Fake Harem – Episode 11

How do you rate episode 11?
What is Pseudo Harem like? Community Score: 4.0

©斉藤ゆう／小学館／疑似ハーレム製作委員会

Here we have the series attempting to come full circle. While I was a little worried that we would skip over the abrupt ending of last week’s episode, since we started this episode with a completely separate sketch, it’s clear what this week’s episode is aiming for. The Pseudo Harem premise serves multiple purposes. It serves as a cute joke that helps bond our two main characters while also showcasing Rin’s acting chops as an actress. As they grow closer and closer, we begin to see less of the different personalities she’ll take on over time because she doesn’t need them anymore. At least that’s what I initially thought. Even though she doesn’t seem to need them to deal with her issues with awkwardness or self-confidence, Rin still relies on them to express herself. The different aspects and deep details of her personality that she wants to show are all aspects of herself.

When Eiji declares how much he wants to prioritize her and that she doesn't need to act anymore, he comes off as noble, but that's not what she wants to hear. Rin sees any rejection of her different personalities as a rejection of a part of herself. This leads to the premise of the episode where she tries to win Eiji back in various ways. This is probably the best use of the Pseudo Harem the show has had since its debut. The idea of ​​Rin acting more to make Eiji love her more is cute. It's fun to see these antics outside of a school setting.

While I like the idea, the execution is a bit clumsy. We don't get to see all the different personalities Rin has accumulated when I feel like it has the potential to do so. The pacing feels particularly slow. I also think this plot point could have been built up more. If we had more appearances from the different characters Rin has come up with over the past five episodes, I might understand why it's harder to separate from them. They're still young and not the most mature of duos, but this would have been a good episode to see Rin grow as Eiji has grown since entering college.

Pseudo Harem tries to say something with its premise and gets most of it right when it doesn't need to. It does more than most other romantic comedies do these days. Despite my complaints, the resolution and dialogue are still lovely. I hope the show doesn't get bogged down trying to get across the finish line.

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AJ also streams regularly on Twitch as indie Vtuber Bolts The Mechanic where they chat and play classic media!

Pseudo Harem is now streaming on Crunchyroll.