Final Impressions / First Impressions / true tears

Summary:

In the aftermath of Noe’s fall, Shinichirou meets Jun at the hospital and repeatedly apologizes because he wasn’t able to stop her. Jun doesn’t appear angry and instead comments on how the snow isn’t bad – he attributes Noe ending up with just a broken bone on the snow. He also finds the snow pretty, just like he finds Noe pretty. Jun then asks Shinichirou about Noe not being able to cry, and when Shinichirou puts forth the idea of autosuggestion, Jun wonders if that’s all. He ends up telling Shinichirou to go home and claims that he can’t forgive him, so Shinichirou bows and leaves. Returning to Noe’s hospital room, Jun finds her awake, and she immediately apologizes to him. Noe explains that after seeing Shinichirou’s dance, she had wondered if she could do it too, and she feels bad about making Jun worry. Jun doesn’t blame her though and instead blames himself for deciding things on his own without telling her. Noe, however, feels that not knowing anything is bad and believes that she hurt him because she didn’t know anything.

The next day, Jun happens to run into Hiromi, and the two head to the nearby shrine to talk. When Hiromi also blames herself for what happened, Jun tells her that it’s okay and that it didn’t have to do with her. The two then chat about the festival that Jun wasn’t able to see, and it culminates in Jun confessing that he didn’t have feelings for Hiromi. Shinichirou meanwhile has become really popular in school thanks to the dance, but Hiromi is unaffected by this and tells him to come by her apartment after school. He does just that, and Hiromi ends up serving him cake and coffee, but because she claims to have only one cup, she uses the chance to drink out of the same cup as him, while it’s still in his hands. This causes him to blush, but he gets even more embarrassed when Hiromi consents to something, and he questions what she’s talking about. After a period of silence between them, he makes her realize that she’s acting weird, and this leads to a quick exchange where she asks him not to hate her, he denies that he would, and she accuses him of lying. This surprises Shinichirou, and when Hiromi realizes what she just said, she apologizes and asks him to go home. After he leaves, Hiromi tells herself that what Noe said about her tears being pretty was a lie, and she feels that she’s rapidly becoming an awful girl.

Sometime later, Shinichirou gets a phone call from the publishing company telling him to submit again. Afterwards, he questions his father about when people are supposed to cry, and his surprised father answers that it’s when their hearts quake. As Shinichirou is thinking about what this means, he overhears his mother greeting Hiromi who had just come by to see him. Hiromi admits to him that she had behaved disgracefully and that she doesn’t like it when she acts that way, and she attributes it to how she’s always loved him. She hadn’t wanted to give up, though at the same time, she was against getting in his way because she wanted him to properly face her and Noe. Hearing that Hiromi was ready to accept his answer, Shinichirou tells her that she wasn’t behaving uglily and compliments her instead. He then takes his picture book and decides to go see Noe, though he first talks to Hiromi about dinner and asks her to wait for him. At the hospital, Noe refuses to look at Shinichirou’s picture book and cites how he’s fine drawing without her. Shinichirou threatens to throw it away if she doesn’t want to see it, and as he gets up to go do so, Noe asks him where. When he responds by referring to the breakwater site as the place where Jibeta chose not to fly, Noe realizes that he had seen her there that time.

Shinichirou ends up making paper airplanes out of each page of his picture book and tosses them all towards the sea, but he eventually notices Noe approaching and attempting to pick up the pages that landed on the beach despite of her crutches. Hiromi meanwhile is surprised when Shinichirou’s mother pays her a visit with some food, and Shinichirou’s mother comments on how waiting requires energy. Back at the beach, Noe reads all the pages that they could gather, and she discovers afterwards that they’re missing the final one. She doesn’t mind though because she can think up herself what happened to Raigomaru after the chicken was able to fly. Shinichirou uses this opportunity to declare that he loves Hiromi, but he credits his being able to draw and dance to Noe, and he confesses that his heart quakes when he sees her. In response, Noe cites him believing that she can fly as her wings, and because of that, she refuses his offer to escort her back to the hospital. She feels that since she can’t fly yet, she’ll walk. As he watches Noe struggle down the road with her crutches while singing the cockroach song, Shinichirou starts crying and singing it too.

Once he gathers himself back together, Shinichirou heads to Hiromi’s apartment. When he realizes that she’s not there, he rushes out and is able to find her in the bamboo forest. Surprised to see him, Hiromi reveals that she wanted to see the picture book too, and she initially refuses when he asks her to go out with him. Shinichirou doesn’t give up though and tells her that she can see it at any time because he’ll always be by her side from now on. This causes Hiromi to comment on how it’s like he’s proposing, and she starts crying as she points out that she hasn’t even said okay to going out with him yet. Her tears cause Shinichirou to remember what he wrote about wanting to wipe them away, and since he feels that he can do it now, he hugs her. While in this embrace, Hiromi notices that it has started snowing. Sometime later in the spring, Shinichirou is walking to school and sees Noe with her friends. He thinks about how people can get tears from those they cherish, and he feels that this is what Noe’s grandmother was talking about. Shinichirou believes that thinking about a precious someone can cause tears to overflow on their own, and he thinks about being able to know these true tears. Noe meanwhile heads to the chicken coop and sees the remnants of the rocks that Shinichirou had arranged as a confession to her. After staring into the distance for a while, she starts crying.

 
 
 

And so, true tears ends about how I thought it’d end, though as I’ve said before, they kept us guessing just enough to make this interesting. In a way, this ending felt like a results show where we finally get to see who wins, and unlike some other series, this one ended largely without another plot twist. Mind you, I don’t mean that in a bad way. There’s something to be said for a show that builds up so well to the conclusion and doesn’t try to pull the rug out from under you at the very end. The writers have largely been developing Hiromi as the romantic interest and Noe as the intellectual interest (that’s the best way I can describe it), and so when you look at the bigger picture, this was the ending they were going for. I view all the stuff that happened in episodes 11 and 12 that made us doubt Shinichirou choosing Hiromi as showing the vulnerabilities of their relationship and how things aren’t always picture-perfect. I’m still not entirely convinced that Hiromi can inspire him as well as Noe could, but as far as who he had deeper feelings for, it was Hiromi. Ultimately, my point is that I felt the ending was a very good way to cap off what’s been a topsy-turvy series, and so I enjoyed it.

Final Thoughts: While it’s easy to call true tears a great series now that it’s complete (and I do think that it is), it wasn’t always that way, especially in the beginning. If not for the third episode completely changing my mind about it, I almost dropped this show because nothing in the story really stood out to me in the first two episodes. But from that third episode on, the writers did a masterful job of weaving in the plot twists at key moments – mostly at the end of episodes to guarantee that we’d eagerly anticipate the following week. And as a friend pointed out to me, true tears proves that it’s possible to do a romance series with multiple girls without the need for supernatural occurrences or murderous intent. On the other hand, the one thing I have been impressed about from the very beginning though is how consistently good the animation quality has been and how incredible the soundtrack is. I’ve had the soundtrack on my playlist for the past month (unheard of for me), and it’s going to be hard for another series to top it by the time I consider the bests of the year. In any case, this production quality combines with the great writing to make a series that has been a joy to watch, and true tears ends up as probably my favorite of the shows that aired this past winter season.

230 Comments

    1. yep ur right unlike Naruto , boruto this sucks I thought noe will be the winner hiromi is just like shit anyway this story is lame shame on the author I. I only watch qualified stories this sucks it is fuuuuuuckkkedd up

      dinugi b
      Reply

    2. noo one can see that hiromi hates noe and she dumped shinichiro back in one of the episodes now he s lame anyway JUN ISURUGI is hot and better than shinchiro noe will find someone better . shame for the author he does not deserve to be a anime drawer
      deserves

      dinugi b
      Reply

  19. Why the rage Leviahan? This was the expected outcome unless people were blinded with the Noe thing.

    Personally, I like Noe’s character a lot more than Hiromi, but I didn’t let that fact blind me from the direction the writers were taking the story. In general, I find that you shouldn’t let your personal preferences depict if a show turns out good or not. I, along with Omni and many others, saw a Hiromi ending with Noe getting her tears back. Episode 12 put some doubt in the viewers that such an ending was guaranteed (which was good because it kept us guessing), but this was still the most probable ending if you take into account everything that was built up during the series.

    divine|s
    Reply

  20. This is just idiotic!! Noe is so much better character than Hiromi!
    All these idiots only like her because they are pornfags and anti-moefags.
    THESE IS SO PATHETIC, WHY DID IT HAD TO END LIKE THIS???
    Now instead of been the epic win of the year this show has become utter garbage, another typical show were the Hiromi-like character wins.
    SUCH A SHAME!!!!!

