As a chapter, I think this works really well. The sparse and melancholy dialogue is perfectly matched with the art and expansive paneling. It's a bit weak as the ending to the story since the whole stepsister subplot is disposed of with a shrug, however. It doesn't quite feel like an axe, so perhaps the author had intended to end the story this way the entire time, with the middle detour something that was grafted in later.
Regardless, since this is ultimately one of those "it's the journey not the destination" type of stories, I consider the series largely successful and worth remembering