I’ve realized recently that Ore no Imouto ga Konna ni Kawaii Wake ga nai! is a cleverly disguised harem anime.  I wouldn’t say that the harem elements overshadow the “fantasy little sister” angle—not by a long shot—but thinking of the show this way brings out some interesting nuances.

First, let’s look at the control sample.  Aragaki Ayase sees a guy she finds attractive.  She arranges some one-on-one face time.  They establish basic chemistry, and then she takes the initiative to exchange numbers.  We could then assume a standard courtship: A dinner date or two, progressing to a day trip of some kind, and eventually, maybe, they’d become a couple.

Hooray!  Too bad Kyousuke is the engine of his own destruction.

Normal girl and her normal ways.

Now let’s move on to the geek samples, because to me they’re much more interesting.

First, Kuroneko.  Oh, poor Kuroneko.  Her method I’m going to call the fascination style, because it relies on cultivating a personal mystique that intrigues and draws people in.  This suits geek sensibilities, especially our terrible anxiety regarding the social graces.  After all, why reach out and possibly get burned when you can beckon and bring the flame of love to you?

But unfortunately, reality falls short.  To be purposely attractive, you have to know what attracts people, and Kuroneko doesn’t really know.  She only knows what she finds cool in her favorite anime.  It’s painfully clear that Kuroneko is really just a shy, geeky girl who wants to be seen as sophisticated and mature.

“If I act this way, he’ll think I’m really dark and interesting!”

Next is Saori and her proximity method.  She chats with Kyousuke and gives him gaming advice over the phone, and otherwise takes any opportunity she can to hang out with her friend’s big brother.  The reasoning is simple: You need lots of contact to get a fire going.  If you can become friends, becoming lovers should be that much easier, right?  It’s like When Harry Met Sally!

Sadly, not really.  No matter what your relationship is like, if the necessary attraction isn’t there, it’s a dead end.  I happen to be rooting for Kyousuke x Saori myself, but it isn’t because I think her chances are especially good.

“If we get to know each other really well, he’ll see my attractive side."

Meanwhile, with all these girls interested in him, Kyousuke continues to walk the thorny road to incest.  As Scamp mentioned in his post on episode four, why on earth would a man go through such trouble otherwise, no matter what he says?  The way he goes about his relationship with Kirino, even loudly announcing his attraction to her on the pretense that it’s just a clever ruse…

This, too, is another kind of method.  For now I’m going to call it Freudian wishmaking. What an exciting show!

"If I say it to her as a joke, maybe she'll take it seriously!" Hope springs eternal.