Hello, and welcome to a special review of Project Nitsuj. Why the special review? Well it’s because I’m reviewing an anime I thought I lost. You see a few months ago I had computer problems and lost a few good reviews on a laptop I couldn’t start up. Had to get a new laptop and everything. Thankfully, this past week, I was able to restart that laptop and recover my missing reviews. One of those reviews was Tales of Wedding Rings. Based off a manga written by Maybe. No, that’s literally their pen name. Tales of Wedding Rings ran in the pages of Monthly Big Gangan, who featured a lot of good mangas such as Akame ga Kill, Dimension W, and Goblin Slayer. The series ran from 2014-2024 and takes us on a fantasy harem story. At the start of 2024, the relatively young studio, Staple Entertainment debuted an anime based off the manga. At the time I didn’t know that much about the series, but harem, fantasy, and ecchi always make a good combination. Let’s check this series out. This is Tales of Wedding Rings.
Opening and Ending Theme
The opening is “Lover’s Eye” by Sizuk feat. AYAME (from AliA). This song is pretty cool. I love the tone of the song and the way it sets up the story we’re about to watch. It’s not just some harem story, it’s a story of hardship and finding the courage to face the unknown with those around you.
Our ending is “Kokoro no Naka” by AliA. Another good song. The instrumental is awesome and I think it does a good job expressing the thoughts and feelings of the female lead in this anime without sounding repetitive or generic.
Episodes 1-4
So the anime begins with our main character Satou voiced by Gen Satō (Chrome from Dr. Stone) and his childhood friend, Hime voiced by Akari Kitō (Nezuku from Demon Slayer) who is an alien. When she was a child she came to our planet and met Satou as a child and he wasn’t the least bit shocked or frightened by the fact that she was an alien (he lives in Japan. He’s seen crazier shit than this). In exchange for not ratting her out to the authorities, Hime became Satou’s friend and has lived with him for 10 years. The two are now in high school and sure enough Satou has developed feelings for his childhood friend. When summer vacation starts, they go to a festival after school (a little early aren’t we?) where Hime tells him she’s going to be moving tomorrow (https://youtu.be/-6pwCu0U8t8?si=Ls1iabhq0JFHs6yV&t=6). She’s returning to her homeworld to get married which means she has to say goodbye to Satou (https://youtu.be/xZtdGfYOfpE?si=kOZZUztIjKm1IoZ6). Rather than forget her, Satou jumps through the dimensional portal and reaches her homeworld where he crashes the wedding. And it looks like someone else had the same idea as a monster from the Abyss arrives (damn, even the forces evil are shipping Satou and Hime). Hime real name Krystal, gives her ring of light to Satou which gives him the power to use light magic. Using that magic he kills the monster and passes out (our hero everyone). When he wakes back up he finds out that he’s become the new hero of Krystal’s kingdom as well as their Ring King and he’s officially married to Krystal (today’s a win. You made dad proud). As they share a moment in the royal baths the monsters appear again and Satou gets called out to fight (damn it guys, sense the mood).
In episode 2 we open up with Satou slaying some monsters with a halberd (extra point for not giving him a sword). When a knight of the Abyss shows up he as well as everyone is forced to flee the caste. They get saved by Marmarugias aka Marse (yeah that’s much better), the prince who was supposed to marry Krystal until Satou crashed the wedding (all in all, he’s taken it pretty well). Krystal’s grandpa, Alabaster the sage, explains to Satou that his power is still weak. In order to fight against the Abyss he’ll need the other rings to give him strength and there are four more out there (only four? Why not a ring for each finger) which means he’ll be getting married four more times (okay, this feels like the plot of every fantasy hentai minus the sex). They rest at an inn where Satou and Krystal steel themselves and confess to each other to make it official. The next day they make their way to Romca the kingdom of elves. The kingdom is protected by a tempest wall that stops other races from entering. After getting saved from a bear they meet some elves who take them to Romca and we meet the princess, Nefritis voiced by Miyuri Shimabukuro (Yuuna from Yuuna and The Haunted Hot Springs) who flat out rejects Satou because she hates ecchi stuff (oh~ she’s going to be a lot of fun).
So in episode 3 we learn that Nefritis is a shut-in and her older brother Jade is a siscon who won’t let her marry Satou because she’s too young (for a redwood tree). Three days pass and Satou has been locked up away from everyone where he gets rescued by Peridot the Elder elf of Romca (and just like a fine aged wine she looks good). Peridot leads him out of the cell into the wind temple where the wind ring is in the hands of Nefritis’s parents who turned themselves into stone in order to keep the tempest surrounding Romca. Nefritis pays a visit to the statues where she runs into Satou and passes out. She wakes back in Peridot’s place and starts to talk to Satou where she sees he’s not as scary as he originally though and is interested in the outside world, she’s just too afraid to go outside. Through their talk, Satou gives Nefritis the courage to face her brother and plea her case to go out but he won’t allow it and she returns to her shell. She leaves with Jade and Satou reunites with Krystal who was jealous to see him getting along with another girl (cute). Peridot reveals that Nefritis’s mom wasn’t the first choice to inherit the ring. Nefritis’s mom was the second princess and married someone within the village in order to keep the ring with the elves. The eldest princess however fell in love with a traveler and the elves were firmly against it out of fear that they would lose their treasured rings. One day the traveler stopped coming with some believing that the elves killed him (you kept throwing rocks at him. I wouldn’t do business in a town like that). Filled with rage the eldest princess fled the kingdom wishing a curse upon the nation that the Abyss swallow them up and the line of the ring maidens come to an end. This curse scared the elves including Nefritis’s parents (who knew elves were so paranoid). So, they created the tempest to protect the kingdom and made Nefritis swear to never venture out of it (okay, I get it now, you’re all a bunch dickless cowards!).
