#hq analysis

I started thinking about this after stumbling upon this post discussing how Hirugami's eyes usually lack any sort of highlights unless he's looking at or interacting with Hoshiumi (where his eyes literally light up like let that sink in for a moment oh my GOODNESS), but I want to take it one step further and examine how Furudate illustrates Hoshiumi as a presence that quite literally lights up Hirugami's life.

Furudate's panelling in chapter 351 alone warrants its own separate analysis, but for the sake of this post, I want to focus particularly on the recurring image of Hirugami walking down a dark, narrow hallway throughout the chapter. The first instance of this image in this chapter is in the panel above, with the only source of light in the hall coming from the gymnasium itself. A room where Hoshiumi is practicing.

And it doesn't stop there because we get yet another instance of Hirugami walking down a much darker, much more narrow hallway later in the chapter:

This time, there isn't a single trace of light in the hall — which, accompanied by how narrow the hallway feels, comes to represent Hirugami's psychological state at this stage in the narrative. As if the walls are caving in on him the further he spirals into this perfectionistic mindset that plagues him throughout his middle school volleyball career. This time, the hallway also feels much more constricted, and the perspective of the panel is positioned much closer to Hirugami than that of the previous panel, and it feels suffocating — a feeling only reinforced by the lack of light in this panel.

BUT THEN

The panel right after this features Hoshiumi entering the hall — however, this time, there is light, specifically coming from where Hoshiumi has entered. There has been no light in the hallway until Hoshiumi has entered it.

We can also tie this back to Hirugami's eyes being completely dark unless he's interacting with Hoshiumi in some way (be it looking at him or talking to/about him). It's important to note that, at the very beginning of chapter 351, Hirugami's eyes do contain light. It's not until he begins to spiral into burnout that the light leaves his eyes.

Case in point:

At some point, Hirugami did find volleyball "fun" (as he notes at the beginning of the chapter), and the light in his eyes reflect that. He wasn't burdened by the fear of making mistakes just yet; wasn't dedicating so much time and effort into the sport so intensely; hadn't realised that he might not be as passionate about volleyball as he once believed himself to be, pursuing it primarily out of a sense of obligation rather than genuine enjoyment. But the moment he begins to do so, that light fades:

Furudate continues to illustrate Hirugami with these pitch-black eyes until Hoshiumi catches him hurting himself:

All of that in mind, allow me to direct your attention to this specific spread:

Now, there are a few things I want to point out from this spread alone (from right to left):

A similar feeling of constriction is elicited (albeit to a much lesser extent) in the panel where Hoshiumi tells Hirugami that he's "probably just burned out on volleyball". The perspective is positioned in such a way that the background of the panel is solely the wall behind Hirugami — the one he dragged his knuckles across.

In the following panel (where Hirugami is processing what Hoshiumi has told him), the background is completely blank, except for a singular leaf blowing past Hirugami, turning his gaze away from Hoshiumi.

The leaf has blown in the direction of an open sky, accompanied by another leaf blowing in the same direction.

This progression of panels (from the wall to a blank background to a view of the open sky) comes to signify how those walls caving in on Hirugami earlier have crumbled away as "the whole world opened up to [him]" after Hoshiumi helped him realise that his life isn't tethered to volleyball, that he can stop playing whenever he wants to.

And the fact that this is also the moment where the light finally returns to Hirugami's eyes... all because of Hoshiumi's intervention... I'm so normal about this I swear.

I also think names play a significant part in this as well. I'm not Japanese, nor do I speak Japanese, so apologies for anything I might get wrong — but Hoshiumi's given name ("Kōrai") is comprised of the characters for "light" (光) and "come" (来), and means "incoming light". Furudate has also confirmed that they gave Hoshiumi his name "so that he becomes a shining person" (for additional context, the name "Hoshiumi" is comprised of the characters for "star" (星) and "ocean" (海), and means "star ocean") (seriously the name "Hoshiumi Kōrai" is SO PRETTY what the heck), and while this seems more in relation to his character individually... I can't help but also think about how that comes into play with his relationship with Hirugami, in a more literal sense. I'm most likely missing the full intention behind Furudate's decision to give Hoshiumi his name (since it's, unfortunately, inevitable that these extra details get lost in translation), but typically, a "shining person" refers to someone admirable; someone so brilliant it's inspiring. Hoshiumi, as his story progresses, becomes that "shining person" — going from a boy who spent his entire middle school career on the bench, to the ace of a powerhouse team coached by someone with coaching experience in multiple professional volleyball leagues, to a first-division V-League player who makes it to the Olympics.

