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(The) Masterful Cat Is Depressed Again Today (TV).


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Tony K.
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Joined: 18 Nov 2003
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Location: Frisco, TX
PostPosted: Mon Jun 19, 2023 5:28 pm Reply with quote


(The) Masterful Cat Is Depressed Again Today (TV)

Source: Manga (ongoing @ 7 volumes by Hitsuji Yamada)

Demographic: Shounen

Animation Studio: GoHands

Genres: comedy, slice of life

Themes: anthropomorphs, giant cat, workplace

Plot Summary: One day, a young woman named Saku took in a stray black cat who she later named Yukichi. However, as time went on, Yukichi grew large enough to be mistaken for a bear. Instead of being a threat though, Yukichi spends his time cooking food, doing laundry, and taking care of his owner after she comes home from hard days at work.

Air Date & Platform:
July 7, 2023 (Friday)
Available on: Crunchyroll

Episode Count / Runtime: 13 episodes
----------------------------------

Sounds like (The) Way of the Househusband, but with a giant talking cat instead of an ex-yakuza leader. I'm intrigued.


Last edited by Tony K. on Thu Apr 11, 2024 12:17 pm; edited 5 times in total
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter



Joined: 07 Mar 2009
Posts: 23833
PostPosted: Mon Jun 19, 2023 5:37 pm Reply with quote
I know absolutely nothing about this title but my spidey sense tells me it's gonna be pretty funny. We'll see!
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smurky turkey



Joined: 30 Jan 2022
Posts: 2009
PostPosted: Tue Jun 20, 2023 2:40 am Reply with quote
Yeah, seems like it will be a fun and weird watch.
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smurky turkey



Joined: 30 Jan 2022
Posts: 2009
PostPosted: Sat Jul 08, 2023 4:39 am Reply with quote
Sigh, you know, I tend to dislike when people just assume an anime will be shit because it is made by a certain studio. Some studios have a better track record than others, but I would like to believe that every studio can produce something good. After having experienced the girl with glass anime and now this one I am altering that belief.

The Masterful cat is a simple but fun comedy that has some genuinely fun and charming moments. Said moments are ruined however since GoHands is more interested in having an art and effects orgasm than actually trying to make the most out of the source material. While not as awful as the glasses anime, the first episode is filled with moments that just feel like art masturbation for the sake of showing off. The weird camera angles, awkward looking characters and many other weird moments are only there to make the studio feel good, not to enhance the experience.

Like, the first 4 minutes are just purely showing off effects.....sigh. I am curious to know what anyone else thinks, am I being too hard on the studio and their anime?
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 08, 2023 6:04 am Reply with quote
Episode 1

I'm one of those weirdos who actually likes GoHands visual style although I 100% understand anybody who does not. I didn't realize GoHands was doing this one until the opening made it stunningly obvious. This was another title that, based on its premise, I assumed would be pretty funny. It definitely had some chuckles but not on the scale I was assuming. Plus, the cat didn't seem all that depressed to me. Irritated at times, sure. But depressed? Nope. Anyway, not convinced this is a keeper but I'll try some more.
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smurky turkey



Joined: 30 Jan 2022
Posts: 2009
PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2023 9:50 am Reply with quote
The second episode was better than the first in many ways and sold me on the series. Just like with the glasses girl anime there is far less animation porn and awkward camera shots when compared to the first episode. The opening is a bit wonky, but I will forgive it on the count of Yukichi rocking those sunglasses.

Speaking of Yukichi, he got a lot of attention this week and has quickly become my favorite character. He has plenty of spirit and is not at all reluctant when it is time to smack that trashy owner of his. Both mc's now have a better life compared to before they met. Yukichi has not frozen to death and Saku no longer lives like a giant cockroach. There were plenty of solid jokes, I especially like the shopping scene.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 15, 2023 6:19 pm Reply with quote
Episode 2

Agreed, this was a better episode. I loved Deadpan Store Clerk's reactions to Yukichi. It was funny to see the different rationales people came up for what they were seeing: including that he's a guy in a cat suit. Are we seeing a burgeoning romance between Hot Mess and her Chief?
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smurky turkey



Joined: 30 Jan 2022
Posts: 2009
PostPosted: Sat Jul 22, 2023 4:36 am Reply with quote
Another great episode this week. I think the series it at its best when it focuses on Yukichi with bits of Saku sprinkled in between. It is due to the masterful cat that the second and third episode are so good, the sections focused solely on Saku are a lot less fun. This week we had some masterful bits like smoking catnip, cursing the homo sapiens and making something good out of a bad day.
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Hiroki not Takuya