    Leviahan
    Reply

  23. I’m really glad it turned out this way. I have nothing against Noe, this ep really made me like her quite a bit more, but I’ve always been rooting for Hiromi. Wtching Ep12 was torture for her fans, so I couldn’t watch Ep13 normally, I had to skip ahead to the important part. I just had to know how it ended, but still, no kiss? wtf!

    tako
    Reply

  24. You know it’s strange when Shinichiro told Noe that he like Hiromi it seem like he’s regretting it and he even sing while saying his heart has Yuasa Hiromi, that moment was strange but at that same time laughable too. Well atleast it did ended well with Noe finally got back her tears,Shinichiro and Horomi ended up together.

    setsuke
    Reply

  25. Okay. that ending was somewhat of a let down for me. Personally, i was a noe fan, but i wouldnt have minded if hiromi was going to be the end girl, cause i figured if he did choose her, it wouldve been a beautiful ending either way. and i guess him hugging her is okay n all, but noe has NOBODY now. shin chose hiromi, and her brother isnt even there to support her anymore. I just cant understand why the girl who tries to make others happy in the series, ends up sad in the end? its cool hiromi has her happy ending, and aiko is happy too. but what about noe? when a girl who hasnt cried for several years ends up crying over sadness isnt a good thing people XD. i mean, even though hiromi was chosen, they couldve ended the series kind of differently. :/

    iPOOD
    Reply

  27. Well, that was a let down for me. I was really hoping for a Noe ending but like Lunita said, I guess he prefers the “emo-slut” more. Whatever. Time to move on to some newer, better animes coming up!

    Victor
    Reply

  28. I both love and hate the ending. …I was disappointed at first, but then i thought about it and came to the conclusion that he didn’t deserve Noe and that Noe deserved way better.

    That goodbye scene between Shin and Noe was soooo heartbreaking. I liked how Shin told her he loves Hiromi, but when he is with Noe his heart races. He really loved Noe, but I guess it was a matter of who he loved the most….

    Razz
    Reply

  30. Noe deserved way better!… And Hiromi and Shin deserve each other… I don’t dislike Shin nor do I like him, but Hiromi is the exact type of female I dislike…oh well…They were always pretty lame IMHO, and now they can go be lame together.

    Kain
    Reply

  32. Honestly what is wrong with you Noe fans.

    He chose the one he loved. WTF is wrong with you guys…

    Both Hiromi and Noe were good characters. “emo-slut” and all this crap, what’s with all the hating now…, this isn’t KGNE or Shuffle?

    This is still the best romance of the past year; far better than that Clannad trash with its “down syndrome is moe” mantra. Get a grip people; both characters were good but he could only end up with one.

    He loved them both for different reasons, but he loved Hiromi more in the romantic sense.

    vio55555
    Reply

  35. Honestly I don’t see how you can say that.

    Clannad’s ending was so expected that it became almost boring to watch as the show slowly meandered to its finish.

    The girls in True Tears, both Hiromi and Noe, were far more real and compelling emotionally than any of the Clannad girls in my opinion. Those were too neatly packaged and I didn’t particularly care for most of them by the end.

    The drama of True Tears peaked near the end and in some sense Shin did have feelings for both of the girls which was resolved at the end. I found it to be a vastly superior love story.

    vio55555
    Reply

  36. omg…!!!! i agree with leviahan! … its always that tipacal ending! why!??! ¬_¬ and @ vio 55555, clannad is like way better and its about to get better in the after story arc. and i thought this was gonna be a different anime without out the obvious end .. *sigh* well it was good but didnt exacly appeal to me as much now… so much for my name ! >_

    ShinForNoe!
    Reply

  37. Like vio55555 said, whats wrong with u guys? All these flaming because they dont have their “ending”. Oh well, whatever it’s useless what we say anyway.

    However, even I’m happy that he ends up with Hiromi. They didn’t show anything afterward as couple. I’ll say more when I watch the subs.

    AznSoulBoy
    Reply

  40. This Anime brokes down in the moment, he shouts “Yuasa Hiromi” in the last verse of Noe’s cockroach song.
    There is the great break, if Shin had shout “ISURUGI NOE” and run after her… what would had been perfect but…
    The producers decided for the worst ending they could choose, I can’t understand why Noe has to be alone, crying because Shin lied to her…

    If Shin had chased after her, hug her and say that he really loves her, that would be the perfect ending for me and thousands of other people…

    I think that i will never watch this show again

    Everyone who’s commenting on this post, calling me a freak or “your opinion sucks”: Please shut up!

    ShinxNoe forever

    virox
    Reply

  41. Well I didn’t see that coming. I honestly was hoping for Shin to choose Noe but oh well. We get what we get and there will be many of those who don’t like it and many of those who will like it. Nothing can be done. Let the fans flame and what not.

    And for the Clannad and True Tears comparison, I’m sorry but Clannad pwns True Tears. vio55555, ff you think Clannad isn’t as dramatic as this series, think again. You need to know the whole Clannad franchise to understand that point (game, series, movie and upcoming After Story). The characters in clannad are much more interesting than the girls in this series. True Tears doesn’t even compare to Clannad.

    Like Victor mentioned, a new season is upon us and that means newer, even better animes to look forward to. Oh and ShinForNoe!, I like yer name! haha.

    Invy-2pointOh
    Reply

  43. I agree with you AznSoulBoy; I loved both Noe and Hiromi; I don’t see why people couldn’t just accept it for what it is.

    It might just be as sad that had Noe won the posts would be exactly the opposite from most of the people here: it’d all be “Noe sucks” or “This anime is the worst of all time because Noe won” and all of the Noe fans would be like “This is the best romance anime ever… Noe FTW”.

    I don’t see how a single damn episode can change your view of the series that much just based on “who he ends up with”, Noe was a strong character and she was the better for the experience with the ability to love and accept her own tears by the end. There’s no reason for a shipping war over this anime…, both girls are strong on their own merits and Shin loved both of them in different ways.

    That’s all I’m really going to say about it, but I’ll never understand why people pick sides like this when they’re both very realistic girls in the way they express their emotions for Shin. That’s why we all started watching this in the first place; it shouldn’t be any different after 13.

    vio55555
    Reply

  46. The confession scene is embarassing, the dialogues is so crappy that it makes me cringe. A normal confession scene with normal dialogues will be much more better.

    BTW Hiromi shed too much tears. Episode 3(child), 9, 10, 12, 13. The writer mistakenly thinks that otakus (target audience for shounen romance anime and manga) like girls who shed tears easily, a weak and vulnerable girl that you feel like wanting to protect her. Well this is not true. I’m your typical otaku and I don’t like so much tears shedding. Just one or two tears shedding scene at crucial moments is adequate.

    moonmoomoo
    Reply

  47. Even as a devout ShinXNoe supporter I can’t really see a reason for all that flaming against Hiromi at the end. Sure she was quite annoying in the middle, but afterwards she got a lot better and I especially warmed up to her in ep11 and 12. What’s important is that there was lots of drama as is befitting for the final episode and, although I would have preferred for Shin to end up with Noe, it was still a great ending for a great romance anime.

    bearzerger
    Reply

  48. I don’t know how all the Noe lovers out there can really call this, a “typical ending”. Sure, he does end up with the girl who everyone thought at the beginning of the series was going to win, but there were also alot of moments along the way that swayed our opinions a bit that “This girl is going to be the one to win”.

    Heck, I pretty much thought it was over right at the end of episode 10, and then even then, they forced me to believe that Noe still had a chance, especially, when Shin ran off to Noe at the end of last episode. I was actually really excited for the episode because I was still uncertain about who was going to win. And judging by all the Noe fans comments from last week, and even further back, you guys truly believed that Noe had the best chance out of the two. And there was uncertainty among the Hiromi fans, believe me. Plus, it’s not really hard to call a victory for a girl when the girl only has one other real rival.

    Just because a show didn’t end how you wanted it to DOES NOT mean that it’s a bad show. Heck, if Hiromi lost all the Hiromi fans would probably be bashing the show too, and all the Noe fans would be saying that Hiromi sucks, blah, blah, blah. Personally, I never like to judge a show by its ending. I’d much rather judge the show by the ride that takes me to that ending, and in this shows case, it was one helluva ride. I’ve had plenty of shows not go my way for the ending, and I’ve never whined about the ending and said the whole show was garbage. It’s all a matter of opinion, but if you honestly think this was a bad show because the girl you wanted didn’t win, then you might as well stop watching these shows, cause it’s gonna happen a heck of a lot more. Not that i’m telling you to, but seriously, not everything goes your way, and you can’t decide Shin’s emotions for him. This is how the creator made him, and he obviously is one to believe that a childhood spent with someone you grew to love, is more important than someone you grew to love in under a year. So yes, you can call this a “typical ending”, but you just have to face the facts, this is the more “realistic ending” for Shin.

    Kuntzy
    Reply

  50. Thank you, Kuntzy and bearzerger.

    There are rational Noe fans out there like me who liked the series for what it’s worth. And it’s not like Shin didn’t have feelings for Noe; he was crying as he had to let her walk away and he sang the song.

    I felt bad for Noe, but the series really made me appreciate her as a character and the value she got out of loving Shin and his feelings for her even though they weren’t the same as his feelings for Hiromi which were in the “love” sense.

    And Noe got to move on and accept Raigomaru’s death as well as making other friends and being a normal girl again.

    AnimeOtakus
    Reply

  51. “Well this is not true. I’m your typical otaku and I don’t like so much tears shedding. Just one or two tears shedding scene at crucial moments is adequate.”

    o_o

    C’mon, you guys are like kids… the show was great for me, and the way that you discussed
    confirms that..very committed to the show.

    gretts

    Sona
    Reply

  53. Well, I wasn’t going to bother making a post because these final episodes just turn into a big flame war or shipper war. But I figure why not.

