5-toubun no Hanayome

I'm a fan of harem genre, and it seems to be that this one, "The Quintessential Quintuplets" is very unusual plot for the harem, the main reason I got hooked up to follow the series and totally liked it. No, I definitely love it!.

The art is good on how they drew the Nakano Quintuplets, especially on how they drew Itsuki, Nino and Miku. The haristyle of Itsuki. Oh no! So good! On Nino, so adorable, Miku had the "Loner Aura" thing on the art (10/10 for the Art).

The story is plain alone if I am talking about the tutor thing. But with the characters' attitude, the story got some cool twists and making it sometimes unusual, and I love how it really goes (10/10 for the Story)

The character development is a bit slow (that's better than being fast like "a year passed" scenario thing) but it emphasizes each characters both good and bad sides, which is essential for the story and on how it goes in the future (10/10 for the Character)

I do really enjoy following the series, as well as reading the manga. As I stated above, since the harem is unusual and also the character development, the enjoyment "The Quintessential Quintuplets" gave to me is totally good. (10/10 for the Enjoyment)

Overall it's 10/10 for me

A big Kudos to Negi Haruba for this wonderful manga. And also a big thanks for the enjoyment it gave me.

My reviews may be different from some others, but here is what I have to say about this manga.

I have not read much in the past, and I have not watched much anime (~1100 episodes when writing this), but this may be one of the best series I have watched and read currently.

I love so much about this manga. The characters were amazing, the art is phenomenal, I loved the story (I was on the edge of my seat a lot) and overall I enjoyed this manga so much over my week or so of reading. In fact, why would I be sitting here writing a review 2 days after I finished it if it was not on my mind all the time.

And no, I'm not a Miku fanboy. I just genuinely love this story.

Spoiler free review!

Gotoubun no Hanayome, ah...where do we begin. So much here has been excellently executed, yet a few of the most important parts were utterly destroyed. And it's a pity that despite being few in number, the problems are massive. My mind is literally all over the place as I'm writing this because this series had all the hallmarks to be truly special; and I don't mean this the way people did when talking about Nisekoi or whatnot. Gotoubun was literally amazing up to the final eight to ten chapters: what's utterly shocking here is how QUICKLY it stagnated. Feels like the story was cut short by at least 50 chapters, for reasons I simply cannot fathom.

Characters: 8/10

This for me, is where the Quintessential Quintuplets truly shines.

The work that Negi Haruba put into his characters prior to the end was truly a joy to read and experience, especially for characters such as Ichika, Miku, Yotsuba and Nino. The author manages to take these girls beyond the generic tropes you'd expect and actually craft human beings, with clumsy spats, interesting views and motivations together with the pangs of adolescent love and drama that tends to challenge their powerful bond as quintuplet sisters. Besides having great chemistry with themselves and making for some honestly very moving moments, most of the girls have great harmony (chemistry wise) with the protagonist of this story: Fuutaro Uesugi, who himself, is a fantastic character.

Futaro goes through the motions of a goal oriented achiever, who's stunted in many aspects of life. I love how his academic ability is chalked down to exceptional hard work ALONG with intelligence. Futaro's academic excellence is contrasted with an abrasive personality; he's rude, impatient, unable to consider others' views easily and intolerant towards failure. He isn't some protagonist that's just good at everything he does. Seeing this teenager grapple with his responsibilities to his family and his own deficiencies as a person is truly joyful to watch. Through his job tutoring these five Quintuplet heroines, the readers get to see Futaro become a more wholesome human being who learns the value of altruism and kindness, getting a genuine desire to help the young girls succeed in both their academic endeavours and their lives as a whole. The fact that these virtues grow within him and are not innate at the start of the series adds something to Futaro that most harem/romance protags lack — since they're almost all great, standup guys from the start.

Seeing this non dimensional teenager grow through the course of the manga was extremely rewarding. Brilliant character work.

While perhaps not as subtle and well played out as Futaro's, the characterisation of some of the Quintuplets comes close enough; with certain characters such as Miku and Nino going through very meaningful arcs, especially relatable for teenagers. The simple nature of their problems that isn't greatly exaggerated but is still enough to create conflicts makes for some great development with these two: and while I say it these developments aren't as profound as Futaro's evolution, I genuinely enjoyed how the author explored what made those two tick and act believably. Yotsuba has a good character plot throughout the story as well, though some viewers may throw the term 'predictable' around. Now I'm afraid I can't delve exactly into these details else I reveal spoilers; but these three girls stood out the most to me compared to their remaining siblings.

Compared to the storylines that develop Miku, Nino and Yotsuba; Ichika has a more controversial arc that brought huge character growth but that which may be interpreted differently by others. However it is arguable that due to the rushed nature of things, some of the characters simply did not receive equal treatment to Miku, Nino and Yotsuba; which really is regrettable, since both showed great promise at the start.


Art: 8.5/10

I really love the character designs on this one. Aside from being consistent throughout, the expressions the characters display are comical and fun to follow, with the infamous pouts becoming a regular fixture whenever anime/manga memes are mentioned. Again, it's very reminiscent of another manga with great expressions — Nisekoi. I also liked how every girl is made unique from the other even when they're without their identifying accessories or hairstyles: with enough practice and chapters under your belt, you'll be able to tell the Quints apart based on the slightest things: the shape of their eyebrows, the position of their eyes, their posture, their actions. Subtleties, just like how you can tell twins and triplets apart when you start spending more time with them. Nice details.

