Jeezes, chill. I'm not saying Yuzu doesn't have her own stuff she needs to deal with, but nobody gets to have their cake and eat it too. She wants to be with Mei no? If she wants to be with Mei she needs to be stronger.

So what I am saying is that they both are immature teens. However Mei is in a situation that requires maturity and exceptional psychological resilience to handle, so it's no wonder she would take off and not think Yuzu is up for it even if Yuzu naively said she can.

She is wrong in the way she conveyed everything through a letter only, but not in wanting to remove such a burden from Yuzu's life.

last edited at Apr 6, 2018 5:16PM

Mei isn’t that mature. She’s a scared little girl that Yuzu needs to save all the time. Their relationship will never be healthy if Mei stays the way she is now. Yuzu was really childish in the early volumes, but she’s way more mature now. She’s thinking about her future, tries her best to make the ones she loves smile. In volume 9 you can see that she’s feeling more comfortable about showing affection to Mei in public.

But now Mei needs to know what she really wants. Yuzu can’t do anything about it (to be honest, she needs a break from all this mess). At this moment, Mei is just running away from everything, she can’t even look Yuzu in the face.

last edited at Apr 6, 2018 5:51PM

I agree that Mei is not mature either. So what I mean by saying Yuzu needs to be stronger, is that I think Yuzu will need to tell Mei she would be with her and fight for her through the whole ordeal (assuming Mei didn't drop off the face of the Earth, which I doubt -- seems from the letter she is still in school). And also talk about what they can do to get out of the situation with minimum damage.

Like, all the little relationship challenges they had is nothing in comparison to what Mei is facing here, everything before was just normal relationship stuff like not knowing how to confess your feelings, helping with some family problems etc. Even friends also help each other with such stuff, it's nice but not out of ordinary. But will Yuzu accept being ridiculed, be seen as a terrible person who perverted the daughter of a rich family, accept being shamed (even potentially by their own parents) etc etc? Let alone maybe media scandal and stuff like that, once the word got out since the school is probably famous. They could seriously be stigmatized here socially, as the world of the story seems relatively realistic.

So whatever Yuzu did before in terms of being a good gf, one cannot assume Mei would just know that Yuzu is OK with facing all that. For all Mei knows, Yuzu has a free bright future ahead of her if she is not with Mei, she could date any other girl or guy she wants. Heck Mei probably thinks Yuzu would be happier with Harumin, and she might not even be wrong lol Besides if she loves Yuzu, of course she would remove herself from Yuzu's life, because she would think, I don't want someone I love to go through all this.

So I guess my questioning is why people think that Mei has something to decide or that she doesn't know what she wants? Like, I don't think from the letter, she is in doubt about whether she wants to be with Yuzu or not. Of course she wants to be with Yuzu, she said she has "fallen in love to the point of no return". Does she need to make it any clearer? But she is trying to spare Yuzu from the burden of being with her. So that's why I think Yuzu needs to show her she is fine with suffering through it for their sake, and only then let Mei decide.

First track from Vol 9 drama CD

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wWcUKK68qg&feature=youtu.be

Turn on CC to get the english subs.

@matsuri_wins Exactly. Mei isn't indecisive and clearly knows what she wants. She wants to be with Yuzu. But she can't, due to the reasons we all know, and she acknowledges it in the letter. But we don't now what happened during those 6-7 months of time skip. May be Yuzu did try to tell her that she is capable of facing all the social stigma associated with coming out and stuff. But I will agree with some others on this thread that this time, Mei should figure out what to do with their relationship. Well, she is a smart girl, so I guess she can come up with a plan that will help her to be with Yuzu and at the same time, she can do her duties as the daughter of Aihara family, even if she is already half a year late. If she can't, I hope someone else in the manga does, I can't stand bittersweet or marriage endings, especially when this is one of my favourite mangas :(

I don't understand why everyone thinks that if Mei chose Yuzu she would have to come out of the closet to everyone. She could, you know, just choose not to get married at a stupidly young age and keep her relationship with Yuzu on the down low.

I don't understand why everyone thinks that if Mei chose Yuzu she would have to come out of the closet to everyone. She could, you know, just choose not to get married at a stupidly young age and keep her relationship with Yuzu on the down low.

