Summary:
Asa is missing, but Rin is unable to find her around the hospital. He widens the search and remembers when Asa told him about her dream for their future, so he heads to the spot where he confessed. Indeed, she is there admiring the scenery. Asa is surprised to see him, but starts recounting fond memories. Rin makes another plea for her to use her magic, but she again refuses. Feeling helpless, he takes out the box cutter. Because he loves her and wants her to live, Rin has decided to risk his own life and cut his wrists – blood sprays everywhere as Asa rushes over. Losing consciousness, Rin begs her to consider the feelings of her mother, and says that he and her mother both don’t want to see her suffering face. Not wanting Rin to die, Asa finally unleashes her magical powers to heal him. When her tears finally wake him, his wound has closed and Asa’s hair has grown long from the magic.
Three weeks later, everything is back to normal and Primula is even attending school with the group. Rin has apparently taken on newspaper delivery job. The girls learn that he was treated to coffee by Kaede, which gets them all fired up. Things haven’t really changed in school as Rin gets in trouble for sleeping in class, and the girls offer their notes to help him. When Itsuki tries to pick up Kaede, Nerine, and Sia, they all reject him because they still like Rin. In the afternoon, Eustoma and Forbesii pass by Ama on the street. Within earshot, they remark about how she looks like someone who had died, and indirectly apologize to her as they walk away. Meanwhile, Asa now works at the same shop as Kareha, and shows off her uniform to Rin. Asa catches him calling her Asa-sempai again and has him correct himself. During the credits, we see Nerine visiting Lycoris’ grave, Primula playing cards with Eustoma and Forbesii and blowing the place up when she draws a bad one, Sia applying lipstick onto Kaede and the two having an accidental kiss, and Ama cutting Asa’s hair short again.

Another fun little Primula shot to end the series.

Overall, in the scope of the entire series, the finale was a bit anticlimactic for me. Granted, I knew long ago how this was going to end, so that does affect how I see the ending. The bar had been set pretty high by previous episodes, so I definitely had my hopes up a little more than I should have. Maybe a final kiss or something would have given me more closure because it feels like they left it slightly open-ended. Though I guess you could say that in true harem fashion, the girls all still like Rin.
But if you take the final episode by itself, I rather enjoyed it. The Asa finale was done exactly how I thought they would, long hair and all. The second half has its share of funny (Primula rubbing up against Rin when he faints on her), life-is-back-to-normal (Rin getting into trouble), and conclusionary moments (Ama, Foubessi, and Eustoma being the big one for me). I really enjoyed watching the scenes during the credits, Sia and Kaede’s kiss included, although I wish they hadn’t scrunched it up into such a small window. Anyway, I feel that this was a fitting ending for the series.

Final Thoughts: Boy this has been quite the rollercoaster ride. What started out as a simple harem, based-on-an-h-game series turned out to be one of the best, if not the best, shows this year. SHUFFLE! is a show full of twists and turns and big surprises. I mean, who really thought at the beginning that Asa, a seemingly side character, would be the one Rin ends up with? Add on a large dose of top-notch drama and performances, and SHUFFLE! becomes a must-see series.

84 Comments

  1. So.. its over. Whos that person kaede is kissing?

    nice scenes of Mayumi and Primula thou

    I hope Soul Link turns out to be a little better, after all it is from Navel right?

    Warukyure
  2. zOMG! Now i’m happy with this.

    I was so disappointed Kaede got rejected by Rin, but, she went lesb? Lol Now that’s good. Especially if she ‘loves’ Sia, which was my second fav girl. Fixes the end for me allright, who was totally disappointed by Rin’s decision.

    Noooow, go Omni, we need your wise summary asap!

  3. I am not happy….it’s not that they’ve turned kotori or another DCSS girl into a lesbian only because they have been rejected by Jun’ichi. I like yuri, but this time Navel phails

    They’ve really hurt my pride as KKK member >_

    Aizenji Sorato
  4. Oh sure. Itsuki really is the example of a good ‘man’? Can we hall him that?

