My Chihayafuru Addiction and Why Taichi is NOT the Underdog.

Gaaaaaah!

I can't bear it!

Nobody should just ignore a character who's basically the foundation of the whole series.

I love every character in Chihayafuru, maybe some more than the others, but I still love all nonetheless.

It is insinuated that Taichi is the underdog, but may I point out that he has twice as much as Arata's screen time, maybe even 4 times greater than Arata. He is with Chihaya, supporting her and cheering her on. His point of view is also used, his thoughts and feelings revealed to the viewers. His character is so well-made, he's hands-down a favorite. His experience in the Karuta World makes everyone feel bad and good for him. He loses and doesn't give up. He doesn't believe in fate. He is in love with Chihaya. He focused and driven. I can go on forever, and the reason for that is because we know him. Everyone can't help but cheer him on because he is not perfect. He also gets jealous, insecure, and impatient. Added to that is Arata's presence himself, the karuta genius. Everyone will cheer for Taichi, the poor boy who doesn't have the royal karuta blood. But seriously, Taichi is amazing! He grew up! I have lots of hope for him. And that doesn't include him ending up with Chihaya. More like I don't ship Taichi and Chihaya not because I don't think Taichi is better that Arata. It's just that Chihaya is not who Taichi deserves. It was proven that her presence brings out the best and worst in Taichi, and for hopeless romantics, that is love. I can never disagree with that. It's just that I'm a huge fan of Fate. And Taichi not believing in destiny is a blatant opposition to Arata's character.

Can I describe Arata? In limited words, He is Fate/Destiny. That is the focal point. Everything else is secondary. He has the proper training, he has the skill, and to balance out that perfectness, he is in Fukui. He's like the invisible barrier between Taichi and Chihaya (for Taichi fans). That is laughable because Taichi is not a barrier between the him and Chihaya. Taichi puts on this much of an effort, and Arata can show up any minute and sweep Chihaya away. I was not lost in the symbolism. I just think that other fans are looking at the wrong side of things.

Everyone believes that Fate wants Chihaya and Arata to end up together. Episode 1 says so. Taichi's suffering says so. Taichi's bad luck says so. He's the effort guy. He's Naruto to Sasuke, Sakuragi to Rukawa, Gon to Killua, Conan to his father. It looks that way. And for him to end up with Chihaya, he needs to break down all of these barriers.

Because Taichi was presented to be the hardworking guy, it is to be expected that he would win in the end. That is more plausible than Arata and Chihaya right? It would be ridiculous of after all those efforts Taichi exerted, he still won't have what he wants. So in reality, Fate sides with him. Because he works hard, he will be rewarded. Arata is not doing anything, therefore he'll lose. That, for me, is the real score. That is why Arata is Ariwara. Because Narihira did nothing but write a poem that transcended thousands of years only to be repeated or not. But my only proof against that notion is the Chihayaburu poem. Narihira no Ariwara is Arata. And he didn't end up with the Empress. The poem speaks of longing for something you can never have. Of distance. Literally and figuratively. Someone can point out that the poet is more like Taichi than Arata. But humor me, is Taichi the poet kind of guy? The arts kind of guy?


Did I just contradicted myself by saying Arata is on Fate's good side and Taichi is not but then claiming that what is destined is Taichi and Chihaya? No. Fate is a curious thing. What is predictable may not be fated, we will never know. It's just that Taichi hating what is destined might actually bring us all to what is REALLY destined (that he is destined to hate his destiny), and Arata is on Destiny's side because Destiny is just going to repeat what has happened thousands of years ago. (Narihira no Ariwara's fame is because of his poem and his heartbreak. If he ended up with the Empress, he's just going to be someone from history.)

Arata would always be the underdog because of the fact that most of the expectations and pressure is on him. I don't think he'll become the Master. Taichi's going to be the Master before him and that would be Fate's reward. That's the image that is currently being created in the series. It would be utterly predictable to have Arata go straight to win. He is strong, but he hasn't experienced losing like Taichi had. Taichi is off for more greatness that doesn't include Chihaya because she would always have her eyes on Arata. Time to move on Taichi. She's just not for you.

Credits to mon ami, Janfred Ducusin who inspired such thoughts from me. Or rather, whose comment forced me to write almost every thought I've had since my discovery of Chihayafuru. THIS IS HOW MUCH I'M ADDICTED TO THE SHOW.

Disclaimer: OFF THE PRESS composition. Pardon the mistakes.