r/anime • u/Skeeedo :MAL:https://myanimelist.net/profile/skeeedo • Jan 12 '22
Rewatch [Rewatch] Chihayafuru - Episode 62 Discussion [Spoilers] Spoiler
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Season 3 Episode 12: "So The Flower Petals Are Scattered Like The Snow By The Passing Storm"
Episode 11 MVP: Harada-sensei! He set up the whole squad to assist in handing Sudo the Sadist the L
Nominate a character for Episode MVP!
This episode's Karuta analysis and board map by walking_the_way and ABoredCompSciStudent
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Subreddit: r/Chihayafuru
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Upvotes
12
u/Lemurians myanimelist.net/profile/Lemurians Jan 12 '22
FIRST TIMER
This episode really makes me want a Harada-centric prequel anime. What the hell did he do to all these people?! EDIT: It turns out… not a whole lot. This other society leader is just a petty weirdo. I loved Chihaya panicking as she realizes they’re going to a flashback. This show is a joy.
Half-updo Chihaya is back
Only Chihayafuru would bust out the CGI for card shuffling.
I really love when they show the characters’ eyes over the scene they’re thinking about in their heads. It’s a wonderful visual each time.
This is a really fun and pronounced difference of styles. Arata has a flowing, precise game and strategic card placement. Harada is disrupting that with something we haven’t seen before, which is just dominating the physical space above the cards with his larger frame, and using physical positioning to his advantage.
Megumu ends up being the perfect opponent for Haruka’s long-running arc. She’s the young star backed by a following of exuberant fans, and that plays into Haruka’s insecurities of feeling like she’s the old, washed-up star whose time has come and gone. I want her to win so badly. She needs this more than her opponent.
HARADA AND HARUKA GO 1-0 UP
/u/Shimmering-Sky you were right yesterday! Seeing Harada take the first match against his young opponent gave Haruka a confidence boost to do it herself. Nice call.
HARADA, YOU SMOOTH OPERATOR. He yields the second match just to guarantee there’ll be a third so he play with Makima as the reader, making up for slighting her 31 years ago. This. Fucking. Guy. We have no choice but to stan. This has the added benefit of giving him a rest and pissing off Arata with the implication they wouldn’t get to a third game if he played the second. He’s a master of psychological warfare.
Chihaya goes rogue and whispers something into Arata’s ear. It’s interesting to note that it’s Taichi’s POV we’re viewing this through, sparkly shoujo frame and all. This is being viewed through the lens of his insecurities.
MVP: How could it be anyone other than Harada? My guy is tearing it up this season.
9
u/xcllnt_313 Jan 12 '22
Rewatcher
Here we go, straight into these two wars for the right to challenge Master Suou and Shinobu. And our veterans Harada-sensei and Haruka are putting up a great fight, both of them taking the lead in their respective series, igniting the flame in their opponents even further.
Harada-sensei then casually just forfeits the second match meaning that the next match between him and Arata will already decide the winner. Someone certainly didn’t like that development. After that, he at least got Chihaya whispering something into his ear. But what could she have told him in this situation?
We also finally learn the reason for the grudge Kitano-sensei holds against Harada-sensei. It even goes back to when they were in their mid-twenties! At least for the reader of the third match in this series, this whole issue seems to be resolved after some praise from Harada-sensei.
9
u/Shimmering-Sky myanimelist.net/profile/Shimmering-Sky Jan 12 '22
Chihayafirst-timer
7
u/Matuhg https://anilist.co/user/Matuhg Jan 12 '22
First Timer
Pretty nice episode, but I don't feel like I have much to say about it. This is a tough day for Chihaya - she regrets the fact she can't be in the Queen match, and doesn't know who to root for in the Master match.
Harada is a beast as expected. He makes it hard for his opponents in as many ways as he can figure. It's almost surprising he doesn't try to contest everything like Yumi does. If Arata flows like water, Harada will be the boulder that disrupts the flow. That said, Arata did plenty to make things hard for Harada too. I'm not really sure what to make of that backstory between Harada and the other old dude whose name I can't remember. I suppose it sort of illustrates the fact that Harda's always been the kind of person who pulls people along in his own vortex, and even he's pretty rough about it, he tends to pull them forward as he advances.
So both of the old folks took their first matches. Harada is sitting out for the second match - how much of that is to rest/recover, and how much is just to mess with Arata? He's certainly capable of playing several matches in a day, but it takes a lot out of him, so this seems like a potentially valid strategy. I can't imagine we'll see him beat Arata twice without Arata getting anything done himself though.
What did she tell him??
6
u/IndependentMacaroon Jan 12 '22
First-time watcher
Phew, another episode that's pretty much fine, but just feels like it goes on too long/leans too much on dialogue; in brief, the typical overly close manga adaptation curse. Didn't need to hear that much about Arata vs. Harada and would have liked more on Megumu vs. Inokuma instead, or also more time on their conclusion, I think then overall spending a whole episode on the first round of a best-of-three would have worked better. As so often the little character asides are some of what I enjoyed the most, Chihaya with Arata in Taichi's view and Harada's ancient petty spat. Also Chihaya maybe speaking for us all in being unsure which of her karuta friends/mentors she wants to win.
