Watashi Ga Motete Dosunda

At first I was going to give Watashi Ga Motete Dosunda the slip because from the promotional poster, it looked like another reverse harem and BL. It’s not really my cup of tea since I’m a straight guy. However taking a look at all the good looking people, my curiosity peaked a little so I went to read the synopsis. Our female lead is a fat and chubby fujoshi. Nothing to like about her at this point. Then when her favourite BL character dies, she goes into shock mode by locking herself in her room. Guess what? She did an ugly duckling transformation because she turned into a smoking hot girl! I know it’s literally WTF but here’s the deal. Now that she is so attractive, this gains the attraction of a handful of boys. They want to date her and thus always try to be close to her. However in her eyes, she sees them as only fodder for her BL fantasies! It’s like keeping her BL harem close to her, eh? So my begging question is, will she turn straight first or will the guys turn gay first? Oh, this I gotta see…

Episode 1
The girls are watching the guys playing volleyball. Kae Serinuma is a fujoshi as she starts fantasizing fellow classmates Yuusuke Igarashi and Nozomu Nanashima. Unfortunately Nanashima slams into her and knocks her out. She wakes up in the infirmary with her best friend, Amane “A-chan” Nakano who is also a fujoshi. They talk about their favourite BL topic especially Nanashima who looks like that Shion guy from Mirage Saga. Hayato Shinomiya shoos her out since she is looking fine to let another student use the bed. They might not like his obnoxious character but in BL land, the more obnoxious he acts, the hotter he gets. On her way back, Serinuma meets her senior, Asuma Mutsumi who shows concern about her accident. Back in class, Igarashi wants Nanashima to apologize for the accident but instead he says she provided a nice human cushion. Of course Serinuma doesn’t care if the hot guys treat her badly. So long she can fantasize about them, she’s alright. That night as she watches Mirage Saga, suddenly Shion gets killed off! The intense shock has her absent from school for a week! So when it’s time for mom and big brother Takurou to get the fatty out, they are shocked to see a total transformation. WHO THE F*CK IS THIS GORGEOUS BABE???!!! No Serinuma, the mirror isn’t broken. It’s really you. So you can bet when she returns to class (how did she find a fitting school uniform?), everyone is shocked to see this hot chick. Imagine their surprise to learn she is Serinuma. USO DESHOU?! Now you can see all the main guys attracted to her in their own ways. No more mistreatment, eh? When Igarashi wants to ask her out for a movie, the other guys won’t let him have his way. So they were going to ask her the same thing? I don’t know how but she somewhat agreed to go out with all of them. I guess she’s in for the BL fantasies.

A-chan helps Serinuma pick out a dress (why does she have really nice fitting dresses?) and she thinks it is time for Serinuma to hit a new genre called boyfriend. A-chan herself has a boyfriend but he doesn’t know she is an otaku so the challenge is not to let those guys know or else it is over. You can’t blame the girls for staring at the hot guys waiting together. Serinuma can stare at them forever. As they go see a movie, Serinuma tries to promise herself not to fantasize (so as not to leak her otaku behaviour) but couldn’t help do so. So she didn’t really watch the movie but was more of fantasizing the guys. Igarashi thought he could sneak her away to take a personal photo at the photo booth but Nanashima knows how he thinks and breaks them up. Even this scene can get BL arousal… At the end of the day as she is pale from trying to resist showing her BL urges, suddenly she hears an announcement that an anime shop is selling limited edition of Mirage Saga. At first she tries to hold it in but when there is only 1 left, she couldn’t take it anymore and rushes in to buy. When she comes out, she comes clean with the guys that she is an otaku and apologizes she blew their normal date. She was trying so hard to hide her flaws that she couldn’t enjoy herself but in the end she can’t lie to herself. However Mutsumi doesn’t see what is wrong and believes it is okay for her to have something she likes. He prefers to see her smile and happy. The other guys don’t want to lose out and also agree. So does this mean they’ll follow her to the next anime store? Oh… Oh well, as long as Serinuma is a happy girl.

Episode 2
Now that Serinuma’s body is lighter, she thinks she can do well in sports and doesn’t hesitate to help the girls’ football club when they seek her help for an upcoming match. But does she know football? Don’t worry. She’s a fan of Captain Tsubasa… But still she needs to practice. Igarashi would love to coach her as he is the captain of the boys’ team but since he is busy, he suggests Nanashima. Unfortunately Nanashima has a different set of opinion on Captain Tsubasa and with the friction between them, Nanashima drops out. Serinuma attends her first training. She didn’t know there is going to be a long warm up. Yeah, it literally zaps the strength out of her by the time actual practice begins. Nanashima hears the football girls thinking Serinuma sucks after all that practice. He tells them off to fix their attitude as they were the ones who sought her help. He goes to see her still practising. Because she still sucks (her curve kick was awful), he decides to help her out. During the match day, their side is a goal down and a couple more minutes to the end of stoppage time. Serinuma suggests an idea. When her teammate throws in the ball to her, it looked like she goofed up by kicking the ball in the wrong direction. The ball actually curved back into the opponent’s goal! Nanashima couldn’t contain his laughter as he finds this girl to be unbelievably hilarious and silly.

