Uchi no Maid ga Uzasugiru!

Japan loves their maids and it’s not too hard to see why. In their world, maids are much more than just eye candy but portrayed as individuals who treats others with respect, dignity, and care. In the Western world, people will probably see maids differently. Watching Uchi no Maid ga Uzasugiru brings out an absurd side of the maid culture that I didn’t realize I wanted.

Also known as “Our Maid is Way too Annoying”, the show doesn’t intend to hide its intentions from the very start. The first few episodes immediately sets off some red flags as we meet Tsubame Kaomi. She’s a former JSDF ... fighter pilot and now serves a young girl named Misha Takanashi. In no less than a single episode, we discover Tsubame’s unhealthy obsession towards Misha. At every chance, she tries to initiate some intimate moment between them. The teases ranges from sneaking into baths, proposing marriage, and always trying to be at the same place. It’s the type of humor that can make or break for the viewers.

Because let’s face it, this show’s plot is more of a deconstruction of the maid culture. In real life, maids wouldn’t ever behave in the way that Tsubame does. However, this anime made it clear that Tsubame genuinely cares about Misha’s well-being. From many instances, she comes to her aid when the young girl needs it the most. On the other hand, Misha begins to accept Tsubame more and more despite responding in a tsundere fashion. I should point out that Tsubame definitely leaves hair-raising moments for Misha and it’s not easy to accept her as a maid. Tsubame’s actions speaks louder than words whenever she shows affection towards her. This also extends to another character later on in the show named Midori. The catch is that Midori’s affections are pointed at Tsubame while the latter seems indifferent about them. Amusement ensues.

Yet despite the reception, this anime can be entertaining to watch when you get attached to the character chemistry between Misha and Tsubame. That is, you’d have to accept them as a pair from the start. There’s no overwhelming character development for either character but it’s shown that they grow to care more and more about each other with every passing episode. There’s also a variety of humorous gags used as comedy stands out as one of the main selling points. It’s pretty cartoonish most of the times that even feels like black comedy. I’m not going to lie, Tsubame’s obsession sometimes borderlines on pedophilic tendencies. Although the show doesn’t really step foot into such category, some of the humor can really be exaggerated. On the other hand, you could definitely watch this show with the intention of absorbing the humor. A lot of it is played for laughs that does what it intends to do: show the audience a different side of maid behavior in Japan. The show is just so damn playful that it’s impossible not to laugh once or twice every episode.

While the plot feels almost nonexistent, there’s some actual characterization with the main characters. The background stories of Tsubame and Midori are explored in details that makes us understand where they came from. The same can be applied to Misha although it’s shown in less vivid details. But honestly, don’t jump into this show with the intention of some interesting plot. The storytelling is mediocre at best and a poorly executed joke at worst. It’s the type of plot that adheres to comedic misadventures with almost every episode being a story of its own. This even extends to Misha’s life at school as she hangs out with her friends. Self-proclaimed rival Yui Morikawa also brings in some oddball drama based on her own perceptions. But seriously, don’t try to invest yourself into this show’s plot.

Doga Kobo’s track record with slice of life content have relatively been regarded as safe and fluffy. Some of their anime also associates with shoujo-ai and it’s not hard witness those moments. This show actually jumps a bit over itself compared to their other works so I was surprised they would take such a project. The 4-koma itself also contains the absurd humor. Not to mention, the character designs are portrayed with care to make the maids look larger than life. Tsubame is a character that no one can take eyes off of whether it’s her personality, stylish maid outfit, or having a ripped body that few can match. This is a sharp contrast to Misha who wants to be as normal as possible as a child. On most parts, the show maintains a balanced art style although the comedy segments can go over the top at times. Character expressions often jumps overboard and the easiest finger to point at is Tsubame. Her affections are shown through the way she blushes and expressing her undying love in the most absurd of ways. The same can be applied to Midori towards Tsubame so you’d better get used to it. I should also point out that Tsubame’s VA did a flawless job at portraying her character. Sure, she’s not a realistic maid to accept but one that definitely gets the job done when it comes to selling her personality.

It’s not an easy show to recommend but that’s ok. When I first decided to watch this series, I had no intention of expecting anything groundbreaking considering its premise and style. It took me perhaps more than half the show to truly accept what this series is capable of. Don’t get me wrong though. Once I embraced the humor, it became a show that I didn’t realize I wanted. This all depends on how you commit to this series as you can easily quote a line or two after watching. But for me, I want to watch more annoying maids doing annoying things.

This season we have another anime about a pedophile, aren’t we tired of the same stuff? The most significant change is making the pedophile a female, pretty smart none will notice a lolicon maid being a pedophile. Well, is not clever, but I am giving the author some credit for trying something new. Honestly, I was surprised in the first episodes. The show was enjoyable, original, hilarious. After some episodes, I noticed the series re-used the same joke every time to have the comedy afloat. The anime that we praised became boring, irrelevant, and in the end, it is just another series that will be ... forgotten as an average comedy because the director does not hurry the pace of the main plot.

