Chihayafuru by Suetsugu Yuki || Anime/Manga Review

Manga Info
Anime Info

Chihayafuru is a sports/competitive Karuta manga written and drawn by Suetsugu Yuki. The start of the series introduces the main characters, Taichi, Chihaya, and Arata, (the OT3) in elementary school as they form a bond with each other through the competitive game of Karuta. Unfortunately, Arata soon moves away, and Taichi and Chihaya go to different middle schools. When they enter highschool, Chihaya and Taichi reunite; the former having improved her Karuta skills immensely, and the latter hating Karuta. Because of Chihaya's eagerness to start a Karuta Club at her school, Taichi helps her out, and they struggle with building a team to go to competition. All the while, Chihaya has never forgotten the person who first got her into Karuta, Arata, and aims to be the best female Karuta in Japan; the title of Queen.

Taken from http://www.goldenjipangu.com/150105karuta.html

I know what people who haven't been exposed to Chihayafuru are thinking; what the heck is Karuta? Well this is from my understanding of the game(click on the link for more info); it is a card game revolved around the 100 Poems by 100 Poets, which is an anthology of Japanese poems written by poets in Medieval Japan. The matches take place on tatami mats, and each player's side starts off with 25 poem cards(which you can position to your liking). There is a reader who reads the verses of the poems, and the objective of the game is to take the corresponding card faster than your opponent. To win the game, you have to get rid of all the cards on your side. But come on, a competitive literature game? Doesn't that sound freaking exciting???(completely serious here, by the way)

This series is just FANTASTIC and honestly a breath of fresh air. I think it might be the effect of the soft art style, but I went into this thinking, "Nah, there can't be a good sports anime with a female lead". This completely blew me away. It reminds me of Hikaru no Go, except with a female protagonist, and both stories are centered around games that are relatively unpopular(although Go is more universal than Karuta because you know...), AND THIS IS LITERALLY WHAT I HAVE BEEN LOOKING FOR FOREVER. I'm pretty crazy about finding good series with well-developed, strong female protagonists, and Chihayafuru definitely fits it.

The anime follows the manga pretty well so you could watch the 2 seasons(a total of 50 episodes) that are released and then start reading around chapter 87-89 and you wouldn't miss much. Both the anime and manga are brilliant but I would have to say the anime really brings a huge impact in terms of setting the atmosphere and tones of certain scenes. The voice acting, soundtrack, and animation, all bring it together and it's a really enjoyable watch. If you don't want to read/watch it twice, then I'd recommend doing what I said above ^; watching the anime, and then continuing on in the manga.

Characters
What I really want to talk about in this non-spoiler review is that cast of characters, although a bit exaggerated, are all really diverse in terms of personality, and I actually enjoy many of the reoccuring side characters. The interactions between them can be really sweet and hilarious.

I especially love seeing the thought process of different characters as they are playing Karuta. It really gives a new insight on their character, and it also very satisfying seeing them realize their mistakes and growing throughout a game. Seeing Chihaya and Taichi grow are probably my favorite to watch (especially Taichi...boy has got it rough...but he is so intelligent!) Not Arata because he seems to be super relaxed through a lot of his matches(and we rarely get to see his thought process in a game) lol. 
The "enemies"(not really, though, more like really big opponents) of this series are the reigning Queen and Meijin(corresponding title of best player) have really eccentric personalities, but they interesting to say the least. They make for good rivals, as they extremely talented in Karuta.
My favorite character in the series by far, is probably Taichi. I really love his effort, and how he worked hard to compete against talented Karuta players, even though he keeps on saying he hates Karuta lol(do you, Taichi, do you really?)

Taken from http://chihayafuru.wikia.com/wiki/User_blog:Mikzy/Mizusawa_Karuta_Club

I also can't ignore Chihaya, because despite how she has that typical trait of being dense, she is extremely spirited and intense when it comes to Karuta, and it's, I know I've said this before, but really refreshing to see a female character chase after her dreams with such passion instead of those typical shoujo manga(I know it's josei but Chihaya is still technically in the shoujo age range xD) that just focus on romance. Sure, there is some romance in this series, but it is not focused on. There's just enough to keep you wanting more, but not so much that it disrupts the focus on Karuta.

Karuta:
Because I am a person that enjoys the intense, competitive scenes of anime, I really like watching sports anime to which the genre Chihayafuru falls into. Surprisingly, Karuta not only involves mental strength and endurance but also, physical stamina.
Although, Karuta may sound strange at first, the story and characters really draw you in to make this game all the most interesting. I honestly wouldn't mind trying out a game of Karuta; it seems like fun.