Serinuma is glad the summer vacation is near. She’s got all her events planned out till the teacher reminds her about her if she fails her tests. Supplementary classes for 2 weeks. So you see her going crazy trying to study multiple subjects at the same time. Mutsumi offers to coach her. The other guys don’t want to lose out and also want to be coached by him. In actual fact they don’t want to let him be alone with her. Because Nanashima and Shinomiya argue loudly, they are kicked out of the library. Same case too at the restaurant. Igarashi suggests studying at Serinuma’s home. She accepts as she was the one who sought for help. Now the problem to clean up her messy BL merchandise… Looks neat when the guys arrive. The guys are so hot that her mom even puts heavy makeup. So while Serinuma chastises her, the guys accidentally look around and found a few BL stuffs. Serinuma then reveals some of the BL stuffs she put away for today. She even shows them an altar for Shion! Yeah, they wonder why Nanashima is dead… They go with the flow by paying their respects to Shion. When Takurou hears his sister has male guests, he immediately barges in to warn them about her otaku habit. They already know. He then opens her closet filled with BL manga. Serinuma doesn’t appreciate all this. This is when Mutsumi kicks him out because they are in the midst of studying. The guys then help her carefully put back her manga. Serinuma is grateful for all Mutsumi has done. He gives everyone a good luck pencil. Thankfully Serinuma passes the tests. The guys want to hang out with her at the pool or other normal places but she has got otaku events set as top priority.

Episode 3
Serinuma’s class will be doing a cosplay café for the cultural festival. She volunteers to do the costumes for Igarashi and Nanashima. In addition to hearing Shinomiya’s class doing a play and he will be playing a princess, she too would like to do his costume. She also agrees to help out Mutsumi with his class exhibit. It’s going to get busy. She takes the measurements of the guys and each almost got their way if the others didn’t interrupt in time. Serinuma realizes she can’t handle too much work. The other guys offer to help. She wants to leave the costumes to them while she goes help Mutsumi. But Igarashi suggests the guys helping Mutsumi since sewing doesn’t sit with them. This makes Igarashi question what he is doing this for. On the day before the festival, Serinuma is so happy as she gets to see the guys wearing her costume. No doubt Nanashima is as Shion but Igarashi as Eren? Serinuma suggests everyone going around the festival together in their free time. However Igarashi puts his foot down. He doesn’t agree. He is done playing buddies with everyone. He confesses he likes her and wants to only be alone with her. With the other guys also stating their similar intentions, Mutsumi then suggests a schedule. That way everybody has a fair amount of time with her. Serinuma doesn’t even get a say in this…

First up is Nanashima. But it looks like she is using him to promote their cosplay café? Nanashima gets his face close enough to hers. Too bad Mutsumi breaks them up because it’s time. You don’t get an extra second from the tight schedule. Serinuma is overwhelmed when Mutsumi feeds her but it looks like it is Igarashi’s turn. At the Shinomiya’s play, he holds her hand. She can’t concentrate and blacks out. Finally it is Shinomiya’s turn and he thought of proving his manliness at the haunted house. However he is the one who is getting scared so much so he hugs her and has his face in her boobs. This has her screaming and running out. The other guys think the haunted house is that scary. Serinuma returns to A-chan, complaining she can’t take this anymore. All she wanted was to be watching from the side-lines but now she is like the main character of an otome game story. As she ponders alone, a few boys try to hit on her. She accidentally punches one of them and runs. They catch her and before you know it, Igarashi and co come to her rescue to beat up those jerks. A big brawl fest. It stops when Serinuma yells at the top of her voice to stop. The guys feel sorry for what she had to go through. Igarashi apologizes for rushing things and they should take it slowly. Everyone agrees. So for the bonfire dance at the end, the guys don’t want to bug her and dance among themselves. Good fodder for Serinuma and A-chan’s BL fantasies to run wild. Best place ever!

Episode 4
Nanashima suggests doing a Christmas party on the eve. However Serinuma already has plans to go to the Comiket. And she’s not budging from this. She would be happy if they all could come. Happy is the winning word. Therefore they agree to go with her and have a party on the way back. Little do they know they hell they will experience on that day. They have to wake up 5 in the morning still groggy to take the train and then wait in the crowded line out in the cold for 2 hours just to enter! When the guys split up to get the manga she wants, many girls stare at them with glee. Can’t resist pairing those hot guys, right? As Serinuma is waiting outside, a photographer starts taking photos of her. This freaks her out despite she tells him she isn’t a cosplayer but he continues to snap anyway. He is then stopped by this handsome cosplayer, Sebastian (temporary name because Kuroshitsuji look-a-like) and also earn the ire of other photographers because his actions are giving them a bad name. He goes away and Serinuma is infatuated with Sebastian. As the guys return, they’re in for a shock because Sebastian kisses Serinuma’s hand before leaving. She explains the misunderstanding. On the way back to the party, the guys have no more energy and are practically dead. Only Serinuma is the one singing and partying like mad. Moe power?

Serinuma is surprised to see Sebastian in school. Furthermore, Shima Nishina is a girl! Why am I not surprised? Serinuma quickly clicks with her since she is also into BL. She introduces them to the guys who are obviously shock as well. But at least they can be at ease that the hand kiss didn’t count. Really? Oh, she has lots more female admirers than the guys. Insult? Not sure if they’re starting to realize some sort of lesbianism between them because when Nishina invites Serinuma to her home to talk about Mirage Saga all night long, the other guys won’t lose out and also want to come. They’re in for more shock because she lives in a mansion! A huge mansion! She has rooms specifically for figurines, clothes and even manga! Guess what? She also has her own doujin circle and draws her own doujin! OMFG! Is there anything this girl can’t do?! Like Nanashima says, this girl is so perfect like as though she is a walking life hack. He doesn’t want to lose out to her and draws a picture of Shion. It sucks. However Serinuma loves it! Feel better? But when the other guys draw horrible renditions of Shion and Serinuma still loves it, it dawned to us that she will love anything Shion related. Nishina has the guys promised her they would do something if she allowed them into her home. They have to pose together while she takes pictures of them for BL references! The guys feel awkward after a while so the girls demonstrate. While Serinuma feels embarrassed shortly, Nishina takes this chance to kiss her lips! Oh dear! That’s the last straw for the guys. Nishina says that kiss wasn’t a joke and warns them that if they will have a problem if don’t take her seriously. She’s serious. Whatever the case, Serinuma’s first kiss went to a handsome girl…

