Drama Digest
The beloved web novel by Yu Ren Erdai gets an anime adaptation. The story follows a high school student by the name of Yang Ming. Yang Ming is an underachiever who goes through all the classic high school shenanigans, such as fights, skipping classes, and cheating on his homework. However, one day, after being confronted by the school flower, he begins to feel ashamed and has a deep desire to change even though he feels like he has fallen too far behind. As luck happens to be on his side, he ends up acquiring a pair of contact lenses that allow him to change his perspective of the world. This change in visual perception completely alters the course of his future forever. But what is the price of this newfound perspective? Does he become better? Is there something that is going to come back to affect him later? Watch the anime and find out.
The Feel-Good Part
Harems usually get a bad rap for being just a fantasy of a bunch of girls chasing after an unlikely protagonist. The difference with this one is that it can switch the narrative around and give the chase some sense of meaning. The girls are not just blinding chasing him but rather it is because of his improvements. Another significant part of the story is that it pads out the harem tropes with an actual storyline of someone wanting to be better and not be perceived as the creep and failure everyone knows him to be.
The Disappointing Factor
While the drama does try and improve on the harem genre, it is still a part of it. The harem genre, no matter how you try and spin it, is still inherently problematic and in poor taste. The show to some degree falls into those tasteless tropes every so often that you are reminded that at the end of the day, it is a harem; unnecessarily lewd, with female characters that do not have any sense of agency and are 2-dimensional are just attractions for the main character. The magical element of the anime does seem a bit weak, and no matter how you see it it does still appear as a flimsy excuse to have 2-dimensional female characters.
In-Depth Analysis
Aside from the problematic nature of harems, the issue with this anime stems from its doubtful and unbelievable nature. There is a lot; magic, love triangles, harems, mobs, and gangsters. Whether or not harems need to be animated or given new life in the 2020s is up for debate, but this anime tries its best to turn the harem head in the right direction. With added elements and storyline elements, it tries its best to stand out. In some instances, it can, but in others, there is a lot that is desired and does not meet the mark. But it is interesting to see how a manhua gets translated into anime and whether or not it does the source material justice.
Star Power
The main star power of this anime comes from the novel it is based on and written by Yu Ren Erdai. His manga of the same name is otherwise known as So Pure So Flirtatious and runs for 373 chapters. The manga is in Chinese so it is fun to see how it gets translated into manga. This is Yu Ren Erdai’s only credited work, but it has managed to grow a following over its three years as a manhua. The anime is produced by Tencent Penguin Pictures Anime. The company is home to anime such as Quazhi Gaoshou, Mo Dao Zu Shi, Quanzhi Fashi, Ani ni Tsukeri Kusuri wa Nai!, Da Wang Rao Ming, and Biao Ren: Blades of the Guard. These anime are all Chinese and are a great insight into the Chinese animation world. The studio is producing this anime alongside Tencent Penguin Pictures Anime is Garden Culture, best known for anime such as Long Zu, Huyao Ziao Hongniang: Zhu Ye, Huyao Xiao Hongniang: Wei Sheng, Huyao Xiao Hongniang: Jin Chenxi, Liu Yao, and Cang Lan Hue.
Overall Opinion
Whether or not you give this anime a shot depends completely on you. Some elements are significant, and some components are not. It is an exciting look into how the harem has evolved and what it has to offer now. So purely for educational purposes, it is an exciting watch.
