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Now in Japan
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Written by maehara
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Saturday, 16 April 2005 13:36 |
 If you had told me when I started watching Final Approach
that its finale would almost bring a tear to my eye, I would have
laughed at you. Long and hard. This was a comedy series,
with very little in the way of serious romance anywhere, and
certainly not between Ryo and Shizuka. In amongst the twisting
excuse for a plot, though, they managed to wrap things up in a very
satisfying way...
11 - The Great End!? The Hina Dolls of Love and Farewell
The day has arrived for Shizuka to return home. Ryo and Akane
haven't told anyone other than Haru about her imminent departure,
although Shizuka's mood on her last day at school clues Emiho in that
something's up. Even with her imminent departure, Shizuka's not
prepared to give up on her hopes of bringing Ryo around to the idea of
marrying her, and tells Ryo the real reason why he was chosen, and
pleads with him to find a way to let her stay...
12 - Great Applause! Idiot of Love and Blessing!
Shizuka's gone, and Ryo's determined to make the most of his
rediscovered freedom - or so he says, as he walks around with a cloud
of depression surrounding him. He's not alone in missing Shizuka,
either - even if some people are missing her cooking more than Shizuka
herself. Eventually his feelings get the better of him, though,
and finally decides he has to get her back...
13 - A Great Conflict!! The Wedding of Love and Glory!
It's the epilogue episode, as Haru & Yurika get married, giving
Shizuka far too many romantic ideas for her own good. Her first
step in her plan for Ryo's domination - moving in next door.
Emiho's back on the scene, though, and seems determined not to let
Shizuka have her own way - she's arranged for Ryo to be her partner in
a modelling contest. For wedding gear. Let the battle
between the girls commence...
Or at least, it would have been a great ending if they had stopped at episode 12. Like a number of recent shows, Final Approach
has saved its last episode for a fanservice spectacular that also hits
the big red RESET button, and puts Ryo & Shizuka's relationship
back to where it was at episode 1 - which is a damn shame, and a real
waste. If it had been episode 4 or so, it would have worked well,
but it feels really out of place after the 'real' end of the story in episode 12.
As for the other two episodes... Like I said, they almost
brought a tear to my eye. One Emiho was unceremoniously bumped
off the scene earlier in the series, you just knew there was going to
be a happy ending between Ryo and Shizuka - the only question was how
they would do it. By way of a lot of heartbreak & some really
touching scenes from Shizuka just before she leaves for home again, the
show pulled on the old heartstrings in a way you just don't get very
often.
Overall, then, like its Princess Hour stablemate W Wish, Final Approach
has a lot of both good and bad, but the good comes out on top.
Come good comedy moments throughout the series, and one of the better
mushy endings I've seen in a while. At just over 3 hours to watch
the whole series, it's well worth checking out.
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