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Ayakashi Triangle is an ecchi comedy that mixes in action elements, written by the same author of To Love-Ru.


Its start was, in my honest opinion, solid. While the action wasn’t out of this world, and the story wasn’t some masterclass storytelling that welled my eyes in tears, it did a great job at entertaining me, mixing perfectly the Slice of Life, comedy and action/plot.
Although, I could say that the World Building, at the very least at the start, can be a bit rough to swallow. Ignoring any resemblances to other series, many times when there’s something happening on screen, everything will halt, the characters will ... explain some completely new fact of the world you’ve never heard about and suddenly there’s a drastic change to your perception of the situation, in other words, the worldbuilding is provided through asspulls instead of through careful storytelling (mostly in the beginning, though.). It could be way better at laying things out, allowing us to engage with the world and characters in a stronger and easier manner.

The first arc was interesting, and while it could be better in a few parts, such as pacing and foreshadowing, it presented an interesting dynamic between the main characters, allowing us to see a clear plot progression every chapter. The climax, while well done in theory, did not bring out its fullest extent in practice.
It has everything, the new life of the protagonist is threatened, the villain is, if not charismatic, at least entertaining, it has an initial conflict where someone important to the protagonist is hurt and captured, the characters don’t stand around and beat around the bush, they go straight to the action, allowing the plot to flow with ease, there are moments of tension where it seems all hope is lost, grand transformations and shows of true power, and a satisfactory ending.
The only problem is, while it ticks off all the boxes in the list, none of them were done to the extent the actions reach the heart and make the reader’s feelings be moved deeply.

In simpler words, the first arc is solid, but it could be better.

The real issues begin after this.
We follow right after with a transition arc that is somewhat relaxed and fun, new characters being introduced, plot points being brought up, and a fun SoL with the characters. However, since it is there to pave way to the second arc, it may come to be somewhat forgettable.

The second arc itself brings the classic scenario of a gauntlet of powerful enemies to be defeated.
Out of the three opponents to be fought, two of them go down rather unceremoniously and without bringing in true weight or development for the characters(and it is all done rather fast), which makes it seem like the story didn’t receive the required attention so that it would be considered a solid piece of work and storytelling that can stand on its own two feet.
The third opponent, though, comes out with a bang. While the other two only possessed superficial connections to one of the main characters, this one comes with a direct connection, plot twists, foreshadowing and true weight to the story and its characters. It brings a climatic fight that brings out the feeling the story is going into a rising arc of conflict, ready to enter its climax, as the characters are forced to retread and prepare for the next conflict, which will hopefully be the last.

This is, in my opinion, the last time I can truly say the story is good or entertaining.
After a sudden love confession, which is neither deserved, nor does it change the dynamics in a truly noticeable way, all the conflict and stakes melt when the main villain (that third opponent) simply throws it all to the air and decides it is a good idea to join in the casual life of the protagonists, turning the story into a full on rom-con. The chapters lose proper continuity, and everything that happens in them doesn’t matter anymore, because all tension is fake, and it tells. The comedy loses a lot of what made it funny, despite suffering no apparent changes, and the story itself was lost.
It is as if, in the middle of a war, after a major development that could spell its end, the major leaders all decided to move in to a friendly neighborhood in a distant country and be friends living a nice old funny life.

Because of that, the world building falls down the toilet, actions that are taken solely for the sake of the comedy completely destroying any semblance of credibility that was built.



The art itself is excellent. The author is experienced and knows how to draw well and dynamically. The story itself is an ecchi, so, if that’s something that bothers you, the art is going to hurt to look at, but if you are someone that enjoys it, it is a marvelous treat for the eyes.




The characters are…
Well, *majority* of them have a strong personality from the very beginning, matching perfectly with striking character designs. In other words, with majority of them, you can have a good idea of their superficial personality just from one good look and the first thing they say.
When it comes to character depth, and I believe that this is maybe due to the fact the manga itself is not over yet, the majority of them can’t be called a three-dimensional character. While they all show they are more than just clichés and what’s at first glance, there isn’t enough exploration and development to call them deep and well-thought-out characters.
The main character is one that… can be polemic, as I’ve seen for myself in many internet discussions. To avoid any extensive arguments, I’ll just say that… there could be a deeper exploration, allowing for a more interesting character. There have been cases of characters that went through… less extreme transformations and had much more of their mentality and outlook on life changed, with a lot more exploration of their feelings and the process.
Another character that could also be more explored is the romantic interest, Suzu Kanade. Personally, I believe that there is a lot of personal drama that could be explored with her character, judging by all the circumstances that surround her, and yet, they are barely, if at all, explored, going solely by the shallowest of developments when it comes to all the situation surrounding her.


Now, when it comes to how entertaining the story was for me… well, I would say that, while it wasn’t the best story I’ve ever read, I found myself quite engaged (although not to the point of having my feelings deeply swayed by the climaxes) with the characters and plot, and had a lot of fun with the events surrounding them. The real issue, though, comes at the second arc; when the plot fell apart, so did my engagement and any importance I gave to the story. The jokes all felt out of place, considering the plot that *should* be happening full throttle, and the plot that wasn’t happening (though, it was, if you squinted, and it was shit, because it revolved fully around comedy), was sorely missed, it all being topped off by some ridiculous flanderization of some characters. It absolutely ruined all the good-will I had with this story, although, some good memories from the beginning still remain.





Now, to end this, I think it is important to talk about a few things:
This is a manga that has humor/comedy as a genre, so, why am I complaining so much about it bothering the plot?
Well, the reason is simple. IF this was a pure comedy manga, I wouldn’t even bate an eye to any of this happening, because they would’ve been expected. There aren’t true stakes in comedy manga, because the sole thing that matters in those is the comedy, is how funny it is, if the comedy retains its quality and the premise that moves it can keep going.
Problem is, this does not apply to this manga. This is a manga that decided to tell a story when the story required it, and it did. It created a world, and it created emotional and serious drama for the characters. Comedy being used to fill in the overall tone and interactions is perfectly fine, it helps with falling in love with the characters, makes it easier to approach them and feel more comfortable with them, being the perfect topping for the SoL. However, when the plot begins, the least the story could do was to take itself seriously and do what it proposed itself to do.

A world where we spend majority of the time in an SoL comedy, with a plot slowly developing on the background, creating a reality with which we care about, and giving a lot of weight when it all risks to shatter, allowing us to truly feel the stakes and seriousness of the plot. As we follow the characters in their journey and wish for them to protect the life that we’ve grown so attached to seeing them in.
When the comedy breaks the plot, the base in which this manga was built upon is also destroyed, and those that genuinely felt invested in the world and characters can’t do anything but feel disappointed.
In the end, the beginning was good, but for some decision that may have come from the author himself, or the editors wishing to milk the story for as long as possible, everything that was tumbles down.


I’ll keep on reading the story as it releases, however, I don’t know if my opinion of it will ever be as good as it used to be.