Usagi Drop
Bunny Drop

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Warning: Massive ending spoilers ahead. I'm very sorry but that 6 up there can't be properly explained without delving deep into spoiler territory.

I wish Usagi Drop had 2 separate entries, one being the start and one everything after the time-skip, starting in chapter 26. It's for one very simple reason. Usagi Drop is a prime example of how a great concept can still run off the rails badly. It's a masterclass in turning what starts as a warm, cute and fuzzy story into a catastrophic failure of a 'romantic' drama.

The gist of the premise is that Daikichi (a man who couldn't more obviously be unhappy ... and feeling unfulfilled unless he stuck a neon sign on his face) takes a 6 year old girl, Rin, into his house for the sole reason that everyone else either hates her or straight up doesn't care for her. And it's not hard to see where this goes. A man with no experience with children now has to take care of one with the comedic hijinks that ensue. During that time, we see Daikichi and Rin grow as characters as we learn more about them, who they are and their relationship. I'll be honest, the first part of Usagi Drop is one of the best and most enjoyable things I've ever read. It's just sweet enough to tug your heart strings and make you feel great but also sincere enough to show the problems Rin and Daikichi cope with. I was ready to give this a good solid 9, maybe even a 10!

Now, those of you who have seen the anime or the live-action movie might notice there's a considerable amount of material that wasn't adapted. There's a reason for that.

The great part about having one person both writing and illustrating a manga is that you have synergy. Who else can better convey their thoughts, mental images and general ideas to paper than the writer themselves? The problem that comes from it is that there's no second person to openly doubt your decisions and no manga is a better example than this. I'm not sure what Yumi Unita was thinking but I hope she realizes how poorly it worked out.

In chapter 26, we leap forward about 10 years. Rin is in high school and Daikichi is 40, having to deal with the appropriate issues. Already this brings up some headscratchers, such as how both of our protagonists still hang out with the exact same people they did 10 years ago with no new additions. One of two bigger problems is a shift in tone that is about as smooth and fluid as trying to walk while both your legs are asleep. Gone is the happy heartwarming slice of life, in comes an unnecessarily angsty and gloomy 'romantic' drama. Everything is a lot darker for no adequately explained reason other than some cardinal rule that anything involving teenage characters must be existential, dark or depressing.

No, the biggest problem of all is that the second part builds up to an almost gutpunchingly disturbing conclusion.

Part of the second part involves Rin dealing with her relationship with Daikichi getting more....complicated. Her feelings for him get out of the comfy wholesome foster parent/daughter zone and instead the considerably ickier kind. It's just as disturbing and just as well-executed as you'd expect. After an ass-pull 'but they're not really blood-related' card (on the level of SAO episode 14), Rin decides she wants to marry Daikichi and he goes along with it. Oh boy, where do we begin?

Let's start with the fact that at its very core, this is still creepily close to parental incest. For all intents and purposes, these 2 had a father/daughter relationship for the last 10 years and now she's genuinely in love with him. There's also a distinct lack of consequence shown. There's one character who's ever made aware of her attraction and, no joke, she encourages Rin to go along with it. But there's another layer of disturbing that you might not pick up on the first time. Hell, you might not pick up on it until a good while later. Namely, Daikichi just rolls with it. There's no real shock, no real contemplation to speak of, he listens to her and accepts it. On the surface, it's bad writing. Underneath, it's worse. Disregarding for a moment that this is quite clearly an action of impulse, since his feelings for Rin have always been parental and it was never really hinted that it was more. What we have is a man who's more concerned with the age difference than with the fact that he raised her as his daughter. A man who has no qualms doing so. A man who, I swear I wish I was making this up, is okay with her carrying his child and raising it. A man who's just plain given up on a proper relationship.
A man who by all rights shouldn't be in one because he isn't fit for one.

The first part of Usagi Drop is a 9 or a 10 for me without a doubt. It's well-crafted and heartwarming to see these 2 misfits grow on each other. The second part is disgusting in every way. The change of tone, the ending, how it plays out, the implications it carries, it's nothing short of insulting your readers.

If you want to read this, by all means do so. Sounding like a broken record but the first part is excellent. I highly suggest you finish chapter 24 and stop there. Because unless you're into poorly written, poorly executed semi-incest, there's just nothing for you there.

This story should have been a 9 or 10 overall. However its time skip destroyed everything that made this manga so enduring.

WARNING!! Spoilers ahead.
It isn't possible to discuss why this gets such a bad score without delving into spoilers.

The first 25 chapters were brilliant they were heartwarming and enduring. They brought out all of the good feelings you could possibly want from it and they were golden. A solid 9 even 10.
They were all focused on Rin and Daikichii becoming a family and the struggle of raising a child as a single "parent" and the finding the joy that a child could bring to your ... life.
For Daikichi, Rin was basically his saving grace as he had nothing in his life. He was 30 years old, working the same job for 9 years, living only for himself and wasting his money on drinking and doing nothing but going through the daily motions of life. Rin saved him from that, she gave him a purpose to start living his life for something other than himself and as much as he needed her, she needed him more.
A 6 year old abandoned in the world with no parents. The family members who gathered around for the grandfather's funeral all rejected her and the "embarrassment" that she represented as an "illegitimate" child to a 79 year old man who is no gone from the world. Daikichi saved her from being thrown into a world of upheaval and gave her a stable life and became her parent to support her on her path to adulthood.