Episode 5
Although Nishina said it was just a joke, Serinuma can’t take her mind off the kiss. There is this Valentine design collaboration in which Serinuma wants to enter and win for its prizes that include the designer’s signature. Nishina suggests they make it together and also invite the guys to make them watch chocolates they will never get… Wicked… Serinuma makes a nice 2D illustration of Shion on a chocolate but feels it is not good enough. But trying out 3D is worse. She can’t seem to get it right. Igarashi is suspicious of Nishina getting too close to Serinuma like as though she has an ulterior motive. Nishina admits she likes cute things. Does this mean she is only after her looks? However the guys can’t say for themselves because they too like Serinuma because of her looks. After 73 hours… Serinuma finally nails it… Not! WTF is this Picasso model?! Nishina wants her to submit using her own Shion 3D model and put it in her name as the deadline is tomorrow. However Serinuma decides to send her own because she has put her heart and soul. At least with the many leftover chocolates, she gives it to the guys. Igarashi realizes he might have liked Serinuma based on her looks but now it is different. He likes her personality too. But this will be soon put to the test because Serinuma is back to being fat again!!! Holy cow!!! I guess she ate the remaining chocolates, huh?! This is of course a great shock to the other guys so Nanashima and Shinomiya really want her to get back to her beautiful shape. However it hits a little snag since Nishina is trying to feed and fatten her up as she loves her being plump and chubby!

Even more shock because Serinuma’s chocolate design won a special award and she has to attend a special ceremony that has many of her favourite celebrities attending. And so begins the quest to slim down. Normal physical workout doesn’t work. Still fat but only more depressed. Then they do this otagei dance. It is really fun and addictive till she sprains her back. Before they start pointing fingers, Mutsumi calms the warring sides and tells them it is ultimately Serinuma’s wish if she wants to continue with this. For the next few days, Nishina continues to be by her side at every chance so much so Serinuma might be developing some sort of phobia. So Igarashi takes her away to talk. He realizes she is still the same girl who is bright and positive and never gives up. Nanashima couldn’t believe him and thinks he has gone bonkers that Igarashi is truly in love with Serinuma the way she is and looks now. This time the guys has devised a ‘good’ plan for her to lose weight fast. There is a point card system in which the more kilograms she lose, the more risqué BL stuff they will do before her! From holding hands to kiss on the forehead! Better burn those calories right now! In no time, Serinuma is her slim beautiful self again and the guys despite almost dried out are happy this is worth it. But there is one more catch. Nishina added another final motivation to the point card. An achievement bonus for Igarashi and Nanashima to kiss! Now come on, show us that beautiful spirit of yours! Serinuma’s waiting… Igarashi might have gone crazy preparing to do it but Nanashima can’t escape… NNOOoooOOOOoooOOooOOoOOOOoooo!!!!!!!!!!

Episode 6
Serinuma is spacing out that. Hmm… She’s not sick. She finally admits she has found someone special to her. WHO IS IT?! It’s… It’s… It’s Akane from Katchu Ranbu. Oh. An anime character… Since Nishina also likes this anime, they instantly click and become even more best of friends. Since the guys don’t quite catch it all, they let them watch its trailer. Cool? More squealing that would make your hair stand at ends till their opinion differs on who is uke and seme. Then it turns into a battlefield and since they won’t accept the other’s opinion, they now hate each other and won’t speak! And the guys still don’t get what is happening. When A-chan learns about this, she explains the terrifying divide. Since Serinuma and Nishina continue to avoid each other, it’s up to the guys to fix things. First they set things up and make it sound like they need their help. So when both sides ‘coincidentally’ meet, they are forced to talk it over at the café. But since they’re still not talking, the guys start talking how good the anime is. Everything seems to be going well if only Shinomiya didn’t say the taboo word. Back to world war again. The girls decide to settle this via challenge. They will each write of fan fiction of the anime and post it on the same site. The one who gets the most hits wins and the loser must acknowledge the other’s pairing. Igarashi wonders if Nishina has thought through about this because there is a chance they might never be friends again. Not like it matters to him because less one rivalry will be better.

