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(Semete, Kibou no Kakeru wo)
"At The Very Least, A Fragment of Hope"
Picking up from Aoi's first encounter with Kazura since his betrayal, I honestly had no idea how things would wrap up and was looking forward to being surprised every step of the way. Well, Anime no Chikara sure delivered in this finale by throwing out twist after twist after twist.
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("Futari" to Iu Koto)
"What It Means To Be a 'Pair'"
Finally some Opast level action! After the slow change of pace with Yuki getting settled into his new life with the Giou clan, I was looking forward to seeing exactly what a high level battle in this series entails.
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13 BRIDGE
With the announcement of a second season following the airing of this finale, SHAFT's taken the opportunity to introduce some of the other characters they opted not to earlier on.
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(Deeto to Iu Na no "Kessen", Takanashi to Inami no Sore kara...)
"Takanashi and Inami in the So-Called "Decisive Battle" of a Date..."
Better late than never I guess, as Matsumoto Maya (Kawase Akiko) finally gets some screen time and lines in the final episode.
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(Tsubasa Kyatto Sono Go)
"Tsubasa Cat Part 5"
It was delayed enough times for me to stop caring when it would come out, but SHAFT finally got around to airing the last episode of the Bakemonogatari anime. Remember six months ago when everyone voted it as the best anime of 2009? Well, this series probably should've been saved for 2010 consideration given how late this aired.
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(Tobira no Mukou Gawa)
"The Other Side of The Gate"
With the fight against Father looking like it was pretty much settled last time, I wasn't expecting Greed to get pulled back into the fray for his philosopher's stone. More so than that, Greed tricking Ling into giving up on the fruitless struggle so that he can play hero was something I really didn't foresee.
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(Kyouen - Toride no Sensou)
"Banquet - The Fortress War"
The only thing better than trumpet girls playing war are DRUNK trumpet girls playing war! And in 1080p no less, in this first of two DVD/Blu-ray only episodes.
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(Baka to Furyou to Hiiroo to)
"An Idiot, A Delinquent, and A Hero"
Oh how the mighty have fallen. To think that the once renowned and feared "Tornado White Demon" of Seisen Middle School would become nothing more than the happy-go-lucky "Shiro-yan" after entering high school.
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Graduation
The graduation ceremony was down to the five shown in the preview last time, but that didn't take away from the bittersweetness of it all. Surprisingly, I managed to hold the waterworks back this entire finale, though I felt a little of it coming on during Otonashi's valedictorian speech.