The plot is very straightforward with languid pacing because they focused more on the jokes than in the story itself. A lolicon maid falls in love with a young girl because she hasn’t her first period *roll my eyes* Yes, it is funny haha – I tried to laugh but I couldn’t, sorry. So, this maid became a stalker that follows the girl every time, asks for marriage (most all the time), she disguises to be with her. It is fun. The maid enthusiasm combined with the girl repulsion is hilarious. Sadly, since the same joke is repetitive, I got tired. Maybe I expected too much; the first episode delivered an animation quality out of the chart. That is very unusual for a comedy, but the plot quality at the end wastes the animation quality, and the show is now average. You can blame me and send me back into the medieval bonfire, but this show is boring and stupid. In the middle of the series since the first maid lacked humor, the author has the ingenious idea of adding a second maid with some masochism behavior. However, this does not change anything, now we have two perverts for the price of one, and both do not fill the comedy moments showed from the beginning.

On the other hand, Misha, the girl, has a bright personality, and she is the only character that has some development during the story. She is charming, cheerful and is trying to continue her life after the death of her mom. Misha hates the lolicon maid aka Tsubame who has a bizarre personality, and Misha elaborates plans to get Tsubame fired. The maid is a stalker, lolicon, pedophile, she is a hard worker and wants to marry Misha. That is delightful. However, the constant repetition is tedious because in certain parts Misha looks like a person with schizophrenia awaiting Tsubame's assault. Perhaps that was the reason for adding three secondary characters to refresh the plot. Those are Midori aka the extra maid with a twisted personality. Mimika aka glasses and probably Misha’s best friend and since the MC needs someone that challenge her, they added Yui, that always wants to compete with Misha. About Tsubame, I wanted to know more about her but we got some sporadic scenes about her past, so her background is incomplete, sadly.

One important aspect of this series is the animation, and it is impressive in the first episodes. Although, the quality changes and now is a mix of beautiful and weird. There are certain parts were the characters are rough and ugly and are more appreciable in the second half of the series. If we check the colors are very bright and charming. The palette is pleasant to the eye, and a lot of spectators will feel the series warming.

The sound is very nice. The OST is very vivid and helps to catch the spectator in the hilarious moment. The OP and ED are average, but the rhythm buried the lyrics, however.

Finally, my verdict is average (5). I liked the first episodes and was near to give the series an 8 – 9. Nonetheless, after the half, I notice that the fun disappears. It is an alarm if you get rid and tired of the same jokes because the comedy fails. “Uchi no Maid ga Uzasugiru” issue is the lack of an outcome when it is needed. I disagreed when some persons said me that this show does not have a plot but is a combination of jokes. The show has a plot (Misha life after the death of her mom, that’s why her dad gets happy when Misha wants to share anything new with him, Tsubame life in the air force, how did she lose her eye, was Midori involved? That is called a plot) but if the director takes too much time deciding when to advance the main plot (last episode), that is another thing.

This is a show about a pedophile.

There's absolutely no debate about that fact, but I suppose there could be discussion on whether UzaMaid actually promotes pedophilia or not; in my opinion, it strays over the line that separates "protected" media (ie, media that displays immoral things objectively or simply for entertainment) from "WTF is this icky crap" (ie, media that glorifies the immoral/illegal/disgusting). In point of fact, the Maid in question says well over a dozen times that she isn't attracted to any girl who has had her first period. This is also shown in flashbacks at least twice. In every episode she also ... does illegal and morally dubious (at BEST) actions, such as sneaking into the bath of an 8-year-old, recording her sleeping, stalking her at school, rubbing her underwear, stealing clothes, collecting her hair, etc etc and so on.

So, pedophile.

I actually felt dirty watching UzaMaid at times, because every episode had a couple sequences that were just so...wrong. And not in a naughty way: I mean dirty in the way you feel after you accidentally pick off a mushy scab in the shower and it gets stuck under your fingernail.

So why did I finish the show? Two reasons: the first is that I adore Doga Kobo to the point half my favorites list are productions by them. It's even better because I didn't realize they were behind all those anime until I accidentally noticed this about a week ago (which is why I began UzaMaid in the first place..."it must be good, right!?") The second is that UzaMaid has two underlying strands that are IMMENSELY compelling: very good situational humor and a heartrending dramatic subplot that rui--ahem, is portrayed in the last three episodes. If some fan were to remove all the pedo scenes this would be a fantastic anime.

UzaMaid could E A S I L Y have stood on its own merits without all the fucking nasty shit Kamoi gets up to. Kamoi herself is a unique character; she's a military veteran who's totally jacked but also looks great in a maid outfit. She's smart, athletic, looks good, and has shockingly-deep backstory. The loli around whom Kamoi helicopters is animated well, voiced better, and has a strong enough personality to carry the series herself. All the supports are great too!

It's actually heartbreaking, unironically. Like, who is UzaMaid supposed to appeal to? Normies will be utterly revolted by the pedophilia. Studio fans like me will hopefully be able to pretend that stuff isn't there and enjoy what's left, but will be wondering why it exists in the first place. And the third group, well, pedos don't get to have an opinion because monsters aren't people. So it's GOT to be that UzaMaid exists only to appeal to those subhumans, in my opinion, which means it's a piece of shit not worth watching even if you love Doga Kobo.