Story: 5.5/10

Now let's say we ignore the last ten chapters or so; the story would probably cap off at a 7.5/10. That's because this was always a story based on how the characters interact with each other and enjoying the fruits of those interactions. It's a waifu war story not just of love, but of growth and accepting oneself. Actual Fullmetal Alchemist levels of story and writing were not needed for this story to work, but despite that, somehow the author managed to derail his good work with such a rushed ending. I literally cannot emphasise how let down I feel with this ending; the closest comparison I can think of is Kubo Tite's Bleach, which derailed over a longer period but derailed all the same.

Gotoubun's end was sudden and the stagnation was equally shocking. Many suspected the story would take a pounding the moment it was announced that the story wouldn't even reach 130 chapters; which was shocking considering that one major character hadn't even had an arc yet. The author went through the motions nevertheless and left numerous loose ends, while also half assing an ending that kind of backtracked on some important moments of development. I do not know what Negi Haruba was planning, but he betrayed the good work he had done in the first 90 chapters especially. It's always disappointing when something so good you expect to never be able to fail, fails within a short time and leaves a bad taste in the mouth.

So why do I still give the story an above average score?

Simply because I enjoyed the plot well enough until the closing few chapters. I don't have the heart to give it anything lower than a five, but that ending was truly atrocious. People who are about to pick this show up should suck in all the great moments because the final few chapters are probably, to most, atrocious.


Overall: 6/10

A good enough score, but this manga was poised to land in an 8.5 at very least, in my book. Great character work with Futaro, Miku, Nino as standouts; catchy art designs and a coherent, simple enough and fun to follow story manage to make up for an absolutely messy ending and questionable treatment of some of the development received by the characters. Overall, Gotoubun is well worth the read — there's a lot here that shouldn't be missed, but that can't make up for the fact that this was supposed to be the best harem/romcom in a long time.

And it simply could not live up to what it easily could have, and would have been.

This is my first review of a series.
I’ve read 86 Chapters of this, and this is, one of the best harem manga right now.

Quick overview : the story is about 5 quintuplets seeking educational assistance because they’re grades are bad and luckily, Fuutarou, the main character, the highest grades in his school, becomes their tutor.


First off, the story. A solid 8 for the plot and subplots in the manga. For a harem manga, it handles the story well. It’s generally consistent and well-paced, with very creative and unique storylines. The twists and reveals are built up and there is shock value. Why this is not a 9 is purely because some of the scenes can be quite cliche and the story quality is just very good overall, not a 7 or a 9, just a solid 8.

Secondly, the characters. It’s really surprising that the characters aren’t the typical, boring, saturated , monotonous characters in most harems and all of them receive character development. Fuutarou , the main character, isn’t the trash harem protagonist where he’s oh so cool, and all the girls for head over heels. Instead, his enthusiasm for studying is what contradicts the whole character type and gives room for character development for other characters. The quintuplets don’t instantly start liking him, and we get to see the development. The quintuplets are well developed, each having their own unique personality, and as they progress , it’s really exciting and fun to see what might happen in the later story.

Third, the art. Not much to say really. It’s very good art for a weekly publish and it helps compliment some of the impactful scenes later on in the show. Nothing to say much about it, it’s solid.

Finally, the enjoyment. I enjoyed it a ton. I caught up to it in a day and personally, it’s severely underrated and I highly recommend it. If you’re looking for a romance manga that doesn’t do bs plots and character scenarios, this is the one series you might be interested in.

*SLIGHT SPOILERS*

I'll keep this short and simple (if possible). 5-toubun no Hanayome/Gotoubun no Hanayome/The Five Wedded Brides is a very sweet, romantic story thus far about the main protag, Uesugi, and quintuplet sisters who need tutoring in school to pass. Right at the beginning we find out that Uesugi marries one of the 5 sisters, but we don't know who yet which makes it so mysterious and interesting.

The story so far is great! The pacing is perfect in my opinion, and there isn't any filler (so far) to halt the progression of the story/plot. We find out many things about Uesugi and each sister, and how different they are from one another. We learn how the sisters (somewhat) feel towards Uesugi and what they think of being tutored. (P.s. I love the sisters and seeing them work together at times is cute and amazing!)

I'm really enjoying this series and I really REALLY hope he ends up with Miku! But no matter who Uesugi chooses, I just want an amazing story! I'd recommend giving this a try to see if YOU will enjoy reading it, as not everyone will.

The Quintessential Quintuplets was a surprise. Negi Haruba took an extremely typical harem concept and somehow elevated it to an exceptional love story.
In a character-driven narrative like this it is especially important how the author decides to approach his not at all small main cast and I must say that Negi did not disappoint me in the slightest. Each of the quintuplets gets an equal amount of time to shine and leave a lasting impression. They all come with distinctive personalities and great chemistry both between themselves and with our main character. You are guaranteed to have at least one favorite to cheer for while reading. Our protagonist, albeit not the most exceptional, is still quite amusing and provides a great straight-man response to the sisters' stupidity.
The mystery of who Fuutaro is going to marry at the end never stops concerning you until the end and leaves you constantly trying to piece together an answer with great probability that you will not succeed.
Having such a great cast greatly enhances the romantic aspect of the series. This is where I find difficulty in assessing my level of enjoyment. Negi puts a lot of effort into torturing the reader by constantly playing with his feelings which leads to various moments of pure frustration. However, I see this as further proof that an extreme care for the cast is present. In a way this is what all romance should aim for.
Lastly it is definitely worth talking about the art. In a mostly slice of life setting Negi captures the feel of the seemingly normal situations with stunning artwork all throughout. Every important emotional moment is further enhanced by his very impressive drawing skills.
Overall, I can't recommend this manga enough. If you want a well-crafted romance that will emotionally affect you and leave you somewhere between heartbroken and overjoyed, then give this one a read.