He's inspired the crowd that cheers his name. He's inspired Hirugami — someone whose entire philosophy is founded upon what this boy he hardly knew had taught him:

(Yes, I'm aware that this is an analysis of chapter 351 and these panels are from chapter 360, but they're relevant nonetheless. This internal monologue is taking place while present-day Hirugami is surrounded by a blank background in a way reminiscent of the "burnout, huh...?" panel from that earlier spread. The chapter is titled "Teachings", and Hirugami is specifically reflecting on what Hoshiumi had taught him "that day". It's a different chapter, but it's all relevant.) (Also, is it really a cosmickoshi analysis if I don't go on at least one tangent?)

I know the Haikyuu!! fandom faces a lot of scrutiny due to "making everything about the ships", but the truth is... I don't see how you could discuss certain character arcs without mentioning the relationships said characters form throughout their journeys. No one got to where they did entirely on their own — volleyball is a team sport, after all — and Hirugami is no different! He explicitly refers to what Hoshiumi taught him in middle school as "the foundation" of his entire mindset!

And if we take the visual storytelling into consideration, much of Hirugami's panels following this moment contain much more light than the ones in the flashbacks. To examine this further, let's have a look at this specific page:

Considering everything I've discussed thus far, notice how (from top to bottom):

The earlier panel of Hirugami walking through the narrow hallway is paralleled by present-day Hirugami walking towards the net during Kamomedai's match against Karasuno. He's on the court, participating in a sport he doesn't care about, and yet no walls surround him. There's light all around him.

We get another panel featuring an open sky while Hirugami is still playing said sport he's not passionate about, except this time, the view has never been clearer — because, despite him continuing to pursue volleyball, he now knows he can quit anytime. He's no longer confined by the pressure to be some ideal player; no longer measuring his success as a player based on how many mistakes he makes; no longer spiralling into the pit of self deprecation he was once lost in. "All of my shackles have fallen away."

This is kind of off-topic, but I think it's also important to note the fact that Hirugami starts off the page looking down while reflecting upon the sense of obligation he felt towards volleyball, then tilts his head back up once that section of his internal monologue has concluded. Volleyball is a sport where you're always looking up and yet Hirugami only looks up upon acknowledging that his life isn't tethered to volleyball:

And!!!!! Look at the highlights in his eyes!!!!! There's light in his eyes from the second he looks up!!!!! Are you KIDDING ME.

Tsukishima Kei is a character who has one of the most impactful turn-arounds in the manga. Tsukishima begins as a character who isn’t particularly dedicated to volleyball. He watched his brother lose himself and lie because he gave too much to the club, and as such Tsukishima believes it's better to not become invested in volleyball because "it's just a club”. By the end of the manga, this attitude has shifted, as Tsukishima has a genuine passion for volleyball. The moment when Tsukishima really begins to shift is in chapter 163. Tsukishima manages to block Ushijima’s spike, winning a final point for Karasuno to win the second set. The panel is focused on Tsukishima pumping his fist because he was able to block the spike. The panel has no words on it which emphasizes the internal moment it was for Tsukishima. This moment had been building since the summer camp training arc where Bokuto pointed out that everyone has a moment where they become hooked on volleyball. But for Tsukishima this moment could not have happened without the direct mentorship of Kuroo. Tsukishima was only a good enough middle blocker because of what Kuroo had taught him.

This direct mentorship is emphasized throughout the manga and it's even more directly connected to Tsukishima being able to find his passion for volleyball in chapter 298. Chapter 298, aptly titled “The Guide”, further emphasizes the mentor/“guide” relationship between Kuroo (plus Bokuto) and Tsukishima. This chapter takes place during the “Dumpster Battle”, the game between Karasuno and Nekoma. Kuroo asks Tsukishima how volleyball has been for him lately. This question is followed by several panels that are flashbacks from earlier chapters of the time Tsukishima spent with Kuroo and Bokuto training, they are overlaid with Tsukishima’s speech and inner thoughts. Tsukishima says out loud, “thanks to everyone”, then thinks internally, “I mean that too. Thanks to everyone…”. The last panel focuses on Tsukishima smiling, and finishes his thought, “Once in a while…A very great while…It’s actually kind of fun”. Tsukishima credits his changing attitude towards volleyball to Kuroo and Bokuto, because they forced him to practice with them, and took the time to teach him Tsukishima and because of that he was able to block Ushijima’s spike. Typically in men’s sports there is an intense hypercompetitiveness, which can often lead to the dehumanization of rivals in the effort to “destroy” them (Colleen 2017). This attitude is further enforced by hegemonic masculinity. So naturally helping your rivals improve is not something that is done under this system of sports. Bokuto, and even more so Kuroo, subvert the typical attitudes adopted in men's sports which emphasize a lack of sportsmanship towards other teams and instead chose to assist a rival to help him improve as a player. Tsukishima is only able to have his moment as a character because of the mentors who helped him get to that level, Karasuno would not have made it anywhere had Bokuto and Kuroo refused to teach Tsukishima.

