1 Litre of Tears - Episodes 10 to 11

These two episodes are evidently the most dramatic in the series. Episode 1o is entitled, "Love letter", while episode 11 is entitled, "Far away, where there are no tears left to cry."

In episode 10, Aya decides to break up with Asou-kun by writing him a love letter since she can't say some things to him face to face. Aya also asks her mother, "Kekkon dekiru?", which means, "Will I ever get married?".

Episode 11, the final episode, marks the conclusion of Aya's disease. Her health goes downhill and she could no longer walk. Asou-kun visits Aya for one last time, bringing with him a post card sent to Aya by a young highschool girl with the same disease. He reads it to her. Aya, with all her remaining strength, pushes the curtains open and tells Asou-kun that even though she was no longer able to walk, she was able to help people through the excerpts of her diary which Takano-san had kindly published.

Aya goes home to spend Christmas with her family. This was to be the last time they would all be together so everyone tries to make it a beautiful memory. What touched me in this part was when Shioka gave presents to Ako, Hiroki, and Rika. It turned out that they were presents from their neechan. Each present was highly symbolic of Aya's gratitude and apology to her siblings.

However, Aya's disease continues to grow more and more dangerous. The next scenes show that Aya has already lost her voice. She now uses a hiragana-card to spell out what she wants to say. Asou-kun visits her for the last time. Aya tells him to read her "nikki" which means diary in Japanese. He reads them loudly (excerpts from Kito Aya's diary) and cries as he realizes how hard she is trying to live on. Aya then falls asleep, still smiling as Asou-kun points out. In her dreams, she sees herself in the basketball court, scoring each basket beautifully.

The scene is cut short with a loud alarm coming from Aya's room. Five years have now passed. Dr. Mizuno and a group of nurses come in and ushers Aya's parents outside. Death had now taken Aya. Someone screams her name out loud into the night.

A year later, Aya's parents are shown visiting her grave. They are surprised to see Dr. Mizuno there also. He tells them that Aya was such a great person. Suddenly, more people come up to them, some healthy, some sick. These were all the people who have been touched by Aya's story.

The credits show that Kito Aya's diary has sold more than 18, 000, 000 copies. Aya's youngest sister, Rika, is working as a private tutor. Hiroki is now a policeman and Ako is, like their mother, a health consultant.

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Overall, this series is one of the best ever. I hope it also makes a great impact when it is shown here in the Philippines.