My favourite manga of all time, until it all went wrong. Endings are supposed to be satisfying to most readers, and even if the ending is unexpected, it should still be reasonable. Yes, I'm mad that Nino didn't win, but I can count with one hand how many people I know that wanted Yotsuba to win. The character developments of the other 4 were incredible, as well as the artwork, but the ending just does not deliver. The epilogue doesn't even show how the other four moves on from Futarou, they're all still collectively in love with him. It would've been nice to see how the other girls overcame him. 6/10.

The harem genre can be quite complicated and hard to follow through with, especially when you have so many potential love interest but one male character. It can become challenging to develop every one of them and make it a satisfying experience in the process. All the while, you have this steady pace without it feeling lackluster or off by other means. Many harems, anime or manga alike, have issues writing a well-written character that feels both alive and quirky but is different from rest of the cast.
This is where Go-Toubun no Hanayome comes in. Which managed to draw out the potential in every character but make it carry an emotional weight, and making them all likable and enjoyable, all at the same time. The author, Negi, knows how to write a good harem and work out the issue which stems from this genre and having a massive cast of love interest.

We have five sisters, or rather, quintuplets which the story focuses on. The fact that they are siblings, meaning they live together, should make the harem aspect even harder to tackle. At least, according to myself. It's not like you will meet next love interest in the next few chapters since everyone is revealed from the very beginning. The first impression is significant. In which case, the author does an impeccable job to capture the reader's attention and attract you toward those adorable and precious quintuplets. All with their flaws and their own unique charm point you will figure out as the story move forward.

Story

The plot revolves around the quintuplets and our main character, Uesugi Fuutarou.

To begin with, it's about the sister who is nothing bout troublemakers and is close to flunking out, because they can't study. Our unlucky or more accurately lucky main is to be their tutor, to make sure they don't fail the class. He is the top of the class, so this should be easy? Well, think again.

He made a terrible impression on one of the sisters and have to now gain her, and everyone else trusts and forms a bond with each of them. It will not be a walk in the park, I can guarantee you that much.

If you have seen any harem, it's normal for every girl to suddenly love the main character from the beginning, for no substantial reason but the fact he is the main. This is not the case for this harem; it's not that easy here. At first, he will need to make them open up to him, and then they have to grow a bond, and that's when the romance can begin form, slowly but surely, haste makes waste, which is abundantly clear from every other harem, after all. This author takes his time, giving us a good character background for every sister and building it from there. Everyone gets a good amount of development, and you won't like them just because they are gorgeous, although, it would be wrong to deny, that takes apart in it.

As you start to see their flaws, the good and bad, you will inevitably begin to ship the main with one of those girls. However, in your mind, you will realize that all of them is quality and none feels wasted. So, you won't help but think that only a harem route can satisfy yourself. Which I can say for sure, is right for me. I can't see a story where even one of the sister get a sad end and fully accept it. The harem route is the only right option for this manga, and that's clear as day when you read it.

Moreover, every bit of character development the sister goes through is shown in great detail. If you compare them to their start counterpart to now, you will see a clear difference between them. I saw myself, going from disliking to loving a character, and while it took time and effort. It was all worth it to witness her and the rest of them's story bear fruit.

Art

No problem with the art, it's beautiful and compliments the overall atmosphere this manga gives off. The expression the author draws for the character makes them feel so alive, and it can tell its own story by just that. It feels wholly unique and different, I don't know how to explain it, but that's how I think about it.

Characters

I've already said my fair share about the characters, but to give a slight background to each of them and give you a better understanding of who they are, I will write out how I see them at first glance.

For starters, Ichika has this older sister vibe to herself and feels the most mature of them all. Nino's role is the cook in the family, she is also very protective of her family and loves them a lot which causes many issues in the future. Miku at first she gives you this vibe of calm beauty and confident but she is entirely different than her personality suggested. As for Yotsuba, she is the loving and caring, energetic girls who have too much energy and should share some of that with the rest of us. Lastly, there is Itsuki who loves her food too much, she is also very serious and could be considered stubborn in some instances.

All in all, this description does not constitute justice for their character, it's only to give readers an idea of what kind of attitude they can expect. However, I left out lots of details and didn't dive too deep into spoilers, it's better if you figure the rest out for yourself, once you decide to read the manga. They are all likable and exciting, I don't think any of them are a waste and just missing one of them would make the whole story feel different.

Lastly, the main male, Uesugi while feeling like any other main character which is typical for any harem, he's not that. He is quite complicated, and his personality is amusing. His interactions with the sisters are always funny and quirky, so they never get boring in the long run. To put it very simply, he is the kind of character that says what's on his mind and is not shy or awkward around the girls so definitely not your average main character, for sure. He is dense, like any other male lead in a harem, but it feels entirely different from other protagonists in the same genre.

The Negative

Quite honestly, for myself, I have no issues with the direction or writing for this manga. If I had to point some few things out, then the pacing, well this only applies to me unless someone else feels the same. In any case, I wouldn't mind if the pacing was slightly slower and we get more arcs that follow through with another chapter. Instead of starting from something else. This is not a big issue for me; just a tiny nitpick so I can write down something in this section.

