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Is there a legit good Harem Anime/Manga out there?
- Thread starter Jadow
- Start date
Tenchi Universe + the movies (Tenchi in Love, Tenchi Forever) is pretty legit. It also really gets close to actually having Tenchi end up with someone and writing the women as people instead of fan-service props.
It's telling that it was directed by a different person than a lot of the other Tenchi shows and comics.
Tenchi Forever nails that late spring rainy sunday vibe.
I was really invested in Love Hina back in the day, eventhough it was pretty frustrating towards the end and ... very weird how the main characters started religious insignia (guessing the author turned catholic at some point and wanted to spread the word or something?) but still, thought it was great
I mean, thematically, it really fits he fell for the only girl that behaved out of his 'knowledge' and he was unable to predict; I just liked other girl much more lol
My wife tried to argue this but it doesn't really hold up when rather than wish fulfillment it's just a string of wish destruction. For everyone.
I was thinking of Love Hina too, but I'm not sure if that's just because it was my first exposure to the idea.
I enjoyed Love Hina when I read it ages ago but I was ~14 at the time and hardly remember any of it.
Did more than 1 person (and even then, debatable) in NGE have romantic feelings for Shinji?
I liked this one. Not sure it really stuck the landing, but it was a fun time overall. I liked all the characters and their interactions, which is really the only thing I care about in manga like this.
I mean it is more of a reverse-harem in the sense that EVERYONE knows who will he ended up in the first chapter of the series, even if everyone is trowing themselves at him =P
Definitely true. I'd argue that NGE has a harem setup but doesn't fall into the traps you normally expect from the genre (wish fulfillment of the main character, and lack of meaningful character development). Basically, what sets it apart from standard harem animes is that it's good. :P
The harem candidates here are Asuka, Rei, Misato, and Kaworu. Of those, Kaworu clearly has romantic feelings for Shinji and is very open about them. The feelings of the other three are more complicated, but all of them have sexual overtones, two of them kiss Shinji, and the third (Rei) considers her relationship with him special.
I obviously see that NGE isn't a typical harem anime by any stretch of the imagination, but I do think its setup draws from the genre, and it occasionally leans into the genre's tropes to advance the serious, psychological exploration of its characters (the scene in Rei's apartment being the most egregious example).
People will probably get more out of "reverse-harems" more than harems. Most I've watched with my wife give off Otome vibes, and though the men usually follow tropes, they usually are built upon and more than just surface-level character types.
I swear I saw drawings somewhat recently that showed Tenchi's children from the author.
Depends on the version, and while nothing is never definitively stated, Tenchi Forever heavily implies one.
I swear I saw drawings somewhat recently that showed Tenchi's children from the author.
He has them with just about everyone. The weirdest thing that stuck out to me was that he had the most with Ryoki or however you spell the cabbit's name. That's right. The damn cabbit.
Ryoko GOAT WaifuTenchi Universe + the movies (Tenchi in Love, Tenchi Forever) is pretty legit. It also really gets close to actually having Tenchi end up with someone and writing the women as people instead of fan-service props.
It's telling that it was directed by a different person than a lot of the other Tenchi shows and comics.
Ranma 1/2 isn't really a harem, at least not how it's between really been defined over the last 20 years. There are relationships outside of Ranma's to start. For two, Ranma isn't just reluctant which is common in happens, but actively does not want to be with most of the men and women who are in love with him.
At best, you could call it a proto-harem, since harems 'refined' a lot of the tried that it pioneered, but it's more of a romantic clusterfuck than anything.
Is that a harem anime? From what I remember only one of the guys had any real romantic interest in the protagonist. I always considered it to be more of a high school comedy.
There are actually several different "creators" of Tenchi, with wildly different views of the character and the women. They actually had a big falling out and sort of all just did their own thing with the property for awhile. Hiroshi Negishi handled the Universe series and its spin-off films, while others took the property into... less savory... territory.
I guess even if I could consider all of those as romantic they seem like more fleeting feelings, they come and go.
The strongest (Kaworu) is there and gone within the span of a single episode
The movies may change things a bit more, haven't seen them in a while.
