Chihayafuru

**Chihayafuru** is an anime series written by Naoya Takahama, directed by Morio Asaka, musically composed by

   Kouske Yamashita, and Produced by Studio Madhouse with 2 seasons of 25 episodes a piece anda third season on the way.  It's also recieved three live action movie adaptations, the first two released in 2016, and the third and final one released in 2018.  The anime and movies were based on a manga series written by Yuki Suetsugu and published by Kodansha in Be Love Magazine.  The manga started on December 28, 2007 and is still ongoing with a total of 36 volumes so far.

## Plot

Chihaya Ayase is a girl who has spent most of her life simply supporting her sister in her model career. That changes when she meets a boy named Arata Wataya, a talented karuta player. After becoming friends, he believes that Chihaya has potential to become a great player. As Chihaya takes on a new dream of becoming Japan's best karuta player, she is soon separated from her karuta playing friends as they grow up. Now in high school, Chihaya is reunited with her childhood friend, Taichi Mashima. Together, they form the Mizusawa Karuta Club. With her teammates and friends supporting her, Chihaya strives to become the best karuta player in the world and to one day be with Arata again.

## Live Action Movies

1. Chihayafuru:  Kami no Ku (2016)
2. Chihayafuru:  Shimo no Ku (2016)
3. Chihayafuru:  Musubi (2018)

## Why It Rocks

1. Very appealing art style and character designs.  The show has the thick outlines and colors that Studio Madhouse is known for.
2. Incredibly interesting, likable, lovable characters; the characers carry the show.
3. A great amount of tension in each of the games of Karuta, despite the fact that the game doesn't even exist.
4. Good drama that feels natural and not forced.
5. This anime actually has GOOD live action movie adaptations.  In fact, it has three of them.

## Bad Qualities

1. Like many sports anime, Chihayafuru can be very slow at times.

## Reception

*Chihayafuru* won the second Manga Taishō award,[78] and the 35th Kodansha Manga Award in the shōjo manga category.[79] When *Chihayafuru* won the Manga Taishō award, it was commented that the series combines elements of the sport genre and literary elements with a discerning eye on the subject matter.[80] The manga had sold over 16 million copies in Japan by the spring of 2016,[81] and its popularity has boosted the popularity of competitive *karuta*.[3][82]

In the week of 10–16 March 2009, the fourth volume of *Chihayafuru* appeared at #24 on the Japanese Comic Ranking chart, selling 29,776 copies in that week.[83] In the week of 8–14 June 2009, the fifth volume appeared at #11 on the chart, selling 46,774 copies in that week.[84] The next week, it slipped to #21, selling an additional 40,344 copies in that week.[85] In the week of 7–13 September 2009, volume six of *Chihayafuru* appeared at #8 on the list, selling 61,089 copies.[86] The next week, it appeared at #23, selling 45,028 copies in that week.[87] In the week of 7–14 December 2009, the seventh volume ranked at number nine on the list, selling 70,790 copies.[88] The following week, it ranked at #15, selling an additional 55,266 copies.[89] The eighth volume of *Chihayafuru* ranked at #5 on the bestseller's list, selling 92,555 copies in the week of 8–14 March 2010.[90] The following week, it slipped to seventh place, selling an additional 72,957 copies.[91] For the week of 7–13 June 2010, the ninth volume of *Chihayafuru* appeared at #6 on the chart, selling 99,296 copies in that week.[92] The following week, it slipped to ninth place, selling an additional 74,885 copies.[93] The tenth volume of *Chihayafuru* placed first on the list for the week of 13–19 September,[94] slipping to nineteenth place the next week.[95] For the week of 13–19 December, the eleventh volume debuted at #2,[96] slipping to #23 the next week.[97] The twelfth volume appeared at #9 for the week of 7–13 March 2011,[98] rising to #4 the following week.[99] The thirteenth volume debuted at #3 for the week of 13–19 June 2011,[100] slipping to #20 the following week.[101] The fourteenth volume debuted at #3 for the week of 12–18 September 2011,[102] slipping to #24 the following week.[103]

Among North American reviewers, Gia Manry, writing about the first episode of *Chihayafuru*, felt that despite the animators' efforts, *karuta* seemed boring, and criticised the overuse of CG sakura, describing it as a "mixed bag" of an anime.[104] Bamboo Dong says that Chihaya's passion and characterisation make *karuta* interesting.[105] Carlo Santos felt that the series was the "first genuinely good show of the season", citing its characterisation, unusual subject, and polish of the first episode.[106] Marcus Speer enjoyed the production values of the first episode, but felt that the theme songs were "standard fare". He was intrigued by how the characters' childhood impacted on their present interactions.[107] Theron Martin appreciated the focus on the characters rather than the game, feeling that while the teenage Chihaya seemed "gimmicky", her younger self was "quite likable".[108] Chris Beveridge praised the tension shown between Arata and Taichi in the second episode's *karuta* match.[109] Theron Martin felt the second episode's *karuta* tournament was tense and compelling, and that despite the plot unfolding in a predictable fashion, the execution made this forgivable.