“They are odd, they are dangerous, they are an interesting team.”
Ever been sick while recording a podcast?
This week, rainbow and em cover season 1, episode 6 'An Interesting Team' and talk about Kindaichi being stuck in the past and Kageyama's growth since middle school. For Who in HQ? your hosts struggle to decide which One Piece characters are most lime our lovely volleyball boys.
1:15:40 - Spoiler Zone Begins
Podcast Socials:
twitter
bluesky
instagram
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Send us an email! flyhqpod@gmail.com
Transcript available on our website, if not included in your podcast app: https://flyhqpod.buzzsprout.com
If you have the means, please consider donating to Pious Projects, which provides period products to women in Gaza
“They are odd, they are dangerous, they are an interesting team.”
Ever been sick while recording a podcast?
This week, rainbow and em cover season 1, episode 6 'An Interesting Team' and talk about Kindaichi being stuck in the past and Kageyama's growth since middle school. For Who in HQ? your hosts struggle to decide which One Piece characters are most lime our lovely volleyball boys.
1:15:40 - Spoiler Zone Begins
Podcast Socials:
twitter
bluesky
instagram
tumblr
Send us an email! flyhqpod@gmail.com
Transcript available on our website, if not included in your podcast app: https://flyhqpod.buzzsprout.com
If you have the means, please consider donating to Pious Projects, which provides period products to women in Gaza
Hi everybody and welcome to Fly a queer, high-q podcast. I'm Rainbow and I'm Em, and we're both recovering from colds, so excuse us if our voices maybe sound a little bit different.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, we definitely. We sounded really stuffed up yesterday. I think we're sounding better, but you know, just warning you, yeah just if you hear anything, just ignore it. Yeah, we just got back from visiting Rainbow's family last weekend and of course you can't fly anywhere without coming back with a little bit of a cold these days.
Speaker 1:Yeah, absolutely, I always tend to get a little sick, but yeah, it was a really nice visit with my family, our family. You're part of the family. Now Don't make me cry.
Speaker 2:I'll do it. Yeah, we didn't get to obviously record last weekend and you know what we missed, you guys? Well, yeah, we missed it.
Speaker 1:We're really glad we're back in the back in the studio again. Okay.
Speaker 1:Where it belong, where the flow goes, yeah, and so you all might have noticed last week that we did not jump right into things when we started. We had a little bit of a chit chat corner up at the top, and I think we're going to keep doing that and see how it feels. We kind of like it. Obviously, if you all hate it and enough of you, let us know we might stop it. But for now I think we're going to keep going, don't make me cry.
Speaker 2:Yeah, please don't be mean to us.
Speaker 1:We're sensitive. We're sensitive, but yeah, so I did want to talk a little bit about animated to live action stuff.
Speaker 2:What could have possibly inspired? That?
Speaker 1:Oh, you know just a few things. For one thing, I finally watched the one piece live action and it was incredible. I fucking loved it. I started watching it when we were home with my family. We started watching with my brother. My dad has also watched it.
Speaker 1:My dad's not really like an anime animation person, he's a little bit like a boomer Xer, and that just doesn't really fit. Not that boomers and Xers can't be into animation, but just I feel like it's less likely generationally. They think it's for kids, yeah, they think it's for kids. And so my dad watched one piece and he really enjoyed it and I also really enjoyed it. And then also, so as of this recording, we are just a few days from the release of the Avatar, the last airbender live action, which was what I expected and my expectations were low, so it was underwhelming. I did watch all of it in one day and I didn't completely hate it Like I'm not. It's not like the movie that shall not be named, where we just need to strike it from the record and pretend it doesn't exist. There were things that I liked about it. Obviously the casting. The fact that they cast actual Asian and native actors for these roles was great, except for Sokka. I don't know the full story behind why they didn't think to fix that and I still.
Speaker 2:I know that Katara is a native actress and that is great, but I still feel like they really whitewashed both of them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think. Yeah, that's the thing. Like in the animated show, their skin was they're brown, dark. Yeah, brown people, let them be brown. There's a body on Twitter who is an amazing native writer. She has a blog, but she was talking about them whitewashing.
Speaker 1:The woman who played Grand Grand who is a native actress as well and I think I saw some people being like well, you know, if they were filming like they used, like like you know, if they were using like fake snow and stuff like the light could have reflected and made her look but these are all deliberate choices.
Speaker 2:Like colorism is very real, um, but yeah, so that, sorry guys, we just had to pause real quick. We had some technical moment, but yeah, we're just talking about, um, you know the paleness of a lot of these characters and how that is all deliberate. And you will notice that there's that thing called the paper bag test, yes, where characters of color are never like darker than a paper, like a brown paper bag, like it. It's just frustrating.
Speaker 2:And another thing with the movies, I just like I just I don't know why we do these remakes if we're not going to put real money into the writing and the performances. And then, like it was really CGI a lot of the times where I felt we could have done a little bit more practical, like it's just like, I don't know, I feel like we rush these things because their money grabs and their nostalgia farms. But like, like everything that I liked about the show, I didn't really love it. Um, everything that I did like about it was because they pulled on my nostalgia heart strings and that was really it for me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so part of for me, some of it was nostalgia. I will say I felt like they added certain things, yes, that I appreciated, Like I am really excited to see what they're going to do with Azula. I can't remember the actor's name, but whoever is playing Azula, I think, is doing a really good job. See, I disagree with you a little bit, you disagree.
Speaker 2:I mean, go right ahead. I didn't love the acting from really anybody, I don't know, it's just and she wasn't really giving me Azula like that, like, and you know what. I'll give her this. I think we're in the first season and, for those who aren't watching it or haven't watched it yet, in the one day it's been out, they give us more of Azula in the first season under Ozai, which is very interesting, but I just feel like her personality is super lacking.
Speaker 1:I would say a lot of the characters, personalities are super lacking. I think it really comes down to the writing more than anything, and probably the directing as well, for sure.
Speaker 1:I think it's one of those things where they, like you said, they're just not putting the money and the effort into it. I think they're really like resting on their laurels and the fact that Avatar is so beloved that the care and the like intelligence that went into the original series just isn't there. And, as many of you probably know, the original creators, mike Canetsko and Brian something they're, I think they just call them break a lot of the time. But break, they originally were attached to this live action and then they left because of creative differences and I would love to know exactly like I would love to know in more detail what it was, but there were, like I just felt like a lot of the character development was taken out, like they toned down a lot of the characters, I think, in an attempt to maybe make it like, maybe make things like less controversial.
Speaker 2:Even though they even they like and I remember them making a comment about how they wanted to make it more adult and the way they're doing it is not my favorite, like it. Just I feel like they're being a little more brutal with the violence, like we actually see Katara's mom get axed Like I don't know if that was necessary.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think they're just making it. Yeah, like it kind of feels like they are making it more adult in the way that, like DC movies were trying to make superhero movies more adult, which is like just by making them like darker and more like violent. And I think they're doing things with some of the characters that I do not like, like Hakota we get to see Hakota and like I I'm like holding back a little bit of judgment because I'm like maybe that isn't exactly how things really like went down. Like maybe that is just like a like soccer's idea of who Hakota is and like I'm going to give them like a little bit of slack and see what happens later on. But I that really pissed me off.
Speaker 2:Basically Hakota like voices that he's disappointed in soccer, which Hakota would fucking never.
Speaker 1:What was something I loved about Avatar is that they showed like a range of adults where, like they showed like some adults are like caring and kind and then some adults are jerks, like I. Just I think they they don't the people they had writing this. I don't think really understood the characters as deeply as we would like them to. I also have a lot of complaints about Katara's characterization, like she's very flat to me.
Speaker 1:She was very flat, very bland. I think the actress is doing the best that she could with what she had and that's what I feel bad for, like a lot of these, especially these younger actors, where they're in this, like they're part of this amazing show or this amazing like an electoral property.
Speaker 1:They're part of this amazing world but they're not really given the chance to do with it what they could, and that's very upsetting. So a lot of complaints and all that to say, like I thought, a lot of what they did with one piece in comparison was so much better.
Speaker 1:One piece had really good writing, really good directing, a lot of practical sets and costumes, like the fishmen, like so many shows, would have just made those guys CGI and they just would have used motion capture and it would have been shitty. But you could tell they used actual prosthetics which just makes it look better, like these quality makeup and really put in like the effort and I know a big part of one piece, like a lot of people are pointing out, that the creator was involved with the creation of that show and had a lot of like, was able to make high level decisions, and I think that's an important part of it. But I think they also just had better writers and better directors and I mean the kid who plays Luffy is I love him, I think he's amazing. Same with the person who plays Zorro. Really everybody, everybody was giving it their all. They're putting their whole posties into it.
Speaker 1:And I just don't think Avatar, the Last Airbender, was given that space or given that money and, like I said, I think and I think they were worried about offending people so they toned down like soccer being sexist and they toned down Katara being kind of a hothead, which is a big part of her character and pisses me off because, like women are allowed to be angry.
Speaker 2:It's just this like mass sanitization of media, where everything has to be like a certain way and morally correct and God forbid we have it like problematic issues or development of any fucking kind. Yeah.
Speaker 1:And that's the thing that I don't think they understand is that a lot of those things about those characters that maybe people like complain about, are important part of their character development.
Speaker 1:Like, I feel like they are sacrificing character development for like more action and more like darkness and I'm just, I'm not very happy with it. I did.
