Kotaro lives alone

Before you read this please be aware that this post contains a lot of spoilers, the anime realm community doesn't have a lot of active posters and I doubt many who follow me watch it frequently but for those who do make sure you're aware before you read through it. For those who don't, maybe this post can change your mind to give them a shot.

I'm not someone who watches anime all that often, but every now and then I get that itch to catch up on what may have been released since last time I binge watched a lot of different kinds. Lately I've gotten to enjoy shorter anime a bit more rather than the never ending One Piece's, Na/Boruto's, etc.

I went to https://myanimelist.net/ and scrolled through some top anime rated recommendations, moving down the list a lot as I had apparently watched more of them than I thought I did, or it's just that their trending list hasn't changed much as that's where I mostly take my selections from and this one caught my eye at random. I didn't even read the description but went and started watching it. Of course I watched it in its original language voiceover as they really put a lot of effort into it and probably where most of the budget goes when creating anime, especially this one since a lot of the drawing wasn't as A rated as the voiceovers. The main con with watching it in Japanese is that I have to read the english subtitles which means I am not able to do other things at the same time, but maybe with good anime like this it's better that I was able to focus mostly on it rather than other things and considering there were only 10 episodes out of the first season it was just as well.

I'm glad I focused on this one especially, it's also one of the first anime that made me want to post about and make use of the anime community we have on Hive, even though I wish it was more popular.

This is a screenshot of Kotaro, in the beginning the anime seemed a bit weird and over the top, especially the character of the kid. He speaks in this well articulated and feudal kind of language and tone, something his neighbors think he got off his favorite anime which he admires a lot and wants to be like the main protagonist of so his first visit to the grocery shop he also purchases a tiny toy sword to protect himself and others from harm. You don't get a lot of background of his story early on but it slowly comes in little at a time every episode, naturally you just know something is wrong as he's recently moved in to an apartment complex all alone.

His neighbors are of course surprised to hear about it but don't want to pry and ask about his parents after they understand they're not around. His next door neighbor is an award winning manga artist who's been failing to get anything done lately and constantly just procrastinates his days away and rushes to meet his deadlines which his publisher is not happy about as it takes a big toll on his drawing style. Something that can also be said about the anime, the drawing isn't that great but like the saying "don't judge a book by its cover" it fits well here as the characters and stories are very rich instead and some of the humor in it as well is much needed to cover up some of the darker parts of the show.

He becomes good friends with his neighbor after going door to door to introduce himself as the new resident and offering napkins as gifts

and finding out there's no bathtubs in the apartment complex they go to a public place together instead and bond somewhat. The manga artist starts to feel a bit like a father figure to him but he's also worried as the kid is only 4 and there's constant news on the TV about abducted children so he wants to make sure someone is around to walk with him to school, etc, especially early on. Over time he starts to find him more and more interesting, the way he talks, the way he thinks and how polite he is.

There are a lot of parts in the tv show that focus on the kid and what he's thinking others think of him based on his own experiences, we are after all all unique based off of the experiences we've had and being only four years old but having experienced a lot already sure takes a toll on how you think, no matter how educated and mature you are for your age. You can tell that Kotaro cares a lot to not be a burden to others as that's something someone has called him once that made him feel bad, so he is often shy to ask others directly if he needs help with something like in the episode where he's outside of a girl neighbors door with his pillow and asks her if she's coming home late from work. At first she doesn't think much of it but notices the next day that he has deep bags under his eyes and invites him for a sleep over on her night off from work to find out he has constant nightmares. Sleeping with a girl sure seemed to do the trick which his manga artist neighbor likes to point out jealously as Kotaro mentions he only dreamt of the girl ever since the sleepover.

