Princess Lover was a show I went into not sure what I was going to do with it. I’ve watched it before in the past with my friends and even back then all I could say was it’s a good anime and it is a good anime that does the series justice. Based off a light novel hentai game the anime focuses on a guy named Teppi whose parents were killed in an accident. He soon gets adopted by his rich grandpa and joins the life of Japan’s elite where he meets and befriends various girls who fall for him and he falls for them as well.
Over the years I’ve learned that adapting light novels particularly videogame light novels usually don’t translate well to anime but this series manages to hit it out of the park. For starters, Teppi is a well-written character. He’s not bland nor forgetful he actually has his own personality. He can be courageous in the face of danger, funny and outgoing, perverted but not dense, confident with his choices and actions, and open and truthful with those around him. Despite the fact that his character and personality are based off the player’s personality they manage to give Teppi his own personality where he’s able to stand on his own and be identified as his own character. The girls are also good, I like how each one is different from the other and has their own relationship with Teppi that’s different from each other. Charlotte is more fun-loving and carefree so Teppi acts more natural and fun-loving as well. Sylvia is a person he has a lot in common with so he’s more straight-forward and frank with her. Seika is a person who Teppi respects the most out of all the girls because of everything she does at school and outside of school and Yuu has a motherly personality that Teppi finds comforting and usually confines in her more than the others. Character dynamics and different interactions is what separates this series from other harem animes and makes it all the more enjoyable. Again, I still find it hard to decide which girl is best for him because they’re all pretty and have great relationships with Teppi although it does seem like the anime is favoring Charlotte over the others. The ending with the whole kidnapping of Charlotte and finding who the real killer of Teppi’s parents were was a little silly now that I look back on it but at the same time an enjoyable climax that felt like something out of B-rated action movie. I gave this series a 7/10 when I reviewed it and yeah I think that score still holds up to this day. It’s one of the better harem animes I’ve seen and one of best adaptions of a videogame light novel.