ispeakforthebeez asked:
duskisnigh answered:
Okay, so I’ll try my best to tell you what I think I know, but I only joined the fandom last July and I know Final Haikyuu!! Quest came into being long before that.
I think the concept of FHQ first manifested in an Ennoshita movie poster, which was official art drawn by Furudate-sensei himself. It might have been the first of Ennoshita’s many movies, back when we first learned that he was a writer and director. The poster in question is the first one in this post.
Since then, the concept has become rather popular with the fans and more official works were dedicated to FHQ. I believe the second light novel includes a few chapters on FHQ, which details the hero’s company journeying forth to the castle to defeat the Grand King Oikawa (and not the actual confrontation). Some people have already translated (or at least summarized) those chapters on tumblr.
I understand that the FHQ concept has been incorporated into a Nintendo 3Ds mini-game called Haikyuu!! Quest (which you get the code for if you happened to get the first copies of the Haikyuu!! Tsunage! Itadaki no Keshiki!! game). You can also find character profiles of the hero’s company (Hinata, Kageyama, Kenma, Aone, Iwaizumi) and the villains (Oikawa, Kuroo, Shimizu, Nishinoya, Tanaka) on tumblr. The profiles list out the characters’ stats, weapons, strengths and weaknesses and relationships with each other. A lot of FHQ fanworks stem from the information found there. This post has the profiles kindly translated to English.
There’s also this very cute video of picture dramas (with English subtitles) for the FHQ game, which might have been used as promotion for the game (I’m not entirely sure).
If you watch the video you’ll understand that the game is actually very dorky and not at all angsty. The original movie poster, however, did have the words “(Approximately) all of America cried” in orange, suggesting that the movie has its sad elements. We fans actually have little information about the FHQ universe aside from what is listed above, so the rest is up to the imagination.
There are a few things that give FHQ a high potential for angst, though. While the story of how the hero’s company met may be different from that of the manga universe, the dynamics between the characters are largely the same. Aone and Kenma are still quiet and communicate generally best with Hinata. Iwa-chan and Kageyama know each other from their past with Oikawa. This prompts fans to interpret relationships in FHQ as ones similar to that of mangaverse. That’s when angst happens.
1. FHQ essentially split up two pairs of childhood friends (Oiiwa, Kuroken) and made them fight each other.
a) As I’ve mentioned in a previous post, Iwa-chan’s profile says he used to be Oikawa’s friend. If you look closely at the tip of his sword, you’ll see that the design there is the same as the one at the hem/corner of Oikawa’s clothes. This suggests that Iwa used to be Oikawa’s knight.
Iwa used to fight for him. Now Oikawa’s the big bad. He wants to take over the world. Iwa needs to stop him to save him from himself. Blood will be shed.
b) While Iwa-chan is the one who left Oikawa, it’s popular belief that Kuroo left Kenma to join the dark side. Kuroo is also listed as Kenma’s former friend. His profile also says that nobody knows why he decided to go evil. This prompts fans to speculate that he’s not really interested in helping Oikawa achieve world domination. What could possibly be his motivation? Some say he’s doing it for the very best friend he left behind.
2. Kageyama also knew Oikawa. He was probably one of Oikawa’s soldiers alongside Iwa-chan. He possibly looked up to him. Possibly wanted to learn from him. Now he’s here as part of the hero’s company, about to kill whom used to be his king.
3. Oikawa wasn’t always the demon king. When Iwa-chan befriended him, he was probably a kind, happy soul. There’s a reason why Oikawa turned evil, just like there’s a reason for mangaverse Oikawa to be bitter and angry. It’s probably a sad story.
4. It’s a story about war. If the hero’s company succeeds, Oikawa and co. die. If Oikawa wins, Hinata and co. die. For the fans, this is a lose-lose situation.
