Anime’s fantasy harem genre gets a harsh dose of reality in parody manga

Would it really be so great to have your all-female party instantly falling in love with you?

One of the grandest traditions in anime and manga storytelling is the isekai story, wherein the protagonist, generally an everyday teen or young adult, gets transported to another world. The appeal really isn’t all that hard to see.

If you’re listlessly slogging through school or an entry-level job, being whisked off to a fantasy realm, with a real quest giving your life a significant purpose that you can make clear-cut progress towards, can sound pretty nice. And if your fellow adventurers all happened to be attractive, friendly members of the opposite sex? Many would say that’s icing on the cake.

But as exciting as it might seem to flip the script of your life, suddenly finding yourself as the protagonist of an isekai harem epic doesn’t mean you’re going to abandon all of your real-world logic. Reality-based values might make that fantasy daydream a stress-filled nightmare, as shown in this manga from artist Marumikan, who goes by @maru3kan on Twitter (translations below).

ハーレム展開に厳しい勇者が旅に出てみた https://t.co/6nkUZQ4dai

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丸美甘 (@maru3kan) December 27, 2017

One day, Takeru, an ordinary high school boy, is transported to another world.
[right to left: Fighter, Magic-user, Hero, Cleric]
His quest to defeat the Demon King begins! And everyone else in the party is a girl!

A monster appeared! It used Tentacle Attack!

Fighter: “Kyaa! Hero, you looked at my panties just now, didn’t you?”

Hero: “Put on some damned pants!!!”

Hero: “If you’re a melee character and you know you’re going to be moving around a lot, why in God’s name are you wearing a skirt on this quest? If nothing else, aren’t you cold!? Girls who freeze their legs off while thinking ‘You have to bear with these things to be fashionable’ are committing a major logical fallacy!!”

Fighter: “I’m sorry…”

Fighter: “And you’re no better, Monster! What’s the point of attacking by sliding a tentacle across someone’s body!? Is that some kind of psychological warfare tactic!? We’re enemies coming to kill your boss. Try taking things a little seriously!”

Monster: “Sorry…”

Hero: “I’m really sorry I saw your panties! If it really bother you, Fighter, we can have a healer use potions or something to erase my memory of it.”

Cleric: “What a gentleman…. I’ve never met such a wonderful person before….

Magic-user: “Be my husband…”

Cleric: “No fair, Magic-user! I’ve got my eye on Hero too…”

Hero: “Is that all it takes for you to fall for a guy?!?”

Hero: “What the hell are you thinking, asking a guy you just met to get married? Do you understand how cute you both are? Have some self-respect!”

Hero: “If you’re already thinking I’m ‘The best guy you’ve ever met,’ that means you’ve met no one but lowlife jerks up until now! Try meeting more people and meeting each other’s families before you go doing that sort of thing!!”

Monster: “Umm… sorry to butt in, but….”
Monster is looking this way, and wants to join the party!
Hero: “Always good to have more members in the party!”
Fighter, Magic-user, Cleric: “That monster’s a female!”

It’s yet one more reminder that even when the real world has got you down, things might not actually be any better for you in another.

Source: Twitter/@maru3kan via Jin
Images: Twitter/@maru3kan

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