“God I wish that were me”; the thoughts of many lonely people watching any Harem anime ever. Are you single (or even in a committed relationship), are male (or even female!), and want someone to simp over you (fall head over heals in love)? Are you one ugly motherf*cker? Do people go out of their way to avoid you, at all costs? Are you shy and socially awkward as hell like I am (*weeps internally*)? Then you’ve probably gone out of your way to watch an anime/read a manga that has elements of the harem genre in it. 

A harem typically starts out with a protagonist, usually high school boy, with the personality of a cardboard, perverted or prude as hell. One day he meets a girl (extremely attractive at that), and she falls madly in love with him at first sight. That’s it. That’s the whole anime. Nothing else to see here…. Still here? Alright. Usually said girl is in trouble and the main character solves their problem and that’s how the infatuation begins. But most of the time said girl is ready to romp with him and do underage illegal things. And its not just one girl, no no no, a second bombshell of a girl, and a third, and a fourth, sometimes a guy whom the protagonist always turns down or friend-zones. And now the protagonist has to balance his ‘innocent’ relationship with all the women, because there’s always jealousy and serious polygamy relations hardly exist here. 

There seems to be a lot of outward hatred for harem; after all, they’re not very realistic depictions of love or daily life, and are made to portray the deep selfish desires of many (often lonely or isolated) people. But in secrecy, I think harems can be alright (*gasp!*). 

Alright everyone, just… hear me out… as long as you yourself are a mature person, in which you don’t act on the impulses played out in harem anime and manga; if you can realize that women (and men) aren’t objects of sexual pleasure, and that everyone’s feelings should be treated equally  (whether they’re ‘attractive’ or not) instead of treated as a prize to be won in an endgame, and if you can exert self-control with the people around you, I think harems can be enjoyed by many. And this applies to all forms of media, whether they involve gun violence, drugs, sexuality, or other controversial themes, because in the end, they’re trying to tell a story.

Want me to stop blabbering? Wikipedia has you covered: genre of light novelsmangaanimehentai, and video games originating in Japan in the 1970s but exploding late 1980s and 1990s with dating simulator games. and focused on polygynous or polyandrous relationships, where a protagonist is surrounded by three or more androphilic/gynephilic love interests or sexual partners. A story featuring a heterosexual male or lesbian protagonist paired with an all-female/yuri harem series is informally referred to as a female harem or seraglios; while a heterosexual female or gay male protagonist paired with an all-male/yaoi harem series is informally referred to as a male haremreverse harem, or gyaku hāremu…

harem, which was a term used to refer to the most private rooms of a household in Middle Eastern culture, especially among the upper class where only women and close relatives were permitted inside…

Because romance is rarely the main focus of an entire series, a harem structure is ambiguous. The most distinguishable trait is the group of polyamorous females or males who accompany the protagonist and, in some instances, cohabitate with the protagonist. While intimacy is just about customary, it is never necessary. When it is present, it is always a minimum of two supporting characters who express sexual orientation or the romantic orientation interest in the protagonist. this structure made Dating games extremely popular to many people without having to cater a game to just one outcome. Making use of the Dere-dere Personality structure to archetype romantic characters.

Harem Titles Reviewed

List of Harem Titles and Recommendations

Wikipedia’s List

My Recommendations

  • Date A Live (season 2)
  • Tsugumomo