Review: Nisekoi Season 2

After watching the first season, I was genuinely excited to watch the second; however, this season had a big mix between the good and the bad.

There are some spoilers below to the first and second season of Nisekoi, so read further if you dare.

The protagonist, Ichijou Raku, is a high school teen who supposedly made a promise with another girl ten years ago. The promise is, if the two were to meet again, they would be married. However, Ichijou forgot who this girl was, and that there are three potential candidates: Kirisaki Chitoge, Onodera Kosaki, and Tachibana Marika, and each of them hold a key that can potentially open the locket Ichijou carries. Skip forward ten years and we have all these characters in the same high school class. Ichijou is also forced to forge a fake relationship with Kirisaki Chitoge in order to stop their gang families from mercilessly slaughtering each other, hence the “False Love” title.

Despite the backstory, season 2 pretty much strays away from that topic. Like seriously, the locket was broken since season 1, and is still not fixed yet AFTER OVER 20 EPISODES. I don’t know man, I’m starting to question the validity of that locksmith, no matter how many limited edition, autographed photo-collections you offer him.

Notice me senpai

This season honestly fails to bring much to the table. All it details is everyday events, in which many of it does nothing in developing character or progressing in the main story (like seriously, fuck that episode with the parrot, and that magical girl part). I was hoping we’d have more progression in the backstory, but we’ve got almost none, which, as you may have guessed already through the tone of my writing, is a disappointment. I was also expecting more drama, similar to the conflict that arose near the end of the first season. That didn’t happen either. I’m not saying the plot isn’t the worst; season 2 itself is fun to watch if you enjoy watching the everyday high school life of a harem system.

Summary of the second season of Nisekoi.
(the anime depicted in the picture is Oregairu season 2, not Nisekoi)

All right, let’s move on to character. I have some interesting things to say about this one. First, Kirisaki Chitoge. I personally like the tsundere type because it brings liveliness in the interactions between characters. Chitoge is no exception. She develops drastically throughout the first season, and the second season elaborated more on her dere side. Her overall feelings towards Ichijou, as well as small meticulous details, such as her individual weaknesses and vulnerabilities, succeeds in making her a well-rounded character. I’d argue that, besides taking account of the protagonist, she’s the best character in the series, despite being just the “textbook tsundere”.

As for Onodera Kosaki, I’ll first mention that many people will indeed disagree with me on this, but this is my opinion alone. Onodera is probably one of the most bland characters I’ve seen in a harem anime, despite all the screen time poured into her. The character is completely one-dimensional, and undergoes absolutely zero progression in the two seasons I’ve watched her. It has come to the point in which I could almost predict the exact words she’d be saying next. She utilizes the kindest language imaginable, and most of her thoughts are only about Ichijou. Countless times have I been bored just seeing her on screen. She does nothing to spice up any situation, and whenever she’s alone with Ichijou, I could almost fall asleep from hearing the amount of times they’d both think about how fast their hearts were pounding. Making Ichijou have a crush on her from the very inception of the story only served to dull her character, since the reason of Ichijou liking her, and how he developed this crush, is left relatively unanswered. Honestly, the only factor that’s keeping this character on screen is her best friend Ruri. Ruri attempts to set her up into many “alone times” with Ichijou, and it is, in a way, entertaining to see that. If it weren’t for Ruri, Onodera mind as well be a rock at the back of the classroom, waiting to be sat on. But wait, I am indeed being a little harsh. Episode 11 did give Onodera a little more character, which I do respect. However, her most charming quality, her “cuteness”, is executed even better on other characters. And sometimes, I just want to grab a pair of scissors and fix that hairstyle of hers. Okay this one is a joke. Her hairstyle isn’t THAT bad.

Or is it???

The other characters, or shall I say, additions to this harem, doesn’t serve much purpose besides sidetracking from the main plot. Many of them are a little underdeveloped; some is a major engine to one episode, but is then casted aside to merely fit as an addition to the clique. And c’mon, let’s be honest. If the protagonist ever ends up with someone, it’d probably be either Chitoge or Ononera, However, I do admit many of them succeeds in spicing up the story.

As for the main character, Ichijou, he can be considered as the prime example of harem protagonists. Clueless as ever, but also extremely kind to others, he’s just the average protagonist you’d find in a lot of animes.

Chitoge on the left. Onodera on the right.

The art and animation is very impressive, as expected of Shaft. The art style became less “crazy” compared to season one, which is a good thing since it is less distracting. The visuals overall paint a very unique mood that I can’t quite describe with words – nevertheless, it is appealing. The soundtrack is also relatively memorable, and has quite the chemistry with the art.

I really appreciate the OP and ED for the first season. As for the second season, the OP, as well as its theme “Rally Go Round” isn’t anything that stands out. From the first time I saw it, I already predicted that this season wouldn’t bring much drama to the table, which is a disappointment. However, I have to praise the many ED’s they had. If I’m not mistaken, they’ve created up to five different ED’s, and one of them was sung by the many voice actors themselves. This change highlights various moods and progressions throughout the series.

There is quite a bit of fan service in this anime (but what did I expect from a harem?). The female characters are shown either in their bathing suits or naked every two or three episodes. Having some fan service can be effective, but overusing it is like putting too much sugar in the making of your dessert. And surprisingly, There’s a limited amount of blood that can come out of a viewer’s nose.

WHAT THE FUCK?

To put it simply, the anime isn’t too bad. It’s not horrifying to the point in which carving your own eyes out would be the better choice, but it’s not amazing to the point in which I want to throw candy in the air whenever I watch the opening roll onto the screen. All I had was an expectation, and maybe I raised the bar a little to high; when my expectation was not fully met, I became perhaps a little more disappointed than I should have.

If you’re in a bad mood, this anime can definitely cheer you up. And if you’re instead in a good mood, well, why not test the waters and watch it anyway?