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Sep 28, 2014 3:03 PM

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Feb 2012
3770
Hikaru no Go is different how? Because of the ghost?

Also this show should have ended with the relay. Two eps of angst epilogue, not good.
Sep 28, 2014 3:27 PM

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Jul 2012
48256
mecharobot said:
Hikaru no Go is different how? Because of the ghost?

Like Chihayafuru, they're both more of card/board games, which would be the common argument. I would consider all of these animes in the genre though.
Sep 28, 2014 4:47 PM

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Dec 2012
16144
This episode drew so many strong parallels to Love Live S2. I am completely satisfied. 9.5/10
Sep 28, 2014 6:59 PM
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Jan 2010
45
The latter half of this season and particularly this episode felt like it totally copped out on the "free" theme of the first season. Haruka felt almost like a different, less interesting, character. It also felt like a pointless nod to verisimilitude to not have them take first place in the nationals (its a pet peeve of mine when otherwise unrealistic sports anime pull back from the final plunge of letting the neophyte protagonists win, who are they trying to fool with a pointless nod to "realism"?)
Sep 28, 2014 7:04 PM

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Jul 2012
48256
^ But, it was more realistic this season rather than Haruka's "I only care about the water" attitude. At least now he has a dream of his own. And the 6th place is more realistic because it's not like Iwatobi has all strong swimmers. They consist of one prodigy and three other decent swimmers.
Sep 28, 2014 7:16 PM

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Aug 2011
1817
I can't believe the critics, who the hell was expecting a 10 out of this? It was a nice show, it had sexy males and a nice slice-of-life pace in the story. That's all I care about.

Apart from Makoto-sama, of course. Makoto can come and hug me whenever he feels like it.

» Escapism.


Sep 28, 2014 10:31 PM

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Apr 2011
41
I love the fact it got better than season 1 because more character development, the story get to the point about Haruka's future and other as well (even I'm still disappointed how mysterious Sousuke's future in the ending). And yeah all the characters are loveable imo.

Minus point because free is basically more into drama aspect than the sport one, So I guess if people want to watch it because of sport references free probably is not quite recommended because this is more likely driven with drama. (8.0/10 for me)
Sep 29, 2014 11:05 AM

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Aug 2010
142
bekeru said:
Opi-chan said:


Why should he have been invited? He wasn't part of the team.


Rin did it in their childhood, and is a close friend of them all. It wouldn't be weird if they did invite him, actually.


Then he was part of the team. He isn't now. He has his Samezuka team while Mako and the other three have the Iwatobi team. It was a team thing and Rin isn't part of the Iwatobi team...
Personally I like that he wasnt invited.
Oct 1, 2014 3:34 PM

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Jul 2010
34
I iked the fact they didn't were the Number 1 in the competition, but the number 6 :)
That's still pretty good, but they aren't perfect. Not yet.

I liked this ^^
Oct 2, 2014 9:40 PM

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Jan 2013
11047
Good episode, most everything was resolved. Nice animated swimming sequence.
Oct 3, 2014 12:39 AM
Mob Character C

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Oct 2009
5335
The series is fine. Nice episode.

Maybe it's just me, but ever since the last episode of the first season, I haven't liked Nagisa, Haruka, Makoto, Rin, or Rei. Rin and Rei redeemed themselves a bit pretty early on in the second season for me, but I still disliked Nagisa (especially Nagisa), Haruka, and Makoto-- and Sousuke. So I was sitting here, watching with apathy for almost the entire second season.

Every character (Nitori, Gou, Momo, etc.) except Nagisa, Haruka, Makoto, and Sousuke were A-Okay with me.
Sounds like a problem, but I made it through, so hey.

Enjoy your anime! | Witch Cafe Wisteria
Oct 3, 2014 6:22 AM
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Jun 2012
199
Episode felt too rushed. Like they didn't have enough time for everything. Especially nationals.

I think they should have put the return from Australia bit in the previous episode, that would have given them a bit more time for other things.
Oct 3, 2014 3:09 PM

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Jul 2010
2005
This was still pretty forgettable, as last season, but I found the theme of Haru grappling with his idea of "freedom" really intriguing. It's something that I deal with too. I hate being placed into deadlines and conceptual boxes, but I guess it's how you approach those things that allows you to create meaning.

