Tomoyuki
Exactly! The thing that pissed me off the most about MGA's harém was How the Females were simply too "untalented" to be able to follow the MC in his adventures. They were Just trophies that the MC conquered, their only use was to be f***** and ignored. And I quite liked their personalities, especially Su rou and Eggy, so It made me really disappointed in this novel.
Harem Female Personalities
- Edited
The worst thing is how they got raped by Chu Feng and then they just simply treat it as nothing and fall for him. Didn't he basically rape the daughter of an enemy clan and then marry her, and she for some reason doesn't even hate him or contemplate revenge? Or was it he raped her and then justified it as "punishment" for her crimes? What a hypocrite.
Also, I don't see any problem with a Girl becoming INTERESTED ( not in love, but interested ) in the MC. Because of his appearence, background, personality? It doesn't matter, personaly, I think that love begins with a interest, later after some trials and more development, the characters would truly fall in love with eachother.
Tomoyuki
I totallyagree with you, I mean I know I haven't read a lot of harem novels because I can be extremely picky, if a look at the outline or pick a random chapter and read carp then I won't touch that book again. It's only a few novels I've read that there is actually a reasonable reason for this or that person to fall in love with MC dearest but unfortunately after this few wins they usually relapse into the millions of nameless faces that are stashed in an interspatial palace accessible to only th mc.......honestly speaking it either gets too old or is morally and immorally disgusting, example of an eight year old with the soul of an ancient lust God raping his mother because the lust God had taken over the tiny kid's body....
And the concerned mother didn't even try to check him spiritually even tho she was a cultivator with a very high rank smh
Tomoyuki
As a girl I would intentionally distance myself from a guy with even only one girl, talk more of five.
Tomoyuki Oh yeah, I remember dropping MGA over that scene. I think it's around chapter 120? Basically, he has a marriage arranged with some girl who doesn't want to marry him, and he's not that interested either. The girl tries to trick MC into S.E.X. with her friend, who does like the MC. He finds out and as punishment, he beats the girl who likes him half to death and rapes the girl who doesn't.
After that point, I decided to read on a bit, because I thought that maybe, finally, Chu Feng would get the punishment he deserves for everything he's done. But then the next chapter he talks to the raped girl's master, who's also a woman, and she basically tells him: "That stuck-up girl had it coming. Well done."
Really couldn't stomach any more after that.
SociableHermit Yeah, that was utterly disgusting. The author doesn't treat women like human beings. He just sees them as...objects or trophies.
Blessing_Emmanuel_3403 Yeah, I thought that was normal behavior. But for some reason heroines in xianxia or Japanese stories don't seem to do that. Either they fight over one guy or agree to share him, which makes no sense to me.
Tomoyuki Wow what an incredible answer. I really agree with you and you really opened my eyes to what it is to write a story. I really really appreciate your answer. I didn't actually expect anyone to answer this question tbh.
I guess I really need to plan my characters out really well before I write my story, seems like I'm a bit influenced by all the harem novels I have read X) I will try to incorporate all of your tips into my story and hopefully make a really good harem story that actually has great depth in both plot and story.
Tomoyuki
So, um, after reading that quite long answer, I just want to ask, any good Harem story that could fit the criteria for that great answer?
GegeSadewa I honestly have no idea. Haven't read a good one. Hmm, I do like Kawaikereba Hentai demo Suki ni natte kuremasuka? That one was hilarious. I also like Gotoubun no Hanayome, because each of the five sisters have their own distinct personalities and don't necessarily depend on the protagonist (Futaro) like a crutch.
Tomoyuki
I could find "Kawaikereba Hentai demo Suki ni natte kuremasuka?" ( https://www.novelupdates.com/series/kawaikereba-hentai-demo-suki-ni-natte-kuremasu-ka/ )
But I could not find "Gotoubun no Hanayome".
I'm guessing that both are Japanese Novel.
Have you read "The Black Card" ? ( https://www.novelupdates.com/series/the-black-card/ )
I've just read your definition of good harem, and I compare it with most harem I already read, and they are not fit with you criteria. But then I read "The Black Card" and wondering is it good enough or not.
So maybe if you could also give opinion on the one inside that story? I just want to know other opinion.
( http://gravitytales.com/novel/the-black-card/tbc-chapter-1 )
Thank you.
Harem stories suffer from pretty much everything the wall of text said. Harem:ish situations, however, aren't entirely unrealistic though.
The girls were friends to begin with and the setting was naturally shared. That also means a more homogenous group (which would be 'less interesting' to read about), and the situation petered out into nothing as soon as that natural setting was no longer shared a year later. In the end there was nothing even resembling a lasting relation.
University party group, which makes it less strange.
Now, how to translate into existing fiction? I'd argue the Japanese manga centered around a high school club or university circle are reasonably realistic in terms of setting. Especially if that group doesn't interact with their environment all the time (which we did since it's hard to party with only five people).
Notably there were other girls present as well, but since they didn't belong to the existing group of friends they stayed the hell away from the hornets nest, so no introduction of new girls halfway through the story.
There is no true love, harem or warfare -route. When the setting dissolves the situation does as well. I'd say this kind of ending is pretty uncommon in the manga I read. Usually good stories with just about every reader comment screaming bloody murder since the ML didn't end up with anyone. Sorry to rain on your parade -- that's life.
My two cents on harem.
GegeSadewa Gotoubun no Hanayome is a Japanese manga, not a novel. It's serialized weekly. And I have not read The Black Card, so I'm afraid I don't know what it is about. Sorry.
It's usually written as "5-Toubun no Hanayome", since Go is Japanese for 5. Try searching for that. You shouldn't have a hard time then.
As with all things in stories, you write what you understand.
Most harem stories are written by and for horny teenage boys who fantasize about a collection of girls who will accept him, not matter how useless or awful he is, and never love with anyone else or ever get bored of or criticize him. They basically want a spineless mom who is also a fleshlight. That's what they understand. So that's what they write.
Most people you see criticizing the harem genre are basically everyone else who see most examples of it for the pandering, softcore pulp trash it is. And I say this as someone who has a "harem" in one of their stories. Harems are super hard to get right, and super easy to get wrong.
Done right, a harem isn't a harem, but rather a collection of interesting people who have legitimate reason to be interested in the MC, and legitimate aspirations of their own that can and should take precedence over their romantic interest in the Mc when the time comes. You know, like normal relationships.