Little Busters Refrain episode 13 FINAL EPISODE

Hello there lovely readers. Post number 3 is here for you. I just spent the last two hours as part of my chores wrapping presents. Yes Christmas presents for NEXT year. Most people go crazy shopping the day after Thanksgiving. Chumps. XD Unless you do that. Then you can be slightly crazy and hopefully a defensive driver. No no, my shopping day of the year after Christmas. I do have many trees to ornament. But I don't only think of myself. I must think of all my friends and family...they have Christmas trees that need love too. Merry Christmas to all, I am almost done with everyone on my list with 360 days to go!

At least it wasn't Endless 8 up in here.

In terms of anime what we have up now is Little Busters Refrain episode 13. Yes the final episode is here. Spoilers for....Riki floating around in what is probably embryonic fluid and gasoline.

Riki is so amazing he had thoughts before he was even born.

Episode Summary: Riki is floating around in the nothingness. He knows he is falling asleep because things have gotten really bad. He is trying to fight this but every since he can remember this is how he has been. When bad things happen he goes to sleep. Ever since his family died. They were out for the day having fun and on the way home their car was run off the road, similar to the bus. Riki's mom protected him and when he woke up he saw his dead parents. It was so awful he put himself back to sleep. That is how Riki's life has been when anything bad happens. His friends were always there for him during these episodes. These friends that are currently in the bus. Riki has to push through this pain, this reality. But what is life like? Riki then goes back to before he was born. While he was waiting to exist he realized that life was about losing things and why bother going through that process if you are just going to lose everything? He sees images of his friends and realizes that all the hardships are worth it to meet them. So poof Riki will exist. He wakes up to Rin hugging him, having woken up from her dream world. They hold hands and walk to the bus because they are going to save everyone. They walk on the bus and see everyone thrown around. They get slightly upset but start to work on taking out Komari. They are going to take everyone from the bus and then move them to the hill before the bus explodes. When they walk back to the bus they see Kyousuke leading against said bus. The gas leak has been plugged by Kyousuke's back. With a heavy heart Riki goes to rescue the other people from the bus as Kyousuke wouldn't want them to save him and let the others die. They get everyone out of the bus and up the hill with a lot of work. They go back to Kyousuke who has woken up. He is so proud of how these two kids have grown up and smiles. They spent a few minutes talking and finally they decide to start rescuing Kyousuke. The bus finally blows up and they go flying. Rin is then heard singing a song about cats as Riki slowly wakes up. She smiles at him as this was just a normal wake up, not a I fell asleep because life sucks sleep. The rest of the girls run in with great news. Masato and Kengo have been finally released from the hospital. With that everyone is back at school and recovered from the bus trip 3 months ago. Everyone is happy and smiles. Well except for Kyousuke who is still in a coma. Riki has taken over for Kyousuke as the leader of the Little Busters but he is waiting for Kyousuke to come back. Life is okay at school but not the same without Kyousuke. Then without warning Kyousuke returns all better, nothing wrong with him. He smiles and is ready to take all his friends on an epic adventure to the beach. Onward to fun. It is all smiles and cupcakes as they take pictures and have a good time. Everyone has lived and onward they go to have so much more fun in the future, this time for real. THE END!

Wai look at how happy baby Riki was. :(

And so ends the story of the Little Busters. Was the adventure fun while it lasted? Have you dried your tears yet? Are you too overwhelmed to even talk? Well before we tuck away this show in the done section of our folders lets talk about this last episode.

It's like a Christmas Carol X__X

Again not sure how long this post is going to be (even though I say that every time) as it went by pretty fast and not much was covered. Or at least from my point of view. I think there might be cultural differences at play in regards to how the last few episodes were handled. To me it looked like they ran out of material for these last 13 episodes. That everything was dragged out. Way too much it terms of floating around in your own subconscious and not enough meat behind the situation. But perhaps that is just me. I like my horror films full of slash and death while other genres of horror focus more on the suspense. So maybe this really worked in Japan. Me not so much.

I would fall asleep a lot at work....

The first part of the episode Riki was doing just that, floating around and passing out. We got slightly more info on his situation with narcolepsy. Well maybe. Riki might just be putting himself to sleep. Like nope things are getting way too real and I can't handle it. It all started when his parents died. To be honest if that happened to me when I was that age I would close my eyes and pretend the entire thing wasn't happening too. A bit odd that Riki might have been able to control this but sometimes people are not able to handle real world pressures. I think I already said this but I know a few people like that. Can be frustrating but if no one challenged Riki on it when he was growing up of course he is going to be like that as a teenager, near adult. Block out the awful things and try to pretend it is all cupcakes and rainbows.

Thanks for deciding on that Riki...

Due to Kyousuke repeating events over and over again Riki has become stronger. Which is odd since he has forgotten most of what he has learned yes since it repeats without him knowing? Well anyway enough of it has stuck and remained with him. Again all the memories of his previous encounters come rushing back to him. This episode was high with cheese and whimsy when Riki went all the way back to before he was born. Before he was born he knew that life was going to be suffering. I see. But since he has such lovely friends, new and old, he is willing to be born and meet them.

