What is Usagi Drop?

Usagi Drop
Writer - Yumi Unita
Director - Kanta Kamei
Production - Studio Fuga
Music - Suguru Matsutani

Going home from his grandfather's funeral, thirty-year-old Daikichi is floored to discover that the old man had an illegitimate child with a younger lover. The rest of his family is equally shocked and embarrassed by this surprise development, and not one of them wants anything to do with the silent little girl, Rin. In a fit of anger, Daikichi decides to take her in himself. As Daikichi nurtures Rin, he started to understand the struggle while at the same time the joy of parenting.

The word of the day here is "Sentimentality". Familial controversy and comedic gags related to her legal status as his 'aunt' are put aside early to make room for the real purpose of the story, which is "Child Raising". Daikichi knows nothing about raising a little girl and he must learn, frequently through last minute desperate endeavors, how to do so. Rin on the other hand is a 6 year old girl, not even in Elementry school yet, who is trying to understand the death of her real father while adapting to life under her new bungling guardian. Through all the little firsts and experiences and trials experienced by the duo, a very real father-daughter love begins to blossom. The show really does focus on the little things, to such a degree that it might be taken as an "idiots guide to child raising". Little things you wouldn't think about normally, like immunization shots, enrolling in primary school, grocery shopping, or the troubles of co-habitation.

The animation quality is difficult to swallow at first. The first moments of the first episode lend to the thought "how could something this grainy possibly be good or entertaining?" That thought quickly disappears as both story and animation smooth out into a near-real life quality. The background music is phenomenal, adding to and sometimes setting the sheer emotion that permeates through the entire series.

I still cannot believe how addictively entertained I was by this show. Maybe it was because of the nature of the drama, but soon in I was wrapped in the warm blanket of platonic romance and crying for precious more seconds of familial love. For being the most real-life fiction I have ever encountered I give this show an unprecedented Perfect 5 out of 5.

'Ben