Kakushigoto

Seemingly, the last 3 or 4 seasons have given us something to make us feel warm and cozy on the inside. In today’s world, we probably need that more than ever. This season’s wholesome heartwarming series was Kakushigoto. Based on a widely acclaimed manga, the story follows a mangaka, his assistants and his daughter as he attempts to balance being a high selling mangaka with his responsibilities as a father. To further complicate things, Goto wants to keep his real occupation as a mangaka hidden from his daughter. The show follows them on their adorable and often hilarious day to day activities. Whether it’s Hime andher dad going to an onsen on a free trip that she won or them going to Kidzania, the show offers enhoyable slice of life moments that allow you to connect with and form attachments with the characters. While on the surface, the series seems to be very lighthearted and a constant stream of smiles and laughs, there’s actually a rather interesting juxtaposition in narratives. The first 20 minutes or so of every episode is told from the past perspective of Hime, while the final 4 minutes take place in the future following a time-skip with a much darker colour palette as well as tone. The questions that this segment leaves you with after every episode will have you on the edge of your seat awaiting the following episode for more answers. So, if you like bingeable shows with content that keeps you engaged, this is your show. From a technical standpoint, the artstyle is very well done and has a unique look to it. Colours pop and backgrounds are rendered gorgeously. The top notch production quality remains consistent throughout. I came into this series knowing nothing of the series and came out of it reading the manga and a big fan. This is a genuinely great show that offers life lessons on parenting, communication and provides consistent heartwarming entertainment. I can’t recommend it enough. Kakushigoto gets 9 Inu’s out of 10.

Kakushigoto is the Hitou Nami of anime. By that which I mean it is a completely fine and serviceable anime, but otherwise incredibly average and normal. If I had never watched any of the author's previous manga-to-anime adaptations, I may have been more lenient with it. However, in an ironic culture counter-current moment, I was introduced to Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei through this show, which heavily influenced my expectations of this show moving forward, in both style and substance. Unlike his previous works, Kakushigoto contains quite possibly the most positive (or least negative) self-depiction of Kumeta himself. No longer is he some loser whose eternally bitter abouthis assistant's successes or other works outselling him, Kakushigoto is instead a more wholesome or less cynical take on the manga industry through the eyes of a doting father. While this less cynical (I use the term because in no way is this work entirely wholesome or positive) work is somewhat refreshing, the fact of the matter is that it ultimately leads to an at best above average slice of life comedy that is somewhat forgettable by its conclusion. A central motive to the show is nostalgia. Present day scenes are beautifully animated with a different style to the past scenes, and, the ED especially nails the tone to a T. I've also felt some nostalgia watching this throughout the past 3 months or so since I was constantly reminded of Shaft's SZS, that elusive golden past that is long gone, one way or another. The majority of the show with its slice-of-life comedy is not enough of a hook to draw me in unfortunately. There are some nice moments here and there , some good jokes or observations occasionally, but without the usual cynical or pessimistic worldview or even satire. It's just so normal. The only thing I could recall with any bit of clarity is that one bit in Episode 11 where it just turned to SZS for about 10 minutes. It's hilarious yet so out of place at the same time. The fact that I've struggled to write out any more of this review without referencing SZS in any fashion speaks volumes, even the show itself can't escape being in the shadow of SZS given how many references both direct and indirect it has to it. Kakushigoto is just okay, even above average in a few instances, but I've come to expect so much more given the author's previous works and style. And no, even if you have gotten Golden Age Era Shaft to animate this, it wouldn't have been any better. 5/10

this review is spoiler free, but you really can't comprehend even a fraction of how good kakushigoto is unless you consume the entire story, so please watch it if you can. > STORY/ENJOYMENT: 9.5 kakushigoto is so much more than a comedy, and the process of slowly realizing that is honestly what makes it so good. it may feel like everything shown in an episode is just a short story for a quick laugh, but then you soon realize that it's all important to a greater over-arching story. it's utterly impressive how kakushigoto turns such a simple idea from a gag into something serious enough to bea meaningful extended metaphor and the theme of almost an entire episode. this also applies to the series as a whole. i also like how we ever so slowly learn where the story is going. it shows little details directly and indirectly, letting you piece it together. it just feels like someone's dangling all these puzzle pieces in front of you, only to take it away once you try to grab it. but then in the end, they just suddenly drop everything on you, and you wanna be mad, but you can't. the picture that the puzzle forms is just too beautiful. it just feels so good to finally complete it. and since it is labeled a comedy, of course it's funny. only a few comedies have ever made me audibly laugh and actually slap my knee, and this is one of them. kakushigoto handles emotions very well. it makes sure you enjoy anything and everything put in front of you. it doesn't feel awkward or unnatural when a predominantly funny scene turns into a serious scene and vice versa. kakushigoto achieves a masterful balance of the serious and comedic aspects, giving you the best of both worlds. it's also very wholesome and heartwarming. however, the ending is kinda underwhelming. i was expecting it to hit harder than it did. it left me wanting more, which could be either a good thing or a bad thing, but this one's leaning a bit more on the negative side for me. it also felt a bit rushed cause the last episode was the only episode where i feel like the comedy wasn't balanced well, and i hoped the tone was just more serious. if it had another episode to work on the ending, im pretty sure the story would be a 10. > ART: 9 the art is very simple, but still unique and fits the show really well. the character designs are very cute and i honestly wouldn't ask for more than that. animation is smooth and flows nicely, but that's nothing out of the ordinary. the visuals in the op and ed boost this score a bit just cause of how fun they are to watch. > SOUND: 9 the soundtrack feels very ambient and well thought-out. it emphasizes the mood it aims to express pretty well. voice acting is on point for the main characters as well as the side characters we see frequently. just like the visuals, the sound of the op and ed boost this score too. absolute bangers. > CHARACTERS: 8 this is where kakushigoto lacks the most, but still doesn't lack much at all, really. the main characters, hime and kakushi, are quite well-written and have an amazing father-daughter dynamic, though perhaps not as realistic as it can be (i mean, you can only be so realistic in a comedy anime; it has to be hyperbolical, to some extent). hime is absolutely adorable. she's naive and looks like nothing goes on in her mind, but also very sincere, caring, and overall a good kid. it's just the perfect combination of traits to create this specimen of cuteness. she's everyone's ideal daughter and we see how thankful kakushi is for that. he just cares for and appreciates hime so much. most side characters are a bit forgettable, and are often only there for gags, but they're unique enough to be entertaining when you watch them. besides, the actual story focuses heavily on hime and kakushi, so the side characters only having significant roles in the comedy aspect isn't really much of a problem. > OVERALL: 9 protecc hime at all costs.

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