More interesting than last season, but still was more eye candy than anything else for me.
Found myself apathetic through most of the show.
7/10
Oct 3, 2014 4:12 PM
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Jul 2018
564055
I loved it! My favourite show this season. If as a straight guy, you can forget about fan service, you can definitly enjoy this show.
Oct 3, 2014 6:56 PM

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May 2010
6698
Juhnny said:
If as a straight guy, you can forget about fan service, you can definitly enjoy this show.

Well, there wasn't even much of fanservice this season.
Oct 3, 2014 8:46 PM

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Jan 2014
1422
I LOST IT WHEN REI STARTED CRYING

and omgf its really over theyre in college and haru went pro and omg ;___; i am going to miss free so much

i really hope the ova is when they reunite to open the letters in a few years

<33333 goodbye freeeee
Oct 4, 2014 9:00 AM

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May 2010
8099
Wow Ai is the next captain! Yeah that's right, Sousuke, don't give up on your dream!

Too less Gou esp. in the last few episodes, but damn those end scenes... So beautiful.

After that previous episode, I was gonna give it an 8 but... a 9 it is. I am gonna miss them all esp. my waifu Gou! She deserves her own series... Gonna miss Makoto, Rin and Sousuke too. All in all, a beautiful anime.
Oct 5, 2014 4:22 AM
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Jul 2018
564055
Kitsu-nee said:
Juhnny said:
If as a straight guy, you can forget about fan service, you can definitly enjoy this show.

Well, there wasn't even much of fanservice this season.


You're right. The show became much more emotional. I had friends droping this because of the fan service. I can't say that I didn't enjoy it :3 but what kept me watching were the characters, the colors, the message and everything else that's great about this anime.
Oct 5, 2014 8:23 AM

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Dec 2013
2814
Not a bad ending to a really good shounen show.
The four of them race to the future for their dreams. The sentimental value of this episode, and this show in general is very high.

I don't see them doing a third season, but I can totally see them filming a movie to show them opening that box.

Good reminder of our youth and our dreams when we are/were young.
HESTIAAPPROVES
Oct 8, 2014 8:50 AM
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May 2012
7011
Wow, I am actually, kinda speechless. I don't know what to say but beautiful~
If only Rei was beside me while watching this episode, we would be saying "beautiful" at the same time <3
Good thing that I don't give a shit about what people says about certain Anime. In this case, many people keeps on saying that Free! is fucking gay, but I didn't give a shit about what they are saying, and I am glad I did, cause this Anime is beautiful to me, really. Their friendship is <3
KyoAni can still make a season 3. Showing Iwatobi's new club members, Sousuke's recovery, Rin and Haru's journey to pro, and Makoto's studying.
Well, I will be waiting~ Thank you ^^
Oct 8, 2014 5:26 PM
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Jul 2018
564055
Tengai said:
Wow, I am actually, kinda speechless. I don't know what to say but beautiful~
If only Rei was beside me while watching this episode, we would be saying "beautiful" at the same time <3
Good thing that I don't give a shit about what people says about certain Anime. In this case, many people keeps on saying that Free! is fucking gay, but I didn't give a shit about what they are saying, and I am glad I did, cause this Anime is beautiful to me, really. Their friendship is <3
KyoAni can still make a season 3. Showing Iwatobi's new club members, Sousuke's recovery, Rin and Haru's journey to pro, and Makoto's studying.
Well, I will be waiting~ Thank you ^^


Omg!! Just thank you for that!!!
Oct 9, 2014 12:52 AM

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Jan 2010
54
Glad it's finally over. I really felt meh with this season. I don't understand why it's rated higher than the first one, tbh.
MenatsuOct 9, 2014 2:54 AM
Oct 13, 2014 4:30 PM

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Jul 2013
18193
Beautiful finale.

Great job on bringing everything together and wrapping things up.

So much feels.

Season three please
Oct 13, 2014 11:42 PM

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Jun 2011
821
OMG that was just beautiful, way better than the last season, sad to see it go. I was going to make it a 9/10 but after that beautiful ending its going to be a 10/10. My god I am going to miss Free.
Oct 14, 2014 1:10 PM
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Jul 2018
564055
Such a great season and ending this was.
I'm gonna miss it too. :(
Oct 16, 2014 12:10 PM

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Mar 2014
96
It was so freaking beautiful. I honestly got myself into this mainly for the fan service but I got out with so much enjoyment. :'3
Oct 16, 2014 9:00 PM

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Jul 2012
48256
Menatsu said:
Glad it's finally over. I really felt meh with this season. I don't understand why it's rated higher than the first one, tbh.

