Mixed Feelings
Alright, here's the deal. Well, there's no deal; not for a certain lucky or rather unlucky guy named Eita Kido anyways. The thing is, he gets blackmailed in the most embarrassing way possible. Now he's nothing more than a little boy toy to a certain admired beauty at school. But hey, at least he's getting a hot girl with a manipulative personality yet someone “cares” about him in some way right? That's not what it seems to be... Wait, this is a bit too fast. Let's start from the beginning. Ore no Kanojo to Osananajimi ga Shuraba Sugiru (God damn that is a long name, so Iwill call it 'Oreshura' instead), is an anime series that debuted in 2013 based on the LN written by Yuji Yuji. The Japanese title literally translates to:
“My Girlfriend and Childhood Friend Fight Too Much”
YA THINK?
Well, the series does display that theme quite a bit. For starters, we got this kid named Eita Kidou who is in his puberty years in high school. He's a normal high school student with a healthy body. At that age, most boys would think about girls, right? No, in his case, the only thing is in mind is to study, study, and study. In fact, he hopes to become a doctor. (for a friend's sake) Well hell, if anyone tries to make that into a goal, we should all envision on the journey to get there. It's not an easy task being a doctor and saving lives, not to mention the amount of education you need to obtain the occupation. This also came from some bad memories from his past related to his parents. (poor kid) And beyond that, he has decided to eradicate the thought of “love” from his thoughts. In other words, the only focus on his mind is to achieve his goal, with absolution regardless of the costs. Oh but life just isn't so easy for this kid because there's one BIG problem:
Masuzu Natsukawa
She's a mysterious transfer student where after nine long years came to his school all the way from Sweden. She has silver hair and in anime logic, we all know that's an attractive trait. In real life though, that's probably bizarre. But at any rate, this girl quickly becomes the talk of the school where boys instantly becomes attracted to her. On the other hand, Eita is just being Eita there with no second thoughts related to her. That is of course till one faithful day. After a certain incident, it seems that Eita becomes blackmailed by a certain notebook (Death Note reference anyone?) and now is literally forced to play the role of a “boyfriend” for Masuzu. It's basically an offer he can't refuse!
Of course, in today's anime industry, the concept of the 'fake boyfriend/girlfriend' theme is not new. It's literally a palm in the face at occasions where we watch a fake couple doing fake things that are expressed as fake romance. It's overused all over the world but hey, it's still here. The fact that Eita and Masuzu are a “couple” means that they are the talk of the school and among other things, an obstacle for both Eita and his childhood friend Chiwa Harusaki. That's because Eita promised to become a doctor in order to help her with the injury that she endured during her times as a kendo specialist.
Now regarding Chiwa, this girl gave the word 'annoying' a whole new meaning. With a lack of any sex appeal, an annoying mouth, and obliviousness to a lot of things, she plays the mascot of the show. In fact, she is even nicknamed as Chiwawa as a pun for chihuahua. This is because her petite figure and hairstyle resembles those of a puppy. Well, let's not forget about her mouth of course because a puppy barks when annoyed and Chiwawa here is no different. Sorry Chiwawa fans.
She brings on some early drama in the series after finding out about the whole fake 'boyfriend/girlfriend' ordeal. Being herself, she lacks the knowledge of “romance” and its ideas so she tries her best to break them apart. With her persistence, she often tries to interfere during their moments of “romance”. However unlike Masuzu, Chiwawa lacks confidence. Unfortunately for her, it seems that Eita only sees her as a childhood friend although at many occasions, he seems to put her in high regards and does truly care about her. Among other things though, Eita-kun also meets other girls which puts Chiwawa on even more stress when she realizes the many rivals to love.
Those rivals would be Himeka Akishino who self-proclaims herself as Eita-kun's “ex-girlfriend”. Her introduction invokes the wrath of not only Chiwawa but also Eita's fake girlfriend Masuzu. It becomes a battlefield and Himeka portrays herself as the “Burning Princess Saint Dragon Lady of Dawn”. It all happened after a certain event and after being a witness, she is determined to prove to Eita that she is his destined one. Too bad destiny doesn't land her well on the side of love. Speaking of which now, destiny presents another girl, the all loveable pink haired girl Ai Fuyuumi. She seems to play the role of the antithesis with her tsundere like features and delusions. In fact, she even has a little cute history but that would be spoilers. Watch the series and you'll see.
