The story line is completely independent of the manga, and covers the story behind Nagi's father and mother. In all honesty I thought that the actual plot of the show was not half bad, I might even admit good, but there was a bigger issue. The plot didn't appear until about the 7th episode.
Now, in Hayate no Gotoku terms plot wouldn't really be important, but I found the episodes in the first half of the series to be somewhat lacking. There was a few good scenes, but in all honesty I felt bored at sometimes. Seeing as I would claim myself as a fan of the series I found that to be slightly awkward. The jokes were there, but I suppose they weren't as appealing to me at all.
A new anime specific character Tsugumi Ruri, claiming to be Nagi's sister, is added to the show. Tsugumi is clearly up to no good upon her entrance to the show in episode one, but at the same time is obviously to nice to do any harm. She is an airhead and her voice is somewhat whiny, and is picked on for the entirety of the show.
Thankfully, in the second half my faith was returned. The plot helped increase my enthusiasm to continue watching and I slowly enjoyed the comedy that was placed in there. The entire cast eventually makes their way over to Las Vegas to obtain an object called the Kurotsubaki that her deceased father left behind. Needless to say it is cursed with horrible luck, but allows the wielder to experience great luck at times. For some reason Tsugumi wants Nagi to reclaim this pocket watch, and the mystery behind Nagi's father, the Kurotsubaki, and Tsugumi's motives is revealed.
In all honesty I wouldn't say this is the best Hayate no Gotoku has to offer, but if you want to learn the history behind Nagi's parents this will explain it. The Hina fans will probably last until episode three at least, and I don't think I need to say that the majority of the season is almost all Nagi centered. I don't think I would recommend this season to anyone who is on the fence, but I am sure that any fan would probably still enjoy this season.
