Saiunkoku monogatari

Despite trying to watch the show about four times due to its high ratings, I only managed to get through episode 8. The pacing felt sluggish, and not much occurred throughout the episodes. The characters lacked depth, making it difficult to connect with them. Additionally, there were no cliffhangers to maintain interest. I found the main character quite irritating, and the historical accuracy was questionable. I really don't understand how this series received more seasons when I couldn't even finish the first one. I've watched over 170 anime shows and movies, this is one of the less entertaining series.

The Story of Saiunkoku is a series of Japanese light novels later adapted to manga and anime, I picked up the anime series based on its high ratings. The anime is very different from what I am used to watching, probably more catered to girls then guys with what seems to be a elements of reverse harem and a bit too many love angles going on. Also the slow pacing really took a toll on me.

The setting is an ancient Kingdom borrowed heavily from the Chinese Forbidden city. The plot centers on Imperial life, running a country, bureaucracy, personal life and love angles. The plot is deep and have unexpected conclusion but the slow progress is an issue. The main character is a girl wanting to be a government official, along the way every male character in the series falls in love with her.

The animation itself is decent, nothing to write home about. What stood out for me was the music, it took getting used to, but after a few episodes really enjoyed the haunting bitter sweet melodies of the local Japanese/Chinese instrument.

Not a series for me, so i won't pick up the next season.

I think this anime signifies perfectly what a reverse harem should look like - it goes to the core of what women would want (excuse the generalization, but it comes from exp) in potential partners: understanding, support and freedom to choose.

That aside, the growth of the characters is quite well done throughout the season. The pacing is a bit slow, and its not particularly exciting in every episode, so might not be everyone's cup of tea. It also offers pockets of wisdom sprinkled about.

If you enjoy political settings with a captivating story, multiple character involvement in the plot and character growth, this is for you. I personally really enjoyed it.