Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai
Title: Ore no Imouto ga Konnani Kawaii Wake ga Nai Genre: Comedy Rating: 6.5/10
Review: Boy how long has it been since this anime ended? cracks knuckles Let’s get this review going so I can finally spill my rants and ravings, then mix it with the praise and glory.
The animation for this series was pretty top quality stuff. They actually took the time to detail the backgrounds and characters. Personally I liked the way they drew and colored the hair. The hair colors weren’t a blast of color and they had a subtle glow to them. The facial expressions and movements seemed really natural and I liked that the illustrator stayed away from computerization. Or if they did use computers for the graphics (excluding coloring and inking), they did a great job making it look hand drawn. More importantly, with a little research, I discovered that the covers to many, if not all, the adult games were actual titles. There was a bit of debate whether this was morally expectable to use real titles in the anime without the rights to do so. If I recall correctly the creators of the ergo were a little angry about it because it gave a negative message about the ergo and the characters who play them.
That being said the characters were quite likable in Oreimo. I had a couple problems with some of them though so let’s start with the good and end with the bad, shall we? Kyousuke was a great brother figure because he showed care and understanding for his unusual sister. He didn’t mock her, or laugh at her for liking ergo or anime in general for that matter. Considering he grew up with a father that absolutely detested the thought of his children liking such “vulgar” and “corrupted” media, he coped pretty well. I think that understanding and care was Kyousuke’s biggest plus. His sister was quite the character herself. Despite being such a stand-up person in societies eyes, top grades, athletic, funny, and model-level cute, she had her little secret as well. It was her secret that made her even cuter. When she got excited for a new release or while dancing to her favorite anime Meruru I couldn’t help but smile. Kirino’s friends Kuroneko and Saori were pretty cool as well. Saori didn’t play a big role in the series other than introducing Kirino to other anime watchers. Kuroneko on the other hand was probably the most mature and had her own little charm. She is a loving sister who happens to enjoy dark anime. The calm, collected Kuroneko is the polar opposite to Kirino and only anime brings them together. I feel that their anime connection is what a lot of anime viewers feel. Just as some of you watchers out there may disagree with some of my reviews, I still feel like that common subject can bring a community together. I really enjoyed the debates between Kuroneko and Kirino about what anime genre is better, because I know I’ve had the exact same debate with someone else. Though I don’t think I acted as offended as they did. I also liked the fact that Kuroneko pointed out Kyousuke’s addiction to helping his little sister and made a couple incest jokes here and there.. Finally, Kyousuke’s childhood friend, Manami, was another riot. Her undying love for Kyousuke was awkwardly obvious. Her shy personality made for quite an interesting side story as well.
Now here is where the bad comes in. After reading so much praise and love for the characters, you must have been expecting the negatives if you have read any of my past reviews. These same rants can be found in my first look and quick post of Oreimo as well. In case you didn’t get enough during this review that is. Kyousuke’s character model was very, very, understanding of Kirino’s situation. And to be a good brother he wanted to help his poor little sister out. I mean come on, middle school is such a chaotic time in a young girls life, right? Let me just say this to any brothers or sisters out there: helping your siblings is a good thing, following their every whim is not. Kyousuke seemed to have an obsession with helping his little sister out. Almost every episode consisted of a mini-plot development and then Kyousuke ending up humiliating himself to save his sister the embarrassment. Here’s a newsflash to all you guys, girls, mothers, and fathers out there: if you end up on your hands and knees begging executives, getting punched in the face multiple times, or wrecking your societal image for someone who shows little to no gratitude, IT ISN’T WORTH IT. I know a very difficult concept to wrap your head around. You can’t protect them from everything, they have to learn on their own. Spoon feeding and holding their hand should end well before middle school. I could not stand how little respect Kirino showed for her brother that did everything for her. If you do decide to pick up this series don’t go around punching holes in walls as I did because there is redemption in the end. I’m not sure if it makes up for everything, but at least it’s a start. Now I mixed in my rant about Kirino somewhere in there, so I will move onto her father and “best friend” Ayase. Her father flipped out when he discovered that his precious daughter liked anime. Now I wont bag on him for being against Kirino’s love for adult games because they would be illegal for her to play. Everything else didn’t seem to be that big of a deal though. I understand that anime doesn’t have the best history in making productive members of society, but come on. After that nuisance I turned my hopes to Ayase. That didn’t exactly end with skips through a flower garden and sunshine. Ayase flipped out even more than the father. She completely made a 180 and couldn’t be friends with someone who watches anime. How could you drop a friend because of a hobby like anime when it has had no effect on the relationship in the past? It looked like she was about to rip her head off in fury. God forbid you let her loose in an anime convention, that would end in a blood bath. I don’t go around expressing my passion for anime, but I’m pretty sure the worst I’ve got is “Oh.. heh… that’s cool” followed by an immediate subject change. These unbelievable outbursts and situations Kirino has to deal with seem completely unrealistic. I hate to call an anime unrealistic, because lets face it why would we want to be watching an animated reality show, but this is taking it over the top. The reactions are infuriating.
If you read my rant you can probably tell that I don’t fancy the story too much. I felt that it had great potential, but come on, after the summary how much did you expect? I did laugh at the beginning and toward the end. However, the middle consisted of me clenching my fists and sighing in disappointment at Kyousuke and Kirino. I’m thoroughly happy that they didn’t make the ending an incest lovers dream (though they hinted at it heavily), but that shouldn’t be something that I should need to worry about. At first I really enjoyed watching the relationship between the siblings grow and strengthen, but it turned out to be too much. I partly blame any drama that was caused by Kirino and blame the rest on Kyousuke’s obedient-dog attitude. And in the end, after going through hell and high water, I feel that nothing actually happened.
Final statements: If you want to watch a solid anime then don’t bother with Oreimo because I’m giving it a low priority watch. Most of that comes from a great animation style and good soundtrack. I laughed here and there and liked most of the characters (even some that I didn’t mention). If you are looking for an anime about otaku pick up Kuragehime instead. Trust me.