Rating: 8.5/10

Overall Series Rating: 9/10

Impressions:

I’ve never been a fan of endings, as I’m usually left wanting more. But strangely, True Tears does such a nice job of wrapping things up, that I don’t really feel like watching any more anyway. Everything feels complete (except for how I was hoping Noe would finally cry in the end). All in all, a great romance/harem series, and a great ending as well. The story, music, pacing, and especially the quality, are all exceptionally high. And you can always argue about whether the characters are well-picked or not, but in the sense that they make the show interesting, I will have to say the writers came up with a pretty nice cast.

Honestly, I’m surprised Shin ended up with Hiromi, BUT only because by the standards set by anime, if someone is occupying a guy’s heart for two episodes before the finale, then usually, the guy will stick with that person. Thankfully, True Tears doesn’t really follow the conventions of anime, but rather, the conventions of life, which dictate that, you can be really thankful and close to a person you don’t necessarily have any romantic feelings for. In this case, Shin shows that it IS possible that in an anime, a guy can have a normal relationship with more than one girl. In the end, he declares his love for Hiromi, but there’s no problem in being grateful for Noe, is there?

In the end, I was quite content with the final developments of all the characters, so it didn’t really matter to me who Shin ended up with. Noe becomes rather normal, and Hiromi throws away her momentary bitchiness which is obvious in the previous episode. It’s also nice to see how Aiko’s relationship with Nobuse has improved drastically, now that they’re just ‘friends’. If anything, I would really love to see an aftermath episode, something that would depict the lives of Shin and Hiromi as a couple, or how things end up with Ai and Nobuse (it would be good if they ended up together). But that’s not anything to complain about. If you like romance, True Tears is a must-see.

Rating: 8/10

Impressions:

I hate how animes can change a character completely in one episode. I liked Hiromi’s personality. Quite a lot actually. But quite obviously, she has been portrayed as the ‘villain’ in this episode, with her ‘leave us alone’ rant and tears/makeup, acting all high and mighty…and I can’t help but like Noe better. I also think it more likely that Shin ends up with Noe, which would be a good move if the writers wanted to NOT follow the traditions of harem anime. Noe has always been the main girl anyway, so I guess it would only be natural. She simply doesn’t seem like hte romance type though…

Either way, the writers have been awesome up to this point, continuously making the story captivating and unpredictable. True Tears is definitely one of the better romances out there, and in my opinion, it’s a harem done correctly. Speaking of harems, the third harem member, Aiko, has never really been a contender, which probably makes it more realistic. Surprisingly, her involvement in the story has not seem to ended yet, and although I doubt any major development, I wouldn’t be taken aback if they squeeze in some final elaboration of her relationship with Nobuse or Shin. There’s still the question of who Shin is going to end up with…if anyone…

Rating: 9/10

Impressions:

Uh oh, the part I’m most worried about now is Hiromi’s vengeful glare after informing Shin about Noe’s disappearance. I definitely hope the story doesn’t become highly unrealistic, like School Days, though a bit of fighting or angst wouldn’t hurt. I still have doubts that Hiromi will end up with Shin, but of course this is the path I would like the show to take. Perhaps the uncertainty at the moment is what’s creating a large portion of the excitement—even the well executed kiss-on-beach scene doesn’t wrap anything up. Ai making up with Nobuse was a quick and efficient way of concluding the two up, but also shows that they were never really in the heat of things.

I’m really not following the urgency behind Shin’s search for Noe after visiting the hen cage. Does he believe she is going to jump? That’s highly unrealistic, so I have no idea what he’s thinking (unless he cares for her THAT much). This is why it’s still quite unclear what’s going to happen with Shin’s romantic interests. Personally, I think he still holds Hiromi at heart, and only really saw Noe as a refreshing change of his usual every day life, and attracting him with the prospect of new experiences as well. The preview shows Noe trying to make Jibeta fly, and I foresee this as a perfect opportunity for her to get her tears back (with the dramatic sound effects and waves beyond the peer…)

Rating: 9.2/10

Impressions:

Hiromi is love! Aiko has definitely lost what little chance she had with Shinichiro, while it doesn’t seem like Noe is having much luck either. I guess the next few episodes are either gonna have Shin break up with Noe, or re-realise his love for her. I like the former idea much better, as you would imagine. Shin still has to confess to Hiromi, who I’m sure he is now hot on the trail for after discovering they really aren’t related (though in a real situation, there’s always the possibility that the parents are lying, or have been deceived themselves). I really hope they finish this awesome series well.

