AW SHIT YOU GUYS THE MOMENT IS HERE. After dedicating roughly half the season to building up this year’s challenger matches, the time has finally come for Suo and Shinobu to defend their thrones. Recent episodes have revealed both the competitive strengths and clear emotional vulnerabilities of karuta’s two reigning champions, while also building up both Harada and Haruka as scrappy and profoundly sympathetic challengers.

I’m worried for both of them, frankly. Having recently lost to Chihaya, I’m not sure Haruka has what it takes to match Shinobu – and considering how badly his Arata match taxed Harada’s body, I’m not sure he’s physically capable of matching Suo, either. What this frankly might come down to is the current temperament of karuta’s two champions – whether Shinobu is currently in peak emotional form, and whether Harada’s aggressive style actually rattles Suo, or simply ends up playing into his fault-centric strategy. Both Harada and Haruka are facing much younger opponents with highly tuned physical skills; I’d like to believe experience can trump these advantages, but these are some true monsters they’re battling. I’ve hyped this fight long enough, so let’s get right into the action. IT’S TIME FOR THE MASTER AND QUEEN BATTLES!

Episode 17

“As my sleeves are wet with dew.” A title promising heedless exertion – striving, no matter the consequences. Good luck, Harada

Arata viewing this confrontation via streaming offers a neat illustration of karuta’s shifting appeal. Having his screen covered in the usual bands of streaming comments may make it harder to see the match, but offers an avenue for karuta to survive as a communal activity for new generations. Another useful byproduct of Arata getting sick before these matches

Apparently Shinobu’s silly hair buns are actually the same style used by Snowhime, Snowmaru’s girlfriend, a fact that only Chihaya appreciates. I love these aggrieved faces from Hanano and Taichi in the face of this explanation

Once again, Shinobu’s general lack of consideration and preplanning are one of her greatest enemies, as she wonders whether she can take cards in the heavy robes she’s chosen. Shinobu is incredibly serious about karuta, but not tactically minded in the slightest in her pursuit of total victory – she’ll unthinkingly handicap herself through lack of preparation, but still fight her hardest on the field. Only someone with a talent as profound as Shinobu’s could actually get away with such a careless approach to professional karuta – in contrast, we see the profound effort that less inherently talented competitors like Taichi and Harada put into preparing for every single match, and making sure they have the best possible chance to seize victory

Of course, it was Shinobu’s grandmother who chose this robe – and though she’d personally deny it, the few human ties Shinobu possesses are absolutely precious to her, with her grandmother’s love being most important of all

Beautiful shots as Shinobu and Haruka exchange glances, their intent concealed by flowers. This season has done an excellent job of incorporating traditional shoujo manga ornamentation into the anime in a way that feels natural and visually appealing

“Her face is so calm and gentle…” It seems Haruka has truly resolved her anxieties regarding karuta versus her children. She belongs here, and she knows it

Suo’s wasting memorization time outside, talking on the phone. Chihaya passes him by, and reflects that she actively hates that someone like him is the Master, considering how hard Harada’s working. Like Shinobu, only someone as talented as Suo could get away with how frivolously he approaches professional karuta – and to someone who’s seen how hard Harada is working, that really must burn. At the same time, Chihaya’s such an upbeat and good-hearted person that it’s extremely unusual to hear her say she “hates” someone; Suo has likely only reached that level because he actively trampled on her own dream, by telling her she can’t become the Queen

Of course, Chihaya’s a very kind person, and she immediately resents herself for having these uncharitable thoughts

Aw shit, Hiroshi, Sudo, and Sakurazawa will all be commenting on the mega-board version of the match

Hahaha, Arata’s started actively participating in the chat, and explaining things like the commentary board to the other viewers. Great to see him immediately diving into this new version of the karuta community, and offering a small version of what Harada does: letting his experience and enthusiasm enrich karuta for newer players

Shinobu’s cards are being moved by a new girl, Momo Yuikawa, who is apparently a fangirl of karuta players specifically. Her personality is neatly established through a rambling recounting of her favorite Haruka-versus-Sakurazawa match, once again demonstrating Chihayafuru’s remarkable ability to sketch sympathetic characters in like thirty seconds

Chihaya’s vision of her “dream” is very specific – not just her facing off against Shinobu, but Taichi and Arata simultaneously battling for the Master spot. Her vision is no longer self-oriented; even in her dreams, karuta is something shared with her closest friends

The speaker Komine is terrific. One of you readers confirmed a few weeks ago that at least some of Chihayafuru’s speakers are professionals, and this guy’s tone seems like the genuine article

I can’t believe this anime is turning me into a hundred poems traditional card reading vocal tone snob

Harada takes the first card!

