After the first season of Nisekoi ended, many theorized there won't be a second season anytime soon. Unsurprising, since the source manga has been spinning it's wheels for a while now, producing nothing but filler content in droves. Adapting it to a new season seemed like a waste, maybe a few OVAs at most. But kicking logic in the butt, here it is: [Nisekoi:]
In this second season the main story of Ichijō's locket, the "fake" relationship with Chitoge, the girls with the keys and him finding his long lost soulmate is just completely shelved. What we do get, is a straight up filler season with loosely connected by-the-book story bits, some fan service and two new completely superfluous characters who add nothing to the story. Ichijō and his harem keep circling each other with some fun moments but basically no payoff. The rest is just your average slice-of-life set pieces with a new school year, Valentine's Day, Christmas Eve, the obligatory swimsuit/fanservice episode (pool cleaning this time around) and so on. An exercise in mediocrity.
Having said all that, I would highlight two things about this season. The first is the mini-arc of Chitoge and her mother in episode 3-4. It was really well done, the story was intense and it had a really satisfying payoff. (Also, the 4th episode was ONLY one that touched on the main story, even if just a vague hint.) The second one is episode 10, where we learn more about one of the least used support characters, Shū. It's a pretty slow episode with lots of dialogue, but one of very few where the emotional charge wasn't ruined by badly timed slapstick.
Other than that, there is really nothing remarkable about Nisekoi: in the slightest. It's not "bad" per se, it's just kinda lackluster after the intensity of the first season. The art style and the animation is still top-notch, the music and sound is still good and it's still kinda fun to watch the Nisekoi gang doing their thing, but after watching the whole thing I felt like I wasted 12 episodes to nothing. The series stays true to the source material, I give it that much, but maybe this should've been the point to go a little bit original. I'm still hopeful for the third season...
