Niehime to Kemono no Ou

By far one of my favourite manga and anime series of all time. It's an adorable and gorgeous story of two hurt people finding love in both themselves and the many friendships they grow. If you want a tooth-rottingly sweet romance between a 'monster' and a human this is more or less the pinnacle. This is not really an angsty romance anime though, so if you're looking for some sweet sweet romantic pain this won't be your best choice, but I still think you'd enjoy it for the many other reasons for which this anime is great. If you liked series like Akatsuki No Yona (Yonaof the Dawn) or Shirayuki - Akagami No Shirayukihime! (Snow White with the Red Hair) this is a must-watch.

One of those stories that just really *makes you care*. Care for the characters, care for the world building, care for the side characters, care for the cute airhead and the softhearted big guy to have lots of cute kids. Its really hard to make me genuinely care for a story like this, and sadly, wholly subjective, I would still ask you to watch this regardless. The plot is a typical story of romance and acceptance, and well executed at that, not unlike the Beauty and the Beast, which it is being compared to left and right, but also quite unique in its execution. Also, fluffy furry designs leftright and center, I suppose you already know if thats an added benefit for you or not!

Beauty and the Beast in movie form: it's the classic Disney fairy-tale princess story of love and romance between a human and a beast. Beauty and the Beast at home: Niehime to Kemono no Ou a.k.a Sacrificial Princess and the King of Beasts. The classic Shoujo romance by-the-book retelling fantasy with the touch of anthropomorphism Even from the very beginning, mangaka Yuu Tomofuji's work-turned-anime was one of the Spring 2023 shows that not a lot of people were talking about, especially in the wave of more notable shows like the season's biggest hitters of Oshi no Ko and Kimetsu no Yaiba's continuation. Even worse, drama and romanceshows like Skip to Loafer and Boku no Kokoro no Yabai Yatsu a.k.a The Dangers in My Heart easily appeal to the wide audience range being newer works than this one, being a traditional romance fantasy that'll appeal more to the fans of Disney's classic Princess fairy-tale series of movies, written and serialized from November 2015 to October 2020, capping at 89 chapters in 15 volumes. And while J.C.Staff's production looks awfully simple with female director Chiaki Kon at the helm, I'd argue that the show's simplicity works well to its regard by keeping it simple. The soul of Niehime to Kemono is exactly where its narrative lies: the relationship between humanity and beastkin. In the typical fantasy world where humans and beasts are locked in at least a breakout war that ends in devastation and loss of life, the consensus between both realms is that the annual tradition is imposed where every year, a female sacrifice would be sent to the beast realm of Ozmargo to be eaten by the King of Beasts. This tradition would go on unbroken, that is until the 99th sacrifice: 15-year-old Sariphi. The miasma-filled realm where beasts live and human entry is forbidden, surprises the King of Beasts that this young woman being so unafraid of death imminent, he broke the tradition and placed Sariphi under special conditions, even though her fate has been sealed the moment she left the human realm of Yoana. But little does Sariphi and the King of Beasts, which the former eventually gave him the name of Leonhart (meaning "brave heart") and being named as the Queen Consort of Beasts, know that this unseen trajectory of theirs will re-shape the entire landscape between humans and beastkin in a huge way. In many ways, Niehime to Kemono is your typical human-beast fantasy romance story that, as dated as Yuu Tomofuji's work seems to be and looks like, it gets the job done: simple, super safe, but straightforward. Where Niehime to Kemono does well is in regard to its many characters, aside from both Sariphi and Leonhart (shortened to Leo) making the big changes that'll affect everyone and everything going forward. The 15-year-old petit young girl may not be a princess nor appreciated by the masses as an abandoned orphan who has no family nor friends, but what she does have is a compassionate heart that's fueled by courage to dream for the impossible, aside from her upbeat and positive personality on life that makes her love and embrace Leo a lot. Compared to the King himself, Leo acts like what a beastkin king should be with his stoic and aggressive behaviour, but deep down, he's a rather gentle and benevolent king to those who are very close to him, which is supported by a secret that only Sariphi knows. Other than his unwavering commitment to Sariphi that she has pulled through many of the inhumane conditions set by his most trusted advisor: the pharaoh-hound inspired Chancellor Anubis. The criticisms of Leo choosing a human queen is as valid and far as the eye and mind can see and comprehend, and while Anubis may be a tough nut to crack for Sariphi being hard-headed and steadfast to tradition, as Sariphi proves over time, so does him in his loyalty to Leo, even in the face of adversity. Sariphi has no shortage of supporters within Ozmargo, starting with the Cyclopian clan of Cy & Clops. Cy is the eye that speaks of few words, and Clops is the mouth who does all of the talk, and together, they work like a well-oiled machine. Next, is Princess Amit of the Reptile clan, with whom she quickly befriends Sariphi, and also is captured by the alluring attention of Ozmargo's Royal Guard captain Jorgunmand, who, like Chancellor Anubis, Leo entrusted the beast army's command to him, which he swears fealty to him. To aid her in her royalty pursuits, Leo gave Sariphi a Holy Beast in the form of Bennu, a phoenix-like beast that, as crude as he is always in his plump, bird-like form, he trusts Sariphi in whatever she's always up to, as well as making the hyena of Lanteveldt (shortened to Lante) be her personal guard. Despite the Hyenians being despised by both humans and beasts alike, Lante does not care and is proud of his blood while sporting a laid-back personality that fights for true justice, the same expression as Sariphi. The devil is in the details, and despite the human girl having her own typical human love interest and racking up friends and enemies along the way, she goes all-in on wanting to help beastkin reconcile with humans, and that is her ultimate goal as the Queen of Beasts. How can you find a calm and collected human, much less a 15-year-old, who can stand up to the heft of beasts who were once slandering her in hate, turned into love, admiration and adoration as the perfect candidate to make a noteworthy difference to all? Not gonna lie, I do have concerns when it comes to the long-time veteran J.C.Staff director of Chiaki Kon. If you don't know anything about her, her past directorial history is very rich, adapting works like the classic shows of famed BL mangaka Shungiku Nakamura's Junjou Romantica and its spin-off of Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi a.k.a The World's Greatest First Love, as well as the very well-known J.C.Staff produced shows of Nodame Cantabile and Golden Time. But as of recent years, she has developed a reputation for disappointing adaptations like Back Street Girls and the very egregious Gokushufudou a.k.a The Way of the Househusband, which is heavily panned for its limited animation, resembling more of a motion comic rather than anime. Other than the short series of Cool Doji Danshi a.k.a Play It Cool, Guys, which its web manga narrative fits the anime well, it feels like she went back to the Gokushufudou treatment for Niehime to Kemono here. And while it's technically a complete-but-incomplete adaptation of the entire manga, the 2-cour, consecutive 24-episode series is fitting enough...if they only had time to create just 1 or 2 episodes more to flesh out the unadapted sections of the manga. Of the OST that was composed by famed Anisong composer Kohta Yamamoto, the music was also done fairly well, and it doesn't let loose on the plot-driven action and drama that escalate as the story goes. I especially love the series' 1st OP song of BIN's "Saku no Nie" (translated to Sacrifice During the New Moon), which its themes perfectly fit the narrative from the get-go, both from a visual and musical point of view, as well as the simple 2nd ED song of Katagiri's "Call Your Name", which is a soothing song that speaks to the heart. The other theme songs (even GARNiDELiA's 1st ED song), just seem so Shoujo-ish that it only fits in the name of being targeted to the Shoujo demographic first and foremost. But overall, it was a good showing. I'm not gonna lie that there wasn't any hype made for this show, even back from the very start of the anime. It's for sure that the Shoujo demographic has its fans, but its fanbase is of a rather small size as well. Niehime to Kemono is a show that'll only please those who've stuck around for the past 6 months, and for all that it's worth, it may be mangaka Yuu Tomofuji's only recognition to both Japanese and Western audiences. But make no mistake, it's just like Beauty and the Beast - the beauty of folklore "not being spunky" but winning over the fearsome beast with gentleness and a calm demeanour. A good traditional Shoujo fantasy romance, all things considered.