We are the Little Busters. We don't leave anyone behind.

Riki and Rin finally are able to break free of their own personal worlds of sorrow or left over Kyousuke world. All they have is each other. They need to put aside their fears and childish hold backs to face the truth. No more fantasy land time. Hold my hand and we will....enter the world of reality where two small kids thrown out of a moving bus have the energy to move every single kid on said broken out to safety!

We can save everyone because we believe!

The miracle in this series was not going back in time to stop the bus crash or to give Riki and Rin some sort of super powers (despite Rin powering up all Super Sayian last episode). No the miracle was that the kids on the bus were able to create a world that made Rin and Riki stronger mentally. Oh and I guess the other miracle would be that no one died in the crash. Everyone just rolled down hill and were in varying degrees of hurt. So I was slightly wrong on that aspect, that everyone was dead. They were just...super close to death and that experience allowed their subconscious to merge and create that world. That was the miracle. Because Rin and Riki nearly killed themselves rescuing all those kids. I was surprised they were able to get Masato and Kengo out of the bus, let alone up the hill. People really do get rushes of energy is desperate situations.

Yep...still very sad and disturbing.

They were able to do this because yes Kyousuke really was blocking the gas leak with his body. He was just on the opposite side of the bus last time and I couldn't see him. But he really was crawling away from the bus last time. I suppose to make sure he lasted long enough to support the world. He looked too hurt to properly save anyone anyway. Riki and Rin found him pretty early on but decided to leave him near the gas leak to save the others. Because that is what Kyousuke would have wanted. Must have been a hard decision, to leave the most important person for last. Rin and Riki are all grown up and saving people.

How to love. Be free my yaoi thoughts.

With a lot of extra fluff going on (memories of everyone again and what not) Riki and Rin were able to drag everyone to safety. Glad to see the bus was full of other people despite the Little Busters. Makes it more realistic. After everyone was to safety it was time for Kyousuke. I know this show is full of feelings and what not but maybe next time Rin and Riki can do a little less talking and a bit more saving when it comes to buses that are about to explode. I mean it could have been the last time Riki and Rin could have had to talk to Kyousuke, given how injured he was but still. SAVING! Kyousuke was super proud of Riki and Rin, that they were able to go through all that sadness and come out as strong people. Thank you....and goodbye Mr. Bus.

Slowly but surely all the Little Busters are getting out of the hospital to join the rest of the group.

The next thing you know, Rin is singing and Riki is sleeping on his desk. Has this all been a dream? Did they save no one and they were still stuck in their happy world? Is this all one big troll show?! Wake up Riki! Well he did...and this show does have a happy ending. Riki was just taking a nap. Saving people is hard work, even 3 months later. Everyone lived. There were injuries of course. Masato and Kengo got the most of them it seems as they were protecting people. All is well. Things are going to be okay. Riki is the new leader of the Little Busters, everyone is alive, and they can continue to have fun everyday.

Let the good times roll.

But where is Kyousuke? Did he make it? Yes. Of course happy anime show. He was just in a coma as he was hiding in the bottom of the bus and got the most injured. Plus he was running another world for who knows how long and that was very taxing. I am sure being covered in gasoline isn't great for you and the bus sorta did explode on him. Around him. So for the past three months Kyousuke has been in a coma. The Little Busters have continued on and Riki is guiding the way. But he is still waiting for Kyousuke, the person he looks up to in every aspect of his life.

Coma? What coma?!

Due to happiness and rainbows Kyousuke appears at the end of the episode, completely better. I wish there would have been more...reality to the situation. You know, in a world where there are people making worlds and kids rescuing like 20 people from one bus. I would assume being in a coma for 3 months is very draining on the body and Kyousuke would be low on muscle mass. None of this running around and doing tricks. But...we got to end on a high note. Everyone is better. Kyousuke can't be in a wheelchair. Why he has to be full of life, a life that Riki gave him. TO THE BUS!!

We are all alive weee!

Yes that is how this series ended folks. A trip on a bus. I tried not to make the X___x face a bit much. I guess Kyousuke didn't want to have any regrets in this new life of his. They were going to get on that bus and face their fears. Onward to fun and snapping pictures. They all have a fresh start on life. They have spent enough time in the hospital, now it is time to play up to their character silliness and end this series on a high note. No one ever gave up....well maybe a little but they got right back up and here they all are now. Happiness!

Everyone say awwww!

Overall I guess the series was okay. I think it got a bit much in the end, with all the self reflections and floating around. And while I am glad everyone lived (through just the tiniest bit of magic) I think the seriousness of the situation was underplayed. Like I thought maybe Masato was going to lose an eye. Maybe Kyousuke will be in a wheelchair for a while. Things can be happy and fun with lasting effects, reminders of what could have been. Just way too over the top cheerfulness you know? But maybe that is me just being no fun. I am glad that Rin and Riki were able to conquer their inner demons but I don't think some of the other characters got enough screen time. About what their real issues in the real world were all about. Overall it was a nice fluffy anime that is worth watching but maybe not repeat visits. Well as fluffy as a show that had almost all the main characters die. Thanks for the memories Little Busters. I am officially scared of buses woohoo!

