InkSpider said: Thanks for the recs! What I have seen of EVA (1 ep) seems promising. I guess it didn't really register as a harem on my radar because 1) it's a scifi action/drama series first and a harem second and 2) it only has two love interests. Still, I suppose labeling EVA a harem wouldn't be completely inaccurate. Also, @Clebardman. Two? Three, if you count Kaoru. Four, if you count Misato but that's highly debatable: As for why Ranma didn't light up the 'harem' alarm for me... it's quite possible I've fallen victim to the No True Scotsman Fallacy. Harem series are boorish male escapist fantasies. Ranma isn't. Therefore, Ranma is not a Harem series. Derp. Harems in the 1980s and early 1990s were much more of a mixed bag and of the multiple-love-interest plots I've seen from the 80s and early 90s, most of them are love-triangles that resolve. If I recall, Tenchi Muyo is really the series that laid the groundwork for the bland protagonist escapism fantasy. I was never interested in it, so I've never seen it. I suppose one of the strong points Ranma has going for it, in addition to the fact that there is actually some level of character development, is that both the male and female leads have multiple possible romantic leads. It undercuts that male-centric structure that so many harem fall into. Ranma is also not happy about his situation. He does not want to be chased by all of these women. Most harem leads (I think) are either clueless or feign cluelessness in order to maintain the status quo (a very important factor in preserving wa--"social harmony"). Ranma and Akane gradually fall in love with one another over the course of Season One but are too stubborn and afraid to reveal their true feelings and allow themselves to be vulnerable. Unfortunately, Rumiko Takahashi refused to ever bring the situation to a certain and final conclusion... As for Urusei Yatsura, Ataru is not clueless, nor does he feign cluelessness--he's an unrepentantly horny teenage boy. Whereas most protags stumble into ecchi fanservice situations, he deliberately sought them out and--here's the big difference between then and now--he deserved the pummelling he got from the girls. Also, aside from Lum, I don't recall any other females crushing on him very often. |
| @Fvlminatvs I must admit I'm only repeating stuff I heard and never saw a minute of Urusei Yatsura, but I plan to. About NGE, I kinda wish the harem and ecchi tags weren't so completely random on MAL. Ranma and Monogatari should both be tagged harem, and Monogatari at least definitely deserves the ecchi tag. Ranma might too seeing how Rumiko seems to love drawing naked girls (^: |
DeathkoMar 13, 2018 8:03 AM
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Clebardman said: @Fvlminatvs I must admit I'm only repeating stuff I heard and never saw a minute of Urusei Yatsura, but I plan to. I have watched a couple of the movies and I am familiar enough with the series, even though I've never watched it. Both Urusei Yatsura (from what I've seen and heard) and Ranma 1/2 need to be approached as sitcoms, really. The characters never truly evolve, the situations never really resolve, and the situations only progress in a way that increases complications via adding characters. I like the movies of both series, though. It's funny that Oshii Mamoru and a few of the other staff members who worked on Urusei Yatsura 2: Beautiful Dreamer made cameos at the very end of the film, commenting on how the characters would never change. I always interpreted that as a criticism of Takahashi Rumiko's unwillingness to progress anything. From what I understand, Oshii and Takahashi butted heads over the first two or three Urusei Yatsura films he directed--primarily with regards to character growth. About NGE, I see what you mean. The remake films imply the development of feelings but I'm not really certain how to approach the remake films in relation to the original story. I kinda wish the harem and ecchi tags weren't so completely random on MAL. Ranma and Monogatari should both be tagged harem, and Monogatari at least definitely deserves the ecchi tag. Ranma might too seeing how Rumiko seems to love drawing naked girls (^: Yeah, but it wasn't as sexualized as most modern ecchi and mostly a gag. It is most often Ranma in female form that is usually shown naked. 80s and 90s anime approached sex and sexuality differently than anime has been doing in the 00s and 10s. Even as an 18-year-old, I didn't feel as though nudity in Ranma 1/2 was designed to elicit sexual titillation but instead was more meant to be embarrassing (for the characters) and comedic (for the audience). I can't speak for the manga, though, as I've only read a little bit of it. As for the Monogatari series... I'm on the fence. I think I should watch at least Bakemonogatari because it is highly regarded as being exquisitely directed. However, I am generally flat-out bored by modern ecchi tropes and fan-service. I won't say that ecchi is the cancer that is killing anime. I would be lying, though, if I didn't admit that I find most current trends utterly boring and in poor taste. That's just me, though, your mileage may vary. |
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