Tsugumi is too cute
What They Say:
“Fate / Showdown”
Tsugumi has a visitor from her past. Her dark, violent past… Now, she has to prove that she still has the skills she once had!
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Another girl, another best girl candidate in Nisekoi. With this episode, there’s the introduction of Paula McCoy, otherwise known as White Fang (she’s like Kakashi! Actually, I wouldn’t be surprised if the nickname is a not-so-subtle homage to Konoha’s own).
Nisekoi has never really been about love, it’s about the execution of a very good harem manga / anime. So when a completion is suggested where the goal is the first one to kiss Raku wins, I had no doubt in my mind that A. it would be ridiculous and B. there is no way Raku would actually be kissed by the end. It’s what makes Nisekoi so much fun. Despite knowing that it will subvert expectations, it ALWAYS does it in perhaps the most absurd way possible.
Tsugumi…Well, really everyone in their own special way displays a kind of ridiculous love. Tsugumi’s is that of naivety. It’s characters like Paula, that foil so well with Tsugumi both in her disposition toward love and her name, that bring Nisekoi to life. It’s a show that is at its best when pairing characters together in weird combinations. Like, when’s the last time there’s been an episode with Raku and Tsugumi? A while and it’s great for it. The return (and introduction for us) of Paula makes it all the more sweet.
But it’s never just about the focal character’s love toward Raku. It’s about Tsugumi’s interplay with Paula. How the innocent one in love is not as much so in this game (at least until the end) and the one that suggested it is maybe not so willing to play. The underlying motivation is not love from Raku this time, its love from Tsugumi. Or perhaps not even love, but acknowledgement that her idol thinks she’s as hot stuff as she thinks.
In Summary:
Another episode past and another without Onodera playing a significant role, so I don’t know how to feel about this season so far. On the other hand, these are some of the funniest episodes of Nisekoi I’ve seen thus far and a constant reminder why this was one of my favorite shows of last season. It doesn’t take the world by storm by any means, but it does everything extremely competently, even excellently, and manages a laugh from me almost every episode.
Grade: B+
Streamed By: Crunchyroll
Equipment: PS3, LG 47LB5800 47” 1080p LED TV, LG NB3530A Sound Bar