Something I really liked about the anime was the way they introduced some of his bad history into his actions. There was a day for instance where he'd go to the grocery store and spends a lot of time choosing the right napkins for himself, which his neighbor finds odd how much he knows about them and eventually realizes the thing he cares most about it is their sweet taste. It hits him later that at some point in his life he must've been stuck alone at home for so long that there was no food around so he had to eat napkins. Another day they're at the park enjoying their time but when the girl neighbor attempts to get a selfie with him he keeps shaking his head and body and then keeps running around while she playfully chases him to snap a good picture only to later find out about his abusive dad who had figured out where he went to kindergarten through a public class photo after the first time he had ran off from him and had to get a restraining order against him.

There are a lot of very dark sides in this anime, abusive relationships, phobias, probably drugs/alcohol, depression, etc that Kotaro has had to experience from both sides of his parents at a very young age. It's a miracle he is as strong as he is and you feel really sad about him at times. The creator really knows how to hit those feels without overdoing it as I know some anime like to get overly dramatic about it just for that max heartbroken feeling effect. It still leaves a lot of room of things unsaid that make you think yourself how certain things may have affected him and what he's learned from that and why he behaves the way he does often.

Even though he is very educated because he's read a lot of newspapers daily you can of course tell that with other things he has no idea but constantly keeps trying to do his best to help. There's this one time where a pregnant lady is selling some meat in a store and offers him some to try out, he eats as many as he can and then decides to buy everything she has left, surprised she asks him if he's sure and he confirms. The next day he's back again and does the same thing, then again a few more days until one day he catches her as she's just gotten off work and explains to her that he's very worried about her stomach constantly growing and asks her if her boss is forcing her to eat everything that doesn't get sold that day.

It's fun things like these that make for a very cute show but then you get to find out that in his previous apartment he used to subscribe to 4-5 different newspapers and when the delivery man asks him why he's buying so many and if he needs help to unsubscribe thinking people are taking advantage of him he tells him that it's something he wanted himself but if he could, since he's the main delivery man, that if he notices the newspapers haven't been picked up for a couple of days, if he can go in and check on him as he lives alone. It's things like that that really make you feel your heart drop.

It's a really good show with loads of rich characters who all have their own problems but realize that being there for each other helps them all in one way or another. The failing manga artist becomes inspired by Kotaro just cause of the way he is to do better with his drawing and stories in his own manga while he also spends a lot of time with the kid as he often feels alone and helps him evolve his character more.

Some thing you keep wondering throughout the show is where he's getting all the money he spends on expensive napkins, rent, food, etc, which is introduced through the bank tellers delivering him cash the old ways knowing how young he is and the restraining order from his dad that he's living alone. Everyone tries to play a small part on checking up on him and making sure he's doing okay without telling him where the money actually comes from as its something they want to protect him from at this age and considering everything he's already been through so they keep insisting it's from a generous donor no matter how often he keeps asking about it. Thinking they're a gift may also be the reason he likes spending it more carelessly to help others and gift them, but even there are times where others try to take advantage of him even though he's a little kid, goes to show what people do for money no matter when, where or to whom.

It's a TV show about life, from the perspective of a small child who's had the worst start to his life than most of us can imagine but tries to rebuild and get stronger. His strength it something that's very important to him, he never cries or wants anyone to see him when he does. Worst of all he blames himself for being too weak to deal with his abusive dad who's lost it after his mom abandoned them so his goal is to become stronger to be able to face his dad again and be with him and for his mom to return.

Even though I realize I may have spoiled quite a lot of the story there's still 10 episodes of it which surely you'll forget most of what you read here as you start watching. It'll definitely be worth it even if this is your first time watching anime and you have to get used to it or his weird looking pupils. I was a bit disappointed at first when I noticed it was a Netflix creation as they have a horrible history of Anime but hopefully this will be their turning point with this one. Can definitely recommend and hope there will be more seasons as you definitely get attached to him and want to know what else he'll do next. Although I can't really relate to what he's been through, I can say I haven't had the easiest childhood either so a lot of parts of it I could really put myself in his shoes and imagine what it must feel like.

Images don't seem to want to load properly for some reason so I stopped taking screenshots after many attempts to upload to peakd or even imgur, maybe better this way as it's less spoily.

If you've watched it, let me know what you thought!

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