One of the most well-known josei manga ever written, Yuki Suetsugu’s Chihayafuru, follows an aspiring karuta player named Chihaya Ayase after spending the majority of her life supporting her sister’s modeling career. Through karuta, Chihaya is able to make friends and find something in her life that she’s truly passionate about. Running from 2007 to 2022, Chihayafuru‘s powerful coming-of-age story resonated with readers, having nearly 28 million copies in circulation by the time the series ended.
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An anime adaptation of the series produced by Studio Madhouse was released in 2011, running for three seasons before coming to an end in 2020. The anime concluded with 74 televised episodes and an OVA that ended on a cliffhanger alluding to potential future events. However, a fourth season of the series was never produced – but, that doesn’t mean the original creator doesn’t want it. In a recent tweet made by Yuki Suetsugu, the mangaka expressed excitement over seeing news about the live-action adaptation of Chihayafuru, and that she’s actively working to try and get a fourth season of the anime greenlit. There were no details about the process, of course, but rather a message of encouragement that she hasn’t given up on the prospects of the anime continuing.
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Chihayafuru’s Creator Tweets Out Hopes for Season 4 Renewal
Suegetsu’s tweet translates to say, “I’m happy that the news about the drama Chihayafuru -Meguri- is trending! I haven’t given up on the 4th season of the anime either!” This latest update is nothing new, especially in the shojo and josei fandom, which frequently goes without renewals for even some of their most beloved hits. This includes all-time greats like Yona of the Dawn, which, despite a manga with over 15 years of circulation and 15 million units sold, still has yet to get a Season 2 despite clear demand.
These examples go before even mentioning classics like Ouran High School Host Club, one of the most infamous examples of shojo fans’ wishes falling on deaf ears. The anime has garnered an especially impressive 8.16 on MyAnimeList and countless adoring fans, yet it only ever got one season.
Chihayafuru Is the Perfect Coming-Of-Age Story for Young Women
Chihayafuru, while its premise is rather simple at a glance, is an incredibly powerful story about a young woman learning to find herself for herself – and not to conform to any other person’s expectations of her. While Chihaya does have two main love interests featured throughout the series, the story doesn’t base the protagonist’s entire character arc around the love triangle created by Taichi and Arata. Rather, the story chooses to focus on her growth as a kurata player, and her growth as an individual learning how to adjust to the real world while still finding the time to enjoy being a teenager.
It’s a message that, especially in the modern age, is important for everyone – not just young women. The manga is one of perseverance, dedication, and hard work, themes that can resonate with every generation and manage to spin the game it’s centered around in an interesting way while still keeping its deeper literary elements intact. Chihayafuru is an award-winning manga for a reason, and while it’s still unknown whether the anime adaptation will officially make a return, it’s more than worth it to binge-read the original series.
As confirmed by Yuki Suegetsu’s official X (formerly Twitter) account.
