Summary
Harem manga can help some readers live out their vicarious fantasies of charming and eclectic groups of people, whether they’re leaders of a host club or oni-inspired alien princesses. But some people don’t want to be Rentaro fromThe 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You. They want to be Charlie fromCharlie’s Angels.
It’s one thing to have a host of admirers, but another to have a host of admirers who can fight off threats. One wouldn’t think a harem manga’s hero would be in enough danger to require bodyguards, but there are plenty of series where their league of admirers comes in handy as a combat unit. These are some of the best battle harem manga around.
9Aiki
Cocky Fighter Agrees to Defend Girls from Delinquents
TVTropes describesAikias a “lewd and evil version ofKenichi: The Mightiest Disciple,” in that both are as much about ecchi fan service as they are about martial arts. Only Kenichi was a schmuck with the potential to be a star.Aiki’s Joukyu is already the strongest fighter around, and he knows it. Not even his dad dislocating and relocating his joints could teach him humility, though it left him at 70% of his old strength.
Yet, he’s the only hope the faculty of Juzenji High School have, as they want him to train Kizuki, the granddaughter of the school board’s chairman. Otherwise, she could fall prey to its delinquents, including her rival and cousin, Miu. Reluctantly, Joukyu begins teaching her and other women how to fight back, even if it means fighting dirty, while seeking to regain his lost strength.
8To-Love-Ru
Boy’s Lack of Courage Lands Him in Trouble
AIKI’s Joukyu is rather too forward for some. By contrast,To-Love-Ru’s Rito is, for many, not forward enough. If he had the courage to confess to his crush Haruna, he might’ve gotten into less trouble. Instead, while sulking in the bath over his inability to reveal his feelings to her, an alien princess suddenly drops into his bathtub. She reveals herselfto be Lala Deviluke, and that she fled her home planet to avoid getting put into an arranged marriage by her father, King Gid, who happens to rule the Milky Way Galaxy.
She’s so against the idea that she tells her father’s forces that she’s found someone else now in Rito. He protests, but to no avail. Now, he has to keep both Lala and her space emperor father happy to keep the planet safe, while avoiding the ire of her old suitors. Luckily, Lala is powerful enough to defend him, and she just becomes the first of many formidable aliens who take a shine to him, like Lala’s sisters, Momo and Nana — and the assassin, Golden Darkness — among others.
7Omamori Himari
Boy Learns of His Destiny and His Allergies from a Magic Catgirl
Tsukune isn’t the only regular joe to be surrounded by the supernatural.Omamori Himarireveals Yuto, an orphaned teenager, comes from a long line of demon slayers, even though the only thing he’s killed is time. His past and destiny were revealed to him by Himari, a cat demon who swore an oath to protect Yuto while training him to fulfill his destiny as a slayer.
It’s easier said than done as, aside from not having special powers or abilities, he’s allergic to cats. Yet, he’s arguably safer with her than the other spiritual suitors he meets, like the water spirit Shizuku, the possessed teacup-turned maid from Scotland (really) Lizlet, and his Slayer fiancée Kuesu, who he can’t remember getting engaged to, despite her assertions to the contrary.
6Sekirei
Guy With Confidence Issues Unlocks Alien Ladies' Superpowers
It’d be hard to callSekireithe absolute best battle harem manga around, otherwise it’d be at the top of the list. But, it’s perhaps the most straightforward example of the subgenre, as it’s all about regular, puny humans powering up their strong, gorgeous, alien partners with their smooches so they can fight each other in a large tournament.
Minato is a smart, sweet guy who has no confidence in himself. But Musubi, an alien known as a sekirei, saw he had the right genetics to make him her ‘ashikabi’ — someone who can bring out her full power in battle via affection. Though he soon ends up ‘winging’ more sekirei along the way, from the pervy hacker Matsu to the tsundere blonde Tsukiumi, his willingness togo out of his way for themjust boosts their feelings for him even more.
