If you've
ever been in the office drowning in earrings and thought "I wish I was a
raccoon so I didn't have to pay taxes," it turns out that someone in Japan
had the exact same idea. The publisher Ichijinsha has just
brightened up our week by confirming that the popular manga Would You
Like to Be a Tanuki? (known in Japanese as Omae, Tanuki ni
Narane--ka?) will have its own anime series adaptation. The surprise
announcement came packaged with a first video teaser, a promotional
image and a special commemorative illustration drawn by its creator
himself, Tomo Nagawa.
To ensure
that this peculiar mix of fantasy and comedy reaches our hearts, the production
was left in the capable hands of the Nippon Animation studio.
And it's very serious with the staff they put together,
because they brought in real heavyweights: Jun Kamiya (the
genius behind the first season of Kingdom and the
mythical Hikaru no Go) sits in the director's chair, while Masaki
Wachi will be in charge of polishing the scripts. If we add to this
the designs of Cocoro Takemoto and the soundtrack of Minako
Seki, we have the perfect recipe for a slice-of-life of
the highest audiovisual quality.
The
silent success that conquered the digital format
The story
originally began publishing in the digital magazine Comic Pool back
in April 2021. Since then, its super-human touch (ironically) and stories of
self-improvement have made it a beloved work by the community. So much so that
the manga is already preparing to release its tenth compilation volume on May
25. Although the production committee still has us on tenterhooks without
letting go of an exact release date, knowing that the series is already in the
oven is enough to put it on our list of healing anime.
Synopsis
of Would You Like to Be a Tanuki?
The story
introduces us to Koganemaru, a mystical raccoon (tanuki) with a rather
peculiar life mission: to get closer to people who are going through serious
existential crises or who are on the verge of collapse due to the brutal
pressures of daily life and modern society. His proposal is simple but
irresistible: he offers them the magical opportunity to temporarily transform
into raccoons like him. Through this bizarre yet tender experience away from
the cares of the human world, Koganemaru helps these lost souls heal their
wounds, truly relax, and rediscover the things that are truly worthwhile in
life.
