[Akito Kinomoto]

Originally Posted by relentlessflame

Spoiler for Episodes 14-16:

I have to admit that I was a bit surprised by this comment because I thought it was clear that these weren't really "specials", they're just the last three episodes of the show that couldn't be aired on TV due to time-constraints (a season is only 13 weeks). So the fact that it requires you to have followed what happened in the TV series to follow these last episodes was expected to me: these are episodes 14-16, not off-to-the-side OVA episodes. As such, the brief flashback to Ayase and the resolution for Kuroneko are to close the existing plot points, and the issue with Ayase was already basically closed in Episode 12, which is why it wasn't further "followed-up upon" here. This is also why Manami and Kanako get closure here, because it wasn't given in the previous TV episodes. If you take the last 5 episodes on a whole, they basically resolve all the open plot points remaining in the story, and when you view it in that context, Ayase actually got more closure in her episode than some of the other characters did, despite going first.

Spoiler for episodes 14-16:

Looking back on it, yeah, I forgot about the closure Ayase gets. Though now the point becomes why do these episodes go back to her when her story is already done? But that also means Manami and Kanako aren't wasted time. So the only problem left here is that and Kuroneko.

Time for a rewrite...