Those first 25 chapters were amazing to read, the bond between Daikichi and Rin, it was so enduring to your heart.
However it all goes downhill starting with chapter 26.

Chapter 26. A time skip of 10 years takes place and we jump forward to Rin's 1st year of high school and right before her 16th birthday.

The inclusion of a time skip baffles me. The story before was great in the direction it was headed. The bond between Daikichi and Rin was ever growing, there was a chance of romance between Daikichi and Yukari (Kouki's mother). It had all the makings of a heartwarming story of a child being saved who had no parents. Of gaining a father and even a mother.
The thing that made it so great was the innocence involved in all of it.
However the author chose to do a time skip and we're left with the jumbled mess that is made.

From there story evolves into a darker coloring, relationships and friends have barely changed. There is hardly any inclusion of any new characters and older characters are almost entirely removed from the story only to have a few thrown back in again right at the very end.
It's understandable that there will be conflicts and a darker tone during ones teenage years however the implementation of this darker tone and route was poorly implemented by the author.
At this point in the story Kouki and Rin are portrayed as love interests, but an item that well never occur due to Kouki's poor decisions.
The author throws Kouki into this new role of a guy who is looking for love from Rin, but well never achieve it. Due to his "bad boy" streak during middle school and is now a reformed good boy who has woken up.
This is poorly implemented and just a mess of story writing as we learn about what happened during little flashback scenes that are spaced throughout the remaining chapters.
The only reason I mention this bit of spoiler is, because it is the catalyst that leads to the true catastrophe of the story.
After giving up on ever letting herself love Kouki again Rin begins to move forward with her feelings. However the author has trapped her in a box. A box that is "self" made as the only boys she's ever been involved with were Kouki and Daikichi. As she begins to explore her feelings she ends up deciding that she is in love with Daikichi. The man who raised from 6 years old.
As it goes it begins questioning the boundary of what is and what isn't allowed. How far can she go with her feelings that is acceptable. In a climatic conclusion to her feelings for Daikichi a very poorly implemented excuse of that they aren't blood related is revealed. That Daikichi knew this ever since reading his grandfather's will that he found in Rin's parental booklet back when he first took her in.
From there it evolves into Daikichi not even having the capability to reject Rin's feelings for him and accepting them instead.
In a final chance to try and change her opinion Daikichi makes the deal to make her wait 2 years so she finishes high school and if she finds another boy to love during that time then she must give up her feelings for him of love.

The story writing throughout this is so bad compared to the first 25 chapters.
Rin went from being a lovable little girl that one could sympathize with. To a teenager that has never tried to get close to other people. She's blocked herself off from ever finding other people as her whole world is just her and Daikichi and on occasion Kouki her childhood best friend and Reina. Who in the story is basically the equivalent of a cousin to Rin.
Rin wasn't part of any school club or activities even though she didn't lack talent. The world created for her was just her and Daikichi. In this environment it is basically forced upon the readers that the only conclusion for her is to be with Daikichi forever.
Rin in this state ignores the feelings of Daikichi completely, forcing him into a position of accepting her feelings through a poorly written explanation that they're aren't blood related even through he raised her.
Any proper figure in Daikichi's position who has raised a child is only looking for the best opportunity for they're child and to provide them with whatever they need in order to succeed. Rin completely ignores these feelings of a loving father only focused on what she wants in the end.
The story almost completely writes out Yukari and Daikichi's cousin Haruko is completely wiped except for being mention.
As a final mention it haphazardly brings back Sayaka and Nobu in the final chapter after writing them completely out since the day back in the park during the jump roping practice.


This story was amazing for 25 chapters. After that is was destroyed due to poor story planning, poor writing, haphazard character development, and the destruction of and haphazard return of old characters.
This story had so much going for it. There was plenty of material to go with, without doing a time skip. It crushed the roots of its story and its very sad to see that.

This is a prime example of how a good story can be destroyed so easily.

Usagi Drop is one of those manga I just randomly stumbled upon, read the description and put it on my read-it-later list. Months later when I remembered I actually had a list, I went back to read it. I regret putting it off for so long.

Usagi Drop follows Daikichi on his journey from being a bachelor to being a guardian for a little girl who is actually his half-aunt. When everyone else in the family makes excuses to not keep her or disapproves of little Rin, Daikichi takes custody, slightly disturbed by the shallowness of his relatives. The two start to grow accustomed to each ... other, going through trivial trials and any regular hardship of parenthood. It's really a coming-of-age story, telling how both Daikichi and Rin grow as people through their own father-daughter connection.

The art for Usagi Drop is nice and clean, not overwhelming. It's got a wispy feel to it and takes a nice rooting of usual josei style, only not overly elaborate for its genre. The scenery is always symmetrical and prim -- though the houses always feel a bit empty. (This may just be a cultural thing.) Daikichi himself if drawn to look thirty and Rin is drawn to look like a kid, none of this where the main characters look too young. That's a wonderful thing, so many manga characters follow that set design with the too-big eyes and the same heart-shaped face, boy or girl.

