Kamisama Hajimemashita

Introduction:

I was listening to "Just Tonight" by The Pretty Reckless and somehow it reminded me of a task that has been on my laptop's sticky notes for quite a while: "Read Kamisama Hajimemashita's 100th manga issue". So, instead of searching for the translated manga issue, I decided to write a review for the anime hoping it would reignite my passion for the manga (it never died if you ask me) and refresh my memory regarding certain events.

Editor’s side note: Although this anime may look like an underdeveloped one , there is more than meets the eye. I also have a thing for bad-ass demons that have animal ears and tails ( call me a creep but the anime had quite a nice flavor especially when I was quite stressed due to my exams).

So what is Kamisama Hajimemashita about and what sets it apart from other anime that fall under "shoujo, slice of life, and mystery"? Let us take the first step and introduce the plot and hopefully things will interest you and get you watching the anime or even reading the manga which is much more developed and intriguing!

1- Plot: ( YOU by The Pretty Reckless is playing in the background which fits perfectly :P )

Momozono Nanami is a regular highschool girl until she is evicted from her house thanks to her reckless father who left her with debts and made his escape just before the debt-collectors claimed their rights. ( Quite a role model for a father if you ask me :P ! )

We are presented with Nanami sitting on a lonely park bench when she hears a man's voice requesting "HELP". Nanami sees a full grown man on a tree being harrassed by a dog. Nanami comes to his aid and chases the dog away.

Editor’s side note: This was quite a hilarious start if you ask me. Seeing the man on the tree, and having a young school girl chase the dog away ( by simply shaking her foot at it) made my mother laugh as she, my older sister and I rewatched the anime.

Mikage thanks the young girl for her help and inquires about her current state. Nanami retells how she has no home to return to and how her father left her to fend on her own as he made his escape. As a result, Mikage draws Nanami a map and tells her she can have his home, after all, he has been absent for 20 years and "TOMOE" would knock his teeth off if he sees him. Mikage kisses Nanami's forehead and tells her to make his home her own.

    Enter Tomoe :3 ! <3

Editor’s side note: If I were Nanami and a strange man kissed my forehead or even approached me, I would dropkick him so help me GOD! ( I just wanted to point that out :P .)

There is no doubt that for every "golden deal" there is a catch, for there is no such thing as a "free lunch"! Apparently our young hero walked into what she calls an AYAKASHI haunted house. As she enters she is attacked by an angry fox familiar ( Tomoe, who is quite a hottie with epic fox ears and tail ). The latter tries to rip her throat out, only to stop at a split of a second pointing out that the girl is not MIKAGE. At that moment, two shrine servants, Onikiri and Kotetsu, state that she has Mikage's seal which deems her the deity of the shrine.

Onikiri and Kotetsu being harassed by the ladies who serve Tomoe wine :3

As a diety and the official inheritor of Mikage, Nanami has to attend to several tasks. Things start to hit a wild turn when several tests of faith, will and power are thrown at her. Will Nanami rise to the occasion  or give up to her mere mundane nature? More importantly what does Nanami have to do to make Tomoe acknowledge her? Will she succeed in fulfilling her role as a diety of a shrine when her weak state and mundane nature constrain her from seeing "deity-fit tasks" to their proper ends?

Nanami sealing the familiar contract with Tomoe ( nyahahahahahah :3 )

2- Characters: (Need you Now by Lady Antebellum is playing which is quite true because I miss Tomoe)

Other than Nanami, we have Tomoe as a lead character. He is a fox demond and Mikage's familiar serving as the shrine's guardian. Other than the shrine tasks, he also writes down the believer's prayers which he has kept in journals that are neatly saved awaiting Mikage's return. In the past, Tomoe was quite a demon who would wreck havoc, massacre humans, and hunt just for the pleasure and to satisfy his blood thirst. This is revealed in the manga in more details, the latter lays the foundation for the coming arcs relating to his past and how it links to Nanami's. ( It was a great read discovering Tomoe's past and secrets; the manga left me eager and demanding ).

Kurama Shinjirou is a prominent pop-idol who is supposedly a fallen angle from hell ( his stage image :P ) when in fact he is a Tengu who descended the mountain 16 years ago. He picks on Nanami on the first day causing her to cry. Later on, when he discovers her deity nature, he tries to devour her, to which Tomoe comes to the rescue and injures Kurama with his fox fire after turning the latter into an ostrich. After that encounter, Kurama befriends Nanami and helps her out on several occasions including the event when Tomoe is shrunken into chibi/baby form and left defenseless.

There is also Mizuki who was the familiar of a different shrine deity who died and her shrine was submerged under water. He is one hell of a funny character ( wait until he starts playing the flute). Also, Mizuki has white hair and green eyes and usually rides on a snake and makes divine wine!

3-Music:

The into and closing songs is quite addicting. My mother ended up happily humming them all day!  I wouldn't blame her for the tune is quite catch and the rhyme is a memorable one. The original soundtracks are quite.

COMMENTS:

I loved the anime; it was warm, mysterious, and quite relaxing. The story develops more and takes some good twists and turns both in the anime and more evidently in the manga. I bet manga issue 100 is going to be a total mind-blower. Keep in mind, that Tomoe has a very dark past and you will not be let into that past except by looking at the hairpin shown in the anime. The anime does not show anything regarding his past, yet , I hope there is a season 2 since  the manga develops the plot further and will leave you with an open jaw on several occasions. 

There is beauty in the anime/manga's simplicity, and a touch of eccentricity that sets it apart. I recommend it to you all give it a 9/10 compared to its fellow anime that fall under the same sub-genre.

I hope you enjoyed the review and would give the anime a try :3 ! I am off to read manga issue #100 !