Huh, was that the last episode? It has to be, since we’re already in July. I dunno, I guess I half-expected something to happen between Koyuki and Minato. More specifically, I half-expected Momoka to make a play at Minato, and since he’s been feeling as though he’s crossed a line with Koyuki, he might accept Momoka’s feelings. ‘Cause this is what this show is all about, right? This show is all about awkward teen love — so awkward, that you end up in situations you might not want to be in, because you’re young, stupid, and don’t know what to do. In fact, we almost get that.

But let’s set the stage. Ever since Miki noticed Giraffe Guy’s feelings for her, she has been doing a poor job of trying to keep things the same — she wants things to stay the same. She doesn’t want their friendship to have conditions and contingencies. She tells herself this over and over. And yet, through her own actions, she has instead made things awkward between her and Giraffe Guy. She starts not hanging out with him as much as before. She starts not talking to him as much as before. So on the one hand, I totally get where Miki is coming from. “Oh my god, my lifelong friend suddenly likes me. Did he always feel this way? Will our friendship be ruined if I don’t return his feelings? What if my best friend likes him?” But Giraffe Guy hasn’t done anything wrong. These are all just hypotheticals. Miki’s already gone ahead and fractured their friendship!

So of course, Giraffe Guy being who he is, wants lay the cards all out on the table and just get it over with. This way, she can reject him and they can go back to being what they’ve always been. Sensible. Pretty mature. In fact, it almost feels like he doesn’t belong in this cast full of overthinking, dramatic teen idiots. Maybe I should start using his real name! But you always need at least one sensible person to serve as a control. But I digress. In the moment, with tears in her eyes and the somber rain around them, Miki almost walked right into the same trap as her best friend! She almost wanted to go out with Giraffe Guy simply because he liked her so much. Maybe she could learn to like him back eventually! Oh, the parallels! In my head, I was thinking, “You and Koyuki are so similar!” But in the end, Miki couldn’t do it. She couldn’t start dating Giraffe Guy if her heart wasn’t in it, and that’s a good thing. This is easily the best part of the episode — hell, maybe the whole season. No more awkwardness, no stolen glances, no annoying stammering. Just Giraffe Guy confronting his first love head on, and accepting whatever happens. And likewise, Miki being mature enough to realize she can’t fake her feelings. Whatever happens between them going forward, they’ll be alright.

So with that out of the way, I thought it would be fitting if we did see someone accept a confession for all the wrong reasons. Y’know, to serve as a contrast. I thought Momoka would ask Minato out, and because she had planted all those seeds of doubt in him — she made him think he might have crossed a line with Koyuki — he might have reciprocated Momoka’s feelings if only to assuage Koyuki’s concerns. That would be terrible of him, of course. Momoka is no angel, so he shouldn’t use her just to strengthen his friendship with Koyuki. But this is exactly the sort of thing that dumb teens do. Plus, he has half-assed his previous relationships, but this was way, way back at the start of the season. Point is, I expected a parallel situation to unfold. And with Momoka being so bold — almost kinda bitchy when she sidled up to Koyuki at the wrap party — I half-expected her to make a move. It really felt like a mask off moment for her. But Momoka still doesn’t do anything, and this is the part of the finale that I’m not so rosy about.

The situation between Koyuki and Minato just doesn’t go anywhere. If this was the middle of the season, then fine, whatever. But it’s the finale. I get that the focus is more on moving things forward with Giraffe Guy and MIki, but I’m still left dissatisfied with the main couple. All that really happens is Momoka probing to see where Koyuki stands. And in order to do so, she flat out tells Koyuki that Minato obviously likes her. But like every other kid on this show, Koyuki keeps wanting things to stay the same. Giraffe Guy, Miki, Koyuki, and possibly Minato as well. Like damn, is there really not a single person who wants to be ambitious and reach for the stars? Not a single person marches to a different beat? It’s just a little strange to me. And sure, Koyuki has been this introverted wallflower up until recently, so out of the entire cast, you would expect her of all people to put barriers up and protect the status quo. But when everyone is also acting similarly, it comes across a bit unrealistic.

The end result is nothing happens. Just teens overthinking things. Oh my god, we’re wearing the same watch! Overthink, overthink, overthink! Oh my god, our elbows are so close! Overthink, overthink, overthink. Let’s overthink in bed as well! And that’s how the first season ends between those two. All the stuff with Giraffe Guy and Miki? That was a banger. She found out about his feelings last week, they hash things out through tears this week. Cool, great. It wasn’t a happy ending, but life doesn’t always work out the way you want it to. I like Giraffe Guy’s maturity, and I like Miki walking up to the edge of disaster but deciding not to jump off the cliff. Meanwhile, both Koyuki and Minato are just languishing. Momoka could have been a catalyst and made a move. Maybe Minato would’ve agreed to go out with her, maybe he wouldn’t. But for better or worse, something definitive would’ve happened. But Momoka decided to do nothing. She was being a conniving ass at the wrap party for nothing! What a shame. This show has been full of drama from the start, so I expected it to go all in for the finale. This finale feels anticlimactic. Kinda like those mini fireworks they were playing with at the end. Sparks fly, but then everything just dies out.

Stray thoughts & observations:

— At least the Nishi clone is just on the sideline, minding her own business… sorta. She notices all the drama around her, and she does weigh in… in her own mind. She just never gets involved, and maybe that’s a good thing? There’s no need to get involved unless Koyuki opens up to her or whatever.

— Really? They look like a couple because they’re both wearing a vest? Ugh, I don’t miss being a kid and blowing everything out of proportion.

— Akine shoves Miki’s brother away as to not interrupt a moment between Koyuki and Minato. She’s kind of an enigma. She hasn’t had much screentime, so we don’t really have a good sense of who she is or what she’s like. But just last week, she asked Koyuki to root for Momoka… but now we see this. What exactly does Akine want to happen?

— Speaking of Akine, she doesn’t join the rest of the group during the fireworks session, so Miki’s brother just picks her up and forces her to hang out with them. Yeah, I don’t like that. Don’t go touching people without their consent. It’s a little different from her shoving him away in the previous scene, because he doesn’t lose control of his own body. Meanwhile, she’s completely helpless here when he picks her up.

— I think the fact that Momoka has to be the antagonist is somewhat disappointing. Why are we just doing Akine’s sister ver 2.0? Why are we repeating history? That was middle school, right? I know high schoolers aren’t exactly the bastions of maturity, but wouldn’t it have been nice if Momoka ended approaching this differently than Akine’s sister had? But no, we have to do this quasi-love triangle nonsense again. The only difference now is that Koyuki actually likes Minato. Poor Igarashi…