stewart.wunsch - 2013-08-12 02:09:35

*This is my first review so please try to keep that in mind when criticizing*

My first review on this website and what a show I picked. Oreimo, short for Ore no Imōto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai (Thanks Wikipedia) is an anime that follows the story of our protagonist Kyosuke Kousaka who is really nothing more than a normal 17 year old high schooler with normal boy problems. However things start to become strange for him when he stumbles upon a Magical Girl DVD in his house. When he opens up the DVD, he discovers that there is a disc of an eroge also known as a hentai game.

(NO YAMAZAKI)

Anyway......he discovers that this eroge belongs to none other than his little sister and one of the most popular female characters to spawn out of recent anime in the last few years, Kirino Kousaka. I will go more into her character later in the review. That night Kirino decides to show Kyosuke her large collection (even by Otaku standards) of Magical Girl anime and eroge and makes him promise that he won't tell a soul about her mega-otaku nature. This becomes the start of a very eccentric, yet strong (and may or not be) romantic relationship between the brother and sister.

Ok I'm not going to lie to you, this show is just WRONG in many ways. There are constantly signs of incest between the two, which becomes almost just downright sick when the two decide to play these *hentai games* together. However, none of this even came close to phasing me (and obviously most other viewers) since we're experienced enough with the otaku nature to know that this is not uncommon in anime. It could also be that we really are just that weird. So to someone who's never seen the show, how this is show so popular and well received among anime fans? Because its a guilty pleasure. Its sad that I have to resort to such a bad excuse to say why I was so engrossed in a show in my first review, but there is really no other way to explain it. However, this show isn't just good because of it being a guilty pleasure, its a lot deeper than that.

Story:

I don't want to go to into the story as one of my biggest pet peeves is spoilers (as it should be with everyone), so I won't go too far. In short, the story follows Kyosuke giving his little sister "advice" (not that kind of advice.....I think), about how to deal with her Otaku nature helping her every step of the way. This isn't some masterful story with a shocking climax and a break-taking ending, however Kyosuke's and Kirino's often wacky adventures are more than enough to keep you coming back every week (or keep you glued to your seat) to see what will happen next. Again, there isn't much here to discuss in terms of story without spoilers, but it does what a good story is supposed to and keeps you engrossed and coming back for more.

Characters:

There is a lot to discuss here concerning characters, but I'll try my best not to bore you so here we go:

Kyosuke Kousaka

As I said earlier, he's a 17 year old high school boy who after discovering his little sister's otaku obsession, decides to do whatever he can to help her for reasons even he cannot understand. Some people say its "love", but I believe its just the innate nature of a big brother to help out his little sister. The relationship between him and his sister makes for some of the best scenes in the entire series and there is amazing character development between the two. Just know that he is a great main protagonist, in an age where that's still a hard thing to find (Isn't that right....Yuki).

Kirino Kousaka

(We men are known to go to extreme measures for our faping)

Kirino is Kyosuke's 14 year old little sister, who can be described best as a popular, beautiful, perfect middle schooler.....if it wasn't for the fact she is secretly a Hentai-loving tsundere. Which also happens to be two of Japan's favorite things (now I understand why she's so popular). However, this doesn't mean she's a boring or cliched character. There is never a dull moment when Kirino's on the screen whether she's tsundere-ing it up with Kyosuke or obsessing over her eroge. (A note, I found her specific fetish in her eroge to be MUCH more amusing than it is creepy and her explanation to Kyosuke was probably one of my favorite parts of the show.) Despite not being the main protagonist, she gets ample amount of screen time and much consider her to be the star of the show. Personally, I found her quite annoying at times as I've seen the big brother-little sister relationship before in real life and she takes being a "bitch" to a whole new level on occasion. (I would've slapped her after that porn magazine incident). However, despite my problems with her, I still love her in the "she really is that cute" kind of way.

