A "Harem" is a magical word used to describe every straight male's ideal reality in which every single girl he comes in counter with wants to hop on his yaoi stick. The harem is typically courted by a dense male lead and at least five girls -- each with a different hair color than the others. This male lead will then become involved in at least three scenarios (Per episode) in which he accidentally touches one of these girls in one of their private areas and thus receives a slap in the face, followed by blushing and an occasional punch that defies the laws of physics and sends him skyrocketing across the galaxy. Trinity Seven is an atypical representation concerning this definition of "Harem".
Kasuga Arata (Only dude pictured above) isn't your typical dense "Omg I have no idea you want to bang me" protagonist. This is where a lot of the charm Trinity Seven has to offer comes into play. We meet him as the world he resides in is being torn to shreds, ultimately ending humanity. In his final moments, his cousin hands him a necklace/grimoire-thingy (Before falling into a crevice opening up in the world) which contains a magical entity that will allow him to essentially re-shape the world on a journey to find that cousin. However, in order to do that, he must become acquainted with the "Trinity Seven" which is the name given to the seven magus females that all want to swallow his mana.
But the cool thing about Trinity Seven is that it never really feels dull. It's predictable in a good way, which sounds weird at first -- but makes sense in context. You won't grow to hate the main character, which is a common flaw that harems typically encounter as they progress. This all culminates in one of the most surprisingly entertaining shows to come out of Fall 2014. In order to better illustrate this, let me break it up into a few key components.
Music: 8/10
Trinity Seven sports a soundtrack that is infused with hard-rock, techno, funk, and some sweet-ass bass lines. It's actually quite good when listening to it even out of context. The music never seems like it's "Just there". It serves as a good sidekick during fight scenes and allows the audience to keep their eyes fixed to the screen without feeling distracted or irritated by overly-obnoxious music typically prevalent in action-sequences. On top of this, the opening song is pretty damn catchy and becomes an essential part of every episode that almost anyone would look forward to.
Characters: 8/10
The best part of this show really lies within the characters. Each one carries their own distinct personality and complements the protagonist almost perfectly. In harems, another common problem is how viewers will basically choose one girl that they want the protagonist to end up with. This results in hate bubbling up for the other girls and eventually ends up on some message-board like /a/ where everyone argues about who is "Best girl". In Trinity Seven, it's actually pretty hard to decide who you want to "Win". To be perfectly honest, I still don't know which girl would make the best pairing with Arata. Maybe Mira. Or Lilith. I don't know, just let me keep Levi to myself. Anyway, it's this aspect that makes the characters enjoyable all-around. One thing I would have liked to see though, would be character development for anyone outside of Arata. Everyone seems kind of snug within their own niche, not ever changing from who they already are.
Art: 8/10
At first, I didn't know how I felt about the visuals that were put in front of me in Trinity Seven. Three episodes later, I adored it. There was just that period of "Mehhhh" time it took for me to feel it out. I felt the same way about Madoka Magica when I watched that, and now I think it's one of the most beautiful shows I've ever seen. Trinity Seven shouldn't really be compared to Madoka outside of the "Girls with magical powers" thing, but you probably understand what I mean when I say you might not like it at first. Just give it some time. I promise. In addition to the general artwork, character designs were unique and impressive. It appeared as if the artists actually put love and care into each one, treating them more as actual characters than curious teenage girls waiting to be taken advantage of after meeting a boy for the first time. Each one was extremely different from the others (Apart from Lieselotte and Selina, but you know...twins) and I never got tired of seeing them.
Story: 8/10
Trinity Seven has a solid story. Is it great? No, not by any means. But it's more than you'll normally find in this genre. The protagonist actually has a goal that he is constantly moving toward. The side-characters try their best to aid him in this endeavor. It just works out. There are periods where things seem bleak, but those periods are then counteracted by others that seem hopeful. Each episode actually goes somewhere, which is a feat that so many shows struggle with nowadays. The series even ends on a note that will allow for another season or two if season one sells well enough. Hell, I might even pick up manga one day if I get bored enough. Once again, solid storytelling by writer, Kenji Saitou, and director, Hiroshi Nishikiori.
All in all, Trinity Seven is a very well-rounded harem/comedy with a few fight scenes thrown in for action and a story that actually goes somewhere. If you are a fan of fan-service, character design, or laughing, I would give it a try. It definitely surprised me and became an easy favorite for the year of 2014.
Overall Score: 8/10
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