Character is important for this manga, as the chapters are more or less episodic. Daikichi is a very compassionate, calm individual, and it's fascinating to watch him change from a puzzled bachelor to the a more set-in-place guardian who now sort of knows what he's doing. Unlike some other manga where a new guardian has the responsibility of a child thrust upon him (My Girl, Otaku no Masamune-san), Daikichi chose this path and was the one who decided to take up raising Rin. And he has to cope, changing jobs, changing his schedule, all over re-doing his life. Daikichi also has fairly strong convictions but also understanding situations, frowning upon Rin's mother (who is a childish mangaka) for her abandonment, but also realizing that Rin's mother may have not been the best parent.

At the first of the manga, Rin didn't speak much at all, but as the manga progressed and she built a relationship with Daikichi as a father or older brother figure, she breaks out of her shells and makes a few friends, like the chatty cousin and an equally as antisocial boy (whose mother is Daikichi's romantic interest). Rin is intelligent, but lacks confidence and as Daikichi's influence endures, the more she flourishes.

I really enjoyed this manga and would recommend it to anyone looking for family-oriented fluff, trials and errors.

(Review Contains Spoilers,you have been warned)

I love the first half,easily a 10/10 for me when it comes to slice of life...Then the second happened and suddenly,this enjoyable series became painful to read. Everything turns depressing,relationships are messed up and honestly what kind of audience was author going for? Pedobears? Those are the only type of people I can imagine who would read the first half hoping for the ending that happened at the end.

The reason i give it a 6 is because despite the messed up second half, I still enjoyed the first half and giving it anything less than 5 would be a ... not being true to the first half of the series.

So I got into this anime not knowing what to expect.
It was a very warm and bright story about a not so ordinary family that started when daikitchi decided to adopt an orphan relative and raise her as his like his own child.
It was a beautiful story about the struggles of parenthood and how being a single parent is!

Naturally when the anime ended you'd want to see more of it so I went and read the manga. (I wish I didn't)

(The score is not 1 just Cz the first half was amazing)

It was ok at first even after the timelapse!
But at some point ... it turned gloomy and in consistent.
The characters started acting out of character.
And sensitive aspects of the story werent given the attentionthey deserve.
it really felt like the writer has changed in the middle.

The ending is a whole nother section! It was traumatizing! (Spoilers below)
It ruined everything that the story stood for until then! (Parenthood/father-daughter relationship/ doing good for goodness sake)

It was disgusting not because it was (supposedly incest) or because of the age difference as many would claim that was the reason why some think it's horrible.
But simply the fact that he raised her as a daughter.
He's seen her grow up and become a fine young lady.
It doesn't make sense that he'd look at her as a partner and if he did then he's sick.

One last thing!
How is this a JOSEI manga!?????

Usagi Drop is a example of how quickly things can go wrong. For the first 24 chapters - which the anime covers - it is as good as slice of life dramas get. For once the premature ending of an anime is actually a good thing. In the manga version, every relationship built in the first 24 chapters is systematically demolished. As the end approached, I found myself hoping against hope that the decline would stop. That Usagi Drop would return to its senses. However, the last chapter serves only to crush the cherished sentiments of what was a promising beginning.

Aside from the ... sudden and distasteful plot reversal, this manga has well developed characters, tenable art and memorable moments.

I suppose the reason for the abrupt change in direction could be it's Josei origins - a genre I have no prior experience in. Whatever the reasons, this manga is a disappointment given what it initially was and could have been.

I just finished this manga recently and probably unlike a lot of the readers here I knew the ending before the series began. It actually deterred me from reading it for a long time, after reading the series I think this series has been treated quite unfairly. This series simply put is a masterpiece if you understand what the author is portraying and who the audience is. Adapting this series into anime set unrealistic ideas of what the author is trying to portray.

Usagi drop is one of the rare josei series to receive anime adaptions. Josei manga targeted towards older women, and usually ... the smallest segment of the manga/light novel market. It is rare that josei works achieve popularity to gain an Anime adaption. Furthermore, it is rare for Josei manga to receive official English releases, so we are less conscious of differences between Josei and works written for other audiences.
What sets josei series apart from other genres is their focus often on the complexities of real world relationships. Characters in josei series can be flawed, grey and interpersonal relationships are complicated. In shoujo or shone slice of life romances often focus on an average/flawed main character entering into a romance with a perfect or idolized partner. The story is told by enumerating the main characters good qualities and introducing the idol partner’s flaws to make them social equals. This makes for good entertainment, but it doesn’t reflect common real world relationships. The head cheerleader rarely hooks up with the nerdiest guy in school. Josei series in contrast might instead deal with why a women chooses to remain with a flawed partner. Why a women remains with an abusive husband. This type of stylistic difference is important understand when reading a josei titles. You are entering stormy waters where ships are not meant to sail. If you sail ships in these waters they will often sink or veer off course. Sometimes ship will evaporate as if they were never there. In the rare event a ship is on course, it may be the only ship that is sailing.
Usagi drop is not a romance. It is a slice of life/drama. The story is about the complexities of familial relationships. The main character Daikichi is a 30 year old man, at his grandfather’s funeral adopts his supposedly illegitimate daughter. The story is told from his point of view and deals with the struggles of suddenly becoming a single parent. The story is told largely from his point of view, and the cast introduced are other young parents. The second half of the story is told ten years later and from the point of view of now almost adult children. It deals with typical struggles of teens transitioning to adults. Love, angst, what do I do with my life and increasingly complex relationships with families.
SPOILERS BEGIN HERE
The author’s storytelling is excellent if not masterful. I think many people will notice that the supporting cast is given the ‘right’ amount of character development. The level of character development a character receives is used to make the reader feel that Daikichi’s and Rin’s household is normal, when it is anything but.