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Little Busters Refrain episode 12

BAWWW! Just one big BAWW!

Post 5 weee! Christmas specials are finally starting to roll on the television now. Time to start watching and vegging out in front of the tv. You know, not what I have been doing all day long already....Up now is Little Busters Refrain episode 12. Spoilers for many tears drowning everyone.

Kyousuke is on the bus because..he is. End of mystery.

Episode Summary: Riki and Rin are running through the broken down world. Rin asks where they are going and Riki says to the real world. Riki sees visions of his friends (Masato, Kengo, and Kyousuke) one more time, with their goodbyes, before the world completely is erased. Rin and Riki walk through the nothingness for a while and poof they are outside. Hurt. Riki manages to get up first and located Rin under a tree. They are at a bottom of a mountain and were thrown from the bus and landed some distance away. They look around...and see the bus. It all comes back to them (well Riki first I guess) on how they all went on a school trip together. Riki was joking that Kyousuke somehow snuck on the bus despite being a 3rd yearer. He can't just leave them to have fun alone. On the bus are the rest of the girls but none of them are friends with the main Little Busters left so they are scattered throughout the bus. Riki is all smiles that this will be a great day when the bus is hit by something and off it goes flying down the mountain. Riki remembers Masato protecting him while Rin knows Kengo protected her. Riki goes towards the bus but sees the gas leaking. He then decides to listen to Kyousuke and his final request and live, to protect Rin. He pulls Rin away from the wreckage crying as Rin looks out of it. When Riki looks back at the bus though he doesn't want to listen to Kyousuke. He can't live without his friends and decides it is not too late. He tells Rin to stay put and he goes back to the bus the best he can due to his injuries. He wants to save ALL of the Little Busters, new and old. Since things are getting awful Riki starts to have one of his attacks but he pushes through. He will rescue everyone through the act of friendship. Only when he gets to the bus and looks inside it appears everyone is bleeding and looking...dead like. Riki then realizes that wishes and unicorn feathers don't exist. He can't save everyone.

Masato went out smiling, protecting his best friend.

Riki starts to get woozy and then the point of view switches to Rin. She snaps out of her crazy and realizes what has happened. She looks towards the bus and is too scared to move. She starts to explain why she is the way she is. A bunch of adults were mean to her once. She tried to cut herself off from the real world and keep to herself. Only Kyousuke was there to always bring her along and make sure she stayed connected. Slowly Kyousuke started to introduce new people into her life. She was scared of Masato and Kengo but took to Riki fast. They had fun times together and that is how she wanted it to always be. Now they are dead. Rin just breaks down and cries. Cries her little eyes out. As she sits there and cries she seems to be taken to the fake world...that just got destroyed. She hears Komari calling out her name and looks around. She finds the drawing book with the penguins and how the special penguin was happy in the end. Rin starts to cry because she realizes she forgot about her friends because it was easier than dealing with the pain. One by one Rin visits the girls and they tease/talk to Rin. Some offer advice to Rin while others tell Rin to stay the way she is forever. Rin cries even more as she didn't get to say goodbye or thank you. Then Rin remembers when she first became friends with Komari, that there was mention of making promises on hair ribbons and Rin wanted Komari to make hers for her. Rin runs to the roof and finds Komari. Komari apologizes for not telling her the truth and that she just wanted to be with Rin to the end. But now Komari no longer exists and all she wants is Rin to smile again. Komari disappears and Rin falls down. She says she can't cry as she would be going against Komari's wish. But to smile again Rin would need to be with her friends again. Suddenly the ribbon powers up Rin super Sayian style and saying the good luck chant brings Rin back into reality. There is still time to save everyone ya'll. THE END!!!

Somewhere awful...:(

X____X I think this post will be just as quick as the last one but I think it was just as traumatizing. Like there is not much to say because all there was to this episode was feeling? If that makes sense. Merry Christmas indeed.

Riki really doesn't want to say goodbye but he has Rin to protect.

There was still bit of running through the dream world. The Kyousuke world if you would. Because there needs to be 3 episodes of goodbyes for us to properly cry our eyes out. I mean...I get that it is sad and super....depressing but the goodbyes won't mean as much if they keep repeating. Like okay I will say goodbye....one more time. And then one more time. Oh and then one more time. Almost like there wasn't enough material for this season and they have to stretch it out. Of course I could be a brat and just not understanding how traumatizing this is and that Riki just learned the truth 4 minutes ago and is still processing it. People are dead so I guess he needs to say all the goodbyes he can.

Can we go back to the nice world now please?

Once the Kyousuke world was completely gone...POOF back in the real world our main characters find themselves. I wonder how much time passed in the Kyousuke world. How many times did each day repeat itself? Is Riki 60? In any event...Riki and Rin were pretty far from the crash site. If Kengo and Masato were protecting Riki and Rin from the blast how did they get so far away? Shouldn't they be under Masato and Kengo? Or you know...super duper hurt because being THROWN at that speed would cause more damage than the actual crash?