5Rosario+Vampire
Human Student Is Protected by His Supernatural Harem
Rosario+Vampireis a good reminder for people to do well in school. Sure, Tsukune ends up being at the center of a harem of pretty monster girls. But he’s also the only human in a private school that was built by monsters for monsters since its establishment. For each student and staff member who wants to get on with humans, there are more who’d rather turn them into an entrée.
His luck began to turn when he befriended Moka, a vampire girlwho liked his company and his blood— particularly when he can help her reveal her full strength by removing her choker. From there, he manages to break the ice with the succubus Kurumu, witches Yukari and Ruby, and gains a stalker in Mizore. Just because they’re pretty doesn’t mean they’re not still monsters.
4Negima! Magister Negi Magi
Welsh Wizard Becomes the Key to Unlocking His Class' Full Potential
An ordinary guy surrounded by extraordinary women has been the harem genre’s bread and butter since its earliest days. But, if readers would rather have a male lead who didn’t make white bread look like pumpernickel,Negima! Magister Negi Magi’s title character is a Welsh mage who’s looking for his lost father, Nagi, while teaching the basics of spellcasting at a magic academy.
He ends up teaching an all-female class, where he discovers he’s able to bring out their latent magical powers via pacts. Some of their abilities are more utility-based than combat-based (Kazumi’s far-seeing Oculus Corvinus), but others definitely have more offensive means, like Asuna’s Ensis Exorcizans, which can switch between being a paper fan or a giant blade.
3Tenchi Muyo! Ryo-Oki
Humble Teen Befriends Some of the Strongest Women in the Cosmos
Still, the plain guy surrounded by a babe battalion formula is one that’s hard to beat, as it worked so well for the subgenre’s big hitters. LikeTenchi Muyo! Ryo-Oki, where the seemingly ordinary teenager Tenchi ends up freeing the impulsive, all-powerful space pirate Ryoko. Despite her initial hostile reaction to him, she ends up forming a bond with the guy.
It only gets trickier for him from there, as he meets more powerful space women along the way. From geniuses who are secretly goddesses (Washu) to ditzy space cops with power over causality (Mihoshi), they could all turn Tenchi into a piece of human origami if he didn’t have the surprising ability to stay on their good sides — which might be proof he isn’t just a typical guy after all, if he can keep them from causing havoc.
2Ranma ½
Sex-Switching Protagonist Charms Straights of All Stripes
It seems when it comes to harem manga in general, it all comes back to Rumiko Takahashi’s works.Urusei Yatsuracould arguably count as the first battle harem manga too, as Lum isn’t exactly a damsel in distress (maybe one that causes distress perhaps). But, it wasn’t as focused on combat or fighting asRanma ½.
After all, it’s centered around which of the fighting Tendo sisters Ranma would marry to keep their dojo going (despite their reluctance at the prospect). It’s just further complicated by his curse that makes him swap sexes when doused in water. As a result, he ends up charming theChinese Amazon Shampooand the kung fu gymnast Kodachi as a man, and Tatewaki, the kendo team captain, as a woman. With all of these suitors fighting Ranma and each other, it’s a wonder he didn’t take up a vow of celibacy.
1Black Lagoon
Desk Worker Impresses Pirates and Gangsters
This one may need some explanation, asBlack Lagoonisn’t strictly a harem story at all. It’s about organized crime and piracy in Southeast Asia, as its hapless salaryman lead, Rokuro ‘Rock’ Okajima, ends up getting press-ganged into the titular mercenary group. Even so, it adheres to quite a few Battle Harem tropes.
For one, Rock has managed to stay on the good side of its wilder, female cast. Eda straight-up crushes on him, while his courage stoked something in thestern Hotel Moscow boss Balalaika. Revy hasn’t shot him yet, which is already a plus given how trigger-happy she is. Though with how jealous she gets over Eda and Yifei cuddling up to him, she’s clearly got more feelings for him than tolerance.
