Usagi Drop

Daikichi Kawachi is a 30-year-old bachelor working a respectable job but otherwise wandering aimlessly through life. When his grandfather suddenly passes away, he returns to the family home to pay his respects. Upon arriving at the house, he meets a mysterious young girl named Rin who, to Daikichi’s astonishment, is his grandfather's illegitimate daughter!

The shy and unapproachable girl is deemed an embarrassment to the family, and finds herself ostracized by her father's relatives, all of them refusing to take care of her in the wake of his death. Daikichi, angered by their coldness toward Rin, announces that he will take her in—despite the fact that he is a young, single man with no prior childcare experience.

Usagi Drop is the story of Daikichi's journey through fatherhood as he raises Rin with his gentle and affectionate nature, as well as an exploration of the warmth and interdependence that are at the heart of a happy, close-knit family.

[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:	Usagi Drop
Side story:	Usagi Drop Specials

More characters

Characters & Voice Actors

Kaga, Rin

Main

Matsuura, Ayu
Japanese

Kawachi, Daikichi

Main

Tsuchida, Hiroshi
Japanese

Nitani, Yukari

Supporting

Ohara, Sayaka
Japanese

Nitani, Kouki

Supporting

Sakai, Noa
Japanese

Yoshii, Masako

Supporting

Sakamoto, Maaya
Japanese

Kawachi, Kazumi

Supporting

Uchiyama, Yumi
Japanese

Gotou

Supporting

Kano, Yui
Japanese

Mi-chan

Supporting

Hirakawa, Daisuke
Japanese

Kawachi, Kenji

Supporting

Itou, Masakazu
Japanese

Maeda, Haruko

Supporting

Ueda, Kana
Japanese

More staff

Staff

Nakatake, Tetsuya

Producer

Matsushita, Keiko

Producer

Kamei, Kanta

Director, Episode Director, Storyboard, Key Animation

Wakabayashi, Kazuhiro

Sound Director

Edit

Opening Theme

"Sweet Drops" by Puffy

Edit

Ending Theme

"High High High" by Kasarinchu

Reviews

Nov 14, 2023

whiteflame55

Recommended

This is the kind of show that just feels like a warm hug throughout. It's not just cute for the sake of being cute, though the animation style is certainly soft and sweet enough that one might be forgiven for seeing it that way. So much of this story is about parenting and what it pulls off masterfully is its depiction of that parent-child relationship in a way that feels authentic without leaving either of them out as individuals. Both parties have their own issues, but together, they are more than the sum of their disparate parts. It helps that, as the show goes on, ...

Open

Gift

Apr 8, 2022

squish

Mixed Feelings

(minor spoilers ahead)

It has been several days since I completed Usagi Drop, and I'm still thinking about this series.

Despite my relatively low score, I truly think Usagi Drop is a work of art. What makes something art, for me, is not whether it is enjoyable or "good" from an entertainment perspective, but how much it makes me feel and think about my own existence. Usagi Drop did a very good job at the latter two things.

I based my score on my overall enjoyment of the show, however. I do think that it probably deserves its relatively high rating (currently over 8.0 here on MAL), but ... I personally found a lot about the series unenjoyable. I want to say that I'm probably not part of its target audience. I don't have children, nor do I ever aspire to be a parent. I definitely identified more with the child Rin than father-figure Daikichi.

Usagi Drop is as its core a story about the mundanity of life. From brushing your teeth to cooking meals to catching a fever, we go through it all with Daikichi and Rin. Daikichi is an interesting character, because he clearly cares about Rin, and considers himself "somewhat" of a parental figure. The show is basically about how he navigates life as a new "father," and he spends a lot of time comparing himself to other parents in his life, learning from them, and contemplating the life he has signed up for.

For some strange reason, though, at one point Daikichi admits that he doesn't see himself as Rin's father. What is he, then? Interestingly, whenever something outside of his scope of parental capabilities crops up, he relies on the women in his life to help him parent Rin. In many scenes, these women are doing most of the work, while he kind of just sits there and acts like Rin's friend. This is part of my issue with the series - although Daikichi has put himself in a parental role, a lot of time he doesn't act like Rin's parent. Knowing about the end of the manga makes this fact even weirder (and, unfortunately, did sour my enjoyment of the anime as a whole).

