Anime: Usagi Drop

I'll admit that I originally skipped out on this one after seeing some promotional images of the animation style. However, I eventually decided to give this series a shot and it turned out to be quite a pick. Usagi Drop is a slice of life, but not a slice of life about making fun of ordinary events, rather a slice of life about what it really means to have a family and truly be responsible for another being. That being said, this is probably the first series that I'm ever going to recommend for older audiences not for profanity, violence, or scientific complexity but because of the actual content matter. If you're not old enough (mentally) you're just not going to find this entertaining.

While many other series these days tends to try to hide the parental aspect, this series boldly places it as the main theme. Usagi Drop takes a six-year-old girl and places her under the arms of her thirty-year-old nephew (her father is the main lead's grandfather...). The series focuses on parental issues ranging from time management to dealing with a sick kid. Yes, this means there's no secret agents, instant girlfriends, or anything else of the sort; as others have mentioned, realism is what this show is aiming for and, in my opinion, it does a good job of conveying it without making the material overly dry or intangible.

If you need your action/harem/ecchi/romance or are otherwise unable to focus on something, this is not for you. If you like warm shows that simply exist to brighten ones day (you don't have to be a parent), then you might consider this one.

Animation:
The animation is definitely unique, it was an initial turnoff but became OK as I grew accustomed to it. Every episode starts with a fuzzy sequence that looks like it was drawn with watercolors (pre OP). The animation then changes to a more typical style for the remainder of the episode. Overall the series has a slightly dulled look, sometimes under saturated, but perhaps this is to go along with the realism aspect. Backgrounds are dutifully drawn with no noticeable shortcuts used.

My initial turnoff was with the character styling, in particular I thought the styling looked a bit too plain. However, I still grew to appreciate the style as the show went on. Rin's furrowed brow look is by far the most memorable in this series.

Sound:
Thought the OP isn't really my cup of tea, it fit quite well with the slightly upbeat tonality of the series. The ED probably is a pretty good match as well though it was just too slow, ending a fairly uneventful episode with a sleep-inducing ED is just asking for a skip. Just don't forget that there's segments after the ED in every episode (some fairly good tidbits here). The BGM is just right as well, utilizing a wide range of instruments just enough to support.

This is probably the oldest role I've ever seen Kana Ueda take, but in this series Rin's VA takes the cake. They actually got a pre-teen girl to do her voice (for added realism?) and she did a tremendous job.

Story:
This show is progressive episodic. Each episode has a different topic, be it how to sign up for kindergarten or the difficulties of married life but time does pass- marked by graduations, growth, and lost teeth. It is truly refreshing to be able to reminisce about one's own past events, and to think of all the silly pranks one's done - there's a boy that Rin always plays with so guys aren't alienated.

While each episode is by itself quite interesting, it's really the character interactions that define the series rather than an underlying story. Indeed this doesn't really grow to any particular climax, nor does it have a conclusion. At the end, there's a lot of potential as to where the series could go (I've been told by others to just be happy that it didn't follow the manga...).

This show does focus on realism but as others have pointed out it isn't truly real. I found it a bit odd how Daikichi never really faced monetary issues despite having to take on Rin as well as getting demoted. Perhaps that would have tipped the scale towards the negative and shifted the focus away from the relationships that are the real focus of the show.

Character:
There's quite a few characters introduced in this series, but it's a manageable size and most of them are utilized fairly well. The majority of the warmth in this series radiates from the interactions between Daikichi and Rin, as they grow to accept each other. Daikichi and Rin are both dynamic characters and can definitely be seen changing through the eleven episodes. I really enjoyed the line where Daikichi philosophically asked whether he was raising Rin, or whether she was raising him.

If there was one character-based issue, it would be that Rin still seemed too mature for her age. Other than meandering off once in a while, she is able to quickly grasp complicated situations and is in general remarkably well behaved; all while maintaining that innocent smile of hers. Not to be too negative, but I have doubts that most children are like that.

Value:
You aren't going to find many other shows like this. Its combination of cute innocence and warmth create a very pleasant experience that will likely keep you watching. This is definitely one of those series where you can easily lose track of time, and to do so without resorting to action, romance, or anything out of realistic slice-of-life is quite the accomplishment.

