Alright folks, let’s get right back to season three of Chihayafuru! It’s currently Wednesday, and I just logged on to Crunchyroll hoping the new episode had been released, only to see that two new episodes have somehow already been released. That doesn’t make any sense to me chronology-wise, but I’m not going to look a gift Chihaya in the mouth, and am eager to get back to the karuta drama. Last episode served as a fast-paced but generally effective return to the series, using an early series of flashbacks to remind us of both the rules of karuta and the relationships between Chihayafuru’s leads, before diving right into Chihaya and Taichi’s training with the Fujisaki team. Their training under Sakurazawa went on to lay out a variety of threads for us to follow, from Chihaya’s quest for a more strategy-minded understanding of karuta, to Taichi’s Chihaya-bound relationship with karuta itself.

Though Taichi’s relationship with karuta has always been closely tied to his feelings for Chihaya, the consistent reiteration of that across season three’s premiere seems to imply that we’ll at last be directly addressing that fact, and moving him towards either a more honest relationship with Chihaya or a healthier one with karuta. At the same time, Chihaya’s new understanding of Taichi’s situation feels like a neat echo of her newfound interest in strategy. In both her personal and competitive life, Chihaya has always been propelled forward by her single-minded love of karuta, an instinct that at times has made her feel more like a narrative force than a fully realized person. Chihaya’s desire for a more thoughtful approach to karuta seems mirrored by her new awareness of Taichi’s feelings, as if in both karuta and her personal life, she’s finally taking a moment to step out of her enthusiasm and assess the world around her. I’m excited to see Chihaya taking steps towards greater self-awareness, and am expecting some gloriously thorny drama ahead for her and Taichi. Let’s see what’s in store in the next Chihayafuru!

Episode 2

We return to what looks like the end of summer, as students return and are congratulated for their various athletic victories over the break. I’ve never seen this ceremony in an anime before, but its existence makes immediate sense to me – the Japanese summer break likely coincides with a lot of post-season tournaments and whatnot, since it’s one of the few times you can assume kids won’t be in school. I’ve certainly read Cross Game enough times to know about the summer baseball tournaments, at least

Arata awkwardly announces his desire to compete in the team karuta tournament, with his schoolmates encouragingly cheering him on. I love how nice people are in this world, on average

This scene is efficient – reminding us of Arata’s recent victory and setting out his new quest in one quick stroke

Okay, looks like we’re getting the actual new OP this time

Nice use of shifting typography here, a classic trick for the series that visually echoes those persistent red leaves flowing past

Most of the imagery here only touches on familiar conflicts; likely the most telling shot is a dramatic pan past Suo, the current karuta Master, which implies he’ll likely be taking a more active role in this season’s plot

“Our world of karuta can only grow because of team players who keep the game alive, right?” Right, I forgot about this refrain. The ultimate counter to Shinobu’s insistence on karuta as a solo activity is that it is only through team play that karuta can grow and flourish, with new players finding joy in working together even when they fail, and stronger players teaching their friends to love the game

It’s tough for Arata to gather players; after all, he’s already a second-year in the fall, meaning the time you’d generally step back from clubs to focus on college exams is already approaching

And right on cue, Chihaya is staring in horror at her own career survey

Chihaya’s friend Michiru went on a class trip pre-trip to Kyoto, in order to make sure their actual class trip goes smoothly. That is some serious dedication to the class trip tradition

Chihaya’s smile is too damn bright

Ahaha, Kana is seriously disappointed in Taichi and Chihaya’s lack of romantic progress

Alright, so at their current levels, Taichi can occasionally beat Chihaya using her left hand. That’s still a pretty substantial distance between them – it actually seemed like the Class B Rion gave Chihaya more trouble

Tsutomu has gained so much ground that he’s now actively arguing with Nishida for the right to battle Taichi. Tsutomu’s development as an individual karuta player has largely taken place in the background, though; it’ll be interesting to see if his role changes now that he’s in Class B

Oh my god this Kana look of disgust

Chihaya is paired up with Hanano next, which neatly serves to both reiterate her general goal (attempting to gain Taichi’s attention) and her recent progress

