I have to say the best part of this series is the mother, Machiko. She is a laugh riot. I really enjoyed this series right up until the marriage episode. It just seemed too forced and convenient. Naota spends most of the series teasing and bullying Kotoko and in one episode he decides not only to abandon his plan to save his father’s company but to marry a girl he’s never even gone out on one date with.

IMO, Kinnosuke was and is the better match for Kotoko than Naota. It’s too bad he’s stuck with that dull Chris.

The good thing about this series is that, even though the main characters got married, it doesn’t seem like it’s slowing down drama between the two. It’s just taken a different direction in now that Kotoko has to deal with making a place for herself as Naota’s wife.

I still can’t get over how 13 episodes of love-drama was resolved in one 2-week wedding. It would’ve been nice had the writers gradually developed a relationship between them instead of thrusting them together at the last minute.

I also didn’t enjoy how spineless Naota’s father comes out in all this. He didn’t protest when Naota was going to marry Chris to insure that his father’s company got the loan and he didn’t bat an eyelash when Naota ran home and SUDDENLY announced that not only was he calling it off with Chris, but that he was going to marry Kotoko instead.

The only characters that really come off looking good in that episode were:

Kinnosuke, for standing aside gracefully to make Kotoko happy
Kotoko’s father, for telling Naota all about his daughters bad faults and good points. Essentially, telling him that he’ll have to take the good with the bad and for being a very, very attentive father to her daughter’s needs.
Yuuki, for recognizing Naota’s feelings for Kotoko and gradually coming to accept his Onee-san.
Machiko, for being the awesome scheming ocaasan that I love.

Naota and Kotoko came off like selfish assholes, imo. Especially Naota, for throwing it in Kinnosuke’s face that he was “stealing” Kotoko from him.

Mostly, I feel annoyed at how Yuuka’s presence was wasted. She was only around for a few episodes before being replaced by Chris as Kotoko’s love rival. Yuuka seemed like she was more of a match for Naota, sharing the same interests and personalities and it would’ve been more interesting to seem them compete for Naota’s love. Instead, both get shoved aside by a deus-ex-machina character who is equally brushed aside just as quickly and easily as she was introduced.

The other thing is Kotoko’s complete dependence on Naota for her own self-esteem and identity. She’s resolved to join a nursing program just to be by Naota’s side and her entire identity is centered around being Naota’s wife.

Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of cute “Kyaaaaa” moments in InK but the way the relationships are forced together and broken apart are jarring and disorienting as a viewer. It’s sad because at the heart of all romcoms are the relationships and in this series Kotoko comes off as a bit of a masochist, which is similar to Risa in Lovely Complex, as opposed to a true heroine who wins over her love with spunk and personality she seems more like a doormat for Naota.

Overall, based on what I’ve seen, this series is decent but not great (Kotoko’s friends are pretty much useless and don’t lend anything to the story as a whole). I’m hoping the writers can turn things around by introducing new characters or new situations that will make more sense with the overall theme of the series.

@LDC
Right on comrade, right on!

This seems like a really good shoujo romance series that actually (gasps) allows the characters to grow up and move on with their relationship besides the initial courtship stage. It’s refreshing to see a romance series that actually allows a relationship to progress organically beyond the usual chase/hookup/firstkiss/end.

I look forward to marathoning and following this show now that I’ve dropped Koihime+Musou, Natsume Yuujin-Cho and To Love Ru.