Way out of the bus....

Details details. The point is Masato and Kengo did something to protect Rin and Riki. Everyone else is still inside the bus. Riki's first instinct is to go to the bus and rescue who he can. Which I think is the proper response even though Riki is hurt. Most people aren't going to stand by and do nothing. This leads to other people getting hurt or killed, especially when it comes to rescuing drowning people. Even though I am not very strong I would still try.

I must do this...for Kyousuke.

But Riki stopped. The gasoline was leaking. I see that Kyousuke dragging himself back to the leak was just metaphoric as I didn't see him. Well I guess he could have been on the other side.....Still Riki saw that the situation was still dangerous. And in case of emergencies you need to make sure you are okay. Move any injured individuals off to the side (Rin). And in case of magical worlds and promises...it would really do Kyousuke a disservice if you know...Riki and Rin died after Kyousuke went through all that hard work to rescue them and make sure they were taken care of in the living world. It might be just a giant EFF YOU if Riki and Rin died 5 seconds after everyone else did. Not that Riki and Rin asked for all this hard work but still. Just the idea that these were people's last wishes and if they disrespected them it would be awful. So Riki took Rin so they could live.

I can rescue everyone because I believe!

This lasted about 5 seconds. Rin is safe, Riki is going back to rescue his friends. Because that is how this show is. Doing things for your friends. And if anyone thought Riki was just going to walk away when MAYBE he could save his friends...well you are on crack. That is not the person Riki is. Especially after all the trials Kyousuke put him through. He used to look away when things got bad or allowed his narcolepsy (which wasn't why he lived...) to take over. Kyousuke has taught him how to be a stronger person. He will fight through these awful feelings and save his friends. He can do it. He can drag everyone out of the bus and save them all! GO RIKI!

Or...maybe not....

Or you know....everyone is dead. Seriously hurt but on their way to dying. I am not sure if it was censored or just meant to be dark but whatever Riki saw brought him back to reality. Kyousuke was able to do magic things...because it was his own world that he created. In reality land Kyousuke couldn't help Noumi escape those awful people. I am guessing that Mio might have been a lose cause too. Riki thought that just doing your best and wishing hard enough would make things happen. But in real life when vans fall off a cliff....people die. Riki has to accept reality now.

Stop being so mean to me!!! I'm just a little kid.

Back on top of the hill Rin has woken up from her well deserved moment of sadness. The kind where you look off into space and wish it all away. Rin woke up and realized that Riki had gone off towards the bus and she was all alone. And was going to be all alone (with Riki) for the rest of her life. Time for sobs. And even if Rin wasn't emotional stunted or whatever is wrong with her I think it was time for a cry. I mean look at all of this craziness. There was a bit of a moment where Rin tried to explain why she was shy and cut off from the world. I guess some people aren't equipped to deal with...much. I know a few people like that too. It is frustrating but sometimes people are just fragile. And now fragile Rin has more to deal with. Time for crying.

Twice the tears!

Since this show is about magical and people's wishes I guess there is no point in wondering how Rin got back into Kyousuke's made up world. Because this show needs to end happily. Perhaps someone is still alive left in the van and their wish is keeping the world running for a bit longer. Because Kengo, Kyousuke, and Masato aren't the only ones that matter to Rin now. No no, thanks to Kyousuke making this world Rin has a whole bunch of new friends that are now in different states of dying. This was the best plan ever Kyousuke!

Next I am going to visit Tenchi since she likes messing up my name.

I thought Rin taking the time to say goodbye to all the girls was nice. Well I just typed that and it wasn't really true right? More like all the girls came and said something to Rin as their final goodbye. Because Rin didn't know what was going on in the baseball field and hadn't said goodbye to anyone. So technically....she was going to have regrets too if this didn't happen. It just felt a bit much, the goodbyes that will never end again. Some girls gave advice while others were just being themselves around Rin. Because everyone needs closure. And Rin needed to cry some more. Thanks for the memories.

You can't even say that without crying!

Komari was always special to Rin. Perhaps because she was Rin's first friend or maybe they just spent more time together. While Rin felt bad about forgetting all the girls she was especially upset about Komari. So Rin sought Komari out herself. I need to find Komari. Of course Komari was on the roof like usual. I like that she actually felt guilty about all this lying. All the other girls just smiled. Komari's main thing is smiling though....Anyway Rin remembers the wish that Komari wanted Rin to make and I think Rin wanted to make that wish for everyone to live. Only Komari has accepted what has happened and just wants Rin to smile again. I am not sure how much smiling Rin is going to do. Her brother is dead, not just some friends. Friends are important too but Rin's main family member is gone. So...this is a very strong wish that might never happen and hopefully Komari will be okay with that. Or guilt Rin into it, whatever works. Live on Rin.

Um...how about no?

