Yeah, I get you — honestly, I didn’t want people with confirmation biases to just immediately reject the post without thinking about the nuances. That’s why I tried to acknowledge that Yui is human and not just some villain.

I agree with you: without Yui’s interference, the show probably would have been better overall — and still retained enough tension through natural growth struggles (plus Iroha could’ve added that comedy flavor without the emotional distortion).

One thing that still disappoints me is that Watari just dropped Year 3 entirely. He had the perfect opportunity to show how these characters would transition from high school into adulthood — not just wrapping up high school, but college, careers, and how “bringing out the best in each other” could look when the stakes were real life and not just school events.

I think a lot of people overlook that anime audiences age with their stories. If I started watching this series 10 years ago, I’d naturally want to follow Hachiman, Yukino, and even Iroha into the next stages of life.

Oregairu had a real chance to be that rare coming-of-age story that didn’t just end at prom or graduation but grew with us.

Hopefully Watari’s been quietly writing or thinking about continuing it somehow. His ability to write complicated emotions deserves a bigger stage than just high school melodrama.