Speaker 1:I think Zuko was probably the standout for me, the guy who played Zuko.
Speaker 1:I thought he did, and again, like all very light skinned people and I will say, in the movie that shall not be named, the M Night Shyamalan one, there was a lot of criticism because the Fire Nation, who are the bad guys, were played by a lot more darker skinned South Asian actors, whereas the good guys, the Aang and his friends, were played by like actual white people who were, I guess, being in like slight brown face Not brown face, but like we're supposed to be playing, like Asian or native people.
Speaker 1:So like I'm glad that they didn't like do I'm glad that they didn't use that kind of colorism in the live action show, but I would have appreciated if they had used like darker skinned actors, just in more variety, because even other characters like jet, the mechanists, like boomie, you know, all of them Asian, except for soccer, but like all, still very light skinned. You know, and I don't know if him and I have mentioned this, but we're white, so like, we're not like experts on this, but I do think it's important for it to be brought up in it, to be talked about, and I'm definitely interested in hearing more about that, and especially from people from Asian and native communities.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and then again, going back to one piece, I feel like one piece is doing a better job at like inclusivity. They have more like there's more queer representation and and all that. Yeah, you can definitely feel the love. I mean, I still have my critiques about one piece as well that are just kind of nitpicky because I've seen, I've watched. Well, I got like 40 episodes into the anime. Ok, it's a little too repetitive for me to get super into, but I did it. I did like fall in love with it a little bit at the beginning and I just think it's hard to like. Anime is a specific kind of medium that you can do different things with. With animation that like real life just is limited and it is interesting to see how they do it Like. I do like how one piece condensed a lot of stuff for the live action, like it makes good choices, but I don't know, overall it's just like what if we just left these alone.
Speaker 1:No, I totally agree. I mean, I've said before, I think, on Twitter, that I just I think we need to stop trying to translate anime but animation in general to live action. I feel like there's this idea that, like animation like you know, animation is still having like a renaissance and like there's a lot more adult animation and I feel like children's animation is being taken more seriously, but we're still not quite there yet. I feel like there's still this idea, especially in Hollywood, that in order for something to be like really good and to be taken seriously, it needs to be live action, it needs to be real people. But then, like you add, in the CGI, which often is kind of shitty and you're like they rely on CGI too much, like I'm sorry, apa and Momo I thought looked pretty terrible in Avatar, the Lost Airbender, and it's just, it's, it's not great.
Speaker 1:And I just also wish that we would start making like original ideas, like I want. I want original ideas like even like I love Shira, but Shira was like an already, like was already a property back in the 80s and then they made this new amazing queer show and like I think that's the way to do. It is like take something that's older and update it for the times, but don't just take something that exists, that came out 20 years ago, and turn it to live action like it's clearly just about making money and that sucks.
Speaker 2:We could be. We could be using this time and money to make season 5 of Haikyuu.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah absolutely, or like rebooting Steven Universe and letting Rebecca Sugar actually like tell that story. Yeah, really, the way that they wanted to and that is something I will say about Avatar, the Lost Airbender is, I thought it was clever the way that they decided to condense certain things. They like they combined certain things together and we still got those character beats and those plot points, and I thought that was pretty good. Um, but yeah, overall it's just like it's pretty mid, pretty underwhelming.
Speaker 1:All of that being said, the original creators of Avatar do have their own Avatar Studios, which is under, I believe, Paramount, and so they are in the process of making I think they have. Currently, they have planned three new animated movies that will focus on different things. One is supposed to come out in 2025 and it's supposed to follow Aang and his friends and like the other characters from the show when they're in their like 20s and 30s, I think, or like late teens, early 20s, somewhere around there, so a little bit grown up. So I think they're maybe giving us like, I think maybe they're gonna give us stories between when Avatar ended and maybe even going up to like closer to when Korra happens. So I am excited about that.
Speaker 1:I'm excited that we're getting stuff from the actual creators and we're getting to explore this world more. And yeah, and there it's gonna be animated and I think that's gonna be good. I think maybe the creators realize like, hey, maybe live action isn't the thing and we should just stick with animation, and I think that's the right choice. And, all of that being said, I will still watch more seasons of the live action Avatar, the last airbender show when they come out. Will I rewatch them the way that I've rewatched the animated show over and over again?
Speaker 2:No, Absolutely not, because it's just like. It's just all it is, is like the word that I want is escaping me, but just like the coolness of it being like, oh, live action that wears off very fast, Like that cannot make up for, like a good story.
Speaker 1:And especially in the world of like leaks and where they're like the marketing, where they're constantly like giving us new pictures and new information. I was over the like the shiny newness of the live action fucking months ago. Yeah, like, as like. I was just like, okay, I don't care anymore, I'm just I'm, I'm excited for the Avatar Studios stuff way more. That's going to be like the big hell. Yes, let's do this kind of thing. Yeah, okay, is there anything else? We need that now that we've talked, for what? 15?
Speaker 2:minutes 15 minutes later.
Speaker 1:Let's move on. Okay, let's move on. Yeah, we'll move on to our housekeeping stuff, and so I have a few things here. We actually have some listener responses to a few things. So Zale on Twitter, one of our original followers of the podcast was listening to episode two, where I brought up my UK theory about UK being the person who's setting for the little giant in the game that he natuses. And so Zale said, and quote regarding your UK theory, at some point, I think, when he's deciding starting setter, you can mentions that he was a bench warmer pretty much the whole time he was on the team. He's also five years older than the little giant, so I think he would have already graduated, and so that's not something I thought about. So my little theory is just probably not true. We appreciate the the history.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I appreciate Zale pointing that out. So, and yeah, I think that makes a lot of sense. And I do remember, after Zale said this, I was like, oh yeah, you guys does talk about being a bench warmer, not really being like that good of like not being dedicated enough to it. Yeah and so, and we'll talk about UK more, you guys definitely coming up, I think, after the next couple episodes will get to really see UK. Yeah, so that's that, yes, and then we got our very first listener email.
Speaker 2:Oh my God, I was so excited. I opened the email just to go into our drive and then I saw we had like an actual email from someone and I called for rain. Boys said come here, we have a, we have mail.
Speaker 1:I brought my yes, I brought my cereal in and we I ate my cereal while in red and responded to the email.
Speaker 2:and we are so excited Because this is that's really like the creme de la creme of all of this like we are talking about it because we love it and getting to share it with you guys and hearing that like you enjoy listening to it and it sparks your own conversations with your friends, that is like. That just puts me on cloud nine. I love to hear it.
Speaker 1:I like that. It's not just us like screaming into the void about haiku, like the void is screaming back. Yes, and I like the community aspect of it. So I think there was something I posted an AI generated description that our little AI gives us, which I don't use those for our actual description. I still want to write that, but I thought the AI description was really funny and it said something about like it's it's not just like a one way dialogue, it's a thriving community or something like that. And I was like you're right, ai, and we did get permission from this listener there from tumblr concert confetti. They also have an a03, so go check that out. Also a tumblr user, not a Twitter user. That also feels special, and so they wanted.
Speaker 1:They responded to our we asked for people to tell us what they think of tonneco, tonneco and Kyoko because, like we said, we don't really get it. So this person? They responded and I'll read what they said here, quote from the perspective of seeing loads of shitty romance and shonen, I saw tonneco's behavior as more obviously a joke. Kyoko is unbothered by him for the most part and it's not shown as romantic. More just silly to not ask Kyoko to marry him. I believe when they met which is a ridiculous thing to say, so I sort of headcanon that he and noia leaned into it a bit as a joke.
Speaker 1:This is illustrated for me when we see UG quote flirting with Kyoko later, and that's Taroshima. He doesn't know her and won't leave her alone, despite the fact that she is clearly uncomfortable. We never see Tanaka push Kyoko after she says no. When she says no, he stops whatever nonsense he's on that day and moves on. Taroshima doesn't. He presses and presents himself as a threat. Is it perfect? No, they really don't have any interactions that point to romance, and Kyoko does end up being saved a lot, but as the only boy gets married to a girl couple, I don't mind it. Also, it's leagues above most manga from the time.
Speaker 2:I see Tanaka and Kyoko as bye for bye personally, I liked this a lot and I fully agree with it. Like, yeah, I think that's a very fair summation of them and I think it's really just like my like. My impatience with them really just comes from my like, my man, hating lesbian tendencies, because I just have such little patience for that kind of like straight couple, male, like you know, pursuing the woman like way too much kind of like. I just have such little patience for it. So I tend to hate on them, I think a little more than deserved, because I think that this, this email, is very fair and I do. I have to adopt that headcanon that they are bye for bye, because I think it'll make it easier for me. But what did you think? I think you're a little less harsh than I am against Tanakiyo.
Speaker 1:A little bit well so for me. And also like, coming from you know, growing up watching shonen anime and like, at the time, not really understanding the sexism and like the harassment that I was seeing, and then growing up and being like pretty disgusted by some of the things I've seen, like even like Naruto. I grew up loving Naruto, but the way that she treats its female characters is not great. I could talk a lot about certain things.
Speaker 1:I love Shikomaru, but like boy, shut the fuck up. And so I was very pleasantly surprised when I started watching Haikyuu. And there is like, because you know they have like there's always like a pervy character in a lot of anime pervy sage and Naruto and like it's often like it is often really gross and creepy and it's just not fun. Like I think my hero has like a pervy character yeah, minita or whatever the fuck.
