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Chihayafuru
Anime Review
To win at karuta, what is a skill that is a definite must have? Is it speed? Recollection ability? Passion? Accuracy? Determination? How about all of this and with a little bit of luck, a game is dominated. Karuta is a Japanese card game that is played between two players, and an orator. It relies on the ability to be the fastest to grab the correct card that has a poem recited from a selection of 100 poets. Japanese elementary and junior high schools would have contests between students much like how storytelling contests is done in American schools.
 Chihaya Ayase is a girl with model looks and the nickname of 'wasted beauty.' She grew up in the shadow of her older sister who is a semi-successful model. Initially it was her dream to see the rise of her sister as a star. Eventually she meets and befriends Arata Wataya who inspires in Chihaya a dream of becoming the Queen in competitive Karuta. Include in childhood friend Taichi Mashima and watch this series embrace shonen and shojo elements. Shonen in the fact that it is about a competitive game, and shujo for the relationship overtones that pop up time and again over this anime.
 The anime follows Chihaya as she goes from elementary to high school. At her high school she forms a Karuta club with four other members, who join for different reasons. Karuta as in competition is separated into individual or team rounds and what happens to be the the skill level of the players themselves. Chihaya happens to be in the A Class, with skills to be a Queen.
 With every series that is ever made, just what would make other titles a good fit for fans of this series? There are three titles that come to my mind. Hikaru no Go, both series mention games that has enjoyed a surge in popularity with the production of these series. Fruits Basket, because of the relationship between Chihaya, Arata, and Taichi, it is interesting to see if Chihayafuru realizes that both guys like her a lot, and would she pick someone? The third similar title to consider is Summer Wars, where both titles have a focus on playing card games, not board games like Shogi of Go.
At this time, Chiayafuru is available for free from Crunchy Roll in 25 episodes for the first season. The second season is airing in January 2013. This series is adapted from its ongoing manga series, which in 2012 is still not completed. It won the Manga Taisho Award in 2009 and the Kodansha Manga Award in 2011 for best shojo series. It is easy to fall for this series, since it is vetted against other series, and came out triumphant.
Reviewed by Linda Yau, February 2013
Below: Scenes from Chihayafuru .
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