Never in my entire life have I ever made a review for a show despite having watched anime for a very long time now. By no means am I a professional at writing reviews, but the fact that I am willing to make a review for this anime goes to show my appreciation for it. For starters, this is a very underrated show that I happen to stumble across out of boredom. And as you guessed, it completely blew my expectations. It absolutely got me investing in it! A story is truly compelling when it manages to grasp your attention despite the characters not appearing thatvisually appealing to viewers (as viewers are likely to watch anime based on the appearance of characters; e.g. waifus & husbandos). The best aspect of this show to me is how the characters are well-written. The female lead here is a strong individual capable of drawing influence to others despite being a mere human that cannot compare to the power of a beast. Whereas the male lead is depicted to be relatively weak (in mind) despite having a very strong aptitude of physical strength. Both of these characters come hand in hand being missing pieces if not with one another, which makes it a very nice aspect for romantic troupes. In a nutshell, one of the aspect this anime teaches is that strength doesn't come with a display of power, but rather your own ability to harden your resolve as a person. Of course, the female lead doesn't start off as a strong character and the vulnerabilities of the male lead is neither visible at the beginning of the anime. However, that is all the more reason for you to watch it. To understand the emotions and thoughts of the characters as they are faced with obstacles are one of the reasons I enjoy reading and watching stories unfold. And this show has captivated me, re-assuring me that my love for stories are not in vain! For those that love to observe the development of characters and their romantic relationships, I would absolutely reommend this! 9/10 *I rated it 10/10 as it is very underrated. I absolutely cannot let this stay at a low rating!

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