Due to family troubles, Uesugi Ren and his sister Mihato run away from home without a plan for the future. Together they move to the city, but are short of money. Several coincidences lead them to meet Kuonji Miyu, a girl who comes from a rich household. Ren rescues her while she faints from sunstroke. This opened the way for the two siblings to live a relatively normal life. They manage to find a job at the Kuonji family mansion, where they are hired as servants to the three sisters Shinra, Miyu and Yume.
Table of Content
Kimi ga Aruji de Shitsuji ga Ore de (2008) – Audiovisual Design
Video
In terms of visuals, I have to separate two issues. Detail and animation quality, and resolution. The resolution of the scanning and composition is quite low for 2008. It is more reminiscent of something from the early 2000s. This does not pose any significant problem for me and, above all, does not strongly detract from the overall experience. The quality of animation the level of detail (especially on close-ups) are really satisfying. I also liked the character design. I rarely write anything about male characters from the design side, but Tajiri Yasushi – that is, the main butler of the Kuonji estate perfectly captures the familiar type of personality characterized by elegance. He really made a sensational appearance. Of course, the design of each of the Kuonji sisters was also very much to my liking. The backgrounds are very nice and aesthetically pleasing. Realized in a fairly typical way for those years (although, again, they remind me more of something from the beginning/half of that decade – but I consider it quite an advantage).
Audio
The soundtrack stood out quite a bit from many other similar series. I’m sure I’ll revisit it more than once, as quite a few tracks firmly caught my attention. In fact, so did the track used in the opening. The ending, in addition to a pleasant track, also has a rather interesting animation.
The cast includes many popular names. Asakawa Yuu, Kamiya Hiroshi, Gotou Yuuko, Tanaka Rie or Itou Shizuka. So I don’t think I need to write a paper on how good it was from this side as well.
Kimi ga Aruji de Shitsuji ga Ore de (2008) – Plot and Characters
Introduction
Kimi ga Aruji de Shitsuji ga Ore de has been on my list to watch for probably 10 years now. The fact that just now I decided to get acquainted with this anime was decided by pure coincidence. I just randomly chose something to watch, and it hit this title. This anime is an adaptation of the visual novel of the same title, which takes an average of 35 hours to read. I am not familiar with the source material, so what I will write in this review will be based solely on what I saw in the adaptation. However, the assumption should be that the source was much better. Even more so when the whole thing was shortened to 13 episodes, stripped of endings and much more. In the original, this is an 18+ title.
A quick look at the plot
The Uesugi siblings (Ren and Mihato) run away from their alcoholic father in search of a better life. However, they quickly learn that it won’t be easy for them to find a job or even a place to live. They also don’t have much savings, so their future doesn’t look bright. Fortunately, their situation is saved by Ren’s good nature, incapable of passing by other people’s misfortune indifferently. He saves a girl who faints from sunstroke. This girl turns out to be a native of the very rich Kuonji Miyu. As a thank you, she invites them to a sumptuous dinner at her estate. There they explain their situation and from word of mouth they manage to qualify for a trial period as servants’ helpers.
Most of the action of the series takes place around the Kuonji family estate. However, there was a trip to a remote paradise island, where the main character had to undergo special combat training. Female characters had the opportunity to show their beauty there.
By all accounts Kimi ga Aruji de Shitsuji ga Ore de is first and foremost an enjoyable slice of life, spiced with a good dose of humor, a bit of romance and fanservice. The humor relies heavily on references to other series and general Japanese pop culture from a very different time period. This won’t make the humor unfunny without some familiarity with the creations referenced, but it certainly will lose a lot due to it.
Kimi ga Aruji de Shitsuji ga Ore de (2008) – Characters
The cast of the series is really numerous. In addition to the three Kuonji sisters (Shinra, Miyu and Yume) and the main characters, we get to see the entire staff of the mansion. Most of them give the impression of being crazy when you first see them. However, it is quickly apparent that they all get along very well with each other. A fair share of this is due to the owners themselves, who treat the servants as their family. I won’t write about them, as quite a few episodes are devoted precisely to introducing the backstory of most of the people employed there.
The three sisters mentioned are radically different in character. Shinra is the oldest. She is the one who followed in her father’s footsteps, deciding to become an orchestra conductor. She loves her younger sisters to excess. Miyu is in the middle. She has complexes about her appearance, despite her adult age and very high intelligence. Shinra doesn’t help her, constantly teasing her and calling her loli. That leaves Yume, or the youngest of the sisters, who is constantly searching for her character type.
Other remarks
The ending was executed quite smoothly. It does not give the impression of being abruptly cut off. Unfortunately, there is a noticeable lack of adequate closure of the threads and, above all, the completion of the romantic threads. Something that in the source material certainly had several paths. But it’s hardly surprising, in thirteen episodes to fit the entire 35-hour material is simply not feasible.
Evaluation and Summary
Kimi ga Aruji de Shitsuji ga Ore de is one of those titles that strongly stands up for its atmosphere and characters. It was the atmosphere of the series, the directing style and the relationships between the characters that made me very eager to return to it. The nice visuals and the overall sound design also helped.
Finalny werdykt
Final evaluation
Which translation do I recommend to watch Kimi ga Aruji de Shitsuji ga Ore de (2008)
- Retrofit – includes two subtitle tracks. Aniyoshi and Ayako. I checked both and both seem equally good, although Aniyoshi has a bit more interesting notes.
Gallery