Joined: 17 Apr 2012
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PostPosted: Wed Jul 26, 2023 1:16 am Reply with quote
^^Agree! Had to come here to express my appreciation for The Masterful Cat, another solid comedy despite GoHands (a very unkind cut BTW). One of my favorite moments so far was Saku asking for a beer in the morning and Yukichi chasing her around the room with "that dangerous weapon" (bathroom scale)! Followed up next Ep with her asking how he grew so big and he indignantly brings out the "weapon" again...
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smurky turkey



Joined: 30 Jan 2022
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PostPosted: Wed Jul 26, 2023 3:46 am Reply with quote
The sad thing is, I see very few people talking about how funny the anime is. There are a lot of good moments so far, but most of the discussion is on GoHands. I get it though, the first episode was very over the top with the animation and thus very divisive. I still absolutely despise the first episode while others love it. That said, the latter 2 episodes have toned down the art masturbation by a lot yet it is still all about GoHands discussion wise (thankfully less so here).
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smurky turkey



Joined: 30 Jan 2022
Posts: 2009
PostPosted: Fri Jul 28, 2023 3:15 pm Reply with quote
Besides the first episode every week has delivered great content and this week is not any different. We had an aquarium date(?) and Yukichi secretly tagging along. As you might imagine, a huge cat is not something you would expect to see in an aquarium, but it ended well enough. There were also a few shorts at the end of which I especially like the cat crazy manager one.

The takeaway of the episode is that Fukuzawa really needs Yukichi. Be it cooking, cleaning, sewing, using a disquise and a bit of dancing, the masterful cat can do it all. Meanwhile the lazy homo sapiens manages to make the room messy in just a short period of time.
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PostPosted: Sat Jul 29, 2023 7:19 am Reply with quote
Episode 4

Another funny and cute episode. But I'm calling bullshit on the title of this show. Masterful Cat? For sure. No quibble there. But depressed? Again? Hell, I don't think we've even seen Yukichi down in the dumps, let alone depressed. Irritated? Sure. Exasperated by his "worthless" owner? Yep. But depressed? No, one rather thinks not.
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Hiroki not Takuya



Joined: 17 Apr 2012
Posts: 2529
PostPosted: Sat Jul 29, 2023 10:56 pm Reply with quote
^^Ditto on all your comments (and ST's too). If he was anywhere near depression it was mid-Ep3 but seeing Saku on TV expressing her appreciation fixed him right up. Makes me wonder if this is a translation issue...

Seems like the writer is continuing the gag that everyone knows about Yukichi and is OK except worry-wart Saku and I can't be more tickled. Had to laugh at Mr. SuperFan Neko in the back as well and the "blackmail video" Saku shoots. The Masterful Cat Knows...a young man and a young woman at an aquarium together means Date Desu... Wink
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smurky turkey



Joined: 30 Jan 2022
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PostPosted: Sat Aug 05, 2023 4:42 am Reply with quote
Episode 5 came out yesterday and it was another fun one, I am genuinely surprised at how good this series is so far. This time it was all about a birthday party and it was an entertaining time. Yukichi became something of a party mascot and due to some creative zipper work was able to blend in perfectly well. Despite the zipper the grandmother was able to see the truth, which is ironic given her poor eyesight. The conversation with the grandmother felt a bit melancholic, or something akin to that.

A few random thoughts during the episode:
I keep getting surprised at how good Saku is at being a trashy human.
I want one of those cat plushies.
Does the boss hate cats or is he just scared of a big costumed cat?
Yukichi is pretty good at handling that frying pan like a weapon.
A woman going to sleep in a park/on a bench during a cold night is not a good idea.
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smurky turkey



Joined: 30 Jan 2022
Posts: 2009
PostPosted: Sat Aug 12, 2023 4:59 am Reply with quote
You know, I joke in nearly every post here that Saku is a trash human being that can not take care of herself at all. This week we saw some things that make that joke a bit too real. Prime example: getting very drunk in a kotatsu and spilling beer over an electrical outlet is not a good idea. Without Yukichi it would have turned into a fire and Saku being so trashed likely means that she would have died in the resulting fire.

To confirm Saku's trash status we also had some interactions with her mother. She made clear in not so subtle words that she knows her daughter is a human trashbag and that she is more interested in how Yukichi is doing.

Besides all that it was another great episode. Yukichi smoking that fat catnip never gets old and seeing him get scary when sharpening the knives was great too.
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