Review
Older protagonists are rare. Damn rare. Usagi Drop got to my list mainly because it offered a lead who was not some teen dumb head trying to catch girls. This is a simple tale about Daikichi, an 30-year old man that ends up with the responsibility of taking care of his aunt, who happens to be a 6-year old girl, fruit of a secret love between his deceased grandfather and a young unknown girl. From there, Daikichi not only has to learn how to deal with a child, but also search for the mother.

---

1. Initially stunning
   Usagi Drop kicks off with some stunning aquarela-style artwork, a perfect fit for its cute atmosphere and a marvelous piece of identify. Sadly though, this unique touch is just a tease, as regular coloring returns once the first scene ends. This pattern repeats in every episode, always giving us a glimpse of how beautiful this could've been. The standard coloring, however, still hold its ground, composed of a light palette aided by a simple artwork capable of giving the show a much needed visual identity even without the watercolor painting. Add that a solid voice-acting and sound track and you got a winner.
   
   Nice but pointless
   Overall, Usagi Drops make good use of its awesome concept and offers some good plot elements as the show progresses. Unfortunately though, the anime simply lacks any kind of conclusion. Everything presented, every plot started, every character shown, everything lacks a true development and the anime simply shuts without a single important event happening. The ordinary elements of daily life may be well made and fun, but you'll end the show without knowing what happens to the future of the characters. Romance is started but never progressed and the default elements from slice of life animes are simply left without any conclusion. The anime ends and you'll simply think why you bothered watching a show that gave nothing except the ordinary life over a very good initial idea.
   
   A slice-of-life with living people
   Usagi Drop doesn't escape the use of stereotypes, yes, but manages to put a nice amount of character development in these short episodes and gathers a great and believable cast. Daikichi being an older man and acting like one definitely helps in this department (Koi Kaze comes to mind) and Rin is a cute energic kid full of life and smiles. The rest of the cast also works in a great way to make the two protagonists shine. Daikichi's family is a very good representation of a realistic family, Rin's mother and Daikichi's love interest are also shown in ways that you don't usually find in japanese animation (no sexual jokes, ecchiness, or otherwise cliche'd events). Sadly, as mentioned earlier, the characters don't have a major event that marks them and conclude their tales within the show, which leaves you only wondering what could happen in their immediate future.
   
   Slice-of-Life
   Usagi Drop brings nothing new. It's a show where cuteness tops anything else and only ordinary events are shown. It takes "slice of life" to the limit of ordinary and because of that fails to deliver something really great. The daily life is worth watching, but fills nothing and brings very little in sense of accomplishment and satisfaction. There's a reason why every show have some coincidences and more uncommon elements. Regardless of these issues, Usagi Drop is quite unique on its look and has such a great artistic value that will be easily remembered by those who watch it.
   
   Too many teases
   Usagi Drop gives you many expectations about how the protagonist could handle taking care of the girl, how he could start the romance, what he would do with the biological mother, etc. But nothing happens, and that makes the whole experience a bit shallow. It gets a bit of worrisome when you learn this is based on an ongoing source material, which means that perhaps there are conclusions to reach, but sadly this may only happen far in the future and only if it gets a new season.
   

---

Comments
If you like cute things you may love the show, if you like slice of life you may like it at least a bit. If you're looking for anything more complex, watch something else. Usagi Drop lacks a very good unique element, but it's worth watching to fill some time and contemplate some possibilities of the kind of life shown by the tale. If there's a continuation where someting happens this could be a very awesome preparation, but on its own is very lacking. I was very interested in the show until episode 7~8, where I could already tell that nothing would really happen to conclude or at least to give a meaning to the show, after that I was really disappointed.

The show may be a bit overrated, but you can give it a chance without fear. I'm the kind of watcher that is easily moved by drama, tragedy and other less joyful events, but Usagi Drop never shows anything that could really move someone emotionally, except if you can cry when you watch a child getting a fever or when they pray for some dead familiar, which for me is extremely normal.

Before I start let me clarify that I don’t care about slice of life shows. I find them to be the second most simplistic and passable genre, with moeblobs topping them by a few miles for going overboard. In this particular case I sat down to watch it simply because the anime became top ten in almost every site in just a few weeks. I wondered “hey how is this possible; it is just another everyday show”.

