Dogs also hit anime when they walk. No.20] "Amazu to Inazuma" - A home-cooked meal and smiling family members are the best feast of all!

We want to meet more and more anime that excite our hearts, anime that will cheer us up tomorrow, and anime that we will always love! Our anime writers will introduce you to the hottest anime of the moment, regardless of whether they are new releases or long-term favorites.

Amazu to Inazuma", which started in July, is an anime about a father and daughter who lost their wives and a high school girl whose mother is often absent, who together in the kitchen of a small restaurant, dutifully cook home-style meals such as meat and potatoes, hamburgers, and donabe gohan (rice cooked in a clay pot).

There are many gourmet anime, but what is depicted here are the basics of home cooking, which is to cook to the delight of one's family, and the warmth of the gathering around the table. As you laugh and cry while admiring the modesty and normality of the dishes, you will find yourself wanting to get in the kitchen yourself.


Happiness" at a peaceful dining table


What is happiness? Is it having money? Being praised and envied by others? Getting good grades or achieving good results and being told how great you are? To be able to rest and do what you love?

The world is filled with all kinds of difficulties, and both adults and children are so busy in their daily lives that they sometimes lose sight of such simple things.

But one thing is certain. But one thing is certain: a peaceful meal cooked and eaten together with people you love and who tell you how delicious it is is definitely a "happy" time.

Amazu to Inazuma" is a tale of food and fellowship that reminds us of this.

The main character, Kohei Inuzuka, is a high school math teacher who just lost his wife six months ago. His daughter Tsumugi is an energetic, growing kindergartener. Kohei, who tries his best to balance work and child-rearing, makes sure to pack Tsumugi's lunch for kindergarten. Even so, Tsumugi often eats dinner alone, and something is missing at the table between father and daughter.

Then father and daughter meet a student of Kohei's, Kotori Iida. The small restaurant run by their mother, a cookery researcher, is currently closed because she is busy with her increasing number of TV appearances. Kotori uses the kitchen of the small restaurant to "cook" for the father and daughter. However, Kotori is afraid of knives and cannot cook by herself!

The "duo of a person who can't cook" - Kotori, who knows a lot about cooking, and Kohei, who is a novice and clumsy but has a lot of motivation - work together to make Tsumugi eat something delicious, and they try their hand at cooking for the first time.

From then on, the cooking scenes in each episode will unfold in a slightly awkward manner, just like this.

The dishes that appear in each episode are all "the kind of dishes you would find on an ordinary family dinner table. The procedures and ingredients are introduced in a detailed manner, almost as if it were a cooking show. The way the ingredients are chopped and arranged is very beginner-like, making those who are not good at cooking feel a sense of familiarity, while those who are reasonably good at cooking feel as if they were a parent watching over them with a watchful eye. In other words, you can't take your eyes off them!

Once you've tried your hand at something for the first time and taken the time and effort to give it shape, the thrill of actually eating the dish is waiting for you. Did I do it well? Will Tsumugi be pleased? I find myself as thrilled and nervous about such a small and familiar thing as I am about suspense and action.

"Otosan, mmmm!"

When little Tsumugi's smile lights up, even the viewer, along with Kohei, can't help but let out a sigh of relief. The smile almost brings tears to my eyes.

Eating a meal alone is somewhat lonely. It would be a happy experience if I could eat a meal with my family or loved ones with a smile on my face, saying, "It's delicious. When was the last time you had dinner with your family? I haven't had dinner with that person recently. I can't stop thinking about that.

Food makes you long for the company of others and makes you want to cook your own meals with great intensity. This anime has such a side effect.


If you spend enough time eating together, you become a family.


Kotori, a high school girl who teaches the Inuzuka father and daughter how to cook in the kitchen, is also hungry for company and food.

She lives with her mother and daughter, but her mother is busy with work these days, so they often miss meals together. Although she is no longer a small high school student, Kotori is still lonely.

Of course, she knows how busy her mother is. Her mother also cares about her, cooks meals for her, and calls her. But the truth is that she also wants to eat with her mother.

The depiction of this loneliness makes the slightly nosy behavior of the little bird seem very natural.

Although she always blushes in front of Kohei, Kotori actually seems to have romantic feelings for Kohei, her assistant high school teacher.

Sensei, why don't you cook and eat dinner with me!"

It is no mistake that Kotori's line in the first episode sounds like a marriage proposal.

However, it is also true that the beginning of a "family," which was originally composed of strangers, started with the idea of sharing a meal together under the same roof.

The time that they spend together day after day is so precious and warm that viewers can't help but watch them with a sense of comfort. Kotori's friend Shinobu Koshika and Kohei's acquaintance Yagi also warmly watch over the three of them.

Whether Kotori's love comes true or not is not the most important thing. At least for now, the fact that the three of them cook and eat together seems to be enough to make Kotori happy. This is the way that non-family members become a family.


Enjoy the movement and voice acting! The adorableness of Tsumugi


What is fun when a comic is made into an anime is that it has color, movement, and sound. Here, "Ama to Inazuma" has a big advantage.

First of all, Tsumugi is cute. She is just adorable!

Her childish little gestures never stop. Her long, matted hair is like a stuffed animal's. She is voiced by Ruri Endo, who has been active as a child actress since she was 4 years old. The voice is played by Rina Endo, who has been active as a child actress since she was 4 years old. Some anime fans may remember her as the crying Hina Kubota with long black hair in "Barakamon," in which she played a small child who was very lively and cute.

Otosan!" Otosan, look!"

Her slightly lisping, energetic voice is endearing. Her reaction to waiting anxiously for her meal to be ready and being moved by the delicious food is wonderful.

Just hearing her voice is enough to make me think, "I want to make Tsumugi-chan smile. Cooking is wonderful to make people happy! I think.

The gestures of cooking are also carefully depicted. I thought that the little bird who was sharpening the rice had dangerous hands, but it turns out that she really is an amateur cook!

The finished dish looks warm, glistening, and delicious. The rice glistened, and the reactions of the little bird and Tsumugi, "Delicious! The table shines even brighter with the reactions of the little bird and Tsumugi. Yes, rice should be eaten while savoring its deliciousness.

The three of them are very sincere in their attitude toward each other.

There is no pretension between Kohei and Kotori that they are teachers or students.

Neither Kohei nor Kotori take Tsumugi's opinion lightly because she is a small child.

The three are connected in a roundabout way, centering on the happiness of cooking and eating. This is what makes them feel at home. There is an indescribable sense of security.

I want to be in this kind of happiness, and I want to sit around the table with someone. I want to be in this kind of happiness, and I want to sit down at the table with someone. Or, "Let's have dinner together"? This is a warm and cozy anime that gives you such strength.

It is good for your tired body and mind, so please watch it. Oh, be careful not to watch it on an empty stomach, as it will be irresistible in many ways.


(Text by YAMAYU)


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