Rin doesn't fully act like a child, either. She is markedly less childish than all of her peers, and has a level of maturity far beyond a normal 6-year-old. Some of this could be blamed on her trauma, but I think a great opportunity was missed here with regards character development. Much more could have been explored with her character and her pain around having lost her father, but instead we got a pretty one-dimensional Mary-sue.

In the first few episodes, this series seems like it is going to be a heartwarming, comfy story with not much conflict. And it really doesn't have a ton of conflict. Most of the time I was waiting for something interesting to happen. But it doesn't really have many heartwarming scenes, either, in my opinion. Aside from Daikichi, it seems as though every other adult in this show is miserable. One of the themes explored is the sacrifices parents make in order to be parents at all, and whether or not those sacrifices are worth it. I didn't think the way the show answered this question was very satisfying. Realitsic, maybe, but definitely depressing. For the 5% cute moments we get between the children and their parents, the other 95% of the show is, to put it bluntly, pretty boring and hard to watch. If anything, I found it to be a chillingly realistic portrayal of what parenthood is probably like for many.

Despite all this, Usagi Drop is not without its redeeming qualities. Episode 6 brought me to tears. There were plenty of heartwarming moments that, coupled with its deep themes about life and parental sacrifices, make the series worth having watched. But what started out in the first couple episodes as a seemingly comfy slice-of-life turned into something that dragged on, felt a little too realistic, and left me feeling extremely melancholy. As someone who values anime as a source of escapism, I didn't get much enjoyment out of this one. I do understand why many treasure this series, but it's probably not for everyone.

Open

Gift

Aug 18, 2022

WallflowerSoju

Not Recommended

Informative

Spoiler

It seems like a nice slice of life dad/daughter anime until you realize the manga exists.
Beware of the true ending for this, and watch based on just seeing this anime from the top layer and what is only presented. A lot of CP folks will like this and the manga, so check the reviews carefully!

Spoiler CW:
Certain manga's should not see an anime adaption, and while it was at it's base level not bad of an anime you can't watch this with knowing what the true relationship is under the depths. It's grooming. This whole premise is grooming his future wife and it's no longer wholesome. ...

Open

Gift

More stacks

Interest Stacks

Anime for Adults

by hamidio1998

50 Entries · 230 Restacks

Meow IV

by ellps

14 Entries · 4 Restacks

animelon complete catalog: JPDB level 1-2 (EASIEST)

by database_animal

19 Entries · 5 Restacks

More recommendations

Recommendations

View All

More news

Recent News

Q2 2014 Anime Licenses [Update 7/12]

Sentai Filmworks (North America):Haikyuu!! Bokura wa Minna Kawaisou (The Kawai Complex Guide to Manors and Hostel Behavior) Isshuukan Friends. (One Week Friends) Lov...read more

Apr 5, 2014 2:33 PM by Dunois | Discuss (80 comments)

NIS America Licenses Usagi Drop

According to their official press release, NIS America has licensed Usagi Drop (Bunny Drop). NIS America will release the 11-episode series in their premium package ...read more

Apr 28, 2012 11:02 AM by Florete | Discuss (44 comments)

More discussions

Recent Forum Discussion

Poll: Usagi Drop Episode 11 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) tsubasalover - Sep 15, 2011	391 replies	by lupuoc »» Oct 17, 2:24 AM
Poll: Usagi Drop Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 5 ... Last Page ) tsubasalover - Jul 7, 2011	362 replies	by Nouka72 »» Oct 8, 10:34 AM
Live Action JSeanaY - Aug 18	14 replies	by imjayhime »» Aug 24, 7:19 PM
Poll: Usagi Drop Episode 10 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) notsureifsrs - Sep 8, 2011	164 replies	by MxS7HGS »» Jul 29, 6:11 AM
Poll: Usagi Drop Episode 9 Discussion ( 1 2 3 4 ) tsubasalover - Sep 1, 2011	157 replies	by MxS7HGS »» Jul 29, 4:51 AM

Recent Featured Articles

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

608,880 views

The Value of the Slice of Life Genre

Slice of Life is typically an underappreciated genre, despite being the most relatable in terms of subject material. Here's why it deserves to be noticed more.

by MAL_Articles

43,085 views

Usagi Drop

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

Kaga, Rin

Kawachi, Daikichi

Nitani, Yukari

Nitani, Kouki

Yoshii, Masako

Kawachi, Kazumi

Gotou

Mi-chan

Kawachi, Kenji

Maeda, Haruko

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

Usagi Drop

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-