Okay...so there have been other shows with similar plots. Sad things happen, miracle occurs, everyone lives. I accept that this is going to happen with this show but almost all the seriousness of the series was erased in 5 seconds. I wanted Rin to get up and have the resolve to save everyone on her own. To find some inner strength. Instead it got a little cheesy. Okay a lot cheesy with Rin saying Komari's catch phrase and striking that pose. Things are still VERY bad. Why the happy face and smiles? Just...yeah I think the episode would have been a lot stronger without that scene. Almost ruined it for me.

Oh look everyone is wearing their winter uniforms and Kyousuke has his diploma. ALL IS WELL!

I guess I wasn't very short with this post was I. XD Well watching it was fast I guess. And not much seemed to happen. This series is wrapping up. Will Riki and Rin muster up enough magic to bring people back to life? Or at the very least drag all their broken bodies from the van? With the gas leaking? Um...I am guessing yes. Christmas miracle!

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Little Busters Refrain episode 11: Goodbye

Um because you told him the truth?

Post number 2 weeee. Hopefully I will be almost all caught up due to work being closed for a few days. XD Of course that is because of Christmas and Christmas time is full of Christmas things. Shocking I know. But here is another post that has been waiting so patiently to be posted. Little Busters Refrain episode 11. Almost the end of this series! Spoilers for....well the end of the world!

Thanks for bringing us together Riki. For 15 whole minutes woohoo!

Episode Summary: Riki and the gang arrive at Kyousuke's door. It appears that he was waiting for them. Riki offers up his hand, saying that he has put the Little Busters back together and now it is time to for Kyousuke to come back. Kyousuke smiles and simply takes his hand, no questions asked. Riki smiles and says things will be as they should be forever now. Kyousuke smiles and says that it will soon all come to an end. Kyousuke tells the viewers the school is now void of people and cats other than the core 5 Little Busters. Riki does look around for 5 seconds but just assumes it is quiet. Masato and Kengo ask Riki what they will do next and he smiles and says baseball. They smile back at him like that is the best idea in the world. They get to the field and Kyousuke is already there sorting out the equipment and thinking how this will be a fitting end. Rin hesitates when she gets on the field as she hears Komari talking to her. Something about someone needing to figure out a wish....Riki feels as if she has forgotten something but goes along with the fun anyway. Kyousuke thinks to himself how everything is turning out amazing and it will be okay when he is gone. He thinks about how Kengo has always been the real crybaby of the bunch and just wanted to be happy. He thinks about how Masato knew the entire truth and kept up his stupid act so everyone could stick together. He cares for those two so much and thank them for their sorta help. He thinks about how Rin has grown so much in this world despite his screw up. He thinks about Riki and how he has taken all the tasks and surpassed Kyousuke. Kyousuke nods to Masato and Kengo, letting them know their time was almost up. One more pitch for everyone. Riki hits the ball and Masato goes out of his way to catch it. When he crashes Riki runs to make sure Masato is okay. Masato starts saying goodbye to Riki, making sure the boy enjoyed their time together. That they had a lot of fun being roommates and what not. Riki is distraught as he has no idea what Masato is talking about. Masato then says goodbye and disappears. Riki is like what the heck and Kyousuke is like play ball.

Kengo....well he was a bit confused about a lot of things but I guess he has a good heart.

When Riki tries to point out HELLO Masato is gone Kyousuke then tells Riki the condensed truth. The bus that crashed was not a school from another town, it was theirs. Everyone on board will die except Riki and Rin as they were protected by Masato and Kengo. That Kyousuke's dying wish was to protect Riki and Rin too and all the lost souls of the bus came together to create a world for Riki and Rin to grow in. Despite only receiving this condense version Riki seems to believe Kyousuke and remember the others. He starts to cry and thinks how horrible it will be but Kyousuke is like you have been through so much and now you must be here for Rin, to take care of her. No more crying. Rin apparently isn't listening to any of this conversation and Kengo nods that he is ready for his turn. Riki is up to back and manages to pelt Kengo in the stomach. He made no effort to catch the ball and starts to cry as he lost so much time being happy with his friends. He asks if his life was happy. Kyousuke replies that it is up to him to answer that. Kengo decides that it was since he had so many people around him to care for him. Kengo smiles through his tears, shakes hands with Riki, and disappears. Rin is still lalala and wants to know how this game can possibly continue. Kyousuke says that they have to keep going. Riki hits the ball once more but this time Kyousuke couldn't possibly catch it. He laughs, saying Riki has surpassed him. He tells Riki to take Rin to the school gates. Riki almost loses his resolve, asking if anything can be done. Kyousuke starts crying, saying he loves Riki and Rin the most and of course he wishes things could be different. But he can't be with Riki and Rin anymore and he knows they can pull through life. Riki tries to stop crying and pulls Rin towards the school gate. She still has no idea what is going on but Riki vows to keep everyone's wishes for them to be happy in his heart and push through. They exit the gate and look back to see no Kyousuke. Kyousuke has decided to spend his last few seconds looking around the school and seeing where they all had fun. Kyousuke sits in a desk (Riki's I think) and looks out the window one last time. The rest of the Little Busters appear and I guess say goodbye before Kyousuke poofs as well. THE END!!!

