One of the joys of the current anime season is the proper continuation of Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon, or Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, which came back to us after many years. Along with the Violet Evergarden final film, the series marks the triumphant return of one of Japan’s most beloved animation studios, Kyoto Animation, after the tragic arson attack of 2019. Let’s look at some reasons why this is such a magical anime series, and the most important anime today.
Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid is My Favorite Anime of the Season
Legendary manga artist Cool-kyou Shinja must be quite busy these days, as he has no less than three of his works airing this season: season 2 of Kobayashi, plus Heion Sedai no Idaten-tachi and the oppai-laden Peach Boy Riverside. I love his incredible creativity and the amazing range of stories he’s able to tell.
With the proper return of Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, we return to the household of Kobayashi, a tired programmer who’s living a lonely life with no close relationships or family around her. One thing leads to another, and she ends up with a family of dragons living with her, who provide an endless stream of comedy and touching moments for us, as each character moves closer to the place they need to be.
The Animation Quality is Over 9000
After going a few years without a major Kyoto Animation release, the animation quality of the new series is so eye-popping beautiful that it’s like watching an HD video for the first time. Every frame is so beautiful we could print it out and hang it on the wall as a poster. But this is all in a day’s work for KyoAni.
It’s an Anime That Makes Us Think More Deeply
Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid has always been an anime that caused me to think more deeply than just about any other show I can think of, as each episode wrestles with interesting themes. Like the time Kanna wanted to go to school and Tooru asked why the students were required to buy school-designated P.E. uniforms and shoes. “It’s to erase the differences. Differences between boys and girls, or Japanese and foreigners, so that everyone is exactly the same. That’s important. This might not apply to dragons, but humans are scared of being different from those around them.”
One thing I love about Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid is the depth of all the characters, and the way each one is on a path to finding a better place to be in, in relation to the other characters. pic.twitter.com/eaaAdEp1bV
— Peter Payne (@JListPeter) August 16, 2021
Even the genre the series belongs to can’t be pinned down. It’s got dragons breathing fire and destroying things, so is it a fantasy anime? It’s based on a manga that doesn’t have a structured story, so is it a slice-of-life? And of course, there are plenty of moments like this…
…which means it’s an ecchi fanservice anime, right? The answer is all the above because Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid is a story that surpasses any single genre.
It’s an Anime That Tells Its Own Story
Certain shows seem to be magnets for drama, and season 2 of Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid managed to attract haters months before it even began airing because Western Twitter users decided that a dragon couldn’t possibly be short and have large breasts… just like they decided that a university student couldn’t be vertically challenged with a large chest, either. This caused some users to pre-hate the series because of Ilulu… which was naturally picked up on by other Twitters users and made into hundreds of YouTube videos, some of which have received 500k+ views. And as is usually the case, the haters stirring up “controversy” because of the new “problematic” character likely brought far more fan attention to the show than if they’d just stayed silent.
What I love best about Kyoto Animation and season 2 of Kobayashi is that it has zero fucks to give about what any fan cares to take offense with. Whether it’s Ilulu’s short size and ridiculously large fun-bags, having Ilulu give Kobayashi some added anatomy in a surprising place, giving us sexy moments between Lucoa and poor Shouta-kun, or focusing on Saikawa crushing on Kanna, KyoAni is going to tell the story it wants to tell, with zero self-censorship because of what online users in this or that country might happen to think. As a fan who supports the absolute right of creators to tell whatever stories they want to tell, I am 100% on board with this.
(If you’re a Kyoto Animation fan, J-List stocks the original Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon limited Blu-ray boxed set, along with the upcoming Violet Evergarden final film, for any customers who want to collect the Japanese limited releases and support KyoAni.)
Thanks for reading my post celebrating the return of Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid. Got any thoughts on today’s topic? Post it below, or tell us on Twitter!
J-List loves to find new doujinshi and doujin artbooks for you, and have been adding new stock to the site almost daily. You only have a week left to use our automatic $20-off-$100-or-more coupon, so why not pick up some great doujins for your collection? See all our new doujins here!
