Sarazanmai is a supernatural action anime that was released in April and finished in June of this year (2019). Three middle school boys encounter Keppi who takes their shirikodama—a fabled organ that contains the soul—and turns them into kappa as they connect with each other’s souls in their quest to gather the plates (or dishes) of hope. As this is happening two officers—Reo and Mabu—are plotting in their office their next victim of desire. SPOILER ALERT: This does have a few spoilers from the most recent episodes so if you want to watch it or haven’t caught up with the anime yet, know that you have been warned.
Despite this not being a yaoi anime, I still decided to include it in pride month since queer representation is a major thing—especially with Reo and Mabu and Kazuki and Enta . This was recommended—well no not recommended—a friend of mine demanded me to watch it because they wanted me to experience the beauty that is this anime. Don’t get me wrong, at first I literally screamed “WTF” while watching it, but after the second or third episode, it starts to grow on you and you start seeing the artistic and emotional value within this anime. That shock factor was actually a good idea on the part of the creators since it really does catch your attention. The emotional aspect is also very present in the second half of the anime. I was feeling a rollercoaster of emotions as I was watching this.
I think the part that really took the cake for me was the relationship between Reo and Mabu. They are the life of the anime (in my opinion) since a lot of the emotional aspect comes from it. I bawled when Reo and Mabu “died.”The last full episode with them both was absolutely heartbreaking, however, I did scream loudly when I saw them appear suddenly in the last episode. I was absolutely elated. They definitely deserve the best life with each other—especially if you were to read the manga where they become Sara’s parents through adoption. They were also the ones to put the crown on Sara’s head which—to me—was a reference to the manga because they were her adoptive fathers (especially since she was their world), their princess in the manga (which is why I also love them as parents).
With that being said, I give Sarazanmai a solid 5 paws out of 5! 🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾 I didn’t really go much into the critical route with this review, but I really do recommend it. If you do watch it, give it about 2-3 episodes since the first episode has you completely confused with what’s going on. There is also a lot of symbolism within this anime along with many life lessons, so I do hope you all enjoy it if you ever get the chance to watch it. That’s it for today. Until next time, keep your paws and bowls of ramen up, everyone! Nya! 🐾
The Kitten Who Eats Ramen 