In those short minutes we had time to see this scene again though. How fortunate for me.

This will be an incredibly fast episode to blog. Well this is me we are talking about and I tend to make everything and anything wordy. But yeah....it felt like not much happened in all those minutes. Sorta like the new Hobbit movie. XD

Riki took this news a lot better than I thought he would. Last episode I was like X___X Riki will fall to pieces.

So the episode starts off where the last one stopped. I thought there was going to be more interaction between Riki and Kyousuke. Like more of an effort to make Kyousuke rejoin the Little Busters. We know that Kyousuke never really stopped helping, that he had a slight moment of sadness but then was just stuck in one spot to help Riki. But to Riki Kyousuke had given up and I thought he would question how easy that all was. Like why is everyone being so weird. But Kyousuke just took Riki's hand. He must be tired too. All this work and repeating timelines has gotten to him. One could say this whole time the story was about Kyousuke but I don't think Riki officially healed him. If that makes sense. The world is falling apart so Kyousuke doesn't have time to let Riki “work” on him. Riki is ready. Or better be.

Oh so observant.

Riki and his lala self are like WOOHOO we are all back together now. No questions asked. No real begging for forgiveness for leaving him with crying Rin. Masato, Kengo, and Kyousuke have been forgiven. It is time to play ball! Riki did have a moment of saying up it is rather quiet...but then skipped to the field. That is because there are no other people in this world but you 5. Riki has always seemed sorta...disconnected from things. I am sure this is a result of being in such a crazy world. He cares about the people he can see but if he can't see them I guess out of sight out of mind.

Does this mean something super important?

Rin had a moment of HMMMM too. Half of this world's effort was to help Rin as well yet I feel as if I know less about her than I do Riki. Still she is important and has a few moments to shine. Like she is having moments of remembering her friends. She doesn't have as strong of feelings as Riki and doesn't seem to pick up on the fact that people are disappearing right before her eyes but still she is there...a small part anyway. Komari seems to be her most important friend thus she can hear her near the end of the world. Wish? There is a wish to be made? Someone hasn't picked their wish?! Well there is the way to save everyone folks, show over.

Kyousuke saying his first of many goodbyes.

Still the last ballgame must go on. Riki and Rin think things are all still fun and games. Kyousuke knows that they just have minutes left until KA-BOOM!!!! Which I guess I was wrong about. Rin and Riki are on the bus too. Just that Masato and Kengo protected them from the impact and they are still alive. So....if the bus blows up are they going to? Guess not since Kyousuke is convinced they will be okay. So as the balls were being thrown Kyousuke was thinking about how everyone has taken to this world that has been built. Kengo being described as being the weak and crybaby one is interesting but I guess it makes sense when you think about it. Masato was really the rock of the group and no one knew it. Rin....well she has bounced back from her moments of sadness and Riki has become a man. Cue the Mulan music.

:( Poor Masato. Doing his best...and having one small (but massive) crazy moment.

One by one everyone had to leave this world. Masato was the first to go. Riki was trying to put things together while Masato was trying to make things right despite the context being temporarily lost to Riki. Despite his brief meltdown Masato did a good job no? Goodbye Riki, be brave! Since Riki has brains enough to ask (not Rin) Kyousuke gave Riki the rundown of this world that took about 30 episodes to explain the first time. X__X I was surprised that Riki was able to accept this so fast. I thought there would be crying or demanding to know more details. Nope just....this sucks and it can't be. Maybe he knew it was the truth the whole time. So when it came to Kengo and his tear faced self it was a BAWWW fest. Like don't go! As much as these kids wanted to help Riki and Rin it doesn't change the fact that they are kids and they are the dead ones trying to help out the living ones. It makes sense that they have regrets and sadness about leaving. Who is there to help them? Well it turns out that was Riki, giving them extended lives some meaning and peace. Cry on Kengo. :(

So much BAWWWW!

So by the time it got to Kyousuke it was a BAWWWW fest right? Rin still had no idea what was going on but Riki and Kyousuke knew this would be their last few moments together. I think Rin should have been told the truth so she could say goodbye to her brother but maybe if there is happy ending that won't be necessary. Still Kyousuke crying like that. BAWWW! Trying so hard to make himself look like the bad guy despite doing all of this for his sister and best friend. He was just a kid himself who had to grow up too fast and used whatever time he had been magically given to try and make sure they could manage through life. Of course he wants to live and have this all be a bad dream but it's not. More tears. More crying. Kyousuke was good at being brave all this time so him breaking down and actually having a real moment was necessary.

Goodbye everyone!

This is how the episode ends. Riki takes Rin and runs to the gate, signifying they have left this world and will move on to the living. I am not sure how Rin will handle all this sadness but Riki seems to be ready to take on the burden of taking care of her. By honoring his friends he will live on. Kyousuke took the last few moments of the episode to rub in how sad everything is going to be very soon. Places they had fun, moments they shared. All were false as they were supposed to be dead and gone. Still they matter to Kyousuke and the rest of the Little Busters came to say goodbye to Kyousuke. Thanks for helping us as well as Riki. Thanks for giving it your all Kyousuke. Now it is your time to rest now. You have done enough. Rest in peace. BAWWWW!

