- Besides the introduction in the beginning, Raku would be put into a situation where he would meet Onodera or Chitoge (both if it’s the 42nd time and that gets annoying) in a situation where fanservice can be achieved, trying to segue in the theme of “fate” for good measure. This template of a situation was of course also used in every new girl that was introduced, with only the segueing of the theme “fate” being taken down a notch─ Because even Naoshi Komi knows it’s imprudent to have the very thing that got you interested in the story be rubbed on your face.
- When his boss yells to him “OI GET ON WITH THE STORY,” Naoshi Komi will write a whole arc dedicated to a girls’ character development (sometimes 2 or 3 girls if he feels like it). He would of course assemble a team comprised of him, his editor and possibly his assistants with how much development is needed for the said arc so that the fans would be satisfied but still want more.
- And my favorite: With all of the fillers and character development, all of which took up 50 or 100 chapters (there is no in-between), Naoshi Komi will finally write an arc for the “Zawsze in Love” story. And at first, it seems promising. You could even say that this would be a cornerstone of the series. But by the ending he’ll give you the bare minimum of what you wanted because the rest of the problem he raised on that arc was sloppily ended (possibly the effect of how the fans reacted to the development.)
Imagine this: Let’s say I wanted a big stuff toy for Christmas; life-sized. But when Christmas came I only got a smaller stuff toy. It’s still a stuff toy but it’s not exactly what I wanted. And when I ask the sellers why they didn’t give me a life-sized stuff toy, they said they don’t have a box big enough to put it and they need the money that would be payed for the box to keep their company going. I could go on about the many teases that had little-to-no pay off, Chitoge being put out of the Promised Girl race (see chapter 90) and Marika’s illness to name a few, but the review would be too long that moderators might take it down.
Look, I stand by the notion that fillers are somewhat necessary in a story but judging how many they are in the manga, it would seem like Naoshi Komi binge watched Naruto and saw inspiration. Long-time manga fans have said to me that this is commonplace for any series that’s a hit and it’s more of the publisher’s doing and not the author’s fault (for the most part). But I reckon the story’s development could’ve been better.
We also have the problem of how the story was set up. In the beginning, long before the chapter count reached double digits, we already have 45% or more worth of development for the over-arching story. Dropping the information that Chitoge and Onodera have the keys would spark the idea that the promised girl is among them (naturally), but keeping that as status quo for SO LONG would lead people into thinking that the competition is only between the both of them. Sure, other girls came out and played but if being a part of the race mean they have to have a key then automatically the other girls are hopeless. It's kinda funny because there's an obvious segregation of the heroines, kinda like an idol group where the producer is picking favorites to put in front of concert performances and have their own solo songs.
The effort of making the girls diverse is nowhere to be seen. Imagine if Onodera did not have a key but Raku still likes her. That would give an impression that the option of disregarding the promise that was made years ago is possible and in turn, give the other girls a fighting chance.
Now, it might be wrong to criticize Nisekoi’s bold, first chapters because one of the major reasons they did that was to pique people’s interests. And evidently, it worked. There are still people who kept reading it despite the bullshit they’ve been fed on for years. But all I’m asking was to make those 5 years worth something. Instead, the best we got out of that was Maiko Shuu’s story─ It’s not even from Raku; the MAIN CHARACTER.
I’m not gonna enumerate all of the characters because outside their archetypes, there’s not much. But I will give a special shout out to Marika Tachibana because out of all of them, I like her the most and, with all of my power, I will try to defend that statement. Out of all of them, I saw Marika as the most eligible girl to be the promised girl. The person that even if the story ended in the most cliché way (and it did), I’d be alright. And while being the gutsy heroine who just puts herself out there is a bit by-the-book, it’s still a cut above the rest when you’re against a token tsundere, a dandere, and a big sister character who are too shy to either say her feelings or do anything at all. Plus, there’s the aforementioned illness tease. (For anyone wondering, I’m a Chitoge fan but she’s my second choice. Chitoge’s only on first because the signs keep slapping me in the face.)
And now, the other reason that made the majority of the readers stick with the material: the art. A harem series like Nisekoi is bound to be waifus galore but let’s acknowledge the other pleasures that its art offers. I remember this one panel where Chitoge’s (?) loafer that was drawn so well and also the BG art from that time when Raku and Onodera went to the mall near Christmas time (there were more but I can’t remember any of them). That attention to detail is worth noting. And let’s not forget the action scenes that are well-paneled and beautifully illustrated (but it does worsen the identity crisis of this series).
So here’s where we are: the ending of Nisekoi gave me joy, not sadness. Joy because it’s finally over and sure enough I’m not the only one feeling that way. In that respect, it’s not even an ending that made all that waiting worth it. It ended with the 2 possibilities that you predicted years ago.
TL;DR – Do not read Nisekoi. Or at least, don’t read all of it. Skip some chapters but stay for the art… And Shuu’s story. Gotta love his story.