Flashback shows Nishina loves anything beautiful. However she saw the ‘ugly’ side of the world when kids badmouthed about her being from a rich family, etc. It wasn’t the kind of beauty she wanted. Since Serinuma is having it tough writing her story, Shinomiya thought he could be a smart ass as he goes to tell Nishina to back down as she is an experienced writer and this is just a waste of time. This triggers Nishina as she pins him to the wall and tells him off while other girls watch in glee over this feminism domination. So the duel come and go. Nishina wins. She is laughing on her high horse and is forcing Serinuma to admit she lost. Do you have the heart to after seeing Serinuma’s tears? Although Serinuma runs away like a child and won’t admit it. Igarashi reminds Nishina if she likes all things beautiful, is making a girl cry beautiful? Food for thought. More flashbacks on Nishina. When she enrolled in this public school, she realized it was no different because students still badmouth about her rich status. Then she sees fat Serinuma crashing her fat body into those girls. It was beautiful! It was?! When she had her first doujin convention, it was Serinuma who bought up all her volumes and even thanked her via email. Nishina tried to find her in school but couldn’t because at that time she was already slimmed down. She realizes she doesn’t want to lose this beautiful girl over something this trivial. The guys are consoling Serinuma at a café. She won’t pick up a call from Nishina. Igarashi had to secretly tell her where they are. When she arrives, she hears Serinuma admitting she still loves Nishina’s stories. In turn, Nishina also admits she likes her stories. Time for a girly emotional hug and reconciliation. This means they’re on good terms, right? Even better, they accept their characters are both versatile. Both can do uke and seme. If peace was this easy…

Episode 7
This Saturday will be the anniversary of the Lord Sametora’s death. He was the character that the lord in Katchu Ranbu was modelled after. Serinuma wants to make a pilgrimage there and Nishina agrees to come along. However the guys are suspicious because this means they have to spend the night together. Well, it’s not like the guys are interested in this historical piece, right? On the contrary, Mutsumi is very much interested and the other guys are ‘interested’ as well. They’re coming. We’ve got the usual hotspring fanservice but the kind that the girls want to peek at what the guys are doing and the pillow fight. Igarashi slips and falls over Serinuma. This leads the rest to give him an extreme pillow beat down. Next day, they pay a visit to the site for the ritual. Lots of young similar girls too. They’re all crying… For real… The guys can’t really understand what the girls are seeing. Uh huh. Praying and crying at Sametora’s grave for 30 minutes? It’s insane! So while they stop for lunch, Mutsumi tells of a story about Sametora’s head that was buried on a nearby island. Sounds like a ghost story. It revs up the girls to visit the island. They go in swan boats and since it can only take pairs, rock-scissors-paper and no grudges. Igarashi is the lucky guy ending up with Serinuma. Nanashima and Nishina are full of despair. They can’t rest thinking something fishy is up with the duo and try to ram their boat. Suddenly a storm occurs and they get sucked in by a whirlpool. This is a lake, you know.

They wake up on the shore but some are separated. Nanashima isn’t breathing and the only way is… Mouth to mouth! Igarashi, your job… Nishina can’t stop taking pictures… Meanwhile Mutsumi finds Serinuma unconscious and thinks of giving mouth to mouth. That won’t be necessary as she revives and spits water in his face. Though both sides call out to each other, they can never seem to meet. Igarashi’s side realizes they’ve been walking in circles, coming back to the same spot even though they have been walking in a straight line. Creepy… They are picked up by an old man to his hut. Serinuma is starting to burn up so Mutsumi conveniently takes shelter in a nearby hut. Her condition is getting worse so he is forced to take off their clothes and share body warmth. Once she is back to normal condition, he puts back on her clothes. She never realized anything. Nothing scandalous. What a disappointment. Serinuma remembers she was dreaming being hugged by a fuzzy cat. When the windows start breaking, they run. It seems the spirit of Sametora is going to kill them. Likewise, the old man is also a spirit and is out for vengeance. It gets ridiculous because our kids luckily have a small charm to protect themselves and also release some super anime power move to fight back. Sametora is seething in anger and that is when Serinuma disagrees about him being a malevolent person but one who is cool and filled with love, the reason why people still hold a memorial for him. Sametora feels at ease and passes on. Everything turns out to be the store owner accidentally serving them poison mushrooms that caused hallucinations. Everything was just an illusion. Except Igarashi’s mouth to mouth. Pictures as proof! But was it really a hallucination? Because Mutsumi notices the charm all worn out.

Episode 8
Nanashima realizes he is falling behind the competition. Everybody seems to have gotten closer to Serinuma. Nanashima realizes his worth was his Shion look-a-like but with Akane taking the spotlight, he’s got nothing left. Everyone learns Serinuma is taking up a part time job because she used up all her allowance and advance for that pilgrimage. She’s trying to save for the upcoming events of Katchu Ranbu. As she will be auditioning for a job at Usami Land, this means her entourage will also be trying their hands in landing a job. Serinuma got the job of a live magical girl stage show called Puri Moon Show. The rest blatantly lie through their teeth that they know about this show when it is obvious they don’t. Except for Nanashima who genuinely knows about it and even the dance moves because he does it all the time with his little sister, Kirari who is a big fan of this series. So naturally he gets the job with Serinuma (the rest landed other jobs around the park instead) and he relishes doing training with her every day. Things are going great till he falls sick during practice. Serinuma brings him back to his home. Kirari thought Serinuma is onii-chan’s girlfriend as we get to know her buranko status because nobody but her will marry her onii-chan! When Igarashi heard about Nanashima being taken home, he rushes down there fearing the worst. Because it is already happening. Nanashima trying to rape Serinuma???!!! OMG! He’s got his arms wrapped around her body and trying to go for a kiss!!! Igarashi enters in time to punch him away. Scared Serinuma runs out and never returned. Igarashi returns to grill Nanashima but obviously he is still in dream land as he hugs Igarashi thinking he is a girl! Once he is wakened up and told what happened, Nanashima knows he is in deep sh*t.