However, if you were to watch the anime, then you would fail to see all the good about this piece of fiction. The anime, to put it bluntly, does not do justice to the manga, the source. You won't get the full picture if you watch the anime, just a glimpse of it. While, on another hand, if you are a fellow reader watching the anime as a form of seeing your favorite character brought to life or other bonus the anime brings. Then, it's not bad at all. However, as a means to judge this overall series, I would say the anime opinion is not reliable enough, and every viewpoint should be formed when the manga is in focus instead. That's why I highly recommend the manga over anime.

Conclusion

If you like the harem genre, but have gone tired of the same old and want something different and fresh. Then this is for you, but not only that, it's a pretty good romance manga to boot and has a great cast of character that is both entertaining and very likable. Moreover, the main character compared to other harem is both quirky and alive, so you might witness something new with this male lead in the main role, and being the lucky one to have his story be told where those quintuplets are the focus and his bond, even the love life will be around them. Will he manage to capture the quints affection for himself? Will his love blossom in the form of a harem or as a couple? Find this and much more as you dive this impeccable harem manga.

I'm living a deja-vu, another great manga with a controversial ending. A conclusion that has several mixed feelings. The ending lacks the charisma and emotion of the entire series. 5-toubun no Hanayome and the 4 broken hearts. 1- I want to get married and the twilight zone where dreams can give us the wrong impression.

First, I want to clarify this; we could have a manga with the "What if" ending. Some will complain and try to indicate that it is not valid. However, Negi said it in an interview where he points that he wants to write an ending that would make everyone happy, and we need to accept the reality, this is a total disaster. Following that order of ideas, I think that we are mistaken, and we are right, Negi made a colossal mistake, yes. He buried the work of 85 - 90 chapters. Negi had a good idea, yes. However, he didn't conclude it in a good way. We have the right to criticize an ending that feels rushed, incomplete, and that's what I am going to do in this creepy review.

Let's begin with art and panel dynamics. It is outstanding. Overall, the mangaka delivered a beautiful and clean manga with excellent character design, a well-developed environment that flows correctly from panel to panel. Ironically as it seems, the art, in the end, is wasted because the author could not explain his decisions in a controversial story where the status quo was affected. The nonsense and the pressure to finish the story as soon as possible buried it in a hole. The last arc is misplaced and unconcluded.

On the other hand, the story was terrific. I want to underline the word was. We have a group of five sisters (Quintuplets to be precise) that could have particular love interest or feelings towards their tutor, a student from the same school, the annoying and insolent, Fuutarou Usegi. The question that all the readers have in mind was who will end with Usegi?

As the story progresses, each character showed a magnificent development. However, one of them froze in an endless loop that kept memories of the past and avoided any desire for the sake of her sisters. That character decided to be a shadow, and it was a shadow to the point that some readers thought it was close to a supporting role. That's where the real problem begins. This character never showed a significant development, and in the end, Negi, the author, could not give an adequate conclusion creating an inexplicable incoherent plot. If we compare the background that the author provides for the rest of the cast, this character never grew.

Furthermore, this shadow eclipsed the whole story without any proper explanation and ended as the most central character in the story. Does a kiss entitle you to destroy the entire background of the rest of the characters? The answer is a big NO. Where does the fight end, the desire that all the other "quints" showed throughout the story until the end?

Albeit this nonsense, the author tried to twist the plot, and he added an ending that plays with the readers and mocks with them with a big question mark "What happens if" Usegi ends with this sister? Everything could be accepted because it was a mere illusion. From my perspective, it's a horrible joke. Negi is playing with the reader's feelings. Furthermore, if the author has a preference for a particular "quint," then he shouldn't write a useless ending as he did. He should give the audience the tools to understand his decisions. Still, in this particular case, he couldn't even explain those insignificant reasons leaving the fans with a weird look in their face wondering if all was a silly joke. Also, the ending impales the heart of the other sisters. If I were in their shoes, I wouldn't be planning the honeymoon trip, and I will be upset at my home.

Lastly, I am sad. I was not a fan of any quint, I could accept any of them, but this conclusion is a mere joke that affects the background of all the characters. Usegi, cold, calculator, the guy that never showed big emotions, appeared in the last chapters as Romeo saying, "will you marry me?" Are you kidding me? Are the other quints not going to fight for their beloved? We are more complicated than what was shown in the end.

Changing the subject, this could explain why an average studio is the one adapting the second season. It is understandable that a good studio with vast experience avoids encouraging a conclusion that will have some disapproval and mixed feelings. This was something that was not a top-secret within the animators and the VA circle. The decision was made a few months ago when the spooky ending began to be published, why do you think Azur Lane episodes were delayed to improve quality?

Well that was a journey.

This reading this manga is enjoyable.

The characters where likable.

And I am satisfied with the end ship.

Just because I didn't specifically routed for anyone.

Actually I lied, I routed for Ichika to win up until ch.90.

I love the art too.

It is really appealing to the eye.

And the characters designs where nice too.

If not for the disappointing ending, I would have given it a 10/10

Overall I recommend you read this manga, if you are tried of this cookie-cutter shit mangas.

And lastly, don't listen to the community when reading this manga, they just got trolled lmao.

