The way I look at it is Hotaru from NTR and Mel fill the same space in terms of a charater that is redeemed near or at the end. Except Hotaru really did get developed heavly and even reverted to her true personallity at the end. Hotaru sends the message that sometimes you create the monster that makes your life more difficult. Mel had no setup for her actions she just kinda did stuff with no real reason to.

Well I think that unpredictability in her actions was also a part of her charm initially. Mei appeared quite enigmatic during the first few chapters and that made many of us root for Yuzu to uncover Mei's troubles and help her solve them. I don't exactly hate Mei like many here seem to, I'm just disappointed at her stunted character dev till the end. She was a troubled and flawed character with a ton of potential to grow, but the author decided to laze off and we got what we have now. Ultimately, those of us who're a bit irked by the last chapter aren't dissatisfied by the ending imo, but the route the series took to get to that end.

I agree with this. I have trouble even seeing the Mei of the later chapters as an imaginary "person" upon whom I can pass moral or ethical judgments at all. She's more of a botched fictional construction by an author who set up a series of narrative and thematic problems in the early chapters then failed to even try to solve them.

Those early chapters were about Yuzu enabling Mei to open up emotionally, to confront her feelings about her father, and to begin to explore how she could move forward with her life on her own terms and move forward in her relationship with Yuzu. She was also someone whose maturity (in certain respects) and greater experience in the world could also help Yuzu to grow up.

The emotionally twisted, self-sacrificing Mei who was paralyzed by familial expectations (pressures which we ultimately learn were almost entirely self-inflicted) is more like the character she was at the start than the one she seemed on her way to becoming after the first couple of dozen chapters.

My suggestion :
1. Fluttering feelings
2.Maison de maid
3. WDTFS .Drama but well explained than citrus.
4. Blooming sequence.
5.Beloved
6. Her shim-choeng

Excellent list!

Never heard of the sixth one though :. What's it about? and where did you read it?

Here . https://m.imgur.com/a/VYjcM
There are more chapter but i read it in korean and vietnamese . Dont know About english version
.

Noooo Saburouta! Where's the sex? We were waiting for it! TT__TT

Rushed ending, but you can tell Saburouta wanted to be done with this. Don't blame them. I'd be pretty fed up if I had to work on the same project for...what, 5 years?

I'm disappointed we didn't get the outcome that a lot of us were hoping for (i.e. Yuzu doesn't chase after Mei and instead Mei has to chase after Yuzu later, Yuzu develops more independence, Mei grows a backbone, etc.), but I'm also really relieved we're done.

I'm not going to get into details since that would take up an entire page of comments, so I'll just summarize my overall feelings for the series: it's okay. It's not well-written, the main characters don't really develop at all, conflict is always repetitive, and there are lots of cringey moments. That being said, Citrus is worth a read, and I think every yuri fan should read it at least once. The art is fantastic, the supporting cast is great, and there are lots of cute and fluffy moments.

Hopefully, SU's next work will have more coherency and will be written better.

Can people please stop saying that the ending was rushed please? Inform before you say something. Citrus will continue in a new manga called Citrus + in which you will have the ending expanded and adventures of their lives after marriege. The ending was rushed on purpose to open a path for Citrus +, so stop it already

Can people please stop saying that the ending was rushed please? Inform before you say something. Citrus will continue in a new manga called Citrus + in which you will have the ending expanded and adventures of their lives after marriege. The ending was rushed on purpose to open a path for Citrus +, so stop it already

This is a series that spent almost three full chapters at the fireworks festival, that spent 10 pages getting Sara and her sister from the train station to Yuzu’s room in one of the final four chapters, but then refused to do more than fast-forward through the most difficult problems that the entire series had set up without even bothering to show us exactly what happened.

Don’t tell us that some future, unwritten series will rectify all the storytelling flaws that most certainly are present in the Citrus that actually exists.

Or at least don’t expect us to believe it until we see it.

last edited at Aug 21, 2018 9:19AM

Can people please stop saying that the ending was rushed please? Inform before you say something. Citrus will continue in a new manga called Citrus + in which you will have the ending expanded and adventures of their lives after marriege. The ending was rushed on purpose to open a path for Citrus +, so stop it already

We don't know anything about Citrus Plus so far except that it will be more focused on the sides characters, it could be before or after the marriage for all we know, so unless you have an official statement from Saburouta regarding the exact content of Citrus Plus you don't know what it's going to be about. And Citrus ending was rushed, it is undeniable, the fact that she is going to make a spin off is not an excuse, quite the contrary, botching your work on purpose just to keep some content for a spin off is not something to be proud of.

