Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai

Kirino Kousaka embodies the ideal student with equally entrancing looks. Her grades are near perfect, and to cover her personal expenses, she works as a professional model alongside her best friend Ayase Aragaki, who abhors liars and all things otaku. But what Ayase doesn't know is that Kirino harbors a deep, entrenched secret that will soon be brought to light.

At home one day, Kyousuke, Kirino's perfectly average brother, stumbles upon an erotic game that belongs to none other than his seemingly flawless little sister. With her reputation at stake, Kirino places a gag order on her sibling while simultaneously introducing him to the world of eroge and anime. Through Kirino, Kyousuke encounters the gothic lolita Ruri Gokou and the bespectacled otaku Saori Makishima, thus jump-starting an entirely new lifestyle. But as he becomes more and more involved in his little sister's secret life, it becomes that much harder to keep under wraps.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Kousaka, Kirino Main

Taketatsu, Ayana Japanese

Kousaka, Kyousuke Main

Nakamura, Yuuichi Japanese

Gokou, Ruri Supporting

Hanazawa, Kana Japanese

Aragaki, Ayase Supporting

Hayami, Saori Japanese

Tamura, Manami Supporting

Satou, Satomi Japanese

Makishima, Saori Supporting

Nabatame, Hitomi Japanese

Kurusu, Kanako Supporting

Tamura, Yukari Japanese

Meruru Supporting

Tamura, Yukari Japanese

Tamura, Grandfather Supporting

Kashii, Shouto Japanese

Evans, Bridget Supporting

Kuno, Misaki Japanese

Iwakami, Atsuhiro Producer

Kananiwa, Kozue Producer

Miki, Kazuma Producer

Ougi, Jiyuu Producer

Reviews

Sep 20, 2025

JoeDaPotato

Recommended

Against all odds, this show is not about incest, depending on how you look at it... It is about a little sister who likes games and anime about incest. Ridiculous in its premise, Oreimo actively acknowledges the awkwardness of the situation through meta comments from the brother and sister, addressing the thoughts of the possibilities of incest in the viewers’ minds. However, the anime leaves it vague as to whether the connection between the brother and sister is a familial one or a romantic one. I will walk through the first episode to address the duality of the viewing experience and possible ethical dilemmas people ... may feel towards this anime.

Kirino and her brother Kyou are not on good terms despite living together, in a middle-income Japanese suburban house, for a long time and being of the same biological parents. Kyou is portrayed as a high school protagonist who desires a plain, simple life, well reflected in his possible romantic love for Manami, his childhood friend and high school classmate. Kirino is a perfect middle school girl by all measures: ace track and field athlete, beautiful in appearance, admired by classmates, and even a fashion magazine model. By chance, Kyou, the brother, discovers that someone in his household owns a copy of an eroge, an erotic galgame/visual novel. During family dinner, he tests the waters by asking his family about anime. Their father solemnly reprimands otaku culture and the harm it causes to children’s education. At this point, Kyou could tell from Kirino’s reaction, her sudden silence, and her lack of eating during dinner, that the game belonged to her.

Ok, at this moment, I will need to address that there are several camera shots that can give imagination to fetishization about incest/siscon. These camera shots focus on Kirino dressed in pajamas and exposing a lot of skin. Naturally, though, one would dress without much care around their family member, and Krino is characterized as one who likes to stand out in dress and academic achievements. Nonetheless, the show does serve those her for incest well in this respect, but notably, these shots are rarer in upcoming episodes.

Back to the story, Kirino immediately tries to steal the game back from her brother’s room without permission. However, her brother notices and prevents her action, demanding a proper explanation. She grows angrier and asks an indirect question about how his brother would feel if he discovered she is into these eroges and is an otaku. He said he would not judge. Late into the night, Kirino calls him to her room for life advice by getting on his bed… instead of a normal person, and maybe shaking him away on the side. A secret shelf full of eroge, anime DVDs, and merchandise is revealed by Kirino. And everything is related to incestuous relationships between a big brother and one or multiple little sisters. Kyou is shocked by this absurd situation but does not judge Kirino. His real-life, usually aloof little sister appreciates his acceptance and wishes for help in coping or expressing her passion for this shunned hobby. No one at her school, in her family, or even her friend groups knows about her secret, absurd obsession. Her first step is to get his brother up to speed on her favorite eroges and shows… Throughout the 12 episodes, Kirino, with the help of her ordinary brother Kyou, explores and grapples with her hobby and relationships.

