Blastaar posted:
It seems to me that the “they’re just going to be roommates—there’s no yuri” reading of this ending really is kind of a kneejerk reaction that doesn’t take into account the series as a whole or the various ways the characters have been developed.
This isn’t a couple of “will they or won’t they?” schoolgirls being given an ambiguous ending—Miss Sunflower has been portrayed as an intensely private, indeed repressed, person who previously has had extreme difficulty opening up to the people around her or expressing affection, and her invitation to Matsuri really is the equivalent of an open confession.
Furthermore, while the series has been quite open about its depiction of romantic love (or at least romantic attraction), mostly focusing on the figure of the first Miss Sunflower, it has never come near including any suggestion of physical intimacy of a sexual nature at all (in fact, even a kiss between Matsuri and Miss Sunflower would be totally out of character for the way this series has worked).
It was pointed out to me today that the series never really has the two of them interacting in overtly couple-y ways (holding hands, head pats, bed-sharing, etc.). I can sympathise with that perspective, and I personally would have loved the series even more if it had shown some of those things*. This wouldn't seem too distant from where the series is at already - with its many references (both from characters and the text in general) to the nature of their relationship. But, that's about as far as I would like.
The story was beautiful as it was told, and I'm quite glad there weren't any late attempts to discuss sexuality or have either of them musing about the nature of their feelings. It's disappointing to read folks suggesting the series was about "nothing" or "had no progress", but different readers will look for different content, so I suppose the diversity of opinion makes sense.
*What I really want in hindsight is a final volume end card of them cheerfully talking while lying in bed. Which would have dodged being too overtly physical while still being very cute...
