Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon (Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid)

As Kobayashi sets off for another day at work, she opens her apartment door only to be met by an unusually frightening sight—the head of a dragon, staring at her from across the balcony. The dragon immediately transforms into a cute, busty, and energetic young girl dressed in a maid outfit, introducing herself as Tooru.

It turns out that the stoic programmer had come across the dragon the previous night on a drunken excursion to the mountains, and since the mythical beast had nowhere else to go, she had offered the creature a place to stay in her home. Thus, Tooru had arrived to cash in on the offer, ready to repay her savior's kindness by working as her personal maidservant. Though deeply regretful of her words and hesitant to follow through on her promise, a mix of guilt and Tooru's incredible dragon abilities convinces Kobayashi to take the girl in.

Despite being extremely efficient at her job, the maid's unorthodox methods of housekeeping often end up horrifying Kobayashi and at times bring more trouble than help. Furthermore, the circumstances behind the dragon's arrival on Earth seem to be much more complicated than at first glance, as Tooru bears some heavy emotions and painful memories. To top it all off, Tooru's presence ends up attracting several other mythical beings to her new home, bringing in a host of eccentric personalities. Although Kobayashi makes her best effort to handle the crazy situation that she has found herself in, nothing has prepared her for this new life with a dragon maid.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Edit

Background

No background information has been added to this title. Help improve our database by adding background information here.

Episode Videos

Edit

Related Anime

Adaptation:	Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon
Other:	Kobayashi-san Chi no OO Dragon
Sequel:	Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon: Valentine, Soshite Onsen! - Amari Kitai Shinaide Kudasai

More characters

Characters & Voice Actors

Kamui, Kanna

Main

Naganawa, Maria
Japanese

Tooru

Main

Kuwahara, Yuuki
Japanese

Kobayashi

Main

Tamura, Mutsumi
Japanese

Quetzalcoatl

Supporting

Takahashi, Minami
Japanese

Elma

Supporting

Takada, Yuuki
Japanese

Fafnir

Supporting

Ono, Daisuke
Japanese

Saikawa, Riko

Supporting

Katou, Emiri
Japanese

Magatsuchi, Shouta

Supporting

Ishihara, Kaori
Japanese

Takiya, Makoto

Supporting

Nakamura, Yuuichi
Japanese

Saikawa, Georgie

Supporting

Gotou, Yuuko
Japanese

More staff

Staff

Cook, Justin

Producer

Nakamura, Shinichi

Producer

Saitou, Shigeru

Producer

Herek, Samantha

Assistant Producer

Edit

Opening Theme

"Aozora no Rhapsody (青空のラプソディ)" by fhána

Edit

Ending Theme

"Ishukan Communication (イシュカン・コミュニケーション)" by Chorogonzu (ちょろゴンず) [Tooru (Yuuki Kuwahara), Kanna (Maria Naganawa), Elma (Yuuki Takada) & Lucoa (Minami Takahashi)] (eps 2-12)

Reviews

Apr 5, 2017

Veronin

Recommended

Kyoto Animation has been something of a lost soul, struggling to find its identity in a post-Haruhi and K-ON world. It is through flipping back the dial and returning to their roots that their newest title, Maid Dragon, is able to find its footing. It feels like something that might have been animated once upon a time in 2005, and that is precisely what makes it so special in the modern climate of harem and superpower.

And unlike many of their more recent titles, it knows what it wishes to be and never compromises its vision in a futile attempt to appease everyone and anyone. It ... doesn't play around with drama, and it never centres on action and explosions despite its cast of malevolent dragons. It's silly. It's relaxing. And it can even be a bit heartwarming when it tries, too. Have I also mentioned that Tohru is cute as all hell?

Some may immediately wince and groan upon reading the series' synopsis. Maids plus dragons does not make for a very promising setting, nor does it seem like a combination that required much more than two or three seconds of thought. Everything that could possibly exist has, or inevitably will, receive some sort of series with cute girls indiscriminately slapped onto it. Modern anime has trained people to be cynical.

