Brothers Conflict

Hinata Ema becomes a stepsister of thirteen boys of the Asahina family when her father decided to remarry. She moves in to the family's apartment complex and found it was easy to get along with her new brothers. Being the only child of Hinata Rintaro who always traveled, she found this an opportunity to finally have a real family. However her pet squirrel Juli thinks she has to be careful around the boys because they might try to do something to her.

Her 13 stepbrothers are the ff.: doctor and eldest Asahina Masaomi; lawyer Ukyo who is also the family cook; monk Kaname who took a liking to her the first time she came to the apartment; novelist Hikaru who loves to cross-dress and tease his brothers about their feelings for Ema; triplets Tsubaki, Azusa, and Natsume who are the most expressive of their feelings for Ema; gentle hairdresser Louis who joined Juli in looking after Ema; talented athlete Subaru; mysterious Iori who gives Ema flowers to make her feel better; Yusuke, Ema schoolmate who has a crush on her even before she became a stepsister; popular idol Futo who loves to tease Ema; and the youngest Wataru.

This series with 12 episodes (and 1 OVA) shows how Ema has captured the heart of her stepbrothers. Foremost are the triplets, who soon enough started heated arguments over her. In the end it will be up to Ema to prove to them that all she wants is a family she can be part of.

Juli and Ema

The first words that came to mind when Ema moved into the Asahina's apartment complex was 'here we go again.' It is too convenient to live in separate rooms but still together under the same roof with 13 boys minus the parents. Seems also a bit unrealistic to have such a huge family without the mom looking after them even if the youngest Wataru is still 10. Of course there's bound be trouble with all the manly hormones. It's also unrealistic that almost everyone would fall for Ema the first time they see her, but I guess that's how it goes for most reverse harem genre. 

The series has nothing new to offer. It follows the same pattern of story which goes: girl has to live with the boy(s) or is forced to pair up with the boy(s); the boy(s) or girl or both of them start liking each other; some conflict from another party begins; then finally girl has to make a choice. In this series however there are a lot of choices. There's a type of boy for every girl's fantasy and preference. Their relationship is also different because Ema is a family member.

Ema with her stepbrothers

There is some attempt at characterization mostly on the triplets, whose relationship with Ema has more progress than their other brothers'. Most of the brothers have a story to tell but the others are left out and rarely get some time with Ema.

The animation is fine. The characters have doll-like eyes that suit most personalities. Both opening and ending themes are not so bad as well. The ending theme in particular is sung by the 13 brothers and Juli and has a nice tune.

The series has a typical story and the usual but numerous choices of romantic partners. If you're into this genre however, I think you'll find most of the stuff you're looking for.

Rating: 6 out of 10