Chihayafuru is a sports anime series based on a traditional card game called karuta that is only loosely considered a sport (the game has also inspired manga, light novels, and live-action movies). Beautiful and goofy Chihaya enters high school hoping to start a karuta club. She intends to reach the highest levels of competition as a means of seeing her childhood friends: handsome perfectionist Taichi, and quietly intense Arata, whose love of karuta infected Chihaya before he left town with his parents. Taichi winds up attending her school, and their renewed friendship draws him back into karuta, despite his initial disinclination. Recruiting club members is a common trope of sports anime, as are training, tournaments, and love triangles, but while these have a familiar ring, the series ultimately upends expectations as it follows the funny and heartwarming process of team-building, as well as the excitement of watching characters discover and pursue their dreams. The well-designed animation is vibrant, and learning about the history/rules of karuta is nearly as fun as getting to know the cast. Presenting all 25 episodes from 2011-12 in a dual-language Blu-ray set, rated TV-14, this is highly recommended. [Note: Chihayafuru: Season 2 is also newly available.] (L. Martincik)
Chihayafuru: Season 1
(2011) 625 min. DVD: 5 discs, $79.98; Blu-ray: 3 discs, $99.98. Sentai Filmworks (avail. from most distributors). Volume 33, Issue 3
Chihayafuru: Season 1
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