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A storm has arrived in the form of two Karuta gods.
This was kind of a weird episode for me to watch, and not necessarily for the reasons I think most people would feel put off. I've been long aware of the xenophobia of Japanese people toward foreigners, and to see that portrayed here isn't nearly as shocking as I think it may have been for those who aren't aware. Shocking might seem like a harsh term, but it really isn't; from my experiences with other students of the Japanese language, many of them are very upset when they find out just how stereotyped we are in the eyes of a culture we admire. I've actually known people to stop learning the language or to stop watching anime because of how much it bothers them (though, admittedly, these are in the very tiny minority). But, to be brutally honest, this is just the way things are, and it's a result of history and culture that isn't going to disappear anytime soon. What I find rather ironic, actually, is that this is not a Japan-specific problem (though their circumstances are certainly unique), but something people do everywhere. I've been stereotyped my entire life for my skin color and cultural background, and believe me when I say that a good deal of the time, the people behind the stereotyping have no ill will toward me or my heritage specifically. As such, I'm not particularly bothered by this in Chihayafuru; you get used to this sort of thing very quickly.
No, what I was really somewhat bothered by was Komano's attitude toward the team. Don't get me wrong, Komano is very intelligent and selfless, so much so that he realizes just how expendable he is in terms of being a player and kindly gives Akihiro his place so that he can be of more use gathering information. While this is a mark of a great strategist and a self-sacrificing soul, I can't help but feel bad for Komano personally. Sometimes working hard just doesn't allow you to progress as much as you'd like, and Komano is feeling the limits of his strength as a player. Instead of getting depressed, however, he decides to work on that which he's already good at, which is strategics. Even though that's a wise move, it always hurts to know that no matter how hard you tried, you couldn't be as good at something as you hoped, and that sting doesn't go away all that easily. It's kind of sad how easily the rest of the team acknowledges his choice, because, at least to me, it reflects on his isolation somewhat. Still, it would be nice if his work came in helpful and pushed Mizusawa to new heights, as well as giving him a new goal to work at as team strategist (and possibly even coach).
Still, there's not a lot of time to dwell on the martyrdom that is Komano's choice. As usual the pace is brisk and we're through yet another Karuta match in record time. What I did find interesting, other than the whole gaijin xenophobia, was that even in this "exotic" case, the other team is still given real development and insight as real people who love Karuta, rather than just a set of intimidating opponents. It's kind of ironic that Chihaya is the only character unfazed by the opponents' heritage; she's just happy to think that more people love the game than she originally thought ("Even the Japanese don't like it!"), and there's some truth to that. It feels good to know that people love something you do, and it's evident that these kids love Karuta as much as any pure-blooded Japanese (and more than most). Even so, Mizusawa quickly gets its act together to pull of its first victory at Nationals, and things would seem to be going well. Except that Arata, the resident drama-instigator, has arrived in the flesh, and he's attracted another hurricane along with him in the shape of Wakamiya Shinobu.
You can smell the drama in the air like moisture before rain on a hot summer's day.
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