Comedy Anime Combines Crime And Fake Romance On Streaming, A Wild Twist On The Yakuza
Harem-based anime are nothing new, and it takes a lot of work to make them stand out from the rest of the crowd. While Nisekoi: False Love doesn’t claim to be the most interesting and unique, it does take the standard harem anime and perfect it. If you’re a fan of watching a guy try and choose between a bunch of very cute girls, you won’t go wrong with Nisekoi.
Raku And Chitoge
The story follows Raku Ichijou, a high school student whose family also happens to be involved in the yakuza. He has a crush on a girl named Kosaki Onodera, but when another yakuza group starts conflicts with his family, he has to pretend to be in love with their daughter, Chitoge Kirisaki. The two cannot get along, and end up fighting most of the time, but they have to make it work if they want to get through high school without a huge fight between their families.
The Key
Of course, it wouldn’t be a proper harem romance with only two love interests. Raku has another secret. When he was younger, he gave a girl a key necklace as part of a promise to be together forever, but he doesn’t remember who exactly he gave the key to. It turns out a few girls have the key, including another girl named Marika Tachibana, and they all knew each other when they were younger, making it even more confusing who this special girl really is.
The Cast
It’s worth noting that there are only two seasons and the story isn’t complete for the anime. He never finds out who the real girl is, or picks the one he wants to be with. However, there is a manga that is complete, written by Naoshi Komi, with a total of 25 volumes.
Explaining this anime wouldn’t be complete without discussing the cast. Nisekoi: False Love makes sure their characters stick out with exceptional voice actors, such as Kouki Uchiyama (My Hero Academia, Fate/Grand Carnival) as the voice of Raku Ichijou. Nao Touyama (Goblin Slayer, The Devil is a Part-Timer!) plays Chitoge, Kana Hanazawa (Akame ga Kill!, Steins;Gate) plays Kosaki, and Kana Asumi (The World God Only Knows, Non-Non Biyori) plays Marika.
Solid, But Not Unique
Overall, there’s not much terribly special about the storyline of Nisekoi: False Love. It’s a harem anime based on childhood promises and fake dating. There is a bit of something interesting with the Yakuza, but not really enough to make the show stand out.
However, it’s an anime done with flawless execution. It promised a basic but fun and pretty story, and it offered just that. The animation and voice acting cast helped push it above most other harem stories and gave it a little something extra.
Reception
On My Anime List, the show has a 7.56 out of 10. While it’s not the highest-rated show, it is popular, with a ranking of #122. The studio behind the anime production, Studio Shaft (Monogatari, Puella Magi Madoka Magica), and the amazing cast have likely played a part in the popularity, as it’s often hard to make a harem stand out from others. Akiyuki Shinbo (Owarimonogatari, March Comes in Like a Lion) and Naoyuki Tatsuwa (Zoku Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei, Nisemonogatari) are the directors of Nisekoi: False Love.
Stream It Now
GFR SCORE
Nisekoi: False Love is slightly better than the average harem story, but not enough to make it stand out and be memorable.
Want to check out this funny harem romance featuring Yakuza and lost love? Nisekoi: False Love is available to watch on Crunchyroll
