Next to the second season of “Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo!”, one of the comedies I was looking forward to the most this winter is “Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon”, the anime adaptation of the “小林さんちのメイドラゴン” manga by Cool-kyou Shinja.
Knew this show would likely be an epic comedy considering that the author also created the hilarious “Komori-san wa Kotowarenai!” and “Danna ga Nani wo Itteru ka Wakaranai Ken” manga, and studio Kyoto Animation have proven with “Nichijou” that they excel at animating eccentric comedies.
Loved the first few episodes and am confident “Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon” will easily become one my favourite anime this winter season. This show is absolutely hilarious and its oddball characters feel positively familiar, their quirky antics and typical retorts not unlike those from the cast of the author’s other works “Komori-san wa Kotowarenai!” and “Danna ga Nani wo Itteru ka Wakaranai Ken”.
Must emphasise though that “Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon” also pleasantly surprised me with several heartwarming scenes, had not expected this quirky comedy to offer such moments.
Thanks to good pacing and solid directing these quiet, heartwarming scenes do not clash with the humour and silly shenanigans of its characters, but the show seamlessly flows from comedy scenes into heartwarming moments and back.
Even though it is primarily a silly comedy, with such heartwarming gentle scenes “Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon” fits nicely alongside excellent slice-of-life shows like “Flying Witch!”, “Tanaka-kun wa Itsumo Kedaruge” or “Barakamon”.
Although many of the actual jokes used are anime classics and hence rather predictable, the comedy in “Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon” nonetheless works well, thanks to the excellent animation by studio Kyoto Animation and solid character writing. Also appreciated how they handle the yuri subtext between Tohru and Kobayashi, instead of going for superfluous fanservice or cheap innuendo, after the first few jokes their bond is soon portrayed as one of closeness, familiarity and warmth.
Highly recommend this show to any fan who enjoys silly comedies with a cast of quirky characters, as well as to those among you who like slice-of-life anime.
You can watch “Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid” on Crunchyroll.
