Oregairu is one such anime. At first glance it is easy to mistake this anime for your stereotypical harem filled with cliches that we have all seen many times. Oregairu is different, it breaks off from that awful mold and presents an anime that is in actuality provides a unique, refreshing point of view on the whole slice of life/harem genre. In fact, I am not inclined to even label Oregairu as a harem anime, as that aspect of the anime is relatively tame, and makes very little progress.
Oregairu is not a harem, but is actually social commentary on the psychological elements of relationships, society and friendship at its core. It is not an upbeat anime, in fact its underlying elements are very dark. The anime has comedic elements, but they all work towards highlighting some maybe unsavory parts of society, and social hierarchies that exist within society.
The characters are what drive the anime. They are interesting, because all of the protagonist have very stark contrast between each other. Yui is ditsy, is socially intelligent. She is the most adept of the three characters at interacting with people, and understanding the changes, and problems that exist between them. This is what gives her depth over your run in the mill ditsy genki girl that exist in every harem. She has multiple different sides, and an interest prospective.
Hatchiman is the main character and is perhaps the most interesting. He identify's himself as a misanthropist. He is a loner that has a cynical view on relationships, society and social hierarchy's. His methods of problem solving are often underhanded, and self sacrificing. He tends to want to solve things on his own, without the help of anyone if at all possible. Hatchiman has created a shell around him from past experiences, even though he seems like he hates people, he seems to be the first to help out in times of trouble. Hatchiman has an interesting duality about him, and that is part of what makes him one of the best characters in the anime world, in my opinion.
Yuki is the creator of the club in which this show takes place, and initially she seems like she is cut from the same cloth as Hatchiman. She is cold, calculated, and very competitive. Her persona was also shaped by a traumatic past, and she is also prefers to be alone. Gradually, Hatchiman and Yuki develop a mutual respect for each other. Yuki and Hatchiman also come to realize that they are actually very different people, and sometimes this leads to conflict, and hurt when they are solving other peoples problems.
The contrast and depth that these characters have are what drives the anime forward. Even the side characters are not what they seem at first. This anime can be slow paced at times, but it is a journey, and it contains astute observations, and lessons about the society, and world that we live in. I highly recommend this anime, it is a cut above your typical anime.