Because it was a lot better, in most aspects.

Tengai said:
Wow, I am actually, kinda speechless. I don't know what to say but beautiful~
If only Rei was beside me while watching this episode, we would be saying "beautiful" at the same time <3
Good thing that I don't give a shit about what people says about certain Anime. In this case, many people keeps on saying that Free! is fucking gay, but I didn't give a shit about what they are saying, and I am glad I did, cause this Anime is beautiful to me, really. Their friendship is <3
KyoAni can still make a season 3. Showing Iwatobi's new club members, Sousuke's recovery, Rin and Haru's journey to pro, and Makoto's studying.
Well, I will be waiting~ Thank you ^^

I love comments like these, especially because you're a guy who respects this show :)
Oct 24, 2014 4:21 PM

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Sep 2012
19236
This was pretty terrible. I honestly don't see how people could enjoy this season.

They dropped the ball fucking hard.

In the end, Haru decides that, no, he doesn't want to swim just for himself, but rather he wants to do it competitively. Why? Because.... well, just because I guess.

Oh wait, no, we do get a lazy half-assed reason:


Um, then buy a fucking swimming pool. You don't need to go to the damn olympics just because you "want to swim".

I guess the show's title "Free" is ironic now, because he no longer swims "free"- as in, because he wants to swim and enjoys it for the sake of being in the water- but rather now he swims because he wants to "worry about times and winning".

Am I the only one who thinks that's pretty shitty? Swimming because you want to swim, just because you enjoy it, isn't good enough. You have to do it to win and be better than other people. What a shitty moral.

And then we have to sit through that absolutely unbearable, gratuitous, literal summary of the past events, plot point by plot point. Gee, thanks. It's not like I just watched the damn show or anything. The amount of overexplanation and summary in this anime was horrendous.

I think this line summed this episode up the best:


And then we get overblown hysterical wailing and crying. Because two characters are leaving high school. Are they 4 years old?


Yea you fucking said it.

That whole sequence was so cringe worthy and melodramatic that I had to pause it multiple times and go do something else for a bit. It made me self-conscious to even watch.

The race scene was annoying, with their hallucinations and giggling that was supposed to feel "magical" or whimsical or whatever. It was just corny.

And of course everybody is crying about it and sobbing like toddlers when they finished the race. Barf.

Oh wait, hey. Wait a minute. They got 6th place. Um. If the whole moral of this story was that "winning is the most important thing" (after all, that's the revelation our main character had), why the fuck are they happy with 6th place? Shouldn't they be like "....well fuck, looks like we weren't good enough"? It doesn't make sense.

Whatever.

This show really had me severely disappointed. It was all in all a chore to watch, and I honestly regret not dropping it. Sousuke's character was completely filler, and a giant waste of time. The "drama" was overblown vague nonsense. Every character overreacted to inconsequential things for no reason. The dialogue was terrible. There was no suspense and nothing to keep me interested.

Did I even watch the same show as everybody else?
Red_KeysOct 24, 2014 4:28 PM
Oct 27, 2014 3:48 AM
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May 2012
417
I'm starting to see this season as a tale of two stories, one from Iwatobi and one from Samezuka. Although Iwatobi has the greater coverage (of course, it should be), It didn't feel like Samezuka or Rin's story was left out. Both were quite well played, and I pretty much enjoyed both until the end.

8/10
Nov 13, 2014 9:50 PM

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Jan 2014
372
...a butterfly? Really? Everyone else was a sea creature. But Haru's was a creature that dies in water. Wut?
Nov 16, 2014 10:13 AM

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Feb 2013
211
Oh God. This beautiful feeling. This touching OST, which made everything even more emotional. I already feel nostalgia. I know, I'm gonna miss it. I had tears in my eyes. Free is amazing. And not only because there are sexy boys here...Some people just can't see it. I don't want to end it. I just love when I feel like this at anime...<3

Nov 26, 2014 5:48 AM

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May 2008
2282
Toa_Allanon said:
...a butterfly? Really? Everyone else was a sea creature. But Haru's was a creature that dies in water. Wut?