Serinuma has not turned up in class or even practice for the next few days. It is believed she is out with a cold. Nanashima knows it is his fault and tries to contact Serinuma but she doesn’t reply. He thinks she doesn’t want to see him anymore after that horrifying incident. He finally decides to go see her but since she doesn’t want to see him in this pathetic state of hers, he starts yelling from outside her window. He is really sorry for what happened but he hopes she could come because Kirari is really looking forward to tomorrow’s performance. A lame typical kiddie drawing of Puri Moon Show from Kirari proves to be the turning point. She turns up although she still has reservations about Nanashima. As the play begins, a group of rowdy fans hog the front stage and to a point harassing those on stage and annoying other audiences. This is when Nanashima decides to intervene by teaming up with Serinuma to get rid of the ‘real villains’. This isn’t in the script. With Igarashi also adlibbing to their act, the crowd cheers them on to dispose the baddies. It is also at this point Serinuma made her peace with Nanashima. For the dance routine, one of the actresses sprained her ankle during that rowdy commotion. Nanashima volunteers to cover for her since he knows the move. The dance was brilliant and a success. Backstage, everyone else teases how lame Nanashima is in that girly clothing. Even he himself realizes it is lame and perhaps the reason he is behind everyone else. However Serinuma thought Nanashima was cool today and her perception of boys changed a little. They might be scary but can be dependable.

Episode 9
The gang is here at the beach courtesy of Nishina inviting them to stay at her beach house. Shinomiya somewhat regrets coming here because he isn’t the outdoor kind and realizes how scrawny his body is. But I’m sure he is thanking his stars that he came since he gets to see Serinuma in her cute swimsuit as well as pairing up with her to learn body surfing. When other girls swoon over Igarashi and Nanashima being cool surfing, Shinomiya gets desperate to show off. Looks pathetic but he is able to at least stand on the surfboard. That is, until he crashes and lands his face in Serinuma’s boobs! Scandalous! Shinomiya profusely apologizes but Serinuma forgives him. I guess if she has pardoned him, there is no reason for Nanashima to stay mad at him. Nearby, a group of jerks are leering at girls. Nishina quickly takes Serinuma out as Nanashima and Igarashi confront and warn them. When they try to get physical, Mutsumi stops them with his finger! You better back off now! Have you seen this guy mad? This makes Shinomiya realize his worthlessness. How can he compete with these guys? While making BBQ, Shinomiya spots a snake crawling near Serinuma. He tries to save her but ends up spilling all the food. He feels ashamed of this mess and runs home. Unfortunately he ran in the wrong direction and only deeper into the mountains. Yeah, tripping on a tree root only makes him feel more miserable. Should have stayed home? As it is getting dark, Serinuma is worried and wants to go find him. The guys think he’ll come back but Serinuma knows Shinomiya is afraid of the dark and goes off to find him herself. Well, I guess you guys have to come along too.

Oddly, Nanashima is afraid of heights as he is holding up the traffic on a wooden suspension bridge! After Serinuma reaches the other end, the bridge’s rope snaps. Don’t worry. The chasm is only a few meters deep. And they make it sound like it was so high… They decide to meet up in the abandoned hotel ahead. Serinuma finds Shinomiya tangled in vines. How the f*ck did he end up like that?! But it only served as good fanservice for Serinuma. Tentacles + boy = great BL fanservice! After she untangles him, it starts to rain. They take shelter in the abandoned hotel. They start freaking out because they hear ghostly phenomena. Shinomiya realizes how big an idiot himself is. Serinuma is trying to calm him down knowing he hates scary stuffs but he could feel her hand shaking when doing so. He vows to protect her. It is revealed this ghostly prank is by those jerks and they’re laughing at this pathetic scene. This is their hideout. Because they view Shinomiya as weak, they toss him aside while they prepare to have fun with Serinuma. Shinomiya then kicks one of them in the crotch before taking Serinuma and run. Thankfully Nanashima and co have arrived and those jerks are going to get a beat down for forgetting the warning. Shinomiya apologizes to everyone for causing trouble but they forgive him since they are already used to his freak outs. Shinomiya may not be as strong as them but he still wants Serinuma for himself. Cue for pathetic bad luck because this time he got his leg stuck in the drain. How in the world… But Serinuma and Nishina love it because of the klutz appeal.

Episode 10
Mutsumi found a treasure map in his clubroom and hopes everyone can go treasure hunting with him. Well, nobody is interested. Till Serinuma wants to go. Then everybody wants to go now because they can’t let him be with her. This pattern is getting too predictable. Later Nishina asks the other guys if Mutsumi seriously like Serinuma because they’ve been ‘competing’ but she doesn’t feel such vibes from him. It makes them question why he is doing all this for. As the gang reach the cave, the boys head in first. Igarashi asks Serinuma straight if he likes Serinuma. Yes. He likes everybody too! Wow. That makes him sound gay. But when asks if he likes her romantically, it’s that retarded face. They lost him there. After the girls join them, the bats on the ceiling freak them out. Nanashima thought Serinuma is cowering in the darkness and hugs her. Turns out to be Shinomiya. Gay! Then they realize Serinuma and Mutsumi aren’t around. Mutsumi is paralyzed in the darkness because of a prank that left him trapped in a storeroom for the entire night! When she takes his hand, he feels her warmth and then unwittingly hugs her. When they discover the treasure, it is so obvious like as though someone set this up. True enough, inside is a note indicating it is a prank. But this note is written by Mutsumi? Kazuma Mutsumi. His older brother. Oh… You thought that was over with, right? Back in school, Kazuma becomes a trainee teacher in Serinuma’s class!

