Review of Motto To LOVE Ru

I really enjoyed the first TL-R series, this one was better for a number of reasons. First was that, unlike the first series, Motto TL-R followed closely to the manga, without putting additional plot points. Each episode is split into 3 sub-episodes, with each of those covering a particular chapter from the manga; for the most part the sub-episodes are actually named after the chapters on which they're based with a few notable exceptions--more about this at a later time. The major liberty taken from themanga was the use of the entire cast from the start. This wasn't necessarily an issue; however; it took some 162 chapters of the manga to get Yuuki's entire harem assembled. Most character explanations and backgrounds are taken care of in the first sub-episode but done briefly (From the Beginning) through exposition. It is assumed that most viewers of the anime are already familiar with the basics of the TL-R universe, and the series serves to fill in gaps that have been left out by the first series. Also notable is that the chapter order bears no real relation with the order of the episodes; characters are sometimes added as needed, but seamlessly.

The reason this works is that the chapters used for the anime were more the side-stories and not in the major plot arc; for example, no appearance of King Deviluke and Zastin only shows up briefly once or twice of the manga. The only real arc in the series as a whole is the developing friendship/crush/romance between Mikan and Yami, dealt with in several episodes. Yui's feelings for Rito are given some multi-episode treatment as well; the Haruna/Lala/Rito triangle is taken as obvious (to the viewer) from the start.

I enjoyed the art style and the animation was good as well. It had great scenes of humor which I really enjoyed. I was a fan of the original series like I mentioned.

The final episode is the final four chapters of the manga, encompassing the "I Love You" story arc, and ends with the same hilarious nonsense as the manga. And this leaves space for more series in the future. Hopefully...