Anime Review: Usagi Drop Episode 1

Anime Review:
Usagi Drop Episode 1

What this is about: Watching all of the anime shows so you don’t have to! For more information about me and my reviews, click here for details on what I am reviewing.

Series Premise: Usagi Drop, or “Bunny Drop”, is a weekly anime series between July 2011 and September 2011, based on a long-running manga series by Yumi Unita. Salaryman Daikichi discovers that his recently-deceased grandfather left behind Rin, an illegitimate 6-year-old girl. When no one else is willing to take her in, Daikichi steps up and accepts her, changing his life forever.

Click on the thumbnails below to view the picture in full size in a new window:

ep. tl;dr review: 30 year old man adopts 6 year old girl; Highly-hyped show lives up to the hype.

Spoiler-free Episode Summary: Daikichi Kawachi is an average, 30-year-old single salaryman, who heads off to attend the funeral for his grandfather. But when he arrives, he soon meets six-year-old Rin, who turns out to be his grandfather’s illegitimate daughter (and therefore, his aunt). As the rest of the family goes about preparing for the funeral, they generally avoid Rin, not knowing what exactly to do with her. Finally, it comes time to discuss what to do about her, and no one is willing to take her in. When they talk about sending Rin to an orphanage, Daikichi jumps into action and offers to take her in, much to everyone’s surprise.

My Impressions: I’ll admit it, I was just a bit emotional about this episode. I always take that as a good sign. A very good sign.

Maybe I’m becoming an old fart, but it seems that I am much more attracted to the slower-moving, touching drama stories in anime these days, as opposed to the hard-hitting action or fantastical sci-fi shows that would have caught my eye in years past. Could I possibly be…maturing? Perish the thought! More like, I mostly avoided these type of shows in the past. Didn’t know what I was missing, I guess. Then again, that’s one of the main reasons for going on this “I’ll review the first episode of everything!” bender I’ve been on.

As for Usagi Drop itself, it’s really quite amazing how much is conveyed by the tiniest little things, with one small scene or glance expressing so much about the the characters. Daikichi seems so tired at life, going through the motions of the day as if all the life has been drained out of him. The small moments between Daikichi and Rin throughout the next day show how completely alone each of them are, even though they are surrounded by people, forming a small, unspoken bond. On impulse, he steps up to the plate and takes her in, perhaps unconsciously realizing he needs a change in his life, that he actually needs her as much as he needs him.

Or maybe I’m reading too much into this. Or maybe I’m putting myself into the role of the protagonist, mapping some of my feelings on to Daikichi. Hard to tell, it’s only the first episode, after all.

And now we’ll see just how much Daikichi has bitten off more than he can chew. He has no idea how to raise a six year old little girl, a person he only met the day before. Oh yeah, there will be all kinds of touching moments, Rin really is as cute as a button…but don’t expect it to be a bed of roses. Now the real “fun” begins.

Usagi Drop could potentially be in the running for my “Best of 2011” list. This was a really strong debut.

I also learned there is a live-action feature length movie of Usagi Drop as well! Trailer #1 on Youtube. Looks like it’s just as cute.

The verdict:

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For more information:

• Preview trailer on Youtube.
• Info resources: My Anime List, Anime News Network, AniDB, and Wikipedia.
• If you like this, you might also like: Maybe Honey and Clover or Kowarekake no Orgel

Sampling of Online Reviews:

• “What was poignant about this episode is how it went into a lot of detail showing us just how attached Rin was to her beloved grandpa, and at times in ways that were much more subtle…Daikichi is really the only one who goes through the effort to notice Rin’s little but significant actions, and he’s really the only one out of the entire family who seems to really care for her. Grade: 8.5/10.” – Emory Anime Club
• “Unlike most anime, Usagi Drop requires little verbal interaction to convey emotion. The meaningful looks exchanged by the characters were enough to gain a glimpse of what they were thinking. Also, the dialogue was not only realistic, but witty as well, thus adding depth to the scenes.” – Sekijitsu
• “Wow. Usagi Drop was MUCH better than I had anticipated. In fact, this first episode made me cry. Now that’s good. Everything is just so tender and beautiful; it’s warm. Not only so, but it’s one of the sweetest and quirkiest stories ever.” – Metanorn
• “The drama was really subtle: there was none of the overacting you usually see in anime. This episode especially rocked in how it let everything play off naturally: it didn’t force anything: it just established its characters and gave them the opportunity to let things play out themselves. Potential: 85%” – Star Crossed Anime Blog
• “For me this is easily the best premier episode of the season. This is a little show for big people or at the very least, people with big hearts. Let me tell you how good this episode was; I’m ready to go to sleep now, but if I had 6 more episodes like this one, I’d stay up and watch ‘em all.” – Moe Monster
• “I think the biggest danger this series faces is the temptation to go for the big tearjerker moments, because you have a premise that’s already loaded with emotional weight. If Usagi Drop can avoid that trap, it stands a chance of becoming yet another stellar series in an amazing run of quality from NoitaminA.” – Lost in America
• “If you’re looking for something amazing yet different this is definitely the show to watch, if it keeps up as it is going it will definitely become one of my favorite shows. Grade: 9/10.” – Coldlink’s Blog
• “Usagi Drop is the second show I was going to give a chance. After this first episode, which is the animated version of the plot outline, it will be the second show I’m going to follow. The melancholic atmosphere can really get to you. Besides, how many chances do you get to watch a protagonist that isn’t a 16 year old and a total bore (your average male lead) or some happy-go-lucky loli (your average female lead)?” – Polychromium
• “Usagi Drop has a very nice, slow and steady atmosphere right from the start with enough drama to keep things interesting yet not AnoHana-ish emowhelming and ridiculously melodramatic.” – Re Jinx Me
• “Right now, I just finished watching Usagi Drop episode 1 and I am just awed by how good this is.” – Kuro’s Anime Ramble Blog
• “Usagi Drop’s level headed approach to the topics at hand is admirable. Daikichi and Rin are kindred spirits drawn to each other, almost as if they have an unspoken understanding between one another. Most of the touching scenes are handled very carefully, but they still manage to pack a lot of emotion into it.” – Hachimitsu

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ROUND ONE RESULTS FOR SUMMER 2011 SHOWS:

Thumbs-up for Round One: Busou Shinki: Moon Angel, Blood-C, Mawaru Penguindrum, Kamisama Dolls, No. 6, Dantalian no Shoka, Uta no Prince-sama, Ikoku Meiro no Croisee, Nekogami Yaoyorozu, Kamisama no Memochou, Nurarihyon no Mago Season 2, Natsume Yuujinchou Season 3, Usagi Drop

Thumbs-down for Round One: Double J, Morita-san wa Mukuchi, Mayo Chiki, Nyanpire the Animation, Carnival Phantasm, Copihan, Yuruyuri, The Idolmaster, Sacred Seven, Manyuu Hikenchou, Blade, Higurashi no Naku Koko no Kira, Itsuka Tenma no Kuro Usagi, Twin Angel Twinkle Paradise, Baby Princess 3d: Paradise Love

Coming up next: Baka to Test to Shoukanjuu Second Season, Rou Kyuu Bu, R-15, Oretachi ni Tsubasa OVA, Astarotte no Omocha EX, Touhou Project: Gensou Mangekyou, Kid the Phantom Thief Special