Kamichu!

[gia]

Review through episode 5, no spoilers.

Grade to date: B+
Another low-key, low-energy anime, Kamichu! is an interesting look at a lot of Japanese culture surrounding gods and other mystical forces, not to mention it's ridiculously cute.

Imagine, if you will, a slice-of-life anime mixed with a bit of low-energy magical girl parody, plus a lot of Japanese occult information, and you might get something like "Kamichu!" ...Maybe.      


The story opens with middle school student Hitotsubashi Yurie-chan telling her friend Mitsue during lunch that she became a god the night before. The how or why of this transformation isn't addressed or even flashed back to, and really, it's unimportant.

Mitsue doesn't believe Yurie, but their perky classmate Matsuri befriends the newfound god as a way of bringing some profit back to her family's shrine. Matsuri tries to help Yurie figure out what kind of god she is, in the midst of which appears the "Kamichu!" phrase. Kamichu! is short for "kami wa chuugakusei," which means "middle school god." The word becomes an incantation which causes a storm with Yurie's face on it to wreak havoc in the small town in which the girls live.

Yurie herself reminds me of a low-energy combination of Osaka and Chiyo-chan, a young-looking and -acting middle schooler who always seems vaguely confused and overstimulated by the world around her. (If that's the case, then Mitsue quickly becomes Yomi and Matsuri would be Tomo).

As of episode 5, we're following Yurie around as she learns about and controls her godhood, often meeting other gods (including Matsuri's shrine's god, Yashima, and a poverty god who lives in the body of Yurie's pet cat). Mostly the show is cute with a bit of funny, although some episodes (most notably #2 and #4) have some really hilarious bits.

Although one of the things that I find the most interesting and unique about the show is its occasional focus away from the plot and on the world of gods, demons, and other occult creatures that Yurie finds herself in. Minor deities and random ghosts and funny little creatures appear in pretty much every episode, all of them (I believe) based on Japanese occult mythology. They're cute and they add to the backdrop as much, or perhaps even more so, than the town where Yurie and co. live.

Of course, no middle school girl-centric anime would be complete without at least one unrequited crush, and in poor Yurie's case, it's on Ninomiya Kenji, who must have smoked pot nonstop for a year or something, because the guy's always dazed and confused and rarely remembers Yurie's name. Not sure what the point of him is yet, but I hope they work something good out.

If nothing else, download the first episode just to watch the ending animation. It's cute, vaguely reminiscent of the "Mahoro de Mambo" from the first season of Mahoro-Matic, although (of course) less energetic.

Actually, considering the sheer genki-ness and energy of a lot of anime in recent memory, the seeming onslaught of slower-paced slice-of-life shows like Honey and Clover, Emma, and even Mushishi  seem like a breath of fresh air, though they may be difficult for viewers with shorter attention spans.

Originally posted here.