    It’s expected that Noe fans would moan and bitch if Hiromi won. It’d also be expected that Hiromi fans would bitch and moan if Noe won. But the simple fact is that the story has from the very first episode set a goal and went towards it. Now if many of the viewers missed things I suggest you rewatch all 13 again and maybe pick up on whats really happening in the story.

    From the get go it was clear who Shin loved in his heart. All of this started because he wanted to make Hiromi feel better and get rid of her tears. Lets not forget things so we can conveniently shape the story into what we want to see instead of what is actually being shown here.

    Noe was always set to be the person who would take Hiromis tears away, any blame as to mistreating Noe falls on Shin and also even more so on her own brother Jun. Noe up until the midway point in episode 12 was doing just the same thing many of you viewers have been. She saw only what she wanted to see, missing her brothers true feelings, missing Shins, and only thinking about herself. She says as much right in the episode.

    It’s not her fault as I said, she’s been too protected and sheltered by her brother. But enough about this, the truth to the matter is simple, Everything Shin has done from episode 1 to todays final was because of Hiromi. To deny this is to totally toss out the story in favor of your own fantasy.

    GP
    Reply

  57. UWAAAAA!!! i want to cry, unless you want to make me kill and strangle to death that hiromi to bits, i hate what they did to my favorite show of the season….. i want Noe to win, i know this is anime, but i’m still disappointed, give me one day to recover my sanity and maturity, but for now let me act like a kid, prone for taunting by the hiromi camp, stupid m33w for making that damn ending scene specially with that editor’s note in the end..

    i hate this day >_

    inoochan
    Reply

  58. Well, it ended as expected (and if you were seriously surprised, you need to watch more romance shows, folks)…

    It was a good show, but it had its share of flaws. My main gripe is that Shin ended up as the embodiment of what I hate in male leads. Wishy-washy, oblivious to the pain he causes to the girls by his indecisiveness, and completely passive unless poked and shoved. In other words, completely undeserving of ANY girl which showed an interest in him. Other than him, the characters were good, really good. I liked all the girls, and I’m glad to see Miyokichi succeeding in the end.

    Still, the story fell into the same trap which plagues most “artsy” shows: It raised much more questions than it could answer. What’s the big deal about Noe not crying to the very end? Started but not finished. What about the Raigomaru/Jibeta story? Also essentially unfinished. Ah well.

    Anyway, certainly worth watching. 8/10 from me.

    Mentar
    Reply

  60. Wow… Well, this was kinda expected. I really would prefer Noe, but I don’t think that could happen somehow.
    I just dislike how Hiromi acted in episode 12. But I guess this happy, I just feel bad for Noe.

    Feei
    Reply

  63. @GP: No, Noe was not that selfish. She always tried to help Shin, she even gave up on him after she realize he loves Hiromi. she always intend to make him happy (or fly). The only time she was selfish was when she and shin were together, she was in her own world and she tried to take shin with her but eventually realizing she can’t force him to be happy with her if he doesn’t really want to, but all in all her intention was to make the people she love happy.
    Hawever Hiromi was selfish from the beginning till the end, she thought of nathig but herself and how much she wanted Shin only for herself. Of course this is understandable, since most people would have act the same way, but I still think Noe is alot less selfish than Hiromi.
    Yet people see different things, so it’s all just opinions and with whom you more emotionally relate to.

    Leviahan
    Reply

  65. So glad is Hiromi, Noe is just not my taste a girl that treat you like a replacement chicken and feed you chicken feed is too weird for my taste. Some of you say Noe is a better character, hell yea in a very weird sort of ways, as for me I prefer normal girls.

    John
    Reply

  66. What’s with all this bashing of True Tears just because Hiromi won? Even if it didn’t end the way you wanted, it clearly is a good show for making everyone so tense for the last 12. If you’re going to bash True Tears just because the girl you liked didn’t win, then you really shouldn’t be watching this show.
    And about Clannad. I’ve read a few posts that have said that Clannad is “WAY” better than True Tears, but I have yet to see prrof of it. Which part is better? The completely predictable ending? Sure, I love Clannad too, but the ending was one hell of a disappointment to me as the series just got more and more predicatble. Read Omni’s post in Clannad – even he thinks so too. The After Story might be really good, but as we have yet to see it, it is unjust to compare something not even released to True Tears.

    PYROtechnic
    Reply

  67. Even though i liked Noe better as a character, i think it would of been best that Shin went with Hiromi, it makes a lot more sense. Noe from the start just wanted to gather tears, whereas the feelings between Shin and Hiromi were obvious from start to end. If Shin picked Noe it would of been unrealistic since he had feelings for Hiromi for a long time, and i don’t see why that should change just because Noe was there. Noe didn’t have any of those romantic mushy moments with Shin, they just seemed to be close friends, and Shin only went out with Noe because of Jun and Hiromi. Even when Shin went our with Noe it was still evident that his feelings towards Noe were not as strong as those he had for Hiromi. I don’t get the fuss over why Shin should of chose Noe, its unexpected, i guess people like ‘unexpected’ endings, but it makes no sense at all. Noe would kind of be portrayed as ‘home wrecker’ of the relationship between Hiromi and Shin, because they always had it and Noe just jumps in between. The feelings between Shin and Hiromi are more developed to have some sort of love relationship. Noe looks to cute and innocent to have that sort of thing anyway.

    Labu.Labu
    Reply

  68. @ShinxNoe Shippers

    What you don’t understand is that True Tears (current story of Shin/Hiromi/Noe) mirrors the (past story of Shin’s dad/Shin’s mom/Hiromi’s mom)

    Hiromi played the role of Shin’s mom, which explains why Shin’s mom didn’t understand her at first since she thought Hiromi was playing the role of Hiromi’s mom. Around episodes 8-9 Shin’s mom begins to understand that (Hiromi is probably doing all the same things she did 30 years ago; i.e. trying to date a random guy to not stir the boat) and does a “180” since she now understands that Hiromi is filling in her role. It also explains her line in ep 13; that the “waiting is hard” for Shin/Shin’s dad to go and talk to Noe/Hiromi’s mom.

    Noe plays the role of Hiromi’s mom which is that she’s the one who Shin/Shin’s dad wavers towards…, and probably the reason why Hiromi’s resentment to

    Shin plays the role of his dad, which is obvious to some extent, and the fact of course that he asks his dad when a man cries true tears, which is when of course, “his heart wavers”, so we know his dad went through this same kind of drama with the Shin’s mom=Hiromi, Hiromi’s mom=Noe.

    I think this completely serves as the answer to the general criticism leveled over the treatment of Shin’s mom and her relationship with Hiromi. We can pretty much completely conjecture based on the hints dropped after that, that the parallel to the past should clear up all of Shin’s mom’s original feelings in eps 1-9 that she thought Hiromi was like her mother, but in 10-13 she understands that Hiromi is actually like her.

    vio55555
    Reply

  70. *sigh* I wonder if all those who’re mudslinging realize they’re arguing about a fake imaginary relationship that is neither real nor matter to their own lives?

    Personally, I was still cheering for Aiko.

    Remy
    Reply

  72. Hiromi doing a split while be-spectacled???
    ((((OOOOOHHHHH NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!! MY TRUE TEAR’S ARE LEAKING OUT!!!!!))))..
    @leviahan…..hahahahaahahahahahah haaaaaaaaaaa ahahahahahaahah, in yo face sucka!!!!

    BROOKLYN otaku
    Reply

  73. @Omni or rather at your poll
    like Shakugan no Shana it’s best to think of R2 as a new season rather than a continuation as the gap the two seasons took place is quite big actually so you should start to blog it as Code Geass R2 – 01. Of course it’s your call in the end also are you going to be posting a entry on what shows your going to be blogging? I’m positive you’ll be blogging Macross, and Code Geass but that’s about it.

    Hei
    Reply

  74. it’s not fair to blame hiromi.i guess it’s expected to be selfish with a person tat u love since u r a child but tat guy too dense to notice it.It must be a pain.tat’s y she won’t believe shin when he said he want to go out with her at first. but i’m glad shin is true to his feelings.It’s pretty obvious he likes Hiromi from the start but too scared(maybe) to confess and hiromi knows this too(the feeling must be excruciating).

    ayumi
    Reply

  75. Noe is broken. She a cute girl but has some mental issues. Hiromi just lacks self confidence in herself and Shin so she can be fixed. But Noe a psychiatrists dream. Not to mention her own brother is warm for her form. That doesn’t help matters either.

    Splash
    Reply

  77. Wow. You Hiromi rooters are no different from the Noe rooters. If you keep going on saying that the decision was just and rub it in, you are just as stupid as the noe rooters who wished it happened. Even trying to force an explaination for the reasoning behind why Shin chose Hiromi is just as bad as Noe fans bashing the series for not getting what they want. You are just showing to us that you are rubbing it in. Get over it people. An ending is an ending. If you guys want to, either right your own damn fanfics or just let the story be. This goes for everyone, Noe and Hiromi rooters alike. You people know who you are. Grow up!

