Saekano the Movie: Finale Review

Thrown Into the Deep End

Saekano the Movie: Finale (Saenai Heroine no Sodatekata Fine / 冴えない彼女の育てかた Fine) concludes the Saekano series. The movie came out back in 2019, and I put off watching it until now. Why? Because I don’t like watching movies.

But, putting this movie off for so long may not have been the best idea. Obviously, it means I was missing out on this great content for four years. But, it also means that I didn’t remember much from the main series. I watched the second season of Saekano back in 2018, after all.

If I had watched this movie when it came out, maybe I would have been less confused. But, as things stand, I had no idea what was going on at the start of this movie. I didn’t remember Eriri and Utaha had left the circle and I didn’t remember Akane Kousaka at all.

But, the movie assumes you remember that stuff and more. It doesn’t try to recap anything with brief flashbacks or dialogue. You’re thrown straight into the deep end. Even after finishing the movie, I’m still not sure where Akane Kousaka came from.

Anyway, as I said, Eriri and Utaha left Tomoya’s circle to work at a larger circle (I don’t think it’s a company). This movie is about those left working to complete their game before Winter Comiket. That means Tomoya, Megumi, Izumi, Michiru, and Iori (whom I had no recollection of).

Tomoya becomes the lead scriptwriter after Utaha leaves the circle. And, Izumi becomes the lead artist and character designer after Eriri’s departure. Michiru is still doing the music, Iori is doing the marketing, and Megumi is being herself. Though, throughout the movie, Megumi takes on more of a project manager role.

It Should Have Been Me, Not Him!

Considering the Saekano anime ended back in 2019, I don’t really write about it much. So, something you may not be aware of is that Megumi Katou is my “waifu.” She’s perfect in every way and it should have been me she ended up with, not Tomoya.

Now, for a lot of people, the concept of a “waifu” is pretty cringe. And, for the most part, I agree. But, I have to acknowledge that it’s a real thing. I like a lot of anime girls; there are many cute ones out there. However, a waifu goes beyond liking the character.

I didn’t get it until I watched Saekano. But, once I was introduced to Megumi, everything made sense. I still can’t explain it well other than to say you’ll know your waifu when you see her. The neurons in my brain activate when I see Megumi.

Well, that’s not entirely accurate. It’s not like just seeing a picture of her is enough. It’s seeing her interact with the other characters in the series. Everything about the way she acts draws me to her, whether she’s happy, sad, or emotionless.

So, why am I bringing this up? Because I want to highlight what Saekano does best. From the outside, it looks like a generic comedy harem anime. But, the characters, especially Megumi, are so well-written that they suck you in. There’s a lot more depth to them than you’d expect.

Even after I watched the first season, I thought it was good, but not great. However, the second season changed my mind. And this movie is somehow even better. We got to see more sides of the main characters, which made them feel more real. It’s kind of the perfect ending to the series.

The Perfect Ending

Okay, so the movie is a perfect ending to the series. But, the movie itself also had a perfect ending. It was satisfying, yet not satisfying. It wrapped everything up, yet left it open. And, much like the start of the movie, it was meta.

As a Megumi super-fan, the ending was satisfying because I got to see my favorite girl happy. And, the fact that there was a definitive “winner” is in itself satisfying. But, at the same time, I felt bad for those who lost out, especially Eriri.

Eriri having to give up on her dream of being with Tomoya was heartbreaking. And, that’s how I know it was written well. It hurt me to see that Eriri couldn’t also be happy in the end. Even though I’m solidly team Megumi, I still want to root for all the girls.

The other thing that Megumi winning did was begin the process of wrapping everything up. Once she and Tomoya were official, it meant the other characters could come to terms with that. They could move on with their lives. And, this is what we see. Eriri and Utaha move on and continue honing their crafts.

However, the whole original team comes back together at the very end of the movie. Now, instead of being a circle, they’re an official company. They got their experience working elsewhere. And now, they’re back to making games they love together.

But, before we get to that true ending, there’s a false ending. And, I’ll admit, it tricked me. In the false ending, Megumi breaks up with Tomoya and he reconnects with Utaha. Luckily, it’s revealed that this was actually Utaha’s new script. I almost had to rate this movie a 0/10 for breaking Megumi’s heart.

Final Thoughts

Overall, Saekano the Movie: Finale is a 9/10. It was a bit long. Though, despite being 4 minutes longer than K-ON! the Movie, it didn’t feel nearly as long as that one. And, I would have liked a little bit of recap via dialogue. But, other than those two complaints, it was perfect.

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