(C)古舘春一／集英社・「ハイキュー!! 3rd」製作委員会・MBS
Here I am again! I’m bringing you another recap of our favorite anime series, Haikyuu!! Karasuno Koukou vs Shiratorizawa Gakuen Koukou! Before you start off your weekend, be sure to watch the new episode as you’d miss a tenth of your life if you don’t. Here we go!
Japanese Original Episode Title: こだわり
The episode starts with each team being given a pep talk by their respective coaches. This is already the start of the fifth set. Shiratorizawa’s coach told them that they will run back to school if they lose. On the other hand, Coach Ukai told them that Kageyama will be resting and that Sugawara will be the setter in this set. Unlike before, Kageyama doesn’t have that much qualms with getting subbed out of the court since it means they are doing it for victory. He also believes in Sugawara’s skills as a setter.
While it may be true that Sugawara is ready to fight on the court, he can’t help but be nervous since this is a very important game for the team. He receives encouragement and that’s how he was able to keep a cool head as he enters the court.
And this is the start of the fifth set!
The highlights for this week’s episode are quite amazing. The score is still running back and forth. Moreover, there’s an accident! On whose team – Karasuno or Shiratorizawa? Find out by reading more on this week’s episode highlight!
Highlight #1: The Final Set
During the team huddle before the start of the final set, Sugawara is put on the court to allow the tired Kageyama to rest. However, Sugawara can’t help being nervous. He understands that he is going to be the playmaker of the team and he doesn’t want to let anyone down.
It was an ice breaker for everyone when Shimizu, the team’s beautiful third-year manager, grabbed Suga’s hand. ‘Please wait a while before we get married!’, exclaims the flustered Sugawara to which Shimizu replies, ‘I don’t plan on marrying you.’ That was funny because we rarely see the third-year boys get flustered over Kiyoko, especially Suga. Daichi and Asahi even protest how it was unfair that only Suga gets to touch her hands. They try to grab Suga’s hand for an indirect contact with Kiyoko, but Suga wards them off, afraid that ‘it’ will wear off! The second year idiotic combo, Nishinoya and Tanaka, are also inching closer to him.
It is because of this shenanigan that Suga’s nervousness goes away.
Highlight #2: Sugawara on The Court
Sugawara points out that the pressure on the court is really heavy, especially since this is Shiratorizawa they are facing. Since his plays are quite textbook, Tendou even notes that he is quite an easy guy to read, to which he rebuffs him saying that it is just because his teammates are reliable. Tendou promises to break his heart.
Highlight #3: Nishinoya – Setting?
Sugawara admits that Karasuno depends on him for his reliability on the court and that is what supports his plays. However, that doesn’t mean that he isn’t up to something new. Because of these past volleyball practices, he is adding another play into his repertoire!
The new play is a good surprise for the Shiratorizawa team, though. After all, the play consists of Nishinoya setting the ball up and everyone participating in a synchro attack. It basically means that, in this play, Karasuno is going into all-out attack without someone to do receives or follow-ups!
Highlight #4: Flashbacks
Tendou’s and Ushijima’s past are shown in a flashback here in this episode. Tendou, who only moves on the court as his instincts tell him to, is seen being scolded by his middle school coach. It seems that, back then, he didn’t get along well with his teammates too.
As for Ushijima, it shows how he started volleyball. He takes inspiration from his father’s words. He may not be aiming to become like his father, but he wants to become the ace on whom everyone can rely.
Highlight #5: Tsukishima’s Block
Ushijima’s engine is now revving up. He is in the mood for grabbing scores for Shiratorizawa. On the other hand, Karasuno is frustrated by just how much of a monster Ushijima is.
The only one who remains calm and observant is Tsukishima. He was able to somehow match the timing of the opponent when they spike. Though he was only able to force a one-touch and block outs out of Ushijima, he is definitely saving Karasuno from the end!
Highlight #6: An Injury?!
Tsukishima is always in front of the net to block off any attacks from the other team’s spikers – even Ushijima. However, it seems that Ushijima is much more powerful as the spike that he let loose made a cut on Tsukishima’s hand, causing the latter to bleed. As a result, Tsukishima is taken off the court to get his injury treated.
Although he tries to hide it, Tsukishima is very frustrated at being removed from the court at such a crucial time. To ease his worries, he receives encouragement from both his older brother, who apparently came in a disguise but was later found out, and Kiyoko-senpai.
Highlight #7: Another Synchro
Karasuno attempts to pull off another synchro with Nishinoya setting up the ball. Despite this play being a fairly difficult attack for the opponents to read, it is a different case with Tendou. He is able to block the spike made by Sugawara.
This week’s episode was directed by Susumu Mitsunaka, with Kishimoto Takashi in charge of both scenario and production. Before the airing of this episode, there was an announcement for a broadcast schedule change. The episode aired 15 minutes later than the original time in MBS (Mainichi) channel.
The episode ends with quite the atmosphere. The team was relying on Tsukishima so that they can keep up with Shiratorizawa’s attacks. Now that he got injured, the team has to up their game. Who would step up? Can Tsukishima return to the game before everything ends? Find out together with me here in Manga.Tokyo next week!
NEXT TIME: An Annoying Guy, Iya na Otoko (嫌な男)
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(C)古舘春一/集英社・「ハイキュー!! 3rd」製作委員会・MBS
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