First of all, I’d like to go out on a limb here and say that Nisekoi’s genre represented here on MAL is actually inaccurate and can be quite misleading to newer viewers. If you’re expecting a complexed and hilarious love story…well, you will get that for the most part, but be forewarned that this is also a harem in the making. While having a strong start in the lines of a romance comedy manga, this convection flails as the series progresses. However, do not let this factor hinder you from reading. Being ranked 44th here on MAL, I think its popularity says for itself just how amazing this manga is. And Nisekoi certainly does provide quite the exciting read, from problems issuing from a school cultural fest to helping a friend confess his feelings, Nisekoi leaves you on the edge of your seat even without the intense fighting of a Shounen.

To strip it down to the basics, Nisekoi is about a boy named Raku, who is your typical 1st year highschool boy. He gets decent grades, knows how to cook, and has a faithful childhood friend (who is, sadly, a huge pervert) and aims to become a civil servant someday. But unlike normal highschool boys, Raku has a family background that is, to put it mildly, quite…unique. Well, that is unique with a capital “U”, as no typical highschool boy have a Yakuza family. Due to this, many people at school are intimidated by him resulting in Raku not having any friends. However, despite all this Raku is not discouraged, as he has a reminiscence of 10 years into his past, where he made a promise with a girl he loved, and although he does not remember the details, he holds a pendant as proof of their relationship, with her in possession of the key. And so our MC hopes to some day reunite with his love and to uphold their promise-that is, to get married.
Due to delicate circumstances, our MC is forced into a fake relationship (thus the name Nisekoi) with a beautiful and talented “gorilla”, Chitoge, which creates a huge problem, as he already loves another girl. Through this relationship, they encounter dilemma after dilemma, many of which will get you laughing your head off, from convincing their families that they are real lovers to conflicts with a cross dressing hitman, the comedic humor is endless. Under all this however, the commitment to solving the mystery behind his past never eludes Raku, and as the intricate love story progresses and it is discovered 4 different girls were present 10 years ago, all of whom holds keys, the romance story is thrown into a mass of exciting confusion. As their group overcomes various obstacles, from making chocolates on Valentines Day to viewing exhilarating fireworks on New Years, more mysteries from their past are slowly revealed, and it is completely unpredictable as to what will happen next.
Nisekoi does take detours from the original plotline, and between chapter 50 to chapter 90, the whole pendant issue seems to have been momentarily forgotten in replacement to a harem-like build up where every dam girl just irresistibly falls for our MC through the progression of events. While it was initially annoying to see such a great romance story turn into a generic harem, it was not disappointing. In fact, contrary to what many people are saying here, it was not unenjoyable to read these in-between chapters. Instead, it serves as a great character development, and not at all lacking in the hilarity of the beginning chapters. The harem element does not detract in the least from the actual romance storyline. Honestly, the only thing that pisses me off is how there is so much budding romance, but it just doesn’t seem to be heading anywhere. But with the good outweighing the bad, it definitely is worth the read.

Not much to say about the art, but that it is really cute. All of the characters look really nice. I fell in love with Marika’s character design instantly, but then her personality kind of screwed it up for me. Nothing too out of the ordinary, but the varying clothing designs is certainly an added bonus, from the elaborate kimonos to Romeo and Juliet style dress. It is quite impressive.

I thought the characters were really well done, with each having distinctive character traits and back stories. From the tsundre like Chitoge, to the shy and introverted Kosaki, to the persistent and determined Marika, the cast is a colorful crew who guarantees hours of enjoyable reading. And while not completely original, all these diverse personalities all coming together and interacting is something of a miracle on its own, take for example Marika’s clinginess to Raku, and Chitoge’s jealously of said clinginess. What seperates Nisekoi from other mangas of the same genre is the background behind all the characters. Some people argue that as readers we do not know much about the pasts of many characters and the story offers very few flashbacks so we are left guessing as to what might have happened, and thus has a very low view on Nisekoi. However, keep in mind that this sort of thing is intentional, as this is a romance story focused solely on the events 10 years in the past, and that said past shrouded in mysteries would slowly be revealed in time. As for things we do know, the story provides a sense of connection between all the characters, and serves to offer an emotional depth at the same time. All in all, each of the characters are very strong (in Chitoge and Tsugami’s cases, physically as well) and there is a strong sense of idiosyncraticness not seen in the likes of, say, 1/2 Prince. If anything, I’d suggest people read Nisekoi just for the characters.

Overall, Nisekoi was one of the best romance mangas I’ve ever read, and will continue reading. With such a creative storyline, intricate situations, both in the past and present, leaving you on edge wanting to find out just who the chosen one is. And so, I’m going to stop digressing and end it here. However, I just want to say one last thing, no matter if you are a newer viewer or seasoned otaku, you will not regret it if you give Nisekoi a try, as contrary to what many people are saying here, Nisekoi certainly does give off a vibe of its own,