    Always trying to have all the girls rofl How’s that, Kaede with a boyfriend who can’t even be faithful to her?

    I’d rather get Sia.

  5. Were all those funny faces really necessary?

    And I am NOT happy about Sia’s first kiss being with Kaede. Shame on Navel.

    Finally, Shuffle is over. All that’s left is Canvas2…Must…watch…Hanbun to Tsuki…

    Rasmiel
  6. Calm down people, read the summary: “Sia applying lipstick onto Kaede and the two having an accidental kiss.”
    I think that explains everything, don’t you agree?

    Anyways, good ending.
    I wonder why they cut off Asa’s hair, it was so good.

    Slyzer
  7. well…. it was the mildest of possible endings and certainly sets the stage for OVAs or a second season I guess (I’d rather see OVAs focusing on the girls and their stories).

    As I said in animesuki …. Asa needs to keep her rearview mirror clean because “girls in mirror are closer than they appear”… particularly Primula.

    I was always a Nerine fan … whom I suspected from the outset would follow the LH:Motoko path … most growth, good independent finish …. loses the guy. I always seem to root for that girl and it seems like the anime culture is still uprepared for that sort of girl to win … though the Asa win constitutes some baby steps (the “bokukko” (tomboyish type) wins).

    Overall I give the series an 8 … it would have been a 10 if they hadn’t thrown cold water on the Kaede arc at the end and so poorly written the Kaede-ending->Asa arc. Yes, her reasoning was lame even in the game.. wouldn’t have taken many tweaks not to make her sound like such a doofus. And the Rin-Asa treatment of Kaede after a 10 year triangle friendship …. definitely a bit weak (or at least way too short).

    ah well… perhaps I’ll get to see more Nerine since the series seems to have done well.

    Vexx
  8. Well, if Rin is a normal guy, he’d probably end up banging all of them. Given the whole polygamy is allowed in God world, they might as well learn to share him and enjoy each other as well.=)

    EliteF22
  9. Can’t wait to see Asa with long hair…I can imagine that’s hot! Yes, I’m aware there are raws out, but I’d rather wait for a fansubber.

    Wonder if they’ll ever animate Tick! Tack!…ah well, none of my business.

    -D

    Dan
  10. Mmmmeh, I’d say mediocre. They didn’t solidify RinxAsa in the second half of the episode as much as they should have. Basically It’s said to be official that Rin and Asa are a couple, and yet the girls are all still after him? >.> Bleh. After the way they “wrapped up” Kaede’s part in the story, especially after she was ignored so much until the late episode teens, they needed to solidify Rin x Asa. It just seems so weak in the second haf of the episode. >.>

    Shinji103
  11. thinks it is quite funny when Itsuki try to hit on Keade and gets a critical blows and staggers on towards first nerine and then Sia and getting equally critical blows and then when Mayumi comes she deals the killing blow in a rather psysicly way

    Nightwisher
  12. woah….a great ending for a great anime, Shuffle! really turn the harem-based h-games into another dimension with a great twist. Well, as for now Shuffle! closes it’s curtain, i can’t wait for Soul Link which will air in Spring 2006

    Eien
  13. Anyone else notice how the animation kinda went shitty after the 2nd half of the episode? Mayumi’s and Primula’s faces to be exact. They were really deformed if you ask me. Also what’s with Primula calling Rin “Oniichan” all of a sudden. She always just called him Rin. Other than these few things, the episode was great. Seriously didn’t expect Rin to cut himself that deep. I was seriously feeling sick at the sight of Rin slicing himself and all that blood.

    KiraTakuto
  14. Lol Omni its to late to call Shuffle the best anime of the year when you already gave taht award to Honey & Clover. But still all and all shuffle was good lets hope for more good animes like this.

