Random Curiosity

「陽だまりの詩（うた）」 (Hidamari no Uta)
“The Sunshine Song”

Why couldn’t have every episode of Kimi to Boku been this good?

「訓練しなイカ!?／祭りじゃなイカ!?」 (Kunren Shinai ka!? / Matsuri Janai ka!?)
“Won’t You Practice!? / Isn’t That a Festival!?”

「さよならぽぷら」 (Sayonara, Popura)
“Farewell, Popura”

Maya speaks yet again!

「僕は友達は少ない」 (Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai)
“We Have Few Friends”

I’m speechless. For the final episode to one of my favorite shows this season, I’m left with mixed feelings.

「私はただ探している」 (Watashi wa Tada Sagashiteiru)
“I’m Just Searching”

The little show almost nobody watched certainly went out with a bang, delivering up a classic finale to one of the most satisfying mysteries anime has seen in many a season.

「愛してる」 (Aishiteru)
“I Love You”

If you’ve come here looking for answers to Mawaru Penguindrum’s ending, I’m afraid I don’t have them. The best I can offer is my interpretation of it, which is a bunch of fragmented ideas that revolve around the theme of neglected children and fighting fate.

Update: This isn’t official, but this 2chan chart illustrates one interpretation of how the “fruit of fate” was shared between the Takakuras. It suggests that Himari’s portion “rotted” after the Sarin gas attack.

「みんなと、いっしょに！」 (Minna to, Issho ni!)
“Together With Everyone!”

I was anticipating A-1 Pictures to pull out all the stops for the 765 Pro’s New Year Live, but they really outdid themselves with a fully animated, 2.5-minute special performance of “READY!! & CHANGE!!!!”, followed up by a second insert song, “Itsudemo mo, Dokodemo mo”, before wrapping the series up with one more ending theme. It was just about everything I could’ve asked for in IM@S’ finale.

「Last Episode」

Unlike the anime that featured an original ending with Éclair Tonnerre, the drama sticks to the source material where Tamaki decides to quit the Host Club for Haruhi’s sake. Having seen both variations, I have to say that I prefer the manga’s storyline, simply because it directly involves Haruhi.

「時よ止まれ」 (Toki yo Tomare)
“Stop Time”

The ending for the anime of the manga that isn’t ending anytime soon wasn’t really an ending at all. But stay tuned for the movie…

「バカとテストと召喚獣っ!」 (Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu!)
“Idiots, Tests, and Summoned Beings!”

I’ll admit that I’m going to hold on to this hope that Minami will eventually be the one who will win Akihisa’s heart. However, after watching Himeji suddenly gain the confidence to let her true emotions just flow right out of her, I’m beginning to see why so many of you like her so much.

「まだ見ぬ明日の詩」
“Poetry of unseen tomorrows”

Dantalian no Shoka ends with a very powerful, visually stunning and (finally) emotional episode. But in looking back, I can’t help but feel I’ve just watched a pretty, well-produced 12-episode teaser trailer for the light novels.

「揉んでください!」 (Monde Kudasai!)
“Please Grope Me!”

Even though it would have left a larger impression had the series ended with Jirou and Subaru’s kiss, this last episode was strangely interesting. While I can’t support this statement with any concrete details, this episode felt like it wasn’t troubled with the overarching story since the biggest problem was solved last week. Meaning I could fully enjoy all the randomness!

「わすれじの」 (Wasureji no)
“Forgotten”

All things considered, the conclusion to Blood-C wasn’t half-bad.

「隻・枸雅匡平」 (Seki, Kuga Kyouhei)
“Kuga Kyouhei, the Seki”

Well, it looks like Hibino’s damsel in distress role has finally been upgraded to emotional support, after she took the initiative and thanked Kyouhei for saving her.

「夏目遊戯帳」 (Natsume Yūgi-Chō)
“Natsume’s Book of Play”

It’s great that season three ended with what I think even the harshest critic would call a superb episode. But it’s as if the gang at Brains Base had a direct line to my brain, because they used a story for the finale that tackled all the issues I’ve been kvetching about all season head-on.