The term “genius” or “gifted” are typically used to describe kids who are extraordinarily good at activities, usually at a young age. This idea of young talent, especially in boys, is strengthened by the hegemonic masculinity which culturally expects men to be good at sports. Haikyu!!’s interpretation of “talent” and “genius” is directly mentioned in chapter 281, during the Inarazaki versus Karasuno match. Inarazaki’s captain Kita, makes a speech spanning several panels saying, “...Now there’s lots of people out there in the world you just can't measure up to, and there always will be. It’s only natural to look at them and think that they’re amazing. Personally I think the ability to press on no matter what is a talent, and I don’t think it matters what folks call people who have it. ‘Gifted’ works fine. It ain’t no insult. [New panel] But to think they’re as good as they are just because, for no reason at all, well… Folks who think that have already lost to those people without even steppin’ in the ring. [New panel] It’s rude, plain and simple”. Haikyu!! flips the typical concept of “genius” by establishing genius, not as innate but instead as a headstart on learning and a persistence to keep on learning.

This idea of headstart is further established by comparing Hinata and Kageyama through the manga. Hinata Shoyou is the main protagonist of Haikyu!!, from the beginning of the manga it is established that Hinata is not a very “gifted” player. Hinata lacked the resources to become a good player at a young age. He was physically short and he came from a public school which didn’t have a boys volleyball team, because of this Hinata did not have the opportunity to become a “genius” player. On the other hand the deuteragonist, Kageyama Tobio, is constantly referred to as a “genius” player. Kageyama grew up playing volleyball since age one, and attended a middle school with a highly respected volleyball team. Anyone who lacks resources in a given area will find it increasingly difficult to learn a skill or sport(Wilson 2002). Which is why Kageyama had such an advantage over Hinata in the beginning of the manga. However Hinata and Kageyama’s rivalry is one of the most important relationships throughout the manga, and one of the main driving forces for Hinata to keep improving. Hinata's drive to improve his own playing is central to Hinata’s character, as he is often only considered useful when paired with Kageyama because only a “genius” can use his skills properly. Hinata’s personal drive to improve, and his persistence despite his shortcomings gets him far; in chapter 400 Hinata and Kageyama face off over the net playing a division 1 volleyball game, with Karasuno's banner flying behind them. Hinata’s drive to improve and even when he loses over and over again to Kageyama is a direct opposition to the typical win-it-all attitude. That’s not to say Hinata doesn’t care if he wins or not, he does, but what Hinata values more is staying on the court the longest. Hinata values playing for the longest time, being the best player on the court or in other words personal improvement and persistence. While athletes do value personal improvement it is only to an extent. Athletes will try to improve in order to win, and not necessarily for betterment of themselves in their given sport(Colleen 2017). Hinata improves not because he wants to win, but because he genuinely loves the sport and wants to reach a level of excellence so that he can compete with the other players that are given this label of “gifted”. That attitude is in direct contradiction to the attitudes surrounding winning typically seen in men's sports.

In contrast to Hinata, and most of the characters in Haikyu!!, Kozume Kenma does not particularly care for volleyball. Kenma hates getting sweaty, and dislikes the effort he needs to put in to play. Kenma is a character whose philosophy around sports is the most directly oppositional to the typical hegemonic philosophy. Kenma does not care whether or not his team wins or loses, he plays merely because his friends play. Throughout the manga Kenma recognizes that he isn't the typical athlete. In chapter 25 when Kenma and Hinata meet for the first time, Hinata asks if he thinks it strange that he's a middle blocker (a position typically reserved for tall players), Kenma responds saying, “ I get that kind of thing [judgment], at tournaments a lot too. People look at me like, ‘Setters are supposed to be the smart guys. What’s he doing there? I mean…I’m not a gifted athlete or anything”. Kenma recognizes that there is a typical mold that male athletes are supposed to fit into, and because Kenma doesn’t he receives a lot of judgment. This idea that an athlete is supposed to be a certain way, stems from hegemonic masculinity and this belief that men should be hyper-masculine, especially men who play sports (Colleen 2017). Volleyball, the sport is often categorized as a “girly sport” because volleyball relies on team work and cooperation. Whereas hegemonic masculinity puts emphasis on individual strength and often ridicules men who have to rely on support. Similarly hegemonic attitudes have caused sport to be depicted as fun only if you can be the best at it. But that isn’t necessarily true. Kenma by the end of the manga despite not being a character who extremely loves volleyball and becomes extremely skilled in it, manages to find the fun in playing. In chapter 323, during the “Dumpster Battle”, Kenma after a long rally collapses to the floor smiling and says, “That was fun”. Kenma, despite not becoming the best player, or putting in the most effort to defeat his team's rivals, still managed to find volleyball fun. This is direct opposition to the idea that you need to win to have fun, for Kenma playing volleyball was never about winning, he played because his friends played. To him the sport was his connection to other people and how he showed his dedication to the sport did not mean he needed to become the best or most dedicated player on the court.

