Ranked #3103

Onii-chan Dakedo Ai Sae Areba Kankeinai yo ne!

Well now there are many ways to approach this anime review. I could review it based solely on the anime or I could compare it to the light novel and inform you what was lost in the “translation”. For the sake of giving the anime a fair shot, I will score it based only on the anime itself but I will be injecting notes on what the anime could have done better in comparison to the light novel.

So the anime does a pretty piss poor job of explaining what is going on and keeping your feelings invested towards the characters. The plot is essentially a reuniting of Akito and his sister Akiko after a long separation. They end up living in the same house along with the student council at their high school and the usually boy x girl events happen. The anime unfortunately comes across as a generic harem while the light novel feels more like a serious drama. The anime has all the typical harem scenes that we have experienced in the past; the shower scene, the mall scene, etc. I hate to say it but the anime really looks and feels as if it was put together very half-hazardly and was trying to ride on the success of the light novel. Please understand that this is NOT a faithful adaptation of the light novel.

The animation is somewhat a mixed bag; it looks great in some scenes but the overall quality is somewhat lower than what I would expect from a 2012 anime. The characters are visually appealing but the show lacks a certain visual aspect that sets itself apart from all the other anime. This lighting is not done very well, you see many instances where proportions do not really match up, ext. The animation just comes off as generic for eighty percent of the time.

The only redeeming quality for this anime in the sound department are the voice actors’ performances. Each character’s voice actor did a superb job injecting their feelings into their characters. Anastasia has a cold, monotone personality that is expressed well by her voice actor. Even the annoying but too cute Akiko’s voice actor did an amazing job making Akiko a loved and disliked character. Other than the voice acting though the anime falls pretty low on the bar as far as sound goes. The background music is forgettable and generic but the intro and ending songs are quite catchy.

The cast of this anime work very well with each other even if most of them are forgettable. Akito, Akiko and Anastasia were for me the stars of the show. Akito’s strong will and intellect, Akiko’s annoying but super cute personality, and Anastasia’s cold and cool attitude created so many funny and unique scenes throughout the entire anime. My personal favorite character was Anastasia because even though her personality withheld most of her true feelings from everyone else, it was easy to always tell what was on her mind. Also her interactions with Akito were the most fun to watch. The other characters however were either boring or just not appealing. I especially found Arashi just out of place and a bother to the whole chemistry of the group. The young house leader was also quite annoying and off putting. Overall the main three characters really helps make the show shine but a couple others bring it back down.

Overall the anime adaptation of Onii-chan Dakedo Ai Sae Areba Kankeinai yo ne (what a mouthful) is just generic. After reading some of the light novel a couple months before the airing of the anime, I was very excited to see the brother sister romance issue unfold with the student council. What unfortunately occurred here was taking a great drama with very thought provoking and witty conversations and turning it into another generic and barely passable harem anime. I advise that you steer clear from the anime and just read the light novel. It is much better than the anime and it will have you craving for more. read more

the harem genre is an interessting phenomenon. altough its premisses are completly delusional, it is this very fact, that can be used to produce quite an entertainment. but of course, chances are high, that the result is just annoying. „Onii-chan Dakedo Ai Sae Areba Kankeinai yo ne!“ is certainly the latter.

usually --at least that is the impression i have so far--, the whole plot is resolving arround the incapability of the male protagoist in transcending his infantile characteristics in regard to his sexuality, so that he is either in a state of paralysis or in an attitude of complete avoidance, when targeted by the naturally quite aggressive and voluptuous females surrounding him. well, since this is certainly not enough to advance the plot, there is likely to be an attempt of an interessting background story, complicated relationships, et cetera, et cetera. that is/should be stuff we are able to relate to, because it corresponds more to our actual experience and that shows a distinct sense of humour.

but not in this case. all you get is just a boring and faceless male character, whith no deeper emotional or sexual affections whatsoever, who is having unending monotonous dialogues about crap with the other equaly boring and faceless female protagonists, living under the same roof, while they are hitting on him in the most exaggerated presentation of cliche. actually, it was not just boring. the complete lack of imagination and innovation, and the mindless overcompensation by fan service made watching tiresome, even annoying. after half of the season, i couldn't stand it anymore. so, don't waste your time. read more