But to treat Maid Dragon as just another silly comedy with moe characters wouldn't be entirely fair, as there are a number of things it does quite differently. Kobayashi, the show's title character and languid protagonist, is a working adult rather than the conventional teenager. Whereas most anime of its nature would choose instead to play a teenager as some pseudo-adult ("my parents are conveniently away on a business trip, so, hey, I have this house and this maid lady all to myself"), Maid Dragon chooses instead to portray real adults with real issues. Kobayashi is so bored with the office-lady routine that she will choose to drink herself halfway to death after a long day's work. Such is life in much of Japan.

By portraying adult characters, the sense of family between Kobayashi, Tohru, and Kamui feels genuine. Kobayashi is the mother of the household, and she will snap back at her dragon friends whenever they do something unreasonable. She is strict, yet also caring, and tries her best to understand their difficulties with getting used to the human world. Even little things such as peeling oranges for the two on their kotatsu makes it clear that she appreciates their company, even if she may not always be clear and forthright about it. Maid Dragon is true slice-of-life.

Kobayashi being female also helps to keep the show away from any unnecessary sexual undertones. If she were male, the show would no doubt be a harem, and it would be all the worse for it. It is hard to care about a cast when the only thing characterising them is accidental breast fondling (yay) and walking in on (and screaming at) each other in the bathroom. Yawn. While Tohru's feelings for Kobayashi are humorously exaggerated as being romantic, that is not Tohru's actual intentions, and indeed, her reactions come more from gratitude and a desire to protect her guardian, rather than anything genuinely romantic or sexual. The one exception is that, yes, there is a compulsory beach scene, although I suppose I can't fault it too much as it was relatively short and harmless (and because Tohru's body is a lovely sight indeed).

Maid Dragon can occasionally be funny-- Tohru visiting Kobayashi's workplace and repeatedly tripping her crabby boss, or challenging one of the other dragons to a fight in another dimension only to close it on them-- but it isn't an anime that is particularly defined by laughs. It is meant more to be relaxing, and, undoubtedly thanks to Kamui's presence, cute, at times adorable. I just wish it didn't have to repeat the same joke about Tohru cooking her tail a million and one times over.

The anime is at its strongest when it focuses on these main three, which makes the scenes with the other three dragons and Kobayashi's otaku friend, Takiya, significantly less appealing. Takiya's split personality is so jarring and exaggerated that he is often more obnoxious than anything, and Quetzalcoatl is pretty much a non-character whose only defining traits are that her boobs are large and that she likes to dress in scantily-clad clothing. If they were taken out altogether, I don't think anyone would find much reason to complain. More time should instead have been spent developing Kobayashi's cynical worldview, and Tohru's newfound interest in human society, the show's two most compelling themes. It would be nice for Kamui to also have something else to her besides simply being cute and snugly, but then I suppose it would be difficult to develop a character who is essentially the equivalent of a six or seven-year-old child. I sure as heck did not have anything else defining me at that age besides a love for candy and temper tantrums.

Kyoto Animation's artwork is generally excellent, but it certainly stands out in Maid Dragon's case. While there are few scenes that draw particular attention for their animation, the cute and humorous expressions the characters make (notably Tohru and Kamui) make the anime a ripe for grabbin' screenshots. Tohru's eyes are especially detailed, and draw attention to her nature as a dragon while never seeming overtly inhuman. Bright colours and soft edges also do well to enhance the fluffy, relaxing atmosphere the anime strives for. Part of the problem I had with some of KyoAni's other titles, such as Hibike Euphonium, is that they just looked so bland and dreary all the time. It's always welcome to see them return to a more traditional style, as traditional, it seems, is the very thing that KyoAni is skilled at.

To label Maid Dragon as something stellar or ground-breaking may be giving it a bit too much credit, but there is little doubt that it is at least a return to form for a studio that has been losing its way for many a year. It is as well a fun time in its own right, an almost nostalgic recollection of what slice-of-life anime used to be, and could, can be once more.

Open

Gift

Apr 5, 2017

MetaThPr4h

Mixed Feelings

Honestly, I’m not a fan of writing negative reviews since I prefer to use them to recommend series that I enjoyed, but as a fan of both comedy and the “cute girls doing cute things” genre I felt disappointed with Maid Dragon, that was the anime I was looking forward the most for this Winter 2017 season. I know that comedy is a very subjective genre, so I can see why other people would like it, so in this review I will talk about what I liked and what I didn't from this anime, while trying to keep it as a recommendation to give it ... a try as long as you're fine with what this anime delivers.