    Victor
    Reply

  78. I guess, I failed predicting the ending… I thought it would be a Noe ending…I prefer Hiromi… for some reason, I tend to like a heroine who has issues in the past or a heroine who has just created an issue.

    Alec
    Reply

  79. I have not watched this last episode yet but I will say that Hiromi x Shin is the proper pairing. Why? The first few episodes of this anime showed us that Shin already had feelings for Hiromi. They already have some history as shown through their childhood relationship. Also, since Hiromi spent some time living at Shin’ichiro’s abode, they would have more or less known known each other better. Noe only recently entered his life and there was no substantial amount of time for her to overwrite Shin’s feelings for Hiromi. Kudos to the writers of True Tears for making us doubtful of the final pairing throughout the length of this anime.

    If there was any romance anime that didn’t end well it would be Kimikiss. I’ve posted why on another person’s blog.

    Analytical Critic
    Reply

  83. Haha i see so many angry souls around here. This only shows that life isnt like a bed of rose, and that there are always ups and downs. The reason they end up with hiromi because majority like it that way, being the “special” ones out there you all are bound to be left out and thats sad, always has been the case.

    But no matter whoever ends up with who it is the process of the anime that determine whether its good or just mediocre, not the ending. Just because of the ending you guys start condemning the anime? Thats very shallow personality, or maybe you got too emotional about it? Well do reflect on that.

    So far as you all realise i’m talking about the attitude of the fans out there and not the anime itself. I’ve seen so many “blamers” and “victims” mindset people out there and it worries me.

    Momboos
    Reply

  84. @Kiri
    That is the stupidest thing I ever heard. Just because they are newcomers doesn’t mean they have a chance. Most of the animes out there have newcomers ending up with the main character. Childhood friend status doesn’t mean you are guaranteed anything. That even applies in real-life -_-

    @Victor
    You do have a point that the Hiromi shippers are being arrogant but they way you worded it was “awkward.” I do agree that many of the Hiromi shippers are just as arrogant and dumb as the Noe shippers after seeing some of the arguments here and the past episodes. You don’t need to brag or offer some kind of a detailed explanation on why Shin ended up with Hiromi. It happened. The fact is that it happened. There will be fans that are not satisfied with that outcome. That is the same for many romance animes out there. No need to go out and say “Hiromi FTW!!! Noe loses!!!” or something of that sort. That’s just plain arrogant.

    Noe fans so hell-bent on not getting the ending they want need to accept it and move on. That’s why we have fanfics. Make some up if you don’t like the ending of the series. Get over it and watch some other animes.

    Invy-2pointOh
    Reply

  85. Well, I’m disappointed…
    Aside from shipping preference (I was rooting for Noe), I feel cheated for Noe. In my opinion, Shin didn’t really help her actively to find her tears back, and the way she recovers them is a bit anticlimactic. After all she did for him, that’s a pity.
    It really reeks of bad end for Noe. I knew she would be totally alone if Shin rejected her, but they randomly wrote her some friends in the end to make up for it. We don’t even get to see how she opens herself up to others.
    So as a Noe fan, I’m not angry, I’m just sad for her.

    eurys
    Reply

  86. @PYROtechnic
    I think Clannad was a good comedy, but the romance aspect was completely retarded, because the characters are emotionally on third grade level. Compared to that Shinichiro and co. are far more mature. They have the courage to act on their feelings even if they might fail and each actually deeply thinks about his or her relationships.

    bearzerger
    Reply

  89. YES!!! Justice! I was like: “oh, it’s so predictable, Noe ending blah blah blah…” but NO! And if feels GOOD! YES! Like pineapples in hot SAUCE! With oysters and marshmallows!! HELL YEAH! DAMMIT! LEMON CURRY!!

    I usually prefer the childhood friend, for some reason I don’t have the energy to tell you about. Nor a reason. And it’s not always the childhood friend that “wins”, just take a look at Shuffle, dammit.

    Levy
    Reply

  90. I still think the most brilliant thing is the parallel between Shin’s story and his dad’s story.

    If you play close attention it completely explains Shin’s mother’s actions towards Hiromi, which seemed to be questionable early on…

    Absolutely brilliant stuff.

    Io
    Reply

  91. @eurys

    Those are my feelings too, ok, Shin ended with Hiromi… big deal w/e. But at least we get to see Aiko and Nobuse relationship is growing, but Noe just gets ditched… and suddenly she is all happy and surrounded by friends that came out of nowhere… WTF!? where did those friends came from? since when people stop considering her a weirdo and started to make friends with her? they just pulled that end for Noe out of their ass.

    A nice boat for Noe would have been better, Ronery Noe is too painfull for me to watc h ;_;

    And those saying Clannad was better than this, sorry i disagree, Clannad ending was written before it started it´s production, so everyone who played the game or spoiled themselves already knew the ending, besides, Clannad has Fuko and his fucking random moments… i hated that shit, dropped the show because of that. For true tears the writters already had the ending written, but the way the show was made, made us all speculate about who was going to win at the end (Fuck you all of you saying “obvious ending was obvious”, that´s not what you were saying a week ago, or weeks before chapter 12).

    So yeah, True tears was the best winter show and one of the best romance/harem shows i have watched (Shuffle! was idiotic for me and i didn´t even passed chapter 1 of KGNE, way too boring for me), but they could have given us a better ending (and no, i don´t mean a ShinxNoe one).

    Oh well, they´re elevens…

    Shigure
    Reply

  92. Wow, what a great romance series of this season. I simply loved how the writers kept me guessing until the end. I thought for sure it would be Hiromi ending after ep11. Then I changed my mind after ep12. And then ep13 just blew me away!

    I absolutely agree with everyone who has said that an anime’s quality cannot be only determined based on the ending. Sure, you may not like the ending, but you can’t deny the fact that you watched True Tears to the very last episode, soaking in each episode and part of plot with excitement, anticipation, and hope. And for those of you who did that, only to say you “hate” True Tears after ep11, it’s a little unfair, no?

    I’m a Hiromi x Shin fan, and I thought they suited each other. Noe was a brilliant character whom I loved dearly. She was mature, smart, caring…just an all-around awesome person. But the writers chose to end it this way…and there’s nothing we fans can do about it (but fanfic will live on!). I do feel sad for Noe at the end, because she doesn’t “end up” with anyone–but at the same time, she’s not alone at all. Her brother will always love her (whether he grows out of the sister-complex or not), and Shin will always love her–but as a dear dear friend. They will, no doubt, help Noe to be at her full potential. Basically, while they are no longer supporting her from underneath her and around her as a foundation and as a shield, respectively, they are pulling Noe forward towards something new. And that is the best thing for Noe now.

    Windaerie
    Reply

  96. Ooh, flame wars between otakus! So irresistible…
    Chill out, some of you (“oh-i-hate-hiromi”, “oh-i-hate-noe”, “stupid-ending”, “i-hate-you-all”) sound like the very same people who kill themselves/others over a typical soap opera. Heck, life is not fair – you can’t always have your way/ending. Might as well say you demand a 6-some ending with the 2 boys + 3 girls + roast chicken, and throw in a couple of Gundams for that matter. And even then it’s still not as twisted as i suspect some of you are. Maybe you could write a better story and get a company animate it? I believe that if you don’t like something, put up, shut up, or fix it yourself.

    Regardless of the ending i think it’s a nice show, though maybe a bit too emo/mushy at times, and maybe too artificial in some parts, and somewhat wishy-washy – but maybe that’s why it’s a show. And it’s JUST A SHOW. Get a life!

    RAMBot
    Reply

  97. Leviahan:

    I can reverse your attitude:

    This is just idiotic! Hiromi is so much better character than Hiromi! (you need some grammar editing here)
    All these idiots only like her because they are pornfags and moefags.
    …

    Now you know you don’t really have anything to back you up.

    asdf
    Reply

  98. Jesus christ, so much flaming going on..

    Although I’m disappointed that Noe didn’t win in the end, I’m happy that she finally moved on (with her tears and all). It’s the journey that matters, not the destination, and in that respect I found True Tears very satisfying. Definitely my favorite of the season.

    The problem is that all these idiot fanboys are going to drag the show down every chance they get. Seriously, watch them go on every anime review site and give it horrible ratings, and ridicule the show at every forum and blog they can possibly find. *sigh* Anyways, that’s all for my little rant. Certainly going to miss watching this show every Saturday.

    Cytex
    Reply

  102. I thought that it was great for Shin to end up with Hiromi, as throughout the entire story, I never saw a fit with Shin and Noe. Even that last part of the show, where Shin was singing the song that Noe always sang, felt really contrived to me. I did not even shed a tear. Noe’s final situation, however, was a little saddening, but I think even at the end, it felt like the producers were masking her emotions.

    As for the ending, even though it went the way I wanted it to (Shin and Hiromi), it felt sort of anti-climactic. A shared kiss between the two would’ve been good. More tears would’ve been good. Overall, it felt sort of mellow, lacking emotion, which is why I think they could’ve done a better job. Normally, the last episode in a drama series like this, makes me cry and I was disappointed that I didn’t feel that way.