Daikichi is a man who has never married and chooses to adopt his grandfather’s (adopted) daughter. Child rearing is a difficult activity and most single person rarely enters into parenthood voluntarily. Many of Daikichi’s coworkers have families of their own, but represent the typical nuclear household where two parents raise biological children. Their families are mentioned, but rarely introduced as they are far removed from Daikichi’s world. Instead the characters who play central roles in the story are the Nitani familyare typical single parent household born from a failed marriage. The one nuclear families we catch a glimpse of is Reina’s family which is a nuclear family, with a troubled marriage.

I also like that how time skip shifted the point of view of the story. The beginning of the story is told from the point of view of parents and their struggles as young parents. The second half of the story is told by children who are now young adults. Both Kouki’s and Rin’s decisions and outlooks are conscious of their single parent and in contrast their classmate’s desires seem more trivial. Decisions like whether or not they should attend university are influenced by their family relationships. Kouki and Rin both show a greater disposition towards choosing a path that is not necessarily based on desires, what will be best for the people who raised them.
I feel that Kouki’s character is misunderstood as many people express disappointment with how he grew up. His character is portrayed beautifully and represents who he is at the age of 16. A wayward teenager with no father figure. He is in a rebellious phase where he frequently disappoints those who are around him through a lack of discipline and by lashing out. The worst of these streaks are often resolved by Daikichi, illustrating his need for father figure. Despite his flaws, he is honest, kind hearted and cares deeply about his loved ones. He is essentially a lost teenage boy.
Rin at age 16 also seeks a mother figure and forms a bond with her mother, by her own choosing. We are shown from the beginning that Rin’s mother is a flawed character, but not necessarily a ‘bad’ person. As Rin enters adulthood she is aware of the sacrifices Daikichi has made by raising her. Sacrifices that most people would not make. He essentially sacrificed his youth, career and social prospects by adopting her a child he never had societal obligation towards. Rin’s mother illustrates this clearly.

Many people are disappointed in the ending, to the point of they describe the ending as ruining the series. However, this is simply because the ending violates a taboo. Daikichi is not a biological father, but a surrogate father. Given her circumstances Rin’s desires are not hard to understand. Her desire is fundamentally to remain in a single household with the person that sacrificed everything to raise her. The romantic relationship is for the most part one sided, even though Daikichi comes to accept it. In the end this manga is simply a story about the complexity of family relationships and what makes a family. This story begins and ends with as unlikely a family as any.

**Attention**
If you want a 10/10 manga, then read till chapter 24 and pretend the manga ended there.

If you happen to be Woody Allen, or in want of a pathetic attempt of justifying grooming, then by all means go ahead.

I for one cannot accept that under any circumstances, it doesn't matter whether they are related by blood or not.

The pre time-skip manga was so wholesome, the characters were so well drawn out and nuanced, the relationships were so layered, that's it's almost impossible to believe that the post time-skip was written by the same author. It's as if he had an agenda to destroy everything he ... had built, the final arc destroyed everything that made this manga special.

Yup, the other reviews were right. This shit was weird.

the first half of this manga is a very touching and heartfelt display of an unwilling father coming to terms with the new responsibilities that come with raising a small child. There were some parts of the story that had me smiling from ear to ear. It was very cute.

There are lots of people that complain about endings ruining a good piece of media. But normally that is because the ending falls flat, or the ending does not give them the satisfaction that they desire. This, though, is one of the rare circumstances where the ending ... TRULY ruins the manga. The ending isn't just dissatisfying, it completely recontextualizes everything that happened earlier in the manga and gives it a sour taste.

If you somehow haven't been spoiled of the ending and want to experience a cute found family type of story, watch the anime and pretend the manga doesn't exist. Truly.

Yumi Unita's "Bunny Drop" follows the main characters Daikichi (30) and Rin (6) as they settle in and face the everyday challenges of a single parent. Basically the story is a grown-up version of "Aishiteruze Baby**", and although Yumi Unita's style isn't as cutesy as Yoko Maki's, the characters aren't any less adorable. The story is equally good, or even better, as it deals with more down-to-earth problems.

What makes the manga really stand out in my opinion, though, is the interaction of the main characters with their environment. Daikichi is struggling with the issues of bachelor-suddenly-turned-single-parent, while Rin is trying to overcome her shyness, which ... is a result of her secluded upbringing.

