As on point as the fourth season of Haikyuu has been, not being able to get to the Riku vs Kuu OVAs certainly hasn’t been a lack of interest.  Time, as always, is the most precious commodity there is.  But given that these are not side stories or original episodes but in fact part of the manga, I figured I’d better find a way to squeeze them in before the parent anime gets around to showing nationals.

Given that there’s almost no involvement from Karasuno in these chapters, it was probably a decent choice to farm them out to OVA if pacing for the fourth season was looking tight (and if it wasn’t, I don’t know why you’d bother).  Karasuno is obviously the protagonist team in Haikyuu, but it’s equally obvious who the B-team is, and that’s Nekoma.  Kenma is Shouyou’s fated rival for starters, and the team as a whole has gotten more development than any other opponent.  I don’t find them absolutely the most interesting group myself, but they’re fine.

I don’t think there was much suspense as to what was going to happen with Nekoma – obviously with Shouyo waiting Kenma has to join him.  But not knowing the rules for these qualifiers (three teams actually make it to nationals) I was a bit surprised to see Fukuroudani take Nekoma out in straight sets.  Surprised but not disappointed, as the Owls and their baka-in-residence Bokuto-kun are among the more charismatic opposition in the series.  Bokuto especially is a loveable goof, and nationals would have been less fun without him around.

That result left Nekoma to take on Nohebi Academy (every school in this series is animal, pretty much) in what seems to be effectively the loser’s bracket, with the winners (Fukurodani and Itachiyama High, who I don’t recall seeing much of) already qualified (but still having to play each other for what I assume is a higher seed at nationals – which Itachiyama wins).  Itachiyama seems to be shaping up as the next mysterious colossus, which means not revealing much of anything about them until nationals are well underway.

Once it comes down to the Cats and the Snakes that’s when the plot armor really kicks in, and there’s no question who the winner will be.  Several Nekoma players get their chance to shine – Lev obviously, the seniors Yaku and Kuroo, and the first-year libero Shibayama (for the first time).  He has to step in when Yaku sprains his ankle diving into the crowd (hey, he is a libero) and he and Lev prove central to the remainder of the story.  Kenma, for his part, remains about as interesting to me as the ingredient list on the side of a cereal box but for whatever reason. Furudate-sensei seems to think he’s absolutely riveting.

While “To The Top” has been genuinely surprising, “Land vs Sky” is very much sasuga – and that’s much more typical for Haikyuu.  The animation and choreography are great (maybe just a notch below the TV episodes), and the episodes managed to strike a good balance between the on-court action and the personal dramas of the volleyboys.  It’s classic Haikyuu, no more and no less, and that familiarity is a distinct part of the Haikyuu experience by now.