    Fury
  15. Hmmmm… I disliked the ending because that’s almost how exactly the game ended (except without the sex…) so that was majorly spoiled and kind of a bummer… I was hoping he would pick Nerine so they could make season two of Shuffle! based on the second gane released by Navel, Tick Tack! That would have been better in my point of view…

  16. I was wondering about some things while watching the beginning episodes of SHUFFLE! such as whatever happened to those special protection groups: KKK, SSS, and RRR. They just sort of disappeared sometime without me noticing. They were kinda like the Team Rocket of Pokemon, always interrupting the good parts. Another thing that I noticed is that we don’t actually know what happened to Asa’s dad. Rin asked if the person Ama-san was talking about was Asa’s father, but he never asked what happened to him. If this was explained in the game, please enlighten me ^^;.

    KiraTakuto
  17. At least one thing is clear: Asa’s hair only got long when she used that magic and she didn’t even become a demon (or at least her human ears didn’t turn into those of a demon). Or am I? Because except that her hair became long, I don’t see any changes on her ear.

    BTW, Primula’s final sponsor scene is funny; when did she even have a mecha scene?

  18. Primula deserves more screen time.
    by Pandaharo January 5th, 2006 at 9:22 pm

    ————————————————————-

    Primula deserves a spin-off on her own :3

    Aizenji Sorato
  19. “At least one thing is clear: Asa’s hair only got long when she used that magic and she didn’t even become a demon (or at least her human ears didn’t turn into those of a demon). Or am I? Because except that her hair became long, I don’t see any changes on her ear.”

    Asa merely released her powers. That doesn’t turn her into a devil. Asa thought that once she uses magic, she’d be a devil, since humans can’t use it.

    “I was wondering about some things while watching the beginning episodes of SHUFFLE! such as whatever happened to those special protection groups: KKK, SSS, and RRR. They just sort of disappeared sometime without me noticing.”

    They stopped bothering Rin once he rejected Nerine, Sia, and Kaede. In the game you can see them praise Rin and calling him a man if you choose Asa route ^_^;

    “Another thing that I noticed is that we don’t actually know what happened to Asa’s dad. Rin asked if the person Ama-san was talking about was Asa’s father, but he never asked what happened to him. If this was explained in the game, please enlighten me ^^;.”

    I believe he’s dead.

    Rasmiel
  20. man that was a hell of a sisi for nothing drama events!!! T_T
    My brother here told me this phrase after watching this ending:
    ” WTF ..every man that likes this Sh..T has must have all the collection from BARBIE dolls!!! ”
    ” I´d never cut my pulse for a pussy ” was another one of his phrases LOL ^_^
    ” they should cut theirs for me, just for me to start thinking to date them ” @_@.Don´t take it personal people ( omni ) he just hates the series, but i still liked the ending but still the yuri stuff was unnecessary.A plus point for lesbian otakus out there.

    Dark_Schneider
  21. Well, it is a satisfying ending to what started as a typical fanservice anime. Who would have thought the producers decide to pull some drama and throw a curve ball to pair Asa with Rin instead of the “main” three.

    All I can say is good job to the producers and hope to watch the entire series on video.

  22. Who in god’s name doesn’t like yuri?!!!

    And that wasn’t an accidental kiss.

    They made eyes first and then kissed.

    Which means they thought about it first. And note the way they are. That is not accidental kiss. The one on Tsukiyomi Moonphase was accidenta. So accidental that I almost puched my LCD from fury. they de-meant the way of the yuri. But this Kaede/Sia, the feeling is strong with this one.

    Demon Eyes
  23. Also what’s with Primula calling Rin “Oniichan” all of a sudden. She always just called him Rin. Other than these few things, the episode was great. Seriously didn’t expect Rin to cut himself that deep. I was seriously feeling sick at the sight of Rin slicing himself and all that blood.