Speaker 2:I hate that guy.
Speaker 1:Yeah and exactly. But, like with this show, tanaka and Noya are kind of especially. Noya is kind of like the like pervy character, but it's just so like it's pretty harmless. Yeah, I think it still needs to be discussed and we can talk about it more when it comes to Noya, but it's very much like there's no pushiness, like this email is saying is like as soon as they hear the word no, they stop.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they're definitely more like goofy, normal teenage boy behavior than like the over the top shit you see sometimes.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean do Tanaka and Noya need to be sat down and do they need to have a conversation about, like women, not being objects? Yes, they absolutely do. Dai Chisuga, you failed.
Speaker 2:Even that moment, and this isn't until season four. But Noya like falls into a pair of boobs accidentally and he's very happily accepting his fate. It's like, alright, I can, I can understand.
Speaker 1:It's like yeah and that thing, and that's like he didn't like cause that to happen. He's just like oh, this is just like a moment that happens and then and I don't really think this is a spoiler, I think it's okay to talk about this here, but he is like a me. He doesn't actually get what he wants, he doesn't get to fall into the boobs, he stopped and he's not mad about it. There is no comment of like oh, I almost had it like they just like very much, let it go. Cause like Noya, I think, is just like he's just excitable, and you know we will save Noya conversations for when Noya is introduced. But so I really appreciate Concert Confetti. Thank you first of all for just sending an email at all.
Speaker 2:We love it. Yes, brings us a lot of joy.
Speaker 1:Yes, we love, we love getting emails. Emails on this podcast are like comments on an AO3 thick where it's like oh, this is my life, not to say that we do not love and appreciate all of the stuff that we're getting on Twitter. The quote, retweets and the replies like those also bring us joy.
Speaker 2:Any kind of interaction we can get is just, it's just a lot of fun, so I hope that this encourages listeners. If you've been thinking about writing in, don't be shy like we are. We couldn't be nicer.
Speaker 1:Absolutely, and email is a great format if you have something that's like more obnoxious to put on Twitter, like in a thread or even, or if you're scared to like DMS like I get that like email. I feel like is a little bit more like separated.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you're in our.
Speaker 1:DMS, exactly, yeah, but like feel free to and Concert Confetti, like I said. Thank you so much, and look them up on Tumblr and AO3 if you're interested. They seem like a pretty cool person. All right, I think that's it for our housekeeping, unless you have anything else you wanted to talk about. No, ma'am, all right. Well then, we are going to move into our recap and it's Im's turn.
Speaker 2:Oh boy, I'm so nervous, are you?
Speaker 1:ready. Yeah, I believe in you. Oh, before we start this, I do want to say I did put a pullout on Twitter at this point. It'll be like weeks ago. But yeah, I put a pullout on Twitter. We're going to see if people want pre-written or off the cuff. So I think by next week's episode we will have determined whether or not we're going to continue doing off the cuff or we're going to do pre-written. But for now Im's doing this off the cuff and she looks a little nervous and we'll see how it goes.
Speaker 2:Okay, you made a, count you down. Yeah, count me down.
Speaker 1:All right, Three, two, one go.
Speaker 2:We're at episode six. Can you believe it? An interesting team. We are at Obajosei and Hinata is still very nervous and his teammates, they aren't really helping. And now we also get to see two members of this new team. We don't fully know their names yet, but they're talking about Kageyama, they're talking about Karasno and you know what. They're not worried about them, but they should be, because Tanaka's someone's talking shit about me.
Speaker 2:Radar has picked up and they're there and I love this shot of Tanaka and Tsukishima and Kageyama and they're all just like yeah, we're crows, we'll take you down. And of course, then comes Dachi to be like, please calm down. So they start the game. But Hinata is still very nervous and, oh boy, people talk about how other arcs are hard to watch. This is hard to watch because Hinata is just making a fool of himself, because he's so nervous that he actually hits Kageyama in the back of the head with a volleyball and Kageyama, surprisingly, doesn't beat into a pulp but says hey, you've already done the most embarrassing, worst thing you could possibly do. So get your head out of your ass and let's do this thing. That, of course, snaps Hinata out of it, because his soulmate always knows what to say and they get back into the game and they're doing a little better, and that's really all I got.
Speaker 1:That was wonderful, thank you, yeah, I'm excited to talk about this one. This is a fun episode, this is very fun. So, yeah, do we just want to jump right into it?
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, take it away. I got to find where I put my phone, okay.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So my first note here is you are not helping Tanaka, because Tanaka at first is like dude, it's okay that you throw up on me, it's no big deal. And then he immediately is just like oh, but you know, if you fuck up like we're, all this is all riding on you, bro, yeah he's trying to be like helpful and jokey, but it is backfiring it's, but yeah, he just hasn't like no tact whatsoever.
Speaker 1:And Daiichi and Suga are like shut up and then. So Hinata gets a stomach ache and has to run to the bathroom again. And then Kageyama, who's just as bad as Tanaka, is like I'm going to go beat him up, and it's like shut the fuck up.
Speaker 2:Yes, you're not helping, that's his solution is just to beat it into Hinata.
Speaker 1:And then, yeah, I have a note here about the comment about Kyoko, because I think it's Yahaba who says, like the only thing I know about Karasuno is that they've got a girl manager and she's got a really sexy vibe. And it's just like can we not do this, can we not? They don't know how to act. They don't know how to act. Can Daiichi, who I do headcanon as like 100% gay, is just kind of like oh, a sexy girl manager.
Speaker 2:Uh huh.
Speaker 1:Doesn't has no idea how to handle that, and I do. I love Tsukishima being part of the bullying.
Speaker 2:Yes, it is fun now that his bitchiness is being directed towards opponents.
Speaker 1:Yes, he's just so like sly about it, because at first like it's Tanaka and you think it's just going to be Tanaka talking shit, and then Tsukishima comes in with his fucking smug ass and he's just like no, no, no, I get to talk about my team like this.
Speaker 1:You don't get to talk about my team like this. But then as soon as Daiichi shows up, tsukishima walks away, that little punk. He's like no, tanaka can get in trouble for this, I didn't have anything to do. What do you mean? I don't care about this game? Yeah, and then I also have a note about Kandaiichi has not moved on from middle school, but Kagama has. Like you see, because Kandaiichi tries to like antagonize Kagama, he's like oh, have you whipped your team into shape? And, like you know, kagama, just a few episodes ago, would have like probably exploded about that and like been angry. And so he just kind of like, kind of in a sassy way, is just like yeah, and then he moves on and I think Daiichi gives him a little back slap.
Speaker 2:Yeah, him and like Tanaka both give him like this back. So I love the, I love how they like praise them. It's so funny. But yeah, no, I think in just the short time of like Kagama getting that reassurance from his team, and from Hinata specifically, I think he is, you know, he's a little more ready to face them than he would have been a week ago.
Speaker 1:Yeah and so, and that all happens outside of the gym. And then they go into the gym and Hinata says, wow, this gym is huge. And I wanted to talk a little bit about inequality, because I think we get a little bit of it in the first episode with. You know, kagama comes from a school that actually like cares about volleyball and like fosters their volleyball team, whereas Hinata comes from a school that doesn't even really have a real volleyball team, and I think this is you know, now we're at Kurosu no and for Hinata, he feels like he is like rich now because he has a team and he has a gym to play and he has like an actual net. But then you, this is really the first time that you see, compared to other schools, kurosu no is like they. They clearly don't have as much money. They don't have, they don't have like a real coach. Still they. I think they play in a much smaller gym. I think they play in like the B gym. I think maybe the girls Kurosu no volleyball club gets a little bit more Like they have like a bigger space and stuff.
Speaker 1:Possibly versus Sejo which, like you know, they're like one of the top powerhouse schools in the prefecture. They have this huge gym. They have like an actual coach and an assistant coach who both, like, know the sport. They have a lot of players. There are like students from the school walking by and watching the practice match and like knowing what's going on, like it's very clear that volleyball is an important part of the school, and so I think that's just very interesting and I think we can talk about that more with Sejo, because I feel like Sejo, especially for seasons one and two, is like the big team to really compare Kurosin-O too. So I think that's very interesting and I think that's just part of like the big one of the big themes in IQ is like how you know, you know, often people have less and they have to fight harder.
Speaker 2:And like.
Speaker 1:Kurosin-O is a team that fights harder. So yeah, I just wanted to point that out.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that whole theme is really like very sprinkled throughout the whole show and like pretty subtle, but it's there, just like, how you know, capitalism and inequality is always there. It's always there right under the surface. And then this brings us. So, you know, tonica continues to try and rev Heenita up, but only makes him more nervous. So he goes to the bathroom again and this is when we have our second bathroom confrontation and I wrote ex-boyfriend versus current boyfriend because Heenita runs into Kandaiji and Kandaiji, yeah, he really. I mean it'll continue to show like how affected he still is from this, but from what went down in middle school. But it's, I love how they agree about how Kageyama is a horrible dictator and Heenita goes on this long tangent about being a peasant under Kageyama's rule, which that's just fan fiction fodder right there. But I digress. But they're like, yeah, he's the worst, but his tosses are the best, the worst. They don't agree there because Kandaiji could never keep up with a bad bitch.