Rating: 9/10

Impressions:

Just about everything turned out just the way I wanted it—the misunderstanding between Hiromi and Shin being siblings has finally been cleared up, Shin’s mother has ultimately realised her wrongs (though personally I wanted to see something bad happen to her for being such a bitch), and of course, the thing that all Hiromi fans probably would’ve liked; Noe brushing Shin off. From now, I guess there’s still a chance of her getting back with Shinichiro, but the fact that she went to Shinichiro first usually means she won’t be the one who ultimately ends up with him, as suggested by many other harem shows. It would be more suiting if she just got her tears back, IMO of course. xD

The only real complaint I have with this episode is the execution of the initial bike scene. The effect they were going for was obviously the ’silent but harsh truth’ feel, though personally, I would have preferred the more generic ‘instantaneous jerking’ effect, with the usual added sound affects and perhaps screams as well. The reason is, if I look at it from an objective point of view, the way that Hiromi and Jun fall but get up as if nothing had happened really suggests that none of it was at all important, though it is actually very important to the development of the characters that occur minutes later.

Rating: 8.5/10

Impressions:

The fact that Noe is becoming so close to Shinichiro when there’s still 5 episodes left suggests that the current pairings may not reflect the end result very accurately. Of course, it could simply be a sign that the two will come across some obstacle in the near future, and must work to overcome it, but this obstacle may well be the cause of their possible undoing. I sure hope so, since I just can’t come to like Noe’s personality. Hiromi is still my favourite, though I have to admit all three girls have undergone some significant character development that has changed their original behavioural patterns quite a bit.

This show manages to keep things moving at a nice pace, and does not spare a moment of peace as whenever something is resolved, another matter pops up, or a lesser matter becomes more important. Aiko’s crush on Shin seems to have been crushed (ok, bad pun >_>), but this allows the situation between her and Nobuse to come to light again, and we’ll see what happens from here. Also, while Noe seemingly has caught her ideal fish (aka Shin), new factors have arisen, such as the conversations and happenings between Hiromi and Jun, that may well complicate things again. And with 5 episodes left, this is almost guaranteed to happen.

Rating: 8.5/10

Impressions:

The first half of this episode makes me kinda hate Noe. The second half shows her sweet side and makes me like her again. So it’s all good. The first half, however, does leave a big impression in me, as it tells me that Noe is either just really childish or extremely selfish—and both aren’t good traits. The way she accuses Hiromi and demands to know what’s not her business is quite irritating, so I’m certainly not hoping for her to end up with Shinichiro anymore. The latter half of the show shows her in quite a good light, though I still like Hiromi far better. Lastly there’s Ai, who’s made the boldest move so far, though I doubt she’ll get him in the end.

True Tears remains highly interesting as it’s easy to see that thing’s have been completely messed up now (and hopefully, not like School Days). As Shin says in the episode, there is a complex web of romantic feelings going around, and what’s more, Shin and Hiromi believe they may be related, Aiko is on the verge of breaking up with Nobuse and has stolen a kiss from Shin, and Shin himself has gone and asked Noe out when he’s not even sure of his own feelings. It basically means, there’s no telling what might happen from now, and since we’ve only just passed the halfway mark, I’m sure there’s going to be a lot more twists and surprises waiting.

Rating: 9/10

Impressions:

NOOOOO this means there is a possibility that Hiromi and Shin are related, as everyone probably already suspected. This basically means Noe’s chances of getting with Shin have skyrocketed, and she seems to be the ‘main’ girl if the ED has any say in things, but you still can’t rule Hiromi out yet. And the way Hiromi says it at the end clearly means she’s got feelings for Shinichiro, regardless of whether something like that may be forbidden or not. Now we know the reason for her being so cold to Shin and everyone else in the family, though she still warmed up to him unusually quickly. My guess is she gives up on him and accept him as her brother.

Speaking of just this episode, I reckon it was handled exceptionally well, especially with Hiromi’s final scene and Aiko’s confrontation with Nobuse. The latter essentially finally puts Aiko in the running for Shin, even though we all know it’s not going to happen anyway (unless they do what Shuffle did or something). Aiko as a character doesn’t intrigue me as much as Noe or Hiromi, and she’s too far from the centre of things to be a proper main character, but that could well change. For now, it looks like next episode will have Hiromi and Noe facing off for reasons yet unknown.

I’ve always thought this, but Shin’s mum is a royal bitch. I’m not going to try and justify or blame any of the characters for the reasons behind their respective actions (such as the family problem), but it’s no exaggeration when I say I really hate Shin’s mum. The fact that she’s being so cold to Hiromi, who has never done anything to her, and yet at the same time trying to be all loving towards Shin who lives in the same house is just shameful. Again, I’m not going to go into why she would do this, why she shouldn’t or why she should, but I guess this has to do with being able to relate to such a situation. Shin on the other hand, should really start standing up to his mum more.

