World's End Harem

Synopsis

In the year 2040, Reito Mizuhara is a young man who is put into cryostasis while waiting for a life-saving treatment to be developed in order to cure the rare disease he suffers from. Five years later, Reito awakens to discover that, in this period of time, an extremely lethal and contagious virus called the MK (Man Killer) has emerged, which mysteriously affects only males, causing the death of about 99.9% of the world's male population, leaving approximately one million survivors who were put into cryostasis before being infected. Much to his surprise, Reito also learns that he is one of five men in Japan who somehow developed immunity to the MK Virus and, as a result, is required to participate in a breeding program by impregnating as many women as possible so that their children can replenish the world's population. While Reito investigates the secrets surrounding the MK Virus and the mysterious disappearance of his childhood friend Elisa Tachibana, the series also shows the perspective of the other men who have developed immunity to the MK Virus, each with their own circumstances.

Characters

Reito Mizuhara (水原 怜人, Mizuhara Reito)

Voiced by: Taichi Ichikawa, Makoto KoichiEp. 2 credits (young)

A researcher who goes into deep sleep while waiting for a cure for his illness. After waking up, he learns that he has been cured, but that most of the world's men have died due to the MK Virus. He has feelings for his childhood friend Elisa, and refuses to mate with any of the other girls presented including Mira. Instead, he continues to work on finding a cure for the MK Virus.

Mira Suō (周防 美来, Suō Mira)

Voiced by: Haruka Shiraishi

A woman assigned to take care of Reito. She bears a close resemblance to Reito's childhood friend Elisa. It is later revealed she is actually Elisa's clone.

Elisa Tachibana (橘 絵理沙, Tachibana Erisa)

Voiced by: Haruka Shiraishi

Reito's childhood friend and a researcher. She and Reito had mutual feelings for each other. In the sequel After World, it is revealed that she had died of an illness and her organs were donated to Mira.

Akane Ryūzōji (龍造寺 朱音, Ryūzōji Akane)

Voiced by: Yō Taichi

Reito's lustful nurse. Her mother Kihara is the leader of Japan's council of rulers.

Sui Yamada (山田 翠, Yamada Sui)

Voiced by: Aya Yamane

Reito's bodyguard. Though she looks like a small child, she is strong enough to knock out a rampaging bear.

Media

Manga

World's End Harem, written by LINK and illustrated by Kotaro Shono, started on Shueisha's online magazine Shōnen Jump+ on May 8, 2016. In May 2020, it was announced that the first part of the manga reached its climax. The first part of the manga finished with its 85th chapter on June 21, 2020. In March 2021, it was announced that the second part of the manga, titled World's End Harem: After World, would start to be published on Shōnen Jump+ on May 9 of that year. The final arc of After World started on December 4, 2022. The series finished on May 7, 2023.

Shueisha has collected its chapters into individual tankōbon volumes. The first volume was published on September 2, 2016. As of June 2, 2023, eighteen volumes have been released. In October 2017, Seven Seas Entertainment announced the acquisition of the manga for an English language release under its Ghost Ship imprint for mature readers.

A manga series, titled World's End Harem: Fantasia, written by LINK and illustrated by SAVAN, started in Shueisha's seinen manga magazine Ultra Jump in April 2018. It was also published on Shōnen Jump+ and the mobile app Young Jump!, continuing digitally only from March 2022 to April 2026. In April 2019, Seven Seas Entertainment licensed the manga for an English language release under its Ghost Ship imprint for mature readers.

A spin-off series, titled World's End Harem: Britannia Lumiére, written by LINK and illustrated by Kira Etō, started to be published on Shōnen Jump+ and the mobile app Manga Mee on June 26, 2020. Shueisha also simultaneous publishes the series in English for free on Manga Plus. In December 2020, the series went on hiatus after the release of its 17th chapter due to Etō's health condition, but later resumed serialization in June 2021. The series ended on July 29, 2021, with the release of its 22nd chapter.

Anime

In May 2020, it was announced that the series would receive an anime television series adaptation. The series was animated by Studio Gokumi and AXsiZ, with Yū Nobuta as the director and Tatsuya Takahashi as the scriptwriter. Masaru Koseki designed the characters, while Shigenobu Ookawa composed the series' music. The first episode of the series premiered on October 8, 2021, while later episodes were delayed to January 2022 due to a need to "closely examine" the anime's production. The series resumed airing on Tokyo MX, BS Fuji, and AT-X from January 7 to March 18, 2022, starting from the first episode. The opening theme is "Just Do It" performed by Helical, while the ending theme is "Ending Mirage" performed by Exina.

In August 2021, Crunchyroll announced that they had acquired the license to the anime for worldwide streaming, excluding Asian territories, while Muse Communication licensed the series in South and Southeast Asia.

Audio drama

An audio drama based on the manga was released on the official Shōnen Jump+ website for nine consecutive days from May 28 to June 5, 2017. Due to its sexual tenor, some segments of the drama were censored, requiring a password to unlock its content. Another audio drama started to be released on YouTube on August 27, 2021.

Video game

In November 2018, it was announced that the manga would get a virtual reality game adaptation developed by DMM Games, the video game division of DMM.com. Titled World's End Harem VR, the game's story was separated into three different chapters of five minutes each that reproduced popular scenes from the series, and it starred Shizuka Itō as Mira Suō, Marie Miyake as Akira Tōdō and Yū Asakawa as Akane Ryūzōji. World's End Harem VR was officially released on March 4, 2019.

Reception

Popularity

By November 2018, the manga had over 3 million copies in circulation; over 5 million copies in circulation by December 2020; over 7 million copies in circulation December 2021; and over 9 million copies in circulation by May 2023. Due to the manga's popularity, some of its characters have become popular cosplay themes, causing a trend in Japan where fans attempt to replicate their iconic costumes. To commemorate the release of the manga's fifth volume, a collaborative event was held in Shueisha's adult magazine Weekly Playboy, in which 200 winners were selected to participate in an actual event that took place on March 17, 2018, at a bar in Shinjuku, Tokyo, where they were able to take pictures with gravure idols cosplaying as female characters from the series.

Critical response

Jonathon Greenall of CBR praised the series for its unique approach to the harem genre but criticized its semi-apocalyptic setting, stating that it did not fit the harem format. Maxwell Freedman of CBR noted that the harem genre has long been controversial, with criticism ranging from trashy and repetitive to misogynistic. He argued that while the series does little to counter such criticisms, it has some deceptive depth, becoming increasingly psychological as it explores the dystopian consequences of a female-only future rather than glorifying it as a male paradise. Freedman added that the majority of the manga's appeal nevertheless remained in its fanservice.