Speaker 1:Yes, I did. Also, going back to when Heenita first sees Kandaiji, he recognizes him by his hair and it shows like a flashback of Kandaiji and Kageyama standing next to each other on the other side of the net and you can see Kageyama perfectly, but Kandaiji's faces blurred out because clearly Heenita only really remembers Kageyama from that match, he just remembers he. I think in the dub he calls him onion top, oh yeah.
Speaker 1:And then I think I've seen it as turnip head to turnip head, onion head, turnip head onion head. I mean they're both like root vegetables, I think. So they probably do have similar shapes. But I just think it's so funny that like he's just like turnip head and I was like Heenita is like wracking just a bit too hard on Kageyama. It's just like so intense where he's like he's like an evil dictator and you know what. It's fair, because Kageyama has been like a huge shirk to him so far. It's like just really in like the episode before when Kageyama stopped being quite as mean to him. But then, yeah, I just love that like they're saying this, like they're just agreeing and agreeing until they get to the thing with the toss, and Kandaiji is like no, what are you talking about?
Speaker 2:You must not know.
Speaker 1:Yeah, absolutely. He's like well, you've clearly never tried to hit one of his kingly tosses.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and then he just ends up freaking out Heenita more because he tells Heenita like he'll get rid of anyone, he doesn't need to win, and of course that's like Heenita's biggest fear is not being needed on the court. But Kandaiji doesn't know what he's talking about.
Speaker 1:He doesn't. And also, I think it's a little rich coming from Kandaiji who, like, literally like, because, like you know, Kageyama was, like, obviously not a great setter and wasn't giving him tosses that he could hit, but like Kandaiji was the one who, like, led the team turning against Kageyama, like they kind of did to Kageyama what he's, what Kandaiji is saying Kageyama will do to Heenita, and also like Heenita, like, why are you believing this? Kageyama doesn't have the authority to take you out of the game.
Speaker 2:Well, I was going to say it's funny. I feel like this is kind of the last episode where we really get a lot of Heenita being very fearful of Kageyama and like having this fear and respect combination because he's so good and he's so mean and he needs him. And we see it more later on in the episode my favorite moment ever. He's just like terrified of Kageyama, but that definitely calms down and goes away and then he just starts antagonizing Kageyama more back at him. So that's that's a fun development to watch. But yeah, heenita is still just so, so new. He just he wants to stay on so badly and he's relying on this scary person.
Speaker 1:Yeah, absolutely. And I think, and even you know, heenita does start antagonizing Kageyama more in later episodes, but he has already been antagonizing him so much. I love Heenita for that. Heenita is just like. He is like a little coward, but he's also like I'll fight you. I'll be afraid, but I'll fight you. Yes, and I love that about him. And so, you know, heenita finishes off with his weird little bathroom confrontation and he goes back and he's still nervous and Daichi is like trying to figure out how to like help him. And so he asked you know, he asked Kyoko to help, because I'm sure Kyoko has like really given, like you know, daichi and Suga and the other third year we haven't met yet I'm sure like she's really been helpful for them. And so I think he just assumes, you know, kyoko can help and all she does is put her hand on Heenita and says you know, do a good job today. And Heenita freaks out immediately and then in the dub, daichi's line is so great he's like well, I killed Heenita, sorry, guys.
Speaker 2:Yeah, pretty much similar in the dub. He's like well, that was the final blow. I'm so sorry, heenita, because it's like yeah, what were you thinking? Yeah.
Speaker 1:I'm sorry. You're like, have you not been paying attention to the way Heenita reacts to Kyoko? Like this is not going to help. Now there's even more pressure on him. And then also I have this is where we first get to see Owaizumi Love him. Oh, I fucking love Owaizumi so much and I always like forget, because I think I focus a lot on like Kandaiji and Kunami in this episode but I forget that Owaizumi is also there and like making small comments and it just excites me so much. And he is such a good Senpai to little Tobio because he sees Kageyama and he's like, oh, Kageyama is at Karasano and I have a headcanon that Owaizumi like assumed that Kageyama was going to end up going to Seijo because he's good enough to.
Speaker 2:But then he was invited. He was invited to Seijo.
Speaker 1:Yeah, he was invited. I'm sure Owaizumi thought that Kageyama probably would show up there, but then, when Kageyama wasn't at Abajo Sai, I think he assumed that he got into like Shiratou Rizawa or another powerhouse school. So I think he is surprised to see Kageyama at Karasano, because Kageyama is so good and I just still love Owaizumi so much and I can't wait to talk more about him. And I just think like he's such a good Senpai. I love him.
Speaker 2:He takes his job seriously. He's definitely the dad of Obajo Sai. He absolutely is.
Speaker 1:And I think he is especially like, I think he cares a lot about Kageyama in his own way and like that's like a platonic ship we could talk about at some point because, like, I just think they're so cute.
Speaker 2:So the game starts, and this is a hard one to watch because, yeah, he and Hina Ta is like, he feels like he has to do everything, so he's taking the ball when it's not meant for him, he's hitting the ref in the face, he's falling into the net.
Speaker 1:Well, he's kind of like taking on that mentality that Kageyama has has been shown to have in games, where it's like it's all up to me, I have to do it myself, yeah, and it's again. That's that thing. It's like that lesson that they are. They keep trying to teach them, but it just hasn't sunk in yet that, like you are not the only player on this team right now, it's not up to just you, mm-hmm, so Hina Ta, and then it's Hina Ta's turn to serve Mm-hmm. And I think everybody is just like. I think it's Daiji, or somebody is just like oh no, it's Hina Ta's serve, like if he fucks this up, it's not going to, it's really going to bring him down and, oh boy, does he fuck it up Yep.
Speaker 2:He smacks Kageyama right in the back of the head.
Speaker 1:Oh my God, and it's so funny and like Tanaka and Tsukishima are both like making fun of Kageyama for getting hit in the back of the head, which is so high school, that is so accurate. So funny. I just I thought it was great. I also love when Tanaka and Tsukishima this is like a really like Tanaka Tsukie teaming up episode.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they're a dangerous pair, honestly.
Speaker 1:Yes, absolutely. And then Kageyama is terrifying. I said I have here Furudate's horror horror background. Is that it again?
Speaker 2:Yes, the way he just like turns and there's fire and again. Hina Ta is just so terrified of him, which I just I relish him. I love it. I think it's hilarious.
Speaker 1:And like you don't see Kageyama's face until he's like right up in front of Hina Ta. You just so see him like slowly stalking. And I love how nobody like everyone is just frozen watching this happen. The refs are not like doing anything. None of the coaches are doing anything. They're just like, oh fuck, they're just watching Kageyama. Just like walk up to Hina Ta and loom over him. Also, in the anime he gets much closer than in the manga. He is like there is hardly any space between them. Yes, and then you see Kageyama's face and it's just so scary.
Speaker 2:That like calm anger, which is so terrifying, and he's just like. He's just like what's your problem? You nervous because your first game, what's going on? And Hina Ta is just like. I also love the little moment of Hina Ta like accepting his death after he's hit Kageyama and like the sweat goes back into his pores because he's so freaked out, but it works.
Speaker 1:It works because Kageyama is, like you just did, the scariest thing you could possibly do, which is hitting me in the back of the head with your serve. So what do you have to be afraid of? And Hina Ta is like no, you're right, there's nothing else to be afraid of, like yeah.
Speaker 2:So get back out there. And then of course he yells and he's like just get, like, just fucking snap out of it, absolutely Get into the game.
Speaker 1:And I have a note that Hina Ta immediately goes from scared to pissed.
Speaker 2:Like classic.
Speaker 1:Well, because he's just like Kondaiji you lied to me, like you like. What do you mean? Yeah?
Speaker 2:Well, because he was like oh so Kageyama isn't going to have me thrown out of the match, and it's like, of course not, you fool, he needs you more than you need him, arguably. So, yeah, I think that that really does help to to snap Hina Ta out of it. Unfortunately, that missed serve does cost them the first set, but there's still time to catch up Absolutely.
Speaker 1:And this is where Tanaka finally is. Help is actually helpful. And instead of trying to be like jokie because I think he was just trying to be like funny, but he is like being a good senpai, and so he says to Hina Ta like, look, everyone on this side of the net is your ally, Like you can rely on us.
Speaker 2:Yes, he reminds Hina Ta like we are a team, it's not just up to you. I also like what he says about, like you know, as far as getting switched out of the match, worry about that when it happens. And that is a really good mantra for my fellow anxious girlies out there. That's something that I try to remind myself of of. Like, don't worry about things that haven't happened yet.
Speaker 1:Yeah, there's. I can't remember where I heard this quote from, but there's a quote that, like, if you worry about something that hasn't happened yet, you're going to suffer twice. So like, if you, you know, like being worried that Hina Ta being worried, he's going to get taken out of the game. He's suffering in the moment because he's worried about what might happen and then if he does get taken out of the game, he'll suffer for that too, but there's a chance he might not get taken out. And then all of that suffering he did initially was for nothing and it just caused all of these problems.
