#thank you so much for this ask!! i loved the opportunity to talk about sudo uninterrupted this made me so happy dklshfdshfhlk

[lesbian-kyoru]

What do you think of Akihito Sudou as a character? His relationship with other characters? He's my second fav character in chihayafuru but i don't see anyone talking about him that much anywhere🤧 plus I wanted to read some fanfics about him but couldn't find any good one,so if you don't mind,any recs?👀 Thank you,have a nice day😊

oh i am a big sudo fan! he was a character that i initially didn't focus on a ton, but rather the more i read of the manga, the more i really came to appreciate his character, to the point where i'd probably list him in my top 5-6 chihayafuru characters….. he started out as more of a background rival character (i think i didn't like him at first because he was mean to chihaya amshd;falkhsd), but with sudo, suetsugu did one of the things she's best at as a character writer: taking characters that fit neatly into archetypes at first, and over time fleshing them out beyond that point. all of her characters, even supporting or background ones, end up feeling like fully realized people; she accomplishes something similar with characters like suo, shinobu, and even taichi.

building upon this idea of archetypes, what makes sudo so compelling to me is the fact that at first he seems like a sadistic karuta player who will bring adversarial tension to karuta tournaments, nothing more—but there's a lot more to him than that. over time, we as readers and the characters around him start to see that sudo is a sadist, but he's not a cold-hearted or uncaring person. he truly loves karuta, and his sadistic, intense nature as a player is how he displays that passion and love for karuta. (in a way this acts as a precursor to arata’s internal struggle, where even though he doesn’t want to, playing karuta ruthlessly turns out to be the truest way to show respect to his opponents as his equal—with sudo, he has already reached the point where he’s comfortable going to that place in karuta, because he has internalized that that’s how his passion for it comes through.) he shows an unwavering passion for not just becoming the meijin or the top player, but a desire to stay involved in karuta his entire life because he loves it that much. even among a cast of characters who are literally all obsessed with karuta, sudo is special to me in that way because our perceptions of him as a player shift so greatly over time.

sudo also cares deeply about the people around him—his team, suo, even his rivals like taichi and chihaya. i think this second point is something very striking about him. there's actually a quote in the manga fruits basket about how every person's kindness looks a little different, how it takes a different shape, and for a lot of people you have to look harder to recognize that innate kindness—because it doesn't look the same as what we imagine “kindness” will look like. for some reason, sudo is always the chihayafuru character that makes me think of that quote! i found it really impactful to see a character like sudo, who at first glance appears mean and malicious, turn out to be one of the kindest characters in the series, one who loves karuta in a truly uncomplicated way. the way he shows affection for other people is more complicated by his hard exterior, but he genuinely has a very big heart. obviously his relationship with suo is a standout and probably what made sudo a favorite for a lot of readers, including myself. there’s something really special about watching sudo do everything he can to keep suo in the karuta world—and when he cried for suo, mountains were simply moved! it’s just clear to me that sudo is in love with him loves him a lot even if he doesn’t say it directly, and their bond is quite meaningful to me.

aside from this obvious one, i also love sudo’s friendship with chihaya so much!! i never really expected to, but i was obsessed with their little challenger/qualifier training arc together! the way they play off of each other is very fun to read. i think their dynamic is also interesting because chihaya typically hates people who play karuta in a “nasty” or mean-spirited way, but i feel like she’s able to reach a common ground with sudo because his sadism is so deeply rooted in a love for karuta, which chihaya can understand. i also really love sudo’s scenes with taichi and desperately wish they had more scenes together. the way sudo teases and simultaneously pushes and motivates taichi….. it’s good. specifically, i think the interplay of suo-sudo-taichi is fascinating and no one talks about it enough. it isn’t lingered on a ton in the text, but sudo must have been feeling immense jealousy when suo started focusing all of his attention on taichi; i love fanworks that dive into that aspect of his character and his relationships with suo and taichi. (there’s a lot that can be said about how those three characters intersect and are juxtaposed to each other—suo and taichi drawn together by their common “apathy” towards karuta while sudo is “left out” as someone who truly loves it; taichi who appears to love karuta but secretly thinks he hates it vs. sudo who loves karuta in such a warmhearted way that’s obscured by his harsh exterior….. however, that’s a far more complicated post; i genuinely feel like i could talk about those three forever, so i will rein myself in!)

i haven’t read a ton of fics with sudo featured, unfortunately! most of the ones i’ve seen are chihaya/sudo, which i don’t ship, but if you’re looking for something to read there are several on ao3 that you could check out! my favorite fic portrayal of sudo, however, is definitely how he's characterized in perfectly still in the dark by bloodletters. while suo and taichi's relationship is the main focus of the fic, sudo has the most striking scene with taichi—even if you are not a gay sudo truther like myself, it's so worthwhile to read just because of how expertly and subtley he is characterized. now that i think about it, i think that fic might've actually been what jumpstarted my love for sudo, but i digress LMAO. tl;dr out of all the chihayafuru characters, sudo for me is the closest to being canonically gay, and he should be celebrated more for that reason alone 🤍

#thank you so much for this ask!! i loved the opportunity to talk about sudo uninterrupted this made me so happy dklshfdshfhlk #chihayafuru #sudou akihito #suou hisashi #mashima taichi #ayase chihaya #chihayafuru meta #i used so many words to explain all this but if i had to be real i think realizing that sudo is gay is how i became obsessed with him #like he's gay.......he's everything he's the world......... #ask #anon #zoe.txt

[natsumi-no-hotaru]

Chihayafuru #23: The elusive bridge

AKA. “Welcome to the Taichihaya club, Kanade Oe-sama! We hope your stay with us will be fruitful and to your utter delight!”