I remember starting this when the first chapter was out, thinking “this seems cool, I’ll follow along and see what happens”. I think I’m satisfied with the ending as it is. Sure, I might’ve been rooting for Matsuri and Harumin the whole time but that’s how it be sometimes. I feel like you couldn’t really add more content given the characters’ background, like Mei’s deal with the family business is running dry and Yuzu is pretty much already fully developed the first few chapters. She didn’t really have much of a background other than her father’s death and that was only covered for a few pages so I’m a bit disappointed she wasn’t explored any further. It’s been a wild read. Also could someone explain to me the way Harumin looks at Yuzu? When Yuzu confesses to her, it kind of made it more dramatic than it should be and didn’t require many words. Maybe it’s just a best friends thing and I’m reading too much into it but when I got to this, the box on the middle left looks like it’s showing a love square? Or is it just what Nene envisions?

Can people please stop saying that the ending was rushed please? Inform before you say something. Citrus will continue in a new manga called Citrus + in which you will have the ending expanded and adventures of their lives after marriege. The ending was rushed on purpose to open a path for Citrus +, so stop it already

We don't know anything about Citrus Plus so far except that it will be more focused on the sides characters, it could be before or after the marriage for all we know, so unless you have an official statement from Saburouta regarding the exact content of Citrus Plus you don't know what it's going to be about. And Citrus ending was rushed, it is undeniable, the fact that she is going to make a spin off is not an excuse, quite the contrary, botching your work on purpose just to keep some content for a spin off is not something to be proud of.

Agreed. Regardless of how Citrus Plus is going to be like, it still doesn't change the fact that the original series was so rushed at the end and resolved so quickly, i.e. showing textless panels of characters being cool with everything as opposed to creating a coherent storyline about it all.

Also could someone explain to me the way Harumin looks at Yuzu? When Yuzu confesses to her, it kind of made it more dramatic than it should be and didn’t require many words. Maybe it’s just a best friends thing and I’m reading too much into it but when I got to this, the box on the middle left looks like it’s showing a love square? Or is it just what Nene envisions?

I am having a hard time now thinking it wasn't simply to cause a lot of questioning among the fans and nothing else. Gosh, how to take this series seriously anymore? I want to believe :-(

(regardless of the intention, Harumin apparently seeing her love interest slip away was the best scene in the series for me -- more subtle and powerful than any Mei scenes...)

last edited at Aug 21, 2018 12:04AM

Hmmm Nice ending but some things are lacking.
i wanted more "hot and steamy" scenes and more side characters/ship developments (Matsuri is the most interesting character in my opinion).
i hope we'll see them in the spin off.

well to be short: nice story over all but i want MOAR !

last edited at Aug 21, 2018 12:16AM

Edit: Posted two days ago: “So far what is known about the spinoff is that it will focus more on the side-characters such as Harumi, Matsuri and Himeko.”

https://yurination.wordpress.com/2018/08/17/citrus-plus-spinoff-manga-announced-for-winter-2018/

How it is fun to see this info posted the 17th before the official release of the magazine because people from this blog just took a look to unofficial leaks of some pictures. "What we know so far" = they know nothing more than what is shown on the teaser for the series.

The spin-off tag excludes the sequel since the wedding is in a near future, unknown but not too far from the graduation.

Probably expanded stories on side-characters too along with stories about the main couple, but also a genre shift to a more slice of life tone. And another timeline (third year?). Maybe a different format two, no real plot but different stories, different focus. All that are assumptions of course. Let us not forget that Citrus + is the name of the bonus chapters in each volume.

The Hime Cafe interview of the author, published in the same magazine at the end of it, and not yet translated officially (and totally ignored by most of the manga blogs that all blogged the same info taken from the leaks) gives two details, three if we add some direct answer of the author herself.

To a readers question about "What will happen to Yuzu and Mei now ?"

• Answer from the author: "It will be enjoyable to have Mei and Yuzu meets new events/things".
• Additional comment from her co-commentator (who is her personal editor and also Yuri Hime's editor in chief): "Because Yuzu and Mei became an established couple (openly lovers), they will have new encounters. Look forward to seeing that in the spin-off in winter".
• The conclusion of the interview where the author mentions she'd like to draw adult romances and societal conflicts: "Although Citrus greeted it last chapter this issue, let's have a look to the happy daily life of Yuzu and Mei in the spin-off beginning this winter".

