Because Free Money is Good: Last Minute Panic Challenge Accepted Mashiro-iro Conclusion Predictions

Due to a request, I have here a last-minute review/predictions post before Mashiro-iro Symphony episode 12 comes out (today, holy shit). Personally, there's not a lot of pathways the plot can go; the major problem is that the characters are so wishy-washy. I'm not sure how accurate I will be compared to previous "successes" (e.g.: Ano Hana), but I will try. Here goes!
[WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD]

Every time I saw this OP past episode 6 a little bit of me died inside

So far, this series has seriously been reminding me of Akane-iro ni Somaru Saka. Both VN adaptations, both plays it safe, but goes the unconventional route for the lulz (in Mashiro's case, Miu-senpai; in Akane's case, the sister, Minato.) Do I like this format? Well it's a change in pace, but personally I don't prefer one route, or having a variety of routes; I just want the girl that the main guy ends up to be a good character/person. Just putting that out there. No idiots for me please.

Anyways, I digress. What are the statuses of the heroines so far?

Sena Airi (The Tsundere "Main" Heroine): Got schooled in this adaptation.

Uryuu Sakuno (The Sister): Got schooled in this adaptation. WHAT NO IMOUTO LOVE :(

Angie the Maid (The Maid): They boxed her up and shoved her in a corner after that one episode where she became the protagonist's maid for a day. Poor thing, lots of potential but got wrecked by the writers.

Amaha Miu (The Senpai/Openly Kind-Hearted Girl): Going her route, not looking back apparently.

Inui Sana (Genki Girl/Tsundere. Just in case you didn't think Sena was tsun enough): Main plot changer. Moping around, being bipolar/indecisive, etc etc. 

Miu's Mother (The Hot Mom): She should have been one of the choices. 

Excellent question.

Ok, so the main point of the plot is that Pannya the stuffed animal will return to the wild. Or something. And then Shingo and Miu make out. I think the latter is a side story.

No but seriously, a synopsis is as follows:

Episode 10: Sana acts tsundere. Then she acts more tsundere. After acting tsundere, the two cats, named in a fashion that would only happen if the christening of the two kittens were attended to by the most obliviously awkward of people (Shingo and Miu) are taken in by Sana in a sense. Well not fully, but then stuff happens, and filler filler filler blah blah blah, she gets both of them. Whatever. A lot of obvious allegories/metaphors occur when Sana plays around with Shingo and Miu (I mean the kittens...clearly...) Shingo is taken in by the fact that someone in an anime series this season is not being an asshole (I'm looking at you, Guilty Crown) and jazzhands Miu. Sana goes berserk and runs away and cries and confesses. Uhm, to Airi. The episode ends with the viewer thinking, "Ok, so I guess I don't have to worry about the Sana route anymore."

Episode 11: Right, fillers happen. More of Miu's mom, which is not a bad thing. The next ten minutes is spent on screwing with the viewers as the probability of Sana x Uryuu upset goes up and down like a roller coaster, from the talk with Sana, to the rejection of her as a rebound girl, to the implied hope that Uryuu will get dumped by Miu, to the shopping trip ALONE WITH NOT-HIS-GIRLFRIEND. The early warning of Shingo not being able to get together with Miu (around the 7:30 mark, OP included) set off an orchestra of alarm bells in my head. School merger not working thing comes up from 10 episodes ago (it won't matter much I think...maybe it'll speed up confessions?) The most important thing in the episode is Airi mentally bitch-slapping Sana and telling her to stop it before it gets too rough. The viewer is currently thinking, "...Huh?"

Quite honestly though, I'm not sure of the writers' decision to leave Sana ambiguous in episode 11 while they also pulled all of the last-minute stops in episode 10 to pre-emptively end her route. Again, the major problem is not with the routes in themselves, but just how wishy-washy these characters are. For all of their damned talk over these last 11 episodes, none of them actually did a thing. I mean, neither did Shingo, but Jesus, they couldn't ask their crush out on a casual walk if they had tethered them to an electric collar. Because of this, as much as I would like an upset (which would be refreshing; Miu is a tad too bland for me. I liked her pouty expression in episode 9 though), there most likely won't be one. 

My reaction after episode 11

Again, the studio took the "unconventional" route because it makes it more refreshing (like how the manga adaptation led to a different route from the anime adaptation for Akane-iro), but with this lukewarm character setup, it just becomes very incoherent instead. I'm not sure of the impacts of the specific stuff in each episode, so I'll just spitball some ideas:

On the Significance of:

The cats (Shingo and Miu): The allegory shall continue - nothing more really than a message to idiots out there about how the Miu-Shingo relationship is going. It could be used as foreshadowing, but whatever. If Sana makes an upset and couples with Shingo, she'll definitely return them to the club room.

Confession of love of Shingo from Sana to Airi: Obvious upset implications. Airi will end up worrying herself sick in the background while Sana takes care of everything in the last 10 minutes of the episode though.

The coupling of Shingo and Miu: It seems very...stereotypical. I don't like it. It's not sudden, but it's not exactly deep, is it? I mean yes, girls in shounen series hook up with boys because they're nice, but like literally all Miu has done is taken care of a cat and handed out flyers. I'll be surprised if there isn't some sort of tension in episode 12 before it ends though.

The chain of incidents (Miu and Shingo not getting together for an outing, instead Shingo goes with Sana): Alarm bells ringing. Not too much though. Obvious foreshadowing of a showdown, but how well it goes depends on how much cojones the writers decide to stick onto Sana. From the looks of it, not enough.

The mental slap back to earth by Airi to Sana: lol. Totally ignored.

The school merger failing rumors: Not gonna be important except in the pacing. It's going to speed up the showdown between Sana x Uryuu x Miu x OMFG THE OTHER GIRLS PILE INTO HAREM AT LAST SECOND, but will also force a lot of terrible terrible fillers that obviously get solved at the end.

Other stuff not as important: It's not as important. There will probably be a Special or an OVA with Sakuno or Angie in it though. It will be glorious.

You can never have enough maiDDDDDDHNNGGGG

I guess the best thing I can do at this point is point out the endings. I thought they were pretty obvious, but School Days could always happen. 

Probable Endings:

Miu x Shingo (likely ending): It's not because Miu's really really good, it's just that the combination of the implied kiss + make out scene and the fact that none of the girls have the guts to make a peep about the relationship is going to bulldoze over any other possible endings.

Sana x Shingo (less likely ending): Will happen if Sana decides to say "screw it" and run to the club room while carrying the two cats. Then she'll meet Shingo and Miu in a miraculously timed manner and have a little chat, no hearing aids required. Shingo will go home, brood over it while Sakuno/his sidekick blondie/Airi give him their advice, and then apologize to Miu and carry Sana home, bridal carry-style. Miu will be moody for a bit and then perfectly accepting the next day, because she's a good girl. Everything will turn out all right, and then in the epilogue, Sana will ask if Shingo really chose the right girl. Shingo will tell her to make a sandwich. The last sentence was just in my imaginations, because I don't want this to be the CLANNAD Kyou ending.

Sakuno x Shingo: :(((((((((((((((

.....what? A man can hope.

Guys...it's called Photoshop.

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I can see that Manglobe tried to make it interesting by interjecting in forshadowing + tension at the very last second (which seems to be the trend for this Fall season), but the way the characters are set up, they aren't exactly stoked for a Wild West showdown. Expect obvious worrying and indecision, but don't bet your money on the dark horse.