Chihayafuru Episode 22

Just As My Beauty Has Faded

It’s been a while since Chihaya’s matches felt this exciting to me. The outcome is usually that she wins after making a sudden revelation. But here, it’s the complete reversal of the formula, where her opponent gets stronger instead. Not only that, she’s the former queen who has been dubbed “Yumin” by Porky.

Interestingly, Yumin is all depressed in the beginning of the match, unable to get over the fear of the new queen while downplaying her own skills. Chihaya’s passion and determination give her the upper hand until Yumin snaps back to her competitive, “stubborn” mode. It ended with Yumin winning and…Chihaya just sitting there in shock. It’s about time something like that happened, isn’t it? I really enjoyed Yumin’s character study and look forward to the next episode.

Oooo, Kana-chan, a “special reader?” That would suit her very well, actually… And I’d like to see the exam for that. o_O

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