Except for this interview and the teaser, there is absolutely nothing about the spin-off content.

last edited at Aug 21, 2018 4:08AM

I just want to thank Saburouta-sensei for this awesome and emotional manga. Citrus is the only manga I am always anxious to read whenever the new chapter is updated. And I always panic whenever I see spoilers while scrolling around Tumblr. I cried a lot over the years of reading this manga. I really enjoy the characters' development, especially Yuzu. I'm so proud of her.
I know Citrus is not perfect, but I have no regret following this manga from the start. And the ending really brings a tear to my eyes. I couldn't stop myself from squeelling on the inside. I really can't describe my feelings that well but...Once again, I thank you, Saburouta-sensei for the Citrus manga.
Hm..wonder if Citrus can get a second season. Probably not.

I heard that Saburouta-sensei wanted to make 12 Volumes but he/she needed to cut her story to 10 Volumes. Thats why he/she rushed that ending. I dont know if thats true but i hope that is...

I heard that Saburouta-sensei wanted to make 12 Volumes but he/she needed to cut her story to 10 Volumes. Thats why he/she rushed that ending. I dont know if thats true but i hope that is...

That can't be true, if it was the author would not have wasted so many pages in stupid shit like all the drama after chapter 36 to resolve everything in half a chapter.

Can people please stop saying that the ending was rushed please? Inform before you say something. Citrus will continue in a new manga called Citrus + in which you will have the ending expanded and adventures of their lives after marriege. The ending was rushed on purpose to open a path for Citrus +, so stop it already

Majority of the final chapter was dedicated to Mei still continuing to push Yuzu away and reject her, and everything we've discussed at length here and thought was going to be important (gramps, Shou, Mei taking over the school, Harumin's feelings) were only acknowledged in a collage of silent panels spanning two pages. If that's not rushed I don't know what is. And if it was purposeful as you say, that makes it an even worse ending.

Citrus+ has always been more focused on the supporting cast while Yuzu and Mei got smaller, 4-koma style comedy skits. I'd personally like to see it stay that way, and get more HaruMatsu content (which is what I mainly kept up with the main story for, but alas). Those two were easily the biggest wastes of potential this manga had; seeing them get more focus would be more than welcome.

While I definitely hate these last two volumes, I can't say I hate the whole series. There were lots of high points and fun moments that I can read over and over again, and most of the cast brought the series to life with their interesting personalities. It's a shame that Mei constantly dragged it down though, and that she didn't develop at all just really annoys me.

While I definitely hate these last two volumes, I can't say I hate the whole series. There were lots of high points and fun moments that I can read over and over again, and most of the cast brought the series to life with their interesting personalities. It's a shame that Mei constantly dragged it down though, and that she didn't develop at all just really annoys me.

While these comments have always had their share of both the "love every scrap of Citrus 4ever" and "Citrus = obviously total trash from beginning to end" factions, most people, and the most consistent commenters, weren't in either of those groups, but in fact were readers who liked some aspects of the series very much and hoped that it would continue to get even better and more consistent as the story developed.

I feel a twinge every time someone slags the character of Mei (not that they're wrong), because at one point to me Mei had the most interesting personality, or at least the one most capable of being developed in potentially unexpected ways. But that character's behavior seemed to just get more random in the later chapters and in fact she regressed to being much the way she was at the very beginning, except she was even more passive (and mostly absent to boot).

I didn't expect the resolution of the basic setup to be easy, but I thought it would be interesting to see how it was done. But "yadda yadda yadda--everything’s perfect" I did not expect--until it was obviously coming in the last few chapters.

last edited at Aug 22, 2018 8:26AM

I didn't expect the resolution of the basic setup to be easy, but I thought it would be interesting to see how it was done. But "yadda yadda yadda--evrything's perfect" I did not expect--until it was obviously coming in the last few chapters.

I really REALLY liked the first chapters because of the implications this manga had and it was not shy about it, they were step sisters in a sexual relation, how it'd impact their lives their family and how'd they deal with it, but then robot mei happened and everything went to the trash bin, I get that edgy characters add drama to some series but they can't be edgy forever and without reason and expect people understand their motives.

