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This manga isn’t particularly bad, but I cannot, in good conscience, fully recommend it. At this point, it feels like a poorly executed bait-and-switch. It’s clear that the author intended to build up a readership before abruptly and disruptively changing the manga’s tone purely for shock value.

To be clear, genre shift isn't a bad thing. In fact it's a trope that was present in some of the best medias that came to us from Japan. However, those shifts require a good execution to avoid alienating your audience. In most successful examples, the tone shift typically respects some or all of the following principles:
1. The ... tone shifting is gradual
2. It’s foreshadowed in some way.
3. The initial tone represents only a small portion of the overall story.

None of these principles apply here, although the third one could still be salvaged. The tone shifting in this manga was extremely brutal. It's so drastic, that you could likely make two separate mangas out of the different parts, each of which would appeal to a specific audience. But right now ? the content would not be satisfying for either of them.

It's hard to tell what direction will be taken right now. the story could end up being extremely good that it would make us forget how the story initially started, or it could become a bigger trainwreck than it already is.

Makeine: Too Many Losing Heroines! was a simple but enjoyable read, and as of now (with 7 volumes released), it offers a lot to enjoy, although it's not without its lows.

The main premise is probably one of the first things that will catch your eye. It's not uncommon for female MCs to have crushes on secondary characters and even be rejected, but I've never read a story that focuses on a group of them. Generally, I think it was executed well throughout the beginning of the story. It was enjoyable to watch the different girls grieve and come to terms with the end of their ... first love, as well as how they interact with the MC, who evolves from an observer to a consoler, building up his friendships through these interactions.

This leads to potentially the strongest point of this series, which is its rich cast. The story is carried by how enjoyable many of the characters are, though if you came from the anime and wanted to discover more, you likely already know this. Most of them have a lot of depth (although they can be a bit tropey), provide interesting interactions both with the MC and the rest of their entourage, and create nice dynamics. It's unlikely that you won't like at least a couple of them. The way the story is structured also helps, since most volumes are centered around a particular character, but most of them still get enough screen time despite that restriction. This could backfire, though, if the story focuses on a character you don't particularly fancy.

The characters' quirks are also the main component of the comedy aspect of this series, and I found that part decent. I think it's safe to say that Makeine gives more importance to the "Com" rather than the "Rom" as of volume 7, so it's at least a relief that it has its moments there. Many running gags still land even later in the story, with a couple of exceptions I'll point out later.

Still, character growth is the theme of this LN, and it does not disappoint on that front. I found the transformations most of the cast had to endure very charming. One of my favorite ways the author expressed this is through the different stories the characters write (most of the cast are part of a high school literature club). While most of them sound like mundane fanfics, I liked the subtle changes that occur in their stories if you can detect who they based their characters on.

Which is a shame, as I found the MC's growth particularly lacking, or at least contradictory. First, he's your typical RomCom LN genre-savvy character, whose main traits at the start of the story are shyness, nerdiness, and a lack of social interactions. Unlike most other stories, Nukumizu is passive, going with the flow and letting other characters direct the show. He does have his moments, of course, usually in the climax of each volume, but their impact can vary. This isn't bad on its own, but it can be unenjoyable for those used to more active MCs like the ones we've been seeing in recent years.

The most frustrating aspect of the MC is how his behavior doesn't reflect the growth he supposedly undergoes. This is a story about a high school student rediscovering himself through the life experiences his new friends are going through, in order to eventually live his own life. He learns to become more observant, compassionate, and better at understanding his peers' feelings and motivations. Yet, as the story progresses, he becomes denser, more cowardly, and even more of a pushover. The first trait can at least be justified by the setting and the fact that it's a universal RomCom MC characteristic. The second feels like a lazy plot device meant to preserve the status quo. It's inconceivable that, months into the story, as he gets closer to someone to the point of empathy and mutual understanding, he still completely freaks out at any suggestion of flirting or potential attraction from the other party, just for the sake of comic relief and not advancing the plot too quickly (or at all). The last part is even more frustrating. This is an MC who would get kidnapped, stalked, slandered, falsely accused, wiretapped, and blackmailed into revealing both his and others' secrets, yet he does absolutely nothing about it. It's mostly done for comedic purposes, but most of these situations are hardly funny and make it hard to maintain suspension of disbelief. There's passiveness, and then there's letting the other characters constantly step on you, rather than letting the MC make his own choices and show his personality. At least Yanami constantly stealing his food has its charm. I can only justify this by assuming the author wants to keep any dramatic conflict involving the MC to a minimum for now.

Speaking of unfunny moments, it seems the author was heavily inspired by late 2000s humor midway through the story, as the running gag you'll encounter most often is the "clingy, jealous FMC." If you despise this trope like I do, due to how overdone it was in the past, your reading experience will become dreadful at one point, as it is used constantly. I wish I were exaggerating, but the MC can't interact with a girl without another making a fuss about it. I suppose this is the natural direction for harem-like stories, but I think other series execute better when their MC isn't a literal punching bag. In the case of an inactive and apologetic MC like Nukumizu, it is extremely annoying. And no, the fact that he admits these flaws in his monologues doesn't make it less frustrating.

Still, I do think the highs outweigh the lows, and this series is worth a read if you're even slightly interested in the genre. While it could totally fall flat later on when the author has to make hard decisions, it still has a lot of potential in the upcoming volumes, and I'd recommend it to you, assuming you're not easily deterred by what I've mentioned above.