Anime Review: Samurai Harem (Asu no Yoichi)

Samurai Harem… with a title like that you might be thinking “Another harem anime? No thanks!”

Well, yeah… this is another harem anime. The staple and arguably overused tropes are present in this series – everything from the main character walking in on a girl changing to him “accidentally” pushing in on a girl’s chest. Even though we’ve seen these jokes plenty of times before, they somehow still manage to be funny, and this show is no exception. Toss this in with some damn good character designs, and you have what will make this show worth all your while.

Samurai Harem tells the story of a young boy named Yoichi. Despite living in the modern-day world, he grew up secluded from civilization and has spent his whole life practicing with his father to one day become a samurai. Because of this, he lacks common social skills and is vastly unfamiliar with modern technology. After completing his samurai training, Yoichi moves to the city into a house occupied by the four Ikaruga sisters. You can see where this is going.

Being a comedy, one should not expect much from this show in terms of story. This show is for entertainment purposes only, and it serves that purpose quite well. Most of the episodes involve either someone trying to capture or kill Yoichi in order to get some reward, or some pervert trying to “get with” Ibuki, the oldest of the four sisters. Ibuki, being the most well-endowed of the four, gets tons of attention from any male who crosses her path. Of course, the three younger sisters get extremely jealous of this, and hilarity ensues.

Expect to see some excellent character designs in this show, as should be expected from any harem. The female characters provide an excellent helping of eye candy, but the fanservice doesn’t go over the top. However, I wouldn’t call Samurai Harem an “ecchi” because it stays several steps away from the ecchi standards set by anime today. The fanservice is certainly present, but it’s nothing extreme, and this is one of the more pleasant qualities of the show.

Samurai Harem is a fun show for any harem fan or for people who just like pretty girls in their anime. If you’ve enjoyed other harem series like Love Hina or Starawberry 100% then this series should definitely be on your “to watch” list. While the jokes and humor are far from original, the show still manages to be funny while keeping one interested with the well-designed characters. Don’t be so quick to throw the “cliché harem” label on it, because you’ll be missing out.

Samurai Harem is licensed and distributed by Sentai Filmworks.

ENJOYMENT
Great characters and humor that still manages to be funny

4/5

RECOMMENDATION LEVEL
A must for harem and comedy fans, but not for everyone

3/5

REWATCH VALUE
Worth rewatching for any jokes you may have missed the first time around

3/5

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