    Cyrilix
    Reply

  104. Attention Noefags: BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWW!
    I bask in your tears! Hiromi ftw 😀

    Not a bad show, it kept people guessing to the end. Always fun! It did lack the tear-shedding I had expected but no matter. Now to wonder what show to watch next…

    AnonK
    Reply

  106. YAY! Even though I like Hiromi AND Noe, I like this ending because it was the opposite of what I thought was going to happen. I thought that Shin would end up with Noe, so I was pleasantly surprised. I don’t understand many people’s attitude to the ending though. Just because Shin didn’t end up with Noe, doesn’t make the series a let down/sucky. And character bashing? Is not cool.

    I thought it was a satisfactory ending- true tears really is a great series.

    Mary
    Reply

  107. Why are so much of the Noe fans totally ecstaticly unreserved and tactless people? ._. We don’t flame Noe(or at least most). She’s a good character, just as hiromi was. It’s just the decision that the directors has made. Both characters do have their own share of fans.

    Mike
    Reply

  109. u know what… guess who is the biggest loser here?

    It’s not Aiko, not even Noe, both of them ‘win’ in their own different ways, although Shin didn’t choose them. The biggest losers are those noefags who complained that this series sucks simply because Shin didn’t choose their fav girl. Heck, even Noe has already got over this, got her tears back and moves forward, only the noefags are still whining right now. Get over it noefags.

    noefags are so ggpwnt right now LOL.

    YESSS
    Reply

  110. Here we go again…more flaming.
    Anyway, I watched it and I don’t really know what to say. I’m happy and sad at the same time, really weird. Like I said before, they should make Shin and Hiromo spending some times together or something like that or at least a kiss, but no. That’s my only complaint. I feel sad for Noe, actually i feel very sad for her even though she moved on.

    Anyway, i really enjoyed this anime. It’s been a long time that I wasn’t so much excited and guessing what will happen in each episode.

    AznSoulBoy
    Reply

  111. Honestly guys, the flaming is worthless.

    Both Noe and Hiromi are among the most realistically portrayed in their self-doubts as well as their emotional depth of shounen romance heroines in a long while.

    Noe did find resolution in that Shin’s feelings for her became her wings because he did have feelings for her that were real.

    Hiromi found resolution in not having to doubt Shin’s feelings for her.

    Shin was able to finish things properly like his father was unable to 20 years ago when he left Shin’s mother hating Hiromi’s mother.

    The series ties all of this in beautifully and gives us a graceful ending worthy of the previous 12 episodes.

    Io
    Reply

  112. @lo – I agree completely, IMO the story ties itself up beautifully, and each characters were able to find closure to their story, regardless of whether their fans liked it nor not.

    Mike
    Reply

  114. I’m a Hiromi fan and I think they did a great job with how it ended in fairness to Noe. Shin could have loved Noe if he didn’t love Hiromi. If they would have got to know each other more he could have been with her, but Hiromi would always be in the back of his mind. He dumped her, but he did obviously like her. He just liked Hiromi more.

    anne
    Reply

  115. Ah the child hood friend won which was expected ( just finished Watching Kimikiss Pure Rouge ) so had a strong feeling it would go this way. Although i was a Noe fan i still think thier were several moments where it could ahve gone either way thoughout the series.

    Really good series imo.

    Andrew
    Reply

  120. You Noe-fans are nuts. Hiromi was a much more developed and complex character. She’s smart, athletic, but vulnerable, and lashes out. She realizes she has problems, and she’s trying to improve and mature into an adult. Noe is a complete child-like character. When people say, ohhh, children see the world in a completely different way, it’s so interesting, that’s Noe. I pity her, but I’d go for the girl who’s living in my own age group.

    otakuatwork
    Reply

  121. That was great!

    wait…I don’t get it. What happened at the end? And what is Shin’s dad’s job anyway???? I thought he was a dancer? This was such a “life goes on” type episode >

    rufe
    Reply

  123. oh geez, i’m a noe fan and the ending was a real let-down for me, but not for hiromi fans (good for them d(^_^)b). omg before i was gonna watch i was hoping for noexshinichiro, but omg once i saw how much shin’ichiro was interacting with hiromi and his fixed resolve, i could tell it wasn’t gonna end with noe. good for all the hiromi fans, thats great i guess. for me…i’m sad. i wished they had two seperate episodes so that you could choose the one you wanted him to be with. The hiromi ending was great and all, but didnt drive as much suspense and excitement that i hoped for. It’s interesting though how they seperated noe and the theories of the picture book from shin’ichiro so that he falls in love with hiromi rather than noe. I would just wish that the creators would make one, just one more episode for the noe fans (that alters the story for a different ending), but i know thats not gonna happen. T-T

    Kyle
    Reply

  124. People, be happy the anime had you guessing until the end. And not the long drawn-out type of ending, either. It really could have been either Hiromi or Noe all the way through.

    And, apart from the ending, has anyone else noticed the production values skyrocketing this episode? I mean, just look at those waves. Shinkai Makoto couldn’t have done a better job (he would have taken a lot longer, though).

    Wannabe Otaku
    Reply

  130. God the end was freaking art.

    Long live NoexShin.

    How can Shin say he loves Hiromi when he says he falters around Noe? Lol freaking rage; it’s like he “loves” Hiromi impulsively.

    Though Hiromi finally did something worthy of respect this episode (letting Shin decide for himself as opposed to her self-centred declaration to Noe in the previous epidsode), it really fails to make up for how much Noe inspires and impacts upon Shin’s life. His motivation, his courage; Noe means the world to him, and yet he fails to see it. In retrospect I suppose it’s this inherent understanding that makes me feel so sad about the ending. I don’t think the series is generic, and I don’t dislike Hiromi (or do I?) but the aforementioned potential and the quality of Noe and Shin’s affinity for one another far outshines anything that Hiromi can ever bring to him.

    That said, I still loved True Tears; long live Noe.

    Thanks for blogging Omni, as usual you rock. =]
    I

    esquirek
    Reply

  131. Noe x Shin’chiro for me.

    If Hiromi did love Shin, she should not have made up that lie about her liking Jun, just to protect herself. Nobody wouldn’t get hurt. But well, in reality, in real love I mean, this kind of thing actually happens.

    I also hated Hiromi for telling Noe to leave she and Shin alone because she’s confident that Shin loves her. Had Shin seen that, I wonder if his heart will still waver.

    But well, it’s their story, not ours.

    Makkun
    Reply

  132. And, apart from the ending, has anyone else noticed the production values skyrocketing this episode? I mean, just look at those waves. Shinkai Makoto couldn’t have done a better job (he would have taken a lot longer, though).

    xDD

    Btw. I’m glad Hiromi won, i love this kind of emo characters.

    eldaron
    Reply

  135. I see some mature comments and some pretty childish ones around here. Well do forgive those that are just going through their puberty as their hormone rages and resulted in their extreme behaviors that look so damn pathetic. You know who you are, both Hiromi fans and Noe fans alike. Words to describe people like that; pure stupidity, hopelessly childish, utterly brainless, emotional freaks. Please do kill each other and we’ll see lesser such people around in this world.

    Momboos
    Reply

  137. Loved the finale and not gonna join the flame war. But just one thing though, Clannad, itself is not better than True Tears. But Clannad’s after story IS 10x better than True Tears whether it be Nagisa’s route especially Tomoyo’s After(I can’t think of anything off the top of my head that can top Tomoyo’s After story for that matter) Clannad is just the setup for the real meat of the story which is the after stories.

    Random guy
    Reply

  141. Ahhhh we lost. *shakes fist at P.A. Works and Shin*
    I still like Noe more than Hiromi after all this time…
    Damn youuuuu!!! Sigh, the pairings I support always loses XD. This is the ending that I pretty much predicted as well. Sigh.

    At least Miyokichi got together with Aiko. NICE GUYS FOR THE WIN!!!!!

    With that said, still a great show. Good job PA Works. Looking forward to their next thing…now bring on Spring season!

    W-General
    Reply

  142. @Momboos: It’s simply what happens when you get emotionly attached to a character, it become very important for you. If you were anable to get attached to anyone, well good for you. But to despise us like this, claiming you are better than us (how original of you), you have proven me that you’re certainly not.

    Leviahan
    Reply

  143. The pairing as i see after i watched the espisode gives a feeling that was pretty vague and kinda just for the closure. Instead i feel like Noe gets more of the limelight in this episode. Lastly shin was able to indirectly help her get back her tears isnt it? Tho i was initially a shin X hiromi fans (which somehow becomes neutral), i think noe kinda win the hearts of the audiences aint it?

    Momboos
    Reply

  144. To me it was a great anime, there was drama and the script was written brilliantly, pitting all three girls against Shin but it was a two way fight near the end. Though I was rooting for Noe and was surprised it went the other way, I give credit for the producers for making me stand on my seat to see the final out come. It was a well matured anime which deals with many issues such as relationships, family and friendships that gave it a quality that many other animes of this genre didn’t have.