Okay so I am going to spoil here but I feel it is necessary to spoil here because otherwise you may make the same mistake I did and fall in love with the story only to be crushed with disappointment. If you can't stand stories with incest themes or large age gap couples then DO NOT READ THIS. There is technically no blood relation but I still found it appalling. If you don't mind this then go ahead and read it and don't read this review any further because it has severe spoilers
I started reading this after I watched the anime and thought that cute ... 7 year old Rin was adorable and awkward Daisuke was a good main character. The first section of it takes place when Daisuke is 24 and he adopts Rin: an adorable 6 year old girl. This is the part that is shown in the anime and contains the two of them becoming a a family and Daisuke learning about parenting and becoming responsible. I loved this section. It was sweet with great characters and had an implied romance between Daisuke and a single mother of the troublemaker boy Kouki in addition to the adorable interactions between Daisuke and Rin and the great character development of Daisuke.
Then the second section skips to when Rin in high school and has some romance between her and Kouki along with the romance between Daisuke and Kouki's mom, Nitani-san. I was concerned with this double romance because if both couples ended up together, that would mean incest, but I kept reading anyway and was relieved to see it didn't end that way (little did I know that the real ending was far worse). Circumstances didn't allow Daisuke and Nitani--san to become a couple and after many years, Nitani-san decided to marry another. They remained friends which made me happy. Rin rejected Kouki despite having liked him at one point, deciding that dating him would cause to much trouble and strife. While I liked their pairing I was also happy with this because it showed how well Rin thought things through and didn't follow a typical romance sequence. I grew to like Rin as a responsible high school girl who acted like a granny and was smart and knew how to avoid trouble and her relations with the other characters were still cute and fun.
The third section is when things break down: Rin gets a crush on Daisuke. I only kept reading at this point because I had like the rest of the story so much and trusted the author to bring it back on track. Daisuke thought of Rin as a daughter and had no romantic feelings towards her at all. Another potential love interest was introduced too so there was hope of bringing the story in a different direction. But the love interest ended up just being a tool to reveal Rin's feeling to Daisuke and in the end I don't even remember his name. As the relationship between Daisuke and Rin becomes strained Daisuke comes to the pretty logical decision that he will put this problem on hold until Rin is an graduates high school and becomes an adult. He tells Rin he will think about their relationship over the next two years and in that time she should think about moving on and finding a boyfriend around her age. I agree with his actions at this point wholeheartedly as well. But then they do a time skip to when she graduates. And he basically says "You know I can never say no to you, my Rin" and they decide to become a couple. They discuss getting married right away and she says she wants to have his child and is looking forward to seeing him raise it wonderfully as he had raised her. I find all of this ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTING AND WEIRD. I lost all respect for the characters and my point of view of the beautiful story so far is ruined. Just because he wants to stay close to Rin no matter what does not mean that it is okay for them to become a couple. Not to be crude or anything but romance, especially marriage with children involves not only kissing but SEX. The fact that Daisuke could HAVE SEX WITH HIS DAUGHTER is beyond disturbing. Not to mention the 24 year age difference is already kinda... I don't care if there is no blood relation, he was still her father and its appalling to think that they end up together. The entire manga was ruined and its only more devastating because I loved the rest of it so much. If it weren't for the ending I would have given this story a 9 or even a 10 but as things are I can only rate it a 1.

I read it entirely in a couple of days, more like evenings, lying in bed after work. I would get bundled up into bed, crack open the pages and just bask in the feel-good nature of a unique family story.

Immediately you are flooded with an array of emotions. There is grief chief amongst them as you begin the tale with a gathering to mourn someone’s death. Very shortly afterwards you feel a strong tension within the family because there is a child born out of wedlock that needs to be cared for, yet it’s a burden that no one in the family wishes to bear. ... This tension is heavily tied to themes of shame, disgust, loneliness, rage, and pity. Then as we watch Daikichi and Rin adapt to a new and unfamiliar life, we are washed with a wonderful sense of warmth and comfort. If you’ve ever been a parent, you can relate to the struggles that go into raising a child. The bulk of that has to do deal with making sure that you’re feeding them enough and nutritiously, clothing them, and providing them with a home as well as shelter. But there is also that other half: teaching them a sense of self, respect, culture; helping them understand what it takes to survive and live as they grow up and ask some very difficult questions, questions that usually only experience itself can answer.

Because of every single one of these amazing aspects, I felt wholeheartedly enchanted. Daikichi and Rin were learning so much about each other as well as themselves and they were doing it together. Rin helped Daikichi learn the virtues of patience as well as the skill to thoroughly think about a situation before making decisions. The brash instincts of a bachelor were quickly being matured into something deeper because these choices would affect more than one person now. Daikichi helped Rin fit into a world where she felt comfortable and at peace, a place where she didn’t feel like an unwanted, broken toy. A home where she truly belonged.

I have never read a manga that examined parenthood on such a substantially deep and intimate level like this. This made up the artful and elegant first half of the series, however. The second half loses its unique story appeal and rapidly mutates into an atypical shōjo plot line. After Rin enters high school, the perspective shifts from Daikichi to Rin’s social and romantic development. The tale becomes less and less about Daikichi tackling parental concerns and more about high school life and drama.

