@Tfmonkey re- anime harem protagonist conversion: You disagree with the male protagonist being a self-insert of the male author who created the character. How can it not be a self insert, when the author and viewers (average guys) would sacrifice anything to be in that situation.
@theFlow @Tfmonkey For harem animes to be successful, they have to allow the protagonist to be a vessel for the audience; so, they depict the protagonist that the market wants: an individual with no solid character traits who develops a role in the story to gain the affection of the females therein. The more bland the initial character, the more relatable; this is why a character like Guts can't fit the model. He is a character in his own right rather than a vessel.
@DoubleD @theFlow @Tfmonkey an inverse example of this takes place in the Twilight books/movies. Bella the main character is bland, and it makes it so that the female audience can insert themselves as her character and fulfill their romance fantasy.
It clearly worked there too, as the Twilight series was clearly quite popular. Yes, it was a bad story, but popularity often does not align with quality.
@DoubleD @Tfmonkey have you watched The Quintessential Quintuplets?