A “haikyuu”:

Twelve boys from the sticks

Made their way to Tokyo

“Niiyama” indeed

Yes, I’m stalling for time here.  Because while this was a very entertaining “night before” sports anime episode from Haikyuu, there’s not a hell of a lot here for me to write about.  That can sometimes be the case with a series as direct as this one (which is why the first arc this season was so refreshing as a writer) but where this trope is concerned, it’s especially acute.  These sorts of episodes are all about setting the table and it’s not in Haikyuu’s nature to take a ponderous or heavy approach with that sort of thing.

So what did we have?  Daichi’s dream, and then a New Year’s segment focused mostly on the third-years.  They’re good sempai but the third-years are not among the more interesting cast members, Suga excepted (and he has the least to do), so this isn’t exactly riveting.  The genki bunch end up at the closed school, playing Hanetsuki, a traditional New Year’s game sort of like badminton without a net.  Daichi scolds them for not resting (which seems to be his main role on the team this season) and everyone’s thoughts start to wander towards what’s coming.

There are some nice moments in the Tokyo segment, mostly centered around these country kids getting their first (in most cases) glimpse of Tokyo.  Kiyoko and Hitoka get a little exposure which is nice, but it’s literal exposure which sort of undercuts the point.  I also think it’s a bit sad that the only way these girls’ dreams are explored is as vicarious dreams of the boys’ success – and I’m also reminded that it seemed as if Hitoka was going to end up pursuing volleyball herself.  Was that early dialogue with Shouyo a false lead, or was it foreshadowing something that hasn’t happened yet (manga readers: that’s a rhetorical question)?

The other thing I wonder is whether Furudate-sensei named the girls’ team “Niiyama” with the payoff from this episode in mind.  If so, that’s a hell of a lot of patience in setting up a joke.  That aside, things are about to start for real next week and it can’t come a moment too soon.  It’s always great to see (and even more so, hear) Koutarou, and most of the big names we’re familiar with are present.  We’re not going to get any resolution this cour, obviously, but in a season relatively thin on competition episodes a few eps of them to tease the next cour are most welcome.  And I expect them to be pretty intense.