    In respect to Noe I think she was the more mature and stronger among the three. She was the one that managed to lift Shin/Raigomaru up to where he could finally fly, of which is to acknowledge his true feeling and face it. She took it onto herself when she sang at the beach, acknowledging that Shin had feelings for Hiromi and even at the end went bravely ahead even as Shin confessed his feelings of who he liked and in the end even when she was alone, she faced it to the best of her ability, many qualities which Horimo spent years wasting, of fearing her action and then let chances go by with inaction and selfishly only acted when she realised that someone else was catching Shin’s heart. At least the exchange between Aiko and Noe was more civilised. Its a bit sad that Noe got the end of the short stick but kudos for an excellent anime that consistently gave excellent artwork, great script and wonderful song inserts. Wish there were more such animes.

    Kervin
    Reply

  145. I have to say that this was an excellently executed series. It kept everyone guessing to some degree all the way to the end. And some may feel disappointed but accepting of the end, I think everyone can feel empathy for the Noe character. To have to gain back the tears she thought she had lost by basically realizing her first love had never really felt the same way about her must be the worst feeling of betrayal in the world. And she took it the best that she could and that certainly makes her the hero of this anime in my book. And I’ll always look back on this show as one of favorites even if the couple I rooted for didn’t happen I’ll always have the memories of happier times to back look at; just the way I think Noe would as well.

    JacksMom
    Reply

  146. this anime really show some good and quite deep stuff……

    IMO Noe is the real heroine of the story.
    The real heroine doesn’t have to actually be with the main guy.

    Hiromi won Shin in her own right after all that she did.
    She went emo and cry like babies wanting that toy(aka shin) but who cares…. she doesn’t even care as long as it could make her win what she want. IMO, it must be harsh for Hiromi to go THAT far for the sake of pairing victory, in this matter….. Noe PALE to Hiromi in terms of desperation. ( does desperation = amount of love ??? I dont know. )

    well… this is a sight that you often see IRL anyway…..lol

    Noe is a stronger charactor than Hiromi. I bet that Shin knows that Noe can cope with the disappointment better than Hiromi. also…. Noe’s been taken care of too much already ( by her bro ) in contrast to Hiromi who was alone all that time.( its probably time for Noe to come out of the shell, accept the truth and stop with the “selective sight” )

    The end justify the means.
    although I’m Noe’s fan with all my might… I gotta admit that “rationally”, Hiromi deserve it more than Noe and this ending is perfectly concluded.

    It is something more than love that Shin and Noe offer to each other.
    I love this series ^^.
    thx omni for blogging this ^^.

    LighTdR
    Reply

  147. Personally, i thought this episode was a little odd in some respects. For instance, when Shin hugged Hiromi, his face looked completely emotionless. The producers made it seem like he was hugging Hiromi because he was forced to, which just seemed awkward to me. As for Noe, it feels a little odd that they left her alone. However, I think it’s amazing how they portrayed the character development in Noe, Shin, and Hiromi throughout the past 13 weeks this show has aired.

    And as for the flame war, all I have to say is: why do most of the people here see this as a zero sum game where if one loses, the other wins? I see it more as a win win situation where both Noe and Hiromi won in their own way.

    Anyhow, this series, in general, was amazing. This is probably one of the few that actually kept me interested to the very end. Kudos to the producers for creating such a compelling and amazing show.

    twilightlegacy
    Reply

  148. i didn’t know there so much flame wars going on here. but in respect to the to the creators this is an excellent anime. personally i don’t have a fan base in this. i only watch this anime for fun and its story to tell like reading a book. this anime is a step above what i’ve seen so far. the ending was great with something to think about in real life. to me this is what stand out the most about it’s artwork was amazing. and as for the flame wars goin on here stop its the end of this production. you know you like the ending with graet joy and tears for some of you. in all i think this applies in real life, and some its problem presented to us fear of rejection, doubting in oneself, believing in yourself this all apply in a real life situation pack in one story. this anime should to your favorite anime list.

    noone
    Reply

  149. dannggg… episode 12 so totally fooled me. I’m a bit disappointed in the ending not mainly because Hiromi won but because the producers had me going from blah at episode 11, then OMG on episode 12. I was expecting a Hiromi ending and if I would have gotten a Noe one, it would have totally blindsided me. (which is a good thing!). I would have applauded the producers for giving me an ending that I was totally wasn’t expecting.

    Sadly it wasn’t meant to be. ~_~

    Kaila
    Reply

  150. Perfect ending to a perfect show! Can’t imagine watching anything in the near future that will stack up to this. so sad to see this, Clannad, KimiKiss, and Spice and Wolf all over now ;_; They were my favorite shows!

    Karisu
    Reply

  152. Great ending, but really sad. I was hoping since the beginning that he ended up with Noe. And everyone on here who’s ‘insulting’ the noe lovers saying things like “HA Hiromi won! Noe fags!” Seriously, get a life. Noe was just a better person, easy as that. Think about it. When Shin told Noe at the end “I’m in love with Hiromi” all she did was nodded and understood his feelings. Hiromi on the other hand, went up to Noe, and told her to just stay away. She also was trying too hard to win back Shin. If she had just acted the way Noe had, maybe shinXnoe would be together. A great anime, though. It was really sad when Noe cried at the end..

    Kameko
    Reply

  153. @Kameko:

    So you would hate Hiromi for acting on her feelings, being honest with herself, and trying to get the person she loves? Love is not that simple. It’s not “the cutest person” or “the nicest person” that wins. I think you fail to see Hiromi’s depth of character. Whether or not this is because you’re blinded by the fact that Noe has a saintly personality and is a child, I don’t know, but you’re not being fair to both sides, nor are you being realistic.

    Cyrilix
    Reply

  154. Am I the only one waiting to know what random curiosity will blog. We’re waiting to see the summer season line up which by the way starts this week.

    ************

    Please Hurry Up

    Sniper
    Reply

  156. Hi! Well the doubts disapeared …but is sad for me … i prefered Noe than Hiromi. I don`t hate Hiromi but I think it would we a better ending if Shinichirou ends with Noe… ohhh im sad… the show its beautiful no one cant doubt about it …but i really hate how things turn ..poor Noe she has all that shinchirou need mature ands imagination …
    well that`s what I think

    Yukirumo
    Reply

  160. Wow, thanks for the translation. I understand this episode more now. That’s probably why I had an impression that it’s going to be a Noe ending. Shinichiro danced and “flew” for Noe in episode 12 and, in consolation, he did admit that it was true. I thought the girl who brings out the best in Shin will be the chosen girl but darn writers lol Still, I guess the amount of time loving someone still wouldn’t amount to a newfound encounter. 😐

    @ Momboos

    “Instead i feel like Noe gets more of the limelight in this episode. Lastly shin was able to indirectly help her get back her tears isnt it? Tho i was initially a shin X hiromi fans (which somehow becomes neutral), i think noe kinda win the hearts of the audiences aint it?”

    Exactly. I think the writers just purposely want to break our hearts to emphasize the show’s title. True Tears. Because seriously, they made Noe the most enigmatic in the show who just brightens the place and made her cry in the end. Surprisingly, I really didn’t get a bad vibe from it all, if anything, it’s optimistic and makes you love Noe even more. Let’s face it. The girl who brought the MOST change in Shin is Noe even if he chose to stay loyal to Hiromi. That’s what I love about NoexShin. ^__^ Their bond is special. If they’re gonna do another true tears series, a second season with Noe as the main character will be great lol It’s Springtime for Noe!

    ani_d
    Reply

  161. Now that I think about it, this anime was all in all awesome.
    @Momboos & ani_d: your words inspire, and now I’m able to see the greater picture of this show. Thank you both.
    I’m sorry I raged earlier.

    Leviahan
    Reply

  162. I think anyone who’s watched this show for the full 13 episodes and stayed through it has to feel that it was worth it after all of this.

    Everything is resolved and Noe manages to finally become complete and look confidently towards the future. I’ll admit that it was hard seeing her walk away from Shin, since I like her, but in the end everything before made sense.

    The stuff about Shin’s mom in the first 7 episodes is all explained by the whole connection of Shin’s mom to Hiromi and Shin’s dad to Shin through their words to each other as a parallel to the past.

    Either way, a solid show and I hope we get more of this kind of drama in the future.

    Ion
    Reply

  163. this ending sucks , i completely agree with virox in “in the moment, he shouts “Yuasa Hiromi” in the last verse of Noe’s cockroach song.
    There is the great break, if Shin had shout “ISURUGI NOE” and run after her… what would had been perfect but…
    The producers decided for the worst ending they could choose, I can’t understand why Noe has to be alone, crying because Shin lied to her…”

    it will be perfectttttt really this anime break my heart more than the part in candy candy when terry leaves candy T_T fuckkkkk
    id really hope the producers make a OVA for the heartbreak-noe-fans
    or make a second season when shinichiro accept loving Noe ;_;

    fuck emo-slut why the boring girl always win T_T

    Melyyy
    Reply

  164. I was and still am pretty upset with this ending. I was for Noe and Shin from the start. But at least Shin cried for Noe. And this anime once again shows that all guys are bastards. At least the guys I know.

    hysterical
    Reply

  166. I agree, it should have been NOE and not Hitomi… this is a really crappy ending it was so predictable, i should have just watched the first episode and the last.

    Probably the worse ending i have ever seen!

    Irisray
    Reply

  167. There seems to be this strange connection all of you have here where “a girl who is intellectually stimulating” somehow must therefore be the protaganist’s girlfriend. Noe and Shin had no romantic chemistry while he did with Hiromi. You can kind of see it throughout the whole show.