So the brothers meet during recess and because there is a lot of physical contact with them, it is today’s BL fodder for the girls. Apparently Kazuma forgot he set up the prank and when he does remember, he laughs wildly that it took 3 years for somebody to fall for it! They wonder if Kazuma is a good big brother because sometimes he gives off that halo vibe. Then Kazuma admits he is bisexual. He flirts with Nanashima! But when he turns to Serinuma, Mutsumi loses his cool to remind him recess is over. Kazuma becomes a popular teacher with boys and girls in just a few days. One day, he spots Serinuma coming out from an anime shop. They have lunch together as Serinuma finds out he was the one who locked Mutsumi in the storeroom prank. She tells him the trauma it gave him that he hugged her but praises him as the non-assertive type who has helped her a lot. Next day in school, Kazuma sees Serinuma cleaning up the clubroom. He decide to give her a Mirage Saga box collaboration he had won in an arcade years ago. Look at Serinuma’s retarding face… She wants it! Her excitement has her bump into things and the box on the shelf almost fall on her had not Kazuma pull her into his arms. That is when he starts to touch her face and claims how cute she is. Luckily Mutsumi whacks a book over his head and warns him on making a move on a student. Hey. Have you ever seen Mutsumi this mad? Kazuma then challenges him. It won’t be a problem to pursue Serinuma after his term ends, right? Oh yes there is. Mutsumi proclaims Serinuma is his girlfriend!

Episode 11
Apparently the others were eavesdropping as they barge in to protest. Kazuma covers for him that he was just protecting Serinuma. When Nanashima challenges Kazuma, the latter starts flirting with him! With all the reaction, Kazuma now knows where everyone stands as he blurts out all of them are head over heels for Serinuma. As Kazuma isn’t a full teacher yet, he is serious in pursuing Serinuma. However she tells him her waifu is Shion. The rest feel he is still dangerous and the need to protect Serinuma. Kazuma doesn’t mind being her second waifu. Sorry, that’s Akane’s spot. In fact she has 16 waifus! Shinomiya distracts Serinuma that her friends is calling. After that, Kazuma blackmails him with a photo of him dressed up as a princess! He kisses the photo! This just destroys Shinomiya. In class, Kazuma gives a quiz and who answers wrongly will have to kiss him! Thus he targets Serinuma and gives a hard question. Igarashi takes the fall by answering wrongly. He is willing to be kissed by him but gets flicked on the head. Kazuma assures he won’t steal him from Nanashima who is looking all too intense. This gives the entire class the wrong idea the guys are dating! Now they’re destroyed. It’s Nishina’s turn. But after a day, she returns destroyed. It seems Kazuma read aloud a favourite self-published book of her favourite author. They have no choice but to request Mutsumi’s help. Heck, they force him.

So Mutsumi confronts Kazuma and tell him to stop making passes at Serinuma. Kazuma insists he is serious about her. Then he makes his underhanded move by locking him up in the locker! The darkness paralyzes him as he remembers how they were fighting over some castle model and Kazuma who always gets what he wants locked him up in the storeroom for it. The rest manage to free Mutsumi. But at this point he is contemplating of doing nothing because if Kazuma is serious instead of playing around, there’s nothing he could do about it for his brother’s happiness, right? Kazuma then makes an announcement via PA challenging his little brother to a duel. A card game called Guard the Castle that Serinuma is a big fan of. Kazuma is giving Mutsumi a last chance to defend something he wants to get his hands on. Mutsumi is in a dilemma whether to challenge him. When Serinuma talks to him and says if he doesn’t want that thing and just give it to big brother then, all the more reason Mutsumi is going to defeat his brother. So the card game begins and nobody except the brothers and Serinuma knows what the hell is going on. Yeah. Whatever. Just cheer! It looked like Mutsumi is losing but he pulls off a move Kazuma never thought he would and wins the game. Yeah. Whatever. Just cheer! The brothers reconcile and give each other a big hug. Nobody knows what’s happening. Yeah. Whatever. Just cheer! In the aftermath when Serinuma asks what was it that he didn’t want to give to Kazuma so badly, Mutsumi pats her head and confesses he likes her. This sends alarming bells to the rest because they’ve got another enemy to defeat!

Episode 12
Luckily Serinuma didn’t hear at first go. Mutsumi is about to repeat his words but the rest take him away. So when they confront him about it, he tells it straight in their faces he likes Serinuma. Thanks to Kazuma, he is able to realize his love for Serinuma. When they oppose, he questions them, why not? Because if all of them likes Serinuma, then they all should tell her their feelings! Well, he’s got a point. So for the next few scenes, everyone is trying to cut off Mutsumi from Serinuma like keeping tabs on him and even sneakily blocking Mutsumi’s contacts from Serinuma’s handphone. However that guy is smart. When he gives them the slip, he uses the PA system to broadcast like his brother did. This time he tells Serinuma to come to the rooftop afterwards. Once more the gang confronts him. Mutsumi doesn’t understand why they are so against this. Everyone is free to tell her how they feel. He won’t stop them so they should not stop him. Anyone interested to confess to her is free to come to the rooftop. Period. So everybody is deeply thinking if they will be the one and of course worried by doing so they won’t get to see her smile again. Finally the appointed date, everyone confesses they like her and would love to go out with her. Serinuma is then seen running into A-chan’s home all panicky. She told he what happened although they don’t require an answer immediately but just want to let her know how they really feel. Because they look serious, she too must take this seriously. So no BL thoughts on them, please. With A-chan suggesting if this was an otome game, this gives Serinuma an idea. She would like to date them for a day and at the end of it she will give her answer. Okay. Sounds fair. The battle is on.