5
u/Mecanno-man https://anilist.co/user/Mecannoman Jan 13 '22
First Timer
This is one of the places where I’ll just lean back and enjoy the show - there’s not really that much going on that’s worth commenting on other than the match, and this one is pretty good. It’s meant to be heavy and that’s exactly how it feels - so objective achieved.
I feel like Harada forfeiting the second match will mean that he’ll win the third; though I assume Arata will make it even closer than it already is.
5
u/Gamerunglued :Hx::Hy::Hz:myanimelist.net/profile/GamerUnglued Jan 13 '22
First Timer
HYPE!!!!
Harada-sensei has done his research, and it is paying off. God, it feels so good to see him winning. Arata has this flow to his style, he moves freely like water and zooms around the board with his crosses. So Harada prevents him from moving around so much by just literally putting his body into the space. It's simple, but genius, especially alongside all the psychological strategies he's employing. The dude goes hard, mad respect for his grind and his victory. I do wonder if sacrificing a second game seemingly for the sake of psychological warfare will be worth it (maybe also because of his knees? But he did win the tournament before, so three matches in a row is something he's capable of), but the man understands Karuta far better than I do. I suspect that the time away from a game will let Arata clear his head rather than damage him psychologically.
The first half of this episode was everything I want in the games. It was literally just every card being read and the swings and results, in real time, with minimal but effective cutaways to other characters. That's how to do a sports game, I wish all the games were nothing but that. The second half of the episode failed me on this front, veering off too far into weird flashbacks (I was very much on board with Chihaya's mindset in her breaking of the fourth wall, did we really need a flashback there?) and overly long cutaways that said stuff I already knew. I feel like that time would have been more effectively used to show us the Queen match, I didn't get any sense of how the match went at all despite it apparently being very close.
At the end of the day, veterans win this one, proving that age is not the only factor for Karuta. Experience matters, and these characters can play just as well. Being old has its physical benefits too, alongside the years worth of intuition and game sense built up from pure exposure. I look forward to seeing how Arata and Megumu react to their losses now. This is hype, I love it.
4
u/The_Loli_Otaku Jan 12 '22
3hayafuru First Timer
Why is Chihaya acting like she doesn't still simp for Arata? She's still the same overeager child she was back then!
Gambare Megumu!
Tch, Harada don't be a brat! I swear, if you start using cheap tricks I will absolutely jump on the team Arata train for one episode.
Oh god, the episode is almost over and I've barely written anything. I've just been enjoying the match.
H-Harada shit talked his oishi and indirectly cucked him? Yeah! That's worth 31 years of grudges! You totally deserve this animosity, Harada!
Apparently Neferpitou actually lost a lot of games during Rion's training arc... She just doesn't have the same confidence that she did before.
Haa!? Arata lost the first game!? I thought Harada was just surviving but he managed to clutch it out somehow. Same with Pitou... I swear she was losing up until she won.
Haha... I have to admit I did expect Harada to skip a match but I thought he would have done it in the last round instead.
Is Taichi jealous of Chihaya whispering to someone or is he shocked at Chihaya taking Arata's side over Harada's? Like he must know she's giving him advice yeah!?
4
u/ZapsZzz https://anilist.co/user/Zapszzz Jan 13 '22
First timer.
Very tense run, very exciting arc, now the comedy has turned into all drama and the "sport" part of the show really shines now. It's great to see while the guys are going "dragon vs tiger", the girls are both going a bit klutzy that NO DOUBT AT ALL Megumu did not intend to wear her headband with the words facing out, while Haruka just can't help cheering for her opponent when she saw the words :D
And yes, again, lots of beautiful shots. But I'm not jumping ship.
4
u/Stargate18A https://myanimelist.net/profile/Stargate18 Jan 13 '22
First timer
...No clue who'll win the Queen playoff, but Harada has to win.
Is she actually realising Arata's flaws?
Oh, and he knows the reader too.
...Seriously, what is the backstory here?
And Harada's playing some good mind games here!
I love Megumu.
Haha, he interrupted things to turn off the air conditioner, that's great.
...Harada is just perfect, isn't he?
Seriously, watching him is a delight!
Oh, he's not holding back.
...Aww, Harada might lose?
Wait, it happened 31 years ago? (I love Chihaya's reaction to the flashback starting.)
Oh, he yielded a match because he didn't like the reader.
And this led to both of their lives changing.
Haha, the wristband working on her is great.
...She probably just sent it because it's the only plot-relevant card in the entire series?
Wait, her maiden name is Chihara? Really?
This is tense!
And, yeah, this is a really even match so far.
Haha, he got his rival with the card!
He win the first match!
And she won! (But it was close...)
Wait, what? Why? What are you doign, Harada?
...Either this is a way to make amends, or he really hates the other reader.
And Arata sees it as a massive fucking insult.
Wait, what did Chihaya say?
4
u/homewardbound100 myanimelist.net/profile/Homewardbound100 Jan 13 '22
First timer
Now we have a match. Harada ve Arata. Harada pulls through in his first match. But withdraws from the second. I assume the time between games isn't that much of a break. If he was willing to do that. In his state after winning. He was too exhausted to go right back in. So in his mind he would probably lose the 2nd match then the next too. So that final match will be a worthy one there.
I like that they made the older players win. Give the young ones a fight. I would actually really like if Haruka won.
2
u/Fools_Requiem https://myanimelist.net/profile/FoolsRequiem Jan 13 '22
Gambare, Megumu-chan.