The third season of Oregairu is something that I have been anticipating ever since the second season ended in 2015. My interest in the series waned for most of the time in-between seasons, but ramped right back up after I did a rewatch of the series a few weeks before this season was supposed to air. Unfortunately, a virus got in the way, and this season was delayed for three months, among other things. In the meantime, I dived deeper into the series by reading the light novel to completion. As you can expect, I had sky-high expectations for this season. Season two of Oregairu is my favorite season of any anime that I have ever watched--topping that would be hard, but I had faith that feel. could pull it off.

Before I get this review in full motion, I have to air some of my grievances at the Oregairu fanbase. The Reddit fanbase in particular (although there are some wackjobs semi-independent from the website). After finishing the light novels, I decided to try to start associating with the Oregairu subreddit fanbase. Maybe it’s because I don’t use Reddit all that much, but I’ve never seen a fanbase for a show seemingly hate it so much. I understand having favorites, as I love Yui to death. But what I don’t understand is treating the series as some sort of stage for a ‘waifu war’. To devolve such a moving and layered series such as Oregairu into such is an insult. It misses the point so far off that I don’t even have a figure of speech for it. I don’t know if this is the intention of the people that I mentioned, but the result is that the series looks like it has rabid fans that want to gate-keep it from otherwise unsuspecting anime fans. I would understand if the rhetoric commonly found in the comment section of r/oregairu was on the 4chan anime board, since I don’t expect much from there--but not from somewhere where you’re only semi-anonymous. I get it that the series has a special effect on those (the “Ace Combat Effect” as a friend called it) that can make them go into a manic-like state for hours or days. It happened to me! Some people get that effect and turn it into vitriol for the series (this for example). It really sucks that such a fanbase can give a series as brilliant as Oregairu, a bad name. Guess that’s Reddit for you. (That being said, the subreddits for Yui and Iroha are filled with good people.)

Back to the series--this season starts right after the ending scene of season two. Yui and Hachiman agree to listen to Yukino’s request; that of becoming independent and not relying so much on others. With her request stated, we all know what each of the three want. Hachiman wants “something genuine”, while Yui “wants it all”. While I could go into what each of those mean, I’m going to assume that most of you reading this at least vaguely already know what they mean. While the first two seasons were more focused on Hachiman and the rest of the Service Club trying to solve other people’s problems, this season is more focused on solving their own. The one request that was made for them this season is from Iroha, who wants to throw a prom. Yukino rejects the idea that the Service Club help Iroha, but tells Iroha that she herself will help her. Yukino believes that if she can pull this off, she can prove to others that she isn’t completely reliant on others (usually Hachiman’s) help and can act on her own accord.

This season covers the last three light novels of the series--typically that would be a piece of cake for a season of anime, but it becomes a bit of a struggle when the light novels are as dense as the volume twelve, thirteen, and fourteen of Oregairu. Some of the issues with the differences between the anime and light novel are due to parts in the light novel being cut in the anime in past seasons. The two members of the Gaming Club that help Hachiman and Yui with the ‘dummy prom’ plan were introduced in volume three of the light novel. But since that part of the novel was never in the first season, it would be weird if Hachiman and Yui acted like they already knew the two Gaming Club members. The differences between the anime and the light novel aren’t that big. Most viewers wouldn’t even know about how the Gaming Club members being cut from the first season unless if they read about it online or read the light novel. What was cut out this season didn’t negatively affect the anime. Mostly just some parts left out due to being unimportant and others being switched around to make more sense for the anime. The only times I remember that I was disappointed about a part being cut out was when some lines from Yui’s monologue from the ending of episode four were cut, and a part in the light novel where Yui fixed up Hachiman’s hair for the promotional video in episode three.

Some will complain that this season is too ‘Yui focused’, but that’s the way the light novel was as well. She’s willing to do anything to help him. Some of those complaints are coming from the same Reddit people that absolutely hate her. They should know better because they also act high and mighty for having read the light novel. If there’s one thing I would complain about plot-wise, it would be that the anime didn’t show Hachiman being miserable while coming up with the ‘dummy prom’ plan as well as the light novel did. Season two did it better with showing his struggle, culminating in the ‘genuine’ sense. Casual viewers may not be able to pick up why he’s doing all of what he’s doing or what mood he’s in. That being said, he isn’t as visibly miserable as he is the second season, and him doing all he does just to make a point should drive the point home.