At the start of episode 4 Alabaster tells Satou to give up on the wind ring for now saying they’ve wasted enough time here. As Satou and the others leave an Abyss Knight shows up and attacks the kingdom. Using its magic, it manages to break through the tempest and unleashes Abyss upon the elves trying to claim the rings. Satou fights the knight but he’s still not strong enough to win, so Krystal goes to get Nefritis so that she can marry Satou. With all the courage in the world, the two ladies shatter the statues of Nefritis’s parents (this is teen rebellion at its best) to get the rings and Nefritis kisses Satou asking him to be her husband (what is this Vegas? You’ve only known him for half a day and already getting married). With the power of wind and light (add in heart for good measure) Satou manages to defeat all the Abyss and save the kingdom. Later on, we meet Smaragdi the eldest princess who fled the kingdom. It turns out she was the Abyss Knight who attacked the kingdom while being under the control of a dark ring (oh well that’s convenient). Also, Alabaster was Smaragdi’s lover from the past (oh Alabaster you dog). He couldn’t stand to see her ostracized by her people so he gave up on her (which means you didn’t really love her). With everything settled, Satou relaxes in the springs with Krystal, Nefritis, and Peridot (Corbin: Yeah~, she knows a thing or two about love-making. (Baron): I’d hit it) with Krystal wanting to protect her position tries to make love to Satou right then and there but he stops her saying he doesn’t want to force this on her (you coward. (Baron): A shy lover. Can’t perform when there’s an audience around. (Corbin): That is so sad when that happens). The next day Satou and the others leave with Nefritis going with them and joining their party.
Episodes 5-8
At the start of episode 5 we see Krystal is jealous of the attention Satou is giving Nefritis (step up your game). Continuing with the mission, the groups next stop is the land of water run by the dragonfolk, but they instead take a side trip to Needakitta, the land of fire. It’s a wondering kingdom that’s always on the move and home to knights and cat people (Corbin: Stop. You had me at cat people. (Nitsuj): That was literally the last line of my sentence. (Corbin): Or was it?). They go to meet the princess, Granart voiced Hitomi Ueda (Gold Ship from Umamusume: Pretty Derby), who states that if you want to marry her you’ve got to be stronger than her and she is strong (Baron: Please squeeze my head between your thighs until it pops off). She easily defeats Satou but will face him again any time. Satou begins learning how to swordfight from Marse while learning magic from Alabaster. While relaxing in the steam baths, Granart approaches Satou asking for a rubdown (Corbin: Slap dat ass~!) and telling him that the next time they fight she’ll throw the match on purpose. She knows her responsibilities as a ring maiden and can tell he’s worthy of wearing the rings he currently has. However, Satou says no, he doesn’t need her pity, and will beat her (there he is).
Episode 6 is a quick episode. Satou takes on Granart where he has no intention of using the power of the rings to his advantage. If he’s gonna beat her he’s gonna beat her using his own power and skills to appear cool in front of the woman he loves (very noble if not stupid. But that’s men for you). After interference from a wild Abyss knight and Krystal promising to have sex with him if he wins (Baron: That’s all the motivation I need) Satou wins with a little help from an unknown voice. Granart surrenders herself to him and wants to do right there but Satou has a prior engagement (Baron: I still would invite her to join. If there was ever a time to be greedy now is the time). Unfortunately, Satou is too exhausted to do the deed and passes out (https://youtu.be/BTnJvOPEBE0?si=dLyReVtKVS82OxzO). Even if he wasn’t exhausted he still would have passed as he wants to do it with her on Earth and after they save the world (Corbin: You dumb romantic).
