To Love-Ru Darkness Vol. 2

YES, the second volume of To Love-Ru Darkness is OUT, that is so AWESOME.

VOL. 2
5 – Uneasiness

It seems that the manga is alternating between Yami and Momo’s story each chapter, so this chapter focuses on Yami. We see that she has grown a liking to life on Earth, creating friends, but this has made her ‘weak’ according to her enemies. A new assassin comes to fight her, and throughout the chapter, it was surprisingly interesting. I liked it, and I like the indecision feelings that Yami is feeling, it adds some depth into her character.

The longer chapters provide a more engaging read even though it takes more time to do so. The chapter ends with another cliffhanger, if I was following this on the monthly Jump, then I would be annoyed that I have to wait a whole month to see how it turns out!

6 – True Smile

An exciting chapter with all the fighting, but there is a section of the chapter where the ecchi is nothing I have seen before. When I say that, it’s in a bad way… it’s really treading on a fine fine line. Other than that, I thought it was very interesting to read, and I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. Sadly, it seems the focus now is on Momo instead of Lala, and as I don't particularly like Momo, it feels disappointing.

7 – Worry

Mmmmm, I don't even know if this can be called fan service anymore, going way way over the top, the situations aren’t even humorous any more. This chapter is not as nice as the previous chapters in terms of plot or development. I would assume you could safely skip this chapter and none would be the wiser. A pretty disappointing chapter overall, and it was just starting to get really good.

8 – A Man? Woman?

An interesting chapter, with a few things happening, the effects from the events of the last chapter being carried on. That said, the fan service was bearable for the first half, and even wasn't that over the top, but what a let down at the end, with the full thing happening, so much innuendoes…

BUT, it was one of the funnier chapters for a while, particularly we finally get to see more of the original cast from To Love-Ru, instead of just Momo, Yami, and Mea again and again and again, I mean, you gotta have some variety. Mikan’s just as hilarious as always with her comments, still a bit of a letdown as Lala and Haruna doesn't get as much ‘screen time’. After seven chapters of mysteriousness, we got a glimpse of the hidden ‘master’ behind Mea but still nothing is revealed yet. I can't comment too much on the story because of this, but it is more suspenseful than the original, and Momo’s a bit more likeable and intelligent in this chapter.

Sad to note that the event at the bathtub that affected Rito deeply wasn't Lala appearing but it was Momo (from the Prologue chapter). Really do not like the scenes at the end with Mea, Momo and Rito, more so the actions as it just felt too contrived and doesn't fit their characters at all. Chapter ends with Run’s appearance and it seems that she’s sad and wants to see Rito, so it’ll be interesting how it turns out, it promises that it will be more complex…

Extra – Pollenplan

I guess I can say it’s a typical chapter, it focuses on Mikan and once again (and it’s getting old), Celine’s pollen affects someone; in this case Mikan, and she develop romantic feelings for Rito. It went along quite well in the beginning but it just fell through near the end, when it kinda went towards the incest direction, something that I really do not like. Then there’s Momo, what with her harem plan that I also don't like, so the ending ruined the chapter for me, although it was a little bit funny at a few places.

Overall

I do believe I am getting used to the direction the manga is heading towards, but I still don’t really approve of it. I would much rather the light and carefree mood of To Love-Ru. This volume wasn't that great, there was an overload of ecchi and fan service, which really just went too far. Particularly the last three chapters weren’t that great, and at first glance there seems to be a better plot, and the dark tone of the series help that, but if you think about it, there isn’t really that much happening and it’s a really weak and thin plot anyway, just like the original. I’ll be interested to see if it ends up going off onto a tangent like To Love-Ru did.