Pretty late into this but everyone in the team were looking at the spiritual "animal" of the person who swam before them. Haru was seeing butterflies because the person who swam before him, was Rei, whom is a Buttlerfly Swimmer.
Nov 28, 2014 8:35 AM

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Jan 2012
586
I was so happy when I saw that Haru followed Makoto to Tokyo! It's hard imagining him living without Makoto's support, and it's sweet that the bffs are still together. What a feel good ending for everyone.
Dec 8, 2014 1:54 PM

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Jul 2013
2639
That was such a great ending!

Haru finally told his friend he would carry on swimming.

Rei and Nagisa crying made me cry!

I loved seeing the nationals and them seeing the imagery in the pool like they were being guided by their friends!

It was nice seeing them bury that box and Rin made Ai-chan the next captain!

It was nice seeing them run in to the pool full of cherry blossoms and seeing a bit in to the future at the end.

Like Makoto and Haru together then it looked like Haru and Rin were gonna race at the end whilst Nagisa and Rei recruited new members.

It was a beautiful story of friendship again and I wish there was a season 3 but it looks like there might not be ;____________________________;

But there is an ova at least next year!
Dec 11, 2014 6:18 AM

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Jul 2014
2200
I was hesitant to watch the 2nd season of Free! after watching the 1st season. To this day I still can't believe I managed to finish this anime since I usually drop animes I don't particularly like.

I don't particularly love Free! but I don't hate it either. I enjoyed watching it casually but it wasn't all that great, especially not this season.

I'm a fan of shounen ai and yaoi but shows like these that are neither but a bundle of heavy implications that leave fangirls to do the pairing in their head, I don't particularly like. >_<

I still enjoyed it though but mostly because of the characters and the friendship between them which I found nice. The story line was also interesting which is why I finished it towards the end. The only reason why my rating isn't so high is because of the excess of fan service and (as I mentioned earlier) implications that the boys could or could not be a "pair" which all but made me cringe as I watched it. 7/10~
. . . . . . . . . .
DO NOT touch my rice. . . . . .
I'm Asian. . . . . .
Dec 26, 2014 5:48 AM

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May 2013
2029
Red_Keys said:
rant

rant

rant

rant

rant

rant

rant

rant

rant

rant

rant

rant

rant

rant

rant

rant

rant

Did I even watch the same show as everybody else?

Most likely not.
Dec 29, 2014 7:29 AM

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Sep 2013
144
I was crying most of this episode. Can't believe it's over T^T
More crying at the end scene which is also the end scene of the Free! ad that started all of these feelings. FEELS. Great ending! I hope to find my dream too thanks Free <3
Dec 29, 2014 10:11 AM

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Nov 2014
651
Omg I'm so sad that I finished it, it was so amazing!!! Makoto & Haru being together in Tokyo at the end at the restaurant I was like YESSS. & Makoto looking adorable & perfect during his class. Such a great ending! And it was great to see many new recruits joining Nagisa & Rei in the swim club.

When Nagisa & Rei started crying omg I was tearing up...but then again there were feels all over the episode I was crying during the last race cause it was such a special moment for them.

Happy for Nitori becoming Captain, good for him he worked hard for it. The ending for Sousuke though omg like Rin is waiting for him, but like it's such an open ending for Sousuke, guess he went to go work with his dad but I wonder if he ever goes back to swimming or not...I need a Season 3 so badly I really hope they do it or do something to show us the future!

But all in all, Makoto & Haru being together in the end was the absolute best. Nothing can separate those two! <3
Dec 29, 2014 9:00 PM

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Feb 2012
618
Great series. The character development was great and quality didn't drop anywhere. Based KyoAni!
Jan 4, 2015 9:05 AM

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Oct 2013
274
No more good looking guys in their swimming suits... It was a nice end. When I see them swim, they make me wanna learn to swim like them :)
Jan 4, 2015 4:00 PM

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Aug 2009
3108
Wonderful finish to a very heart-warming series.

Was worth the watch.

Makoto <3
Jan 5, 2015 8:10 AM

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Jul 2010
1224
Finally got myself to watch the final episode, it was very good though I'm sad the series is really over now, thhough we still have the special in March it's really over... :(

I really enjoyed this season, it's different from the last one but that's only natural and I think they handled it very well. I personally really liked that they showd what Rin, Haru and Makoto decided to do in the future instead of just stopping at the nationals without real "closure". The end shot with Rin and Haru racing each other was the perfect final shot if you ask me, really happy to see things worked out for everyone in the end.

