volleyball boys (part one)

This was inevitable. You should've seen it coming. OF COURSE I'm going to watch the Haikyuu!! anime after rambling about how much I love these volleyball dorks for nearly 2,000 words. So without furthur ado, presenting Part One of episodic highlights from the first season of Haikyuu!! (because I refused to believe there won't be a second season)

Episode One: Boys Be Ambitious!

I think I like the opening so much might be because I just really love the Karasuno team. I like the feel of the ending too, Hinata striving to be faster and stronger in order to catch up to his skyward dreams. I also like how the anime emphasizes Hinata's two childhood friends as well. 

·         Tiny Hinata finding his idol

·         Middle school Hinata being called ‘senpai’ and ‘captain’ – let’s have that happen again

·         Kageyama somehow just projecting a royal aura

·         His friend who knows nothing about volleyball being mesmerized by Hinata’s jumping form. It’s just that awe-inspiring.

·         The commercial cuts are adorable!!

·         The first appearance of the tiny beast mode Hinata! I love it when he gets that scary look on his face; he’s like a honey badger, cute but deadly.

·         The score keepers rooting for Hinata’s team because who could resist that much sunshine and sincere enthusiasm?

·         ‘And so the curtain rises on their passionate love story…” JKS. But really, they’re a duo that’ll go down in history, probably to be passed into the legends of high school volleyball. I can’t fucking wait.

·         Hinata’s friends tearing up when he thanks them. I just love Hinata’s sincerity and no one else can resist it either.

·         Hinata’s training montage. When you see him try so hard for a sport he loves, to make such an effort just to be able to play volleyball – you can’t help but cheer for him. 

Episode Two: Boys Will Be Boys

·         The Karasuno senpais recognizing both of them from their middle school game

·         Daiichi showing his scary side. I’ll never get enough of ‘Beware the Nice Guy’

·         The sudden art shift when Kageyama slams the first serve to Hinata like it’s so frightening ordinary line art can’t contain it

·         When Daiichi shares his goal of getting to the nationals and suddenly crow feathers are flying around and Hinata sees the giant stadium behind him. It’s a bit cheesy but I love it. Go for it boys!

·         Kageyama getting super excited over how cool the setter’s job is. It’s interesting because he seems set up to be the cool, unaffected genius type but he shows a genuine love for the sport that won’t lose to Hinata’s. It’s great because they’re such different people but when it comes to volleyball both of them share the same passion. They’re both just silly chicks let’s be real.

·         Tanaka helping them out!

Episode Three: Boys Do Your Best!

·         Sugawara helping them out! He’s my favourite kind-hearted senpai! I love him! He’s the mother hen of the flock for sure.

·         Hinata and Sugawara practicing even during lunch break, and Hinata sharing his memories of struggling to practice without a proper team. Two things here that’ll become staples of my HQ experience: One, Sugawara sacrificing his lunch break for the sake of his cute junior. He’s the best senpai. And two, Hinata being a cute junior. Hinata is so cute I could fill a thousand bullet points talking about how precious he is.

·         Tanaka and Sugawara yawning in unison because they got up too early to help their cute juniors. Also trying to hide it from their captain, like please as if Daiichi doesn’t know what you guys are up to

·         Hinata jumping like two meters to snatch the ball from Tsukishima all like HELL YEAH IN YOUR FREAKISHLY TALL FACE! (I really hope there’ll be a second season for the anime to show Tsukishima’s character arc because I really do love Tsukishima when he’s being a team player)

·         Another musical training montage! Is his bike over the mountain supposed to be symbolic of his journey over an obstacle to face forward to the sunrise at the top?

·         All of his receiving montage paying off! It’s so awesome seeing him getting every serve like that.

·         ‘I feel like he has the fortitude to become a winner’. As expected of Sugawara-senpai, he’s hit upon Hinata’s best quality. It’s not that he’s a good athlete or has good reflexes. It’s because he uses all of his abilities to win, to give 120% every second until the last call. It’s not that he can jump really high; it’s that he can take that one extra step.

·         Kageyama recognizing that ability and finally tossing to him. Hinata smiling like a puppy in the sun and jumping to receive that toss. It’s like a handshake for these two. It’s funny how slowly and dramatically he moves his hands up for the toss.

·         Right after Hinata spikes when they show his smiling face as he’s falling. I LOVE THIS MOMENT. How slowly it goes, how the music swells, just how goddamn happy he is I WANT THAT BOY TO SMILE LIKE THAT ALWAYS. 

Episode Four: Boys You Are Not Alone!

·         Tanaka getting riled up

·         Kiyoko and the other senpai’s surprised that Hinata’s jump. I’ll never get over strangers being awe-struck by his jump.

·         Kageyama’s tragic backstory flashback time! I really like the moment where he realizes the rift between he and his team. I like the moment when he admits how painful it is. I like the moment when Hinata goes like wtf I don’t care just toss. And he does. And it’s great.

·         It’s subtle but between Hinata confronting Kageyama about it and Tsukishima saying how irritating it is, they show Daiichi and Tanaka smiling at Hinata. It’s a small moment but it’s super cute anyway.

·         ‘I’m here!’

·         Tanaka getting riled up for Hinata’s sake when Tsukishima says he’s not cut out to be a spiker.

·         One’s a serious, meticulous control type and one’s a spontaneous, straightforward action type but they both carry the same wish: I want to play volleyball.

·         ‘To break the wall in front of the spiker…that’s the setter’s job.’ They’re finally standing on the same side!

·         When they huddle and Kageyama makes an effort to teach Hinata how to spike. Then you have Tanaka’s tsukkomi ‘LIAR!’ which does nothing to dampen the duo’s determination: ‘We’ll do it anyway!’

·         Their awkward signing like wow adorkable cuties.

·         Here’s one thing the anime does absolutely a cut above the manga: relaying the speed. The manga’s intensity is definitely something else, but to get across just how fast their special quick is, the anime is definitely the best.

·         The collective ‘HAAHHHH?!’ that comes out of their mouths when Daiichi says Hinata has his eyes closed its funnier with sound too.

·         ‘Who trusts anyone 100 percent?’ Hinata does. He puts all his faith in his teammates and that’s what makes him so great. I freaking love this kid. He trusts 100%

·         I also like how the anime slows it down in terms of the speed too. It shows off every little moment of that dramatic change. (Swelling music always helps). Also enjoy the nice call back to the first episode with the view beyond the wall. You’re not alone anymore!

I like the manga’s little taglines though. Like ‘their fervor overlaps!’

Episode Five: Boys Ready Set

·         Sugawara looking on with tears in his eyes like the proud mother hen he is

·         The first glimpse of Hinata’s skill as the strongest decoy

·         Tsukishima taking off his sweater and getting serious. You might lie but you’ve got a fire in your sportsman’s soul too. (Come on with his character arc!)

·         Hinata jumping around and doing his best to shake Tsukishima’s hand. Give it up Tsuki, you can’t defeat Hinata’s power of friendship.

·         The shot of the first-years wearing their new jerseys

·         Good Job Captain!~

·         Sugawara and Kageyama’s little chat.

·         When they cut to HINATA STUFFING HIS FACE with a little text scroll like ‘onomnomnomnom’ in the back I CAN’T WITH THIS BOY

·         Mini volleyball lesson about the positions (After reading Haikyuu I’d say that the setters are important, the spikers are cool, but it’s the libero that I like the most!)

·         The appearance of the girl’s team captain! I really like her so I hope she shows up more

·         Hinata not rising to Tsukishima’s taunts, Kageyama’s serious lack of self-awareness, and Hinata’s little sister bursting in to scold her big brother.