Rating: 8.2/10

Impressions:

I actually thought that Hiromi had become ‘happy’ too quickly, but then seeing her strange reaction to Shinichiro telling her about number 4’s remark made me rethink my opinion entirely. Her reaction is a little off, and doesn’t seem like the kind of thing she would express if she was only expecting something like a confession or a date offer by Shinichiro. The repeated scene doesn’t help much either…but I wonder if the txt message she receives beforehand has anything to do with her frustration. This certainly seems to have set her relationship with Shinichiro a little back, and the dating deal that has come into play isn’t going to make things better.

Meanwhile, Aiko is definitely latching more onto Nobuse than before, so all signs point to her NOT getting with Shinichiro (unless this is just some façade to get closer to Shinichiro. Speaking of the two, the ending line that Aiko gives in this episode is somewhat confusing. Not so in the sense that, I don’t understand what she means, but rather in the sense that I have no idea what the scriptwriters were thinking in making the show finish with that, since it certainly doesn’t seem like a very effective hanger or anything. So Nobuse comes and is about to bust the two, but then he already knows about the jumper. So what’s so secretive and important?

Overall, this episode isn’t as good as some of the others, but I attribute that to the fact that this episode is more of a setup episode for the twist in things that’s to come. That is, the dating deal that Shinichiro makes with good ol’ number 4, who doesn’t seem very ‘nice’ at all though. I can only see Hiromi getting hurt if she really has any feelings for him (or even if she doesn’t), and who’s better to come to her rescue than Shinichiro? However, there’s also the matter concerning the twos’ parents and any possible relations. I wonder how Noe will react if Shinichiro approaches her with a date in mind as well. She certainly appears to be attracted to him, even romantically, right now.

Rating: 8.8/10

Impressions:

A few scary thoughts…perhaps Jun is not related to Noe, which would sort of explain his actions while putting on the bike helmet for her…But still I can’t see an ending where the two end up together. I’m confident to say that True Tears isn’t weird enough to do that…I hope. And the other: Maybe Shinichiro’s actually related to Hiromi…Shin’s mother definitely seems to have something against her, which implies a close relationship…perhaps she’s like, Hiromi’s real mother or something. That would be the worst possible revelation ever though, as it means Hiromi and Shin won’t be able to get together…(which will probably make me cry).

But man, I love this show. I’d have to say I like it as much as Gundam 00 and Shakugan no Shana (which is pretty damn good after both Gundam and Shana crossed their midpoint and got significantly better). It’s probably because this show, to me, is a harem that’s actually done right. Well, I’m not so sure it’s explicitly a harem at the moment, since everyone doesn’t have a clear objective of wanting Shinichiro, but they’re close enough…I also like all of the characters—they’re believably, unlike most members of harems, which means they don’t go emo, aren’t super happy-go-lucky, aren’t extraordinarily shy and don’t ‘present’ themselves to the male lead at every chance they get.

It’s troubling for me right now though, as I really don’t get what a lot of the characters are thinking. Noe for one—she seems like she just wants Shinichiro’s tears, but what the hell does this even me? I don’t really see a romantic relationship happening here, as neither seems to like the other, but her actions do indicate her desire to get closer to Shinichiro. Aiko, on the other hand, definitely likes Shinichiro, but also seems content with moving things further with Nobuse. I thought the hand-holding thing was incredibly cute, but also made me wonder what was going on in her head at the time. Perhaps she’s preparing him for a fallback boyfriend in case Shin rejects her…

There’s more: Jun (Noe’s older brother), seems to have a sister complex…or maybe he just likes admiring Noe’s cheeks/neck. I was desperately trying to comprehend his actions when I saw it happened, but to no avail. And then he goes and asks Shinichiro to go out with Noe, which I’m sure neither actually want. And also, the first relationship to occur in a harem is usually not the final turnout. Which means, Noe’s probably out of the love game already (but then again, I doubt she was ever in it). On a side note, I wonder if Jun is going to become a main character in the show. Hopefully not, or else Hiromi might actually have something to do with him.

And finally, there’s Hiromi, who I just don’t understand. Is she really content with simply being able to talk with Shinichiro now? She continues to speak of Jun, who she supposedly admires, but I’m sure a normal person wouldn’t go to such lengths to cover up her secret crush in front of the very person she likes. Perhaps she’s not even aware of her true feelings for Shinichiro, if there is any (and there better be, since I find her character the most likeable). The ending I see would go something like this: Hiromi ends up with Shin, Aiko gets rejected or ends up with Nobuse, and Noe just becomes happy with her newfound tears…Nah it can’t be that predictable can it?