*Spoilers ahead for those who have not completed the manga and/or only watched season 1 of the anime*

I wanted to believe that this manga would have been different from the rest of the generic harem trash out there on the market. I so wanted to believe that Negi Haruba would have written the manga in such a way that the ending would be acceptable to most of the fan base surrounding it. BUT NO. He had to fuck up a manga that could have gone down as one of the best harem manga on the market by rushing the ending and completely disregarding the fan's opinions expressed through the popularity poll.

Story: 2/10
At the start, Futaro was portrayed as a MC with excellent grades who needs money to feed his family and hence took up a tuition job to tutor 5 girls on their grades. Of course, those 5 girls were all rather spoiled and despondent when it came to their grades, and he was supposed to be the all-mighty savior to turn their shitty Fs into passes, which is basically the gist of the manga. As the story progresses, Futaro gets more and more involved with the girls when it comes to their personal life, and starts to form more personal relationships with each one of them, acting differently when it comes to each of the 5 girls. He had to deal with Nino being adamant about not joining in when it comes to studying (whereby she went to the extent of drugging him in order to drive him away), he had to deal with Itsuki being rather cold as well albeit not to the extent of Nino, and while to a smaller extent with Yotsuba, Ichika and Miku, he had to deal with the fact that the 3 of them were not picking up the material as quickly as he would have liked and find a way to work around it.

Up till this point of time, while the MC was undoubtedly kinda plain, at least the premise was pretty good at least up till the School Festival Arc (this is where the shit-storm starts). Although you may call me biased, the way Yotsuba started to become the main focal point of the manga and how he started to begin seeing Yotsuba as a potential romantic partner is pretty bullshit and poorly written. Yotsuba, the girl which showed almost no interest in him romantically by trying to hide the fact that she was the "special girl MC met during their childhood but didn't want a head start over her sisters" suddenly gets a freaking confession outta nowhere from the MC. Seriously, she had the least screen-time other than Itsuki and undoubtedly the least amount of interaction with the MC on top of the most forgettable arcs in the entire series (seriously, she almost had nothing going for her that readers can remember other than the fact that she is popular, sporty and the dumbest out of the 5 quintuplets since she was the reason the 5 had to transfer in the first place). Fucking terrible. And to rub salt into the wound, the ending was out right garbage, leaving it as the ending that elementary teachers would scorn upon and lecture to their students that you should NEVER LEAVE THE ENDING AS AN OPEN ONE (A.K.A A FUCKING DREAM). Honestly, the only reason the story did not get a 1/10 is because the earlier development of Nino and Miku, which I still find as the most suitable choices for the MC (and the fan base did too) made me feel kinda guilty since their developments were not half-bad, thus the 2/10.

Art: 7/10
Artistically speaking, this manga does shine quite a bit with the designs of the female characters, making them rather distinct and visible from other girls from other manga. For Ichika (while the most plain in terms of design), her short hair does make her easily recognisable. The other four, Miku, Nino, Itsuki and Yotsuba, have their special quirks, which are the headphones, the butterfly head attachments, the star hair attachments and the ribbon, which in all honesty are rather outstanding when it comes to the design of female students in manga. There were no points in the manga in which I found the art being lackluster or poor, and thus I do not have any complaints about the art style of the manga whatsoever, though i found Futaro's design to be super basic (which I guess is meant as a blank canvas for the reader's to portray themselves upon since he is as generic as Kirito from SAO.)

Character: 1/10
Oh boy. I could go on all day about how Futaro made a shitty decision or how the author rushed the ending to make me rate the characters a 1/10, but I don't want to spend any more time reviewing this manga.

For the MC, as I have stated earlier, he as plain as shit. Plainer than porridge, plainer than drinking water. Extremely generic, since he has the "I will save the damsel in distress mentality" that all basic bimbos of a MC have in harem manga like this. However, even though he is generic, there is not really any particular annoying trait of his that I hate, other than the fact that he pretty much disregards the advancements of the other 4 sisters and chooses the 1 sister that honestly had nothing going for her other than her "childhood friend trait". Sigh. Now on to listing the 5 harem girls.

Ichika: She was pretty alright until the fact that she tried to back stab Miku when they went hiking. Reader's got to see the dark side of Ichika and how she was trying to manipulate her way into getting the MC to hate Miku and choose her over the other girls. At least in the end, she redeemed herself by realizing she stood almost no chance after that incident and became kind of a wing man to the other sisters.

Nino: In the begining, she was a generic bitch. That's it. But later on, as the saying goes, "Tsunderes are not bitches. They are misunderstood", which holds true in this regard by suddenly becoming the strongest forerunner in the race to becoming Futaro's significant other. Her change in demeanor and development in character was what kept me reading the manga.

Itsuki: Well, not much of a development here. Was never a favorite to win the race nor the worst choice when it came to the girls. However, she was the girl that helped to keep the social cohesion among the sisters and was undoubtedly the most mature of the bunch, even though even till the end she kept up her Kuudere tendencies which I found pretty unfortunate.

Miku: The girl that won everybody's hearts in the anime. A very shy and timid tsundere and kuudere mix of social anxiety. Throughout the manga, her resolve in trying to get Futaro to like her back is seen to become stronger and she gains more confidence throughout the entire show, which proves that there is a meaning to her existence in the manga other than her cool appearance. Solid.

Yostuba: Utter garbage. There is nothing going for her at all. A boring, stupid girl that is joyous and cheerful and yet aggravates me whenever I think of this particular sister. Acts like she does not reciprocate Futaro's feelings but in the end still ends up marrying him, much to the dismay of Nino, which took her many days to accept the fact that this sandbag of a character won his heart when she did nothing particularly outstanding thing throughout the manga. Definitely the worst of the 5 by a light-year.

