Otoboku: Maidens are Falling for Me!

Otome wa Boku ni Koishiteru, Story: Hmm, the story lacked quite a bit, being sent to a all girl's highschool due to his grandfather's will? What's in it for the main character? The storyline basis lacks in detail and does not give enough information, but through witty plot's and lots of cross-dressing this piece makes you quickly forget what the storyline even is. Art: The art of course was amazing. Sound: Soundtrack fit the lalala atmosphere perfectly and the character voices were nothing but exquisite.Character: Who does not love a "Cross-dressing boy that actually looks like a girl" character? The main character is very important throughout the anime and makes you quickly forget that she's a boy, whoops I mean he's a boy :p. With an entourage of supporting characters that make the experience even better. Why did I like this anime? Not only is this anime hilarious, but it has the capability to make you forget even the key plots of the storyline. Through various experiences the characters mature and relationships form. This anime is the funny, not serious, non-sexual version of Strawberry Panic, and it packs a soft punch =)

'Otome wa Boku ni Koishiteru' is a unique anime in that it combines several themes that you think wouldn't work in a million years. A guy masquerading around an all-girls school in a girl uniform (inflatable pair of breasts included), a subtle haremesque Yuri and not so Yuri romance theme and last but not least - a bit of slice of life drama supplemented by brief and witty comedy. What's even more unique is that this combination works very well in this anime. I initially had low expectations and let's face it - the plot sounds corny. Once you start watching this series however, everythingbecomes clear and you'll be surprised just how well all of the components in this anime fit together. The story does a tremendously good job when it comes to plot & character progression and the pacing is fabulous. It's neither slow, nor rushed. The speed of progression over this 12 episode series is just right. It gives you enough time to process the information, cry over the dramatic scenes and/or fist pump the piece of atmosphere in your room to oblivion during the romantic scenes between the male lead and the girls. The concept itself might not be the most original (as in MC + obvious harem dramedy) but other factors such as the fact that the male lead is disguised as a girl and has to avoid detection make it more novel and interesting. That's not to say that the story here is flawless. No far from it as ironically it's the weakest component. While it has good pacing and certainly caries an interesting premise, it lacks direction. There's no definite conclusion here. No moral of the story. Additionally some of the initial questions are left unanswered all throughout the show. There's also one story arc that sort of ruins the seriousness of 'Otome wa Boku ni Koishiteru'. However I cannot mention exactly what it is and keep this review spoiler free. The characters themselves are some of the most virtuous characters that I've seen in anime. The male lead - Mizuho, is an epitome of moral excellence. A selfless boy who willingly accepts the task given to him - moving to an all girls school to complete his education. Once there he assumes a high communal position and becomes a paragon of virtue, staying under cover and helping out all the girls in any way he can. This is what I liked the most in this anime. Any other plot would see the male lead taking advantage of the situation and... doing some fairly stupid stuff. Not in here though as Mizuho is a true gentleman. The female characters were likewise extremely proper and looked up to the MC for guidance. Only 3 episodes in and you can clearly see that the connection between Mizuho and the girls is genuine and they work very well as a team. This in my opinion added to the realism of the series and gave it a lighthearted tone. Finally, there are a couple of female characters that are mysteriously drawn to Mizuho so the series naturally opens up the opportunity for romance and a bit of drama. Interesting to note however is that this romance and drama occurs in natural fashion rather than being forced upon the viewer out of trivial and otherwise superficial situations. Moving on, the art style and quality are impressive and perfectly supplement this anime's overall cheerful tone. Attention was paid to the characters as well as static backgrounds so the viewer is presented with a consistent experience. Voice acting was authentic and the voices fit the characters very well, especially Mizuho who sounded androgynous and as such made it more believable that he'd fit into an all girls school. The OST itself featured extremely relaxing music, the start of the first episode is a testament to that. And some classical music thrown in between too which completes this series. Overall, a near damn masterpiece. The story has some issues, mainly the fact that for the most part it doesn't have a clear direction + one arc that kind of ruined the seriousness of the plot. However, if one is to overlook these two problems then one will find that the story succeeds at most of the things it does. All other departments are either perfect or hovering a tiny bit below perfection. I have enjoyed this anime immensely from the start and have watched all the sequels and specials and while their enjoyability varies, the first season of 'Otome wa Boku ni Koishiteru' is not something to be missed. 9 points.

