WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Horimiya Episode 13, "I Would Gift You the Sky," now streaming on Funimation.
After last week's Christmas-themed episode ended with Hori and Miyamura deciding to get married, the only question on viewers' minds was: what's in store for the finale? Horimiya's concluding episode brings its trademark mix of humor and emotional moments while giving adequate screen time to the titular characters, nearly all their closest friends (where was Shindo?), and a wonderfully goofy cameo from Kyosuke.
Yet for all the laughs, the students' graduation ceremony and the completion of Miyamura's journey to self-acceptance, the finale still doesn't feel wholly satisfying. So many plot points and curiosities remain unanswered that it brings the question of whether this is really the end, or if there may be a film or OVA in the future.
With graduation looming for the Horimiya cast, everyone is reflecting on their time at school and feeling a bit nervous about their uncertain futures. From the Student Council members to Hori and Miyamura's closest friends to Honoka Sawada crying over Hori leaving school, the finale brings them all together one last time. The room is silent as President Kakeru Sengoku walks up to the podium for what should have been an emotional speech. Only, just as he's about to begin, Miyamura sneezes -- causing the entire room (except a silently raging and embarrassed Hori) to break out in snickers. It all feels hilariously like a real-life high school moment.
The overarching theme of the finale, however, is the recap and conclusion to Miyamura's journey from a highly self-conscious and silent loner to a happy young man whose life is now full of color and meaning. Throughout the season, Miyamura continues battling his inner demons which take the visual form of his previous selves from earlier points in his life.
As graduation and the future beyond arrives, Miyamura spends the episode reflecting on the chain of events that led him to meet Hori, fall in love, and become integrated in a social circle full of jovial friends. Heading up to the school's rooftop, he finds the Miyamura seen in Episode 1 -- longer hair covering his face, lonely, and scared of his tattoos and body piercings being discovered. The two have a touching conversation as present-day Miyamura is finally ready to acknowledge and accept every side of himself, which causes his previous high school visage to disappear once and for all. His journey to self-acceptance is complete and he knows that, come what may in his future, he's going to be okay with Hori beside him.
Despite this lovely resolution for Miyamura and the students' graduation, the Horimiya finale ultimately still leaves something to be desired. Fittingly, Hori is annoyed that she didn't get to meet Miyamura's parents at the ceremony. Miyamura says both -- including his father, who has never been seen on screen -- were there but left shortly after.
Likewise, Yuki and Toru never actually reach a final decision on their relationship. Are they just friends or do they acknowledge their romantic feelings? What are Hori and Miyamura planning to do with their post-high school lives? Are they getting married, going to college, or job hunting? What are they passionate about doing in life? And these are only a few burning issues that still need resolution.
With so many lingering questions, it seems a good bet that there will be a "true" finale in the form of a film or an OVA episode. Regardless, Horimiya has been a wonderful journey full of laughs, occasional tears, and a colorful mix of personalities who seemed so different yet came together in the names of love, friendship, and acceptance of one another -- and themselves most of all.