Okay after reading your post and the other one I decided to try my best to get the answer and you are absolutely right... WTF...
Plenty of decent shoujo offerings. Helps that there's usually a somewhat sensible plot tying all the cute M&F hijinks together as well as more developed characters.
Two of them did but its fairly obvious from the start whos going to get together in the end.
Even if it is two I still think that's not really enough to qualify lol. Love triangles are everywhere in fiction.
Learn something new every day! I figured different studios just went with their own interpretations based off one source.
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I think the hottest one on r/manga right now is The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You. I agree with 5Toubon as well which ended fairly recently.
At the very least one of the twins is interested if my memory serves me right.
No that actual romantic feeling seems to be the defining factor to know if an anime is "harem" given the number of people I've seen say that Re:Zero is 'harem' ( and by that logic I would even call Your Lie in April, harem ) .
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Yeah, I don't think there is one. I guess this goes to whether wish fulfillment is a requirement for a harem anime, or whether it's enough to just have a 1 protagonist : multiple love interest setup and then have it go in whatever direction you want.
In the final episode, there is a brief "alternate universe" skit that is 110% conventional harem anime. Asuka is the childhood friend who harbors secret feelings for Shinji, Rei is the transfer student who bumps into Shinji and accidentally flashes him, and Misato is the hot teacher.
I'd argue that's pretty good evidence that the creators of NGE were aware that their work was related in some way to the harem genre, while also being aware that what they were creating was definitely not typical of the genre.
I'd argue that's pretty good evidence that the creators of NGE were aware that their work was related in some way to the harem genre, while also being aware that what they were creating was definitely not typical of the genre.
I remember loving Bakarina because of how hilarious it is.
Here's the wikipedia description for it.
The main character is an endearing idiot who unintentionally manages to get a harem while trying to avoid a future death. She also never at any point realizes she has a harem. It's not really a traditional harem though since both men and women are attracted to her and all harem moments are generally treated as comedic so I'm not sure if it counts for the OP.
Here's the wikipedia description for it.
The main character is an endearing idiot who unintentionally manages to get a harem while trying to avoid a future death. She also never at any point realizes she has a harem. It's not really a traditional harem though since both men and women are attracted to her and all harem moments are generally treated as comedic so I'm not sure if it counts for the OP.
The best harem anime/manga are probably the ones where it's 1 girl and a bunch of guys. Fruits Basket, Ouran, Hana Yori Dango, etc...
My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! - Watch on Crunchyroll
Wealthy heiress Catarina Claes is hit in the head with a rock and recovers the memories of her past life. It turns out the world she lives in is the world of the game Fortune Lover, an otome game she was obsessed with in her past life... but she's been cast as the villain character who tries...
www.crunchyroll.com
Enjoy.
ThanksMy Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! - Watch on Crunchyroll
Wealthy heiress Catarina Claes is hit in the head with a rock and recovers the memories of her past life. It turns out the world she lives in is the world of the game Fortune Lover, an otome game she was obsessed with in her past life... but she's been cast as the villain character who tries...
Enjoy.
+1 for Bakarina.
Otherwise you can go read "The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You".
It's basically a satire on the harem genre while being a harem.
There's two big reasons why pretty much every harem story ends up shitty:
#1 No ending. Most of these don't even have an end other than "and the crazy things they all do went on forever more~". I still remember how the Shuffle anime shook everyone by having an actual ending. People lost their shit because it was THAT unexpected.
#2 Less of a desire to make a compelling story with good characters and more of an author's sexual fantasy on display.
Otherwise you can go read "The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You".
It's basically a satire on the harem genre while being a harem.
There's two big reasons why pretty much every harem story ends up shitty:
#1 No ending. Most of these don't even have an end other than "and the crazy things they all do went on forever more~". I still remember how the Shuffle anime shook everyone by having an actual ending. People lost their shit because it was THAT unexpected.
#2 Less of a desire to make a compelling story with good characters and more of an author's sexual fantasy on display.
He also said good and these are 'okay' at best.