Aw shit, the Master/Queen qualifiers overlap with the school trip

Kana sees Chihaya in crisis, and whips out one of her signature inspirational speeches, this one centering on small righteous actions building up a pool of good luck. Kana has precisely the kind of romantic worldview you’d expect from someone who loves the hundred poems; she proceeds as though all of our actions play into some greater unseen web of narrative connectivity, as if the world is ultimately guided by storybook logic

And her advice is also practical: if you’re stumped by one major problem, try breaking it down into tiny discreet steps to take. It also echoes the question represented by that career survey: what kind of person do you actually want to become?

“Learn the pain of creating something. And once you’ve learned it, resolve yourself to show lenience to others. In poetry, in literature… in everything.” This teacher’s speech is terrific, and further emphasizes Kana’s point. This Japanese teacher has found his purpose, and finds joy in imparting the lessons of those who’ve influenced him to the next generation. What path will bring Chihaya such joy?

And right on cue, Chihaya’s right hand is restored, and she must decide how to wield it. This whole episode has essentially been winding Chihaya up like a tightly coiled spring, as she prepares to leap towards her chosen future. She’s in the past often been able to have it both ways; embrace karuta fully, and also satisfy her social and scholastic responsibilities. But at this point, she has to start choosing what she’s willing to sacrifice to pursue her dream

Apparently there’s one last major tournament right before the Master/Queen qualifiers. This may serve as an opportunity to translate Chihaya’s answer into sports drama – “I’ll prove the force of my convictions through my play” is a classic trick

It’s very charming to see Harada and the other karuta society leaders all get competitive together. This sport having such a limited appeal and player pool is actually an asset for Chihayafuru in a variety of ways – not only does it feed Arata’s “supporting the future of the sport” narrative, it also means the whole competitive circuit starts to feel like a familiar family, and each new tournament like a family reunion

Ahaha, Chihaya almost gets roped into another fucking bet with Sudo, but Taichi arrives and yanks her away

Instead, Taichi accepts a bet where whoever loses first won’t compete in the Masters qualifier. It’s easy for Taichi to make this bet now, because he’s assuming he’ll be on the school trip then – but I’m guessing the course of this tournament may change how he feels about that

Incidentally, it’s episode two of the new season and we’re already in another tournament. I love this show so much – whatever else it’s currently doing, Chihayafuru is always dedicated to keeping the fun sports drama coming

Tsutomu loses immediately, which is understandable – he just moved up into Class B, after all. I appreciate this focus on his internal monologue, and the use of his hands’ outlines as a way of visually framing his thoughts

“Even if no one else took me seriously, I had high hopes for myself!” What a brutal line

But then Kana arrives, heralded through this overwhelming vision of soft lighting and pastels. This director’s aesthetic quirks may have solidified into a somewhat predictable look at this point, but his style works well for the operatic storytelling of Chihayafuru

“I’m not the only one watching me.” What a charming moment. This team desperately needs Kana – Taichi and Chihaya are both totally wrapped up in their own journeys, and it falls to Kana to manage the emotional states of the rest of the team

It turns out the closest match of the A ranks is actually Sudo versus Nishida, which Nishida only narrowly loses. But as he articulates afterwards, that’s still a form of victory – he made Sudo sweat, which will make him weaker when he faces Nishida’s teammates. Solo karuta really is team karuta

And Done

Oh man, that concluding point is so nice. Building on Harada’s familiar “team matches are individual matches, individual matches are team matches,” Taichi spends the last moments reflecting on the truth of that, and how all the contenders here aren’t just fighting for themselves, but also bearing the teams and schools they represent. At this point, we have a solid grasp of what feels like the overall state of high-tier karuta, and are personally invested in representatives from basically all the major teams. Chihayafuru could pit beloved fan favorites against each other for six straight matches here, and still not run out of sympathetic, familiar competitors. We have returned to Chihayafuru’s highest calling, that thrilling celebration of strategy and character that is the tournament arc!

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