The story begins when a woman called Kobayashi finds a dragon named Tohru, that looks for a home to live, and after insisting she becomes Kobayashi’s maid, from there other dragons start to appear and they become a part of the daily life of our protagonist. With each introduction we get hints that there is more to know about the dragon world and the conflicts that happen there, something that sadly doesn't get explored in this anime, and while I find that fine since this is just a context for the story and it’s still early on to really need development, I still feel a bit disappointed because the idea is interesting and I wanted to see more.

My issues with this series (and in the end what makes me like a comedy or not) is the characters and the comedy itself. While some characters were fine the way they were (Tohru and Fafnir in special were pretty nice and I enjoyed most of their comedy bits), there are some that very early on reached a point where I was annoyed with them, and the constant repetition of their gag (even 4 or 5 times in an episode at times) without them getting any development during the series to make me feel that there was more to them than that, reduced a lot my enjoyment of this anime.

First in that list is the duo Kanna-Ahegao girl (she's called Riko, but she really deserves that nickname), Kanna is cute, I get it, everything she does is made to be an overdose of cuteness, but all Ahegao girl did for the whole series was, yeah, doing an ahegao face when near Kanna because she was really cute like always, while some people find that face funny, I found it absolutely annoying right from the first time, and nothing about her character changed at any point to make the gag atleast funnier or different. One thing that really bothered me is how the series used Kanna for fanservice at times, and more considering how she has the attitude of a child. One scene with Ahegao girl in particular was very uncomfortable to watch and made me lose the hopes in ending up warming up to this anime sooner or later.

But if we're talking about uncomfortable, Lucoa definitely takes the cake here. I can resume her character in a single word: boobs, all of her comedy comes from them, either via having them bouncing, her wearing dresses that show them a lot (she even gets called as someone that “dresses like a slut” by Kobayashi, I'm dead serious), but definitely the worst part is her constant gag of breast smoothering a kid she lives with using them, I'm fine with some fanservice, but Maid Dragon reaches a point where I think that they went too far, both with how much it uses it, and to which characters the fanservices goes directed to.
Finally there is Kobayashi, our protagonist, that while I find her a pretty bland character, I think that this is exactly her purpose since she is there to bring the heartwarming moments of the series, related to her enjoying having all these weirdos around giving colour to the lifeless world around her due to her personality, I find that scenes well executed and I wish that the series revolved more around the family feel they create.

In the artistic part, well, it's KyoAni, really well animated moments in the scenes where the series needed them while staying nice from start to end. The series also provides a solid OST, with personal mention to the song that plays in the previously mentioned heartwarming scenes, that improved them a lot in my opinion, and the opening “Aozora no Rhapsody” that is a very catchy song to start the episode in a nice mood.

In the end, while I personally didn't enjoy this anime due to not being a fan of the comedy and the fanservice present in the series, it's definitely worth trying out if what I mentioned didn't bother you.

Open

Gift

Jan 3, 2018

RPWPA

Not Recommended

Have you ever thought about making creepy people and pedophiles acceptable? well look no further because this anime is what you need, the "How to Abuse jokes and make creepy characters appear acceptable by using the homosexuality shield" anime is here, you also get the "It isn't pedophilia because the one doing it is a female" extra.

Jokes aside, in this review I'll talk about the comedy aspects and the characters so to start I have to say there is a big variety of character in this starting from cute characters to the creepy ones.

There are creepy and disturbing characters like Saikawa which i'm not ... sure if the mangaka wanted to make an acceptable version of a pedo so he made her, annoying characters like the otaku version of Makoto and Tohru (in the first 7-8 episodes) and useless characters like Elma which i'm not sure why she is there to begin with, it's not like she helped the plot progress or anything, even tohru's dad made the plot move a lot quicker than her and he only appeared in the last episode (which sadly had a cliche ending).

On the other hand there are some good characters like Kobayachi, Kanna, the other version of Makoto, Fafnir and Elma who was useless but the 1 minute she appeared in in every episode was actually enjoyable.

Most of the interactions between the characters are well-written specially between Kanna and Kobayashi and Kobayashi and Makoto while some are just creepy like Kanna and Saikawa.

Now the comedy in this show is weird, I would laugh at some jokes but they would overuse them till they started becoming annoying.

