First Impression: I, Tsushima

Tsushima is a generously proportioned stray tabby who channels Garfield but with a much deeper voice and infinitely better manners—albeit only towards other cats. When it comes to humans, not so much. Which is only amplified by the fact that he can talk, and people can hear him. If I write any more than this for the synopsis, I will have spent longer describing it—and you, reading my description—than it would take to watch this delightful short form premiere. Plus, I don’t want to spoil the punchline! (Which, coming from the creative force behind Pop Team Epic, is on point.)

I said it in the preview post and I’ll say it again: if you watched Way of the Househusband and thought that the cat should get his own series, but with better cat art (and floofier fur), then this is the series for you. It’s along the lines of My Roommate is a Cat, revealing everyday life from a cat’s perspective, but is more clever than it is sweet, which is to be expected when the mc is a street smart veteran rather than an innocent kitten. Check out the art style below, which is non-standard but works really well with the flash-style animation (reminiscent of Househusband’s animated manga panels) and the reversal at the heart of this series that takes its felines seriously, and its people, far less so. It takes less time to watch than your average cat video on YouTube, so if that’s the kind of thing you while away your time doing in between meetings, emails, or classes at school, then it’s kind of a no-brainer: go check it out! I know I will be.

I, Tsushima is being streamed legally on YouTube by Asmik Ace, the show’s Japanese distributors (don’t forget to turn on the subtitles!). Read our thoughts on all the new summer anime series, in addition to comments from our other writers, on our Summer 2021 Anime First Impression master post.

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