Overall enjoyment: 2/10
All I can say is that this manga is extremely disappointing. It left a rather bad taste in my mouth reading the ending of the manga and it goes to show the lack of aptitude of Negi Haruba when it comes to ending a manga. As good as the first 90 chapters or so the manga was, the last 30 chapters basically destroyed the foundation that made me enjoy the manga in the first place by chucking down all the development that has been done for the rest of the girls.

Would I recommend it? Fuck no, unless you want to be cuckolded by a shitty ending and/or a humongous Yotsuba fan from the anime because I see no reason why this manga is currently above 8/10 on MAL. Thank you for reading this rant/review.

anyone who hates this manga I'm confused. This manga is really perfect for singles who don't have a clear direction in their life. Always when I read this somehow I smile myself like an autistic person. That's because in my brain, I'm happy like I feel that so many girls come to me. IRL might not be like that, but I hope that Amen can be like that. The illustration per character is very different from other manga. Each character has a rich feel, so it's really boring. The virtual design and hair are really great, thx negi, for making these beloved characters. The funny Face is delicious too, and I won't be bored to see it. 10/10, this manga is no debate. I love this manga to death.

This manga is really good but if not for the end i would have put a better note to it. I really liked the characters, they were interesting aswell for the story and the art is great.

But as I said I have a tiny problem with the end (not a big thing but I would have put a 8 or a 9 with a better end). For me (and some other persons too) the end causes troubles for the character development because it doesnt take into account the character development of the other characters. It seemed me weird. It's blurry to explain my point of view without spoiling but it's the kind of situation where you are asking to yourself "why do they do that ? It's a nonsense they were firmly doing the exact opposite up until now but now they decided to do it without any reasons". Once again it's an opinion but i'm not the only one to share it.

Regardless of the end, this is one of the best harem that I have ever seen because all the girls were great, different and lovable. The plot were not cliche, the characters are not cliche aswell. I think it's a manga to read if you are interested in harem or in romance.

MC was (for once in harem genre) not an idiot and he doesnt give a feeling of worthless MC like in a big part of harem or romcom where you have the wortless MC, idiot, ugly and all and beside him, the beautiful girl known all around the school, smart, athletic and all. This MC was very smart, not tense (he was conscious of what was happening all around him), very kind even of he's not the best to communicate and as a teacher for the girls, he was necessary for her unlike in those romcom where MC is a worthless loser but for some reasons, the most beautiful girl is falling in love with him at first sight or anything else and she finishes to stick with him everytime.

QUINTUPLETS & THEIR TUTOR'S LOVE INTEREST

**Asking me for any Romcom or Harem recommendations? Yes, this manga is definitely one of them.

Minor spoilers:

If you are interested in how sisters compete against each other knowingly or unknowingly for the love of the protagonist, Fuutarou, then this manga is definitely for you.


Story: 9.5
As a manga in the category for Harem, it is rare to find a manga that DOESN'T FOCUS on a ton of ECCHI moments (such as constantly showing naked girls or girl undies). If you are trying to find pure love development without wasting time on ecchi moments, this is truly the right manga for you.

What I appreciate the most about this manga is that the Mangaka is able to draw the conclusion in the beginning while baffled with which girl of the quintuplets will be the ultimate bride. Through chapters and chapters, each quintuplet is given a fair chance to compete and continues to trick the readers into thinking "maybe she is THE BRIDE?". While doing so, the transitions are so smooth and won't make the readers feel repetitive or feel that the story is stagnant.

**Even though the plot was slightly shaky around the middle-ending section (-0.5), there were still no side stories or stagnation even until the end.


Art: 10
Huge 10. In order to draw and help distinguish the difference between the quintuplets, it requires a ton of mastery in drawing out the details of the characters. For me, I have no difficulty in telling the difference among those quintuplets (except the bride!!!!!!) ;(, why does Haruba san have to make it so hard for the readers!!). Even when quintuplets switch minor things, such as hair ornaments, with each other, the Mangaka was able to draw their faces so well to the point that I also have no difficulty of getting confused.


Emotions and expressions are drawn to the point that some scenes literally melted my heart. 1010101010101010
The backgrounds are also on point


Character: 10
The Mangaka definitely put in a huge effort into creating the distinct personality of the characters. Even if the quintuplets look alike, their difference in personalities never ceases to amaze me as to how they flow from chapter to another chapter. Their actions, purpose, and motivation are so clear to the point the I feel like they are real.


Enjoyment: 10
When I first know this manga, it was updated to chapter 56. I have no problem binge read those chapters in the early morning from 7:30 am to lunchtime. Then, whenever the manga is being updated, I naturally just click to read. <3

**Two years later, here I am re-editing this manga review :D


Overall: 10
A masterpiece of harem manga. I was so happy that this manga was announced to have an anime for itself in 2019. Congratulation because it is truly well deserved. No wasted time for side stories and each chapter has the meaning and purpose of the upcoming chapters.

**It is alright if the ending isn't your taste. It is also perfectly fine if the bride of the story isn't who you predicted to be. This manga supports why love is just such a complicated yet exciting topic to write and read about. Moreover, this manga is a "simple" refreshment for everyone to enjoy!


