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What is Reverse Harem? Reverse Harem or Male Harem (逆ハーレム gyaku haaremu) is popularized in Japan where the heroine has three or more male characters smitten with her who are generally bishonen or ikemen or flower boys.
History of Reverse Harem and Reverse Harem Garden
My favorite when I started watching anime was "Fushigi Yugi". Over the years I kept on looking for anime similar to "Fushigi Yugi" but I couldn't find one because I didn't know what I was looking for. In January 2007 (9 years after watching Fushigi Yugi), I picked a random title from Memento's site (the site is closed). I have no idea what the anime is about. All I care about is that I want to watch an anime that is short and has an ending and it was "Ouran High School Host Club". Kirimi's statement is a phenomenal line that will later produce 180 posts, almost 50,000 hits, and counting. (Update: it's now 1480 posts and close to 4M hits as of 2020) It also paved the way for me into reading manga and watching Asian dramas. There's something about a girl and a love dodecagon of swoon-worthy bishies.
Big Bang Theory
I've always wondered who coined the word 'reverse harem'. Hands down "Ouran" popularized the buzzword in 2006. But the contender of the most popular cookie-cut reverse harem with one girl surrounded by three or more guys is Yuu Watase's "Fushigi Yugi ". The manga debuted in 1992 while the anime aired in 1995. I think this officially set the trend in stone and no earlier anime may equal the cult following and franchise it earned. "Hana Yori Dango" also has a very successful franchise and debuted in 1992 but the romance is strictly a love triangle.
I'm also thinking that reverse harems probably evolved (aside from branching out from harem) from stories wherein girls have multiple suitors or love interests spread out in different timelines like "Georgie" (1981). Maybe we can call it grandmother of reverse harem? As per Mangaupdates, the oldest reverse harem titles we got are "Soredemo Chikyuu wa Mawatteru" (1984), "Fusuma Land 4.5" (1984), "Akogare Boukensha" (1985), "Momoka Typhoon" (1987) and "Hanasakeru Seishounen" (1987). They should also add Hiatari Ryoukou! (1980.) We can probably call them pioneers of reverse harem.
For otome games, the first generally acknowledged is "Angelique" which was first released in 1994. Reverse Harem has also gained popularity in Western Fiction. The first intentional reverse harem is The Ghost Bird Series in 2012. But there are poly books already prior to Ghost Bird like Anita Blake's Merry Gentry series.
I'm also thinking that reverse harems probably evolved (aside from branching out from harem) from stories wherein girls have multiple suitors or love interests spread out in different timelines like "Georgie" (1981). Maybe we can call it grandmother of reverse harem? As per Mangaupdates, the oldest reverse harem titles we got are "Soredemo Chikyuu wa Mawatteru" (1984), "Fusuma Land 4.5" (1984), "Akogare Boukensha" (1985), "Momoka Typhoon" (1987) and "Hanasakeru Seishounen" (1987). They should also add Hiatari Ryoukou! (1980.) We can probably call them pioneers of reverse harem.
For otome games, the first generally acknowledged is "Angelique" which was first released in 1994. Reverse Harem has also gained popularity in Western Fiction. The first intentional reverse harem is The Ghost Bird Series in 2012. But there are poly books already prior to Ghost Bird like Anita Blake's Merry Gentry series.
Devices
Statistically, there are a lot of girls over boys, but all it takes is some common cliches and creative storytelling for a reverse harem recipe. There's the guardians, all-boy clubs, girls disguised as a boy or the only girl student in an all boy-school, stepbrothers, girl in an all-boy dorm or house, and more. In some cases, they don't use these devices, and guys with no connection or relation to each other fall for our heroine. Of course, the guys will represent a character stereotype as further explained by Kirimi like the prince type, glasses boy, etc. More bishies, more variety.
Ze Future
I decided to create my first and only fansite after I've seen all the reverse harem anime listed on Wikipedia before (it's no longer available) and I couldn't find a resource. After each manga or drama that I've finished, I tell to myself oh well it's time to start reading the manga versions of the anime but up to this day I've never done it yet. Because every day I discover some old and new titles. I didn't know that it had been around for such a long time and it must be getting more popular as we learn new projects. In case you've noticed, I haven't started any otome game reviews yet. I really appreciate those who frequently visit this site, who recommended titles, and who shared their thoughts since I first started this.
P.S.
Why Reverse Harem Garden? Hmm.. Let's see "For you in Full Blossom," "Meteor Garden", "The Wallflower"...The uber-abundance of roses in "Ouran High School Host Club" and sakuras in "Saiunkoku Monogatari". And to sum this all up here's a cheesy haiku that I wrote in the banner before:
red rosebud blossoms
bishonen by the dozens
love blooms in Eden
Also, check out Levels of Reverse Harem and A Decade of Reverse Harem.
bishonen by the dozens
love blooms in Eden
Also, check out Levels of Reverse Harem and A Decade of Reverse Harem.
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