So here's my general opinion about the series. In a nutshell:
Animation Quality: 8/10
I liked that it was there when it needed to be, properly fleshed out animations and that. There isn't really much else to say, other than that I don't really care too much for this technical side. Still, the drawings were good and didn't take away anything from the show.
Voice Actors: 10/10
The absolute best cast I've ever seen. Granted I'm not an expert, of course, Toradora!'s cast even tops Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei's. Ryuuji was there, Taiga's was outstanding (her seyuu's best performance IMHO), Kuchieda's was great and so were the others. I can honestly say the voice acting in Toradora! was definitely the best part of all the series for me.
Script: 4/10
And this is a borderline 3/10. On the plus side there are some interesting dialogs and good character development, but the script is just generally convoluted when it needn't to be, the characters loose consistency in relation to what the first half of the series makes us expect from them, and the ending (not the epilogue) is subpar IMHO. It's obvious that the series tries to create emotion on the viewer, time and again, and it fails to do so consistently. I'm not saying it doesn't do it for anyone, I'm saying it doesn't do it in a definitive manner. Christmas Night is an example of that, with the real highlight being one of the less worked on parts.
Soundtrack: 7/10
Can't say I found it outstanding, but it did a very good job for what it was supposed to do.
Editing: 8/10
I felt some parts were missing, but nothing that damaged the series in any relevant way.
Enjoyment: 8/10
It's a very enjoyable series thanks to excellent voice acting, good animations and steady character development, which can make up for the unfortunate script and sore ending that leaves us aching for more.
Emotional Involvement: 6/10
This is a very subjective matter, so I give a 6/10 because I was very emotionally involved at the beginning of the series and at episode 18 I lost absolutely all emotional interest. I'm not a native English speaker, but I watch the English subbing, and I clearly recall saying to myself "damn! I lost all interest!" And I'm not one for theatrical monologues. The reason...
Kushieda Minori.
She's the reason. I empathized with Ryuuji because he liked her, and that kept me going through the first two thirds of the show. I cannot explain it, but I just can't help but absolutely fall in love with
some genki female characters. I have no clue why, honestly, and even though at first I was like "eh, Kirino [from Bamboo Blade] is better :3", Minorin just went and captivated me. What Ami said of her, she being the Sun and all, that's absolutely spot on, and for me, she was the Sun of the series. Taiga was just an annoyance that came with a superb voice actress. And then they went and faded the sun, and made something else out of Taiga. That really spoiled it for me...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Haak
He probably thinks it's sad because his favourite pairing didn't happen, even though it was never meant to, and there wasn't really any hint of it whatsoever.
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It's possible that he missed the epilogue. If he did, then it's sad. Otherwise, I don't think it is.