So it should be known.
That Tenchi Muyo! Is arguably my favorite and many of all time.
Now this would come as a surprise to a great number of my friends, my point out that I constantly decry the wasteland that is the harem anime genre. And my simple answer would be that Tenchi Muyo, and to a lesser extent the other entries in the "Tenchi verse"succeed where others fail.
But why you may ask?
The answer simply put is that there are a collection of harem animate do not. The other enemies failed to avoid while Tenchi either successfully navigates around or somehow manages to make work.
No should be noted that there may be some exceptions to this rule that I'm not thinking of right off the top of my head. For instance I adore Ouran host club... And can stand fruits basket. But those are both noteworthy as examples of reverse harem anime.
So I'm going to make a short list of the harem anime don'ts, and how Tenchi avoids them.
Number seven. (#7) (#Yourplotsucks) (#WhatPlot) (#DatPlot) (#Wedontneednostinkingplot)
The story/plot. One of the great problems with harem animate is that the vast majority are belts around the concept of taking a male (Or female) character and surrounding them by suitors, and the hilarity that ensues. The problem with this however is that concept takes a phenomenal amount of writing and storytelling talent to make work on its own, and as a matter fact I don't believe I've seen in anime that succeeds at keeping at keeping itself afloat on the premise alone. Every show that works were others fail, works because a portion if not the majority of the viewing audience would still be interested in what the characters were doing even if the harem Anime dynamic were not in place.
Ouran host club could carry the audiences attention even if all pretenses of romantic relationships between the main female lead and her female suitors were removed, because the show is fundamentally a character driven story. In much the same way Tenchi could very well operate as a high fantasy grand space opera, if the harem animate dynamic were removed entire. Which effectively means that the harem animate dynamic only needs to operate to improve the already existing show. Which in the case of Tenchi effectively sets it apart from other space operas, and makes it something legitimately enjoyable and unique in animate.
Number six. (#6) (#Yourpacingsucks) (#Whereareallthesewomencomeingfrom?) #Itsrainingmen)
Pacing. The cardinal sin that most harem Anime commits in this area is that the show is very clearly meant to continue on for ever into the distance until you die of exhaustion, or the writing staff compensates for the plot growing stale by simply adding another perspective love interest, or more often than not another psychotic to the cast to keep your interest. As we've already established Tenchi doesn't need to do this because it's storyline is good enough that it will keep your interest. The matter fact in the tensor more serious moments of Tenchi you would almost forget that it's a harm automates begin with. To further sidestep this problem almost all of the prospective females in Tenchi's life are introduced fairly early into the storyline of Tenchi Muyo proper. (We won't get into the other Tenchi versus yet)
Number five. (#5) (#NoSexintheharemanime) (#Cockblockingnojutsu) (#LoveHiniasucks)
Cock blocking and designated love interests.
This is to separate but equally annoying tendencies of harem Anime that serve to provide the same effect. Of status quo is God.
In the former it's made clear very quickly that the center of attention is never going to consummate their relationship due to the continued cock blocking of every other female involved even the ones that clearly haven't no actual shot at his affection. And in the second every other one of the females is a very clearly the one that he is designated to end up with which largely makes every other female character involved pointless and this vestigial. (After my $20 word for the week) and by great example of this is Love Hina... And as I listened to the collective gasp of Anna Mae nerds everywhere (not that anybody reads this blog) I say to you that love hina is a terrible terrible show. Now if you watch and like Love Hina it doesn't make you a bad person it just means that you like bad Anime.
Tenchi avoids this problem in two ways. In the first it makes it perfectly clear that in all reality only a small selection (two) arguably three of the female characters in Tenchi have any real chance. Or it simply goes with the "Tenchi solution" (a too lazy to put the hyperlink in here just go to tropes and idioms.com)
Number four. (#4) (#What4?) (#Allguysarelosers) (#Notaloserbycomparison)
The supporting cast! (Pervert) (nonromantic)
This boils down to the problem that in many harem Anime, the lead male character is in fact a loser. And to make him not such a loser while still giving you the ability to laugh at him as a butt monkey his friends or any other nonromantic supporting character must be a bigger loser in comparison. This may or may not extend to members of the opposite gender who were not romantically interested in the lead.
In the case of Tenchi and is actually shown that his friends are a little on the loser side, but in actually believable manner. That is to say you could actually see these boys existing in an actual school setting. Likewise while his father have some rather butt monkey-ish moments is actually kind of likable and has a lot of redeeming qualities. And his grandfathers actually one of the more dignified characters in the show, whereas in other Anime they would be almost completely reprehensible characters.
Number Three. (#3) (#Makealoveconnection)
The love connection. Simply put in a lot of harem Anime the explanation for the attraction to the main character is slipshot at best and downright insulting at worst. Looking at you Negima... In some Anime this actually boils down to the entire point of most of the cast never actually having a chance romantically. And in others there simply one central reason for the attraction given and were meant to accept that as the explanation for every characters attraction. In the case of Tenchi this is avoided almost completely, with both of the primary love interests actually having very well developed and presented reasons for their attraction to our here. Now unarguably one of them actually does have a better overall reason, but the other is being shallow or two-dimensional in their attraction.
Number Two. (#2) (#Noonewoulddateher?) (#Datbitchcrazy)
The love interests! Simply put many Nah most of the female characters in the harem Anime would be put up with by any sane individual with a shred of self respect for more than a few moments. (Again I'm looking at you love hina) tsundere, kuudere, and dandere characters are to be expect. And indeed Tenchi may actually be responsible for this because all three of those character types are actually represented in the Tenchi cast. But only in so much as a reasonable believable versions of each are present. And other lesser Anime were forced to take these character traits and below them up too often on billing and insulting level to carry weaker storylines.
Number one. (#1) (#HowDidAutoSpellThinkThatNumberOneWasGumballWater?) (#Thatstolongtobeatweet) (#MatPatDidThatJokeAlready) (#YouShouldGoWatchMatPat)
The protagonist.
For lack of a better explanation they can simply be submitted that the main character of most harem Anime are losers. Not kind of losers huge useless waste of human skin. Most are perverts slackers stupid and almost completely unlikable,And much like their crazed female admirers wouldn't draw the attention of any prospective mates that was not certifiably insane. And as harsh as that things my love and admiration for the character of Tenchi Masaki cannot be overstated. As a character concept it's understandable why would garner the attraction of his admirers. He's kind of hard worker studious morally upright and patient, from the Japanese perspective he has in fact the perfect boyfriend and this even translates almost flawlessly to a Western audience. He's not only the boyfriend you would want he's the boyfriend you could bring home to your parents, you can get married to you could have children with you good live a long and eventful life with.
And from the perspective of story writing he's actually a fairly believable character, he still has an adolescent tendencies he still has failings he still loses his temper he still has a slight tinge of teenage boy perversion and him and is an overall believable character. Simply put I never met anyone who watched Tenchi Muyo, and just like to the character. I'm sure I've met people who didn't particularly care for the character but they didn't dislike him and many people myself included find the character a welcome change and a version to Anime character rooms.
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Now discussions of other Tenchi verse subjects can, and another Diane stretch off into the sunset until the end of time.
(#Tenchi/Ryoko)
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