Well, it’s February, and you know what that means – it’s a month where romance reigns supreme, and where I usually review at least a couple of shows that are of the romance genre, or that at least have something of a romance bent. Last year, I went for some of the more twisted takes, but this time around I thought I’d approach some material that’s at least a little more wholesome.
Take, for example, Psuedo Harem – a love story between a boy who wants to have a life like a harem anime and a girl who can play a million characters to be a harem of one.
Hey, things have to be at least a little weird to be interesting, right?
Fittingly enough, our leading lady, Rin Nanakura, is an incoming high-school student who wants to join the Drama Club, where her acting ability is pretty quickly recognized, particularly by her senpai and soon-to-be crush Eiji Kitahama. He might have the leg up, though, as by just about the second scene we see them in, she’s using her ability to play various characters in order to kind of flirt without embarrassing herself, playing into an offhand comment by Eiji about how he dreams of having a harem like most guys do. She introduces the Imp, the Tsundere, the Cool Girl, the Spoiled Girl, and so on, often flipping between them line by line or on request as the two of them go about their daily lives. Honestly, while we see her acts a lot, the “harem” aspect is only barely referenced other than by the fact that she mostly plays these romantic archetypes. I think the concept is mentioned maybe three times in the whole show.
And… to an extent, that’s the show. A little like Chronicles of the Going Home Club, Psuedo Harem consists at least at first of a zillion tiny vignettes. But, because they’re slice of life with a bent towards romantic cuteness rather than stand-up acts, they can be even shorter. By the end of the first episode we’ve seen probably a dozen interactions, each with multiple characters from Rin aside from her true self. The two characters are already clearly aware of each other in a romantic sense, and we even have some extras commenting on them like they’re an item. This isn’t the kind of romance where we really draw out “Will they or won’t they?” as a legitimate question, and more one where we just kind of watch as mutual attraction does what it inevitably does. Unless you count Rin’s assorted characters – which are portrayed fully as acting and not alternate personalities – there are no love triangles or losing heroines here.
Thus, we very quickly get through the pair’s first year, hitting high notes like the culture festival, Christmas, and New Years so that by the end of the third episode, Rin has kouhais of her own.
Naturally, since the time the two have is limited, things have to get a little more focused after that. But, surprisingly, it seems to only go a little slower. The episodes feel a little more TV-sized, but by the end of episode 7, Eiji has graduated. Before he really does, he and Rin manage to have a proper confession and even a(n on-stage) kiss, so they’re an official thing as Eiji heads to college.
There, we get some more extended scenarios with the two now having a closer relationship, but also one where they don’t see each other every day. We see them go on dates, and even get an episode that’s mostly dedicated to the two getting jealous, Rin of the idea that Eiji might be popular at college, and Eiji, when she comes around for a day, thanks to one of the guys from the college drama club needling him more or less that she’s out of his league.
After some more cuteness, we do get as much of a climax as this show deserves: Eiji’s friends want to enter a short film contest, but the theme is Romance. They ask Rin for help, seeing as Eiji is no good with mushy stuff, and the result ends up being that Rin and Eiji play the leads. The film goes viral (it was a contest entry at least) and Rin’s performance, in particular, catches the attention of a talent scout. Rin angsts a fair deal because going full-time actress out of High School would mean not joining Eiji in college, worried that she’s choosing between love and career. Eiji for his part is a little concerned, but more that he might hold Rin back.
They have a nice little talk where Eiji encourages Rin to follow her dreams, promising she won’t have to lose anything, share the show’s big damn kiss, and then we cut to years later where Eiji, having moved up fast in the industry, scores a job at the studio where Rin works and feels fit to propose. Thus, we end with our couple actually getting married and their reception held in the old club room with all their friends.
So, in the end, Psuedo Harem ends up being, despite the title sounding salacious, a cute little fluffy romance with just enough to it to not quite fall into Slice of Nothing. If you want heartwarming this Valentine season, it certainly fits the bill. No drama, minimal angst, little real stress, and just a couple with good chemistry getting together.
I think the highlight of the show is Rin. Especially with her voice work, the role is knocked out of the park. You know how most of the time, when you want to show that a character in media is acting (even if they’re acting well) you need to have them overact to make it distinct from the performer doing the regular character? With the alternates that Rin plays, that’s not needed. She can deliver very good, natural performances that we still know are acting for Rin. This is especially important early, when she and Eiji haven’t really gotten together yet and she occasionally tries to play off letting her true feelings slip – as the audience, we know where the lines are.
This sells the idea that Rin is a good actress, possibly even a truly great one, which is a very hard thing to convey.
On the downside… this show is a lot of fluff. Even though it covers essentially three years of time (with Rin about to graduate when she gets scouted) there are still times when it feels padded, unlike really genius outings. It’s solid, but it doesn’t look like much special and you have to be here specifically to indulge in the fluff. I like that they didn’t end it with the confession moment, but I kind of wish they’d moved that up even further so that we’d have three phases: the hesitating phase, a “couple together” phase, and the longer distance (they’re still in the same city) relationship once Eiji graduates. But I guess leaving off confession until said graduation meant we can understand how pent up Rin is in the last episode, since she never gets “boyfriend” and “with me every day” at the same time.
One theme I heard a good deal when first learning that Psuedo Harem was a thing was that Manga readers thought the Manga was better. This is not normally something I bring up, since fans who start with the manga of any property almost inevitably prefer it, no matter how weak or strong the anime outing is. But I’m mentioning for Psuedo Harem because this is one where I can believe pretty easily that it’s not just first introduction bias. The show feels like it has more underlying intelligence than it has any right to, similar in some senses to the astounding outing that is Kaguya-sama: Love is War. But that intelligence… shows through the cracks. The whole show feels badly constrained by having to exist in half-hour blocks and broadcast standards, and while the voice actors knock it out of the park the animation… can’t quite keep up. It’s nice to see Rin flip in real time, but I don’t know how many brownie points that really earns.
I can’t outright recommend the manga myself since I haven’t hunted it out, but that might be something worthwhile to do.
In any case, I can recommend the show… at a flat B. It’s just nice, no more and no less, worth the time you’d give it.