I just finished watching Otome wa Boku Koishiteru and I find it very good from the start till the last episode. =) It's categorized as a "Shoujo Ai" but since the main character is actually a boy, I consider it more like a super mass harem with an utmost gentle touch. It has a very creative plot, it's really funny at times, specially when the main character and his friends avoid being busted with their secret, and each episode turns out quite well. I recommend it to those who are not into pure girl to girl, Shoujo Ai. I like Shoujou Ai's because it's all girls, but forsome reason their pure girl on girl plots don't amuse me. I dropped anime like Strawberry Panic and Maria-sama after their first episode for it failed to give me enough interest. But this anime, Otome wa Boku ni Koishiteru is very different, because although they all seem like normal shoujo ai girls that emit a shoujo ai environment, the main character being a boy only hiding as a girl (meaning he's not gay) gives a great PLUS and will make viewers expect for further plot developments. A story didn't show much in the 12 episodes. It just shows how the main character progressed in an all-girls school for a whole year without knowing the real purpose for it, but his experiences are funny and really interesting that you won't complain much for not seeing a story. The last episode is more of a new beginning and not an ending, so a second season is a MUST to show more of the character's history and to finally develop the story and end it. I give it a good 7 for having a great story potential. The art was supposed to be great but their are a lot of times that the characters look disappointingly bad, so I give the art, a good 7. I didn't notice the sounds so much but it was fine, nothing to complain about, and the OP and ED songs are good. The sounds are a good 7 too. The characters are all good and they all fit in together well so I rate it an 8. I really enjoyed this anime so I give the enjoyment a very good 8.

As my good friend Admiral Ackbar would say, "IT'S A TRAP". Literally meaning that in more than one way, a person can be a trap any way you look at it. By means of physical form and forms of lies and mental deception. However you are eventually found out by means of stacking lie upon lie or your charming good looks will make it to second base. I was a bit disappointed though. Otome wa Boku ni Koishiteru didn't deliver, and I didn't expect it to with the abundance of titles that seem similar to it. I did enjoy it to some degrees but then it fellapart in many areas and I lost my interest mid way through. Well what went wrong? The title itself isn't even a shoujo-ai, I think someone may have pointed that out already. It's simply a harem style romance with little yuri involved, the main character is simply a trap (Male posing as a female). The series is hurt quite a bit due to Strawberry Panic being released only a couple seasons before it and that really destroys its points for originality. Any comedic moments would only be dwarfed by the hilarious parodies of Maria Holic. The story is fairly slow moving, you have the main male character inching closer to each female lead without ending up with one. In hindsight this title even fails at being your standard harem just because of that. Yeah you might be thinking its setting and story may be unique but its been done too many times already. 6 is all across the board here folks, I won't "trap" to you. The artistic side of the story is fairly simple, the series lacks detail on characters and background alike. Fairly simple animation that looks like it suffered budget cuts at the start of its season. The scenery isn't really seen all that often, mostly on occasion outside of the school has a fall type setting. Background noise was lacking as well, I only really payed attention during the opening theme and break transitions which I started skipping later. I couldn't even make out a note during showtime, maybe it was playing on -90dbs? Oh I also forgot to mention the character's heads looks hugely out of proportion to their tiny bodies, felt a bit odd. Being a huge trap fan I was hoping for some consistency and exposure, didn't happen. The series lacks consistency, it shifts the mood gears too often but I guess that's romance. Maybe its not my thing, I feel romance needs a touch of jealousy in harems, this sure didn't present that. Lets not forget the shemale now. This is where I laughed a bit, one episode the character was in a two piece bikini with full breasts and everything. Some episode down the road they're falling off. Odd how that works, oh wait it doesn't. I was a bit angry when it was all flogged and greased they didn't even bother exposing him to the entire school body. Please, that's a ritual for any series with traps. First, exposure then leftover guilt followed by a big group hug. Maybe im just delusional and don't watch as much as I think I do. Forgot the yuri again, look at the harem. He doesn't even pick a girl that he likes, you forgot something. I think he might be gay, he looks like a catcher to me. Just the idea of the main character disguising as a female doesn't take the effect away that its still a trap, but people forget that. Hey now, it wasn't all that bad though. Its a fuzzy heart story about someone who doesn't want to do but does anyway. The result is coming out on top and making endless numbers of friends. Our friendly neighborhood trap is the center of attention through unusual circumstances and puts together his own little troop of friends and great memories. Yeah it lacked a lot but I had to punch a few sandbags after I was done. The tags are a bit faulty, give it a try though if you like something warm and fuzzy with that deceptive trap.