AKA. Natsumi lied. Sorry for the crazy long time gap between #22 and #23.

[Previously: Kanatomu took the spotlight and saved the episode.]

I feel like dying a little inside every time I watch this episode. No doubt I have always strongly empathized with Taichi from the very beginning (okay, more like after he lost the primary school karuta match to Chi-chan) and there’s no surprise on that count. However, it’s not only Taichi’s realisation of having hopelessly fallen head over heel for our ditzy heroine that got me this time, but also Chi-chan’s attempt to bridge the vast distance between her and Arata. As soon as one can look past the whole shipping rivalry (read: me), it’s not hard to see why Chi-chan would try so hard to reach out to someone so dear to her and yet cut off from her life for so long. From my personal experience, I understand what it’s like to be part of a really awesome group of friends in the past and wanting to get back those glory days. And Arata, is a really cool guy, and this is me being sincere and keeping it real.

With that said, I do want to talk about Taichi and his grappling with the question of to be selfish or selfless, be in it love or in karuta. 

In karuta

Barring her parents, there’s no one who understands Chi-chan better than Taichi. He could tell that the loss against miss-Ex-Queen (frankly, my dear I don’t give a damn) shook Chi-chan immensely and left to her own device, she would not be able to stop wrestling with herself about her mistakes. He also knew that there is no better way to distract her from such self-torture but to talk of Arata, even provoking her of his communication with Arata. Chi-chan’s banging at the locker door is absolutely hilarious, even if one was so concerned for her barely a moment ago, and it shows how far Taichi is willing to go to cheer up Chi-chan.

“I know how much it hurts to lose after trying your best, but my words won’t be able to reach her. Only Arata can help her.” 

And there goes my heart. Though some solace is given when Chi-chan opens the locker and pulls Taichi along to watch Harada-sensei’s match against Sudo. 

At least one can always count on Chi-chan to remind Taichi that he’s not meant to be a spectator, but a potential opponent of all the players present. He cannot always give up opportunities to better his karuta in order to be a supporter to Chi-chan, a notion that will be driven home in the next episode.

“Yeah, I’m hopeless... hopelessly in love with her.”

That sense of buoyancy from within when you are suddenly given a glance of another glimmering facet of that dear, dear person is absolutely precious. It’s not necessarily something new or surprising that you are treated to but somehow it reminds you of all that your beloved is to you and just sweeps you off your feet entirely. The expression of being “hopelessly in love” doesn’t ring truer than this.

Yep, hopeless. 

In matters of the heart

Tsutomu: ...After spending all that time with her, she doesn’t even seem that beautiful anymore.

Kana-chan: The reason why no one from our school approaches her is because she’s always with Mashima-kun.

First of all, thank God for Kana. She brought so much to this series - be it her lectures on Japanese poetry and culture, her grace, or in this particular incident, her wise guidance when she plainly told Chi-chan to turn down the boy from a different school who asked her out. 

“Go ahead and give it a shot. You need to experience it for yourself. You can’t go out with a guy who hasn’t seen you play karuta.”

And when Chi-chan revealed that she already gave the guy her number...

And most importantly, thank God for Kana being a Taichihaya shipper :)))

Truly, the nincompoops have no clue at all. 

On a more serious note, what will Taichi do if Arata, or even a different karuta player, comes to ask Chi-chan out on a fine day? 

The bridge

Chi-chan: I would be having more fun if the other club members were also here. 

Tsutomu: When you find yourself wishing that a certain person was also here, that person is like your family regardless of how long you’ve known them.

One can say that it portends romance between Chi-chan and Arata, given the comparison made in context of the misty bridge of magpies. Lovers long separated given a chance to reunite under very specific circumstances are not unlike Chi-chan and Arata meeting each other only at karuta tournaments. Or it can just be an innocent analogy, as after all, “cellphones are like the misty bridge”.

Omake

Memorable quote by Harada-sensei:

On knowing of Chi-chan’s bet with Sudo with the loser having to shave her/his hair:

LOL, we are in full agreement, Kana-chan. 

After Chi-chan ran off from the karuta playing room and locked herself in the locker.

The team’s spirit is really warming the cockles of my heart here, guys. 

Hahaha, until the next time then!