I won’t say that I despised this variation, but I certainly did not find it pleasant. Instead of seeing her go about her day studying, interacting with friends, and then coming home to cook and study some more, my preference would have been to see Daikichi having to adapt to Rin turning into a woman. That means fighting off boys who want to date her, having to address any questions or issues she would have with the decision to go to college (or to not go), and how to financially prepare for something of that magnitude. It would have been very fascinating to use this period of Rin’s life to examine sex. How would Daikichi speak to Rin about sex and her self-worth as a woman? These particular facets create a considerably more compelling serial then what was given.

Unfortunately, that is not even the worst of the disappointment. There are relationships and interactions that grow on you so deeply that watching them fall apart just breaks your heart. Then you have other relationships that are so toxic that you feel a strong sense of fear for the characters you have grown to love. In this manga series, I felt as if the author was purposefully trying to make her audience wither with rage or frustration. While I suspected Rin’s feelings before it was blatantly revealed, I had never anticipated that it would be met in such a dishonorable fashion. Meanwhile, Daikichi has a chance, finally, for something beautiful but it’s completely stolen after volumes of teasing and pining. The resolution in this scenario was abrupt, unpredictable, and plain unfair.

The finale and the wrap up of the tale left a bitter taste in my mouth and a heavy heart in my chest. There was an ocean of wondrous possibilities for Bunny Drop to be one of the best josei manga serials ever written. Yet, everything from the second half unto the conclusion was a complete and utter disaster. I won’t even recommend the manga. If you really want to experience the series then please just watch the anime, as it had a very good reason for stopping where it did. Six bunnies out of ten and a sad face on top.

This was really good but the ending is messed up in my opinion. It's not technically wrong or illegal but it certainly feels that way. The main reason for this is that I read the whole thing and imagined the characters in a father-daughter relationship. But when they started moving towards the romance, I felt uneasy and just plain wrong. I at least thought that Daikichi will be the sensible one and not do this but he failed to meet my expectations. It is a really good read until the high school arc. I suggest stopping there if you are uncomfortable with what happens next.

Spoilers ahead, without them I cannot illustrate why I have the opinion I do regarding this manga, and why the manga went from great, to awful.

Usagi Drop did one thing great, and two things awful, and even the thing it did great didn't last for long. Usagi Drop did a fantastic job of making a light, fluffy and very enjoyable relationship about a clearly miserable man taking in a girl he's barely related to who just lost everything. What it did awful with was it's ending, and romantic relationships in general. Here's why.

Usagi Drop starts off with very familial, Slice Of Life vibes, with zero ... seeming intention of delving into more complex and simply different genres such as drama. That coupled with the fact that the first third of the manga sticks very close to that Slice Of Life and familial growing makes what comes after very difficult to achieve and what ended up ruining the series.

Usagi Drop attempted to turn those Slice Of Life and familial bonds into dramatic romance, and it failed, hard. It attempted to transform Rin and Daikichi's contrasting relationship into a romantic one, and here are the two reasons it failed. First, this manga spent one third of it's life span clearly setting their relationship as an awkward but cute father daughter relationship. And second, there were much better match ups, specifically for Daikichi. With Rin and Daikichi you couldn't feel much more there than a budding father daughter relationship, and it tried and failed to transform that into a romantic one, which wouldn't be nearly as bad if not for the fact that Daikichi has a much clearer, and much more compatible relationship. Nikitani Yukari, a single mom. She is the perfect foil to Daikichi and an even better romantic significant other, if this series inserted her as a mother figure, a wife as well as bringing a brother for Rin, I have no doubt this could have been a 10. It could have been a fantastic Slice Of Life with minor romance and drama about four individuals who each have their different scares when it comes to family and love. But no, it tried and failed to be a half cocked semi-incest manga.

The next problem is the time skip, I am not a fan of time skips because the rarely ever work out well, and skip a lot of potential character growth. The can be pragmatic time savers if executed well, but this one did nothing good and A LOT bad. We simply discarded the warm Slice Of Life vibes this manga had for edgy poorly written romantic drama. We got absolutely no warning, and ended up with severe literary whiplash from this violent genre change. This is also the point at which Yukari's and Daikichi's relationship took a slight incline, then violent turn for the worse. The point at which a lovely father daughter relationship was pointlessly perverted into a romantic housekeeper. That's the kicker. We never even got a clear answer as to their relationship. All we know was Rin and Daikichi stay together. We don't get a clear answer as to what their relationship turns into after this manga cuts off the much better relationship of Yukari and Daikichi.

The first third (24 chapters) of Usagi Drop is fantastic, well written, heartwarming Slice Of Life where we see two contrasting but equally messed up human beings grow and comfort each other in the most familial and PLATONIC of senses. The latter 38 chapters are just a perverted poor attempt at romantic father daughter incest, with sloppy writing and poor transitions, unanswered questions and better options.

Overall scoring

Story: (Until Chapter 24) 8 (After Chapter 24) 4 (Overall) 6
It simply goes from something well written the author clearly is good at writing, to something poorly written the author has no skill in writing.

Art: 6
Nothing special, nothing bad. Though the author is good at matching emotions with faces.

Character: (Until Chapter 24) 8 (After Chapter 24) 6 (Overall) 7
Same issues as the story, it starts out doing very well at what it's trying to do, and then takes a violent turn for the worse because the author improperly set the tones and emotions of the characters.

Enjoyment: (Until Chapter 24) 9 (After Chapter 24) 5 (Overall) 6
It was a lovely Slice Of Life but an abysmal Romantic Drama.