Now that we're done with the main characters, I'll give a short description on the side characters

Ayase Aragaki - Kirino's popular best friend who also does modeling with her (Did I forget to mention Kirino models? How else would she pay for all that eroge.) However, she doesn't know about Kirino's otaku obsession since it would obviously break the two of them up. She doesn't get TOO much screen time, and she's like Kirino in a lot of ways which is understandable, yet disappointing. Like Kirino, she may or may not have a crush on Kyosuke as well.

Saori Makishima - One of two of Kirino's new otaku friends who also leads and otaku club for women. She soon also befriends Kyosuke as well and she is often the peacemaker between Kirino and her other new friend Kuroneko (Ruri Goko). Despite her very eccentric nature, she is often the most sensible one in the show since she is always there to help out Kyosuke and Kirino in a pinch.

Kuroneko - The other of Kirino's new friends who is also an otaku nut, but is the complete opposite of Kirino in terms of the anime she watches. She watches more dark anime and often debates with Kirino why her favorite anime, Meruru, sucks. She also befriends Kyosuke and like Ayase, may or may not have a crush on him (I swear this isn't a visual novel).

(You can probably guess who is who)

Manami Tamura - She is Kyosuke's childhood friend and like Kyosuke is as normal as it gets. They are often seen together and while its obvious from the start that she has a big crush on him, but Kyosuke is just too much of a dumb high school boy to pick up on it. She doesn't always fall into the "I hope senpai notices me" trope that most girls fall in since she isn't obsessed with Kyosuke, but its pretty close.

The rest of the characters aren't really important enough to write about, but these are the ones to keep in mind.

Overall great cast of characters, some are a little predictable or bland, but they're all really good at what they do, keeping the viewer entertained.

Animation/Sound:

This anime was produced by A-1 pictures who also produced shows like the two other very well known anime, Black Butler and Sword Art Online. But this is a slice of life anime and as such, the animation and sound are exactly as should be. Not Fate/Zero, but not terrible (Pretty sure I just threw any cred I may have just recently built by comparing this show to Fate/Zero). This show does its job in terms of animation and sound though. It sets the mood while never really taking away from the experience. However, special mention goes out here to Irony by Claris for the AMAZING opening song that plays during what would've otherwise been a pretty normal opening. It was one of the biggest things I looked forward to while watching the show. Take a listen for yourself.

There's not much else to say about the animation and sound, it'd be like talking about the story and character development of an anime like Highschool of the Dead.

Enjoyment:

As I will again repeat, this show is just wrong. One can even go as far as to say that its a symbol of everything wrong with anime. Incest, fanservice of 14 year old girls, cute moe aspects. But here's the best part, I really don't care.This show knows that its already an exploit of the current otaku nature, yet maintains a high level of enjoyment, never making anything feel cringeworthy. Added to that some great voice actors and you got yourself a great show.

That's right I said it, this show is great. I don't care if people judge me because chances are you either like the show yourself or just haven't seen it yet. And if you haven't and you're ok with the whole may or may not be incest motif then seriously check this show out.

Well I hope you enjoyed this review because it took a few hours to write, but I certainly enjoyed doing it. Now off to watch the OVAs and season 2.

melyna49 - 2013-07-31 05:25:14

I have to admit it, when I saw this announced, I really hoped something hardcore like Yosuga no Sora: "To hell the whole world, we'll find our own happiness". But it really don't disappoint me, it makes me hold a heartbeat with every hardship that both protagonist have to face in order to get close together and come upon their feelings.

