oikawa tooru character analysis and love mail, a (serious) appreciation thread

i'm just gonna be rambling about oikawa. buckle your seatbelts bitches, this is NOT gonna be short. read with caution cuz i'm probably gonna get sad in the middle of it

i'm not gonna lie. i didn't like oikawa the first time i met him (i think that was the intention LOL). as someone whose favorite character was kageyama, he was a nuisance and i couldn't stomach his constant condescending attitude. i thought it was really childish and unnecessary

he seemed pretty shallow, like your typical anime villain whose only intentions are to interfere with the protagonists' goals. when oikawa told kags not to get eliminated at the interhigh, just so oiks can exert his dominance over his underclassman (inferiority complex much?)

i physically rolled my eyes LMAO. i got so used to seeing antagonists with little to no depth that i hardly even considered the possibility of oikawa getting any kind of real development. so how the hell did he end up as my favorite character???

oiks appears cheerful and personable, and that, paired with his good looks is magnetic. if i were in the haikyuu anime i'd be one of his fangirls NO CAP. but under the trope of a cocky and mean-spirited jerk is someone that is very human and relatable (at least to me).

it was made apparent very early on how envious and even resentful oikawa is of both kageyama's "genius" skills and ushiwaka's pure, raw power. he believes that he, an 'ordinary' person who had to grind their way to success, would be inevitably surpassed by these people.

despite being crowned "the best setter" in middle school, oikawa never let the praise truly get to his head, despite how arrogant he seems to be. and let me just say, this boy's attitude is nowhere near as pretty as his face.

kageyama, who only wanted to learn from oikawa's powerful serve, was nearly pummeled after asking for advice. normally, i'd see that as a just a jerk move on oikawa's part, but for him, that moment was a show of vulnerability, not an attempt at showing off.

it was a reflexive reaction, one that he even showed remorse for after. oikawa, someone who's seen as charismatic, easygoing, and friendly, has this selfish desire, to not only surpass others, but to prove to himself that he can be better than the little natural talent he has.

(but i must stress, that oikawa is and has been noted to be an EXCELLENT player, he is absolutely fantastic and no one has ever said he has no talent)

and when people like kageyama, what with all his genius skills, approach him and ask for help, it's like a million stabs to oikawa's pride — if oikawa, worked endlessly and persistently to succeed, why should he be giving advice to the gifted? figure it out and fuck off! LOL.

and like i said before, despite giving off the aura of a huge ego (which, to be fair he does have) oikawa isn't afraid to point out his own weaknesses and do his best to improve them. and after winning the first match against karasuno, he doesn't gloat and boast like expected.

instead, he accepts it with a reaction that could only be described as relief (it WAS a hard match) and anticipation for the next time he would face them. after all, karasuno could only improve from here on out — and so could their 'genius' setter, kageyama.

oikawa might be a jerk, but he respects and acknowledges the strengths of his opponents, such as when he complimented hinata and the little orange bean was so happy :(

let's talk about the relationship between ushijima and oikawa. i can really see why someone like ushijima would really piss oikawa off. shiratorizawa has been compared to this looming, unclimbable mountain with ushijima looming at the peak as an undefeatable enemy.

and oikawa has been fighting that uphill battle since middle school. ushijima has ZERO malicious intent. he has a one-track mind. he loves volleyball and is damn good at it. he doesn't have time to worry about being angry or jealous when he just crushes everyone in his path.

and that's why ushi seriously gets on oikawa's nerves. oikawa almost just wants to see ushi gloat in his face about winning a match. hell, even just batting a single eyelash! but no! despite all the envy and even hatred oikawa has, ushi never matched with true malice of his own.

and once they get to highschool, the only thing ushijima has to say to oikawa is "you should've come to shiratorizawa". i know this is often used as a meme (and rightfully so, i use it myself it's fucking hilarious) but i can really understand the rage oikawa must've felt.

ushijima, the rival he's been struggling to overcome for so damn long, wants to be his teammate? yeah fucking right. oikawa would rather keep losing to ushijima for the rest of his life. that's his shitty pride that is just oh-so-damn-human-and-relatable. more on that later.

okay, moving onto the relationship oikawa has with his team. LET ME SAY THIS NOW. OIKAWA IS A GOOD CAPTAIN. REPEAT AFTER ME. OIKAWA IS A GOOD CAPTAIN. AND ANYONE WHO DISAGREES CAN COME AND FIGHT ME RIGHT NOW I WON'T HESITATE

he cares about the players on his team, from the underclassmen to his fellow third years, and hell, his pre-game ritual is to tell them that HE BELIEVES IN THEM. when they said it back to him as "we believe in you, captain!" at spring interhigh i was literally in tears. SJDJSJKSK

so iwaoi. i can go on all day. iwaizumi is the one who has kept oikawa in check for so long. Despite all the memes about iwachan beating oikawa up at every given moment, the two of them have a strong bond that tied them together for the many years they spent with each other.

it's no secret that oikawa is a hard worker. he works tirelessly to improve himself, to the point where people often call him out for it, especially iwa. oikawa overworks and overthinks and simply overwhelms himself with tunnel vision on his one goal of improving.

despite mostly having control over his outside demeanor, oikawa still sometimes cracks. and when he starts to fall apart, iwa is there to shove him back together — literally. these two will forever be an iconic duo.

there are so many scenes of which they both pick each other up when the other is down, like when iwa messed up and oikawa literally spiked him on the back, or even just little moments when one of them loses confidence and the other says something to get them back on their feet :(

when oiks was rambling about how despite kags was unmatched at tosses, kags but lacked in serving, blocking, and spiking etc. and you know what iwa did? well, first he threw a volleyball at oikawa's face. then he told oiks, "dont say his toss is better than yours!" :((

the faith they have in each other is just so >>>>> the fact that they aren't playing pro together really depresses me :( oh and last thing before this turns into an iwaoi thread, let's just talk about the bonus ending with seijoh in the 2nd haikyuu movie FUCKED. ME. UP.