Speaker 1:And you know Tanaka doesn't say this, but like I think it's, if Hina Ta did continue like that, they would have to take him out of the game. And so, like, by being so anxious and by like trying to like fix the problem that hasn't even happened yet, he's actually causing more of a problem. And yeah, I also struggle with anxiety and I have those same issues. And sometimes we'll like, sometimes, when you're trying to like solve a problem that doesn't exist yet, you actually just end up making the problem happen, and that's like a Greek tragedy thing really.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, you're creating your own demise at that point. Yeah, it's like a self fulfilling prophecy. Yeah. So then we go into the second set and they try for a frequent quick, but Hina Ta misses it. And this is a crucial moment, because Kandaiichi is on the other side of the net and he's like so you're going to get it now, you're going to see what I'm talking about. But all Kageyama does is apologize. He's like oh, that was too high, sorry. And Kandaiichi and Kanumi are shook.
Speaker 1:They're like Kageyama just apologized, Like they can't believe it, and I think it is so cute because he's just like he's like I'll think about forgiving you. And then Kageyama like grabs him by the head.
Speaker 2:Yes. And he's like, he's just such a little dick and I just love it and I love how there's a tweet that, like I love how tactile they are with each other. They're like siblings in a lot of ways, where they're just not afraid to fuck each other up, yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 1:And like Hina Ta will fight back and he's very loud about. He's like get off of me, okay, arma, and it's so cute. Yeah, and I always I'm going to point it out every time we get to see somebody's reaction to Hina Ta, because I love it, because you know he does, he does do his like quick jump. Can Daichi sees him like fly up into the air, like he does, and he's like oh my God, but then of course he misses the spike. But it's just like I just love getting to see people's reaction to him. Yes, and I love Hina Ta like still getting used to the fact that he's on a real team. They like do something, they have like a little like huddle or something. And then Hina Ta's like that was very team like, and Tanaka's like team like honey, you are on a team and it's just so sweet, it's just like I love it.
Speaker 1:And then I think Daichi says something to Kageyama. He kind of gives him like some kind of like praise a little bit, where he's like that was like really good or something. And like you can Kageyama is just like he's smiling about it and it's just like very clear that he like enjoys having his Senpai, like tell him he did a good job, and I just think it's so sweet and it's just like oh, we're going to talk more about the Senpai, one of the Senpai that Kageyama has had in the past. That did not give him that, yeah, but that's OK, because he's on Karasano now and all of his Senpai are great, and then Kageyama kind of tries to cheer Hinata up right, like so they try the the Homo quick freak again, and it works.
Speaker 2:And then they wow everyone and that's always fun to watch. And then, oh and so then he's able to use Hinata Not Hinata is kind of back in the game he's been. He's able to be used as a decoy, and so Hinata goes for the ball and can die. She's like I'm not going to let you and he's like I'm not, we'll see about that. And then he's used as a decoy and Tanaka gets it through and Hinata is all embarrassed because he was so genuinely like going to go for it. And I love how reassuring Kageyama is, because he's like no, that's good, Like that is the point, buddy, Like you believe it. So they believe it. And he's just like yeah. He's like yeah, and then they kiss what? No, they want to.
Speaker 1:But yeah, no, I love that too, and I love it. Like Hinata doesn't like immediately like get mad about being a decoy. He like understands, he's like oh, that's like a point for the team and I think it's. I think that's again part of like Hinata. You know, he, I think at this point, you know, after his whole freak out at the beginning, he's like no, like we are on a team, this is a team. Any point is a point for all of us, even if I'm not the one, and even in a way like being a decoy, like that is still kind of like partially Hinata's point, because if he wasn't there as a decoy, tanaka would have been blocked, and I think that's. I think that's an important thing. I will talk about it more because there's sometimes where, like, the setters will sometimes talk about like well, I set that ball. So that point is kind of mine, not the spikers, and it's just like what if, like every point is just the whole team's point, because it's all about connection, you know.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but then egos get in the way, yeah.
Speaker 1:Well, you know, that happens. I have here that somebody makes a comment of they make a lot of mistakes though. Oh, yeah, I think someone watching them. Yes, yeah, I think yeah, because, again, because there's like students from the school just like watching the volleyball practice match, which you would never see at Kurosin-O, yeah, and they say that they make a lot of mistakes, which is classic Kurosin-O. That's what they do in practice matches is they're trying things, they're trying things and they tend to fail a lot. But that's kind of what you have to do in order to succeed is you have to fail and fail and fail again.
Speaker 2:Haikyu is a great story about embracing failure because, folks, let me tell you something we're all so concerned about how we look to others and we're also concerned about falling on our face in front of people. But, baby, that's what you need to do you have to fall, you have to fuck your face up, you have to eat shit in front of everyone and then do it again, but that's the only way that you get good at something.
Speaker 1:Yeah, there are no shortcuts. It's practice, practice, practice more. I also have there's a quote that Hinata says I think he's talking to Daichi or he says the first time I played a real game, I felt like I had to carry the whole thing by myself, which I think contributes to what's happening to him here, because he did, he did have to carry that game. He was the only one on his middle school team who had any kind of experience, and it was very little, and so he really was running around and doing everything on his own, and so it's a very new concept. It makes sense. Why he was acting the way he was acting at the beginning of this episode is because that's where he's coming from, is like this is all on me.
Speaker 1:I'm the only one which is similar to Kageyama, whereas Hinata's comes from desperation and necessity and Kageyama's comes from arrogance. Yeah, and so just another way that they're two sides of the same coin. I just love them so much. And then can? Daichi, I think, is the one who makes a comment. I don't know if it's Kandai Chir or if it's the coach who makes a comment about Kageyama changing his play style.
Speaker 2:I think it was the coach. So the coach and the assistant coach start to discuss and of course there's always got to be a full blown conversation about how Kageyama and Hinata have improved each other and their existence. Of course they don't know Hinata yet, so they just call him number five. But there is something and like I just wanted to touch again, because the assistant coach confirms, like Kageyama was invited to our team, right, and I just think it like that can't be understated. I think it speaks volumes that Kageyama volleyball idiot, that is his number one thing would turn down a strong school because, assuming he doesn't want to face his old teammates that he let down, he doesn't want to face the Senpai that rejected him, like he's really affected by his middle school days and that's talked about more. But I just thought, like this moment it's like, yeah, that is kind of crazy that he turned that down because he probably just felt so much like shame about what went down.
Speaker 1:Yeah, absolutely, and I think you know and we'll talk about it later because he talks about, like other schools that he tried to get into and he talks about why he decided to come to Karasano and thank goodness that he did. But yeah, it just, and that's the thing is, I don't think he would have done as well at Blue Castle. He wouldn't have the room for growth that he has at Karasano and the coach says that.
Speaker 2:I think he says, you know, we see, kageyama has changed because of Karasano, because of the players he has and because of Hinata specifically.
Speaker 1:Yes, they also point out Hinata. I do have a note in here of like, oh yes, the beginning of other coaches providing commentary and exposition about Karasano.
Speaker 2:Yes, they yeah, because they see what's going on and they respect it.
Speaker 1:Oh, okay, I have the actual quote right here. I think it's Karasano, specifically that number five, hinata. That's made him the player he is now and that's true and we've seen that. We've seen that over the last few episodes. So there's a part where Kageyama sets for Tsukishima and Tsukishima hits it. It's very successful, but he's mad and he's like you know what your sets are so accurate. It pisses me off, like I love that he's so mad, that he's so good. It's like Tsukishima. It's okay that you want to kiss him. It's okay that you think he's talented and cool and hot. It's fine.
Speaker 2:You don't have to be mad about it. Yeah, they really have a pissing contest, like at the net. They're like nudging at each other and like, yeah, they really, especially Tsuki, cannot help but antagonize him.
Speaker 1:But then Daiichi is like yeah, no, I can't, he doesn't have to say it like that, but I get what he's saying, where it's like you want the ball to be there, and then it just is like it is creepy how good Kageyama is, and that isn't the first time it there's a quote like later on, like much later on, where one of the third years is like I'm kind of jealous of the people who, like, will get to hit Kageyama sets next year, but I'm also scared for them where, like, kageyama is so good, it's scary, yeah, and people are constantly commenting on that and he is good and, but you know it's sheer talent alone is not enough.
Speaker 1:He has to learn more and he's learning that through Kurosu. No, and he's just, they're just going to make him even better. They turn it, they help turn him into the monster he becomes yes, in a good way, monster in a good way. Also, I have a note here because at some point we cut to Takada and, like the people on the bench kind of going over some things, and I said bless you, takada, for being there to help us go over the rules.
Speaker 1:This is where we talk about like the rotating, and I think this is pretty common in a lot of sports anime where they like part of the, the series is kind of also learning the sport Like Yuri on ice did that where they like really tried to explain like the rules and the point system. I still don't understand entirely. Oh, I have a note here that Tsuki, kageyama need to calm down because they're getting mad at each other. They're like blot, they're having like a fucking block measuring contest where they like hmm, yeah, yeah, where they go to like block the ball, and Kageyama is like yes, and Tsuki is like that was me who blocked that. And Kageyama is like it totally hit my hand and it's like why can't you guys just work together as a team? You're both tall, you're both good at blocking and the supplies, like they try.
Speaker 2:They're like shut up, get along, love each other. It's not really working. They just can't. And then the oba, just like coach, says, which is I love this quote they are odd, they are dangerous, they are an interesting team.
Speaker 1:Yes, oh, it's so good. Well, because he talks about all of Kurosano being strong. He like talks about like that guy with the glasses is really good at blocking and their captain is really good at receiving, and like I don't think we've mentioned, but Anoshina is playing in this game, yes, which I don't know, if they say his name.
