Gotoubun no Hanayome – Episode 1 [First Impressions]

And the battle begins.

We got all the classic harem elements here in a convenient, fun-size quintuplet package.

Line up here! Come one, come all. We got your tsunderes, we got airheads, we got kuuderes and onee-sans. We even got a yandere.

Now, I swore off harems at the end of Koi to Uso, which obliterated my soul, but that pledge lasted for about as long as you’d expect. A day. Tops. The formula drives me nuts! I hate stories that don’t end, which most don’t, and god forbid my best girl isn’t chosen in the rare case it does end. You can’t satisfy everyone so let’s just satisfy no one. Then everyone wins? Uh, sure, that sounds about right actually.

Right off the bat, this show kind of ousts itself as a harem. I don’t even know if you can really call it one. I feel guilty even listing that as a tag (but them harem tags bring the views). I mean, let’s get real. The opening and ending shots are at their wedding. How much more conclusive can you get? Now, even when the show most likely cuts off, at least I’ll still know there was a winner. It’s definitely a bold move, but it’s one that I appreciate. Cut the bullshit, here you go. It’s nice, it’s refreshing. I was planning on watching one episode, already half wrote it off in my mind, and sticking to my go-to’s, action and adventure anime. Now… I have to admit, I’m kind of into this. Unless this is a fake out? Oh god, what if they’re bamboozling us from the get-go? Now that would be funny.

She’s got money, he needs money. He’s got a big brain, she needs a bigger brain. It’s destiny! The plot is simple and predicable, but that’s clearly not the point of the show. If anything, it reminds me a lot of the Royal Tutor in that the first part is going to be actually getting the students to show up. I like that they framed it as a quest when Yotsuba (the airhead) tried to recruit the girls for the first time and it showed their heads over each door like 4 boss battles. I generally enjoy the characters, they look stereotyped to hell, but that’s not always a bad thing. Just almost always. The banter is ok so far, nothing extraordinary. Overall, I see this as a low-risk low-reward situation.

I’m not entirely sure what else to say about the show so far. I wish it wouldn’t devolve into mindless harem-driven antics as the show goes on, but I don’t really have my hopes up. The best compliment I can give it is that I think this will be a very good fluff show for the inevitable feelings of doom that I’m thinking certain other shows will be bringing this season. Who doesn’t love a good fluff show?

I’ll finish with this. A note of extreme hypocrisy, considering I literally (300 words ago) just complained about the harem formula. Don’t judge me for this. BUT NOW I KNOW MY BEST GIRL IS GONNA LOSE! THE FORMULA WAS RIGHT AFTER ALL. We gotta go back. Screw the wedding and everything that made this show original and fun! Stagnate, stagnate!

So with episode one done and one girl conquered, who will be the next to fall to the harem king? Also, I don’t know if my conscience could bare not stating that, as a fact, Ichika (onee-san) is best girl with Yotsuba following close behind. The race for 2nd place (now that we know the winner) has officially begun.

Possibility of Blogging: Meh, I really doubt it. Apart from screaming at each other about waifu’s, I don’t know what else I’d really have to say about the series. Not that I’d mind that per say, but I’m not entirely sure that’s a great way to spend my time.