“It’s the Masters match, and yet Suo has no desire to win.” Suo might truly be seeking a graceful defeat, but his play style naturally looks like “no desire to win,” as he racks up points based on his opponent’s actions, not his own

The commentator is Watarai, a thirteen-time Queen. Unsurprisingly, most of the long-time Queens have been pretty strange characters; karuta is a niche and demanding sport, and long-term dedication to it probably takes a pretty unique personality

Nice energetic pace through these first exchanges, facilitated by the rapid cuts and coherent flow of tactical exploration. Watarai knows her shit – she quickly establishes this fight as a contrast between Shinobu’s speed/accuracy and Haruka’s terrific hearing

Shinobu is at last in her element, fighting an opponent she doesn’t have to hold back against. Shinobu is a strange girl who badly wants friends to talk to, but the only language she’s comfortable speaking in is high-tier karuta

Harada unveils his secret weapon: a high-performance memory foam cushion. Still, these matches are best out of five, and Harada barely survived two rounds against Arata. He’ll have to use everything for this

God, Suo’s so infuriating. As he continues to be distracted by the Queen match, he thinks to himself “this one might be a little difficult.” No wonder everyone hates him

Watarai points out that Haruka is given great strength by her prior status – both of these combatants have been the Queen, and so Haruka isn’t burdened by the usual pressure and insecurity of the challenger position

I love this cut of Shinobu’s eyes flashing, transposed against her hand rising to catch a card. Really evokes the frightening speed and intensity of her strikes – her eyes serve as an excellent stand-in for her general style of karuta, cold and precise

Shinobu’s speed just can’t be fought directly. Haruka has to fight a positioning battle, and constantly cedes one syllable cards

Oh man, Shinobu has really come to respect Chihaya at this point. Simply seeing her rival in the audience prompts another of her classic evil grins

Shinobu takes the first Queen round in a luck-of-the-draw faceoff

Meanwhile, Harada wins his own luck-of-the-draw, which is crucial. Harada just doesn’t have the stamina to fight through five full rounds, he can’t take early losses

But Taichi believes Suo intentionally lost – just as he works to control the exact card differential between him and his opponent, he might actually be intentionally drawing this out to five matches, in order to savor his final battle as Master. He’s an incredibly selfish man

Apparently Suo’s phone calls are all him trying to help someone watch the match via the streaming service, which is actually pretty charming. I wonder who this mystery person is, who Suo actually cares about seeing him play

Haruka’s son offering her a rice ball has melted my heart

Rion unexpectedly shows up in Haruka’s prep room. Nice to see her demonstrating both a stronger personal passion for karuta, as well as more confidence in conversation

Meanwhile, Shinobu’s party is unsurprisingly just herself and her mother. Shinobu’s beautiful dress is facilitating some wonderful shots this episode

Jeez, Shinobu’s mom is laying out some really brutal arguments here. Apparently, the company that made Shinobu’s beautiful kimono is actually one of her grandmother’s clients – thus, rather than giving her this gift to show her support, her mother assumes it’s just a useful advertisement. Whether it’s true or not, that’s a hell of a thing to tell your daughter in the middle of a match like this! No wonder Shinobu isolates herself

And at her lowest moment, feeling abandoned by the one person she thought believed in her, Chihaya enters Shinobu’s room. BLESS YOU, CHIHAYA

They don’t even really give Shinobu’s mom eyes – she’s a figure of pure antagonism at this point, with no personhood at all

Ah, damn. Chihaya mentions the class trip situation, and Shinobu immediately turns to ice. She cannot relate to someone who would choose something like that over karuta

Broken friendship being symbolized by the crushed snowmaru snack is too damn much

And Done

Alright, first rounds complete! With both the Master and Queen matches ending in luck-of-the-draw faceoffs, it seems these competitors are as evenly matched as could be – or rather, it would seem like that, if we didn’t know of the sprawling mess of emotional touchstones and tactical ploys underlining their fierce battles. It still feels like Suo isn’t taking Harada seriously, and on the Queen’s side, Shinobu’s mental state is far too volatile for us to say how the upcoming matches will play out. A strategically and emotionally complex web continues to weave itself, as we enter the next stage of the challenger matches!

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