Speaker 2:No, they very much treat the second years as filler.
Speaker 1:Yeah, everyone except for Tanaka and Noya are just like there to fill out the team which I don't know. It's like part of me gets it, but part of me is just like how are you going to give like in like deep backstory to characters from other teams but you're not going to give us information about these characters who are on the scene that we see all the time? Like they each get like little things and like, so their character spotlights are going to be like spread out throughout the season because, like, especially especially Narita, oh my God.
Speaker 2:Narita is like nobody.
Speaker 1:Yeah, we barely get anything from him, and Anoshina, at least we get a little bit of. And then is it Chikara, is that his name, that's?
Speaker 2:Anoshina's first name. I think, yeah, Okay. Well then, who's the other guy? Anoshina, Narita and then Kenoshina.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, yeah, it's like Kenoshina or something, yeah.
Speaker 2:One, two and three Like that. They're literally. Yeah, it is pretty crazy because, like we haven't really, as we get deeper into the show, if you guys have not watched it we get, we'll get random like deep background stories about several random like opponents. But yeah, there are three people on this team that we know very little about.
Speaker 1:It is kind of wild, but it really is. I did include Anoshina in our who and how Q scenario because he is at least playing and at least says a few things.
Speaker 2:He's the one who gets the most content out of the three of them, for sure. But yeah, so we're getting close to the end of the episode. Kageyama warns them they're feeling good, but they're like don't get comfortable, because I don't think that's their actual starting setter. And just as he says that girl scream oh, it's our favorite twink, oikawa san.
Speaker 1:Yes, oikawa is here and he kind of is like he's such an idol. He's an idol and he's kind of. He is kind of introduced like he is, I think, as close as IQ gets to a villain. He's definitely an antagonist, like a listen. I think it's very fun to talk about. Oikawa's anime is greatest villain.
Speaker 2:I think that's a fun.
Speaker 1:He's not like.
Speaker 2:He's not a villain like context, so for people who may not know, but like how it gets like looped in with anime villains all the time and like like magazines like mass murderers and stuff, like it's really.
Speaker 1:and it's like Oikawa is not that bad, he's just like he's just, he's it's volleyball Like I would argue that there are other characters in the show that are also kind of like antagonists, kind of on the same level. But I think, just because Oikawa gets a lot of love from the fandom, he's the one everyone talks about and he is kind of the antagonist for season one and two, where the other antagonists are really only there for like one season and he is not very nice to him.
Speaker 1:He is not very nice he is and like it's not just like Hageama, who has issues with him, like some of the other characters do too, and he is a very important character, but he is like this very first introduction to him is just like him, like, blank faced, probably like schooling his expression, so he doesn't show how like upset he is, that like what he knows Kageyama is there, but like, just so he's like it's very blank faced and just him like, like being there, as like oh, this is the guy we have to look out for.
Speaker 2:It's a dramatic entrance.
Speaker 1:It's very dramatic and I love it, and I'm so fucking excited to talk about the next episode because that is where that episode ends on Oikawa so that's it.
Speaker 2:Next episode will get deeper into him and we're excited because we know a lot of y'all love him and we get it.
Speaker 1:And I love him. I also hate him, but I love him. I can't wait to talk about my feelings about Oikawa Toru in the next episode.
Speaker 2:I went on a journey with him because I'm not like with the character archetypes. I typically like I don't like pretty boys. They usually just annoy me. I'm very wise in me in that way. Um, so I was very like about him and then, as a Tobio lover, he's not nice to my boy, so that really hurt me and also, like the fans of him, piss me off sometimes. But like I really turned a corner and I think it's just because another character has now taken his place in annoying me and we'll get into that later. But I, yeah, I, I love Oikawa. Though he is, he's a lot of fun.
Speaker 1:I yeah, so like my, as I said, like I hate him and I love him, I don't hate a pretty boy character. I think they're fine.
Speaker 2:No, you like those, I like a pretty boy, it's funny rainbow and I have very different tastes in men. Yes, and like and like you know, male anime characters and stuff. I would say yeah, I would say like very opposite taste in a lot of ways, personality wise you like the sunshine ones, I like the grumpy ones, you like the little twinks and I love the big beefy ones Like we are a total. We'll never fight over a man, that's for sure. No, that's right.
Speaker 1:I feel like in each of, like, the main ships, there's one that, like we like more than the other. Like you know, when it comes to Iwa Oi, like I like Oikawa more I think you like Hawaii's anymore, which, not to say more Like, I think I can love a wise me. Listen a wise me, hi, jimmy, the man that you are athletic trainer 27. Yes, we all know you're the best, and if you don't agree with that, I don't know what to tell you.
Speaker 2:That is something that he's one of the characters that I think the whole fandom can kind of like. Who fucking hates a wiser me?
Speaker 1:I feel like if you hate a wiser me, you're just trying to be like a nonconformist and it's just. It feels performative to me. Of course, anyone can have any opinion that they want. Maybe you have specific reasons for not liking him. I just will never understand. Yeah.
Speaker 2:But yeah, so that's, we were officially entering Iwa Oi territory. Stagio fans, listen up, behave in the seats. We're going to get crazy.
Speaker 1:Yes, so super excited to talk about next week's episode. For the rest of this episode, we have a few other things to touch on.
Speaker 1:Unless there's anything else from the episode discussion you want to talk about? No, let's go. All right, I just have a couple of things for the sub versus dub, which is mainly that Yahaba's English voice actor is really weird to me. Yeah, um sounds way too adult. It sounds like the kind of like voice actor you'd cast for one of those like overly sexual grown men characters who like is like trying to be like seductive. It was just weird and I actually kind of get that, thinking about Yahaba's character Mm, hmm, but it's just like. No, it's one of those things where, like, I think English voice actors for anime it's like a pretty small group of people overall and I just don't.
Speaker 2:I don't think they always are making good decisions when they cast these voice actors, I think it feels like they're taking the piss out of the anime a lot of the time.
Speaker 1:I think sometimes yeah, I, yeah, I have complaints about that, and I do want to say, as much as I love Owizumi, I think his dub voice sucks. I don't think it matches his character. I at least in this first episode it really was bothering me. I'm sure I'll get used to it, but it just like. I think his sub voice is just so like. The original voice actor does an amazing job with Wise Me. I do have one thing from the manga that I like, which is Daichi said something kind of like this in the anime, but I really like the way it was said in the the manga, which is it's after Hinata says the thing or not Hinata, it's when Tanaka says the thing about like everybody on this side of the net is your ally, and then it cuts to like Daichi I think he's talking to Suga or somebody and he says Tanaka is a sincere guy and because he is, the words he says have impact.
Speaker 2:And I like that.
Speaker 1:I like when you are a sincere person and I think we see this later with another character like when you are like sincere or like very blunt, when you say something that does have an impact, that like if some like, if you think somebody's just saying something to be nice to you, it's like, oh, but you're just saying that to be nice, you don't ever have to worry about that. With Tanaka, like you know, he's saying that because he means it. So that was the only thing I had for that. And then I do want to move on to the character spotlights and I decided to do kandai chi utaro for this one Onion head himself.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I just I feel like this is we get a lot of kandai chi in this one. I think this is the most we probably get of kandai chi. There's a little bit more in the next episode, but next episode we all know who the character spotlight is going to be on, and so I wanted to do kandai chi, and you know, don't worry, we will have character spotlights on other carousel players later on. I just feel like there are other episodes where certain carousel players are highlighted more.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we have a lot of episodes ahead of us. We're going to spread it out, don't you worry.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So with kandai chi, I wanted to talk a little bit about his personality. I pulled something from the high Q wiki that I really liked and I thought we could discuss a little bit, so quote kandai chi is generally good natured and gets along well with his teammates. He is very respectful towards his upperclassmen, especially Oikawa and owaizumi. In contrast to his tough exterior, he appears to be quite sensitive. He's deeply affected by the middle school feud with kageyama, while the others have moved on.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and we'll see more of that in the future. But it's very clear that kandai chi cares a lot about what went down and, I think, feels bad about how everything went down.
Speaker 1:And I like that, pointing out that he's sensitive, because he is very sensitive. I think you see that a lot. I think sejo in general is a very interesting team. Yeah, quote of their name, of the episode. I think kandai chi is an interesting character and I don't hate him. I think initially I didn't like him because I was like, well, he's just a jerk, but no, I think it makes a lot of sense.
Speaker 2:I think it's fun to clown on him, yes, but like no genuine hate. He's just a kid and like he just couldn't keep up with kageyama's hits, which is understandable, because kageyama is insanely talented and then the rest of them are just high school boys doing their best.
Speaker 1:Well, and also, you know, and you know, kageyama was not doing his job correctly as a center, he was not putting up balls that his spikers could hit, and that's on him. And you know he was coming from the mindset of like, well, you have to catch up to me and you have to be as fast as I do, and I think that's why it's so important in I think it was in episode four when Suga has that conversation with kageyama of like, are you putting up, are you putting up a ball that Hinata can hit?
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:And you know, wouldn't it be amazing if one of the Kitagawa Daichi coaches had said that to kageyama in middle school? What if they did their jobs? What if a high schooler was not better at your job than you? Oh, I imagine, I will never let those coaches live that down.
Speaker 2:No, well, and that's all. To say that, like, even though it sucked, it had that, like that kind of like breakup, you know had had to happen. We had to close that door so we could open the window to kageyama not being such an asshole.