The only tiny thing that bothers me is that we don't know what happened with Sousuke, I hope the ova will show us more about him?
Feb 20, 2015 7:08 AM
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Feb 2015
175
Haru talks about his feelings. Unusual. It was too cute, I melted. And it was a bit silly when they won the relay on the nationals... A bit naive story.

We don't know future of the club and Sousuke. They could make next season, but probably they won't... It would be nice to see Nagisa as a captain and new member (and their muscles) of Iwatobi SC.
Mar 2, 2015 8:51 AM

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Sep 2014
1093
Yaay , i like the ending :) Everyone is happy , new members ^^

It was a nice show !
Apr 19, 2015 8:30 AM

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Aug 2014
843
A memorial future will join them forever! ^.^ Love the series, both are amazing. I should make a re-watch of them in the summer.. ;) Now I just need to wait for the movie, and see the special in a couple of days :D
Maloween 2017
Main Candies
May 29, 2015 5:52 PM
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May 2015
1
Does anyone know what happened to Rin at nationals, I mean he did get to to nationals didn't he? I would have liked to see his race... :(
Jul 23, 2015 7:21 PM

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Aug 2007
1490
I really enjoyed everything about this season except for Sousuke. I just didn't like him or find the appeal of him at all. This made the second season less exciting for me versus the first one. A lot of the really, really good episodes were at the end of the season but the rest was average.

Giving it a 6/10. First season was a 7/10.

Aug 16, 2015 11:36 AM

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Jul 2010
8334
I enjoyed it as much as the first season and it had good conclusion. Solid 8/10.
Aug 28, 2015 10:19 AM

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Jan 2010
54
Red_Keys said:
This was pretty terrible. I honestly don't see how people could enjoy this season.

They dropped the ball fucking hard.

In the end, Haru decides that, no, he doesn't want to swim just for himself, but rather he wants to do it competitively. Why? Because.... well, just because I guess.

Oh wait, no, we do get a lazy half-assed reason:


Um, then buy a fucking swimming pool. You don't need to go to the damn olympics just because you "want to swim".

I guess the show's title "Free" is ironic now, because he no longer swims "free"- as in, because he wants to swim and enjoys it for the sake of being in the water- but rather now he swims because he wants to "worry about times and winning".

Am I the only one who thinks that's pretty shitty? Swimming because you want to swim, just because you enjoy it, isn't good enough. You have to do it to win and be better than other people. What a shitty moral.

And then we have to sit through that absolutely unbearable, gratuitous, literal summary of the past events, plot point by plot point. Gee, thanks. It's not like I just watched the damn show or anything. The amount of overexplanation and summary in this anime was horrendous.

I think this line summed this episode up the best:


And then we get overblown hysterical wailing and crying. Because two characters are leaving high school. Are they 4 years old?


Yea you fucking said it.

That whole sequence was so cringe worthy and melodramatic that I had to pause it multiple times and go do something else for a bit. It made me self-conscious to even watch.

The race scene was annoying, with their hallucinations and giggling that was supposed to feel "magical" or whimsical or whatever. It was just corny.

And of course everybody is crying about it and sobbing like toddlers when they finished the race. Barf.

Oh wait, hey. Wait a minute. They got 6th place. Um. If the whole moral of this story was that "winning is the most important thing" (after all, that's the revelation our main character had), why the fuck are they happy with 6th place? Shouldn't they be like "....well fuck, looks like we weren't good enough"? It doesn't make sense.

Whatever.

This show really had me severely disappointed. It was all in all a chore to watch, and I honestly regret not dropping it. Sousuke's character was completely filler, and a giant waste of time. The "drama" was overblown vague nonsense. Every character overreacted to inconsequential things for no reason. The dialogue was terrible. There was no suspense and nothing to keep me interested.

Did I even watch the same show as everybody else?


Apparently, we did not, because everyone else thinks it's the best. Lol.
Sep 1, 2015 1:54 AM

Offline
Aug 2010
102
I'm speechless. Most people here in the forums already expressed what I need to say about this series.

One thing certain, I was caught off-guard that the "Sporty" Anime my friend suggested before became one of my favorites in the Slice of Life Department.
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