As someone who just recently got into the very exuberant, very pumped up, and very queer-coded world of sports anime, I’m no stranger to Haikyuu! If you like sports anime, you automatically adore Haikyuu! and how it is sports anime royalty at this point. It’s a zeitgeist of a franchise, with the kind of fan following you would expect from a mainstream Shonen. And yet, it’s all anyone can talk about, with its success garnering at least sequel anime seasons and now two anime movies on the way. But how close are we to the story finishing?

Technically, Haikyuu! had its finale happen in the manga serialization this year, with Chapter 402. It’s the last we got to see of Hinata Shoyou and how the love of Volleyball sparked an unlikely kinship between each of the characters. A story that was 8 years in the making, it went out on quite the hopeful note. Which, no lie, is pretty on brand for the franchise. Haruichi Furudate, the mangaka of Haikyuu!, had laid to rest one of the best sports stories we’ve gotten in the past decade.

Haikyuu! is arguably what restarted the sports anime fever across the Animesphere (alongside Free!, of course!) when the first episode of the anime aired back in 2014. I remember how all my Otaku friends suddenly went ballistic over Volleyball, and I was just so confused. This was right when my hiatus from anime was starting, so I didn’t keep up with the hype.

But now, finally getting back into it, I get what it was all about. If we didn’t have Haikyuu!, competitive anime such as Yuri!!! On Ice and, more recently, Sk8 The Infinity wouldn’t even exist. This is why it’s really for a lot of fans to say goodbye to something that impacted their lives so immensely. But, with recent news of the final arc of the Haikyuu! The story is divided into two movies instead of a 5^th season. Fans can’t wait for the conclusion!

Haikyuu!: A Sports Anime Icon!

The story of Haikyuu! needs no introduction. In hindsight, it is so simple. The first episode starts with the rivalry firmly set between Hinata, a player from a subpar team who has big dreams, and Tobio Kageyama, the indisputable ‘King Of The Highschool Court’. After losing the match (but impressing Kageyama momentarily), Hinata gets the opportunity to attend Karasuno High School, seeing as their athlete program was more developed.

Who else would he come across but Kageyama himself, also being inducted into Karasuno High’s volleyball team? Now known as ‘The Little Giant’, Hinata has to prove to everyone that he’s worthy of the Big Leagues. But most importantly, he has to show Kageyama how he isn’t just a roadblock on his way to glory but genuine competition.  

And this dynamic right here, that is what is the heart of Haikyuu! From then onwards, the story covers the journey of Hinata growing from an impulsive novice to a straight-up beast in the sport, all the while aiming to catch up with Kageyama.

And hey, after all, what is a sports anime without a rivalry that borders on obsession?

Haikyuu! Manga Finished: How The Story Ends!

Despite its intense tones, Haikyuu! has always been about the excitement of sportsmanship and the drive to become better than ever before. And it carries that hopeful note right up into the finale, where we see the life of the Karasuno High Volleyball team, and how they go their separate ways.

There is a time skip, where we learn that after graduating, Hinata ended up going to train in Brazil in Beach Volleyball. Hinata returns to Japan after two years and ends up joining a pro-league team called MBSY Black Jackals. But as luck would have it, his very first match with them happens against the Schweiden Adlers, directly pitting him against Kageyama, who they have recruited into their team.

The match was like a call-out to what started everything nearly a decade ago. The excitement is nearly palpable, with Hinata commanding the audience like he was born to. And both he and Kageyama come into themselves, both as individuals and team players. As Kageyama and Hinata leap and meet in front of the net, there it is; Karasuno’s Banner proudly saying FLY!

And finally, we have it. The Black Jackals end up winning, and while it wasn’t Hinata scoring the finishing point, the victory is just as sweet. And that’s how it goes, with them being together in Team Japan for the Olympics one moment and then competing against each other again in the World Championship. Haikyuu! was never about one winning over the other, the win or lose scenario was never what mattered here.

The point is that the journey these high school students started on has finally ended, only to give way for a new one as the athletes they were always meant to be.