Indeed she doesn't need to go through any of that. The possible ways out as I see them are:

(1) Facing all the heat from coming out, probably losing the business/family wealth in the process. --> Might happen for max drama purposes, but very hard to execute since Saburouta is not that good with her storylines.

(2) If Mei wants to lead the academy, they need to spend the rest of their lives pretending to not be a couple and stressing about being found out by the "high society" that sends their children to the academy. --> Definitely possible but would be a downer, as it dilutes the manga message.

(3) Sho does not come back and Mei abandons the academy to be free, which means nuking the family legacy. --> I think this is the least likely option if you analyze only the character because it would require a change of values, basically she would need to do a total 360 like Sho did. BUT very likely to happen because manga logic and fits the overall message.

(4) Sho decides to come back and takes over the business so that Mei is free. Yuzu and her would still have to be on the down low so as not to damage the business reputation too much but definitely the best solution. Even better if Sho/Ume have another child to replace her as the next official head of the business, she can just work on stuff in the background. --> My bet on what will happen.

last edited at Apr 9, 2018 3:54PM

Dang that was a gut punch of a ending..uguu
Well I can definitely see it going several different ways.I doubt that this end will be the end.

I like Harumin because she reminded me of Chikaru Minamoto from Strawberry Panic. I pretty much instantly liked both of them from their very first introduction.

Have some adorable fanart

https://twitter.com/glidesloe/status/983758264729878528

That entire account is filled to the brim with lovely Citrus fanart (and is a dead ringer for Sabu's own art)

And here's another pretty good pic, translated and typesetted by Anya at Dynasty's Discord.

https://www.pixiv.net/member_illust.php?mode=medium&illust_id=68139713

Fanbook is coming

https://twitter.com/citrus_anime/status/983930120967602176

AozTkM
For me, the work's only real saving graces are that it's hilarious, unexpectedly poignant, and has nice art. (And now the frigging sweet, dissectable anime.) It's also impressive in terms of showcasing monomaniacal (this has to be the most apt term) immersion in the Highly Subjective world of angst-loaded, imbalanced and repressed "love"; qualifying it because the participants are freaking 16yo. And as anyone can attest in retrospect, that near-out-of-control phase in life is rife with mind-altering, paradigm-shifting hormones, and the onslaught of the accompanying Mass Confusion only exacerbates everything that is Everything--more so if you are a highly sensitive individual.

Monomaniacal immersion into world of repressed love. I am grateful for your explanation. It is well thought. This also describes one of the main aspects in the series that i personally relate with and continued to past my reaching adulthood and in my mid 20's still. However i've come to terms with and appreciate the things that come with it. I can cultivate my inner child and not change it, but grow with it.. essentially that phase of life has not ended for me even through 3 separate relationships spread out over 9 years now since i was 15. I have no desire to ever lose it either. But not forget to keep growing as a person, not from my person though.

Anyway, hence why i really like this series and am glad Saburouta exists and is willing to incorporate her own personal experience, memories, and vision into this lovely and exciting and comedical work of art. Can't wait for more. I haven't enjoyed an anime or manga as much as this before. Truly superb to me personally.

For Mei, security has been part and parcel to her still-underdeveloped personality; again, a painfully clear type and generic trope. Security (both psychological and physical) is the double-edged sword she's been wrestling with since Ch 1, so giving in to a young romance/commitment (lasting eternity) with so many unknowns and obvious hardships is to betray everything else about her own person, identity, and life. This is nothing surprising or new; while self-acceptance, with understanding and added acceptance of individual love, are all important issues, they're forever secondary to personal service and security in the long run. This is where Citrus becomes a timed Tragicomedy; Mei has been the catalyst, the end goal, the ultimate object of desire with the most to lose, so yes, there are people who will see her as having harder choices to make and requiring more attention. It's not a stretch given the Tragic Samurai Melodrama/Epic Stoic feel she's had throughout her basic (under)development over the years, on page, but also remember this is all coming from a highly neurotic, adult-creator POV that most identifies with Yuzu; a creator with a penchant and skill for nailing down emotional truths--however conservatively and circuitously--in the end.

Also well said my friend. Well said. You have a keen eye and feel for this all don't you? Thanks for your post.

last edited at Apr 11, 2018 1:56PM

Mei fought a losing battle, and Yuzu took to the waves like a surf fanatic.

This will be from now on the TL;DR of Citrus when I recommend it to friends :-)

the deluge imagery, experiences, and general concept permeates the whole of Citrus, for whatever reason, upstairs.

