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.
Ryan
February 4, 2020 at 3:29 amI really felt the pacing was very off compared to the regular series. If I remember correctly, there was a lot of moments without background music, and a lot of the big moments lacked the punch they would have had in the regular series. It didn’t seem like they had the time to fine tune the pacing. I think this must be the difference between a budget for an OVA nowadays compared to a regular show budget.
sonicsenryaku
February 5, 2020 at 11:30 pmIt almost has nothing to do with a budget; the production schedule this season has been a tad bit tighter compared to the previous ones. Animation-wise, there’s been some shuffling/changes in some of the more notable staff; however the ones that have taken over possess enough animation acumen to keep the visual consistency of this series in top form. Visual-wise, the philosophies used to carry the fidelity of the animation is going through a change rather than a decline; and it’s a change that could be potentially be good going forward.
Khairy
February 4, 2020 at 11:35 pmThe direction seems off, and other ova’s were much better with no matches!
Anime S4 too sometimes seems lacking the punch of build-up and payoffs, I don’t know if the director is changed or what but it looks different.
Marty
February 5, 2020 at 1:26 amIf I remember correctly, manga readers (without spoiling) have mentioned in the Haikyuu subreddit that nationals matches are just as detailed, if not more, than the Shiratorizawa-Karasuno match.
Since each match can’t be given its own season, I wonder how the anime will handle what to keep and what to leave out of these matches.
Yann
February 7, 2020 at 10:14 amDMs closed on Twitter? I’m in kyoto right now and wanted to ask if you got any recs for off the beaten tracks wabi-sabi stuff to see… (feel free to delete this comment… Just don’t know where to ask)
Guardian Enzo
February 7, 2020 at 10:27 amI can get DMs on twitter – did it get bounced or something? Are you following the account?
Try again as I think it’s better to do stuff like that in DM than a comment thread. If it still doesn’t work ping me again here. Off the top of my head Honen-in would be my #1 priority.
Yann
February 7, 2020 at 8:39 pmIt just says “@GuardianEnzo can’t be messaged” but yeah… Totally don’t want to litter your blog with my personal msg. Please delete 🙂 Thanks for the rec!
Guardian Enzo
February 7, 2020 at 9:27 pmSorry about that, very weird. Are you still in Kyoto? You could always DM me in Facebook.
Yann
February 8, 2020 at 9:55 pmNo worries! I’m here for a few days and kinda made some sorry sort of itinerary already 🙂 Thanks again for the rec!
Guardian Enzo
February 8, 2020 at 10:14 pmIf you have time to make it out to Otsu, Ishiyamadera is my favorite large temple anywhere (Honen-in is my favorite small one). Koryu-ji is the oldest temple in Kyoto and has an amazing statue of Miroku-Bosatsu. A trip up to Ohara or Kibune-Koyama is great if the weather’s decent.
Phil
October 15, 2022 at 1:23 pmYou should’ve warned there’d be spoilers. Big, sudden, huge spoilers.