Igarashi goes first as he takes her to the aquarium. She notes he is engaging and very considerate. At the Ferris Wheel, he says embarrassing things like “I love you”. Next is Nanashima. He takes her to an amusement park. He knows how to have fun and soothe a lost kid. Shinomiya brings her to an alpaca farm. This guy is clumsy and has an alpaca biting his hair! He might be the kind of guy whom you can’t leave alone but can also be reliable at times. For Nishina’s turn, she flies Serinuma to a classy restaurant in Okinawa and they fantasize about BL stuffs. Finally it’s Mutsumi’s turn. Ever the history freak, he takes her visiting various historical places. He makes a wish for them to stay together forever. He thanks her for making him realize this special feelings of his. Of course now the real headache comes because Serinuma as expected cannot pick one out as each has their own unique charms. She feels like there is something missing. Then something hits her. The D-Day is here. Everyone makes peace that no grudges will be held to whoever Serinuma chooses. So who will it be? The person that will be special to her is… Drum rolls please… That person is… Shion!!! Last night she saw the announcement that they are making another season of this so this means they are bringing him back to life, right?! She can’t wait for it to happen and runs off to some event. The left are left hanging and in shock but they chase after her for an answer.

Friendzoned Forever!
Also I want to think… Watashi Ga Motete No Wa Dou Kangaetemo Omaera Ga Warui! “I’m famous no matter how you think about it, it is all your fault!”. Yeah, that somewhat sums up the relationship point of view of Serinuma and the rest of her harem. At least if she ever realizes it. I didn’t really expect to enjoy this series and it was lot of fun till the end. Despite the cliché theme of the guys trying to appeal and get the girl, it doesn’t feel much like a real reverse harem anime. It is more suited as a romantic comedy instead. The typical ending even for a reverse harem series was expected although I didn’t see it was Shion because that fictional guy was dead. So this means if Mirage Saga can get another season, will we get another season for this anime and watch more of their antics to win Serinuma’s heart?

The story and plot might feel almost the same. But somehow I never got tired of it is it because that I myself have this wishful thinking of landing a smoking hot anime babe? Thus you can see this pattern in many of the episodes. Serinuma wants something or to attend an event. The guys not being hardcore otakus like her aren’t really interested. However one of them wants to accompany her for some reason and because the rest deem it ‘too dangerous’ for them to be alone, they also volunteer to tag along. And hence the so called ‘plot’ for the guys to make their move to appeal to Serinuma. In the end, it all goes back to square one with nothing much changed. Rinse and repeat.

Status quo seems to be the reason why the relationship between the characters can stay so for a very long time as far as this series is concerned. Basically there is a hot competition among the guys (and a girl) to be Serinuma’s significant other. But that is where the problem lies. None is like trying to make the bold move to do anything to steal her heart. Well, there are a handful of moments but you can bet that the rest will be breathing down your neck like the grim reaper coming to get your soul. Therefore, it is like they’re biding their time waiting for something really drastic to happen before they might take some real action. Thus when outsiders like Kazuma enter the fray and increase the competition, they naturally form a temporary alliance to kick him out and maintain their status quo. I know you might be questioning if they really want Serinuma that bad, shouldn’t they take some sort of decisive action to make her his? Aside the backlash from the rest, I believe maintaining status quo is the best option because nothing has been decided yet. That includes Serinuma not hating or discarding them as part of her groupie. Therefore the chances of staying and doing things together are much better than becoming an official couple.

A big part of this status quo is also due to Serinuma’s dense and cluelessness. She does not see the guys as mere boyfriend potentials. They are all just helpful friends. That’s right. Sorry to break it to you guys. All of you are just friendzone. Always. I am pretty sure that she isn’t a devilish person who has ulterior motives in taking the advantage of the guys (except as fodder for her BL fantasies). Because you see her innocent and genuinely happy when she seeks help or when the guys offer to help out. She never thinks that there could be more implications to it. As proof in the past, there are a few instances when the guys feel a little impatient and did rush a little things and this freaked her out and shook her up badly. Hence instead of rushing into things, let’s just take things slowly and build things up step by step. We’ll cross the bridge when we get to it. After all for now, it is obvious that she believes Shion is her first waifu, right? Though she does take some serious time contemplating the issue (albeit not much), she will eventually return to her BL roots. After all, she is the kind of princess who loves hiding in the corner watching 2 princes smooching! At least, that is how she describes it.

Talking about the characters, they are quite likeable although they might be cliché stereotypes at least for a reverse harem. In addition to the dense hardcore otaku female lead, we have the mature and composed guy, the hot headed guy, the bratty junior and the airhead laidback senior. Not forgetting the devilishly scheming lesbian. It’s like to give variety to instead of guys just chasing after Serinuma, they put a girl interested in her too and sometimes her partner in crime because all is fair in love and war, right?