Speaker 1:Yeah, like I think you know and we can talk about, because you know this is not the last we see of kandai chi. We get to see him in the time skip and we'll talk about him. Yeah, we'll talk about him more, but I did want to talk a little bit about his name, meaning I didn't do like the full breakdown like I did in other ones, just because his name didn't seem to quite have as much to do with his character as some of the other ones have. I think you see that a lot with some of these like more periphery characters, where their names aren't given as much weight as some of the others. For his family name, which is kandai chi, kin is gold, da is rice field, ishi is one, so his name translates to one golden field. And in Japanese this is from Reddit, by the way, and it says, quote kandai chi doesn't exist as a family name. As with other sejo characters, his name is a reference to an onsen or a hot spring location, in this case in a town called Ninohei in the Iwate prefecture, which happens to be, for a date, is native prefecture and I think that I pronounced all of those rights. So so if you want to correct me on any of that, please feel free to. But yeah, so I thought that was interesting and so I'm part of the reason I want to talk a little bit.
Speaker 1:I want to take a small break from kandai chi's name to talk a little bit about alba josei, aka sejo, and where that name comes from. Yes, break that down for us. So alba josei literally means west of alba castle, which is historically known as sendai castle, and so that's a thing. In Japan they have these like castles, they're like historical sites that people go and visit. I think sometimes they're associated with like museums, and so I think alba josei is like it's located near sendai castle, and that's why I don't think we see it in this one. But their banner says rule the court, and so there's a lot of like, you know, kingly, like castle imagery associated with them, which is important. And then the school's shortened name, which is sejo, comes from abajosei's first and third kanji being put together, so like that. So I think abajosei, I think it has like three or four kanji, and I think that's very common in Japan to take things like, to take the kanji from like larger words and put them together to a smaller word for like a shortened nickname.
Speaker 1:So that's where that comes from. And then I did, I think earlier I referenced I called sejo blue castle, which also, I think, is how you pronounce it oh is blue in Japanese. And so this is what I found from a discussion on Reddit about this, because people call sejo blue castle and it does that in, like, I think, the beginning of the manga in the manga. So the literal translation of sejo is light blue castle, blue castle being found in the early chapters of the manga. But this might actually be a bad translation. That might not really be something that they would do in Japanese. Again, I don't know if anyone has any more information on that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so west of Elba castle is what abajosei means, and so I think that's why, with a lot of sejo characters, their name is a reference to like a hot spring location. So I guess that happens a lot. And then, so kandai chi's family name is one golden field, and then his given name is yutaro, and that means brave, great son, where you is courage or brave, ta is big, fat or great and Ruu is sung or young man, and I thought that was interesting, that he was brave, great son, because it takes courage to stand up for yourself and for your team, and I think that's something. I think when I first watched it I was a little bit like oh kandai chi, you're just being a jerk turning your back on kageyama.
Speaker 1:I think it takes courage to do what kandai chi did, and I do think it was, in a way, brave of him to stand up to kageyama Again. Maybe if their coaches were doing their jobs, the teenage boys would not have had to take it upon themselves to do that, but I guess then we wouldn't have all of this great character development. So yeah, I thought that was interesting. Do you have any comments on any of that?
Speaker 2:No, ma'am. I like everything you said.
Speaker 1:All right, excellent, and I apologize if I butchered the Japanese language saying any of those names. I try my best. All right, and as we started doing with our last episode, we've decided to move the who in high Q section to above the spoiler zone. So I think we're going to get into that. And because we talked about one piece so much at the top of this episode, and because I just recently finished the one piece live action and was very excited about it, we're going to do who in high Q, one piece addiction.
Speaker 1:Yes, and I would just also like to say so, in has at least watched, like the first, like 40 episodes of the anime. I have really not watched any one piece anime. I have not read the manga I saw, like somebody did like a YouTube video that was just like, if you can't, if you don't want to watch the one piece anime, your week. It's not too long and I'm like, beg to differ, absolutely it's too long for me. I'm not like I'm not really into like battle anime that much, like it bothered me with Naruto, it bothers me with my hero, it bothers me with Bungo Strait Ox. It bothers me with Jujutsu Kaisen, like I just don't need to see these long drawn out battles.
Speaker 2:And I will say, like comparing sports anime to like these battle anime is I so much more enjoy because, like the exposition and battle anime is kind of just like, is like white noise to me because they're explaining made up shit and why things make sense because of their made up shit. They're like, well, of course you could defeat his cube of silence because he went with his blue circle of justice. Like okay, you're just making shit up. It sounds like a 14 year old boy. That's like explaining his imagination game. But with sports anime there are actual rules that make sense.
Speaker 1:At least we don't. If you love the one piece anime in the manga, good for you. That's great, that's not how we're wired.
Speaker 1:No it's not how we're wired, it's not like that, it's not the kind of media we enjoy. I would say, based on the how great the one action or based on how great the one piece live action was and based on, like, the fact that the creator was involved. I totally understand why people love one piece so much, like I have fallen in love with these characters and I've fallen, you know, in love with the story in a lot of ways, and so I totally understand it. I think, just for me, like because I'm sure the battles are much more drawn out than they were in the live action. Also, another thing with a lot of these battle animes there's like one girl, maybe two, and it's just very like male heavy, and that's how it is with high Q, two.
Speaker 1:But high Q is literally about like boys, volleyball, and so it makes sense. There's like, and they do like have they bring in girls and they bring like we get to see the girls volleyball team play at one point, and so they do at least kind of highlight that, whereas with these like battle animes it's like you literally have no excuse. This is a made up world and you could bring in more female characters, but sexism and patriarchy, and you don't know how to write female characters, yeah, so, okay. So who in high Q? One piece addition, and I figure we could do like a character to character thing. Yeah, okay, and so the characters we're going to talk about are Hinata Kageyama, daichi Tanaka. Do we want to do Suga? He wasn't really in this episode.
Speaker 1:He wasn't really in that, let's. Let's not do Suga. So Anoshida Kandai Chi Kunami Awazumi, so starting with Hinata, we all know Luffy.
Speaker 2:I mean, he is always going to kind of be the main character, because the main character remains pretty similar throughout most shonen anime.
Speaker 1:Yeah, at some point I want to do some research into like Japanese like character archetypes, because I think that's very like much a part of their like storytelling and I think I'm very interested in that and you know we can look into that.
Speaker 2:But yeah, a lot of the like shonen protagonists are like kind of you know, they're kind of the same archetype and so, yeah, luffy obviously gives huge Hinata vibes especially and I thought was the thing I pointed out to like a difference between the live action and the animated with one piece that I kind of noticed was that the character of Luffy has this unhingedness about him that I think is similar to Hinata where like, yes, he's relentlessly cheerful and he is loving and he has his big goal and he inspires people. But he's also a little scary sometimes and I think the live action Luffy is a lot like I don't know he's not as like kind of unhinged and scary to me. Maybe that'll get more as we go on and it's not a complaint. Like I like the live action Luffy a lot, but that is a similarity, I think, between Luffy and Hinata is that they're a little scary sometimes with with the way they do things.
Speaker 2:I do also want to say well, okay let's get into Kageyama, and then I have something to say.
Speaker 1:Yes, okay, so Kageyama is Zoro.
Speaker 2:Is.
Speaker 1:Zoro. Yeah, the angry, talented one. Yep, thank you. That's exactly who at first thinks he has to do everything on his own.
Speaker 2:Yep, and then and then falls for the main character's charm and I will say and I don't I'm not going to put this in in spoilers on his own stuff, because I think it's okay, I won't get too detailed, but in the time skip, hinata says he's making a new friend and they bond over one piece, and he tells him that Zoro is his favorite character. And I just think that that is so interesting because Zoro is very Kageyama similar and Hinata being so Luffy like, it's just like, and I'm sure Hinata doesn't even notice that comparison, but of course I clocked it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Also one thing I will say about the live action. I don't know how it was, how it is in the manga and in the anime, but like the Luffy Zoro agenda is there. Like Zoro is like clearly a gay man and clearly in love with Luffy and, you see, luffy like has feelings back to him. I could like go into my whole head cannons about like Luffy being asexual and panromantic and Zoro being just like the gayest gay who's ever gay, and I just think that they have like a beautiful relationship and I'm so excited to see more. I like I think Season Two for One Piece has been officially announced and we are getting more.
Speaker 2:And I'm so excited because their bond is definitely there in the anime, but again, I just think the live action has a little bit more heart in it, which I enjoy, and I think that, yeah, that's getting that. The Luffy Zoro thing is being affected by that as well.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I'm not mad about it. So Kageyama are Luffy and Zoro.
Speaker 2:Yes, very much.
Speaker 1:Okay, daiichi. Who do we think Daiichi is?
Speaker 2:See, this is where failure.
Speaker 1:What's the? What's the redhead guy who Luffy looks up to? Oh, shanks, shanks, yeah, shanks I don't see.
Speaker 2:Yeah, sorry guys, we really don't know. I know there's so much more lore and backstory that, but we are very much glossing over. But yeah, I'll do that. He's kind of like an inspiring figure to Luffy and then Tanaka, tanaka, I would. He's like who's the what's the cook's name? Sanji, sanji, okay, confirmed Sanji. So like I think he could be a mix of, like Sanji and Usap. Yes, I was, yeah.