It make me rediscover me as an otaku and feel proud about. It teach me that true friendship is something that endure time and trials and tribulations.

koch.maxie - 2013-07-07 09:22:03

This Anime isn't anything new or original and it is not anything great, but it is a nice show with a tiny bit of drama but made up no mostly comedy and some cuteness thrown in for good measure. Its about a little sister who secret of being an Anime/Manga/Visual Novel otaku is leaked to her brother, and from then on its all Kyousuke the older brother helping her out with 'Life Couselling' as she has to deal with the secret being known to there parent, old friends and how she comes to know some new friends with the same interest.There are a lot of parts of this show that we see quite often, the brother sister bond, now this show doesn;t do what a lot of shows do, there isn't any romance, its about them becomeing closer as family. Another thing is the otakuness about keeping her secret and is nothing we haven't seen in Nogizaka Haruka, there are even those fan clubs with the uniform we see often.The art for this show is really nice, it doesn't stand out as anything flashy but its use of soft tones really make it a relaxing show. The characters are well drawn and although it does use the cliche of having odd hair colors it doesn't go overboard with it and it doesn't stand out too much. Animation is genrally smooth an there arn't any huge pointers that spoil it.The sound is ok, the opening song is fun to listen to but i guess is a little generic, the ending though has a different song after each episode wich i quite nice as it add a little extra after you finished watching just to see what will play, each though is mostly a fun bubbly song sung by the seiyu of Kirino. The voice actors all do a good job, no one sounded forced and was always natural sounding but other than that it didn't stand out.Characters are great, Kyousuke is a great character, he's stoic but not all the time as his patience with Kirino is tested and can probably be compared to Kyon, though not as cool, and although reluctant he always gives a helping hand to Kirino. Kirino can be rather tsundere, she gets all embaressed when trying to thank her brother or gets all giggle when playing eroge, she can be rather cute at certain poits which i guess is one of the Animes selling points. The friends Kuroneko and Saori offer a different perspective, Kuroneko dresses in gothic lolita style clothing and seems to reference the world as a demonic fantasy type place, but she is willing to offer help as seen in various episodes. Saori is the super geek type, dressed rather guy like with thick glasses but throughout the show we are teased with the fact she has a different life style of an Ojou. Kirino and Kyousukes parents are very strict on her otaku habits and dislike it a lot but come to accept it, there father is extremly tsundere which is very amusing. All other side characters are all different and funny especially Manami's grandfather.The shows main theme is family. A brother and sister starting off as rather distant siblings but through various activities they become closer as siblings should. It offers a decent amounto of comedy and slice of lide all the while being cute. definitely a show that should be watched.

bridgette.orn - 2013-07-04 04:10:16

First off, let me begin by explaining how this show (And in this case, this first season) is for people who enjoy their otaku life and want to laugh about otaku moments that happen to others. The show is not necessarily about that but thats the premise of it. It follows the life of Kyousuke and his little sister, Kirino, who tells him about her little sister eroge obsession. It is looked down upon to like any sort of anime or to be an otaku so she has to hide it from all her friends and family, except Kyousuke, who often has to cover for her when people suspect she may like anime/eroge.

Characters:

The characters are likable and each have their own personality that can be unique and add to the shows continuous theme of family love. Some characters don't get explained until later on in the series (Specifically season two) and it makes you wonder why they are who they are. The characters really pull you in.

Story:

If you think this is a typical slice of life anime, then you are dead wrong. It has many different themes to it, it is very intense, and some plot may not fit in with that category at times. There is enough of a story to make it so it isn't a mindless anime.

Sound:

The soundtrack is amazing. It is peaceful but another track could be sassy and so on and so forth. The soundtrack never fails to amuse me and amaze as I listen to it. All the OST/Songs fit in with the anime perfectly as well.

Overall: This anime is a beautiful masterpiece in anyway you look at it. The second season may not be as good as this but it is still worthy to keep the title of 'Oreimo' or the japanese title that is too long for me to remember... But anyways, every anime lover/otaku should watch this anime as it has something for everyone!

