Seiren (original) (raw)

This is one of those anime that I found on Facebook whose visuals made me want to watch. This I did despite negative reviews.

Seiren is a sequel to the anime Amagami SS, which I haven't watched as of this writing. It's said to be similar in format, namely an Omnibus, which is similar to different paths of a visual novel. Each arc, though it has the same characters, is from a different timeline. The MC will end up with a different girl per arc. In the case of Seiren, each arc is made of 4 episodes, so there are three girls in total.

It's not actually... too bad that I think it's a wasted time. You can be quite amused playing the episodes. But it's not exactly great either. The MC is forgettable.

In fairness to it, one of the good things to come from watching it is making me interested in watching other anime that uses the Omnibus format, namely Amagami SS which is said to be more decent.

It has a few fanservice, but it's more on innuendo. It's not blatant such as too many boob and panty shots, but it can get steamy.

Let me talk a bit about the arcs.

Arc 1: Same year as mc. The best girl but with a weak arc. She is the most attractive, but it's ambiguous if she ended up with him or not. The first three episodes are so-so, but I loved the last episode because she had a hot, steamy scene. But this can also be annoying because of the weak mc.

This arc deserves 12 episodes to fully flesh out.

Arc 2: A year ahead of the mc. The coolest girl you can hang out with. She may have a better figure than the first girl but does not have the same sex appeal. She has the best arc, but it seems that the romance between her and the MC is forced.

Arc 3: One year the MC's junior. The cutest girl but her character design is generic. She reminds me too much of Nayuki from Kanon and Akebi from Akebi's Sailor Uniform.

Her arc is mediocre but executed so well. It's the only arc that I think is best fit for the 4-episode limit.

She has the most chemistry with the MC. As an individual, she is not as great as the first two girls. But if she can vibe well with the MC, it also means that she is the only girl that the MC can realistically handle.

Conclusion:

It's a so-so-watch but not something that I would caution others not to watch. It's okay to pass the time, but if you are bothered by weak male characters, this is not for you.