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Little Busters Refrain episode 10: Hitting the fan via bus

Long time no post!!!! I have slightly recovered from my crazy...whatever it was. Not the flu as I was still able to move but not really a little cold. Anyway it was slightly slow at work today what with people doing last minute Christmas shopping so I finally got to rest a bit. A few Christmas movies later at home and I think I can string together a few words to catch up on some anime posts weee!

Surely this will all work out weeee!

Long overdue is Little Busters refrain episode 11. Spoilers for....well the beginning of the end for happiness?

I AM SO HAPPY *sniff sniff*

Episode Summary: Kengo cries a little more on the ground. Then he tells Riki he is ready to rejoin the Little Busters. Riki is overjoyed with the idea that he has become Kyousuke and brought everyone back together. He then marches the group of 4 to Kyousuke's room. Now that everyone is back together and not punching people in the face surely Kyousuke will rejoin them. Everyone knocks on Kyousuke's door and he is still sitting there on the ground looking out of it. Whoosh whoosh it is flashback time with Kyousuke narrating it. While Kyousuke is talking he is seen laying on the ground. He is bleeding heavily and clearly he was in the field trip bus that crashed. All on the ground are broken bits/memories of the other Little Busters, books and ribbons. At first it looks like Kyousuke is crawling away from the bus but he turns back despite bleeding heavily. At the beginning of Kyousuke's speech he is seen getting up and going back towards the school after the accident. This signifies the first day in the world he created for Riki and Rin, when Masato is like the day has arrived. Kyousuke doesn't know why he was able to create this world but since he could he was going to do everything he could for Riki and Rin. He felt as if Riki was too dependent on him and Rin was too shy. So he gathered p souls from the bus crash that still had regrets and recruited them to help make Riki and Rin ready for this harsh reality. Masato was ready to support Kyousuke whole Kengo was against this plan. Kyousuke used the white cat to pass notes and tasks to Riki and Rin as well form the baseball team. Then Riki was to grow as a man by helping these ladies out with their problems while Rin was to...get less shy. Because making friends with dead people will help her out. When Riki would fail to help out a certain girl Kyousuke would start THAT DAY over. Over and over until Riki got it “right”.

Wait so everyone could be sad and miserable? Where are those versions?

Things started getting a little iffy around Noumi's story and by the time Yuiko had her turn Kyousuke started to lose his power over this world. Most of the girls left in an effort to stabilize things but Komari stayed to see things through. Riki had grown enough so Kyousuke drastically sent Rin away to test her. One week later and she was back crying. Still Kyousuke knew Rin had to grow up and was going to send her back. Kengo for some reason just wanted Riki to have fun in this world or grow up in his own way and opposed Kyousuke. Thus the trick with the patch girl. However Kyousuke didn't count on Riki and Rin running away. All his hard work failed and Kyousuke just gave up. But then....he remembered who he was fighting for and tried again. Only this time he was much weaker and things went differently. Kyousuke crawled all the way back to the bus before it could explode. He used his body to stop the gas leak by leaning on it. Thus all he could do in this world was lean on the wall. Kyousuke always wanted to help Riki but Riki decided to start help himself, first through cracked out Masato and then Kengo who still thinks Riki should be told this at all. But now Riki has stepped up as the leader of the Little Busters. He has grown and maybe Rin will be okay too. Now that Riki has returned with all his friends Kyousuke will take Rin's hand when he enters the room. That will cause the bus to explode and this world to end forever. TO BE CONTINUED!

It all makes sense now. Or at least why this didn't make sense.

Hot damn folks. Hot damn indeed. Also...XO I was right. Well semi right. Mostly right. One might argue that after a while it was apparent what was going on but hey....I had my suspicions for a while. Let me have my moment. Hot damn though X___x

Recap of SADNESS!

This is basically a recap episode. A recap from Kyousuke's point of view but still. Probably won't be as long as other episode posts. Also there are still three episodes left for this series. Still plenty of time for the bad thing to be reversed and what not. Like maybe Riki will stop the bus from leaving. Also maybe the final episodes will tell us how Kyousuke was able to do this. Because he doesn't seem to know and I doubt this is going to be all a dream or really Kyousuke is the only live one and Riki is testing HIM. For now we are to accept that this is magic and...that's it.

The start of the "world" they live in.

The bus crash that happened to the other school actually happened to this one. Called it. So shocked. Riki is so trusting of Kyousuke he was like oh yeah I heard about that. Or somewhere in his heart he knows the truth and didn't want to accept it. It appears that Kyousuke was on the bus despite being in a different grade than everyone else. We can also assume all the people that Riki talked to other than the Little Busters are dead too. Although if they were playing roles they did a great job convincing me. They might be NPC's too for all I know. Except Ms. Twin. But yes. Everyone is dead or will die once the bus explodes. This includes Kyousuke, Kengo, Masato, Komari, Noumi, Haruka, Yuiko, and Mio. I have decided that Rin must be alive. Riki might have had another attack and she stayed behind to be with him. Or since she was so shy she didn't attend anyway. But Kyousuke did this world for her too so I am assuming she is also alive.

