First Impressions – Haikyuu!! 2
ヾ(ﾟ∀ﾟ○)ﾂ三ヾ(●ﾟ∀ﾟ)ﾉ
I could not be more happier to see Haikyuu!! return!! See those double exclamation points on two counts? I’m even more excited than that and I can say this about a very few series. I know I didn’t cover this episodically before but you can’t blog all the shows you love. So, simply happy to have the excitement back because once you start watching, you can’t help but keep rooting for the boys.
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I had doubts that volleyball would be an interesting sport for an anime, but I was proven to be completely wrong. And I’m glad! Haikyuu!! has turned out to be such an energizing and charming series that I’m delighted it got a second season.
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Something I really like about Karasuno is how they react to failure. Instead of sulking and spouting melodramatic monologues about their dreams being crushed, they bounce right back and try to learn from their mistakes. For example, season 2 takes place right after their narrow defeat, but they seem just as lively as ever. In fact, they’re trying twice as hard to squeeze in as much practice as possible. What makes it the most impressive is not the quantity of physical labour they’re putting in, but how much they genuinely want to work hard. They’re not slaving away in desperation to catch up to another team for the sake of victory and a shiny trophy. They’re working hard because volleyball is hella fun and winning tournaments means more volleyball matches!
It’s such a sweet, non-toxic relationship with the sport. Although this episode is essentially just reintroducing everyone (remember Rolling Thunder? Well, here it is again!), it’s still interesting as a reminder for just how motivated these guys are. They love volleyball and that’s that. It’s that single-minded passion that leads to cute moments such as Hinata and Kageyama getting lost and then wandering around their opponent’s campus with starry eyes like they’re on a field trip. It’s pretty much all they think about.
From my experience with team sports, it’s pretty rare to find one person with that positive attitude let alone an entire team. Usually it’s all about winning, and players will suffer bitterly through practice just to achieve that goal. No one ever asks for “more” during practice, and if someone ever did, the rest of the team would grill them afterwards. That was my experience, at least. I certainly don’t take this team’s positive attitude for granted given how much I’ve seen people fall out of love with a sport because they’re just so obsessed with winning and nothing else. You need to love the sport and want to win. And Karasuno certainly has that, getting all intense and challenging someone on the Japan National Team!
It was literally business as usual for Karasuno boys to push forward with their practice rather than dwelling on their Aoba Johsai loss. This new found enthusiasm is something they can ride on for greatness. As Ukai said, the only thing this team doesn’t have is experience; however, everyone is trying their best to get up to speed as per their best capabilities. As Cools mentioned, at any given sports it’s hard to find an entire group of individuals so bent on winning. Sure, every team basically plays to win but you don’t see an entire collective working together for a break to nationals. The teamwork has its own wonders and there is a reason it is a featured highlight of any good sports animanga.
As well, what would be the fun of a story if the characters are dull? They after all breath life into any story. Sure, Shoyo and Tobio are the stars of the show but each member of the team has an important part to play. Even when only six players can play on the team at a time, they have a nice mix of players to sub any of the positions out. The choices are more and everyone is doing their best, including the Coach, Manager and Adviser. Along with the usual team shenanigans, it was good to see how the Coach is experimenting with different players combinations, Kiyoko is looking for help to better equip the team (presumably, she’s getting a kouhai assistant), and Takeda-sensei is calling multiple teams persistently and using all his contacts to get Karasuno more practice matches. Go team!
Add the continued rivalry between Shoyo and Tobio and you have a winner. These two can never get old, even when they had a shaky start in the beginning due to past resentments. If you have been following this from season one, you have already seen them grow more confident in their own skins and honing their skills rather than remaining in their own little boxes. They literally complement each other and have a potential to become a deadly duo. I love their shenanigans and was not surprised when they ended up in the Shiratorizawa area just because they were mindlessly racing each other. What I didn’t expect was Ushiwaka being a douche. Well, he’s not a douchey douche but any player who underestimates other teams/players is up for a surprising failure soon. It’s the rule of sports after all; the moment you think you are the boss, someone will come along and show your real place. So, be prepared, doofus, because you messed with the wrong boys.
In your face, Ushikawa.
It’s great to have the boys back! I forgot just how adorable they all were, as excitable as small children on a sugar rush. I wasn’t terribly excited by this first episode, but that’s because we can’t just dive face first into a match without a bit of a recap. But that’s okay, because I know waiting will lead me to some intense matches against vicious teams. The addition of a new lady coach(?) seems like a nice development as well. I love these characters though, so I could watch them do anything. From matches, to practice, to cramming so they don’t fail in high school, to friendly bickering…I’m looking forward to all of it this season!
I get excited like Shoyo whenever I watch a Haikyuu episode. The characters have the capability of giving you virtual enthusiasm injections and it’s addictive like a drug! I am definitely in for the whole ride and what do you know, 24 more episodes to go. The fun of this season would be seeing the boys grow even more and pass more hurdles. And I’ll be rooting for their exciting face-offs! But hey… clear your exams too.
Oh, also, I wanted to share an extra titbit about Kiyoko (kawaii Manager). There was an extra chapter of Shokugeki no Soma, which had a special banquet organised at Totsuki by Erina for VIPs and it turned out that the guests were actual heroines from popular Jump mangas (One Piece‘s Nami, Nisekoi‘s Chitoge, Gintama‘s Kagura, World Trigger‘s Chika Amatori, Haikyuu’s Kiyoko and Assassination Classroom’s Bitch-sensei). And we all know that Soma is known for its food orgasms and I found Kiyoko’s very amusing. You can read it here.
Anyways, I know we have a fewer number of sports fan on Metanorn so come on around to share your thoughts.
About Tag Team
We live, laugh, enjoy and strictly believe on "more the merrier". When together, we usually come up with very chatty, conversation-based episodics and interesting posts.
POWUH: 900-999 with 915 comments
I’m so looking forward for the female characters being introduced. And hopefully they will give some spotlight to the female team. They seemed so frustrated losing in the first season, I really hope they come back for more.
POWUH: Meta Team and Ringleader Extraordinaire~ with 6433 comments
Hopefully, there is more of the awesome struggle that both teams are doing through practice matches. But I don’t expect their airtime to match boys. Be happy about the two females on the management of the team though. 😉
POWUH: 800-899 and Self-proclaimed Manga Queen with 874 comments
~Like I lot of fangirls, this is probably one of my most anticipated series coming out. I started reading more of the manga and I’m really excited to see certain characters and chapters get animated!
The beauty of Haikyuu!! is the crazy amount of interesting characters from not just Karasuno but the other rival teams as well, essentially making it too hard to hate any one character or pick which one to be your favorite…
POWUH: Meta Team and Ringleader Extraordinaire~ with 6433 comments
I just realised that due to first season, I left manga reading so I’m pretty behind and this time would only follow the anime. It’s enjoyable as usual and I can’t wait for the challenges they will go through this time around.
And you are right. I seriously can’t hate anyone and like most of the opposing team. However, Shoyo and Tobio would remain to be my favourites. xD