Japanese criticize Oshi no Ko's latest

This article includes spoilers for the "Oshi no Ko" manga. Discretion is advised to the reader.

In chapter 159 of "Oshi no Ko," the plot picks up right where the previous chapter left off. Fuyuko Niino apologizes to Ruby Hoshino for stabbing her, revealing that her goal was to prevent anyone from surpassing Ai. However, 'Ruby' reveals that the knife had not injured her thanks to a knife-proof vest she was wearing. At that moment, Ichigo Saitou immobilizes Niino, while Akane Kurokawa, disguised as Ruby, takes off her wig and explains her plan.

Ichigo then confronts Niino, who had been dating a fan, Ryosuke Sugano. Although Ryosuke committed suicide after changing his admiration from Niino to Ai, Niino had forgiven Ryosuke and was not seeking revenge. All she wanted was for Ai to remain the best. Hearing that Ai wanted to be friends with Niino, Niino gets excited. Finally, Akane asks who manipulated them to commit their crimes.

The episode moves to B-Komachi's concert, where everything goes normally, including Kana Arima's farewell message. Hikaru Kamiki watches the concert on his phone, and Aqua Hoshino approaches him, wishing to save him as his mother Ai wanted. However, Hikaru shows a contemptuous and confused attitude.

It was definitely a chapter full of surprises, from the revelation of Akane Kurokawa as a Ruby Hoshino double, the capture of the traitor, and the confirmation that Hikaru Kamiki cannot be forgiven. However, Japanese fans were confused by a development that they considered rather 'strange':

"Some analysis groups mentioned the theory that Akane Kurokawa had disguised himself, and they were right. Congratulations on getting it right."
"Is it possible to dress up as someone else just with a wig in this manga?"
"I didn't want Ruby to die, but I'm starting to get upset that they made this wait two weeks."
"Kamiki is not the bad guy! It's all Nino's fault! ↓ Nino is not the bad guy, it's all Kamiki's fault! What is this?"
"I wish he would say 'this is a bulletproof vest' while blood is pouring from his neck."
"Don't use Akane for that. If they cut her somewhere other than her abdomen, her acting career will be over."
"Oh, it looks like they took proper measures! Thank goodness it wasn't a bad ending."
"What if they aimed at his face or neck? Why is it assumed that they will only hurt his abdomen?"
"Well, Kurokawa cutting her hair and acting like Ai serves as a clue, but it wasn't necessary to wear it until the moment she was stabbed. If they had pointed at his neck, he would have died."
"What is this cheap plot? Not even in a soap opera would you find anything worse."
"In the end, it's Young Jump, so there's not much to do."
"Do this and Kaguya-sama have very bad endings?"
"This anime really only caused a stir in the first episode of the first season and in the theme music."
"Is there a rule that forces the author of this manga to make a fool of himself in the second half?"
"Targeting the neck is difficult because it is a small area of a few centimeters. In addition, it takes a lot of force to pass through the arteries. For beginners, it's best to use a knife on your abdomen and push your body with the weight to cause damage. If the knife gets stuck, move it to damage important organs and blood vessels."
"Akane is really pitiful, poor thing."
"Depending on who you ask, this episode is either magnificent or completely bad."
"I still have no idea what's going on."
"This writing is horrible."
"It would have been more believable if they had involved the police instead of playing heroes and risking Akane. She's an actress, it would be bad if she ends up with a scar."
"Hurried chapter, all my emotions about Ruby being stabbed quickly went down the drain. How the fuck Akane planned everything and how everything went pretty well, it all worked out in 10 pages as well. Now, for another twist, Kamiki will have another fit of rage."
"This has to be the worst manga that has ever become mainstream."
"We're getting to soap opera levels of nonsense here, I don't even know what's going to happen."
"'Knife-proof vest,' this is the same guy who wrote First Kiss Never Ends, what the hell happened?"
"So Aka returned to Kamiki as the main villain, did he plan it from the beginning or did the reaction of the fans change his mind? I mean, Kamiki was calling Nino in the previous chapter telling him they should turn themselves in, what would have happened if she had said yes?"
"Honestly, this looks like Aka is trying to erase the elements that fans didn't like (Nino being the villain, Kamiki being a sad boy, the idol fan who murdered Ai being a representation of the dangers of the industry)."