    Also it’s kind of amusing when people hate on Hiromi when she expresses the whole range of human emotions and undergoes the greatest character development of everyone else.

    Eh
    Reply

  168. @Eh:

    Totally agreed with you on the chemistry part. It’s what I’ve been trying to say for a while. There’s affection and there’s mutual friendship but no romance whatsoever. For Noe to acquire the status of girlfriend would be a true “WTF” in my eyes.

    Cyrilix
    Reply

  169. I don’t see why the “Noe fans” are so upset.

    You guys have gone beyond admiring what her character really stands for and are trashing the series for no real purpose.

    Shin DID love Noe. He admits this openly in the last episode, but he had already decided in the romantic sense that he was going to love Hiromi as he always had.

    His heart did waver towards Noe, but she is able to move on accepting his feelings and beliefs in her as what they are.

    Shin does become Noe’s wings at the end and she is able to become an emotionally complete person.

    Sure it is bittersweet for Noe in the romantic sense, but Noe fans should be happy that she found the personal resolve to move forwards.

    Ionic
    Reply

  170. i dont know if anyone noticed, but the last scene with NOE standing in front of jibeta’s cage. she seemed to have change, having one of those really calm-mature-heroine type of look on her face (which seriosuly isn’t bad O_o), if she was like this from the beginning, i would’ve become her fan no doubt!

    but other than that… HIROMI FTW XD (wtb… kiss-scene)

    ZeeVee
    Reply

  172. Finally! We have a winrar! I’ve always been for a ShinxHiromi ending. (I can’t take another sad ending after watching Byousoku 5cm) =3
    This is definately a Masterpeice in my book.

    Dragoon
    Reply

  179. *sigh…* definitely not the ending i was hoping for. Either ending would have left an emotional impact, but I was rooting for Noe for a while since Hiromi’s type of character is already too common in animes (girl who likes guy but doesn’t admit it until its the most inconvenient time) But I guess some can argue Noe’s peppy character is common too… Either way, I prefer happy, peppy girls over emotional, flakey girls.

    jinnybloo
    Reply

  180. Great series, great ending. Emotional all around, and everything came back to Shin. He loved both and it showed, but he had already decided to be a “life-partner” to Hiromi in 10 and closed off his feelings for Noe even though she really inspired him.

    Ionic
    Reply

  182. I really liked the anime. I would’ve liked it more if it had ended for noe. I was kinda sad at the end because they made Noe into a stand-alone character. I felt it would’ve a more livelier ending with Noe giving more emotion and energy to the ending. I thought the Hiromi was a great ending too, but not as I anticipated. Throughout the anime, people have said stuff like Hiromi was more mature and honest and Noe was more of a childlike character. But in my opinion (not hating or anything) Hiromi kinda felt emotionless through most of the True Tears anime, just look at the expression of her face. People said shes honest, but she lied to herself and Shin’ichiro through parts of the anime as well. There’s really no more point in debating, since the anime is over and the ending is final. The ending was fantastic and I wished they could’ve done more the the final episode to make it much more interesting like the episodes prior. I still wished that the makers of True Tears would make an episode especially for the Noe fans that are unhappy with the Hiromi and Shin’ichiro ending. Like any other anime, you can’t always tell exactly what is going to happen, its unexpected and just like that.

    Felix
    Reply

  183. @Lumin:

    A good anime is not ruined by “shippers”. Only your perception ruins a good anime. If the comments bother you, then the best conscious decision to make would be to not read them or to read them selectively. “Shippers” have a right to express their feelings on the topic just like anyone else. The importance lies in how it is expressed, whether it be in a reasonable and logical way, or in an unjustified, inflammatory way.

    Cyrilix
    Reply

  184. wait he loved both of them right…it seemed he had stronger feelings for noe, personally i think he is stupid, but i think hiromi blew her chance and shouldnt get another one, i felt a stronger connection between noe and him…oh well still a good ending i guess

    Amanda
    Reply

  185. Amanda, he loved both of them but he decided in episode 9-10 that he wanted to be there for Hiromi since she’s the one he’d always loved since way back in the past.

    His love for Noe was deep in the sense that she inspired him and made his heart race, but he still loved Hiromi romantically and wanted to be with her.

    I don’t think he loved Noe more per se (or he would have chosen her and not really returned to Hiromi); he loved Noe in a different way from how he always wanted to be there for Hiromi.

    vio55555
    Reply

  186. I agree with vio55555 on the reason why Shinichrou’s mom changed her attitude towards Hiromi (3/29 comment) and the difference between Hiromi and Noe in the heart of Shinichirou (4/1 comment). I think Shinichirou cried at the end was because he realized his heart was “shaken” by Noe even though he always believed (or wanted to believe) that he loved Hiromi. Unlike stereotypical characters in dating games, Shinichirou is a decent person who does not just accept anyone’s advance. In fact he rejected Aiko and even once for Hiromi (Ep. 13 in her apartment). It is only reasonable for a person with integrity like him to feel shame when he betrayed Hiromi once for going out with Noe and had to betray Noe later for being honest with himself. Over all, he really made a lot of the right decisions to make a happy ending possible for everyone– even for Noe. (Noe started to make friends at the very end.)

    True Tears is remarkable in the sense that it has all the cliches in a romantic comedy. Yet each time an old conflict is quickly resolve, only to give rise to a new one. In the early part of the series, Hiromi pretended to want to make friend with Noe. Then Noe exposed Hiromi’s lie right away. Later Shinichirou made a pack with Jun. But the secret wasn’t kept for long either. No relationship comes easy in True Tears. People spin and spin and spin. But at the end, a relationship has no meaning unless people are honest with themselves and towards other. I think this is what makes True Tears such a remarkable story.

    Matroid
    Reply

  190. Ok this ending i love/hate
    I just feel so sorry for NOE i mean comeon its so unfair for her
    and the changing of the cockroach song is heartbreaking but still
    HIROMI FTW

    Konoha's Golden Flash
    Reply

  192. -cries a river- i was sooo hoping for noe to end up with shin T__T!!

    IM soooooooooooooo saaad! how come no anime ever end the way i want them to? for example, canvas 2 and now this T_T KILLLL HIRROMIII!!

    zecki
    Reply

  193. It ended perfectly. He never really loved Noe in the way that he loved Hiromi. Shin learned from Noe how to make Hiromi stop crying… he learned what it meant to wipe away someone else’s tears. Noe learned to stop letting her soul cry. She learned how to let other people in. Hiromi and Shin are perfect for eachother, no matter what way that you look at it. He never gave his heart to Noe, he let her open his heart up enough to finally be able to wipe away the tears that Hiriomi was always sheding.

    eirowen
    Reply

  194. leviahan, quit your damn whining. If you’ve been following the plot you’d know that
    Shin loved Hiromi way more than Noe.

    sheesh, you remind me of those annoying Haruka fans for KGNE/Rumbling Hearts who whined
    about how Haruka should’ve won.

    good anime
    Reply

  198. yay hiromi. 100$ most people who wanted noe watched “ef- a tale of memories” and are influenced by that.

    hiromi = much better in my opinion (+

    True Tears = One of the best Animes!!

    (=
    Reply

  199. im getting each time more and mores disapointed of the writters twists and progress of history.
    in this anime the winner was a woman that only atribute is being pretty, but is nothing else than an evil
    and noe… NOE.. a cute, misterios, dreamer, joyfull and a bit naive,girl
    that can share her dreams and fantasies with other people.

    the only one atribute for hiromi is being pretty,..
    but
    she is a witch !!!!!!
    this anime is a good example of oriental japanese culture

    maiku
    Reply

  201. (= no baka
    i first watched true tears and then tale of memories
    screw this ending since the first time i saw it
    i have watched a lot of animes with fuking bad endings
    like.. this one, the one that mustnt be mentioned “school days”
    and other twist really goods in amimes like
    shuffle !!!!
    but
    in the end
    im really starting to hate harem anime xD
    is nothing that can really happend..
    and the ones that have their chances …
    are really stupid and arrogant people
    like the men in japan =O
    about ef-a tale of memories
    renji-kun rules !!!

    maiku
    Reply

  203. I loved this anime, until the last episode. I absolutly hated the ending.
    All give the impression that shin loved Noe but feel the obligation to stay with Hiromi… weird, and feels too forced. It make me feel bad, like the ending of Kiminozo.

    I would have prefer even a School Days ending.

    I guess that this series must como with two final episodes. At least with Kiminozo I could play and make justice.

    Rincewind
    Reply

  204. This series is great! You know how? I am not really a big fan of things of this genre. But this anime kept me coming for more like a drug addict on weed!

    As for the ending, all I can say is that it very well constructed and at the same time, very very…..ugh what’s the word I’m looking for…..dang it! Maybe what i meant to say was that it made me feel like I’m on cold turkey. I love the fact that Shinichiro chose Hiromi* (Hiromi FTW!), but I resent (maybe even rue) the fact that it did not show anything that would have happened between them; and it’s driving me crazy! Oh well..it is with this that I clap my hands in applause while banging my head on the table asking for more.

