I am allergic to cats and anime heals me! Three "cat anime" that cat skiers can't get enough of! Akiba Research Institute Writer's Choice: Anime Samurai Selection No. 11

Animation featuring animals, including anthropomorphic ones, is one of the author's favorite genres. However, although I like animals, I am allergic to animals, so it is not easy for me to go to the zoo for healing ....... Therefore, when I want to see animals, video or photographs are my standard.

Among them, cats are the ones that cause me to have a strong allergic reaction. I really want to touch them, but I have never touched them in my life. The cat characters in cartoons are the solution to my cat cravings. I like cats with realistic fur, but I tend to choose cartoon-like cat characters because I feel that if they are too realistic, I would be allergic to them.

So this time, I would like to introduce three cat anime based on the themes of healing, daily life, and fantasy.

Tama on 3rd Street ~Don't you know our Tama? ～～

In 2018, the healing character "Tama & Friends" celebrated 35 years since its birth. ～The TV animation "Tama & Friends: Do You Know My Tama? ～was a daily life anime that depicted the heartwarming story of Tama and her friends, cats (and sometimes dogs), who lived in 3-Chome.

At the time, I was only aware of it as a cat depicted on fancy goods, but when a new anime was broadcast in 2016, the first in 22 years, I decided to check it out again.

Henceforth, the 1993 version will be referred to as the "old version" and the 2016 version as the "new version."

The "New Version" is a one-minute short animation that depicts the heartwarming daily life of Tama and his friends, and is perfect for when you just want to be healed.

When the "New Version" aired, many people said, "I miss it! I still have the goods! and "I still have the goods! This is because the "old version" was a masterpiece that won the 1994 Agency for Cultural Affairs Award for Best Motion Picture in the category of television films for children, including profound episodes dealing with such themes as life issues, lonely death, and war.

A representative episode is "Matsuribayashi," the 17th episode of the first season of the old version.

This episode, which begins with a reminiscence scene of a stray cat, Nora, is a story about "death. One summer day, a woman in a straw hat is sitting on the porch. However, the woman does not move even a twitch. When Nora dug her nails into her dilated pupils, blood flowed from her mouth.

The scene changes to the present.

It was a midsummer day. Tama and her friends find an abandoned kitten and run to the respective owners for help. Nora is alone, cuddling the emaciated kitten and waiting for help. But it is a festival day, and all the houses are away. By the time Tama and the others brought the owner to her, the kitten was already out of breath. ...... Then Nora's eyes filled with tears. Nora's eyes fill with tears as she recalls the day her owner died on the porch, and at the same time, she understands death.

The overlap between the gradual weakening of the kitten and the people enjoying the festival, set to the background music of a joyous festival music performance, is quite shocking. The visual impact of the episode may have been more striking because there was extremely little dialogue in the episode.

This episode, which depicts "death" in an unaffected manner, may seem shocking for a children's animation, but at the same time, it is a solid showing for children. At the same time, it is an episode that should be shown to children. There are times when the desire to save someone is not enough.

The words in the text are completely unimaginable from the visuals of Tama and his friends, but they are still talked about as a traumatic episode because they touch the heart and leave something behind.

There are other episodes that deal with the themes of owners and pets and "death. Episode 18 of the second season of the old version, "Paradise of Kanikan," also strikes a chord with the viewer because of Nora's actions. This is an episode in which Nora's kindness, coolness, and compassion can be fully appreciated, so we encourage you to check it out!

■I Want to Cry, I'll Put on a Cat

Many movie theaters were closed due to the new coronavirus. While many films have chosen to postpone their release due to the effects of the virus, this film, despite being produced as a theatrical animation, decided to be distributed on Netflix rather than in theaters at an early stage. This film, which has been attracting attention as a work of art for some time, also attracted attention for its quick and bold response.

It was produced by Studio Colorido, the studio that produced "Penguin Highway. The film is directed by Junichi Sato, who has directed many works including "Sailor Moon," "ARIA," and "Tamayura" series, and Tomotaka Shibayama, who is making his feature film directorial debut with this film. and "Sora no Aoisa wo Shiranai Hito" (Who Knows the Sky Is Blue?).

Mirai Shida and Natsuki Hanae star as voice actors, and the theme song is sung by Yorshka. The theme song is sung by Yorshka, and the film was created by an unquestionably splendid cast.

Second-year junior high school student Muge (Mirai Shida) can't help but love her classmate Hinode (Natsuki Hanae). However, Hinode's attitude toward Muge, whose "love" for Hinode is being leaked, is rather unfriendly.