Mei wasn't waving. She was drowning.

last edited at Apr 13, 2018 5:53AM

https://youtu.be/oyAlJ2qROP8

Final track of the drama CD is translated, with all of its HaruMatsu goodness.

the deluge imagery, experiences, and general concept permeates the whole of Citrus, for whatever reason, upstairs.

Mei wasn't waving. She was drowning.

o_O... Were you looking to add something to the convo with your comment--aimed at a later, contextual generalization of a larger conversation that was clearly missed, or were you hoping for random, hit-and-run-type pwnage?

I thought this reference to one of the most famous modern poems in the English language was incredibly apropos to the general course of Mei’s development in Citrus. (Brutally paraphrased: what appeared in a person’s life to be signals that all was well (Mei’s hypercompetent persona) were actually signs of desperation.)

And even though the drowned person is a male in the poem, the poet published it with an image of a girl that looks a bit like . . . well, I’ll let everyone decide for themselves:

http://thethirdtale.edu-spirit.com/home/stevie-smith-not-waving-but-drowning

last edited at Apr 15, 2018 9:36PM

I thought this reference to one of the most famous modern poems in the English language was incredibly apropos to the general course of Mei’s development in Citrus. (Brutally paraphrased: what appeared in a person’s life to be signals that all was well (Mei’s hypercompetent persona) were actually signs of desperation.)

I actually didn't expect anyone to get that. More the fool me for underestimating.

The water immagery made me think of the poem and when i compared, it seemed to fit well. I did read most of the other comments and everything i could say has been said. Mei is not okay. But it's only because we get to see what Yuzu does that we know she is struggling as the weight of her responsibilities threaten to overwhelm her. Yet she keeps her composure and others (not all) think that she is fine.

I’m really not sure what these massive posts full of repetitive categorical assertions are meant to accomplish, but if it’s to prevent further responses to them, they work.

Its official, Citrus has gotten so bad that people are writing pretentious essays over examining run of the mill melodrama to add as much actual content to the story as they can.

last edited at Apr 16, 2018 10:13AM

Somebody have much more free time.

I myself think the "Mei wasn't waving. She was drowning" thing really fits. But will leave it at that.

On the other hand, I must say the obvious: having complex thought processes doesn't equal being pretentious, that's a judgement on the part of whomever is reading. It is certainly better than the shower of dumb (if I may judge it myself) "ZOMG"'s that this forum usually amounts to and will probably become again in 2-3 days once the new chapter is out lol

Also if you read what AozTkM wrote with no judgement, it's actually pretty reasonable and although verbose (which has been his/her style of writing from the start) it is not even THAT complicated.

last edited at Apr 16, 2018 1:59PM

Also if you read what AozTkM wrote with no judgement, it's actually pretty reasonable and although verbose (which has been his/her style of writing from the start) it is not even THAT complicated.

That's fair, and I don't doubt AozTkM's thoughtfulness and sincerity. But the writing is quite complicated and digressive, and in order to engage with it as an argument one is nearly required to summarize and perhaps reword any given idea or to tease out the argument's underlying premises from a thicket of verbiage, at which point "that's not what I said" becomes a (perhaps not inaccurate) discussion-ending trump card. And I too will leave it at that.

Yes the writing is complicated and could be done much better, but it's unlikely it's done out of malice or due to being pretentious right? Who the heck is going to write a thoughtful wall of text, usually with pretty interesting points once you tease the ideas out, just to troll others when they can have the same effect by writing like 200 ZOMGs in sequence...We live in the era of fast-food information after all lol

I think we can just ask AozTkM to please write more concisely and separate each idea in a separate paragraph :-)

Yes the writing is complicated and could be done much better, but it's unlikely it's done out of malice or due to being pretentious right? Who the heck is going to write a thoughtful wall of text, usually with pretty interesting points once you tease the ideas out, just to troll others when they can have the same effect by writing like 200 ZOMGs in sequence...We live in the era of fast-food information after all lol

Point taken. I'm just going to have to readjust my personal mental-cost/benefit analysis about it all, though. I have enough trouble figuring out what these frustrating characters are about without walls-o'-words complicating the issues unnecessarily.

Only 16 pages... Ehhh... Im disappointing

2 months for 16 pages? WTF