Overall Review: Kamisama Hajimemashita

Who still remembers Fruits Basket the anime?

FB was one of my first anime series, one I fondly remember from my days of reveling in the almost endless discoveries of unknown shows as a newly initiated anime fan. Back then I had yet to discover manga, so I had no idea that FB was an adaptation rather than an original work, and I loved the simple sadness and joy of the piece. It was fun, it was elegant, and above all, it was emotional without being too overbearing. Then I discovered the manga, and I realized how much the anime had deviated from the original, permanently damaging my initial impression of the anime. After all, it's rare that an anime can do better than its original manga format (though it does happen, as is the case for Tonari), and it's even more difficult for the shoujo genre.

Shounen manga is mostly perfect for the anime format because of its emphasis on battles and action. This translates well to animation and its a good reason for why the most popular anime are usually ones which have a good take on fighting, and thus usually shounen adaptations. Shoujo, on the other hand, tends to be novelistic, usually focusing on romances and their developments. Anime based on shoujo manga is a little tougher to make interesting because the majority of what happens occurs through dialogue rather than action, and thus the anime medium has a harder time capturing the essence of the story without becoming too over-dramatic. I myself have a hard time keeping interest with shoujo anime after having been introduced to their manga counterparts, but once in a while something so interesting or genuinely entertaining comes along and I can't help but want to watch it.

Kamisama Hajimemashita is such a series, though Fruits Basket is one as well, and brought up for good reason. For one thing, both series share the same director, Akitaro Daichi, and his style clearly shows through in both. For another, both are manga adaptations, though by different mangaka (KH is by Julietta Suzuki) and thus affect the manner in which the series were adapted. While both of these series deviated heavily from their manga origins, the fault lies mostly with the timing of the anime releases; the manga was ongoing for both and caused the anime to end in a nearly unfinished way, omitting much of the material. Now that I've (probably) grown wiser and more experienced, I came to realize that the very fact that I enjoyed FB as much as I did without having read the manga meant that it was a good anime after all; it simply had to progress differently due to the different medium and the lack of material. KH is the same; it doesn't follow the manga word for word, but it remains an enjoyable and pleasant experience, a series directed in an old-school style amongst the modern pieces we're used to.

The story is fairly simple: The heroine, Nanami Momozono, is a girl whose father ran away from his debt and left her homeless by herself; as she contemplates her bad luck she spots a man in the park being attacked by a dog and helps him out. In return, the stranger kisses her forehead and gives her direction to his home, where he promises she'll find shelter. Upon reaching her destination she discovers that the man she met was a Land God who had run away twenty years ago and that he had chosen her as her replacement to live in his shrine with his Fox-Demon familiar Tomoe and the shrine spirits Kotetsu and Onikiri. After initially rejecting her new position as a Goddess, Nanami gradually comes to accept her new life, even gaining a second familiar, the Snake Mizuki, through her own actions and falling in love with Tomoe, who rejects her advances due to her human nature. It's basic, it's shoujo, and it's somewhat cliche, but the series is still sweet and funny; it doesn't take itself too seriously and despite being simple is still an enjoyable watch.

However, if you're searching for something groundbreaking, this series is certainly not what you're looking for. Tomoe is a sadistic male lead, Nanami is the clumsy and tried and true shoujo heroine, the spirits are cute and silly, Mizuki is the rival love interest, and the plot is sweeter than honey. But that is also what makes the series so charming and alluring; it isn't trying to be different. Kamisama Hajimemashita is a montage to what made shoujo anime so pleasant to watch several years ago; it proves that you don't need to be complex to create a good anime and that the basics of the genre are sometimes more appealing than attempting to reinvent the wheel. It's not the greatest series of the year, but it was, and is, definitely worth watching for anyone who recalls the easy enjoyment of anime like Fruits Basket.

Episode 13 Screencaps: "I've Become A God (Kamisama Hajimemashita)"