hunter.powlowski - 2013-07-03 18:44:47

I have to be honest, I only started watching this series because many of the series I was watching ended. I only came across this series on my blog. I thought "hey why not give it a try?" No, I don't have a fetish for little sisters. I don't even have a sister to begin with. I digress.(SPOILER ALERT)I didn't expect much from this series then being the standard ecchi-anime. However, it was more than that. It kind of delved into the relm of your normal "growing up/slice of life" anime where the heroine/hero is really cold and warms up but still is cold- the cliche Tsundere anime. I saw a lot of similarity between Kirino and Taiga from Toradora. Especially in one seen where Kirino head-butts Kyosuke, Taiga does the same thing to Ryuji. Otherwise, they both take on the tsundere role. We get a little more "cuteness" from Kirino by the end, but still the coldness she directs towards her brother. The rest of the characters seem rather dull. The one other character I found interesting was Saori. We get glimpes of her true self in some episode, but the rest of the characters are clueless as to who she really is. We get a sense of her true identity when Kirino informs Kyosuke that Saori lives far. It was safe to assume she was well off without even showing her living room in some episodes. I would also like to see more character development of Kirino and even some of Ayase. Maybe even a budding romance between Kyosuke and Manami, but from the looks of it, the creators wanted to rap up their relationship to just as "childhood friends" in the one episode when Kyosuke spends the night with Manami.I hope they do something well with the second season. I hope to write a review for that one once they complete it. Look forward to it!

bartell.salvatore - 2013-06-28 08:18:31

Review out of 100. 35 for Story, 35 for Characters, 15 for Sound, and 15 for Animation.Story: (27/35) Much better than you would expect, but you need to watch the OVA's for a good ending. Has an incomplete story.Characters (28/35) Overall pretty decent. Work very well together, but aren't anything special on their own. Sound (11/15) Slightly above average. Animation (13/15) Very well done, everything looks very fluid and bright. Overall (79/100) Will break the expectations you had for it, but aside from that there are better things to watch. Admit it, when this show first came out you all thought it was some weird show about a guy trying to get with his sister. Well, you might not be all that wrong depending on how the second season turns out. But this review is only for the first season, and the first season is surprisingly decent. It isn't anything amazing, but it was a lot better than I was expecting. I was expecting incest, mixed with a harem, and as we probably know, that doesn't make for the best plot. Thankfully, there is neither in season one, and the show is a surprisingly good slice of life about two siblings trying to get along better. There isn't much more to it than that. It's pretty much about Kyousuke and Kirino and how they have become closer siblings and friends through Kirino's eroge addiction, while also helping her hide that from some of her friends (and helping her make new ones). Yeah, it's a little weird, but it's original and doesn't seem all that weird when you are watching it. You should keep in mind a few things though, there are 4 extra OVA episodes, so if the ending in episode 12 seems weird, it's because there are 4 more episodes that properly end the show. That ending is actually pretty good, but the REAL ending isn't until season two. Sadly, season two is much worse than season one, and the odds that it will turn into incest and the like also increase exponentially. So if you arent into (potential) incest and don't like stories with a "proper" end, you might want to steer clear of this one. The story wasn't anything special, but it gets this moderately high score for completely breaking everyone's expectations. (27/35)The characters really shine in this show. Kyousuke is a pretty good main character, especially with his interactions with the rest of the cast. All the other main characters are girls and they are all pretty lovable in some way. Kuroneko is probably everyone's favorite girl, Saiori is oddly the most normal of the group, and everyone else has some stuff going for them. But the way they act around eachother is what make them shine. (28/35)The production vales for this show are moderately high. The music is pretty average, maybe a little above average, but have some pretty generic pop songs as an opening and ending. (11/15) The animation on the other hand is very very good. It is really smooth and everything just looks good. No complaints here (13/15)Overall, this show will probably beat the expectations you have for it, even after reading this review. Don't get me wrong though, this show isn't anything special, and we have yet to see how good the ending is (either way, season two is quite bad as it is), but if you want an example of a show you shouldn't judge by it's title/cover, this is a good choice. (79/100)

kwehner - 2013-06-28 07:50:57

Before starting, a few notes as usual.

#1. Mildly incestuous. Watch with an open mind or do not watch at all, got it?

#2. Awesome. Please watch it.

#3. May appeal slightly more to fangirls than fanboys. The wonderful pairings though.