I am grateful to have the chance to read this manga.
*(Still am after following this manga for a year)
**(Love the ending even though I wanted someone else to win. Thanks for this manga! No regrets <3)


orig Chapter 56->*edit Chapter 87 -> **second edit Chapter 122
P.S. My favorite chapter is definitely the motorcycle ride in Chapter 59

5-toubun no Hanayome has an interesting premise for a harem by having not two nor three sisters, but five sisters as part of the harem. And to top it all off, they are quintuplets. They are each given a personality quirk and an appearance quirk in order for them to stand out. Our male protagonist is a standard, book-smart and uptight guy who has been hired to be a tutor to the sisters. As it turns out, the sisters are really bad when it comes to studying and are reluctant to have him as a tutor. But the guy has to stick to this job because he is poor and has to think about his family. Thus the misadventures begin.

And while this premise seems interesting enough to create a decent enough length for a serialized manga, it falls short in establishing decent enough character arcs to drag it to that length, a problem that is generally faced when trying to establish multiple main characters. This is a problem that first time authors often face, especially when trying to force complexity where it isn't needed.

Over time, the sisters' personalities don't stand out too well, essentially resulting in simple and similar character arcs for all of them. The male protagonist, however, has much better faring in this regard. His uptight nature is brought to check under the unruliness of the sisters, who all are in love with him somehow.

There's not much to comment on the story itself, since there isn't much to it and it doesn't stray too far off of what you'd expect from a harem where characters are at least aware of being in a harem. This could lead to better story-telling eventually, and has been observed in simpler harem manga (like Ichigo 100%, for example), but this would really depend on whether the writer chooses to stray away from the self-contained and rather uninteresting path that the story is currently at.

The best part about the manga, however, is the art, which is crisp and while not too original, is good enough to create distinguishable characters for the most part. It is observably better than the art of Rengoku no Karma, a manga which was drawn by the same author.

All in all, what starts as an interesting premise for a harem romance, quickly mellows down into a more generic and uninteresting one. It is certainly not one of the better harem stories I've come across, or rather I should say, it's a bit late at arriving since it doesn't really do anything spectacularly different aside from having quintuplet harem members. But, needless to say, it has potential if the author could add better complexity to the character arcs and manage multiple main characters in a single story, which is its biggest flaw. Whether it happens or not, only time will tell.

Lemme start off with the girls I absolutely loved the setting .How each quint supplemented for the other was ngl a little over the top but it was fine it was really enjoyable and fun ride .

The story went a progressed fine and had plenty of character development both for futarou and the quints. The progressive story of the fights that took place and the quarrels all felt sort of realistic and relatable on how little things can turn into big things all and all the story (besides the ending ) was fantastic

they could have worked on building up the love uesugi had for a certain someone more so that we could feel the depth of this affection so that we could atleast be satisfied at the end but the ending did leave a big hole in my chest and this a 100% worth a read/watch

Quintessential quintuplets was a manga that I enjoyed from the beginning but not towards the end.

Story:6/10
QQ had an amazing start that kept me interested but lacked the ending that nobody would expect and more or less wanted. The story could have ended as a cliffhanger, although it would be disappointing I feel it's the best choice. (As I hate how this ended)
It was eventful though and all the girls had their share of Futaro; not equally though but ok

Art:9/10
In terms of art, It was amazing. Details were very accurate and I hope it goes on like this with the anime. (art only)

Character 9/10

For Quintuplets, Their personalities were very far from each other but nothing bad about it. As the manga progresses we can see how their personalities changed for the better just like how their marks have increased through the school year. :) But this doesn't only apply to the quintuplets, It also applies to Futaro but I won't mention in what ways for the sake of spoiler

Enjoyment: 7/10

It was fun reading it, but I hope the manga can give us an ending that won't leave fans screaming like me.

Overall: 8/10
Enjoyed most of the aspects of this anime apart from the ending but I guess It wouldn't cause a gigantic ruckus among fandoms.

Story: 2
The story boils down to another rom com manga. The only "twist" is that the heroines are all quintuplets. What could have potentially been interesting ended up being the same old, safe, uninspired manga I've seen enough times before.

Art: 7
The only decent part of this manga. The art style is appealing and the easiest way to tell all the characters apart.

Characters: 3
The protagonist is another uninteresting, self insert type. His character development is about the same as every other manga of this type I've read - starts off cold and not liking the girls but through many wacky and zany and emotional events he becomes a caring and kind person!!!!
Additionally, the sisters are uninteresting as well. Since they all look similar, it's hard to give them the usual tropes but they still exist, and all the girls fall in love with some loser in order to progress the self insert fantasy. Not to mention that the girls also do not have particularly unique personalities and feel like robots who's only objective is to date the protag. Even with issues with their family, school, and struggle with future plans they manage to make it all about wanting to date the protagonist or falling in love with him.

Enjoyment: 2
I about half of this, thinking I liked it but as I read different mangas, I realized this really isn't that good. There are other romcoms that are significantly more interesting, and I found once I returned to continue reading that the plot really just isn't that interesting and the characters are boring.

Overall: 3
I can't really recommend this to anybody unless romcoms are the only genre you read and you can tolerate this kind of stuff. There is so much interesting material to read however, this manga is not that - interesting.

I'm writing this review a few days after reading the last chapter, this manga was one of the greatest work that I have read, it delivered to us a wonderful romance/ harem story, The story in Overall was a masterpiece, but it didn't feel like that starting from the festival arc, I felt like the writer was rushing to finish story as soon as possible, I believe that 10 or 20 more chapters were needed to strengthen the plot, as for the characters I liked most of them, all of them developed in a great way through the manga except for Itsuki, it was like the writer totally forget about her, and when he finally remembered her he started to add some random event relating to her that didn't fit or have any major impact on the story, the art was great in this manga I have no comment about it I will give it 10/10, and in the end, I was very sad about the loss of my favorite girl, and that why I liked the what if situation, in the end, it was a nice gesture XD.

