DID SOMEONE SAY YURI? XD Argh, I didn’t like the lack of resolution…

Thanks for commenting! We always appreciate any thoughts.

Ps. tbh i think Midori has a crush on Tamako as well LOL !! :p

“Come on! Come on! Come on! Come on! Come on! Read it! Read it! Read it! Read it! Give it! Give it! Give it! Give it! Give it!”
-Taichi Mashima

Yeah…that’s pretty er…devoted for a card game player. XD

“It was also nice to see the Queen and Arata soften up a bit; should humanize them enough for the next arc.”

Arata’s relatively warm thanks to his past with Chihaya and Taichi, so I think the person to watch is Shinobu. Will her experience affect her game? That’ll be interesting if it does…

” I appreciated seeing how oblivious Arata is, since he’s enough like Chihaya that we don’t know if she really “loves” him or just sees him as a kindred spirit.”

Nice observation on Arata and Chihaya’s similarities. I always wondered why I have trouble seeing them as a couple. They’re practically the *same* person, no?

“just how should we read her choice of napping spot?”

Yay for ambiguous choices on where to nap? (゜_゜)

“Usually I just get that “oh, that just means they’re gonna win” anticlimax, but here I actually wanted them to win, because BOTH teams had the same problem, but I’ve simply got more of an emotional attachment to Mizusawa then the other guys,”

Hm…by anticlimax, do you mean on Hokuo or Misuzawa? And by “same problem”, what do you mean? I’d appreciate it if you could elaborate just a little more, since I’m kinda new to sports anime tropes and all. =D Anyway, great comparison on both teams; it’s no wonder Hokuo’s a close second behind Misuzawa on my favourite team list.

Thanks for the insightful comment, Hogart!

It was great to see Taichi finally get a much-deserved victory after all of his earnest efforts (poor guy’s been chewed up and spat out to the point where he’s going a bit mental). It was also nice to see the Queen and Arata soften up a bit; should humanize them enough for the next arc. I appreciated seeing how oblivious Arata is, since he’s enough like Chihaya that we don’t know if she really “loves” him or just sees him as a kindred spirit. Doubly so since Taichi just won’t give up on her (having picked up her stubbornness over the years). And speaking of Chihaya, it’s nice to see that her brain might finally be stirring a little, now that she has to worry about something other than Karuta (just how should we read her choice of napping spot?).

Finally, Sudo was indeed a joy. It was nice to see Hokuo being driven just as hard as “Pizasawa” drive themselves. I especially love how they went about emphasizing that this was Mizusawa’s last chance to really make it as a team: few sports shows even attempt to do that properly, let alone succeed. Usually I just get that “oh, that just means they’re gonna win” anticlimax, but here I actually wanted them to win, because BOTH teams had the same problem, but I’ve simply got more of an emotional attachment to Mizusawa then the other guys,

Romance, where art thou? For a shoujo show, Chihayafuru’s rather unique, no? Nice analogy with the elephant too! Although I agree that Chihaya looks to Arata for inspiration, there’s still that hint of love in her actions. Why think about a guy before, during and after (almost) every match? Still, with all the hints so minute, far apart and mostly disguised, it’d be hard to build a case either way.

Although the Ice King vs Ice Queen match would be glorious, I’m still gnawing my fingers off at the thought of Arata vs Taichi. All that stands between Taichi and that is an A-rank, so, like you said, his qualifying match will be one for the ages!

And just for the record, I’m with dedicated Mashima all the way, baby!