Like I said. No reading comprehension. They can literally confess, say I love you and lets stay together forever and it's still not enough.

There's a long history in anime and manga of two female characters telling each other "I love you," after which one or both hook up with a guy anyway. The issue is what happens after they say it, but this story just ends there. To me, that comes across as "so close, yet so far."

I'll also keep it at that. Yes, I'm annoyed, but hey, there's so much more to read out there.

You're fighting phantoms of your own making. The story has plainly laid out the feelings and circumstances of Hinako and Asahi. They are asexual. They are romantically interested in one another. They are moving forward on that basis. What elements are missing to make them qualify as a couple, in your eyes?

Ayo, ain't no way they left us hanging with Subaru and Fuuka

Yoo aces are winning.

Nice change to have proper ace yuri couple. For me they really developped well and I am glad they had a proper confession and all before it ended. But I will definitely miss them and wish I could see a bit of everyday life after.

Awww felt like it ended too quickly but hey I'm still gonna miss this series!

In this house, we stan aces.

you know how there's an 'angst' tag and an 'aaaaaaangst' tag? i think we might need 'whooooooolesome'

She mentioned "kissing, affection..." as things she is averse to (or incapable of), things I took as physical intimacy as a general concept, but holding hands with Asahi is one of her favorite things, and what is it if not a sign of affection and a form of physical intimacy?

This jumped out to me too - in one of the chapters she basically couldn't resist grabbing her hand, to the point it scared her, and I was sure this was some kind of prelude to overcoming her aversion to physical contact. I think this one thing might somewhat point at the end being just a tiny bit rushed - with a couple more chapters they could get to a hug or something and it wouldn't be inconsistent with the story so far at all.

But other than that I think the ending was satisfying and fairly logical. The whole point of the story to me was that both characters were either scared of or didn't understand love, so the endgame was obviously overcoming that and confessing to each other... and even if I'm slightly disappointed that they didn't hug, I think it was also a lot about the journey, not the destination, and I enjoyed the journey very much. Something about the general atmosphere of Usui Shio's stuff just speaks to me, it portrays feelings beautifully and has a warm sense of humour throughout (someone earlier said that the "well we made our feelings clear huh" moment was undercutting the impact a bit, but I think this was very on-brand for this author, and the big reason I liked the series).

last edited at Dec 8, 2022 2:24PM

This was honestly pretty good I thik the characters felt like real people with worries and anxieties and stuff. I also think the confession at the end there was very cute :).

But I would've liked if this series showed Hinako and Asahi dating...

last edited at Dec 8, 2022 2:38PM

I was preparing myself for an underwhelming last chapter since I saw people mention it in spoilers months before that there was no kiss and stuff, but it wasn't bad at all. Other than the last few chapters being rushed af and yeah you can feel the loss of enthusiasm from the author, it tied up everything really neatly and it was nice to see an actual ace yuri couple.

To those who still see this ending as platonic love, how can you say that when they specifically had that whole Fuuka arc to explain how Asahi's feelings toward Hinako is very different and NOT platonic friendship love. If it was just friendship with Hinako, it'd end the same way it ended with Fuuka. They even made a point of Hinako saying she "loves" Fuuka as well, but that it was still a different love compared to the love she felt toward Asahi.

Anyway I do think the 2nd half of this series was not as engaging as the 1st half, but I still really enjoyed it overall.

Like I said. No reading comprehension. They can literally confess, say I love you and lets stay together forever and it's still not enough.

There's a long history in anime and manga of two female characters telling each other "I love you," after which one or both hook up with a guy anyway. The issue is what happens after they say it, but this story just ends there. To me, that comes across as "so close, yet so far."

I'll also keep it at that. Yes, I'm annoyed, but hey, there's so much more to read out there.

In those stories, one of the female characterst never ask "are we lovers now?" afterwards, and to put that in a manga where homosexuality have a big topic, is just stupid if your goal was to make them best friends at the end. Because everyone would think they are lovers.

Plus, after reassuring her that it was ok to be lovers even tho they would'nt kiss and do other lover stuff, you could see on their body language and with the context of the scene in mind, i think its really farfetched to say they are just best friends.

Also, you can be lovers without having any skinship.

I think this one thing might somewhat point at the end being just a tiny bit rushed - with a couple more chapters they could get to a hug or something and it wouldn't be inconsistent with the story so far at all.

I feel the ending is not so much rushed as just plain average. Everything about it (composition, art, dialogue) is so basic it doesn't make me feel a thing, while the first chapter left quite a strong impression on me.

I think it was also a lot about the journey, not the destination

I also care more about the journey than the destination. It's not the romantic outcome that I find disappointing , but the fact that the two main characters somehow became less interesting than when they started out. It's like they stopped growing around chapter 10 and had remained flat ever since. Even their ranges of expressions toward the end are rather limited. Or maybe I'm just biased against the art style Usui Shio ended up with.

last edited at Dec 8, 2022 3:15PM

It feels rushed because the dialogue seems a bit stilted to me.

Would've liked to see them dating as Aces though, navigating the nuances of the urges they do and don't get.

Bit sad that it ended just like that. Would've liked seeing the sister's reaction for example but ah well

Bit sad that it ended just like that. Would've liked seeing the sister's reaction for example but ah well

Gah why did you have to write that, I was fine with the ending but now I actually want to see this too

Bit of a downer ending. Even if they're not interested in kissing, we could at least have had a flashforward of them as a couple. The ending happens to be a confession, but then there's no kiss, no romantic date, and no plans together for the future. For a romance manga, this is a bit disappointing as an ending. Anything that would cement them as a romantic couple, beyond a few words that have often been misused in yuri manga, would have made this more satisfying.

It's a good ending for these two. Being with someone who completes you is always the best.