I want to point out that sometimes I feel that Igarashi and Mutsumi’s character at times overlap because of their behaviour of being the calm and reasonable ones of the group. However I sometimes have this feeling deep inside that Mutsumi might be a lot more dangerous as he seems because he might just be putting up a dense act and playing dumb. I mean, does he seriously think of Serinuma nothing more than just a junior history club member? Because when it comes to competing for Serinuma, this guy seems to be the least likely threat because his face always pops up that ‘what is love’ thingy. Like it never occurred to him it might be love. Then of course towards the end, it proves Mutsumi might be an airhead after all because he starts thinking what Serinuma is to him. Then he becomes the biggest threat to the rest. From last place usurping the rest to take the lead. That’s pretty dangerous alright. Therefore his airhead is both a strength and weakness when it comes down to this. After all, he is the only male who has treated Serinuma the same as she was when she was plump and heavy. It is also thanks to his honest to goodness character that enables everyone to take action rather than maintaining status quo. Even though the results still remain the same, but hey, at least they tried. It makes Mutsumi even more respectable and cool because he wasn’t just being selfish in wanting Serinuma to be only his. He might not see the rest as rivals but at least he is giving them a chance too. In short, all of them here has Serinuma to thank for because she is the one who brought them all together doing a bunch of stuff and antics.

With Serinuma looking pretty attractive in her slim figure, it makes me wonder why the rest of the boys in the school do not drool or fight for her. Logically it will be like too many cooks spoil the soup and it would be redundant to have a reverse harem anime with so many and literally every boy in school chasing after her. And perhaps behind the scenes that we don’t see, Igarashi and co are somewhat making sure that no other boys can join this club. If not, could this mean that Igarashi, Nanashima and Shinomiya are sexist? Because despite the boys being shocked and awe at her transformation, they don’t really see them falling in love immediately with her. But these trio are like suddenly they want to date her. And when she is back to being fat for a while, although still interested in her but not as motivated as before. Isn’t that judging a book by its cover? I know it is for the plot but I don’t blame them. I’m like that too, a sucker for a pretty face.

So the only person who could ever hate Serinuma with a grudge is her brother Takurou. It is only natural to expect this from siblings. But doesn’t that make him the ‘bad guy’ of this series? Because with Serinuma being so beautiful and hot, at least those who are not involved have no feelings whatsoever but this guy sometimes can be seen trying to bring her down in front of the rest. Not too sure if he is trying to be a saint thinking he is saving them from something unwanted but I guess it is better their relationship to be somewhat this way. Because it would be hell of a confusing if Takurou loves Serinuma and now you have the problem of incest thrown in! Holy sh*t! I think they should have made it that way too! And of course the other person who might dislike Serinuma is Kirari. But that is only if somebody tries to steal her onii-chan away. Last but not least is Kazuma. Sometimes I am thinking he is purposely making all those ambiguous moves just to push his brother forward. Because he is such a cool and charismatic person, I can’t tell if he is acting or true to his own feelings. Thankfully he isn’t officially part of the group chasing after Serinuma because this guy’s level is so high that they’ll be blown away to bits and eating dust. As we have seen, you can’t beat this guy with mere cheap and poor thought out tactics.

In line with the beauty of outward appearance theme of this anime, it is no surprise that the characters are all drawn to their bishonen and bishoujo looks. Almost everybody looks so damn hot and beautiful. So that’s why when Serinuma is in her fatty version, you could say it was really a turn off. Masturbation level extreme! After all the years of conditioning on what beauty is supposed to be, it makes us even more compel to prefer the slim Serinuma compared to her chubby version. The physical obvious is so vastly different. Look, I’m not shaming Serinuma when she’s fat. But since when is preference something sexist? Animated by Brain’s Base who also did a number of series with beautiful people like Kurenai, Kamigami No Asobi, Endride, Natsume No Yuujinchou series, Amnesia, Tonari No Kaibutsu and Yahari Ore No Seishun Love Comedy Wa Machigatteiru.

It is quite pleasant to hear Yuu Kobayashi helming the role of Serinuma. Because no others could go into that kind of trademark ‘screaming’ like she can. It suits her character all the better since Serinuma is prone to get excited and do her inner screaming when she starts fantasizing BL. While this seems okay, at first I was wondering if her voice would suit the sweet looking Serinuma. You know, for a girl to be this smoking hot, Serinuma sounds a bit hoarse if you ask me. It’s like she’s trying hard to sound cute and it doesn’t match her cute demeanour. But you know me. After a while I got used to it and didn’t really care anymore. I’m a sucker for a pretty voice but not for a pretty voice. Unless you’re talking about Mamiko Noto…

Miyuki Sawashiro as Nishina, Yoshitsugu Matsuoka as Shinomiya and Yuuichi Nakamura as Kazuma are the only seiyuus I recognized. The rest of the casts include Yuuki Ono as Igarashi (Isami in Shokugeki No Souma), Keisuke Koumoto as Nanashima (Raul in Yuushibu), Nobunaga Shimazaki as Mutsumi (Manato in Hai To Gensou No Grimgar), Takahiro Mizushima as Takurou (Nagasumi in Seto No Hanayome) and Asami Shimoda as A-chan (Rin in Infinite Stratos). The opening theme is PrincexPrince by From4to7 which is basically the 4 guys of Serinuma’s reverse harem. It sounds very much like a boy band song. Dokidoki No Kaze by Rie Murakawa as the ending song on the other hand sounds more of a generic anime pop.

Overall, this is a refreshing take on the reverse harem series instead one that is currently being plagued and ubiquitous in the music genre. This series has its charm and funny points, light and nothing too serious so it is basically a fun watch. Even if you’re not into the harem type genre, this feels more like a romantic comedy more than that. But unlike in games, reality doesn’t necessary mean there will be a single route to end up with or even returning to an earlier saved point. It could go on and on and on forever without any conclusion in sight. Bad end? Worse, if this was actually real life and Serinuma really had to pick one of them, she’d screw and ditch this choice and choose a total jerk or a big dick ass hat instead. Why do the good guys always have to give way and lose out :’(.