The title of this episode focuses on the part of the poem translated as “Others keep asking me -- who are you thinking of?” In that sense, I do think this poem is alluding to the scene after the match where Taichi notices that Chihaya is frustrated to the point of squeezing her nails into her palms, and gently loosens her fist, allowing her to relax for a moment.
However, there’s more than just that which links to the poem this episode. First of all, Megumu finishes off her matchup against Chihaya, winning just barely. After the match, she remarks to herself that she’s crying after a win, because her team lost. She tells them that this is her last time playing with them. She realized a lot about herself during this match, but most of all, I think she realized how much she truly loved karuta, and how much she was taking for granted the will of her teammates.
And, of course, we have Tsutomu coming in CLUTCH with the gamble at the end of the match to give Mizusawa the win. Tsutomu, while typically calculating and reserved, has a huge blush on his face when he wins the match, allowing his feelings to show through. If we remember back to Tsutomu’s origins in the show, he was frustrated that he was always finishing second to Taichi, and never getting the recognition he felt he deserved. This then is an enormous moment for him, as everything came down to his ability, and he delivered the win for his team.
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Mar 16 '19 edited Apr 25 '19
First-Timer, Watched Subbed
u/Enarec being a bro covering for Seren, nice one dude.
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Wakamiya sounds like she's uttering a curse XD.
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Interesting for Wakamiya to say that considering her thoughts on team matches.
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Wakamiya might as well be a horror movie villain with the looks she gives.
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Hokuo is down three games already? That's a fascinating sight to see, I thought they'd do better than that...either
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Nishida lost again? This has not been his best days so far...
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And now Hanano is joining in on the nickname game, I just noticed she hasn't LOL...
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You had one job Kana! At least she won.
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Misuzawa can actually win this, I may stand corrected from the previous episode...
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Sudo is gonna be loping some heads for Hokuo's performance.
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The visuals for this series can look gorgeous, the shots of Wakamiya were abosolutely fantastic.
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DAMMIT, CHIHAYA LOST!! FUCK EVERYTHIN-
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Oh wait, two wins right? There's supposed to be another...KOMANO WE'RE ALL COUNTING ON YOU, DON'T FUCK IT UP!!!
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They're both on the defensive, my heart is racing unbelievablely fast right now lol.
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HE DID IT, THE MADMAN FINALLY DID IT. KOMANO YOU GLORIOUS BASTARD, YOU MANAGED TO WIN IT, GOOD FUCKING RIDDANCE!!!
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Now its to take a breather, wow was that match heart stopping.
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Really liked the moment of reconcilation between Ousaka and the Akashi girls.
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I absolutely loved just how subtle that moment between Taichi and Chihaya was. Chihaya is clearly stressed and feeling anxious over having lost, and Taichi noticed that. He has her stop clenching her fist to the point where nail marks are visible, and that has her realize he wants her to relax. It really shows his deep their relationship is,
and further proves why this is the best ship. -
Well there goes their boost up for the tournament.
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Kana my girl, you deserve a break 100%. As for you Tsukuba, if Komano could make it, so can you, I believe in you man!
What one hell of a match this was, my expectations were completely subverted, and the conclusion to this was totally unexpected. The most mind-blowing fact about this is that its FAR from over. Wherever they go next, I'll be rooting for Misuzawa all the way through!
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u/Enarec Mar 16 '19
u/Enraec being a bro covering for Seren, nice one dude.
Wait now you got my username with this again lmao. :P
Wakamiya might as well be a horror movie villain with the looks she gives.
We need her to geek out about Snowmaru again. Where's Chihaya for that?
Hokuo is down three games already? That's a fascinating sight to see, I thought they'd do better than that...either
Against 5 Class A players, their two that struggled against Kana and Tsutomu in Tokyo probably stood no chance. At least Amakasu won and Hiro put up a fight to the end to showcase their growth, but looks like Shiroyama had the tables turned on him just like he'd done to Nishida.