#Chihayafuru #chihayafuru anime #chihayafuru season 1 #chihayafuru marathon #Chihaya Ayase #ayase chihaya #Mashima Taichi #Taichi Mashima #taichihaya #taichimashima4tw #karuta #natsumi watches #natsumi talks

[metal-harbor]

1,2,3 and 16

1. How does your character think of their father? What do they hate and love about him? What influence - literal or imagined - did the father have?

Mika has very few memories of his father, he doesn’t remember much beyond his name. His opinion of his father is that he was a weak man who allowed Mika’s mother to abandon him, then when his mother was done with his father she abandoned him too. 

Sudoku sees his father as almost a commanding officer, he would only be there at the worst moments of his life to force Sudo to train harder or work faster. He fears his father and after coming to live with Mika fears becoming him; he too however, thinks his father is weak-willed as he acted out whatever the boy’s mother told him to.

Sunny has absolutely no memory of his parents, as he grows up he resents them, who trades away their kid? but knows he is loved and has strong male role models in his life to fill that gap.

2. Their mother? How do they think of her? What do they hate? Love? What influence - literal or imagined - did the mother have?

Mika is disgusted by his mother, not only did she abandon him when things were difficult she abused his younger brother to the point where Mika had to completely re-teach him right and wrong and how to make and keep friends. He disliked his mother for what she did to him, but he hates her for what she put Sudoku through. That said, he does believe that there was a time when she loved him, but that was a long time ago.

Sudoku has nothing but contempt for his mother, he blames her for being unable to truly fit in with any group of people and fears reverting back to the ruthlessness of his childhood. He is afraid of her, he’s seen first hand what she can and will do and even more so than his father he fears becoming her as he grows up. He hates her but can’t help but feel as though she abandoned him when things got tough, just as she did to his older brother. He longs for the mother she could have been.

Just like with his father, Sunny has no memory of his mother and grows up to resent her, however, he is willing to talk with his brothers about it and seeks their support when he begins feeling this way.

3. Brothers, sisters? Who do they like? Why? What do they despise about their siblings? 

Mika loves his brothers with all his heart. He thinks the world of Sudoku, despite getting off to a rocky start he makes a great effort to support his brother, knowing communication can be difficult for him at times. Mika tries to guide him along the right path even if it is difficult sometimes but admires his confidence and the development he’s made since coming to stay with him. Sunny is a whirlwind and for a while made things very difficult between him and Sudo, but he saw himself in Sunny and knew he would be a good fit for their family. He tries to be more of a big brother to him than a father as he grows up, letting him make his own choices even if things don’t turn out as planned. Sunny’s overwhelming positivity keep Mika afloat. One thing he doesn’t like is how fast he had to grow up, a huge chunk of his childhood was taken away from him and just as he managed to get a second chance at his last years of being a teenager, he was suddenly taking care of two kids. He’d never change the decision he made, he just wishes he’d had a chance to grow up himself before raising two kids.

Sudoku is fiercely protective of his brothers. When first coming to live with Mika he thought he was weak and due to his own issues didn’t speak a word to him until living with him for a few months. He views Mika as a mentor, he was raised to be brutal and ruthless so he tries to learn compassion and understanding from his older brother. Mika forgives him when he makes mistakes and helps him learn from them, he was the first person Sudoku ever truly cared about. Sudoku hated Sunny for months when Sunny first came to live with them, selfishly he viewed Sunny as taking Mika away from him and he disliked how needy he was compared to himself. It wasn’t until Mika asked him to pick Sunny up from school and he saw Sunny being picked on that their relationship began to actually develop. Sudoku thinks Sunny is naive, but sort of admires that about him? He is proud of Sunny for being able to keep his innocence in the face of life. One thing he doesn’t like about his brothers is how often he feels as though his space is being invaded, sometimes Mika will vacuum his room while he’s out and everything will be different, or Sunny will invade his ever-changing personal space bubble. They don’t mean to but it stresses him out none-the-less.

Sunny thinks the world of his big brothers. When he woke up the one name he knew was Mika and he searched and searched until he found him, tried and scared Mika immediately accepted him into his home. He has Mika almost on a sort of pedestal because of this. Sunny sees his lack of confidence as a challenge and over the years does end up helping Mika feel more confident. Sunny felt rejected by Sudoku at first and even though things are okay between them now he can’t help but feel hurt whenever Sudoku ignores him because of things that have happened in the past. He takes great pleasure in being one of the few people who can make Sudoku smile and enjoys getting him into new comics and anime. Sunny doesn’t like how his brothers make him feel like the baby of the group sometimes, even if they don’t mean to, he knows how to stick up for himself but it feels like at times they take those opportunities away from him.

16. What does your character do for a living? How do they see their profession? What do they like about it? Dislike?

Mika makes custom mechanics for commissioners all over the world, whether its parts for vintage cars that are no longer being made or inventing something entirely new. He loves being able to step back and see his completed product but can be frustrated by how long they take as it leaves him little free time to work on his own products. All I really know about the others is Sudoku will be an extreme gear racer when he’s older and Sunny will probably grow up to be a freelance artist!

Thank you for the ask!!!

#mika the tenrec #sudoku the tenrec #sunny the tenrec #personal #not sonic #Anonymous