    by KiraTakuto January 6th, 2006 at 3:21 am

    ————————————————————-

    Yea that Oniichan thing was a little out of Character for Primula I think, but some should know that oniichan in alot of animes is just a means of refering to a older guy, like here. I heard from somewhere that the people in Charge of it thought it just made her ‘more cute’ so they went with it. If there is a second season, or OVA of some sort I wouldn’t expect they would keep it up. oh! I wasn’t sure how much they were going to show so I’m suprized they showed Rin cutting himself like that, well it wasn’t really plesent to watch, but it was ok. Well I would of loved of seen some more of Ama ;_; would of been nice to have more Asa x Ama mother and daugher moments.
    In the end the Shuffle Ending good because they didn’t close the Door for any of the girls, though some might hate that but still its ended with Asa and Rin, though it hardly felt like it with they way they played out the second half.
    Anyway, I cant wait to see Soul link animated, hopefully the animetion, will be Great for the whole show unlike shuffle wich was a bit over the place.

    God!!
  24. You are right, Onii Chan is often a phrase used towards an older boy who is like a brother to you.
    I saw Shuffle today, and i am also really happy with this ending because they managed every girl to be happy^^
    For me Shuffle ist the best of the animes i saw last year, ok, on one position with Last Exile 😉
    Now i’m looking forward to the translation of the pc game (which i already have^^) because i want to see what’s the story like in there.
    Thank you Shuffle, i definitely will buy you on DVD as soon as i can get you completely!

    *Chi*
  25. About Primula calling Rin Onii chan, its simple really, in the game if you went down her route, at one point, when Rin stressed that they were family, she asked him if he could call Rin Onii chan and Kaede Onee chan. Also she uses it in a more affectionate way then just a simple ‘brother’.

    Silverwolf X
  26. Woah.
    Like you said about the roller-coaster type of Anime, it truly is one.
    It varies from Comeday, Romance and Drama.

    This Anime will surely be a classic soon enough, and stands at the same level or even higher than Love Hina.

    There will be some OAVs, I’m pretty much convinced.

  27. woops for got to say something XD

    I think they’ll probably make a tick tack sequel as an ova later on…but we might have to wait till a few years later to see. That would be awesome…

    Anyone got information on why all of a sudden they started showing crappy animation? i really hated the way eveyone’s face got those huge chunky edges…

    LAL
  28. “Who in god’s name doesn’t like yuri?!!!

    And that wasn’t an accidental kiss.

    They made eyes first and then kissed.

    Which means they thought about it first.”

    Lol. Go meet some real lesbians then ask who doesn’t like yuri. And you obviously didn’t watch the ep if you think that kiss was on purpose… (Or just blinded by otaku >_>).

    fale
  29. I just had to finish the series before making a comment. I’m a bit surprised, since I was prepared to like Nerine most of the characters, but ended up liking Kaede. I’d have to agree, the Kaede arc could have been done a lot better, but I personally liked Rin’s answer: “How can I not love someone whom I’ve spent so much time with?” I’d agree, they could have made it a lot better, but I’m generally satisfied with the way it was done.

    And Dark Schneider: I’m not surprised your brother came up with those comments. I would like to also tell him that I don’t give a —- what the thing in between his legs thinks, some of us do give a damn about a person beyond their sexual attributes.

    Wavehawk
  30. WOW! Just WOW! Although I haven’t watched Shuffle beyond ep.12 yet, from what i have read I can say this is probably one of the best animes ever. I am DEFINATLY going to get the game… as soon as i can find one…

    Hudson
  31. Sorry about the double post but the darn thing cut the rest of my text off. Anyway Asa was my favorite character from the get go. She kinda reminded me of Shinobu, but without the shyness. But although she was my favorite character i never though she would actually be the one to win Rin’s heart! I thought for sure it would have been Kaede becasue she was the main female character from the begining. When i read that i was so shocked you could have knocked me over with a feather! I am most defenatly going to get the DVDs. The thing is out of all the animes i have watched i have only gotten 1 right when i chose which girl would end up with the main male character. (Love Hina – but it was so obvious from the start) I tell ya this anime knocked me for a loop. Asa and Rin is the best pairing for this anime!

    As for the animation i have a theroy about that. the animation at the begining of the anime started out with regular animation, but after a few episodes when the story started to become more serious the animators uped the animation quality to reflect that. And when all was said a done they went back to the regular animation at the end.