Oreimo walks a fine line between actual incest and a drama of siblings growing closer thanks to eroge. It is up to the viewer to interpret this show however they want. It chooses to lean into incest to attract a guaranteed, dedicated group of fans, but it maintains a genuine, valuable story of not just an otaku, but a female otaku, not even a fujoshi, reconciling her hobbies with her social life. Thankfully, in the modern day, anime and comics and these more nerdy subjects are becoming popularized, so the social stigma against those who like these forms of media is not as regarded against. However, there is still a difference between typical anime and an eroge. Kirino IS INTO PORN GAMES. That is hard to accept, especially when a middle schooler likes it, but clearly, she sees a line between her fetishes (not even necessarily sexual fetishes) and reality. One can still thrive even if they are an otaku. This is even better portrayed in real life nowadays, with many furries being prominent scientists (i.e. one of the scientists who invented the COVID vaccine being a furry). Again, there is a line between being a furry and having a fursona and being sexually attracted to furry things, but this is similar in the strangeness society usually views these individuals with rarer hobbies. Although some hobbies are socially frowned upon, that does not mean the person with the hobby is “weird” or “bad” or even incapable of functioning in society, although there could be a higher chance that an anime-lover is a shut-in compared to an athletic student.

One last ethical qualm to be addressed is Kyou’s (probable) sexual attraction to middle-schoolers. He is in the second year of high school, so an eleventh grader in an American education system, and he has several times definitely gawked at Kirino’s friends, who are almost all in 9th grade, which is the last year of middle school in Japan. The age gap is not actually that significant, but this show can also be seen as a pedophilic harem anime. The show even addresses that through a gag in the later episodes, at the idea of Kyou’s harem, in one of the more powerful scenes in this season.

In this defense of the show, the moral or ethical qualms one may have with Oreimo, or My Sister Cannot be This Cute, are addressed through a more platonic interpretation of the story, but a person with stereotype can easily see this show the other way. The show is designed to be seen as either platonic or romantic, even both. The characters may even be confused about their own feelings at times, and what even differentiates a biological family member from a complete stranger? Oreimo is too modern a show to plead innocence when writing about a brother navigating his relationship with a little sister who likes little sister porn. Oreimo is not Tale of Genji in the 13th century, which also has a lot of incest. The show can be viewed as tasteful and comedic, but also, understandably, disgusting and sinful.

Personally, a lot of my enjoyment is derived from seeing whether or not this show is actually about incest or not, and again, it can be interpreted both ways. The sibling dynamic is portrayed quite nicely, though dramatized at many points due to this being an anime, dramatic in nature. I highly recommend this show and would rate this higher, probably if I did not feel that I should not like this show due to social pressures.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Dec 23, 2021

CostCurl

Mixed Feelings

An easy way to describe this anime would be the brother MC is essentially a punching bag.

There are also way too many tsundere's in this anime, even the dad is a tsundere, where most of them are more tsun than dere.

What this show has going for it is literally just the titles for each episode are funny and memes at this point. The rest of the show is honestly not the best for an enjoyable pleasant watch.

Specifically, both main characters brother and sister are not that great. The sister, Kirino, is violent and continuously hostile to her brother. While he himself feels like an ... empty shell of a character which we know very little of since the story basically never shows much about him or his achievements.

While I do understand it is in a sense realistic, since most siblings would do anything for each other in the real life even if it meant harm to themselves. It wasn't a fun or great thing to watch take place. Rather it often created unnecessary drama in what is supposed to be a Comedy and Slice of Life. I will say though it did feel like they acted like their age somewhat being teenagers.

The animes side characters being the friends really is what saved this show from being worse off than it is. Most of them(Manami, Ruri, Saori) are pretty likeable characters with some hinted background depth we did not get to experience much, but i'm sure that will come later.

The OP was alright and it seems they changed the ED's every episode, but they honestly sounded a bit of the same I hardly noticed. The different scenes during the ED were a nice touch though.

Overall, this wasn't as funny of a show in my opinion. It was rather lacking and focused too much on the drama between siblings with beatings seemingly placed as the punchline for comedy. It wasn't bad at times, but those moments were short lived when it would go back to the main characters tiring sibling feud. There's just too many unlikeable characters creating annoying moments that it ruins the mood of this show in the end.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Feb 22, 2025

prakhargr8

Not Recommended

The pacing of this anime is nothing short of atrocious, rushing through episodes with little regard for coherence or depth. While it manages to evoke a few chuckles, its potential remains largely squandered. The premise had the opportunity to explore the fascinating conflict of an otaku girl struggling with her eccentric tastes, yet the plot conveniently sidesteps this, leaving a hollow narrative. The character dynamics, which should have been the show’s strength, instead feel mismanaged, setting up intriguing interactions only to leave them hanging, like a punch that never lands.

Repetition plagues the series, with new plotlines emerging abruptly and vanishing just as quickly, devoid of ... any meaningful resolution. Growth, which is often the backbone of a short anime, is completely absent. Short-form storytelling thrives on concise yet impactful progression, but instead of embracing this sprint-like format, the anime merely trudges along, failing to capitalize on its limited runtime.

Even the visual storytelling falters, with an overreliance on blushing to indicate emotional shifts, effectively dulling the impact of moments that should have been truly heartfelt. By overusing this crutch, the anime misses critical chances to convey genuine emotional depth. In the end, the experience is nothing more than a waste of time. An anime that had an usual and daring premise utterly failed to deliver.

Reviewer’s Rating: 2

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