DID U SEE WHAT THEY SAID? HOW THEY ARGUED OVER WHO TO BE MAD AT BECAUSE IWA GOT BLOCKED AND OIKS MISSED THE RECEIVE? HOW IWA IS SO PROUD TO HAVE OIKS AS A PARTNER, AND BELIEVES THAT HE'S THE BEST SETTER EVER, AND HOW THAT WON'T CHANGE EVEN IF THEY END UP ON DIFFERENT TEAMS?

AND HOW THEY WON'T GIVE UP ON THEIR RIVALRY WITH EACH OTHER? GODDAMMIT YALL. and when they showed clips of babie/middle school/early high school iwaoi i literally fucking CRIED. GOD. THESE TWO. HOW COULD YOU SEPARATE THEM FURUDATE??? WHYYYYY

cough anyway, i will stop rambling about iwaoi and move onto why oikawa means so much to me. haikyuu is known for developing its characters, and oikawa is no exception. i never expected that i would relate to him most out of all the characters, but here we are.

as an athlete myself, i've also been afflicted with the curse of being jealous of those who have natural talent. i am really fucking clumsy, with flat feet and a crooked spine, and guess what sport i do? ice skating. LOL.

almost 12 years later and i still feel like all my work has been for nothing. seeing people who don't work as hard for not nearly as many hours, for not nearly as many years, improve so fast still kills my confidence. unlike oikawa, i often let these feelings get the best of me

as cheesy as it sounds, oikawa, in all his shitty glory, has become a role model for me. he turns some of his biggest weaknesses (his crippling jealousy and lack of natural talent) into a strength: a burning, unceasing desire to improve.

and that's not to say that oikawa has no talent. NO ONE ever explicitly said that oikawa isn't a genius or a good setter. but this is just perception, and instead of letting that perception hinder him, he lets it drive him. i personally admire that so much

so yes i am SICK AND TIRED of people labeling oiks as a petty whiny crybaby who only wants to antagonize kageyama (i mean not as a joke cuz i do that LOL). he is a STRONG-WILLED, DETERMINED, MOTIVATED, PERSEVERANT KING! HE'S SOMEONE TO LOOK UP TO!

oikawa isn't perfect. he's kinda a shitty guy, as iwa likes to put it. he whines, he taunts, he teases, he cries. and we love him for that. he might try to put on that facade for the public, but he is just a truly caring, passionate person who loves his sport and his team.

seriously, if oiks truly was a bad guy why would someone like iwaizumi, a no-nonsense and straightforward guy put up with his annoying ass for so many years? (fuck i'm slipping back into my iwaoi mind) shit i love oikawa and seijoh so goddamn much.

anyway, i'll just end this thread by saying that he's truly a beautiful character (yes both inside and out) and i love him. yeah. fine. i love your shitty ass self, oikawa.

now i can go back to hating him :) fuck you oikawa i hope iwachan destroys your ugly ass kneecaps

okay FUCK, allow me to add JUST A FEW MORE TWEETS TO THIS LONG ASS THREAD. OIKAWA TOORU'S WORTHLESS PRIDE. IS SOMETHING THAT IS SERIOUSLY ADMIRABLE AND I DONT TAKE CRITICISM FOR THIS. HE STICKS TO HIS VALUES. HE OWNS UP TO HIS CHOICES AND DOESN'T GIVE A FUCK WHAT OTHERS THINK

if oikawa had gone to shiratorizawa, would he have gone to nationals? yeah, probably. but here's the thing: HE DOESNT GIVE A SHIT. oikawa doesn't only want success, he wants to succeed in HIS way. so seijoh didn't go to nationals, but he and the others did their best.

and he basically told ushijima to fuck off. LOL. this worthless pride that "kept him' from going to nationals is what makes him such a complex character. you'd think someone like him would want victory above all else, but in reality, he wants to win HIS way. HIS way, or no way.

oikawa is no fucking fool. he believes strongly in his own motivations, and he won't let anything get in his way. so some may say he chose the wrong path of not going to shiratorizawa, but oikawa could go on and on about the complete opposite.

SEIJOH IS OIKAWA'S PRIDE AND JOY. HE PLAYED ON THE TEAM FOR 3 YEARS AND EVEN HAD THE PRIVILEGE OF LEADING IT. HE TRULY LOVES HIS TEAM. EVEN THROUGH LOSSES, EVEN THROUGH ARGUMENTS, EVEN THROUGH THE TOUGHEST OF TIMES. THESE RELATIONSHIPS MATTER MORE TO HIM THAN ANY TRIVIAL VICTORY

so yes, this worthless pride may have kept him from victory. but it gave him something much more important: a sense of self-fulfillment in following his instincts and most importantly, a chance for him to truly work with a team he cherishes. don't fucking @ me i miss seijoh sm

oh and also oikawa is now still a rly hot hunk living his best life in argentina so y'all uglies have nothing on him we stan so hard

ok yeah that's it for now again. once more i say: fuck u oikawa u smelly ass bitch i hate u