Speaker 1:I was definitely thinking Usap for him, but I think Sanji too.
Speaker 2:Mainly the womanizer ways. Like they're both obsessed with girls, yeah.
Speaker 1:What about Anoshida?
Speaker 2:Anoshida just like. Is not that much of a character?
Speaker 1:He's really not, and this is this is where we, like, really want your feedback as well. I'm actually maybe regretting doing one piece for this. I feel like maybe I don't know enough about it, you know I think we're doing okay until now.
Speaker 2:Anoshida is the anime version of Kobe, because the live action Kobe is a lot more involved, whereas the anime one is just like I want to go.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah Also, I loved Kobe in the live action.
Speaker 2:Kobe is great.
Speaker 1:Played by a trans actor, right? Yes, yes, sir, fucking love that. Yeah, that's how you do some inclusive casting right there. Yeah, love that for him, okay. And then Kandaiichi Hear me out like just in the story, buggy Just getting clowned on. Yeah, it's coming, buggy, it just feels like it. I have Kunimi on the list, but we really didn't like talk about Kunimi very much in the episode.
Speaker 2:And yeah, he's very background.
Speaker 1:He's very background, still Like we really don't get more about him until later.
Speaker 2:Hey, you know what? If there are any more involved One Piece fans listening feel free to write in and say what you think that would be good.
Speaker 1:Yeah, absolutely, dms. Email us, we want to know what you think. And then just lastly, like a wise me, gives me Sanji's boss the one who watched all the episodes that you have.
Speaker 1:Oh, ok, yeah, that's right. Ok, so Sanji I can't remember the guy's name, but Sanji is boss when they first meet him and I don't need I you know. Correct me if I'm wrong. I assume that this is based on the anime and the manga as well. Like they both get like abandoned on a rock, like shipwrecked on a rock for like over like 100 days, I think, and like like the guy gives Sanji all of his food, all of the food, and Sanji doesn't realize it, and then the guy eats his own leg oh my God, survive. It's really intense. I was like, oh, my goodness, um, but that that, just like that, that's who a wise me gives me is just like he, because he really cares about Sanji. You can tell like they both have this, like they both have the dream, the same dream, and so that was kind of who I thought of. Or also, like he also gives me shanks a little bit too. Yeah, maybe, maybe shanks is like combination of Dai Chino, wise of me. So, yeah, that's not so great.
Speaker 2:Not so informed.
Speaker 1:Yeah, not so informed, but I just I was so excited about one piece and I wanted to talk more about it. And, yeah, anybody out there who knows more, especially about the anime and the manga? So, if I'm not mistaken, I think you are into one piece. That's our Twitter baby. We were very interested in knowing what you all think. Write in, quote, retweet, reply, whatever you want to do. Let us know what you think.
Speaker 1:And also, if anybody out there is like a hater of like the live action, don't come at us. Don't be mad at us for not watching the anime or reading the manga. You can't shame us. You can't. No, you cannot shame me. I, when it comes to media, I watch what I want to watch. We know who we are. Yeah, I know who I am. And again, not to say that it's bad, it's just not for me. Okay, so that's who in IQ. Moving on to the spoiler zone, I have a. We have a few things to talk about there. I'm going to say right now if you are not interested in the spoiler zone or you are just done with the episode, feel free to follow us on.
Speaker 2:If you're just over it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, if you're just over it at this point. Um, you feel free to follow us on social media. Fly high Q pod. That's fly HQ P O D. You can find us on Twitter, instagram, tumblr and blue sky. You can also send us an email. We love emails, um, and that's fly high Q pod. At gmailcom, spelled the same way as our social handles, but if you don't care about being spoiled or you already know what happens, we're going to go into the spoilers.
Speaker 2:Come on cool, get kids, let's get in the pool of the spoilers.
Speaker 1:Here we go, all right, and here we are in the spoiler zone. I have a note here talking about the lineup, but do you want to talk about your little quote before we get into that?
Speaker 2:Oh, yeah, there was just because I just had like one little thing. Um, when kandachi is scaring Hinata about Kageyama, he says to him Kageyama needs pawns to do as he says, and I was just that kind of brought me back to season two when they have their big fight where Hinata, you know, wants to grow and Kageyama is kind of afraid to and is like no, we already have this lightning in a ball like whatever. I don't know. I would just wonder if that went through Hinata's head of, like you know, is Kageyama just still treating me kind of like a pawn to be used? Um, yeah, that's really all I had. I can't wait till we get to that part in season two, because there's going to be so much meat to discuss.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm really excited to get the chance to talk about that, because I think there is a lot there, and I think that's one of those things that a lot of people kind of like point to as like. Well see, kageyama is just a big jerk.
Speaker 2:No, he's afraid. Oh, I can't wait to get into it.
Speaker 1:Well, yeah, we won't get into it too much here, but I do think that's an interesting thing. And that's not something I thought of, but is definitely an interesting thought is like is that something Hinata's worried about when they get into their fight? Yeah, so I wanted to talk about the Kurosinno lineup before this game, because they all get their little practice jerseys with their numbers, which is different from what their official numbers will be after the full team is together, and so I wanted to talk about how maybe some of that relates to things that we see later on and maybe if there's any kind of meaning to their placement. So Daichi is number one, of course, because he's the captain and that will be his position. And then Tanaka, for this game, is number two, which normally he's number five, but he's number two and that is his number. In his third year he becomes I believe he becomes the co-captain or the yeah, it's the co-captain, right the vice captain, vice captain. There we go. He becomes the vice captain in third year and so his number is two, which I thought it was interesting, that in this game, when we don't have Asahi and we don't have Noya, he gets moved up to number two.
Speaker 1:And then Inoshita, who is the future captain of Kurosinno. We haven't talked about that yet, but he does become the future captain. And there is a part in this episode where, like, daichi and Inoshita are having a little conversation and I was like, oh, it's current captain and future captain having a little talk and Inoshita is number three and I don't think that really has a ton of significance to him. That's Asahi's number, but I think it's just because Inoshita is a wingspiker and I do think it's interesting that, like, he is like one number below Tanaka, whereas when they get into third years, inoshita is number one and Tanaka is number two. And then we have number four is Kageyama. We learn later in the show that number four is typically reserved for the ace. Like that's Awazumi's number, that's Bokuto's number, and I just wonder, do you think there's any like specific significance to that, or do you think it was just like well, that he's just like naturally the one who comes after, like the second years?
Speaker 1:Probably that, because isn't Noya four yeah which I can't wait to talk about, that we need to talk about Noya being number four and how that is usually reserved for the ace, and then also how that connects to like him and Asahi. Like I have a lot of opinions on Asahi, noya, a lot of opinions on Asahi and Noya individually as well, so very excited to talk about that. So I thought that was interesting. And then Hinata is number five, which is Tanaka's current number, and I love that. And Hinata becomes number five in their third year, which I thought was I love that. That's like kind of like he gets to take on Tanaka's role on the team. And then I also wanted to point out, other than their first match, hinata is always one number below Kageyama whenever they in any, in any in any iteration so like, in their very first game against each other, hinata was number one, kageyama was number two.
Speaker 1:But from now on it's like Kageyama is number four, hinata is number five. When they get their official jerseys, kageyama is number 10, hinata is number nope. Kageyama is number nine, Hinata is number 10. When they are in the V League, kageyama is 20, hinata is 21. And then when they play on the Olympics, kageyama is again nine, hinata is again 10. And then I think it's the same thing. I think when they go to the international league, I think Kageyama is 20 again and Hinata is 21. Yeah, so they're always like, Hinata is always like just right behind Kageyama, and I just love it so much.
Speaker 2:So I thought that was interesting.
Speaker 1:And then Tsukishima is number six, and we see that, and he later becomes number 11, and he is always one below Kageyama.
Speaker 1:And there's always this like he's kind of chasing them. And then I looked it up and I think his number when because Tsukishima does end up being on a division two V League team his number is like 17 or something. It wasn't like I was like I don't know what significance this has. I'm going to keep my eye open. Maybe that was like his brother's number when he played in, I don't think so that doesn't make sense.
Speaker 1:So maybe I don't know what the significance there is. So I just thought that was very interesting and I wanted to kind of talk about that, and I think that's something I'd like to continue doing. Moving forward is talking about people's position on the team and their jersey number and how we feel that relates to them as characters and how we feel that relates to things that happen later on in the show or things that have happened in their past. Yeah, do you have anything?
Speaker 2:No, I'm going to drink that, I think that's it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think that's it for the spoilers. I mean, you know, next episode we're going to have so much to talk about.
Speaker 2:Yeah, this episode was interesting like things happen but I feel like it's not as like heavy as other episodes.
Speaker 1:This is one of. They do this a lot. I feel like this is a an episode that is setting up what's going to happen in the next couple next episode. Like this episode is setting up the Oikawa stuff that happens next episode.
Speaker 2:And I'm our teeth in the lab.
Speaker 1:So excited. But we do get a little bit of like kandai chi. We do get a little bit of like Kage Hina and Hina to working through some things, because I think Haikyuu is one of those shows where, like every episode is important. There's really not any filler that I can think of. That's what I was going to say yeah there's no filler. Everything is important. Haikyuu is everything. Everything is Haikyuu.
Speaker 2:And with that, we're going to leave you. Yeah, don't forget to follow us on social media. Here's a little kiss on the forehead and fly high Bye.