Just finished it.
How does 仕上がる differ in connotation from 終わる?
@ericaw
仕上がる (intransitive verb) or 仕上げる (transitive verb) is often used when you complete creating deliverables – e.g. 壁の塗装を仕上げる (I finished painting the walls); レポートを仕上げる (I’ve written up the report); 仕上げにケーキの上に粉砂糖をまぶす (I frost icing sugar over the cake ← frosting sugar is the last process of making a cake).
The image of 仕上げる is 仕事 (work/task) + 上げる (to lift up). A servant kneels in front of a king, and hands over a deliverable to the king for review.
You cannot replace 終わる with 仕上がる in the following sentences:
野球の試合が終わったばかりだ。= The baseball game is just over.
私たちの関係は終わりよ！ = We (as a romantic couple) are done!
Those subjects are not deliverables.