Princess Lover!

Teppei Arima seeks peace in the embrace of his loving grandfather after a devastating automobile tragedy shatters his world. He has no idea that this unexpected sanctuary will catapult him into a world of grandeur and privilege, far apart from his humble beginnings.

Isshin Arima, a wealthy and influential figure, reveals to Teppei a glittering existence that defies his assumptions and leaves him speechless. Join us on an exciting journey through the corridors of money, ambition, and passion. Witness Teppei's metamorphosis from a young teenager dealing with grief to a figure of the elite, where love, responsibility, and the pursuit of his own identity all intersect. Prepare to be charmed by the intriguing experiences that await him as the tapestry of his new life develops.

Princess Lover!, also known as “Purinsesu Rabā!” is an anime directed by Hiromitsu Kanazawa, written by Makoto Nakamura, and produced by GoHands as the animation Studio's first production. It was initially shown as a video in a public screening in Akihabara in June 2009, and then again in June 2009 at Television Kanagawa's Tvk Anime Matsuri exhibition in Nippon Seinenkan in Shinjuku. Both events included a public screening of the anime's first episode, as well as Umineko no Naku Koro ni and other anime for the Tvk Anime Matsuri event.

The anime first aired on Japanese television in July 2009, on the Chiba TV and TV Kanagawa networks, and ended in September 2009. In the webcast area, they also offered an unedited version. Fun fact: Princess Lover! was one of five anime titles (together with KonoSuba, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, Zombie Land Saga, and Nekopara) banned by the Russian government in May 2021 for depicting reincarnation.

This anime series was based on the same-named visual novel and consisted of 12 episodes lasting 23 minutes. Ecchi belongs to the Comedy category; its topics were harem and school, and it was rated R+ for its Mild Nudity. Hoods Entertainment produced a two-part Princess Lover! Adult OVA titled "Public Enemies" in September 2010.

It stars Sylvia as the main character and includes a unique plot with several sensual moments. The adult anime label published it on DVD as well. Princess Lover! began as a collection of light novels written by Utsusemi and illustrated by Hyūma Kitsuhi. The first novel in the series, Princess Lover! Silvia van Hossen's Romance debuted in November of 2008. Princess Lover! is the title of the second novel in the series.

In May of 2009, Charlotte Hazelrink's Romance was released. Kill Time Communication published these light novels in conventional and limited editions. Princess Lover has also inspired three manga adaptations! Naoha Yuigi, a Japanese artist, created the first manga series. “Princess Lover!—Pure My Heart” was also serialized in Comic Valkyrie by Kill Time Communication. Shu illustrated the third manga, “Princess Lover! Eternal Love For My Lady”, which was serialized in ASCII Media Works' Dengeki Moeo magazine. Each manga was later compiled into a single volume.

His grandfather has taken in Teppei Arima after his parents are killed in an automobile accident, and he is exposed to the lifestyles of the wealthy and privileged. Given his impoverished beginnings, Isshin Arima's opulent lifestyle astounds the youngster.

In exchange for the lavish hospitality, Teppei is expected to carry on the family company by succeeding his grandfather as the head of Arima Financial Combine, and he is enrolled in a prestigious high school to prepare him for these obligations. Along with his newly gained celebrity status and wealth, Teppei is notified of a wedding arrangement with the similarly wealthy Sylvia van Hossen, kicking off the exciting adventures of his new life!

The main cast in the character department is exciting and adds many positives to the show. Male harem protagonists usually fall into one of two groups: the losers or the kind-hearted saviors. Surprisingly enough, Teppei doesn’t fall right into either one at first because within this outwardly playful character is a young boy struggling to deal with his past and moral dilemmas.

Four leading heroines also received decent development through the course of the series. Granted, some of the girls receive better treatment than others, but that’s honestly fine in my book. I did find two of the ladies to be quite similar in design and personality to two more well-known girls from other series. Whether this was intentional or not is unknown to me, but those two were also the most interesting of the four.

As for the remainder of the cast, only Teppei’s grandpa remained noteworthy, while the entirety of the Supporting cast remained sub-par and relatively redundant. Honestly, killing off some of them wouldn’t have affected the story at all and might have actually made the series a bit better. Teppi, Charlotte, Seika, Yuu, and Sylvia remain prominent throughout, but only Teppi and Charlotte have significant screen time. The rest don't accomplish much until the conclusion.

The Art and Animation in Princess Lover were quite average—nothing eye-catching and practically nothing distractingly terrible. If I had one criticism of the Art, it would be that most of the primary female characters had breasts too large to be believable. I generally find female characters more appealing when I believe that spotting someone with their size in real life is not unattainable. Again, this is an ecchi and harem series, so this isn’t a glaring issue.

The majority of anime viewers picture an average male in a harem of three or more out-of-reach girls in a peculiar setting full of breast-grabbing and constant flashing. Does Princess Lover fit into this dreadful category? Yes, but given that it's based on a famous visual novel, it can do much more than most harems struggle to achieve. That potential was evident in its characters but tragically wasted with its weak tale.

The plot is standard, yet it is engaging enough to keep most people intrigued. It's about an ordinary adolescent guy named Teppei who lives an everyday life with a typical family. Then stuff happens, and our protagonist is compelled to live with his super-rich grandfather and transfer to some ridiculously fancy school. It's just as the synopsis reads, so don’t expect a grand tale here.

There isn’t much to be said about the Sounds and Music department. The Music is not memorable, and the Sounds were decent at best. The Opening theme is "Princess Primp!" by Miyuki Hashimoto, and the Ending theme is "S.S.D" by yozuca*, both of which are just fair. The Voice Acting was pretty good, and I commend their performances—no complaints in this department, but no praise either.

One aspect of the show that troubled me was how straightforward the concepts were, yet how it failed to come up with reasonable solutions for their pressing problems. “Greater money, greater troubles” is one of the core themes here. Another apparent theme is that "poor people shouldn't take on affluent individuals for their poverty; they should simply stop being poor."

This simply left me with a sour taste in my mouth, for obvious reasons. I would have been much more satisfied with the story's quality if they had left several characters and story points up to the spectator to judge what was acceptable and unacceptable.

Overall, Princess Lover is a series that could end the cycle of conventional harems that tend to arrive year after year. Still, it only added to the harem genre's already tarnished reputation. Some of the condemnation is placed on the villains, who were among the worst ever created, but I choose to condemn the real-world villain here—the fool who came up with this nonsense.

So, if you don't mind what I've mentioned, go ahead and watch; nonetheless, I believe it's more valuable to sit and await the next Key & KyoAni collab. This is a pretty average show; I recommend it if you’re highly into the Harem and/or Isekai genres. It actually starts off good and promising but goes downhill way too fast in the second half.