BEWITCHING SETTERS THREAD

ATSUMU & OIKAWA
pt 1 | FAITH vs EXPECTATION

after y’all asked for a meta comparing these fanatic setters, i reread some haikyuu then decided that one thread is not enough (they’re both so compelling!) — for now tho, let’s talk about FAITH

although atsumu & oikawa seem similar to some ppl upon first glance (regal setters w/ shit-eating smirks), they’re vastly different in personality & their philosophy on what it means to be a good setter. there’s many layers to this of course but let’s start first w/ their mottos!

to put it simply, i summed up their recurring mottos as follows:

oikawa: pull 100% out of the spikers’ abilities

atsumu: make the ball as easy to hit as possible (and anyone who can’t, sucks)

yes, the two phrases sound similar on the surface: both consider the spiker’s abilities & depend on the setter to enhance them. both require the spiker to rise up & apply themselves. both ‘bewitch’ the spiker into being their best. both refuse to compromise spikers’ bad habits.

however, while oikawa’s motto prioritizes team morale, atsumu’s aggressively demands everyone’s fair share of input. not to say that these two ideas are mutually exclusive for either oikawa or atsumu, but it’s clear they each rank them differently in their mode of operations.

we see that distinction of priority in how they perceive their relationship to their team. for oikawa, pulling 100% out of every spiker is often shown to be built on FAITH whereas for atsumu, the work/dedication he puts into making the right toss is paired w/ EXPECTATION

so let’s start with faith. one of oikawa’s consistent pre-match prep routines is to tell his team he has faith in them. when he does this, we are told from the coach that his team has equal faith in him back. now i could be extrapolating here but given his overall character+

i think it’s true: inspiring the team with HIS faith in them is oikawa’s way of eliciting clear confirmation of THEIR faith in him which in turn bolsters his own confidence for himself. bc as snide & confident as oikawa acts, he lacks faith in himself (note: his stunned silence)

for oikawa, it’s easier to have more faith in others than in himself. he’s hypercritical of his abilities & often envies others. this mentality causes him to feel like he has to make up for all the holes in his form, to the point where he equates his own skills to the team’s.

this is also why when iwa scolds him, the main quote that snaps oikawa back to clarity is “whichever 6 players are stronger will win!” note that the word he uses in reply is INVINCIBLE. he needs his team’s morale to be his own — the patch up to his gaping holes of insecurities

in short, oikawa struggles with deriving faith & morale in himself until he derives it from his team. it’s the collective confidence they have together that in turn brings him confidence. he can’t let go of his insecurities until he inspires the team to feel his faith first.

now onto atsumu. atsu has a wealth of confidence. i don’t think there’s a specific reason/event that affected this, it’s just not his personality to dwell on any holes in his skill. when he hits a wall, he tries another angle. he also has samu to keep his competitive spirit going

take kita waxing poetic abt his work ethic. while oikawa tends to get tunnel vision with how rigorously he practices, atsumu works hard & smart in a way that’s efficient. his approach stems more from pure curiosity rather than insecurity (might do another meta thread on this)

bc of this + his confidence, atsumu often comes off like a blunt asshole. but i think the reason he says ppl who can’t hit his toss suck is bc he is dedicating his utmost to making his tosses right for the spiker so in his mind it’s common courtesy for them to meet him 100% back.

he KNOWS when he achieves a proper toss & confirms it by asking. in his mind, if he doesn’t receive any critiques then the other possibility for faulty scoring is that the spiker isn’t rising up to give atsu their all in return. there’s an unspoken expectation here that’s a given

hence why, despite his egotistical demanding side, atsumu is still described as a setter who is so considerate & dedicated to his spikers. although being considerate of feelings/morale like oiks isn’t quite his thing, he IS considerate of spikers in many other aspects nonetheless

now, let’s go back for a moment to FAITH. oikawa is the kinda person that talks to his team & bolsters them in a more relational way. he cares about their morale and desires them to have overall faith in each other. atsumu on the other hand...

confident atsumu pairs his ability with expectation. it’s partially bc he has osamu. as carbon copies since birth, they‘re used to EXPECTING the other - a trait atsumu often finds lacking in other (more average) ppl. this is why he admires hinata for being a spiker who EXPECTS.

i’ve seen ppl wonder abt their similarities & differences. personally i think they’re more different than alike. yes they’re both talented setters who give easy-to-hit tosses, are considerate of their spikers & bring out the best in them w/o settling for less. but+

beneath the surface of these traits, they differ so much in philosophy. in short, where oikawa says ‘have faith and fly,’ atsumu wonders ‘then how come you didn’t score?’ one huge difference lies in their blatant display of Faith vs Expectation.

god this was 20 tweets. also special thanks to @yamineftis @xoratari & @timshel_11 for help with discussion + listening to my nonsensical word vomits while i was processing all these thoughts rly feeling so blessed to have intellectuals i can converse with abt all this

SHOOT HOW COULD I FORGET @atchumu your love for atsumu constantly brings me life and i love talking to you about him and analyzing the twins together!

sorry one last thing: if you made it all the way to the bottom here, feel free to leave suggestions on other aspects of atsumu/oikawa analysis y’all would be interested in, or if anything in particular from this thread stood out & made you wanna delve more! ty for reading