Admittedly it has been nearly a year now since I watched, "Shuffle!", and I've seen many anime shows before and after this and some of them sort of run together in my mind. The plot is outlandish but that's pretty common for the genre. Rin is a seemingly normal young man in school who was orphaned as a young boy. He has since lived with his childhood friend, Kaede who lost her mother in the same accident that he lost both of his parents. Everything changes one day when a devil princess moves into the house next to them and a princess of the gods moves in on the other side. Each are there to win his affections and become his bride.
This show is enjoyable enough from the start but it's really just typical harem anime fare with excessive fan-service. The fan-service, (mostly lots of big bouncy breasts), is understandable considered the source material and it may be a deal breaker for some and a deal maker for others. The story is serviceable but seems to run on rails as Rin works his way through the girls, so to speak. He spends time with them and seems to have made his choice but then he doesn't.
That's the first half of the show; the second half is what took me by surprise. About midway through the series things start to get deeper and darker and just all around cooler. Kaede's breakdown was intense and probably the highlight of the show for me. I've seen a few harem anime shows and that's the first time I ever thought one of the harem girls might actually snap and kill off some of her competition.
In the end, "Shuffle!", is a good watch. The main story is kind of weak but the characters are mostly likable and their development is pretty strong. It's a fun show that might surprise you with it's character's depth, especially after the somewhat misleading beginning episodes. If you like the harem style shows then I recommend this one.
This show is enjoyable enough from the start but it's really just typical harem anime fare with excessive fan-service. The fan-service, (mostly lots of big bouncy breasts), is understandable considered the source material and it may be a deal breaker for some and a deal maker for others. The story is serviceable but seems to run on rails as Rin works his way through the girls, so to speak. He spends time with them and seems to have made his choice but then he doesn't.
That's the first half of the show; the second half is what took me by surprise. About midway through the series things start to get deeper and darker and just all around cooler. Kaede's breakdown was intense and probably the highlight of the show for me. I've seen a few harem anime shows and that's the first time I ever thought one of the harem girls might actually snap and kill off some of her competition.
In the end, "Shuffle!", is a good watch. The main story is kind of weak but the characters are mostly likable and their development is pretty strong. It's a fun show that might surprise you with it's character's depth, especially after the somewhat misleading beginning episodes. If you like the harem style shows then I recommend this one.