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「神以上、人間未満」 (Kami Ijou, Ningen Miman)
“Higher than a God, Lower than a Man”
There’s no way I can write six posts simultaneously, but it’s kind of scary how Keima’s zealous attitude towards gaming mirrors my blogging one. In fact, this finale served as an “anime reality check” of sorts, as contradictory as that may sound. From an outsider’s perspective, our behaviors may as well be perceived as a case of obsessive-compulsive disorder.
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「さよならの忠」 (Sayonara no Chuu)
“Goodbye Kiss”
It was a little cliché, a tad too overdramatic, and had black and white battle scenes that dragged out for a bit too long, but this climactic finale still left a very good impression on the series as a whole. Surprisingly, the loss of Jubei’s innocent personality wasn’t emphasized in a remorseful way, and instead became the high point of her final battle with a Amakusa Shirou empowered Gisen.
They aren’t allowed to end things off on such a sweet note are they?
「戦わなイカ？／ピンチじゃなイカ？／もっとピンチじゃなイカ？」
(Tatakawanai ka? / Pinchi Janai ka? / Motto Pinchi Janai ka?)
“Won’t You Compete? / Isn’t This a Pinch? / Isn’t This a Major Pinch?”
They may have broken practically every rule in the book when it comes to beach volleyball, but this final episode went all out in a tournament that saw Ika and Eiko as an unstoppable duo. Everyone got involved at some point as well, giving the sense that they were going to go out on a high. That is, until the last two mini episodes headed in a completely different direction with Ika’s return to the sea.
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「ハルカナソラヘ」 (Haruka na Sora he)
“To A Distant Sky”
It wouldn’t have been a finale if they didn’t save the best arc for last. In terms of having a flair for the dramatic, this one sure delivered as I found myself feeling sorry for Haru when Sora forced him into a corner about their relationship. It’s like I could see his mental breakdown happening before my very eyes as he was torn between his feelings and his moral principles.
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「クリスマスの願いごと」 (Kurisumasu no Negaigoto)
“Christmas Wish”
I can’t say I’m too surprised that the finale focused almost entirely around Mio, but I feel a bit cheated by the way they slipped in a completely unexpected development and made me sympathetic towards her sadistic character. Mio isn’t as nearly an unbalanced tsundere as Taketatsu Ayana’s other lead role this season either, so I even got a bit teary-eyed when I saw her crying.
“You may now kiss the bride.”
「明日に羽飛く彼女達（フォルテ）」 (Asu ni Hapataku Kanajo-tachi (Forute))
“The Girls (Forte) Flapping Their Wings in the Morning”
After the climactic battle with Chaos last time, all I was really expecting in this finale was a lighthearted epilogue of sorts. While that’s pretty much what we got, this last episode surprised me by slipping in the big question at the very end: Which girl would Tomoki marry?
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「それはあの日のこと、なので」 (Sore wa Ano Hi no Koto, Nanode)
“It’s About that Day”
Something about Tamayura always makes me smile. Somehow, someway, as the anime reveals more about our main characters I feel myself growing exponentially more attached to them.
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「夢幻の薄桜」 (Mugen no Usuzakura)
“Light Cherry Blossoms of Dreams”
With Koudou dropping out of the picture earlier than I expected and Kazama intent on settling his score with Hijikata, the possibility of this series ending on a promising note looked rather bleak. In addition, the series has been faithfully adapting the Shinsengumi’s historic events up until now, so Hijikata’s fate looked like it was more or less guaranteed.
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「オーバーチュア 後編」
“Overture Part 2”
Picking up right where we left off, Shana is continuing her search for the rouge Tomogara that attacked Junko.
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「Over the rainbow」
It was pretty ambitious of the writers to slip in one more arc for Mario and go from start to finish in a mere episode, but they managed to pull it off and wrap up the second of four major manga arcs with this adaptation.