This is easily one of my favorite animes of all time, up there with Haruhi, Sword Art, Railgun, Nyarko, and awesome stuff like that. It's cute, it's emotional, and it's funny. And all on top of that it actually has a meaning to it that fans of anything can understand. WHAT MORE DO YOU NEED PEOPLE!

STORY

The story is adorable, and not just a succession of one shot things like most slices of life. Everything feels like a continuous story. And what a story it is, full of romance, relationships, and fandom. The story tends to revolve around how society perceives people, with the female lead being a major league otaku and eroge player. This causes problems with her family and friends, some of whom accept her hobby and some of whom do not. There are the complex and realistic love stories, which are both understandable and compelling. Of course, the main one of these being the uncertain relationship between Kirino and her brother Kyosuke. Are they in love, are they friends, are they enemies, are they siblings? And whats going on between Kirino and Kuroneko? Kyosuke and Ayase? The story fully explores the relationships between each and every character in an amazing way, giving each and every interaction meaning and life. And it also deeply investigates how society treats otaku, with plenty of discrimination towards Kirino and her hobby. One of her best friends, Ayase, struggles to support Kirino and her hobby while feeling incredibly uncomfortable about it. Kyosuke trying to rekindle his relationship though otaku-dom with his sister after many long years. Kirino's dad saying "hell no" to his daughters hobby. Ok. I need to end this section before I become unable to stop writing it.

CHARACTER

I love these people dearly. They almost seem more real than some actual people I know, which is probably more a commentary on me than the anime. But you really get to know them. They are shown in their ups and downs, at home, with friends, alone, wherever they are how they act and who they are. We have the protagonist, Kyosuke, who just wants to be average due to a long ago tragedy. He's kind, helpful to a fault, and always sees the good in people. Then Kuroneko, who lives in a fantasy world apparently for the hell of it. She's surprisingly manipulative, yet oddly kind, plotting how to achieve a perfect ending for everyone. She wants the best for everyone, and yet spends half her time cosplaying and cursing people. There's Kirino, master of little sister eroges. She's stubborn to a fault, delighted by anything related to her hobby, and a tsundere to every single person she meets. She struggles with her relationship with her brother, and how she should feel about him. But. To quickly wrap this one up too, all the characters feel believable and lovable. Go fall in love with them as I have.

ENJOYMENT/OVERALL

WATCH THIS SHOW FOR THE LOVE OF ANY DEITY OF YOUR CHOICE! But seriously, the only thing I can complain about is the animation. It's no Bakemonogatari. But that is literally it. The story is great. The characters are great. The message is great. You simply cannot use enough adjectives to mean "awesome" to describe this show. Go see it. Go love it. You will not regret it.

felicita56 - 2013-06-21 18:00:57

Whoa! What a surprise, after I've read the tags I had a quite low expectation about this series since Slice of Life animes are usually really boring and tends to repeat the same arks over, and over again - yes I'm speaking to you K-ON.Story: 7This anime tough me not to judge a book by it's cover, or should I say not to judge an anime by it's cover? A very good plot with enjoyable and funny scenes, the producer keeps a good balance between filler episodes and plot driven episodes making the anime feel new every time you finish an ark.Art: 8As far as animation goes it's properly the best part about this anime, a very vibrant, colorful, crisp animation.Sound : 5Despite the good art and story, the music seems too repetitive to me. Though there were good it was repeating ever, or ever other, episode.Character: 7After watching this anime, I've related to the character so much that I couldn't find an anime with a similar and well done cast like this.Overall: 8I have no idea I wound enjoy a S/OL like this. Not sure if the anime got this high of a mark because I had so low of an expectation for this anime, or the anime was genuinely good.Should you watch the anime?Well, for you ecchi and/or slice of life fans you should give this a try. However for anyone else, watch the first 3 episodes of this anime, if you don't like it after that then don't watch it. Also there're no incest love type of thing, well unless if we're talking about Kirino's eroge collection, so sorry don't bother looking for it.Thanks for reading.~Jirawaa22 : Jack

bethany55 - 2013-03-21 02:10:04

Otaku activity, like watching anime and especially playing eroges is usually viewed to be a hobby of a young adult males that are a little outcast. Surely, there's no way that a model middle schooler could do things like that.