Overall: (Until Chapter 24) 8 (After Chapter 24) 3 (Overall) 6
The rankings speak for themselves. If you don't understand my reasons for ranking this manga as such, please do read it for yourself and perhaps you will gain the same opinion as me.

If you want to read this manga, by all means go ahead, but I think the ratings speak for themselves. The manga as of this writing is significantly lower ranked than the anime, and that's because the anime stops at chapter 24. It stops before this story takes it's steep downhill turn for the worse. So if you want to read this manga, let me offer two pieces of advice. One, stop at chapter 24, or two completely disregard the manga in favor of it's well animated, well voiced and smarter anime which knows when to end a good thing.

I recommend you stop reading at the end of chapter 24. Don't read beyond that. The anime stays true to the manga, so the anime is great, it stops right at the 24th chapter, the anime is right-on, they had the right idea using only the first part.

The first part is a truly heart warming, touching, well-developed story of the struggles of fatherhood. It's really nice, I loved it so much and recommend it to anyone.

The second part, after 24, involves a timeskip, and sinking deeply into... A totally different series, really. The mangaka clearly ... decided to take things somewhere else, and while perhaps she could have made a different series, it feels wholly wrong with the flow of the first part. It's just too much, and it comepletely sours the feel of the first part.

Seriously, just assume everything after chapter 24 doesn't exist.

The story of this particular manga is realistic yet odd. Without trying to give spoilers, anyone wanting to read the manga must be warned that the story might not go as they expect. Which is not by default a bad matter, except... I have yet to find anyone who read the ending and who wasn't terribly disappointing. As emotional, captivating and heart-warming the scenes and bonding between characters is, the ultimate relationship that is revealed at the ending is somewhat out of the box and not very rooted for by the majority of the public. Nevertheless, I recommend anyone who is a fan of family ... type of stories to read this up to chapter 26.

The art of this manga is simple yet sufficient. There are hardly any truly outstanding character designs which complement the realistisc slice of life genre. Therefor it is easy to picture the story to take place in modern Japan.

Character development is what this story is all about. The time skip in the story was unexpected, but refreshing, for it shone a light on the relationships in a more mature setting. The main girl, Rin, blossoms into a teenage girl who is mature for her age but still naïve about the world. The only part about the character development aspect that I disliked it the constant obnoxious behaviour of Kouki obsessing over Rin wanting her to like him as much as he likes her. Get the hint, kid. She doesn't like you, it's not endearing to stick your nose in all of her business and to insist on walking her home even when she's on a frigging date. Ugh.

I enjoyed this story only until I figured out that Daikichi was not going to end up with the person I was hoping for. Which means I am biased and disappointed, but who isn't? It was truly joyful to see Daikichi as a mature single man try and raise a little child and have to adjust to parenthood without a partner to support him.

Overall I give this story a 5 out of 10. This low mark is mostly based on the ending and the odd character bonding that suddenly took place and totally made me flip all the tables in my house. Sadly enough this story took a turn for the worst which left me feeling awkward and confused and simply unconvinced of Daikichi's feelings for the 'love of his life'.

Well, this is...weird.
As many people have mentioned before, we can divide this manga in two parts: the first one before the timeskip and the second one after the timeskip, starting this one after chapter 26. Many people can think: "but hey, a timeskip usually does that, look One Piece etc" Yes, but in this case there's no only difference in content but also in its vision of life, almost a complete throw. But why?

As I previously said in my anime review of Usagi Drop (which adapt this first part of manga, excluding few scenes) these episodes are completely beautiful, with a magnificent slow pacing for ... an slice of life anime and a great story about family, sacrifice, kindness and responsability in its simple and realistic way. Daikichi is the perfect example of sacrifice and maturity, helping Rin with her insecurities like the best father in existence. But remember, he's not her father, Daikichi must remain as Daikichi. And here is where this manga gets weird. (spoilers onwards, go to the very end if you have not read it)

We have a timeskip. 10 years have passed. The narrative perspective goes now to Rin and we get a deeper character with more and more insecurities and how she face them. Well, it is done pretty well, being the Kouki arc a pretty solid arc, focusing in their relationship then and before, but the heartwarming slice of life is totally gone.
Slowly, Rin is starting to change her feelings for Daikichi, and we are getting into a confusing territory. Later in the manga, a Deus Ex Machina situation change the relationship between these two and Daikichi finally accepts her feelings.

This is weird as fuck.
This is pretty close to parental incest. Even if they are not blood related, these two had a father/daughter relationship for the last 10 years and now she's in love with him. Slowly, yes, in a natural way, yes, they explain you how, yes, but it just...doesn't work. It is true that is not THAT creepy or disturbing, you can even understand her feelings, but if you look back to the first 26 episodes, something does not fit.
In addition, the end of the manga is...abrupt. That's the word. You don't have any time to empathize with this new situation.
The volumen 10-extra is kinda good - Good side stories to know better some characters and oh god the little Rin- but its end is also abrupt.

Talking about the art, i have any problems with it, same as the anime. Cute and nice to see.