Episode 7 begins with the group making it to Massa, the Land of Water and home of the dragonfolk. He quickly meets Saphir the maiden of the ring voiced by Ai Kakuma (Rossweisse from Highschool DxD) who is a prankster and quickly hands her ring over to Satou accepting him as her husband (wow, that was quick. If only the others were this easy). We see that things are not all well is Nassa. The city is being occupied by forces from Gisaras, Marse’s kingdom who are being led by his older brother Solaxis. Abyss creatures have been popping up in the kingdom, and the king has become the puppet of the palace oracle who is obviously evil (like it’s so obvious it’s almost hysterical). And on top of all of this we have a love drama involving Marse and Saphir’s twin sister Saphira. We find out that Gisaras and Massa have been at odds for quite some time after Gisaras tried to invade their land and failed. Since brute force didn’t work, they turned to diplomacy and sent Marse to learn about their culture and inner workings. Marse and Saphira fell in love with each other with Marse promising to take her with him out of the kingdom unfortunately he didn’t keep his word (*chuckles* funny story about that). Marse’s dad found out about him fraternizing with the enemy and called him back to be the ring king which still would have allowed him to be with Saphira (even if he was creating a harem), but then Satou came and screwed up everything. In Saphira’s eyes, Marse broke his vow. As Marse tries to smooth things over with Saphira, Satou is being targeted by the palace oracle who has sent assassins to kill him. The assassins fail so the oracle decides to use Marse in her plans. She warns him that an army of monsters will attack in three days and to use that army as a cover to kill Satou and steal his rings.
So in episode 8 everything goes as you would have predicted. Marse gives in and tries to kill Satou using a dark sword that tries to control him but a part of Marse is still in there and doesn’t want to hurt Satou (the bromance is real bro). Satou is able to break the sword’s control on Marse and the palace oracle reveals that she’s really an Abyss knight. Marse confesses his love to Saphira and asks for her hand in marriage (now is not the time). Marse and Saphir team up to defeat a monster with Saphir transforming into dragon and eating it (best dragon waifu ever). The Abyss knight retreats where we find out she was working with Marse’s dad this whole time but now that she’s outlived her usefulness he kills her. With the Abyss knight gone Saphir’s dad returns to normal and gives Satou and Marse his blessings to marry his daughters.
Episodes 9-12
Nothing much happens in episode 9. Satou makes it clear to everyone that Krystal is the one who owns his heart and goes out on a date with her where they finally kiss and right outside a love hotel (you’re first and goal Satou. Take it all the way) but don’t go inside as Krystal is just as much a coward as Satou (I’ll settle for a field goal). The next day they leave and head for the Land of Earth.
Episode 10 sees Satou and the others reach the Land of Earth. In the past, it was home to the dwarves some of the fiercest warriors in the land. They went into battle with the previous Ring King to defeat the Abyss King (small in stature but big in bravery). The battle was fierce, and a majority of the dwarves were wiped out along with the land and the remaining dwarves went into hiding. Throughout the episode Satou and the others search for clues on where the dwarves are but have no luck. As if that wasn’t bad, the Abyss King has fully resurrected and now they’re all screwed. The Abyss King sends hordes of monsters after them, so Alabaster and Marse sacrifice themselves so Satou and the others can escape (https://youtu.be/7mlAVC1YKsc?si=fqQDiVm5t3I_Q9D6).
So at the start of episode 11 we see Alabaster’s magic sent everyone back to Earth and they don’t know how to return. They try to look for a possible magic spot to return but have no luck so everyone does their best to cope with this situation. While on Earth they find the holder of the Earth ring, Amber (ironic, we found the Earth maiden on Earth) voiced by Mikako Komatsu (Maki from Jujutsu Kaisen). Amber is an android that the dwarves created after the fight against the Abyss King. They knew they were close to extinction and wanted to preserve their heritage (and instead of making an ultimate weapon, they decided to play God and create a human-size sex toy. Not the worst legacy to leave behind). She has the power to return them but Krystal doesn’t want to return because she’s afraid she’ll lose Satou but he manages to win her around and she agrees to return. Before returning they decide to solidify their love but that gets interrupted by Amber who opens the portal for them (we need to work on your timing Amber).
In the final Satou and the others return to the other world (don’t know where their clothes went during the transportation process but fanservice). They immediately fight the Abyss King where despite unleashing the full power of the rings it’s still not enough to beat him. The group soon gets surrounded by monsters and saved by Alabaster (the eagles are coming! I’m not joking he’s literally riding an eagle from Lord of the Rings). Marse and Alabaster were saved by Smaragdi who’s been stalking them this whole time because she still loves Alabaster (this elf crazy as hell). Alabaster brings them up to speed on what’s been going on. Their situation is dire however they have hope now that Satou is back as he’s the only one who’s been able to hurt the Abyss King. The plan now is to have Satou strengthen is bonds with his wives to make himself stronger and defeat the Abyss King once and for all. The girls are going to be doing some special training as well and we get introduced to Morion the little sister of Krystal.
Final Thoughts
This anime was mid at best. I don’t dislike it but I wouldn’t call it a good anime either. The characters don’t leave much of an impact on me, the story is pretty generic and a little all over the place, the action not impressive, and the animation/music is forgetful. Aside from some good fanservice and pretty anime girls this anime is just mid and one of those animes you watch to pass the time. Just turn your brain off and pass the time.
Final Score
The final score for Tales of Wedding Rings is 5/10. Not an anime you need to scramble to watch but if you like it then definitely check out the manga which is better. A second season has already begun to air. Not too excited for it but I am interested in checking it out. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you next time on Project Nitsuj.