Doukyonin wa Hiza—more commonly referred to by its English title of My Roommate is a Cat—is in my opinion one of the best slice of life shows in the last few seasons. The story follows the life of the shy novelist Subaru who recently lost his parents in an accident. Lonely and socially awkward, he one day randomly comes across a stray cat on the street whom he decides to take in on a whim. He's never raised a pet before but little does he know that it might just be the best single decision he's ever made.
There are numerous things to like about My Roommate is a Cat really, but first of all I like the dynamic between Subaru and his cat Haru in the sense of just how important they are to each other given their respective pasts. Subaru has recently lost his parents as mentioned, but Haru has also had a rough life on the street with her siblings, always on the run from enemies and scavenging for food. They give each other the support and peacefulness that their lives have been missing.
Secondly, the overall tone of the show is quite mature. This might partially be related to the fact that Subaru and all his other human acquaintances are adults, but just in general the writing feels quite genuine and the relationships between Subaru and his friends always come across as human. As a result there isn't really any character in this show that I find much of a reason to dislike. They all fill the roles they've been presented quite admirably without ever coming across as tropey.
Last but certainly not least however, is how the author has managed to portray Haru and her view of the world. You see, this is an anime that really has two protagonists: a large portion of the show is seen from Haru's eyes instead of Subaru's. This is generally done by first having a few scenes play out from Subaru's perspective, and then a while later you'll get to see those same events again, but this time from Haru's eyes. It's a brilliant structure that manages to provide some drastically different anglings of the same events without ever feeling repetitive—in fact they manage to fill in a lot of holes that have intentionally been left somewhat incomplete the first time around from Subaru's perspective. What I find especially impressive about this though is just how believable Haru's thought processes and actions are when you get to see things from her eyes. I can totally imagine a cat looking at the world in the simplistic and childlike way that she does and it's always a pleasure to watch.
My Roommate is a Cat is an absolutely heartwarming and charming anime that feels both realistic and creative at the same time. It makes me wonder why there are so few anime about pet raising out there. Evidentially it's not a bad concept at all if executed properly. In any case if you're a slice of life fan then this should be a must-watch; even if you consider yourself to be more of a dog person than a cat person I would still recommend it as I have some total doggo fanatics amongst my friends that have still loved this show.
Plus you know, Haru is cute as a button. Seeing her wiggle her tail along to the beat of the OP was the best moment of every week this season for me.