:( So sad.

Kyousuke sees this magic as one thing. Help Rin and Riki. If he can get them ready for life past dead friends and family it will be okay if he dies. Kyousuke is really awesome for doing this or insane. Again we have no idea how Kyousuke is doing this but he is. All he had to do was get away from the bus and create his world for Riki and Rin. Was the scene all shadowy and dark to censor the dead kids or to show us how this was Kyousuke's messed up world?

More like the in denial type.

Now clearly Kyousuke views himself as somewhat a villain as does Kengo. Now that the truth is out Kengo does look a little stupid. I thought he refused to join the baseball so Riki could collect all the right girls. Learn the right lessons. No. Kengo was just being stupid. I'm sorry but he was. What good is it going to do Riki if Kengo “protected” him for as long as Kyousuke's powers held out. First off I didn't see much of this protecting when Riki wanted to be with his friends. Second this would only hurt Riki in the long run. Once the world is over he would be on his own with Rin and they would need these lessons. So being so harsh with Riki made no sense. Have as much fun as you can because your life will be miserable soon? I think Masato might have cracked so that explains that.....

Such a villain.

Kyousuke the villain though....with his magic he gathered up people from the bus that had regrets to help Riki and Rin grow. Since this is all magic there is no sense in wondering how he knew all these girls had problems. Maybe they were the only ones who didn't move on after death, still clinging on? Now...this might just be me.....but could Kyousuke have made Rin and Riki grow up without involving these new girls? Because it will be bad enough that Masato, Kengo, and Kyousuke are dead. But now Kyousuke has introduced Riki and Rin to other people that will be there friends. Yes for a whole month but in Riki time that's forever. So one could say Kyousuke...made this harder? Get over us being dead...and other other people you just met died too so keep on crying. Since Kyousuke loyalties lie to Riki you think he could have done this without their help. But maybe this world was formed by all their collective regrets thus explaining why Kyousuke started to lose his power near the end. Either way....more friends, more problems.

So each day was over and over again. X___X

I was wrong in one aspect of this anime. Well probably more than one but still. I thought Kyousuke was repeating the timelines over and over again when he didn't get the right Rin results. It turns out he was really focused on Riki. He didn't let the timelines continue on until the very end and when it went badly poof start again. It was more like no you didn't make Komari better AGAIN. No you still didn't help Komari AGAIN. Komari is still crying AGAIN. How insane is that? I am surprised more of them didn't snap. Yuiko's was just the last in repeating DAYS not the anomaly at the end. Poor people repeating this all so many times. So it was only because Kyousuke's powers were weakening did Riki realize what was going on. Everyone else was used to this insanity.

Rin couldn't handle it. :(

So Kyousuke has explained it all. Through powers unknown he was able to pull Riki and Rin into this world of the dead and helped them grow. Sorta. Giving them trials and suchies to help them grow as people. Now Kengo and his crazy self wanted Riki just to live in peace until BAM reality hits. How is that helpful? Won't Riki be more pissed at the end? At least Kyousuke was trying to help. Even if Rin wasn't ready for this harsh world. Baby steps Kyousuke. He spent so much time repeating timelines with Riki he didn't really help Rin and if he did it wasn't shown that much.

Clearly Kyousuke was more in control as...you know...I see him moving and no one else in this scene.

Mr. Villain Kyousuke eventually fell into despair. He has given all that he can but it wasn't enough and there wasn't much time to start over again. Thus the super bad start to this timeline. All hopeless. Still Kyousuke only have up for a little while. Then he crawled his broken body back to the bus to give Riki and Rin more time. So disturbing when you think about Kyousuke sitting in that position. That explains Kyousuke's behavior but no so much Masato and Kengo's. Kyousuke was thinking about helping Riki but he couldn't due to lack of energy and impending doom. Maybe he should have told Kengo and Masato what he was doing....anyway Kyousuke wanted to help but Riki actually started to do things on his own. Of course he did copy things from Kyousuke....still why change things if it works? Nothing is wrong with Riki wanting to be like Kyousuke. I just hope Kyousuke doesn't regret doing so much for Riki. That is just how some relationships are. Kyousuke being there for Riki was the right thing to do.

Um....is Kyousuke going to explode now?

So what exactly IS going to happen now? Riki has matured enough in Kyousuke's eyes but wasn't Rin the real issue? Like look the gang is back together and Rin is better. How will her fragile self handle the POOF they are gone? Kyousuke seems like he is going to take Riki's hand which will end it all. Will some magical force enable Riki to save them? Make it to the bus before it explodes? Or will this be the first time an anime like this (Kanon, Clannad) will have a bittersweet ending? I predict.....no. Riki and Rin can have meltdowns but then something magical will happen and save everyone weeee! Until next time!

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