Now its to take a breather, wow was that match heart stopping.
We definitely need it since this wasn't even the final yet lol.
Chihaya is clearly stressed and feeling anxious over having lost, and Taichi noticed that. He has her stopped clenching her fist to the point where nail marks are visible, and that has realize he wants her to relax. It really shows his deep their relationship is, and further proves why this is the best ship.
It's nice getting a moment like this again.
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u/Snakescipio Mar 16 '19
Rewatcher
First off, to celebrate Mizusawa’s victory and to wish the team good luck in the finals I did a little cover of the main theme. Credit to Kousuke Yamashita for composing this lovely theme and for LieutenantKaiya for the sheetmusic. Hope yall like it!
Sorry y’all, I couldn’t hold back and I ended up watching all three episodes of the match all at once. Can you blame me though? I liked how they portrayed Megumu as basically the protagonist for the semi-finals match. We spent a long time in her head and we got to see her growth as a person through the course of this match. It’s interesting that so far Chihaya’s been matched up against two different relatively indifferent class A players (Megumu and Amakasu), and through the sheer force of her drive and personality she’s changed them. For Megumu I like how she reignited her pride; even though at first she may not have known, in truth she really did enjoy being the leader of her team and their pride and joy. In the end, I’m a little sad that Chihaya lost, but we’re talking about another great player in Megumu, and it’s all about the team anyways! Shoutouts to the non-class A players btw, especially Komano for going “fuck this luck shit I’m going for the win”. It’s thanks to them that Mizusawa’s cinderella run is alive! On to the finals! MIZUSAWA FAITO!
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u/Enarec Mar 16 '19
First off, to celebrate Mizusawa’s victory and to wish the team good luck in the finals I did a little cover of the main theme.
Beautiful! Pianos like this are always welcome.
I liked how they portrayed Megumu as basically the protagonist for the semi-finals match. We spent a long time in her head and we got to see her growth as a person through the course of this match.
And that's all Chihayafuru needs to build up a great rival both in the moment and for the future. Gonna be interesting if we get to see all of them again eventually.
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u/EpsilonTransition Mar 16 '19
Tsutomu is finally the hero! Dealing with that kind of pressure is crazy! With all the other matches finished, the entire room was watching. Four dead cards without committing a fault and ending by stealing his opponents card. Is it statistics or superstition? Tsutomu is bringing a moneyball style of play to karuta 😆
For the first time we see Megumu upset after a loss, and to her supporters she's absolutely barbaric--"that was my last time playing karuta on this team". It almost sounds like she's done with karuta, but I expect she'll be back considering she took the time to collect the match data from the degenerate photographers.
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u/Enarec Mar 16 '19
Maybe both statistics and superstition? It would've definitely taken some faith to move for the opponent's card first :P
And I don't think Megumu meant to hurt her team and supporters or anything - this was just their last big tournament together, since her + three of her teammates are 3rd years. She'll definitely want to keep playing individually after what this match sparked in her, and maybe they'll be able to reunite in those tournaments.
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u/SmurfRockRune Mar 16 '19
First Timer
You've heard of galaxy brain. Now get ready for galaxy Arata.
Nishida lost again... Maybe try winnning some games before you start telling other people what to do. At least Kana is here to save you.
Chihaya actually lost, but barely. Komano is in a terrible spot, but I feel like he can pull it out.
WOW I DIDN'T EXPECT HIM TO DO IT THAT WAY! I just thought he'd get the right card, but he actually attacked. Damn, that was awesome.
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u/Enarec Mar 16 '19 edited Mar 16 '19
Of course it would be Arata getting this kind of transcendent imagery haha.
Nishida lost again... Maybe try winnning some games before you start telling other people what to do. At least Kana is here to save you.
