Kamichu!

So the lovely little slice-of-a-god's-life series Kamichu! is three quarters of the way through its American DVD release, and that...well, it gives me a convenient excuse to talk about the show, is what it does.

So, quick and dirty explanation: Yurie is a regular middle school girl. She becomes a god. She's great because, while she has the cuteness factor one would expect from her kind of character, she's also selfish and lazy and imperfect like real kids her age often are. She lies. She makes mistakes. She constantly pesters her younger brother, who is a lot more responsible than she is most of the time. She's got a huge crush on a boy in her class, which makes her do silly things sometimes. And all that makes her a fun and interesting character.

Yurie is new to godhood, which means having to learn to use her powers and deal with the responsibilities her position brings. It's rough going at times, but she learns quickly and never gives up. Naturally, she's got friends to help her along the way, like the cool-headed and steadfast Mitsue, the exuberant shrine maiden Matsuri who's always looking for ways to use Yurie's divinity to bring money into her struggling shrine, her 3-piece team of personal helper spirits who call themselves "Team Shiawase" (i.e. "Team Happiness"), the god Yashima-sama, who is more interested in becoming a rock star than taking care of his godly duties, her cat Tama, who (slight spoiler) becomes the host body for a god of misfortune, and all of the other gods and goddesses in the world around her. Her family is loving and supportive as well; even her brother, who is actually pretty patient with his sometimes exasperating sister.

And so Yurie has various adventures as she struggles both with being a god and a middle-school student in love. The show is as much about everyday life as it is about magic and miracles, and can be just as interesting when showing Yurie spending a whole winter's day lounging under her family's kotatsu as it is when it's showing her stopping a wayward typhoon that she accidentally created.

With its careful pacing and focus on the beauty of life and the world around the characters, Kamichu! could easily be referred to as Ghibli-esqe (and has been already, I am sure). The color scheme and overall design of the series also do little to deflect this comparison. Of course, being compared to something from the legendary studio is only a problem if the show can't hold up to those lofty standards, and honestly, Kamichu! is strong enough in overall production quality to avoid seeming like a watered-down Ghibli film.

The soundtrack is suitably nice too, with an ending theme sung by Yurie's voice actress, who also happens to be a member of the J-pop group Bon-Bon Blanco. Be forewarned, however: this ending theme is accompanied by a simple little ending sequence that is about an 11.5 on the cute Richter scale. I've never enjoyed maracas so much.

Kamichu! is a good show. A really good show. It's sweet and pleasant and funny and loaded with great episodes. The adaptation from the original manga is accomplished with confidence and skill, which is no surprise when you consider that the anime was produced by the team known as Besame Mucho, who - along with artist Hanaharu Naruko - were responsible for creating the manga in the first place. I recommend this show to pretty much any fan of anime, and especially to people who like stuff that makes them feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Score: 8/10 (Don't Miss It)