Nikolita’s First Impression
A romantic reverse harem set in a world where the arts become magic? Oh god, this is going to be my guilty pleasure of the season, I can tell already. *squee*
Our protagonist is Kohana Aigasaki, the daughter of artista prodigy Sakura Aigasaki, who is famous around the Hoshinomori School of Magical Arts but passed away when Kohana was a child. Kohana has worked very hard to be accepted into Hoshinomori, but she’s hiding a secret: while she’s worked hard to succeed in her mother’s chosen art, flower-arranging (ikebana), she cannot yet produce her own sparkles.
As Kohana arrives on campus, through her exploration we are introduced to each of the six bishounen who will be her love interests throughout the series. 
There’s a red-haired young man who plays the cello beautifully, and a silver-haired guy who dresses and paints in monochrome and has a pet hedgehog.
Elsewhere on campus Kohana sees an orange-haired guy sculpting a cheetah and has sparkles which smell like vanilla. Around the corner she sees a ladies man named Angelo who shows off his dancing skills for his adoring fangirls, and whose sparkles manifest as wings on his back. Last but not least she comes across Aoi Suminomiya as he demonstrates his calligraphy artista for passing students.
Last but certainly not least is Ichijoji Teika, a gifted singer who is also the school’s unofficial “king.” It’s rumored that he can sing any song after hearing it only once. He’s obviously talented but comes off as very cold and aloof, naturally. Gotta have that romantic tension.
We also get introduced to Kohana’s new roommate, Juri Chikamatsu, and this girl is fantastic. She’s outgoing and friendly, and I have a feeling she’ll be my favourite character.
After meeting all the characters, the rest of the episode is split into two main scenes. In the first, Kohana tries to make sparkles while practicing her ikebana and fails, until she bumps into Ichijoji again. After he tries to motivate her with some strong words, she gives him a small bouquet of flowers. Both of them touching the flowers at once causes sparkles to emerge from the flowers, and Kohana is over the moon with her achievement.
The second scene takes place in a classroom the next day. It’s revealed that Kohana is Sakura Aigasaki’s daughter, and for some reason this angers Ichijoji. He proclaims that Kohana is now his enemy, but the poor girl doesn’t understand why. After the credits Ichijoji talks on the phone to his brother, who tells him that he must become the Artista Prince.
All in all I adored this first episode and I’m super excited for next week. I love all the music themes and the animation is AMAZING – the CG sparkles blend perfectly with the 2D animation, and omg it’s just so gorgeous! *0*
A common side effect of reverse harems is that they are somewhat predictable, and Magic-kyun! Renaissance looks to be no exception. Based on the opening sequence and how the first episode went, I can take a wild guess as to who the main ship is going to be, but I’d love it if a twist proves me wrong. I basically expect this show to be like Dance With Devils, except with actual romance. I have high expectations so I hope I don’t get let down!
Side note: If you’re thinking of playing a drinking game for this first episode where you take a shot every time Kohana says “kira kira” (sparkles), don’t. You’ll give yourself alcohol poisoning. Maybe refrain from playing said drinking game throughout the whole series, just in case.
Possibility of Watching: Oh hell yes
Possibility of Blogging: Guaranteed