Overall, i enyoyed this manga, but i could've done it much more. If you have seen thie anime and you are in love with this world go and read this, it's still a good read, but not as good as the anime or the first manga caps.

THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILER

Usagi Drop. I really love the first volume until fifth volume. I should score it 10 but the time skipping is just ruining such a cute story. The story after the time skipping is just wasting potential. Daikichi should have ended with Kouki's mother and not Rin because Daikichi and Rin have Father-Daughter bond but why should Rin marry with Daikichi? and this thing makes me sick. I would really happy if Rin call Daikichi as a ''Dad''. By the way, Rin really like Kouki's mother and she wanted to be a mother like her. I know Daikichi and Rin have no ... related blood but I really wanted to see that Daikichi and Kouki's mother have end up together and Rin have a brother named Kouki. I'm not accepting the ending in the Manga . The real Usagi Drop for me is from Anime. The ending in Manga is just really horrible.

(Sorry, I'm not speak English very well)

*This review contains significant content spoilers*

Usagi Drop (Bunny Drop as its called in English) begins as a wonderful entry into the slice of life genre and carries itself quite competently... until the last moments of the narrative. The story is mostly character driven and follows the livelihoods of thirty year old Daikichi in the first part and his adoptive daughter Rin in the second.

The first part focuses on Daikichi learning the sacrifices and struggles that come with raising a child as a single parent. The writing for this part is excellent; Daikichi's inner monologues detail his thoughts well and I found it easy to follow ... his character through the intricate trappings of his new found daily life. His interaction with six year old Rin is also well done, she acts and responds like a typical child and he quickly learns to work his way through many "ah ha" moments which one takes for granted if they don't have a child. Shedding light on what it involves to be a parent is what I would consider the main theme of the first part, and I think it succeeds without question proving to be a very enjoyable read.

The second part of the story is more focused on Rin's daily life ten years into living with Daikichi. It is typical high school drama/romance/comedy and is, for the most part, successful. Characters are believably written and the story is fairly easy to follow, though it is not as easy as the first half because the focus is romance triangle drama. I found story became less interesting to read as it shifted away from Daikichi learning to be a parent and waded into the life and times of high-schoolers.

It is the end of the story which comes out of left field so quickly, I was left dazed and needed to re-read the last couple of chapters. The story reaches its climax when Rin falls into romantic love with Daikichi, and decides that she is okay with these feelings. When Daikichi is made aware of this, without any thought or deliberation he accepts these feelings and equally returns them, making the two characters a romantic couple. The writing falls incredibly flat at story's end: large, deus ex machina-esque plot points are introduced in order to facilitate the romance between the two and other plot threads for different characters are swept under the rug or hastily tied up. The romance between Rin and Daikichi feels very forced and seems to blossom at an alarmingly fast pace. Furthermore, because of the familial relationship the two shared up until the end, the incestuous nature of their romance didn't provide me any kind of satisfaction what so ever. The ending really ruins my ability to reminisce about the story as a whole, which is disappointing because three quarters of the story is engaging and entertaining.

The art of the manga is simple, but elegant which gives the manga a very clean look. I like the character design of Daikichi who is portrayed as a lanky, tall man which lends to the awkwardness of his character. The character design for young Rin and other small children are fantastic. They appear energetic and durable which is balanced with the sense of vulnerability that young children possess and the artwork succeeds at portraying this. There are a few instances where I though character movements looked stiff, but it never left a lasting impression. All in all, the artwork is competent and consistent and I like the simple, clean look to the manga.

As stated above, the end to the story really hurts my ability to enjoy the complete product. It feels like the author had more planned out, but then ran out of time and cut the ending short with something half assed. Had the characters had more time to contemplate and discuss the shift in their relationships, it might have been able to work, but that is only theory and nothing more. As it stands, Usagi Drop is a lovely series until the last quarter and worth a read for the first part where Daikichi learns to be a guardian to Rin. I gave this manga a 7 out of 10 for the fun I had reading the first part and its enjoyable artwork.

FIRST OF ALL: SPOILER WARNING (maybe. i dont know. i guess you will read it anyway)

ok this will be a short review.
in my opinion Usagi Drop should ended with the 4th volume (chapter 1-24) like the anime does.
After the "timeskip" (chapter 25-56) the manga has gone in a complete other way... im not sure how i could explain it with the right words, but yeah i guess most of you guys should know what i mean... it just destroyed the whole heartwarming, beautiful and lovely atmosphere of the "part 1"-story i fell in love with.

Summary:
Part 1: Volume 1-4 (chapter 1-24)
Story 10/10, Art 10/10, Character 10/10, ... Enjoyment 10/10, Overall 10/10
Comment: i was totally in love with everything. fuckin heartwarming, tears of joy and some normal tears too :D love love love it was so beautiful

Part 2: Volume 5-9 (chapter 25-56)
Story 5/10, Art 10/10, Character 7/10, Enjoyment 6/10, Overall 6/10

i did not count the 10th volume because there are just some shortstories :)

Over-overall 7/10, the way how it changed (timeskip, 24 to 25) i didnt like how the mange goes... it destroyed the atmosphere of the beautiful first part.

Anyway would still recommend it... well part 1.
part 2 is optional, i wouldnt recommend it but if you have no life and enough spare time... just read it xD