Nakaimo: My Sister is Among Them! (Review)
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| Image from Wikipedia.org |
Background: This show centers around the life of Shogo Mikadono. He is the son of the President of the Mikadono Group, a powerful Japanese corporation that makes everything from cell phones to swimwear. The show begins at Shogo's father's funeral. Shogo is visited by an unseen girl claiming to be his little sister. She tells him that she has come to be a part of his life from now on and that he doesn't need to fear being alone anymore. She also says that she intends to marry him. Before he can find out who she is, she disappears and Shogo learns the strange conditions of his father's will. In order to inherit the Presidency of the Mikadono Group, Shogo must attend Miryuin Private Academy and find a suitable girl to marry before he graduates. But this is complicated as, on his first night after his first day of school, Shogo receives a package and a birthday cake from his "little sister." Shortly after opening the package his cell phone rings and the call comes from a private number. The voice on the phone claims to be his little sister who reveals she also attends Miryuin Private Academy and that she will be seeing him soon.
Analysis: The central conceit of Nakaimo is the idea that Shogo will accidentally start dating his half-sister. This would be disastrous and create a scandal that would disqualify him from inheriting the Presidency of the Mikadono Group. But, for reasons unknown, his little sister refuses to reveal herself. The show attempts to explain this by saying that if she revealed herself, Shogo might somehow get in trouble or there might be some unknown consequences for his little sister. This is not explained very well and this is to the show's detriment. It doesn't seem too far fetched for an anime plot but if you think too much about it, it might stretch your willing suspension of disbelief.
This brings us the second stumbling block for the show. The show doesn't quite know what it wants to be. On the one hand, you have the mystery. Who is Shogo's sister? On the other, it is revealed through another character (cleverly identified as "Mister X") that there are powerful business rivals who are attempting to steer Shogo into dating his sister so that they can steal the company away from him. So, in that way the show is an espionage drama. Third is the obvious Harem Anime/Romantic Comedy plot. But finally, we throw a bit of Amnesia into the mix when Shogo reveals he has memory loss due to an accident he had as a kid. We also find out he has previous relationships with several of the girls.
I don't want to give away too much of the show but the espionage plot sort of peters out. The mystery of his sister is handled strangely as well. As mentioned, Shogo has history with several of the girls. As such there are many "misdirects" (get it, "Mister X") where as Shogo and Mister X (actually a girl named Ikusu Mizutani) try to use clues to solve the mystery - several of the girls impersonate Shogo's sister for one reason or another. They even go as far as using a prototype voice-changing cell phone (which is seen in the opening song). This leads to many of the episodes ending on a cliff hanger where Shogo's sister is revealed only to have that immediately undone in the beginning of the very next episode. After a while, these intentional misdirects feel kind of predictable and manipulative towards the audience.
The real meat of the story, though, is the romance plot. This is the strongest aspect of the show. I will say that I was interested throughout. There are some anime where you just keep wanting to watch the next episode and Nakaimo satisfies in this regard. That being said, it doesn't really push the envelope. The girls all fall into various anime stereotypes (Tsundere, childhood friend, et cetera). Shogo is also very much a Harem anime stereotype. He isn't particularly handsome, skilled, talented, kind, funny, or anything. His attractiveness might be explained by his money but suffice it to say, he is another very average Harem anime protagonist. It is really unclear why any of these girls are so obsessed with him (other than the ones he made childhood promises to marry). But, this is a harem anime done well, so if you are into that, then you will like the romance parts.
You also have to really like fan-service. I will admit that I grew up liking fan-service but as I get older I feel almost kind of pervy watching it. There is a lot of fan-service in this show. This is where people will be divided. In almost every episode we get one of the girls taking off their clothes for one reason or another. There are also the typical "caught coming out of the shower" and "fell on top of her and land with my hand on her breast" type moments. And Mister X (Ikusu Mizutani) really likes being naked around Shogo.
In Conclusion: This anime is thoroughly enjoyable but only under certain conditions. You have to like (or at least be okay with) the "little sister" trope in anime. You have to like Harem Anime. And, you have to enjoy lots of fan-service. If you meet these criteria then Nakaimo will entertain you but won't do anything especially new. It is a by the numbers harem anime that is done well. The characters are stereotypes but you grow to like them. And, I was rather touched at the big moment when he tells his little sister he knows they are related. I don't want to spoil it but I did tear up a little. So go check it out if any of this sounds appealing.
Dubbing: Not bad. It isn't Cowboy Bebop level of dubbing but I can definitely watch the show in English without cringing.
Music: Decent, but nothing memorable to write home about.
Fan-Service: Off the charts. Seriously, don't watch this with your parents (you'll be embarrassed) or any younger siblings/children. Ages 16+ for animated nudity, exposed breasts, and suggestive dialogue/situations. Maybe 17+
Biggest "Really?" Moment: While the show has many moments of over the top fan-service including several "bathroom confessionals" where the girls are taking their evening bath and talking to themselves about whether their boobs are big or nice enough for Shogo, the biggest "really?" moment comes in one episode where the girls mistakenly think Shogo might be homosexual and decide to "fix" him by moving in and showing him how much better life with a girl/wife would be. This pushed even my patience and luckily the show dropped this entire storyline after a single episode. It was homophobic and felt out of place. The worst part was that it was played for laughs. This might be more excusable in an older show like Ranma 1/2 (manga 1987 and anime 1989) that plays with gender identity and sexuality/sexual preference. But, Nakaimo was created in 2012. Then again, I guess you could say that the rich boy who goes to a private academy in order to find a wife storyline is pretty 19th century as well. If you decide to watch the show, just be prepared for this episode.
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