Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai - Episode 15 (Completed)

The game development club's competition offering spear-headed by Kuroneko may have turned out to be something of a disaster in terms of its popularity, but that aside things seem to be going pretty well as we enter this final episode proper of Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai.

Indeed, it almost feels as though Kyousuke's work is done - Ruri has now finally been accepted by her classmates, and she's also made friends with Sena to put that rivalry (more or less) to bed.  What could possibly go wrong now?  How about an e-mail from Kirino telling Kyousuke to throw away her collection of eroge and the like to set a cat amongst the pigeons?

With his sister still not having contacted anybody since leaving for America, Kyousuke is understandably worried about what is going on with her, but first he finds himself summoned to see Kuroneko, to receive a kind of half-baked confession of her feelings for him before she sends him packing to where he needs to be - a visit to Kirino all the way out in the US to see what's wrong.  Perhaps unsurprisingly, it turns out that things have all gone a little pear-shaped for Kirino in her bid to become a top athlete, while Kyousuke's loneliness without his sister gets the better of him as he begs her to return home.  So, all's well that ends well, in a finale that is arguably perfectly poised for a second season.

It's perhaps this requirement to effectively "reset" everything come the end of the series that makes this ending feel a little disappointing - nothing really progresses, Kuroneko's feelings only get a half-baked outing and even the entire concept of being able to fly out and take your sister home on a plane just like that feels less than satisfactory.  The requirement to focus on all the human drama also strips this last episode of any real comedy, which is what the series has always done best from the very start any how - things just aren't the same without the amusing otaku-centric premises and snappy one-liners.

Still, despite any feelings of dissatisfaction with its ending, let's not forget that Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai as a whole has been polished and entertaining far more often than not; a kind of Genshiken-lite in a way that is both complementary and critical.  When push comes to shove though, I'd be absolutely signed up to watch a second season of this series, and that above all else is a sign of the fun and laughs I've had watching it.  It's the kind of show that doesn't always manage to deliver, but when it does it can be a tremendous viewing experience.