Chihayafuru is an anime series in the slice of life and romance genre first released in 2011. Based on the manga series that Yuki Suetsugu has written since 2007, the series came to the audience with a new season years later. The original of the series has a total circulation of 25 million as of March 2021, which is incredible. Madhouse, the creator of popular anime such as A Place Further than the Universe and No Guns Life, took part in all seasons of the anime. The anime, licensed by Sentai Filmworks, was originally listed on Nippon TV and Crunchyroll. Will the anime released in 2011 with its first season, 2013 with its second season, and 2013 with its last season, and 2019-2020 will have a new season, and will we have to wait for years for a fourth season?
What is the plotline of the Chihayafuru?
All her life, Chihaya’s dream was to see her sister, the model, as the best in Japan. Until a quiet transfer student named Arata tells her otherwise, Arata makes her eager to work for herself. Arata was playing a cross-over version of the traditional Japanese card game known as Hyakunin Isshu in a way Chihaya had never seen it before. Chihaya realizes she is eager for this. Chihaya now aspires to be the world’s number one Queen of Karuta.
First of all, it is worth mentioning that Chihayafuru is more of a sports anime than a josei anime. There’s a vague love triangle and plenty of Karuta. Karuta is a very difficult game that requires intelligence, memory, physical and mental stamina, and strength. While the question of whether it can be considered a sport or not is mentioned in the anime; The characters’ love for Karuta and their desire to improve themselves is the main theme of the anime.
Will there be a fourth season of the anime?
Even after years, we can see the anime returning to the audience with a new season. Chihayafuru, one of the most prominent examples of this, appeared before the audience exactly seven years later with its third season. As of March 2021, Madhouse or any related company has yet to renew the anime for the fourth season. However, we know that if an anime has enough source material, it can appear with a new season even when the hopes are exhausted. For this reason, we will speculate about the fourth season by evaluating some main factors, especially source adequacy.
Manga compared to anime in terms of stock material
As we mentioned at the beginning of the article, the series’s original is the manga series written and illustrated by Yuki Suetsugu. The manga series published by Kodansha and Kodansha USA in English is published in ‘Be Love’ magazine in Japan. The manga series consists of 45 volumes in total from 2007 to today. The manga series, whose last volume was published on 13 October 2020, is still ongoing.
The anime’s main source material is the manga series, and the important point is whether there is enough source material for more anime seasons. Anime covers approximately 10 manga volumes per season. The third season was adapted from 18-27 volumes. Considering that a total of 45 volumes of manga series and 18 volumes of source material remain, there is no problem in terms of manga adequacy for a new season. If you’re too impatient to see a new season, you can read the rest of the story by reading the manga.
Disc sales (BluRay & DVD) of the anime
Many anime does not be confirmed for a new season if disc sales are low. Generally, an anime season is expected to sell around 4,000 copies before renewal for a new season. However, the anime Chihayafuru discs did not sell 4000 copies in each period from 1 to 3. In particular, the first volume of the third period sold only 1251 copies. Looking at these disc sales, the probability of the Chihayafuru anime season 4 is pretty low.
- First Season 1st volume: 2,609 sheets
- Second Season 1st volume: 3,426 sheets
- Third Season 1st volume: 1,251 sheets
When is the fourth season of the Chihayafuru?
To summarize, the fourth season of the anime has not been confirmed yet. There is enough stock for the new season, but the disc sales are insufficient. Looking at the live-action movies released in 2016 and 2018, it seems that the production company had sufficient financial returns for the fourth season. It generates additional income from license companies as well as from disc sales. It has been distributed to more than 50 countries worldwide and is a popular anime around the world. We waited many years as the anime did not have enough source material, but the available stock material is enough for the fourth season. If there is a recent update, we can watch a new anime season in 2022-2023.