Another complaint I’ve seen is with the animation quality this season. While I do believe that the quality is down from the second season, it really isn’t as bad as people say. Some people say that Yukino is animated weirdly this season, but I didn’t notice that. I don’t think she looks worse than the others. If I was a Yukino-ultra then I could probably tell if she was or wasn’t. Complaining about animation has always been a part of this series. In season one, it was because the style of animation was exceptionally cartoonish, looking barebones at times. In season two, it was due to personal preferences between what style you liked more. This season, it’s because the animation quality is slightly down from last season. The style differences between season one and two fit the greater tone shifts in the series, but there isn’t any excuse I can say for the animation being ever so slightly worse than season two.

To answer the question; no, I don’t think this season is better than the second season. At the same time, I think it would be nigh impossible to even do so, considering what a masterpiece it was. It’s unfair to this season, but that was the card it was handled. Season two gets a hand over this season due to its animation and the mood it created. The fluid scenes from season two are missing from this season (until the tail-end of it anyways). There isn’t a scene like the Splash Mountian scene this season. This also ties into how season two created a mood of the forlornness that Hachiman had for most of the episodes. While he has an idea of what he wants now, he still has trouble grasping it. To be fair, there are only so many monologues from Hachiman that the studio can adapt before it starts cutting into the other parts of the anime. And he isn’t the only one who’s struggling too. From Yui’s helplessness, Iroha’s frustration, and Yukino’s misguidedness, Hachiman isn’t the only person whose thoughts we get to hear this season. The point is that it would be impossible to fully adapt how Hachiman feels this season. And even if it was possible, Oregairu is such an abstract series that it might ruin it if it spelled it right out there for you. This season is also handicapped somewhat since the best part of the series is commonly considered to be between volume six and eleven, most of which was adapted in the second season.

What this season (and series) nails so perfectly is ‘the mood’. Even in season one, when the series was more of your stereotypical rom-com series, it still got the feeling of loneliness and youthful cynicism down perfectly. While season two still technically did it better, the feeling that Oregairu creates is something that I’ve never really experienced while watching another anime. Maybe that’s just something to do with me, since I view this series differently than how most others do. Even though I knew what was going to happen (since I read the light novels), I still was thrown for a loop watching each episode. I think one of the best ways a series can prove that it’s good is if it still affects you even when you know what’s going to happen. In Oregairu’s case, I was more affected seeing it happen a second time, something that I’ve never experienced. Maybe that’s just the power of the visual form.

It’s sad to see this series finally come to an end. Oregairu was one of the first anime that I watched when I got into watching anime years ago. Perhaps it finally coming to an end affects me more because it’s a relic from when I was still an ‘anime newbie’. The fact that a third season even aired was pure circumstance. I’m glad it did, because the cliff-hanger that the second season ended on would have let down many that wanted to see an ending but were too lazy to read the light novels. Some say that the way this season, and the series, ended was disappointing. While I see where they are coming from, they have to remember the vague nature of Oregairu to begin with. The ending being as straightforward as it is a little surprising. While certain characters don’t have their ‘conclusion’ yet, the ending is still is satisfactory for them. One of the main points of the series was that you shouldn’t let others try to manipulate you into doing something that you don’t want to do just because it’s ‘logical’. In this sense, while some characters didn’t get what they want, they still have the ones they love close to them. Also, a spinoff series could always happen and ‘resolve’ any loose ends as well.

Oregairu is my favorite anime series of all time. It speaks to me like nothing else ever has. Maybe that’s a character defect on my part, but it is what it is. I honestly wish that more people treated the series as a character drama about a young man discovering the value of his youth instead of a battlefield for them to conduct another bird-brained waifu war, but I can’t do much about that. While this season isn’t the masterpiece the second season was, it still upholds the Oregairu name and doesn’t make a mockery of it. The emotions it invokes is something I’ll never get from a form of media again (unless if I start playing every popular visual novel out there). Oregairu is the one anime that I would recommend everyone to watch. Maybe they won’t get what I got out of it, but I think most people will like it. I’m sad that this series is over, but I’m glad I got to experience it with others.