Usagi Drop – 11 (Finale)

One of the hardest parts about watching a finale is that moment immediately following the end.  At that point, the anime is complete.  But you don’t always feel the same way.  And for a series like this with half of its material still ahead, it shouldn’t really feel complete either.  It’s finales like these, where you know it is not the true end, that are some of the hardest to deal with.

Usagi Drop – 10

We’ve gone through many firsts for Rin in Usagi Drop.  Rin’s first loose tooth.  Her first School Festival.  And Rin’s first illness, at least with Daikichi.  Yeah, can’t forget him in these situations, too, although these aren’t necessarily firsts for him.  But there was a big first for him in this episode and that was worrying about Rin.

Steins;Gate – 22, Usagi Drop – 9, Dantalian no Shoka – 8

Back from vacation meaning a full week of anime to catch up on.  And since I’m already days late on all my weekly posts, I’ll borrow a format that has worked so well for tomphile over at Ani-Philes and combine this week’s shows into one post.  Hope you’re enjoying all of these shows as much as I am!

Usagi Drop – 8

You can see a whirlwind of emotions within Masako throughout the entire episode.  Whether she’s exhausted, irritated, astonished, regretful, or jealous, you can clearly see those feelings on her face and in her body language.  Of course, you can see the emotions of every character in this series, so that’s nothing new, but Masako has generally been stubborn and impassive since her introduction four episodes ago.  But that façade melted away and she journeyed through a series of emotions when she finally saw Rin again.

Usagi Drop – 7

One bothersome aspect of children in modern anime is that they often seem unbelievable.  They regularly fulfill the role of a minor character used for cuteness or comedy and typically follow the stereotypical moe outline that has been obviously successful.  But those characters never seem realistic, instead being the byproduct of a formula for maximum likeability and popularity.  Fortunately, the children of Usagi Drop, Rin, Reina, and Kouki, are believable as real children while still being adorable and humorous.

Usagi Drop – 6

There’s just something so simple and charming about the art style in Usagi Drop, that it just suits the story, themes, and atmosphere of the anime perfectly.

Usagi Drop – 5

I never thought I’d feel sympathy for Masako.  After all, she was the one who abandoned Rin and left her alone with no one to look after her.  But after finally meeting her, seeing who she is, and learning about her situation, I don’t feel that way anymore.  She’s actually not a bad person.