Welcome to my review to the anime 'Doukyonin wa Hiza, Tokidoki, Atama no Ue', or simply 'My Roommate is a Cat'. The anime has a standard of twelve episodes with each around 24 minutes, and it is produced by the studio Zero-G. If this name doesn't ring a bell to you that's totally fine. That's because Zero-G hasn't done any significant anime titles, except the recent Grand Blue. Now, Roommate is a Cat is an anime...what type of anime that I will say soon.
Plot/Story: The core of the story is fairly simple. It's about Mikazuki Subaru, a young successful writer who not so long alogo lost his parents through a traffic accident. What follows is a son now completely alone. Having no one Mikazuki is a quiet person who dislikes the company of other people and who enjoys to stay alone and in calm. This all however gets thrown over when he happens to find a Stray cat and reluctantly decides to let her stay home. This marks the beginning of a 'probably' long friendship and many deep lessons in life for Mikazuki as his life gets a complete makeover.
For what this story is it is fairly simple and that is not a bad thing. More so, a simple story allows for molding the characters and their individual stories. There isn't anything wrong twith this story, easy to digest and quick to follow. Something like this is good for SoL-type anime like this.
Art: The art in this show isn't anything spectacular nor noteworthy. I would even argue that the artstyle is somewhat amateurish and some movements sometimes feel sloppy or sluggish. The animation also isn't really worth commenting on.
Sound: The BGM in this show is nice to hear and it mixes well with the atmosphere of the things happening. SFX aren't of use here since there is no need for anything having a memorable sound effect. As for the OP and ED, both are fine and are on the calm side of songs. Both however are not really memorable and again, the show doesn't really shine in this aspect either.
Characters: Yeah, this is it. This is the point of the anime. Since this is a SoL without any relevant supernatural or absurd elements all the characters in this show are portrayed as people like you and me. The only human I think I should talk about is the main character Mikazuki Subaru himself. He is the one character this series is about. It is his character arc sotospeak that's of relevance. At the start Subaru is a mental wreck. No outside connections, no friends, just being alone in his house writing his books.
You could say he has a routine in his life that primarily consists of writing, sleeping, and eating. Sometimes, that is. The fact that this one stray cat appears in his life is a new thing and Subaru hates unexpected things. But it is this cat, which he later named Haru that is the foundation of his new life. Slowly he makes his way back as a real human being.
The other and most attractive aspect of this anime is that the viewer gets to see things from the side of the cat. In the mind of Haru we get to see things from a totally different point of view. Of course Haru also develops as a character but not nearly on the scale as Subaru.
I would argue and I feel that I am not the only one to think this way, the reason why this anime is so good is the reason that this anime hits home, especially for owners of cats. As someone who has cats in his home I can see things. It is a truly heartwarming story like others from past seasons. I feel like there is at least one such anime each season where it is all about the feels and the warm feelings. And I am all in for such stuff. I do not think I cried during this show but I can see other people doing so. Some things are generally sad and touching. Now that I think about it, I might have had wet eyes at one point. Yeah, that one was a strong moment. Actually, there were more. Cut what I said, I cried during this show. It is one of those stories that carries the heart on the right side.
Subaru and Haru are truly actually the only characters that do matter. Everyone else is there for the purpose of making Subaru a better man and bringing him back to his roots and realizing things long since forgotten.
Overall Enjoyment & verdict: To be fair, I did already talk briefly about what I feel about this show. A genuinely good and touching simple story and about simple people and simple animals that yoh can find pretty much everywhere. Maybe not in the exact same positions like them but similar. It's what's inside that counts after all, not the stuff around. That's a good reason why music and artstyle isn't grand, they do not avert the eyes of the viewer from what is happening onscreen.
Yes, I did enjoy it. A lot. It's not a masterpiece but it doesn't have to be. It achieved what it was trying to do, what it was trying to deliver. Things I will take to heart myself. Thanks for this show, like all the other similar stories.
If not for you the anime world would look very different.
Thanks for reading and I will see you at the next review!
