Giji Harem

Who needs 100 girlfriends when you can have 1 girlfriend with 100 personalities? Giji Harem takes “get you someone that can do both” to the next level and is one of the most satisfying seasonal romances you’ll see. A nonstop heartwarming ride that’ll have you covering your face and gushing like an idiot. Eiji and Rin are one of the cutest couples around, and what makes them standout in a crowded field of romance shows lately is the romantic progression! Going from a kouhai-senpai relationship with the personality switching acting gimmick to a full blown relationship, dates, kissing etc all in the same season is ... almost unheard of these days and makes this a must watch for any romance fan.

Giji harem was an amazing time for me. The persona switching gimmick was something different and I like how it was a way for Rin to communicate her feelings with Eiji under the guise of practicing her acting skills. Episodes were idyllic bliss and went by in a flash. Every scene with the two leads together just felt like a cuteness overload and I would’ve been content with just seeing 12 episodes of them goofing off. But what made this such a memorable experience is that we see the two of them develop so much throughout. Usually gag series just kinda stay as gag series, but it’s clear the author had a plan in mind and wanted the couple to grow together which is beautiful. Rin slowly goes from only being able to express her emotions via the personality switching to saying how she feels on her own. Eiji gets the courage to tell Rin how he feels to her and not just her characters, and by the end of the series we see a couple that’s able to be themselves around each other. My only real complaint about it is that the off screened some of the big turning points in the story which seemed odd to me as a creative choice. With a little bit of common sense you can easily see the shift in the relationship and fit the pieces together, but I really think it would’ve been nice to show those moments to the audience!

I think this might be Hayamin’s magnum opus. She truly shines like never before in this show because of the number of personalities she portrays. We see a range that I didn’t know she had and she brings Rin to life. The chemistry that she and Eiji’s seiyuu have shines through and makes their relationship that much sweeter. Normally I talk about the animation and art, but this is a show that truly is elevated by amazing voice acting. It does of course look great too, Rin is genuinely a star girl and the amount of screenshots I have of her just looking cute is astonishing.

If you’re a romance fan and just want to watch something that’s pure, no fanservice, no uncomfortable scenes, no spineless MC who can’t tell a girl how he feels, just two people that fall in love and get a satisfying conclusion this is the one it’s really as simple as that. It’s as advertised and I will certainly miss it.

Giji Harem gets a very easy 10 personalities out of 10

I'll be honest, Giji Harem left me underwhelmed. As a romance anime enthusiast, I thought I'd found my next obsession. Instead, I got a simplistic, predictable storyline that failed to deliver emotional depth.

The premise sounds cute: girl crushes on senpai, senpai falls in love, they confess, and get married. But trust me, it's not. The conversations between Eiji and Rin dominate 95% of the screen time, making it feel like an endless, sappy date.

I nearly dropped it by episode 5, but my curiosity kept me going. The only redeeming quality is Rin's multiple personalities - tsundere, cute, cool, and devil. It's entertaining to see her ... adapt to Eiji's desires. But Eiji himself? Mediocre face, talentless except for drawing, and utterly dependent on Rin.

What bothers me is the lack of:

1. Character development: Eiji and Rin feel like cardboard cutouts.
2. Conflict: No real obstacles or challenges in their relationship.
3. Emotional connection: I didn't feel invested in their love story.

I've watched better romance anime with more nuanced storytelling and memorable characters. Giji Harem feels like a missed opportunity.

Pros:

1. Unique concept (Rin's multiple personalities)
2. No unnecessary fan service or ecchi content
3. Refreshing change from typical harem anime tropes

Cons:

1. Weak storyline
2. Underdeveloped characters
3. Lack of emotional depth

Recommendation: Only for die-hard romance fans seeking a lighthearted, easy watch.

Final Thoughts: Would I rewatch it? Probably not. Would I recommend it to friends? Only if they're desperate for a romance anime fix.

Rating Breakdown:

Story: 4/10
Characters: 5/10
Romance: 8/10
Overall Enjoyment: 5/10

Total: 5/10

This anime won't stay with me for long, but hey, at least it tried.

**The Definition of Torture Watch**

The premise of this anime is simple. Nanakura Rin meets his sempai Kitahama Eiji whilst going to the high school theatre club room. For some reason, they hit it off. Eiji wanted a harem, and so Rin, in order to make sure of her acting skills, takes on different personalities, thereby creating Eiji's Pseudo Harem.

The low rating I am giving is because it feels like torture watching this as far as I'm concerned. This is the case of an anime clicking for some people but not for me. Some have described this show as 'diabetes' and perhaps equivalent to what ... my native language calls 'kilig.' I have no intention of disputing their experience.

So here are some positives that I can find. It's drama-free. They are cute, especially Rin. I couldn't care less about Eiji, but I really like Rin's character design. Plus, she is voiced by Hayami Saori whose voice as Falin in Dungeon Meshi is so soothing. If anything, this anime has demonstrated her vocal range in voicing different character types.

Negatives: I cannot understand what made Rin fall for this Eiji bloke. He seemed struggling at the start but met Rin and seemed to impress her despite being a so-so person. It's a good thing that Rin inspired him to be better, but if I were Rin, I wouldn't pick him as a mate.

The animation is subpar. Admittedly, this type of anime doesn't require an impressive animation and something serviceable like this would do. But you can't help faulting if it's too slipshod on an anime you don't enjoy.

The episode format is a mess, especially the earlier episodes. I believe in the manga, each chapter is a different skit of varying lengths, and the succeeding ones may or may not be related to the previous chapter.

Adapting it to anime makes them not flow so well. After 5 minutes of a skit, it's a different skit altogether and it made me pause this anime so often. The last few episodes were good and more tolerable. The succeeding chapters had a better connection to what came before.

Ironically, as far as I'm concerned, it became better on some occasions when Rin had a chance to interact with other characters. And even Eiji's interaction with Rin's younger sister was a net positive rather than being all about Rin and Eiji. Like I said, YMMV. Some people find Rin and Eiji's interactions so cute and charming but me personally they're cute only to some extent.

I might have liked this better if these were YouTube shorts of varying lengths. Some skits are only worth 5 minutes. But some skits like the ones shown in the last few episodes are perhaps okay to be shown as a full-blown episode.

This is also why I think MahoAku suits me better. It has half the episode length and I couldn't get enough of it.

In conclusion, I apologise if I have to give this a low score and mark it as 'do not recommend.' I hate that I did not enjoy this as much as others did. I did not drop this because I have a no-drop policy, but if I were to follow the 3-episode rule, I would have dropped this as early as Episode 1.

Even if I said I don't recommend it, it is up to you to try it and see if you will enjoy it. And if you enjoy it, I offer you my congratulations.

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Here are anime I recommend instead:

1) The Magical Girl and the Evil Lieutenant Used to Be Archenemies aka MahoAku

2) The Girl I Like Forgot Her Glasses aka SukiMega


NOTA BENE: A grade of 3 out of 10 means that I did not enjoy watching this anime despite being either well-regarded or at least popular, or perhaps I happened to rank them below my 4's.