Like with Hikaru no Go, Chihayafuru has sparked more interest in Karuta in Japan(and even worldwide), making it more public. I really like the idea of anime and manga bringing an uncommon game/practice/concept to the table. I believe that anime and manga have the power to influence and inspire people, and I would LOVE to see more series like Chihayafuru getting published/animated.

Also check out my Chihayafuru tag on Tumblr(I'm hilarious...kind of) for feels and probably giggles. ^^

Since the manga is still ongoing, my rating of this series is susceptible to changes but for now....

5/5 stars!! Enjoyable to read and recommended! 

Hanasaku Iroha || Anime Review

Info: http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=11795
Episodes: 26
Produced by: P.A. Works
Sites to watch?
KissAnime
Crunchyroll

Image from: https://forums.hummingbird.me/t/spoilers-hanasaku-iroha-home-sweet-home-discussion/1825

This is a non-spoiler review! 

I don't know how to start this off since I just finished marathoning the anime series, and my thoughts have yet to form into coherent words but...I'll try my best to explain why this is such a good show and why everyone should watch it.

So, Hanasaku Iroha doesn't really start off well in terms of appearance. I mean, the name, for one, in English is "Blossoms for Tomorrow", like what the heck is that cheesy shit? Once you watch the show though, it actually fits very well. Also, I'm not sure if this is a problem for anyone else, but I find that typically anime with a large, and mainly female-focused cast tend to suck in terms of plot and characterization and are loaded with fanservice. I thought HanaIro was going to be the same, looking at the poster of these overly cute female characters. Luckily I was wrong.

Summary:
HanaIro is a story about growth; about finding a dream to pursue, and that there isn't always a clear end to things like other "perfect" stories are. The main character, Matsumae Ohana is plagued by the laziest and the freest mother in the world. But because of this, she quickly learns to rely on herself and to not depend on others; she takes care of all the chores around the house starting from a very young age. Although she lives in Tokyo, and although most would envy her for living in such a beautiful city, Ohana finds her life very dull, and doesn't have a clear grasp on her future. That is when, her mother and her newest boyfriend decide to make an escape together one night, in order to avoid debt collecters(caused by the latter), dropping Ohana off at her grandmother's inn located in the countryside, Kissuisou. Here, Ohana learns gains the experience of working with others and discovers her place at Kissuisou. But first, she has to gain the acceptance of her grandmother, who despises her mother(daughter), and the others that work there, as well as dealing with a crush back in Tokyo.

Supporting characters (Image from: http://www.zerochan.net/Hanasaku+Iroha)

This series is produced by P.A. Works, which is a studio I like a lot from watching the amazing art and animation in Nagi no Asukara, and although it aired in 2011, the art in HanaIro was still absolutely gorgeous.
No complaints about the music as well, although I wished that they would have picked different songs for the OP/ED; the singers aren't really that pleasing to listen to.

What I think defined this series was the characters. The female characters especially shined, which is typically rare to see in the anime. This is mainly because the girls are focused on; each one of the girls in Kissuisou, Minko, Nako, Ohana, and Tomoe (and others) all get their backstory episode. We get a look at what's happening in their life through their perspective and their thoughts. It is really refreshing to see them all (not just the girls but everyone in Kissuisou) focus and work together to please their customers, rather than a romantic slice-of-life(which I'm not quite fond of).

The one who became the most developed of course, was Ohana, the lovely heroine. She starts off as quite unmotivated and undriven in life, but when she arrives at Kissuisou, she is taught to take work seriously, and works hard at her job as a waitress. Like most main characters, they have a sort of charisma that draws people to them, and Ohana is no exception. The other characters note that Kissuisou changed when she came, and in a good way. Ohana, is also a teenage girl, so OF COURSE, she deals with boy problems and angsty teenage stuff (but it's not the main focus of the show). It makes her more relatable, what with her procrastination and her struggle to communicate her thoughts eloquently.

Of course, this series is not without faults; the main one being that the story kind of deteriorates in the latter half of the series(around episodes 13-) with a couple of interesting episodes in between. I think that nevertheless you should watch this series for its characters, animation, and story. It was a very pleasant watching experience.

Overall, I would rate Hanasaku Iroha a 4.5/5 stars!!

Please give Hanasaku Iroha a watch!~ :D