For example: every time Kanna touches Saikawa or looks at her she turns into the creepy pedo version which was disturbing from the very beginning, How is sexualising a 6 Y/O and giving her an orgasm every time she touches Kanna be acceptable, people genuinely find this cute just because she is a lesbian and that really makes me disgusted with them because of how fucked up those people are and their way of defending this is the cringy "You must be a homophobic" argument, it's like those people are defending their own fucked up way of thinking tbh.
Same thing with Shouta and Quetzalcoatl but you know since this time it's a young boy with an older lady and not the other way around then people won't talk about it and about how creepy it actually is, also the fact that in the last episode they made the only cute scene between them when he pretended to exorcise her was just a sad way to try to hide all the other pedophilic scenes and say "She is a caring girl and there is nothing sexual about their relationship".

Other than those examples and the annoying version of Makoto which I think was also there for comedic purposes the rest was really nice to watch.

And before I end the review, I have to give credit to the people who worked on the art because it was very well-drawn from episode 1 till the last episode.

Overall I would give this anime a 3/10.
I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

Open

Gift

More stacks

Interest Stacks

Perfectly Pampered

by alice404

10 Entries · 7 Restacks

Best of the 2010s part 3

by marcosocram2004

50 Entries · 9 Restacks

Super thicc, gluttonous, and plump girls

by FireX

34 Entries · 81 Restacks

More recommendations

Recommendations

View All

More news

Recent News

North American Anime & Manga Releases for February

Here are the North American anime & manga releases for February Week 1: February 4 - 10 Anime Releases A.D. Police (TV) Complete Collection Blu-ray Bai She: Yuan...read more

Feb 3, 2020 1:24 PM by Sakana-san | Discuss (2 comments)

'Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon' Receives Second Season

The wraparound band on the eighth volume of Cool-kyou Shinja's Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon (Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid) manga announced a second sea...read more

Feb 11, 2019 7:06 AM by Vindstot | Discuss (83 comments)

More discussions

Recent Forum Discussion

Poll: Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon Episode 3 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) Stark700 - Jan 25, 2017	189 replies	by MoonlightVT »» Apr 12, 10:54 PM
Poll: Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon Episode 13 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) Stark700 - Apr 5, 2017	315 replies	by _untitled »» Apr 7, 2:50 PM
Poll: Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon Episode 12 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - Mar 29, 2017	131 replies	by _untitled »» Apr 2, 2:38 PM
Poll: Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon Episode 11 Discussion ( 1 2 3 ) Stark700 - Mar 22, 2017	113 replies	by _untitled »» Apr 1, 7:56 AM
Poll: Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon Episode 10 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) Stark700 - Mar 15, 2017	169 replies	by _untitled »» Mar 31, 7:40 AM

Recent Featured Articles

What Kyoto Animation Means to Us

In loving memory of those who lost their lives.

by Shymander

142,958 views

Spoiler

In Numbers: The Best Anime of the Decade

What's the #1 anime of the 2010s? Which year was the best? What studio had the most hits? We have the answers to all these questions and more!

by Shymander

623,673 views

Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon

Alternative Titles

Information

Statistics

Available At

Resources

Streaming Platforms

Synopsis

Background

Episode Videos

Visit MALxJapan
MALxJapan -More than just anime-

Related Anime

Characters & Voice Actors

Kamui, Kanna

Tooru

Kobayashi

Quetzalcoatl

Elma

Fafnir

Saikawa, Riko

Magatsuchi, Shouta

Takiya, Makoto

Saikawa, Georgie

Staff

Opening Theme

Ending Theme

Reviews

Interest Stacks

Recommendations

Recent News

Recent Forum Discussion

Recent Featured Articles

MoreTop Anime

MoreTop Airing Anime

MoreMost Popular Characters

Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon

Alternative Titles

Information

Statistics

Available At

Resources

Streaming Platforms

Synopsis

Background

Episode Videos

Visit MALxJapan MALxJapan -More than just anime-

Related Anime

Characters & Voice Actors

Staff

Opening Theme

Ending Theme

Reviews

Interest Stacks

Recommendations

Recent News

Recent Forum Discussion

Recent Featured Articles

MoreTop Anime

MoreTop Airing Anime

MoreMost Popular Characters

Visit MALxJapan
MALxJapan -More than just anime-