Anyways the manga was great and I highly recommend it

The Quintessential Quintuplets or 5-toubun no Hanayome. The direct translation of 5-toubun no Hanayome is "5 equal brides", which is ambitious enough because most harem mangas tend to favor 1 or 2 characters which makes the harem pointless.
This manga was very close to achieving greatness but leaves much to be desired at the end and a bitter feeling of how a borderline great manga ends up being like it's harem predictors.

Art: The art of Negi gradually became better and better throughout the manga and he kept it very consistent in quality. The double spreads are breathtakingly good at points, the covers are simple yet beautiful. And let's not forget the best thing about Negis drawings, the quints pouts!

Characters: This is were the manga truly shines! Most harems tend to use the same formula for their heroines, by this I mean there are always, for example, a tsundere, a tomboyish girl, a kuudere and so on.

How 5-toubun no Hanayome manages to take this to the next level is by making the characters feel like they're individuals instead of cutouts of famous characters.

Ichika is the big sister of the group and the ara ara type character. She goes from trying to support Mikus love to eventually trying to sabotage her own sisters chances. This might seem like she's a horrible character but she's really just very human. Her redemption is well done afterward but unfortunately, because of her arc, she's quickly disregarded in terms of having a chance with Futarou later on.

Nino is the girl that starts off by hating our MC for getting in between her sisters. She's the assertive sister and the one that is the harshest. But behind that is a girl that probably cares for her sisters more than anyone else. When she finally falls in love with Futarou, she almost immediately confesses to him. She breaks every harem trope that you can think of!

Miku is the one with the biggest fanbase, why? She's a shy girl that doesn't like interacting with others but because of Futarous continuous efforts of trying to get her to study, she very quickly falls in love with him. She goes from being uncertain about her feelings and if they're OK to harbor, to valiantly showcasing her love and appeal to Futarou at every chance that she gets.

Yotsuba, oh boy. When the manga was at chapter 90 she was the second favorite girl of 90% of the fanbase, but that quickly changed for several reasons. But in a nutshell, she's a relentless extrovert with a positive attitude, or rather that's the role she tries to play.
She tries to sacrifice her own happiness for her sisters but ultimately plays into her own feelings several times throughout the manga. She's also the infamous childhood friend of Futarou, which is also something she hides during the mangas run.

Last but not least, the girl that everyone dreaded as the first girl, Itsuki (aka best girl, fight me!)
Itsuki is the first girl to appear in the manga and her relationship with the MC is shaky at first. But gradually she starts to trust Futarou and eventually this leads to her wanting to become a teacher. She's not bright when it comes to school but gives it her all. She loves food above all else, hence the nickname Eatsuki! And she's the one that Negi uses a plot device every single time!
She's an amazing character, but how Negi uses her, that's something I'll go deeper into in the story section.

But overall, this is the strongest part of the manga

Story: Now this is where the manga eventually falls apart (sorta, more like the last 15 chapters). At the start of the manga, we see Futarou getting married to one of the quints which starts of the mystery of "who is the bride"? Because they're quintuplets and all look the same.

This and several chapters in which we get a look into the future makes for a fascinating mystery aspect to a rom-com harem manga. This is also why the manga was so loved and had such an active community because there were so many theories to be crafted. Unfortunately, Negi throws this all under the bus for a rushed romantic development at the end.

One of my biggest disappointments with the manga is also how Negi uses Itsuki. The fanbase automatically had a dislike for her only because she was the first girl and Negi knew this and used this a plot device. The infamous bell kisser looked like Itsuki for one. She got close to no romantic development throughout the manga and didn't even get a kiss like all of the other sisters. All of this could've been for Futarou to reveal that he actually likes her instead of the ones that are already in love with him but no, instead Negi throws in that she was in love with him for a single chapter at the end.
Many people have said that not all sisters have to love, which is true BUT not when the manga is literally titled "5 EQUAL BRIDES".

We also never get to see how Futarou falls in love with the girl that he eventually chooses, which was even weirder because he said he's not going to pick anyone just a few chapters ago. And when he did decide to chose one, we get forced drama instead of fluff.

The ending is also nonsensical because nothing happens, literally! They play one last game of the quints game where he tells them each apart from the others and then he marries one of them. Still no interactions between the wedded couple, instead all of the sisters decide to tag along to the honeymoon!

Enjoyment: So as much as I ranted on about the story, that is only the ending. The story was very VERY enjoyable up until the last 15ish chapters. I truly feel very strongly for this manga because I really loved it and part of me still does. The characters are amazing and I'll probably never forget them. The mystery aspect was new and intriguing, even though it all fell apart at the end.

Overall: Why I feel so strongly towards the ending is because of one simple reason, I loved this with all of my heart. Every Tuesday, when the chapter would drop, would brighten my day, I had so much fun making up theories about who the bride would be and so on.

The story fell apart completely at the end and the writing took a nosedive, yes! But is that enough for me to forget how much I enjoyed this over its 3 years run? No, definitely not

At one point, I was sure that this was gonna replace "The World God Only Knows" as my favorite harem of all time. But alas that was not meant to be, but this manga will still have a very special place in my heart!