Can people please stop saying that the ending was rushed please? Inform before you say something. Citrus will continue in a new manga called Citrus + in which you will have the ending expanded and adventures of their lives after marriege. The ending was rushed on purpose to open a path for Citrus +, so stop it already

We don't know anything about Citrus Plus so far except that it will be more focused on the sides characters, it could be before or after the marriage for all we know, so unless you have an official statement from Saburouta regarding the exact content of Citrus Plus you don't know what it's going to be about. And Citrus ending was rushed, it is undeniable, the fact that she is going to make a spin off is not an excuse, quite the contrary, botching your work on purpose just to keep some content for a spin off is not something to be proud of.

Agreed. Regardless of how Citrus Plus is going to be like, it still doesn't change the fact that the original series was so rushed at the end and resolved so quickly, i.e. showing textless panels of characters being cool with everything as opposed to creating a coherent storyline about it all.

Also, any future series has no bearing on the fact the plot points of this work were basically left unresolved, or more accurately, resolved highly unsatisfactory and yes, rushed. Rushed. As. Fuck. The social position of the Aiharas, how an open lesbian relationship could be perceived by society and the school (because again, this setting was not presented as "Strawberry Panic", where everyone is gay by default and no one bats an eye), what the grandfather would do, what Shou would do, and a myriad of other, smaller problems, all of which we discussed to death and back here. Nothing of that was actually addressed, we got textless panels of key people reacting to the news and that was it. Happily married! Yey! The manga built up all this "family legacy", "academy", "marriage" and other issues, in a setting that looked for all intents and purposes like a real life one, or close to that, and then puf! All of it just swept neatly aside in a ten-panel solution of "lets marry". I adore this manga, and I often defended various elements of it, but this ending is just bad. Badly written, rushed to the point I am struggling to think of another manga with an ending as abrupt as this one. Hell, most axed series have endings more satisfactory than this.

Edit: Getting bai... responding to Cannibal made me realise something else, what was the whole point of the arranged marriage?? We theorised it was because her future position at the head of the academy demanded it, for various reasons we brought up at length previously, and it made perfect sense. The story itself seemed to corroborate our line of thinking, when Mei's letter linked the implied necessity of the marriage with her desire to preside over the school. But now, suddenly, it no longer matters. Am I missing something here? If she could have had both Yuzu and the academy ages ago, then what was the point of all this??? This would only make sense if she gave up on the academy, choosing Yuzu instead, but nothing of the sort was even implied.

Additional edit: @Blastaar: After giving it some thought, I will agree with you and Sibyllalal on the "there is not enough evidence to conclusively tell one way or the other" approach to Yuzu's sexuality.

last edited at Aug 21, 2018 6:14PM

You are obviously missing the "ten years old" part there. A ten-year-old was given a life-changing choice, by a parent who up until that point behaved no differently than the universally hated grandfather, and she was given this choice without any preparatory period whatsoever, Shou just sprang it on her. Her father, who was a strict, traditional parent all her life and raised her as such, suddenly comes to her one day and offers to abandon everything with him for reasons that are beyond her grasp, and you think she "decided it all herself". Have you ever seen a ten-year-old??

First off, in civil divorce cases children are given the choice which parent they want to predominantly live with. In real life young children are given a similar choice, and we as a society accept that they are able to make that choice.

My emphasis. Figure it out. Also, equating asking a child during a divorce settlement, a lengthy process that also gives time to said child to come to grips with the choice before them, and Shou springing this up on his daughter one evening out of the blue and then walking out. Totally the same thing. It is not like you have a retarded way of looking at this, no, this is the exact same situation.

Secondly, this is a manga 10 year old. Apparently you have never seen a RL 10 year old if you think they act any way similar to a 10 year old Mei. Just like no 16 year old acts like a 16 year old Mei.

Firstly, we are not even given much on how a 10-year old Mei acts, so this is nonsense. That there are no 16-year olds who act like Mei is also nonsense, though I will grant you they are not exactly common. A product of her own insecurities, upbringing, and class, resulting in a not really healthy mental configuration, suuuure, no such occurrences in real life. You must not go out much.

I would also like to point out, that Shou abandoned his daughter at such a young age, even more, as someone here pointed out, he left her in the very same family and atmosphere which caused him to break. He prioritised his own escape over his daughter, because he is a fucking horrible parent. His leaving was what probably made Mei so unbelievably stubborn about the academy, he not only abandoned her, he also mentally scarred her in the process.

And I can't believe you people keep using the word abandon when he asked her to go with him and she refused and so she was left in the care of the grandfather like she wanted.

