Today, I had fun.
What They Say:
“Happiness”
Claude is training Tsugumi for her mission of finding out the truth about the relationship between Raku and Chitoge. Tsugumi is going through some changes, and she seeks advice from people around her. Could it be possible that she is in love?
The Review: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Love. It’s such a well-worn trope that we’re all kind of sick of it by now, right? But we’re not. We’ve been hearing love stories for thousands of years and they still strike us in our metaphorical heart. It sets something off in us that makes us care about people that don’t even exist (or exist, if it’s a non-fiction).
What makes these new love stories so interesting? Sometimes, we’re seeing what is essentially the same story with different characters and they’re both considered amazing (I’m thinking particularly of Inside Llewyn Davis and Her, which I saw back-to-back in the theaters). Nisekoi follows a lot of the same old harem tropes. First there’s one girl who likes him (Onodera) and then there’s two (Kirisaki, sort of) and then there’s three (Tsugumi). Soon, there’ll be four, five, and six girls that all like the same guy. But as I said last week, Nisekoi is turning these tropes on their head.
Kirisaki has to cover her tracks for saying she doesn’t love Raku all the time. Her knee-jerk reaction is to say, “Who would love that guy?” But he’s her darling! For once in a harem, the guy and the girl get together from episode one, but they don’t even like each other. Tsugumi’s goal in life is to prove they don’t. For one, Raku isn’t good enough for Kirisaki and two, Tsugumi has her own feelings for Raku, which she’s working through in this episode.
The focus on Tsugumi was much appreciated, but I find myself at a loss for words as what more to add to the discussion. I’m entertained with shipping characters, but there’s no one in Nisekoi who I’m particularly interested in yet (though I’ll argue for Oliver Queen and Felicity Smoak forever). Plus, I don’t find that to be compelling review material.
What I do love watching, and talking about, in Nisekoi is how often it subverts expectations. Tsugumi asks Kirisaki what this feeling in her heart is and she says, “Wait! Is it…a disease or something? Maybe you should go to the hospital.” Every other girl has the same reaction, but stops at “Is it…” They know its love, but don’t want to say. It’s not until she goes to Onodera and Miyamoto that she finds out that it is love. Of course, she doesn’t believe it because she can’t love anyone. She’s thrown away being a woman (an idea not fully recognized, but interesting as a concept).
I haven’t even touched on how Tsugumi is a completely different character when she’s dressed as a male or as a female. I don’t want to dig too deep into it, because most of these moments are for comedy, but it could mean so much more that she has this drastic of a personality change (except when it comes to Raku; then she’s always flustered).
In Summary:
Honestly, I’m just waiting for something to happen. The pacing is JUST a little too slow for my tastes, and that’s frustrating me a little. But the hints are there and, despite my own complaints, the series is moving along very nicely. We’ve learned of the existence of another key in Kirisaki’s possession, which she presumably got ten years ago. So maybe Onodera’s key really is to a bookcase.
Grade: B
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
Equipment: Radeon 7850, 24 in. Vizio 1080p HDTV, Creative GigaWorks T20 Series II