Or is there a way? Ore no Imouto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga Nai is an anime that tells you a story of a high schooler named Kyousuke Kousaka. His relationship with his sister named Kirino Kousaka is pretty troublesome, and the anime centers around that relationship. I have always liked sister & brother stories, and on top of that the anime also involves a lot of otaku culture in it. Kirino is a top achiever in her school, great athlete and also a model. And, when no one sees, she also plays eroge games and watches anime. One night, she shows her secret to his brother and asks for a life counselling. The idea itself is pretty unique to me, and from the start this anime seemed to be very funny. The story itself is not bad, but what I really liked was the characters, Kirino is a a character that you want to hug tightly, but at the same time you want to beat him to death. It seems like she is your usual tsundere, but I think she is more than that. Kirino's father is an old fashioned man that has no tolerance for things like eroge. And her mother is your typical kind mother. The only character which I didn't like that much is, surprisingly, the main character. Kyousuke could have had some balls to stand up against his sister. Their relationship works fine this way also, but I would have wanted to see him getting really mad at Kirino some times.

When you put this setting into action, you can't have a bad anime. Kyousuke's and Kirino's relationship is one very interesting thing, It's like you are waiting for them to either kill each other or commit something that is also illegal at any point. It doesn't help that Kirino also plays eroges that have the objective of charming your own little sister, the sibling complex is there all the time, kinda lurking in the shadows when Kirino acts all tsundere and I love it. But there's no way that Kirino would ever look her brother that way right, it would be gross! However, in her games it's not. At the same time Kyousuke just tries to not give a fuck and just help his sister. When you mix this up with very tight dad that has no understanding for anything like that, you get very comical and enjoyable anime.

The otaku culture is also very relevant in this anime. Part of this anime deals with problems that one faces when prejudged based on his hobby. You play eroges, so you are a gross human being. This anime really tries to break that and teach you that any thing that brings you such joy and unifies people like that can't be that bad. At least I saw a meaning like that behind this anime, which is a nice thing. In the end, it's just a hobby, but all people don't understand that. That plus Kirino's and Kyousuke's relationship really made this anime worthwhile. I must also mention that is was funny to see her playing those eroges, since I have played some myself and all those things that happen in that anime regarding that are very true. Anyone who watches anime can relate himself to this story and feel accepted.

The ending changes every episode, and there is not even one bad ending there, I liked them all. On top of that, I loved The opening. The art seems to be your normal modern style art, very bright colors that actually do fit very well in this anime.

This anime was very funny and at the same time very interesting anime that still didn't forget to convey some kinda message through you. You won't waste your time watching this.

mbartoletti - 2013-03-17 06:39:38

When a friend suggested this anime to me, I was hesitant at first. "The main character's sister is addicted to some porn games", "So you really want me to believe that this isn't going to be hentai", etc. After I watched it, I realized how my prejudices shaped how I feel about things. 

The story is magnificent and explores how people are treated and viewed because of what their beliefs are associated with, without thinking about them as an individual. 

Story - 9/10

The animation scenes are very well done. While not highly detailed and intricate, it is still very good. 

Animation - 7\10

While the soundtrack is good, it felt pretty generic. No songs stood out or were memorable. The voices are well done and chracters can be easily distinguished.

Sound - 7/10

The characters in OreImo are a mixed bag. While some chracters stand out and are very memorable, others are the same staple characters that you find in most anime. 

Characters - 7/10

Watching OreImo was fun. I liked most of the episodes but there were episodes that I think are just wastes of time, because they didn't stand out and weren't memorable at all. 

Enjoyment - 9/10

Overall - 8/10