Romantic Killer is an unique take on the harem/reverse harem genre. It's a parody where rather than the MC being this cute damsel starstruck between different ikemen, confused as to which one she should choose, Anzu instead is forced into the scenario due to weird fantastical circumstances, and vows to never fall in love with any of them due to pure stubborn rage. While I found this premise to be pretty flawed, it hooked someone like me who usually really dislikes the harem/reverse harem genres.

Let's start with that flaw I mentioned. Romantic Killer is trying too hard to be a reverse harem parody. When it drops that act and becomes more unapologetic in it's last few episodes, it becomes a lot more honest and enjoyable. And again I say that as someone who dislikes the harem/reverse harem genre. The central premise of the MC really not wanting to date anyone but being forced into it by having all her favorite things confiscated is a fun one. But the way it is done through a fantastical wizard potato quite literally manipulating the events around her felt way too on the nose for me. The constant otome game comparisons just got old and I honestly felt bad for the love interests and Anzu for most of it. And a lot of the tension and comedy felt artificial to me due to that. If it wasn't so fantastical and instead went for a more grounded approach, like maybe her parents are worried sick about their girl failure of a daughter and themselves decide to confiscate her stuff and go abroad, and the development between the MC and the love interests is a string of un(?)fortunate coincidences rather than some grand orchestration by a potato, I think I would have laughed and enjoyed the show more. I'm not saying it has to outright stop being a parody, the MC's stubborn bitchiness is great and one of the best aspects of the show, it just didn't have to feel as over the top as it did.

The characters are mostly good. I really like the MC and she is easily the best character in the show, her antics and stubborn attitude is a joy to watch, while still being a really kind and likeable person. I found Riri to be annoying but I think it's less about their character and more about the circumstances and my dislike of the fantastical elements. If they weren't a wizard potato using magic to manipulate people but rather was a friend or something like that and was doing classic wingman shenanigans to set Anzu up with a boyfriend I think I would have liked Riri a lot more. The love interests are all quite cliche and archetypal, but I like most of them. Kazuki is the ikemen who doesn't do well with most women because of a past incident, Junta is the kind childhood friend the MC conveniently forgot about, and Hijiri is the rich spoiled brat. Other than Hijiri, I liked all of them. Hijiri's archetype is very unlikeable imo and he never acts outside of that rigid cliche unlike the others, and I would have preferred if he didn't exist entirely. Unlike Kazuki and Junta, who routinely interact with each other and have their own dynamic, Hijiri isn't even involved with the other love interests. He feels so unnecessary as a character. The other side characters are all okay, some of them are interesting but none of them get the screentime necessary to really flesh them out. I couldn't even tell if Ryuya was supposed to be a serious love interest or not.

The story kind of meanders around for 8 episodes and I feel like that is the weakest portion of the show, which is also sadly most of the show. It's just the characters being introduced and Riri doing their fantastical shenanigans to force cheap scenes. Then episode 9, 10 and 11 start to pick up the slack and become more serious, which I really enjoyed. I especially liked the dynamics of Anzu's old childhood friend group and I lowkey wish there was more focus on that rather than Riri's antics or Hijiri. Kazuki's troubles were also interesting, if a little melodramatic, but I preferred it to the lighter tone of the first 8 episodes.

And finally episode 12 tries to wrap it all up hastily, leaving room for a season 2 which I doubt we will ever get because the source material is fully adapted afaik, so it would have to be anime original. That might be my biggest complaint with the show overall. Just when it feels like things are finally starting to pick up and move forwards, it ends. It feels like wasted potential. If you want to watch it regardless, with the knowledge that it has a sudden open end that doesn't resolve the story at all just when it starts getting good, with very little hope for a season 2, feel free. I enjoyed my time with the show, and I don't really regret watching it. But it's hard to recommend a show that ends so anticlimactically. My score might seem too high considering most of my review was complaints, but this show really did have a lot of potential and gets really good in the last third, and if a season 2 were to release, I would 100% watch it. It's main flaw is simply being too short. Maybe I would even like Hijiri if he was fleshed out more.