With these girls and Eita-kun in the mix, we have the formula for a harem. They all have different colored hair too but with different physiques. It also seems that at the same time, Eita can't seem to pick which one to choose. In fact, he still wants to escape from the idea of love and pursue a dream as a doctor. Well tough luck to Eita kun because this kid can't ever catch a break. From some of the episodes, he gets humiliated by the notebook, beat up by thugs, and caught up into countless misunderstandings in what some may see as an unwanted harem. It's a battlefield for all the girls and everyone to themselves. It also seems that at some occasions, Masuzu may generally care for Eita in a more romantic way as opposed to their fake relationship. Still though, it doesn't avoid the typical harem themes. We have the jealousy from the girls that often results from misunderstandings, the stalkers on dates to “observe” what Eita is doing, and hell, even the traditional CPR scene. It gets old and overused . Let's not also forget the “transfer student” theme, the childhood friend relationship, and even a case of the naked apron idea. It's Harem with a capital H.
The series is labeled as romantic comedy and surprisingly, it does have its comedy side. The idea of “love” is really played out during many episodes is weak though as I've yet to sense that feeling of real romance from any of the character. However, I admit that the comedy of the series is done surprisingly well.
Let's see, there's the fun references of chuunibyou presented in many episodes involving Himeka and Eita. They imagine themselves as the “Burning Fighting Fighter” and “Burning Princess Saint Dragon Lady of Dawn” respectively. But of course, this theme isn't new to the anime industry especially in terms of romantic comedies. Yes, I'm looking at you, Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! Other little fun gags in the series revolves around Masuzu who presents herself as a hardcore Jojo fan. In fact, she often uses references and quotes throughout the series to make humor. These often puts Eita in an embarrassing situation but amusement for Masuzu herself. It's not surprising though given her manipulative personality. Additionally, there's the idea of 'obvious lies' involving Ai. It's so obvious that her “boyfriend” doesn't really exist that it should be a big sign for anyone. Additionally, her strict policy of being a “hall monitor” contradicts her personality as she herself seems to want fun. Yup, I personally found these little gags here and there amusing or at the very least presents comedy in a fun way.
Unfortunately, it seems that not all of these doesn't work out too well in the end. There's still fan service and the typical beach episode, the festival at night (with yukata for decoration), the obvious love triangle/square, and Eita being oblivious to certain things in life despite his intellect. I also personally found that Eita is a bit annoying to watch. Being a nice guy, he often wants to help others by putting himself at risk but I feel like he's not using his brain much. Although I admire his care for the other girls, I find that his actions presented are a bit weak to my liking. Additionally, I also find that Himeka's character to be way too blend and hardly stands out at all. In fact, at some occasions, I forget her existence in the show just like her delusions that are nonexistent. The love triangle is also weak too in my opinion. It seems that Eita doesn't wants any of them as a real girlfriend. In fact, it seems that the only thing he would marry would be a career and that is of being a doctor. Maybe, one of the girls should pursue a career in medicine or something to stand a better chance.
In terms of visuals, I had a hard time adjusting myself to watch this. Even being a manga fan, I would have to say that A-1 Pictures dropped the ball on this one. The characters are generic, washed out, and not to mention most of the scenes from this series are so bright that one might need sunglasses to get a true experience. The girls themselves also lacks any realism at all. Well, I guess some of the more humorous scenes are presented better visually but ultimately, this series only gets a '5' in the art department. I'm disappointed.
I don't have too much complaints about the music/soundtrack of the series. However, that OP song "Girlish Lover" by Mizukara wo Enshutsu Suru Otome no Kai is like a buzz to my ears occasionally. It's very girlish (sticks with the title) and really tries to tell the viewers that this series is what it is: a romantic comedy with a harem. It's also funny how Eita doesn't seem to be in the OP song at all. It's almost if the girls in this show is the more dominant characters, not the guy. This is especially true for Masuzu. As regarding the background music, I find it just fine and sometimes amusing especially during a few of the guitar rhythms during those 'notebook scenes'.
Ultimately, I will give this show a '6'. It's definitely a threat towards to a '5' scale though with its lack of characterization in Eita's harem. The main male protagonist, despite being kind, lacks any distinct features from what I see him as. As for the drama, it is presented in a more causal way rather than anything too serious. With seemingly no real winner in fact, this series is just a romantic comedy with a harem that our friend Eita-kun can hardly stand. Well, I could barely stand this series at many times but if you want to find some fun with its comedy parts, Oreshura might be worth a shot. If you want to pursue a doctor career yourself though, then save that precious time that you'll never be able to buy back; not even with blackmail.