Also, Asahi is so getting married!

Bit of a downer ending. Even if they're not interested in kissing, we could at least have had a flashforward of them as a couple. The ending happens to be a confession, but then there's no kiss, no romantic date, and no plans together for the future. For a romance manga, this is a bit disappointing as an ending. Anything that would cement them as a romantic couple, beyond a few words that have often been misused in yuri manga, would have made this more satisfying.

Why would they kiss for the sanctification of the reader when they themselves don't want to? Or have a typical romance, again for the satisfaction of the reader, when that typical expectation isn't Asahi's primary interest?

In fact, trying to live up to the labels and expectations of others, for the fulfillment of other, is exactly why both of them suffer and can not connect their own love.

They absolutely do plan on staying together, both say as much. And the moon representing romantic love is classic to Japanese romantic literature. The story ends with a full moon or their love for one another realized, even if it does not fit into labels of the expectations of others.

Like I said. No reading comprehension. They can literally confess, say I love you and lets stay together forever and it's still not enough.

There's a long history in anime and manga of two female characters telling each other "I love you," after which one or both hook up with a guy anyway. The issue is what happens after they say it, but this story just ends there. To me, that comes across as "so close, yet so far."

I'll also keep it at that. Yes, I'm annoyed, but hey, there's so much more to read out there.

You're fighting phantoms of your own making. The story has plainly laid out the feelings and circumstances of Hinako and Asahi. They are asexual. They are romantically interested in one another. They are moving forward on that basis. What elements are missing to make them qualify as a couple, in your eyes?

Can this not be discussed without personal insult. There enough contextual evidence to use without making it personal.

It is clear that Hinko and Asahi are in love with each other and the reference to the moon at the end is romantic in meaning. The latter being classic Japanese poetic symbology for romantic love. And in classic Japanese romantic literature the implicit or objective whole is preferred over the explicit or subjective dissection typical of Western romantic literature.

This is not the same as when some manga and anime hide or detract from lesbianism for some moral purpose. History is not evidence of every occurrence.

Otherwise, Hinako's concern is if they can truly be lovers, even if she may not be interested in or capable of kissing kissing and going further. Asahi otherwise assures her they can be.

---

Anyway, I'm gonna go listen to Haddaway.

What is love!? Baby don't hurt me. Don't hurt me. No more.
What is right, what is wrong?
I need you forever..
The moon is full...

last edited at Dec 8, 2022 6:03PM

God I love the ending. They confessed and confused right afterwards, such idiots. Lol this story really give me hope for romance as I am so so so much relate to both of them as a traumatized ace human being.

Or have a typical romance, again for the satisfaction of the reader, when that typical expectation isn't Asahi's primary interest?

Why would they end up together as a couple, for the satisfaction of the reader ? This is a romance story. Do the character end up as a couple ? The answer is yes, but the manga failed to depict that properly. The ending is so abrupt that we're never shown them as a couple; at best, we are told (through the confession) that they love each other. But due to the ending being so abrupt, it doesn't really tell much, or anything.

The appeal to realism argument would mean that they can equally have decided to never take their relationship further and act as platonic friends for the rest of their lives, and that the reader doesn't have a right to feel cheated by such an ending. I don't personally agree -- such an ending would certainly be "realistic" but it would be pretty poor, narratively, as the culmination of a romance story, and would be a waste of the interactions the characters had with each other. And, even for people who would be happy to see such an ending, the relationship the characters settle on should still be depicted properly.

After following the story until the end and the evolution of the characters, I feel that the readers "deserve" (if I may use such a word) to see how it ends. There are many ways this could have been shown : they might be going on a date, moving together, one might call the other their lover, partner, or whatever word feels right in front of others, or anything else that strikes the author's fancy. None of those is necessary because every couple can feel comfortable with different things, yet any of those would have shown them as a proper couple, rather than this vague ending. Kissing (along with marriage) happens to be one of the simplest, most unambiguous things to depict characters as a couple, and generally serves that purpose when used in the ending, but it's not the only option.

I feel that this ending correctly addresses the evolution of the characters in being able to properly express their feelings (as shown from the fact that they both confessed), but fails to provide a satisfying conclusion to their relationship and interactions towards each other.

Accusing someone who ignores all the textual evidence of a fairly lengthy series of a failure of reading comprehension is far from being anything like a “personal insult”—it is a reasonable inference from the specious argument being made.

Anyone who asserts that a pioneering Class-S series written in 2003 (Marimite), a slice-of-life workplace series with an on-again-off-again yuri tease (Aquatope), and a carefully developed romance featuring ace characters (Crescent Moon) are essentially the same obviously is more committed to breezy generalizations than to reading stories in their context.

EDIT:

Kissing (along with marriage) happens to be one of the simplest, most unambiguous things to depict characters as a couple, and generally serves that purpose when used in the ending, but it's not the only option.

This assertion seems to handwave away the context of the story and the development arc of the characters. These are ace characters for whom even holding hands is a new and somewhat alien experience; a depicted kiss (or one of the unstated alternatives) would be entirely for the benefit of skeptical readers.

last edited at Dec 8, 2022 6:48PM

Was this axed or something?
That's it? "I love you, I love you too, ok but are we lovers? Not really lol, btw I'm incapable of showing up affection, me too! Lol aren't we just one for each other?"
Kinda disappointed tbh, not even a kiss? And what about the sister's reaction, and her relationship with the friend? What about my long awaited nsfw scene?
Oh well, let's hope for better endings in the future

Holding hands is pretty affectionate for us.

hello yes why didn't this story i supposedly enjoyed abandon everything it's built to end exactly like every other romance story idgi

Ah, a lot of good insight by commentators in this. Re: Hinato's problems with intimacy. Makes perfect sense, the ending now.