Muge receives a mask that transforms him into a cat when he puts it on, and he takes on the form of a cat and goes to visit Hinode, whom he loves very much. Hinode, who normally has a curt attitude toward Mugue, names Mugue "Taro" in cat form and dotes on him. Although she has mixed feelings about the difference in Hinode's attitude, she cannot change the joy of being doted on by Hinode, whom she loves very much.

Eventually, Mugé begins to enjoy his cat form to the fullest and feels so much joy that he even thinks it is okay to remain a cat, and the boundary between cat (Taro) and human (Mugé) becomes blurred. ......

One of the highlights of this work is that Mugé, a cute kitten as she is, becomes cuter and cuter as she is loved and adored. Hinode is an adolescent girl and boy in the second year of junior high school, and although they don't get along well as humans, they show their honest hearts in front of Taro the cat. When she learns that the person she loves so much, whom she has gone to see, is usually wearing a cat's mask, and that he has a good heart, her feelings for Hinode grow.

However, what he can do as a cat is limited. Whether he is in human or cat form, he is still conflicted. The story makes us think a lot about when and to whom we should put on a cat's mask, but what attracts us the most is Taro's cuteness, which makes it no wonder that Hinode adores him so much.

Although I have never touched a cat, I can imagine how soft they are to the touch, making this my favorite cat anime.

Natsume's Book of Friends

Strictly speaking, this is not a cat anime, as it is a story about the spiritual exchange between humans and demons. However, many people may think of "Natsume's Book of Friends" and think of Nyanko-sensei, the bouncer of the main character Natsume Takashi. I picked up "Natsume's Book of Friends" as an anime with healing cats.

Based on the best-selling manga by Yuki Midorikawa, which has sold more than 15 million copies in total. The first season of the TV anime aired in 2008, and it has been produced up to the sixth season so far. 2018 will see the release of the movie "Natsume's Book of Friends: Utsusemi ni Tsunagu," the first full-length original episode in the series. Amidst the growing demand for a sequel, two fan-favorite short episodes, "Ishi Wake-up" and "Kaitoshiki Kaikanja" were screened in January 2021 for a limited run.

Takashi Natsume, a boy who has been able to see yokai since he was a child, has inherited the "Book of Friends" that his grandmother Reiko made him write his name in as proof that he is a yokai's henchman, and spends his days returning the name to the yokai together with the self-styled bouncer, Nyanko-sensei. The story naturally brings warm tears to Natsume's eyes as she repeatedly encounters and says goodbye to the yokai, feeling a deepening bond with her friends in the precious place she has finally obtained.

Nyanko-sensei, who senses Reiko's presence in Natsume, approaches her to take away her friend book. Nyanko-sensei approaches Natsume to steal her friend book, saying, "When I die, I will entrust the book to you. He reluctantly accepts Natsume's request to become a bouncer until then, and the two begin to work together. Although Nyanko-sensei is a pain in the ass, he is a reliable bouncer who saves the day in any way he can, but his true identity is that of a "speck," a great yokai with a powerful lift among yokai. The gap between Nyanko-sensei's usual cute beckoning cat appearance and the beautiful white beast that is Mawara is one of the charms of this work.

Although Nyanko-sensei is a supercilious and impudent yokai, he is in fact a special yokai of the highest rank, which makes sense once you understand his character, and the gap between his cute form and the other two makes him even more "pretty.

After being sealed in the beckoning cat for so long, Nyanko-sensei's colonized appearance seems to have become familiar. The way he sneaks into Natsume's bag gives the impression that he is a little larger than a normal cat. However, as a viewer, I am worried that "Natsume, you look heavy. ...... The reason for this is that Dr. Nyanko is a gourmand. Whenever he asks for a favor, or anything else, he always says, "Feed me ____! It has become a standard practice for him to beg for food.

He loves fried shrimp, cakes, watermelon, and ekiben (boxed train lunches). He loves Nanatsujido's wagashi (Japanese confectionery), and always checks out the newest releases and begs for them.

And just as much a fan of sake as he is of wagashi. He carries a bottle of sake, and he can't give up his favorite surume (dried squid meat). You don't have to worry, "Cats shouldn't eat such things! He is a cat. Nyanko-sensei is a yokai in the form of a cat, so he does not get sick to his stomach.

His pretty form, the variation of his facial expressions, and the way he walks around with his butt flailing make your eyes happy, and his gentle tone of voice and venomous tongue make your ears happy!

If you imagine such things, your brain will surely be happy as well.

If you watch them eat deliciously, you will be able to smell and taste the food.

Nyanko-sensei is the most soothing cat character, stimulating the five senses and relieving brain fatigue. That is Nyanko-sensei.

(Text by Shinobu Tanaka)