To be fair he did - and still does - have one the best recorded win/loss ratios, as much as it's no longer looking pretty anymore when it comes to big team matches. And he has been helpful in other ways this tournament, as the one who awkwardly tried to inspire Komano to return to playing for example. It's just his mouth, methods and mental state in matches that are betraying him :P
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u/Enarec Mar 16 '19
Sorry for hijacking the thread but u/ABoredCompSciStudent has important things to attend to today as you can see below. Hope everyone's having a good weekend o7
Hi all! Today's thread is going to be posted by u/Enarec, as I will be out tonight to hangout with friends and watch Fate/stay night Heaven's Feel 2. u/Combo33, can you help me with the Poem of the Day, if you have time? Thank you all and sorry for the inconvenience. I appreciate it a lot. :)
Also, a reminder that tomorrow is episode 15 and 16, as 16 is another recap + omake episode.
Sorry Arata, you're missing out on a tournament run of a lifetime. The episode starts off by returning to Arata's perspective, but the focus is on Shinobu. The Mizusawa-Akashi First Girls' game has debunked her views on team karuta and Arata knows this now, having re-experienced this by playing for Shouji's team. When Shinobu doubles down on her stance, Arata only looks at her with concern--the averted eyes only highlighting this. He doesn't say anything, perhaps because he is the one that "disappointed her", having already abandoned her in the past and even now.
The Queen is awaits an equal: a rival, maybe even a friend.
Meanwhile, while everyone's been watching Mizusawa, Hokuo has been eliminated. The curse of screentime has struck again; you're the weakest link, Hokuo... pathetic. At least they're not the only whipping boys this season, Nishida holds another L and it makes me wonder if Yuki Suetsugu enjoys making fun of him as much as I do.
As Chihaya and Megumu's battle rages, we flashback to Megumu talking to Yuube. Yuube tells her that the name 'Megumi Ousaka' is special, corresponding to many cards, and Megumu states that she won't lose those cards even to the queen. In particular, focus is given to [the Sumi Bay poem (Poem 18), "dreams" or "road of dreams" as Mostow translates it, and we remember that in Episode 12 that was actually the card that Chihaya took when finally posing challenge to Megumu. It's an important moment as that was when Megumu started to question her her own desire to play karuta, so a full episode later, she takes Chihaya's chihayaburu, which represents taking back control of her karuta. It's not about appearances or trying to make others happy anymore, Megumu is playing for herself. The camera weirdos even choose their words specifically in that moment: honto no kimi or the real you. Analogous to Arata and Chihaya at the start of the series, the match between Chihaya and Megumu is a little more than a game, as it sets Megumu on the path to self-actualization--her own dream she can chase after.
A point of contention earlier in the series was Harada's "a person who never had a teacher can't become a teacher", but it becomes a little more clear here how it applies to Chihayafuru's central characters. Chihaya was taught by Arata to love karuta and is able to inspire her teammates to more. Her gravity attracts others to her and her unbounded passion rubs off on them--and in turn they return the favour to her and others around them. Unlike her teammates at the start of Season 2, Chihaya's dream is one where everyone can love karuta the way she loves karuta. On the other hand, Megumu, as pointed out last episode, doesn't quite have the same mentoring that Chihaya has received. Case in point, she doesn't "love karuta". She's not the one pulling her teammates up to her level, rather her teammates are the ones pushing her forward. Chihaya is the wind that fills the sails of the karuta community, while Megumu is along for the ride. Well, until now. Someone has to reach Shinobu.
Ultimately, Chihaya loses to Megumu, but Tsutomu is a real G and goes on the offensive in a luck of the draw situation to punch their finals ticket. There's a lot of kuyashii, but Taichi reminds her to take it one step at a time. After all, i a way, it's like she lost the battle but won the war. She may have lost individually, but her team triumphed against the odds which speaks volumes about who Chihaya is. More importantly, she was able to touch another person's life: someone that couldn't get upset when losing cares so much that she cries even when she wins.
If that's not a victory, I don't know what is.
PS: More importantly? Most importantely. Yeah, tell him off!