The end of 3rd year:

At the end of their third year, Kageyama is still not fully open with Hinata, let alone anyone else. I'm not saying that you have to be completely open with everyone before getting into a relationship, but I think for their dynamic, he needs to learn to be more open with his emotions than he is at that point before you can have two personalities like him and Hinata in a relationship together.

At the end of third year, Hinata is still nowhere near Kageyama's skill level in volleyball. Again, I'm not saying that they need to have equal skill levels to be in a relationship however, Hinata does have a major inferiority complex about this specifically when compared to Kageyama and I don't think that, with he skill level he is at in 2015 (when they graduate). He can't catch up with Kageyama by becoming a skilled player in his own right without going to Brazil, we know this, but going to Brazil also develops his personality as well as his vb skills. He is now more confident and has learnt a lot and so he is able to be on what he considered equal footing with Kageyama (what he considered is the important part here bc of his issues with comparing himself to Kageyama, which we see the whole way through the story).

Now flip to post Brazil:

At this point, Kageyama has begun to open up a bit more by spending time with his teammates, mostly on Adlers, but you can assume JNT as well - we just don't see much of that bc Hinata is the protag, and he's busy sulking over Kags not visiting him atp. Like we can see this in small things like him showing Ushijima the photo of Hinata and Oikawa. He is now more open than he was in hs but he hasn't talked to (at least not much more than maybe like a couple two message interactions) Hinata in a couple years as far as we know. Because of their whole soulmate thing because Kageyama is still somewhat alone because of his skill level (see Kazuyo's promise)

At this point, Hinata is finally confident in his skill level, I mean, he was practically unknown and got into the MSBY D1 starting line-up. However, I think it's important to note that atp he has not beaten Kageyama so although he has definitely improved - he's earned the title of Ninja Shoyo, which is his own compared to the little giant (I can also yap abt that honestly) - he doesn't know whether he has caught up with Kageyama who, for all he knows could have improved just as much as he did in the time they were apart. Hinata might now have many brain cells, but he knows enough that it's silly to think that Kageyama has not improved at all while playing with the JNT and being in VL D1 since high school.

Post-Adlers v MSBY match:

Kageyama has now opened up. This bit is less about opening up to those around him (although he has, see "took you long enough") and is more about him being open with his own emotions. Obviously, he's not suddenly fixed years of emotional repression in one match, but he's chosen to open himself up to Hinata (see being happy/smiling at losing a match) and therefore also open with the audience (we finally see his backstory - that idea is not mine it's from this post it's rlly good u should read it). At this point, I feel like he is ready to have a healthy relationship with Hinata while still working through his other issues. He isn't going to be magically perfect now, but still, he's at a maturity point where he would be able to be in a relationship with someone as competitive as him and Hinata are together.

Hinata has now won against Kageyama. He now knows and feels confident with his skills as a player of his own right and worth, and so now his competition with both people like Hoshiumi and then especially with Kageyama is not going to be him seeing himself as the small junior high version of him who got beaten in 30 minutes still trying to prove himself, but the amazing Ninja Shoyo who is an amazing all-rounder and a wing spiker (the position he's wanted to play in order to be ace which he didn't get a chance to play before). He has grown as a person already while in Brazil, but this win is simply confirmation that he has done what he went there to do. He can trust that he made the right choice to leave Kageyama and the trust and dynamic that they had created (which was a major worry of his through the first part of the Brazil arc - with the homesickness and seeing Kageyama in the Olympics) and is better for it. this game proves it all to him, and he can welcome Kageyama and a possible relationship with him now that they are equals, rivals and a team at the same time.

Finally, onwards:

We finally see that they are together, whether you want that to be as teammates and best friends/platonic soulmates or as romantic soulmates it's up to you, but we see that they have improved both in vb and in their relationship together (see one of my fav panels to ever exist with their fist bump in JNT uniforms).

They are on the same team together, except stronger, when they go to the Olympics together. And then when we see after that, they still have a strong dynamic with them both declaring they're going to win in the Ali Roma v ASAS São Paulo game which makes me think that they keep in contact a lot better than they did while Hinata was playing beach - only bc there seems to be less of the tension that is there when they meet before the MSBY Adlers game.

Anywaysss that pretty much concludes my yap on why they shouldn't get together until after the Brazil arc. I could probably say a billion more things about this, but this was the best way to get any sort of coherence from me about this. I will probably do more yaps so if people want, feel free to ask me questions in my ask box or in the notes!!!!