    Hudson
  32. I think Nerine should get more screen time and also more attention from Rin. It’s really unexpected that Rin ended up to be with Asa which was previously in a passive role of a side-character… It would be great for me if Rin ended up with Nerine… Sigh… It’s a great anime, I give it a 8/10.

    Skysong
  33. damn navel damn rin and b*tch asa damn… asa stole rin to kaede in the first place she knew about kaede’s love to rin and she still stole Rin and about Rin who has no respect to what kaede’s doing for him…damn him and the creator of this show….

    kkk
  34. xD omg…that was a retarded post. lol

    ok, biggest thing (as most ppl pointed out) THE KISS! @__@; gah! so random and it killed some part of the sory i think when they did that. lol…hehehe ^^;

    tik tack eh? if they make it…wouldn’t it be odd? since it would have neri in the lead? ah well, whatever works. i KIND of do hope they make a sequel/ova..but not at the same time, know what i mean?
    and i hope kaede and sia doesn’t make it any further then that ending credit. T_T. i dun have problems with yuri…it jus…doesn’t work i think. lol, but yes, the OTHER sia would do this. normal one wouldn’t i think.

  35. oops, sorry. forgot to add this:

    …kikyou reminds me of lucy from elfen lied….
    and then seeing kikyou (not sai…though when they parted it was prob sai who was in control) and kaede kiss….well, for some reason its a lil more creepy when picturing lucy making out with kaede…@_@;;;;;

  36. SIA X KAEDE?!?!?!?! WOOOOOOOOOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    That’s sweet! Like Mai and Saiyuri from Kanon

    It was better when rin was w/ Sia, but kikyou sort of ruined it

    Next Move/s: Final Approach , hey! what’s canvas?

    I

    kevin
  37. Dammit…. some parts in this anime are enuff to make a guy cry(witch i did =/) im all for lesbo and it’s hot but like.. Kaede and Sia feel so wrong.. ehh btw this is my first post here.. i finshed watching this on youtube and googled “shuffle ending” i wanted to talk to ppl of how much a lot of animes end at episode 24.. funny how i found this show on accident

    JohnXAzn
  38. So kaede was just a maid basically? Why have her in the story in the first place ( if she had no chance)? Kaede should move on, any guy who is stupid enough to not realize the feeling of a girl who live and cook for him (dont’ desserve her). Asa was a really dark horse, i never expected her to win. Kudo on the out of nowhere comeback . Rin sound like a gay name too. So why is the other girls still chase him after he rejected them? He have to be the worst male lead ever. Asa better watch out and keep and eye on him at all time. If he can string along a girl for years (kaede), he is capable of cheating on the girl he is dating. WHO HERE WANT TO JOIN THE “I HATE RIN” CLUB?

    xdotx
  39. I have to say stealing your boyfriend from your friend you know loves him and lives with him all those years is pretty low.

    Asa should have backed off as soon as Kaede told her the truth under the bridge or really she shouldn’t have tried in the first place.

    Honestly the way this turned out Rin is really dumb, the whole question of the show to choice to be a god or a demon was pointless. If you’re not going to choice one of the money/power spots the only choice should have been Kaede.

    In all honesty Kaede deserves a much better guy then the main male lead character of this show. Honestly if Crazy Kaede and Crazy Sia were to have a spin off I’d watch it. xD

    Don’t get me wrong I like all the other characters, I just think this show leave a bad an annoying feeling that I can’t quite describe.

    In closing, I guess if anything this show proves love has nothing to do with logic.

    Dimeric
  40. I enjoyed Shuffle for the most part. Asa is my favorite girl in the show so I was pleased that she ended up with Rin. That being said, the ending really wasn’t up to par with the rest of the show in my opinion. It definitely feels like they’re going for a second season, but that wouldn’t really mesh with the Visual Novel unless they’re going to go with a different route this time. Oh well, good show anyway, and go Asa!

    Pujols

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