I am a biiiiiig slice of life fan. Ah! If they hadn’t been there, what would have I done in my life. Apart from hilarious k-variety shows like Weekly Idol,  slice of life anime are my go-to when I feel down. (I am pretty sure, most of the upcoming reviews are gonna be slice of life)

And again, as I said in my last post, this particular genre is quite underrated. People new to anime, either think of it as an anime or dismiss it as something mundane or unwatchable. Hence, some awesome shows go unnoticed and unappreciated. One such gem is this show called Gingitsune.

Plot: Makoto Saeki’s mother died when she was four years old. She inherits a power from her mom called “the sight” which enables her to see shrine spirits. One such spirit is Gintaro, who has been guardian of their shrine. After her mother’s death, her father takes up the job of shrine priest and thus, her life starts with this fox spirit. The story begins with Makoto entering the middle school. It’s about her daily life with new friends, both human and shrine spirits and how she evolves as a human being (the common theme).

There are some loose ends here and there which could’ve developed more. But you can’t expect much in 12 episodes. Even so, the speciality of slice of life anime is that they end at pretty okay point where you don’t really feel the need to know more. Pretty self-contained they are.

Animation: Animation and character designs are pretty good. Many consider the designing style of the shrine heralds quite unique. But frankly speaking, I like the human characters more. The main character Gintaro is sometimes shown with unusually big hands or clumsy tail and such. But all in all, it’s pretty good. Not to mentions the backgrounds. They just melt my heart and feel so peaceful. (I keep adding these to my desktop wallpaper slideshow)

Characters: Makoto’s character is quite likable. Being a motherless child, she has her flaws. But growing up with her loving, at times silly, but almost always intelligent father, she is really caring towards others. Also, she strives to strike a balance between the heralds and human beings.

Whereas, Gintaro is the mature and experienced fox, who guards Makoto and loves her very much. He tries to be hard on her to teach her about life, but can’t bear her tears, hence has to concede most of the times. He is the most knowledgeable but acts childish every so often.

There is such contrast of personalities in almost all the characters in the anime which is quite enjoyable, seeing the two opposite sides in one human being.

Other characters are introduced one by one, slowly, which is, again, a plus point. The quiet, know-it-all yet lacking in knowledge of everyday behaviour Kamio Satoru; the old in age but kid at heart Kamio shrine herald, Haru; arrogant yet kind Yumi Ikegami and the one who makes a 180 degree reversal in her behaviour, Hiwako Funabashi are some of the characters who make Makoto’s friend circle and the plot of the anime.

Other things: Soundtracks are pretty relaxing and go well with the anime. I really love the opening and the ending. And as usual, the anime is full of feels (I know, I know. My choices are good, at least, when it comes to anime)

Summary: All in all, I’ll score it a 9/10. And my final verdict is, recommended, not highly, but if you’re looking for slow pace, peaceful story and easy going characters, go for it! And, here we are with the PV next:

PS: This anime season, there are so many slice of life series, and their first episodes so look promising. I am so very excited!!! Will write about them when they finish, but from first impressions, I am going to follow Shounen Maid, Tanaka-kun wa itsumo kedaruge, Anne Happy, Flying Witch and Kuma Miko from Slice of Life list. Some more series are coming up, will add after watching them.