    * I don’t know about what you think but maybe Noe’s role is to attract some audiences to like her more and more as the series progressed, only to have her fans be taken by surprise when Shinichiro chose to be with Hiromi. We’ll never know for sure….and this is why it’s driving me nuts!

    J
    Reply

  205. I really love this show. The ending wasn’t bad at all. Regardless of who they ended up with, everyone was able to move forward. Everyone was able to fly and grow with their experiences. Noe probably gained the most out of all of them. She was finally able to do something she hasn’t been able to for a long time, to shed her tears, True Tears.

    DarkEmperor
    Reply

  206. I just watched this after all the positive things you said about it in the best of 2008 post. It was beautiful! I would have voted this best of 2008 if I got to vote again. Of course this is well after the fact, but thank you for a good recommendation. =)

    Azure
    Reply

  208. Thank you for the caps and review.

    Word of God (the staff of True Tears) said Shin NEVER LOVED NOE IN A ROMANTIC WAY. He felt compromised to help her and felt sorry about her situation. His romantic feelings were always about Hiromi.

    Noe is my favorite but I never saw any possible “romance” between them when her goal was to get her tears back (and Shin wanted to wipe away Hiromi’s). Both got what they wanted. Perfect ending.

    Dove
    Reply

  211. Just finished watching this in a time span of 10 hours. Here’s a couple thoughts from me:

    Yes! Good ending! Hiromi didn’t “win” (Well, she did over Ai-chan, it’s Noe was more Shin’s intellectual (Need a better word) guidance while Hiromi was his love.

    Overall, I enjoyed watching this very much, but I gotta say it shouldn’t have ended with Noe crying, she should have “regained her tears” in another scene, as it left me with a kind of bittersweet feeling.

    Ugh, I hate ending anime series; it gets hard to move on to another one.
    Anyone else recommend anything? I haven’t watched Air yet, so I might go there.

    dszx
    Reply

  212. Air is just as sad and ends weird O_o

    And why does it always have to end with the ship I don’t support.
    This is just Kimi ga Nozomu Eien all over again, but there I had an OVA with the good ending and more.

    Damn childhood friends crap, I had a lot of childhood friends but after I changed school I forgot about them.

    O well they at least could have made it better for Noe she ended all alone.

    The only harem anime that ends perfect is Shuffle! Da Capo is second.

    reaper_unique
    Reply

  213. Sigh. I saw this ending coming a mile of (more accurately i saw it as soon as the flash back). If child hood memories, especially suppressed memories are mentioned at any point anywhere in the plot then you can give up on your expectations and go along for the ride. (If there are more than one set of flashback’s then it’s the girl/boy with the largest amount of flashback screen time. Example, Kanon. QED).

    The annoying thing about this series and frankly every harem amine is that a lot of character development is pored into the rival characters that dont end up with the guy/girl yet the one who does end up with him/her always seem to be less developed than the rivals. Note the difference between series’ which end with the choice or series’ that have the choice before the last episode and you will see what i mean.

    Hiromi was the obvious end yet compared to Noe she seemed less developed. By that i mean change in character. Not maturity or depth. She had plenty of depth (read generic depression and self doubt). She just didnt change much. She basically had two states. Pre declare and post declare (love that is) and the difference between the two was that she smiled a bit more.

    Noe on the other hand showed much more of her personality and her screen time contained much more… insight.

    Akio, who was cut out of the match quite early by the way… why did they put her so much in the opening and the ending when she played a relatively minor role… Anyway, Akio few scene’s had much more powerful scenes compared to Hiromi.

    I guess i am just annoyed that the writers relied so much on child hood memories for the choice. I dont mind that it was her who was chosen (Noe fan if you haven’t noticed) but just the way that the choice was reached.

    Noe i would say was not the best match to Shinichirō’s personality. He is nothing like her except when he is around her. At all other times he is more like Hiromi (who is like his mother shock and awe. If he was given more time then Shinichirō would probably turn out to be the spitting image of his father). Noe is, and i am stealing this from some one else as i am struggling for a word here, Shinichirō’s inspiration. I guess they were aiming for the ‘magical period of my life’ senario. After the book was finished then what would have happend… a much better ending thats what (Noe fan remember) but you get what i am talking about… probably.

    Anyway to sum up, I found True Tears to be a refreshingly serious. Much more emphasis on the characters themselves (i may complain but Hiromi was great character… Noe is just better… screw neutrality). It doesn’t use HUGE amounts humor, horror, sub-character arcs, ultra cuteness, magic, war, magic and war, gender confusion etc etc as most harem amine do (not complaining about those by the way) and instead focuses almost solely on the relationship. Which is some what of a rarity. Especially as they pulled it of brilliantly. Nothing but praise for the artwork and i had the OST on download before i had even finished the series (opening theme still wedged in head). The plot is, well if your honest, predictable. There are no plot huge plot twists that aren’t explained or for foreseeable (i was getting suicide vibes from Noe episodes before the tree). But it keeps you guessing right up until the last episode. Which is no easy feat. One complaint though, WHY HIROMI DAMMIT… ok fan boy moment over, i’m done.

    Vi
    Reply

  215. seriously? Hiromi????????????????????????????????????????? WTF man i just watched this whole thing and it seemed like NOE had it in a bag. Her character’s much more suitable, all i saw in Hiromi was her being a bitch.
    Damn this was such a shitty ending. Well off to japan…Fuck i spent all day on this anime, time for 4 hours of sleep 🙁 thanks for the shitty ending True Tears EHHHHHHH

    Anon
    Reply

  216. There’s a lot of Noe and Hiromi supporters here lol. I think that the show was always going to be heading towards Hiromi. In my opinion, Hiromi really wasn’t a great character despite it honestly and I felt that the only thing that she had going for her was that she was the childhood friend. Noe although had more to her, but i can see why it would not be a love interest as the reviewer said. She seemed more like the intellectual, or inspiration that he had to get himself going. I would find it quite hard personally to be able to share such a close relationship without it becoming more than just that. Although that dude was really setting his heart into one girl against all odds.

    Btw, I also raged on the ending. So hard. Personally I didn’t want the ending to be like that but it’s the most probably ending and it was a great series.

    elderich
    Reply

  218. I was so upset by this ending. I never liked Hiromi because of the way that she acted through out the whole show! And then when she went and told Aiko that she was Shin’s girlfriend when they didn’t even establish a relationship like that! Man i was so pissed. And poor Noe she was so much sweeter and sincere with her feelings. It would have been such a good show if he chose Noe because they look so much better together and i think they fit better together personality wise!

    They shouldn’t have put Hiromi with Shin she’s so pathetic throughout the whole show! Don’t you all agree? Like yeah she did have her own hardships but to act so selfishly like she did, i thought it was just another mark against her!

    Just gotta say that this was good up until the last two episodes! I was always thinking that ‘this is the point when he tells hiromi that he doesn’t really like her it was just a childhood crush’ but that hope withered away! Oh wells it’s wasn’t such a waste of my time just needed to vent this horrible ending so a good show!

    Keiraneesan
    Reply

  219. Wow, I have to say that this show is so damn good! I really appreciate the cinematography and storyline. The writers did a great job. I hope that others noticed this as well, but don’t u think the love triangle of noe/shin/hiromi just mirror the relationship of what shin’s parents probably went through? That scene where the mom waits with hiromi was a big hint.

    I have to be perfectly honest though, I really thought Noe should have been the one but I understand why it’s Hiromi. Like you can’t blame hiromi for not being as… supportive or etc. because her character has been mindfucked by the mom and also she’s just naturally scared and shy because of all this family stuff that went on. But then again Noe was clearly the much more (as Omni have said) intellectual decision since she was way more compatible. It REALLY breaks my heart the fact that throughout all of this drama that he was still officially dating Noe and completely screwed with her feelings despite all of that innocence. People can be so selfish at times and just can not realize the consequences of their blinded actions.

    Watching this anime made me analyze it so much and feel so satisfied yet so uneasy. I just can not describe how this anime ended so well but still makes me think there should be some other sort of closure.

    Trinergy
    Reply

  220. G’ah, well I really liked this anime a lot, although I was disappointed at the end. [Noe fan] Oh well, I guess for this story it just worked out that he ended up with Hiromi. I will just make my own characters because it seems the only way the couples I like ever end up XDD I really like the opening! <3 and the art work was beautiful all the way through! I also really like Ai!

    Kisa
    Reply

  221. Oh man I loved this series. I knew it was hiromi from the beggining but I couldnt stop second guessing if he would go for Noe. Probably the best normal Romance/Drama Anime I have seen. PSTTT OP was Kickass.

    exia
    Reply

  222. Good show. The only bad character was Shin- Indecisive, oblivious to the feelings of those who loved him, and to be honest he didn’t really seem to care that he was that way. Basically, he was one of those male leads that I absolutely despise, in a similar sense to Makoto from school days, although shin wasn’t THAT much of a twat.

    Science
    Reply

  223. I hated the ending, Shinichirou should have picked Noe rather than hiromi. And I felt so sorry for Noe that I could have cried. But I must admit that this series was very good, but i feel that Noe needed Shinichirou more than Hiromi. Because of her loses, and that she suffered more than Hiromi did. So the last episode was disappointing in my point of view.

    Pera
    Reply

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