Untranslated final volumes:

The most maddening event as an otaku is when a great franchise is translated into English all the way until the final climactic conclusion, the last volume of a work, and then the translation stops.  This applies to a much larger number of works than one would imagine, since it makes so little sense.  If you're willing to translate all the less interesting portions of a story, why wouldn't you want to translate the dramatic conclusion that answers all the unanswered questions that had been building up all series long?  My only explanation is pure spite.  People want to dangle the tantalizing joy of the ending in front of the readers and then, like Tantalus, snatch the ending away right before you can bite into it.

This final volume curse is currently true of Kimi ni Todoke ~Soulmate~, Guyver, Lucky Star, Broken Blade and Eromanga Sensei.  In the case of Guyver you could say the final volume isn't important because the author abandoned the work before resolving anything, but still.  Every other volume of Guyver has been translated so why not volume 32?

There's also the authorial final volume curse.  The author of Baccano refuses to write the final volume of Baccano and is instead writing Dead Mount Death Play and other inferior works no one cares about.  He should be strapped to a table and forced to write Baccano with cattle prods.

Majikoi A-5 is the final volume of the visual novel Majikoi A, which is broken into five parts because it's so big.  Every other volume has been translated long ago, but A-5 continues to elude us, even though a partial translation patch has already been released.  So we're talking half of a fifth of a visual novel to translate left, and yet years go by with no progress.  The entire visual novel translation community is a mess with no progress to be seen anywhere, but this missing final volume to a long and well supported franchise up until now is the most infuriating.  We who have read every less important route to Majikoi, why can't we read the most important one, the ending of the whole series?  Why is this specific one the only one that goes untranslated?

Not to mention how long it's taking for the finale of Shingeki no Kyojin to come out, or Sailor Moon Cosmos to be translated, or the Winds of Winter to be published.  And now the second half of the Dune movie has been delayed.  We are so close to so many endings yet still they all elude us.  This is literally ancient Greece's description of hell.

At least Choyoyu's final volume is coming out this October.  Otherwise it too would be on this list.

Of the 302 franchises honored in my fictional character hall of fame, 64% have an English-translated ending.  The other 36% are still waiting for their turn in the sun.  Some will never get it, like Bastard!, Hinowa ga Yuku!, or High School of the Dead.  Some are extremely unlikely, like Zettai Karen Children or PapaKiki.  Some I hold out hope for like Bakemonogatari.  Some are bound to happen like Princess Principal.  But however the future plays out the number is too damn high.  A work of art great enough to be memorialized for all time should always have an English translation, and the author should never abandon it halfway.  Both acts are grievous insults to the quality of the work by people who should know better.  Everything should be sacrificed so that at least these series receive endings.  There is no excuse for any of them to go unresolved.

On the bright side, volume 17 of Ryuuou no Oshigoto! has been translated into English.  I was beginning to worry the translators had abandoned this work too, but apparently they only felt the 15.5 volume was unworthy of their attention.

Meanwhile, I promoted 'Last Game' back to my 5-star music tier, demoting 'Nagi Heigen' to make room, another instance of an anime vocal song replacing a video game instrumental.