I read the description of the story and it doesn’t seem like much. Some guy finds out his grandfather had a kid in an old age and decides to raise it after he passed away. Ok, so why is this so great to bother? Some said it was because of the really weird thing that happens in the end of the manga (which I will not reveal since it is a spoiler) and others because it is very good at what is supposed to be about (meaning that you watch it mostly for the feelings it transmits to you). The story is otherwise very basic, the characters are very basic, the ending is not really there, so I am already not seeing this as a perfect show, all in a very objective and undeniable manner.

Other than that I do admit that as far as presentation goes it does a fine job. It really feels like everyday life. More than the usual too. For example, there was an anime I watched some years ago with a rather similar story. It was called Chocotto Sister and unlike Usagi Drop it had a lot of silliness in it, from lolicon, to harem, to ecchi, to female Santa Claus gifting naked girls to teenagers. Its slice of life feeling was fine too but quickly became stupid and the rather low production values made it passable and even forgettable.

Usagi Drop on the other hand does things a lot more subtly and artistic. The visuals are made at times to look like cute pastel-drawn pictures, the characters have lively motions that make them look interesting to pay attention to, the voice acting is appropriate and never overdone. The characters are also behaving in a much understood reason; you won’t find energetic, angsty-filled teenager cop-outs here. The protagonist is an adult working, and the girl needs psychological support. All these everyday aspects of a normal life are very rare in anime and it is quite interesting to see them being given such attention. Most shows would skip all that, give the characters magic money, their hardest problem would be their scores at school and everybody would accidentally bump on one another while undressed. And do I even need to remind you how mature parenthood was portrayed in Astarotte no Omocha?

Usagi Drop avoids all that and focuses solely on portraying realistically what it means to have an actual working life, while having to take care of a melancholic child. It shows all the things you need to sacrifice after you have kids to take care of and it’s not holding back to be sad about it. This unfortunately makes it a show which is hard to be appreciated by anyone who doesn’t like realism in his shows, and by that I mean around 99.98% of any anime, cartoon, dorama, or Hollywood movie out there. Heck, I myself am no fan of too much realism. At the same time the show is far more mature and down to earth that anything else I have watched regarding parenthood. I know for example many who consider the second season of Clannad to be realistic, but the ending alone yells it was just an escapism fairy tale and nothing more. There is another one called Kurenai, which felt realistic in how a young boy needs to take care of a little depressed girl. It also had a fair amount of action, dementia, and even incest. Was it better than Usagi Drop for having action and dementia? No, because the protagonist was a super powerful fighter who was beating crooks every day and yet acted in school like he was a meek wimp and nobody ever questioned his injuries. It became too far fetched after awhile.

Now before you start thinking I am praising the series too much for it realism, I must still clarify that it also has its minor issues in terms of storytelling. For example, the way Daikichi took Rin under his wing happened very easily. He just took her home and that’s it! She was also accepted to the kindergarten without any paperwork to clarify who, what, where, when. The whole adoption thing happened really easily.

But it is not the story or the development that matter but the feelings it transmits to you. And sure, any stupid fan catering/poser/moe show out there can do the same but none of them manage to succeed by being normal. They are just exaggerated, throwing in lots of sex, violence, death, immorality, and then call themselves “mature” when in reality they are just over the top and eventually poke your disbelief too much. The characters are also good for being basic, without any unnecessary extra, such as being defined by quirks, hairstyles or dress fetishes. They are good at their role and in no need of extra spices. This is what I appreciate in this show; it manages to be simple and quite realistic without being dull right away even if you are not a fan of the genre. And this comes from someone who tried colossi like Aria, Wandering Son, and Yokohama Shopping Diary and found them unbearably BOOORING.

So is it a good show? Well it definitely is an uncommon one, and I say this in a positive way. It is getting really hard to see something out of the ordinary in most recent anime and Usagi Drop succeeds by being about REAL life and not some wannabe “mature” story. At the same time, I doubt it would be so famous if it weren’t for “that event” in the end of the manga (which was deliberately left out in the anime version).