And speaking of Shou, horrible parenting, and ten-year-olds, may I also point out that only in the realm of fiction could a ten-year-old be given such a "choice". Beside the option to stay for the sake of his child, Shou also had the option to take her with him, you know, as her parent and legal guardian.

Like I already pointed out, you are just wrong. Children are given similar choices in civil divorce cases. And once again, she chose not to go with him, and then chose not to go join him for 5 years.

Again. You are just wrong. As always. By equating this to a divorce settlement. Grandfather was not the legal guardian. End of story.

It is not theoretical in the slightest, the letter chapter is the perfect example. The western audience hated it with a passion, while the Japanese audience mostly praised it on social platforms. What made the western fans condemn Mei, caused the Japanese ones to sympathise with her. I do not think it filters to most westerners just how much the Japanese value self-sacrifice, be it for the sake of duty, family, business company, country... Individualism is not highly regarded there, and it never was.

Uh, no they didnt. Not at least according to 2chan. They had a very similar reaction as western fans to the author pulling a wild arranged marriage out of nowhere. Probably why the manga is getting cut short shortly after introducing it.

Learn to read, I was talking specifically about the letter chapter, where the arranged marriage is merely an afterthought without any weight, because Mei's choices were in the forefront, and her reasoning for abandoning Yuzu had little to do with the marriage, and all to do with her ambition to inherit the academy.

last edited at Aug 21, 2018 5:04PM

My emphasis. Figure it out. Also, equating asking a child during a divorce settlement, a lengthy process that also gives time to said child to come to grips with the choice before them, and Shou springing this up on his daughter one evening out of the blue and then walking out. Totally the same thing. It is not like you have a retarded way of looking at this, no, this is the exact same situation.

Love how you have to come up with so many assumptions. You have no idea how long Mei knew her father was leaving or how long it took him to set everything up. You assume he just left in the matter of a single day despite it not stating such anywhere in the manga.

Firstly, we are not even given much on how a 10-year old Mei acts, so this is nonsense. That there are no 16-year olds who act like Mei is also nonsense, though I will grant you they are not exactly common. A product of her own insecurities, upbringing, and class, resulting in a not really healthy mental configuration, suuuure, no such occurrences in real life. You must not go out much.

Nah, its just a badly written soap opera manga character you want to seem realistic but know it isnt true. Please, would love to hear about the real 16 year old student that is able to run a top notch school.

Again. You are just wrong. As always. By equating this to a divorce settlement. Grandfather was not the legal guardian. End of story.

How does that have anything to do with the fact that courts believe children are mentally capable of making such decisions? It doesnt, you are attempting to write it off on a technicality about legal guardianship when the argument is about the capabilities of the child.

Learn to read, I was talking specifically about the letter chapter, where the arranged marriage is merely an afterthought without any weight, because Mei's choices were in the forefront, and her reasoning for abandoning Yuzu had little to do with the marriage, and all to do with her ambition to inherit the academy.

It had absolutely everything to do with the marriage. She doesnt say she is dumping Yuzu because Mei cant be a lesbian chairwoman at an all girls academy, she says that she has to marry someone else.

Guys, you both patently have put 100 times more thought into a fictional character than her creator ever did.

In fact, commenters here have been writing a far more coherent and consistent Citrus than the author has (or rather multiple, variant Citruses) for months. These nuanced debates are rather beside the point when the story itself waves away every potential incongruity of plot or characterization.

This shit is finally over. What a long five years its been.

Don't even follow this manga entirely. But at least it has a proper conclusive ending with public marriage and all.

The ending had no substance to it and Mei never developed her reasoning as a character but in real life there are stupid and selfish people. At least we got an ending unlike countless of yuri manga that stays unresolved. Citrius isn't a revolutionary yuri manga but it is a manga that we needed as a yuri community. It's a casual anime and manga that is easy to watch and read. We need more manga's like this so our community can grow and hopefully, its a platform for better story and character driven, yuri manga's to come out.

Holy shit so I just started reading this last night and I finished 34 chapters in one go. I didnt sleep all night wanting to find out what would happen next. I must say that while the writing can be flawed and theres seriously some unnecessary drama in it, the story does have some great characters in it. Especially Yuzu. Yuzu and Mei's relationship has kept me captivated from beginning to (almost) end. My question is whether Mei will ever stop being so incredibly stoic and will continue concealing her feelings deep within her. In my opinion it would be great if Mei finally became more open.

But dont mind me, maybe I'm sounding silly now since I still have like 10 chapters to go